Everything is better in small towns...and with family

   While I have always been a big-city girl, nothing seems to be as enjoyable as time spent in a small town.  That time is always accompanied by family, which also makes everything better, so whether the chicken came first or the egg I do not know, but I suspect they go hand-in hand.
   A few weeks ago, on a beautiful Saturday morning, a couple of my kids and I, along with my parents, were strolling through quaintly restored downtown Bryan, TX, headed toward the farmers' market.  There, the farmers' market is the real deal.  Rather than a cool hipster hang out, actual farmers bring in home-grown goods from real farms in old Ford pick up trucks. Everything about it oozes authenticity.  Somewhere on the 100 yard walk from our car to the canopies of fresh produce, flowers, herbs and honey, someone mentioned being hungry.  Mind you, breakfast was only an hour or so in the past, but we have a family tradition on trips of any length or location, that we must make food stops about once an hour.  So, it made sense to everyone to turn around and look for some cute local place for a bite.
   My middle daughter, who's in school there and frequents the charming establishments in that district, immediately suggested a new kolache shop nearby.  We did not need to be convinced.  In a few minutes we entered a tiny little bakery with still-sparkling pine trim and stained concrete floors, and an intoxicating aroma of freshly baked breads, kolaches, and cinnamon rolls. As we stared through the glass case at the mouth watering choices, I'm pretty sure I heard multiple murmurings of, "Just give me one of everything".  My dad proceeded to order almost that much, along with hot cups of coffee, and soon our 2nd breakfast was being devoured.
   I lost track of all the times someone said, "These are seriously the best cinnamon rolls I've ever had", but the truth is, they just were. The perfect amount of cinnamon and sugar, pecans and glaze. Light and flaky. Melted in your mouth. Amazing.
   Or... was it the cute shop? Or the picturesque town? The perfect crisp, early spring day? The farmers' market? The small town? Or being with family? Probably, all of the above.  But I will definitely be returning regardless of the weather, and by myself if need be, and I can test that hypothesis while indulging in another one of those cinnamon rolls.