Erin's Bachelorette Bash '08

I have a lot of reasons to back up the opinion that every girl needs a sister. Sharing clothes, knowing someone well enough that they can be painfully honest with you (whether you ask for it or not), and having a personal built-in secret-keeper in the family are all reasons to love having that crazy girl who looks like you by your side. But I've discovered another reason I am thankful to have a sister. Getting to throw the bachelorette party! A few weeks ago, I had the pleasure of throwing my bride-to-be sister, Erin, a bachelorette party that I'm sure she'll never forget. Of course I can't divulge too much information about the crazy night, but it was one that we both agreed we'd love to re-live over and over again.

I rented a room at the Embassy Suites in downtown Austin. (When I asked Erin where she'd like her big night held, she requested that we do it up big in Austin. I, of course, was beyond happy with that request!) In all, we had seven girls at Erin's party. We did games, cake (of the erotic variety, what else?), and a lingerie shower in the hotel room.

We ate dinner at Hula Hut, on Lake Austin. I picked Hula Hut because it is authentically "Austin" and the view on the lake is gorgeous. I wanted to make sure that all the girls felt they'd come to Austin and soaked in as much as possible.

As the hours of celebration wore on, we took our party of 7 out to 6th Street in Austin, a street famous (or infamous, however you see it) for knowing how to "do it up big". Again, as the matron of honor, I'm sworn to keep the juicier parts of that night to myself. But please believe there was plenty of dancing, "wahooing", and memories were made. Congrats to a sister who I couldn't wait to throw this party for! I love you!

Thanksgiving Part III-The Melson Family

After driving back down I35 from Oklahoma, we decided to stay a few days at the Melson house. This post is dedicated to my very strange family. Only at the Melson house will you find dogs in boots and family members leaping across the living room.



Mom decided her "grand-dogs" needed boots to keep from tracking mud into her house. Tex looks rather handsome, don't you think?



Later that night, a few of us decided to do some leaps and jumps around the living room. This is the result. (Note: Ryan, Grant, & Chris were all absent for our shananigans. But make no mistake about it, those guys can leap with the best of them!)


As previously stated...I have an extremely weird family. And I wouldn't have it any other way. :)

Thanksgiving Part II-Uncle Bob & Aunt Judy's

Thankfully, Thanksgiving Day was free of go-cart disasters. We spent the day at Uncle Bob & Aunt Judy's house in Edmond, OK. They definitely took one for the team with over 40 people celebrating Turkey Day in their home!

We all got to spend time with family who we've known for a little while now...

(Claire & I)

(Crystal, Caitlin, and Nathan-who looked pretty good after his big go-cart spill)

and got to introduce new members of the family. :)

(Duke and his girlfriend Katy)

We played our annual Gobbler Grab Bag...

(Mamma Q explaining the rules of the game.)

and everyone came out a winner!

(Grant with his Touch-down Headband)

(Angela and her sassy boa)

(Uncle Marion in his fancy new hat)

All in all...a great day for families to be together. :)

Thanksgiving Part I-The Farm Continued...

So as you can see from the previous videos, the go-cart is always a big hit on the Ryan Farm. No matter if you're four or fifty-four, everyone loves the go-cart. But maybe a little too much...

This is Uncle Dudley, using the tractor to pull the go-cart out of the twenty-foot drop into the creek.

As Caitlin likes to say, "Here's where I was when it all happened...". I was standing around with Caitlin and the "grown-ups", sipping my Snapple Iced Tea, when Uncle Dudley said, "I think they just went into the creek". They, being Cousin Stephen and his four-year old son. They'd been driving down the bridge that goes over the creek and then there was silence. Everyone scoffed a little at first but Uncle Dudley was convinced they'd gone over the edge.

Caitlin, Mom & Dad Q, and Angela (Stephen's sister) hopped into Uncle Dudley's pick-up truck and raced down to the dirt road, just before the bridge. I stayed up by the farmhouse with Stephen's other two daughters, just in case things were bad. I could see everything since we were up on a hill and I was terrified that I was going to get the signal to call 911. Everyone jumped out of the truck and I could hear Angela yelling Stephen's name. Other family members had been in the cow pasture shooting targets. They joined the rescue party and several dissapeared over the edge of the drop.

