Easter in the Big D

We had a great Easter up in Dallas with the whole family! Ryan and Lauren came in from Philly and we drove up from SA. Here are some of the highlights...

I brought these awesome dessert cheese balls from HEB. One was a little chick and one was a bunny rabbit. You know I don't think I've ever even had a cheese ball before, but these were tasty...pina colada and strawberry macadamia nut!

Nothing like some immediate family bonding/competition by playing a little UNO Stack-o. Mom had left some very interesting pieces sticking out at the bottom and Jeremy was the next to pull...

No trip to Dallas would be complete without dinner at S&D Oyster Co. in Downtown. We've been going there as far back as I can remember.

Though I'm pretty sure when Jeremy saw a dozen of these bad-boys brought to the table he wasn't hungry anymore! =)

On Saturday we rented 3 tandem bicycles and took the trail towards White Rock Lake. Jeremy decided that there was no such thing as a brake, and was terrified of stopping our forward progress. Lauren and Ryan looked like pro's ready to enter the Olympics, and Mom and Dad seemed to enjoy the "team building" experience...I take after my mom and hated not being in the drivers seat! =) This is us at the end of the 18 miles...and still in one piece!

Getting ready to dye the eggs - Dad's very deep in concentration and hoping his hand won't cramp in that position!

The end result... and also the beginning of "egg-salad sandwich" week for Mom and Dad!

Here's our contributions. One of Jeremy's had a reese's cup for a hat - he was very impressed!

It'll make you cry

I finally wanted to get this video up for you! NBC Dallas did a special piece on my business, The Texan Biographer. They highlighted the biography we're creating on my Dad's life story, and his run with Dallas Cowboys. Turns out WOAI in San Antonio re-ran the piece last night (with their own spin too).

So without further delay, enjoy!

It is sure to make you cry, or at least it made me cry... even though I kept telling myself, "Don't cry or else they'll be sure to use that clip in the piece!" =) Of course, they did!!! And I only cried for .2 seconds, I swear!

A Dallas Cowboy in the Family!

As many of you know, I am a family biographer. I work with clients from all over the country to capture their life story. In fact, I started the company because I was inspired by my own Grandfather Werner....whose story we were unable to fully capture.

Every day I am reminded how important it is to capture the stories, life lessons, and memories of our loved ones. We take for granted the fact that they will always be with us to share their story.... And so I decided a couple months ago that it was never to early to start saving my parents' history.

Not yet 60 (sorry Mom, had to put that in there), they have some fascinating tales to tell. I decided to kick-off my father's biography first, and have to tell you the interviews alone have been a blast! What a fun memory to have together.

The Dallas NBC station found out about my project and decided to come over and do a story on us! And I am proud to say that the piece will be airing in Dallas and San Antonio this Easter Sunday at 10:30pm. So all of my readers in Dallas and San Antonio, set those TiVo's and catch a great piece of television history!

Here's a shot of Matt Barrie, the NBC sports anchor, getting Dad in the hot seat during his interview. Why the sports section you may be asking yourself? Well, my Dad had a great run with the Dallas Cowboys....drafted at quarterback in '73 and worked his way up within the administration to Director of Operations. So the sports division wanted to hear all of the great Cowboy stories that we were capturing.

We had a great time filming at the house with Matt and Noah (the ace camera man) and I can't wait to see how it all comes together on Sunday! I'll post a link as soon as it hits...in the meantime enjoy these snapshots that might appear in the segment!

Dad looking very quarterback-esque while playing at Michigan State

Dad with the Vince Lombardi Super Bowl VI trophy, from a Cowboy victory!

My little brother Ryan and I on the field before one of the Cowboy games.
I'm pretty sure he covets this photo with the cheerleaders - just look at that face!

Designing Again!

I had a chance to help one of my friends, Sarah, with her wedding invitations. We had a lot of fun picking out the style and trying to get all the inserts to work. I think they turned out beautifully...so wanted to share!

Plus I had a chance to relive the craziness that is known as "planning a wedding!" Glad my part was only the invitations this time!

