Road Trip Part II

Today's celebration is the Holmes family! Cara, Eric and I attended Southwestern University together. Cara lived two doors down from me on "First Kurth" our freshman year in college. I remember thinking she was one of the most beautiful girls I had ever seen with her wavy dark hair and piercing blue eyes. She was so quiet and mysterious....and that lasted for about 1 week! I imagine a lot of people still consider her quiet and introverted. Precious few know the Cara that I know. I feel so lucky and blessed to have been one of the individuals in her life she has chosen to befriend and share her total self with! We have been friends for 16 years. Regardless of how much time passes between conversations or visits we are always able to pick up exactly where we left off. I have several friends from college that continue to be a very important part of my life. Cara is one of these people. We arrived at Southwestern as children....truly. We left only slightly less child-like. It has been such a privilege and gift to have Cara, Ciara and Jen by my side all these years and to see them become the outstanding women they are today!

Below is my very favorite photo of Cara. I think this picture captures her beauty and essence. It also offers the tiniest hint of her playful and ethereal side. I was privileged to be a part of Cara and Eric's wedding. I promise you that day Cara floated in her own beauty. She was as elegant and effortless as a ballerina. It was almost as if she was from another time and another place. Her loveliness simply wasn't earthbound!

Below is a photo of Cara at David Leggett's loft (which I will chronicle in a later post). This was taken last weekend.

Below is a photo of her husband participating in one of his favorite activities....Rock Star. Eric is in the green shirt. His brother Mark is on drums and Ricky (another old college friend) is the dude tearing up the guitar! Eric and I have also known each other for over 16 years. He and Cara started dating towards the end of our freshman year and they have been together ever since. Cara and Eric compliment each other beautifully! Where Cara is quiet and reserved, Eric is hilarious and the life of the party! Eric enjoys any excuse to throw a party! And when Eric hosts a function he leaves no stone unturned. Eric has always graciously hosted me in his home and I so appreciate the way he loves my dear friend Cara.

This is Cara and Eric's first "child" Buster! I love this dog just as much as I love Ciara and Ryan's dog, Toby. Buster is perhaps the most melancholy animal I have ever met. He seems most happy when he is left alone to rest on the guest bed. However, whereas Toby cuddles with me and allows me to be the human in the bed....Buster lays across the bed width-wise and does not appreciate my invasion of his sleep space! Sunday night's sleep was interesting.....I had about 1/10 of the bed to spread out on!

On March 31, 2007 Cara and Eric's family grew by one beautiful little lady. This is Josephine Elaine Holmes. She answers to JoJo......

JoJo enjoys riding in her little red fire truck......

She also loves when her Daddy turns her upside down.....JoJo has also seemed to develop an affinity for her Daddy's big gulp diet Cokes.....
She also very much enjoys having a leisurely ladies lunch with Mommy and Auntie Patty or Auntie P-Funk. (Eric is insistent all the important people in JoJo's life have a hip hop name. I could choose between P-Funk or P-Diddy. I decided to kick it old school and go with the George Clinton reference. Much more respect for his legacy! No disrespect Puffy.)

Walking is a relatively new activity so landing on the floor sometimes happens. At this particular moment she didn't want to get up from the floor so Auntie P-Funk laid down next to her and took a few photos. Most of them were "fussy face" pictures...but this one has that tiny little grimace that she no doubt inherited from her Mommy! Cara and I edited these on iPhoto to get some interesting colors and images.

JoJo also enjoys pineapple, strawberries and grapes. She loves to sleep with her baby doll Beatrix and needs a "sound machine" to get a good night's rest. She enjoys going for a walk to the corner store in the morning. (She really enjoys bringing Auntie P-Funk some coffee in bed!) She loves to gingerly bend down to give Buster a hug. She likes to look at pictures of herself when she was a baby and say, "babbbybbybbyyy." She smiles when Mommy tells her, "No, JoJo isn't a baby anymore!" She enjoys playing with her cousins Baker and Lucy and she gently pats baby Lucy on the head. JoJo is an angel. I loved every moment I spent with her and her hugs made Auntie P-Funk feel all better!

