They call the thing RODEO!

One of best perks of doing what I do is the fact that I get paid to do fun things I would want to do anyway, and it also conveniently gives people to do it with.  Just one more reason going into this field was a good decision! For example, just last week, I got to go to the Houston Rodeo Parade - with special seating, parking, and food because I brought clients and families from the Lighthouse! 

The Houston Rodeo Parade in a picture
-people, horses, flags - just missing the marching bands!

The RODEO in Houston is a big deal and apparently one of the most fun times of the year! The weather is nice - not too hot and not too cold (although there was freezing RAIN the other day, which gave everyone quite the scare/excuse to be late to work).  It is also a time when everyone get their cowboy-wear on. We are a city in Texas which gives us a nice opportunity to be a little bit bi-polar. Apparently, we can get our Western/Hick on for one-month (rodeo-month) out of the year and then go back to city life the other 11 months.  Which is awesome!

Pretty sure it's impossible to have TOO MANY Texas flags in one place!

I came just in time for the hick/western month. The excitement everyone has for the Rodeo has definitely rubbed off on me! It's strange because for the first time ever in my life I actually feel like I need cowboy boots, and I'm doing on-line window shopping/research to try and understand what cute cowboy boots actually look like, which is something I've never once in my life actually seriously considered. I'm asking my mom send me the plaid shirts I thought I wouldn't need, and I'm listening to all the songs on Florida Georgia Line's album because I scored free tickets to their night at the Rodeo! These are all things I would not have thought to do just a month ago, but apparently, when Texas it's best to do as the Texans do! (Which hopefully means using the word y'all in a sentence without being self-concious and excited about doing so - something I've wished for my entire life!) 

Kelli's Dash Cam

I had to include the above picture to illustrate just how much the city gets into this holiday-month! They shut down major city streets and thoroughfares so the trail-riders, who are a major part of the parade, can get back to the places they camped the days before and after the the parade. People open up their parking lots and city parks shut down, so the trail-riders can have a place to stay. The city also designates several street-cleaners to be part of the parade to periodically clean up after the horses. They also have these street-cleaners follow the horses home after the parade, as pictured above.  The picture above was taken more than 5+ miles away from the parade location on my way home from the parade! 

The bottom-line here is that Houston and Houstonians throughout the city are serious about their Rodeo festivities, and I, for one, am so excited to be living here in Houston just in time for one of the best times of the year!