Category Archives: Our Everyday

So after I was a total mamarazzi at Disney, I really didn’t take out the camera too too much on our trip to Austin. I mean, I did have to take a few photos of our trip, right? Plus, I knew the Pinkle Toes Workshop would be intense and I’d be taking a gazillion photos.

So our trip was mostly about Austin but we did take the first day to go to San Antonio. A few favorites from the trip:

The Salt Lick – Amazing. Really. I never liked brisket before and that was all I could think about the rest of the trip.This was the first place we ate when we got there and when I was leaving, I was sooo happy there was one in the airport! woo – hoo! (Did you know the Austin airport has live music? #awesome)

 

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So, our first day there we headed to San Antonio. Owen rode two airplanes, a monorail (Houston airport), a riverboat (LOVED) and a taxi all in one day. So you know he loves transportation and was super excited about each one but the cutest was the taxi. We didn’t even mention we were getting a taxi and when he saw it, he started screaming, “We’re in a taxi car, we’re in a taxi!” (Another one of those I used to be a second grade teacher love that he made a connection to his puzzle-first time he’s seen a taxi-connection.)

We haven’t been to San Antonio since 2007, and I totally forgot how gorgeous the river walk is – just breathtaking. We had fun walking around and just love the boat tour – so fun. It kind of reminded me of the Jungle Cruise since I mean, we just got back from Disney.:)

We also stopped and tried Kolaches while we were there – delicious. I’m not sure how many Owen ate – he loved them and kept asking for more.

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Okay – so all about Austin. Let’s see..

*We took Owen to Zilker Park to let him run around – of course he needed his superman cape.

*Next stop – South Congress Avenue. (SoCo) We visited Jo’s Coffee and tried the Iced Turbo. (LOVED!) We also stopped to snap Owen’s picture at the I love you so much wall. We had to wait a few minutes for our turn and watched several photoshoots in the next hour while we were shopping nearby.

Shopping on South Congress is amazing. I think I could spend days there – so many pretty clothes, vintage finds, antiques, boots, etc. Owen got a super cool sheriff pin for his cowboy hat. We met some really nice store owners and one store had a display of old film cameras and equipment. I wanted to take all of them home. (I couldn’t really buy too much because my super bright yellow suitcase and my epiphanie bag was packed to the max.) P.S. – that bag is awesome if you need to fly with your camera, lenses, and laptop. And, I mean, if there is an Austin fire truck practically on the sidewalk, Owen definitely needed to check it out! He thought it was the best thing ever.

Eats. There was like a million amazing places to pick from on South Congress, and we had so many recommendations. (And there are all kinds of  food trucks everywhere!) We went with

*The Mighty Cone – the avocado cone is delicious!

*Hopdoddy Burger Bar – So many cool things about this place. First of all, you just get in line to order and they find you a place to sit and put the number on the table. So nice, especially when you have little ones. (And it was BUSY) We walked right in but as we were eating, the line was out the door. We really wanted a good burger and this place was awesome!

What else did we do?

*Definitely ate at The Oasis on Lake Travis. Lake Travis is just gorgeous and our view while eating was just beautiful. It is the sunset capital of the world, for sure, and they definitely ring a bell at sunset so you do not miss it.

*Maria’s Tacos Xpress for breakfast – delicious.

Went and explored the University of Texas campus, checked out the Whole Foods which was founded in Austin, stopped at the Farmer’s Market downtown, and since it was close by, dropped by Jo’s Coffee on West 2nd Street for another Iced Turbo. #ofcourse.

Oh, and we had to take batman to see the Austin bats. We weren’t sure if we were going to see anything this time of year but right at sunset they appeared. It was really cool to see!

When I started this post, I had no idea I had so much to write! It was such a fun family trip, and it was really cool to see and explore Austin. (And now I’m going to check into ordering online from the Salt Lick)

 

 

 

You may remember one of my January goals  was to read Snowy Day and make this Adorable Snowman. First of all, the former second grade teacher in me forgot how much I love Snowy Day.  We have loved reading it over and over and it is so sweet how Owen can read it to us now. (We’ve read it so much he has it memorized:)We don’t really get a lot of snow in North Carolina so don’t laugh at my snow pictures:)What I love so much about reading is the wonderful connections he made with the book – as soon as he saw the snow, he was screaming, “I want to make snow angels! Mommy I need my red snowsuit!” Such a sweet memory and we’re off to the bookstore this morning to find another book to read over and over.

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Click here to see more of Our Everyday.

Disney was amazing – perfect time of year, awesome weather, and a 2 1/2 year old that was sooo excited about pretty much everything. It was such a great time with family and Owen just loved being with his cousins. He LOVED meeting the characters and wanted to see Mickey everyday. (We went to the Town Hall  Theater anytime we were in the Magic Kingdom)

Some of our favorite places to eat:

Chef Mickeys for breakfast (Although The Wave at The Contemporary also has an awesome breakfast buffet)

Via Napoli at Epcot – the BEST Italian Restaurant

Dole Whip at Aloha Isle in Adventureland is an awesome treat. Gaston’s Tavern also has LeFou’s Brew which is frozen apple juice and marshmallow! So Yummy!

We tried out the Be Our Guest restaurant since it just opened – so cool on the inside and loved the steak!

Of course – Ohana. This my brother’s all time favorite place at Disney. We definitely ate way too much.

We’ve also been to the Coral Reef restaurant which had awesome food, Cinderella’s Round Table (definitely a must!) Hoop – Dee – Doo Musical Revue (a favorite!!)and T-Rex. (like the Rainforest Cafe except Meteor Showers every 20 minutes)

I would recommend downloading the WDW Waits app and the Disney Mobile Magic apps. I think the one we used was called My Disney experience. WDW Waits let you know the current wait times for each ride. Mobile Magic is awesome because it tells you which characters are in which park/where/and what times. There is also a schedule of events/parades for each park.

Oh – their super cute chevron sweatshirts and Owen’s chevron Mickey shirt were from ALM Designs.

Some highlights of the trip were:

Owen rode his first roller coaster – LOVED IT!

We saw soooo many animals on our Safari at Animal Kingdom.

Our first day was the last day the Disney Junior Live on Stage would be open for a while. We knew Owen would love it so this was the first thing we did when we arrived at Disney. We were first in line for the show and they took us by ourselves to the door (which looks like the Mickey Mouse Clubhouse doors. They told us we were the “first family” for the day and Owen got to say the magic words (Meeska Mooska, Mickey Mouse) to open the clubhouse doors. They even brought him a little certificate – so cool!

Owen asked every character to do the hot dog dance. I think we took 500 videos of this.

Okay, I could keep rambling but it was definitely a great time. Owen still asks me if we can take the monorail instead of the car.:)

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