Happy Summer!

Deep Eddy Pool, originally uploaded by Steve Hopson.

My husband and I celebrate a ridiculous amount of made-up holidays & celebrations. I won't go into all of our schmoopy lovey dovey ones that would make you want to vomit, but we also have nice general ones like Happy Texas Day (the day we moved to Texas, which is 2nd weekend in October) and our personal favorite, Happy Summer.

Happy Summer is our official kick-off to my favorite season of the year. It's a simple celebration, really, because all it entails is going to the pool, jumping in and yelling "Happy Summer!" No need to wait until June 21st either, because luckily around here, pool season starts in May.

Last night my husband, son and I celebrated Happy Summer at Deep Eddy Pool, which is the oldest swimming pool in Texas. It's also one of the most awesome. It's right off of Lady Bird Lake, minutes from downtown, and has the best vibe of any pool I've ever been to. They even do movie nights every Saturday in the summer, which starts at dusk. (I think they're open until 9pm every night during the summer, with fewer hours open for the rest of the year).

One thing about Deep Eddy, though, is that it's cold. Not Barton Springs cold, but close. I usually like going there in August when it's blistering hot. Even then, it helps to move around a lot to keep warm.

This weekend we're going to meet up with some friends at Mentzer Pool in Pflugerville. I haven't been there before, but according to my friend it's an awesome place for toddlers to swim at, complete with little slides and fountains and such. And at $3 an entry, it's also way cheaper than going to Schlitterbahn just to hang out at the kiddie section.

My neighborhood pool opens up the following weekend, which is free. I can't wait! As I am 8 months pregnant, the only state my body wants to be in involves fluid displacement and buoyancy. If I'm going to look like Shamu I might as well act the part.

Move To Austin website updated

I've been busy updating my website, so let me formally invite you to go there and take another look around again.

New additions/updates include:

• How much can you afford in Austin? A slice of what the real estate market is offering in different price ranges.
• Austin Commute Times - my best guess of how long it will take you to get from your new neighborhood to downtown.
• Where are the best schools in Austin TX? - I've put the google maps on my website, which were featured on my blog earlier this month.
• Austin TX Cost of Living - a look at how much I pay for things while living here, which is a bit scary/embarrassing for me to disclose. But that's how much I care.

Most of these pages come from repeated questions I get from my lovely readers who contact me and ask me specific questions. Thanks for the ideas, darlings! XOXO

Austin Unemployment Rate Down - April 2009

New numbers are out and Austin's unemployment rate has dropped a little. The Texas Workforce Commission is reporting our April 2009 rate at 5.8%, down from 6.2% in March. According to TWC Chairman Tom Pauken:

"Professional and Business Services lost 20,100 jobs in April [for the entire state of Texas], followed by Trade, Transportation and Utilities with a loss of 15,400 jobs.

Manufacturing employment in Texas recorded a loss of 13,300 jobs over the month and Construction jobs here declined by 3,200.

Some industries added jobs in April. Leisure and Hospitality posted the largest industry gain with 10,600 jobs. Education and Health Services added 4,500 jobs, representing an annual job growth rate of approximately 4.5 percent."

Texas' overall unemployment rate is 6.7%, compared to the US national rate of 8.9%.

Killer Austin Chalupas

There is one thing that my family members all have in common: a love of chalupa night. For those of you not familiar with the term, a chalupa is similar to what most of the rest of the country calls a tostada (thanks to that bastion of cultural adulteration, Taco Bell). However, here in Texas - and especially in South Texas where my family hails from - it's a chalupa. To be more specific, chalupa compuesta, meaning "decked-out chalupa." I've been eating these things since I was a little tot, and my sister and I are passing on the tradition to our children and spouses. That's my son to the left, who has already eaten off the cheese, tomatoes & guacamole.

We have often remarked that we've never had as good of a chalupa at a restaurant as we can make at home. And the ingredients are so simple. You can go the easy, convenient route of pre-shredded cheese and canned beans (believe me, I do this too when feeling lazy), but here's my recipe to make killer chalupas, Austin style. By the way, I never measure anything, so all amounts are approximate.

