In between DC and CO, we spent three weeks in TX and LA to spend time with our parents.
Louisiana
Shawna drove by herself to spend 10 days with her mom while Keith stayed in Texas for his dad's back surgery and then Keith joined her about half way through.
While in Louisiana, we did the following:
Day in Lafayette - Shawna took her mom to the dermatologist in Lafayette and while there, we had lunch at Don's Seafood and ran a few errands. We also picked up some pastries at Poupart's to take home - some of which we brought to Lydia and Mark.
Lunch with Hope - We met up with Hope for lunch at La Petite Affair Cafe in Marksville. It's a cute place with a menu that changes daily.
Evening in Alexandria - Keith got a one way rental car to Alex where Shawna had to pick him up. So Shawna and her mom made an evening of it - going to Dillard's to get a few things for Shawna's mom and then having dinner at Verona Italian Restaurant - cute place with tasty Italian food.
Day in St Francsisville - Shawna bought tickets for a tour of gardens where we got to walk around the gardens of six homes and we were also able to go inside two of the homes. There were a couple of gardens that were quit nice. We had a bit of time before lunch so we also stopped to walk around Afton Villa Gardens and Rosedown Plantation. We lucked out with the weather as it turned out to be sunny but not too hot. We then met up for lunch with Brenda and Joe at Restaurant 1796 which is at the Myrtle's Plantation - the place is very nice. We shared a salad and a great steak.
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| Rosedown Plantation |
Mother's Day Lunch - We went to Little Big Cup for Mother's Day lunch in Arnaudville - they do a massive buffet which turns out was just OK. Shawna and her mom had been here a couple of times before and it had been good but this time we were a bit disappointed.
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| Mother's Day Lunch at Little Big Cup |
Rocky's - We went here for dinner our last night so we could get our fill of crawfish. Crawfish was great, decor was not as great.
Texas
Keith stayed behind in TX for four days to be there for his dad's back surgery before joining Shawna in LA. Graham also flew in for a couple of days. During this time, he did the following:
Outback Steakhouse - Shawna, Margaret, Keith, Jean and Dick went to dinner here the night before Dick's surgery. We shared a salad and pork chop.
Visited his dad several times in the hospital - Dick was there for three nights to recover.
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| Family gathering after Dick's surgery |
Nanglo Indian - Jean, Keith, Graham, Margaret and the four kids went here for dinner after seeing Dick right after he got out of surgery. Keith had the lamb vindaloo and it was as delicious as ever. Dick texted the family to bring him butter chicken which he ate half but then was told the next day to stay away from spicy food for a bit!!
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| Dodds Family Dinner |
Uncle Julios - Margaret, Graham, Keith and Jean went here for Mexican dinner where Keith had the chicken fajitas and way too many chips with salsa.
Cold Beer and Cheeseburgers - Keith and Peter went here for dinner - Owen was not working this evening. The beers were cold and the cheeseburgers excellent! It was great to catch up. They both stopped by the hospital right before dinner to see Keith's dad.
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| Keith and Peter at dinner |
After our time in LA, we both drove back to TX to spend a week before heading out to CO for the summer. During this time, we did the following:
Parker Cemetery - Keith had organized a clean up of this cemetery for his Eagle Scout Project in 1985. We stopped by to see it - it's in great condition but sadly you cannot go inside without scheduling an appointment.
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| Parker Cemetery |
The Mexican - Keith, Shawna, Jean, Dick and Margaret went to dinner here as a belated Mother's Day / early Father's Day celebration. We shared several appetizers for the table: guacamole, lobster elote, and sea bass ceviche. Then we both shared the beef enchiladas. Everything was very good.
Family Dinner - Margaret, Owen, Kaitlyn (Owen's girlfriend), Josie, and Lily came over for dinner. We grilled some steak and made corn on the cob and potato gratin. We also made a lemon almond cake for dessert. The dinner was a success - the kids were engaging and the food was great!
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| Dodds Clan |
Visit with Bob - We stopped by one afternoon to catch up with Bob and had a glass of port with him.
Mi Cocina - Keith met Rick, a former Livcor colleague for dinner.
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| Mi Cocina with Rick |
Full City Rooster - Keith met Rebecca and Thad here for lunch in between doctor appointments.
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| Rebecca and Thad at Full City Rooster |
Margaret Dinner - Margaret came over on our last night and Shawna made a fish dish with polenta.
