A great time at the Oil Ranch ~ Houston
Would you like to hear about our day at the Oil Ranch outside Houston?
We left Austin this morning bright and early and drove on down to the Oil Ranch in Hockley (just outside of Houston). There was about a 20% chance for rain and as we left Austin, it certainly looked like we were in for a rainy day! But we only encountered light sprinkles along the way. By the time we arrived at the Ranch, the skies were clearing and we found it was HOT and HUMID in the way only Texas can be ... like a sauna! But it was a beautiful day and we practically had the ranch to ourselves! 
The little train was running every hour on the hour, so we decided to start there ... what day would be complete without a train ride?!! 
I liked the Weather Station at the Ranch very much. The "hanging rock" was dry, so the weather was pronounced FAIR ... and it certainly wasn't windy, foggy, raining or snowy ... but like I said ~ it was hot and humid!
There were pony rides! Look at Jackson Drew proudly riding this cute little pony! Everyone got to have a turn ... or two even!
Six months ago, Nathan wasn't very excited about the pony ride at Old McDonald's Farm (but the pony was bigger) ~ but today, Nathan rode this pony like a true cowboy (or cow-toddler).
And Karis certainly wasn't going to be left out of the fun ... she could ride a horse as well as any boy!
They hay ride was a blast ... as we were climbing on board, the gentleman was handing us this weird-looking cow food (hard sticks of something) and we were told that we were going to feed the cows! Cool!
Except these cows were BIG and not at all shy! I was very overwhelmed at first when eight or nine of these huge animals surrounded the hay wagon and stuck their faces within inches of me!
I mean, look at this guy! Would you want him just inches from your face!!!??? Plus, each cow came with their very own one thousand flies ...
The little kids were pretty squeemish of these animals at first (it didn't help that grandma was saying, "Oh no ... I don't like this, etc.") ~ but then everyone got used to how huge the cows were and fed them the food and the hay and we had a great time!
Boo bear wasn't sure about the cows and the flies and the smell ... but young Nathan brings Boo everywhere with him ... he looks like he is having a great time!
Boo is practically as big as Nathan, but this small boy just grabs Boo by the neck and off they go! They are inseparable!
Miss Nia watched contentedly from her stoller ... her uncle Andrew and her daddy were approaching something called "Dynamite" and were going to try to lassoo a cow!
Andrew was first to try this mechanized gadget ...
Everyone got in on the fun ...
Andrew's attempts to rope the little steer were unsuccessful ... although he put forth a great effort!
Jackson was watching close by from the driver's seat of this nice tractor ...
Nicolas caught the steer by its neck on the first try ... and another time got it by its heel! We were very impressed! :)
There was just all kinds of fun stuff to do at the Ranch!
Since we were all overheated, snow cones seemed to be just what all of us needed ... look at Nathan's little face ~ I have no idea where Boo is right now, but it seems he missed out on having his snow cone ... but after our snow cones were eaten, it was time to say good-by to Andrew, Sabrina, Jackson and Karis ~ they had a 2.5 hour drive back to Austin. It was sad to see them go and to realize it will be awhile before we get to see them again ... that's the real sad thing about having children and grandchildren so far away ...
We decided to take one last train ride around the Ranch to help us cool down a bit. Here is Grandpa Jones with the youngest grandchild, who will be a big sister before the end of the year.
Nia was pretty tired by the end of our time at the Ranch and fell asleep in Grandpa's arms. Very sweet ... We had a great time at the Oil Ranch. I actually took over 300 pictures today of the animals and the beautiful scenery around the ranch ... I just wanted to give you a peak at our day!
We left Austin this morning bright and early and drove on down to the Oil Ranch in Hockley (just outside of Houston). There was about a 20% chance for rain and as we left Austin, it certainly looked like we were in for a rainy day! But we only encountered light sprinkles along the way. By the time we arrived at the Ranch, the skies were clearing and we found it was HOT and HUMID in the way only Texas can be ... like a sauna! But it was a beautiful day and we practically had the ranch to ourselves! 
I liked the Weather Station at the Ranch very much. The "hanging rock" was dry, so the weather was pronounced FAIR ... and it certainly wasn't windy, foggy, raining or snowy ... but like I said ~ it was hot and humid!
There were pony rides! Look at Jackson Drew proudly riding this cute little pony! Everyone got to have a turn ... or two even!
Six months ago, Nathan wasn't very excited about the pony ride at Old McDonald's Farm (but the pony was bigger) ~ but today, Nathan rode this pony like a true cowboy (or cow-toddler).
And Karis certainly wasn't going to be left out of the fun ... she could ride a horse as well as any boy!
They hay ride was a blast ... as we were climbing on board, the gentleman was handing us this weird-looking cow food (hard sticks of something) and we were told that we were going to feed the cows! Cool!
Except these cows were BIG and not at all shy! I was very overwhelmed at first when eight or nine of these huge animals surrounded the hay wagon and stuck their faces within inches of me!
I mean, look at this guy! Would you want him just inches from your face!!!??? Plus, each cow came with their very own one thousand flies ...
The little kids were pretty squeemish of these animals at first (it didn't help that grandma was saying, "Oh no ... I don't like this, etc.") ~ but then everyone got used to how huge the cows were and fed them the food and the hay and we had a great time!
Boo bear wasn't sure about the cows and the flies and the smell ... but young Nathan brings Boo everywhere with him ... he looks like he is having a great time!
Boo is practically as big as Nathan, but this small boy just grabs Boo by the neck and off they go! They are inseparable!
Miss Nia watched contentedly from her stoller ... her uncle Andrew and her daddy were approaching something called "Dynamite" and were going to try to lassoo a cow!
Andrew was first to try this mechanized gadget ...
Everyone got in on the fun ...
Andrew's attempts to rope the little steer were unsuccessful ... although he put forth a great effort!
Jackson was watching close by from the driver's seat of this nice tractor ...
Nicolas caught the steer by its neck on the first try ... and another time got it by its heel! We were very impressed! :)
There was just all kinds of fun stuff to do at the Ranch!
Since we were all overheated, snow cones seemed to be just what all of us needed ... look at Nathan's little face ~ I have no idea where Boo is right now, but it seems he missed out on having his snow cone ... but after our snow cones were eaten, it was time to say good-by to Andrew, Sabrina, Jackson and Karis ~ they had a 2.5 hour drive back to Austin. It was sad to see them go and to realize it will be awhile before we get to see them again ... that's the real sad thing about having children and grandchildren so far away ...
We decided to take one last train ride around the Ranch to help us cool down a bit. Here is Grandpa Jones with the youngest grandchild, who will be a big sister before the end of the year.
Nia was pretty tired by the end of our time at the Ranch and fell asleep in Grandpa's arms. Very sweet ... We had a great time at the Oil Ranch. I actually took over 300 pictures today of the animals and the beautiful scenery around the ranch ... I just wanted to give you a peak at our day!
1 comment:
We had so much fun. If it was closer I'd probably go at least once a month! I'll try to load up mine later.
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