WHAT A GREAT TRIP!

 I recently had the BEST teaching experience I have ever had, in 11 years of being a "road warrior" Traveling Quilt Teacher.

Flights to and from Austin were uneventful, even arriving early each of the 4 flights. That's "Traveling Mercies" these days.

The Fabric and Fiber Quilting club at Sun City brought me to town. They are a delightful group and the Classroom Studio was beautiful--large, bright, more than enough electrical outlets. And the BEST technical set up I've ever had. My PowerPoint was an easy set-up with their system, I really appreciate when that part of the job is all set and goes off without a hitch.

At the Podium for the Lecture Time Management for Quilters

POLL: Care to vote, long hair or short?

Electrical cords hang overhead as well as on the tables, so much power

The Home2Suites at Georgetown  Austin North was my home for 4 nights. It is an excellent hotel, with a great breakfast, and well-trained employees. There is a refrigerator/freezer, microwave, sink, dishwasher, and real dishes and silverware for bringing meals in. It was a joy to stay there:

I always sleep under my own quilt

Breakfast was good and healthy

Each day starts with a workout, 5-6 am: 

Half what I do at home but enough to enjoy all the great meals I get

Class Friday and Saturday was Western Sun. The students ranged from very experienced to very new. Everyone did great and seemed to absorb my tips and tricks. I was so impressed with what all 25 of these women accomplished in our two days together:

Student work all gathered to appear as if it's one quilt

Marthe decided ONE block was sufficient to learn the skills it teaches. Great job!

I was so incredibly well-cared for on this trip. From the Welcome Goodie Bag to the amazing meals, from Gayland's tour guide skills around the wonderful square in Georgetown, I felt honored to be treated so well. I was even treated to dinner at a member's home, wonderful BBQ prepared by Karen's husband--no photos, we just relaxed and enjoyed the evening:

My Welcome Goodie Bag from the guild, so kind and appreciated

Dinner with a friend at Tony & Luigi's--awesome!! Salmon and Salad

Great restaurant on the square

Macadamia crusted Jumbo Shrimp with mango rice and snow peas

The county courthouse--an iconic Southern square 

Dinner on my own from 2020 Market--right across the street from the hotel, Salmon and Salad

Texas Flags are everywhere--they have a lot of state pride

Sun City is a Del Webb retirement community of some size. The part I saw was beautifully landscaped, walking trails I would love, nice homes, very serene. As I went to the restroom Saturday morning I happened to explore the area surrounding the class Studio--look how lovely:

The primary reason I teach these classes all over the country is to share what I have learned how to do over 40+ years with those who want to learn. After class ended Saturday afternoon I think every woman spoke to me privately about what they learned, how much they enjoyed it, how glad they were they invested the time to be there. Those words of appreciation are PRICELESS! It is those moments that make all the travel and planning worthwhile. And they know I will be happy to come back should they want me again. It really was the BEST GIG ever. 

No class is complete without the group photo:

And a special thanks to Jennifer, who handled all the arrangements for months in advance and was the primary driver for getting me where I needed to go. We moved me to the Austin airport area after class Saturday as I had an early morning flight the next day. She is a gem!

Jennifer and I at a Jamaican Jerked Chicken food truck for the last night's dinner, what could be more "Austin"?

Chamber of Commerce weather was a special treat. The funny thing is, this week was chosen so that I might see fields of Bluebonnets in full bloom--a BUCKET LIST for me. Alas, I was too early this year, last Fall's lack of rain slowed the blooms. I did see a few in bloom beside Culver's Custard, thanks, Sherry! But for now, I get to enjoy my screensaver every day:

Until I return to Texas again, a huge THANK YOU to the wonderful women of the Fabric and Fiber Quilting Club of Sun City, TX!

Let's quilt.

Barbara

TEXAS TOUR 2024 PART 2: TEXAS!

I love Texas! I can see myself living there.  I love the landscape, so vast and so different throughout the state. I love the people, so welcoming, fun and engaging. I love the quilters, such good people there, many I am proud to call "friend". 

In planning the TEXAS TOUR 2024, it became apparent there would be logistics in getting me from Beaumont to Victoria. And there would be 5 days of "free time" between jobs. My contact in Beaumont, Susan, had the perfect solution: a side trip to Austin. I really love Austin, having visited twice before briefly, so that was perfect. 

