Sending love to my hometown state, the warm, welcoming, stylish, outlandish, and fun Lone Star state of Texas.
This was not my intended post for the week, but in light of the recent hurricane that is wreaking havoc on Texas I changed direction. It seems inappropriate to write about anything but the lovely state where I was born and raised for 18 years.
Texans feel a pride for their state that seems to greatly outweigh how others feel about their state. There is no place like Texas. It is vast. I miss driving on the flat highways seeing that wide open sky. Texas has areas in the western part of the state that seem undiscovered while Houston and Dallas are ultra-sophisticated cities. Texas has something for everyone. Below are pictures that come to mind when I think of home.
Old Highland Park in Dallas still has bits of 1920’s charm visible.
Brick houses such as this always remind me of Highland Park where I grew up. Brick is commonly used throughout the Lone Star state.
Southern Methodist University is blocks from my childhood home.
Charming Highland Park Village is where my friends and I would spend every Saturday afternoon eating Mexican food and looking in the then-affordable shops.
Spanish details make Highland Park Village the prettiest outdoor shopping center that I know.
Leading the way to the prettiest shopping center are the loveliest bus stops spotted on Preston Road in Highland Park, Dallas.
The house where my father lived during his teenage years, Highland Park.
A glimpse into the home of my super-stylish aunt, Jan Barboglio, Dallas.
Houston is a very cosmopolitan city full of nationally recognized designers, doctors, and museums.
The very beautiful campus of the prestigious Rice University in Houston. I was hoping to have one child attend Rice so I could visit my Houston-based college friends. No luck.
The former home of antiquarian Kay O’Toole. (Photo: Tria Giovan for Veranda)
Every Spring there is a lovely and lively garden party held at Bayou Bend, former home of Miss Ima Hogg, Houston. (Photo: Rick Gardner)
Corpus Christi, the windsurfing capital of the world, sits on a bay and takes life slower than some of the larger Texas cities.
A local take on Botticelli at the Water Street Oyster Bar, Corpus Christi.
A charming old stone house in my husband’s hometown, Corpus Christi.
Change is slow in Corpus Christi. There are many wonderful homes that haven’t been renovated and many that I would love to take on.
Casa V has a love for houses that began long ago in Texas.