a peaceful morning at hamilton pool, austin

the last time we tried to go to hamilton pool we arrived promptly when they opened only to be turned down because of too many people [but it ended up being a great day at reimers so, whatever]. luckily, HP now takes reservations [at first i thought was annoying because it takes away all spontaneity], however it's actually pretty genius. you can make them in advance *here* and choose one of two time slots: 9am – 1pm or 1pm – 5pm. the pool is not over crowded this way, and it's more than enough time to enjoy the water. we chose the morning slot to avoid the heat, however i think the afternoon shift likely gives you better lighting for photos if you're into that. 

it was the perfect girls day with my mom and sister to celebrate lindsay's birthday and enjoy the warm summer weather austin is having right now. some tips if you're planning to make the visit:

• bring cash for parking, they don't take cards
• wear chacos or tevas, there is a mini hike down to the pools and you'll want to wear sturdy waterproof shoes
• pack blankets or chairs, the "beach" is pretty rocky
• bring a small cooler full of snacks and cold beverages [but no glass!] * you will have to hike up hill back to the car so don't bring anything you won't want to carry back
• a floatie or two might be nice
• leave your pets at home [they are not allowed at the pools and it's much too hot to leave them in the car]

happy summer!
 

^^ our morning ended with lunch at hula hut on lake austin, and i kind of forgot how much i love this spot! 

outdoor voices: doing things

when we lived in austin {on blanco street} an amazing little shop opened a stone's throw away; outdoor voices. we'd often pop in on our walk to clarks browsing all of their cooool gear. being active is truly so much more fun when you feel like you look good. i admittedly wore this softest outfit ever all-weekend-long. cannot take it off. crossing my fingers they'll expand to sf one day soon ... 

boat party

last friday we had our annual summer boat party to celebrate mcj's 18th birthday on lake travis. initially i thought drinking in my swimsuit with coworkers might be weird – but it most certainly was not weird. it was awesome and we had a great time. after a long day in the sun we finished our day with drinks at handlebar and dinner at contigo. i'm happy the following day was saturday.

barton springs night swimming

last wednesday was the final blues on the green for the season – before heading to zilker we had dinner at the cute little cantina, el alma. i love their rooftop. when we arrived at the concert it was really crowded and really hot, so we decided to mosey over to barton springs to confirm the rumor that they were open until 10pm free of charge (it's true!). even better, you can still here the music from the cold water. it was the perfect summer evening – can't wait to swim under the moonlight again soon. 

summer swimming at blue hole and jacob's well

^^ no mini road trip is complete without donuts

we've happily had an extremely mild summer here in austin – but it's finally getting hot. real hot. like – it's not that fun to be outside hot. this has inspired us to seek out pools and swimming holes any chance we get. last weekend we finally explored jacob's well and blue hole in wimberly and can't wait to get back! while both spots were obviously crowded, we loved jumping and rope swinging over and over into the cool blue water.

afterwards we had lunch at the leaning pear {it was amazing and i'll definitely go back} and drinks at driftwood winery before heading back to austin. it was such a fun little day in wimberly – it's hard to believe i grew up in austin and never explored these spots!