IN 20 YEARS, YOU'LL REGRET THE THINGS YOU DIDN'T DO MORE THAN THE THINGS YOU DID! FT. WORTH...HERE WE COME!

ONLY OUT ON THE RANGE CAN YOU TRULY FIND YOURSELF! WELL, OUR "RANGE" FOR THE DAY, WAS THE OL' COWTOWN OF FT. WORTH, TEXAS...THE INFAMOUS STOCKYARDS! WE WERE ALL OVER THAT PLACE LIKE A CHICKEN ON A JUNE BUG!

WOW - WHAT AMAZING BURGERS WE HAD AT THE LOVE SHACK!!!!!

WHOA, NELLIE...buffalo butt beer?

ON TO MAVERICK...

OH MY...WHAT A PLACE!! AT MAVERICK, OTHER THAN SALIVATING OVER THE HUGE SELECTION OF FINE WESTERN WEAR, BOOTS, JEWELRY AND ACCESSORIES... WE VISITED WITH THE FAMOUS DEVON DAWSON - VOICE OF JESSE, THE SINGING COWGIRL, IN THE TOY STORY MOVIES! I KNEW HER THROUGH MY AMERICAN COWBOY MAGAZINE AND A SPOT ON TEXAS COUNTRY REPORTER!

THEY EVEN SERVE COLD BEER & WINE WHILE YOU SHOP!



COLLESEUM ENTRANCE (1908)-LEARN MORE ABOUT THE STOCKYARDS AT: http://www.stockyardsmuseum.org/

NEXT, IT WAS ON TO THE COWGIRL HALL OF FAME!

I HAVE ONLY DREAMED OF ONE DAY SEEING THIS PLACE!

WE WERE BLESSED TO HAVE OUR OWN PRIVATE DOCENT - COMPLIMENTS OF JOLINE- AND IT WAS AWESOME AND AMAZING! HER NAME WAS KAY AND SHE GREW UP ON THE RODEO CIRCUIT - HER DADDY WAS A RODEO CLOWN! SHE WAS VERY KNOWLEDGEABLE AND HAD A LOT OF PERSONAL BACKGROUND INFORMATION! THE EXPERIENCE WOULD NOT HAVE BEEN WHAT IT WAS WITHOUT HER! THE EXHIBITS WERE GORGEOUS AND WE SAW SOME OF THE NEATEST COLLECTIONS FROM THE 190 INDUCTEES!

(OF COURSE I WASN'T ABLE TO PHOTOGRAPH IN THE MUSEUM, EXCEPT FOR THIS ONE PARTICULAR INTERACTIVE EXHIBIT!)

YOU'D RIDE YOUR BRAINS OUT FOR 20 SECONDS, TRYING NOT TO LET YOUR SADDLE OUT RUN YOUR BUTT AND THEN COLLECT A TICKET TO LATER DOWNLOAD YOUR BUCKIN' FOOTAGE FROM THE COWGIRL.NET WEBSITE! WHAT A HOOT! YOUR IMAGE WAS SUPERIMPOSED AGAINST OLD FOOTAGE TAKEN FROM THE PENDLETON ROUNDUP OR THE CALGARY STAMPEDE - YOU COULD PICK!

"IF YER HORSE AIN'T SWEATIN', U AIN'T GOIN' FAST ENOUGH!"

OOOOWEEEE!

AFTER THE TOUR, WE HAD TO CHECK OUT THE GIFT SHOP THAT WAS PACKED WITH THE COOLEST COWGIRL GOODIES! I ROUNDED THE CORNER AND WHAT DID I SEE? YUP! COWGIRL KATE! THE COWGIRL FIGURE THAT I MADE EXPECIALLY FOR THE INDUCTEE LUNCHEON LAST OCTOBER! SHE LOOKED GREAT AND IT WAS THRILLING TO VISIT HER IN HER NEW HOME!

(THAT'S KAY, OUR FAVORITE DOCENT, IN THE PRINTED PEARLSNAP!)


This was coming out of the ceiling in the gift shop
Mamie Francis Hafley (1886-1950) Year Inducted: 1981 Home State: CA
Mamie thrilled audiences with her dare-devil act of riding her horse off a 50-foot-high platform into a barrel of water just 10 feet across. Between 1908 and 1917, she performed this stunt 628 times. She also performed as a sharpshooter, before and after the years of her diving act. Learning to shoot when she was a child, Mamie did her rifle shooting from horseback, performing in vaudeville and the wild west shows.





THE FIRST DAY ENDED WITH AN AMAZING MEAL AT JOE T'S!
OUCHEE WOWA...THE FOOD, MARGARITAS, GARDENS AND ATMOSPHERE.....

MUI BUENO!!!!!!!!!

DAY 2.....WEATHERFORD, TEXAS!

WE STAYED WITH LUANNE'S DAUGHTER, SARAH AND SWEET TALULAH!

THE INFAMOUS TESKEY'S!!!!!!!!!

WHERE DO YOU LOOK FIRST? TACK, FARM & RANCH, HOME DECOR, CLOTHING, BOOTS, OR JEWELRY??

SMILE, CHICAS!

THE PLACE WAS FILLED WITH THE MOST EXTRAORDINARY STUFF! HUGE WESTERN NAME BRANDS! I SAW THINGS THAT WERE ADVERTIZED IN MY COWBOYS AND INDIANS MAGAZINES! OF COURSE, BEING WHO THEY WERE...THE PRICE TAGS WERE HUGE TOO!

...IT WAS STILL FUN TO LOOK!

WE HIT A FEW OTHER HOT SPOTS IN WEATHERFORD AND ALSO MINERAL WELLS BEFORE WE HEADED BACK TO VERNON...BACK TO REALITY...

SOME THINK THE CITY IS A WASTE OF GOOD PASTURE LAND, BUT IT SURE IS FUN TO VISIT EVERY NOW AND THEN!

IT WAS A SASSY, EXCITING GIRL'S TRIP AND WE'RE ALL LOOKING FORWARD TO ANOTHER ONE SOON!

...RIDE LIKE THE WIND AND NEVER LOOK BACK...