Texas for Christmas - Dec 2023

Following our trip to Vegas and Phoenix, we arrived back in Texas on Sunday Dec 10 in time for Keith to have his second toe surgery on Monday the 11th.  The surgery was as seamless as the first, and the pain was mostly zero for the two weeks "of toes in the air."  There were a few to-dos that we caught up on, and Shawna was able to do a girls trip to Des Moines while Keith was in recovery.  Peter came over for lunch once day and had pizza with Keith and his parents.  Shawna did more of the cooking, and we used most of the 24th to pack for the east coast trip.  

Keith second surgery

Peter came over for lunch

Christmas Day was a bit quiet as it was just us with Keith's parents.  The four of us saw Boys in the Boat around lunchtime, and Margaret and Peter both came over mid-afternoon to chat.  Dinner was just the four of us having lamb chops.

Boxing Day was the "official Christmas" for us.  Keith had his 2-week post-op that morning, with the whole family arriving just after 11am.  Of course the first priority was opening the pressies for the kids which is always fun.  Graham participated as well virtually via video! Christmas lunch was a traditional turkey, with crab legs for Margaret.  Lily and Boone stayed the night at the house on the 26th.

Dodds Xmas in TX

On the morning of the 27th, we got up at 5:30am to get ready to leave on our epic 5-month east coast road trip.  

Saying farewell for our roadtrip

But, the first stop was Moreauville, which we got to at 3:30 in the afternoon with Shawna driving most of the way while Keith sat in the back with his feet propped up.  A bottle of red wine for dinner, with gumbo for the 3 of us that Shawna had left frozen from our trip a few weeks earlier.  We then opened presents, which for us included new sleeping bags for our retirement adventures.  Then it was to bed early again, as we had a 7am start to get to the first leg of the trip: a beach house in the Redneck Riviera with the RDU gang!

Christmas with Honey in LA

Des Moines - Dec 2023

Shawna went to Des Moines for a girls weekend to visit Eva (who she worked with at Cigna and who lives there) and Stacie (who she also worked with at Cigna and who flew in from Nashville).  Keith joked that this was going to be "Girls Gone Wild, Healthcare Executive, Des Moines Edition"!

Shawna and Stacie both flew in on Friday, arriving around 1:30 where Eva picked us up at the airport.  Stacie had not eaten lunch yet so we stopped at Franka for a pizza and a glass of wine.  We went back to Eva's house and after getting settled in and getting a tour of the beautiful home, we relaxed and chatted for a while.  That evening, we went downtown to have a few drinks at the speakeasy bar, In Confidence, where we got a few yummy cocktails.  We then had dinner at Bubba's, a restaurant with southern style food with huge portions.  We got a few apps for the table and then got fried chicken and chicken fried steak for our entrees.  The food was tasty.  Back at the house, we stayed up chatting a bit more.

Dinner at Bubba's

On Saturday, we all slept in and had coffee in the morning.  We then went to Cooper's Hawk for lunch where we had a bottle of wine and yummy roasted brussel sprouts and meatballs as appetizers. Shawna had a grilled cheese for her entree.  Back at the house, we napped and then headed downtown again, first stopping at the rooftop, Christmas themed bar, The Republic on Grand to have a few drinks.  It is here that we met up with a friend of Brian's (Eva's husband) and his date.  After drinks, we watched the Iowa Hawkeye Women's Basketball team who were in town playing at the Wells Fargo Arena - Eva really wanted to see them as they have a star player that is getting lots of attention.  The game was fun and the Hawkeyes won, scoring over 100 points! We stopped at a sports bar, Caffrey's, on the way home for a few more beers. Back at the house, we chatted some more, this time with one of Brian's daughters and her two friends.

Hawkeye Game

On Sunday, we slept in again and then went to Eatery for brunch where Shawna had some tasty chilaquiles.  We then went to a 'paint and sip' popup where we painted a Christmas themed decoration on wood panel boards.  The joke was that Stacie kept calling it 'paint and stroke'.  We found out that painting will not be our second careers!!  Back at the house, we napped again and then went to Gastro Grub & Pub for some tasty burgers and beers.

Work of 'art'!

Shawna left early on Monday morning with Stacie leaving later that day.  It was such a fun weekend filled with many laughs!!

Vegas and Phoenix - Dec 2023

We flew for the weekend to Phoenix to visit Rak and Ria and decided to do a quick trip to Vegas for one night to see U2 at the Sphere, something Keith had wanted to do ever since he read out this venue.

