Tales of the Traveling Totes and Giveaway

Welcome to our September Issue of 

Tales of the Traveling Totes where

twelve ladies explore the world

with our MacKenzie-Childs' totes.

As part of our traveling tales we always

include a giveaway, so stay tuned for that

at the end of this post, and take time to

visit the other travelers to see where they have

been off to.

Miss Madi K and I had lots of fun this

summer.  

Our adventures together started out in Jackson Hole, Wyoming,

where Madi K and I took to the river for a river

rafting trip.

We stayed at a charming place called

Carlisle Ranch about 45 minutes

outside of Jackson where they have large

bunkhouses and these charming sheepherder

cabins.  There is a pond with a paddle boat 

and lots of space for kids to roam.  

Our friends are experienced river runners

and have invited us, our children and even

our grandchildren for several years.  Even

the three year old went down the rapids.

They have three boats and can take 30 at a time,

so we take turns running the river for two days.

It is a blast!!!  This is my oldest granddaughter

taking a fabulous splash in the boat.

In July Miss Madi K and I had a calmer

experience as we traveled to Cabo to check on

the progress on our construction.  She and I

especially enjoyed swimming up to the pool

bar and ordering shrimp tacos and shrimp

nachos and smoothies.  We told hubby we 

really liked being waited on at the pool!

This 20 foot tall rock had to be removed to fit the pool

in and we had fun watching as they drilled into the

rock, filled the holes with an expanding substance to

crack it apart.  Later we received a video of it falling

down the cliff.  LOOK OUT BELOW!

It's a slow process, much slower than we were promised -

surprise, surprise, but one of our favorite surprises

was this suspended circular stair outside that connects

the upper pool deck with the lower pool deck.

This is the main level, still not a lot of progress here,

but we return in October and the walls should all

be up.  

Not much to look at yet, but we are starting to 

see it shape up.

In August Miss Madi K and I flew to visit my sister

Jean in San Antonio.  We were joined by two of my

girlfriends that I grew up in Wisconsin with.  They 

had never been to San Antonio, and one of them

requested that we take an overnight trip to

Waco to visit Chip and Joanna Gaines' Magnolia

Market.  

Of course we were hoping to see the lovely Joanna,

and I did, on the cover of her book, so of course

I had to add her cookbook to my collection.

The store was delightful.  I just had to include

a tablescape from the Market.

Everything was so beautiful

but rather pricey.

I also had to pick up this gardening pad to use

at home.  (It ended up being a nice airplane pad

too - haha!)

We spent the night in a hotel, but if I had it

to do over again, I would stay in one of the Air BNB's

homes that were featured on Fixer Upper.  It would have

been about the same amount and we would have

had the whole home.  

The next morning we were hoping to get a chance

to experience Magnolia Table.  Reviews online

said that you could experience a wait of an

hour or more.  The end of August turned

out to be a great time to visit!  Baylor University

had just started and I guess most moms were home

getting their kids ready for school the next week.

We were given a wait time of half an hour.  Miss Madi K

loved the decor in the waiting area, actually she loved all of

the black and white checks on everything Joanna and

Chip have created.  After a lengthy 13 minute wait - 

yes, only 13 minutes - we were seated.

We had to start our breakfast with Joanna's

famous biscuits.  They are featured in her cookbook,

so I can't wait to try them.  You could choose them

with strawberry butter or sausage gravy, but

we asked for a side of both.  

The controversial avocado toast - Chip said it was too frou frou,

was amazing!

Most of the breakfasts came with their signature

Tater Tots, presented in a small cast iron pan.

They tasted more like Hush Puppies to me.  I

am not a huge fan of Tater Tots, but I loved these.

Every employee we encountered at the Magnolia

spots were utterly charming.  I finally had to ask

one if they all had to attend charm school.  We

had a delightful time in Waco.

If you visit, you have to take time to find some of

the charming furniture stores that have sprung up

around Waco featuring a similar style.  I just had to

take a photo of this gorgeous tablescape.  Made me anxious

for fall.

You know me, I can't resist taking photos of

gorgeous tablescapes.

  This one was at Simply Irresistable.

Check out Simply Irresistable

and The Findery. I am sure there are more wonderful

stores here in Waco. Wow if only I had a truck and

trailer to haul things home.  I did bring home some

compotes in Miss Madi K that I found at the Findery.

It was a great summer of travel and fun.

Now to experience more travel and fun visit these

fine explorers and see where they and

their Traveling Totes have been off to.

Come along and travel with:

Debbie with Miss Aurora @ Mountain Breaths 

Emily with Miss Courtney Childs@ The French Hutch

 Patti with Miss Kenzie @ Pandora's Box

Katie with Miss Daisy @ Preppy Empty Nester

Linda P with Miss Lola @ Life and Linda

Rita with Miss Luna C @ Panoply 

Sarah with Miss Merri Mac @ Hyacinths for the Soul

Jackie and Miss Madi K @ Purple Chocolat Home

Ricki Jill and Countess De Monet @ The Sketchy Reader

Lea and Miss Scarlett @ Cici's Corner

Now for the fun!  This is our giveaway for this month.

I wish I could win!  Aren't these the cutest MacKenzie-Childs's

towels.  Makes me excited for Halloween.

Visit Linda at Life and Linda and leave a comment to

be entered to win these adorable towels.

Join us in December for another edition of

Tales of the Traveling Totes 

and for another giveaway!

Yikes this gives me chills!

I will be posting this with

Tablescapes Thursday

Share Your Cup Thursday

and

Dishing It and Digging It