library – Jen Holtkamp

We went back to visit one of our favorite cities, Austin, Texas! When we moved to Austin in 2016, we chose a city where we pictured ourselves living forever, a city to love and put down roots. It was bittersweet leaving because we loved the city and people and were also excited about returning to Southern California with its amazing weather and beaches.

Dave had a work trip in Austin and the kids and I got to tag along. We loved visiting some of our favorite places, people and restaurants and seeing some new sights. One of the new places we visited was the Austin Public Library downtown which was everything we could have wanted in a library, a dream public library! It is beautifully designed with multiple levels, an awesome kids area with lots of board games, rooftop gardens, and amazing outdoor reading patios.

We also checked out the Austin Nature and Science Center and our most favorite restaurant in Austin, Terry Black’s BBQ.

Best brisket ever! ^

More of our Austin favorites highlighted here

This winter is the warmest winter we’ve had in the 10 years we’ve been married! 10 years! The kids’ and my favorite thing to do in the summer is the splash pad but our favorite cold weather activity is the library. When we lived in Utah, Brent and I went to the toddler story/sing time every week. Our library in Texas had tons of puzzles and puppets (in addition to books obviously) that the kids loved. Our new library here in CA only has computers as an extra ‘activity’ to books which I don’t love since we try and limit the screen time the kids get. However, it’s still fun to read new books!

library winter activities with kids