6Romneys + 2Muffetts = Fort Worth Stockyards Fun!

We recently took a trip to the Fort Worth Stockyards to find our inner cowboy. Grandpa and Grandma Muffett were in town from Oregon, and we wanted to give them a taste of Texas history.  Not really knowing exactly what to expect, we rode into town on our old pony "GMC," and boy did we have a great time!  When we first arrived we had a chance to watch the "Fort Worth Herd" mosey through town.  They make this walk twice daily and seemed rather bored with it.  The cowboys riding with them (there were more than you can see from the picture) were definitely on the alert and making sure to keep everyone out of possible harms way.

Harrison and Ryder got some free souvenir FW sheriff badges from the Visitors Center.  You know how they like to keep the peace and all.

Next we visited the Stockyards Museum - "free" with a mandatory $2 donation per person.  While inside we found this cool tub the cowboys used to bathe in once or twice a year.

I'd definitely spend the extra dime for my bath!!

Then we took a look at what's left of the old Stockyards.  It's almost incomprehensible how much livestock used to pass through there!

Looks like Grandpa enjoyed the view from above a lot more than Ryder!

Next we took the kids to the Cowtown Maze.  For $5 per kid they get lost inside (I mean really lost) for about 15-20 minutes, or however long it takes them to find the letters in the word MAZE, punch their card and get out. They win a fabulous prize such as Chinese finger cuffs when they're done.  The parents get to stand on a platform overlooking the maze and shout out instructions to their increasingly frustrated offspring.  Boy was it fun!

Then Nicole and Ryder rode the mechanical bull. 

Nicole had lots of fun!

Ryder maybe not so much. . . but he held on.

Of course grandma found herself in a bit of a pickle -

Melanie met a special cowboy friend -

And Darren met a celebrity.

All in all it was a wonderful day, even though we never had that order of deep fried pickles like we had planned. I'll never forget Harrison and Ryder getting to ride Big Jake, the most patient longhorn in all of Texas.

We're fixin' to go back soon - y'all come and join us y'hear!

Best Cupcakes EVER!!

I like to have a cupcake now and then, but I have never been one to get overly excited about the prospect of trying a new cupcake flavor or visiting a "cupcake botique."  That was then - this is now.  About a year ago I saw an episode of Food Network's Ultimate Recipe Showdown, and the challenge was cupcakes.  One of the competitors was a dentist, so I was rooting (no pun intended) for her to win :).  She didn't, but I printed off her recipes to try anyway, because I think she should have won.  I made her Lemony Sunshine Cupcakes right away, and they were delightful.  I have made them several times since.  But last week I finally made the Key Lime Coconut Cupcakes With White Chocolate Frosting, and let me tell you I am soooooo glad I did!  These cupcakes are my favorite cupcake ever!!!!  If you make them you definitely want to use real key limes. I found a one pound bag of them at WalMart for only $1.23.  I only needed half the bag.  Not only do they taste DIVINE, but the colors are fabulous!!  If you visit my home you'll know how much I adore the color lime green!!  Trust me you should give them a try - you'll be glad you did!

Wow, I Can Scrapbook

I have always admired and been amazed by other peoples' skills with the art of scrapbooking, but it seems to require a lot of stuff to do it, not to mention time and creativity, so my attempts to do it myself have been few and far between. Recently though I have become intrigued with "digital scrapbooking" and "hybrid scrapbooking." When my folks came down from Oregon for a visit, I ended up with lots of cool pictures and decided to try creating a mini album. It took tons of time, and was not inexpensive (since I have very few scrapbooking supplies on hand), but I am pleased with the results. I sent it to my mom for Mother's Day along with a photo CD of all of the great photos we had taken. Here are some pictures I took of it before I dropped it in the mail.

I love that living in Texas I get to use that good ol' Western theme.

Many of the page markers were cut out of an old pair of Levi's jeans.

The star on the left page was a freebie they hand out to kids at the information center at the Fort Worth Stockyards.

This is my daughter Melanie's favorite page.  She likes the ribbon trim around the picture of the antique bathtub.



Love the Levi's tag on this one - the paper is pretty great too!



Y'all come back now y'hear.

The (rear)end.