It has been through many many changes over the years & all of them are very good. Most of the elegant Art Deco buildings have been restored; the grounds are clean, safe & filled with plantings & flowers…but it’s the same old sights, smells, sounds, & TASTES that stir my heart & remind me of my childhood. I love the Midway noise-all the rides with their different & really loud music blaring; the spectacular Esplanade with the colored light shows in the fountains; the smells of the new cars & trucks; & of course, all things fried!

It’s so much fun standing in line for a big fat Fletcher’s corny dog & looking up at Big Tex standing under the clear blue TEXAS sky. Then wondering if all the kid’s parents still use the same mantra as  mine did every year “now honey, don’t run off & get lost…….but if you do….we’ll meet at Big Tex!”

Go to the fair this year…..you’ll love it too. 

By the way, Bugtussle Burn Sassy Texas Salsa will be in the Go Texan Country Store in the Food & Fiber Pavilion. Come see us too!  (Here’s what D Magazine had to say about the Food & Fiber Pavilion AND Bugtussle Burn last year!)   

I’d been dying to make this trip for so long that earlier this year when our dream was finally realized…..I was beyond thrilled!

We found out just a few days prior to our trip that my husband, Lee, would need surgery as soon as we returned. So, we were quite nervous about travel to a foreign country. But what we found when we arrived in this “foreign” country was…well….just truly a complete gift.

Due to Lee’s health issues we felt it best to change our itinerary on the day we arrrived & decided it best to stay in San Jose, the capitol, to be nearer to medical care (just in case!).

We hired a taxi driver, Juan, to help us get around & he took us to meet a friend of his that had recently opened a boutique hotel nearby. What a beautiful & welcoming place. Terrazas de Golf (www.terrazasdegolf.com) But the best part was meeting Cecilia,

Cecilia on her backporch

 the owner, & her warm friendly family. I felt like I’d know her all my life. Cecilia took us “under her wing” (we now call her Angel Cecilia), made us feel safe & truly at home.

We hired Juan as our tour guide & he picked us up each day for a new adventure. Juan showed us HIS Costa Rica & as many of its natural wonders that we could fit in.

The first day we toured the La Paz Waterfall Gardens (www.waterfallgardens.com).

walkway at LA PAZ

Just ONE of the gorgeous waterfalls at LA PAZ

The next day was Jaco Beach.

Jaco Beach - Pacific side

Day 3 was a canopy ride & whooooohooo zipline in Parque National Braulio Carrillo!

"what beautiful CLOUDS" (too scared to look DOWN!)

Does this man look happy or what?

Juan was always saying “Pura Vida – Lee-doctora -muy bueno”so on Sunday he took us to the city of Cartago to the Basilica de Nuestra Senora de los Angeles…….considered to be the holiest shrine in all of Costa Rica..to say a

prayer for Lee. We were honored.

Basilica de Nuestra Senora de Los Angeles-Cartaga

These people LOVE their country. They appreciate its natural resources-going to great lengths to preserve their rainforests, beaches, volcano parks & all habitat. It is awesome to see & feel their spirit.

We made many new friends & fell in love with this unforgettable place. We’re going back…….”pura vida, Juan y amigos”! 

Lee & Juan

Doris Day Horse Rescue & Adoption Center-Main Barn

A few weeks back, my husband & I were fortunate to be invited to the Grand Opening of this wonderful new horse rescue center. It is on the grounds of Cleveland Amory’s Black Beauty Ranch. Both facilites are doing amazing work in the rescue & rehabilitation of abandoned & abused animals. They are a part of The Humane Society of the United States.

Wayne Pacelle & Mrs. Bug

It was a true honor to meet Wayne Pacelle, the President & CEO of HSUS. He has just published an incredible book called, “The Bond: Our Kinship with Animals, Our Call to Defend Them”.  If you ever have the chance, make the trip to East Texas to see the great work they are doing –or at least check out their website: www.humanesociety.org

A rescued chimp @ Black Beauty Ranchfun on the runway!

fun on the runway!

Our life with the Rock began on our front porch in Bonham when he was 2 weeks old. A stray cat brought her kittens up on the porch & we made a nice nesting box for them all, but the mother (we named her Minnie) kicked one kitten out away from the rest.

Rocky Builds Our House

Well, of course, we took him to the vet (all 4inches of him). Minnie had accidently bitten  his throat while moving them & the little guy couldn’t eat. So, after our wonderful vet, Dr Eve Gerome, saved his life…we spent the next 30days (and NIGHTS) feeding him with a little dropper/bottle.

