👑 Tea & Tiaras + a Denton Tomahawk Steak

Hey, y’all!

First weekend of the school year, and I’m sure for you parents out there the house already feels different. Backpacks parked by the door. Alarms going off again. And that new 8:50 high school start time still throwing you for a loop every single morning.

So I say we all take this one slow. Saturday morning, there’s Buchanan's antique flea market at NTX Arena over on Stemmons. Indoors. Air conditioned. In August, that counts for a whole lot.

Then Water Works up in Denton reopens Saturday for the first weekend of its weekends-only stretch. Daily season ended the ninth. So if your kids are still asking about that lazy river, you've got four weekends left, and that's the whole list.

Over in Little Elm, Tinman Social is throwing its second annual Tea & Tiaras on Saturday morning. Four princesses, a craft table, dancing, and a real coronation to close it out. If you have a little girl at home, she’ll be talking about this clear till Christmas.

Saturday night, me and Tess are thinking of heading out to the plaza at Toyota Music Factory for the free Turnpike Troubadours tribute. Lawn chairs, no ticket, no cover, music under the sky. That’s pretty hard to beat in the dead middle of August.

Also inside: a Denton steakhouse worth the drive, a new boutique opening Saturday in Highland Village, and Piglet, a six-month-old schnauzer mix down at the shelter with a whole lot more enthusiasm than manners.

See you out there.

- Jason

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Tinman Social
199 Main St, Little Elm, TX
Saturday, August 15
10 AM to noon, check-in at 9:30 AM
Tickets cost $17.79 (for one child and one parent)
Additional children and adults cost $10 each
Tiaras available for $2 each while supplies last
Get Tickets

Little Elm ran this last year and it sold clean through. It's back. Got a kid between three and ten? Clear Saturday morning.

Four princesses show up in person: Tiana, Belle, Cinderella and Moana. And the two hours aren't just standing around. There's a craft, there's dancing, there's a tea service, and it wraps with a coronation. That coronation is the whole ballgame. Every kid in the room gets crowned, and those are the photos that end up framed on the mantel.

For an additional $15 per child, Tinman Social will be offering an exclusive Tea & Tiaras lunch package that includes:

Lunch vouchers will be distributed during check-in and must be redeemed the same day before 4:00 p.m.

Check-in's at 9:30, and it sold out last year, so book it now, not Friday night.

Some nights you want a real steak and you do not want to fight traffic down to Dallas to get one. Queenie's fixes that.

It's tucked just off the Denton Square, featuring a small dim room that seats maybe a few dozen. Chef Tim Love (read more about him here) opened it in 2013 and named it after his mama. Dressy-casual, quiet enough to actually hear each other. This is an anniversary room, not a Tuesday-with-the-kids room.

The tomahawk is what everybody talks about, and it earns it.

After that, folks keep coming back for the fried quail legs, the beef tenderloin and the hamachi tostadas. We hear you ought to start with the grilled oysters and the champagne mignonette. And we’ve been told the tomato basil soup and the butter lettuce salad both do more than a side course has any business doing. Save room for the Mexican ice cream.

Couple things before you go. Closed Sunday and Monday. Lunch is Friday only, 11:30 to 2:30. Reservations run through their site for parties under ten. And parking on the Square on a Saturday night is street and garage only, so give yourself a buffer before your reservation.

Price: $$$
Hours:
Sun - Mon Closed
Tue - Thu 5:00 - 10:00 PM
Fri 11:30 AM - 2:30 PM; 5:00 - 11:00 PM
Sat 5:00 - 11:00 PM

When Painted Tree closed every last one of its stores back in April, a whole bunch of southern Denton County vendors got left with no storefront and no warning.

The Collective Boutiques took over that same Highland Village Town Center space on FM 407, and the grand opening is this Saturday, August 15. The name isn't for show. The point is the folks they took in.

Here's how it runs. One big store, carved up into individually leased booths, each one leased and styled by an independent local owner. Gifts, home decor, clothing and accessories, furniture, candles, handmade art, kids' stuff, pet products, outdoor decor, packaged food.

