Today I am Thankful for ...

Today I am thankful for the many blessings of life ...

... a wonderful husband!  We have walked many different roads in 36 years.  We have shared joy & sorrow, laughter & tears, fears & triumphs.  We have moved 34 times in 36 years (not counting all the moves with the motor home:), owned way too many cars, and become the best friends that anyone could want.

... two wonderful sons, two great daughters-in-love, and four terrific grandchildren!!!

... friends, oh so many friends.  Having lived in Nevada and Washington and the Netherlands we have met so many different people who have blessed us over and over with their friendship.  I have Blog & RV'r friends who I have never met in person but I count as friends ~ and we have had the pleasure of meeting in person many of those blog and rv'r friends and our life is richer for that.

... a great church family at Northwood Alliance Church in Blaine, WA.  They have stood by us as we have traveled the into the valleys and up to the mountain tops.  They have prayed with us and for us too many times to count.

... I am blessed to have a great job where I get to work with and meet so many fun people and especially getting to work each day with my hubby.  

Yes, I am truly blessed and I thank the Lord for my life and where I am today. 

Today I am Thankful for ...

Today I am thankful for ....

...an invite to join friends for a quick dinner at Dairy Queen.  Was fun to visit and laugh.

... a surprise visit running into friends as we were leaving Dairy Queen so we sat and visited with them too ... two great visits in one day!

... a phone call visit with a special friend who is not feeling too well and hearing her pleasant voice even when she would rather have been sleeping.  Praying she gets to feeling better real soon!

... that I was down 2 more lbs when I weighed yesterday ~ that makes 19 lbs in 4 months!!!

and I am thankful as always for a loving Abba Father who gave his son to die for me so that I may live in His eternal presence.

In closing I would like to ask you to keep Kathie Thiessen and her family in your prayers as Kathie is nearing the end of her battle with cancer.  Please pray for Jenelle, Andrea, Kendall & Monica as they gather around their mom in her last days. 

Today I am Thankful for ,,,

New friends...yesterday Ron and I took a road trip to Austin, TX to meet up with some Families on the Road families.

 

We had a great time visiting, watching all the children play and of course share a meal.

And then we drove home.  It was a cold and clear night.  And we were without a top or sides on the Jeep.   And we took the long way home.  Ron has been saying since we have been here in Texas that he wanted to go to Luckenbach, TX and so we did.

While driving home we had a beautiful sky of a sliver of a moon and seeing Jupiter.  Here are the pictures I took while Ron was driving.

 And then he stopped and I got a great picture of the moon with Jupiter just below it.  

We are so thankful for God's creation and beautiful show He gave us last night on our way home.

 

It was 46' when we pulled into Hondo at 8:30 p.m. and we both had chattering teeth.   We left Austin around 3:00 p.m.  Took us almost six hours drive home and it only took us 2 1/2 hours to get to Austin.  We definitely know how to make a short trip take a long time.  After a stop at Walmart we made the final trek home...where it was nice and warm.

We laughed as we pulled into Lone Star Corral when Ron commented that we drove 319 miles between 9 a.m. and 9:30 p.m. ~ our normal travel days are usually not more than 250 miles!

All this to say I am thankful for new friends and a sweet hubby who loves to drive even though we were so crazy to not put the top or sides on the Jeep before going for our drive!!  And for the opportunity to see God's beauty in so many different way.

Today I am Thankful for

Today I am thankful for a fun day with my hubby.  First I balanced the checkbook (not so fun but it balanced the first time through :) and then we cleaned the motor home together and then got out the Christmas decorations...the best part!!  We have lights up in the living room, on the tree, down the hall and into the bathroom - it is definitely a Christmas light festival in here oh and Snowflake lights in the living room.  The tree is up and Scooby Doo has sang his song a few times and the Christmas bear is sitting guard on the edge of the couch. 

We also got some little packages ready for our grands and adopted grands.  Will get those in the mail on Monday.

