My Incredible Luck–I Gotta Share

 

Since yesterday was our last day at Lake Conroe for a few months,

I wanted to make one more pass with the camera. . .I was really trying

to get a shot of a water moccasin that I had spotted at one of the ponds. . .

alas. . .no luck!  but. . .I did get this incredible shot

of this momma Mallard. . .she’s set her nest up right at the edge of the hot tub. . .

and then. . .the most incredible thing happened.

I had walked around to the “Bass Pond” and sat down at a picnic table. . .

because I could hear birds all in the edge of the brush, I had turned on the camera,

and was scanning with the high power lens to see if I could get a shot of one of them. . .

Lo and behold. . .this is what flew right into my view finder. . .

I just held down the button and started clicking. . .

I was thrilled. . .

One Last Hurrah. . .

Sunday we had visitors. . .

the awesome Austin. . .and big sis Mac . . .

that would be beautiful McKensie for short

if all the grands are grown up. . .adopt the great nieces and nephews!

along with Mom and Dad.

Austin was so exhausted from swimming. . .

walking down to the lake,  playing on the swings,

and having ice cream. . .

I’m surprised he stayed awake long enough to get this shot. . .

Since we won’t be back in Texas ‘til October,

and since we were so close. . .

on Monday we drove over to Cleveland to meet up with my cousins. 

I love getting together with them. . .I wish we had lived closer growing up,

I know we missed a lot of fun times.  So thankful for FB so we can stay in touch!

Today, in preparation for our trip to San Antonio tomorrow,

I’m adding magnetic latches to all the drawers and doors. . .

we’re hoping these will eliminate the need for the spring loaded

rods we’ve been using to hold the drawers closed.

and on a completely different subject. . .

this gives a whole new meaning to the term. . .

walking the dog.

The things you see in an RV park. . .LOL!

Evans Escapades–A Week in the Life

It’s been so great to be done with the repair shop, and to be back in our little RV home.
Since having the repairs done meant removing all the stereo components, etc. . .
we’ve spent the last couple of weeks getting everything back in order,
and doing “home improvements.”

I have one last chore for this round of improvements. . .
I am going to paint the background wall behind the entertainment center,
so that all the components blend in and disappear.
I’ll take a before and after pic, so you can see the difference. . .
and then we have one last major project. . .
to replace Dave’s desk before we call it done.

We have an “idea” of what we want done. . .so next week,
as we are moving the rig over to Conroe, we will stop in Brenham
to pick up the needed supplies. . .and then, of course
 once we are in Conroe, Home Depot, Lowes, Staples, etc. . .
are just around the corner. . .dangerous! Ha Ha. . .

As I’ve said before, we really, really enjoy the peacefulness here at Columbus. . .

we’re often asked by those who don’t RV. . .what do you do with yourself all day?. . .

but we always seem to have plenty going on. . .we have our morning devotion,

and then I catch up with everyone on emails, and facebook,

or work on writing projects that I have going on. . .

I love to cook. . .and now that I don’t need to rush to get a meal on the table,

I’m learning to enjoy the process as much as the end result

.  Growing up, I learned to cook everything from scratch. . .

so I am going back to my roots.  Here are some lovely home made

buttermilk biscuits that we enjoyed this morning with sausage gravy. . .yum!

In the afternoons, I sit outside with my Kindle, my binoculars,

and the camera, watch the birds. . .isn't this Cedar Waxwing just beautiful?

or the deer. . .and visit with the neighbors.

We did finally take a day last week to tour the pretty little historical town of

Columbus TX, which is the County Seat of Colorado County. . .

and has a beautiful Court House Square

including this gorgeous stained glass cupola inside the District Court Chambers. . .

I wrote a lot more about all the things we saw in Columbus on our RV’ing blog,

ReadyToGoFullTimeRVing.com, so if you would like to know more about
this lovely historic little town,

or see more pics, just click on the link. . .

Until our next adventure. . .safe travels,

Janice and Dave

Gearing up for all the Christmas Excitement. . .

What a difference a week makes.

After a quiet, and uneventful time last week, this week has been hopping. . .

Dave’s sister was performing at the Houston Heritage Society’s Candlelight Festival at Sam Houston Park in Downtown Houston, and got us free tickets for Saturday night. . . thanks Sis!

It was really great, and we highly recommend that you make plans to attend if you are in the area at Christmas time. . .Sam Houston Park is located on Buffalo Bayou with the downtown skyscrapers creating a backdrop.

There was a huge crowd, and a long line waiting to hear the Houston Boy’s Choir perform in this old German Church. . .