Store manager Jennifer Hogeland runs the floor and the staff works the register, so vendors aren't stuck sitting their own booths all day.

Here's what sets it apart from your average vendor mall: they actually publish merchandise standards. No used clothing. No counterfeits. No mass-market junk flipped in from Temu or Shein. So what you're digging through was mostly made or curated by somebody who lives right around here.

Doors have technically been open since a soft launch in July. But Saturday's the party. Go early if you want to catch the owners while they've still got a minute to talk.

5 beds
4 baths
4,089 sqft
0.25 acres lot

A) $1,095,000

B) $1,195,000

C) $1,295,000

D) $1,395,000

School started back yesterday, and if your mornings feel like a fire drill, it's not just you. Trustees flipped the middle school and high school start times and tacked ten minutes onto every grade's day. Here's the new lineup: elementary 7:40 a.m. to 3:05 p.m., middle school 8:15 a.m. to 3:40 p.m., high school 8:50 a.m. to 4:15 p.m. The instructional day went from 435 minutes to 445.

Two more changes worth putting on the fridge, in case you missed it over the summer. Under Texas House Bill 1481, cell phones and smartwatches are banned for every student during the school day, no exceptions. And attendance now gives you five absences with a parent note, plus five more if you file a pre-planned absence form. Back-to-School forms opened in Skyward Family Access on August 3, so if you haven't knocked those out, do it tonight.

The vote wasn't unanimous. Trustees Lassahn and Taylor voted no on the time swap, worried about part-time jobs, marching band and shared facility scheduling. Board VP Katherine Sells voted yes, and pointed out middle schoolers were getting dropped off as early as 7:20 in the morning.

Sources: lisd.net | communityimpact.com

Denton County has held a strange title: biggest county in the whole country without a permanent Boys & Girls Clubs. That's about to end, and it's landing on Corporate Drive. Back in February, City Council handed the former fire station at 195 W Corporate Dr, Lewisville, TX over to Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Tarrant County.

The building's 8,000 square feet with a fenced yard, green space for a playground, and a 25-foot ceiling tall enough to drop in a full gym. Room to add another 5,000 square feet down the road. Programs will run for ages 6 to 18, and the club figures it'll reach more than 6,000 Denton County kids a year. Money in the door so far: $3 million in ARPA funds from Denton County and a $1 million lead gift from the RAO Foundation. Total project's pegged at $4 to $5 million, so there's still ground to cover, and that RAO gift came with a challenge for the community to match it.

The goal is to open August 19.

Sources: cityoflewisville.com

The Denton County Sheriff's Office Human Trafficking Unit teamed up with the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation and inspected 18 massage businesses across the county from June 23 through 26. Results came out July 29. Four shut down the day of the inspection. Six more got pushed into TDLR administrative closure proceedings over serious violations, and eight others were cited for licensing problems. Investigators walked in with search warrants for five of them.

Here's what it turned up: five aggravated promotion of prostitution cases, two operating-without-a-license cases, two people detained on immigration violations, one human trafficking outcry still under investigation, and $2,132 in cash seized. Lewisville, Flower Mound, Carrollton and The Colony police all pitched in, along with fire and code enforcement. Denton County Friends of the Family and Mosaic House Dallas handled victim services.

One thing, because a few aggregator sites already botched it: the Sheriff's Office hasn't said which cities the four closed businesses were in. Anybody telling you different is guessing.

Sources: crosstimbersgazette.com | fox4news.com

Trotter Park is headed to FM 1171 just east of Flower Mound Road, with construction expected to break ground in September and wrap up in January 2028. It runs 13 acres, right around 515,000 square feet, at a construction cost of about $10.25 million. The town padded the park budget with an extra $750,000 after landing a Texas Parks and Wildlife Department grant.

The plan calls for basketball, tennis and pickleball courts, a playground, walking trails, restrooms, a parking lot, and an entry plaza with a shade canopy. The Cultural Arts Commission has floated a permanent art piece, and a glow-in-the-dark trail system is on the list of trail options still being kicked around. The land came out of the 2018 Toll Brothers Town Lake approval and got handed back to the town in 2020.

