Home Safe and Sound
1,915 miles in one week.
Bob’s sister and her husband planned their 30th renewal vows ceremony for one year. We got an invitation in January, and thought to ourselves that it seemed so far into the future, and what with James’ graduation from college, and commissioning, and the nephew’s wedding in Georgia the end of May, I don’t know that we formally committed until all other activities were over.
All of Bob’s siblings made it, with their families and folks from his sister’s church, and even some cousins from Flower Mound and a long, lost cousin that lives close to where they held the vow renewal. (I kept calling it the re-enactment, but my family would laugh at me when I misspoke).
Some camped out at the site, the rest of us weenies camped out at the hotel in Bernalillo near Albuquerque. Bob and I enjoyed the top of Sandia at 10,678 feet. It was nice and cool up there. And as we proved, a gravel road 8 miles long where you cannot go faster than 8 mph means an hour drive. Bob SO needs a four wheeler.
The renewal ceremony was fine, and the food good, and the company even better. It was a family reunion. The little kids played well together. And the breeze whispered in the pines. Back at the hotel, more visiting, and stories shared, and a game of Scrabble or two.
Bob received the greatest gift—he got to see his own mom and aunts and grandparents on an old home movies tape his cousin shared. Bob said he had never seen his own mom in a home movie. And she was holding him as a baby and while there was no sound, she was doing word play and obviously enjoying him. Same with his mom’s Mom---she had a big grin on her face truly enjoying all the blonde grandchildren lined up with her.
We drove on north after the family reunion and wonderful lunch at the cousin’s ranch. Bob wanted to see some mountains and enjoy some cooler air (cooler than Texas). We stayed at Farmington, New Mexico and then drove to Durango and Silverton, Ouray, Montrose, Gunnison and Salida. Years ago we had taken the boys on the Durango train, so in my mind it is an all day trip from Durango to Silverton, but driving it is much better. Better view of the mountains and the towns.
At one scenic viewing spot, the helpful signs brag of the best and cleanest air, but the portapotty facilities quickly diminished that fact. Waiting in line behind an Australian lady, she commented, “whew—thunderbox”
From Salida of-no-cell-coverage to Canon City where they do not open the Royal Gorge park until midmorning, we drove on south to Pueblo, Raton, and the Capulin Volcano in the NE corner of New Mexico. We had enjoyed it last July when it was lush and green from lots of rain and during the ladybug migration. This time, it was dry and brown and in the middle of the gnat invasion. Bob walked the trail in under twenty minutes. There is this cool trail along the rim. It was too hot there for me. But, you can actually see the highest peak in Oklahoma from there, and along the road back into Texas. Dalhart to Channing to Amarillo. And I must brag again about THE best bathrooms on 287. Combination new plus museum plus architectural wonders and so clean you could do surgery on their floors. They are only a county apart, but I wonder if they had a competition or something. One each side of Childress and Quannah and Hedley.
Now a paragraph about the signage. Deer signs have this perky jumping deer complete with antlers. Some give mileage, for example, so that you know that for the next three or 26 miles to be on the lookout for perky, jumping deer. The only actual deer we saw on the entire trip was after Raton on the way to Capulin, and they were eating quietly beside the road camouflaged by coats the same color at the dried grass. Some signs ramped it up a bit with a bigger deer---maybe and elk or a moose? Have there been any moose spotted near Albuquerque?? And we saw a few sheep with horns, like a ram, near Monarch Pass. The milk cow sign near Capulin was a laugh, as all the cows in the nearby fields looked like black angus, but the sign showed udders.
I want to remember the tram at Monarch Pass. 11,312 feet. The operator up top said they had only been open three weeks because of heavy snows. 500 inches. It is a privately owned little operation, but well worth the visit. Clean bathrooms, and a huge gift shop, and museum pictures of the disasters and snow. There is an empty cement pallet on top near the observation station. It was so fun to lay down on top of it and watch the clouds roll by. I did back exercises, and wrapped in a heavy jacket we watched the wind pick up to 40 miles an hour, then die down to a breeze, and then howl again. It was hard to imagine 500 inches of snow, as that would have covered the two story tram house and observation deck. Pretty flowers dot the landscape, and I only saw one tiny bee trying to pollinate the flowers. This was the second time we had donned our jackets.
