GUESS WHO?

Can you guess who was here visiting last weekend?

Yep, you guessed it. The Goobster was back! However, despite all that you see here, he didn't really play with any of these things for long. It was more like he felt he owed it to each and every one of them to stop in and say a quick hello, after being away from them for a whole week. In fact, the only thing that really grabbed his attention and held it for three whole days was this, my recent thrift store find.

A PIRATE SHIP!

After doing a bit of research, I discovered that the ship was named Bucky, and that it was based on a Disney Jr. TV series from a few years back called Jake and the Neverland Pirates. Now, our Goobster has never been much into watching TV or sitting still for anything when he's at MimiPapa's house, but Papa took a chance and ordered these videos.

Glory be, he didn't just like them, he loved them! Don't think we would have survived the long weekend without them.

Best of all, they made playing with his new pirate ship all that much more fun, for now he knew who the different characters were, and what the brig and the plank and the crow's nest and red slide were for!

For some reason he really, really loves cramming everyone into the brig, both good and bad!

 

A SCARE AND A TREAT

My poor kiddos had a rough week. Little Goober was on the tail end of a long-lasting head cold when he suddenly took a turn for the worse, getting all wheezy and coughing up gunk. Lex took him to their pediatrician early the next morning and we were all shocked to hear he might have a mild case of pneumonia. The doc prescribed some antibiotics, but they didn't seem to be helping, and by that evening he had a "barking seal" cough and was really struggling to talk and breathe. Lex called the doctor back and was advised to take our sad baby on over to Dell Children's Hospital, where they decided the poor kid actually had croup, which is viral, not bacterial.

They ended up keeping him overnight and gave him some steroids and a couple of nebulizer treatments. Any idea how hard it is to get a toddler to keep a mask over his mouth and nose? On the plus side, the more he screamed and wailed, the more of the treatment he was sucking in. By morning he was much, much better, 'tho his parents were a good bit worse for wear!

We gave them some time at home to catch up on their rest, then went over to take them some dinner, and to see for myself that my baby was OK. He still has a really raspy voice, but his spunk is finally coming back and, though I'm ashamed to say this, sick baby snuggles are really some of the best, are they not?

Then came the treat part of the week. A good while back Hubby surprised me with tickets to a concert he knew would set me all a-quiver, and which was to be held at the beautiful old Paramount Theater in downtown Austin. We began our special date here at La Traviata Italian Bistro, a longtime Congress Ave. favorite we had just never got around to trying.

Loved this prosciutto and parm appetizer served in crisp endive boats with a drizzle of truffle oil.

Calamari Puttanesca for me and something with meatballs for Hubby

Just my kind of place -- my hubby knows me well!

Then it was just a short walk down Congress to reach our ultimate destination...

And, judging from the number of rhinestone cowboys and gals we passed along the way, all headed in the same direction, we had a feeling it was going to be a full house!

I think this old theater -- the same one where we saw Postmodern Juke Box with the kids a while back -- is one of the most beautiful ever.

Primping Stations in the Ladies Room

Still a Cutie!

The place was packed, and it ended up being one of the most fun concerts we've ever been to. What a performer! Not only does he still have an amazing voice range (perfect for the occasional Roy Orbison ballad), smooth dance moves, and a great sense of humor. He also, judging from all the swooning women in the audience, still manages to exude hotness as well!

Interested in having a fun date-night yourself? Check out these upcoming performances by a couple of Wimberley's own!

Ray Wylie Hubbard

Sarah Jarosz

Now I'm off to check on baby Calvin again. Catch ya later!

 

A NATURAL WOMAN

Hubby and I just got back from another epic "Lanford" weekend, with our long-time adventure buddies, the Sanfords. Once again we met up in Austin and checked into the Austin Motel on S. Congress. It has changed ownership since last we were there, and now belongs to the same group as Hotel San José and Hotel Havana. As I feared, they have replaced much of the old time funk and character with bare bones minimalism. Still, you simply cannot beat the location. And, though the rooms were uninspiring, we did love the awesome patio area above, which they created out of a former driveway -- the perfect place to hang out after dinner! And this pool. I love this pool.

Unfortunately, all those awesome floats do not reside there permanently, but are available for sale at a nearby shop called The Gypsy Wagon. Guess we just caught them in the middle of a photo shoot.

Know what else I love? Being right next door to Jo's Coffee -- the best place in the world to hang out with a chai latte or a cup of coffee each morning, watching the street come to life, while you wait for your travel mates to finally come to life.

The main event of the weekend was seeing Beautiful: The Carole King Musical. 

I was in hog heaven, since her album Tapestry was the soundtrack for my senior year of high school, and I still keep that C.D. in my car, to sing along with on solo road trips. Plus, Carole herself probably had more than a little to do with my finally becoming a "Natural Woman", and letting my wild curly hair do what it was always meant to do... (to be continued)

HE LIKES IT!

I'm pretty sure little Calvin likes our new color-mad carpet...

although he did get a tad frustrated when he wasn't able to pick up any of the "balls".

I had a great time playing with him while Mom and Dad had a date night here in Wimberley. He was a happy, happy camper until about 8:45, when he abruptly hit that famous brick wall. Suddenly he was inconsolable, and nothing but his mommy and daddy and his own bed at home was going to appease him. We took turns pacing the floor with him until Hubby decided to see if he could find something on TV to distract him from his woes. The first thing that popped up was The Hobbit.

