A Presidential Weekend.

This weekend, Wheat and I jetted down to Dallas to visit his family and celebrate his mom's birthday. It was a blitz trip that ended before it even really began, but it was wonderful to spend some quality time with his parents and his beloved family dog, Cooper. Seriously, is there anything cuter than watching a grown man who is head-over-heels in love with his dog? I imagine the answer is yes - watching a grown man who is head-over-heels in love with his child.

Upon arrival on Friday night, my in-laws picked us up from the airport and took us straight to dinner at Uncle Julio's. When in Texas, you eat Tex-Mex and barbecue, right? We loaded up on chips, salsa, and tacos while catching up with each other. Wheat's brother and his girlfriend also joined us for dinner, but we called it an early night due to exhaustion and the tell-tale signs of a sore throat coming on.

By the next morning, the slight discomfort in my throat had transformed into a full-fledged issue. My left ear was hurting, the entire left side of my neck was inflamed and sore to the touch, and I could barely swallow. When I asked Wheat to inspect the back of my throat, he informed me that he saw several white patches near my tonsils. So, we made our way to the little clinic at a nearby Walmart, where it was confirmed that I did, indeed, have strep throat.

Refusing to let my zombie-like appearance and feelings ruin our trip, I bucked up and decided to continue with the weekend as planned. That afternoon, Wheat's parents took us to see All The Way, a play about the 11 months between LBJ's unexpected swearing in as president following Kennedy's assassination and the 1964 presidential election, at the Dee and Charles Wyly Theatre. The political nerd in me loved it. Between voting and civil rights issues, war in Vietnam, concerns about poverty, and campaigning, it really made you sympathize with LBJ, who was forced into an awful position during such a turbulent time in American history. Less than 20 actors played over 40 different roles and it was amazing to see them work on such a simple set. I'm anxious to see the HBO film version, which stars Bryan Cranston as LBJ and Anthony Mackie as MLK, in May.

After the play, we headed to Addison for my mother-in-law's birthday dinner at Table 13, a vintage, upscale steakhouse. I loved the decor, which was all '60s inspired and included pin-up girls on every wall, and the live crooner music was the perfect touch. The food was great (I had chicken cordon bleu and loaded fingerling potatoes), the dessert was even better (bread pudding for the win!), and I couldn't get over the precious mermaid that came in my mother-in-law's cosmopolitan. Plus, how do you beat a place that lights your dessert on fire?

We woke up early for church on Sunday morning and I was finally able to hear my father-in-law deliver a sermon. As expected, he didn't disappoint with his quick wit and comforting tone. After church, we grabbed lunch at Rusty Taco because you can never have enough Mexican food. The bright, casual atmosphere was perfect and I loved devouring my fried chicken and barbecue brisket tacos with the breeze blowing in on a 75º day. Note to self: Never visit Texas in August again.

After lunch, Wheat and I decided to make the most of our day and visit the George W. Bush Presidential Library and Museum on SMU's campus. The expansive building, complete with a replica of the White House's Rose Garden and an outdoor dining area for Cafe 43, was absolutely gorgeous. We spent the bulk of our time exploring the permanent exhibit, which chronicles the life and presidency of George W. Bush. It was fascinating to see artifacts related to so many events that I actually remember in my lifetime - 9/11, the war in Iraq, Hurricane Katrina, No Child Left Behind, etc. Highlights for me included the recreation of the Oval Office and Bush's impressive signed baseball collection. I also really enjoyed the Decision Points theater, an interactive room where you were faced with one of the crises that Bush encountered during his presidency. You listened to advice from different advisors, weighed your options, and ultimately chose what action you would take as president. We did it twice (Hurricane Katrina and the surge into Iraq) and it was fascinating to compare my viewpoints to Bush's.

The temporary exhibit, Path to the Presidency, detailed life on the campaign trail, what it takes to run for president, and interesting details about elections of the past. We posed for a campaign poster, shared what we think makes a good president, watched iconic campaign ads from the past, and read acceptance speeches from a teleprompter. Although we finished it pretty quickly, it was a fun addition to the museum.

The rest of the evening was filled with a delicious steak dinner at home and lots of anguish over The Walking Dead season finale. Are they kidding me? How am I expected to wait until October for its return?