Finally, Angela came up with Stephen's son (who I'm still shocked was not crying), followed by a walking (maybe not too steadily) Stephen. They were loaded into the back of the pick-up and brought back up to the farmhouse. Everyone unloaded and Nurse Qualley hurried our accident victimes into the house to look at any cuts or brusises. Amazingly enough, she reported that Nathan only had a tiny bruise on his forehead and Stephen had a scratch on his head.

After the dust settled, Stephen explained that he forgot that the go-cart doesn't have brakes. (I, myself, forgot that during my first ride of the day with Caitlin. Thankfully, we were in a cow pasture where there was plenty of time to "remember" the no-brake rule.) Stephen was making a pretty fast u-turn on the bridge over the creek. As he turned around, he realized he was going too fast and the go-cart slid down the embankment and into the creek. I followed the crowd down to watch Uncle Dudley pulled rescue the go-cart. It was literally sitting in the middle of the water, with one seat cushion slowing floating away. (We still can't believe the go-cart didn't flip over!)

After the go-cart was pulled out, I really shouldn't have been shocked to see Uncle Marion come flying up the dirt road in the "death machine", as Caitlin and I so lovingly called it. But I'm sure stranger things have happened on that farm.

Thanksgiving Part I-The Farm

Last Wednesday morning, as is quickly becoming tradition for Grant & I, we drove up to Cushing, Oklahoma to spend time at the Ryan Farm for Thanksgiving. The idea is to spend fun-time together with Grant's side of the family, doing outdoor activities like fishing, shooting the guns, riding the go-cart, etc. And it definitely IS fun. It is a tradition I am glad has been passed on to me--now as part of Grant's family.

The day started out the way last year did. Maggie, our wonder dog, hopped right into the cow pasture and started herding cattle. Who knows where they were going, but when Maggie barked and ran, those cows did what they were told.

This is the end-result of some hardwork on Maggie's part.

After Uncle Dudley told us that Maggie was no longer welcome in the cow pasture (he was afraid of her running the cows into the fences), Grant, Caitlin, & I took the dogs down to the fishing hole to enjoy some late-November swimming.

It was SO great to see my favorite sister-in-law after several months. Just the year before Caitlin & I had been neighbors in Norman so it was nice to spend the whole day playing with her and being silly.

Speaking of, Caitlin & I enjoyed one of our favorite farm activities together. G0-carting in the cow pastures!

Stay tuned for a continued blog on this year's adventures at the farm. There was actually a go-cart accident and Caitlin & I actually had nothing to do with it!

Our Camping Trip...

Grant & I both LOVE the outdoors. We've been in Austin for six months now and have somehow managed to go without camping that entire time. In AUSTIN...where everyone seems to be outdoors. So last weekend, we decided enough was enough. Time to rough it at Pacebend Park, a camping site on Lake Travis with Grant's brother and girlfriend.

Being an Eagle Scout, only tent-camping will do for Grant. We got his two-person tent, a couple of sleeping bags, and called it heaven. (For the most part...)

The lake area was BEAUTIFUL and the dogs both loved being able to swim and play to their little heart's delight.

There was a burn-ban so we were only allowed to use a charcoal grill. Of course I made good use of that for 'smores. You just CAN'T camp and not eat 'smores to the point of feeling slightly sick and very fat. It's tradition.

The downside to camping during the fall is that the sun goes down around 6:00pm. By that time, we had eaten dinner, were finishing up our 'smores, and trying to rise above the temptation to crawl into our sleeping bags at 6:05pm. We played cards on the picnic table until 8:15pm. All the while, having a fox visit our campsite and hearing coyotes howl in the not-too-far distance. We finally gave up at 8:15 and crawled into our tents for the longest night of non-sleep ever.

