Trying New Things

Jeff and I had the opportunity, thanks to Mimi and Grandpa, to slip over to Austin last night for a little overnight date. We wanted to try some new things, so we used our Starwood points to book a $530/night room at The W hotel downtown. Let me be clear that we did not and would not pay for the room with money! But, we had a ton of points saved up, and this room wasn't much more expensive point-wise than some "lesser" rooms in town. And, frankly, the hotel was nice, but we didn't really think the room was worth the price tag.

For entertainment last night, we went to see Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit, which we both really enjoyed. After the movie, we tried out a new-to-us restaurant called Corazon at Castle Hill. Every single thing we put in our mouths was absolutely delicious! From there, we headed over to the hotel, and after weaving our way through the rockin' labyrinth bar area, we found ourselves in the hotel's restaurant, Trace, where we enjoyed coffee and dessert. (The W is right next to the Moody Theater, which is the main venue for Austin City Limits, and the hotel has a very rockstar atmosphere).

This morning, we enjoyed breakfast at Trace, but without having to maneuver through the raucous bar crowd. After breakfast, we simply parked ourselves in front of one of the cozy lobby fireplaces and just whiled away the morning in kid-free conversation. Later, we walked over to Second Bar and Kitchen for some very delicious lunch.

Our last event before leaving Austin was an Improv class we have signed up for at The Hideout Theatre. We will attend a three-hour class once a week for six weeks. We have always loved Improv comedy, but the class isn't really so much about learning to be funny as it is learning how to be comfortable with the uncomfortable and learning to roll with whatever is thrown at you. We heard about the class from a couple of Jeff's employees and thought it sounded like a good way to force ourselves out of our comfort zones and pull ourselves out of our shells. The class was fun, but exhausting. We're hoping that by the end of six weeks, we will be able to drop the exhausting part and just think of it as fun.