31 Days of Military Life ~ DAY 2

So DAY 2 of Life in the Military is get into the community you are in no matter where that may be and experience life outside the gate. This is vital to both you and the community. Sometimes the community does better at embracing us then others but their take on who and what we are is a direct result of us and our take on who and what they are...it's kind of a catch22 but you make the best of it and they will too!
 
So this is one of the neat things of military life...being able to get out and experiencing the local culture. The Red River Revel just kicked off so we thought we would mosey down and check it out. I had already had a small taste at the quilt show on Thursday but now that the festival has kicked off and is in full swing we thought we would spend our Sunday morning/afternoon there.

Not to be unfair but I think we have already experienced one of the very best arts festivals ever but we still always try to take in the events like this no matter where we live. So off we go to the downtown area, found a free parking spot and headed to the Rx3.

 Our $5 tickets!

Personally, I was a little bummed that they charge admission...to be fair, it is only $5. They only charge on weekends and after 6 on weekdays (which is $10, so we will not be going during that time frame!) but still I really think it is crummy to charge for these things. To me you know you are going to make the money one way or another. Especially when you are charging to park (which was another $5, unless you park really far away), sodas were $2.50 and most of the food prices started at $5 and my one egg roll was $2) For us, we knew this going in but IMO if you want to maximize your attendance don't charge - just my .02!


Since is was mid-morning and we had only had our coffees this a.m. we thought we would go straight for the food booths. Lots of choices, I went with the fried rice ($5) and egg roll, it was okay, definitely would not choose it again. MiB had a gyros ($8) which he said was stellar. Oh and we also had beignets!

 Waiting on the mini-bini's!

Don't worry Cafe Du Monde we still love you the best! And trust me NOTHING has compared to you since we met in June. I miss you dearly and hope I will see you again soon!

Just to give you a bit of feel for the other food offerings there was muffalato pizza (which I wish I would have tried), roasted corn, turkey legs, grilled pork chops, sweet potato fries, fried dill pickles, mushrooms or zucchini, funnel cakes, pulled pork, taco salad and the list goes on and on! I want to believe it was good so I will!

After filling our tummies we headed on to the vendor booths. Some very unique things, some pushy artisans, some humble ones, some arrogant ones, some sleepy ones (wish I would've taken her pic :). But for the most part some really neat, unique, clever, interesting, one of a kind things to look at. Some really pricy things, some cheap things. Most said no photos, which I get but it also means I have none to share with you except the piece we purchased for ourselves. There were a lot of choices and we could have come home with more but this one spoke to us both.

 I'LL TAKE 'EM

This is our LilBlue to a T. She went through a stage of denim skirts and boots and attitude. I loved it instantly and knew I was going home with it. Thank you Ms S for having a military discout...this will replace the caricature that we had of LilBlue on a horse that was ruined in this move. Those things are irreplaceable but this definitely takes the place of the ruined one and lessens the blow of losing it! I think it is priceless and so screams HLM to me!