Four Posts in One

The most recent update to this blog was almost 2 months ago. Does it feel longer than that to anyone else? I have no idea where this summer is going. It is going by so fast that May seems longer ago than it was. That totally makes sense, right?

In the past two months:

• I have ventured in to the world of crafts. I found out it was a glittery, sticky, waxy, and exciting place.
• I participated in the North Texas Susan G. Kommen Walk for the Cure
  
• Danny, my friend Alex, and I plotted, schemed, and created decorations and desserts for a birthday party
• Danny and I ventured south to Austin for a Lego convention

Alex, and I, have made the unfortunate discovery that we want to attempt various crafting endeavors. I say unfortunate because we should not be trusted around sharp objects and glue. I jest. We are careful and I try not to be my semi-clumsy self.

For Mother's Day we thought it would be a brilliant idea to make candles. It was something we both wanted to try, and we both clung to the hope that our mothers love anything hand made by their children out of principle, even though we are grown ups. So we bought simple and basic supplies and made candles! For our first attempt, the candles turned out pretty good! They sort of collapsed in the middle. We will try a couple different techniques to prevent that during our next candle making adventure.

I chose red wax and cinnamon scent for my mom's candle. This is the wax melting.

Me pouring the wax. Those Dixie cups make a wonderful candle. When the wax is cool you tear off the paper and voila! A candle.

The final result. I made a jar candle and a Dixie cup candle. I bought the twig heart and tied some ribbon around the jar to make it look pretty. My mom loved the candles. They did not explode when she burned them, so, I say they were successful.

My mom and I participated in the North Texas Race for the Cure. It was a really neat experience. There were several people there; women, men, and kids! There were cute families all dressed in matching shirts. One woman, a survivor, had on a large, floppy sun hat. They decked it out in a pink boa and sequins and tulle. I told my mom, for the next Race for the Cure we will make something pink, sparkly, and fun for her to wear because she is a survivor. She hates hat so we will think of something else.

Mom and I before the 5K. She works for the JCPenney headquarters and they had a group of people participating. That explains the JCPenney shirts instead of Race for the Cure shirts. You know, in case you were wondering.

Attractive. Fashionable. Charming. Me.
This is after the walk. It was hot and the humidity was over 60%. They gave out little pink towels. I soaked mine with water and put it on my head to stay cool.
My mom reckons (and I think she's right) that there exists a picture of me wearing an upside-down dog bowl on my head with the exact same expression. I have no explanation.

My step-dad, Alan, turned 60! My mom wanted to hold a party for him. After batting around several different ideas, they settled on reserving a party room at The Pub. I love throwing parties and decorating things, so I volunteered to help out. I became in charge of decorations and dessert. I enlisted the help of Danny. He made a fantastic pinata. I also enlisted the help of Alex.

I decided that the theme of the decorations should all be about Alan. He is a man of simple tastes. Our decorations included the Dallas Cowboys, the Texas Rangers, George Straight, the US Navy (he served in the Navy), the Beatles, Texas, Golf, Bud Light, and Dr. Pepper.

Alan, Danny, Alex, and I.
Alex and I made t-shirts that say "Set phasers to fun". The goatees we are wearing are made out of Fun Foam (or Funky Foam as it is sometimes called). Alan has had a mustache or goatee for nearly his whole life. In stead of party hats, we made the guests party goatees! It was Alex's idea.

I think this table turned out the best. It is the 'sports' table. As I said previously, we decorated with things that Alan likes. On this table we have items representing the Texas Rangers, the Cowboys and golf.

I really should have added more to this board but I ran out of time. Oops! The cupcakes have Corvette logo toppers. He wanted a red Corvette for his birthday.

The party was a huge success. Everyone seemed to enjoy themselves and we received a lot of compliments about the decorations. People raved about the pinata Danny made. I had a lot of fun planning the decorations and everything.

Two weeks ago Danny and I ventured to Austin, TX for a Lego convention. It was the first in Texas! We went down there for Saturday only. Builders had their creations on display. It was fascinating to see what they created using only Legos!

This is me in front of my favorite creation. It is a cathedral based on St. Patrick's Cathedral in New York and Chartres Cathedral in France. The stained glass windows are made from small clear, colored pieces.

Danny in front of his favorite creation. This is an original creation. The builder built it from his imagination. It was very impressive. You can see in the pictures that the courtyards are on different layers. I do not know if this makes sense, but I liked the courtyard because you could imagine moving through it.

We also ate at this incredibly delicious BBQ place in Austin. It is called Franklin's. You MUST eat there. Your life will be better because of it. I do not care how good your life is now, Franklin's can improve it. I recommend the ribs. I do not generally care for ribs, but these ribs are amazing. They are so tender, they slide off the bone. Mmmmmmmm. Good. Oh man, now I want Franklin's.



If you are still reading this, I am impressed. I will try to update more often so when Danny and I do awesome stuff I do not have to write such long posts.

Life is good.

-The Bakkers