Source: crosstimbersgazette.com

Six months old, 32 pounds, black and scruffy with a white patch on the chest and a set of ears that can't make up their mind whether to flop or stand up straight. Piglet's a schnauzer mix who landed at the Lewisville Animal Shelter on July 20.

Staff kept the write-up honest, and we appreciate that: "Piglet is a scruffy pup who would love a family that is ready to take on the responsibility of teaching some manners. He's a happy fella who loves to jump and greet people." Translation: six months old, all gas, no training yet. The jumping? A few weeks of work and it's gone. The happy part, nobody can teach.

The listing has his activity level as high and says he's good with other dogs. Housetraining and how he does with kids are both marked unknown, which usually just means nobody's had the chance to find out. A fenced yard and a little patience would go a long way with this one.

Adoption's $90 and covers the whole works: sterilization, microchip, vaccines, deworming, flea treatment, heartworm test, and a year of city registration if you live in Lewisville.

The Adoption Center's at 995 E Valley Ridge Blvd, Lewisville, TX, open Tuesday through Friday 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Saturday noon to 5 p.m. Mondays are by appointment. Call 972-219-3478 and ask about animal ID 61403393.

🍫 Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory in Shared Reality at Cosm - 5776 Grandscape Blvd, The Colony, TX | 12:30 p.m. | Dome tickets from $17, dessert tastings included | More: cosm.com
The 1971 original blown up on an 87-foot LED dome, with sweet-treat tastings baked right into the ticket. Matinees Friday and Saturday only. No Sunday show.

🏊 Indoor Pool Play Swim, last day before maintenance - Flower Mound Community Activity Center, 1200 Gerault Rd, Flower Mound, TX | noon to 8 p.m. | $4 youth / $6 adult resident, $6 / $8 non-resident | More: flowermound.gov
The indoor pool shuts down August 15 through 23 for its yearly maintenance, so Friday's your last shot for a while. Diving board, a 150-foot slide, and two climbing walls right over the water.

🏖️ Old Town Splash Park - 535 W College St, Lewisville, TX | 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. | Free | More: playlewisville.com
Ninety spray features, no standing water, open seven days a week clear through September. Free, and it sits right behind Wayne Frady Park.

💦 Doubletree Ranch Park Splash Pad - 310 Highland Village Rd, Highland Village, TX | 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. | Free | More: highlandvillage.org
Runs daily through Labor Day, closed Thursdays only. Playground, a fishing pier and a covered pavilion for when the kids need a breather from the water.

🏝️ Little Elm Beach - Little Elm Park, 701 W Eldorado Pkwy, Little Elm, TX | noon to 10 p.m. | $10 per vehicle | More: lakefrontlittleelm.com
Actual sand on Lewisville Lake, ten volleyball courts. Paid parking runs through September 7. No lifeguard, no glass, no pets on the sand.

🎨 Education Hallway Gallery, final weekend for three shows - Lewisville Grand Theater, 100 N Charles St, Lewisville, TX | 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. | Free | More: visitlewisville.com
"Songs Without Words," "Small Works," and Marilyn Henrion's "The Ninth Decade" all come down after Saturday, so this is the last look. Free, air conditioned, twenty minutes well spent.

🏝️ Sounds of Summer: Buffett Beach Band - Corona Stage & Lawn at Grandscape, 5752 Grandscape Blvd, The Colony, TX | 8 to 10 p.m. | Free | More: grandscape.com
Jimmy Buffett tribute out on the big lawn. Bring blankets and chairs, grab dinner from the spots ringing the green. Garage parking's free. No outside booze or coolers.

🎸 Lakeside Music Series: Maximum Acoustic - Music Series Plaza, The Shops at Lakeside Village, 2412 Lakeside Pkwy, Flower Mound, TX | 8 to 10 p.m. | Free | More: lakesidevillage.com
Classic rock and Americana on the plaza. And this one actually lets you haul in your own food, coolers, chairs and blankets, which almost nobody does.

