So Mark is friends with my brother's wife's sister's husband (or sister-in-law's brother-in-law) through church. Ha! I'll give you a second to process that................got it? Good!. So, this project was used again as a means for family to set me up. I got Mark's info from the in-laws and called him a couple weeks ago. We had originally planned to go a couple Saturday's ago, but, due to weather and scheduling, plans changed. Thank goodness Mark was patient with all the changes. I knew our activity would be worth it though.
While searching for date ideas, I happened upon a place I thought only existed in my dreams! St. Francis' Wolf Sanctuary!! I love wolves!!! (Here's where you can really start thinking of me as Dates with Wolves.) I knew that this had to be one of my dates and when I asked Mark how he felt about wolves...he said he liked them. Good answer, Mark! Second question for Mark...how do you feel about pie? "Pie is always good." He was two for two and our date was officially planned.
Mark and I drove up to Magnolia, which is quite a little drive from Houston, but was totally worth it. The weather was perfect and the wildflowers were blooming. We got to know each other on the way up. Mark graduated with a history degree, thought about teaching, but decided against it (smart guy) and now works I.T. for a company here in Houston. He works with the young men at church and gets to go to things like scout camp. Good thing he was brushed up on his scouting skills. They came in handy when we were trying to find the Sanctuary...his handy dandy GPS led the way when my paper directions refused to redirect me after I missed a turn. What would we do without technology! We wound through the countryside until we at last came to Wolf Paradise.
We were directed down a path and then all of a sudden, there they were...8-10 wolf enclosures. Each enclosure had a couple of wolves inside and I was immediately entranced with the place. We walked to where the crowd of senior citizens was listening to the history of the park and each wolf. The worker greeted us and then had us sign our lives away in case of a wolf attack. It was so worth the risk. We listened about each wolf and what percentage of wolf they were, how they got there, etc. Some of them were more dog than wolf, but if paperwork says they have any wolf, they bring them to the sanctuary. After she talked, they brought out the "Ambassadors" to meet and greet the enthusiastic crowd. I got to pet some awesome wolves (even though the Ambassadors were mostly dog...I'm going to think of them as wolves)! Mark and I walked around and snapped pictures of the wolves, the people, and the gorgeous 200 acres of land that the sanctuary rests on. 
As we were walking around, this cute, white-haired, British woman came up to us and I instantly knew she was the owner. She gave me a big smile and an even bigger hug. Mark was not left out...she hugged him too. I told her how much I loved her place and the wolves. Her response? "Isn't it magical?" That was the perfect word to describe it! I want to be her someday! 
After we spent a sufficient amount of time amongst the wolves, we decided we should head out for the 2nd portion of our date...Pie in the Sky Pie Company. I found this one online too and the pictures of pie looked amazing! Yea for Mark and his GPS for getting us there. I loved the quaint atmosphere complete with doors on the ceiling! We picked our table, ordered our food and chit chatted some more. Within a few minutes, our food was in front of us and I was eating some amazing broccoli soup! Super tasty! We enjoyed the company, our lunch and...dessert. We each picked a piece of pie to try. I picked bumbleberry pie topped with a generous scoop of Bluebell vanilla and it was delicious! We finished up our pies and Mark was sweet enough to pay for our yummy lunch. As we headed back home, I was grateful that wolves and pie were such a winning combo and that Mark was such a good guy. Thanks Mark for being willing to walk on the wild side with me! Until date #10
Kim
1 comment:
What a great date! You girls are all so creative! :)
Post a Comment