Dear Mr. Garth Brooks,

About 20 years ago, my husband and I went to the Garth Brooks concert at Texas Stadium. We aren’t concert go-ers really, but obviously your music had struck a cord and we wanted to see Garth Brooks in concert and it was in Dallas, close to where we live! At the time, we had a beautiful red-headed-5-year-old daughter and a brand new baby boy. Our daughter, little as she was, loved Garth Brooks songs.

I can remember her snuggling closer to her Daddy when The Thunder Rolls would come on the radio. She loved the song, but somehow seemed to know there was something sinister about it at the same time; enough so that she would cuddle closer to her safe haven. She was a huge pint-sized fan.

So when the opportunity came for us to attend the concert of our lifetime, we did the grown up thing and snuck away from our sweet little daughter because we knew we wouldn’t be able to leave her peacefully if she knew we were going to see Garth Brooks. But who takes a 5-year old to a giant concert like that? It was YEARS before we confessed to her that we’d gone. Let’s just say, she took it better – not well – but better than she would have at 5.

Last night we may finally have been forgiven when she and her new husband, “The Beau” attended your concert in Houston. The first text I got was, “Garth can spit on me we are THAT close.” Followed by, “OMG. I’m not sure I’m going to be able to make it through the show without crying. Happy tears. But tears.” Let me just say, this precious woman-child of mine is NOT a crier, but there might be a little hero-worship wrapped up in those last night.

You and Ms. Yearwood got rave reviews! They said the concert was incredible and ranked right up there with Paul McCartney (The Beau’s ultimate concert experience) and the tip-top of concerts for her. (They actually go to concerts, so they have better basis of judgement than I would have.) 

The concert glow is still loud and clear this morning. They had FUN and said you did too. They spoke of the finger-pointing light show, the intro chord reaction for Friends In Low Places, the extra verses in Texas, 4 encores, the crowd standing for the entire show and the smile on your face the whole time. And the exhaustion THEY felt after (How can he do another show tonight?!)

Thank you, Mr. Brooks. WELL DONE. And thanks for getting forgiveness for me – some what – 20-years later. Or maybe that’s just pay back since I wasn’t there. 🙁

But here’s the “funny” part of the story:

News broke that you would perform 8 concerts in Houston and MY CHILD WAS GOING! After all, she’d been waiting for this opportunity for over 20 years.

She had alarms and reminders set so that she could get online before everything sold out….then the morning the tickets went on sale….their house flooded. So when the alarms and reminders went off, she was mopping up water and propping stuff up out of the path of the water flow. Hours later, exhausted, frustrated, she discovered that she’d missed her opportunity for tickets. You cannot imagine her disappointment. (Well, you have 3 daughters, maybe you can.) I think she was more disappointed that she’d missed the ticket sales than she was about the house flooding.

I was so bummed for her. I’d even decided to try and write you a letter to see if there was any way she could get tickets. Then – thank you social media – someone posted tickets online for sale. Turns out to be a Baylor fan. (She & her husband are BIG tailgaters for Baylor.) They ended up trading Baylor tickets for Garth Brooks tickets and well….happy, HAPPY girl!

And so, Mr. Garth Brooks, a great ending…a great concert..a happy girl…oh, and a little forgiveness, can’t forget that!

Congratulations on your un-retirement. Sounds like it’s going well for you. 🙂

Gig and I met in Austin this weekend with the intention not to shop, but to eat our way around Austin. I also had a family reunion going on Saturday morning, so it was a 2-birds-1-stone kind of thing. Now we plan to make it an annual trek.

After struggling to get out of Dallas, during Friday evening traffic, I was a little frustrated and very hungry when we met a bit after 10pm. So, off we went on our first adventure for food – off the cuff.

Deep Fried Deviled Eggs

The Food Gods were smiling. We pulled into Lucy’s Fried Chicken on Burnet Rd., walked into the neon lit ambiance and found a seat among the few patrons (it WAS after 10 p.m.). Great little waitress greeted us and recommended the Deep Fried Deviled Eggs…..OK????

Let me just say, they were De-lish! Creamy, with a lovely batter. We also ordered a basket of chicken – 4 piece -which was also really good; crunchy, tender, not greasy. The kind your great granny might have cooked for Sunday dinner. We were super happy with our late night meal and good service.

Saturday, we breakfasted at Magnolia Cafe off MoPac. I would hghly recommend the Prima Dora. An omelet with generous sliced avocado, topped with lemon sour cream, verde and chipotle sauces dressed out like a Mexican flag. I out ordered Gig (that means mine was better) who had some type of Eggs Benedict. Wouldn’t recommend the mimosas – little and over done.

Off to the reunion where, technically, we ate/snacked again about 2 hours later.

District Cutie, Pork Crostini appetizers, Soft Glow

Too full for a regular dinner, we opted to make happy hour at the District Kitchen + Cocktails. We shared a District Cutie (Gig has a thing about ginger beer) and a Soft Glow – dragon berry infused Bacardi with strawberries (it was VERY sweet). Stick to the District Cutie. We also tried the Pork Belly Crostinis which were yummy and the Chicken Street Tacos (very bland).

We meant to go take a nap to prep for our next meal, but we gabbed too long. We ended up at Hula Hut, highly recommended by other foodies, but honestly, we were a bit disappointed. The food was good: Gig had Shrimp Pipeline Enchilada, a shrimp/spinach enchilada and I had a Surfer Salad with mahi mahi, but not really anything to write home about and the waiter spoke so fast that we were left looking blankly at him trying to figure out what he’d just said or if maybe he’d been imbibing. I also think we irritated him by just ordering water when we first set down – and before we had menus – instead of drinks. After perusing the menu, we both ordered drinks, but they were nothing to write home about. We missed sitting outside on the river…Hula Hut just didn’t hit our mark.

Sunday, still full from Saturday, and with plans to leave by 1ish, it took a while to get moving, but we landed at Maria’s Taco Xpress. What a fun place! I bet this place is great fun in the evenings. We had a gordita (good) and a steak & egg burrito platter (way good) with potatoes, rice & beans. There’s an eclectic crowd here (ok, that COULD be said about most of Austin). I’d go back, Maria must have a really great sense of humor and Gig said the cook was a miracle to watch.

But probably the piece de resistance was Burro Cheese Kitchen with their artisan grilled cheese sandwiches. We’d looked forward to this place all weekend and we were NOT disappointed. Stuffed to the gills, but not disappointed.

Artisan Grilled Cheese

We planned to split 1 sandwich but then the selection was just too tempting, so I talked her into getting 2 and we’d save the 2nd half for a snack on the road…Yeh, that didn’t happen either. We scarfed those puppies down like we’d not eaten in days…and I enjoyed every messy, delicious bite.

The Burro is on South Congress, on a corner, in a shipping container, with only outside seating. I don’t care. I had the Waylon and Willie – sourdough, carmelized onions, maple bacon, pepperocinis. It was heavenly! Gig opted for the Croque – Madame – a sweet blend of smoked ham, gouda, pesto aioli, fried egg and dulce de leche. Um – YUM. So glad we stopped there on our way out of town.

I may not eat for a week, but for just a few days in Austin, it was foodie heaven. And the company, some of the best to be had.

Oh, and a shout out to Sara & Frederik (no c) in Allandale for the perfect spot to sleep via Airbnb while we stuffed ourselves on Austin cuisine.