2023 in Review: October

OCTOBER 2023

Katie's birthday and Halloween make Octobers special in our family. Throw in some extra fair time, and this October was off the charts!

October 2: Dallas

I was watching the morning newscast when I heard that Jeopardy! GOAT and host would be at the State Fair that day. Within minutes I was on my way to the train station for an impromptu solo trip to the fair! Ken was super nice and didn't even flinch when I mentioned that I'd been in the audience for a Celebrity Jeopardy! taping in August. (Upon further reflection, I really wish I had mentioned that I'm not a stalker but just living my best retired life!) 

October 4: Allen

Another whim fulfilled! Ryan needed to be at the airport waaaaay before dawn, so I took advantage of those early morning hours to be among the first to visit the new H-E-B in Allen. The team members treated us like royalty with free coffee, gift cards, and lots of cheers as we entered the brand new store. I can't wait to repeat this when H-E-B opens up closer to home!

October 6: Home and Dallas

Happy birthday to Katie! Because she was flying out of DFW that Friday, we got the bonus of spending her birthday with her for a change. To celebrate her day, she and I used my "bring a friend" pass to go to the fair. It was fun to splurge on the Texas Star ferris wheel, eat Fletcher's (and other goodies), and show her the special Texas Tech Centennial exhibit in the Hall of State.

Before going to the airport, the guys met us at On the Border so the four of us could celebrate our Bug.

October 7: Dallas

Even when the game doesn't go our way, Texas-ou is the best Saturday of the year! Once again Ryan got to join us thanks to a friend's generosity.

October 12: Dallas

For this fair trip, Dede and I spent time with our furry friends. We visited the petting zoo (and the overly aggressive ostrich), the pig races, and even dinosaurs. Turns out it was our last trip for the season, but we're already planning to get passes for 2024, too.

October 13: Winstar

Another spur-of-the-moment adventure: seeing a Beatle! I had so much fun (with my $31 ticket!) hearing Ringo and his All-Starr Band. I was excited to see one of the Beatles, but I was delighted to hear hits from Colin Hay and other 1980s musicians.

October 14-16: Lubbock

The morning after Ringo, I hit the road to visit Katie and see The Lion King in Lubbock. Along the way I stopped at a rest stop in time to see the partial solar eclipse. The shadows were super cool.

The Lion King musical had been on my list forever, so it was wonderful to finally get to see it with Ryan and Katie at Buddy Holley Hall. It was also thrilling to watch the Rangers beat the Astros in Game 1 of the ALCS with Katie's friends (who happen to be Astros fans).

October 12-14: Portland

While I was gallivanting across Texas, Brett was representing at the Portland Retro Gaming Expo with friends. Always a huge show!

October 19: Athens

After visiting Milan (Ohio) and Paris (Texas), we wrapped up our "world tour" with a trip to Athens—Athens, TEXAS, that is! The occasion was the wedding of Brett's cousin's daughter. It was great to catch up with Nana's side of the family!

October 21: Houston

It was nice of the Big XII to add the University of Houston to the conference just in time for us to sneak in a visit to the Cougars' stadium. It was hotter than hell, and we nearly squandered the big lead we started with, but the Horns won and we didn't melt--but it was close. While in town, Dede and I attended the wedding reception for my cousin's son. After seeing Brett's family Thursday night, I loved getting to catch up with my family that Saturday.

October 25: The Colony

Nothing like date night! This one started with us picking out new "his and hers" recliners and ended with dinner at Rock 'N Brews. Fun night!

October 26: Fort Worth

We celebrated our 30th "Buenoversary" at Taco Bueno, and the nice social media folks featured our post on their Instagram story! We have eaten Bueno Chilada platters on Oct. 27 for years in honor of the fancy fast food dinner we ate the night of our engagement. This year we bumped our Bueno date to Oct. 26 because I would be on the road for football on the true day, but the Chilada platters tasted just as great and the occasion no less sweet.

October 27-28: Austin

Oh, how my heart needed this weekend! For years we have shared football and our lives, but miles have come between us. For this special weekend, though, Wallis came in from Houston, Greg came from New Jersey, and Dana and Kelley arrived from LA. It was great to share football, Tex-Mex, and lots of laughs with these dear friends who live too far away.

October 31: Work and Home

Happy Halloween! Brett borrowed Ryan's Cobra Kai costume for work, and Daisy cosplayed as both a bumblebee and shark bait. We didn't set up a table on the driveway, but we had plenty of "Trickers" ring our doorbell. Always a fun day!