Sphere Vegas

On Wednesday, we arrived into Vegas in mid-morning and checked into Caesars Palace where we stayed one night.  We grabbed a quick lunch at True Food Kitchen where we had two salads.  Since we had time to kill before the concert, we got a massage in the spa and enjoyed the amenities.  That evening, we had dinner at Gordon Ramsay Pub and Grill where we shared the scallops for our entree - food was just OK.  We then walked over to the Sphere and truly enjoyed the concert.  The graphics on the screens were just amazing and while we were in nose bleed seats, the seats were still quite good!

U2 at the Sphere

Since it was a late evening, we slept in the next morning and then flew into Phoenix, arriving around 5pm. We took a taxi over to Rak's house and then went out for Cornish pasties - our favorite - with both Rak and Ria.  

On Friday, Shawna went for a run in the morning and then we met up with Jen and her husband Todd for lunch at OHSO - Jen worked with Shawna at Cigna.   We then picked up groceries and Shawna cooked that evening at Rak's house - serving cheese and crackers to start along with arugula salad and pasta for the meal.  It was great to hang out.

Lunch with Jen and Todd at OHSO

On Saturday, we slept in a bit and then went to play Top Golf - both Shawna and Ria were pretty bad to start but then significantly improved by the third round!!  We had lunch at Nelson's, each getting a sandwich and then Rak picked up supplies for dinner that evening.  Back at the house, we took a nap and then enjoyed some hot tub time before Rak made a yummy meal of mussels, swordfish, mashed potatoes and green beans.  

Top Golf with Rak and Ria

Dinner at Rak's House

We left early the next morning - Rak gave us a ride to the airport and we flew back to Dallas where we were going to stay for a couple of weeks while Keith recovers from his second foot surgery.

Houston and Austin TX - Nov and Dec 2023

After our road trip to Louisiana, we returned to Keith's parents house for two nights and then did another road trip to Houston and Austin for a week.  Our first stop was in Houston for two nights.  The first night we stayed at Christine and Greg's house - Christine is a childhood friend of Keith's.  When we arrived, we chatted for a bit and had a glass of Prosecco.  That evening, we went out to dinner at Tribute - a nice restaurant in their country club.  We shared the wedge salad for appetizer and the duck for entree.  The food was very good.  

Dinner with Christine and Greg at Tribute

The next morning we had some coffee and then met Ginny and Mike for lunch at Coppa Osteria.  Ginny is Shawna's step sister.  We shared a salad and pizza.  We then went over to their house which was a few blocks away for a small bowl of ice cream.  

After lunch, we headed out to Kingwood (suburb of Houston) to stay one night with Nick and Joannah.  Nick is a childhood friend of Shawna's - both of their parents were very good friends and Shawna traveled with him and his family quite a bit when she was younger.  We chatted with them for a while and then had Prosecco while Joannah made us a healthy and yummy meal of salad and soup.  We also met their youngest son who is a junior in high school.  Shawna got the news of all of Nick's siblings.  The next morning, we had coffee and then packed up to drive to Austin.

Dinner at Nick and Joannah's House

In Austin, we stayed for three nights at Jeff and Nina's house - Jeff went to grad school with us both.  The first evening, we went out to dinner with them at Aba in downtown Austin - a great Mediterranean restaurant with really good food.  There is a sister restaurant in Chicago which we had been to several times.  We started with a cocktail and then moved to wine while we shared a bunch of dishes for the table.

Time with Jeff and Nina

On Friday, Shawna went for a long run in the neighborhood and then we met Jackie and Fred for lunch at Eldorado Cafe.  Jackie is another childhood friend of Keith's and is Christine's sister (who we stayed with in Houston).  We shared a yummy pork dish.  

Lunch at Eldorado Cafe with Jackie and Fred

That evening, we met up with Lily (our niece) and had dinner at Texas Roudhouse - we told her to pick the place and this was her choice!!  We shared the ribs which were tasty.

Dinner with Lily at Texas Roadhouse

On Saturday, we met up with an elementary school friend of Shawna's, Heidi, and her husband Bruce at the Salt Lick in Driftwood (outside of Austin).  It's a great BBQ place.  We got the sampler which includes multiple meats and sides and caught up on lots of years!

Lunch with Heidi and Bruce at Salt Lick

We had some time to kill between lunch and dinner so we went to the LBJ Library in Austin which was quite interesting.  We only had a little more than an hour before they closed so we did the power tour, learning quite a bit about his wife, Lady Bird Johnson.  That evening, we had dinner at the Odd Duck in downtown Austin with Nancy, Hall, Tracy and Dave - all Fuqua alumni.  The food was very tasty - we shared many dishes for the table.

