I love all holidays but I truly believe Thanksgiving is my favorite: Texas is beautiful in the fall, there is very little (if any) hustle and bustle associated with the holiday, and the whole purpose of the day is to reflect on one's blessings. My blessings are too numerous to list here so I will lift up my top five: my parents (though deceased I am who I am because of them), my husband, my extended family, my friends, and my health.
To celebrate the holiday, we're going to Big Bend National Park with our best friends. We're having Thanksgiving dinner at the rustically-chic Gage Hotel in Marathon, TX then we'll stay inside the park in their pop-up trailer for the next four days. We're looking forward to hiking, bird watching, playing Mexican Train dominos and just relaxing.
Here's wishing all of you a blessed Thanksgiving holiday!
Wednesday, November 26, 2008
Monday, November 24, 2008
My Birthday Week
My actual birthday was Tuesday, November 18 but the celebration started Monday evening when my sister and brother-in-law presented me with a beautiful gift from Brazil: a beautiful, 6" long sculpture of amethyst crystals in the shape of a clump of grapes (purple is my favorite color and grapes are my favorite decorating motif). See picture
The celebration continued on Tuesday when we went to Austin to have lunch with a friend. She took us to a quaint Italian restaurant downtown where the atmosphere was charming and the food delicious. The best gift however was when our friend told the waiter it was my birthday. Without missing a beat he quipped,"So you're turning 25 and your insurance premiums are going down!"
Carl and I agreed we would go out for our celebration on Wednesday since we were still full from our lunch. So on Wednesday he surprised me with (1) dinner at The Vineyard which is definitely a celebration-type restaurant -- see picture; and (2) a Nikon Coolpix camera. The latter blew me away as I would have NEVER suspected a camera from him. He said he thought I needed one to carry in my purse so I can take pictures of the things I see in my shopping expeditions for our house "stuff." It's a kicked-up "point & shoot" as there are custom settings but they are all on a menu -- just the perfect camera for me. Is Carl good or what?!!?!!
On Saturday, we went to our best friends' house for dinner where they presented me with a case for my new camera -- it's even the same color!
I LOVE being 60!
Monday, November 17, 2008
Update on Construction
Since the last update, the following has been accomplished:
1. tons of trash to the landfill;
2. all the rebar left by the foundation contractors moved to the back of the shop;
3. all the brush we cut down moved to a brush pile at the back of the property;
4. we purchased a used full-sized refrigerator which we put in the shop (YEA!);
5. we emptied one of our storerooms which is saving us $50/month;
6. we completed the 12' x 64' deck;
7. all the lights, plugs, and switches plus a motion-detector light were activated in the shop.
The plan is to start framing the house the Tuesday after the Thanksgiving holiday.
Stay tuned! :-)
1. tons of trash to the landfill;
2. all the rebar left by the foundation contractors moved to the back of the shop;
3. all the brush we cut down moved to a brush pile at the back of the property;
4. we purchased a used full-sized refrigerator which we put in the shop (YEA!);
5. we emptied one of our storerooms which is saving us $50/month;
6. we completed the 12' x 64' deck;
7. all the lights, plugs, and switches plus a motion-detector light were activated in the shop.
The plan is to start framing the house the Tuesday after the Thanksgiving holiday.
Stay tuned! :-)
Costa Rica and Panama Revisited
Pura Vida! (This is the Costa Rican version of "Aloha")
We returned on Tuesday, November 11, from our 14-day trip to Costa Rica and Panama. We spent 5 days touring Costa Rica via bus, 3 more days touring Costa Rica via small cruise ship (78 passengers), and 6 days touring Panama via the small cruise ship.
We've not had time to get our gazillion pictures in shape to post so I'll just lift up some of the amazing things we experienced (in no order of importance or interest):
1. the tropical rain forest via aerial tram, zip line, and numerous hikes;
2. relaxing in hot springs fed by an active volcano;
3. snorkeling with sharks, and Carl saw a seahorse skittering across the sand;
4. going through the Panama Canal;
5. two indigenous peoples -- the Embera's and the Kuna's;
6. breath-taking views of little islands, reefs, mountains;
7. the best fresh pineapple in the universe;
8. planting trees with 3rd graders in Costa Rica to help them with their reforestation project;
9. a Costa Rican rodeo;
10. a tour of a coffee plantation;
11. sightings in the wild of 3 varieties of monkeys, a boa constrictor, coati mundi, many exotic birds, and 2- and 3-toed sloths;
12. learning about the project to preserve butterflies of Costa Rica;
13. touring the tropical mangrove forest of Panama via zodiac boat; and (Carl and I only)
14. experiencing the expertise of the Costa Rican medical community (I slipped in the shower of one of the hotels we stayed in and had to have 5 stitches in my head).
It was an amazing trip, we met great people on the cruise, and we met wonderful folks in both countries we visited. This is a trip we would highly recommend!
We returned on Tuesday, November 11, from our 14-day trip to Costa Rica and Panama. We spent 5 days touring Costa Rica via bus, 3 more days touring Costa Rica via small cruise ship (78 passengers), and 6 days touring Panama via the small cruise ship.
We've not had time to get our gazillion pictures in shape to post so I'll just lift up some of the amazing things we experienced (in no order of importance or interest):
1. the tropical rain forest via aerial tram, zip line, and numerous hikes;
2. relaxing in hot springs fed by an active volcano;
3. snorkeling with sharks, and Carl saw a seahorse skittering across the sand;
4. going through the Panama Canal;
5. two indigenous peoples -- the Embera's and the Kuna's;
6. breath-taking views of little islands, reefs, mountains;
7. the best fresh pineapple in the universe;
8. planting trees with 3rd graders in Costa Rica to help them with their reforestation project;
9. a Costa Rican rodeo;
10. a tour of a coffee plantation;
11. sightings in the wild of 3 varieties of monkeys, a boa constrictor, coati mundi, many exotic birds, and 2- and 3-toed sloths;
12. learning about the project to preserve butterflies of Costa Rica;
13. touring the tropical mangrove forest of Panama via zodiac boat; and (Carl and I only)
14. experiencing the expertise of the Costa Rican medical community (I slipped in the shower of one of the hotels we stayed in and had to have 5 stitches in my head).
It was an amazing trip, we met great people on the cruise, and we met wonderful folks in both countries we visited. This is a trip we would highly recommend!
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