Our Family

Feta and Spinach Turkey Burgers

3/30/2010 | by Unknown

Some of you already have this recipe, but I made it again the other night and it is wonderful and so so simple. Enjoy, makes 4 large patties

• 1 egg, beaten
• 1 clove of garlic, minced
• 2 ounces feta cheese
• roughly 5 ounces frozen spinach (thawed and squeezed dry)
• a dash of paprika (adjust to your liking)
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1 lb of ground turkey

• Lightly oil a grill pan (or an outdoor grill)

• Mix together eggs, garlic, feta cheese, spinach, paprika, and turkey in a large bowl until well combined; add salt and pepper to taste.
• Form into 4 patties and cook on grill pan, on medium heat, until no longer pink in the center, about 15-20 minutes.

Product Review: Oxi Clean

3/29/2010 | by Unknown

Most of you probably already use this, but I have recently started using Oxi Clean as a staple clothes stain remover. AMAZING! When pulling Evey's clothes out of storage to send to others or the neutrals for Austin, I soak the clothes in a tub of this over night...wash them and no more stains. All the spit-up stains, spaghetti etc are all gone. Love it!!

New Stroller

3/29/2010 | by Unknown

Well we have taken the first step towards the all American family. The double long stroller. Both kids really enjoyed our walk on Sunday. Thank you Uncle Z and Aunt Brenda for the BRU gift card. Next step...the minivan.

Mark Austry

3/19/2010 | by Unknown

Mark Stanley Austry went home to meet his Lord on Sunday, March 14, 2010.
Celebration of life: 2 p.m. Friday at St. Ann's Catholic Church in Coppell. The celebration will continue at Lantana Country Club at 5 p.m.
Memorials: In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Edward Jones Memorial Fund for his daughters, Britt Harper, care of Edward Jones, 120 Southeast Ave. B, Seminole, Texas 79360.
Mark was a graduate of Arlington Heights High School and a dedicated member of the Yellow Jackets baseball team where he helped lead his teammates to the 1996 state baseball championship. He later attended and played baseball at Texas Tech University and afterward finished his baseball career with the Fort Worth Cats. He passionately took up golf and won the Lantana Golf Club Championship six years in a row and still holds the Lantana course record at 63. In recent years, Mark qualified for the British Amateur, the Mid-Amateur and the Public Links Championship.
No words can describe the extraordinary effect Mark had on the lives of his family and friends. He will be deeply missed and remain in their hearts forever. Mark Austry was a caring son, a devoted husband and compassionate brother, but most important to him, was his treasured role as "Papa."
Survivors: He leaves behind his heartbroken family, including loving wife, Mariana; two beautiful daughters Isabella, 3, and Anna, 13 months; his mother and father, Sharon and Jerry; his brothers, Brian and Michael; sister-in-law, Danielle; and scores of loving family members and friends.

Read more: http://www.star-telegram.com/2010/03/14/2039389/former-fort-worth-baseball-star.html

Mark was a really close friend of mine in high school. Mark and Mariana came to our wedding, which was the last time that I saw him. He was an amazing athlete...great at all sports. He could almost beat me in tennis :). He had the best sense of humor. He could make you laugh at the drop of a hat. His positive attitude was just contagious.

It has really been hard on me. I cannot stop thinking/praying for Mariana, their girls and his family. Some things that have slammed me in the face...1. God does not promise us tomorrow. Are you ready? Do you know Jesus, personally? Are you 100% sure you are going to heaven? Do you have a will? Would your kids have something tangible to see or read if you left early?
2. Never leave a conversation on a bad note. Never let spouse walk out the door if in a disagreement.
3. Say it!! Tell friends and family what they mean to you so they know without a doubt.

Mark, you will be dearly missed.

Austin 3 Months

3/11/2010 | by Unknown

Austin is doing really well. He still eats a ton. Some nights he will sleep all night, some nights he wakes up once. He is cooing and talking lots to us. He is so strong and very active. He actually enjoys tummy time for much longer than Evey did. He is still Mr. Smiley. I love how he lights up when you talk to him...his smile just melts you.

What a cute guy in a baseball uniform

Hey Ladies, wink wink

Mind you, these shades are too small for his large head

We love bath time at our house

Oh my, I could just eat him alive.

