Red Poppy Festival

On Sunday we spent the day up in Georgetown, where my parents live. First we met them for brunch at the Monument Cafe. While we waited a short while for our table, we admired the beautiful garden out front. Olivia loves the smell of fresh rosemary.

This was my first time seeing artichokes still on the vine. I really had no idea how they grew!

Once seated, we ordered a plate of fried pickles to start with. Light, crunchy, pickle-y.

I was let down by my entree salad, though. The menu described it as a "kale citrus mint salad" but, as you can see, it was just a big bowl of kale with three croutons. I guess the citrus and mint were in the dressing, although it didn't taste minty to me. $9 for a bowl of kale, hmm. Although I enjoyed our first visit to Monument, Tony has been unimpressed twice in a row now, so I doubt we'll make an effort to go back.

Our day improved as we headed over to the Red Poppy Festival. The streets were blocked off to cars, and lined with craft booths and food vendors.

I loved this pirate ship selling shaved ice.

I can tell you from carrying it around all afternoon, this bag of kettle corn weighed as much as a baby.

Maybe it weighed as much as a baby goat. I'm not sure; I didn't get to hold the goat. But it was adorable.

Superhero recyclers.

It has been a mild spring but now the temps are getting up into the 90's. After walking around in full afternoon sun, we started getting worn out.

Jackson was being slightly dramatic in the above pic. He suddenly found vast reserves of energy when we arrived at the kids' zone.

Ballin'.

All the inflatables were free, and the lines were not long. Awesome festival!

Georgetown

It's official, my parents are buying a house about 40 minutes from us, in Georgetown. They will get the keys in a couple weeks. This weekend, Tony and I decided to visit Georgetown and get a feel for the area. Jackson and Olivia napped in the car while we drove around. When they woke up, we stopped by a fun playground.

 

 

After the kids worked up an appetite, we ate at the Monument Cafe. The building resembles an old-timey diner, the type we saw everywhere when we lived in New York state.

 

While we perused the menus, our server brought us each a giant, fluffy biscuit.

 

I ordered the garden sandwich -- a big slab of cornmeal-crusted fried eggplant, tomato, mushrooms, avocado, swiss cheese, and sprouts, served on hippie wheat bread, with a side of housemade potato chips. Tony hates eggplant, so I could never get away with making a sandwich like this at home. I savored every bite -- it was a great sandwich!

 

When I saw "key lime pie" on their daily specials board, I knew I had to order a slice. Even though it's my favorite type of pie, key lime pie is another thing that I never make at home. Tony doesn't have much of a sweet tooth, so I'd end up having to eat most of it by myself. When it comes to key lime pie, I lack the restraint that such a scenario would call for.

 

Divine! Jackson and Olivia "helped" me finish it off. I didn't really need help, but we always tell them it's important to share, so I felt I had to set a good example. It was tough!