Now we are home, and the cat was glad to see us. She was needing a good scratch, and we are both now covered in cat hair. Laundry is a humming.
Someone or some group is smart and building three and four story new hotels throughout the country. They have about thirty rooms per floor, and an inside pool, and breakfast bar. The Comfort Inn in Amarillo had a Texas shaped waffle iron this morning. And the Holiday Inn Express hotels we stayed in were all nice. I like their peppery shampoo. We saw new Quality Inns, and Best Westerns---all in that rectangular shape. And all doing good business. The tubs at the Comfort Inn were too slippery, and the bathroom door arrangement irritatingly stupid.
I am not too sure what all is entailed in “antler products” near Trinidad, Colorado. But we saw lots of places with antlers piled high in wagons and adorning doorways and roofs.
Dishrags knitted and distributed to sisters-in-laws that like them, and a bag ready to mail to Suzanne. Bob did all the driving. I lost count of how many I knitted.
We kept in cell phone contact with James checking in each night. And marveled at all the rock formations to tell Lauren about. Lauren would love to see the rock formations near Bob’s cousin’s house where they filmed the movie, 9:10 to Yuma. Bob’s cousin said that sharks teeth had been discovered nearby, and gastroliths—stomach stones from whales. The rocks near the tunnels are Precambrian. Silverton is surrounded by pinker rocks, but the iron ore rich streams are orange. The falling rocks signage should be Colorado’s motto. And we also noted that there is plenty of real estate for sale in Colorado.
Cheapest gas was 3.85 in Childress, Texas today. Highest we paid was 4.17 in Raton, New Mexico.
My thanks to all who organized the family reunion. You know who you are. Now get busy on the sisters’ big five-oh in Branson in October.
And what a gift we were given in getting to meet a cousin only two months older than Bob. Bob had told me stories about their adventures growing up visiting relatives in El Paso and Carlsbad. This cousin only has one sister, so he seemed to be enjoying being reunited with eight first cousins, and numerous second cousins. He is talented and has a beautiful wife, and wonderful ranch. I hope we can get a copy of his home movie tape and get copies made for all the siblings. A picture is worth a thousand words, but a movie is worth a library, in my opinion.
Showing posts with label vacation. Show all posts
Showing posts with label vacation. Show all posts
Saturday, June 28, 2008
Saturday, June 21, 2008
On The Road Again...Just Can't Wait to Get On the Road Again...
Time for another trip. This week finds us winding west. Wide open spaces !!! Vistas !
Sunsets. Mountains.
But first, to pack. And then there is the last minute check off list. Do you ever add stuff to the list afterwards and give it that satisfying check?
You'd think we'd save the list from trip to trip. But, no. Alas. I am a throw away person. If something is not used nor needed, it is thrown away. Even the invitation to this next event, that we received back in January, which was carefully taped to the shelf for months...even that invitation with the nifty, handy map somehow got thrown out. Last time I saw it, it was on the table by Bob's chair. I had shown it to him, and neglected to tape it back up so we don't lose it, mind you, but it got covered with some torn-in-half junk mail and voila'. Thankfully, we were able to find an old email, and google-earthed it. Best to let the driver of our family see the route ahead of time, in my opinion. Google earth estimates a two hour drive up unpaved roads to the campsite from the hotel??!! Yikes. What an adventure. Our minivan is not a four-wheeler. Whoa.
I can't wait to see great-nephews in person that we have only seen in pictures!
And it sounds like it is turning into a family reunion with most of Bob's siblings coming---if not all.
Bob's youngest sister (what, twenty minutes younger than her sisters) has been married almost thirty years. They are going to do a renewal of their vows. I keep calling it a re-en-actment. But, that makes my family laugh at me for some reason. We were not able to attend the original wedding thirty years ago because Bob was in the Army and we were stationed across the country at Fort Stewart at the time. But, I heard it was lovely. There was the famous family heirloom bridal veil. And it was held in a quaint little old church with no air-conditioning, near El Paso, at the end of June...114 degrees??!! But, it was dry heat. What fun ! And they went camping for their honeymoon. What brave souls.
