Texas Bucket List

Texas Bucket List

The Texas Bucket List – Nativity Exhibit in Port Lavaca

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Port Lavaca – As the holiday season hits the Lone Star State, you’ll find Port Lavaca native Veronica Koliba putting the finishing touches on one of her favorite nativity sets because when it comes to Christmas, “It’s the most important thing,” she says.

Then she moves on to the next one, then the next, and the next one. “We didn’t intend to do this,” said Veronica. “I would have no idea that I would’ve been collecting this many nativities five years ago.”

Veronica has a fondness for the figurines that make up the manger that depict the night Christ was born. “Artists are just so creative in depicting the Nativity that it was just inspiring,” said Veronica.

Inspiring enough to convince her to buy hundreds of nativity scenes in a few years and put them all on display at the old Red Barn in Port Lavaca. “This is a carved one from Schellenberg,” said Veronica. “Love the detail, and that’s why I put it on a carousel is so that you could see all the detail.”

This array of religious art came to be back in 2020 when Veronica wanted people from around the coast to bring their nativities to display together. Only problem is, no one answered the call. So Veronica decided to carry the cross herself and create this incredible collection on her own. “I grew up with two Catholic grandmothers that were very, very religious, very devout, and so it, I guess, set up my affinity for the Nativity,” explained Veronica. “I call it, That it was more about getting together and praising Jesus and not so much the material part of it. You may think, yeah, this is material, but I guess what I hope I bring to it is that I like my collecting and I like collecting, and then we just happen to have a place that everybody can come see this. That’s what I think of Christmas now is sharing my love for what I do, my vocation, I think of it now, or our vocation of collecting these things and bringing them to people that can see them all together.”

Finding a unique nativity is now an everyday undertaking and Veronica searches high and low, and on occasion has spared no expense. “Go to antique stores, thrift malls, go to a lot of estate sales, and so that’s how the collection grew, and about a hundred each year,” said Veronica. “That’s of my collection. We’re not counting pictures, puzzles and that kind of stuff. Plates, because we have plates and puzzles everywhere, but just nativities. Ones that can sit on a table. About 750. Yeah. Crazy.”

Hunting down these holiday sets can sometimes turn into an all day affair. “This one right here, we bought at Shiner Church Picnic back in September of ’21,” said Veronica. “Got there real early, spotted it, thought we have to have it, three heifers later that we bought. A tree skirt, another nativity, a ladies blouse that I just needed out of the way so we get to the next item. We waited 13 hours because we were there at 11:00, and it ended at midnight and it was the last item.”

From crystal and yarn to coke cans and recycled paper, many of these nativities are made with unique materials, including some rock-solid displays of faith. “What people expect when you hear nativity is that, oh, it’s Mary just looking down at baby Jesus, and we’ve got ones made of pinto beans, like I said, cinnamon bark, macaroni, just anything,” said Veronica.

Imagine trying to figure out how to display all these crazy and classical displays. “Well, I’ve known Joanna Gaines, but I try to get you different textures and colors and heights and stuff to get your eyes flowing a little differently,” said Veronica.

The themes of the nativities can be very interesting. Featuring gnomes, snow people, dogs and foxes, you just never know what you’ll find. There’s even nativity that takes a nod from the Lone Star State. ”It started with Mary, Joseph and Jesus and the Alamo,” said Veronica. “If anybody has a Nolan Ryan, Willie Nelson or George Strait I can have, I’d love to have them as the kings.”

“As much as I love tradition, that’s one of the things with the collection this big, you have to have something different to really keep people interested,” said Veronica.

You’ll also find nativities from across the world depicting cultures from across the world.  And it’s that moment that you realize Christmas truly does bring a lot of the world together to celebrate a special moment from over 2000 years ago. “As much as I love tradition, that’s one of the things with the collection this big, you have to have something different to really keep people interested,” said Veronica. “I think that there’s enough art culture and religion in here in so many different representations of the Nativity that people, it includes everybody. Different artists, different cultures, different races, that it’s just a phenomenal expression of people’s artistry and their faith and spirituality.”

No matter where we are from in the world, there are few things that can bring us together like faith. It reaches the furthest corners of the globe and right here in the Lone Star State, it seems the star of Bethlehem would fit just fine in the Texas skies. “Yeah. It’s definitely just about the Nativity,” said Veronica.

The Texas Bucket List – Slovacek’s Christmas Store in West

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West – Traversing Texas during the holidays can sometimes be a little hectic and if you’re making your way down Interstate 35 during the Christmas rush, it can be hard to stay on Santa’s nice list.  But there is an oasis on I35 off of exit 353 that we know well, and that’s Slovacek’s. “It’s been 11 years since we opened up here in West and really the people have been great and the people up and down the highways have been great and we are doing our best to try to make them happy,” said Tim Rabroker.

