Archery Date at Cinnamon Creek Ranch!

Our whole family enjoys archery but unfortunately we only seem to spend our time at Cinnamon Creek Ranch for kid's night and an occasional Couples by the Creek event.  Stuart and I very rarely get the shoot our bows on our own.

We recently found a great deal on a Groupon for shooting time at Cinnamon Creek so we jumped on that deal!  We hired a babysitter to watch the kids and Stuart and I had a wonderful morning shooting at 3D animal targets in the woods at Cinnamon Creek.

I love shooting the 3D targets, especially in this area of the property which I believe is called the Creeks II.  The targets are set up among the trees or up a hill and it really feels like you are hunting wild game but without actually killing anything and having to clean it.


We shot the targets from 15-35 yards depending on where they were located.  I missed several targets and wasn't able to find a few of my arrows in the brush but that's all a part of the game.  Stuart did quite well, as always.  Here he had an arrow go all the way through to the other side of the wolf.



The owner of Cinnamon Creek lets his neighbor's cows wander around the property sometimes.  It was a little weird to be out in the middle of the woods and see this black cow quietly watching us from the trees.  Was he about to charge us or was he wondering if we were about to make him our next target?  It was definitely weird to be out there shooting animal targets and then run across a live animal that you can't shoot!


Earlier this morning I bought an arm guard.  If I shoot correctly with my elbow slightly bent then I shouldn't need an arm guard.  However, I always seem to get sloppy on my technique for at least one shot and one shot is all it takes to make my arm black and blue for a week.  But somehow, even with arm guard, that string still got my forearm today!


But a bruise didn't stop me.  I was having a great time hitting the targets.  Take a look at this video below :)


Ride 'Em Cowboy!

One of our local homeschool groups got a great group discount for tickets to the Mesquite Pro Rodeo.  Stuart and Nicholas have been to this rodeo one time in the past with our Cub Scout pack but Rachel and I have never been before.

Both of the kids wanted to be sure to dress the part but they had each outgrown their cowboy hats.  The last time we were at the Fort Worth Stockyards, our whole family picked out cowboy hats.   But that is such a tourist area that we can't help but think we overpaid for what we got.  So we made a trip to Cavender's Boot City in Lewisville.  I don't think of myself as a cowgirl but I had fun shopping around although I didn't get anything for myself.

There is a hat bar where they can steam and custom fit your hat.  We asked the man there to help us find the right size hats for the kids.  We thought it was neat that his name was "Chance".

Rachel wanted a pink cowgirl hat but none of them fit her quite right.  They were either too small or too big.  However, she did find a black one with a rhinestone tiara on it that she was quite pleased with.

Nicholas had outgrown the hats in the children's section and is now in the second size up from the smallest adult size.  Chance took him behind the hat bar and did some work on the hat to make sure it fit Nicholas just right.


Although we had only planned to buy hats for the kids, we somehow ended up buying a little cowgirl outfit for Rachel and play gun holsters for the kids.  They were all set for the Rodeo.  


We spent way more time at Cavender's than we had planned and Mesquite is a bit of a drive from our house.  With dinner time quickly approaching, we decided to just grab some fast food through a drive through and eat dinner on the way there.  Not the healthiest food or best dining experience but hey, we had a rodeo to get to!

I was glad that Stuart had been here before because he knew just where to park and how to get into the arena.  

My cute family all wearing their cowboy hats.


I love the patriotic atmosphere at the Mesquite Pro Rodeo.  American pride is definitely seen throughout the night.


My favorite event of the rodeo is the bronc riding.  It is amazing how these guys can get tossed around so hard and still hang on to that saddle.


Yee Haw!


Look at this guy!  We didn't notice this when we were watching him live but the picture captures him standing up in his stirrups as he is getting bucked by the horse.


Rachel is addicted to cotton candy.  Of course, we all had to sample it too.


This is team roping where two cowboys race out of the gate and they work together to rope the cow.  They just got this one and you can see it is being stopped in its tracks.


The prettiest cowgirl in the arena!


There is a Dash for Cash event in each rodeo where kids are invited out to the arena floor where they race after calves to try to pull a flag off their tails.  If they get the flag, they win some cash!  Nicholas tried.  He's in this bunch somewhere.


He didn't win but he did a great job trying.  I love how Stuart was right there to encourage him after the event.


I had to get a picture of the cowboy version of a Zamboni!


My little guy and me.  Happy times.


I didn't really like to see the little calves being roped because it just seemed so rough but it was still impressive to watch the cowboys in action.


Several times during the rodeo, we got to watch this guy do tricks with his rope and his horse.  Here he is standing on his horse while spinning the lasso around himself.


His most impressive trick was riding his horse around the arena while spinning the lasso around the horse!  Wow!


