Chairy Orchard [Denton, TX]

I heard about this quirky place in Denton called the Chairy Orchard a while back on one of my social media platforms. I had wanted to try and find it for a while, but it seemed we were always busy with something else. On a recent weekend, my husband and I finally loaded into the car and went searching!



I started to wonder if we were in the correct place as we seemed surrounded by residential homes. Then we turned a bend and I called out for my husband to stop! We had found it!


The Chairy Orchard sits between two homes and is the brainchild of the women who live there (who call themselves the Chairy Fairies). For the last 30 years, the two friends have lived next door to each other, watching their children and then their grandchildren play together in the empty lot. Several years ago in a fit of whimsy, one of the women attached chairs to a small group of trees in the back of the property. Slowly, the Chairy Orchard has evolved into the fun destination it is today.

The two friends add chairs to the Orchard from flea markets, thrift stores, garage sales and the like, but visitors are encouraged to leave their own chairs as well!

The stated "mission" of the Chairy Fairies is to make people smile! They want people to stop by, take pictures, move the chairs around, sit in them, etc. They even post a number in case anyone wants to use the Orchard for a wedding or other special event. They also encourage people to share their pictures on the official Chairy Orchard Facebook page.


While the husband and I were walking around (with me compulsively righting chairs that were tipped over), one of the Chairy Fairies came out to add some over-sized bears to the huge multicolored chair. We chatted for a bit and she told us that they love to see people come and visit. She's even seen families having picnics among the chairs. The entire feel of the Orchard is so very "Denton" to me. Eclectic, fun, interactive, and the result of incredibly creative people who aren't aren't afraid to do something out of the ordinary. If you have an afternoon free, I highly recommend dropping by!

Review of Juicy Pig Barbecue [Denton, TX]

When it finally opened, the husband I knew we had to try out Juicy Pig Barbecue as soon as possible. We love the nearby GreenHouse Restaurant and Loco Cafe which are owned by the same person. Plus, we're both a sucker for good barbecue. I actually bought the book, Follow the Smoke: 14,783 Miles of Great Texas Barbecue, and we've slowly been crossing off BBQ joints as we visit them.

The Juicy Pig is a relatively small building, so there are only about four bistro tables to sit at inside. It can get pretty crowded, pretty fast! You can also order at the walk-up window outside the building and either take it "to go" or sit at one of the wooden picnic benches. The husband and I ended up sitting at one of the benches since the inside was full.


You can order beef brisket, pulled pork, ribs, three kinds of sausage, or smoked chicken. Since it was our first time, we both ordered the Whole Pig, where you could choose three meats, two sides, and also get two deviled eggs. I decided on chopped brisket, habanero sausage, and smoked chicken. For my sides, I chose their smashed potato salad and Slaw #3. Slaw #3 is their seasonal slaw, consisting of warm braised red cabbage with apple and bacon. I was not a huge fan of the smashed potato salad (I'm strangely traditional about this side), but everything else was amazing! The chicken was so tender it just fell away from the bone, the sausage had just the right amount of heat, and I could just eat Slaw #3 by the vat!


Diners get their choice of three house-made sauces to add that special pizzazz. Left to right, they are Carolina Style (vinegary with tart green apple), JP (more "traditional" but with a tamarind and mango fruit base), and Chipotle Peach (a bit of sweet heat). My favorite was the Carolina Style by far, and the twang of vinegar and apple paired beautifully with the pork.

The smoker itself sits behind the building. If I lived in the surrounding neighborhoods, I would wander over every time the amazing smell wafted my way. It's also a somewhat pretty view as a small creek runs behind the property.


I was so full from lunch, I had to take my dessert home: a charming mini pecan pie. Luckily, the husband is not particularly fond of pecan pie, so there was just more for me!


The husband and I both were really impressed with the Juicy Pig. It is definitely on our list of places to re-visit!!

January Excursion [Portland, OR]

I recently traveled to Portland to spend some more time with my lovely sister and her family.

After picking me up at the airport, we had several hours to run around, just the two of us. She took me to a lovely place to eat in the Boise-Eliot neighborhood called Gravy. I love that they decorated with gravy pitchers!


Although everything on the menu looked amazing, I decided to try the Chile Verde dish. It was filled with tasty pork, cojita cheese, tomatillos, and more!

We walked around the neighborhood, peeking into quirky little stores. (The weird hyena-giraffe was labeled 'Vermicious Knid,' which is the best Roald Dahl reference ever!)


We also had to stop at Blue Star Donuts to get a snack for later. I decided on the Orange Olive Oil donut, my sister the Hard Apple Cider one. Felix seemed fairly approving of our choices.


While I have odd collections of trinkets myself, this was a bit odd for a front window display.


On the way to pick up my nephew, we stopped at Dairy Queen. Why would I travel half-way across the United States, from Texas (which is already known for being DQ Country), to eat at chain burger restaurant? Because of this. Behold the cherry-dipped cone.


Growing up in Alaska, we had Dairy Queens for a while. You could get a chocolate, cherry, or butterscotch dipped cone. Cherry was my absolutely favorite flavor and I was sad when all of the DQs eventually disappeared from town. Flash forward to moving to Texas and discovering that I could once again go to a DQ ... and then being crushed when apparently Texas Dairy Queens have no idea what you are talking about when you ask for this cherry-flavored witchery in a cone.

