I mean c'mon...

I know I am biased but somehow I think most people will still agree with me... we have the CUTEST group of children ever assembled in one wedding!! 

It is going to be so fun seeing all of them dressed up and I am sure they will keep us guessing about what they will do as they walk down the aisle. People may forget to look at the woman in the white dress following them!!

I mean c'mon... look at these faces!!!

TROY

IRINA

DYLAN

The Little D in Big D...

On Sunday, we hit the road for our second road trip of the weekend. This one was a bit farther away- "The Big D"... Dallas. My good friend Kara who lives in Boston was going to be in her hometown of Dallas for the holidays. I try to get up to Boston once a year to see them but its just not enough. So, we couldn't pass up a chance to see Kara, her husband Mike and her parents Suzanne and Ron. Also coming along for the trip was the Little D... Dylan!

We arrived in time for lunch and enjoyed a yummy Italian meal. We caught up on all the happenings and they caught up on our wedding plans. We chit-chatted as Mike and Kara took turns eating and tag-teaming the ever-mobile Dylan. 

Dylan and his Grandpa, Ron

Little did Mike and Kara know, but Brad and I had a hidden agenda for our visit. All the members of our wedding party have been chosen and are on board except for one key player. So, I gave Kara a card I had made for Dylan so they could read it together. 

The card said...

That's right! Dylan was to be our Ringbearer! They cheerfully accepted and then we all started talking about how cute Dylan was going to be in his little suit! Also, we laughed about how at just under 2 years old, he will be fun to watch and definitely keep us guessing as he goes down the aisle. It is going to be fun!!

After lunch, we walked down to a nearby elementary school to let Dylan burn off some energy at the playground. We had a good time visiting while Dylan, Mike and Kara's Dad, Ron ran around. 

Kara, me & Brad

On the See-Saw with Grandpa!

Dylan, Ron and Mike

 

Kara, Dylan & Mike

When all the playground equipment had been thoroughly played on and all the adults had swung all they could, we headed back to the house for more visiting. Around 6PM, Brad and I gathered up and hit the road towards home.

I feel like they are family to me, so going to Ron and Suzanne's house feels a bit like going home. It was a quick trip and Brad was a trooper to do all the driving. The trip was too short but when you live thousands of miles from one another, a 400 mile day trip is worth it. Plus, not only did we get to see good friends, but we secured the cutest Ringbearer EVER!!

A Very Becker Christmas...

Christmas came early this year! Well, at least it did in Boerne. Since we will be in Mississippi with my family for Christmas, we celebrated with Brad's family this past weekend. We loaded up the dogs and headed to Boerne and headed to his parents' house. 

After getting the dogs situated (aka free to run in the country), we drove into San Antonio to Outback Steakhouse and met up with Brad's brother Doug, his wife, Gina and their daughter Irina. We enjoyed great family time and wonderful food. Irina even sat next to me and sang me a few Christmas songs!

L to R: Dorothy, me, Larry, Brad, Irina, Gina and Doug

After dinner we all headed to Brad's parents' house for presents. Irina reminded me of so many of the stories I have heard about me as a child. Since I was an only child and the only grandchild until I was 10, it was always my job to pass out the presents. Just as I had done at her age, she walked around to see what everyone else received and helped them open their boxes. (Somehow, even though I am 35, it is still my job with my family to pass out the gifts!! I guess that is something I will continue until I can pass it on to my kids!)

As we were doing the presents, I glanced over and noticed that the gift we had for brought for Brad's Mom was missing. It was small jewelry box so it could easily have been misplaced. The gift opening stopped and the search for the box began. We pulled out every single couch cushion, looked under every piece of furniture, checked under every pillow, went into close by rooms and even sifted through wrapping paper from previously opened gifts. All of these things were done at least 3 times by each of us!!! Nothing. It was so strange. We had all remembered seeing it at one point during the evening but now it was nowhere in sight. We decided to open the rest of the gifts and then continue our search. Finally, after about an hour, it was found in the room next to us. Each of us had been in there to look and no one had seen it. Brad's Dad was the one that finally found it... we still have no idea how it got in there!!

