Donkey Eared Fern

This is our Donkey Eared Fern. It really isn't a fern, but rather a member of the Kalanchoe family of plants. They produce small "babies" on the edge of the leaves that drop off, or can be pulled off and planted. They are really fun. The plant grows until it is about three-feet tall and produces the typical Kalanchoe "flowerlets" at the top, then dies. Freezing weather kills it immediately, but taking a few of the babies inside preserves them until next spring. We have not only the one you see here, but a variegated version with spots. Cool plant!

Little Boys, Dump Trucks, and Dirt

One of the most special things we did over the Thanksgiving holidays was celebrate great-nephew, Weston's, 2nd birthday.

We started with gift-opening: a wide variety (size and types) of vehicles, a couple of varieties of blocks, lots of manly-man pj's, etc. The big hit for Carl (who is slightly older than 2) was the cardboard blocks -- assemblying them and then playing with them.

Next was the birthday cake: Mandi had bought a LARGE plastic dump truck and she filled the bed with "dirt cake" (ground Oreo's, vanilla pudding, and very realistic-looking chocolate rocks). Carl was absolutely enamored with this production -- his eyes were bright, his face was aglow, and he had a huge grin on his face.

I told Mandi that she and I need to get together and schedule a play date between Carl and Weston!

A Wonderful Thanksgiving Holiday

We had such a wonderful Thanksgiving holiday weekend! A few of the highlights:

1. I won 3 games of Scrabble in a row!;
2. After being exposed to the world of potato martinis, I am definitely a fan!;
3. Carl got in a lot of napping (which he desperately needed);
4. Ruth (my 5-year-old great niece) demonstrated her reading, writing, spelling, and math skills -- in fact, she was my partner in Scrabble!;
5. I ate ham until I started to "oink"!;
6. I got my laundry done -- this is a big deal for someone who lives in an RV!;
7. Lots of visiting with Sharon & Maxie and Mandi & Jeffrey;
8. We met Jodi's husband and daughters -- Jodi is Mandi's sister; and
   
9. It was cold and rainy -- perfect weather to stay inside and have fun with family.

The lowlight:

The Watts' crew beat the Conger crew in Trivial Pursuit :-(

My Top Ten List of Things I'm Thankful For Today

10. RVs with all the amenities;
9. Hand splints;
8. The wonderful, refreshing cold front that just came through;
7. The beautiful Texas Hill Country;
6. An incredible extended family and great friends;
5. A very special sister and brother-in law;
4. A step-grandson, step-granddaughter, a great niece, great nephew, and great nephew on the way -- all of whom I adore as if they were my own;
3. Two stepdaughters and step sons-in-law and two nephews and nieces-in-law who fill the gap left by no biological children;
2. Two precious dogs who bring me so much joy; and
1. A wonderful, loving, supportive husband who is also my best friend.

Country Music Fun

As avid country music fans, we were delighted to run across, on CMT, "100 Greatest Duets in Country Music."

I absolutely LOVE "countdown" shows; I find them much more interesting than award shows. And Carl loves good music, no matter the genre.

We thoroughly enjoyed the show -- hearing duets we'd not heard before and enjoying those we've heard many times before.

And, to make things even sweeter, I called the #1 duet way before it was announced: "Islands in the Sky" by Kenny Rogers and Dolly Parton. Am I good, or WHAT!

Catalina Tiles and Fiesta Dinnerware

Two of my mother's sisters have wonderful collections of the original Fiesta Dinnerware pottery. I have always expressed an interest in Fiesta; last year when we moved the older sister and her husband to a nursing home, she told me to take her Fiesta collection. The younger sister has since given me a few serving pieces as she is still using the dinnerware.

I am eager to display the collection in my new kitchen; however, much of it is cobalt blue and turquoise (which I have nowhere in my house). I've been trying to think about ways I could use cobalt and turquoise somewhere in my kitchen so that the Fiesta Dinnerware will make sense.

Well, when we were on Catalina Island, on Carl's high school reunion cruise, we found a potter who has specialized in reproducing the original tiles which decorated the seawall and other structures in the town of Avalon as well as many residences. She was asked to assist in the Avalon renovation effort and has found a market for continuing the production of these tiles.

She has created a floral collection (3 of which are pictured above) and Carl and I immediately knew we wanted to use them in the backsplash in our kitchen -- the flowers are cobalt, yellow, tangerine, and several shades of purple. In addition, she mixes her own colors so she said to send her pictures of any of the Fiesta pieces for which we need a matching color of tile.

We are SO excited: we can incorporate Carl's heritage (as he spent some of his "ill-spent youth") on Catalina Island); an historic restoration; a unique design; and the colors we need and want in our kitchen.

59: The New 39

Today I am 59: I can't believe it! I love it when I hear that 60 is the new 40 -- doesn't that mean that 59 is the new 39?

No matter my chronological age, I still feel VERY young! I had a wonderful birthday celebration!

Last night Carl and I, along with our friends Bill & Susan, went to dinner at at new restaurant in New Braunfels, Liberty Bistro, and had a WONDERFUL dining experience. Then, today, Carl greeted me with a beautiful birthday card and we spent the afternoon watching the Cowboy game with Bill & Susan.

My primary birthday present from Carl was a GORGEOUS necklace and earrings he bought in Phoenix at the AAUW Convention from a woman who risks her life buying jewelry from women in Afghanistan at fair trade prices and selling them to women in America. The necklace and earrings are beautiful; what is even more beautiful is that Carl assisted women in countries that do not allow women the same opportunities that we enjoy in the US.

