Unique New York

I'm always proud to call New York my original home, and I can deliver some pretty haughty side-eyes when people assume I'm from Delaware or New Jersey. The Empire State was a wonderful area to sprout roots, learn, and grow. And now every visit leaves my heart feeling full and a little nostalgic.

Here are some photos from my recent visit to the Hudson Valley, including a yoga dad on his birthday and some meditative romps through the Chapel of Sacred Mirrors. Enjoy!

Live to Learn

Like I told you in the last post, I'm not the greatest of granddaughters, and before my recent trip to Buffalo, it had been quite a while since the last visit to upstate New York to see my grandma. This time, I took advantage of our stay together to convince her to share one of her most powerful areas of expertise: baking cinnamon rolls.

She has long been known throughout our family and her group of friends for her special touch with these tasty spiraled treats. My sister and I share antagonistic photos whenever one of us is lucky enough to get a full pan of her own in the mail. Despite my grandma's desires to spend the trip showing me around the Grand Island Golden Age center, she kindly agreed to spend a day in the kitchen walking me through all the mixing, rising, and rolling steps. And, even though the instructions have never been exact, the batch she guided me through came out pretty deliciously!

As the people we love grow older and begin to downsize in their living spaces, it's usually inevitable that we'll end up inheriting some of their precious possessions. Even better than the invaluable antique jewelry and multi-generational family heirlooms are the pieces of knowledge we can pick up along the way. A few years ago, my grandma taught me how to crochet, and now I think of her anytime I'm working on a project. And I've only made a few pierogi on my own, but I'll never forget holidays spent making them in a flour-filled kitchen with my aunt and uncle. It's a reward on two levels: you get to spend a special time together learning the craft, and then end up with lifelong memories that spring up whenever you decide to attempt it on your own. While I might not have perfected the kneading and measuring processes yet, it makes my heart happy that my grandma had the time to pass her unrivaled ability along to me. Hopefully I'll get to carry it with me for a long, long while, even if I'd rather not know how much powdered sugar ends up in the glaze.

Disclaimer: I did also come away with more than a few vintage skirts from the guest room closet, so don't go thinking that this post is wholly immaterial.

Found in Ft. Worth

Nowadays, my family looks a lot different than the mom, dad, sister, and me stick figure drawings I used to sketch out back in grade school. As the years have gone by, it's expanded to include many new faces-- related and non-- who spread far and wide across the country and, occasionally, around the world. Regardless of how untraditional our clan looks today, it's pretty cool that a few weeks ago I was able to drive to North Texas for a mini-family reunion. Sometimes you end up where you never could have expected, and it seems to make the most sense of all.

Side note to Austinites who understandably think it would be silly to venture out of Austin to visit another Texan city: It seems like the Ft. Worth part of DFW might have some cool stuff, too! There were lots of breweries, music, and apartment complexes that look eerily similar to the ones here. Come for the professional sports teams, stay for the beer and tattoos.

Oh yeah, and happy 4th of July y'all!

Family Firsts

I'm very thankful that my mom was able to come visit last weekend. This was her fourth or fifth time in Austin, but we always manage to find different things to do, like trying new restaurants and checking out art. I'll be returning to many of those places as soon as possible (looking at you, Round Top!) It was nice to have a piece of home here for a few days.