Tim took over what was a small sausage company in Snook back in 1995 and made it into a massive Texas brand with Slovacek Sausage being found all over the state. In 2013, they expanded with Slovecek’s in West and over the years, it’s become the premiere place to stop on I-35. But one thing they noticed was people that are hungry for a snack are also hungry to shop. “We started over in the main store and then we had a tent hooked up to it, and then we decided to build a warehouse here and it ended up being a Christmas store,” said Tim.

Now Slovacek’s has a massive Christmas depot that’s almost as big as their main store. Tim is like a kid in a candy store at his Christmas shop that has so much stuff, but there’s just one problem. “Organization is not my strong point,” said Tim.

Fortunately, Tim has a few helpers, just like Santa, and Logan Maas is one of them. “You get every dose of Christmas that you need, plus a lot morel,” said Logan.

“Now see, I miss this decorator,” said Tim. “This is Logan. She’s at our main store at our sausage company in Snook, but I’m so glad she’s here today.”

Logan is one of the few folks who can actually keep up with Tim because trust me, he doesn’t like to sit still. “Walk fast, talk fast,” said Logan. “I think I might be able to beat him on the talking fast, which I don’t think anybody… I will say I might take the cake on that one. I love Tim. His vision is, I mean, you can’t compare to this. Who can think of stuff like this?”

“We throw stuff in the air,” said Tim. “It’s moving, it’s flying. It makes it fun. You’ve never seen it decorated the way we decorate it. Sometimes we really hit the nail on the head and you got to see it to believe it. Right?”

Much of the warehouse is ordained with ornaments, featuring objects that you never knew could be made festive. “So over here, these are some of my favorite ornaments,” said Logan. “They have something for absolutely everybody no matter what. Literally the butter stick is one of my personal favorites. My mom loves a good baked dish with butter, so she has one of those on her Christmas tree too. Our cocktails, I also have a little cocktail tree at my house at the bar, because working here will do that to you. We have all kinds of stuff. Literally whatever kind of vibe you’re going for, we have it. We have every dog, animal, anything you could imagine here. If you’re a bird person, we’ve got probably whatever bird you enjoy.”

With such a fragile inventory, it’s no surprise that accidents tend to happen from time to time. “Last night I had a customer, she had dropped a little dachshund and it was the last one of them and she said, ‘Do you have another? I’m so sorry,’” said Logan. “I said, ‘Look, if we count how many we broke, we’d be the ones that break into most of them.’ I have dropped six or seven in one day, so it’s okay. We don’t care. It’s all in the fun of it. Make them feel better and go on your way.”

All of these extraordinary ornaments are displayed on trees throughout the shop, and there’s no telling how many have been decorated for the holiday. “I couldn’t even give you a guess,” said Logan. “Honestly. We got to have like 50. Who would think to put this together, other than Tim Rabroker and his vision for all things Christmas? He has a crazy vision. Our crew here also does a bunch of the decorating, but a lot of the vision, anything up high most of us can’t see at the same sight line as Tim. I think he’s like 6’5, 6’6 maybe. So anytime you need a ladder, you can generally start with him and if we have to go with the ladder, we can do that too. But now this is all his vision. It’s absolutely wonderful and quirky and very, very cool.”

Despite all the crazy Christmas displays and doodads, there’s one thing Slovacek’s is serious about when it comes to Christmas. “The first things we put out are the Nativity, because Jesus is the reason and we stick to that,” said Tim. “And sometimes it gets away a little bit, but it shouldn’t. And so we always keep that at that center.”

“No matter what kind of decor you have, whatever your Christmas motif is, we have you covered,” said Logan. “If you don’t know what your Christmas motif needs to be, we have you covered.”

The Texas Bucket List – Magical Winter Lights in Houston

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Houston – When it comes to bright lights in the big cities of the Lone Star State, H-Town rockets to the top with one of the best skylines in the state. And when it comes to Christmas in the space city, there are all sorts of options like the Zoo Lights, the crazy Nutcracker Market, or even the ice sculptures at Moody Gardens in Galveston. But now, you can add the Magical Winter Lights to the long list of things to do in Houston for the holidays. “It’s just a beautiful place to be and something I think once you’ve come, you want to come again,” said Roshelle Salinas.

Roshelle guides guests through this massive display that’s a little bit different than your normal twinkling lights on a tree. “It’s not just a Christmas celebration,” said Roshelle. “It really is representing our whole world and what we have here in Houston.”

These massive glowing displays are called lanterns and Yusi Cheng is the one who had the bright idea of bringing this to the Space City back in 2014. “Yusi’s from Houston, born in China, but lived her entire life in Houston and she really wanted to share this cultural aspect with everyone and you need a large space for it,” said Roshelle. “It’s a very big footprint. So she first started in different areas of Houston, has moved the festival around the city, and now our goal is really to touch everyone in Houston to build memories and create a tradition that we can get everyone from Houston to participate in.”

