11/25/09

A Cowboy and A Campfire

This past weekend, we took a (too many superlatives to express such a great day) trip to visit my grandpa out at his ranch. I just love that word...."ranch." Use it in any sentence, and I'm all ears.

"Hey, do you want to go out to the ranch?".... I'm already in the car with my boots on.

"Okay, so there's the gate to the ranch, if you don't mind opening...." I'm already back in the car from opening the gate.

.... even the culinary meaning of the word produces a quick response.
"What kind of dressing would you like with that?"...."Ranch, please," I say without a second thought. "We also have blue cheese, Italian vinaigrette...." Eeeeww, I think to myself as the waiter trails on. "No, ranch is fine..." I respond, taking pleasure in the fact that I was able to utter "the word" more than once.

Back to my original story though. Our visit to see my grandpa, and his ranch. Actually, my grandpa has begun exchanging the phrase "the ranch" for "the home place." This is due to recent developments (imagine saying that with a British accent). Haha. My mom and dad have been discussing plans to place a couple of small cabins out there, which, as you can probably imagine, has me already thinking of bed placement and room decor scenarios. We are all excited. It is such a great place, this "home place" of ours, and the best fringe benefit of it all is that when we're there, we get to spend time with a cowboy and a campfire.

Here are a couple of photos and a video to tide you over until our next visit to the ranch. Or, if you're more into swappin' sayings like my grandpa, and are less akin/enchanted/obsessed with the word "ranch" like I am....here are a few photos and a video from our visit to the home place. Enjoy, and have a wonderful Thanksgiving! ~April~









11/16/09

The Tale of Two Blogs

Hey everyone, I just thought I'd let you know about my new favorite blog. I have many. The one I just discovered, and have come to really enjoy reading is called "The Pioneer Woman." Check it out: http://thepioneerwoman.com/. Every time I read her blog, it reminds me of how much I want to live on a ranch when I am older. (P.S. Cowboys, feel free to leave comments...just kidding!) For now though, I'm loving life set amidst the beauty of the Texas Hill Country... it's a very special place! Speaking of special places, many are mentioned on another favorite blog of mine, the "Intelligent Travel Blog." You should check it out: http://blogs.nationalgeographic.com/intelligenttravel/.
Have a wonderful week! ~April~

To end this note, here is a quote: "The world is a book, and those who do not travel read only a page." ~St. Augustine~