Houston Weekend

I finally made it to Houston for a visit this weekend. I flew there Friday so I could drive back in Papaw's Expedition to take it back to him. He has been very concerned about its absence and did not remember agreeing to sell it to Ed. It was a busy weekend going and doing and having much fun with Tommy's family. We went to a music festival/bullriding event in Bellville Saturday. It was really hot, but watching those kids made it worth the heat. After walking around and watching the bullriding and mutton busting, the kids and I drove home so Tommy and Allison could stay and watch Jerry Jeff Walker perform. It was late when we drove home, and those little buckaroos fell asleep before we had gone too many miles. They were up early Sunday, bright eyed and bushy tailed. Nana wasn't nearly as bright eyed. After church and lunch at Chuy's, I drove home. I had fun and I'm really going to miss those little boogers, but there's no place like home. And home is not where I've spent much time lately.

Branson Weekend

We made our longest trip yet in the motorhome--all the way to Branson, Missouri. It went well, but the drive was much longer than we expected. Between pulling the Hummer Toad and navigating the mountains, we did not make good time. However, once we got there, we had a great time. We did sightseeing in the area we camped (right off the strip) and drove over past Silver Dollar City to the lake. It was really beautiful country--lots of wooded mountainsides--and cooler than East Texas (of course, almost anywhere is, right now). There is an old fashioned five and dime store downtown that was fun to walk through. We went through the Titanic museum and saw interesting artifacts from the ship itself and heard stories of the passengers. It was a fascinating view of the past. I don't know how it ended up in Branson... We also went to a couple of music shows. We met Neal McCoy and spoke to him before his show. He is a sincerely nice person who has his priorities straight and who really has fun entertaining people. The performance was a benefit for the American Heart Association's Wear Red for Women's Heart Health. The next night we saw Moe Bandy perform. He lives in a cabin in the mountains outside Branson, and seems to be happy performing when he wants to and living a simple life the rest of the time. He put on an entertaining show, too. All in all, the trip was fun and a different type of camping experience--more like having a personal hotel room on wheels, since we didn't really cook and didn't even set up the grill outside. It was a full couple of days, then a long drive back.

God Bless the U.S.A.

Discovery Science Place Pics

We had lots of fun and exercised those imaginations!

Our Latest (Mis)Adventures

It hasn't been that long since I posted last, but we've had lots of adventures! Time's been a blur. I went to get Christopher and Joshua Friday because they are little refugees. Cindy's living room ceiling fell, and she's had lots of workers there this weekend, so the little ones are here while James is staying there to help out. We went to the Discovery Science Place Saturday afternoon because it is sooo hot this weekend. It gave them a nice cool place to use up some of that excess energy. Of course, we've been to our little playground, too. They're going home Sunday afternoon because the ceiling is up and sealed and Nana is pooped.

Last weekend Rodney and I went camping at Lake Ratcliff in the Davy Crockett National Forest. It was a beautiful place, if you like forest and seclusion, because that's all that was there. That met our needs perfectly, since all we wanted to do was sleep and eat and read. We managed to get in several walks, and the dogs met their first armadillo, up close and personal. I wish I'd had my camera for that encounter! No barking, but lots of curiosity. I could read those little minds..."What IS that thing???" We had our little jeep with us, towing it behind the motorhome. On the way home, we noticed it smoking. Hoping to make it to Tyler, we trudged on. About 10 miles from home, smoke turned to flames, and we had to hustle to get it unhooked from the motorhome before they both went up. The Bullard fire department came and put out the fire. Luckily, the wind was blowing in the right direction, and we didn't set off a grass fire, but it was close. That's how we lost our little "toad." (We found out that's what RVers call the vehicles they tow.)

Of course, Rodney couldn't resist the opportunity to look for another "toad." (I swear the man is addicted to internal combustion engines!) He did lots of internet research and talked to dealers and visited car lots. And yesterday he drove home the jeep's replacement--an '07 Hummer 3. Rather a step up, but he did trade in his extended cab F-150 on it, so it is replacing two vehicles. (My new house rule--have to sell one to buy one.) It is a pretty thing--and a lot more comfortable than the jeep!

I finally finished the school year, but summer school starts the 23rd, so not much of a break. I worked two days last week and will work one week, and then we're off on a longer motorhome jaunt--all the way to Branson. I hope the new toad is ready to tow! We've never been there, and are really looking forward to it. We have tickets to see Neal McCoy and Yakov Smirnoff one night and Moe Bandy the next. (You young folks probably don't know any of these but fellow East Texan Neal.) Then school starts again. Bummer. At least it's only held Tuesday through Thursday through the summer, so weekends are long and it won't be bad at all. Gives lots of time for little get-aways. And I'm planning to head South for my next trip later this month, because I'm really missing those Houston grandkids! Then we're Tampa bound in July--and none too soon! Benjamin's almost grown from the way he looks in the latest photos.