Turns out these lit up lanterns have a lineage that goes back to Yusi’s home country. “Her family came from the town in China that first started creating these Chinese lanterns,” said Roshelle. “So she grew up going to these festivals in China and really wanted to bring that tradition here to her home in Houston.”

These lantern displays do a great job of showcasing one part of the diverse culture of Houston. “It really pays tribute to the creator’s roots, and I think it’s one of the most detailed lantern sections that we have too,” said Roshelle. “We’ve got the traditional homes, we’ve got the Palace Lantern, the Chinese drums that you can hear that also are to go with the Dragon and the lion dance.”

While these exhibits can be explored during the colder months of the year, bringing these lanterns to life is a process that takes a ton of dedication. “Yusi starts approving designs and looking at creations in the spring, the year before the show, and it takes about 60 to 90 days to build all of this as well,” said Roshelle. “So we bring in Chinese artisans and engineers to actually fabricate everything right here on site live. So it’s not stored, it’s not kept here. They really come and build it this whole time.”

The class on culture doesn’t stop there either, as you’ll also find acrobats and even a cotton candy sculptor who can create some incredibly spherical sweets and some really cool characters too. “They get really creative with their desserts,” said Roshelle.

While mini McAuliffe was ecstatic, we’re here for Christmas lights and don’t fret, you’ll find those here too. “We couldn’t have Magical Winter Lights this time of year, all of November and December without a Christmas section as well,” said Roshelle. “You can even get some Santa photos right here closer to Christmastime too. And with so much detail. I mean I think it was like over 4 million lights in here, but you’ve got the reindeer and Santa’s home, and the snowmen, all the ornaments on the castles. It’s just festive.”

There’s even a section of lights dedicated to the Lone Star State. “Yeah, we got to have some space for two-stepping of course. Well, we’ve got the longhorns, the boots that are full of detail, like a good boot maker. We’ve got the skyline, the football players, the Texas flag. I mean, we got to be patriotic for our state here.”

While I had flashbacks to Qbert watching folks dance, my boy had Saturday night fever on a Tuesday thanks to all the unexpected things you can find here. “You’ll be able to play some Chinese drums and you’ll see some animal life and every little boy’s favorite thing, dinosaurs,” said Roshelle.

While you won’t see Santa on every sign, the Magical Winter Lights do provide a unique way to celebrate the season with the world. “We have one of the most diverse cities in the country and to be able to respect all of the cultures that Houston represents, it’s definitely seen here in Magical Winter Lights,” said Roshelle.

The Texas Bucket List Christmas Edition – Lala’s Little Nugget in Austin

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Austin – As the holiday season starts across the state of Texas, a popular place for friends, coworkers, and even a few families is the neighborhood bar.  But if you happen to live in the Crestview area of north Austin, your local pub celebrates that holiday season all year long. “It’s just been a staple of the neighborhood and it’s always been friendly and welcoming,” said Mike Lavigne, a regular at Lala’s

Sunny Allen is the GM of Lala’s Little Nugget, where Noel’s are sung nightly. “So we’re super regular-based. It’s a neighborhood bar. It’s my go-to bar,” said Sunny. “We get a lot of people in here that just love Christmas.”

Decorated from top to bottom in Christmas cheer, Lala’s is one of those places that never puts away the Christmas décor.  There’s even a countdown to Christmas clock!  New Years eve, eat your heart out. “Oh, just think gaudy, throwing up Christmas Everything you can think of,” said Sunny. “We live by the Christmas spirit and we love that vibe and that’s what we can offer anybody.”

All of this got started in 1972 by one Francis Lala. “She was the namesake, Francis Lala,” said Sunny. “Lala’s Little Nugget, which some people think it’s Falalalala. It’s Francis Lala. She’s the matriarch.”

Francis ran her bar till 2015 when she retired at the age of 85.  She spent her final Christmas on Earth in 2016 but her spirit lives on at Lala’s and from what we’ve heard, she was one tough Texas lady. “Didn’t take no guff from no one,” said Mike, the regular. “I mean, I saw her kick out people 10 times her size. It was always a trip when she was here and she was pretty much always here, just smoking behind the bar and giving you the shortest possible pour within the law. She was terrific. She was a very funny lady.”

But what made Francis so fond of the most festive time of year?  That’s sort of a Texas tale depending on who you ask. “There are many theories, and one of them is Kenny Chesney’s song, Jesus and Elvis was actually written in this bar,” said Sunny. “If you turn around, there’s a velvet Elvis, and it’s Jesus and Elvis painted on velvet and it tells a story about how her son went off to Vietnam and she kept the decorations up for whenever he returned. He didn’t return, so they never came down. There is also a theory that her husband left her and she fell into a deep depression and didn’t take them down. And then another theory is she put all the Christmas decorations up and she went through Christmas season, tried to take them down, the walls were too bare. She put them all back up and was like, ‘We’re a Christmas bar now.’ And can’t tell you which one’s true, but yeah. The rumors go around.”

