Texas is awesome

Do you like big states? Well, this one used to be a country. Come with me and let’s explore the Lone Star State, Texas.

First on our stop, is the Alamo in San Antonio, Texas.  It is a historical wonder and also a man made wonder.  Here are some facts about the Alamo:

The Alamo is the first thing that people often remember in the 19th century.  The Mexicans wanted to win back Texas.  The battle at the Alamo lasted 13 days and was the beginning the fight for Texas independence from Mexico.  Sadly, lots of people died.  The people at the Alamo were supposed to get help, but help never came.  The Texans could have escaped but they still fought anyway.  No adult males survived the battle but other people who were there did survive.  Sadly, the Mexican army won the battle at the Alamo.

 

 

 

 

 

My brother and me in front of the Alamo Feb 2019.

 

Next we are going to the pet shop to meet the Texas state dog, the Texas Blue Lacey, aka my dog, Bennett.  Here are some fun facts and I will give some personal facts too:

The Blue Lacey became the state dog of Texas on June 11, 2005.  The Texas Blue Lacey was developed in the mid 80s in Burnett County, Texas by Lacey brothers, Frank, George, Edwin, and Harry.  Some important facts… They are good with kids.  Don’t cover their eyes because they get confused.  They are not blue, so I do not know why they named them the Texas Blue Lacey.  They protective but not aggressive.  Bennett is like me, crazy, fast, strong, full of energy, loving, a cuddler, likes watching football and basketball, loves kids.

 

 

Now we are going to head to a barbeque, aka BBQ.  Texas BBQ is different than any other state, like anything else about Texas.  The BBQ meat is smoked and then smothered in a BBQ sauce that is tomato based not vinegar based.  While we are on the topic of food, Texas is known for Tex-Mex food which is named after Texas and Mexico.  It’s Texas’s twist on Mexican food.  Another state symbol, the jalepeno, the state pepper.  Texans use jalepenoes in everything.  They even make a jalepeno pepper jelly.

 

 

 

 

Let’s hop in the car and head to Houston where NASA’s Space Center is located.

NASA is the National Aeronautics and Space Administration.  The Space Center is a leading science and space exploration learning center.  It is one of the top places to visit in Houston and the number 1 place for international visitors.

Houston is the largest city in Texas.

Texas has several famous people who are Native Texans.  My mom is from Texas, but not a Native Texan because she was not born there.  Her sister is a Native Texan since she was born in Houston.

 

Stephen F. Austin is called the Father of Texas.  The state capitol is in Austin.  The city used to be called Waterloo, but was renamed Austin after Stephen F. Austin.  He successfully convinced about 300 families to move to Texas and settle there.

Texas had four Native Texans who were Presidents of US:

President Dwight D. Eisenhower who was the 34th President – a Native Texan.

President Lyndon B. Johnson who was the 36th President – a Native Texan.

President George H. Bush who was the 41st President – a Texan.

President George W. Bush who was the 43rd President – a Texan.

 

Some other great places to visit would be these natural wonders:

  •  Big Bend National Park – It is a desert.  It has lots of dinosaur bones found there.There are 201 miles of hiking trails.  You can camp at any of their 219 camping grounds.  Big Bend National Park is located at the northern end of the Chihuahuan desert.
  • Natural Bridge Caverns – in March of 1960 college students who were spelunkers from St. Mary’s University discovered the caves.  You can see lots of stalactites and stalagmites in the caves.  These caverns are often compared to the Carlsbad Caverns.
  • Jacob’s Well – Indian folklore that the sun went into the earth and created the artesian spring.  The water is 68 degrees and feeds into the Blanco River.  You can swim from May 1st – September 30th but have to purchase a ticket online.
  • Ann W. Richards Congress Avenue Bridge in Austin where 1.5 million Mexican Free Tail Bats live.  They can fly up to 60mph and reach an altitude of 10,000 feet.  Since 1980, Austin has had the largest urban bat population.