2023 in review: June

JUNE 2023

Our traditional family vacation was a little different in 2023 because Ryan was working summer school and couldn't join us. We chose to visit Ohio specifically because Ryan had previously been there with Brett. We had a great time, but we definitely missed having all four of us on the trip!

June 1: Cleveland

Cleveland is the birthplace of Superman and rock and roll, as the airport was quick to tell us. Our first stop was the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. It was fun to check out the Beatles exhibit and try out several instruments in the hands-on part of the museum. After walking to the lakeside "Script Cleveland" sign, we drove to Skyline Chili. Brett and Ryan had the Skyline experience on previous trips, so Katie and I were excited to see what all the fuss is about.

June 2: Cleveland

We started the day heading to the Lake View Cemetery, but we made a quick stop along the way. I surprised Brett when we pulled up to the "Superman house," a.k.a. the childhood home of Superman's creator, Jerry Siegel. The first Superman comics were created in this very house.

Several notable people from business and politics are buried at Lake View Cemetery, but the James A. Garfield Monument was the big draw for us. This magnificent monument was constructed thanks to donations that poured in after Garfield's assassination in 1881. Dedicated in 1890, the monument's Memorial Hall features a sculpture of Garfield under a magnificent dome. Artwork under the dome represents the wide variety of Americans who paid tribute to the fallen president. A lower level contains the crypts of Garfield and his wife, Lucretia Garfield. A docent told us that this is one of very few places that citizens can see the casket of a president. 

Elsewhere in Lake View is the grave of Alan Freed, the Cleveland man credited with coining the term "rock and roll." One side of his tombstone is designed to look like a jukebox, a fitting tribute to the DJ.

We also saw Harvey Pekar's grave. Writers places their pens at the American Splendor author's final resting place in tribute.

From there we went to the Christmas Story house! Even though most scenes were shot elsewhere, it was fun to tour the house used for the classic movie and see the props in the museum across the street.

From there we went to West Side Market for lunch—and for the record, longhorn was NOT on the menu. Then we returned downtown to see the gorgeous Arcade (the first indoor shopping center) and stop by Heinen's grocery store in an old bank building. We followed Katie's professor's recommendation and had dinner at The Harp before walking along Lake Erie at sunset.

June 3: Canton

From Cleveland we drove to Canton, where we saw President McKinley's memorial. His memorial also contains his crypt on display, so we were 2-for-2 on presidential burial places. Then we made it to football mecca, the Pro Football Hall of Fame. It was surreal to visit this place we had heard about all our lives. We found Cowboys and Longhorns all over the hall, and it was fun to relive so many historic moments through the interactive exhibits. Katie wasn't crazy about spending hours at the hall, so while we toured the memorial and HOF, she went for a ride along the Cuyahoga Valley Scenic Railroad.

June 4: Mansfield

Our destination in Mansfield was the Ohio State Reformatory, a.k.a. Shawshank. OSR was the primary filming location for the great film and an inspiration for the cellblock sets. In the movie, Shawshank has cells on both sides of the cellblock walk, but OSR does not. Filmmakers recreated the look in a warehouse for filming. It was cool to see some of the props still at OSR and take advantage of the photo ops. 

From Mansfield we drove to Sandusky, but not without stopping in Milan, Ohio, Thomas Edison's birthplace. Yes, in one year we visited Paris, Milan, and Athens!

June 5: Cedar Point

As coaster junkies, Katie and I have talked about going to Cedar Point forEVER. It was a big drag that on our one day there I had a massive allergy attack, but it was still great to see the famous amusement park and try out some of the rides. It was especially trippy to ride some of the old-school favorites that used to be at our Six Flags park, like the OG Crazy Legs and the Sky Ride (Von Roll trams). Even with bad allergies, a day that includes a ferris wheel ride alongside Lake Erie is pretty darn awesome.

June 6: Back to Cleveland

On our way from Sandusky back to the Cleveland airport, we closed out our trip with a stop at the Lakeview Park in Lorain. We walked down to the beach to touch the Erie and took time to smell the roses at the city garden there before heading home. 

June 15: Hurst

Back home from vacation, we made sure our favorite Flash superfan got to see The Flash movie on opening day.

June 25: North Richland Hills

Happy birthday to Nana! It's always fun to celebrate her!