waco |

Waco Mammoth National Monument

June 14, 2016 By Callie Leave a Comment

Waco,TX

I’m slowly becoming a National Park/National Monument geek. I have always been a history geek and now having Row I have just begun really wanting to see this great place we live. So many amazing things have happened!

Waco Mammoth National Monument is an ongoing live mammoth dig in Waco, TX.

This is the perfect trip to add if visiting Magnolia Market-like I did! Why-it’s just down the road!

The park hosts the only known Mammoth nursery herd to be preserved. Once you arrive at the park tickets can be purchased inside the gift shop for a nominal fee. You get a guided tour by one of the parks resident paleontologists. The tour is roughly an hour and takes you through the initial discovery of the mammoths by two young boys hiking in the woods to current discoveries being made today. Bring your bug spray because it’s in the woods and sunscreen because it’s Texas. You’re welcome to bring a drink but be prepared to leave it outside the building before going in.

Inside the live dig you will see actual mammoth bones still in the ground. This site is still being discovered and with each small dig more and more bones are found throughout the park. The guides will show you and tell you all about everything still in the ground.

Did you know camels lived in Waco??? They did. Oh and you may even see a Saber Tooth Kitten tooth. Great for families! The park guides happily answered tons of kid questions. If you’re going to Waco you should definitely add this one to your list!

5 Things to Know About Magnolia Market

April 18, 2016 By Callie Leave a Comment

Waco,Texas

Have you dreamed of visiting Magnolia Market since the day you saw Chip and Joanna sit in the downtrodden lot and dream about buying the silos? Is Fixer Upper your inspiration for everything in your house? You’re not alone!

I was oh so lucky to get to go to Magnolia Market while my bestie was in town! Now everyone I run into wants to now all about it so…

5 Things to Know About Magnolia Market-

Yes it is as adorable as it looks on TV. It is clear Joanna put her mark on every single square inch and little detail of the entire place. From the tables in the open area, to the garden area it is clearly Joanna. Things have gotten big for the Gaines Family but that doesn’t mean they don’t pay attention to the details.
Parking can be crazy-Drive around a bit because there is not any designated parking for the Silos and it’s super close to the downtown area. I recommend driving around to the back side of the silos-much more parking there and just a small walk.
Bring ~~some~~ a lot of money. Things are cute but things aren’t cheap. I recommend looking at their website before going and getting price points. There are many many things at the store that they do not carry online and yes you will want them so make sure you plan and budget ahead.
Shop first, eat second. I had no idea there would be adorable food trucks inside the Silos property-everything from coffee and smoothies to crepes and sandwiches. The best part…..if you decide to shop in Magnolia Market there’s a coupon at the bottom of your receipt which can be used at each food truck. Score!
It’s BUSY-BUSY! We went during the week and it was like we were sardines in there. I honestly thought it would be less crowded since we were there just after opening during the week-wrong. Apparently Saturdays are the worst-oh and not open on Sundays and Thursdays are the best but expect a crowd. The good news is they have lots of inventory.

Notice how in the panic of finding my Magnolia wreath the only pic I took inside had my thumb in it 🙂

It was about 2.5 hours from the Houston area and even though it was a drive it was worth it! Especially if you heart Joanna. Save that money and get yourself a Magnolia wreath!

What would you buy????

The Inner Circle

April 12, 2016 By Callie Leave a Comment

I have been a bit missing in action lately. Well first hubs was out of town on a conference. I have been lucky enough to not really have him travel for work since we got married. This conference was for 6 days and let me tell you it hurt. I have to give credit to those wives with traveling husbands because geez it’s rough! I had tons of support from Grandma but it’s not the same right?

I also was lucky enough to have my bestie Laura and her husband here for four of the days hubs was gone. Perfect for keeping my mind off of things.

It’s amazing to me, especially since Facebook first emerged just how may people come into our lives. Maybe more because I basically talk to everyone and I was a teacher-think about it 20-25 kids a year and their parents. It’s hard to believe I was actually shy and quiet as a child. Just think of how many people we know. It’s crazy. Few become lifelong friends. Even though you may be distant for a time they always come back and I am so lucky to call a handful of those people my forevers, my besties-because they just know me. As one of my new friends from mom group said “It’s just so nice to be known, to be really genuinely known”. She nailed it. Well Laura Beth is one of mine.

Our trip consisted of eating, eating, and shopping of and Aunty Laura and Uncle Kevin loving on Row. I spent last week running around and showing them all the fun things Texans do. Oh and when I needed to take Row to class they ran off on their own. Perfect guests. Here’s a little sneak peek for now of what we did but I will totally be catching everyone up in more detail later-oh and you don’t want to miss it! Can you guess where we went?????