The Daxman's Blog: The British Invasion

Grandma's cousins from England, Catherine and Clark, came for a visit, and while she was at work, Dax and I played Texas tour guide. The first day we drove out to Gruene. Gruene is a great, old-time, Texas town. They have one of the best dance halls in the world, and I gave them a dance lesson there. If only they knew how cool it is to learn the Texas 2-Step, and dance at Gruene Hall! Then we ate lunch at the Gristmill next door. Clark had his first-ever chicken fried steak. He said he liked it.

The next day we met Hollie and Payton at Whole Foods. Catherine and Clark got to experience the store's lunch buffet, and the kiddos played on the playscape. Next we took them to Amy's Ice Cream for another Austin experience. After that, we met Duane at the lake and took them for a boat ride on Lake Travis. That's definitely something they couldn't do in late October in England!

The following day we went to the Texas State History Museum. There was a "Cowboys and Presidents" exhibit, complete with a kids cowboy dress-up area that Dax liked. There was also a movie about Texas history we all enjoyed. After the museum, we drove all around University of Texas campus, St. Edward's University campus, and then up to Mount Bonnell where Catherine and Clark enjoyed the view of Austin and Lake Austin. We had "Afternoon Tea" at an outdoor cafe and then took a quick tour of Grandma's office. After dinner we met Travis and Hollie at The Broken Spoke (another true Texas dance hall) for some live music. We then visited downtown's 4th Street entertainment district for some evening fun.

We really enjoyed our time with Catherine and Clark. The funny part is that each morning Dax would get a little freaked out until he got used to their accents again. Luckily, they didn't take it personally. :) They were a lot of fun to show around and we really hope to see them again soon.

At the world famous Gruene Hall