Well I’m not one to ruin a Christmas story, instead I prefer sipping on a Santa Claus Cocktail while enjoying a few holiday hits on the jukebox. “We have a jukebox, a very old school jukebox in the back, and it has Christmas music on it,” said Sunny. “We do play the occasional Christmas song here and there, but let’s get real. The staff would lose their mind. The regulars would lose their mind if we did it all the time. So we usually play non-mainstream stuff, nothing repetitive. And then Christmas season, obviously, we fully embrace the Christmas spirit and go all out.”

Lala’s, if you can imagine, does in fact open on Chrsitmas day, albeit under adjusted hours. “We are open Christmas Day,” said Sunny. “Yeah, we open at 7:00. Get your family time, then you get to relieve yourself from your crazy uncle.”

In the end this is about celebrating the season, lifting up each other spirits, and remembering to appreciate this wonderful life because no man is a failure who has friends. “Loving people all around,” said Sunny. “Christmas just brings joy to everybody. And us being a Christmas bar, everybody kind of gets a little bit of nostalgia every time they walk in, which is really nice. And you can tell people Merry Christmas when they leave every single day of the year.”

 

The Texas Bucket List Christmas – Stanton Studios in Waco

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Waco – Out in the woods between Waco and West, you’ll hear a roaring fire burning behind the vast green curtain.  The sound emanates from Stanton Studios, a family run business that’s big on building works of art from wood, metal, and glass. “So my dad started back in 1979 and we have had work since then,” said Jordan Stanton.

Jordan Stanton is one of four brothers who now lead the charge at Stanton Studios, picking up where their Dad got things started but doing it in a much more elaborate way. “He was never very good at glass blowing,” said Stanton. “He messed around the edges of it, but he did let us play with the equipment and kind of showed us a few things and we took it from there. He trusted us with a lot of things.”

Stained and leaded glass is their go to. “I mean anywhere you can think of putting glass. We’ve put glass,” said Stanton.

Whether it’s for a church, restaurant, or private residence it’s tedious, time-consuming work. “I love the stained and leaded glass and all the challenges and opportunities that you get to be creative in that,” said Stanton. “Stained glass is such a good medium. You can do it in such a way that you can let in light, but you can also block out people viewing the interior of your home and you make really beautiful pieces.”

While stained glass is the bread and butter of Stanton Glass Works, it’s also a little bit of pain and you don’t get to hob nob with any customers while working. So Jordan decided to offer something a little more hands on to folks who wanted see what making glass is all about. “With stained glass, a lot of times I’m working with just one or two individuals over a period of time versus I might see a hundred people in a day doing the ornaments,” said Stanton.

Yes, Christmas ornaments. This simple, round, and colorful piece of glass has now become a cornerstone of Stanton Studios. “I figured out how to make an ornament,” said Stanton. “It was pretty crude, but I figured out how to make one. I was like, ‘Okay, you bring your family over on this weekend, and we’ll make some ornaments, and we’ll make a party out of it.’”

From October through December, Jordan and his brothers welcome thousands of people to make a holiday memory forged in a fire. “I don’t make any ugly ornaments, so each one is better than the last one,” said Stanton. “But there are some that I definitely make more often than others.”

For guests at the studio, the ornament making process begins with a wall of example ornaments, numbered to allow you to pick a color and pattern for your ornament. “So each one of these is a color that I have, anything with the number,” said Stanton. “And then we have our different shapes.”

Today, Jordan is gonna show off how to make a custom ornament, and what better choice of inspiration than our Texas flag? “I mean, there’s a really wide variety to choose from and we can combine them in several different ways,” said Stanton. “I think the twisted rib will give you a little bit of a flag, kind of a flutter shape. Now I can’t get you a star, but we’ll make it look good.”

Once a customer has made their creative decisions about their ornament, the rest of the process blows right by. “Once you’ve got all your colors picked and we’re ready to blow it, it takes about five to six minutes,” said Stanton. “With glass, everything has to go quickly.”

Jordan lays out a handful of shards of glass on a table, with all the colors that have been selected. “Yeah, little glass shards,” said Stanton. “Now, these are specially formulated glass for glass blowing. And so they’re really dense colors. That way they can be stretched out.”

When it comes to handling the hot stuff, that’s where Jordan takes over. “The handling of the glass and the dangerous parts I take care of, I don’t let just anyone get that close to 2100-degree glass,” said Stanton.

Jordan takes the glass from the furnace and brings it over to the table with all the colorful shards layer out. “The glass is so hot when it rolls over the top of them that it literally melts this glass to itself and that’s how it picks it up,” said Stanton.

As Jordan rolls the molten glass across the table, the guest gets to actually shape it into an ornament by blowing air into it through a tube and expanding it into the classic ornament shape. “Every once in a while someone could blow too hard,” said Stanton. “Those are generally our trumpet players or our wind instrument people.”

