This past weekend, John and I were feeling kinda idle so we went to our new fave hole-in-the-wall Vietnamese joint to stuff our bellies full of bun ga nuong (I think that's what it's called, at least). Halfway through our late lunch, John asked if I wanted to go on a road trip. Surprisingly, I said yes but just not a long one. Fredericksburg? Meh...didn't feel like going that far. Bastrop? My parents had visited there and told us it's a fun day trip, but we didn't know anything about it aside from the devastating fires from last summer. After 10 minutes of wondering, we decided to just do it.

A quick shot down 71E, and we landed in one of the most adorable towns in Texas! It was one of those serendipitous days where everything just falls into place perfectly. We got there around 3:15, hit up some thrift stores, drove to the historic district, and walked around for a while. After about 15 minutes of walking around in the scalding Texas heat, I kind of looked like that scene in X-Men when the Mayor guy turns into a gelatinous water blob (aka covered in sweat). High Cotton, an adorable antique shop, posted a sign saying they were celebrating America with free lemonade. Say no more - we were there in a jiffy. This was actually our fave part of the day because we happened to meet four of the NICEST, FRIENDLIEST, MOST AWESOME people ever. The two shop  owners and their friends were literally the kind of people that make you want to move to Bastrop, and invite them over for dinner....like every night. We chatted about all sorts of things...even mini potbelly pigs. We even got to look at some pics they took with it. I mean, come on. Cool points through the roof already. They told us about the patriotic fireworks show that was going on that evening (cha-ching!), and recommended a burgers-and-fries dive up the road called The Roadhouse. That place DID NOT DISAPPOINT, by the way. We got the jalapeno cream cheese burger (sounds gross, tastes like heaven). I swear, I think they spread crack cheese instead of cream cheese on it. So delicious. After that, we hit up a couple more of the shops and then took a little tour of the historic homes from the1800s. After dinner, we walked to the car, started driving down the main road, and BAM! Got front row seats to the fireworks show. Super romantic. And of course, you can't talk about Bastrop without mentioning those horrible fires. As we drove through the pine tree forest where families once lived, all that remained were charred trees and crumbled bits of homes. I snapped a pic of the remnants of one home that burned in the fires - a foundation slab and chimney are all that's left. Driving around those parts of town was just so sad. Most lots were filled with double wides, and we even spotted one yurt-style set-up. You can't help but feel so blessed, lucky, and guilty about all we take for granted after seeing that.

So...bottom line: Bastrop. Do it. While you are there, stop in to say hi to the lovelies at High Cotton. You won't regret it.

PS You'll have to excuse my ridiculous poses in some of these shots....I've recently uncovered my Calvin and Hobbes book (yep...I'm 25 going on 8) and can't help but mimic that little rascal when it comes to photos.