All My Exes Live in Texas

Okay, maybe not exes, but quite a few friends are now living in good ol' Tejas. So I packed up my boots, my cowboy hat, and biggest belt buckle and headed south.

 

But first I had to fly to Antarctica for a layover. I was able to read approximately 6 books on my flight, take a 3 hour nap, knit 12 sweaters, and sing the entire soundtracks to West Side Story, Wicked, and Les Mis.

Or maybe I had a direct flight to Dallas and I simply caught a photo of the clouds that looked like Antarctica. Whatever.

                                               
After arriving at the airport and eating at Breadwinners with Sesha, we went to the adult version of a jungle gym/ ball pit. This is actually an interactive sculpture at Nasher Sculpture Center in Dallas. It was fun to go through... like so fun we did it twice. But I'm guessing it was more fun because of the company. Sesha and Adriane made it a memorable afternoon.

The next day Sesh and I headed over to see Sarah's new baby, Foster!!! And I'm a dork because I spent the whole time talking and staring, but completely forgot to take a picture. It was a great visit and it was beautiful to see the Lord's promise fulfilled.

I have to be honest with you all. I have absolutely no recollection of what happened that evening. Oh, wait!! I remember! Sushi (which just screams Texas, right?), a tour of Dallas and Sesha's new workspace, and gelato. Yum yum. Here's why I can't remember the details of everything: I was just simply happy to be with the girls. My heart misses them terribly and my arms miss squeezing their necks.

Our final day in Dallas was spent with Adriane. Let me sum it up for you: food + friends + laughter + Barnes & Noble + Starbucks + ice cream.

   

Oh, and somewhere in there I had a child, became outdoorsy, and went backpacking. No bigs. 

Our next stop was Austin. Don't you worry, we kept it weird. (Austin has stickers, tshirts, etc all over that say "Keep Austin Weird".) Austin meant more friends + Whole Foods (the original) + great finds + food trucks + ice cream + photo lessons (not shown... these photos are all brought you to by iPhone)

Belgian Chocolate and Mexican Vanilla at Amy's Ice Cream... my tastebuds have never been so happy. These were more than just chocolate and vanilla. I can't even explain. I would probably consider moving to Austin based on Whole Foods and Amy's alone.

We randomly found a huge area of graffiti, but not just any graffiti. This is a purposeful location where artists (with approval) go and create. It was huge and amazing and my photos don't begin to do it justice.

 

My time in Texas was simply precious. It did my heart and spirit good. I didn't even mind the heat because I was with the ones I love. 

And I may have been a little happy too because of all the delicious ice cream we had.... and we had a lot. As in we ate ice cream every single day. But that's what you do in Texas summer heat.

But it's okay because we spent time walking around, sweating off the calories. Seriously. I lost 5 lbs on vacation, even with the ice cream. Thank you, Texas heat! 

 

I met this little buddy on my way home. His name is Jacob.

Can anyone explain this patten on the ground? What's the purpose? I mean, it looks cool, but there has to be a reason, right?

Finally, I have to say a huge thanks to Bridget. She had some great suggestions for places in Dallas and Austin! Thanks, Bridget!! Operation: Sell Amy on Texas was more successful than I would have guessed.