The Trimmier Life

Being around the Stanchaks (my best friend’s family), has got to be some the most entertaining, out-of-the-ordinary,  fulfilling, fun times in my life.  As background, Patrick & Mary (Merick’s parents) have 5 kids (4 girls, 1 boy) and although it’s rare that I am around all 7 of them, it does occasionally happen.  One such occurrence was a few weekends ago when I visited Houston for Merick & Chad’s ‘stock the bar’ shower thrown by Chad’s parents.  All of ‘us’ (the 7 Stanchaks, me, my friend Vera, Merick’s brother-in-law Kurt, Rylie (Merick’s lab), Wyatt and Lyla (Rylie’s puppies)) all shacked up at Merick & Chad’s house and boy was it fun!  This family is like the Brady Bunch, only cooler (and I say that as a compliment, of course).  Their caring nature along with their sarcastic wit make times with them very enjoyable.  And now, I’m ‘un’-officially one of them (Whitney, you probably unknowingly said this, but I’m gonna jump on it!)…while picking rooms, beds and air mattresses for the sleepover, I offered one of the beds to Merick’s sisters and said they should get the real beds because they were Merick’s family – to which Whitney (the youngest sister) quickly quipped “you’re family too”.  Now, that’s a compliment!  And might I add, “damn, it feels good to be a Stanchak!”.  Haha – ok, ok, enough with the corny rap references!

The shower was stunning, the food more than delicious, the company contagious and the evening just damn near perfect (only wish Dustin would have been able to join in on the party!).  And the only good part of seeing it end was knowing that it brought us one day closer to Merick & Chad’s wedding!

Pics from the shower & all the awesome decorations plus 2 of Merick & Chad's engagement pictures (so cute!)

It couldn’t have been a more perfect night.  Set against the pitch black sky with the great big Texas country stars shining bright in a back yard fit for a king, Anne & Justin and their closest friends and family celebrated their marriage in true Texan style.  It was so fun to be a part of this couples big night.  Although not-traditional, the reception was beautifully orchestrated and represented the true love these 2 people share.  It was great to see old friends, make new ones and bless the “bride & groom” as they embark on one of the best adventures of their lives!

Anne & Justin during their first dance

The Chi Omega girls at the reception - Bottom: BOOTS - Mary, Amy & Dana

Anne & Justin – thanks for letting us be a part of this wonderful party.  We love you and know that you will meet each challenge in your future with enthusiasm.  Good luck in your new life together!

Click here to see all the pictures from the night.

What an AWESOME weekend!  Not only did I get to spend a very nice, relaxing summer weekend in the sun with some of the most awesome girls I know, but we all got to celebrate one of the best friends a girl could ask for…Mrs. Anne Sullivan!   Although Anne’s wedding plans changed and she’s actually now a married woman, we went through with our bachelorette party plans and took the time to celebrate the Mrs. in style.  The weekend started with an catered dinner of fajitas on Friday night followed by presents and catching up.  Saturday was filled with sun and ended with a very entertaining Spazmatics concert at Whitewater Amphitheater.  It was a much anticipated weekend that fully met our expectations!  CONGRATS Anne – we love you!

Clockwise from top left: View of the Guadalupe River from our cabin - Our Group - River from our lounging spot - Maureen & Taylor chillin' in the tree

Anne's Bachelorette Antics

To see all the <edited> pics from the weekend, click here.