And all the while cleaning and decorating we watched Christmas movies...new ones and old ones...but all with the message of sharing love with others.  Exactly what the Christmas season is about.

I am thankful for a loving husband who knows how to help me have a fun even when there are little chores to be done!

Today I am Thankful for ...

Today I am thankful for friends who drive and get up early and go shopping with me at 5:45 a.m.

I posted on Facebook yesterday if anyone would be interested in going to Beall's (like JC Penney) for my non-Texan friends.  They had Sketchers, regularly $120 for $29.99 - they had one pair in my size so I grabbed them up.  They are so comfortable.  Though at first it feels kinda weird with the rocking motion.

I was also able to get a gift for Ron ~ it is in hiding till Christmas Eve.  Now I just need to find the right box for it.  I need one about 36" long, 3" deep and 8" wide.  And I also picked up one of the grands' a gift that was on their wish list.

And then we went to Mickey D's for breakfast...so fun to sit and drink a nice peppermint mocha and visit for a little while.  Then it was back to the park as one of us had to go to work.

On a sad note we went to put up our Snowman in front of the office and he didn't blow up anymore...we think he got banged around way too much on his trip to Idaho, then Washington, then back to Idaho, Oregon, California, Arizona, New Mexico and then finally landing here in Texas.  :( :( :(

But that just means we get to look for a new one ;) :) :)

All in all it has been a good day ~ did a little decorating in the office, will do the motor home and outside tomorrow.  Then on Sunday we are going to Austin to meet up with some more Fulltime Families who are RV'ing.  So excited as there are going to be a bunch of little's and this grammy will get to do some cuddling :)

Hope you all had a great day after Thanksgiving!!!

Where Have I Been???

Wow it's been a month since I posted on here...I bet some of you are wondering where I have been.  Well let's see....

.... we took 2 1/2 days off 11/9 - to 11 and went Garner State Park and Lost Maples State Park all about an hour or so from here.  What a peaceful time we had.  No internet, no cell phone service.  Just quiet.  We never even hooked up the television set.  We read, went for a couple of walks, took a drive to Leakey, TX and went to a few antique shops.

... and then we worked the weekend of 11/12 & 13.  That Saturday was the Annual Flea Market here in the park.  WOW what a lot of stuff people had to sell.  I bought  few cross-stitch kits and lots of earrings and a necklace handmade by Bonnie, the VP.  I just love her jewelry.  If you want some nice dangly type earrings they are $5 a pair...let me know what color and I will pick them up and send them onto you.  She uses the most beautiful stones and even has special holiday ones too.  The evening of the 12th we went to a fundraiser in D'Hanis where they had bands playing, a huge raffle and live auction.  The fundraiser was for a local man who is facing some major health issues.  Heard they had raised over $10,000 for him.  And the best part was I won two of the raffle items: a bottle of red wine in a basket and a $24 gift certificate for the Buckhorn Saloon Restaurant & Bar.  We will be going there sometime in December.

... and then on 11/14 we picked up Dee from the airport.  Dee came for a week's visit as a gift to her and I for our birthday's from Ron.  We had a ton of fun, ate way too much, gabbed a lot, and then played tourist for two days.  Saturday we went to Christmas in God's Country in Hondo, then to a fiddler show and potluck here at the park and then back into Hondo for the lighted Christmas parade.  It was a fun, fun day.  On Sunday we went into San Antonio - went to the Golden Corral for breakfast then off to the Alamo and then to the Riverwalk where we road the boat for tour and then walked around for quite awhile and then we headed to the Buckhorn Saloon in San Antonio - what a beautiful museum.  They have a huge western museum with a room about Bonnie & Clyde, lots of exotic animals, a fun house and the Texas Rangers museum.   And then we returned to the motor home for light dinner of salad.  Oh and we had a Daily's one evening...I got another friend hooked on them :)

And then before we knew it it was time to take her back to the airport and send her back to Blaine.  But first we had to stop at Heavy's for BBQ for lunch together.  After lots of hugs and some tears I waved her through security so she could return to her family.  