Move To Austin's Killer Chalupa Compuestas
(feeds 4)

• 12 tostada shells (especially from local tortillaria, El Milagro, which can be found at most Austin grocery stores.)
• 1 pint of refried beans (especially from local taqueria, Juan in a Million, which are the best beans in town. If unavailable but you still want the WOW factor, heat up some bacon grease and chopped garlic and then stir in 2 cans of refried beans)
• 1 block of sharp cheddar cheese
• 2 large Haas avocados
• 1 tsp lemon juice
• pinch of chili powder, salt & pepper
• 2 tomatoes
• lettuce
• sour cream
• salsa
• Crystal Hot Sauce, optional

1. Stick the tostada shells in a toaster oven set at a low tempature and let them warm up. You can also do this in the oven - like at 250 degrees. This is an important step for yumminess, so don't skip it. Also - they'll burn if you just toast them. Low heat for 10 minutes is key.
2. Heat up the refried beans on the stove (now's the time to do bacon grease and garlic if all you have are canned beans. Don't be afraid, it'll be worth it. )
3. Chop up the tomatoes, reserving the juice & seeds for the guacamole.
4. Make your guacamole. I love a simple one, so I mash up the avocado in the reserved tomato juice/seeds, then add the lemon juice and a pinch of chili powder, salt and pepper. You can super charge your guacamole with cilantro, garlic & onions if you like.
5. Chop up your lettuce. I just eyeball the amount, but you might need about 2 cups worth.
6. Shred your cheese. I like to do a fine shred so the cheese can get all yummy melty.
7. Call the gang to dinner. We learned a great call while visiting friends in Houston: "Time to dip your plate, y'all!"

To assemble, go in this order:

1. heated tostada shell
2. refried beans
3. cheese
4. lettuce
5. tomatoes
6. guacamole
7. salsa
8. sour cream
9. dash of Crystal

To eat it, balance it in your hand and take a bite. It will be messy, but soooo worth it.

Back Pain Relief in Austin

As I sit here typing, 8 little metal nodes are massaging my back. My coworker has kindly let me borrow her chair massager, which I have borrowed every single day this week and last. I've got the third trimester body aches.

What I really need to do is go for another appointment with Sarah Farwell, my massage therapist. She's been helping me with a myriad of back problems for about 2 years now. She's also just updated her website, so I'd like to give her a little shout-out. Check out her website and contact information here.

For those of you who have suffered from back pain, you know how important it is to find a good team of people to help you with flare ups. I've suffered from sciatica / SI joint pain with my back for about 2 years and only recently have gotten to a place I would call pain-free. I finally can sit at work with no problems (minus the whole pregnancy aches)!

It was a long and difficult journey to get here. Along the way I've spent thousands of dollars at various appointments, including: 2 doctors, 3 acupuncturists, 3 physical therapists, 3 chiropractors, 2 massage therapists and 1 yoga therapist.

Of the people I've seen, I can highly recommend two practitioners: Sarah Farwell (as mentioned above) and Dr. Myra (or her husband Rob) at Hoffman Chiropractic Care. Dr. Myra has been helping me out with all my pregnancy related pains, and she helped my son get through chronic ear infections (as strange as it sounds).

For those of you suffering from SI joint pain, I also think that wearing a belt like this one to the left helped me out. I wish I had tried it 2 years earlier.

My fellow back-pain sufferers, here's to finding relief!

Restaurants in Austin

I have roughly 10 weeks to go until my daughter is born and I regain the ability to eat goat cheese, sushi and drink copious amounts of wine (well, might still have to watch the last one). Often in the evenings, after I've put my toddler to bed and make myself a nice glass of water, I'll daydream of restaurants. Beautiful restaurants. Serving martinis and amuse bouches. Ahhhhh.

Let's play a pretend game, shall we? Here's where I'd go if I had no kids, all the time in the world, and money was no object (of course, some of these places are wallet-friendly as I love a good hole-in-the-wall).

