#29 A Day with Alpacas!

TX-Ture Farm is a family owned farm in Aubrey that has alpacas, lavender, honeybees, and Christmas trees.  September 25 was National Alpaca Farm Day, so TX-Ture hosted an open house which made it the perfect reason to head north with my friend Jennifer for a fun day at the farm.

The first thing we did was felt some soap.  The farm makes soap, but we got to add alpaca fleece to it.  You pick your colors and use warm water to lather up the soap to adhere the fleece.  The fleece is incredibly soft, like cashmere.  It's a soothing activity and you can't really get it wrong.  The end product is a bar of soap encased in alpaca fleece so you have a built in loofah.

  

I was so excited to do yoga with the alpacas, even though I haven't done yoga since before the pandemic.  But what a fun experience to do yoga outside on a beautiful day with these sweet, gentle creatures walking around you.  When we finished, everyone got a pouch of food and that was super fun to feed them.

TX-Ture has picnic benches, so be sure to take a lunch when you visit.  After our charcuterie board & a lovely bottle of wine, we walked around the rest of the grounds to check out the lavender, the honey bees (from a distance of course), and the young Christmas trees.  We wrapped up our day with a swing through their store where you can get all sorts of fantastic farm-made products.  I may or may not have gotten a couple of Christmas gifts.

A super fun day!  Be sure to check out TX-Ture's Facebook page for future events.  I don't know that it is always open to visitors, but they do have events out there so you can experience the many things they have, not just the alpacas.

#28 Van Gogh

DFW is currently hosting the Van Gogh Immersive Experience.  Luckily, I have a great group of friends who enjoy doing fun things like this, so we headed over to the old Ranger Ballpark to experience the art of Van Gogh in a totally new and different way.

It's not unlike a museum in the sense that art is grouped together by some kind of theme and placards give a bit of background on the artist or the work of art.  What makes this different is that the art isn't the originals and while many of the reproductions were on canvases, much of the art was digital.  I am really wanting to describe the experience to you, but I'm struggling because it is truly immersive and experiential.  Like, you just have got to go do it to really understand.  

My favorite part was the room that was an entire 360 degree projection.  Floor to ceiling covered in constantly changing projections of Van Gogh's work.  This was the bulk of our time, about 20 minutes, listening to some narration and music while all of these gorgeous works surrounded us.  We decided that all workplaces and schools needed a room like this for relaxation.

     

   

We also did the VR option which took us through the French countryside, letting us see 19th century France the way Van Gogh must have seen it as he painted.  That was probably one of the most interesting aspects.  Van Gogh, of course, had mental health issues.  So to hear someone narrating his thoughts, "walking" through the countryside, seeing things as Van Gogh must have seen things really gave you some insight into how Van Gogh created.  Just a really neat experience.

I do think this is a really wonderful family outing, especially if you are looking to expose kids to art, but you don't feel the traditional museum will hold their attention.  The Van Gogh Immersive Experience will absolutely pique the interest of kids (& adults) who may otherwise not visit a museum or gallery.

#27 407 BBQ

 Y'all!  407 BBQ needs to be on your list of places to visit.  It's in Argyle, on FM 407, right off of I-35W.   It was a little stressful deciding what to get because it all looked so amazing!  And guess what?  It was.  I ended up going with the stuffed baked potato.  The stuffed baked potato is something I've come to love late in my adult life.  When I first heard about putting BBQ in a potato, I thought it was super weird.  But it is actually quite genius and delicious and 407's did not disappoint.  The potato was overflowing with brisket with just the perfect amount of butter, sour cream, and cheese.  And that brisket was tender, full of flavor and lean.  To me there is nothing worse than fatty brisket.  Topped with their BBQ sauce, that meal was perfection.  The only thing missing was banana pudding which had just sold out.  I'm so glad my friend Sunni was able to to join me for this adventure.  BBQ partnered with some sweet tea, good company, and a cool evening, it was a fantastic way to spend a Saturday night. 

