Girls Trip to Waco, TX!

Before the beginning of my last semester of college EVER, my mom and I decided to go on a little girls trip to Waco, TX. Our main reason: because we didn’t know what the heck was there in the first place!

Well, that’s not completely true. My mom and I are avid HGTV watchers and any seasoned binge watcher (or frequent Target goer) knows that THE show to watch is Fixer Upper. Their headquarters is in Waco, and they have their own little market that we really wanted to visit.

The drive wasn’t too long. It was about 2 hours and 45 minutes from Houston and 1.5 from College Station. Driving into the city, you immediately see the red brick buildings of Baylor University. Since classes weren’t in session, the campus was deserted.

We ended up staying at a hotel that was walking distance from everything. We set our bags down and decided to go to the Magnolia Market before it got too dark.

---

Magnolia Market

When we got to the Magnolia Market we noticed, luckily for us, it wasn’t too crowded for a Friday evening. The first thing you see when you approach (besides the giant silos) is the cute little bakery that has a line wrapped all the way around the building. The market closes at 6PM every day, so we decided instead of waiting in line to MAYBE get some baked goods, we would look through the store instead.

When I say that the store looks like it's straight out of a Home Goods catalog, I MEAN IT. Even with the dozens of people carefully pushing past one another it still looked beautiful. They had everything from mugs, candles, t-shirts, and home decorations. It was spread throughout the main floor and then down some steps into a larger warehouse. The best part was that they were clearly trying to get rid of some of their left over Christmas merchandise, so things were discounted!

We ended up getting matching mugs (cute, I know), and spared our bank accounts by stopping there, even though we wanted to buy the whole store.

We then walked outside past the green area to the garden, which my dad, the only one in my family with a green thumb, would have loved! They also had a cute little store in the back that sold similar things in the larger store.

(Throughout this entire time I was balancing my phone against my purse to try and take cute self-timed pictures.)

We kept going around the perimeter, past the bathrooms, (that were nicer than any public bathrooms I knew), and finally… we got to…. the food trucks.

Well, we didn’t end up getting any actual food (we were still filled up on the junk we ate on the road) so we got some incredible tea from The Alabama Sweet Tea Co., and popcorn!

(The best part of the sweet tea besides the taste is that you get to keep the glass after!)

From there we got on the (free) trolleys conducted by the sweetest guides that took us on a tour of the entire city. We got to see downtown, learn more about the history, and see the quirky antique shops. He also pointed out all the museums that we made notes to tell my dad about.

When we got back the market was closing, so we spent the rest of our night eating take out Panera Bread, drinking wine, and watching the worst reality TV shows we could find.

---

Magnolia Table

True to our Fixer Upper enthusiast selves, we got to Magnolia Market early that morning to take the trolley to Magnolia Table. The restaurant is owned by Chip and Joanne and the guides said that we needed to try it at least once. While we waited we stopped by the Silos bakery to secure some fresh muffins and cookies!

So there we were, with a bag full of goodies from the bakery (which there was no line there at 9AM so we had to take advantage) walking up to Magnolia table where there was already a wait. Luckily, there were only two of us, so we opted for a community table so our wait time was only around 20 minutes, which is the same we usually wait for a table of 5 at iHop on a Saturday morning.

The good thing about the restaurant is there are plenty of things to do while we wait. We circled around the building into the bakery, where it smelled like heaven. We got a bread basket to save for later and went back to the front to wait for our table. There was a coffee station where you could buy some more baked goods while you waited and some outdoor games. It was definitely crowded.

When our turn was up we got seated at a large table with about 10 or so people? The restaurant was v on brand. Farmhouse chic, black and white, subway tiles, with wood accents.

I got the avocado toast (over hyped) and my mom got the Farm Breakfast. But the star of our meal had to be the juice. Oh my god. No sugar added. Just pure amazing. The perfect end to our trip, truly.

After our breakfast we headed back to the trolley, and to the car to drop off all the food we bought, and headed to the Dr. Pepper factory.

---

Dr. Pepper Factory

The best thing about Waco is that it feels like everything is like 2 minutes away. The factory was literally down the street from Magnolia Market (but we took the trolley anyway).

The building itself looked like something straight out of the past, well- all of Waco is like that. The museum was three floors and had an entire other warehouse dedicated to past soft drink memorabilia. We picked up more snacks for my siblings and got our free Dr. Pepper that comes with every entry ticket purchased.

Last stop: Downtown Waco

---

Downtown Waco

Well, we didn’t go to the “downtown” we were hoping to find. Partly because we got lost (I know… even in a city as small as Waco we got confused… Waco natives don’t come after us please) So we strolled along this strip where we stumbled upon the cutest stationary store where I couldn’t decide what I wanted so I got 5 pens. V on brand.

After walking for a bit we decided to head home before it got too late.

Waco ended up being a cute little town full of rich history. We are definitely going to be back soon to explore everything we weren't able to get to!