Fox and Cinnamon at the Voodoo Museum

Sunday, February 14, 2016

February 13, 2016: Valentine's Day eve

Happy Valentine's Day!

Dinner in East Austin, at the East Side Kings food truck. Beet fries, Brussels sprout salad, Thai chicken. I promise you, beet fries are a lot better than they sound!

Fence art at the East Side Kings food truck site

February 9, 2016: Happy Mardi Gras from Austin!

We found a New Orleans' style buffet in East Austin, at Sawyer's. Catfish, okra, beads, Dixieland jazz.

They ran out of King cake. Homemade coconut cream pie was a delicious substitute. No baby inside.

Sunday, February 7, 2016

February 1, 2016: feeding peacocks and fish at Mayfield Park, Austin, Texas

The peacock liked the bread Papa Tom had to offer.

The peacock was very interested in Fox's bread. Thanks, Emma, for reminding us of how much fun it is to go to Mayfield Park!

Fox and Papa Tom tried to coax a peacock down with bread.

Fox shared bread with this little girl and made a friend.

Fox and me at Mayfield Park.

Fish liked the bread too.

January 30, 2016: Happy 88, Dad!

I love this photo of my Dad and me! Happy, happy 88, Dad!

We left Shreveport ahead of the Mardi Gras parade, scheduled to go down a street near my Dad's house. People drop off their port-o-lets the day before, in their reserved spaces, in preparation for the parade. New Orleans isn't this organized. You simply show up, shout for beads, and go home with your bag full of bounty.

January 29, 2016: Happy Birthday Eve, Dad!

Sweet Sistas Martha and Donna provided King Cake for the occasion of Dad's birthday eve. We had dinner at Texas Roadhouse then enjoyed sampling the King Cakes with ice cream.

My brother Charles

January 28, 2016: on our way to Wichita Falls, Texas, from Ojo Caliente, New Mexico

Had to stop at Clines Corners. When Papa Tom was a kid, his family passed Clines Corners and joked that it was "Clyde's Corners." Clyde was Papa Tom's father.

Here's the house in Amarillo, Texas, where Papa Tom lived from about 1961 to 1971, when he moved to Austin. Papa Tom's Dad worked for the Department of Labor in Amarillo.

No visit to Amarillo would be complete without a stop at the Cadillac Ranch. We tagged a Cadillac. I was not as imaginative as previous taggers; simply wrote "T + S" for Papa Tom and me. Papa Tom made a wriggly Aztec snake with purple paint.

January 28, 2016: Leaving Ojo Caliente for Wichita Falls, Texas

Our hotel key had a little bell on the key ring. But the key fell out of Papa Tom's pocket and was run over by the rental car before we noticed it was missing. Oops! A very kind person in Taos loaned us her tool kit for Papa Tom to bend the little bell back into shape. No luck!

We felt so badly about the little bell that we bought a replacement key ring attachment with the Ojo Caliente emblem on it. Haven't heard from the hotel owners; hope they liked the replacement!

Scraping ice off the Yaris in preparation for heading back to Texas. First, mango/ginger/yogurt smoothies from the Artesian Restaurant at Ojo Caliente, just down the hill.

We'll stay at the Taos Trail Inn again. So New Mexico!

Was too cold to enjoy the patio outside our room. Summer trip next time!

January 27, 2016: Rio Grande River gorge at sunset

We crossed the Rio River Grande gorge at sunset

The river is about 600 feet below the bridge.

View from the other side of the bridge

January 27, 2016: At Lambert's in Taos

We arrived at Lambert's too late for lunch. Opted for snacks in the Treehouse, upstairs.

Papa Tom in Lanbert's courtyard

January 27, 2016: a day in Taos, New Mexico

Had to stop at the Coffee Spot, which we discovered on the August 2016 trip, for coffees with whipped cream and sprinkles of cayenne pepper

No coffee stop is complete without answering a few New York Times Sunday crossword clues

Downtown Taos

January 27, 2016: the low road to Taos, New Mexico

The low road to Taos takes you into the Rio Grande River gorge. On our way, we passed sparkling fields of snow. Not shown is the person across the way who had stopped her car to perform a Sun Salutation. I highly recommend the Sun Salutation: stretches every muscle in your body.

Warnng? What warning? If we'd encountered ice, we would have turned around. No ice!

Crossing the Rio Grande, at the bottom of the gorge

The Rio Grande

January 26, 2016: Ojo Caliente, New Mexico

Nothing like traipsing between hot springs pools when the temperature is in the 20s. But the classic clear blue, sunny New Mexico skies smiled on us. By evening, it was comforting to warm up next to the outdoor fireplace.

Heading west: January 25, 2016

After saying sad farewells to Skyler and Otis in the airport security line, we headed to the Hertz rental counter to pick up our Yaris for the road trip west to Ojo Caliente, between Santa Fe and Taos. By 5:55 p.m., we had traveled 555 miles of the nearly 900 mile drive. Skyler and Otis had been home for hours by this time. Yes, flying is a lot faster than driving!

Sunday, January 31, 2016

Sunday, January 24, 2016

Stopped by to see Anjanette and Jason, and for Otis to play with Fox. That's Bruce sunning in the pile of leaves.

While Otis and Fox played, and Papa Tom was at work, Skyler and Amon and I went to Rainey Street. I'd never before been to a business that offers you a free tattoo of their logo!

Had to take the guys to Via 313 for Detroit-style pizza. Skyler wanted a photo of my cowgirl boots. Well, okay then.

Otis and Fox engrossed in their video game at Anjanette's house.

We brought some of Ryder's home brew home from Asheville. Skyler cracked open a bottle of the flavorful brew, made with the world's hottest chili pepper, the Carolina Reaper.