1. Wink. It's a bistro with a menu that changes daily. Everytime I go there I've eaten things that I didn't think I liked. Ok - sometimes I'm a little picky. But it's here that I discovered I LOVED the following: braised brussels sprouts, foie gras and crispy duck breast.
2. Lambert's. The concept is crazy - fancy barbecue. And I'll admit that all I've eaten here is an appetizer plate (and a dirty martini). But oh my god. Crème brûlée foie gras. So amazing.
3. Sushi time. Let me preface this by saying I'm a wuss when it comes to this, because most seafood makes me gag. But I love pansy ass sushi, like spicy tuna and california rolls. I crave it constantly when pregnant. So I'd probably go to Korea Garden because it's close to my house and has a sushi train, and love seeing food before I buy it. Everyone raves about Uchi and Mushashino in Austin, but to be honest a lot of it is wasted on little old me. Mushashino, however, also has Japanese curry katsu during weekday lunch hours. I love me some Japanese curry.
4. Lately I've been liking the thai food at Titaya's. The atmosphere is less than desirable, but seriously, when's the last time you went to a Thai restaurant for the décor? Give me a good curry and a pad kee mao and I'll ignore any ugly artwork.
5. Din Ho. You know it's a good Chinese restaurant when they hang their roasted duck in the windows, and the ratio of Chinese diners to non-Chinese diners is 5 to 1.
6. Polvo's. It's more interior Mexican than Tex-Mex. Anything you get there should have at least one of the following: al pastor, pecan cream sauce or molé, because they will make you want to lick the plate clean.
7. Shady Grove. I've never been totally blown away by their menu, which features Texas classics like chicken fried steak and catfish. But I love their outdoor patio. This place is always a winner with out of town guests.
8. Chez Nous. Because every now and then I need a good steak frites. Their prix fixe menu is classic.
9. Barbecue at Smitty's, which is 30 minutes away in Lockhart, TX.
10. I have not yet been here, but I thought I'd throw out where I'd like to try: TRIO at the Four Seasons Hotel.

Man, I should start a list of all the places that I haven't been but am dying to try. Coming soon? Anyway, all of the above places have listings on Yelp.

Austin Home Values Rise in 2009

The Community Impact is reporting that home values within the City of Austin (and Travis County) are on average up by 5 percent. Homes in Round Rock and Cedar Park (Williamson County) have lost value.

"Travis County’s average homestead appraisal rose from $281,623 in 2008 to $295,747 in 2009. The average value in the Williamson Central Appraisal District is $188,523 this year, compared with an average of $191,072 last year."

This is bittersweet to all of us living within Austin city limits, as our property taxes have all gone up too. My husband and I own a rental property which was our primary residence last year. This is the first year without a homestead exemption on it, and the property value is appraised at $35k more than it was last year, which is equaling out to about $1200 more per year in taxes. Ouch! Meanwhile, rents are going down in the area. We're going to try and dispute the appraisal, and have until May 31st to file a protest. Want to join us? You can download the protest form here.

And speaking of rentals, some friends of mine are subletting out their house for 1-2 months this summer (July & August 2009). It's in Travis Heights, which for my out-of-town readers is within walking/biking distance to downtown and everything on South Congress. It would be a great home base for anyone wanting to come here for a few weeks to get to know the town. See the ad here.

Austin Area Middle Schools & High Schools with Ratings

Whew, these easier than the Elementary Schools.

Map of Austin Area Middle Schools with Ratings


(View Austin Area Middle Schools in a larger map, plus a list of all area schools by name.)

Map of Austin Area High Schools with Ratings


(View Austin Area High Schools in a larger map, plus a list of all area schools by name.)

Markers are color coded per each school's rating (which is based on how the school body performed on the TAKS test for 2007-2008 school year)

Red = Exemplary
Green = Recognized
Blue = Academically Acceptable
Yellow = Academically Unacceptable

I've included schools in Round Rock, Pflugerville, Cedar Park, Leander, Lake Travis, and Westlake and Dripping Springs.

Again, don't forget to check out the rest of my website, where you can find thinks like links to figure out what school a property will track to, plus more tools you can use to evaluate a school. (I for one think that there's more to a school than how the students did on the TAKS test, but I know it's good for a quick evaluation).

Austin Area Elementary School Ratings

I've been playing around with Google Maps lately. Here's something that I wish I had when I was looking for a house in Austin:

Map of Austin Area Elementary Schools with Ratings


(View Austin Area Elementary Schools in a larger map, plus a list of all area schools by name.)

