Lake Travis Family Vacation

We have been taking so many little vacations this year, that we just didn't have the time for a big week long or more beach vacation.  So instead we decided to invite Jordan's parents to Texas to go visit Lake Travis/Austin for a long weekend.

It was great to be able to see a different part of Texas.  Although we have been to Austin before, we had never continued on to Lake Travis.  I am continuously surprised at the diversity of this state.  Lake Travis is nestled in the Texas Hill Country, and is absolutely beautiful.  Although the temperatures stayed at a steady 99-105 degrees, it was crazy how much cooler it felt without the Houston humidity.

Day 1:  

We drove up to Austin, which is about 150 miles away Thursday morning and spent some time walking around

The University of Texas' campus.  

It was a pretty exciting time as it was the weekend before school started, so it was fun to see all the

 parents dropping their kids off.  It definitely took me back to a time in my life that was both scary

and exciting.  

This was our last stop on our admittedly short tour of campus as it was still a pretty hot day, less humidity or not.  

Since we had Teddy with us, we decided to grab a quick bite to eat at a local food truck park.  There were a bunch

of options to choose from and despite not having any cold beers, lunch was great!

Even Holden enjoyed some lunch... kinda...

After lunch we made a quick trip to the grocery store to get food and supplies for the weekend and made our way to

Lake Travis.  After a long day Isla was super happy to be at the house and relaxing with Nana.  

That night we relaxed on the large back porch and enjoyed the night with an actual breeze that didn't just come from

the fans, while Jordan provided some background entertainment.

Day 2:

We woke up early and made our way to Hamilton Pools.  It's a natural pool and grotto that were formed when the dome of an

underground river collapsed due to massive erosion thousands of years ago.  When the area is

not experiencing drought conditions, there is a 45 foot water fall creating a huge swimming

hole. Due to the lack of rain lately, the waterfall was more of a trickle, but it was still there.  

Isla had a great time swimming with Daddy, and Holden even got in with Nana and Papaw.

After Hamilton Pools we went back to the pool in the neighborhood we were staying in.

The scene was a little different, and we spent the rest of the afternoon relaxing.  

We didn't have a lot of dinner options unless we wanted to drive about 10 miles on some curvy roads.  With two kids a

20 minute car ride to and from dinner after a long day did not seem like the best idea.  So instead, we chose this place.

It was next to a "Salon du Jour", and had a bit of character to say the least.  For instance, this houseboat perilously

perching next to the dining room.

Nevertheless, we enjoyed dinner and got OUT of there!

Holden especially enjoyed the citrus selections they offered.  

Day 3:

This photo totally captures how Isla felt about the life jacket.  In fact it basically ruined her mood for the whole boat ride.

She perked up when we went swimming, and LOVED tubing, but the rest of the trip was basically a battle to keep the jacket on.

Truthfully, it was a very windy day, so Jordan and I were glad we had ours on since as soon as you jumped in the

water you started drifting away from the boat.   

Holden was overall unimpressed and didn't mind the life jacket at all.  This is how he spent most of the boat trip.  

The complicated emotions that are Isla...  (note: all these pictures were taken within a span of a minute).

We had a great time and will definitely be going back soon.  Thank you to Nana and Papaw for making the trip so great and for ALL your help!!!