Chef Nico in action

Nico has really upped his interest in helping out in the kitchen! He contributed to just about every step in making gnocchi tonight for dinner. I'm so proud of him. He couldn't get any cuter.

ACL Festival

We made it a 3rd year in a row to ACL Festival! Still one of my favorite Austin events. We only went on Friday this year, but we got to see a handful of really good bands and spent plenty of time in the VIP Grove area.

This year was definitely a different experience for me, since just a few hours prior to leaving for ACL, I decided to take a pregnancy test...

 

I just had a feeling that I might be pregnant, and I couldn't bear the thought of binge drinking my way through the day with that question in the back of my mind! It definitely made for a different experience being one of the few sober ones allllll day long at this festival, but I would rather have this hopeful news any day!

 

Because ACL Festival is a prime experience for Frank to show up, there was no way that we could keep this secret from my parents. The second I would have declined a beer, the news would be out. (Pretty sad to say, maybe?!), so we told my parents that morning. Nothing planned or special. I just blurted out something like "...so I had a positive pregnancy test this morning..." Their reactions were kind of funny in that they didn't really know what to say or how to react. It is obviously very, very early in this process, and given our history, it's sort of a touchy subject to get too emotionally invested in early on! I believe my dad referenced wanting to put me in a bubble now.

David and I spent a majority of our morning and early afternoon in the Grove, as we couldn't walk away from our beloved Rangers. Or free food, drinks, seating, and shade.

I did venture out eventually to see Leon Bridges and was glad that I did!

The nighttime lineup was right up our alley with Gary Clark Jr and Foo Fighters!

I have a been a little bit of a Foo Fighters fan, but their show tonight really made me like them (I saw them, but really referring to just David Grohl!) even more! Such high energy and plenty of songs through the years that I didn't realize I knew.

Until next year (or maybe a few more years again), ACL!

Be still my heart

Our bedtime routine has faded a little, and there are no longer 84 things to accomplish. Nights now consist of simply reading a book and laying down to talk. One night a week, he gets to have a special sleepover in mommy's room while daddy is away at hockey.

I always make sure that I ask him every night about the best part of his day. Tonight's priceless dialogue was one worth remembering.

Me: So what was the best part of your day today?

Nico: Umm.... playing with you... and loving you... <long pause> ... oh, and you're pretty.

He has a such a big heart. Another one of his lines every now and then is, "You're the best mommy in the whole wide world." Those are definitely words worth remembering any time you need a little pick me up! How fortunate am I?

Fredericksburg Oktoberfest

Fredericksburg Oktoberfest is a fun celebration worth putting on the calendar every year! We went with one of David's hockey friends and his wife to show them a good time!

We stopped at our favorite winery out that way, Hilmy Cellars, since Lacy is a wine fan. Nico loves the two dogs there and stays well entertained. He even made their facebook page!

 

In lieu of lunch, he somehow convinced us to let him have a giant cookie AND ice cream. 

 

We sat for a while at that table, since it was adjacent to one of the main beer tents with music and dancing. Then, we headed over to the kid section to occupy him with various games and bounce houses. It's always a good way to break up the day, since he can only sit and people watch or listen to music for so long!

All I wanted was one family photo...

We all loved the performances with dancing and music! They put on quite the show, so we parked it here for a good hour to watch! I think this was my favorite part! Nico danced to the polka music, did the chicken dance, and thought the "Ein Prosit" song was pretty cool (since he always likes to do CHEERS and PROSIT when we go out to eat!)

He was dressed appropriately for the festival in his Bayern Munchen soccer jersey!!

Surprise date night: Alabama Shakes taping

I pulled out the big guns and surprised David with a big time date night tonight! With my parents out of town, my dad offered up the Alabama Shakes taping tickets! I was bound and determined to use them, even if it meant using a <gasp> babysitter. Call me overprotective, but I have shied away from using any babysitter here in Austin other than my parents. I guess it's not completely that I have avoided it, but we just haven't had the opportunity come up where we needed to. I asked the neighbor boys to help, knowing it was a safe bet with their parents next door. Nico was thrilled and didn't even want to stop playing with them to kiss us goodbye! (No more worrying for me!)

A few hours before they were to arrive, I told David to get dressed, because we had dinner plans. Then, I ended up telling him about the concert once we were in the car. It was too much of a struggle to continue to keep the secret all the way through dinner.

We went to a new restaurant, Second Bar + Kitchen, which had been on my list for a while to try. It was an awesome night, as we both love Alabama Shakes too! They didn't disappoint!

Soccer season has begun!

We signed Nico up for his first organized sport season this fall! Such a milestone in the Biagini household. Games are on Saturday mornings through early November, and he will be assigned to a team through the YMCA.

As we would have only hoped for as competitive, sport loving parents, Nico has gone all out with his excitement over this new venture. Immediately after signing up a few weeks ago, he went to pick out a soccer ball, cleats, socks, and shin guards a few weeks ago. He then gathered all of his European soccer jerseys.

He has asked to practice every day and sometimes multiple times a day... in full attire. I love this kid.

When asked to show me his gameface...

In just a few weeks of practicing with him, I've seen that he already has an understanding of hard work and practice. He literally has asked me if we can go practice "so that he can be a better soccer player!" Music to my ears. Now let's just hope that, at age 4, he can learn to have FUN and not be overly competitive, right?!

