Hi, everyone. Happy belated Father’s Day to all the Dads out there, and I hope you all had a great Father’s Day weekend. Father’s Day is very bittersweet for me. I miss my Dad every single day, but Father’s Day is especially tough. My heart goes out to you if it’s the same for you. I wish my Dad was here so badly to see my siblings thriving, meet DJ, meet our niece and nephews (his grandchildren) and just everyyyything else. The urge to call him randomly is still there, and if you’ve lost someone you probably understand the bulldozing mix of pain and longing that sometimes hits out of nowhere or when you hear a certain song, see the car they used to drive or when together with family and noting their palpable missing presence. My Dad was an amazing man, and there is no way he could have been a better Dad. He had the best heart, was incredibly selfless, hilarious (truly had us laughing constantly), and brightened everyone’s day he interacted with. He saw the best in people and brought it out of them. He set an awesome example for us, taught us invaluable lessons and as we’d drive home from family outings, he’d always ask, “Good memory?”. He was always sure we made good memories together, and we did. I cling to those tightly.

At the same time on Father’s Day, I feel extremely grateful for the incredible “bonus” Dads in my life through my stepdad Pete, my dad-in-law, and step dad-in-law! We are soo blessed.

For this Father’s Day, my mom and I devised a plan to surprise Pete at Brazos in Waco- halfway for us both (about 1.5 hrs). You may recognize this from when we met for my Grandma Violet’s birthday!!

We loved Brazos the last time, so we figured why not go back. My mom told Pete to reserve the day. So after church they headed out. Pete commented on the long drive, “At this rate we might as well visit Kenz!”. LOL!

They arrived before me, so when the waitress said “reservation for three” I think he figured it out, hah.

Oh my gosh, y’all, this lunch was so good and so much fun. It was easilyy the highlight of my weekend & it was really good to catch up, especially since Pete wasn’t in town when I visited my mom a couple weekends ago.

We started the meal by sharing this outrageously good guac.

Pete ordered the Ewing burger from last time that was far too memorable to pass up again.

And these fries!!! Had to get a close up.

My mom and I split their salmon over a bed of basmati rice with asparagus and broccoli along with the house salad with candied pecans and strawberries. Wowzaaa, all so yummy. And what’s a true celebration without some dessert?! We ordered the peach cobbler, and it was out-of-this-world good. Even the vanilla ice cream they served with it was superb. I am so thankful we were able to do this!!! I’m also so stinking thankful for Pete- he has been supportive in every way, through every season of life. If you have followed this blog over the years, that probably goes without saying. There is not a person on earth that has a bad word to say about Pete, and he is one of the most humble, kind, hardworking people I know. We always have the best time all together too.

After lunch, we sat in the car to open cards and gifts, then I presented my presentation for this week’s intensive. My mom spoiled me by sending me off with delicious eats including her zucchini cake (I’ll be sharing about that in a few posts!), fresh sprouts from her garden, a quinoa and veggie dish, and her homemade PB protein balls.

I drove back to Austin and ended the day with a spectacular sunset run.

I’d love to know: 

• How was your weekend?

<3