Texas Lavender Festival!

I've been wanting to go the the 

Texas Lavender Festival

and this year I made it.

My friend & teacher (who retired with me 4 yrs ago)

had a birthday on Friday so

another teacher friend & I went to Blanco, TX

to celebrate her birthday & enjoy the festival.

(Click on photos to enlarge--click twice for extra large image.)

 

Colorful shopper is looking at the wares of a vendor.

Many of the vendors wore lavender straw hats.

Cute.

My friend looking at all things lavender.

More lavender with a Texas Garden Almanac.

Lovely display of basketry.

I think the basket maker is from 

Georgetown, a town just north of Austin.

Various types of crafts were available for purchase.

Beautiful Sculpted Pottery
see below...

(Click on photos to enlarge--click twice for extra large image.)

I thought these clay sculptures 

were particularly beautiful.

It must have taken hours to

produce this work.

These pieces are stunning!

I love them all, but my favorite

may be the hearts below.

Above this painting was a sign:

"Tell us if 'your' a biker."

Yes, this weekend is the huge biker rally in Austin.

There are bikers riding all through the country

enjoying their road freedom.

Stay safe, be aware.

One biker died on Friday after being struck 

by another vehicle. 

The bike passenger & vehicle driver are hospitalized.

Just plain fun!!!

Very nice plants for sale.

I love the burro planter.

My friend is showing off the lovely Passion Flower.

Now here is an idea for a place to store your wine bottles.

Put this in your yard or on the patio

and you have sculpture.

Gypsy Couture

I can't say much about the clothing,

but the ride is cool!

Lavender wares...

more lavender soap & embroidery...

lavender hats...

and even more lavender products for sale.

This banner says it all!

Las tres amigas!

The birthday girl is front and center.

Now this is the type sheriff I could find interesting.

He was friendly and funny.

He must have a great sense of humor

to wear a lavender hat & celebratory beads around his neck!

Pioneer Museum

The Texas Hill Country Book

has beautiful photographs of some of

the tiny Texas towns 

located in and around the hill country.

Blanco, Comfort, Fredericksburg, Johnson City

among others are listed.

Each of the towns have several famous restaurants

and some of the more popular recipes from

these restaurants are included in the book.

Next time I'm in Blanco I will bring home this book.

I don't know why I didn't get it yesterday... just dumb, I guess.

My friend in the little shop next to the

Redbud Cafe where we had lunch.

The shop sells Brieger pottery, 

lavender products, Mexican oilcloth,

purses from Guatemala, and other interesting items.

 

Mexican oilcloth sold by the yard.

A new restaurant in town: Zocalo Eclectic Cafe' & Coffee.

It has been open since February 4, 2011.

It has a nice lunch menu and serves dinner

on Saturdays and brunch on Sunday.

It is quite colorful & fun to visit.

Visiting Miller Creek Lavender Farm

at the intersection of Hwys 281 and 290

west of Austin, north of Blanco & south of Johnson City.

One of the many varieties of lavender in their garden.

Dragonfly wind sculpture

The lavender fields would normally be filled with 

blooming plants at this time of year, but

the severe drought that we are enduring has wreaked

havoc on the plants.

A cozy place to sit and relax

even when the temperature is 100

it is rather comfortable in the shade with

a breeze and low humidity.

Misters were sending out sprays of water

to keep us cool as we stood on the porch of the Lavender Shoppe.

Wares inside the Lavender Shoppe.

Pottery with lavender motif, lavender teas, lotions

and cooking ingredients were for sale.

No matter what the season I totally enjoy driving

in the hill country. Famous Fredericksburg peaches

should be about ready for sale and there are

other fresh fruits and vegetables sold along the roadside in

little stores built by the individual farmers.

The hill country is also known for its wineries.

There are a few along the road driving to Fredericksburg

that have music and wine tastings on the weekends.

Fredericksburg is a German town which attracts thousands

of visitors each weekend.

People come for the shopping, the food, the quaintness of 

the German heritage and for the climate.

It is usually a bit cooler & less humid in Fredericksburg

than in other surrounding towns.

Now when I say cooler, I mean the temperature may be

90 with low humidity & a breeze ... rather than 105 with humidity!

Come for a visit... you may see me.

Miller Creek Lavender Shoppe

Catawba County, North Carolina

 Early morning on Rock Barn Golf Course

Hole #1

 

 Walking to the old covered bridge

just outside Conover.

  

Bunker Hill Covered Bridge 

Erected 1894, Covered 1900

Across Lyle's Creek on Old Island Ford Road

Catawba County, North Carolina

 

 Afternoon at Rock Barn Golf Course
Golf course covered bridge
much newer than Bunker Hill Covered Bridge

Mother duck with ducklings

 Nice fairway

 Mallard paddling along the stream.

 Horses along the roadside.

Totally oblivious to passing vehicles.

Half Broke Horses by Jeannette Walls

 Paint Ponies near Hickory, NC

When the first line of a book grabs my attention, I can be pretty sure it's going to be a good one. Such was the case with Jeannette Walls' story of her grandmother in the book Half Broke Horses. To begin with my love for horses made me gravitate to the book because of it's title, but the first line cinched it.

"Those old cows knew trouble was coming before we did."

 The story begins in west Texas on the KC Ranch on the Rio Hondo in the early 1900s and ends in Arizona. The main character of the book is female and begins with her saving herself & her brother and sister when a flash flood rumbles through the draw on their ranch.

The author draws on her mother's recollection of stories told her by her mother, Lily Casey Smith. Lily is s spunky little kid who at the age of 8 decides that in a difficult situation it is better to put forth effort to save the day rather than to lean on the power of prayer as her mother was prone to do. Lily's attitude was, "God helps those who help themselves."

Ranch life was hard work and it was Lily's job to break horses. Her dad's advice was: "The most important thing in life is learning how to fall." Lily took that advice literally when it came to unexpected events with horses, but she carried it through to unpleasant situations that arose for her whole life.

Lily's father was sure that everything had a "Purpose" and Lily was determined to find her "Purpose" in life. She did arrive at that through a circuitous route. In the town of Red Lake when Lily was in her late 20s, she was known as "Lily Casey, the mustang-breaking, poker-playing, horse-race-winning schoolmarm of Coconino County". That woman had spunk!

Stories of the west and the fact that this is a real-life story of a western woman made it even more delicious. Walls wrote the story in first person because she wanted to "capture Lily's distinctive voice" which she clearly remembered. Lily died when Jeannette was 8 years old. As I read this story I could "hear" and visualize Lily. Walls has done an excellent job. Kudos.

More horses near Hickory