Husband and I were invited by some friends to go to a grape stomping festival at a vineyard nearby. We decided to make a day of it and visit the Lyndon B. Johnson Ranch near the vineyard. Pres. Johnson was born and raised in Central Texas and the ranch he owned is now a National Park. We enjoyed driving through the ranch and touring the house that Pres. and Mrs. Johnson lived in and raised their family in. The ranch is nestled in a beautiful part of the Hill Country. The ranch is still a working ranch, so we encountered some livestock along the road. The cows have the right of way on the ranch and they know it! I am convinced that cows move slower when they know people are waiting on them.
LBJ's grave in the family cemetery
The Texas White House.
Hello cow! If you look closely you can see the LBJ brand on the horn. The cattle on the ranch are show cattle, so they are not branded on their hide.
Windmill on the ranch
A barrel of grapes
Into the barrel I go! It was cold, squishy and smelly, but super fun!
Husband gives it a try.
Husband proudly displays the fork he found at the vineyard. He was talking about taking it back to the barrel of grapes and tasting the grapes. We were able to talk him out of it though!
Part of the vineyard
After stomping the grapes, we took a tour of the winery. It was interesting to learn about the wine making process. This steel drum holds 10 tonnes of grapes!
Barrels stored in the barrel room. The room held over 2000 barrels.
Don't ask!
The vineyard's logo.
Us with Joshua and Alaina
Oh how I miss the beautiful fields!
We attended my brother's football game (He's #50). Is there anything better than a football game on a warm autumn night?
One of the local greenhouses had a pumpkin festival. This was the largest pumpkin I have ever seen! How in the world does someone grow something this big?
With my 8 month old nephew on the big pumpkin. We took a million pictures and he wasn't looking up in any of them. He has a mind of his own, that's for sure! 
Pretty, pretty pumpkins
Goose on the lake with autumn leaves behind him (or her).
A maple dipped doughnut from Tim Horton's. These are definitely the reason I gained 700 pounds in 5 days. I guess 3 or 4 doughnuts a day will do that to a girl!
My nephew, Kaleb. How cute is he? (By the way, in case you were wondering, he really enjoys cookies!)
My other nephew, enjoying his hot dog.
We like to start them young on the whole hockey thing up in the Great White North.
This kids cracks me up! I kept trying to figure out how to bring him back with me. Unfortunately his parents actually love him and wouldn't let me take him. Maybe next time...
One of the emergency vehicles waiting for our plane on the runway after our emergency landing 15 minutes after take off! There was a problem with the landing gear not retracting. Apparently that's not a good thing. I guess it is standard procedure for emergency vehicles to meet planes during emergency landings. I did not know that. They say you learn something new everyday. I would have liked it if this new piece of information came to me in a different way!
The world's largest cheese cake, sliced up and being served.
Yes, that is a purple dog.