The bags are packed. Yes, huge clear ziplock baggies. Our good Lands End luggage went with our sons as they left home. I like the ziplock bags because you can see at a glance where the socks and essentials are hidden. I packed Bob's with one pair of jeans, two t-shirt choices (patriotic and plain and spiritual messages) and two polo shirt choices, two pair underwear, two pair socks, and a pair of jogging shorts for lounging around/modesty. (One year I packed my then six-year-olds clothing in just stacks in the suitcase for that trip west with Dad and was amused to see my dear son still dressed in pjs at Mount Rushmore in their vacation pictures.)
Cooler is ready. I have been making ice cubes for weeks. Silly me---it dawned upon me that a gallon jug of ice might work just as well to keep the precious coffeemate liquid fresh. Bob prefers coffeemate french vanilla. I like the new tirimisu. Yum. Powdered instant coffee is great to have on hand to ramp up the iced coffees. Wasn't it McDonalds that started the iced coffee craze? It is so much better to get your jolt from iced coffee than from scalding, in my opinion.
Knitting. Check. Huge balls of cotton yarn at the ready. Knitting needles, scissors, crochet hook (for tucking in the strings) and an envelope to mail them to my dear friend in Ennis if I don't find any takers along the way. Walmart carries the yarn I use, but the newer ones do not, so just in case... But, I do like checking out Walmart in other cities, don't you?? Smaller, friendlier, yet the same stuff, which is somehow comforting as some socks need replaced pretty soon.
I'd like to see some stars. We live in a very busy, very bright area of Texas, and our huge oak trees block the sunsets, too. The stars we see are just the major ones, like Orion, and the Big Dipper. I hope we get to see the whole shebang one night or two.
Soon as Bob has given that Sunday School lesson tomorrow...
Soon as we go through that checklist...
Soon as we top off the kitty's food and water. (She spotted the bags and is on to us. At least the cat is healthier this trip. When we went to a wedding in Georgia last month, we came home to a full catfood dispenser, and puny cat on her death bed. She is down to just a few of her nine lives, but thankfully, still alive. Sallycat thinks my shoulders and lap are a good perch once a day. She does not always warn me that she is about to leap. I have the holes on my arms to prove it.)
We will be bringing the Scrabble game along. We hauled it all over the west last August picking up James in Washington state, and never played a game. But, the Georgia wedding trip found us buying a cheap set to satisfy a challenge among Bob's brothers. In one last game today, Bob was mighty quick to slap an "S" on the top of my huge word, "MOTHERING". But, I did lay it on the triple, and beat him again.
The back yard is mowed. Whoops---better hunt the sweaty mowing clothes down and give them a wash so that we don't come home to a house smelling like sweaty mowing clothing.
We took our first trip sans children at Spring Break to see the Grandbaby. Second trip this year was the wedding in Georgia with the blooming Mimosa trees. And swinging north to see James at Fort Knox. This will be our third road trip this year. We are getting good at (picky) finding hotels with double showers, first floor, king size bed, no smoking. We are not used to double showers at home, nor king sized bed. A bed as big as your bedroom---who thought of that! Who-hoo. Living high on the hog when we travel, we do. I still remember the ladybug convention atop that Volcano in New Mexico, Capulin, last summer. And the humming birds that liked my red shirt atop the mountain passes in Colorado. That was fun.
I remembered to notify the children this time. There was some complaint from the youngest that we did not tell him about the last trip. I text messaged him from that same spot he helped make so memorable with his brother so many years ago---that Exit P-P in Missouri, which little boys can take very literal and we have the picture to prove it.
Stop mail online. How easy is that!!! And try to achieve that we-are-still-home look with lights and radio, and shoes positioned just so. And hope that if/when our youngest does visit or check on the cat that he remembers to lock the front door?! Many a time we have come home from church and wondered what distracted one of our dear sons from pulling the front door shut on their way out. Was it a cup of hot coffee? Dropping their tie? Forgetting their Bible? How could you not lock the front door? Another mystery that will not be solved until heaven home when we ask to see the video. One video I can't wait for God to show me is which little toddler shoved the garden hose up into the dryer vent and which one turned on the water??!!! We could never get a conclusive confession.
Still need to get a new roof put on. And the weeds out front---will the city understand when I say I am going for that "natural" look. Xeriscope or something?
