Dallas

It's July already? This summer is already moving too quickly for me as I knew it would.

Well, I went on my solo weekend get-away last weekend and it was so much fun. I had never really been to Texas before - just drove through years ago - so it was nice to visit and see what Dallas and it's suburbs were all about. I was going to see and stay with my best friend Stephanie and her husband Matt.

As I mentioned before, this was my first flight in over 17 years, so essentially it was like flying for the first time. We decided to stop for dinner before dropping me off at the airport. BAD IDEA. Not only were the kids "unruly" but it really pressed me for time which was not a good combination for me. After kissing everyone good-bye and wiping away the tears, I made it into the airport only to find a LONG line to check my bag. I had already printed my boarding pass and paid for my bag, so I had an advantage. I could do a "fast bag drop" so I got in that line only to find out 5 minutes later that it wasn't the "fast bag drop" it was actually a cancelled flight full of ticked off people. So, I had to get in the other line which had grown emensely in the 5 minutes. Luckily I got my bag checked and through security in 45 minutes and still had another 45 minutes before my flight left. That was still cutting it way too close for me. The flight went well and I got into Dallas right on schedule.

I of course didn't sleep well the first night and was up bright and early on Saturday. No worries though, I wasn't going to let it ruin my vacation. I wanted to make the most of my kid-free time anyway. Matt worked Saturday so Steph and I had the day to ourselves. We went to the Farmer's Market first, then a quick stop at Walmart for some drinks and ice for the cooler, lunch at Subway and home to get ready to go to the pool. As I got out of the car to go to the back to get the ice out, I decided it would be fun to roll my ankle off the lip in the floor of the garage and skid across the driveway on my hands and knees. This is a classic "Keri" move for anyone who knows me. My hands were fine but the skin was pretty well scraped off my knees.

Off to the pool we went. It was going to reach 100 degrees that afternoon and it did. We stayed in the water most of the afternoon and just floated on our rafts. It was just what I needed. I was completely exhausted from the heat that afternoon and went to bed early.

Sunday Matt drove us to downtown Dallas where I got to see the area where JFK was shot nearly 49 years ago. They have "X" marks on the road in the areas where he was shot the first and second time. From there we went to Hard Rock Cafe and had some appetizers and a delicious frozen drink. We got to swim for a bit when we got home and then headed off to dinner that night at The Cheesecake Factory. YUM!

Monday was another "Pool Day" and then they took me to the Texas Rangers/Detroit Tigers game. It was 100 degrees at game time but lucky for us, Stephanie bought "all you can eat seats" which gave us full access to a private restaurant with air conditioning. We only sat in our seats for 20 minutes before camping out in the restaurant for the rest of the night. 100 is just too hot for me! The Tigers won (woo hoo!!) so it was a good night.

Tuesday was my last day, so I packed and we went to the mall before she dropped me off at the airport. This trip was exactly what I needed. It was relaxing and laid back and quiet. It was a nice mini-vacation.

Eric picked me up from the airport on Tuesday night, and Alex and Evan stayed with Grandma until Wednesday morning. As much as I wanted to see them as soon as I got home, it was nice to come home, unpack and unwind and not get thrown back into craziness.

I was soooo excited to see them on Wednesday. Alex was all smiles as soon as he saw me and heard my voice. Evan didn't care at that moment. It was later at home when he wanted to cuddle!

I want to Thank my Husband for letting me take this wonderful trip, my Mother in Law for helping out while I was gone and Stephanie and Matt for being such wonderful hosts and showing me a great time during my trip.

Now it's back to life and back to reality.