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Trail Creek Farms

January 19th, 2010

Trail Creek Farm
18127 CR 4108
Lindale TX 75571
903 882 5746

www.trailcreekfarmfun.com

For 3 years now, a visit to Trail Creek Farm has been part of our Christmas tradition. Yes, you guessed it, Trail Creek is a Christmas tree farm!

When you arrive you jump on a hay ride to the tree field. You sit on hay bales on the wagons which are named after Santa’s reindeer. Some of them are covered in case it is cold or snowy (well you never know!) It’s fun. The helpers are good tractor drivers – I went the week my baby was due but the bumping still didn’t make me go into labor.

When you get to the field they arm you with a saw and it’s up to you to find the best tree. They are labeled in size and by price and are all shaped beautifully. It’s hard to agree on the best tree as there are 10 000 to chose from. They have Leyland Cypress and Virginia Pine trees. Everyone in our family seems to have an opinion so it takes us ages to pick the best one.

After cutting your special tree down, you load it onto the wagon and go back to the farm where they put it on a shaking platform to shake all the loose needles out of it. It is netted for you and they will even help you put it on the roof of your car for transport home.
Then it is time to relax. In the barn there is hot apple cider for all the family and popcorn – all complimentary and part of the experience. There are candles and Christmas decorations for sale, plus that all important magic stuff to keep your tree fresh in water. The kids can play in the maze, visit the animals at the farm, plus follow a short nature trail in the woods.

A visit to Trail Creek is a whole afternoon experience – your family will love it.

Prices vary, depending on how ‘full’ the trees are – from $3 to $7 per foot. They stay fresh for ages, we have ours up for about 6 weeks.

NOTE: if you visit the website you can print a coupon which will give you10% off the price of your tree. Returning customers are rewarded with the same discount – each year they send us a postcard with their opening dates and times and a10% coupon on it.

The Dollar Tree

January 13th, 2010

You know when you’re looking for something but you have no idea where to get it and then you are somewhere where you least expect to find it and poof there it is? For me that is what happens all the time at the The Dollar Tree on HWY 64 just west of loop 323 in Tyler, TX. Every time I go in there I’m hit with “Wow thats here too! Such a deal.” So many Christmas decorations, if you didn’t get yours there this year then man you missed out. Just the items being a dollar makes it so much more fun!

There is a wedding section with little trinkets, invitations, gift idea’s and bags… I know they’re cheap but come on, the point is to remember your getting married not what they get because you’re getting married. If you are looking for fake cockroaches for a practical joke Walmart does NOT have them and yes, The Dollar Tree does.

If you are cheap about the food you eat guess what! The Dollar Tree has food. Candy, canned food, bagged food and all kinds of drinks. Check out the kitchen section! So much stuff, and for only a dollar. Even while on the way out there is the option to give to the community and buy a bag that will be given to a boy or girl that may need a gift/toy, how awesome is that kind of opportunity huh?

The store closes at 9:00pm so you’ve got time to go! If you’re debating on throwing a party but don’t want to front the funds to make it look totally awesome go The Dollar Tree, it has everything. Cleaning supplies? Once again, The Dollar Tree has it. If you have never ventured into a dollar store in Tyler, TX then put it on your to-do list, at least your bucket list, because it is quite the novelty.

Santa Land, A Great Christmas Destination!

January 13th, 2010

santaSanta Land is located off Hwy 20 going towards Dallas. Santa Land opens up November 1 every year and stays open during the Holiday Season until January 4th. Cost $25 per car and $35 per 15 passenger van. I have been there several times so far and the waiting period has been around one hour or so depending on the time you arrive there. The sooner you get there, the less you have to wait. It is an excellent thing to do for your children and your family during Christmas.

You might think that going around and looking at the Christmas lights around Tyler might be cheaper and less of a waiting period. I guarantee you it won’t be as fun as going at least once through Santa Land. You can go run by a fast food place and eat it in the car while you wait in line. While you are waiting in line you can use that time to listen to music or talk to your children or you can just be silent. There are people that walk around your cars and try to sell you all kinds of stuff that lights up and it costs $5 dollars per item (These people are not with Santa Land or a part of the park. Santa Land only sells things within their gate).

Beyond just the light show display there is The 4000 sq ft gift shop filled with ornaments of all varieties.

There is a Snack shack where you can buy some really delicious hot chocolate, homemade treats, fudge, cookies, and much more.

They have tractor drawn trailer rides and a real live Santa Claus to meet and take pictures with that starts Thanksgiving and runs until Christmas.

I know you are probably thinking you can do without spending all this time on something that will only last for a little while. You are right, you can do without it but your children will love it. We even broke down and bought a sword that lights up and my 22 month old loved it. It was worth it just to see how excited she was to play with the toy and spending time with mommy and daddy while looking at the awesome lights. You only get to come here once a year so I think you can spare $25 dollars a year to go and have some fun with your friends and family and if you really don’t have $25 dollars to spend then borrow a 15 passenger van and get some of your friends together and split the cost. That will be even cheaper than $25 dollar.