Before you know it, the Christmas ornament you had a role in creating is complete.

“If it weren’t for the people, there’s no way I’d be making ornaments,” said Stanton. “I’ve made ornaments by myself before and it gets boring, but interacting with the people is really a lot of fun. Hearing their ideas, sharing stories with them, seeing the same people year after year. I’ve had people that have been coming every year since I started doing this, and it’s their Christmas tradition, but it’s also my Christmas tradition.”

 

The Texas Bucket List – Grinch’s Lair in Palestine

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Palestine – On the eastern side of the great state of Texas, sits an old jail cell, that’s sort of a nexus.

Jeremy Janz is the owner of this old place, and Palestine, Texas is where he calls homebase.

Getting the daily mail or talking to guests, are things Jeremy enjoys but it’s not the best.

He’d much rather dress up for the Christmas Season, and give folks a good laugh for plenty of reasons.

You see, the Grinch is what Jeremy turns into, and his cell house brings in people for his debut.

While Santa is the star of the holiday week, the Grinch does pretty well for not being so meek.

“I have to say, Santa has a pretty hot trend of scaring some kids,” said Jeremy Janz. Back in 2013, Jeremy bought the jettisoned jail that was built back in 1931, Because who doesn’t want to own a nearly century old slammer? “This historic Anderson County Jail became available and I said, hey, why not restore a piece of history and turn it into a creative space?”

While Halloween is a popular time of year at the former prison, the Christmas season has turned into a bigger draw thanks to his holiday presentation of the Grinch’s Lair. “The Grinch character we felt like really had an opportunity to be this great mashup with a historic jail,” said Jeremy.

Jeremy takes on the job of portraying the Grinch every year, a role he takes great pride in. “It’s full prosthetics, so it is all there,” said Jeremy. “This lovely face that you see, it kind of transforms your personality. I’m sure if you had the privilege of transforming yourself, you might find your whole persona changes as well.”

The Grich here isn’t the mean old green guy hoping to steal Christmas, but rather the Grinch who’s heart swells with love for the holiday season. “We just believe that there’s a great potential for sharing the love that was developed for this literary classy character, but with a little twist,” said Jeremy. “There’s the freak out, maybe, perhaps. I don’t know. We do pretty good, but if you do get scared, we have an opportunity to get close, and I might change my tone, lower my voice, and have a moment with them to show them that I’m not scary. In fact, my heart grew, and I’m here to celebrate and share love with you.”

With is trusty Max by his side, the Grich invites you to his lair allows you to tour the old cell block with all sorts of holiday displays including a nice little homage to most kids favorite spot to stop by during Christmas break back in the day, “For all you littles out there that may or may not know about Blockbuster and the magic of VHS,” said Jeremy.

Unlike many holiday events that try to hold a monopoly on memories, Grinch’s Lair encourages visitors to capture as much as they can. “Santa, you’ve marked the corner on selling pictures, man,” said Jeremy. “We actually let you take pictures. Unlike some events where you have to put away your phones, we want you to take out your phone and we want you to get as many memories as possible.”

Getting folks to grin ear to ear is what this grinch is all about. Too see families share a special memory is what makes his heart grow three times over.

“Santa’s great, but it may not be all the gifts that you are asking for,” said Jeremy. “It’s about you enjoying your family, and if Santa can provide some of that magic, Hey, kudos to you, Santa. Keep doing it. If not, sometimes Santa, he does the best he can. Love the fact that you enjoy the holidays with your loved ones, and that’s what we want to spread. Love your family, love your friends, love each one around us. Recognize that even through the hardest times that there is the spirit of giving and sharing joy, and that it’s not about all the money and the gifts. Christmas means sharing the spirit of love.”

 

The Texas Bucket List Christmas Edition – Pape Pecan House & Nutcracker Museum CLOSED

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UPDATE December 2023 – Bad news y’all! The Pape Pecan House and Nutcracker Museum has closed its doors in Seguin! At least you’ll always be able to experience it here on The Texas Bucket List.

Seguin – Seguin Texas is synonymous with pecans. Spanish explorer Cabeza de Vaca was the first European to record the existence of pecans, and he referred to the Guadalupe River as the river of nuts. Today, pecan farms are a big part of the Texas economy and just a stone’s throw from the river you’ll find Pape Pecan House. “Some people say Pape, Pape, but they pronounce it Pape,” joked Grace Craft, an employee of the pecan stand since 2010. “Like pecan. You don’t say pecan around here though. We direct you to the bathroom.”

The Pape Pecan House has a wide variety of nuts showcasing the specialties of various growers around seguin. “We buy from local growers around the area,” said Craft. “Right now we have Pawnee, Cheyenne, Choctaw, and Grey King.”

