Hi!

Operation Tally Ho spent the last month in Allen, TX, which is just north of Dallas. On our drive from Austin to Dallas we had beautiful weather and saw all the gorgeous bluebonnets lining the road. We stopped at the Dr. Pepper Museum in Waco and had a Dr. Pepper made from syrup and soda water right in front of us. It was a great trip to Dallas.

However, as soon as we arrived at the southern point of Dallas the weather changed. The sky darkened and clouds literally rolled in. Checking the weather on our phones we saw that we were about to be assaulted by a terrible storm! They were warning about baseball sized hail, tornadoes, and really heavy wind!! I promptly posted to my FB about our “fine welcoming”. Since our roof is made of fiberglass and would not survive a hail storm we exited the highway and sought shelter under an overpass behind a strip-mall. Safe from the elements we waited… there never was any hail, but the wind and rain were a bit unbelievable. See video below.

Once the storm passes we made it safely up to Allen where we would spend the next month. That was not the end of the weather, unfortunately. On Easter Sunday, after finishing delicious ham dinner, we started up a game of Apples to Apples. Shortly in we heard the sirens. The men were outside studying the clouds while Kristin and the girls took shelter in her closet. Me? I had the dogs all in the guest bathroom since there wasn’t room in the closet for all of us. Oh, and CALI WAS FREAKING OUT!! There was another night when the winds were up to 60mph! We were laying in the RV just watching the trees around us WHIP back and forth like they weren’t even attached at the base. The next day fences lay in rambles and many trees were uprooted. We were fine though since we were tucked in the Tallals driveway (back of the house between their backyard fence and their neighbors fence).

It wasn’t all bad weather though. There were days when the weather was so amazing, you almost forgot you weren’t in SoCal anymore. It wasn’t too hot, there was a great breeze, and there were free refills on the daydreams!

Weather aside, Allen was a great stop for us. Let me introduce you to our friends The Tallals:

Trey is a hard working Dad. He coaches the girls in soccer and loves hot sake. We were lucky to get to celebrate his birthday with him while we were there. He is also a poker player and took Matt to OK a couple times to play some cards.

Kristin and I have been great friends since 2002 when I lived in TX. We met at work and quickly formed a really close friendship that has lasted over many years and many miles of seperation. Kristin juggles many tasks including: working, school projects, checking homework, coaching, and running the girls around to all the stuff they do! Kristin and I had a lot of fun getting ready for the Anderson Elem Talent Show, which she was in charge of with her friend Stacey. After a long day of paper mache’ing we would settle in for some CSI Miami with a grape Smirnoff Ice. I love spending time with her!

Skylar is their oldest daughter. I met her when she was 3, she was adorable then and she is adorable still today. She is a extraordinary cheerleader! She also plays soccer, takes voice lessons, dabbles with playing the guitar, dances, and is an aspiring actress. Everything she does, she gives 100% She is a joy to be around,even with her occasional ‘Tween attitude! Since I’m not the mom, I think it’s pretty cute! (Sorry Kristin!)

Lastly, but definitely not least we have Tatum. Tae is my Goddaughter and she and her little friends call me Tae’s Fairy God Mother. I don’t correct them. :) I couldn’t have asked for a better, sweeter, more lovely Goddaughter. I was then and continue to be honored that Kristin and Trey asked me to be her Godmother. Tae is 6 now and she is adorable and energetic. Like her big Sis, she also is taking voice lessons, and acting classes. She is an amazing soccer player and she’s about to be on Kristin’s new Cheer Squad. Oh, and this girl LOVES to play Apples to Apples.

All in all we spent 25 days in Allen with the Tallals. I feel so blessed to have had that time with them. We shared bedtimes, snowcones, trampoline jumping, guitar lessons, sing-a-longs, A LOT of Teen TV, some special occasions, and a lot of laughter and love. We sure do love them and look forward to the next time we get to be together. Maybe we’ll make it back when it’s not Tornado Season! ;)

Tally Ho!

xoxo

Breezy.