Love and Food in the Big D

Sunday, November 14, 2010

One year down... a lifetime to go. :)



Mr. & Mrs. Chad Kelley
November 14, 2009

Outside Mary Immaculate Catholic Church
Farmers Branch, Texas

I can’t believe it’s been a year already.  Exactly one YEAR since our wedding day.  One year since I became a WIFE.  One year since we committed a lifetime to each other.  Where in the (H. E. double hockey sticks) did the time GO?!  Thinking back on my elementary school days, it seemed like the days took forever and the months crawled, and that long awaited trip to the zoo NEVER came fast enough.  Now, twenty some odd years later, I blink and two years have gone by in an instant.  Chad and I still reminisce about the first week we met…how we wished for the time to fly just so that people didn’t think we were crazy for moving as fast as we were moving.  We hoped that no one thought we were nuts for church hunting for our wedding on... WEEK SEVEN!  We couldn’t wait to be a few months into our relationship just so that our parents might know for sure that we were, in fact, meant to be….(not admitting that we had been planning our wedding probably after week ONE!).  Those silly cliché’s about just “knowing” when you’ve found the “One” was ACTUALLY true!!  Who knew?!  Six months after our first date I was sporting the ring I was eagerly waiting for... the ring I had dreamt about...the ring I had envisioned looking down on my barren left hand...as I waited patiently for the day when Chad finally proposed.  It had only been six months to the day since we met, yet he couldn't ask me to marry him fast enough!  Almost exactly a year after that, I was standing next to him at Mary Immaculate Church reciting the words that would forever change our lives.  Meaningful words that would bind our hearts to eachother, forever.  I had never felt so ready for something this important in my entire life.  I think I can safely say I was ready to be his wife since the day we first met.  Mrs. Yvette M. Kelley.  I've finally gotten used to it.  It took awhile..but it's definitely grown on me.  ;)  


Walking into our cocktail hour at the Eisemann Center in Richardson


Our beautiful flowers


Giggling through our first dance as husband and wife :)


And for those of you who didn't get to see the professional wedding pictures that our awesome photographers Jimmages took of our wedding day, take a gander and let us know what you think...but be warned... there are TONS to look at.  :)

Kelley Wedding Photos

As November quickly approached, we decided early on to spend our first year anniversary in a slightly LESS traditional way.  We thought it was only fitting to celebrate a special birthday that was so selfishly overlooked on our wedding day last year.  Lisa Aguirre Roden.  My Dallas mom.  My home away from home.  The person who lets me let my "mexican" out...lol.. gave up her 50th birthday last year to be a part of our wedding day as our Padrinos de Lasso.  This year, surprise party in place, secret invitations handed out, fake "dinner" planned to celebrate our anniversary and her birthday combined, we led her to our clubhouse where all her family was waiting.  She NEVER saw it coming.  It was the BEST way we could've ever spent a first anniversary...she loved it.  :)    


Does she look surprised?!  :)

Inspecting her "grandma" cane.  :)

We had a great turn out!  :)  She really must be loved ;)

Chowing down on some of Chad's famous ribs and chicken.  :)  
It was a HIT!

We even ordered our wedding cake from La Duni again so everyone could celebrate our anniversary with us.  It was DELISH!  :)

What a great picture :)

Singing to the ole gal.  :)




Lisa cutting her birthday cake  

And us cutting anniversary cake  :)

Opening birthday presents




My sweet, sweet husband of one year

being his normal goofy self.  


It certainly was a HAIR-RAISING good time!!  harharhar... ;)


Happy 51st birthday Oldie but Goodie.  :)
We love you!  :)

Thank you again for spending your 50th birthday being a part of our wedding, glad we could finally make it up to you.  Hope you enjoyed your party! :)








Sunday, October 31, 2010

WORLD SERIES - Game 4

Texas Rangers vs. San Francisco Giants :)

Not that we didn't have any faith in our very own Texas team, it's just that it's the WORLD SERIES for crying out loud!  Did this really happen?  Did our very own Texas Rangers really make the WORLD Freakin' SERIES?!  SERIOUSLY??!!  How incredibly EXCITING IS THAT?!  You don't have to be a crazy baseball nut to realize the importance of this accomplishment.  Never has this happened to the Texas Rangers before.. so, needless to say, both Chad and I felt DAMN lucky to have a first hand account of it.  :)  Game 4 was the game we had scored tickets to..thanks to knowing some great people...who just so happen to know some great people!  (Cara and Conner, thanks again..the seats were AWESOME! :) 

Starting the World Series off right. 
Tailgating with friends in the Rangers parking lot :)
On the menu for the afternoon:
Super delicious pork ribs, corn on the cob and pulled pork sandwiches (made by my love)
Roasted veggies, fruit salad, assorted chips and LOTS of BEER!

Even Conner was able to join in on the fun! 
After visiting with us for a while we loaded him up with goodies
to take back to the guys working the scouting room :)

Super sweet Cara, bar manager at the Moth and
her fiance Conner, scout for the Rangers :)

Conner and Cara's friends and family from Boston

Kyle, Chad's friend and former Soux Chef at the Oceanaire

Chad, happy about those Junior Mints :)

Making our way to the stadium after a few hours of tailgating

Woo Hoo!  Let's GO RANGERS!


Chad and Kyle being silly

Almost to the entry gate :)

Just happy to be at a World Series game

Sitting in the "friends and family" section :)

The sunset that night was simply GLORIOUS!


The stadium took TWO SECONDS to fill up.

And the crowd was ROARING!



The BIGGEST flag we had ever SEEN!
It was incredible the way they unraveled it without letting it touch the floor


BEAUTIFUL

Former President George W. Bush throwing out the first pitch

What an amazing sight...

Awww.. so in love :)
(or maybe it was just the alcohol producing those goofy looking grins of love ;)

Let's PLAY BALL!!

We just so happened to be sitting literally
RIGHT BEHIND Benji Molina's family. 
How cool is THAT?!

Kinda pooped out.. Disappointed by the way the game is going. 

Kyle and Benji's brother Jose Molina, who currently plays for the Toronto Blue Jays


A sad loss for the Rangers but how can you REALLY be sad about making it to the WORLD SERIES?!
What an incredible experience for everyone, us and the team.  :)

Sunday, October 17, 2010

Sweet Endings - Day 5 San Francisco, CA

Five days down and our time had come to say goodbye to our long awaited vacation in Yosemite.  It had nearly taken an act of Congress to pull this time off...with Chad's crazy work schedule, I was grateful to have this time with him, but I was also kind of looking forward to my bed again.  It seemed quite obvious to spend our last day on vacation in San Francisco.  A nice dinner, a warm shower and a cozy bed was all we needed to top off our amazing vacation.


Farewell Yosemite.  Until we meet again.  :(

The short but extremely STEEP way down

Making our way...

To our swanky hotel.  The Prescott



We also thought it fitting to end our last night with a trip to the very restaurant we came to on our honeymoon almost one year ago.  It was just as we had left it...delicious! 

Frascati's Italian Restaurant - recommended by local and friend Jennifer Fontenella for our honeymoon.  We liked it so much, we came back!

So many wonderful things to choose from!

I'll be the first to say that I'm not really a red wine person... 
I'll almost always choose white wine over reds any day..but this one...
Yeah.. I'll take that one.  Mmmmmm...

I chose the chicken.  Made simply..but OH. SO. TASTY!

Mmmmm....carbs... ;) 

And who could go without
Sweet Endings.... 

My last birthday treat....til next year ;)
Chocolate Bread Pudding!!