Saturday, August 15, 2026

🧹 Service Saturday: Prairie Creek Cleanup - meet at Home Depot, 901 N Stemmons Fwy, Lewisville, TX | 8 to 10 a.m. | Free | More: llela.org
Two hours, supplies provided, all ages welcome with an adult. Meet at the far west end of the lot in the grass clearing. Go early. It's August.

🍅 Denton Community Market - Denton County Historical Park, 317 W Mulberry St, Denton, TX | 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., closing at noon if it tops 100 degrees | Free | More: dentonmarket.org
Producer-only farmers and artisan market with live music, kids' activities and food trucks. Texas WIC vouchers good through October.

🕰️ Buchanan's Antique Flea Market - The Vista at NTX Arena, 2401 S Stemmons Fwy, Lewisville, TX | 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. | Admission price not published | More: visitlewisville.com
Dealers from all over the country and Europe hauling antiques, collectibles and vintage finds. Indoors and air conditioned, which in August is reason enough to show up.

🖼️ Final day: three exhibitions at the Education Hallway Gallery - Lewisville Grand Theater, 100 N Charles St, Lewisville, TX | 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. | Free | More: visitlewisville.com
Last chance on all three shows. Jacob Johnson's pairs fine-art photography with his own solo classical guitar, which is a strange combination that flat-out works.

🌊 Denton Water Works Park, first weekends-only Saturday - 2400 Long Rd, Denton, TX | 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. | $19 (48"+), $14 (under 48"), $6 non-swimmers | More: dentonwaterworks.com
Daily season wrapped August 9 and the park sat closed all week. Saturday kicks off the weekends-only stretch that runs through September 7. Parking's free.

🏊 Sun Valley Aquatic Center - 801 S Valley Pkwy, Lewisville, TX | 1 to 6 p.m. | $4 resident / $8 non-resident, under 2 free | More: playlewisville.com
Lazy river, two double-loop slides, a leisure pool and a tot pool. Weekends only now, and the whole season's done August 30.

🛍️ Soul'd Out Saturday: The Melanin Market - Home2 Suites by Hilton, 450 E Corporate Dr, Lewisville, TX | 1 to 5 p.m. | Admission price not published | More: visitlewisville.com
Local maker market: crochet apparel, upcycled denim, candles, books and accessories from Lewisville-area small businesses. Fresh lemonade too.

Sunday, August 16, 2026

🌻 Third Sunday Nature Talk: Wildflowers, Not Just a Spring Thing - Thrive, 1950 S Valley Pkwy, Lewisville, TX | doors 9 a.m., talk 9:30 to 11 a.m. | Free, registration required | More: llela.org
Pat Thompson on Lewisville's fall wildflowers and how the city grows and manages its wildflower areas. Nature-themed door prizes, and it's honestly useful if you've got a yard.

⚡ Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone in Shared Reality at Cosm - 5776 Grandscape Blvd, The Colony, TX | 9 a.m., 12:30 p.m. or 4 p.m. | Dome from $22 (9 a.m.), $66 (12:30), $25 (4 p.m.) | More: cosm.com
Three showings Sunday on the 87-foot dome. Pricing swings hard by slot, so the 9 a.m. is the value play by a country mile.

🥕 Flower Mound Farmers Market - The River Walk, 4203 River Walk Dr, Flower Mound, TX | 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. | Free to browse | More: fourseasonsmarkets.com
Produce, local meat, eggs, honey, breads, jam and pies every Sunday along the River Walk.

💦 Doubletree Ranch Park Splash Pad - 310 Highland Village Rd, Highland Village, TX | 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. | Free | More: highlandvillage.org
Free, no reservations, open till eight. A solid Sunday reset before week two of school lands.

🛶 Kayak and paddleboard rentals at Twin Coves Park - 5001 Wichita Trail, Flower Mound, TX | park 6 a.m. to 10 p.m., rental office 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. | $10 per vehicle plus $15/hr single kayak, $25/hr double, $20/hr paddleboard | More: flowermound.gov
243 acres on the north shore of Lake Grapevine, with a boat ramp, disc golf and a lake overlook that's got a fire pit. Rentals get cancelled above 14 mph wind, so check before you make the drive.

