Family Vacation Part III (My Birthday in Charleston)

Today I celebrate several things. I celebrate Gracie's recovery. My very sick kitty gave me a very real scare. All is well and she has emerged from under the bed to "grace" us all with her presence. She looks tired and a little beat up from the various IVs and shots and ultrasounds and vaccinations and x-rays. I realize I am not a "mother" to a real, live "human" child but I love my cats fiercely. (And yes, I would, and have, loved dogs just as fiercely.) My heart was breaking thinking of being faced with a difficult decision. I had a good cry with mom on the phone as I left Gracie at the vet. I was preparing for the worst but hoping for the best. I celebrate that my kitty survived (another) terrible ailment. Yes, she has done this to me before and she always pulls through! A testament to how tough she is. So hug your pets just a little extra for me tonight. They bring us such joy. And a special thank you to Karin Hinkle, DVM and her veterinary staff at Huebner Oaks Veterinary Hospital. She called me with updates all day long AND she made several follow up calls today. She didn't have to be so thoughtful....apparently Gracie wasn't the most "gracious" patient (no pun intended). Gracie doesn't like to come downstairs, let alone leave the premises. Add to that a raging fever and an infected bladder and you have one angry cat!

I would also like to celebrate a personal victory. Yesterday I officially achieved "Lifetime Membership" status at Weight Watchers! I have maintained my goal (within 6 ounces) since May 18, 2009. (Yes...I know...that was a VERY long time since my last weigh in...but the good news is that I only fluctuated 6 ounces!) A lot of you have been very supportive of me on this journey. Weight Watchers is an amazing system! It works! Now, I know most weight loss programs claim "it works." Weight Watchers is not a diet...it is a way of living. No food is off limits...it is just up to you to watch your portion size and budget your points as you would a checking account. I have recently introduced three friends to the system. They have chosen the on-line option. I actually go to meetings. I need "the group" atmosphere. Plus, I always leave empowered and with a new recipe or food item in my tool box. I know that weight loss and maintenance plagues a lot of individuals. I am one of them! If anyone wants more information...or wants to hear my story...or wants some pointers...please talk to me! I trust this process and this system so much. Who knows....one day I might put myself out there and lead a group!

As promised...more from The Vela Family Vacation, 2009! My birthday was spent in historic...

One of the first places we walked into was this AMAZING antique shop. The owner travels to France and England to purchase her inventory. I went through the entire store saying, "I want that, and I want this, and I would totally own this, and I need this someday, too!" Mom was exhausted by all my "I want, I want, I want!" But we had a good time imagining where we might place something or how we might use something. Dad even had a good time and I noticed he asked the saleslady a couple of questions. Below are some photos of things I absolutely LOVED!

I have wanted a piece like this for a very long time! Sigh....someday!

Who needs an "island" in their kitchen when you could have this zinc-topped farm table? Just run some electrical up the leg and there you go! I would soooooooooooooooooooo choose this over a brand new island in a heartbeat! Oh, and I will take everything "on" it as well!

And what proper Southern antique shop wouldn't have a courtyard filled with the sweet gurglings of fountains? Can I have the entire courtyard, too?

After the antique shop we found this outdoor corridor.....

with fantastic residences located on either side of it.....

peppered with delightful, charming elements.....

that led to the most spectacular cemetery I have ever visited! Mom and I sat on the bench at the edge of the cemetery for a quick photo. I then proceeded to take what felt like a million photos of various gravestones, headstones, etc. I will include those photos in another post. IF I were to be buried...that is EXACTLY the type of place I would want as my final resting place.

As I mentioned, we spent my birthday in Charleston. My birthday is August 5. This was one of the first headstones I photographed. Coincidence? Of all days....I photographed this one on August 5 which also happens to be MY birthday!

I really enjoyed my visit to Charleston. Mom and Dad claimed to like Savannah better. I was equally charmed by both cities. I hope to be able to spend MUCH MORE time in both locations. One day simply is not enough. When in Charleston visit the following places: Tristan Restaurant and Plum Elements. We ate at another fantastic restaurant but the name escapes me. It is named for the dog that once lived in the old home and spent most of his time on the front porch. Mom and I also found a precious boutique that had some unique clothes, jewelry and cards. I WISH I could remember the name, but I can't. (That is really too bad because the owner was so sweet!)

I am lovin', lovin', lovin' OLOROSO! This SUBLIME restaurant is located in Southtown on South Alamo Street. Chef Josh Cross' menu pays homage to the cuisine of the Mediterrenean with a smidge of "contemporary" thrown in for good measure. My Aunt Sylvia and I dined at Oloroso prior to Uncle Vanya. She is a foodie in every sense of the word. She has also had the opportunity to travel the world and feast on all types of culinary delights. Oloroso impressed her from the very first bite of our mushroom puff pastry (I can't remember the name) appetizer. (It is the only picture I took because I was frankly so intoxicated by the food and wine I completely forgot to take any other photos!)