And then back to work on Tuesday for us.  And that brings us to Thanksgiving Day.  We shared a meal in the clubhouse.  We hosted our table.  We were eleven people: Jack & Liz, Jane & Jerry, Kay & Bill, Mike & Elaine, Bill C and Ron & I.  We had so much food and great company.  After sharing the meal and visiting for a few hours we all headed back to our rigs for a good ole afternoon nap.  (That's what Ron is doing right now).

Tomorrow I am venturing out at 5:45 a.m. w/Bonnie and Rose to go to Beall's (kinda like JC Penney's)  they have Sketchers on sale for $29.99 regularly $120 - hopefully they will have a pair in my size.  And after a whirlwind shopping trip we will go to McDonalds for a quick breakfast before I head to the office and Bonnie & Rose do what ever they do - they are the retired ones of the bunch :)

So that's what I've been up to!!  Hope y'all have had a nice Thanksgiving Day with family or friends.  I know we did.

Today I am Thankful for ...

Today I am thankful 

... that we got to talk with Opal and her daddy, Jamie.  Opal has the sweetest voice and sounds just like the princess she is.

... for new friends to spend this Thanksgiving Day with.  And the sharing of a great meal.  And we even got to bring home a few leftovers: dressing & gravy and scrumptious desserts.

... a special note from Rob, our boss at the carnival last summer.  Such a surprise to get greetings via email from him today.

... a beautiful Fall day here in Texas.

My heart is full of gratitude for the many blessings in my life.

Today I am Thankful for ... Skype!

Got a text from Max right after work today - "Do you want to Skype?"  You betcha!!!!

It was so fun to see Treyson.  He now weighs 20 lbs 3 oz and is 27" long.  The size of a one year old.  His hair is super blond and he giggles with his eyes.  So fun to see.

Christopher was his usual bouncy self.  He told me today was a "no school day" and then laughed out loud.  And then he showed us a turkey he made with his handprint - I remember when his Daddy and Uncle Jamie made those same kind of turkey's.

Max was busy playing a Wii game and not much of a conversationalist tonight.  Maybe next time.

Danalyn and I were able to visit for awhile which was nice.  We don't get to do that very often.  Brandon was busy working on dinner: broccoli - cheddar soup.  Sounds yummy.

Again, thankful for the technology of today that lets me spend time with my family even when we are hundreds of miles away.

Today I am Thankful for a fun project.

Today I am thankful for a fun project.  I saw these cute little turkey's on a blog (can't remember which one) and thought they would make great name cards for our Thanksgiving table.

So I bought Oreos, fudge frosting, candy corn, colored writing frosting and gel and malt balls.  And set to work.  I made thirteen of these little guys.  Eleven for our Thanksgiving table and two for Bonnie as a treat. 

What do you think?  Kinda cute, definitely not perfect, but will definitely brighten up our Thanksgiving meal.

These two went to Ed & Bonnie tonight.

From a distance.

Eleven more are hiding in the freezer.  They will come out tomorrow and reside in the fridge till dinner on Thursday.  Will definitely keep these in mind the next time we are with the grandkids for a Thanksgiving in the future.

Today I am Thankful for ...

Today I am thankful for ...

... a great visit with a great friend.

.... a husband who blesses me in so many ways.  Sometimes with word and sometimes with actions.

... being healthy.

... for good jobs and the great people I meet each day.

... for God above who loves me just the way I am.

Today I am Thankful for a funtabulous fun day!

Today I am thankful for a funtabulous fun day spent with my hubby and best friend, Dee.  We were up early this morning and headed out for San Antonio about 8:30 a.m.  First stop was the Golden Corral for breakfast buffet.  What a great breakfast ~ we had banana nut french toast, eggs, hash browns, baked ham, biscuits & gravy, omelet and banana pudding - well that is what we each had some of :)

And then we were off to The Alamo.  What a fun time walking around and reading all about the history of the Alamo and seeing some beautiful artwork.  After spending a couple of hours there we made our way to the Riverwalk.  First up was a ride on the barge - so fun and saw so many cool pieces of architecture and again so much history.  After the boat ride we then walked part of the way and then made our way to the Buckhorn Saloon and Texas Ranger museum.  We enjoyed a margarita (me) and a beer (Ron), Dee passed, as we walked around the museum.  What a place to go...so would recommend it to anyone coming to San Antonio.  I think we spent about 3 hours there.  And then we walked back to the car and made our way back to the motor home.

