God Bless Texas ~ My Weekend at Round Top

I grew up in Texas, & well you know, once a Texan always a Texan…One of my dearest friends, Marylou, lives in College Station with her husband Duane & their cat, Lily. We got together in Houston this summer &, at that time, planned our next meeting…in Round Top, Texas.

~Check out the Chicken Coop Duane is building~

When Wednesday arrived…I headed out.

  (I don’t know what I would have done without the Navigation app on my phone. )

~Heading down a back road, somewhere in Texas~

I arrived in College Station, thrilled to be reunited with my bestie...(whoever thought this Longhorn would say she was thrilled to be in Aggie Land, but I was!)

We headed out Thursday morning, after two cups of hot coffee and a delicious scone... footloose and ready to play….Marylou drove and I enjoyed every minute of our trip…

and, well, hello Round Top!

We shopped all day. It was crazy hot & dusty…until…the freak lightening & thunderstorm in the afternoon …that we spent in the HGTV booth!...

(this is the view from the HGTV booth into the Junk Gypsies Booth)

…& then, that dust…it turned into mud....

&, happily, it got a little cooler....

Friday we headed back..made a quick stop at The Blue Bell Creamery in Brenham…& out to find more fun...they stopped by Leftovers Antiques…& picked up more goodies to bring home!

The whole area around Round Top hosts a huge antique, junk, craft, art…whatever you want…event each Fall & Spring…I thought I’d just let the pictures speak for themselves…

I can’t wait until Spring…Marylou, leave the light on because… I’m coming back!

 (Lily)

New York 1976 ~ New York 2011

I spent the 1776 ~ 1976 ~ 200 year celebration in both New York and Washington, D.C...This was the first time I gazed upon the Twin Towers...we were riding a ferry on the Hudson river...I hold many magical memories of our time there...subway rides, a fancy dinner at the U.N., numerous Broadway shows, passing Peter Jennings on the sidewalk, being mistaken for Charlene Tilton in an elevator (hey...it was the era of Dallas), the Empire State Building, shopping at Macy's & buying that, dream pair, of designer gauchos (yes, I still have them tucked away...just in case...), cab rides, NBC Studio tours where the best classic Saturday Night Live actors were practicing, seeing the Statue of Liberty from afar (no climbing to the torch allowed back then), touring the Towers after arriving via subway, the sailors,in town with their fleets, for the celebration, eating lobster at The Palms, fresh bagels, hearing the ringing of the bell on Wall Street...well, I could go on and on...or did I?













This year, My husband took me to New York for my birthday...the big 50. We revisited so many familiar spots. Memories were rekindled...we stayed at the "W" on Times Square (love the free wifi in Times Square)...we saw the Naked Cowboy, Regis & Kelly, David Letterman & Broadway Shows..(loved Wicked), we enjoyed a 4-star evening dinner cruise down the Hudson, Had my picture taken with the bull on Wall Street, reenacted a "Sleepless in Seattle" moment at the Empire State Building, saw Chinatown, ate at the famous Lombardi's Pizza, shopped Macy's, rode the double decker buses, strolled around Rockefeller Center, Central Park and Radio City Music Hall, drank our fair share of Starbucks coffee... & once more, enjoyed freshly baked bagels from the street vendors...





Still fabulous...but something was missing...The Twin Towers


...in the past...as one gazed through this church yard ( where George Washington once attended church )..you would see the Twin Towers....

In May 2011 it was under construction...now Ground Zero...they were preparing for this weekend...commemorating 10 years, since the attacks on September 11, 2001...





This is a 9/11 NYC Firefighters uniform from that fateful day...now resting inside the church..in this church many were cared for on 9/11 and the weeks that followed...





Click here to see my Ground Zero WorksiteVideo





The beautiful tribute will be officially unveiled this weekend....

It now is a place of reflection, comfort and inspiration...

In honor of those who lost their lives that tragic day...(tears still spring to my eyes when I think of them and the pain their loved ones have endured...)



Through the years, Lady Liberty's torch has burned brightly....now, visitors from around the world wait hours on end to see her up close...just for the thrill of being near her...she symbolizes hope...She will forever represent freedom....our freedom.

And New York....you & your dear people, will forever hold a warm place in my heart...





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Location:Tri Oaks Farm

Oh, how I love new packages....

Oh, how I love to open my front door to find stacks of treasures...I have been savin' my money to purchase an incredible printer ( so, yes, there really is something to the phrase "starving artist"!)...

Many of y'all still love to mat and frame...so, these prints will be perfect. I will offer 8x10 & 11x14....so with a 2" mat..they will frame at 11x14 & 16x20....so those larger pieces you've been dreaming of....well, now you can have them...personally, I love a super sized mat and a chunky frame.....very...should I dare say it?...a Pottery Barnish look....which I love...these designs seem to fit in all decorating styles..from romantic to modern to vintage....



Anyway...the matting and framing will be all up to you....each print will be numbered & hand signed by moi....



I will be posting some finished prints soon....hugs! :D from one happy artist



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Location:Tri Oaks Farm

Louisiana Saturday Night

This is how we do it down here in Louisiane...
Good Food...fajitas tonite! You can take the girl out of Texas, but you can't take the Texas out of the girl..



Homemade tortillas...



Guacamole...








Chimi Churri marinated Skirt Steak, Portobello Mushrooms & Grilled Vegetables...