Sorry if you live south of us. It is just too darn hot to travel to your climes. And with flooding along the Mississippi, better avoid that area of the country for a while. The pictures are amazing. Poor pigs trapped on roofs of barns and houses. Water up to the roof tops. Block after block of submerged devestation. The blog stories of little towns that might be gone forever is heart wrenching. Sometimes little towns die because the railroad did not come through there, or because the jobs went elsewhere. But, it is sad when families, generations cannot go home because home has been swept away.
We'll be blogging about our adventures. Looking for blog fodder along the way, so stay tuned. And with our cell phones leashes handy, only a phone call away. We even have the nifty recharger thingy for in the car that plugs into the old timey cigarette lighter. It snaps my thumb every time I press the recoil, just like a tape measure. You'd think I'd learn...
We sent pictures of new chairs to firstborn, and he is convinced that we are about to install a jacuzzi and buy a bass boat with all our new found riches (i.e. birdies flown the nest). So, maybe along the way, we can stage a few shots of the old folks standing in a jacuzzi or by a bass boat. I have not posted pictures in a while, have I? Well, then, I'd better get busy looking for interesting pictures to blog here for our fans, hadn't I!!!
Sunsets. Mountains.
But first, to pack. And then there is the last minute check off list. Do you ever add stuff to the list afterwards and give it that satisfying check?
You'd think we'd save the list from trip to trip. But, no. Alas. I am a throw away person. If something is not used nor needed, it is thrown away. Even the invitation to this next event, that we received back in January, which was carefully taped to the shelf for months...even that invitation with the nifty, handy map somehow got thrown out. Last time I saw it, it was on the table by Bob's chair. I had shown it to him, and neglected to tape it back up so we don't lose it, mind you, but it got covered with some torn-in-half junk mail and voila'. Thankfully, we were able to find an old email, and google-earthed it. Best to let the driver of our family see the route ahead of time, in my opinion. Google earth estimates a two hour drive up unpaved roads to the campsite from the hotel??!! Yikes. What an adventure. Our minivan is not a four-wheeler. Whoa.
I can't wait to see great-nephews in person that we have only seen in pictures!
And it sounds like it is turning into a family reunion with most of Bob's siblings coming---if not all.
Bob's youngest sister (what, twenty minutes younger than her sisters) has been married almost thirty years. They are going to do a renewal of their vows. I keep calling it a re-en-actment. But, that makes my family laugh at me for some reason. We were not able to attend the original wedding thirty years ago because Bob was in the Army and we were stationed across the country at Fort Stewart at the time. But, I heard it was lovely. There was the famous family heirloom bridal veil. And it was held in a quaint little old church with no air-conditioning, near El Paso, at the end of June...114 degrees??!! But, it was dry heat. What fun ! And they went camping for their honeymoon. What brave souls.
The bags are packed. Yes, huge clear ziplock baggies. Our good Lands End luggage went with our sons as they left home. I like the ziplock bags because you can see at a glance where the socks and essentials are hidden. I packed Bob's with one pair of jeans, two t-shirt choices (patriotic and plain and spiritual messages) and two polo shirt choices, two pair underwear, two pair socks, and a pair of jogging shorts for lounging around/modesty. (One year I packed my then six-year-olds clothing in just stacks in the suitcase for that trip west with Dad and was amused to see my dear son still dressed in pjs at Mount Rushmore in their vacation pictures.)
Cooler is ready. I have been making ice cubes for weeks. Silly me---it dawned upon me that a gallon jug of ice might work just as well to keep the precious coffeemate liquid fresh. Bob prefers coffeemate french vanilla. I like the new tirimisu. Yum. Powdered instant coffee is great to have on hand to ramp up the iced coffees. Wasn't it McDonalds that started the iced coffee craze? It is so much better to get your jolt from iced coffee than from scalding, in my opinion.
Knitting. Check. Huge balls of cotton yarn at the ready. Knitting needles, scissors, crochet hook (for tucking in the strings) and an envelope to mail them to my dear friend in Ennis if I don't find any takers along the way. Walmart carries the yarn I use, but the newer ones do not, so just in case... But, I do like checking out Walmart in other cities, don't you?? Smaller, friendlier, yet the same stuff, which is somehow comforting as some socks need replaced pretty soon.