When folks find their way to the Pape Pecan House, it’s not the decades of history they want to talk about, it’s the collection of nutcrackers that breaks the ice. From your typical holiday affair to cartoon characters and antique crackers, you never know what you’ll find in this museum dedicated to nutcrackers. “It’s a family business who’s been in the business for over 60 years,” said Craft. “Started with his dad, Hugo, and his mom, and then Mr. Pape, Kenneth came in and started learning the business.”

Kenneth took what started as a humble pecan stand with his parents and created a unique experience for visitors by starting the nutcracker collection. “The nutcracker collection started when he had a good friend that gave him a small collection, so as he traveled and saw nutcrackers, he started collecting them,” said Craft. ”He’s got books and books and he’d sit there and look at his books every day, just all the different nutcrackers and just… He loved them. He just loved them.”

As Kenneth’s collection grew, it began to take form as more of a museum than a display, and he was always willing to tell people about all the different unique, antique, rare and novel nutcrackers that he had on display. “A lot of people ask what’s his oldest nutcracker, and he would always laugh at it because someone would think maybe the wooden carved ones or maybe one of these,” said Craft. “It’s actually, in that case over there, there’s some rocks. That’s what the Indians used, so that would be his oldest, his oldest nutcracker. He’s got a lot of wooden carved ones from Germany. He’s got presidents, to Star Wars, to Disney, to the metal cast iron ones, the squirrels, the alligators, the dogs. Then you got the Naughty Nellies down there, the ones where you crack the pecan between their legs.”

Speaking of curiosity, one doesn’t come to the pecan house and not try some different types of pecans. “We’ve got Pawnee, we have Choctaw, GraKing, and Cheyenne. They’re all considered soft-shell pecans,” said Craft. “The biggest difference between them is the flavor, the oil content.

Pawnees and Cheyenne, they have a buttery taste. They have plenty of oil. Choctaw’s pretty close, and GraKing is a good pecan also. When you use this one, it’ll squeeze some of the oil out, and you can see the oil content in the pecan. And that’s what you want. You want the oil content to be in there because it gives the pecan the flavor.”

Getting to sample all sorts of pecans is only a part of the experience at the Pape Pecan House. It’s the thousands of nutcrackers all eagerly awaiting a chance to crack open someone’s snack that makes you realize that this stop is all it’s cracked up to be. “It was his passion, and that’s what he lived for, so hopefully they keep it going,” said Craft.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Texas Bucket List – Basilica of Our Lady of San Juan del Valle in San Juan

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San Juan – The Rio Grande Valley is a massive mix of two cultures but one of the many things that brings them together is faith. That’s why the Basilica of Our Lady of San Juan del Valle is such a hot spot on the border. “We are proud that we have it in Texas,” stated Father Jorge Gomez.

Father Gomez knows this church well, but he also knows what we usually come down to the Valley for. “People in the valley are friendly, no, and our food is the best in Texas,” joked Father Jorge about know what we like on The Texas Bucket List.

Jorge was ordained here in 2004. “When I was 14, I wanted to get married and have a bunch of kids. And then I went to the seminary at 16. I went to high school seminary. And my dad said, ‘Go, and you’ll be back in a month.’ It’s going to be almost 30 years and I’m still here,” explained Father Gomez.

This shrine got its start in 1920 as a small wooden chapel but today Our Lady of San Juan del Valle is the second most visited shrine in the United States only behind the National Shrine in Washington DC.  Each gets over one million visitors a year and considering the population of the Valley is 1.3 million, that’s pretty impressive. “The Basilica is geographically centered, is the center of the diocese. So people come from all over the diocese here to pray, to light a candle. Whenever they’re going to go into surgery, people come and pray to Our Lady of San Juan. They bring a candle. You can see people walking on their knees from the entrance all the way to the altar through the back to the altar of the candles. It is just amazing,” explained Father Jorge.

The reason this shrine is so sought after is part of this miraculous story. “I think the popularity of it grew with the plane crashing on the old shrine,” stated Father Jorge. On October 23, 1970 during a special mass with 50 priests, 50 parishioners and 100 school children  in an adjacent cafeteria, a plane crashed into the shrine and it exploded in flames.   While the church was destroyed, the only fatality that day was the pilot. “Whenever they want to destroy the faith, they do something and then the faith grows stronger. That guy wanted to destroy the church and probably killed the priest inside and the people who were celebrating the mass, and it just happened that it made it into the New York Times and people found out and people started coming more and more, and they saw what they call the miracle. You know, that the statue of Our Lady of San Juan was salvaged from the fire and the blessed sacrament, and that made the devotion grow in the Valley,” explained Father Jorge.

The new Shrine opened in 1980 and while it’s beautiful year-round, Christmas truly brings the holiday season to life.  And yes, this church is a gift shop if you need something for that special someone. The biggest seller here is candles because here lighting a candle is a prayer and to  pray is what people come here for. “We usually get 10,000 candles a week,” stated Father Jorge. “The faith of the people evangelizes me. I’m here as a priest, no? I’m supposed to be the one evangelizing the people, but no, when I see the devotion and the fate of the people, their fate evangelizes me. And when I see them praying on their knees with a candle on their hand, I always say that candle has something special. You know, because it is a prayer, it is a Thanksgiving, it is a petition, it is a family praying there. It’s a lot of meaning,” said Father Jorge.