The boy’s choir has been performing at this event for over forty years. . .

Carolers entertaining the crowd

This gentleman was set up on the porch of an old log cabin, letting the kids sign their names with a quill and ink. . .they really seemed to be enjoying the experience. . .

There are several different eras of Houston History represented in the restored homes in the park. . .this is the Staiti Home, circa 1913. . .and was where our sis was performing. . .they told me I couldn’t take pics inside. . .but here is a You Tube Clip of the performance. . .Mary is the gorgeous one on the far right. . .it’s only a couple of minutes long!

Now on to the rest of our week. . .

It’s time for the Kid’s Christmas Drama at church. . .so of course, we want to help wherever we can. . .which just happens to be the props department. . .

One of the Dads did the cutouts. . .so this is what we started with. . .

and here was the finished product. . .it doesn't look like it in this pic, but it really is painted a beautiful gingerbread caramel color

some of the Moms were going to finish glittering it up and such. . .

While I worked on the Gingerbread House,

Dave took on the Castle and did a really great job. . .

I wish I could show you, but my pic of the finished product didn’t come out. . .

I’ll take more Sunday Morning, so you can see how wonderful it turned out. . .

In addition to painting props, this week,

our son celebrated his 35th birthday, (good grief)

so on Wednesday night we had all of them over for soup and cornbread that I had made, and a delicious homemade cheesecake that his better half Lori had made. . .

before the cherries were added. . .

it was wonderful, and worth every delectable calorie. . .

I can assure you that these poor old bodies are not used to all that exercise,

and we are feeling it today. . .

so we are taking it easy until our grandson’s basketball game this evening. . .

check in next week to see how he did!

Evans Escapades–Camping Out in the Woods

Here we are all snuggled up in the woods in Sam Houston National Forest in a lovely little campground named Double Lake Recreation Area. . .

Double Lake is consider the local “swimming hole.”  Sadly this is all there is of it at the moment. . .the drought has taken a toll on of the lakes in Texas. . .but this is the first one I have seen that is completely GONE!

Dave’s family reunion was just great. . .here’s a shot of the next generation of cuteness. . .the one on the right is our youngest nephew. . .of course we think he is just adorable. . .as are his second cousins!

This is Bailey the Beggar. . .she sat just like this then entire time I was eating. . .let me tell you . . .it was very difficult to resist that face. . .but resist I did. . .I didn’t dare feed someone else’s puppy table scraps. . .since I never fed them to my own dogs.

We head back to my Dad’s tomorrow. . .check on my Uncle who is in the hospital. . attend my niece’s wedding on Monday. . .then see you in Houston next week!

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Evans Escapades–Still in College Station

Here we are, still in College Station until next Wednesday, when we’ll head over to Cleveland for the annual Thanksgiving Day Keith Family Reunion at Dave’s cousins.

We have a reservation made at Double Lake Recreation area. . .had no idea they had RV spaces.  The ranger called last week to verify our reservation, and to let us know the ban burn is still in effect. . .so no campfires, no charcoal grills, etc.  Not a problem for us. . .we’re looking forward to seeing the park’s setup, as this would be a really convenient place to stay on occasion.

When we leave there, we’ll stop by my Dad’s place for a couple of days. . .long enough to attend my niece’s wedding the Monday after Thanksgiving. ..then on to Houston to celebrate our oldest grandchild’s 17th birthday. . .unbelievable. . .and spend the rest of the holidays with the family.

Hoping to see you a few of you . . .let us know if you can work us into your schedule. . .ha ha!




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And Life Goes ON

Although we ended up leaving the valley soon than we expected, we have enjoyed our time at "home" just visiting with the family.

Dave is staying busy teaching for the Fire School, which leaves me plenty of time to just goof off.  I am enjoying it immensely.  

My younger brother, the "sweetheart" of the family, celebrated his FIFTIETH on Valentine's Day, so of course we were there to help him enjoy the experience.

Since he is a child of the 60's, my sis in law decorated accordingly.

I know he enjoyed having all his kids and grands in one place, 

well, almost all of them. . .still missing the oldest grandson. . .

it's just nigh unto impossible to get everyone together.

Once the party was over, it was time to head out to our next destination. . .

which just happens to be right on Lake Conroe. . .

This is one of the "ponds" at the Thousand Trails Preserve on Lake Conroe. . .

and I fully intend to get some fishing in while we are here.

Just wanted to check in, and let you know that we are doing great, and having a blast.

Join us on FaceBook. . .we'd love to know what you are up to. . .

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