How we celebrated the 4th of July

Planning this year's 4th of July was kind of difficult for us. We knew in May that there was going to be a special legislative session, and the rumors flew for weeks that it would be before July 4 to pressure legislators into doing quick work so they could enjoy the holiday. And sure enough, that was what happened. There was no way to know what would happen, so we opted not to travel to Missouri for my family's annual reunion, and planned to go to Randy's family's annual bbq out at the farm in Manor. At the very last minute, that got cancelled, and we were left last Friday going "huh. what now?"

While many of our friends headed down to the Capitol for the Tea Party that was being held there, Randy and I decided we needed a break from politics and government. A bit of independence, if you will. We live and breathe this stuff, after all.

Central Texas is full of patriotic attractions this time of year, like any population center blessed with easy distance to small towns. We decided fairly quickly on the Hill Country, and ended up in Stonewall, Texas. I've got a bunch of pictures from this day on our Flickr account, which you can check out here.

We left home around 10:00, stopping first at the Merrilltown Cemetery which is right on 1325 near our house. I have an odd fascination with old cemeteries, and this one has often caught my eye, but it didn't become an absolute must-see until April, when the Confederate flags appeared near some of the headstones. My guess is that someone from the Sons of Confederate Veterans or similar does this, because otherwise the cemetery is neglected and in need of attention in several places. From there we drove out to Dripping Springs just in time for lunch at Riley's BBQ. Great place to stop - Dripping Springs has become an obvious suburban victim, but it retains some Hill Country charm, especially at places like Riley's. The locals were gathered to jaw and grab early lunches, but it was otherwise surprisingly quiet, and the food was really good.

We then headed out to Blanco County, stopping for pictures of the courthouse (of course). Did a little daydreaming about owning a shop on the courthouse square. Wondered about the sign in one window for the "Pecan Street Brewery." Intriguing!

The bulk of the day was spent out in Stonewall, Texas at the LBJ Ranch and Texas White House - so very cool! It totally made up for the lack of awesome that was the LBJ Presidential Library. The ranch is a national park and has a lot of sites in addition to the Texas White House, like the cemetery, the school where LBJ went as a child, that kind of thing. Plus, herefords!! The experience was amazing, a great way to spend the 4th, learning about one of our presidents. The house was the most affecting, of course - the Texas White House was just opened to the public about a year and a half ago, after Lady Bird passed away, and parts of the house are not yet open as they await restoration (and Luci Baines Johnson still uses part of the house when she comes into town). There are good interior shots of the Texas White House here - we were told not to take pictures when we were indoors.

Afterwards, we wandered around the Sauer-Beckmann living history farm and exhibit, and then we hit the Pedernales Cellars Winery and split a bottle of Stonewall Viognier on the porch, stopped at the Vogel Orchards store for some famed Stonewall peaches, got dinner at the Hill Country Cupboard in Johnson City, and headed home.

It was a pretty amazing way to spend the 4th, I have to say. We wrapped up the day with going to see fireworks at our local park, and came home to watch the "Independence" episode of John Adams. I'll wrap this up with a YouTube clip of one of the best scenes from that episode - if you don't get chills, well, sirs and ladies, you have no soul.