King Tut, Steak and Cheesecake!

Marty and I had a great Valentine's Day. Well except for my initial reaction to Marty's big surprise. He was so sweet and had the whole evening planned. So on the way downtown, I asked where we were going and he said, "To the King Tut exhibit at the Dallas Museum of Art." To which I replied, "No REALLY, where are we going?!" He just laughed and said that was where we were REALLY going. Oops! But it was all good. He tries to culture me. But I'm a museum moron.

So anyway, we got to the DMA and you would not believe how many people were in line for the exhibit! And these were all people with tickets! Luckily I was running late (how unusual) so our ticket time was 4:30 but we didn't make it til almost 5 and the 4:30 people were still waiting to get in. Anyway, after about 20 minutes, we got in the exhibit. Of course there were no cameras allowed. Well I have to say that all the Tut hype was way overrated! And Marty agreed with me. I mean the stuff was cool and all but you see one pharoah, you've seen them all! But we had a great time watching all of the people listening intently to their little speaker things and trying to look all intelligent and interested. That alone was worth the price of admission!!

After we were done with the exhibit, I tried to take our picture outside by the big statue of the pharaoh. As you can see, I was not very successful. But I think the pictures are funny.

And then it was time for dinner. Marty knows me well in the food department. I mean is there any other choice but a steak restaurant? He took me to The Capital Grille and oh man was it good! I got a big juicy filet and Marty had salmon (crazy ... I know!). We also had some lobster and crab cakes and lobster bisque and salad. Then after dinner, I was stuffed. But NEVER too full for dessert! And let me tell you, they had the BEST cheesecake! So worth all those calories!

Thanks for a great day Marty!! I love you.

Let's see ... we need a love song or something for this post. Oh wait! I think I'll go a different direction. Here's a classic ... Steve Martin: King Tut.

AC/DC Concert

Marty and I went to the AC/DC concert on Friday night at the American Airlines Center in Dallas. It was an awesome show! Here are a couple of pictures I took during the concert.

My favorite part of the show was when they had the big blow-up chick (Rosie) riding the Rock N Roll Train. I took this video at the concert. They were playing "A Whole Lotta Rosie."

Concert Review:

Talk about an explosive opening. AC/DC began its blazing gig Friday night at American Airlines Center with a video, an animated doozy of a clip (see video below) featuring guitarist Angus Young as the devilish train operator too tempted by the female persuasion to keep his locomotive from crashing. When it does jump the track, it ends up center stage in a ball of smoke. It's equipped with the band's trademark horns and logo, of course.

"Rock N Roll Train," from the band's comeback smash Black Ice, started it all and for the next hour and 45 minutes the group never let up. For an entity that's been together since 1973, these five rockers still perform as if they have plenty to prove. The 18-song set featured five from Ice, three from 1980's seminal Back In Black and pretty much every other AC/DC anthem you can think of.

Anthems are key here. For AC/DC, rhythm-heavy rock tunes need a chorus the crowd can chant. The packed house did just that time and again. Let's see here: "Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap," "Thunderstruck," "Hells Bells" and "T.N.T.," to name a few.

During "The Jack," a bluesy number from 1975's T.N.T. album, the unpredictable, unstoppable Young launched into a striptease, removing pieces of his trademark schoolboy uniform until he revealed boxers with AC/DC emblazoned on his backside. That was one of many memorable moments.

It really was a great show and Marty and I had an awesome time. I'll close with my favorite AC/DC song. It wasn't played at the concert. From their Back In Black album, here's "Let Me Put My Love Into You."

Christmas Eve Eve!

'Twas the night before the night before Christmas and all through Mom's home
(That's December 23rd if you're date challenged.)
All the England kids were impatiently waiting for Uncle Paul to come
Two stockings were hung on the chimney with care
They were so cute, they made quite a pair
The children were not even thinking of bed
They wanted their presents, "We want them NOW!" they said
But before we could open anything neat
We went to Chili's, we all had to eat
We finally got home and the kids were so happy
The presents they opened were so cool and not crappy
I will stop writing now, you are all in luck
'Cause I know that this Christmas poem really sucks!