Dinner at Odd Duck with Tracy, Dave, Nancy and Hall

On Sunday, we got an orientation from Jeff and Nina on what to expect/do when we return in May to watch their son Ryan.  After that, we went to Patrick and Lauren's house (Patrick is a childhood friend of Keith's) where we stayed for two nights with them.  They have two adorable kids - Shane who was three and Sky who was one year old.  When we arrived, we had a delicious and light lunch of salad and shrimp paella that Lauren had made.  We then walked over to Patrick's parents house who live seven houses away to catch up with his parents who we had not seen since their wedding.  That evening, we drove into Austin and had BBQ at Terry Black's.

The Shami Family

Dinner with Patrick at Terry Black's BBQ

On Monday, we had a great vegetarian lunch at Casa de Luz and then rented a canoe and paddled along the river in downtown Austin.  We then had a couple of beers at Zilker Brewing, sitting outside in their beer garden.  

Canoeing on the river in downtown Austin

That evening, we had dinner with Jen (Rebecca's sister, who is a childhood friend of Keith's) and her husband Nathan at Kome, a sushi place in central Austin.  We shared a bunch of dishes for the table - all tasty.

Dinner with Jen and Nathan at Kome

On Tuesday, we packed up and drove back to Dallas where we stayed one night before hitting the road to Vegas and Phoenix for the weekend.  That afternoon, Margaret came over with Owen and Josie so that Owen could open up his bday gifts!

Louisiana - Nov 2023

We had several weeks to kill before Keith's second surgery so rather than sit around in Dallas, we decided to make a few road trips.  This first roadtrip was to Louisiana to catch up with some of Shawna's friends and to spend time with Shawna's mom for Thanksgiving!

We left Dallas on Monday after Keith's last 'laser' surgery for his first toe and drove to Woodworth, LA to visit Ginger and Michael for one night.  Keith rode in the back seat, feet elevated, while we listened to a book on tape the whole way - it took about 5.5 hours to get there.  We arrived around 4:30pm and immediately chilled with the two of them, having a few beers on the porch.  

Keith ready for the journey

Ginger made gumbo for us for dinner which was so tasty.  We had that along with yams and then key lime pie for dessert.  It was so nice to spend a longer time with them (usually our visits are a few hours).  We crashed after having a few more beers.

The next morning, we had coffee with them and chatted some more before hitting the road to drive to New Orleans where we stayed for three nights in a small studio apartment in Uptown owned by one of Shawna's high school classmates, Amy.  We arrived there around 2pm - Amy met us to give us the keys and show us the ropes.  That evening, we had date night and went to dinner at Le Petite Grocery where we shared ricotta dumplings for an appetizer and the lamb t-bone for entree with white bean cassoulet.  Everything was good but the lamb was too undercooked for Shawna.

Date night at Le Petite Grocery

On Wednesday, Shawna went for a run down St Charles passing by Loyola University where she went for her first year of college.  We then met Amy and Gene (both high school classmates who got married to each other) for lunch at Gris Gris - we each had a salad there.  

Lunch at Gris Gris with Amy & Gene

That evening, we met Janell (another classmate of Shawna's - from both junior high and high school) and her husband, Jon, at Lilette where we had a duck confit salad and lamb shoulder entree with a side of fries - delicious.  Before dinner, we had a drink at Bouligny Tavern - great place.

Dinner at Lilette with Janell and Jon

On Thursday, we met Tammi (a colleague of Keith's from LivCor) and her husband Brian for breakfast at Toast in the French Quarter.  We shared a toast and crepe dish.  Before meeting up with them, we walked down to Jackson Square to take a few photos.  

Breakfast at Toast with Tammi and Brian

After breakfast, we went to the World War II museum seeing most of the exhibits and watching one of the films - the museum is very well done.  In the afternoon, Shawna went for another run.  

WWII Museum

That evening, we met Moni (another high school classmate of Shawna's and who was also in our wedding) and her husband Jeff at Mr Mao for dinner.  We shared a bunch of stuff for the table - everything was incredibly tasty.  After dinner, we went to their house for another drink - turns out their house was just a couple of blocks from where we were staying!!  We had not seen Moni in quite some time so was great to catch up and to meet her husband and daughter.