Happy 59TH to me!

House Progress Update

Many have asked how the house is coming, so here is the progress to date:

• we have a set of house plans;
• we have approval of the plans from our Architectural Control Committee;
• we have a site plan;
  
• the land is cleared;
• we have water and electricity;
• we have a septic permit and septic plan;
• we have a driveway permit; and
  
• we have estimates for the plumbing and electrical work in the house.

This doesn't seem like much progress, but we feel good about where we are.

Next steps are:

1. gather remaining building cost estimates;
2. have the property surveyed; and
3. complete application for construction loan.

Thanks for your interest and your support!

Yummy Dinner & Broke Finger

Hi, this is Carl.
Well, Linda's fractured finger got in the way of a dinner she had been planning for us this week. So-o-o-o, we decided that she would be executive chef and I would be sous chef. The meal she had planned was Ground Turkey Meatloaf with Asiago Cheese Gravy. If you are interested, the recipe is on Rachael Ray's website at - http://www.rachaelrayshow.com/food/recipes/turkey-meatloaf-creamy-asiago-gravy-roasted-broccoli-tomatoes/

Putting it together was pretty simple, but the recipe required a lot of ingredients that our local Super-S grocery store didn't have. So, Linda went into New Braunfels to HEB (15 miles) and picked up everything we needed. By the way, if any of you need to shop at Super-S (except for staples)... don't, unless there is no reasonable alternative.

It was fun to make, and really yummy! I chopped, and mixed, and Linda instructed and suggested, and the process was almost as good as the result.

Pinkie: The Forgotten Finger

One of the not-fun things I did this weekend was take a fall and break a couple of small bones in my right hand. Yesterday, the right side (pinkie side) of my right hand was swollen up like an ostrich egg. Today, the swelling has gone down some, but the pain hasn't gone away.

Until your pinkie finger is out of operation, I don't think you realize how much you count on it:

• holding your toothbrush;
• holding your hairbrush;
• writing;
• putting on your jewelry;
  
• washing your hair;
  
• opening ANYTHING:
  
• picking up ANYTHING; and
  
• using the keyboard.

Here's to Pinkie; The Forgotten Finger -- I'll never again take you for granted!

Fun-Filled Weekend

Saturday morning we took J. J. & Grover to the "doggy hotel" and headed for Austin. We first went to Williams-Sonoma, which is ALWAYS a feast for the eyes, the nose, and the pocketbook! Several years ago, I had bought one of the expensive cork removers and, about a week ago, I was opening a bottle of wine and the opener exploded in my hand! We went to W-S to see if they could (1) replace it; or (2) get it fixed. Sure enough they gave us a new one!

We did a couple more errands and then went to visit Mandi, Ruth and Weston. We had a delightful visit with them which included a presentation by 5-year old Ruth of all the stories she has written -- she is quite the writer!

We left their house and went to our friends, Gina and Richard (aka Wizard). We had a wonderful evening, spent the night, and then had a wonderful morning full of visiting, laughing, and enjoying the antics of their four Yorkies -- Tinkerbell, Houdina, Abracadabra (Abbie), and Merlin. They are PRECIOUS!

I just LOVE weekends like this. . .

"Pampered" Kicked Up a Notch!

I've written on this blog about my regular massage sessions and the difference they have made with my physical and mental health. Well, I had to miss my session while we were on our cruise and then, the next week, I was sick. When I was ready for a massage, I learned that my massage therapist had left the salon and gone off on her on. When I called her she said she had taken a week off to "get her stuff in order." So today was this was the first time I've had a massage since October 11.

Here is the "kicked up a notch" part -- she came to my RV! YES -- she brought her massaged table, linens, creams & lotions, and hot packs and set up shop in my RV!.

It was AWESOME: I felt pampered, special, and like I had won the lottery!

Doggie Alarm Clocks

Almost every day of the year, J. J. awakens between 6:30 a.m. and 7:00 a.m.; he immediately stands on Carl's chest and waits for him to open his eyes. The second Carl opens his eyes, even just a crack, J. J. starts dancing around. This wakes Grover up and, in a flash, our bed has come alive with doggies! Carl takes them for a walk and, when they get back, they get a treat and they jump in bed with me.

The ONLY times we don't have this routine are on those days when Carl goes into his office in Austin. He usually gets up about 5:00 a.m. and is out the door by 5:45ish a.m. J. J. doesn't even wiggle which means Grover doesn't wake up. In fact, the other morning I was really tired (& lazy) and we didn't get up until about 9:00 a.m.!

I find J. J. and Grover's behavior so interesting and I just wonder "How do they know which days to do what??????"

Here I Am -- Among the Living!

I've been off the blog waves for several days and there are at least 2 reasons for that:

• I had my quarterly AAUW TX Board meeting in Dallas this past weekend which included a couple of days prep work and a couple of days recuperation time; and
  
• I live in an RV -- my husband spends 10 - 12 hours a day working (he works out of the RV so this means he is heads down on his computer or on conference calls); we have no children who do interesting things or have interesting activities to attend; our progress toward our house building is moving at a snail's pace; and, frankly, I often am at a loss of anything to blog about!

I have told our friends across the country that they can keep track of us and our activities via my blog, so I have made a commitment to myself to make more regular entries.

Stay tuned!