The state capitol is in Austin.  The population of Texas is 29,206,997 people (source US Census 2019).  The major cities are Houston, Austin, San Antonio, Dallas, Fort Worth, and El Paso.  It boarders New Mexico, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Louisiana, Mexico, and the Gulf of Mexico.

Here are some fun facts about Texas:

It is called the Lone Star State.

It’s like a whole other country.

The state motto is Friendship.

The state flower is the Texas Bluebonnet.

The state bird is the Mockingbird.

The state pie is made of pecans.

The state sport is the rodeo.

They have the most farms in the nation.

Texas used to be part of Mexico.

The state fish Guadeloupe Bass

The state tree is the Pecan.

State animals are armadillo, Texas long horn, Mexican Free Tail bat, horny toad frog.

State foods are chili, pecan, jalapeño, strudel, tortilla chips and salsa.

It is the 28th state.  The date it became a state was Monday, December 29, 1845.

The privately owned King Ranch in South Texas is larger than the state of Rhode Island.

The DFW Airport is also bigger than the state of Rhode Island.

 

Texas native horny toad frog is actually a lizard and can shoot blood from its eyes.

Corn has been growing in Texas for thousands of years.

Texas has 9 different kinds of rattle snakes.

Texans fought a battle after the Civil War was over because they hadn’t heard the war was over.

The town of Sweet Water holds the annual world’s largest rattlesnake roundup.  Events include snake charming, snake weigh-ins, and snake-eating contests.  Rattle snake tastes like chicken.

Texas has more than 254 counties, more than any other state.

More than 5,000 wildflower species grow in Texas.  Look out for cars stopped on the highway since many people stop to take pictures in the fields of wildflowers in the spring.

Texas has one fo the largest law enforcement bodies in North America.

Texas was an independent country from 1836 to 1845.

 

I would and I wouldn’t enjoy living in a boat

The reason I would enjoy it, it would be fun.  If you need extra food, you could go fishing for the food.  You could see sharks and whales and other cool marine life.  If the ship was really big and strong you could maybe be able to put a basketball net or soccer stuff or sports stuff.  You could have a game room and play all different sports with people.  You would be able to sail to different places.  My ship would have a pool and it would be gigantic.

The reason I wouldn’t enjoy it, would be some of the people might not like the rocking back and forth.  You might have people who are seasick.  A big wave could hit you and knock you overboard and you could drown.  And your ship could sink if there are very strong waves.

I would like to try going through the Panama Canal and see Panama while the ship was going through to the other side.  You might be able to sail somewhere so that you could see the Northern Lights and see all the constellations and stars.

I think the downside is that some people might be scared of drowning and you might not be able to see your family or get lost in the middle of the ocean.  I would not sail to where the cold part is because the Titanic hit an iceberg.  I would stay up near the equator where there aren’t any icebergs, but I would stay away the shore where there are big rocks.  If I were in the cold or where there are big rocks, I would go very, very slow.  Also, I think that my brother would enjoy sailing.  He could fish more often.  He could have his own zone in the gigantic ship.  Jacob would have a lot of places for toys and stuff.  My brother would probably bring his iPad.  So our ship would have a lot of plugs.  I would actually bring my iPad too, but my Mom would make it so that I would know the passcode so that I could communicate with her and maybe play a couple games.

I would actually test to make sure my ship was very strong before I went out to see the sea.

Would you rather

Would you rather meet Jace Norman or meet Sponge Bob in person not the person who plays him?

My choice would be to meet Jace Norman for the reasons I posted yesterday.  My brother picked Sponge Bob because he is funny.  He might be able to teach him how to cook.  My Dad would pick Jace Norman because Jace is nice and kind while Sponge Bob is sometimes very mean to his friends.  My mom would pick Jace Norman for the same reasons as my Dad, but she also doesn’t think you can meet a cartoon character, only real people. Who would you rather meet?