Cute Dogs Alert

Posted in Dogs, My Family by Katy

Well, my foster dog has gone back to the SPCA. She has shown some glimpses of being able to be affectionate and interact with humans, and really, she needs someone to adopt her that is willing to work with her for the better part of 6 months to a year. We, unfortunately, can’t adopt her, but I know her family is out there somewhere. And, since she isn’t too panicked in the shelter, it will be easier for her family to find her if she is on the adoption floor. I will miss her face, most definitely!

So, this brings our canine count back down to two in our house. And I love my pups so much, I thought I would share some adorable pictures I’ve taken of them.

20170527_082231

Teddy is settling into the family. He is fascinated by human talk. It’s as if he is trying to figure out what we are saying.

20170618_151434

Here, she is fighting to stay awake…and failing.

20170418_095757

He loves when I pull out the blanket to the backyard to read. He just snuggles right up.

20170418_120326

She follows me everywhere, and when I get home, she’s usually peeking through the door.

20170615_105257

I love catching them cuddled together. They act like they want nothing to do with each other, but I know better. I catch them playing all the time.

I love my pups. I’m so thankful to have them in my life and a part of my family.

Birthday Dinner at Del Friscos

Posted in Outings, Reviews, My Family by Katy

Last Saturday, in honor of my birthday this week, we ate at the new Del Frisco’s in the Shops at Legacy in Plano, TX.

20170617_173712 They have other locations in the DFW metroplex, but this is their newest location. The staff was amazing. We loved our server! But today, I’m going to talk about the food.

So, usually, we get the calamari whenever we eat at a steak house like this one, but we decided to be adventurous this time and we ordered the octopus, served with Gigante beans, tomatoes, olives, capers, lemon, and cold pressed olive oil.

20170617_180856

The ends of the octopus were a little chewy, but the rest of it was tender and the beans and tomatoes complimented it very well!

The special of the night was a bone-in fillet, oscar-style, with asparagus in a hollandaise sauce. This is actually quite similar to what I have ordered in the past at other steak restaurants, so for the first time in my life, I ordered the special.

20170617_183008

The meat was super tender and juicy. I ate half of this and took the other half home, and the leftovers were still tender and juicy even after warming it up in the microwave! Oscar style is crab meat on the top of the steak. I’ve never had it all together in one dish (usually the asparagus and sauce are on the side), but it did not disappoint!

Michael ordered the prime rib, which he ate most of, but still had some left to eat the next day for lunch.

20170617_183018

Usually, we get the lobster mac and cheese, but the server said that there was another lobster option not on the menu yet called lobster mash (basically lobster with mashed potatoes). She asked if we would like to try that instead, and Michael said, why not get both? So we did.

They were both amazing. They both had different tastes and textures, but they were like casseroles. Yummy, scrumptious casseroles. We had a good bit to bring home for these as well. And they were half orders!

Finally, we asked for the dessert menu. The server recommended the butter cake. There were other choices that sounded pretty good, but they were the more usual choices we make. So we threw caution to the wind and ordered the butter cake to share. It’s served with a scoop of butter pecan ice cream and a dollop of whipped cream. The perfect end to a wonderful dinner!

20170617_185904

We left so full and satiated that evening. It was a wonderful birthday treat! We will definitely come back again.

What are some of your favorite restaurants? Do you usually order the same thing, or do you try new things?

18Jun2017

This Father’s Day

Posted in My Family, Rambling Thoughts by Katy

I’m taking a little break from Ephesians, which I will pick back up next week.

FathersDay

Michael came home one day this week, I forget which one, and talked to me about staying home this Sunday, like we did on Mother’s Day. He was saying it more for me than for him because I’ve just been extra sensitive lately, what with Mother’s Day just last month and my birthday this week, and he thought it might not be good for me to be exposed to the public on this particular day.

And I wasn’t sure I totally agreed with him until I went shopping for a Father’s Day card for him. He got me the most amazing heartfelt card for Mother’s Day, and I wanted to do the same for him. But it was hard. Picking up card after card that talked about how good that dad was with the kids, knowing that Michael hasn’t had that chance yet. I finally found a card that centered more around family than fatherhood, as well as a card from the dogs (thank you for whoever decided to start making those).

I was at dinner with Michael last night for my birthday (since my birthday falls in the week and not the weekend), and I took the opportunity to thank him. He has been so supportive and open to understanding what I am going through. I know that the loss of our daughters affected him differently than it affected me, but he has sat with me every time I cried. He walks with me through the uncomfortable moments. And it means the most to me when he just gets it, not because he understands personally, but that he strives to learn by listening.

And that just frustrates me more that his daughters aren’t here to celebrate him tomorrow. He is an amazing father and will be an amazing father to any other kids that enter into our lives.

Father’s Day has always been special to me. I was born on a Father’s Day. I have an incredible dad. I have a great father-in-law (who is loving and kind even though he has dementia). I have had several mentors in my life who have been father-like to me. I’m thankful for all of them. And of course, I’m thankful for my Heavenly Father who is with me daily.

I look forward to the day when my husband can be celebrated by his children as well. But until then, we will continue leaning on each other and leaning on our Heavenly Father who walks with us.

12Jun2017

Recent Happenings

Posted in Outings by Katy

Michael and I have been going and going lately, so I thought I would touch on a few things we’ve been doing.

First, on Thursday night, one of the partners at Michael’s firm invited to go bowling for charity at the Bowlounge in the Design District in Dallas.

