Getting Ready to Head Out

I am so excited today....why you ask???

Well, it's obviously spring here in Texas so sorry if you live where it is cold and white...cold and white is why I don't live there!

Here in Texas my redbud tree is blooming!

My Mountain Laurel is blooming!

No, this isn't the Texas sun..it's just a poppy blooming in my neighbor's yard.

These almost look like petunias blooming in my neighbor's yard but they are very tiny so are probably something else entirely.

So spring is sprung, flowers and trees are blooming, enough to make anyone happy right???

Well,  I have another reason to be happy..........

I am leaving in the morning for the WomenRV forum GTG at Mustang Island State Park.  Woohooo!!!!!

Boerne, Tx (Feb 2012)

A beautiful February day in Texas, 85 degrees and sunny!  What to do?  How about a trip to Boerne (pronounced Burnee)?  The Jeep needed to stretch its legs so we were off.  We headed out in the country to take the back country roads on Highway 46.  It was a lovely drive through Smithson Valley, Bergheim, Bulverde, past Guadalupe SP, Texas longhorns grazing in several different fields (ranch country you know).  We came into Boerne the back way along River Road.  The lovely park along the river was all torn up so instead of seeing people fishing and picnicking, we saw graders and torn up grass.  Ahhh!

As we made the turn into town, we were warmly welcomed.

We parked along Main street.  Things were busy along here but we had no trouble securing a good spot right in the thick of things.

We were right by the Olde Town plaza where there is more parking surrounded by small shops.  The town also provides spotless public restrooms here.

This Hardware and Lumber store has lots of unique gift items in addition to hardware type items in an old-fashioned setting.  DH was very happy to find some Gorilla Tape as the roll he found years ago is almost gone.  Gorilla Tape is like Duct Tape on steroids.

This is a town with German heritage so of course they have a Bier Garten (Beer Garden).

They even have a winery which I didn't remember seeing on previous visits.

This store had an outside area and an inside area to explore.

We found a kitchen store that advertises itself as the largest in the hill country but I think the one in Fredericksburg is bigger.  Still they had almost every cooking gadget you can image.

Calamity Jane's turned out to be a home furnishings store instead of a western store.

Need a little snack, the vine covered Candy Store on Main has it all.

Looks like a little renovation is going on here.  Hmmm, stone over wood over plaster.  I think this goes back a ways.

DH was taking a little break checking out the scenery while I snapped some photos of ......

...the renovations going on along the river.  It looks like they are adding a meandering walkway all along the river along with some new picnic tables.  I guess this will be another "Riverwalk" but completely different than the one in San Antonio.

We stopped at the Bear Moon Cafe for coffee and a snack.  They have a breakfast buffet and serve lunch inside or outside.  They also have great looking bakery items to go along with coffee, expresso, and various lattes.  There are also a couple of other coffee shops in town as well as a good selection of interesting cafes right along Main St.  Even more choices if you venture out to other parts of town.

There are lots of old buildings with historical information posted.  Texas is very good at providing historical information.

 Staffel Store

But Boerne also has a great sense of humor!  You have to read the whole sign.

There are lots of boutiques and antique shops to browse in.

The brine smell from this Pickle Shop let us know what they were selling before we got there.

Lots of little shops!

And if you get tired from all your browsing and shopping....

You can head up the stairs above these shops and rent a room in this unique bed and breakfast.

We had a great day in Boerne.  It is an interesting place to visit up in the Hill Country and only a short drive from San Antonio right off IH10.

So just remember.....

Thanks for coming along on my trip to Boerne, Texas.

A Birthday

There was a birthday at my house today.  Can you guess whose birthday it was? 

 Don't let the candles confuse you.

We went out for a lovely dinner with friends and then came home to have coffee and cake.

The roses were beautiful and I think I am going to like my new KindleFire.  And now, I can get my National Park pass.  See you on the road!

Antique Rose Emporium

I couldn't take the waiting on the rain for one more day so I decided to take a trip to a local place that I have never been to before.  I know I saw a sign for one of these places somewhere else in Texas, maybe near Brenham, so I wanted to check it out.  It is kind of out of the way.  I had never been down the road before.  I had to take another smaller road and then an even smaller road across a low water crossing.  Fortunately the water was still below the crossing level.  Then I saw this sign pointing up yet another small gravel road winding through the trees.

I parked right outside this entrance.

There was a sign saying all photographers had to have an okay to take pictures so I went into this little building and was granted permission to take photos for my blog.

You may already guessed by now that is a garden store of sorts with grounds you can walk around.  This building looked intriguing so I walked down the path leading to it and found....

several little patio gardens, one on each end of the building.

These garden walls were painted a really bright blue color inside.

This little building had all kinds of potting soil and fertilizer.

You may not be able to read the sign on this little building but it says restroom in case you were looking for one.

I definitely don't have a green thumb so maybe I should plant one of these bottle trees in my backyard.  It might take too many wine bottles though.  I have some friends who might offer to help me collect bottles.

Next I wandered around to this little gift shop.  There were chimes and birdhouses outside.

Inside there were hats and lots of other goodies.  The only attendant was a large black cat who refused to make eye contact as long as I had the camera in hand.  If you found something you wanted, you just took it to the "check-out" building where I got permission to take pictures.

They even had books in the gift store.

Since this is a rose emporium, naturally they had roses and some neat little signs.

You wouldn't want unmannerly climbers would you?

I have some friends who are vigorous climbers.  They like to go hiking all the time.

This little building would be a lot more welcoming if there weren't so many big, black, threatening clouds in the background.

See what I mean?

It wasn't very crowded during my visit, just one or two other people and this very large gray tabby.  She was almost too friendly...until I pointed my camera...then she gave me the cold shoulder.

This little greenhouse was in front of another building whose purpose I later discovered.

As I said, I'm not a plant person, but doesn't this look soft and cuddly like fleece?

And who could resist this winter vegetable garden?

They had blooming flowers and birdbaths and pots for sale too.

And some ornaments to brighten your garden.  I liked the metal cactus.  No worries about over or under watering there.

The grounds were very interesting and would be even better in the sunshine.

As I said earlier, this is where you go to check out your purchases.

This was certainly a far more interesting garden store than most I have been in and you can also get married here!  I think that this is what the building behind the little white greenhouse was used for.

An interesting visit even with the unfriendly skies.  I think I would like to come back when it is sunny!