What a beautiful day - it got to 94' and was gorgeous to be with two very special in my life.

On the way home we drove through Castroville so we could show Dee the beautiful Catholic church.  Again we saw many old homes, so many of them made of rock and just amazing.

What a beautiful day - so thankful we had a day to play and just see some amazing things.

Today I am Thankful for my hubby

Today I am thankful for my hubby who goes above and beyond for me.  Without going into a lot of details (they fall under Too Much Information) I am so thankful that Ron is right there when I have a little emergency and he doesn't flinch or get frustrated when I need help with some yucky stuff.

Thank You Ron for being the BEST hubby any girl could ask for.  I love you 'mensly.

Today I am Thankful that I know how to KEEP MY MOUTH SHUT

Today I am thankful that I know how to keep my mouth shut!!!  Because otherwise I might have blown my top and been fired from my job here at the Lone Star Corral.

I would like to know what makes some people think they are so perfect that they cannot have the grace to allow others to make mistakes and then apologize for that mistake.  But no, they wine, mumble so people can't understand their mumbling and then make snide comments about people not doing their job right.

So I copied something upside down - dang, it didn't look upside down to me.  I apologized, offered to redo it, apologized two more times after some rude comments and then walked back to my desk.  And I am not apologizing again.  Three times is just plenty.

So yes, today I am thankful that I do know how to control my mouth even when my brain is running full steam ahead and would have liked to have said a huge mouthful. 

That's all for today!

Oh yes, I am also thankful for a loving hubby and good friend who said I handled the situation with grace and dignity.

Where is the time going?

Where is the time going?

I missed posting last night and here it is already Thursday night.  I continue to have much to be thankful for.  

I am thankful for a hubby who loves me even when I am grumpy at him for no reason.  Being tired and hungry is no excuse for grumping at him over something someone else said to me in an email.  I will try to do better tomorrow.

I am thankful for a best friend who does not mind that I don't have all day to just sit and be with her.  She is understanding that I am working and that our conversations get interrupted without notice and that I sometimes forget what we were talking about 10 minutes before the interruption.  She also doesn't mind that I am not the best hostess this week in preparing breakfast and lunch.  Thanks for being willing to eat a peanut butter sandwich while I ate my liverwurst sandwich (she doesn't like liverwurst and the only other thing I had to offer was peanut butter).  Now dinner is a different story ~ tonight we went to Bill & Rosa's and we all brought home enough leftovers to make a nice lunch tomorrow.  I am so glad she likes me just the way I am.

I am thankful for a quiet evening at home, where we can just sit and watch a couple of TV shows and visit during commercials.  And we can just be us here at home.

Yes I am blessed with a wonderful hubby and best friend.

Thankful Tuesday

Hello All

Have had two great days.  Yesterday I was thankful for planes, traveling mercies and gifts from a distance.  Hubby arranged for my best friend, Dee to come here to Texas for a week to celebrate both of our birthdays.  Dee's is on 11/30 and mine is 12/1.  And I think hubby knew a good dose of friend time would be fun for me.  Dee left her home in Blaine yesterday morning at 7:15 a.m. and arrived safely in San Antonio at 8:55 p.m. (6:55 p.m. her time).  After some great big hugs, picking up her luggage, getting the rental car and then stopping at Applebees for a late night dinner we got back to the park at 12:13 A.M.   We gave each other another great big hug and headed off to our respectable beds.  