Grant told me that, scientifically, your body stays warmer in a sleeping bag if you wear a minimal amount of clothes. I told him I wasn't interested in his theory and that I'd be staying in my three shirts, sweatpants, and slippers. He assured me that this was not a theory--but SCIENCE. Well, science was not on his side when he dreamily rolled out of his sleeping bag in the middle of the night and his bare chest met with the 40-degree floor. My sweatshirt and one little dog sleeping inside the bottom of my sleeping bag trumped science that night.

What I learned from ACL...

This is VERY late in coming, but I wanted to share my experiences with my first trip to the Austin City Limits Music Festival back in September. It was quite the eye-opening experience. Both rock'n...and exhausting.

-Brazilian music is really fun. It's the type of music that anyone can dance to. You feel a little like you're on speed while listening to it, but if you've got the energy, it's a good time!

-Anything goes, as far as clothing is concerned, at ACL. I saw a red-bearded man wearing nothing but a fruit basket-colored speedo, complete with a thick white belt. And shoes, of course. I'll have to reevaluate my wardrobe next year.

-Don't underestimate the amount of dust that thousands of people in a park can kick up. That was almost the death of me this year. When I got home and showered, my tub was FILTHY.

-Surprisingly, a fish burrito from Wahoo's can be the perfect way to get re-energized during a full day of listening to music.

-I didn't realize at first that the old guy I was listening to on Saturday night, Robert Plant, was the lead singer of Led Zeppelin. I was listening to a legend! (Still something that I think my dad would've appreciated more.)

-Austinites love pot. I thought I knew this but I had no idea until I found myself in the middle of a giant cloud of icky-sticky one night.

-Austin can proudly call itself one very green city. They gave out giant trash bags that people could use to collect bottles and cans. If you filled your bag and returned it, you got a free ACL t-shirt.

-I might not be a three-day music festival kind of girl. Considering I totally weaseled my way out of going to Sunday's shows. Eating breakfast out and then taking a long nap won.

My man-child...

Grant & I were invited to Lake Travis this weekend on a party barge. What do you think Grant's favorite part was? Hmmmmm?

More from those funny kiddos...

• A few weeks ago, I was talking to one of our 8 year old swimmers. We were talking about how breaststroke is a lot like driving a car. There are lots of things to think about and you have to get to the point where it's second nature. I said, "You know Lucas, seeing as how you're a driver and all, right?" Lucas replied, "Not yet". Just for fun I said, "Well, when you get your license, what kind of car will you get?". Lucas replied, "Some kind of truck, hopefully with a king cab". "Lucas!", I said, "I'm a big fan of trucks! Something to put the dogs in the back of, huh?". To which Lucas responded, "Well, not me, I just want to make sure it's something big enough to put the wife and kids in".

• Last week one of my favorite two-year old classes was quickly falling apart. Henry had taken a big fall before swim class and skinned his elbow. Every time Henry climbed out of the water or climbed in, he cried about his hurt elbow. It was breaking my heart. I finally said, "Henry, if I gave you a gummy, would it help your elbow?". Henry nodded, so I opened up my little cup of gummy bears and offered it to Henry. Henry took the cup of candy and put his elbow in it. SO adorable! "Oh no, Henry, that's not what I meant", I said. I took out one red gummy bear and gave it to him. He proceeded to put the gummy on his hurt elbow. I couldn't help laughing and gave him another gummy bear to eat.

• I actually have another two-year old named Henry. Recently we were about to sing our "Pancake Song" and float on our back in the water. I asked Henry what kind of pancake he wanted to be. He decided he wanted to be an icecream pancake. I told Henry how yummy that sounded. We climbed in the water, sang our song, and then rolled back over onto our tummies to go back to the wall. I said, "Henry, you'd better swim to that wall because I want to eat your icecream toes!". With a piercing scream that left my ears ringing, Henry yelled, "No! PLEEEEEEEEEEEEEEASE! Please don't eat my toes!". He was completely serious. I said, "Ok, Henry, you're safe this time." Sometimes I just can't help it.