🌊 The Cove at The Lakefront - 417 Lakefront Dr, Little Elm, TX | noon to 6 p.m. | Under 2 free, ages 2-14 and 50+ $20, ages 15-49 $24 | More: thecoveatthelakefront.com
Indoor slides, a lazy river, zero-depth splash zones and a FlowRider Double surf machine. Climate controlled, open rain or shine.

🥃 BENDT Distilling Co. tour and tasting - 225 S Charles St, Lewisville, TX | 5 p.m. | $10 per guest, 21+, reservation required | More: bendtdistillingco.com
About 45 minutes grain to glass, finishing in the tasting room with a guided flight. Walkable from Old Town, government ID required.

🎶 Acoustic Jam Session - Lewisville Grand Theater, 100 N Charles St, Lewisville, TX | 6 to 9 p.m. | Free | More: visitlewisville.com
Weekly open jam and song circle put on by the Visual Art League of Lewisville. Any acoustic instrument, any skill level, and parking's free along Main and Church.

🤘 Punks and Painters, five-band bill - Harvest House, 331 E Hickory St, Denton, TX | 7 p.m. to midnight | $2 cover | More: dentonharvesthouse.com
Five acts over five hours out in the beer garden, kicking off with Leon Carlo at 7 and running through The Amatory Murder at 11. Two bucks.

🍺 Live Music: Road Trip - Guitars & Growlers, 400 Flower Mound Rd Ste 160, Flower Mound, TX | 7 to 10 p.m. | No cover listed | More: guitarsandgrowlers.com
Craft beer, cocktails and a full kitchen with a band in the corner. Low-key Friday that doesn't ask you to plan a thing.

🎸 Tyler Bond with Mattie Rose - Dan's Silverleaf, 103 Industrial St, Denton, TX | doors 7 p.m., show 8 p.m. | $12 advance / $15 door | More: prekindle.com
Texas singer-songwriter double bill in Denton's best listening room. 21+ unless you're with a parent. Pairs easy with dinner on the Square first.

🎤 Tee Sanders - Punch Line Comedy Club, 310 W Las Colinas Blvd, Irving, TX | 7 p.m. | Ticketed, Starts at $32.05 | More: punchlineirving.com
Headliner set at the 240-seat room inside Toyota Music Factory. A Comedy Allstars showcase follows at 9:30 if you're making a night of it.

🎺 Calle 24, Eterno Tour - The Pavilion at Toyota Music Factory, 300 W Las Colinas Blvd, Irving, TX | 8 PM | Ticketed | More: thepaviliontmf.com
Regional Mexican act at the Pavilion. The venue lists the date but parks times and pricing on the ticketing page, so check there.

🕶️ The Matrix in Shared Reality at Cosm - 5776 Grandscape Blvd, The Colony, TX | 10 p.m. | Dome from $17 | More: cosm.com
Late-night run on the 87-foot dome. If you've been curious about Cosm but didn't want to drop real money, this is the cheap way in.

Saturday, August 15, 2026

☯️ Tai Chi in the Plaza - Wayne Ferguson Plaza, 150 W Church St, Lewisville, TX | 9:30 to 10:30 a.m. | Free | More: visitlewisville.com
Free weekly outdoor class working through the 16-movement form. No gear, no experience needed, just loose clothes and flat shoes.

🍂 Made by Hand: Autumn Doorknob Decor - Little Elm Public Library, 100 W Eldorado Pkwy, Little Elm, TX | 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. | Free, registration required | More: littleelm.libcal.com
Build a fall doorknob hanger out of ribbon, faux leaves, twine and bells. Strictly 18 and up, and they'll turn you away if you're more than ten minutes late.

🥃 BENDT Distilling Co. Saturday tours - 225 S Charles St, Lewisville, TX | 1, 3 and 5 p.m. | $10 per guest, 21+, reservation required | More: bendtdistillingco.com
Three afternoon slots if Friday slipped past you. The gift shop with the fill-your-own cask-strength bottles is open noon to 5, no reservation needed.