“We have candles to St. Jude, Our lady Guadalupe, Our Lady of San Juan, St. Joseph is very popular. People go and buy the candles with the saying they want and then they bring them here. Holy week or Christmas, we get more candles than the one we can put in the candle room,” stated Father Jorge.

The gentle flicker of each flame is a radiant reminder of why religion brings us together.  In the end, we all want the same, for friends and loved ones to live healthy happy lives, to end suffering and sadness, for goodness to triumph over evil and for the light from above to shine down on this Earth. “I think that’s the beauty of this place. People leave and they go back home different than the way they came, because there is hope. And our hope is not in ourselves, not in human knowledge or human science. It’s too little. Our hope is in Christ and in the resurrection of Christ. Every Catholic or non-Catholic should come to the Basilica to experience God’s love and mercy. It’s not the only place they can experience it, but it is a special place,” expressed Father Gomez.

The Texas Bucket List – Main Street Bethlehem in Burnet

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Burnet – On the first two weekends of December, the town of Burnet brings in a bunch of people. Lined up along the city streets, they wait to walk through the gates of a unique holiday tradition called Main Street Bethlehem. “I mean, you’re transported back 2000 years when you come through that gate. It’s just amazing,” said Doug Lindley, the senior pastor of the First Baptist Church of Burnet, the folks that have been bringing Bethlehem back to life since 1993.

While you won’t hear Aramaic while walking through the city streets, you’ll hear the story of one fateful night that changed the world forever. “You have not heard the news.” No. “My brothers and I, we were tending our sheep in the hills on the road to Joppa, when an angel of the Lord appeared to us and the Glory of the Lord shone all around us. There was light everywhere. We were terrified but the angel told us to be not afraid, that he had good news, tidings of great joy for all mankind. That here tonight in the City of David, the Messiah has been born,” proclaimed a cast member in character. “The cast is unbelievable. They don’t leave. They don’t get out of character. Most of the time they’re interacting with one another. They interact with guests that come in, but they interact in their character,” said Doug.

Roman soldiers, busy taking the census, are constantly distracted by locals talking about the Messiah. “The shepherds in the field are saying that there’s a Messiah being born tonight,” stated an in-character Roman soldier.

Every building has someone unique, telling their particular perspective on what happened when Christ was born.“Oh, we didn’t have any idea whatsoever that it could have developed like this. It was something to keep us busy for a while,” explained Norman Leftwich, the man behind the idea of Main Street Bethlehem.

Norman Leftwich and his wife Frankie were the driving force behind this idea that started with wood framed walls with sheets painted to look like rock walls to what it is today.  A full immersive land with camels, cows, and a crazy amount of detail.“That’s the blessing that we receive is seeing the faces of people who did find that it is unique and apparently there aren’t very many displays like we have here that you can find, done in the way that we do it. We praise the Lord for that and he’s responded,” expressed Norman.

Well into his 90’s, Norman has seen Main Street Bethlehem grow beyond his wildest dreams and before the night gets kicked off, he leads a prayer that is closed out appropriately enough, with the singing of Little Town of Bethlehem. “He’s the hardest worker out here. He’s out here maintaining the facility year-round and doing things year-round, involved in cast recruitment, cast training and very humble about it. But the fact that the Lord used them to do this and that he let him stay long enough to see what it’s become,” explained Doug.

This peaceful Christmas Carol helps bring home the final destination of Main Street Bethlehem.  The stable depicts the birth of Christ. “We consistently as a congregation pray on site at the manger and there’s something about … I just get emotional when I think about it. When you walk through that gate and see that cave and know he really did this. It’s not just a nice story. He really did this. God became human and he didn’t come as a king or a prince. He came as a baby and he wasn’t born in a palace. He was born in a barn, in a stable and laid in a manger. He did that because he loves me,” explained Doug.

“I think it’s just a good grounding moment for Christmas. It just really reminds you of where it all came from,” said visitor Deborah Figueroa.

“It’s not just Christmas and gifts and everything. It’s about Jesus or to believe in God and everything. Yeah. It’s all good,” said visitor Ana Crowell.

While this display is only a recreation, it truly tugs at the hearts and emotions of the faithful.  Whether it’s joy for the season, the excitement of what this moment has meant in history, or the simple flourish of faith that fills you for some reason everyone seems to get something out of this. “I mean the Spirit of Lord came over me and it was just amazing. I just started crying and I went out the gate and I couldn’t even talk to anybody. And I’m just trying to get away because I’m just overcome by the power of the Holy Spirit,” expressed Doug.

