We own a beautiful 3750 square foot "Texas Tuscan" home nestled in the heart of Texas. Our Austin stone home has 4 bedrooms (2 king sized beds, and 2 queens) & 2 1/2 baths and also features:

HOME OFFICE - features 2 computers, wi-fi high-speed internet, printers, & fax
PIANO - baby grand
FITNESS CENTER - 500 square feet & includes treadmill, elliptical, 4 station weights, dumbbells, and ab/pullup station, and 50" flat screen (includes blue-ray player, Direct TV & streaming netflix)
HOME THEATER - 2 rows of reclining theater seats (seats 9) just under being THX certified (incredible sound) & includes projector, 110 inch screen, blue-ray player, Direct TV & streaming Netflix

We are in a quiet suburb area on a cul-de-sac, but have open land behind us that makes the patio a lovely place to start/end your day.

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We are centrally located between several major cities which is the perfect hub for day trips (which we frequently do):

DALLAS/FT WORTH METRO - 1 hr 15 minutes - Lots of cool areas depending on what you like to do: West End Historic District, Deep Ellum, House of Blues, Piano Bars, Ft. Worth Stockyards, Sundance Square, Six Flags theme park, lots of Museums including JFK Sixth Floor Museum (where JFK was shot), Hurricane Harbor waterpark, Dallas Aquarium, Sporting Events(Basketball - Dallas Mavs, Football - Dallas Cowboys, Baseball - Texas Rangers or Hockey - Dallas Stars), Opera, Ballet, Theatre, Dallas & Ft. Worth Zoos, Dallas Arboretum (botanical gardens)& lots of shopping! DFW metro has more restaurants per capita than New York city - definitely good eats (Addison area is a must)!

AUSTIN - 1 hour 15 minutes - "Live Music capital of the world" - The slogan became official in 1991, after it was discovered that Austin had more live music venues per capita than anywhere else in the nation - there are over 200 venues to choose from & Austin is home to thousands of musicians. You can catch a show almost any day of the week at any time. Austin is just a gorgeous city & there is lots to do for the outdoor enthusiasts: hiking, biking, parks, and water sports abound. (The Oasis restaurant on Lake Travis is a must!). There are great restaurants and entertainment venues on famous "6th Street", and also great shopping on South Congress (SoCo) and the 2nd Street District.

SALADO - 45 minutes - the best Art town in Texas - a lively marketplace with over 60 shops and art galleries. Whether you're in the mood for fine art, antiques, pottery, crafts, collectibles, Americana, southwest or south-of-the-border decor, handcrafted furniture, trendy or exclusive fashions, or gourmet foods and wines, you'll find something you love.

NEW BRAUNFELS/GRUENE - 1 hour 45 minutes - New Braunfels is a wonderful German town with great restaurants with bier gartens, leiderhosen, and oompah music. It's also home to America's #1 Waterpark: Schlitterbahn (this place is amazing!), and there are plenty of opportunities to float the river via raft, tube or canoe (major attraction). Nearby Gruene (pronounced "green") is a quaint historic town featuring fine dining with river views (The Gristmill), an old dance hall that's hopping on the weekends, general mercantile store & antiques.

SAN ANTONIO - 2 1/2 hours - Home to the Alamo, San Antonio Spurs, and festive Riverwalk, San Antonio never disappoints. Check out Sea World, Fiesta Texas, Natural Bridge Caverns, and Natural Bridge Wildlife Ranch for other fun things to do! This one is a bit further & there's so much to do - it might be best enjoyed with an overnight stay on the Riverwalk (lots of restaurants, piano bars, clubs, and shopping).

HOUSTON - 3 hours - Houston Astros, Shopping, Dining, Arts, Spas, Theme Parks, etc.

**We'd be happy suggest activities for your trip... just let us know! There is everything from floating, canoeing, hiking, Schlitterbahn (voted America's #1 waterpark), Six Flags, Fiesta Texas, Sea World, the Alamo, Riverwalk, LOTS of shopping, etc.

We love Waco! It's not a huge metro city, but it's a perfect size for us (about 100,000 city limits/200,000 surrounding) & there are several fun things to do while you're here.
www.waco-texas.com/attractions-map.asp

HOMESTEAD HERITAGE - a traditional crafts village on 510 acres. It's a homesteading community with a blacksmith shop, pottery barn, woodcrafting shop, sorghum mill, gristmill, herb garden, hayrides & more! www.homesteadheritage.com

CAMERON PARK - one of the nation's largest city-owned parks & voted "Top 50 Trails in America" by Bike Magazine - you can enjoy 416 acres of some of the best hiking and mountain biking in the state (everything from easy green trails to double blacks). Be sure to stop in Outdoor Waco in the downtown district: you can rent kayaks, paddleboards, road bikes, mountain bikes, tandem bikes and they can outfit you for frisbee golf as well (we have several courses along the river).

www.outdoorwaco.com
http://www.americantrails.org/nationalrecreationtrails/trailNRT/Cameron-Park-TX.html

CAMERON PARK ZOO - Nestled in one of the largest undeveloped municipal parks in the country, the zoo encompasses 52 acres of lush vegetation & has some wonderful exhibits. www.cameronparkzoo.com

WACO MAMMOTH SITE- The nation's first and only recorded discovery of a nursery herd of Pleistocene mammoths & is now part of the National Parks Service www.wacomammoth.com

SPAS - Waco is home to two luxury spas & a multitude of smaller places. My personal favorite is The Spa at Canyon Oaks.

