Round Top, TX

Kettle corn, face painting, antiques, fall weather. Ahhh, time to go to Round Top!  As a child, my mom, Nana, and other important women in my life would let my sister, Jill, and me to tag along for a day trip to the Round Top Antique Festival.
What fond memories I have of those little trips!  The excitement of waking up early, making the Shipley's doughnut run and passing through all of the fun booths once there.  I'm pretty sure after one particular trip my mother swore she'd never let me get my face painted again.  (I was terrible about scratching off a $10 paint job after about thirty minutes of wearing it.)  

Our friends Zach and Mallory Troyer, who moved to Texas from Illinois, were told that going to Round Top was a cultural must here in the lone star state.  When Mallory asked if we would accompany them on this day trip, I played it cool.  "I'll have to check my calendar and get back to you, but we would love that," I said.  Inside I was doing a victory dance.  The child in me was so excited to relive some of the memories made so long ago.  We even drove through Shipley's for breakfast on the way.  But of course, trying to recreate a memory is like eating day old french fries.  They never taste quite as good and it would really be more enjoyable to make a new batch.

Yep, that was what this trip was for me: enjoying the new experience for what it was and having a blast creating new memories.  We actually drove to Warrenton, TX just outside of Round Top.  We walked through all sorts of booths that ranged from expensive home decor to impaled baby dolls that looked like they had been in the hands of the demented Sid from Toy Story.  Though I didn't see any face painters and somehow left without buying kettle corn, we still very much enjoyed the exhilaration of the cool and breezy, sunny day and each others company.  In the end, we left with little in our hands.  The Troyers bought a cool frame, and we walked away with a bag of buttons.

All of that being said, if and when we go again, here are two things we would do differently. 
1. Pack a lunch.  This way you can splurge on the fun snacks (like kettle corn or a funnel cake) without feeling guilty for already spending twenty plus dollars on lunch.
2. Go with a mission and a tape measure.  Cale and I had no idea what we were looking for, and though we saw some cool things, we would see things and think, "We like this, but what in the world would we do with it?"  Sometimes the best finds are discovered when you aren't expecting them, but in a festival as big as this, you need to narrow down your search and have a way of figuring out if it would fit in your house..

We didn't take a lot of photos, but here are a few from our fall outing. Thanks Troyers for a such a great day!

Cale amongst all of the knick-knacks.

 Mallory and I amongst all of the impaled dolls.  So weird. 

 Nearing the end of our first round of shopping. 

Sorry Zach, this is the only one we got of you!  Haha

Oh and here is a fun pic of the buttons Cale and I picked out.  No, I don't know what we'll use them for just yet.