Author Archives: Diana

About Diana

Canadian-Vermonter, Texas transplant. Cowboy boot wearing, maple syrup connoisseur, music lovin', wine and micro-brew drinkin', two-steppin' traveler who loves finding all the hidden gems the world has to offer. Come join me on the ride!

Let’s Celebrate!

Phew! What a busy weekend! I think Saturday I was home for two hours and Sunday we didn’t get home until 7:30pm. It was definitely jam packed but worth it in getting to see some people I haven’t seen in a while.

Saturday began early as I had a 3 year old’s birthday to attend. Happy Birthday Jackson! The party was held at the California Lane Park in Arlington, TX. What a great location to have a party. The kiddo’s got to play in the covered park / small water park while the adults got to catch up under the covered patio area. I got to see some folks I haven’t seen in a while and some from out of town and the kids seemed to have a blast. It was great.

I had to skip out early to head to party number two to celebrate Lennox’s first birthday! I can’t believe she is already a year old. It feels like just a couple months ago I was on my way to the hospital going to welcome her into the world and to see how her mama Heather was doing. She seemed to have a great time and got a ton of gifts which should keep her busy and stylish (she got some great hand-made clothes) for a while. She got her own little birthday cake for herself, however she wasn’t quite sure how to take it. She would put the tip of her finger into the frosting and just eat the frosting little by little. It was super cute. Then her aunt Kim went over and decided to help her out a bit and helped to cover her face with frosting. It’s what first birthday’s should be all about!

I got to go home for about two hours and then I was off again. Birthday number 3 to help celebrate Sir Matt’s 3!th birthday 🙂

We celebrated at the Oasis Restaurant on Joe Pool Lake. Getting there was more than half the battle. At the State Park at Joe Pool Lake, there was a Juneteenth Celebration going on. Since there is only about one route to the lake, we were stuck in traffic. What should’ve taken us 10 minutes (if that) took us an hour, but we made it!

With everything going on, it made it a little bit better to deal with the heat. At 10:30pm, it was still 101 degrees according to the car. Really makes me question why I’m here in Texas. Sometimes it’s just too damn hot.    

Sunday, we were off again, this time for a different kind of celebration. A dedication for Jackson’s sister Vettori. (A dedication is more or less like a baptism.) This was held at McKinney Church in Ft. Worth. The dedication was wonderful and the sermon was great and well spoken. Afterwards, we headed back to the Jones’ home for a celebration and lunch. We stayed thru the afternoon visiting with people we hadn’t seen in a while and catching up.

Even though the weekend was hectic as ever, it was really nice being able to catch up with those who we may not see so often. The older we get (I say that like we’re in our 50’s… haha), it seems like the more everyone has going on and sometimes it takes times like this to be able to reconnect with everyone and see their adorable children and families.

Finally Friday

It’s finally Friday. Quite possibly one of the best days of the week. Sometimes when I know the weekend is coming around, usually one of the things that crosses my mind – where / what can we check out this weekend.
Traveling doesn’t have to be all hustle and bustle and going a ton of miles to see something new. Sometimes, you have to go as far as your backyard, down the street or around your neighborhood. When I was young, my parents would take my brother and I for a “drive”. Back then, it was kind of a pain in the butt but now that I look back, it was probably one of the greatest things that they could’ve done. I’m sure because of those “drives” it’s one of the reasons why I love exploring this world everyday.
This weekend, take some time and enjoy what is around you. Admire what you have in your everday life.

This weekend, make it a point to try check out your backyard. You may find something beautiful, interesting, ugly, different who knows. Whatever it is, enjoy every second and be thankful for what you have.
This week, I am thankful for…
… having a beautiful park across the street.
… my old neighbor for letting us walk her dog last night (even though I think she was much more thankful to us).
… having AC and pool.
… having wonderful people in my life.
… the Mavs and the Bruins winning their Championships!
… being able to enjoy and explore this world one day at a time.

June Dairy Days – Sulphur Springs, TX

Back in Franklin County, VT, June Dairy Day is a big deal. Frankin County is filled with nothing but dairy farms really. Growing up, June Dairy Day weekend was almost like a holiday, there was a parade, rides, a pageant, tons of events. Here in Texas, I’ve realized that they have cows for meat, not so much milk but I was still curious to search around and see if there were any festivities that I could attend and of course compare. Smiles!

Last June, I found Dairy Days in Sulphur Springs out in East Texas. I realized that this Dairy Festival was not as big as the one back home but it did it’s job.

They each had a parade. (I missed the one in Sulphur Springs.)

Sulphur Springs not only has a Dairy Museum but giant cows (+1 Sulphur Springs).
You have to have old cars…. in Sulphur Springs it was specifically Corvettes. Can’t say I’m a huge fan but this one was nice to look at.

Like the festivities back home, there is a pageant, however when I was in the pageant, we did not have to milk cows like these Southern ladies did.

Obviously, these were not the ladies in the pageant.



Something that I liked about Sulphur Springs was that everything was held right outside the arena. Inside, you could escape the heat, use an actual bathroom and watch some horse competition.
There was also a Dairy Queen right down the street that was pretty convenient.

Although, this was not nearly as big as the festival back home it was nice attending an event which reminded me of Vermont. It’s nice taking part in something that celebrates dairy farmers, something that is part of my family history as well as many others. 
The Dairy Days is going on all this week out in Sulphur Springs – check it out if you are curious.