Hurrican Ike blows in some company...

Usually hurricanes aren't known for the good things they produce. Houston, just having experienced Hurricane Ike, can attest to this. And while my heart broke for my neighbors to the east, Ike did bring a little fun my way.

Due to the sheer force that Ike seemed to be using to head towards the Texas coast, more Houstonians ended up evacuating than were originally predicted. Three of the thousands of evacuees came to my house! Sarah, Terry, and the little busy-body Micah rode out Ike at the Qualley apartment. Where I thought it would be a slightly boring weekend, came a couple of days spent with some best friends and one funny little boy. :)

The funniest part of the time spent with the Dominos was what I like to call Dogs vs. Micah. Poor Micah had only recently encountered his first dog and from what Sarah said, it wasn't a great experience. I, very ignorantly, thought that my two dogs would immediately love Micah and vice versa. That's not really how it happened. The dogs met Micah and barked...a lot. I don't know if they were scared of him and his busy-body ways but it got to the point that I asked Grant's brother to take them for the night. Even if Micah was interested in Maggie & Tex, those two were making it very difficult to form a friendship.

This was how most of the first day went until it was time for the dogs to spend the night at Uncle Duke's.

The dogs would slowly approach Micah, he'd get nervous. He's scream, the dogs would get nervous.

Grant, thankfully, took it upon himself to make life between the dogs and Micah a peaceful one.

By the second night, Micah and the dogs were old pals. Maggie still kept her distance a little bit, but she'd stopped barking at him. And Micah quickly learned that the way to Maggie's heart was through her toys.

Micah really liked Maggie's little red cone toy. He'd wear it on his head like a little shriner and then throw it for one happy little girl.

Micah quickly became very comfortable with the pups. Even to the point of growling with them while playing. I think this picture is Micah's way of showing his great power over the dogs. (Maggie's in the act of running because he's just thrown another toy.)

Surrounded by his new pals. :) Maggie's even smiling!

By the end of the weekend, Micah was giving hugs to the dogs...well, mainly Tex. I'm glad they finally came to an understanding. But more than that, they gave us a few days full of entertainment.

Safety Fair Fiasco...

Tuesday night, our swim school joined several other organizations at Fern Bluff Elementary School for a Safety Fair. The entire night seemed a little nuts and I think my personal experiences more than proved it.

First off, I had to drive to the elementary school straight from work. I quickly printed up directions and crossed my fingers that I'd get to my destination without any "hitch". (Those of you who really know me know that my strengths do not lie in directions. In fact...I'm what you'd call directionally deficient.) Thankfully, the directions were great. The problem ended up being the toll-roads. As I saw the first signs that the toll was approaching, I began digging around in my purse for a few quarters. I couldn't get to them since they were at the bottom of my immensely giant purse. When I looked up, I realized that I'd passed the lane for cash only and was in the Toll Tag lane. I threw my purse back into the passenger seat, looked up at the camera on top of the Toll Tag sign, held up my hands, and made a face as if to say, "Does this look like a face who's trying to rip off the Texas State Government?" I've hoped upon hopes that I might get a bill for the $.75, as ridiculous as that sounds.

At the Safety Fair, there were around twenty booths set up for the students and families of that particular school. One booth, which I thought was odd, was serving smoothies. I couldn't figure out how tropical smoothies tied into safety for young children, but hey...free smoothies! I was eyeing the tasty treats all night as I worked at our own booth. At one point, a mom approached me and began asking questions about the swim school. She was juggling several pamphlets and other material from past booths when suddenly she dropped her smoothie cup. It fell to the ground and landed right-side up. The only catch is that the fall made the smoothie practically EXPLODE from the cup. ONTO ME. I actually let out something that sounded like "Oh my!", as I felt smoothie hit my face, hair, shirt, shorts, and flip flops. It was literally dripping from my eyes and nose. The mom was mortified but I couldn't help laughing. How can you seriously expect to get mad when there's smoothie in your HAIR? I tried to calm the mom and tell her that it really did seem quite funny, but by the time I came back with papertowels, she was nowhere in sight. At least one of us got a good laugh over it. That's not true, my boss and several co-workers also seemed to find it pretty funny.