A few weekends ago blue skies, high winds, and some of our best friends gave us an adventure that we won’t soon forget!  Early one Sunday morning Jess, Rick, Dustin, and I jumped in the car and headed to Corpus for a fun-filled day of sailing on Jess & Rick’s sailboat, Pearl.  Dustin and I were very excited about learning more about sailing and the Underbrink’s  were excited to teach us this hobby.  Once in Corpus at the downtown marina, we helped get the boat ready – opening all the windows in the cabin, unbuckling the latches on the sails, tying ropes (or at least trying to with Rick’s help) in the right spots.  And then we were ready.  The wind was quickly taken out of our sails though because when Rick turned on the motor, there was a loud alarm going off – luckily Rick knew what the problem was and after whipping into mechanic mode for a few minutes, we were back up and running.  But before heading to the high seas we needed a break.  We took a few minutes to eat our packed lunch and then we were ready to roll with the waves.  Things went smoothly as we backed out of the boat slip…no alarm…but as soon as Rick turned the boat and put it into gear we started getting whipped by the wind…and the motor wasn’t giving us any propulsion in the right direction!  This time around we had too much wind and no sails (and no motor for that matter!).  It only took a matter of 30 seconds before we all knew that we were NOT going to get any help from the motor and we were headed right for the rock embankment a mere 50 yards away.  Jess went into panic mode and Dustin and I went into “just tell us what we can do to help” mode.  Luckily, Rick went into “I’m gonna tell you what to do” mode and the rest of us listened.  Just as we were being ferociously blown past the last boat dock before the embankment, Rick & Dustin were able to reach out from the hull just enough to grab it.  Because we couldn’t pull into the slip, the guys worked together to whip the boat around so that it was sitting parallel to the dock.  Now what??  Well, calling a towboat would have taken hours and cost hundreds of dollars…and why do that when we could literally still see Pearl’s floating home?  Then, Rick had an idea…tie every rope on the boat together, swim back to Pearl’s slip and then pull the boat back over…so that’s what we did.   Sounds crazy and truthfully, it was, but it worked.  After looping and tying and securing Rick jumped into the Gulf of Mexico and swam back to the boat dock where our day had started.  After getting there, we tied the rope to the front of Pearl and Rick used his brute strength to pull us ‘home’.  You might be thinking “WOW” what a day – and that’s exactly how we felt – what an exciting, fun, laughable, crusade.  It was all of that and more and although we didn’t technically “sail” we had a ton of fun “sailing” with Jess & Rick.  One of the best things about it was that since we had gotten there so early, we still had the entire afternoon to play in Corpus.  We visited the Texas State Aquarium and ate scrumptious seafood before hitting the road to come back to SA.

Dustin & I with Pearl - Dustin & I in front of the TX State Aquarium - Rick working on Pearl

Thanks for an awesome day, Jess & Rick – we can’t wait to go visit Pearl again!

**I hope to get more pics of the whole day from Rick soon!

And that we did.  We’ve been putting a lot of effort into our goal of being in the sun as much as possible this summer (at least that’s my goal since I’m stuck inside so much! ), and a few weekends ago we were lucky enough to share the big blue skies and sun with our friends Matt & Chris (the ones from Austin).  We all convened in New Braunfels for a float down the Comal River.  The river was packed, but proved to be perfect…temperature was nice (not too cold), and even with its slow flow it gave us an awesome 3 hour trip!

Me & Dustin

Chris & Matt

I know I’ve said it before, but we just don’t get to see these 2 enough and we cherish each of our visits!  Matt & Chris – thanks for being such great friends…we look forward to many more adventures with you both in the future!  To see all of our Comal River pictures, click here.

What a wonderul weekend I had with some of the funnest and funniest girls a few weeks ago.  My sorority, Chi Omega, had a small reunion river float on the Guadalupe River and I am so glad I got to attend.  Not only did I get to reconnect with some old pals, but I made new ones as well.  The river was packed and provided the perfect backdrop for a boisterous time.  Caty, Maureen, Jessica and I decided to get a raft for the float (having had a few bad experiences with Guadalupe rapids in the past) and it proved to be the best decision we have made all year — we were even able to rescue a fellow ChiO from the raging waters after she got bopped out of her tube!

ChiO. ChiO. ONLY WAY TO GO – HEY -aaaaaaaahhhhhh-1.2.3. GO CHI-O! WHEW!

All the pics from our trip are online here.

While celebrating our freedoms this Fourth of July, we expressed our freedom to play while visiting with friends at a small backyard pool party.  Barbara & Justin were gracious enough to open their home and their pool to us – they also fed us delicious gourmet snacks throughout the day.  Maureen joined in on the party and Cinko showed us all how to be a true party-animal!  It was a great day filled with sunshine, friends, food, and nice cold beverages…and the awesome evening was filled with more of the same while watching magnificent fireworks.