Markers are color coded per each school's rating (which is based on how the school body performed on the TAKS test for 2007-2008 school year)

Red = Exemplary
Green = Recognized
Blue = Academically Acceptable
Yellow = Academically Unacceptable

I've included schools in Round Rock, Pflugerville, Cedar Park, Leander, Lake Travis, and Westlake. I'll update it soon with schools around Buda and Dripping Springs.

Don't forget to check out the rest of my website, where you can find thinks like links to figure out what school a property will track to, plus more tools you can use to evaluate a school. (I for one think that there's more to a school than how the students did on the TAKS test, but I know it's good for a quick evaluation).

Also to come, maps of area middle & high schools, once my eyes get uncrossed. Enjoy!

Cracking Skulls

Watch out world. I'm in a bad mood, and it's only 9:04 am. I'm feeling very combatitive today, and instead of hiding my aggression I'm going to discuss the awesomeness of the TXRD Lonestar Rollergirls.

That's right, roller derby. Now ordinarily I would rather watch paint dry than go to a sporting event, this is different. It's awesome. Austin has five teams that compete with each other on a banked track. My husband and I used to be major fans of the Putas Del Fuego, but now that we've gotten to be friends with a member of the Holy Rollers (our sons are preschool BFFs - we went to their house 2 weeks ago for a barbecue and had a blast!) we are thinking of changing loyalties.

If you're not familiar with roller derby, the general idea is that girls skate around a banked track and beat the living tar out of each other while trying to pass each other. There's a lot of showboating and trashtalking along the way. There are a couple rules thrown in, but for the most part it's a pretty simple thing to understand and get into. That's why I like it.

You may have caught a show on A&E a few years back called Rollergirls, which centered on this league. If you haven't, line it up on your Netflix, because it was really entertaining. And then when you move here, you can get starstruck like me when you see teammates around town (the Texas Chili Parlor is a major sighting source, and since it's within walking distance of work AND has good nachos, I'm there a lot).

Austin has a flat-track league as well - the Texas Rollergirls. I've been to some of their bouts, but my heart lies with the Lonestar League. Next game coming up:

Cherry Bombs vs. Hellcats
Where: Austin Convention Center
When: Sunday, May 17th
Time: Doors at 6 pm, Bout at 7
Cost: $15 at the door, $13 pre-sale

Shopping in Austin

I'm going to attempt writing about a subject that I know nothing about. Shopping in Austin. That is, for pleasure. I shop because I have to, because my toddler has no shorts that fit him anymore, or because Mother's Day is next weekend. I take the least painful approach and head to Target, or if I'm feeling more adventurous, Kohl's. I know I should frequent local shops more - and I try to, but most times I just want to get it over quick.

But some of you may have that special gene I'm missing where you actually look forward to a day of shopping. For you, I'm going to do my best.

The Austin Chronicle has their Best of List. Check this list out for our more funky, one-of-a-kind stores.

First of all, start off on South Congress. Even I like to go there, occasionally.

Barton Creek Mall is our largest mall (Central/Southwest Austin) and has most of the national stores you might be addicted to, like Banana Republic and Sephora. Whenever I go there I MUST recharge by gazing at the awesome encaustic paintings by Rana Rochat hanging at Nordstrom. Will somebody please buy me one my own? Thank you. Oh, and nursing moms -- Nordstrom's bathrooms are the best. You won't want to get up.

The Domain is our newest mall in North Austin, and it's a mixed use/outdoor type place. It's trying to go for the upscale market, so you can find Neiman Marcus and Coach. It kind of reminds me of what Santa Monica's Third Street Promenade has become, right down to the California Pizza Kitchen. Ok, maybe less bums and Michael Jackson impersonators.

2nd St District is downtown and is part of Austin's attempt to make a more livable downtown urban center. Think stylish boutiques, sidewalk cafes and restaurants, and higher-end furniture stores, like Design Within Reach (now honestly, who picked that name?) While we're on the subject of asking for things, will someone please buy me the daybed from Ligne Roset?

For antique and mid-century modern furniture shopping, you've got to come to my 'hood in Central Austin. Burnet Rd between 45th and Anderson Lane has tons of little shops like Uptown Modern. Or go over to North Loop for Room Service.

After these hot spots, you'll just have to move here to discover the other cool shops that I can't possibly fit into this post. Oh, and all interested parties who wish to buy me things may contact me for my mailing address.