After all of the gifts had been opened and the earrings for Brad's Mom had been located, we visited for a bit and then said our goodbyes. We even said goodbye to the dogs. They would be staying in Boerne since we will be gone for Christmas. Our car felt so empty without them in the backseat... I missed them.

We would have stayed the night but we had to be up early the next morning for the next road trip of the weekend. We were headed to Dallas!

All Aboard!!!

Last weekend, Brad and I did something that I have always wanted to do!! We took a trip on the Hill Country Flyer. This is a steam train that runs from Cedar Park out to the Hill Country. All of the cars are original and some of them are from as far back as the 1930's.

Our car was hosted by a funny man. He is a career railroad man and still works on the railroad in Minnesota during the non-winter months. He volunteers with Austin Steam Train during the winter months. He stuttered a lot and was kind of random with his streams of conversations... but he was very sweet.

I totally forgot to take a picture of the actual train and I am sad about that! We got some fun shots in between the cars though.

It was just over 2 hours to our destination, Burnet. We enjoyed the scenery and ate snacks. They entertained us with short talks about the history of the train cars and even staged a "train robbery"!! They did actually take our money but we were told it was being donated to a local children's charity! Carolers would even walk through occasionally.

If you look VERY closely on the left side, you can see the front of the train.

Once we arrived at Burnet, we headed to the main attraction- Main Street Bethlehem. This is done annually by the First Baptist Church and it has become quite an event. The doors opened at 6PM but the line began forming at 4PM!! By the time we had gotten off the train and grabbed a sandwich, it was 4:30 so we were quite far back by the time we took our place in line.

See the Star of Bethlehem over the "city" in the distance?

Many people make this an annual events with their families. As we chatted with those in line around us we heard stories of years when it was FAR colder than this year. More miserable weather with rain, sleet, etc. They never close down the event and the line is just as long on those days. Some people wait 2 hours!!

This is an amazing recreation of the city of Bethlehem the night Jesus was born. All of the people are in full costume and never break character. They each have a specific role in Bethlehem and there isn't a single detail overlooked. Even the quiet side conversations by the characters are about the town and the amazing thing happening near the Inn. You could feel the excitement and the "talk" about the Savior that was born that night.

Your chariot awaits!!

As you stroll through the town, there are merchants "selling" their goods, children playing, intimidating Roman Guards walking around and citizens lined up to pay their taxes. You were able to walk in and out of people's homes and they would have conversations with you about their families and how they made their living. Many times you would hear people say things like, "Did you hear about the baby?" It was very cool.

Citizens lining up to pay their taxes.

You could roam around and see all the sights of Bethlehem. No matter where you were, you could see the star.

This kind of reminded me of standing next to the British soldier outside Buckingham Palace.

 
After seeing all the sights and winding around, you make your way to the manger and could see Mary, Joseph and Baby Jesus. It is much quieter in this area.. the hustle and bustle of busy Bethlehem is left behind in reverence of the amazing birth that had happened.

I have to admit, I was very moved. I know they are just people portraying a part but it felt really awesome to feel like you were really there. As you left the city, there were signs with Bible verses that talked about the life Jesus would lead and the difference he would make. The final sign was this...

After making our way through, we were greeted by free hot cocoa!! We had some time to spare before the train left and we were hungry for dinner. We walked over to HEB and loaded up on Lunchables and snacks for the ride home. The ride home was much quieter and darker. We got home at about 10:30 exhausted but having thoroughly enjoyed ourselves. The train does rides during wildflower season and they do murder mystery dinners, so I doubt this will be the last time I travel those tracks!

Holiday Party...

Last weekend my company had a wonderful Holiday Party at the Renaissance Hotel. It was a fun night to hang out with my co-workers and introduce them to Brad.

Yes, he threatened to pick my nose.

The party was a casino night with yummy food and drinks. Neither Brad or I are gamblers so we placed our chips randomly on the Craps and Roulette tables and just let them ride. Needless to say, our gambling night was short lived! 

However, the other entertainment was a photo booth. That provided a lot of fun for us and my co-workers...

In the last picture, Brad decided to scare me... thus the funny expression.

On the left, my manager, Sonnie. On the right, my co-worker, Melinda. Yes, I am wearing a football on my head.

Brad and I pimpin'...