Unbeknownst to JoJo...she likes to shop, too! Okay....maybe it is her Mommy that likes to shop for JoJo but she certainly is up for the spree! Cara took me to a children's boutique in Dallas. She had purchased a very special, one of a kind, dress from the owner/creator at a local Farmer's Market. Cara was excited to visit the shop and was eager to show me the one of a kind creations of Christine's.

If you dropped me in the middle of Dallas I would have no idea how to find Little Bean ever again! Thus I am providing you the link! Christine creates children's wear from vintage fabrics. JoJo has two of her dresses and one of her tees. They are so whimsical and sassy....much like the fabulous lady that gives life to these special creations. I very much enjoyed visiting with Christine and ACTUALLY convinced her to create a BIG GIRL tee just for me! Perhaps if we all bother her enough she will launch a line for the ladies who are just little girls at heart? I can not wait to receive my birdie tee shirt! She and her husband also have an online magazine dedicated to little ones and the parents of little people. Visit here to visit www.smallmagazine.com.

More of my Dallas visit to come. Heading out for family vacation tomorrow and MUST pack before my mother explodes. She must really wonder how it is at all possible she gave birth to me....they both must! They are such highly organized people....and I am just their terribly procrastinative (is that a word...I just made it one!) daughter!

Goodnight friends! I am going to continue to enjoy Pandora. It is a rough, gritty, woman time so I am listening to nothing but Patty Griffin, Lucinda Williams, June Carter Cash, Loretta Lynn. Feels good! Too bad I can't fit those vintage boots in my already overstuffed suitcase!

Small Detour on the Road Trip.....

We all needed this today. Jace', thank you for knowing when my heart needs mending through love and laughter. Logan, thank you for hosting us in your home (or your mother's home because let's face it...she has the divine pool!) Puppies, thank you for knowing when people need big, sloppy, puppy kisses. Nathan and Meredith it was lovely to meet you both. I very much enjoyed this day and this evening. My heart feels warm and full....and no longer full of holes!




And by the way ladies....this lovely gentleman can roast a mean chicken, sautee some sensuous kale and roast sweet potatoes to perfection! Oh....and did I mention he is a jazz phenom? I'm just sayin'! He's one of the good ones!

Oh and for further edification....or clarification...Jace' loves trees.

Goodnight....teaching Pilates early tomorrow then hanging with my gal, Rupa! YAY!

Road Trip Part I

On the way to slay the dragon I had to pick up some "power pellets" in the form of love, laughs and good times with sweet friends! I stopped off in Austin on my way to Dallas. Ciara and Ryan hosted me in their home...AGAIN! Unfortunately Ella Bella was with her "Gigi" that evening. However that did allow Ciara and I to meet Jen and Jaclyn for dinner at Sago.

Below is a photo of Jen and Ciara.
Below is a photo of Jaclyn and me. Please pardon the "cheese factor" for a moment. In my sorority Ciara is my little sister and Jaclyn is her little sister. So we are ADPi family! I won't go into any more detail. It is far too silly!
The photo below is funny. The table was really tall and we all felt like Alice in Wonderland. The glass was also rather large. Ciara couldn't help but snap a picture of how small I looked in comparison to the scale of the furniture and glassware!
Ciara, Jen, Jaclyn and I. We had a lovely evening catching up and making plans for a girls weekend in San Antonio! Ladies....let's make this happen. And Cara is in, too!
Ciara thank you for helping me through the following day. You are such a calming, gracious force in my life. You always take me as I am and you honor whatever space I happen to be in. When you need to point something out to me you have the most beautiful and authentic way of allowing me to see where my processing might be flawed or over processed or over thought. You have always helped me to forgive myself which is a huge difficulty for me. I love you so much, friend! People like you are what convinces me of God's grace!