GOLFING - there is great golfing in Waco. Check out: Cottonwood Creek Golf Course, Twin Rivers Golf Club, Ridgewood Country Club, The Lake Country Club, driving ranges & more!

LAKE WACO: Fishing, Boating, Horseback Riding, Hike & Bike, & Swimming Areas.

WACO WATER PARK: Waco Water Parks features two 22-foot water slides, a competition pool, a beach entry pool, interactive water toys and covered party pavilions.

HEART OF TEXAS SPEEDWAY: Heart O' Texas Speedway is a 1/4 mile high-banked dirt oval located 7 miles north of Waco, Texas on Interstate 35. The speedway hosts racing events every Friday from March thru September.
http://www.heartotexspeedway.com/

WACO REGIONAL TENNIS COURTS: This center features 25 courts, six of which are indoors and air conditioned. The center court has stadium seating for 1,500.

SUSPENSION BRIDGE & RIVERWALK: Now for foot-traffic only, this historic suspension bridge spans the Brazos River. The bridge was the first to cross the river, making wagon and rail travel across this natural boundary possible, and was built beginning in 1866.

MUSEUMS:
Dr. Pepper Museum - www.drpeppermuseum.com
Texas Rangers Museum - www.texasrangers.com
Texas Sports Hall of Fame - www.tshof.com
Mayborn Museum Complex (for kids!)- www.baylor.edu/mayborn/
Masonic Grand Lodge & Scottish Rite Museum
Red Men Museum

SHOPPING:
SPICE VILLAGE - located in historic downtown Waco in the 100-year-old Waco Hardware building, is the most unique collection of shops you’ll find. Occupying 40,000 sq. ft., “The Shops” includes home furnishings, a hair salon, cafe’, gifts for all occasions, antiques, collectibles and clothing.

SIRONIA - 41 individual boutiques under one roof! Within the 2 floors of shopping you will find gourmet foods, fine jewelry, clothing, home furnishings, baby items, paintings, photographs, lotions, Candles and many other items you can'T live without.

ANTIQUES & BOUTIQUES: Several fun shops here

AMELIA'S FASHION EXCHANGE - Ken & I have owned Amelia's for almost 10 years - we would love for you to stop in & see our store! We are a trendy resale boutique with an earthy comfortable feel (think Anthropologie) & we specialize in designer fashions & accessories for Women. Check us out at www.ameliasfashionexchange.com. or www.facebook.com/shopamelias

BAYLOR UNIVERSITY has several things of interest including Armstrong Browning Library & The Bear Pit.

You can also fly directly into Waco Regional Airport (with connecting flights in Dallas or Houston). For more tourist information... check out: www.wacocvb.com

We are business owners & usually have a flexible schedule... while we prefer a simultaneous exchange, a non-simultaneous one would definitely be an option (as we have family & friends that will let us bunk with them) & would also be open to a hospitality exchange on our end.

We are always looking for a getaway! If you are interested in visiting Texas, we are centrally located within day trips of several major cities & our home is a lovely respite. We're open!

We are planning on doing the Inca Trail 4 day hike in September 2013 & would love to do a home exchange in Peru during that time.

Open to any dates

We love to travel & experience new things, so we're pretty much open to any destination - please don't hesitate to write us... we respond to all offers! We are especially interested in: 4-7 day exchanges within the United States (close to any of our National Parks), New England, New York & Hawaii... and 1-2 week exchanges with most of Central & South America including Peru, Equador, Brazil, Costa Rica,... European countries like Italy, France, Spain, Ireland, Germany, and Islands like New Zealand, Fiji, and Tonga.

We are outdoors people and love volcanos, waterfalls, mountains, rainforests, animals/reptiles, and some beaches. We like adventure!

View Feedback About My Exchanges

Introductions! Ken provides accounting services/financial forecasting for several local businesses and Monica owns a trendy resale boutique called Amelia's Fashion Exchange, both here in Waco. We're 41 years old and have been married 20 years. We don't have children, but our kitty, Sydney, is our baby (and she knows it).

I know some people are allergic to cats, but we take great care in keeping our place extraordinarily clean, so minor allergies shouldn't be a problem. (We do have a friend who is strongly allergic & he just takes a benadryl when he comes over & is fine). We will make arrangements for her to stay with our family while we are away. :)

We are fit & love hiking, mountain biking, canoeing, whitewater rafting - practically anything outdoors and in nature. We love travel & new adventures!

Ken & I are non-smokers and ask that you refrain from smoking during your stay. We will respect your home as if it were our own!

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