Saturday, April 30, 2011

The Queen Request You Read This

Please take time to read this post from Julie at The Satellite Sisters on the Royal Wedding.

Then add your comments about the wedding here. It will be fun to read everyone's thoughts.




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Friday, April 29, 2011

Wedding Day


Unless you have been living under a rock, you know that Catherine and William were married today. What you may not know is that


Joanie and Jacob were married this day five years ago. I don't think Joanie looked any less regal than Catherine. ( yes I am her mother, but, I am totally objective! Really)

In fact, the royal family has had events on some of our special dates for years. First, Prince William was born on Brett's birthday. Then, Diana's car crash happened on the evening of Michelle's big thirteenth birthday party. ( I realize she certainly would have not wanted this to happen.) Now, the wedding.

I hope Will and Kate will be as happy as J and J,



and have lots of little princesses! Happy Anniversary, Joanie and Jacob.

Sunday, April 24, 2011

Family Ties


The last day of camping finished with a Good Samaritan act from the Berger/Brier campsite. In the afternoon, Barry and Jerry kayaked down the river in the other direction hoping to find deeper water. Unfortunately, like the rest of the state, the area is dry, and the Guadalupe is low.

At lunch we had wondered if the very few people "floating" the river had been told how low it was from the rental companies. Later that afternoon, three rafts appeared. They were being pulled by their adult occupants and children. One of the men asked if we knew how far it was to their rental place. The two young families had been told it would take them about two hours to reach it when they were dropped off. They were at four hours with still a mile to go. (which at their current speed, was close to another two hours)

We told them they could stop at our camp, and we would get them to their rental spot. The men were thinking about it, but the moms and kids were out and heading to shore faster than a speeding Easter Bunny.

The group had had to walk almost the whole way. They did not have their river shoes. One of the men said before they left Corpus his mother had reminded him to take river shoes, but he thought they would just be floating. He said, " She's smiling right now and doesn't even know why."

The nine year old girl commenced telling us that it was her birthday and one of the other girl's birthday. She also informed us that only the boys had cried. She got a guitar and the river float was her "party." She asked where we were from and told us she was from Corpus Christi. She also said they were staying in #1 and #2. Her dad laughed and asked her if she had told us the name of the place they were staying. It was the Heidelberg. They stay there every year and couldn't wait to get back to it.

This girl was a cutie.
Note to Ben- I think you and she could rule the world if you got together. Keep an eye out for this older woman over the next few years at the Heidelberg.

About the Heidelberg-
Maybe one day my daughter-in-law will write a guest post about the Heidelberg.

Barry drove one dad to the rental spot to get the employees to come pick up the rafts and families. After the birthday girls gave us hugs, the families loaded up their rafts and ten pair of rock-bruised feet.

The moral to this story, help others and ALWAYS listen to your mother.
Happy Easter, everyone.









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Saturday, April 23, 2011

River Road News

We left Port Aransas yesterday morning for New Braunfels. We made one quick stop on the way, as did this onion truck.






We met Jerry and Kathy Berger at a campsite along the Guadalupe. Jerry and Barry ventured out on the kayaks. Kathy and I read blogs and enjoyed quiet time.






The river is very low. In fact, it is so low the guys said it was actually warm. They had never felt it so tepid. It is nice to be back among trees and fresh water though.

After, kayaking Barry dazzled the Bergers with some card tricks. The balloon animals did not go so well. Barry was able to make a turtle and a parrot on a swing, but Snoopy on a Bicycle frustrated him.



There are many, many families camping in the campsite we are staying in, and Jerry, Kathy, and I thought Barry should go make balloons for the children. But, he was content to make them for us.

Jerry cooked breakfast for us ( and dinner last night).



Some children did come by and visit with us this morning. They brought their dog, Pingo. Bingo and Pingo had a great time playing. I would like to take Pingo home. He is a really cute mix or should I say Designer Dog?



Today we headed to Canyon Lake


and visited with Jerry and Kathy's neighbor, Mary. She was out working in her spectacular garden.


She gave us basil before we left.