My traveling companions and now, friends:

Penni and Susan

Penni and Susan picked me up on a beautiful Saturday morning and we headed to our first stop, Katy, west of Houston, just under a two hour drive. By happy accident there was a street festival going on and that was a fun way to spend some time: 

We were looking for Kantha clothing. The one boutique we found that had a few garments was great, but none of the jackets were perfect for any of us. But this jacket made from a kimono silk WAS  perfect for me, except it was way too small. I really wanted it but it was just not ever going to fit so I kept looking. And I DID buy the red silk long kimono vest seen on the hanger:

I also liked this lovely metal sign but it didn't come home with me either, it's about 2 x 3 feet:

Next we headed for La Grange, an hour or so drive west. Home of the Texas Quilt Museum and The Quilted Skein fabric and fiber shop. There were great exhibits as always in the Museum, my fourth visit there:

                                     

It was time to head to Austin, an hour drive to the Airbnb. It is owned by a friend of Susan and Penni, Deb, so she joined in the fun now. We unloaded and headed out to Matt's El Rancho restaurant, nearby:

Authentic Tex-Mex 

A stop at the supermarket got us set for the visit. The Airbnb was perfect, 3 bedrooms, 2.5 baths, a full kitchen and laundry. Once my clothes were washed I was ready for this vacation:

The AirBNB

Breakfast each day 

Each day I did a minimum hour and a half power walk in the neighborhood. I knew I had missed Bluebonnet season by a few weeks--it is my dream and goal to return while they are in full bloom. On my last morning walk I spotted this--at a house I had walked past at least a dozen times--my first time seeing Bluebonnets "in the wild"--I was thrilled!:

Just a couple hanging on

The seed pods getting ready for next year

I spent Sunday with longtime friends and had a lovely meal at Steiner Ranch Steakhouse, with a view of the sunset over Lake Travis. Awesome!

Monday was the most perfect weather day--sunny, low humidity, 75 degrees--Chamber of Commerce weather. We ventured downtown, about a 30 minute drive, and toured the Capitol and the Bob Bullock Texas History Museum. I loved everything about this day:

The Capitol Rotunda features a Lone Star at the top of the dome--it is 8 FEET across from point to point. It is so tall the Statue of Liberty would fit under it with room to spare. Penni, Susan, Deb and I did what everyone else did--take a timed shot as we stood under the dome. Another super FUN thing to do is to stand directly under the star and say something. It reverberates back to you, sounding like the entire room can hear you--so amazing!

That late afternoon we walked from the AirBNB to Kerbey Lane Cafe, very nearby. I heartily recommend it. I had grilled salmon with tamarind glazed Brussel sprouts and basil mashed potatoes, so good! I would go back there any time. It was so good I didn't take a photo. So, here is their photo from the website: 

The next day we headed to Wimberly, less than an hour's drive. It is a nice little town with many small shops, tea/coffee houses, fun to browse and enjoy this last full day with my new friends. Some of the sights:

A kitchen store had LOTS of great stuff, from foods to gadgets. I love flavored oils and vinegars, I use them to make a wonderful salad dressing. Find my recipe on this blog about my favorite foods: My Favorite Recipes. I was delighted to find these to bring home--the dressing is yummy:

A visit to a quilt shop is always welcome, even if I am on self-imposed fabric restriction. I did find two "must have" pieces for a future "Stella Quilt":

We were hungry now and the entire day had been planned around going to SALT LICK BBQ in Driftwood for lunch, my most favorite Texas BBQ place, since I was there years ago. It didn't disappoint; it was so good I bought more for dinner to share with friends I was meeting that night:

Penni, Susan, me and Deb

There was one funny, unexpected thing that happened on this trip. The day after I left home a package came in the mail for me from Woman's World Magazine. It was 3 copies of MY issue--the one that tells how I lost 110 pounds. I had mentioned on Instagram and Facebook I had done a professional photo shoot but not why. I had to wait for the magazine to come out. Here it was, the April 29, 2024 issue. My husband sent me photos and I got excited. 

We started going to supermarkets and drugstores trying to find it, not sure when the weekly issue actually gets released. I wrote a quick blog post to alert friends as they would no longer be on sale after I got home:

Woman's World Magazine Reveal

I came back from my walk one morning and Penni surprised me with this--I love that woman! She found them at Walgreen's on her morning Starbucks run:

A copy for each of us. AND I was featured on the cover--that was not the case on the issues mailed to my home

I sure had fun telling the guilds about this and I signed many copies once folks were able to find them at local stores.  If you want to read the article, find it in full here on their website: Battle of the Diets Winner.  It is an excellent article with a lot of good information on nutrition. And links to sites I use and find helpful.

They chose the outfit and shot I particularly liked. My son, professional photographer Joshua Black Wilkins was hired by the magazine to do the photo shoot. Chelsea Thompson did my hair and makeup--I loved it and her. Here are a few additional images from that day:

All in all, my Texas Tour 2024 was wonderful! This mini vacation was so good for my soul! It filled my cup for a while until I can return. Let's go to Texas!

And let's quilt,

Barbara