Plus we had fun trying to create a monogram too!

Flippin' Out in Atlanta

I'm away on business this week...doing a biography project in Atlanta! I decided to be adventurous tonight and go out to eat...by myself! =) I know, for many of you this does not sound too scary...but I've never really gone to a restaurant alone...."Rory, order for one at the bar!"

I decided to try this AWESOME restaurant called Flip Burger Boutique, which also happens to have co-collaborator, Richard, from Top Chef, as one of the chefs putting together these burger creations! Since I'm a die-hard Top Chef fan this sounded like a great place to try tonight.


I ordered this super tasty creation, the Butcher Cut Burger: caramelized onion, blue cheese, and red wine jam! Or course, accompanied by the vodka battered onion rings.


Oh, and couldn't miss topping off the meal with my new favorite shake EVER!!!....the nutella + burnt marshmallow....they served it with a dry-ice-like-finish, which kind of made it like a dessert show for one at the bar! Two types of ice cream, hazelnut and chocolate, with nutella, and topped with marshmallows (torched in front of you).


And yes, as if dining alone wasn't strange enough for me, I was bustin' out my Nikon and documenting the whole meal! =)

I made best friends with the bartender/shake mix-master guy and he tells me I need to come back all week...and tempted me with recommendations for the "Po Boyger: shrimp, old bay mayo, shaved lettuce, fried lemon and tabasco" and told me to accompany it with the "Krispy Kreme Shake." Yes, they actually put pieces of krispy kreme donut into that crazy creation!

So all in all was a fun outing! Back to work!

Police on Earthwind Drive!

What is this! I come back home (to my childhood home on Earthwind Drive)... on a slightly last minute trip, and within hours we had to call the cops! Okay, okay, I wish I could build up to more drama than a downed light post outside our house...but that is about as good as I can get!

I typically always park my car in front of the house during these visits...glad I decided to park around back tonight.

This is about as much action as Earthwind Drive has ever seen...two squad cars! I took the photo on a long exposure, so it looks a lot brighter than it really was out there. Up to that point my dad was armed with a 6 inch flashlight ready to flag down any speeders who were about to come across a very nasty bump in the road! He took his job very seriously and held vigil until the reinforcements arrived.

And here's the culprit...the good, old, sturdy, lamp post. At 11:59pm this evening decided it had stood for its last Dallas wind storm....it's seriously howling here... gusting above 40mph.

Well, I'm off to bed - but had to chronicle this very exciting night on Earthwind Drive...and thank goodness I parked the 'stang out back! I can just imagine walking out front to find that thing across my hood! =)

Meet John and John

Meet Jeremy...or is it John?

Background for story:
In Jeremy's family they have a "John" tradition. The first born son always has the first name "John." So Jeremy's name is "John Jeremiah," but he goes by "Jeremy."

Injury background:
As many of you know Jeremy's been through the ringer this past year - with a broken leg and a broken hand. Every time we go to the doctor they walk in, look at Jeremy, and say, "Hello, John! Good to see you...how's the leg." It drives me crazy. His name is Jeremy, not John!

I guess since Jeremy has lived through a lifetime of this, he just goes along with it. I'm usually the one what will say, "Jeremy is doing fine!" Then they smile and say, "Oh, Jeremy, of course..."

Come on people, he broke his leg six months ago and we've seen you every 4 weeks since then - can't you get his name right? Jeremy just smiles, shrugs, and tells me to learn to deal with it!

Getting Around the the True Story:
Jeremy's been in physical therapy for the past two months for his hand. He sees the same guy three times a week, for an hour each visit. That is over 20 face-to-face visits....and what name do you think they use? ...Yes, that would be John! Are you kidding me!

Jeremy says it is most confusing when someone calls for him from across the room during a therapy session and he doesn't respond to "John!" They are starting to think he is a little bit slow!

I don't know about you, but at some point I'd have to break down and tell them my real name... but he keeps telling me that once you get past one or two visits it is impossible to go back on the name thing. What do you think...is 20 face to face visits too long to go back on what your name really is? =)