Dean and Letty Rucker were our Wagonmasters for the Winter rally in
Burleson,TX at the beautiful Rustic Creek Ranch. Thursday night, we started the
rally with the Wagonmaster's homemade chili accompanied with hors d' oeuvres and
great deserts brought by the others.
Friday, we went to Arlington to tour the new Cowboy Stadium. The stadium has 3
million square feet, 104 million cubic feet. It is the largest enclosed stadium
(in cubic feet) in the NFL. Cowboy Stadium is the largest domed structure in the
world. Everyone was impressed and enjoyed the tour. Friday night, the group went
to Babes Restaurant. The original Babes was opened on April 22, 1993 by Paul and
Mary Vinyard in Roanoke, Texas located in an old warehouse building built in
1908. "Babe" is Mary's nick name. The menu's main dishes include fried chicken,
chicken fried steak, smoked chicken, fried catfish and pot roast. The meals are
served family style which is great for camaraderie.
Saturday, we headed over to the Russell Farm's Art Center. The original
farmhouse, along with its barns and other restored farm buildings are all
nestled within beautiful native Texas Oaks and Mesquites. Surrounded by a
variety of livestock and wildlife, the Center provides the perfect environment
for the contemplative or creative thought mutual to fine art. The Russell Farm
entered the Texas Family Land Heritage Program in 1977. We visited with the
artist at work and toured the galleries. The artist and students shared their
knowledge of art surrounded by the beauty and the history of the farm.
Saturday night's meal was at the local Villa Diana Italian restaurant. Eating
there was quite an experience. The building was nothing special, but the food
was a different story. Not only was the food outstanding, but the portion size
was unbelievable. Later that night we went back to the rally room for an evening
of fun and games. The Wagonmasters made homemade popcorn and we played the game
Catch Phrase, which brought many laughs and was a lot of fun. Sunday morning,
Ann and Al made their famous pancakes for the group; not to mention, all the
additional help and support they had provided.
The tours were a lot of fun and interesting, but visiting with friends was the
was the highlight of our rally. We all enjoyed visiting with our Washington
guests, Mel and Donna; as well as, Sam and Pat Vaughn who we had not seen in
several years. Also, there were several family guest who joined us: David, Chuck
and Carol's son, and Olivia, Bonnie and Jim's granddaughter. As always, we all
enjoyed fellowship with our President, Reba, and her husband, Clark. We look
forward to seeing everyone in Bryan, Texas.