I had fun, but I was absolutely awful at bowling. I don’t think I’ve bowled in at least a year, that I can remember. And about mid-way through our first game, my wrist was like nope. Still, it was so much fun bowling with the partner and his wife. We were laughing the entire time and cheering each other on. Plus there was a very cool guy there with an awesome bowling shirt. The Dallas All Sports Association provides scholarships for underprivileged youth who have been accepted to a college or university.

And then, on Friday night, Michael and I organized a charity game night sponsored by our church. We raised money for two organizations here in Dallas – CitySquare and Refugee Services of Texas. It was so much fun, and it went late into the night.

20170609_195225

We also celebrated our friend Dave that evening. He was trying to fund a Kickstarter for his new party game, the Greater Debate, and Friday, he met his goal! We were so happy for him and celebrated with cake.

20170609_200310

We are so happy to be a part of such a giving and supportive community. We are so grateful to have so many opportunities to be a part of things that are bigger than ourselves.

7Jun2017

Alzheimer Kick Off Party

Posted in Alzheimer's Association, My Causes, Outings by Katy

This past Sunday, I went to Nebraska Furniture Mart in the Colony for the Alzheimer Team Captain Kick-off Party. 20170604_171341

Each of the team captains received a goodie bag filled with water bottles, a phone fanny pack, and pamphlets on recruiting and fundraising tips.

20170604_163354

After signing in, we gathered in this small area with other teams. I met a lovely nurse from one of the local care facilities. She has been involved with the Alzheimer walks for over 20 years. We talked about patient care, and I could tell she was so passionate about the people she has cared for. I am so thankful for our conversation.

A local Tex-Mex restaurant donated food and drinks for the party. We had eaten there before, so we knew it was going to be delicious! After everyone settled, Tara Longley, the Northwest Regional Director, talked about how much was already in place for the walk in September. Big named companies, like Edward Jones and Denbury, are sending several teams to walk this year. I was able to talk to her personally, and she said that the hope is to outgrow our present location to an even bigger one in 2018. And it looks like we are on track to do that.

20170604_165210

We also talked about the successes of last year. Those who have been team captains for five years or longer received a journal. The longest running team captain received a duffle bag, and the shortest one received a piggy bank.

20170604_164159

Being in a room with so many people who have a passion for finding the cure to this horrible disease was both uplifting and heartwarming. This will be our eighth walk this year, in honor of my great-grandmother, Zorie, and Michael’s dad. If you would like to donate to the walk this year, you can do so at the link below. Together, we can fund for more advocacy for caregivers and research to find the cure to Alzheimer’s!

http://act.alz.org/goto/KatyVendetti

5Jun2017

Par-tay Around the World

Posted in Outings by Katy

This weekend, we celebrated the sixth birthday of this guy.

20170603_113945

We share a birthday month, and he has the same name as my little brother, but there are so many other things that make him special to me. His quiet kindness, his sweet smile, his excitement about his current interests. In fact, his birthday party was a trip around the world because he loves drawing and learning about countries and states and capitals.

The whole party was adorable. She had food from around the world – French fries, German sausage, American chicken nuggets, Italian ice for dessert. Plus there were puzzles and passports for the kids.

Of course, I also love her other two boys as well. The oldest is smart and headstrong, a great big brother most of the time. He has a strong sense of justice and isn’t afraid to ask questions.

And goodness gracious the youngest is a hoot. He is funny and talkative and charming. His smile can light up a room.

When Michael and I moved here, we didn’t know very many people, and we had no family nearby. But this family and our family have adopted each other. We have laughed together, cried together, lifted each other up, mourned with each other, rejoiced with each other, talked about the hard stuff, and just really lived life with each other. So thankful to have them in our lives. Happy Birthday, Daniel!

18Apr2017

Easter Weekend

Posted in Outings by Katy

Since I gave you a weekend update last week, I thought I might as well keep the trend going. That, or the weekends are picking up as we head into the summer months!

This past weekend was Easter, and I wrote a bit about this year and how it is different than prior years in my Sunday post. But we still managed to make wonderful memories this weekend, despite the reminders of our pregnancy last year.

First of all, Michael and I still get each other a little something for Easter morning. This year, he asked for a board game, one that we have played and enjoyed. And I asked for a kitchen composting kit. I know that’s a weird request for an Easter gift, but I’m really getting into the gardening mood lately, and I hate throwing away food scraps, so this really was the perfect gift for me.

To be honest, I forgot to buy cinnamon rolls for Sunday morning, but I knew I had the ingredients for some kind of bread. I thought biscuits would be perfect, so I grabbed a recipe off of All Recipes. It said to use a cookie cutter to make the biscuit shape, and I thought, why not an Easter cookie cutter? I happen to have one from many years ago, so we had bunny biscuits!

20170416_084044

Then, after worship, we had lunch with our framily (friends that are considered family). This is a long-standing tradition between our families, and this time the other family hosted. She made an amazing leg of lamb (cause I can’t do ham), with all of the fixings. I just had to show up with my chocolate covered peanut butter eggs. It was all delicious.

One of her boys is not shown up there, but I love every single one of them. The oldest who is such a smart, funny leader. The middle child (not shown) who is kind and loving. And the youngest who could charm his way into anything. When I sat down, the middle child put a biscuit on my plate to make sure I got one. And when he ate one of my peanut butter eggs, he asked if he could have them for his birthday. I really love making memories with this family.

So, despite the harder parts of the day, the memories of last year, I’m still so very blessed.