I'd like to see some stars. We live in a very busy, very bright area of Texas, and our huge oak trees block the sunsets, too. The stars we see are just the major ones, like Orion, and the Big Dipper. I hope we get to see the whole shebang one night or two.
Soon as Bob has given that Sunday School lesson tomorrow...
Soon as we go through that checklist...
Soon as we top off the kitty's food and water. (She spotted the bags and is on to us. At least the cat is healthier this trip. When we went to a wedding in Georgia last month, we came home to a full catfood dispenser, and puny cat on her death bed. She is down to just a few of her nine lives, but thankfully, still alive. Sallycat thinks my shoulders and lap are a good perch once a day. She does not always warn me that she is about to leap. I have the holes on my arms to prove it.)
We will be bringing the Scrabble game along. We hauled it all over the west last August picking up James in Washington state, and never played a game. But, the Georgia wedding trip found us buying a cheap set to satisfy a challenge among Bob's brothers. In one last game today, Bob was mighty quick to slap an "S" on the top of my huge word, "MOTHERING". But, I did lay it on the triple, and beat him again.
The back yard is mowed. Whoops---better hunt the sweaty mowing clothes down and give them a wash so that we don't come home to a house smelling like sweaty mowing clothing.
We took our first trip sans children at Spring Break to see the Grandbaby. Second trip this year was the wedding in Georgia with the blooming Mimosa trees. And swinging north to see James at Fort Knox. This will be our third road trip this year. We are getting good at (picky) finding hotels with double showers, first floor, king size bed, no smoking. We are not used to double showers at home, nor king sized bed. A bed as big as your bedroom---who thought of that! Who-hoo. Living high on the hog when we travel, we do. I still remember the ladybug convention atop that Volcano in New Mexico, Capulin, last summer. And the humming birds that liked my red shirt atop the mountain passes in Colorado. That was fun.
I remembered to notify the children this time. There was some complaint from the youngest that we did not tell him about the last trip. I text messaged him from that same spot he helped make so memorable with his brother so many years ago---that Exit P-P in Missouri, which little boys can take very literal and we have the picture to prove it.
Stop mail online. How easy is that!!! And try to achieve that we-are-still-home look with lights and radio, and shoes positioned just so. And hope that if/when our youngest does visit or check on the cat that he remembers to lock the front door?! Many a time we have come home from church and wondered what distracted one of our dear sons from pulling the front door shut on their way out. Was it a cup of hot coffee? Dropping their tie? Forgetting their Bible? How could you not lock the front door? Another mystery that will not be solved until heaven home when we ask to see the video. One video I can't wait for God to show me is which little toddler shoved the garden hose up into the dryer vent and which one turned on the water??!!! We could never get a conclusive confession.
Still need to get a new roof put on. And the weeds out front---will the city understand when I say I am going for that "natural" look. Xeriscope or something?
Sorry if you live south of us. It is just too darn hot to travel to your climes. And with flooding along the Mississippi, better avoid that area of the country for a while. The pictures are amazing. Poor pigs trapped on roofs of barns and houses. Water up to the roof tops. Block after block of submerged devestation. The blog stories of little towns that might be gone forever is heart wrenching. Sometimes little towns die because the railroad did not come through there, or because the jobs went elsewhere. But, it is sad when families, generations cannot go home because home has been swept away.
We'll be blogging about our adventures. Looking for blog fodder along the way, so stay tuned. And with our cell phones leashes handy, only a phone call away. We even have the nifty recharger thingy for in the car that plugs into the old timey cigarette lighter. It snaps my thumb every time I press the recoil, just like a tape measure. You'd think I'd learn...
We sent pictures of new chairs to firstborn, and he is convinced that we are about to install a jacuzzi and buy a bass boat with all our new found riches (i.e. birdies flown the nest). So, maybe along the way, we can stage a few shots of the old folks standing in a jacuzzi or by a bass boat. I have not posted pictures in a while, have I? Well, then, I'd better get busy looking for interesting pictures to blog here for our fans, hadn't I!!!
Tuesday, June 3, 2008
Where have we been?