For dinner I selected from the Three Course Pre-Fixe Menu. I have cut and pasted (from the Oloroso website) the options here and I HIGHLY suggest going this route. It is a nice way to sample several items at a very reasonable rate. My dinner choices included the salad, hangar steak and chocolate clafoutis.

Three Course Pre-Fixe

(Available Until 7:00 pm Daily)

Soup of the Day

Or

Salad of Field Greens

Poached Wild Dover Sole with roasted Peppers, Leeks and Fingerling Potatoes finished with Salsa Verde

Or

Braised Honey Cumin Duck Leg with Summer Beans and Swiss Chard finished with Thyme Jus

Or

Grilled Hangar Steak with Fingerling Potatoes, Roasted Tomatoes and Cippolini Onions and Haricot Verts finished with Roasted Garlic Sauce

Buttermilk Pannacotta

Or
Chocolate Clafoutis

Aunt Sylvia ordered the Braised Rabbit Leg. She offered me some and I had a moment of discomfort (you know...the image in my head) but then I let the image drift right out of my head and delighted in this dish. She said, "This is the best rabbit I have ever had!" MAJOR vote of confidence...the woman knows her food!

If you have an opportunity check out this wonderful restaurant. You will not be disappointed. They have valet parking on every night with the exception of First Friday.

I am off to bed! Good night, friends. It is ALMOST Friday! And ALMOST a three day weekend!

Round Top Revisited & I Love a Four Day Week!

Today was another, beautiful spring day! Actually it got quite warm today and I was dressed most inappropriately. By the end of the day I had the familiar desire to throw on my bathing suit and head to my neighborhood pool. However I realize it isn't quite time yet. The water would be freezing. But I was excited in knowing that time of the year is right around the corner!


I realize I haven't addressed all of my Round Top purchases. Truth is I haven't had an opportunity to photograph them all. But I will include some of the purchases in the "What I am Lovin' Right Now" section.



This is a fun picture! Right outside the Junk Gypsies tent they set up this little photo booth for people to take pictures. Presumably they set it up for the Junk Prom they hold immediately prior to the final weekend of the antiques fair. I thought it was a great opportunity to take a unique photo.






These are two photos of vendor booths. I was so heady and dazed by the miles and miles of potential purchases I didn't have the presence of mind to take too many photos of the actual fair.

Today was filled with small celebrations. To begin with....Happy Birthday Alma! You are a beautiful woman whom I have seen grow into a hopeful, energetic, confident butterfly recently! I have enjoyed getting to know you and I hope this celebration of the day you came into this world was a good one. I had early morning coffee with a lovely lady named Lisa today. I had met her several times before but had not had an opportunity to have a conversation with her. I loved her positive, gentle spirit. She seems filled with joy and optimism. I look forward to spending more time with her because I really enjoyed her kindness and sweet nature. I also had the opportunity to meet a precious puppy at the back entrance of my school. We always have dogs at the school but this one was special! He was the cutest mix of chihuahua and something else...who knows. We fed him "Crystal's" extra taco and he ate the entire thing. He played with me and gave me kisses on my cheek. (Let's hope no ring worm sets in!) And finally.....laundry is done! That is a MAJOR daily celebration today. I have been putting it off for some time. I will never reveal quite how long....but let's just say I had been dry cleaning EVERYTHING in order to avoid this task. My windows are open right now and I can smell the laundry wafting up into my room. There is nothing like the smell of fresh, warm laundry. The unfortunate part is this is merely the first load in a collection of many. I am attacking the rest tomorrow.

I have managed to photograph a few of my Round Top purchases. This first photo is of a small piece of art. It is framed in my favorite "Shabby Chic" style. I can tell the flowers are printed on linen paper. I can't tell if they are printed or painted. If they are painted I can't tell if it is watercolor? Doesn't matter....my eye went straight to it. I had to have it and I have hung it underneath several other small pieces in my upstairs bathroom. I purchased it from Sweet Peas. They are located in Athens, TX. I loved their tent at Round Top. It is amazing how they took a tent in a field and made it look like a comfortable, lived-in, perfectly understated home.