This thistle was not in Mary's yard. I just like thistle blooms.


We went to the dam, then back to the campsite for lunch. You have to eat a lot to relax by the river. It's a rule.


Right before lunch, we were visited by this baby mouse. He must have heard us talking about lunch.


Barry and Jerry are off to kayak again. Bingo, Kathy, and I are guarding the campsite (i.e. Relaxing).

Thursday, April 21, 2011

They Call The Wind, Maria

The wind picked up but not from the correct direction. Those little warblers probably blew all the way to DFW. So, we enjoyed a day of sightseeing around Port Aransas. I'll share our day in pictures.




Black-Bellied Whistling Duck



Northern Water Thrush



Paradise Pond



Why are the birds always somewhere other than where you are looking?



Responder boat



Customs and Border Patrol






Huge Tanker



Porpoise



Pelican Poop



And something pretty for the end

Tomorrow we leave for New Braunfels. We are hoping that strange noise does not reappear.

Wednesday, April 20, 2011

Winds-help Us Out

After a good night's sleep (with AC), we started our day with a walk on the beach. There were all kinds of shorebirds for Barry to key out. The pelicans were enjoying the strong winds that seem to be consuming Texas. But for our purposes, we need those winds to come out of the north tomorrow. That would cause a "fallout" and that would be something to witness.



Bingo enjoyed his walk on the beach.



The ocean is pretty rough right now.


On the way back from the beach, we came across this centipede.
Gives me shivers down my spine.



This reminds me of a story, but I will save it for another time.

Next we headed to two main birding areas. The first one has some resident alligators, and I barely escaped.



Disappointedly, we didn't see the alligator that usually hangs out under the boardwalk or as many birds as we had hoped today. We only have sixty-one species so far. However, we still enjoyed our day and the birds we did see. Here are a few more photos from today.




































The End

Tuesday, April 19, 2011

Day Two

"What happened on day one?" you are probably asking yourself. We left Monday morning for Houston to visit our grandchildren and go to a Seder at Barry's cousin's home.


Barry and his brother, Mike

Brett, Shannon, Ben, and Scarlett got to Joanie and Jacob's about the same time we did. Jacob was on his way to Corpus Christi for a deposition. He claims that the fact he is called out of town every time we come to Houston is coincidental. I can't help but recall how Barry would go out and begin cleaning out the garage when my family was coming over. Is there some son- in - law pact I am not aware off? All joking aside, we missed Jacob and I know he missed us. Right Jacob?














Our plan was to sleep in the RV at Joanie's last night. We had done it before, and it was fine. However, that was in the winter and yesterday it was 90 degrees in Houston. For you none RVers, you need a 30 amp plug for an RV our size. Barry tried to plug in thinking he could fool the electrical gods, but it blew the house fuse. As the realization of no A /C set in, I headed into the house to sleep. So it was fortuitous that Jacob was out of town. Barry slept in the RV. He would not admit that he was uncomfortable. However about 10:00am, this is how we found him.


The kids, thirty something's and grandkids went to the park. Lucy and I stayed at the house for baby and Jama time.






Around lunchtime today, we all headed out to our respective destinations. Barry and I began our journey to Port Aransas. First stop was a Whole Foods in Sugarland. I wish I had taken a picture of it. It had waterfalls and fountains outside plus a play area for kids. While Barry was scoping out the best route out of the parking lot, I was fixing our lunch. When I turned on the water faucet that he had fixed this morning, the handle came totally off. I had to stick my finger in it like the little Dutch boy and the dike, until Barry returned. The faucet handle was fixed and we were off again.

About three miles from the ferry we heard a strange sound from the RV or jeep. We still don't know what it was, but Barry says he hopes whatever it is that it doesn't break until we get home. Comforting, huh?






We are now at our favorite RV park in Aransas Pass. As Barry was hooking everything up, he realized he had misplaced the jeep keys. After double and triple searches in the RV and the jeep, he found them in the electrical outlet box. Do we see a pattern here?
All you none RVers stay tuned, because the fun is just beginning. All you RVers, I know you feel our pain.


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