R-V There Yet?

To allow ourselves greater access to the kids camps for our week with the granddaughters, we moved to the west side of Fort Worth.  We’re staying at the Cowtown RV Park, where we stayed when we started full time RVing over 3 1/2 years ago.

One problem with traveling on Sunday, if you have a problem, you pretty much have to make do.  This was the day that a transmission hose decided to relieve itself.  After checking around, we decided to persevere. We made it, using about a quart of transmission fluid every 10 miles.  Nine quarts used in all before getting the truck to the Dodge place.

Despite the truck issue, the kids were able to make good use of the swimming pool at Cowtown.  Rick even got in the pool to give some technical instruction.  After all these years, his swim stroke is still pretty good.

Since our last visit to Cowtown, several improvements have been put in place.  The playground has been expanded, broken cement has been repaired on the interior roads, and their store is very well stocked with RV stuff.

There’s no limit to our efforts to entertain.  We were able to enroll our charges into cooking classes at the Young Chef’s Academy in Fort Worth, TX. They spent a couple of hours preparing a meal consisting of:  Salad with Olive Garden’s Salad Dressing, Californian Kitchen BBQ Chicken Pizza, and Applebee’s Blondie Brownies.

First off, the uniform. Custom Aprons.

Class begins.  Regular school teachers work as instructors.  Apparently they are trained to maintain their sanity.

The preparation begins, one more enthusiastically than the other.

And the final results.  Looks pretty good, doesn’t it?

These various little “camp” sessions are going to be a staple in the future.

Entertainment for the kids has taken on a wilder look.  Monday and Tuesday, Ayden and Gracie took some riding lessons at the Benbrook Stables.

A pretty large group of kids showed up for beginning instruction.

The girls are anxious to begin.

First things first, – grooming lessons.

Finally, their ready for riding.

Benbrook Stables offers a wide variety of services, everything from beginning, intermediate, and advanced classes to hayrides, special parties, and trail rides.

On Friday, Gracie opted for a trail ride.  It turns out that she was the only one on the ride so she got some one-on-one instruction from her trail boss.

And off they headed into the sunset.

And returning in one piece.

This place was a real find.  The girls had a blast and we got a slight break.

If it appears that our life revolves around restaurants and food, you’re finally catching on.

When our daughter-in-law, Kiri, suggested that we try a restaurant called Fish Camp in Royse City, TX, our first thought was that she had lost her mind.  There is no water within several miles of Royse City.

The Fish Camp is located about 3 miles south of Royse City at 7508 County Road 2584. Guess what, they have their own little lake.

We arrived and met with Kiri, Justin, Lance, Jennifer, Gracie, and Katie. (If we’re not already fat enough, click on photo for a fatter picture.)

The menu is varied, delicious, and reasonably priced.

We found that putting Katie in a trance calmed her while the meal was being prepared.

On the small lake beside the restaurant is a very nice deck where bamboo poles are provided and you can actually fish while you wait for dinner.

Justin took Gracie out prior to dinner and she caught about 5 fish before we ate and several more after supper.

These fish were caught on french fries.

By the way, yes, Justin is that big.

We enjoyed the night thoroughly and promise never to question Kiri’s sanity again.

When we blew into the Dallas area last week, we decided to try something new.  Instead of staying at a regular RV park or the Cedar Hill State Park, where we have in the past, we decided to try out a US Army Corps of Engineers park.  The closest one to the kids and grandkids turned out to be East Point Park on Lake Lavon, near Wylie, TX.

The online reservation system is fantastic, easy to use and is site specific.  They provide huge sites with electric (30/50 AMP) and water.  A sewer dump station is also available.  With the size of the spaces, we almost feel alone.

Here’s the good part….. If you happen to have a federal park discount, such as a senior pass, the cost is only $9.00 per day.  Many of the sites have a waterfront view.

It appears that the park “hosts” have a pretty sweet gig.  They get a covered site with sewer.

They have an entire section for the equestrian types that frequent the park.  Each RV site has its own corral.

Here’s a few tips.  Tip #1 – The gate closes at 10:00 PM.  The photo below shows a few of the cars that parked outside the gate after hours.  I guess they had a nice stroll back to their RV site in the dark.  Tip #2 – We were told that if we come in late, be sure to walk on the pavement because of copperheads , a venomous snake. (I feel that this is a most important tip.)  And finally, Tip #3 – If you happen to be going out with another park visitor and plan to be out after 10:00,  park one car just inside the gate.  Then you can drive up, park outside and have transportation to your campsite with the staged vehicle.

This place is really nice and it will become our home base for future visits.