Al and Janet came to visit us and gamely let us take them to every great BBQ joint we could think of.  We got up at 7am to drive out to Snow’s BBQ in Lexington for the best brisket in Texas.  Then we drove to Louis Mueller’s in Taylor for the best sausages, well, on this planet.  Then we walked over to Taylor Cafe for a beer.  I like the robot made out of tin cans.

For dinner, we went to Lambert’s, but then had oysters of all things.  And frito pie.  The waiter though we were cuckoo until we described our earlier excursions.  Then he knew that we were just voracious foodies.

The next day, I must admit, we were all BBQ’d out.  We went to Walton’s Fancy Staple for a Longhorn Whoopie.  The photo tables were turned as Janet grabbed a photo of me (I photographed Al and Janet’s wedding in 2004). 

We had a blast and are awaiting their next visit.

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Only a true friend like Fred (aka Superstar Graphic Designer) will surprise you and send a weeks’ worth of sudokus in the mail.

Yes, I have a sudoku fixation. Blame it on all that time spent in airports.  Now I do them at night to fall asleep.  Something about numbers delights my brain in a “counting sheep” way.  How unexpectedly cool it was to receive this exotic batch, all the way from the Los Angeles Times.  Helping me on my path to be Sudoku Master (honorary title bestowed on me by Noah).

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Little girl toes.  Zoe’s toes, to be specific.

SUZI Q | QWEDDINGS Wedding Photography Austin, Texas

The Flamingo Go Room is one of my favorite places in Las Vegas, it’s got the right combo of Rat Pack Vegas meshed with 60s mod and contemporary finishes.

Carrie and Ed are one of my favorite wedding couples.  Their wedding was filled with 60s and Ikea-esque touches.

Great place, great people…why not do a photo shoot?

This is a perfect example of how I become your lifetime photographer and friend after the wedding is long over.  Carrie and Ed got married at the Long Beach Museum of Art in California in 2006 but we have managed to keep in touch even though I now live in Texas.

I flew to Vegas just to do this photo shoot (and yes, I brought the Hubby too because we both love eating at Olives in Bellagio).  Carrie and Ed are also foodies, so we all ate at Bobby Flay’s Mesa Grill before the photo shoot.  Then Noah and I went over to Tao in the Venetian.  All in all, a pretty swanky time!

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Fred and Yvette following the rules at Coopers BBQ in Llano, Texas.  Notice the pile of meat on that school lunch tray.  Way too much, we had to bring it home to Noah.

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Visiting my cousin Chris and his two boys, Evan (Superman) and Jack (with the blankie).  I never thought I’d actually go to Albany, NY, but the minute I found out I’d be there, I contacted Chris to hang out and actually meet his wife and two boys.  It’s amazing that I hadn’t ever met them and I was so lucky to get the chance.  Eileen had to go to work, but Chris and the boys managed to have a grand time playing while I snapped away.  Really smart kids, and they’re going to athletes too.  You can’t keep up with Jack and Evan is already a solid hitter at the age of 3.  And already a Yankees fan.  Good job, Chris and Eileen!

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Funny hat, funny shed.  Visiting Candace and Jacqueline in upstate New York.

SUZI Q | QWEDDINGS Wedding Photography Austin, Texas

Alina and I tried on some hats in San Francisco at a haberdashery that was about the size of my coat closet.  I ended up buying a furry hat, or, as hubby aptly said,”you look like Elmer Fudd”.  Ah, fashion.

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Alina looked for all of 15 seconds and managed to find a four leaf clover at the De Young Museum.  I’m guessing it brought us good luck, because we had a fantastic time in San Francisco for four days, including an amazing wedding (patience, those photos are coming soon!).

SUZI Q | QWEDDINGS Wedding Photography Austin, Texas

Early Thanksgiving is a little known, but much loved holiday.  Actually, this is the first year for it, but we had such a good time, it is officially a new holiday in our household.

A little back story:  my dad was Canadian, so my family never did the traditional turkey thing, we always had Chinese food on Thanksgiving. Now I’m all grown up (I think?) and I’m not too traditional about it.  I even decided to schedule my flight to Chicago (to shoot a wedding) on Thanksgiving day (less air traffic, plus I get an extra day to go to the Art Institute).  Solution?  We decided to do “Early Thanksgiving” on Sunday.  Yes, 4 days ago!

Even more brilliant, Noah, (aka The Hubby) grew up eating crab legs for Thanksgiving.  His family figured out that crab legs were always on sale during Thanksgiving week, plus, it takes FOREVER to eat them, thereby insuring that you will be spending some quality time sitting around the table with your loved ones.

Also on the menu:
Dry Rub Chicken by Noah, Wade and Fred
Jenn’s Asian Greenbeans
Yvette’s Smoked Salmon blinis (with caviar!)
my asparagus pine nut salad
Jim’s Baklava
Alina’s Lemon Bars & Famous Pecan Pie
Noah’s Sweet Potato Pie

Wade supervised the grilling and then carved the birds.  Lucy watched tv and ate pancakes.  Alina made a vegetable bracelet for Jenn. Fred played an incredible reggae-ska-dub mix and Jim mixed Manhattans in my tiny vintage martini glasses.  Everyone took turns with my camera.

After dinner, it was such a balmy day, we went for a walk around the neighborhood wearing hats and with me twirling baton.  We really needed a kazoo to make it perfect.  I’ll put it on the list for next year.

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