Thursday afternoon, we drove from downtown Dallas to Jackson, Mississippi. And on Friday, we drove from Jackson across the pine forests of Mississippi, Alabama and into Georgia. On Friday night, we visited with good friends and ate fantastic steak and Bob rudely beat everyone at Scrabble. (Note to self: pack our own Scrabble board and Scrabble Dictionary, and Scrabble two-word helps book for the next vacation) Our gracious hosts had an old board, and our fancier version has a turntable and slots that hold the tiles when you jiggle the board.
We drove into Newnan, Georgia on Saturday morning and lo and behold, right behind our hotel was a Toyota dealership and we were just thirty miles on the odometer from needing that fifteen-thousand oil change. I am still amazed at that timing and positioning.
And we noticed a Chick-fill-you-up place across the street. It looked brand new, but it had NO playground. Instead, it had this small house on the front with the non-politically correct name: DWARF HOUSE. Being too curious and nosy, I asked the worker in the middle of this huge eating establishment if that little house was for kids' parties or what? He laughed, and said, no, its in honor of the original founder's first eating establishments that were named, "Dwarf House" and we found out that THIS Chick-fil-eh was a full service SIT DOWN type place with menus and much, much more than just chicken. My husband, Bob had to hear it from this gentleman himself, as he would not believe what I had heard with my own two ears. I wish I'd had the camera at the ready when the patient worker explained, that, yes, they served steak, ham, and much, much more than just chicken. Bob's "REALLY???" and incredulous expression was priceless. We had time before the nephew's wedding to fortify ourselves, and almost wept with glee to eat on real china and use real metal forks and spoons and to be waited on by a real live person who brought the food to our table. Hog heaven.
The wedding, in this beautiful old town of Newnan, Georgia was so fun. Fun for us, as we had no role except to sit on the groom's side as aunt and uncle. This nephew actually attended our wedding thirty years ago, and we reminded him how well behaved he was at our wedding seeing as how he was not actually BORN until two months later.
Our six-foot-six nephew has a beautiful singing voice, and sang to his bride. Too cool. And he tilts his head in a most endearing way. After seeing the bride in person for the first time from the second row of honor, and through tears, and in this very starring role, we enjoyed hearing Bob's oldest brother who is a pastor and prof at a Bible college, give the sermon and administer the vows even as he did at OUR wedding thirty years ago. Bob's brother has ramped up the vows and included a "curse" from Laben and Jacob's exchange in Genesis. Whoa. Bob's niece was sitting beside us, and she leaned over and said that each of the married siblings had received this "curse" of 'God do to me, and more' if I break these vows.
The wedding was beautiful, and the decorations were beautiful, and the bride and groom were positioned in front of us, with the pastor to the side so we could see. They voiced their "I DOs" loudly and with confidence. And then proceeded down the aisle after the first kiss. Then there was this cool power point slide show of them as young adults entering mission training, and how they met, and their plans to continue mission training. Then the bride and groom came BACK DOWN THE AISLE and dismissed each row with a greeting and a hug! I got to shake the bride's hand! Wow. Her dear MOMMA had greeted us as entered the church. Somebody had told her about us, and she said something about reading our blog. Oh, my. What a gracious lady. So friendly and sweet on a day when she was losing her first daughter. Losing a daughter but gaining a son.
It was fun visiting with lots of my husband, Bob's relatives. Some, we were meeting for the first time, as we had not been able to attend the youngest niece's wedding and her little boy has his grandpa's full head of curly hair. (unlike my boys who, more like me, had no hair until they were two years old)
After the wedding, we went back to the hotel and Bob again trounced everyone at Scrabble after dinner at this fancy Canadian moose place. Bug-a-Boo Creek. Tasty salmon. I figured if anyone can "do" salmon, the Canadians can !!!
Then up we rose on Sunday morning for the short, six hour trip to see second lieutenant James at Fort Knox. What fun. We arrived just as James was "getting off work" and I realized I had never heard him use that phrase before. Usually, James tells me he is getting out of class or is "done with lab" and the phrase "getting off work" was amazing unto me.
James is enjoying his work of repelling off a fifty foot tower. When we talked to him yesterday on the trip home to let him know we had made it back to Texas, he said their working with a group of junior rotc cadets was fun. The junior rotc cadets were petrified, and James said he was able to help them concentrate on depending on the equipment and focusing on his calming face. How cool. To go from being nervous himself to confident, and then be able to turn and help others---how cool is that??!! Nothing better, I'm sure.