Dinner at Mr Mao witth Moni and Jeff

On Friday, we packed up and drove to Moreauville where we stayed for a week at Shawna's mother's house.  When we arrived, we got settled and Shawna made dinner - something healthier finally!!  For the rest of the time there, Shawna worked out most mornings.  We also met up with the following people:

• Carey - Shawna and Carey went to Sacred Heart (elementary and junior high) together.  She came over to Shawna's mom's house for lunch where we had gumbo that Shawna had made.

Lunch with Carey at Shawna's mom's house

• Hope and Craig - Shawna went to Marksville High with Hope.  They had us over for dinner at their house - Hope made a delicious chicken pasta dish and a caramel and apple custard for dessert.  

Dinner with Hope and Craig at their house

• Nicole and Hunter (and family) - Nicole is Shawna's sister in-law.  She hosted us for Thanksgiving where we, as usual, had too much food - turkey, pork, rice dressing, cornbread dressing, green bean casserole, sweet potato casserole and eggplant/shrimp casserole - and then pecan pie for dessert!  Pat and Chet was there as well as Juanita, Christie and Allie Rose with her cute baby.  We also separately met up with Nicole and Hunter for dinner on Sat night at Broken Wheel Brewery where we shared the crab cake for appetizer and shrimp and grits for entree. 

Thanksgiving Day - Honey, Nicole, Christie and Shawna

• Brenda and Joe - They are long time family friends.  We met them for lunch at Morel's in New Roads - a great place along the lake.  We shared a redfish topped with crab and shrimp along with a side salad and bread pudding for dessert.  Brenda also had made us a fig cake which we dug into first thing when we got home - so tasty and moist!!

Lunch at Morel's with Brenda and Joe

In addition to catching up with friends and family, we took a short road trip to Natchitoches where we stayed one night at the Andrew Morris House. We went there to see the Christmas lights - an annual festival that Shawna remembers from her time at LSMSA.  We first stopped by to see the school and then checked into the B&B.  We then walked around town a bit, popping into a few of the stores.  That evening, we had dinner at Mariner's which is a nice seafood restaurant located on a lake where Shawna went for special occasions (e.g. graduation) when she was LSMSA.  We shared the wedge salad for appetizer and the panko encrusted seabass for entree with a side of jalapeño cheese grits.  The restaurant had been updated since Shawna was last there with a bright, nautical theme - cute place and food was pretty good.  We then walked along the river for a short while to see the lights.  Unfortunately, Shawna's mom didn't sleep well that night as her room was cold.  In the morning, we had a great breakfast at the B&B and then packed up to drive back to Moreauville.

Andrew Morris House B&B

Dinner at Mariner's

Christmas Lights Festival

We pulled away on Sunday to drive back to TX after Shawna got in one more run.  It took us about 6 hours (ran into a bit of traffic) to get back to Keith's parents' house.  When we arrived, we had dinner with Margaret and the kids - Jean made a yummy brisket, potato salad and pumpkin cheesecake!

Chicago - Nov 2023

Shawna needed to return to Chicago to attend the annual board retreat for Women Employed so we decided to make a weekend of it and catch up with folks.  Since Keith was still in a boot from his surgery, we had to get wheelchair assistance at the airport which he was not a fan of but it did allow us to board first!!  We arrived in Chicago Friday afternoon and stayed for two nights at David's (colleague of Keith's from LivCor) apartment downtown.  The apartment is really nice with great views of the river below.

Kicking back in a wheelchair!

After getting settled in, we had drinks with David in his apartment and then went to dinner with him and another LivCor colleague, Ashley, at Roka Akor where we shared a ton of yummy food for the table.  After dinner, we had a few more drinks at another restaurant nearby and then headed back to David's place to crash.

Dinner with David and Ashley at Roka Akor

On Saturday, Shawna attended her meeting all day while Keith relaxed and had lunch with David.  That evening, we went to dinner with Kara and Ansley at La Josie where we had guacamole for the table and shared the flank steak entree which was very tasty.  We arrived a little early so the two of us had a drink at the bar.

Shawna on the way to the board meeting

The next morning, we headed to the airport after a cup of coffee and showering, arriving back in Dallas around 1:30 - Dick picked us up in our car so that we didn't have to deal with walking to the parking lot!

It was a quick trip but a great one, especially nice to catch up with friends and that the weather was quite nice!!

Texas - Keith 1st Surgery - Oct to Nov 2023

After spending 2.5 months in NM, we went back to TX so that Keith could get surgery done on his two big toes which had arthritis.  The surgeries were 8 weeks apart and each had an elongated recovery so we decided to use the time to catch up with friends and family in the LA and TX area.