But it’s not just the spirit of Christmas that comes over people. For Ana Crowell, it’s a chance to close out the year remembering someone she wishes could have taken this journey with her. “My mother passed away and she has always wanted to come here so today I just fulfilled her… yeah. Yeah, it’s good to be here,” expressed Ana.

While traveling to the Holy Land would be the ultimate Christmas bucket list destination, Main Street Bethlehem does a bang-up job on conveying the true meaning of Christmas. “You know, Christmas has become so commercialized that we forget what we’re celebrating. We forget the reason that we’re celebrating. The whole purpose of Main Street Bethlehem was to refocus our attention on Jesus and the fact that we’re celebrating his birth,” explained Doug.

“You know, I was pretty surprised. It takes you back in time and it’s awesome. We got to see baby Jesus, that’s the best part of it all,” said Ana.

“If you love Christmas? If you love history, this is definitely the place to come,” stated Deborah.

The Texas Bucket List Christmas Edition – Zoo Lights in Houston

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Houston – With nearly 100 years of history, the Houston Zoo is a popular stop throughout the year thanks to their massive amount of massive animals.  But when it comes to Christmas, there’s no shortage of raging and roaring holiday spirit.  “The music and the sights and the lights and the snacks, it’s Christmas time here, for sure,” said Lauren Wappler.

Lauren Wappler has worked at the Houston Zoo for nearly as long as the Zoo Lights have lit up the holiday season in Houston. “It’s been a fun nine years, we’ve evolved a lot,” expressed Lauren.

With so much to see here from dragons, a talking Zebra, to some extremely long light tunnels, the display starts going up in September and takes over two months to complete. “The crew is, I mean, they work fast. They’re very diligent. It’s a lot of work, but they do a great job,” stated Lauren.

When the Zoo started this annual tradition in 2011, they weren’t quite sure what to expect. “We thought, ‘Hey, let’s kind of flip the zoo and let’s do a nighttime thing’,” said Lauren.

We still had one question about the lights at the zoo, what about the animals? “Some of them like them. Some of them couldn’t care less. They go into their barns or their night houses for the night and they’re sleeping throughout the whole thing,” explained Lauren. “I was kind of hoping penguins or something would be out, but I mean, I’ll probably be back,” joked visitor Robert Boss. “The Zoo Lights, it’s not so much about the animals. It’s more so about the lights, though you may or may not see a giraffe or rhino walking around their yard while you’re here,” stated Lauren. “You can smell them. They’re in the background. So we’re good. We know they’re there. You can hear them occasionally,” explained visitor Tim Harrison.

While the animals might not be the stars of the show of the Houston Zoo at night, they are still attended to as normal, or maybe a little more than during the day. “Being a zoo, animal welfare is very top of our priority. So we have animal team staff members who come out throughout the night and make sure that our animals aren’t bothered by it. So we work hand in hand with our animal team to make sure the volume is not too loud, that the lights are set up in a way that won’t disturb the animals too much. So you will see some dark areas and that’s because the animals live there and they don’t really want to see the lights all night long,” explained Lauren.

Two legged creatures are way more into the array of lights. “They’re great. They’re beautiful. This is our annual tradition with our family. So this is our third or fourth year coming. We love it. They’re great,” expressed visitor Tracy Smithson. “It’s great that the city and the Houston Zoo can put this on for everyone,” said visitor Joel Garza. “We love being able to be that place where you can come bring your family and just have a really safe, really fun night together,” stated Lauren.

The dancing oak trees at the entrance of the zoo is just one of the popular stops. “When you first walk in and have the big oak trees full of light flashing with the music going, that’s pretty awesome,” said Tracy Smithson.

Considering this is a time of year where peace, love and joy are prevalent in our hearts, it’s fitting there’s a tree just for that and it really pulls out the passion in people.  “We’ve had quite a few proposals happen at that tree. So if anyone’s looking to make that forever moment happen, Zoo Lights is a great spot to get down on one knee in front of some really pretty lights and pop the question,” said Lauren. “Kind of gets me motivated to do my own Christmas lights. I can’t compete, but it gets me in the mood, so,” joked Tim Harrison.

Of course the ways things are this Christmas season, you can expect a much smaller crowd and tickets must be pre-purchased. “It will be a little more enjoyable, not as many people crowding you around and have some space to spread out, social distance and kind of just be able to stroll a little bit more versus following the herd,” explained Lauren. “Masked up families, still better than nothing. We’re fortunate and blessed. You’ve got to celebrate it,” stated Tim Harrison.

So show your pride in holiday cheer by bringing your pride to the Christmas display that all creatures crazy about Christmas will enjoy. “It’s unique. Where else can you go to the zoo and see Christmas lights,” said Lauren. “The Houston Zoo does an outstanding job every single year. They keep some things the same, but they always change something so it’s a different experience. And it’s just something you have to add to your holiday bucket list,” said Tracy Smithson.