So, we are back. After having crossed many rivers, and seen many vistas. Thanks to the blooming Mimosa TREES (not the drink, for all you young people) we had a colorful drive. And the prettied-up first mile of a new state complete with wildflowers and clean rest rooms, made it memorable, too.
I enjoyed driving one route, but coming home another, like in a big circle. Anything to avoid Little Rock. (I have seen that a lot on our past few vacations and was ready for a change).
One note about the town of Burbon, Missouri---the huge letters on your water tower made me wonder if the water tower was full of burbon. That is a lot of burbon. Now I am wondering if there is a Burbon school district. And all the jokes that would accompany having such a name emblazoned on your cap and jacket.
And our near-movie moment: When Chevy Chase drives downtown St. Louis in the VACATION movie, he mistakenly goes down the wrong exit near the Arch...we re-enacted that scene at midnight, very bleary-eyed, and while the lighted Arch was pretty reflected off the water, Bob thankfully did NOT take the wrong exit, so we stayed safe. I think Bob wanted to avoid downtown St. Louis by using the loop, but he had missed that exit, which found us dangerously close to downtown, and all I could think of was how Chevy Chase lost all his hubcaps in a very ugly section of town.
My glasses broke. Time to reduce this font and "publish" and make corrections later. Ha. Laundry is a-calling. Good thing I took some knitted dishrags I had made. I gave away a few, and kept busy in the car knitting more. Bob's brother's mother-in-law has an insatiable appetite for the dishrags, so she took all I had made, and scarfed up any I knitted in her presence. I am glad she likes them. Four more knitted for my friend in Ennis on the drive home. The car's door bins are just right to hold skeins of cotton yarn. (Canadian Sugar 'n Cream, and made-in-the USA Peaches & Cream)
We drove into Newnan, Georgia on Saturday morning and lo and behold, right behind our hotel was a Toyota dealership and we were just thirty miles on the odometer from needing that fifteen-thousand oil change. I am still amazed at that timing and positioning.
And we noticed a Chick-fill-you-up place across the street. It looked brand new, but it had NO playground. Instead, it had this small house on the front with the non-politically correct name: DWARF HOUSE. Being too curious and nosy, I asked the worker in the middle of this huge eating establishment if that little house was for kids' parties or what? He laughed, and said, no, its in honor of the original founder's first eating establishments that were named, "Dwarf House" and we found out that THIS Chick-fil-eh was a full service SIT DOWN type place with menus and much, much more than just chicken. My husband, Bob had to hear it from this gentleman himself, as he would not believe what I had heard with my own two ears. I wish I'd had the camera at the ready when the patient worker explained, that, yes, they served steak, ham, and much, much more than just chicken. Bob's "REALLY???" and incredulous expression was priceless. We had time before the nephew's wedding to fortify ourselves, and almost wept with glee to eat on real china and use real metal forks and spoons and to be waited on by a real live person who brought the food to our table. Hog heaven.
The wedding, in this beautiful old town of Newnan, Georgia was so fun. Fun for us, as we had no role except to sit on the groom's side as aunt and uncle. This nephew actually attended our wedding thirty years ago, and we reminded him how well behaved he was at our wedding seeing as how he was not actually BORN until two months later.
Our six-foot-six nephew has a beautiful singing voice, and sang to his bride. Too cool. And he tilts his head in a most endearing way. After seeing the bride in person for the first time from the second row of honor, and through tears, and in this very starring role, we enjoyed hearing Bob's oldest brother who is a pastor and prof at a Bible college, give the sermon and administer the vows even as he did at OUR wedding thirty years ago. Bob's brother has ramped up the vows and included a "curse" from Laben and Jacob's exchange in Genesis. Whoa. Bob's niece was sitting beside us, and she leaned over and said that each of the married siblings had received this "curse" of 'God do to me, and more' if I break these vows.
The wedding was beautiful, and the decorations were beautiful, and the bride and groom were positioned in front of us, with the pastor to the side so we could see. They voiced their "I DOs" loudly and with confidence. And then proceeded down the aisle after the first kiss. Then there was this cool power point slide show of them as young adults entering mission training, and how they met, and their plans to continue mission training. Then the bride and groom came BACK DOWN THE AISLE and dismissed each row with a greeting and a hug! I got to shake the bride's hand! Wow. Her dear MOMMA had greeted us as entered the church. Somebody had told her about us, and she said something about reading our blog. Oh, my. What a gracious lady. So friendly and sweet on a day when she was losing her first daughter. Losing a daughter but gaining a son.