Portland. I love you.

When we all got home, I'm very pleased to say that I think I won "Aunt of the Year" award this visit when I gifted my nephew a reptilian hoodie that was promptly dubbed his "Godzilla" jacket. We roared. It was magnificent. (It was even more magnificent watching him wear this hoodie all week with his real "Texas cowboy" boots we bought him for Christmas. I love this kid!)


This trip was a delightful mix of spending quality time with my family and taking solitary trips downtown via mass transit. On my first day of taking the MAX, I got downtown pretty early. Since not a lot was open, I decided that more coffee would be best. (And honestly, when is more coffee not a good idea?) My stop put me right outside of Case Study Coffee Roasters. I decided to go with a latte made with house-made bourbon caramel and an olive oil coffee cake. A delightful way to wake up!


I wandered through shops like Crafty Wonderland and Fat Fancy, all the time heading closer and closer to my favorite downtown destination, Powell's! I spent a long time scouring the shelves for hidden literary treasures. I did find this amazing column in the SciFi & Fantasy area!


After all of those books, I decided to explore more of downtown. I spent a bit of time in the Museum of Contemporary Craft, explored a high-end deli, found an elephant statue, then decided it was time for lunch.


Although my first thought was to try one of the myriad and interesting food trucks that can be found downtown, the weather was getting a bit iffy and I didn't want to eat in the rain. So I headed to the Deschutes Brewery to rest my feet & have a nice lunch (and beer or two). And what better food to have when it's dreary than a grilled cheese and soup? Although, this was technically a grilled cheddar, chevre-cream cheese, hazelnut kale pesto, and apple onion slaw sandwich with butternut squash soup. So decadent!

I also decided to try a small glass of the Abyss 2015, an incredibly dark Imperial Stout that was aged in bourbon, oak, and pinot noir barrels for 12 months. Powerfully good (and a powerful 12.1 APV), but one small glass was enough. I tried several other beers, but decided to not have photographic evidence. My husband was already sad he couldn't come with me this trip. Flaunting my awesome beer selections just seemed mean!


It was soon time to be picked up by my sister. As I headed to meet her, I came across these posters. I couldn't immediately tell if they were serious or sarcastic. This is Portland, after all.


Over the rest of the week, I had several more adventures!

My sister, nephew, and I went out for Sunday brunch at Watson Hall. I had a lovely hash while the nephew and his dinosaur friend shared their own meal!


He also got to try his hand at shuffleboard, where he did surprisingly well.


One day, I decided to take the light rail and bus to get out to the Hawthorne District and explore the delightfully odd resale shops, local artist boutiques, and satellite Powell's bookstores. I started out having breakfast at the Cup & Saucer Cafe.


For hours, I wandered through stores such as Presents of Mind, Red Light Clothing Exchange, and the show-stopping House of Vintage (containing over 13,000 square feet of vintage clothing and various other home goods). I topped it all off with lunch at the Fried Egg I'm In Love food truck. (Enjoying the "Sriracha Mix-a-lot" and a Hopworks Urban Brewery hard cider)


I don't always get to see my sister in her natural baking habitat, but I did get to visit her business, the Desert Tray, this time around. She was very excited about the decorating project she was working on. Ha!


The two or us were able to get away for lunch one day. We decided on the Cedar Hills McMenamins pub. My sister decided on a well-deserved beer. I decided on a well-deserved whiskey flight!


There was one more place I wanted to visit before I returned to Texas and we managed to drop by for breakfast right before I headed for the airport. I had a very lovely meal at La Provence Boulangerie & Patisserie, but I was most enamored with my hot chocolate flight! So incredibly rich and tasty! My favorite was the Spice: smooth & decadent, with a touch of heat.

Although, I was glad to see the husband again, I felt that my trip was over too soon. I look forward to the next time I can visit my sister and her family again!

White Christmas in Abilene

My all-time favorite holiday movie is White Christmas! Bing & Danny ... Rosemary & Vera-Ellen ... beautiful costumes, classic song numbers, and some great (and sometimes sly) one-liners that make me laugh every time!

Every other December, the Paramount Theater in Abilene showcases White Christmas as its holiday movie.(In alternate years, the movie is It's a Wonderful Life, which has never been my personal Christmas movie of choice) This year my good friend and I decided that not only did we need to see White Christmas on the big screen, we also needed to dress up! Our inspiration was the beautiful red dresses from the final musical number.

The Paramount was very festive for the event! We got to hear local students perform Christmas tunes before the movie started, as well as during intermission.

The husband and I looking equally festive!


The two women in red! We had stopped at Michael's earlier in the day and found Christmas foliage to make into decorations for our hair. I think it was the perfect look!

It is so much fun to dress up for these kind of events. We had multiple compliments on our outfits and everyone kept asking if we'd just come from a party! I was also pleased that I managed to wear some of the highest heeled shoes that I've ever worn without falling on my butt.

The next time White Christmas comes to the Paramount, my friend said we should go in the blue dresses from the "Sisters" number. I guess we have two years to come up with the outfits! I can't wait!