Valentine's Weekend 2 - Spelunking at Inner Space Caverns

Inner Space Caverns-
After a frustrating start to the day (missing exits, getting lost etc., etc.), we made our way to Georgetown on this Valentine's Day to check out Inner Space Caverns. 

In the cable car that was to take us underground... Ooooooo...  :)

View to the great beyond...

Our first sight of all the formations.. 

Chad's obviously being silly.  :)

a little furry bat friend..

Just hanging out... not bothered by us taking pictures of him. 

Our tour guide called these Soda Straws...

Temptation Rock...One of the only rocks you can actually touch down there. 

(apparently your hand's oils stop the formations from growing)

In one of the larger rooms down there.. SOOO COOL!

Looks like an ear of some ancient animal..

The 24" hole that brought the first explorer into the caverns back in the late 60's. 

Huge mound of gently running water..

The ceiling above us... Looks like whipped meringue

Or creamy mashed potatoes!  :)

How cool is that?!

Stalagtites and Stalagmites joining together. 

Austin or Bust - Valentine's Weekend

Enjoying the snow but wanting to get away to avoid cabin fever this Valentine's Day weekend, Chad and I decided to head south to check out what Austin had to offer.  With no concrete plans in hand, we started our Saturday with our only real MUST.  Round Rock Donuts.  These things were absolutely INCREDIBLE!  Even as I type this blog, I'm still contemplating giving these donuts their very own post... they were THAT good...oh and did I mention HUGE?!! 

Chad and Macie discuss the incredible GOODNESS that is about to ensue...

Getting their game plan ready to tackle the donut beast...

Waiting in a line that wrapped this way and that way and even out the door...

It was worth every tempting minute!

A heart as big as TEXAS!  WOW!!!

Not only was it HUGE, it was light and buttery and piping HOT!

Taking our first bites.. :)

And Macie waiting for hers...  :)

Mt. Bonnell-

Feeling the need to bring ourselves back from the brink of over indulgence, our next stop to Mt. Bonnell let us walk off our breakfast.  Rising 775 feet above sea level, we hiked to the top for the most breathtaking views over Town Lake, downtown and the 360 bridge.

Snaps of our future house... ;)

But we aren't picky... we'll take this one too.. ;)

Town Lake -

A few hours later, and after a restful stop at Austin's Flying Saucer for a few beers and some afternoon snacking, we made our way south across downtown to Town Lake for a long, relaxing stroll. 

Macie loved seeing all the dogs playing in the leash free area

What great views down here

Having never seen the bats emerge this bridge, we were disappointed to find that they only come out in the summer months... but because the day was so beautiful, we enjoyed our stroll anyway.

We'll definitely be back to see the little guys come out during feeding time...  :)

Macie's first real friend :)

It squaked and quacked and made all SORTS of noises at her... lol

Farewell good friend... until we meet again.  :)

Wink Restaurant-

Relying on only our cell phones to get us around, Chad came across Wink Restaurant and Bar while looking for dinner options that evening.  Inspired by the way we met (online on Match that uses "winks" to start initial communitcation) we thought it was only appropriate for this to be our Valentine's dinner spot.  What a treat it was!  It was quaint and romantic and the food was pretty gosh darn GREAT!  How lucky were we?!  Having a very unique selection of menu items, we ate to our hearts content...and I even found another great sweet white wine to add to my "Favorites List" ---> 2005 Monchof - Riesling Spatlese.  YUM!

Winter Wonderland- Day 2

Snowing into the evening and thru the night, the second full day of snow was even more beautiful than I could've ever imagined.  Thankfully for me, work got cancelled but unfortunately for Chad, he had to miss all the incredible snowy sights. 

Our puppy Macie had a BLAST bouncing around in the snow...

she even got a kick out of our little snowman!

Thick wonderful snow as far as the eye could see... LOVE IT!

Another view out front... to compare to the snow from yesterday  :)

View of our front walk up... All snowed in!

Taking a drive to see all the wonderful snow, I stumbled upon a gorgeous little lake near our house! 

Never knew it was even there! 

SOOO PRETTY  :)

Even had a gazebo!  Definitely coming back when the weather warms up a bit...

The drive back to our house...

Winter Wonderland...

The morning seemed like any other as I hit the snooze button several times as I did everyday....thoughts of calling in swirling in my head.  Little did I know that waiting outside was a sight I had witnessed only a few times in my life.  Everyday my routine was the same.  Not wanting to wake the sleeping grizzly bear (aka Chad) I took my things to the guest room to get ready for my day.  Today, I was stopped dead in my tracks as I opened our bedroom door to be greeted by a winter wonderland outside the window.  It was ABSOLUTELY BEAUTIFUL!  As I stood there in amazement, I waited only a few minutes before I turned around and woke Chad to share in my delight.  :)

View from our guest bedroom window...

View from our Master bedroom... What a sight!!

Morning accumulation..

Our backyard...

What a beautiful snow flocked tree!

View out front

A tangle of snowy branches.

Afternoon and it's still snowing!

Enjoying the snow while waiting for Chad to get home from work..

Awwww....  ;)

Now that Chads home it's time to PLAY! 

This is Chad getting the first shot in.... lol

that's at LEAST FOUR INCHES of snow!

A pillow of soft snow.

Making my very FIRST snowman...  :)

a camera phone shot while taking Macie for a walk.

When we heard that it might snow earlier this week, a slight tinge of excitement arose in our hearts although realistically we knew the possibility was small.  Boy were we WRONG!! 

It STILL hasn't stopped snowing!