I'm baaaaaack!!!

Hello everyone!

Jake and I just got back from Texas last night and we are whooped to say the least. We found a house we love in a great area, so we'll see what happens in the next 6 months or so...we might be homeowners!

On the flip side, we missed our opportunity for an IUI this cycle. I'm bummed, but I understand the timing was off (I O'd while we were in TX) and it's OK. Next cycle will be better.

So here is a day-by-day account of our trip:

Thursday: Took off about 8:40am and landed in DFW about 2:30. Got our rental car after standing in the wrong line for 10 minutes. When we got to the correct rental counter, the car Jake and Dad had reserved wasn't available, so we got a free upgrade...to the same car, different maker. Figures...so we set off to go to our hotel. We get there, no sign of Rick's truck, so we walk in and Ricl is sitting in the lobby waiting for us. We check in after learning the hotel never received our reservation. Good thing Dad printed the reservation and brought it with us. Note to self - NEVER USE EXPEDIA! We set our things down and have lunch at the Saltgrass Steakhouse with Rick. We go to a few developments and look at Meritage and HistoryMaker homes. Rick goes home and Dad, Jake and myself have Whataburger for dinner...yum!

Friday: Rick and Maria meet us at our hotel and we go to Cracker Barrel from breakfast. We then head to a community called Heritage, and look at really nice houses, but too big in space and price for our budget. It was still great to look at. We see Standard Pacific Homes and some other builder I can't remember. We then go to a different part of Heritage and look at DR Horton homes, which my Dad fell in love with the Cape Cod style exteriors. We also try to look at Plantation Homes, and some other builders but they were in close-out mode, so there was no use looking. We went to Sonic because my blood sugar was crashing and then went to Flower Mound to pick up Maria's nephew, Jack from school and meet Charlie (Maria's brother). We go to the Cotton Patch for dinner while being extremely entertained by Jack and his 4-year old personality. We also take a trip to Hobby Lobby because my curiosity got the better of me. I love that store. We then part ways and go back to our hotel where I wait in the window for this "thunder storm" we were supposed to have that night. But I'd have to wait...

Saturday: Dad, Jake and I got to sleep in and have breakfast at the Waffle House. I enjoyed the experience. We got to sit at the counter like truckers, which made it extra fun. We then make a stop to one place my Dad's been dying to go to - Texas Motor Speedway. We get there and I had to learn where entrances for different things were, and we eventually ended up where we were supposed to be - the visitor's center. We walked through the gift shop where one of Dale Earnhardt, Sr.'s suits was. Dad was in heaven! He got to take a picture with a pace car and everything. We then drove to Rick and Maria's house in Aurora and had a light lunch while being greeted with the thunderstorm we were expecting. FUN TIMES!!! The poor dogs were terrified and barking/whimpering. The 5 of us stood out on the front porch watching the action, and I can only say it was very exciting to watch. We heard roaring thunder, clapping thunder, rolling thunder...it was so cool! We then drove to Trophy Club, which is the more affluent town and looked at Lennar, DR Horton, and First Texas homes. We go to dinner at Rosa's Mexican Grill amid the ginormous lightning bolts, dark gray clouds and booming thunder...and the heaviest rain I've ever seen in my life. We then head back to our hotel to watch more lightning and thunder while watching movies.

Sunday: Sunday we were pretty much on our own since we wanted to give Rick and Maria a day off. Maria's been working some loooong hours, so we wanted to give her at least one day to herself. So we drove up to Sendera Ranch and looked at Lennar, First Texas, Cheldan, and DR Horton homes. Dad fell in love with Lennar right then. We drove around the community and Dad got to get a feel for the whereabouts of what was happening with the community. We also drive to Bonds Ranch where there are houses half-built that will never be finished because the builders went under. Sad. We go back to the hotel where we decided to go down the street and see a movie. To Jake's excitement, we saw X-Men Origins: Wolverine. We then head back to the hotel and hang out.

Monday: Rick meets us and we go to breakfast at Dixie House cafe. Definitely Texas-style breakfast. We are starting to notice there are only two types of toast offered at all of the breakfast places: White and Wheat...no Sourdough...has to be a California thing. Then we drive to a few communities and look at Drees and Sandlin homes...more custom builders. I see my first Wolf Spider in one of the homes' doorways...oh hell no! Then we look at a community where Jake and I found a house we love! It's by Meritage in a community called Briarwyck Estates. Then we go to rest a little at the hotel and meet Rick and Maria later for dinner at Jason's Deli. Then we go to a store called Belk. It's like Macy's, but a little more affordable. We talk for a while and then say our goodbyes.

Tuesday: We meet Rick at IHOP for breakfast and then head towards the airport to drop off our rental car. Then we go to Bass Pro Shop's Outdoor World. We wandered around there checking everything out and then to go lunch at Uncle Buck's, the restaurant next to and a part of Outdoor World. Then we head to the airport, say goodbye and go home. Jake and I got to our house at about 9:30pm where all the kitties were waiting for us and have been super-lovey since we got back.

So yup, that was our trip. It was tons of fun...I can't wait to go back.