Either way you do it I think it will be worth your time and money. I know you are waiting to hear what goes on around Santa Land for that much money? When you enter Santa Land they tell you the music radio station that you need to turn to while you are there. The whole place is filled with lights of all types and shapes and is synced with the radio channel that plays Christmas music. They have the Santa Wish shop and his little elves helping Santa. Also they have scenes depicting Jesus, all kinds of flowers and so many other lights. My words really don’t do justice to the place and no matter how hard I try to describe the place you will have to go see it for yourself as to what Santa Land has to offer.

After you are done watching all the lights they have, then you can stop and go look at all the things they have to sell. They have some really neat stuff actually and the price is probably around the same as other places. While I was there I saw an item that was $12 dollars and it was three crosses made out of metal. The item was real nice looking metal made to represent the crucifixion of Jesus. I thought that paying $12 for something like that was not too bad if you like or collect crosses. You will mainly find a galore of different Christmas related items for sale and most of the items are a splendid display of ornaments of all kinds.

The Santa Land Wish Shop has a little something for everyone’s liking but it’s mainly about the kids.  After all that shopping you will probably have worked up an appetite and be hungry. They have an area where you can order something to eat but I would drive up I20 to Bodacious barbecue for some real food. The owner, Cindy has done a wonderful job in making this a family experience sure to leave lasting memories for everyone. Well, I hope I convinced you to go visit Santa Land come this next holiday season.

Tyler Big Lots

January 12th, 2010

We have two locations in Tyler TX for Big Lots, one is off of Beckham and the other towards the mall. I love going to Big Lots because they have everything you could possibly need or want and the prices for the most part are reasonable, especially if you are looking for movies. Big Lots is the place because it’s the cheapest I have ever seen anywhere. They have movies ranging anywhere from $3 to $10 dollars. The new releases are the ones that cost a little more or if you find a series, that usually costs a little more. I once bought the series, Life Goes On, and I paid $4 dollars for it. That is just an example of the things that you can find there.

I also found little Christmas ornaments for a little tree that I have. They have food, clothes, personal needs, bedding, some furniture and many more things. I could not even start to list everything at Big Lots even if I wanted to because they have so many categories of things to buy there. The service for the most part is good. It is a place where if you are looking for a store where you could find some inexpensive gifts for someone, then I would suggest going to Big Lots. It is always a convenient thing to have a Big Lots around. Big Lots is usually surrounding other stores.

The store off of Beckham is next to the General Dollar Store and the Shoe Warehouse. The other one that is close to the mall on the South side is located by Michael’s, Pet Land, Dollar Store, and a Chinese Restaurant. You could definitely take a whole day to experience the bargains available at Big Lots. You would have your shopping, entertaining and food done all in one place.

Shoe Warehouse Factory

January 12th, 2010

Ladies if you are looking for shoes and for a reasonable price, then Shoe Warehouse is the place you are looking for. Shoe Warehouse is located off of Beckham close to T.J.C. I love to go there because they have a large variety of shoes and for a nice price I can afford most of the time.

Just this Christmas I went and found a pair of Ugh boots imitation for $20 dollars with heels, that’s a plus for me. I don’t think you would loose anything by going and checking the place out for yourself. They get new items in all the time and besides that the store is located around other stores like Big Lots and Dollar General so if you get done there and you are not done shopping yet, you can go next door and check all the other places out.

The shoes are in an ok condition. They probably won’t last as long as if you would pay $100-$200 for a pair of shoes but who has that kind of money anyways to spend on shoes? Even if you spend that much on a pair of shoes who is to tell you that it would last any longer than what a more expensive pair of shoes. I have bought several pair of shoes there for anywhere from $14-$30 dollars and it has lasted me for several years and some.

The ones I wear more often of course wear out sooner because I use them more than my other shoes. So if you are not caught up with the name brand and are looking for cute shoes at a reasonable price then I would go and see this place for myself. They have all types of shoes anywhere from casual, to classy and even sexy shoes. Yes there is such a thing as sexy shoes. I don’t mean that in any offensive way. They also have boots, flats, and sandals. They even have shoes for your husband and your children.

They often run pretty good sales. One time they had buy one pair of shoes and get the second one for a penny. A lot of the time they have shoes for $7-$10 on sale. So now that the stores are getting rid of winter stuff I bet you could go and find really good prices for boots and if you have plenty of boots you can probably find shoes for spring. I know that most women love shoes and love to own more than one pair or color or style. Next time you are looking for a pair of shoes remember that you once read somewhere that Shoe Warehouse might be the place you ought to go to see if they have the perfect shoes for you or anyone else who might be needing a pair. And no this won’t turn you into the next Cinderella it just might give you a new pair of shoes, minus the Prince Charming.