& LSU Football






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Location:Tri Oaks Farm

Grab that Apron

I've never been the tidyest of painters...many times, I have traveled to school to pick up one of my sons only to find a streak of red or blue paint in my hair or a brush stroke across my face... i would usually wear my old tried-and-true painting t-shirt & sweat pants knowing the odds of remaining paint-free were not very good...that was..until...my mother made me a lovely little apron.
Daily, I wore it. So often, in fact, my family would often remind me that I had it on ...for fear I would wear it out in public...
It has become a staple in my daily wardrobe...Once, I even had my picture taken for the newspaper in it...
I can't imagine my life without it. Now, my mother has sewn me several, in assorted colors...I wear them while I paint, do housework, walk to the mailbox, check what's happening in the garden...it comes in quite handy for keeping tidy, carrying cell phones, eye-glasses, vegetables, mail & anything that will fit in my big front pockets...
My mother forwarded this charming email ...& I thought some of you might enjoy it, too. Perhaps you, too, love & wear your apron proudly... I don't know who wrote it...but the duties of the apron still hold true today...God bless the Apron...

The principal use of Grandma's apron was to protect the dress underneath because she only had a few and because it was easier to wash aprons than dresses and aprons required less material. But along with that, it served as a potholder for removing hot pans from the oven. It was wonderful for drying children's tears, and on occasion was even used for cleaning out dirty ears. From the chicken coop, the apron was used for carrying eggs, fussy chicks, and sometimes half-hatched eggs to be finished in the warming oven. When company came, those aprons were ideal hiding places for shy kids. And when the weather was cold, Grandma wrapped it around her arms. Those big old aprons wiped many a perspiring brow, bent over the hot wood stove. Chips and kindling wood were brought into the kitchen in that apron. From the garden, it carried all sorts of vegetables. After the peas had been shelled, it carried out the hulls. In the fall, the apron was used to bring in apples that had fallen from the trees.When unexpected company drove up the road, it was surprising how much furniture that old apron could dust in a matter of seconds. When dinner was ready, Grandma walked out onto the porch, waved her apron, and the men folk knew it was time to come in from the fields to dinner. It will be a long time before someone invents something that will replace that 'old-time apron' that served so many purposes. Send this to those who would know (and love) the story about Grandma's aprons. REMEMBER:Grandma used to set her hot baked apple pies on the window sill to cool. Her granddaughters set theirs on the window sill to thaw.. They would go crazy now trying to figure out how many germs were on that apron. I don't think I ever caught anything from an apron - but love...
Blessings and Peace!

five for five

I started an e course this week! Don't laugh, you are never too old to learn..okay, laugh a little. The 5 week class is led by Artist & Possibilitarian Kelly Rae Roberts...It is awesome! But as much as I hate to admit it, my brain is fried...totally fried...As a result of what I am learning this week, I have been personally working on my

Website, Blog, FB, Twitter & Etsy

...trying to coordinate a "theme" design ...





L. Young Studio Website



All this Internet work is a lot for me...it could be a full time job.

(oh, it could be...wait..it is! Trust me on this)

....not to mention the business side of business, painting, designing, packaging canvas', shipping out boxes, cooking, baking cookies, shopping for groceries, doing laundry, cleaning house, preparing for Lifegroup at church, facebooking, blogging, taking photos, entertaining the pets, going to the gym, trying to be a good wife, mom, daughter, friend & student....ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhh.."......:D....



(I'm not complaining, but I am thinking out loud...apologies....)





L. Young Studio Blog



Being me, I'd like nothing better than to get my paintbrush and work some magic...

but this requires major left brain action....

(and I'm wishing myself good luck on that one...)





L. Young Studio Facebook Page



Well, I am still tweaking.

I just wanted to take a little break and visit with you a bit...





L. Young Studio Etsy





L. Young Studio Twitter

I purchased my background from Freshmemoriesstudio on Etsy.





Finally my friend, if you see me during these weeks ahead... roaming aimlessly with a far away glazed look...just hand me an icy cold Diet Coke, a piece of dark chocolate with almonds, flash me a warm reassuring smile & say a prayer...

then point me in the right direction and send me on my way...

just please ignore my mindless babbling & never ending giggling :D



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Location:Brook Orchard Blvd. Monroe,United States

...Oyster PoBoys & Icy Cold-Bottled Barq's Rootbeer

Well, we made it on down the Mississippi Gulf Coast...Sad to say, I hadn't been there since before Katrina hit...This beautiful region is so dear to our hearts. When our boys were young we spent an entire summer in Pass Christian...it was here that we bonded with the kind people of Mississippi...we grew to love oyster poboys & an icy cold bottle of Barq's rootbeer...we played on the beaches after lunch, only to be rushed back inside later by the daily afternoon thunderstorms...it was here we experienced Mississippi history & learned of strong Southerners that traveled our same paths...it was here, we would dream dreams under the stately live oaks...

Joey & I returned back to find the people, as dear as ever...Katrina was devastating...I found myself tearful, as we passed by the abundant vacant lots, where many of the old beautiful mansions along the shoreline are now gone...yet, the live oaks remain...the sidewalks are still there...the front steps...many remain...& tell a story...a story of another time...

We found our favorite poboy restaurant, Pirate's Cove, though the original building was destroyed by the hurricane...thankfully, it has reopened in another spot...only dining outdoors now...it's here you'll find the dear locals...still reminiscing about Katrina, yet with a peaceful & thankful attitude...the beautiful people of the Mississippi Gulf Coast.

I'll close with this...I wanted a photo of a stately live oak...Joey indulged me & stopped at my first holler of "that's it!"...I pulled out my camera...jumped out of the truck...aimed & took a shot...Reflecting as I hopped back in, Joey asked..."did you see them?...go look again, up at the branches"...it was there I found... strands of Mardi Gras beads sparkling & dangling high up in that tree...obviously, once tossed by jubilant people having a grand time...a celebration...they found a reason to celebrate...& were dear enough to let us now enjoy the celebration, too...it was as if those beads spoke to me..."laissez le bon temp roulez" ("let the good times roll")...&, knowing the people down there..that's just what they are doing....& will continue to do...I hope you will join them...