We never heard another peep out of him, and his eyes stayed glued to that screen until Mom and Dad showed up.

Looks like the Normal-to-Geek ratio in this family has tipped even further out of balance, and now stands at 1: 6 (sigh).

COME HELL OR HIGH WATER

Last Saturday, at the end of a week full of rain -- when they were predicting even more and our phones were beeping with flash flood alerts --  my hubby dragged me into the car and we drove over to Austin. Why? Because he had tickets to a show, and wasn't about to miss it! I may have been a bit of a drama queen about it, declaring that our dinner had better be a good one, since it was probably going to be our last meal. So, just who was it that was worth braving the torrents for? This woman here.

The one in the Zoot Suit, comedienne Paula Poundstone. He has long been a fan of her witty responses on the NPR show Wait Wait...Don't Tell Me!, and wanted to see if she was that quick on the draw in person. She is!

Fortunately for my hubby, the predicted rains and floods did not materialize, and the show was a hoot 'n a holler. Best of all was the venue, One World Theater out on Bee Cave Road, overlooking the hills of Austin.

Just the first few rows were folding chairs -- the place to be if you enjoy being singled out and made part of the show. Hubby wouldn't have minded, but I was quite happy to be in the more comfy tiered seating further back, since I am the polar opposite of one who is glib-tongued.

So, I guess you could say, "All's well that ends well", and I'm kinda glad he dragged me out in the deluge. But don't tell Hubby I said so!

WHISKEY TANGO FOXTROT

While we're on the subject of American women who are so unhappy with their current lives that fleeing to war-torn Afghanistan seems like a sensible way out to them, have you seen the previews for Tina Fey's latest?
 

CINEMA BUFFS

Hubby has been attending a film fest over in Austin all week. Everyone wonders why I didn't go with him. Perhaps these photos will help you understand. I believe they must have been aiming at a younger, geekier crowd. Perfect for my hubby, right?

His favorite movie of all was that one on the right.

He had a total blast, and plans to go back again next year, but...five whole days of having to be up by 7:00AM, driving back and forth to Austin during rush hour, and sitting on his tushie all day long in a darkened movie theater?  It Wore. Him. Out!

So what did we do on his first day off, to help him relax and recuperate? Why, we went to a movie, of course! By the way, you should definitely go see The Intern, with Robert DeNiro. We both enjoyed it thoroughly. Plus we can't wait for the new Bill Murray movie, which they showed trailers for, to come out.

We just might go see The Martian today.
  

CAUSE FOR CELEBRATION: SB'S PMJ

Have you ever heard of a guy named Scott Bradlee? Maybe not, but he happens to be a bit of a musical genius -- and I'm not just referring to his piano playing, though that is pretty amazing. No, the thing that makes him "so very special" is that he gathered together a group of super-talented musician friends, all struggling to make a living in New York City, had them dress up 40s style, gave them his jazzy arrangements of some modern songs, and made some videos to post on YouTube, calling the group Scott Bradlee's Post Modern Jukebox. Next thing they knew, they were traveling the country performing for sold out crowds at amazing venues like the old Paramount Theater in Austin, Texas. Best of all, they did it without the help of agents, producers, or record companies. And, this weekend, we were there to applaud their success.

An added bonus was that it gave us yet another opportunity to don our speakeasy wedding attire!

Lexi's wedding dress has since been dyed (professionally) a soft blue-green.

It was almost worth the price of the tickets just to be in this beautiful downtown theater again.

The three origial female members, whom you will see in many of the groups YouTube videos, are these gals here...

Ariana Savalas, Morgan James, and Hayley Reinhart.  Morgan, the blonde in the middle, probably has the most amazing, well-trained pipes, having graduated from Julliard with a degree in opera. You've simply got to hear her sing Take Me To Church. But there's just something about that curly-haired Hayley Reinhart, there on the right, that had members of the audience (mostly guys) yelling out "I love you Hayley!" at regular intervals throughout the show. I almost did it myself, after hearing her version of the song Creep.

If you're a fan of American Idol, you may have seen Hayley there, as well as  Mr. Casey Abrams (with all the hair kinda like mine) who sang and played the cello.

The big finale was this song, which you may have heard once or twice. Oh, and did I forget to mention the tap dancing?

All in all, it was a fantabulous evening!

Can you believe this amazing theater is where hubby and I used to go on movie dates back when we were both at UT? I know you younguns love your multiplexes with dozens of options to choose from, but there was something about seeing a movie in a gorgeous venue such as this that made it, well, more of an event.

Speaking of "events", guess who is celebrating their 40th wedding anniversary today? We are! Quite a feat in this day and age, don't you think? Our upcoming trip to San Miguel de Allende was supposed to be our gift to each other, but since that's not until August, we each ended up doing a little sumpin sumpin for the other. As for our age-old debate about stuff vs. experiences, I think we both got it right this time. I managed to find him a new gizmo which, miracle of miracles, he had not yet heard of and bought for himself...

while Hubby gave me a card with this inside.

Guess I'd better get packing, huh?