Today has been another great day.  Woke to a thunder & lightening storm at 5:09 a.m.  and watched the glorious show that God put on for us.  It was nice to hear the rain falling, not so nice to feel water spraying on my leg on the bed ~ hubby has to do some more caulking on the roof.  Enjoyed fresh coffee made by my sweet hubby and then had a great day at work.  Visited with Dee throughout the day then joined a group of Escapees at the local Mexican restaurant for dinner and then made our way to Dairy Queen for mini blizzards...just enough to taste good and not kill my trying to eat healthier goal.  And then back to the park.  Now for a little time on the computer and then heading to bed.  

So thankful for a sweet and loving hubby, good friends to come for a visit and her sweet hubby encouraging her to take a little vacation and the warm welcome the members of Lone Star Corral  are giving Dee.

Hope you are all having a good day.  Talk to you again tomorrow night.

Oops, missed yesterday :~

I was just eating and thought I need to write my blog post for today and then when I got here saw that I didn't do one for yesterday ~ wonder what I was thinking about??

Yesterday was a good day.  Different working on a Saturday and a Sunday.  It was pretty quiet yesterday even with the annual Flea Market here in the park.  Our day started with breakfast at 7 a.m.  The kitchen was serving up breakfast burritos and cinnamon rolls.  The burrito was a little dry for my liking but it was okay.  And then we headed to the front gate to visit with our local "gate guards."

Top: Jerry, Bill, Keith (a local musician) and Ed blocking the cars from entering. Left bottom: Jerry & Ed.  Bottom right: a look down County Road 5216.  The first truck in line was there at 6:55 a.m. ~ the doors don't open till 8 a.m. and then they started...

and dang I can't get the video to load...grrr....there were 38 cars to the right and 4 to the left before there was a lull in the crowd.  

And the afternoon was quiet.    Had a guest do an early checkout and that was about it.  In the evening we went into D'Hanis for a fundraiser benefit for a local musician who is dealing with some major health issues.  They had a couple of great bands, a chili-cookoff (and then they mixed all the different chili's together so everyone could have a bowl.  It was tasty but a bit more spicy than I prefer.   They made $500 on the cook-off and then they had a raffle  with many different gifts.  Not sure who won as we left before they did those drawings.  But the evening ended for us after the live auction.  So neat to live in a close community who gave generously.  We don't know the final total from the live auction but they were way over $5000.  We did not get home till almost midnight and didn't shut our eyes till after 1 a.m.  

Which leads me to today being thankful for good sleep.  I only got 5 1/2 hours of sleep and made it through the day without a problem.  For those of you have known for me for quite a few years remember the insomnia I used to deal with, some/most nights getting 3 hours of sleep in a 24 hour period...and I am so thankful I am not plagued with that any more.

Today was another quiet day in the office.  Had a good visit with Bonnie, the VP.  Talked about a new contract, some new projects to start working on, discussed the upcoming budget planning meetings ~ it was good to touch base without interruptions.  We ended the day by joining the members in the clubhouse for the ice cream social.  I had some pineapple sherbet...it was really tasty and reminded me I have the stuff on hand to make a pineapple smoothie for breakfast tomorrow.

And of course, my excitement is building as Dee arrives tomorrow night for a week long visit.  I can't wait to see her and spend lots of time chatting and just hanging together.

Wishing you all a great week!!  And thanks for stopping by!!

Veterans Day 2011

First off I am thankful for all the veterans who have served and who are serving in our US Military to keep our freedoms and our country safe.  My Grandpa George, my Dad, Ted, my husband Ron, my son Jamie have all served in the military ~ thank you guys for serving.

We had a beautiful two day respite and went camping at Garner State Park and Lost Maples State Park.  It was a relaxing time and we were blessed to see all the colors of Fall and having time to enjoy God's beautiful creation.

Wednesday afternoon I had a great doctor's appointment ~ Dr. Copelky was pleased with how my blood pressure had come down and stabilized and that my pulse is back down to the mid 70's, low 80's.  And I don't need to be seen again till May 2012!

Thank you to all my friends and fellow blog readers for following along on this journey that we call life.

Today I am Thankful for the opportunity to meet new friends.

