Warning: this post will begin and end with a cute puppy.


A few weeks ago, Tom and Kay took us to a classical music concert at a music camp in Round Top, Texas. We packed a picnic dinner and had a relaxing, cultured sort of time. The campus of the music school was beautiful, as you'll see.


Here's the inside of the concert hall, just completed a few years ago. We couldn't make it through all of the chamber music we heard there (which was good, but sedating), but seeing the hall was worth it!


Another spot on the grounds of the campus.


John outside the Menke house (donated by Charlie's family to the camp several years ago).


On a different topic, we won't be breeding Amadeus. And since he had some trouble with the stitches, he had to wear an E-collar (short for "Elizabethan collar"). None of us liked it, but he was a good sport!


Poor guy. . .


On a lighter note, John and I took a day trip to Austin a few Saturdays ago to see the capitol. It was very nice, very capitol-y. It has personal significance for John's family, as well. One of John's ancestors held horses at the Battle of San Jacinto (when the Texans finally defeated Santa Ana). There's a painting inside the capitol building of Santa Ana's surrender, and John's great-great-grandfather's brother is supposed to be in it.


How would you like to find door hinges like this at an antique shop?


The University of Texas is within walking distance of the campus. We went with mixed feelings. John because it's t.u., myself because it is the only campus I've heard of with both a statue of Jefferson Davis and Martin Luther King, Jr.


John outside the French legate's house. When Texas was a nation all its own, it actually hosted a French ambassador for a year and built him a very nice compound in Austin.


Back at home, with the e-collar off, Amadeus was back to work. After all, he's not just a puppy - he's a beast of burden.


I like to call this picture "The Watchers." Or more specifically, the young watchers who have taken up residence on our front porch.


And finally, Amadeus chilling (using the term lightly) in the front yard.