🍷 LaRue Winery tasting room - 1491 N Kealy Ave, Lewisville, TX | 3 to 11 p.m. | No cover, pay per pour or bottle | More: laruewinery.org
Old Town small-batch winery working with Chilean and California fruit. No act on the books this Saturday, just wine and a room that stays open late.

🎺 Hunter Sullivan Big Band Celebrates the Great American Composers - Windmills Brewery, 5755 Grandscape Blvd, The Colony, TX | 7 to 9 p.m. | $30 table seating / $20 bar seating | More: grandscape.com
Fourteen pieces, ten of them horns, running Basie, Ellington, Sinatra and Bobby Darin in the brewery showroom. You don't get a ten-horn section in a brewery very often.

🥊 UFC 330: Makhachev vs. Machado Garry at Cosm - 5776 Grandscape Blvd, The Colony, TX | 8 p.m. | GA from $11, Hall from $28, Dome from $83 | More: cosm.com
Makhachev defends the welterweight belt against Ian Machado Garry, shown cageside-style on the dome. GA at eleven bucks beats a movie ticket. Walk-ins depend on availability.

🎸 Private Property Band - 4Thirteen Kitchen & Sports Lounge, 755 State Hwy 121 BYP, Lewisville, TX | 9 p.m. to midnight | No cover published | More: lewisvilletxlive.com
Three straight hours from a Dallas-area band with an old-school soul and R&B lean. Close to home if you're not up for the Denton drive.

Sunday, August 16, 2026

🎭 Cynthia Lee Fontaine Presents: Drag Brunch at the Punch - Punch Line Comedy Club, 310 W Las Colinas Blvd, Irving, TX | noon | Ticketed, starts at $26.65 | More: punchlineirving.com
Midday drag brunch inside Toyota Music Factory. It's on the club's own schedule for Sunday at noon.

🎸 Texas Flood: A Tribute to Stevie Ray Vaughan - Dan's Silverleaf, 103 Industrial St, Denton, TX | doors 2 p.m., show 3 p.m. | $15 advance / $20 door | More: prekindle.com
An SRV tribute in a Sunday matinee slot, which is a rare and downright civilized way to burn an afternoon. 21+ unless you're with a parent.

🎶 Sunday Unwind with Chloe Clemente - Tande Craft Kitchen & Cocktails, 5754 Grandscape Blvd Ste 105, The Colony, TX | 5 to 7 p.m. | No cover listed | More: grandscape.com
Weekly live set down in the lower level of The Grotto, cocktails and small plates going. Two hours, no cover, easy landing.

🍇 Malbeck Uncorked - Steve's Wine Bar, 111 Industrial St, Denton, TX | 6 p.m. | $15 | More: steveswinebar.com
Sunday evening guided tasting at the downtown Denton wine bar that just hit ten years.

🎧 Timewellspent, For Ivadell, We Drowned in Pompeii and A New Day - Rubber Gloves Rehearsal Studios, 411 E Sycamore St, Denton, TX | doors 6 p.m., show 7 p.m. | $15 | More: rubberglovesdenton.com
Local emo and post-hardcore four-band bill in the Showroom, 18+. There's a whole second show running in the Rubber Room the same night.

🤠 Cash Byers and the Big Valley - Harvest House, 331 E Hickory St, Denton, TX | 8 p.m. | No cover | More: dentonharvesthouse.com
Free Sunday-night country and Americana out in the beer garden. Harvest House opens at noon on Sundays if you feel like getting there early.

Toyota Music Factory's been running free Saturday-night tributes on the plaza all summer, and August 15 is the Turnpike Troubadours slot.

If you've ever hollered along to "Good Lord Lorrie" in your truck, you already know whether this is your night. It's outdoors on the plaza, no ticket, no cover, and the restaurants wrapped around the space handle food and drinks, so there's nothing to pack. Lawn chairs are welcome and folks bring them, so pull yours out of the garage before you head over.

The nine o'clock start means you eat dinner first without rushing a soul. Summer's fixing to pack up and the free outdoor shows go with it, so grab this one while it's still on the board.

🚗 Get directions to Toyota Music Factory