Top: My handsome husband - Barbara & Me - Mo, sitting pretty on her pool float. Bottom: Dustin & Cinko and Justin, our grillmaster for the day

Pretty Girls!

Relaxin'

Pretty explosions! (A few photos courtesy of Blackstone Studio...www.blackstonestudio.com)

All of our July 4th photos can be seen here.

My friend Vera and I had the absolute privilege of hosting a bridal shower for our dear friend Merick on June 27th.  Merick, Vera and I were college roommates for 3 years and then Merick and I shared a house in San Antonio for another 2 years after college.  We’ve been through the best of times and the worst of times with each other, and lately it just seems that the best has come and stayed…and we aren’t complaining!

The Lighthouse Cafe in Olmos Park played backdrop to the pink polka-dotted themed shower where guests ate, drank and completed a little craft.  Our great florist friend, Mary, provided the stunning flowers to match the pink theme and once Vera and I set everything up we had transformed the shower space into a striking damask centerpiece for the days activities.

The awesome flowers

The back room at the Lighthouse Cafe in Olmos Park, after Vera & I did our decorating magic!

The cake (strawberry with cream cheese filling), with its large fondant bow, drew party-goers in the right direction as they entered the room, allowing for everyone to sign the guest book and drop their gifts before mingling.

I LOVED this cake!

Seriously, LOVED it!

Cake/Sign-in/Gift table

Vera had the cutest idea of having each of the gusts make 2 wine charms…1 for themselves and 1 for the blushing bride.  If you know Merick, you know her and Chad (her fiance) are quite the wine connoisseurs, so the charms will definitely get used!  While we munched on spinach artichoke dip, finger sandwiches, caprese salad and sangria, everyone had a ball designing and wiring their favors.  Before the afternoon was over Merick’s wineglass was toppled with cute little trinkets for her to take home and reuse.

Merick's Granmother & Mom fast at work - The gang making their wine charms - Vera's Mom & My Mom diligently working on their charms

Merick's first charm that Vera made...it was an engagement ring - Merick's glass collecting charms

Merick, Becca & Anne taking a break from charm making

All of Merick's wine charms made by her shower guests

Merick certainly got some nice swag and family and friends alike truly enjoyed celebrating with her and visiting with one another.

Merick having fun opening her gifts

Merick with Chad's mom Lorraine and his Grandma

Merick with her beautiful Mom, Grandma & sisters

Merick with her wonderful shower hosts - haha - me & Vera

All the shower guests

Go Chi-O!

Merick, you know that you are one of my dearest friends and I am so happy for you & Chad.  I miss having you in San Antonio so much (I’m tearing up as I write this because I msis you soooo much!), but I am happy that you are starting your new life with the man you love!  Thank you for allowing me to be a part of your lives and your special day.  And not to stress you out, but let the countdown begin, as October 24th will be here before we know it!

To see all of the pictures from the shower, click here.

We wandered up to Austin the weekend of June 13th to help celebrate Matthew’s 30th birthday party…Matt is a good friend of Dustin’s from college…he was in our wedding.  Not only did we get to experience Salt Lick for the very first time, but we got to hang out with some amazing friends (Matt & his girlfriend Chris).  We don’t get to see them that often, so it made it all the more fun.  Unfortunately, I didn’t last long and ended up crashing after dinner (I ran a 10K that morning and then stuffed myself so full of delicious BBQ I couldn’t keep my eyes open!), so I didn’t get many pictures   But I plan to make up for that when we meet this awesome couple to go toobing down the Guadalupe this weekend!

Dustin & Matt @ Salt Lick - great food, awesome live music, and even better friends!

Cheers to our 30th birthday mate Matthew (Matt played rugby in Australia for a while and picked up some of the lingo ),  you’re a big boy now!!  We love you and had fun visiting and seeing your lovely new home!