We all went over to my mom's house last night to celebrate Christmas with Mom, Gil (my stepdad), my brother, his wife and my nephews. After much deliberation, we met at Mom's then went to eat then went back to Mom's to open presents. It was all last-minute planning but that's what my family is good at. Here are some more pictures we took while waiting for my brother to get there.

And they finally arrived. We headed to Chilis. They tried to squeeze all 12 of us in one big booth but it just didn't work out so we kicked my kids to a booth right by us and everyone could breathe a little better. That's Mom and Paul on the left and Paul's kids Kiran and Zach on the right.

I don't get to see my brother very often so Mom took lots of pictures of us together. Look at all that gray on him! You can tell he's my MUCH older brother because as you can plainly see ... no gray here! (Fine ... he only has me by a little under 3 years.)

And then the present opening chaos began. It's always fun with my four but add in the other two and a couple of dogs and you have a real party! My favorite reaction was Mackenzie when he opened the shirt Grandma and Grandpa gave him that says, "Mackenzie & Wall-e saving Earth together." He loves Wall-e and he just had the best smile ever when he saw the shirt. And I also loved the ruby bracelet Mom gave me (my birth stone.)

Then of course we had to get a picture of me and Paul and Mom. Paul is actually smiling here ... alert the media! Love it when he smiles. You can see his big dimples. But he always has the cool look going on instead of the smile.

And then we lost Paul's wife, Huong. They work at the post office and as you can imagine, this is a busy time of year and they have both been putting in a ton of hours.

Then it was time for a picture of all of the grandkids. I also had to take one of my son Nick and Paul's son Kiran. They are in the same grade and only 9 months apart but there is a slight size difference.

Then the picture of Mom and her kids and grandkids. Lauren doesn't seem to mind at all that she's the only girl.

And, speaking of Lauren, she had to make a quick outfit change and show off her new Hannah Montana pajamas. I think she's much prettier than Hannah!!

Finally, here's me and Marty. We're worn out and ready to go home. So much to do before Christmas! A great time was had by all.

We need some Christmas music for today. How about one of my favorites ... Third Day: What Child Is This?

4,749 days ago!

On a very hot summer day 13 years ago in Las Vegas, Nevada, I married my best friend! (Marty told me to look up the weather history so click here to see the actual temperature.) Best decision I ever made. I love you Marty. And I love the life we have created. The next 13 years will only get better!

And while I'm being sappy, I may as well go all out. Here is today's music - Kenny Rogers: Through the Years (Ignore the video. It's the best I could find.)

Family Fun!

Seems like we have been going non-stop for the last couple of weeks. We're not doing anything major. Just having fun with the family. Here are some pictures from a party that Nick went to at Alley Cats for one of the clubs he was in at school. The rest of the kids weren't invited but we crashed and played games and a round of laser tag while Nick bowled with his friends. Clockwise from top left: Nick, Austin, Lauren, me, Marty and Mackenzie.

We went to Six Flags on Tuesday. It was so much fun but closed too early! Lauren and Mackenzie are crazy! They wanted to ride all of the big roller coasters. We were a little scared to let them go on the Titan by themselves so Marty and I rode it, too. I was a little nervous as we were going up ... and up ... and up! I believe it's 255 feet up to be exact. But we survived and so did they. Then we let them ride the Texas Giant by themselves. Nick even got in on the action this year and rode the Shockwave which was my favorite ride when I was a kid. Nick couldn't believe it had been around that long.

And, finally, last night Lauren was invited to go to her friend's birthday. They went to the movies. But her friends came over and were all dressed up. And my little girl ... who NEVER wears a dress ... decided she needed to wear one. And she even wanted to wear fancy shoes. I never thought I would see the day. But here they are ... Lauren and her best buddies Mackenzie and Markenzie. Both of the girls are only 1 year older than Lauren. Maybe one day she will grow.

And for your listening pleasure today, we have Nickelback: Figured You Out. This song rocks! Have a great day!