ACCIDENTAL FRENCH TOURISTS IN OHIO

Just got back from Middletown, Ohio -- setting for the Hillbilly Elegy book and where Ron Howard is now shooting the film version. We were there to visit Hubby's big bro and his family, and on our first day there, the guys did what they always do. They got up early and headed out in search of the manliest, greasiest breakfast they could find, and we wives didn't dare interfere. It's a tradition! Sister-in-law Priscilla is not a morning person, so by the time she was up and moving, the guys were back and ready to head out for a day in Cincinnati. First stop? Findlay Market, reminiscent of the wonderful covered markets you might find in Paris and Provence.

Mike and Prisi were leaning towards grabbing some yummy sausages or salads and going outside to eat, but Hubby and I wheedled a bit and convinced them to try the cute cafe we'd spotted across the street, so we could sit in air conditioned comfort. Turned out to be our best decision of the day!

Apparently Jean Robert has other larger, fancier restaurants around town, but this little cafe specializes in delicious French omelettes, salads and sandwiches made on wonderful French bread -- just what you might crave after a morning shopping at the market!

Then we were off to the Taft Museum of Art, where they just happened to be hosting an exhibit called L'Affichomania -- The Passion for French Posters!

Our last stop before heading off to meet the kids for dinner was at my favorite little gift shop/bakery from our last visit there, French Rendez-Vous. Priscilla had called ahead to reserve some fresh-out-of-the-oven chocolate and almond croissants for our breakfast the next day, and we bought a couple of yummy macarons to munch on while we wandered the rooms filled with French antiques and tablecloths from Provence.

The most amazing thing about the day? We did not even plan this French-themed day. It just happened!

LONG TIME NO SEE!

Gee! Guess it's been a while since I posted, huh? Perhaps I should have warned you that we were headed up north to visit Hubby's family in Ohio. However, before we left, he had a little surprise for me. First we drove over to San Antonio and checked into Hotel Valencia -- the same one we stayed in when I won that amazing mega-prize-trip to San Antonio a few years back. They've remodeled since then, and it's even better now! Once we were checked in and spiffed up, we walked a few doors down to a little cafe, midway between our hotel and the infamous Majestic Theater, where John had made dinner reservations. I thought the name sounded familiar, but it wasn't until I headed to the ladies room and saw a framed sketch that I realized this was the same Bella Cafe with the cute little awning that used to be down on the Riverwalk. We tried to go there several times with our best buddies Paula and Tim, but they were always either closed or full. Now they are catering to the theater crowd, and offer a wonderful prix fixe menu on show nights.

From there it was just another block or so down to our ultimate destination, where one of my very favorite bands from our college days happened to be playing. But, even if that band hadn't been playing, it would have been worth the trip just to see the inside of this amazing theater -- a relic of bygone days. One thing we love most about San Antonio is that they seem to lean more towards preserving and protecting their lovely architecture, while Austin has a tendency to raze and replace!

When is the last time you rode in an elevator with an elevator operator in it?

To tell you the truth, when John told me who we were going to see, I was a bit shocked. I didn't even know they were still alive, much less touring!

So, imagine my surprise when the performance was actually so good that it got an audience full of people my age and older (and quite a few young ones too) up out of their seats, singing along and waving their iphone lighters in the air!

Best of all, once the concert was over, we only had a five minute walk back to our hotel, where we got a good night's sleep, a delicious breakfast, then had a very short drive to the airport and our flight out to Ohio!

Does it get any better?

LUCKY GYPSY MASH-UP: THE EVENT

It suddenly occurred to me, just this morning, that although I told you about the town and the venue where Lex and I went for our little weekend getaway, I never told you anything about the event itself. DOH!

 
Registration opened up at 1:00 on Saturday, then we all headed over to the big tent for our classes. We started off with a talk about our circles of women, or tribes, and what they mean to us. When it was my turn to talk, I shared the very happy story of how stepping out of my comfort zone and introducing myself to a table of strangers at the first Story Circle Network conference I went to, led me to my circle of Muses who have been my support and inspiration for the last ten years. Before I could stop it, my voice got all quivery, tears were running down my cheeks, and my daughter was beside me, laughing her buns off! However, when it was her turn to share about how much the women of Lucky Star have meant to her, she did the very same thing! From that point on, pretty much everyone who spoke followed suit. Apparently ugly cries are contagious. After that, we were given paper and pencils, and told to doodle whatever words popped into our heads when we thought about our circles and tribes. Then we were asked to use the paints and markers laid out before us to express those words and thoughts in whatever way we chose to. I somehow ended up with this spiraling mandala that has my tribe of one -- my BFF for the last 40 years -- at its center, and works its way out through my familial tribe of sisters, my creative Muses, and on to my universal tribe who are out there fighting to insure that women finally secure their rightful place at the table. I loved the final product so much, it's now hanging on my inspiration board!

