Hallelujah, He is Risen!

The women walked sadly to the tomb in the early morning light. They sobbed as they passed the empty crosses, with hearts broken by the death of the one they loved. How could so much have changed in just one week? Only a few days before, crowds had cheered and called Jesus the King. Then they yelled, "Crucify him!" to Pilate. And so, Pilate had his soldiers beat Jesus beyond recognition. Then, he was led up the hill outside the city and nailed to a cross, left to die between two sinners, this holy one of God who knew no sin.

What a surprise awaited the women! The tomb was empty. 

"He is not here," they were told, "he is risen!"

And so, we serve a risen Savior. He has paid the penalty for you and for me,

 so that we do not have to die. Because he lives, we, too, will live.

Thank you, Jesus...

Son of God...

Savior.

Tea-Licious...Burnet's Tea Room and "Giftique"

If you take the Hill Country Flyer trip, a vintage steam train tour offered by the Austin Steam Train Association, you will arrive in Burnet, Texas for a two hour stop.  This is just enough time to walk around the historical downtown, stop for a bite to eat in one of the eateries around the town square, and end up back at the train, where a wild west shoot out is acted out by a group of volunteers.

That is exactly the itinerary that my family and I took as we celebrated my mother's 80th birthday.

We decided to eat lunch at a cute little place called the Tea-Licious Tea Room and Giftique.

The first thing that really caught my attention was the painted table we where we were seated.

Here is a close-up of the art work. I fell in love with it. In fact, I think I am going to paint my table top in a similar fashion. I took several detailed shots of the table. My family is used to my obsessions, so they just laughed and accomodated me by moving menus and purses so I could get clean shots.

I think my mother had a marvelous time. She got her reading glasses out of her purse and discovered that they had broken in half at the nose piece. That didn't faze her at all. She put them on and modeled her broken glasses for us. Doesn't she look happy?

The wall behind the table is a rich red with tinges of orange and yellow. It made a great backdrop for a photo of mom and Chuck, my step-dad.

Erin, my neice, graciously let me take her photo, also. 

Erin has a passion for photography, so I let her use my camera for a while. She took a picture of Richard and me, so I get to be in the blog, too. Yea!

Chuck was also busy with his camera, sharing pictures as he took them. 

The food at the tea room was delicious. Since Richard and I had a huge breakfast, we just had a slice of coconut pie while the others ordered sandwiches. 

I love funky decor, so this tea room was a visual delight. There was a mix of vintage elements, which I love, as well as some more trendy decorating touches.

The checkerboard colums with the crystal mini-chandeliers are interesting and eye-catching.  What do you think? Are they too much? (I will go ahead and confess, for those who don't know me well, I almost never think there is too much bling!)

When I finished my pie, I wandered around the shop, and not surprisingly, I found darling miniature tea sets and several nice tea pots. 

Finally, right before we left, I took a self-portrait. Can you spot my reflection in one of the mirrors? 

Coming up soon...the Wild West show!

Hill Country Flyer...A Vintage Steam Train Tour of Texas

My mother recently had her 80th birthday, and several of her children took her on a scenic train trip to celebrate. We boarded the Hill Country Flyer, a set of vintage cars pulled by a restored steam engine, in Cedar Park and rode the rails to Burnet, stopped for lunch and a show, and returned to Cedar Park by 4:00 pm. 

This is Carol, the attendant for the First Class lounge car. She took wonderful care of us as we travelled. (If you look in the mirror, you can see just a glimpse of yours truly, lol.) 

There were little breakfast sweets to snack on in the morning, as well as fresh fruit. Also, there were little arrangements of fresh cut flowers on all the tables. In the afternoon, Carol served chips and soft drink to the returning travellers.

My mom studies the brochure that lists the attractions and shops to be found in Burnet.

Towards the end of the trip to Burnet, we got a visit from the "sheriff" and his floozy. Actually, they were promoting the Wild West Shoot-Out  that is performed in Burnet every Saturday for the train travellers.  

We had a great time celebrating Mom's birthday. I highly recommend the trip if you have a hankering for a train trip.

HEB Rockport Lodge Cabins

H.E.B. is by far the most popular grocery store in the state of Texas. If you are fortunate enough to work for H.E.B., you may stay at one of their two lodges a couple of times a year. Our favorite lodge is the Rockport lodge, a quiet haven sitting right on the bay at the edge of Fulton/Rockport. 

For all of you H.E.B. partners who look at my blog, I have taken a few shots of the cabins that are available. Each cabin has a screened in porch with a bedroom next to it, a kitchen/livingroom, and an upstairs bedroom with a double bed and a bunk bed.

Here are cabins number 10 and 11.

This is the view of the bay taken from the entrance to the screened in porch in the cabin we stayed in on our last visit.

Here, you can see the front porch, as well.

The Great Blue Heron Builds a Nest