Enchanted Rock

... a huge, pink granite dome brought out the Indian spirit in our tribe. Cyrus used his "claws" to climb up about 45 of the 450 foot incline and insisted on "hold you" for the additional 405 feet. Ella, our pony girl effortlessly scrambled up the rock and huffed at my calls to "wait for us!" At the top we enjoyed the Central Texas Hill Country view and waded in the shallow pools until Cy's rock and water play threatened our good mood. On the way home I resisted the urge to stop in Fredericksburg for a pint at one of the many enticing biergartens. The sunburn and sore muscles feel good this morning. I'm so grateful for this precious time with the youngins.

Breakfast for Dinner

Over french toast last night Ella filled me in on a secret.

"The secret to being strong and fast is lots of cartwheels, handstands and vegetables and only sometimes eat treats to wind you up."

as evidenced
In other news...

Mr Mooks is carousing SXSW with our good buddy and Wirednews reporter M.Calore. See some of the action including: G-Strings, Frostings Make Perfect Pair at Burlesque Cupcake Cookoff.

nude biker
zito up a tree

Goings On

Fabulous Farmhouse Delivery party complete with delectable gumbo, artisanal brew, animals, music and friends old and new! I may have to defect from Johnson's Backyard garden to Farmhouse Delivery for the local good stuff.

One view
Nice Chicken
Here comes that kid in the orange jersey again
The Beds
In other news we are still working on house projects with the Grand P's and enjoying longer days with friends.

Manicure
Father and Son

Keeping up with the Grand Joneses Part 1

Grandpa and Grandma are visiting. With them they brought handmade wooden planes a la Larry and Summer 08 memory books a la Roberta for Ella and Cyrus. They also brought their unbelievable know-how, phenomenal energy and mid western way of making it all seem unremarkable.

Planning
Supplies
Cold front and insulation
News of Hardware Store replacing Shopping Mall
Grandma facilitates messy projects
...and desserts
Somomores please
Yea Bamboo in the ground

Good Times

For my Birthday this year my dearest, sweetest most generous friend Mary came to Austin for a visit. Over the last twenty some odd years Mary and I have shared sun kissed days in SoCal, cool urban nights in NoCal, collegiate romps in Chico, awe inspiring sojourns to Europe and countless soul bearing conversations and belly laughs. We were traveling very light and did not take a single picture this visit but here are some shots from previous adventures followed by a summary of our brief but delightful Austin experience.

Fountain and Italians Austrian Horses and Wind
Sweaters and Hats Golden Gate Park
We Started with a nosh at Mullberry followed by a show at Lambert's where we caught the tail end of Gary Clark Jr's (one of the most accomplished young guitarists in the country and star of John Sayles movie Honeydripper) charming set and the beginning of the too loud Latin funk band Brownout (subset of Grupo Fantasma who recently backed the artist formerly known as Prince).

The next day before we looped the trail around Lady Bird Lake we witnessed a shaggy handcuffed dude running at full speed down an embankment and through the creek shouting "Viva Revolution... I love my Dog." While the cop took off his shoe's to cross the creek the dripping wet escapee passed us and kindly said, "Howdy. This probably doesn't look too good."

Our afternoon delights included lunch at Cafe Luz's for macrobiotic eats under the shade of a big Oak tree and a spa manicure at Polish. We then checked in at our downtown hotel where we primped for the night. Parkside Restaurant's rooftop patio provided the perfect vantage point to view 6th Street's Mardi Gras preparations. The food was delicious as always but the waiter was too eager to join our private girl party. Our jaunty walk across town to La Zona Rosa gave us a few more precious minutes to chat and gear up for the Lucinda Williams show. Awwhhhh.... Lucinda, whose backing band opened with instrumental covers including Erotic City by Prince and Led Zeppelin's What Can I Do, which was a delightful tease. Lucinda's set was peppered with songs and anecdotes related to her experiences in Austin. At fifty-five Lucinda has earned her rock star stripes and put on a hell of a show. Mary and I sang and danced and hooted are heads off.

After a long sleep in a dark hotel room we headed to East Austin to catch up with Mary's friend from her elementary school days in Dallas. We were treated to a tour of her urban farm where we met a hipster chicken farmer that was due to give a "chicken processing" demonstration to some richie, foodie, greenie folk with the chef from Dai Due supper club. I am delighted to know this gang of gardeners and look forward to spending my Thursday evenings at the farm. Starting in April they'll be hosting a farmers market with music and cocktails by the Tipsy Texan's.

After Taco's at Pan y Vino (YUM) I bid Mary farewell at the airport and drove away, humming last nights tunes and thinking how unbelievably thankful I am for our friendship. Even tho I'm turning 38 with Mary I feel like I'm 17.

Sickies

Runny noses and wet coughs and high fevers Ojoy! I hate to see them suffer and I complain about all the things that are not getting done but I do love having my little bunnies all snug in the den.

Veggie Box!

