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Good morning, The Woodlands.
Twenty years ago somebody signed a paper with Houston, and yesterday somebody signed the last page of it.
That is the kind of news you can read once and put down, which is a good sign for a town.
So this weekend, go eat. Babin's has a $25 dinner for its 25th year, and there are fireworks on Sunday.
And if you were thinking about a tattoo, read what David Gray says about designing tattoos with AI.
Glad you’re here,
—Erika & Mike
🗞 In this issue…
🎨 Nine Years of Ink in Magnolia, and One Warning About AI
🏛️ Houston Voted Yes, and the Annexation Question Is Closed
🍽️ Babin's Turns 25 With a Three-Course Cajun Dinner for $25
🇺🇸 The Woodlands Marks 25 Years Since 9/11 at the Central Fire Station
WARNING: Flood Watch in effect until 7:00 a.m. Thursday. Give the low spots a wide berth on the morning commute.
Thursday, September 3, 2026
🌧️ Rain · 88°F / 78°F
Chance of rain: 70%.
Keep the umbrella in the car all day, not just the morning.
Source: Apple Weather
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Houston Voted Yes, and the Annexation Question Is Closed
Photo: Vanessa Holt, Community Impact
Houston City Council voted Wednesday, September 2, to approve the Third Amendment to the Regional Participation Agreement with The Woodlands Township, one week after the Township Board approved it unanimously at a special meeting on August 26. The amendment is now executed.
Houston gets about $50 million. The restrictions come off the roughly $22.6 million already sitting in the Regional Participation Fund, and the dollar-for-dollar match Houston would have had to put up to access it is gone. On top of that, the Township pays $27.4 million in unrestricted funds over the next three years, $19.5 million of it from existing cash reserves.
The Woodlands gets certainty. Beginning in 2030, the slice of sales tax that used to go into the fund stays here, which the Township projects at an average of $4.5 million a year over the next 30 years. And the possibility of annexation by Houston is eliminated while The Woodlands remains inside the city's extraterritorial jurisdiction.
The vote was not unanimous on Houston's side. District C council member Joe Panzarella cast the lone no, saying he objected to unrestricting money that had been dedicated to infrastructure and parks, and City Controller Chris Hollins called it a bad deal before the vote. Mayor John Whitmire called it a win-win for both communities.
Why it matters: Nearly twenty years after the original agreement, the question of whether Houston could ever absorb The Woodlands has a written answer.
Source/Credits: The Woodlands Township · Community Impact
Babin's Turns 25 With a Three-Course Cajun Dinner for $25
Photo: Woodlands Online
Babin's Seafood House is marking a quarter century the way you would hope: a three-course menu for $25 per person, available starting September 1 at the Shenandoah location, 19529 Interstate 45.
Pick a starter, chicken and sausage gumbo or a Caesar salad. Then an entrée: golden tile with dirty rice, blue crab cakes topped with lemon butter crawfish, or Bourbon Street pasta with blackened shrimp, crab, crawfish and andouille in a Cajun cream sauce. Finish with beignets and coffee custard or a traditional bread pudding. A Hurricane with a Creole kick is $5 on the side.
The same menu runs at the Katy location. Details and reservations are at babinsseafood.com.
Why it matters: Twenty-five years is a long run for any restaurant, and this is the rare anniversary where the customer gets the gift.
Source/Credits: Woodlands Online
The Woodlands Marks 25 Years Since 9/11 at the Central Fire Station
Photo: Woodlands Online
The Patriot Day of Remembrance returns Friday, September 11, from 7:30 to 8:30 a.m. outside The Woodlands Central Fire Station, 9951 Grogan's Mill Road. Residents, visitors and first responders are all invited.
The ceremony honors the nearly 3,000 lives lost on September 11, 2001, and the firefighters, law enforcement officers, emergency medical personnel and military members who answered that day. The program includes a Presentation of Colors by The Woodlands Fire Department Honor Guard, a reading of The Fireman's Prayer, and the Ringing of the Bell for fallen firefighters.
Onsite parking is limited. For anyone who cannot be there in person, the ceremony streams live on The Woodlands Township Facebook page.
Why it matters: A quarter century on, the people who run toward the fire still gather at 7:30 in the morning to remember the ones who did not come back.
Source/Credits: Woodlands Online
Curated local listings for quick browsing and easy connections.
Nine Years of Ink in Magnolia, and One Warning About AI
Mr. Gray's Tattoo Studio has been putting ink on skin at 814 Honea Egypt Road in Magnolia since July 2017, with a team of artists working everything from fine line black and gray to Japanese traditional. Ask David Gray what the most common mistake he sees these days is, and the answer has nothing to do with spelling, or regret, or a name that should not have been there. It is about where the design came from, and why something that looks perfect on a screen can turn into a tattoo you will not want ten years from now.
Thursday, September 3
🗓️ Josh Groban: Stage, Screen and Symphony | The Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion | 7:30 PM | More info
🗓️ Township Special Board Meeting, 2027 budget and tax rate | The Woodlands Township | 6:00 PM | More info
Friday, September 4
🗓️ Fare Free Friday on Township buses and trolleys | All day | Free | More info
🗓️ Storybook Theatre: Hey Grandude! | 11:00 AM | More info
🗓️ Footloose The Musical | 7:30 PM | More info
🗓️ Wilson Fairchild, Sons of the Statler Brothers | 8:00 PM | More info
Saturday, September 5
🗓️ 35th Annual Kiwanis Kids Fish Fest | 7:30 AM | Free | More info
🗓️ Free French class for beginners | French Courtyard, 27326 Robinson Rd, Oak Ridge North | 10:00 AM | Free | More info
🗓️ Zoé: MEMOREX + RESEXEX + MÁS | The Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion | 8:00 PM | More info
Sunday, September 6
🗓️ Labor Day in The Woodlands, fireworks | Waterway Square | 5:00 PM | Free | More info
🗓️ Family Friendly Sing-Along Show | 2:00 PM | More info
Monday, September 7
🗓️ Basic Digital Photography class | Precision Camera & Video, 17937 I-45 N, Shenandoah | More info
Tuesday, September 8
🗓️ Boogie Bash-In September | 11:00 AM | More info
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🌳 Woodlands Trivia
David Vetter, known around the world as the boy in the plastic bubble, grew up in Shenandoah, where the neighbors quietly closed ranks to protect his family's privacy. In 1986 the Shenandoah city council renamed Tamina School Road to David Memorial Drive in his honor. Thousands of people drive it every day without knowing whose name is on the sign.
🤠 Talkin' Texan
"She could sit on the fence and the birds would feed her." Translation: she is unreasonably lucky. Not hardworking, not clever. Lucky, and everybody has noticed.
🚿 Shower Thought
Almost every photo of you as a child was taken by someone who does not appear in a single one of them.
😂 Dad Joke
I am friends with 25 letters of the alphabet. I do not know Y.
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