As a sidenote....the dragon came to tea. But then I had to banish the dragon from my table because the dragon was just plain rude! But wouldn't you know....there is another dragon in the cave! Now...that dragon is available to tea anytime and a most gracious guest. What can I say....some dragons are just better than others. Thank God for well adjusted dragons!!!!!

Next post will include fun photos from Dallas! And you will all get to meet Miss JoJo Holmes! Goodnight!

Dragons Part II

Turns out the dragon did not want to join me for tea. In fact, the beast is putting up a hell of a fight! But I am in the cave and I have no intention of leaving until this particular dragon and I can come to an agreement!

Having a fabulous time in Dallas. Have taken so many photos but am way too sleepy to post them tonight!

Happy Sunday, friends......

Dragons.....

I slayed a dragon today. Okay....maybe I didn't actually SLAY a dragon since I do not believe in animal cruelty. I am definitely inside the dragon's cave and I am going to invite the dragon to tea. I am proud of me. And I am ever grateful to my extensive support system. I am definitely on shaky ground, uncharted territory. However, I continue to amaze myself. No longer do I accept hiding under my covers. It is time to face all of my fears and prove to myself just exactly what I am made of. The thing about facing my fears is that I learn my courage. It feels good....really good!

More photos tomorrow!

Cowboys, Indians and ME!

Ha! I am so excited today. Cowboys and Indians hit the stands. I purchased a number of copies. (I will not ever admit how many I purchased!) The Papa Dean's Popcorn article is wonderful! San Antonio is so well represented and the photo on page 141 ain't too shabby either! Pick one up at your local bookstore and enjoy this beautiful publication!

I am also excited because I am embarking on a road trip tomorrow. I will be headin' north for a few days! I am spending tomorrow evening in Austin with Ciara, Ryan and Ella. We have dinner plans with Jaclyn and Jen and I can not wait to spend time with them. Thursday I am driving to Dallas. I will be descending upon Casa Holmes and hoping to visit with so many old college friends! Sunday I will be heading back through Austin and Monday I will be home! I am taking my computer and hoping to blog and upload photos.

Have a wonderful week and I hope to keep up with you all! Good luck Chupacabras! I am with ya in spirit!

There's No Crying In Baseball....

I have neglected to blog all week! This wave of laziness is shameful. Despite the fact I am on summer vacation, I found myself insanely busy all week. Additionally I suffered two days of tummy icky-ness and all I wanted to do was lay around and mindlessly navigate Facebook! Yes...there it is...the REAL reason I have neglected the blog. It's Facebook. I believe anyone who has experienced Facebook will not deny the culpability of that wicked little site. (Of course...I am in no way responsible for my own behavior!) Thank you, dear blog, for allowing me back in spite of my capricious nature.

Today I celebrate baseball! I also celebrate the fact that I am summoning up the courage to write about something of which I know very little about. Why baseball? Well....it occurs to me this entire week was filled with some sort of baseball or softball like activities. It is my understanding this was All-Star Week? (I end that statement with a question mark because I am hoping one of you boys can validate this fact.) No, I didn't watch any of it but I did notice a lot of "boy chatter" on Facebook about what I can only imagine was related to All-Star Week and/or some sort of Fantasy Baseball League? (Again the question mark....someone please validate!)

Additionally I have been giving a lot of thought to the "mechanics" of baseball. I realize this statement is likely baffling to most of my readers. Allow me to explain. As you all know many athletes have begun to incorporate Pilates into their fitness program....for a number of reasons. (That is a topic for another blog at another time. Look to the right and click on Pilates if you are interested in knowing more about it.) Some time back my mother and I attended a workshop specific to Pilates and golf. As a result my mom has built a solid "Pilates for Golf" program as a part of her Pilates instruction. She instructs approximately 8 female golfers twice weekly and each of them has seen their game improve by about 20-30 additional, STRAIGHT-er yards! I subbed a few of her classes last month and I was excited by her golf classes. I played golf in high school. NOW...let me be 100% honest and say that I was terrible. However, I am at least familiar with the "golf swing" which is ultimately helpful in trying to teach specific Pilates principles related to the game of golf. I have swung at the ball a couple of times since I became a Pilates instructor. It must be said....I can connect with loads more consistency if I address the ball with fundamental Pilates principals in mind.