After months on the waiting list we finally received our membership to Johnson's Backyard Garden and its luscious bounty.

DIY Chore Charts and Placemat

Ella Rae and Cy have taken to checking off their completed chores with dry erase markers. The laminate chart allows us to change the list as needed.
I'm afraid the portable placemat gift for our buddy Miles was not as well received. To add insult to injury our gift also included an arty book "When Louis Armstrong Taught Me Scat." The DIY Joneses were slightly redeemed by the plastic, lighted spinie thingie attached to the hand stamped recycled craft paper present.

Park Perfection

Chris Park in San Antonio was built by Linda Pace, major art patron and heir to the Pace Picante Sauce empire as a memorial to her son Chris Goldsbury.

Public parks are an important part of our lives and this graceful acre of exotic and native South Texas landscaping, contemporary art, fountains and creative play space tops the charts.

Urban Cowboy, Weimaraners and Bamboo
Nod to William Wegman
Future Cowboy

Looks can be deceiving

Under my slouchy mama uniform of yoga pants, Dansko clogs and well worn (boyfriend now husband) T and Flannel shirts lives the heart of a fashionista. Fashion can be indulgent and elitist and vain but it is also interpretive, visually stimulating, theatrical public art.

For inspiration see mom and daughter Dallas style bloggers at Sea of Shoes and Atlantis Home.
The Sartorialist is also worth a gander. Photo below titled "On the Street... Raspberry Beret, Paris"

The Odd Couple

Zito is Felix to Mookie's Oscar.

Zito always on watch
Mookie looking for a fight per usual
Bath time

Blue Ribbon

More blogging and bragging. Ella Rae won 1st place for her Sea Shells and Creatures Science Fair project this evening!

West Coast Potty Tour 09'

After many months of hits and misses Cy is finally potty trained. He is very proud of this accomplishment and of his vast under garment collection. He often models his "chonies" for guests and sometimes wears them backwards just for fun. "Chonies" is Spanish slang for panties. We picked the term up eons ago from Ella's Mexican-American wonder nanny.

Cy's much anticipated developmental leap provided ample opportunity for Ella and I to practice patience on our recent trip to California. Like when he squirmed away and climbed under a strangers stall during our layover in San Diego or his scary potty themed fever dreams that required some pretend janitorial services in addition to Tylenol and a cold cloth to calm him down. Or the insistence of going to the bathroom minutes before the plane took off and the subsequent stalling tactics used to stay in said lavatory. Ella and I have learned that Cy means business when he sees a "pee pee tree" and/or bush that requires his attention. The alternative is much worse. We are still getting used to a boy person in our lives. Our trip was trying at times but mostly joyful and we already deeply miss our West Coast beloveds. Here are some highlights....

The Academy of Sciences in Golden Gate Park is a must see. Here is a picture of Ella and her favorite person (and cousin) Zach in front of the penguin exhibit. The new Academy has a phenomenal aquarium, planetarium and a"living roof." The bathroom has a built in step stool for easy access to the sink for the short folk and good soap but the industrial strength greeny air dryers are way too intimidating for a newbie like Cy.
Fairy Land, the famed inspiration for Disney World and the Oakland Zoo, with its expanded critter collection are always noteworthy. The bathrooms are unassuming and cleanish and the paper towels vs electric dryers were welcome.

The loo at the Lutheran church where we proudly watched Zach's piano recital was a hit. The toilet was silent but I can't say the same for Cy. See pictures of Zachary playing flawlessly and taking a bow.
And back at the ranch Mr Mooks entertained his pickle posse. Ella explained to Grandma that there were "seven or nine mans coming to my house" and that she was "okay" with one of them sleeping in her bunk.

Speaking Up for East Austin

GivingCity is a local Austin blog and magazine about philanthropy and volunteering. Its mission is to "inspire, connect, and recognize donors and philanthropists - novice and experienced - and raise awareness about the needs of Central Texans."

Mr Mooks, aka Christopher Jones sat down with three "Austinites, African-Americans and social entrepreneurs" to discuss the complicated issues related to East Austin and its community. It's a good read and a stellar publication!

Keeping up with the Joneses

I try not to wear that catchphrase out but it's hard to resist. Some images from our holidays 08'...

Parties and cheer and many discussions about Santa and Elves and baby Jesus and the importance of being nice.
An extra special party at the Bartlett's in San Antonio
The Nutcracker at the Long Center was delightful as was Ella's repeat performances
Hulk gloves under the tree to channel boy energy
And a Big Boy Bike
Commence gulf coast excursion...
Lotsa jumping, running, chasing, crawling, catching, spinning, rolling, sitting and staring at the ocean from (and on) the sand dunes -- or "moon dunes" as Ella coined.

Texas Beaches are considered open highways for motor vehicles. So beware of the Portuguese man-of-war, sting rays, rattle snakes and big trucks. This is our humble mini van.
Self portrait
Buckets