Today I am thankful for the opportunity to meet new friends.  Well, really someone I have known for awhile but just now got the chance to meet her in person.

Birdie (Nancy) is one of the members of Women's RV Forum that I belong to and she called today in the middle of our lunch and said she was coming here to Lone Star Corral for the night on her way to Lost Maples State Park.  We had planned to connect tomorrow evening but got to meet a day early.  I explained that I had a meeting with the CPA in Hondo after lunch but I would be back in the office close to 2:00 and I would see her then.

So off to my meeting.  Received a nice compliment from the CPA when she told Kay & Judi that I do a great job on the books for the park ~ I always think I do a good job but hearing it from someone else is always nice.  After the meeting we returned to the park.  And what was hubby doing ~ weeding the flower beds in front of the office.  Wish I had a green thumb and knew what to plant there to make it look pretty ~~~ suggestions are welcome, hint, hint, hint.

Any way, once I was back in the office, this gal walked in and smiled and said "Hi Ali" and right away I knew it was Birdie.  Out the office door and big hugs were shared.  Unbeknownst to me, Ron had already got her parked in a site, she just needed to do the paperwork.  Got that all squared away and she was off to drive to Lost Maples to check the route.  And I went back to work. 

Finished up with work and headed over to do laundry - that never ending job.  When I got home 2 1/2 hours later Ron said Birdie had been by to see if I wanted a glass of wine.  So we quickly ate dinner (thank goodness for the crock pot - I use it probably 3 or 4 times a week.  If you have a favorite dish you cook in your crock pot, please share it with me, another hint :)

And then I was off with a glass of wine to go and visit with Birdie.  We visited for about an hour and then we both yawned and then giggled...and off I was back to the motor home.  We will get more visiting in the next 2 1/2 days as Ron and I are going to Garner State Park tomorrow after my doctor's appointment with the cardiologist ~ just a follow up.  We are going to be at GSP Wednesday night and then move over to Lost Maples Thursday mid-morning and stay there the night and then come back to the park in the afternoon on Friday.

Thankful that Gordon & Diana (the assistant managers) were willing to swap days with us.

I don't know what kind of reception/signal I will get up there with my Verizon mifi card so if you don't hear from me I will be back for sure on Friday night.

Take care all and have a truly blessed night/day.

Today I am Thankful for ... the little things

Today I am thankful for the little things.  One of the gals here in the park volunteers at the local senior center/nutrition center on Monday, Wednesday & Fridays.  And the nutrition center posts a monthly calendar.  If there is something on the menu that sounds pretty good Jan will pick up lunch for us.  Well it lunch at the nutrition center but dinner for us. And all for $3 for each meal.

Last week the menu for November came out and today's lunch was chicken fried steak and all the trimmings.  So we sent our $6 to Jan and she brought lunch/dinner home for us.  And what  a blessing it was for us.  Ron is still battling that cold and he took a two hour nap after work.  I went to the clubhouse and visited for a little while and then came back.  Ron was still sleeping so I quietly heated up the chicken fried steak with mashed potatoes and broccoli...it was yummy.

Thank you Jan for picking up our lunch/dinner.  You always say it is nothing, just a little thing you can do...but for us today it was a big thing.  Thank you for being a blessing for/to us today.

Today I am Thankful for ...naps

Today has been a kinda different day: woke up early, made sausage rolls for breakfast and then went to Sunday School.  Sunday School was interesting and we talked about "our calling."  And through it all hubby coughed, coughed, and coughed some more.  After Sunday School we looked at each other and said at the same time "maybe we should go home."  And that is what we did.  We came home.

Hubby took some cough drops and a small nap in the recliner and I goofed around on the computer and watched some Dateline ID shows and then made lunch: homemade pizza with Dutch apple pie (leftover from last night) and then decided a nap sounded wonderful.  I tried to sleep on the couch but couldn't settle down between the knock on the door (thanks Jim for the newspaper) and Gordon, the assistant manager, coming and going in the golf cart (the negative of living so close to the office) and so I finally moved to the bed about 2:15 p.m.  And then I took a nap ~ slept till 5:23 ~ guess I was pretty tired.  Changing the clocks back/forward always throw me off for a day or two.

