Fowo, not Foco

So a couple of weeks ago the girls and I decided to leave Dave at home working and packed it up and hightailed it to Texas during Calla's Fall Break.  I hadn't been back to Fort Worth for about 10 years.  Friends graduated, got married, had kids and moved on.  I graduated, started a business, had kids etc. etc..  So there wasn't really any chances to go back and visit.  Back in the day after I moved to CO, trips back to Texas involved lots of ballet classes, swirly margaritas, and Fraternity parties.  This trip involved none of that.  Sure I could have taken a ballet class, but my kids don't drink swirly margs, (neither do I anymore for good reason.)  And even though I like to think of myself as a fun and nice Mommy, I am pretty sure we weren't invited to any Fraternity parties at TCU.

Needless to say it was a bit of a challenge at first to decide what to do with kids.  After talking with some friends who have kids now, and are still living in the area, it seemed like a lot of the things they do with their kids, are what we used to do back in the 80's and early 90's.  Perfect!  What went from  being an issue of what are we going to do, turned into how much can we shove into 3 days.

Wed- Flew into DFW and drove to Ozonas at SMU in Dallas to meet my friend Ingrid for lunch on the patio.  As most of you know Colorado doesn't have much humidity.  Texas on the other hand has more then it knows what to do with.  I was not looking forward to that smack yo mamma in the face humidity that hits you as soon as you exit your nice air conditioned car.  The weather however was perfect.  So perfect I had a hard time believing where I was.  Not too hot, not too humid.

After lunch we headed to the Galleria to do some shopping.  Because what else do you do in Dallas besides shop?  Don't answer that.  I am sure there is plenty to do, but let's not burst my fantasy here.


I had arranged before I left home for all of us to have Tea at the American Girl doll store.  We were not disappointed.  For $10 a piece (not including the damn dolls) we had a feast of cupcakes, fruit and mini sandwiches. Each doll was given a seat at the table and her own cup of Sprite.  Our waiter was adorable, and we were sugar highed and stuffed by the time we rolled out of there.

Nope didn't forget Tiana this time.

Julie just hanging with the tea pot as big as her head.

After tea it was time for some retail therapy at Nordstrom and H&M.  Since we had been up since 4 am CO time there was a point where the kids did reach their limit, and the sugar high was toast.  This was about the time when they started to pretend they were the mannequins in the displays.  India found one she particularly liked and made friends with.  Baby was tired.  I swear to you they did this themselves.  I had nothing to do with it.

Do not hate me because I am beautiful. 

 The drive back to Ft Worth was a bit of a pain with all of the traffic and I didn't realize the lights weren't on in the rental car till I had a hard time seeing.  Brilliant concept I know.

Thurs- Woke up, went for coffee in our jammies and returned 3 hours later.  We just kept on driving.  It was good to see my old house and school, but also it was crazy to see how much had changed and how little had changed all at the same time.   Back at home we got cleaned up and planned the rest of our day.

Lazy girls

A little architectural salvage and more retail shopping for Mommy & Ingrid and a train ride through the park for the kids.  Did I mention the weather was gorgeous?

Oh goody goody a train.

Dinner that evening was at the Central Market Grocery Store.  Seriously, this was no Piggly Wiggly or Kroger folks.  http://www.centralmarket.com/Home.aspx  The outside had a Food truck, a live band, patio area where you can take your food and wine and listen to the band, and even a playground.  Every freakin' grocery store should have a playground.  Best. idea. ever.  I was sold when Ingrid told me they had a pickle bar.  Everyone got to choose what they wanted to eat like at Whole Foods.  I had 5 different types of pickles and sweet tea. What.....I was in Texas.  Pickles go with BBQ.  I just left that part out.

Pickles and only pickles, the rest of the line was filled with olives and sauces.

They variety on everything was amazing, and a bit overwhelming.  These are all Rice Krispy Treats.  Ummm. Yeah.

How is one supposed to choose between sprinkles and marshmallows?

Fri- Our last day in Fort Worth.  This was the point where we had to make a decision.  Do we head Downtown to watch them drive the longhorn cattle up the street and eat Mexican food, or do we go to the Cultural District and visit the Botanical Gardens and Museums.  Ultimately it came down to the fact that I am a landscaper who has cows as neighbors.  My kids don't give a hoot one way or the other about Mexican food.  So the Japanese Gardens and Science and Cowgirl Museums it was.  This turned out to be the best choice.

The Japanese Gardens are just what I remembered them to be as a kid.  Only I have a much better appreciation for them since I now know what goes into creating and constructing the landscape, and how long it has taken some of those plants to grow and fill in.  I took lots of pictures for Dave and the girls had fun feeding the koi fish.

Tea House

Inge and Indi - Say that fast 4 times.

I solemnly swear I am up to no good.

Koi fish.  Greedier then my chickens.  

After the gardens we headed to the museums.  One of the cool things we stumbled upon at the Science Museum was a Titanic exhibit.  This was amazing.  It was great because we pretty much had the whole thing to ourselves since all of the school kids had left for the day.  So the docents were more then excited to talk with adults some of the facts and stories from the ship.  Unfortunately we weren't allowed to take pictures, but trust me if this comes to your town, go see it.

Upon entering the exhibit you are given a passport to see if you, a fellow passenger, lived or died on the ship at the end. The hallways through the exhibit were setup to resemble the different classes and hallways on the ship.  You essentially became part of the ship, even down to the coal room.   Many artifacts were on display from the wreckage, and the pictures and stories that went along with the whole process from building to sinking and now.  The kids were able to touch an "iceburg" and even a part of the hull from the actual ship.  There was also an additional IMAX show that accompanied the exhibit, but we were out of time to nab tickets for that.  The final room included a large wall with thousands of names written on it.  These were all of the different passenger classes and crew who were on the ship.

In the end I found out I was the only one out of our group who perished.  My husband and I owned Macys Dept. Store.  (Of course I did!  :) )   I decided at the last minute to get off the life boat and stay with my beloved husband.  Our maid and butler lived, but we went down with each other.  How tragically romantic, and stupid.  Seeing as I am not that chivalrous in real life, you bet your bottom dollar my ass would be on that life boat today.

That night the girls and I said goodbye to Ingrid and we stayed with a friend of mine since Kindergarten who lives closer to the airport.  Random fact: Her husband went to the same High School here in CO as me. We didn't know each other.  They made dinner for all of us including another friend of ours growing up.  It was good to hang out and catch up with all of them and their adorable children.  The kids had a blast, and were sad to leave.

Juile, the kids and I.  Sadly no Michele, or her kids

I feel like I saw Texas in a whole other different light this time.  Through the eyes of my children.  It was the Texas I remembered enjoying growing up with.  There were many other old friends and neighbors who I wished I could have seen and visited with, but our time there limited.  Not sure when I will return, but I am really glad I went, and was able to share a bit of my childhood with my kids.

Have a good weekend.

PS. In case you all were wondering if Dave missed out.  No, he has been to Fort Worth with me before.  He is good.  The End.  :)