Next up was some leather fun, making earrings first, then trying our hands at leather stamping.

Lexi whipped these beauties out in nothing flat! Mine are still unfinished.

After that we had to choose either "glee club" with our favorite Austin singer-songwriter Mandy Rowden, or throwing tomahawks with Kate O'brien.  I, of course, chose singing, but my very pregnant daughter chose this!

So much fun packed into a single afternoon, and just a small sampling of what's in store for you if you ever decide to attend the real, full blown Lucky Star Art Camp in Hunt, Texas, at the magnificent Camp Waldemar! And, just like the real
full blown camp, it wouldn't be Lucky Star if it didn't have fabulous food...

 
followed by some singing 'round the campfire with Mandy. Ya shoulda been there!

AN EYE FOR BALANCE

We decided recently that we needed to have Little Goober here for sleepovers more often. We want it to seem routine, and not some kind of banishment, if he needs to come stay here for a few days when his little sister arrives. Usually he's running around like a mad man, hopping from one toy or project to the next, but Sunday morning I realized he had been very quiet for a while. Too quiet. So I got up to check on him, and this is what I found.

The kid had taken all the many Paw Patrol vehicles my friend Paula had passed on to him, and stacked them up one by one, in perfect balance, upon his pirate ship.

When he let Papa add a piece to the tower, it didn't work out so well. He didn't mind. He just started over again.

This time we got to watch the process, as he let each new piece hover in the air over several different spots until something told him "This is it. This is where it belongs."

All I can say is, the kid definitely has an eye for balance!

MY OWN ARISTOTLE

Pretty much every important life lesson I have learned came, not from my parents or teachers, but rather from books. Not from the books I had to read at school, but from the ones I chose to read on my own. And, if I had to choose the one author who taught me the most, if would surely be Barbara Kingsolver, my very own Aristotle. From politics and parenting to religion, natural science, history, and the production and consumption of food, she's pretty much covered it all. Most importantly, she taught me these lessons, not by saying "you must do this" or "you can't do that", but simply by drawing me into a really good story, sharing many different points of view, then letting me decide what made sense, and what didn't.

With her latest blockbuster, Unsheltered, she knocks it out of the park yet again, and in a most timely manner. She forces one to ask some very hard questions of oneself, such as, what do you do when the world you were born into -- the one they promised would only get better and better, and which you felt entitled to -- turns into something you no longer even recognize? What if you did everything right, just as you were supposed to, but life still turned out wrong? How will you handle it? Will you hide in your little bubble, pretending nothing has changed, or will you figure out how to adapt, and get to it? Is life really about the survival of the fittest?

Thank you, Ms. Kingsolver, for always forcing me to think the hard thoughts, and to become a better person for it.
 

A SMALL TOWN 4TH OF JULY

This year was the year -- the one where we finally decided that our Little Goobs was old enough to take to Wimberley's annual 4th of July parade. Probably the most popular event of the year here in Wimberley, it draws quite the crowd -- and not just the locals, but lots of visiting friends and relatives as well. They close the streets off an hour before the parade begins, and you have to get there extra early if you want to nab a choice spot in the shade. But then, how do you entertain a three year old for more than an hour, while you wait for the parade to start? I surveyed all my friends on everything from where to park and what to bring, to the best viewing spots and exit strategies. I made a detailed plan of attack, and before we'd even left the house, my plan was blown to smithereens. Thank Goodness!

Our first stroke of good luck was that, for the first time in my memory, it wasn't hotter 'n Hades here in Texas on the 4th. In fact, it was almost COOL!

Because we were late leaving the house, the streets had already been blocked off before we got there -- even further out from the town center than we were expecting -- so it was a good hike from our parking spot to where we'd hoped to meet up with friends. About halfway there our little Calvin was done with walking! So we ended up stopping right in front of Blanco Brew, the coffee shop where the Muses and I usually meet up. Which wasn't a bad location, as it turns out. For one thing, it was much closer to the beginning point of the parade, so we wouldn't have to wait as long to see anything. I went inside to nab some iced tea, and when I came back out, I discovered this.

Now THIS is how you entertain a kid while waiting for the parade to start!

I don't know who the couple was who thought of putting this in the back of their truck, or whether they had grandkids nearby that they were doing it for, but we were ever so grateful that they invited Calvin to join in on the fun.

Plus, the Blanco Brew had restrooms, and tables set up outside selling lemonade, and cookies!

Then it was finally time for the parade to start...

Y'all Vote!

By the time he had seen the fire truck and his favorite instruments, trumpets and tubas, he was done, and ready to go back to Mimi-Papa's house to play with Uncle Austinootie and Aunt Areej, A.K.A. The Noonies. Which was fine with us, since it meant we were able to avoid the huge traffic snarl when everyone leaves the parking areas at once.

All in all, I don't think his day could have gone any better, regardless of blown plans and schedules. Which, come to think of it, is usually the case with us.