Rocky & Sam

Rocky never quite learned that he was a cat…preferring to sleep with Sam, our German Shepherd. Anyway, we adore him. He snuggles around my neck at night with his cheek on mine (no, I cannot breathe). He’s a brat.

A Tale of Three Kitties

I’d love to hear your pet stories too -so drop me a note.

We adopted him & sweet Sadie about 3 years ago. They were running the streets in the city, lost & scared, & a friend of ours found them & rescued them from the pound.

Chester & Sadie at our cabin

 As it turned out, of course,  Sadie was pregnant with Chester’s pups. A month after we brought C & S home-we were blessed with 7 gorgeous sweet puppies. We luckily found great homes for all of the pups. But now we must bury our dear boy.

For those of you who “get it” about the love of animals……..you know the pain, the big fat hole in your heart that losing a family member brings. I just wanted to share some photos of these sweethearts-& to say-if you haven’t already………hug your dog today!

Lee & Jake (the horse!) in front of Lil' Bug Guest Cabin

A Happy Horseman

On a beautiful Sunday afternoon here at home in Bugtussle, my husband, Lee, enjoying a ride on his beloved horse, Jake. I’m probably slaving away in the kitchen making sassy Texas salsa while he’s having a big ole time!!

Bugtussle Burn load out @ Mrs. Renfro's

Bugtussle Burn is officially “back” in 2011! Sorry for the “freeze-frame” but it was necessary.

We had to search for a new co-packer as our past experiences were fairly horrific. But now we are working with a fantastic company & are well-stocked with a batch of my Perfect BURN!

So, now after the stressful slowdown at the end of 2010….this is just the most wonderful news for our salsa lovers. If you ever had my homemade salsa right outta the pot…you’ll know we at long last have it RIGHT! Still sweet but bigger burn!

Thanks for your patience.  More good “bug” stories to follow.  Jan

 The ranch was owned by a real Texan who was a true “codger”. His name was Herbert Andrew Burnett & he was my uncle. His ranch consisted of almost 1000 acres of some of the most beautiful country you could imagine. The entire southern side of the ranch backed up to the Red River which divides Oklahoma from Texas. Uncle Herbert was often known to say that his ranch might be IN Oklahoma but he could still SEE Texas! How true that was-often when we would visit & ride up onto a high hill- we could see such an incredible panorama-rolling hills, huge pecan groves, & plenty of cows. I often told my husband that I felt just like Barbara Stanwick in the old TV show “The Big Valley”.

 My uncle was fond of calling me up just out of the blue & saying, “Foxey (that was my nickname since age 4-more on that later), you live in the country now, you need some cows.” Or “Foxey, you need some donkeys to go with your other critters”. So, sure enough, he’d load up some cows & bring down for me to raise. What I didn’t tell you is that I am a true “city girl”. I grew up practically in the shade of downtown Dallas, near Central Expressway. So, my uncle thought it was his job to turn me into a country girl.

  But back to Smiley & friends-as it turns out I didn’t wind up with just Smiley & his mother, Jenny Lind, but 4 more donkeys: Dorothy, Toto, Herbie, &  Junior .  The  few neighbors that we have out here in Bugtussle have donkeys as well & it seems that donkeys like to “visit”. Occasionally, the donkeys would go missing & we would have to ride our four-wheeler up to our neighbors house & “herd” them back home. Our version of “herding” usually meant me jogging along side of the four-wheeler shaking a bucket of cubes while hollering for the donkeys with my husband DRIVING along side! If I may use the word dumbASS  on my blog-I believe it would be appropriate here-generally applying to me rather than the real ones.

 One morning while on my walk around our little ranch I discovered that all of the donkeys were gone-AGAIN. We assumed that they were visiting their buds in the neighborhood so we didn’t worry about it. But when we returned home from work that evening-the donkeys were nowhere  to be found. My husband & I panicked. We started driving all around the countryside, covering several miles, in search of the silly donkeys -with no luck. We couldn’t imagine what could have happened & I mentioned to my husband that maybe we should call  911! He, of course, thought I was nuts, but after much coaxing, he finally called the sheriff’s office.

 Sure enough, Smiley & friends had been BUSTED-thrown in jail-picked up by the “donkey catcher?”. As our luck would have it, at 4am Smiley & friends were nabbed running down the highway heading towards Ladonia (which I should add here has the only liquor store in the county) and were picked up. We had to pay $200.00 for their release!!!  Suffice it to say, Smiley has been, shall we say, rendered unable to desire other donkeys of the female persuasion & now stays contentedly home in his own pasture but can’t you just imagine the MUG SHOTS?