We have another niece visiting us this week. Rachel and Monte went out to the lake and sailed for a few hours. Then Julie and I joined them about 4 o’clock. We sailed around for a couple more hours. Then got a great table at the Oasis. And surprisingly enjoyed the appies that we ordered. The view of sunset was awesome, as usual. Very, very nice!
We went to the lake this beautiful Sunday afternoon. Julie joined us and jumped in. The first one this year. Water temps are still in the 60’s! We brought the kayak out and will try stowing it in the slip. Eliminates some schlepping!
Nick joined us in Arky cove on kalliopi. Then we ate dinner at shades with all the regulars.
Some wisdom from above the bar … I sure can’t wait for Friday to come around again!
For the last 15 years, Becker Vineyards has had a Lavender Festival. Its been one of the things on my todo list. This year, i put it on my calendar several months ago, so I wouldn’t miss it. And, it worked! Today we headed out for a long drive through the hill country, in the miata with the top down. And we had a really great day…
We walked out through the lavender fields. They have several different varieties. It didn’t look quite like I had expected – i was imagining endless rows of deep purple, like in Provence. But it was pretty, nonetheless.
They also grow their own artichokes. I have never seen them in the wild before!
We walked through the vendor booths. Lots of lavender goodies, flowers, herbs, nibblies and such. 
Then one more walk through the fields, this shot is looking back at the winery.
We packed a light lunch and ate it at the festival while sipping wine and listening to the Raggedy Cats (we really enjoyed them).
Then a winery tour. Lots of new factoids. Becker has been here 20 years or so, and in that time, they’ve increased the amount of their wine that they make from grapes grown at the winery to 85%. The rest come from Lubbock.
Can’t wait for the Fredericksburg peach harvest!
On the way home we decided to dodge the brewing thunderstorms and buzzed over to Der Lindenbaum in Fredericksburg for some German home cooked food for dinner.
The festival is open tomorrow, too. Get out there if you can, this year or next!
Ok. This post is not for vegetarians. Look away. Now!
Tonight Julie brought home a couple of magnificent ribeye steaks. From now on, Julie is the official steak shopper. 😉
These babies were an inch and a half thick!
They turned out perfect. We also whipped up some delicious sides: sauted zucchini and yellow squash, roasted mushrooms, and corn casserole. A Thursday feast!
On another topic… Monte just made this great tray / carry-all out of some cypress that he recently acquired. Tonight it carried in herbs for the feast.
Yummy!!!
We anchored in Arky south last night. It was chilly, in the 40s, so we hunkered below. This morning we lounged around until the wind filled in, then went for a sail. We beat upwind all the way to Bee Creek. We dropped sail and motored up the creek until it got too shallow. The big wide basin where we’ve rafted up in the past is just a twisty creek now. 20′ deep where we turned around.
On the way out of the cove we turned the motor off and ate lunch as the wind nudged us back out to the lake.
Another lovely day on Nirvana.
On the sail home this row of birdhouses high on a ridge caught my eye. What a great spot for a birds eye view.
We made it to the lake today in time to race the Beercan. We got a late start, and crossed the starting line about 2 minutes late. But we caught up with the field. In time to come in third out of five!! Woot woot!
We headed to arky and put out an anchor and are waiting for the riff-raff to show up.
Lovely sunset.
We spent the night on the boat last night. Got up this morning and headed out for a sail. We had a great day – sailed up to Windy Point and back. Back at the marina we grabbed a bite to eat at Shades and watched the end of the Masters. Then on to Iguana Grill to watch our friend Wiz and his band play.
As I was sitting listening to the music I saw a tiny hummingbird hit a beam and fall down right next to me. I think he flew in the open window on his way home and hit the beam.
For all the times I’ve hunkered in the kitchen in front of the window where the hummingbird feeder hangs trying to get a stealth shot – it was really amazing to see one up close.
I didn’t know if he was dead or just stunned. So I picked him up. His eyes were open and he was breathing really hard. He was so tiny! I held him for 5 minutes or so. I brought him over to Monte for him to see. He held him in his hands for a few more minutes. Then, after his head cleared, he stood up, flew into the air… chirped a “thank-you” and flew home.
Whew! That was a crazy week! I’m glad it is Friday.
Julie made beef and veggie stir fry tonight. What a great meal. And colorful, too.
On the drive home today we stopped to smell the flowers. The roadsides along Hwy 71 seem to be hoarding all the wildflowers this year. I just haven’t seen much of them in Austin. They’re so pretty!
This one was not grown in the wild, but was in a pot on the deck at the lake house we were visiting. It’s an african iris (aka fortnight lily), or dietes iridioides. According to google, the blooms last only a day, but they have a long blooming period, through the summer. Between bloom bursts, plants take a two-week, or fortnight’s, rest before blooming again.
Lori rented a place on Lake Buchanan for her 50th birthday extravaganza. It was a fantastic day. The weather was awesome. It was great to see friends that had come from near and far to celebrate with her.
A good time was had by all.
This week has been jam-packed. I seem to be playing catch up from the minute I wake up in the wee hours of the morning. I’m doing my last meeting from the car this afternoon as we are heading out of town for the weekend. Lori’s birthday party is tomorrow, and tonight we’re staying with Marty & Sue at a beautiful lake house on Lake LBJ. This place is fantastic. When I grow up I want one just like it. 🙂
We had a storm blow through this afternoon. Had to jockey cars to put them all under cover. There were reports of baseball-sized hail. But none made it here. For dinner tonight we dug through the fridge and made pasta with whatever looked like it would be good: onions, garlic, mushrooms, asparagus, leftover grilled chicken, some white wine, broth and parmesan cheese. We used Buitoni fresh linguini for the noodles.
Delicious!
Julie hasn’t felt good for the last few days. Tonight after work we went to a nearby urgent care place to have them poke and prod her and look her over. There sure are a lot of these urgent/emergency care places cropping up. Have you noticed?
The Easter Bunny just left. Happy Easter!
Sheila365 