Forever in Texas

I'm sure ya'll are familiar with the famous quote "Everything is bigger in Texas." Well the reason people say it so often is because it is very much a true statement. As soon as Cameron and I arrived in the Lone Star State we realized how valid of a statement it was. Trucks, gas stations, shopping centers, food...you name it, and Texas does it bigger.

​ As we got out of New Orleans we made our way into League City, TX  we got a chance to stay with Cameron's side of the family. Not only was Texas a wonderful place, his family was just as awesome. What was supposed to be a weekend of rain and thunderstorms turned out to be just the opposite. 


Clearly no thunderstorms were present.
Upon arrival Friday at dinner time, we were greeted by four friendly pups and two wonderful family members: Lesley and Prentice. After some brief catching up we made our way into the town to a restaurant bar where we enjoyed a night of laughs and big beers with Cameron's cousins. The best part about being around family is reminiscing on all of the things you did when you were younger and what you have been up to.  Being able to recall old stories and jokes is part of what makes each visit just as great as the last, especially when you can't see each other often. 


The big beers.
After a fully satisfying meal and some drinks we were told we had to check out
"Buc-ee's" and try a "Kolache." Boy did we not know what we had in store. In case you are as unfamiliar with Buc-ee's as Cameron and I were you might want to Google it just to get a visual. Buc-ee's is a gas station that lives up to the quote I started out with....everything is bigger in Texas. Basically Buc-ee's is the size of a Walmart and carries just about anything you could ever want from Texas. Not to mention the 24 or so gas pumps they have outside. There is food, clothing, toys and anything else you need in one stop. They pride themselves for having the cleanest bathrooms...so naturally we had to check them out! And they sure did live up to their claim (and had more stalls than an entire airport.) After getting some Kolache to try we made our way back home to rest up for the weekend. 

Saturday we woke up to sunshine and hung out by the pool for most of the day to soak up the sun. We tried our delicious Kolache which are similar to pigs in a blanket. The bread is super soft and wraps the sausage with cheese and whatever else you want inside. I highly recommend trying them if you visit Texas. In the afternoon we headed into town again this time on a mission to find me some cowboy boots. I've always wanted a legit pair of boots but could never find the style I wanted back home in Massachusetts. Well being in the heart of cowboy country you bet I could find a pair here.


Mission Complete.

That night we celebrated Cameron's cousin Lesley's birthday. We had a wonderful dinner at Opus Bistro which was a elegant restaurant right on the waterfront of Kemah, TX. It was a beautiful dinner with amazing food and drinks for a perfect weekend and we were so happy to be there to share Lesley's birthday. 

Sunday was our last full day around Texas so Cameron and I did a little bit of everything. We went out for coffee and had another failure at Dunkin Donuts (seems to be the theme of this trip) and then proceeded to look around the area. Cameron tried WhatABurger which is a famous burger chain out west. After some exploring on our own we went back home and met up with Lesley and Prentice to take some pictures and enjoy our last day with family. We stopped by a friends graduation party and got to try some real Louisiana- style homemade cooking. It was amazing! The boiled shrimp, gumbo and jambalaya were all fantastic. I'm surprised Cameron hasn't turned into Gumbo because he's had it to eat so much lately. For the night we headed down to Kemah Boardwalk where we enjoyed an evening walk and got to see another breathtaking sunset. We strolled around the boardwalk enjoying the view (Be sure to check out pictures in the gallery at the end) and settled on an aquarium restaurant  that Cameron had remembered from when he was a kid. The walls of the restaurant were a large tank and all the different types of sea creatures swam around while we enjoyed the last bite of Texas. 



Our spectacular dinner guests.
Monday morning we loaded up the car and prepared for 12 hours of driving across Texas. We felt well rested and excited to see the land change as well as all the amazing views. Our plan was to drive across I- 10 (the Wild West) and end up in Las Cruces, New Mexico one night before making our way to my family in Phoenix. The drive was nothing short of incredible. We saw dust storms swirling and mini tornadoes along the open land that were scary yet impressive to see in person. The land was absolutely beautiful full of blue sky and mountains that looked like paintings in the distance. I hope you enjoy the pictures, but keep in mind that they don't do justice for just how amazing it actually was and it is an area everyone should travel along once in their life. Thanks for traveling along with us, stay tuned for our Phoenix adventures! 
The rock formations were a Geologists dream.