I woke feeling very refreshed ~ thank you Lord for the gift of a nap, the gift of sleep. 

Today I am Thankful for...a day of relaxation.

Today I am thankful for a day of relaxation.  I woke up at 6:11 this morning - was so looking forward to sleeping in but that was not to be.  So I had a caramel hot cocoa and read some emails.  And then Ron got up about 9:30 and after chatting for a little while decided we would go into Castroville to go to some garage sales.  About 1:00 we went to Sammy's for lunch.  We had heard good things ~ our thoughts "it was okay, but nothing to write home about."  And then we decided to go for a ride...we went to Moore, Devine, Yancey and then back to Hondo for some grocery shopping.

Then home for a dinner of hodge podge - actually left overs and a cleaning out of the fridge.  And I baked a Dutch apple pie.  I am letting it cool for a little while before we dig into it.

It has been a great day ~ no demands, a nice drive through some pretty countryside and a few stops along the way.  In Devine they were having a Fall Harvest Festival so we stopped and walked around checking out the different vendors, listened to some good country music and watched some clogging.  After that we stopped at the Yancey General Store.  And what an interesting store it is  ~ kinda like a yard sale, kinda like a 7-11 and a little like a gift shop.  

Thank you Lord for a great day of rest!!!

Today I am Thankful for...Friends

Today I am thankful for friends.

Ron and I have been so blessed through our lives by friends.  Just today a friend blessed me by leaving me a gift at the door to the motor home.  Another friend provided our dinner tonight by sending us a package from Frontier Soups.  Tonight's dinner was White Bean Chili ~ it was scrumptious.  And we shared that dinner with friends from here at Lone Star Corral.

We have been blessed by friends every where we have lived.  We have been blessed by friends we have met through the internet and met along the road in our travels.  We have been blessed with words of encouragement, a card in the mail, a surprise phone call, gifts of love, surprise visits and so much more.

I hope you too have been blessed by friends.

Today I am Thankful for...

Today I am thankful for our work.  We really like our jobs, being in Texas and the members in the park who have become our friends.

We have been here at the Lone Star Corral just over 8 months.  We like our work.  Ron enjoys being outside so much of the time.  And being outside here is a lot different then at home in Whatcom County - the biggest being no rain.  It has rained three times since we arrived here last February.  We are definitely in a drought and never thought we would be praying for rain ~ yet we do just that each night when we go to bed.

I enjoy being in the office.  I like being able to organize things, design and make forms, flyers and handouts.  One of my responsibilities is to keep the books for the campground and that includes balancing all the different checking/savings account.  What amazes me is that they usually balance the first time ~ what I don't get is why my home accounts don't do that??? 

One of the things we both enjoy is being able to visit and engage in conversations with so many different people.  Just yesterday one of the members shared with Ron about quite a few places to see around here.  So I think we are going on a drive this Saturday or Sunday to check out some new places.  I like hearing where the campers have been before they arrived here and where they are heading when they leave.  For instance, last night a couple left to go work as gate guards for a few months.  We enjoyed talking with them before they left as that is something we have talked about possibly doing in the future.

We look forward to finishing out our contract here at the Lone Star Corral.  Right now our contract ends on April 13, 2012.  But that date may change as we have been asked to stay for a second year.  Right now the Board of Directors are working on a contract to offer us.  We would ask that you join us in prayer ~ that if this is where we are to be for another year that the contract will be one we can accept and is agreeable to all of us.  We will keep you updated on our plans.

Today I am Thankful for My Hubby

Today I am thankful for my hubby!  Well every day I am thankful for him but today is extra...he is such a sweet man and loves me in many ways.