On one of my many trips taking Rachel to the bathroom, we stopped and looked at these gorgeous boots.  Of course, Rachel picked out several that she wanted.  They did sell children's sizes in some of these but I'm not interested in spending that kind of money on shoes that her growing feet won't be able to wear in six months!


The whole crowd lit up for the barrel racing competition.  It was fun watching the horses races around three barrels to see who could finish the race without knocking over barrels.


As you can see, Nicholas really got into it!  He was definitely the loudest fan in our area.


Rachel didn't root for anyone in particular.  She just enjoyed watching the action and was taking it all in.


At some point, she got a pen and apparently decided that she needed to write her name on her Brand. New. Shirt.  I have to say that I'm impressed that she did this while wearing the shirt and writing upside down from her perspective.


The Mesquite Pro Rodeo only runs for a few months during the summer but I can definitely see us coming to it once a year.  It was good wholesome family fun for all.

Mommy-Daughter Day Out at Let's Pretend Tea Parties

I took my little princess to Let's Pretend Tea Parties for a special Mommy-Daughter outing.  She had a wonderful time and really enjoyed the special treatment as she picked out the perfect costume, got a mini-makeover, and had a delightful tea party complete with cupcakes and princess tea!

We were enchanted by the over-the-top girly tea room decorated all in pink.  It is so adorable!


Dress Up

Rachel got to pick out a costume from a huge selection of dresses, super heroes, and more.  She had so much fun! 


She finally chose a sweet lavender princess dress, a necklace, and a magic wand.  I was amazed but there was even a selection of adult costumes and I found a matching lavender dress.  We went into the changing room and emerged as princesses!  

Next, Rachel was treated to a special princess makeover.  She got her hair styled in an up-do complete with a princess tiara comb.  She felt so special!


Then she got to choose which color nail polish she wanted for her manicure.  She loves wearing nail polish!


Sweet princess!


Tea Party

Oh, and then it was time for the tea party!  We had had so much fun dressing up that we had completely forgotten about the tea party!

Rachel had a hard time choosing which of the beautiful cupcakes she wanted.  They all looked delicious!


She finally decided on the chocolate cupcake.  You can't go wrong with chocolate, right?


We were also served a delicious raspberry princess tea to go with our cupcakes.


Check out the sass on that little one!  She certainly thinks she is a princess!


I caught her looking at herself in the mirror!  She felt so special and was so happy playing dress up.


Rachel hasn't had eye shadow on so she was trying to get a look at it in the mirror.  She was cute because she kept opening both eyes too wide to be able to see her eyelid or else she closed both eyes.  She couldn't seem to figure out how to keep one eyelid open while closing the other...so she just held one eyelid closed with her finger!


For a dreamy treat with your little girl, you've got to check out Let's Pretend Tea Parties.  They are located at 317 Jenkins Street in Grapevine (just behind the gazebo on Main St.).  They are open Tuesday - Friday 10:00 - 5:00, Saturday 10:00 - 6:00, and Sunday 12:00 - 4:00, closed Mondays.  Walk ins are welcome for a small tea party Tuesday - Thursday from 10:30 - 5:00.  Please call them at 817-421-6678 to make reservations for some of their more involved parties.  For more information, check out the Let's Pretend Tea Parties website.  You can also follow Let's Pretend Tea Parties on Facebook.

Couples by the Creek at Cinnamon Creek Ranch

Every month, Cinnamon Creek Ranch hosts a special event called Couples by the Creek.  It is an event just for couples so we get either a babysitter or use Adventure Kids to watch the little ones.  Cinnamon Creek organizes archery games for the couples so it is a fun way to meet other archers.  They provide wonderful appetizers for us while we shoot and then an incredible meal and dessert to finish out the night.


I usually don't have problems with this but my bow string snapped my arm pretty badly and I already have a big bruise.  I know from experience that this will get bigger and uglier tomorrow and will probably be there for the next week.  What a romantic date night, right?



Stuart is really good at archery and it was fun to see him competing with some of the other guys as they moved back to the 30 yard line.  


We headed outside to the pavillon for dinner. Cinnamon Creek Ranch owns its own meat processing plant and the owner has restaurant/catering experience so the meals are always great.   It was hard waiting for the meat to be done because the smells were just incredibly good!


Dinner included jambalaya, smoked axis deer, grilled vegetables, and a rich potato salad.  What a wonderful date night!


My Puzzle Girl

Stuart and Nicholas went out running errands early this morning so Rachel and I had some quiet time together.  I love having special Mommy-Daughter time!


Usually Nicholas and Rachel are off playing while I'm taking a shower and getting ready in the morning.  But without Nicholas there, Rachel got out one of her puzzles and spread it out on the bathroom floor to work on it.


Ever since she was really little, she has loved putting puzzles together.  And she makes it look quick and easy.