Tuesday, May 24, 2011

Ft. Worth Stockyards

The countdown is on.  As of this last weekend we had 8 Saturdays left to enjoy being just "us"... and that's if Miss Olivia shows up on her due date.  We figured we better get out and enjoy ourselves and maybe even see a little bit of Texas while we were at it.

I've wanted to go to a rodeo since we got here.  I've never been and it's something I've been wanting to do (even before we moved to the grand old state of Texas).  Lucky for me, there is one going on every weekend of the year in Fort Worth!  Fort Worth has a couple of different "districts" (I guess you would say), and one is called the Stockyards.  It has everything you think of when you think of stereotypical Texas.  We have seen very little of the stereotypes, so it was time to really experience Texas.

Fort Worth is about an hour drive from where we live in the northern suburbs of Dallas.  Every day at 11:30 and 4:00 there is a cattle drive down the streets in the Stockyard area.  We thought that would be cool, so we arrived to the area around 3:30 to find a place to watch.

Here's what we saw on our short walk to the place where we would watch
The General Store and Trading Post... of course! :)

The streets are full of shopping (all Texas style things for sale) and restaurants

These type of statues are all over
The Coliseum is in the background.  That's where the rodeo takes place every Friday and Saturday night.

You could take stagecoach or carriage rides

Some dude riding a longhorn...how odd

The cattle drive--I'll admit, we thought there were going to be a little more, but it was still pretty cool.
Yeah, he was a little closer than I would have liked.  Do you see him eyeing me!?!

After the cattle drive we had an early dinner.  It was a rustic type place.  I wasn't fond of my food, but Michael liked his.  Next time we'll definitely try somewhere different.

From there we headed out to the shops.  It's just one long street filled with all sorts of shops.  They all carrying pretty much the same thing--cowboy boots, cowboy hats, cowboy type decorations.  You get the idea.

I tried on a hat at the first store we went to.  I wasn't really planning on buying one.  I was more doing it to be silly.  Michael really liked it.  He thought I should get one.  Hats aren't normally my thing because of my oh-so-round face, but cowboy hats are a little different because of how they sit on your head (and you can still see my hair).  I didn't buy one there, but figured I'd keep my eye out for a cute one.  I live in Texas now.  I'm sure there will be a time when a cowboy hat will come in handy! :)  I want a pair of boots too, but I'm not buying them while pregnant.

I found a hat and Michael insisted that I wear it the rest of the day.

You know why I love it?  Because it has bling!!!!!!! :)
even along the sides!!

Photo ops through the streets and stores...
"Abe Lincoln"... he was used in some movie that had Sarah in the title.  I never heard of it, which is why I can't remember the name.

I couldn't reach the little window Michael looked out, so I had to look out the bars.

After we hit almost every store it was time to give my feet a rest.  I drank more water that day than I can even count, and my feet still swelled up.  I had 80 oz before we even got there at 3:30.  The waiter refilled my glass at dinner more times than I can even remember--4 or 5?  Later I bought a 24 oz bottle of water and then even later in the evening another 20 oz bottle.  It put my feet up at dinner and then again for almost an hour in between shopping and the rodeo.  It didn't matter.  A few hours of walking, 90 degree weather, and then sitting for a two hour rodeo had both my feet and ankles swollen nice and big.

The rodeo was great.  I wish I had all sorts of fun pictures for you, but they all move so fast that everything was coming out blurry.  Here are just a few of what I got.
 The "flag girl" riding to the National Anthem.
(I don't know what her title was, but she came out with a different flag in between every event.)

They actually prayed!! (which is why her head is bowed)

Bull riders getting ready
No bull rider made it the 8 seconds :(

It's a bit of a blur, but you can see the bull rider being thrown off.

There were lots of other events besides bull riding, but they were all too fast too.  I decided to put the camera away and enjoy the show.  I look forward to going again!

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