He told me this morning about my birthday present.  He got us a room at the Drury Suites on the Riverwalk in San Antonio for December 2nd & 3rd.  What a fun weekend to celebrate my birthday and our 36th anniversary (Dec. 20th that is!).  And the room has a private jacuzzi in it!!  Now how fun will that be.  He knows one of the things I miss being in the motor home is not being able to take long, relaxing bubble baths...now how sweet is that he got a jacuzzi just for us.  Bring on the bubble bath, candles and a glass of wine - yippee!!

I have thought about ways Ron shows his love for me...we have a couple of good deals.  If I do the cooking he does the clean up.  If I do the laundry he cleans up the motor home ~ you know stuff like cleaning the bathroom and sweeping...stuff that he knows are not my favorite things to do when it comes to cleaning.

When I have had rough night of sleep, he will let me sleep in if it is a weekend and till 7:30 a.m. if it is a work day (thank goodness we live only 25 feet from the office).  He is always willing to make me coffee or stop at McDonald's (no Starbucks or Woods here in D'Hanis) to pick me up an iced mocha.

Ron and I joke that he married me to get lower insurance rates and a pay raise (he was 20 and in the Air Force) and I married him to get away from home but the truth is that he wrote his dad a letter the day we met and told him he had met the girl he was going to marry.  I think it took me a couple of weeks to know I wanted to spend the rest of my life with him.  And it has definitely been a journey.

We have had some real rough roads to climb and some great mountain top experiences together.  We have cried together and laughed together.  We have moved 34 times before moving into the motor home.  Some of those moves have been within the same apartment complex to across town to across the ocean and back.  And through it all he has been right along side of me.

We have faced some major medical hurdles and celebrated with some wonderful parties with friends and family.  We have been blessed with two wonderful son's and together we have parented through the good and the bad times.  We have celebrated many mile stones with our boys - birthday's, school achievements, girl friends and wives, and the birth of 4 wonderful grandchildren and mourned the loss of two grandbabies together.

Through all of our married life journey Ron has been my rock, my stronghold, encourager and even a pain in the rear at times but through it all we have walked together.  I am so thankful for a husband who loves me through thick and thin, the good and the bad, the fun and the sad.

Thank you Ron for your unselfish love for me!!  I love you 'mensly!  I love you more!!!

Being Thankful

As I woke this morning I thought about November and Thanksgiving and being thankful.  I am thankful for the many blessings I have in my life: friends, a loving husband, two wonderful sons and their precious families and so much more.  I thought about the decision I made last November to write about being thankful for specific things each day in November.  Don't get me wrong - I thank the Lord each day for things that I am thankful for but last November I was diligent to write a post each day on thankfulness.  And as I woke at 5:03 this morning I thought "I should do that again!" And so here I am today on November 1 ~~~

Today I am thankful for the gift of friendship and unexpected visits with special friends.  Yesterday afternoon I received an email from Pastor Charles (our pastor from our home church of Northwood Alliance Church in Blaine, WA) asking if we could get together for dinner and a visit?  Well of course!!!  So I chatted with Ron and then called Pastor Charles on his cell phone and he said he would be at our place in a couple of hours.  I was so excited to spend time with him.  One of the things I miss about not being in Blaine is being able to walk into Charles' office and ask questions or share something special with him.  Email and phone calls are just not the same.

Charles arrived about 5:30 and after lots of hugs and hello's we gave him a tour of the office here at Lone Star Corral and then walked over to the clubhouse.  We then drove around the park and introduced him to a few of the friends we have made here.  And then we were off to dinner at El Charro's and lots of visiting and catching up.  And before we knew it it was time for him to head back to Seguin where he was staying.  But before he left we spent some time in prayer - another thing we have missed - sharing in prayer time with special friends.  And with more hugs he was back on the road.

Thank you Charles for taking time out of your busy schedule to spend a few hours with us and for the delicious dinner and most importantly for spending time in prayer with us.  We are so thankful for the blessing of friendship, love and care that Pastor Charles brings into our lives.

Stay tuned for more thoughts on thankfulness in the coming days.  And don't forget to find something to be thankful for in your own life.