Look I can bounce my own bouncy chair

Ice Fishing at Lake Simcoe

2/21/2010 | by JP

I just returned from a few day trip up north in Canada to go ice fishing. My neighbor invited me along on a trip with his brothers and step-dad that they take on regular occasion. It was a lot of fun and I will try and explain how it works with the pictures.

First, you have to get out on the ice. Here is Mark, my neighbor's brother, me

(middle) and my neighbor, John, in front of one of the bombadiers.

These are tracked vehicles with two ski type things up front for

steering. They are pretty minimal vehicles designed only for the one purpose.

Here are the guys from the other hut. John's step brothers and step-dad, Art.

The huts are lined up on the ice, about 50 yards apart.

This helps to show the size of the huts. We had 3 guys to each hut, but

could probably have fit 4. Some of the huts are a little bigger than this

too. You can see on the ground that you don't need a cooler for your beverages.

You can only really stand up in the middle.

I'm holding the fish cam in my hand and you can see one of two of the holes

in the ice and bottom of the hut that you fish through.

Once you are inside, the door is shut and the windows covered,

this is the view on the ground. It's actually one big hole cut in the ice,

but 2 holes cut in the hut.

This shows the setup a little bit. You have a propane fed heater in the middle,

the fish cam on a shelf above that, benches on the right and left, minnows

in the middle and the fish holes in the middle.

Here's the view on the fish cam. It's actually pretty cool. You can see your

bait/lure, what the fish is doing with it, and when the right time is

to try and set the hook. It was like fishing in an aquarium.

We weren't exactly catching monsters on this trip.

We actually barely made it over keeper status and kept

mainly what we thought we could get some meat off of.

It can be a long day on the ice, especially working on

2 hours of sleep and lots of driving.

One of the brothers has been ragged on by the group for dropping

a pair of pliers down the hole like 35+ years ago. He happen to live

up to his reputation by dropping his filet knife down the hole this time.

The other brothers couldn't have been happier.

Here's the whole group sitting down ready to play

some cards. A very tired bunch we are, all working on

little sleep, of which I took full advantage of during the game.

Here's our catch for 2 days of fishing. It's pretty disappointing

considering the limit is 25 a day per guy. We didn't

have any real big ones to show for our effort either.

All that's left is to cut them up...

...and eat them.

Aquarium

2/16/2010 | by Unknown

Monday we had the day off so we drove into DC to try out the National Aquarium. It is not that great, I would not recommend it. So many other fun things to do in DC for free. But it was warm inside and we really needed to get out of the house. Plus I think Evey really enjoyed it and learned something too.

Poisonous frog, he looks hand painted, beautiful. God is so creative.

American alligator...this was the best exhibit/tank
You can see it from the top and side. They are very curious so they swim
to the side to see the kids looking in.

Happy Valentines

2/16/2010 | by Unknown

We had a great day. James and I both volunteered in the nursery at church, which was a fun change. Normally, we don't celebrate this silly commercial holiday, but it is different now with kids. I wanted to get them a little something and James too. So we all exchanged little gifts.

My sweet Valentines

Is this the cutest dress ever, thanks Greenley!
Lala wasn't here to iron it...oops

Austin 2 Months

2/15/2010 | by Unknown

Austin is amazing. He has the cutest little mouth. He is so smiley...more than I remember Evey smiling. So far he has a great temperament. He enjoys tummy time much more than big sis did. And he talks a lot. He was watching Evey and Daddy rough house and he was mimicking Evey yelling. He got really excited. He LOVES Evey. He lights up when she is around and just watches her every move. She loves him as well. She is wonderful around him. Tries to get his passie (which he is not interested in anymore, yay) and tells him it is okay when he cries. She is my little big helper. And last night he totally slept all night. I woke up at 6am and wanted to burst into song..."A whole new world" (from Aladdin). He is just so sweet. He is also my big boy. Here are his stats.

Height: 23" 47%
Weight: 13lbs 8 oz 84%
Head Circ: 16"

Every night the 3 of us get in the nice new shower
downstairs. We all love it. It is all Austin can do to
stay awake. He falls asleep almost every night.