The final straw in declaring the night a strange and wacky one was actually my own goof. At times, I can only describe myself as an idiot and this was one of those times. At our own booth, we had a kiddie pool filled with plastic balls. Underneath the balls were small prizes that the kids could take home. Cute idea, huh? You'd think so until you find yourself asking a little girl, "Do you want to hunt for a prize in my balls?". Hearing my co-workers snicker and watching them shake their heads in amazement definitely declared Safety Fair night as the most ridiculous night I've had in a long time.

Nike Human Race...

On Sunday August 31st, Nike hosted the first ever Nike Human Race. The basic idea was to have 25 cities all over the world join together and run a 10k. Grant thought the concept was a really cool one and got even more interested when he found out that Austin was one of the 25 cities involved. He'd been running in preparation for races later on down the line but decided that he wanted to be part of this world-wide race.

There were 15,000 people who participated in Austin's race alone. Downtown Austin was PACKED with runners all wearing the red running shirt that Nike provided for the race. In addition to the runners, there were tons of family and friends there as support. I went with Grant to the race solely as cheerleader. I did not run...seeing as how I really actually hate running and have a tendency to get what my dad calls "wooby" when it's too hot outside. Sunday was especially hot and I could tell poor Grant was a little nervous about this factor as the time got closer for him to run.

As Grant and I walked to Congress Avenue and came up to the starting/finish line, we could hear Aaron Pearsol, one of the U.S. Men's Olympic swimmers, being interviewed by the hosts of the event. I think I swooned a little bit and then came to in time to hear him talk about his experience and his pride in Austin and what the city was accomplishing with the run. The hosts also announced that Lance Armstrong and Matthew McConaughey were running the race. I might've blacked out a little at that point from sheer celebrity bliss, but then snapped back into my wifely duties of encouraging Grant, giving him a big hug, and sending him on his way to find his place at the starting line. As easy as that can possibly be with 15,000 runners. I'm telling you, between Grant running this race and me possibly seeing some A-listers, it was an exciting Sunday!

Before the race started, the hosts talked about how a portion of the race was being donated to the Lance Armstrong Foundating, an organization that fights cancer. It was so inspiring to hear about what they're doing to help and I'll admit, I might've shed a tear or two solely out of pride. For all the bad that goes on in this world, it's nice to hear about the ways that people are trying to help and make a difference. Especially in areas where I've lost some very close loved ones. For those who are working to make cancer a thing of the past, I am thankful.

Back to the race...it started at 6:30pm and the first runner to cross the finish line came in at 34 minutes! 6.2 miles in 34 minutes! Believe me, all of the on-lookers were more than impressed. (It took me closer to 45 minutes to run HALF of that at the Race for the Cure last year. That's just embarassing.)

I was VERY excitied for the sixth runner to cross the finish line. LANCE! I got to see him! It was a very cool moment for me to be able to see one of the best athletes in the world. Wow...still can't get over that one.

Followed very closely was THE Matthew McConaughey. I could barely see him through a crowd of photographers but I was able to snap a few myself. My sister called shortly after I saw him and she was dissapointed to hear that no...his shirt was still on. Poor Erin, no shirtless picture of Matthew. ;)

The absolute best moment of the night, however, was when I got the call from Grant saying, "I'm near the finish line!". (Yes, he'd taken his cell phone in his Camel Pak. Just a safe idea with 15,000 people. How would he find me otherwise?) The host was at the finish line reading off some of the runners' names as they came across the finish line (via microchip on their shoe) and I was so proud when I heard "Grant Qualley" across the loudspeaker. He did it! A 10k in the hottest part of August...in Texas. AMAZING! It was one of my proudest moments. And what was the first thing he said on the way home?

"I sure could use some dinner from Wendy's".