Last weekend I decided to take myself out for a drink prior to meeting some of my friends at a bar. I love hotel bars and it just so happens that my favorite hotel bars is less than 2 minutes from my house. As I sat at the bar of The Omni I was forced to watch what was on television. As usual both televisions were set to ESPN and as it happens it was an entire program dedicated to "the baseball swing." The hosts were comparing "pretty, clean swings" to "uglier, less finessed swings" like Reggie Jackson. (Impressed, boys?) Through the haziness of olive juice, a splash of vodka and three plump olives I began thinking about Pilates and baseball. Not only is there a swing, there is a pitch, a throw, a catch, a slide, etc. etc. However, I am at a COMPLETE disadvantage here! There is no way I can teach Pilates specific to baseball if I do not know what a good swing, pitch, hit, throw feels like in my own body. A-ha! Now I just have to become familiar with these movements. Simple!

Later that evening I joined my friends for more drinks. (Don't worry....it was only a two martini night!) Most of these friends are currently playing in a co-ed, recreational softball league. I was discussing my thoughts with Rico and he suggested I meet them at the batting cages the following Monday. And so I did.....

Rico and Larry (below) were VERY KINDLY trying to explain to me alignment, foot placement, weight shifting, arm placement, follow through, wrist action, elbow angle.....the list goes on and on and on! I connected with the ball about 50% of the time....although never truly "solidly." (It must be said that Christine was ROCKIN' IT OUT in the cage next to me! Go girl....go Crispy!)

1 token=16 pitches....who would have thought 16 pitches could be so exhausting! Definitely needing to bump up the cardio!
Then things just got silly! I couldn't help but channel my "inner Girls Next Door softball episode!" (Photo is a little fuzzy, Pierson!)
Sara, Christine, Ainsley and Danica enjoying the warm summer evening at the batting cages.

Larry was kind enough to "gently" encourage me to TRY to catch a ball! Now...we all saw the video on this very blog of Ella throwing a plastic ball at me. NOT pretty. But in the spirit of research and investigation I accepted the challenge. (Plus as I have said before it is good to be scared sometimes!) Larry gave me his glove and tossed a few softballs at me. The first few just bounced right off the tip of the glove. He encouraged me to think of the glove as a "web" and to actually try to "grip" the softball once it made contact with the glove. Turns out if I hold the glove in front of my face I will be fairly safe and accident free! As it happens I was able to catch a lot of his soft, underhanded (I don't want to be dishonest) pitches if I used both hands. He also coached me a bit on throwing the ball back to him. And then I threw his softball right out of the property and there was no way to retrieve it! Sorry Larry.

It was then and there that I issued a challenge to myself....in front of Sara, Rico, Larry, Jace', Danica and Christine....I would study this so that I might one day be able to join them on a recreational team. Larry said, "Good, you have six weeks!" I said, "Uhm, no!" I was thinking more like NEXT SUMMER! Of course they were all quick to remind me that there is no crying in baseball or softball!

I will only briefly mention that I saw the Chupacabras play on Thursday. A valiant effort to stay undefeated my friends.....so terribly sorry for the loss! Shake it off....next week, next week!

It was often difficult to stay entertained at Southwestern University. Back then there wasn't much going on in Georgetown, TX. We didn't have a football team and the basketball team never drew much of a crowd. However our baseball team was solid and a lot of our friends were on the team. Some of my most precious college memories involve a big blanket, a Mobil coke, a double-header, a crisp spring day, books spread out (with the intent to study) and Ciara sitting right next to me!