This was one of my first purchases on Saturday. I found it at Marburger Farms and I don't recall the name of the vendor. It was a family...mother, daughter, sister, aunt who come together from all over Texas twice a year for the antiques market. I have been looking for an old candy jar to hold my shells. You can't tell from the picture but the lid has a perfect patina which makes this even better. I know they sell these at various home decor stores but I wanted something that felt like it had lived out it's early years in an old mercantile and once stored salt water taffy or hard, colorful candies. I filled it with some shells I recently collected on the shores of Galveston. It was an interesting shell hunt because so many personal belongings were still strewn all over the beach. Among the shells I found chairs, televisions, high heel shoes, a beautiful ladies handkerchief (that I did bring home and clean up), a bar-b-que pit and various other wildly misplaced household items. The shell hunt is a good memory that I will forever cherish in my heart. Displaying them in this manner allows me to remember how much fun I had that day and how EVERY memory has a special place in our lives.

I also purchased this teeny, tiny little edition of Twelfth Night. I am hoping to use the pages for various cardmaking projects.

This is on my life "wish list!" I have been in love with the graphic quality of the Mobil Pegasus since I was a little girl! My family had a gas station in a very, very, very small south Texas town right off Highway 281 (in fact, it is still there). EVERY time we drove from McAllen to San Antonio we would stop and visit my Tio Joe, Tia Pat and Tina. Their station was a Mobil station and I loved looking at the Pegasus. There was no price tag on this item. I can only IMAGINE how much it might have cost.

(A very frustrated Rory) addressing Lorelai: What's your damage, Heather?

What a great line from a classic movie. I really need to single-handedly bring this phrase back from relative obscurity. I plan to use it at least four times tomorrow! Let's see if I can get it done! Will report back with the results tomorrow.

Goodnight friends.....

Round Top Part II (And Laughter is the BEST Medicine)

Happy Monday! My brain feels like it is Thursday...but I digress. This is going to be a quick entry. (Yeah, right....I always say that and it NEVER happens!)




This part of the Round Top story isn't necessarily in chronological order. I simply haven't photographed any of my purchases yet so that topic will have to be addressed on a different day! (That's the best part anyhow.)


We stayed in a teeny, tiny little town called Oldenburg. It is on 237 between LaGrange and Round Top. This is the bed and breakfast where we spent Saturday evening. It is called The Oldenburg Retreat Bed & Breakfast. It is owned by a lovely lady named Carol Carmean. If you are ever in the area please send her an email at carolcarmean@cvtv.net and enjoy her graciousness and warmth. It is a perfect place for family and friends to meet and enjoy "getting away from it all." I suggest the front porch! This is the house where she grew up. She currently resides next door. This house sleeps 7 comfortably. And the very best part is she had fresh baked cookies, coffee cake and muffins waiting for us! The subsequent pictures are of her beautiful garden! (And yes....there is a television with a million channels!)



Today's daily celebration is laughter. It is simple, it is universal and it comes naturally to all of us. It is easy and it is fun. Trick is to be open to it. Since I started this blog I have noticed a significant increase in my outbursts. "Crystal" and I just attended an event for the Julian Castro campaign. We had such a good time laughing with the other volunteers. Then we drove home (in separate cars) and talked to each other on our cell phones the entire (20 minute trip) time. We laughed the whole way home. My sides hurt and my tummy is already sore. It truly is the very best medicine! I look forward to the event we are attending tomorrow.





"Crystal," Rowland and I.







George and I.

"Crystal" and I.

Speaking of the campaign....a couple of days ago I had the unique opportunity to take a small walk and share an elevator with two of San Antonio's finest public servants! I ran into Julian and Joaquin Castro outside a building we were all entering. I was dreading their walk towards me because I knew I should be able to tell them apart by this point....but I just can't! (For those of you that don't know, they are twins.) Thankfully, one was dressed up and one was dressed casually. Aha! I immediately knew Julian was dressed up for the event thus Joaquin HAD to be the one in casual wear. (Loved the boots, by the way!) I don't think I have ever seen either dressed down. It was nice to see a more laid back version of such a high profile member of our community and to chat with them about everyday, regular, non-political topics (i.e. my blog!) Joaquin...I hope you are reading in all your spare time!

Time for "What I am Lovin' Right Now!" I am lovin' my new pair of Lucky Brand jeans! Lucky are BY FAR the most comfortable jeans I have ever worn. (And I have tried them all!) And the best thing is they do all the "wearing in" for you! Holes, frays, color washes...you name it...they do it! Here they are...............

Gilmore-ism of the day.....

Lorelai comes downstairs to get her morning paper, opens her front door, sees a cat, carefully grabs the paper and timidly closes the door. She throws the paper in the foyer and immediately calls Rory (her daughter).

Rory: Hello?

Lorelai: They know.

Rory: Who knows?

Lorelai: The cats. They know that I have broken up with Jason and that I am alone and they have decided it is time for me to become a crazy cat lady.

Rory: What are you talking about?

Lorelai: There is a cat on my doorstep.