Because the decision-making process was so hard, I ended up ordering a plate to go for Sunday lunch.  Stay tuned for an update on turkey breast, mac and cheese, and green beans,

#24 - #26 New Experiences in Las Vegas

Las Vegas is definitely not a new experience for me.  I first went in 2011 and I think I've been six or seven times since.  So even though it wasn't a new place to visit, it was definitely filled with some new experiences for me.  The original intent of the trip was the Joey McIntyre & Debbie Gibson concert at The Venetian.  Of course, I've seen Joey before with NKOTB, and I did see Debbie Gibson back in the day at the Music Mill Amphitheater at Six Flags.  But, I've never seen Guns N Roses in concert before and that was absolutely an unplanned and new experience for me.  They happened to be playing at Allegiant Arena the day we arrived, so we grabbed tickets about 45 minutes before showtime.  I guess I could even count that as part of my new experience, as I am more of a planner and not super spontaneous.  But thanks to Anita & Jaime, I am always working on my spontaneity.  Of course, I knew the Guns N Roses hits, but there were a lot of songs I didn't know as I was more of a New Wave and Pop kind of girl back in the 80s.  Not the most amazing concert I've been to, but worth it to see Slash play. He is phenomenal guitar player.  A true artist with his instrument.  I lost count of guitar changes by Slash after seven.  I was so glad they had these huge screens so I could just watch him play for most of the night.  Axel, on the other hand . . . bless his heart, his voice has definitely seen better days. 

In addition to the Guns N Roses concert, there were a few other new experiences for me, mostly food based.  We ate at Carmine's in the Forum, Yardbird at the Venetian and Sushisamba, also at the Venetian.  Family-style Italian, Southern Comfort, and Japanese-Brazialian-Peruvian fusion . . . I love that our group doesn't get stuck in a rut of one type of food.  We also ventured out to Peppermill, which will be celebrating its 50th next year along with me!  It's a Las Vegas classic; I don't think it has changed a bit since 1972!  If you want breakfast, get there early as it fills up fast,  Luckily, we had an Elvis impersonator to keep us company on our short wait.

My last first Vegas experience was a trip to Kate Spade.  I've always admired the style, but had never taken the plunge.  But when it's on sale, how do you not indulge yourself in a little fashion.

It was good to get away after a crazy start to the school year.  The great thing about Vegas is you can go multiple times, but every time is like a new experience because it's always changing and there are just so many different things to see and do.  Viva Las Vegas!

#23 Marker Cellars

My #50by50 adventure continues with a foray to Alvord, a small Texas town about 10 miles northwest of Decatur.  Why, you may be asking, would I venture out to Alvord?  Because it is home to Marker Cellars, a fantastic little winery with beautiful scenery, live music, and of course, a great variety of wine.  It's located in the Bluestem Grasses of the LBJ National Grasslands, which I was not familiar with.  I love that I got to drink wine with friends and learn about this area of Texas nature.

Even if you live on the west side of DFW like I do, you are still looking at an hour drive to Marker Cellars, but it is totally worth the drive.  First of all, it's in the middle of nowhere, so the views are just gorgeous and more importantly, peaceful.  They have a wide selection of wines, so you can choose to do a sweet or dry tasting, or if you know what you want, get a glass or bottle of your favorite.  And if you aren't feeling the wine vibe, Marker Cellars makes ciders as well.  Marker Cellars also lets you bring in your own snacks which only makes an afternoon listening to live music and drinking wine that much better.

       

After our afternoon at Markers Cellars, we headed back towards Decatur to Greenwood Grocery.  While a visit to Greenwood Grocery wasn't a totally new experience for me, going on a Saturday night for the catfish was.  I hadn't been to a catfish dinner in I don't know how many years.  It reminded me of going to the Hilltop on Friday nights when we would visit my grandparents in Nebraska as a kid.  You just can't go wrong with fried catfish on a Saturday night.  It was fried to perfection and served with this little pot of beans.  

       

     

All in all, a great way to spend a Saturday in North Texas.