A Wedding Divided

This past weekend we attended our good friends, Shelley and Matt's wedding. The majority of the wedding weekend was centered around UT and Texas TECH and of course Shelley and Matt. Shelley is a devoted Red Raider and Matt is a football manager for the Horns. It might be a mystery to some how Matt and Shel survive football season year after year, but somehow they make it work.

The wedding weekend kicked off with the bridal brunch at Iguana Grill which overlooks Lake Travis. The view was amazing and it was so nice to see the lake so full and healthy.

Shel and her Maids


Tech Thetas


After brunch, some members of the bridal party went to check out Lakeway Spa and Resort where the ceremony and reception were held and hung out by the pool before the rehearsal dinner. It is the perfect getaway resort even if you live in Austin.





After catching some rays and the rehearsal, we headed to the rehearsal dinner at the UT Club, which had a super cute "Tailgate" theme with sliders, fries, banana pudding and the works.





We were so excited to see Matt and Shell's engagement pics on the jumbo-tron at the stadium!!!



Mac Brown even made a video appearance and gave his congrats and best wishes to the bride and groom! As if that wasn't enough to make any longhorn fan freak out, Bevo made a guest appearance as well.




After we finished dinner, Matt's parents and the hosts for the evening, invited us down to the field to take pictures.





The wedding was absolutely beautiful as the groomsmen wore orange ties and the reception was colorfully decorated with bright pink feathers, purple lights and more orange of course! It look stunning and you could see all of Shelley and Matt's personal touches which made the wedding more special.







This is normally where I would insert a picture of Austin and me at the wedding, but Austin got a little too sunburned at the lake all day....well here it is anyway...ha!



The food was amazing, the party was fab and everyone had a wonderful time!!! Congrats to the Rutherfords!!!

Julia's Bachie Party

I love driving to Austin and hitting that sweet spot on I-35 where KVET comes in tune on the radio. It is probably one of the best parts of the drive that Austin and I look forward to every time. Maybe it's the hill country and the sun setting that makes us smile and reason No. 580 of why we dearly miss Austin. I always think of my hubby when I drive down by myself and wish he was there to share it with me, but this weekend was a girls weekend to celebrate my sister, Julia's, upcoming nuptials. Turn off the KVET and turn on the rap/hip hop/party music. You know what I'm talking about! Put your party pants on!!! haha! And I did just that...

I was so excited to spend time with my sister and get to know some of her friends. We started the party at Gloria's at the Domain and it did not disappoint. Same vibe as the Addison/Dallas locations, which felt like home away from home. Great patio scene and fab margaritas.



From there we took a limo downtown and kept it low key at JBlacks.



Little did we know a 6'10 Capital Morgan man was going to show up! He was out promoting their new rum Lime Bite. I do not recommend this one. 5 thumbs way down...:(



From there went over to The Mark and then did some serious dancing on stage at Speakeasy, which is always an absolute blast!





I had prepared myself before we left the house that I needed to try my best to stay awake and keep up with the young ones all night, but the young ones couldn't hang! Guess all the partying in Dallas lately has turned me into a night owl...



We all had so much fun and I am so excited for the wedding! Congrats Julia and Greg!

Maybe it's time we got back to the basics of love

This past weekend we headed down I-35 with Austin's sister, Lauren and her BF Colby to Fredericksburg for Austin's cousin's wedding and a Trantham Family Reunion. It was such a neat wedding! We took our time sight seeing along the way and even attended the first ever Hat Festival in Luckenbach. There was a super fun line up with Micky and the Motor Cars, Deryl Dodd and good ole Gary P. Nunn. Our first stop on 35 was at the Style Station outside of Waco. So many fun vintage outfits and other antiques... Showing some Baylor Love

Since we had to drive through Waco, the only place to stop is George's for a BIG-O.

We arrived in Fredericksburg just in time for dinner and stopped by a cute little wine bar for a cocktail and had a German feast at the Auslander Biergarten. A little spitzel, spatzel....and some great German beers.

After a long night, we met Austin's mom and dad at the Silver Creek Cafe for brunch and enjoyed another tasty German meal. A round or two of Bloody Mary's later, we headed out to Luckenbach!



Finally in Luckenbach Texas with Willy and Waylon and the boys....
Luckenbach is such a great place to relax and be outside with fun people. Austin and I visited a couple of years ago and had the best time, just learning all the history, listening to live music, eating great food and of course drinking a little Shinerbock.

After our first round at Luckenbach, we headed back to FBurg for Shea's wedding. They had such a special ceremony and reception decorated with beautiful wildflowers, and we sipped on spiked lemonade served out of mason jars with cute red and white straws and the best BBQ in town! It was so neat and relaxing. It was an Aggie wedding, which I am still learning about all the Aggie traditions, songs and yells. The grooms cake was a hoot!
Austin, Jan and Lauren

Austin's brother, Justin and his wife Johna, our nephew, Braeden and niece, Allison

We took the scenic route on the way back to Big D to avoid the dreaded Sunday drive on 35. We stoped at the Blue Bonnet Cafe for brunch and even stopped at the Koffee Kup Restaurant in Hico for a piece of pie called The Doctor's Office. We had a wonderful time and enjoyed the Texas Hill Country. It was a great break from Dallas.

Austin's Derby 30

We celebrated Austin's Dirty Thirty in style this weekend at the horse races at Lone Star Park for opening weekend! We had an awesome group that came out to help Austin celebrate the big day, which truly meant so much to us. We chartered a bus to drive us to Grand Prairie. We enjoyed cocktails, music and lots of laughs on the way to the races! Did I mention the party attire was "Kentucky Derby"....seer sucker, pastels and obnoxious hats?


The Birthday Boy and me before the party


A group shot


The party bus




Colby and Lauren













The Birthday Boy - Happy Birthday to my hubby!

Grandmom's 85th and Easter Weekend

For Easter this year Austin and I went to Weatherford to visit my grandmom and celebrate her 85th birthday. We had so much fun visiting with her and hearing stories from her past, especially the stories about my grandfather, whom passed away before I was born. His name was Austin as well. Listening to her stories of their courtship during WWII and reading all the love letters they sent back and forth while my grandfather was stationed overseas are fascinating.

We met my Uncle, Aunt, my cousin, Claire and her husband Richard out for dinner at a favorite local restaurant, Fire Oak. The food is always amazing! Then we went to my aunt and uncle's house to have cake and celebrate!


The birthday girl and me.


Claire and Richard


The Brithday Girl picking out her cupcake!

We attended a lovely Easter Service and took a couple of quick shots at Chandor Gardens, next door to my grandmom's house.


Happy 85th Janie and Happy Easter!


Austin and Jane