Bachelorette Party!

Christine is getting married in THREE weeks so it was time to give her a little last minute fun with the girls.  Carolyn flew down for the event and had a fun evening planned.  We started at Christine's new home with games and gifts, went out for Italian food at Vincent's, and ended with a few hours at the dueling piano bar - Howl at the Moon.  It was a really fun evening and we were glad to get some quality time with the bride before the big day.

Bride to be!

Neal is the only guy I've ever known that was

allowed at a Bachelorette party.  Actually, he's

minus a hat but was our chauffeur for the evening.

He drove us around town in a 12-passenger van

that was filled with smokin' girls.  It was a tough

job but someone had to do it.  :-)

Howl at the Moon

Havin' a wild time

Easter Sunday

Easter at the Slevens! The day started out dark, cloudy, and pouring rain but by noon, everything had passed, the sky cleared up, the sun came out, and it turned out to be a beautiful day.

Easter baskets for our hosts

Deviled eggs from our dyed masterpieces

Sam and her friend joined us for a bit

Enjoying the day, taking a walk around the neighborhood

On our walk, we spotted a turtle trying to find food

in this mucky water, and decided to move him

somewhere he might like a little better.

Poor little guy may have been a bit upset with us

for moving him, but we're pretty sure he liked

his new home much more.

There he goes!

Colored Eggs!

The day before Easter we decided to do something we hadn't done in years - dye some eggs! It was so much fun and made us feel like kids again. We even had an "artistic egg" contest, which we each thought we deserved to win, but all in all, every egg was a winner. :-)

The experts preparing the dye

Home Made Sushi

For fun this weekend we decided to try making some home made sushi. We had some fresh vegetables, some of the stickiest rice we've ever come in contact with, some seaweed paper, and best of all, fish that wasn't raw but cooked. For first-timers, we did pretty well and our rolls were delicious! The boys had fun adding some serious spice to their rolls, and the experience brought tears to their eyes. :-)

"Riceman"

A Good Wife

For as long as I can remember, I have always ordered my eggs the same way - scrambled.  It wasn't until I met Neal that I "saw the light" on how delicious other forms of eggs can be.  He is very particular about his eggs, and most of the time orders them poached hard (which I have also come to enjoy as well, especially with Eggs Benedict).  Ordering poached hard eggs at a restaurant can be somewhat of a challenge, as it's a 50/50 shot that they'll actually come out hard.  This has become somewhat of a running joke with our friends, Mike and Lisa, who say they've never seen anyone have so much trouble ordering eggs.

This morning as Neal and I were making breakfast after church, he asked me how I wanted my eggs.  My standard lately has been either poached or hard boiled and today I opted for hard boiled.  For fun, we got out Neal's trusty Betty Crocker cookbook (which was published in 1973) and read about the different ways to cook an egg.  The introduction to the section entitled, "Basic Eggs"  has given me new insight on what it means to be a good wife.  Here is what it says:

"The man you marry will know the way he likes his eggs.  And chances are he'll be fussy about them.  So it behooves a good wife to know how to make an egg behave in six basic ways.  And here they are, with helpful hints." 

Did you ever imagine that the secret to being the perfect wife was to learn all the ways to make an egg?!!

Family Visit!

My parents hadn't been out to Texas in a while, so they decided to come for a spring visit.  It was so nice to have them "home" with us!

Their first night in town, we had Mike and Lisa over for dinner.

It was a fun evening of story telling and laughs.

Our table all decorated with food and ready to share a meal

For the weekend we took my parents to what we consider

the most beautiful part of Texas - the "hill country" of Austin.

On the way we stopped off along highway 290 to see the

spectacular show of natural beauty that occurs in Texas for

just a few short weeks each year - the blooming of the state

flower, the Bluebonnet.

Also on the way, we surprised my parents by stopping

in Brenham, the "ice cream capital of Texas" and the home

of our very own Blue Bell ice cream factory.  Dad was

especially thrilled with this detour, as ice cream IS

a Stallcop family tradition.

Due to the crowds of spring break, we didn't get to tour the

factory like we had planned but we did get to walk the campus,

watch a video on the ice cream making process, and best

of all, sample some of their delicious product.

After arriving in Austin we headed straight to The Oasis,

a restaurant overlooking Lake Travis that is known as the

best sunset viewing spot in the area.  We got there just in time

to enjoy the view in the daylight and then watch the sun

set over the water.

About two minutes after we finally got our table, they

rang the bell for the official sunset.  We made it!

The next day we explored the area, driving through 

Lakeway and touring some of the local neighborhoods for fun.  

Here we are at the Iguana Grill, another tasty restaurant

overlooking Lake Travis.

Back in town, a view of the Colorado River running through

the heart of the city

Going right along with their slogan "Keep Austin Weird,"

Austin boasts some unique sight seeing opportunities.

One of the most popular is the exodus of bats at dusk from

underneath Congress Bridge that can be seen during the

spring, summer, and fall, where literally thousands of bats

make their way up to the sky every night for their daily

feeding.  It is truly a one-of-a-kind experience to watch.

If you click on these photos to enlarge them, you can read

all about the bat population in Austin.  They're actually

quite a misunderstood animal that benefits us more than

we might even realize.

Right on time, the bat show begins

Downtown Austin at night

On our last day we started off by visiting another popular

Austin tourist site - the Whole Foods national headquarters.

To the average person, a Whole Foods market that is double

the size of any other which includes an escalator for you and

your shopping cart to the garage below would not be a big

deal.  But to natural food enthusiasts like my parents, this

place is like Disneyland!

To finish off our Austin experience, we found some gorgeous

multi-million dollar homes along Lake Austin and toured

them for fun.  People who live in these homes have the choice

of commuting 45 minutes to work in the car, or 20 minutes

by boat just down the water from their house.  It would

be nice to say that the best part of your day is your commute

to work!  

It was such a fun weekend with my folks and definitely a struggle to return to Houston after being in hill country for a few days.  Until the next time....we'll be dreaming of lakes, hills, and lush green landscape.