It was fun visiting with lots of my husband, Bob's relatives. Some, we were meeting for the first time, as we had not been able to attend the youngest niece's wedding and her little boy has his grandpa's full head of curly hair. (unlike my boys who, more like me, had no hair until they were two years old)
After the wedding, we went back to the hotel and Bob again trounced everyone at Scrabble after dinner at this fancy Canadian moose place. Bug-a-Boo Creek. Tasty salmon. I figured if anyone can "do" salmon, the Canadians can !!!
Then up we rose on Sunday morning for the short, six hour trip to see second lieutenant James at Fort Knox. What fun. We arrived just as James was "getting off work" and I realized I had never heard him use that phrase before. Usually, James tells me he is getting out of class or is "done with lab" and the phrase "getting off work" was amazing unto me.
James is enjoying his work of repelling off a fifty foot tower. When we talked to him yesterday on the trip home to let him know we had made it back to Texas, he said their working with a group of junior rotc cadets was fun. The junior rotc cadets were petrified, and James said he was able to help them concentrate on depending on the equipment and focusing on his calming face. How cool. To go from being nervous himself to confident, and then be able to turn and help others---how cool is that??!! Nothing better, I'm sure.
So, we are back. After having crossed many rivers, and seen many vistas. Thanks to the blooming Mimosa TREES (not the drink, for all you young people) we had a colorful drive. And the prettied-up first mile of a new state complete with wildflowers and clean rest rooms, made it memorable, too.
I enjoyed driving one route, but coming home another, like in a big circle. Anything to avoid Little Rock. (I have seen that a lot on our past few vacations and was ready for a change).
One note about the town of Burbon, Missouri---the huge letters on your water tower made me wonder if the water tower was full of burbon. That is a lot of burbon. Now I am wondering if there is a Burbon school district. And all the jokes that would accompany having such a name emblazoned on your cap and jacket.
And our near-movie moment: When Chevy Chase drives downtown St. Louis in the VACATION movie, he mistakenly goes down the wrong exit near the Arch...we re-enacted that scene at midnight, very bleary-eyed, and while the lighted Arch was pretty reflected off the water, Bob thankfully did NOT take the wrong exit, so we stayed safe. I think Bob wanted to avoid downtown St. Louis by using the loop, but he had missed that exit, which found us dangerously close to downtown, and all I could think of was how Chevy Chase lost all his hubcaps in a very ugly section of town.
My glasses broke. Time to reduce this font and "publish" and make corrections later. Ha. Laundry is a-calling. Good thing I took some knitted dishrags I had made. I gave away a few, and kept busy in the car knitting more. Bob's brother's mother-in-law has an insatiable appetite for the dishrags, so she took all I had made, and scarfed up any I knitted in her presence. I am glad she likes them. Four more knitted for my friend in Ennis on the drive home. The car's door bins are just right to hold skeins of cotton yarn. (Canadian Sugar 'n Cream, and made-in-the USA Peaches & Cream)
Saturday, March 15, 2008
Going to see the Grandbaby !
Spring Break. Going to see the Grandbaby. Will be on the lookout for blog fodder along the way.
We have been listening to the space walk this evening as we pack and play one last game of Scrabble.
Younger sons made it okay on the first leg of their journey to Colorado to go skiing. The first time for them.
I think its funny when folks list their music on their websites. We don't have an i-poddy, but here are some CDs we will be feeding into the CD player onboard:
Saviour (with Wintley Phipps, Larnelle Harris)
Messiah
Gladiator Sound Track
Prince of Egypt
David Phelps
We have been listening to the space walk this evening as we pack and play one last game of Scrabble.
Younger sons made it okay on the first leg of their journey to Colorado to go skiing. The first time for them.
I think its funny when folks list their music on their websites. We don't have an i-poddy, but here are some CDs we will be feeding into the CD player onboard:
Saviour (with Wintley Phipps, Larnelle Harris)
Messiah
Gladiator Sound Track
Prince of Egypt
David Phelps
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