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Family time
Feb. 3rd, 2013 11:36 amRounding out a busy week of visits, my brother, sister-in-law, and nephew came into town Friday afternoon for a visit. They'd been over in Austin, and after I explained how logistically difficult it can be for me to get over there, we all decided it would be simplest for them to drive out here. It was great to see them, especially because we didn't overlap much over the holidays, and our previous visit in October was also all-too-short.
We mostly spent time catching up, but we also made it out on an expedition over towards the Sam Houston National Forest, which included a stop in Huntsville for lunch at the FarmHouse Cafe. We were lucky to find the FarmHouse Cafe. I first spotted a mural for a health foods store, but upon arriving there we learned they only served lunch on weekdays. However, the person working there recommended a nearby sandwich place, which turned out to be closed on Saturdays. Fortunately, it was near the FarmHouse, which served what passes for Fancy Texas Country Dining - fried okra, chicken-fried-chicken and chicken-fried-steak, and things of that ilk. I had a grilled cheese sandwich (with American cheese, of course) and some tomato-basil soup thickened with a healthy dose of corn starch. Oh, and a slice of lemon icebox pie with two-inch-thick meringue. Pretty good, though between that and the dessert the night before (at the Lemon Wedge in downtown Bryan), I feel like I've had enough sugar for a while.
From Huntsville, we drove south towards our intended destination, Huntsville State Park, but before we arrived, we stopped in at the visitor's center located by the statue of Sam Houston, where we learned that the park was overrun by some sort of trail-running event for the weekend. After inspecting the statue of Sam Houston and learning a bit more about the dude (served as President, Governor, and Congressman of Texas at various points), we decided to push onward for the Sam Houston National Forest instead.
We wound up stopping by Lake Conroe Park, where we paid an entrance fee and then discovered that the signs promising hiking were making false promises - what might have once been a hiking trail was thoroughly closed off. I guess lake visitors are encouraged to focus their energies of powerboating, fishing, and RV camping instead.
I did spot another hiking sign elsewhere in the park, but I can't say I'm overly optimistic. My impression is that "outdoorsy" Texans generally take to the woods on ATVs, those offroad motorcycle things, and horses, or they otherwise build blinds so they can hang out and wait to shoot animals. Or go trail running, I suppose.
Still. We did manage to get in a bit of time sitting along the shore of Lake Conroe, under some pines. And it was good to see how life with a 1.5-year-old works. My nephew is pretty hilarious and adorable (a charmer when he toddles up to people and smiles at them), but he is also capable of expressing strong opinions, such as when we tried to make him wear a hat for the hike (we'd put it on, he'd take it off, repeat ad nauseum et infinitum).
So now it's Sunday. Time for a couple of errands, a few small projects around the house, and get some work done as well.
We mostly spent time catching up, but we also made it out on an expedition over towards the Sam Houston National Forest, which included a stop in Huntsville for lunch at the FarmHouse Cafe. We were lucky to find the FarmHouse Cafe. I first spotted a mural for a health foods store, but upon arriving there we learned they only served lunch on weekdays. However, the person working there recommended a nearby sandwich place, which turned out to be closed on Saturdays. Fortunately, it was near the FarmHouse, which served what passes for Fancy Texas Country Dining - fried okra, chicken-fried-chicken and chicken-fried-steak, and things of that ilk. I had a grilled cheese sandwich (with American cheese, of course) and some tomato-basil soup thickened with a healthy dose of corn starch. Oh, and a slice of lemon icebox pie with two-inch-thick meringue. Pretty good, though between that and the dessert the night before (at the Lemon Wedge in downtown Bryan), I feel like I've had enough sugar for a while.
From Huntsville, we drove south towards our intended destination, Huntsville State Park, but before we arrived, we stopped in at the visitor's center located by the statue of Sam Houston, where we learned that the park was overrun by some sort of trail-running event for the weekend. After inspecting the statue of Sam Houston and learning a bit more about the dude (served as President, Governor, and Congressman of Texas at various points), we decided to push onward for the Sam Houston National Forest instead.
We wound up stopping by Lake Conroe Park, where we paid an entrance fee and then discovered that the signs promising hiking were making false promises - what might have once been a hiking trail was thoroughly closed off. I guess lake visitors are encouraged to focus their energies of powerboating, fishing, and RV camping instead.
I did spot another hiking sign elsewhere in the park, but I can't say I'm overly optimistic. My impression is that "outdoorsy" Texans generally take to the woods on ATVs, those offroad motorcycle things, and horses, or they otherwise build blinds so they can hang out and wait to shoot animals. Or go trail running, I suppose.
Still. We did manage to get in a bit of time sitting along the shore of Lake Conroe, under some pines. And it was good to see how life with a 1.5-year-old works. My nephew is pretty hilarious and adorable (a charmer when he toddles up to people and smiles at them), but he is also capable of expressing strong opinions, such as when we tried to make him wear a hat for the hike (we'd put it on, he'd take it off, repeat ad nauseum et infinitum).
So now it's Sunday. Time for a couple of errands, a few small projects around the house, and get some work done as well.