He was so cute in his first game this week. When he got there, he wanted to know where the tunnel was for him to run out of. Ha! He even was given jersey #23. What a coincidence.

Post-goal celebration! He was so pumped.

 

Here's to many more days of being proud parents on the sidelines.

 

 

Michigan girls trip with my mom!

My mom and I have been saying for a few years that we need to start an annual girls' trip tradition. For what we can consider our first annual trip, I tagged along with my mom to go lake house shopping in Michigan!

We left Austin on Wednesday morning and had to connect in Chicago. We didn't know what we should do for the 2 hour layover, so we figured the obvious choice was to get a beer!

We got into Traverse City that night around dinner time, and I couldn't believe how tiny and empty the airport was. The people on our plane were literally the only ones there! We had a nice, scenic drive around the lakes that took us up to our bed and breakfast in Bellaire. We were pumped.

 

The B&B was awesome! Beautiful house. Funny, welcoming hosts. And delicious, gourmet breakfasts.

 

 

 

We checked out a little of downtown Bellaire that night and landed at the Bellaire Bar. Because the Tigers game was on, our giant beers were insanely cheap. Maybe $1? We liked this town already!

Thursday marked the beginning of the house searching! My mom was extra energized this morning to get this show on the road!

After breakfast, we met our realtor, Butch, in his office. He spent the day driving us around the area, and we must have seen 10-15 houses that day, plus stopped for lunch. I was surprised by how beautiful it was there! I could definitely see why my parents were choosing to find a place so far from our roots in Texas. I approved!!

The leaves were just beginning to change color in some places. Us Texas girls got excited when we spotted some, and the realtor probably thought we were crazy. I loved looking at all scenery- the farmland, hills, lakes, little towns along the way. It's much different than around Dallas or Austin, that's for sure!

One house caught our eyes immediately and continued to stay on our minds all day. Every house was then compared to that, and none matched up. This particular house sat on the northwest side of Torch Lake. There were just so much character with all of the wooden architecture.

My mom also liked that there was a deck, yard space, and you could walk right into the water. It had all of the items on their wish list (except it isn't as secluded as my dad would like, but we figured out that's not really a realistic option anyways.)

We came back to look at this house a couple other times, one with Butch on Thursday, and again with Aunt Jeanie and Uncle Les on Thursday night. After sleeping on it, my mom put in an offer on Friday! 

(But.....long story short, it didn't work out. Their realtor, who is known around town for being shady, claimed that an offer was put in just minutes before ours. Mind you, the house had been on the market for a year or more. My parents were disappointed that it didn't work out, but they will just have to go up there in the spring and find a BETTER one!! The house hunting part of the trip was a success though, because, now my mom knows that she definitely wants to be on Torch Lake. She also has a better understanding of what she is looking for, what the area is like, etc etc!)

Backing up to our fun girls' trip details, after our Day 1 of house hunting, we went to the famous Dockside Bar and Grill to watch the Torch Lake sunset! The patio was packed, and this was the obvious place to be!

We continued the celebration of finding what we thought was the lakehouse, by heading back toward Bellaire and going to their famous brewery, Shorts!

The live music there was awful, but we entertained ourselves with multiple renditions of Kidd Rock's "All Summer Long" song which is actually about partying on Torch Lake.

"...we were crusin' through the sandbar..."

And one last stop at Bellaire Bar again before going back, ha!

On Friday, we looked at a few more houses with Butch before walking around and eating lunch in downtown Bellaire. You could miss this little town if you blinked when driving by.

For dinner on Friday, we went over to Aunt Jeanie and Uncle Les' house! This was most definitely the highlight of the day. I can't claim to know them too well, other than seeing them at a family reunion when I was much younger. They cracked me up the entire dinner by getting on eachother's cases and sharing funny stories. It reminded me a lot of my Grandma Aud and Grandpa Bruce. I'm not sure I have heard anyone use the term "God dammit" so many times in a short time span as Aunt Jeanie did. They were pretty funny.

On Saturday, my mom and I took a scenic drive up to Charlevoix! It was a cute little town with a main strip of shopping, bars, and a pretty lake view.

 

We walked around for a bit before stopping in at Villager Pub! My mom was excited to stop in here since she had been here many years before with my dad. She loved seeing Michigan State fans everywhere and commented a few times how weird that felt. I could tell this all was a little piece of home.

 

 

We went in a few shops here and there, and we bought some Kilwin's fudge! Doesn't this look delicious?!

 

 

We split an appetizer at Bridge Street Taproom before making our way down to the lake to walk around in the sand and look for Petosky stones.

 

We didn't find any Petosky stones, but we managed to have plenty of fun! We drove back into Bellaire later that afternoon and spent a majority of our evening watching football at a country club bar. A large group of drunk guys in their 30's were there and provided plenty of entertainment for us. ("We would have bet that you girls were sisters.") A few of them ended up talking to us for a while. We must have been fun, because they all picked up our tab!

 

My mom was not feelin' the fireball shot.

 

 

When we went back to our hotel, Frank passed out within minutes, and my mom stayed up watching some baseball for a little bit.

 

Saturday came and after breakfast, it was time to leave. We had a heck of a time in the past few days! It was definitely a fun-filled trip with my mom that I will always remember!!

 

the sandbar!

 

I missed David and Nico, but they were having a fun time in Dallas during this time too! Their highlights were going to a Rangers' game and Grapevine's Grapefest...