So it was completely serendipitous, not to mention highly coincidental when Donna called to inform me she had gotten reservations to "Take Me Out!" Tickets to this play are highly sought after. In fact, she and I were unable to sit together. No matter....we were both very excited to see this play.

"Take me Out" was written by Richard Greenberg and directed by Frank Laston. Darren Lemming is a major league baseball phenom who is also openly homosexual. Most of the play takes place in the club house and examines how his honest admission affects his team mates and challenges some of his deepest personal relationships. While the play was three acts, the pace and tone made it feel like it flew by. Each character bounced dialog along side and around each other and the audience in a way that kept me connected....and at the edge of my seat....for the entire performance. I truly enjoyed this piece and I commend all of the performers. This play requires an inordinate amount of full male nudity. The nude performances were completely relevant to the content of the play. I am truly amazed that anyone can stand in front of a room full of people and act....fully clothed....let alone completely nude! Sorry ladies...this is the last weekend and both Saturday and Sunday performances are sold out! All joking aside....this is a great script. If you have the opportunity to see this play...take it.

"Democracy is lovely. But baseball is more mature."-Mason Marzac from Richard Greenberg's "Take Me Out"

Adventure is not outside; it is within.

So.....maybe I should find some "adventure within" and challenge myself to softball team-ship in 6 weeks? I mean...with Pilates as my foundation I can't fail, right Mom? Have a wonderful Saturday friends!

This blog is dedicated to the memory of my Tio Ciro Guerra who passed away three days ago. Often known to young children as "Oscar the Grouch" he was a very loving family man, savvy rancher and business man, wonderful father, grandfather and husband! His was a different brand of sarcasm and humor! One that I came to appreciate as an adult! My thoughts and prayers are with you Tia Anna!

Random Photos Need Home

I have so many photos that need to be shared! I figured I would take this lazy Monday to upload all these photos and share them with you all.

Valerie's special birthday lunch at Sea Island. Jace' picked up this mini-cake for her.

Maria also celebrated her birthday in June. Her son, Logan and her husband, Rick hosted a special event for her at SoHo. The cake was unbelievably good! (Nadler's Italian Creme)

Logan cutting Maria's birthday cake.

Jace' and Maria celebrating Maria's 4oth Birthday! ;)

Jace' and Logan.

Rock Star on the Fourth of July. Aidan on drums, Patty on bass, Jace' on guitar and Julie on vocals.

Did you know that you play much better when you have properly stretched and warmed up?

Christine and Jace' single-handedly saved the Fourth of July BBQ. That's a large fire, ma'am.

Julie, Christine, Danica and Jace' at Christine's Fourth of July celebration.

After the second Chupacabra's softball win at Wetmore Bar. In this photo are Brian, Cyndi, Larry, Christine, Rico and Alma.

Larry, Christine and Rico lovin' the sweet joy of victory.

Celebrating at Wetmore Bar...Me, Julie, Christine, Alma, Cyndi.

Motz, Christine and Larry at softball park.

Rico and Sara at softball park.

Deep thoughts from the dugout. (Is that one word?)

Me and my girl....Ainsley!

Girls Night Out at Brasserie Pavil with Yvonne, Gloria, Rupa, Sangeeta and Katalina.

"Patty Posing" quincanera style at Sara and Rico's "Singles Party."

Sara and Rico graciously hosting us all in their lovely home.

Danica and Jace' at the "Sul Ross End of the School Year Bash." Jace' is an honorary staff member.

Enjoying the summer night at Christine's.

Beautiful ladies....Jace' and Christine.

Matthew, Danica and Sara.

Sara, Christine and I at the end of the year bash.

One of my favorite gals...Tracie Camp and I at end of the school year party.

I have been finding Tessie in this pose quite frequently lately! Seriously? Very un-lady like.

Phew....I feel so good having unloaded all those photos that were just begging to be posted!

Have a great week, friends!