More fun with Jabbar

Not long after Jabbar was officially ours, John Patrick and Nini ventured up to the Hill to meet him.  First we brought him up to the barn for some grooming.

Then I put him through his paces (aka wore him out).

After that, I let John Patrick get on him for a little ride around the arena.

After that it was time to take Jabbar up to the barn for a hose down because it was HOT - remember heat?  And he got to meet Nini face to face.  Welcome to the family, Jabbar boy!

Lucky Seventeen

What a challenging year to be a Hog fan.  We started with a close then not so close game in Auburn and then a few solid victories over non-SEC schools.  Riley got to witness her first full Razorback game!

Then we headed to the Big D for the resurrection of one of my favorite Razorback traditions - the Southwest Classic.  What's not to love about a game in Cowboys Stadium complete with a Cowboyrita or three?

Riley also got to meet Jerry Jones - way cool.

(PICS TO COME...As soon as Mom texts them to me.)

But a little piece of me died during that overtime loss, and losing to Alabama 14-13 the next game did nothing to help my spirits.  With two close games against ranked opponents we went into the Georgia game with optimism.

Turns out Georgia is much better than we are, and I spent a whole quarter and half time looking for a changing table in War Memorial.  Not cool.  We won homecoming and marched into Starkville to play #1 Mississippi State with a 16 game SEC losing streak and a chip on our shoulder.  But yet again things didn't go our way and we lost by a touchdown.  After a week off, my least favorite team in all of sports - that's right, more than the Philadelphia Eagles - Lousiana State University came to Fayetteville.  We're in the middle of a cold snap and kickoff was 7PM, so it took some real troopers to attend this game.  Fortunately, I know a few.

A crowd of over 70,000 people stayed until 10:30PM in 30 degree weather to see our Arkansas Razorbacks beat #17 LSU to snap a 17 game SEC losing streak by a score of 17-0.  The team charged across the field as time ran out to seize the Golden Boot trophy and the crowd stormed the field to celebrate.

If I had to wait 17 SEC games to see the Hogs win, I am extremely happy that it happened in Fayetteville against a ranked LSU - couldn't be sweeter.  Here's hoping we win out and head back to and Eddie Money concert...I mean the Liberty Bowl!  Go Hogs!

Destin In Pictures

Apparently I took some time off from blogging this fall and summer and I completely didn't give you the day by day account of Destin!  We went the third week of July this year which is about two weeks later than usual.  I thought I was going to die of anticipation, but turns out I made it.  The Destin trip is really the highlight of the summer and going two weeks later prolonged the season in a good way.

We made an overnight stop in Ruston to see our family and these two got along famously.

The next morning we were beach bound early, and I snapped a picture of one of my favorite sights on the trip:

Alli always rides with her Tata and Diddy, so I love getting pictures of her from the road.

When we finally arrived, everyone ran out to the ocean.

We spent our mornings trying to spot dolphins off the balcony and drinking coffee.

We spent our days on the beach riding the waves, sunning, chatting, snoozing, and sipping.

We spent our evenings dining at our favorite spots, playing cards at the condo, and hanging out on the beach playing football and paddleball.

We found a sea turtle nest, rode on a pirate ship, and watched fireworks over the Destin Harbor.

 And then we took our Destin pictures using John Patrick's new tripod, camera, and remote.  It wasn't glitch-free...

But in the end, we perfected it and got some wonderful shots.

I'm so grateful for fantastic memories with these wonderful people and I can't wait to go back!