Rory: Well that is better than a bun in the oven.

Goodnight friends......

Round Top Part I

Happy Sunday, friends. Today is truly a heavenly day! I have had a day FULL of tiny, little celebrations. Actually, it was a weekend filled with special moments but I'll address that momentarily. I had such wonderful day today. Nothing in particular stands out. It was just a series of giddy, gleeful moments that filled me with excitement, inspiration and hope. I can honestly say today I am thrilled to be alive! What greater celebratory feeling can there be? And a sweet bonus....I got to see my mom and dad today!


Yesterday, "Spacey," "Anais," "Crystal" and I travelled to Round Top. I would try to explain it but I would do it such a great injustice I won't even try. Some of you have made this pilgramage before. Others may not have ever heard of it. Round Top is a small town outside of LaGrange. Twice a year, October and April, thousands upon thousands of people descend on the small town as well as some it's neighboring communities for a HUGE, GIGANTIC, GARGANTUAN, BEHEMOTH antiques market and fair. This was my first time although this is right up my alley. I am a crazed lover of antiques and avid collector! I had always dreamed of going. This time I actually made it a reality. I am going to break the happenings of the trip into several entries. For today I am going to start with our trip there!


We left ridiculously early! A special thank you to my dad for lending us his truck and dropping it off at my house at 7am. From the beginning it was a typical trip for us! The ATM rejected my request....apparently there is a limit? (And I was in for some serious shopping so I waaaaaaaay exceed the limit.) The teller kindly helped me withdraw my mad money. We get started and I realize I am on I-35 rather than I-10. (I have made this mistake before. Apparently I learned nothing.) "Crystal" took over driving at this point! The trip towards LaGrange was uneventful. The bluebonnets were in full bloom everywhere. We joked about getting out of the car and taking bluebonnet photos the way millions of Texan parents do every year with their toddlers. However, the more we kept passing, the more the funny joke started to become a serious consideration. I want to share some of the lovely (and silly) photos of the Texas wildflowers. I hope you find our state flower as beautiful as we do. I hope for some of you (living in Japan) this reminds you of home.


I thought this was a beautiful opportunity to photograph not only bluebonnets but also Indian paintbrushes. (A special thank you to Lady Bird Johnson!)




This field was particularly lovely. It stretched on for about 300 yards. In the center was a fabulous old farmhouse. Imagine this is your front yard! What an amazing landscape to wake up to every morning. I was laughing at "Spacey" as she took this photo.





"Spacey" and "Anais" enjoying themselves roadside.










"Spacey" trying to find the "perfect" spot to have a seat and leave the flowers mostly undisturbed.


I took a seat roadside as well. I was hoping mom and dad would appreciate the photo of their "child" sitting in the bluebonnets. Perhaps they will choose to use it as next year's Christmas photo. (I am NOT serious mom!)

The girls in the traditional "kids in the bluebonnets" pose.

After getting lost two more times, stopping for directions and calling the lady at the bed and breakfast where we had reservations we FINALLY made it to Round Top. You could have heard a pin drop in the truck. We were amazed, overwhelmed, flabergasted at the task ahead. Tomorrow I will talk more about the actual experience.....

It's time for "What I am Lovin' Right Now." A few weeks ago I was going through a pretty tough time. I was feeling raw and gritty and I knew a pair of vintage cowboy boots would fit the mood just perfectly. I kept hearing Lucinda William's songs playing in my head. I felt I needed some boots with an attitude that were "made for walkin'." But where would I begin my search? And how would I pay the often exorbitant prices "worn-in" cowboy boots often command? In an attempt to "get out of my funk" I decided to visit my friend Ciara in Austin because she always manages to help me heal my heart and soul. On a whim we went to Uncommon Objects on South Congress. Within seconds of walking it I found these pair of cowboy boots. They were my size and only 49 dollars! I walked up to her and said, "God is throwin' me a bone. In the midst of my sadness....look what He has sent me. I have been wanting these, needing these! They completely fit my current attitude and I feel like Dorothy and these are my magical, red ruby slippers." And the serendipity doesn't end there! When I looked inside they were made in San Antonio by Garza's. I looked them up online but haven't found anything yet! Any information would be welcome. And yet another Patty Vela collection has been born! Here they are....in all their glory....surrounded by the Texas state flowers....as they well should be!

A small Gilmore-ism for you this evening. Lorelai and Rory thought "Oye with the poodles already," was one of the funniest sounding sentences one could ever utter. I have to agree! And oh yes, it's on a tee-shirt!

Goodnight friends! I hope this is a wonderful week for you all. I anticipate a less frenzied week than the last few weeks....but "stuff" just seems to come up, doesn't it?