Our week in five

// ONE //

This week was a bit different for us because we started it out by visiting my uncle and aunt at their property in West Texas. The drive is normally about four and a half hours—for regular people, that is. With a three-year-old and a one-year-old, it took us seven hours. Sigh.

But the reward was worth the long drive because we always have such a wonderful time out there. The kids love it because they can touch and play with all sorts of farming equipment like tractors and a backhoe. Or, even better, this old tire that happened to be lying around and that supplied endless hours of entertainment:

We love it because we get to spend time with family and eat queso and homemade pico de gallo all day long.

My cousin Mark was also visiting and taking a break from his tour around the world. Really! He plays an instrument called the Chapman Stick and has been traveling for several years now. Check out his website here if you would like to know more about the Chapman Stick and hear some of his music. He and his girlfriend, Stefanie, are incredibly talented. They are actually working on recording a new CD now, which is why they will be in the States for a little while.

// TWO //

There was one oasis in the desert that was our long drive to the ranch: Buc-ee’s. I could leave it at that for those of you from Texas because, really, need I say more? But to expand a little bit, Buc-ee’s is basically the Disney World of convenience stores. It has delicious food (read: beef jerky, fudge, and kolaches), a fun gift area, and amazingly clean bathrooms—I’m pretty sure it has Disney beat on that. The kids LOVED it.

After I begrudgingly accepted giant fudge samples from the nice lady behind the fudge counter, The Dot and Lamborghini ran around the toy section like, well, kids in a candy shop.

It was the perfect stop for stretching our legs and made the drive seem less onerous. I’m pretty sure we were all “Buc-ee-lievers” by the time we left.

// THREE //

We had to cut our trip short because (1) Mr. L had work, and (2) MOST IMPORTANTLY, Lamborghini had his Fall Festival at school. I adore his school for many reasons, but programs like these top the list. We started off the morning watching Lamborghi and his schoolmates parade through the great room wearing their Halloween costumes.

Lamborghini is dressing up as a fighter pilot this year. He keeps telling people he’s a truck, which is killing me because I’m thinking, “Why didn’t I think of getting him a truck costume months ago!?” But I plan to make a cardboard airplane for him this weekend, so I’m hoping it will up the coolness factor a bit.

The Dot was most excited about the parade because she kept asking, “Brother!” (That’s how she asks for him—with an exclamation point). When he finally came out, she ran up to him and he gave her the hugest smile. It made my heart melt.

In addition to the costume parade, the kids also played games and trick-or-treated for cute toys. We *may* need to work on his golf skills a little bit because he had no idea what to do with that golf club. But he had excellent aim with the bean bag toss games, and he did know what to do with the candy he received as a treat. He and The Dot polished off all the candy within thirty minutes of Lamborghini getting home after school. Good thing Halloween is Wednesday so they can restock.

// FOUR //

The Bug-A-Salt 2.0 Fly Gun.

We built a fire the first night at my uncle’s property, and there were flies everywhere. Then my cousin whipped out this device.

The Bug-A-Salt is a gun that you fill with regular table salt that you then use to shoot at flies. It kills them instantaneously. I must admit that I am a little wary posting about this because of all of the controversy surrounding guns, but we didn’t let the kids use it and, quite frankly, it does the same thing as a fly swatter. I think it would be a great Christmas gift for outdoor enthusiasts. Mentally filing this one away . . . .

// FIVE //

Lastly, I wanted to share this fascinating Texas Monthly article from 2004 that, as Paul Harvey would say, tells “the rest of the story” about a small farming community in West Texas that won the lottery back in 1996. Forty-two struggling farmers pooled together money to buy lottery tickets and hit the jackpot. Sadly the article is titled “Reversal of Fortune” because that’s what befell almost every one of the winners, but the story of how they lost it isn’t what you would expect.

The article also gives a glimpse into the small west-Texas farming communities that are slowly disappearing. I always tell people from out of state that the people in west Texas are the quintessential Texans. They are the nicest people you will ever meet, have a camaraderie you will never see, and would give a stranger the shirt off of their back even though they, themselves, are often the ones in need but would never say so.

The article is just one of many excellent articles that Texas Monthly sends out in their “The State of Texas” daily emails. I highly recommend signing up for the mailing list (linked here). It can get annoyingly political around election season, but most of the articles are interesting and fun to read and it keeps you apprised of state and local news.