We only had one full day back in Colleyville to get settled before his first surgery.  We unpacked and brought stuff to our storage unit which is now really full!  We also had what Keith affectionally called his 'last supper' on Sunday night with his parents and sister at Perry's Steakhouse and Grill where we had a yummy meal of pork and several sides shared at the table.

On Monday, Keith had the first surgery on his right foot - the surgery only lasted about an hour and with an hour of recovery they were ready to send him home to Shawna's care! This kicked off the first two weeks of 'toes in the air' where he had to rest, keep his feet elevated for 23 hours each day and ice it every 30 minutes!  

Before surgery

Xray after (left) and before (right)

During this time, we got a lot of planning done for the rest of the year and for next year, caught up on some shows and caught up with friends over the phone.  Shawna also did quite a bit of cooking, feeding both Keith and his parents.  Margaret came over one night bringing take out for dinner and Shawna cooked one night for Peter making pasta and for Margaret and the kids making mussels and fish in curry sauces.  

Lot of this for two weeks

After the two weeks of house arrest and upon being 'cleared' by Keith's doctor, we started to venture out to see friends.  During the next two weeks, we caught up with the following people in the DFW area:

• Ernie and Miri - Keith worked with Ernie back in the Aimco days.  We met them for lunch at a yummy, authentic Columbian restaurant, Casa Vieja, where we shared a few appetizers for the table and then shared a beef brisket entree.

• Debbie - We went to Duke with Debbie.  We met up with her for dinner at Mr Max Izakaya, where we shared several yummy Japanese style 'tapas' for the table.

Dinner with Debbie at Mr Max

• Melanie - Shawna went to high school with Melanie at LSMSA.  We met her for lunch at Doce Mesas, a modern Mexican place.  We had a margarita and shared a brisket taco / chicken enchilada plate.

Lunch with Melanie at Doce Mesas

• Shawn - Shawna went to elementary school with Shawn.  We met her and her husband for dinner at Las Palmas, a trendy Mexican place in downtown Dallas.  We shared a yummy plate that had a mixture of Mexican items.

Dinner with Shawn at Las Palmas

• Michael - Michael is our godson.  We picked him up and went to dinner at Ra Sushi in Southlake where we shared a few appetizers and rolls. 

• Christy - Keith went to college with Christy.  We met her for lunch at Mi Dia from Scratch, a great Tex-Mex place where we had table-side guacamole and a yummy salmon for our entree - oh and we may have had a few margaritas as well!!

Lunch with Christy at Mia Dia

• Kris and Angela - Keith went to high school with Kris.  We met him and his wife for dinner at Esparza's in Grapevine.  We were a bit full from lunch so we just snacked on an appetizer sampler and of course more margaritas!

• Jake and Keith - Keith worked with them at Steak and Ale.  We met them (and Jake's wife) for dinner at Fitzgerald's in Ft Worth.  We started out with a few cocktails and then shared a wedge salad and blackened redfish - both very good.

Dinner with Jake and Keith at Fitzgerald

• Jordan and Mark - Jordan is our goddaughter.  We met her and her boyfriend for lunch at Chef Point Bar and Restaurant where we had a stuffed pork chop with pasta.

• Gary, Lee, Clark, and Bobby - Keith was in boycouts with them.  We met them and their spouses at Joe T Garcia's where we had fajitas and more margaritas!

The Boyscouts - dinner at Joe T Garcia's

• Boone - Boone is our nephew.  We picked him up and had dinner at Zen Sushi in Dallas.  It was fun to see him try sushi!  We shared a few appetizers and several rolls - great sushi place.

Dinner with Boone at Zen Sushi

• Bob & Ginny - They are great friends of the family and the parents of Peter, Keith's best friend from childhood.  We met them for lunch at Moxie's in Southlake where we each had a salad.

• Brandon - Keith worked with Brandon at LivCor.  We met him and his wife, Jess, at Jasper's in Richardson where we shared the wedge salad and braised short ribs for an entree.  Food was very tasty.

Dinner with Brandon and Jess at Jasper's

• Nikhil - Keith worked with Nikhil at Aimco.  We met him and his wife at their beautiful home in Dallas where Mythili made us an amazing Indian dinner.

Dinner with Nikhil and Mythili at their house

• The Blizzards - Keith served on Bob and Jo when we worked at Steak and Ale.  We met them for lunch at TruFire where we each had a yummy salad.  

And in our last few nights for this go round, we cooked dinner for Jean and Dick one night, making beef tenderloin with mushroom sauce and had Margaret over for dinner again where Jean made salmon.

As you can see that even in our 'down time', we don't stay still for too long!!