Sunday, December 31, 2006

Happy New Year

Well, Christmas is past, the goose is all gone, the presents opened, appreciated and put away in their place. All the trimmings are stored and I'm looking forward to being able to eat next year on all the gift cards for restaurants we received.

We spent Christmas in Montgomery with my two kids - David and Suze. My Dad also came to Montgomery for a couple of day over Christmas. It was nice being with family.

My Dad with his new towels....



Harris with his new digital camera....



Morgan with her new portable DVD player.....



My niece and her hubby - Shannon and Brad.....




Since leaving Montgomery on Dec. 27, we stopped at Dean's daughters - Krystal & Ed, for two nights. The live in Ticfaw, LA just north of Hammond. Had a really great time visiting with them. Dean's ex-wife and her husband, Sandy and Dick were there also, and yes we actually all get along just fine. We need to make more effort to visit them (Krystal and Ed) more. Bad me, I forgot my camera for pictures - darn!!!

From there we moved on west to New Iberia, LA to visit with Dean's son - Tim and his wife Cheryl. She had a pot of the absolutely best chili on the stove waiting for us. How very thoughtful of her. Yesterday, Sandy and Dick drove over for the day and we had another good meal and a great time visiting. I had asked Tim (my computer wiz son) to re-do my wi-fi so that I could share it with friends at my discression. Well, the router that I had (a Belkin) wasn't very cooperative when he attempted to change it, so he and Dean went to Wal-Mart and bought a Linksys. Took him about all of 5 min. to get it installed and working the way I wanted. Thanks Tim! I'm sure down the road, some of my friends will thank you also.

We are going to Cheryl's daughters house this evening for a family get-together and fire works. I'm sure it will be a great time and that there will be a lot of good Cajun food for all to enjoy.

Tomorrow - New Year's Day - we will be starting the New Year right - on the road! Finally we slowly begin our trek West.

I should be back to posting more regularly, especially after we get in West Texas area, so check back often and let me know that you stopped by in the comment section.

Have a Very Happy New Year!

Wednesday, December 06, 2006

Where Does The Time Go?

Wow - I can't believe I haven't posted since mid-November. Time does pass quickly - it's hard to believe that Christmas is almost here.

Dean and I have been staying busy visiting with my Dad and friends in the area. That along with trying to do some Christmas shopping and getting in a few days of relaxing has made the days fly by.

I went to lunch with three of my good friends from church a few weeks back. What an experience that was. Someone picked Wetzell's Oyster House in Fairhope for our outing and off we went. Well, I don't recommend this place. The service was worse than bad and the food was not all that great. Maybe we hit it on a bad day, don't know, but I for one won't be back. We took it in stride and still had a good time together as you can tell in the picture below that shows, left to right, Diane, Betty and Jessie. I complained to the manager when he came by our table to see "how everything was" and we ended up getting free desserts - even they were delivered slow! After lunch we went shopping in Fairhope which is a nice place to do so. Lots and lots of little shops with unique items.



This past Saturday we drove to Biloxi, MS to a Arts and Craft Fair held in downtown Biloxi. My son, David and his wife Denise were vendors there. Although the sky was very clear and blue, it was cold and the north wind made it worse. Sadly, it wasn't one of the better shows. I was surprised at how many vendors there were, but many didn't show up. Here is a picture of Scent's and Wind's - my son's spot. Fortunately for them, their candles sell very well.



On Monday we took off to Dothan, AL to visit with good friends, John and Betty. Dean and John worked together at the Air Natl. Guard Base in Gulfport, MS for several years. When John retired this year, they decided it was time to get off the MS Coast and head for higher ground. They landed in Dothan, AL. John had a lunch of sausage/chicken gumbo & potato salad waiting for us when we arrived - how thoughful and gosh was it yummy. After lunch, they drove us around town, showing us some of the highlights of Dothan like the Opera House, that is still being used, and the paintings on the side of buildings. We also spotted a couple of the Peanuts that are located at many businesses around town. Every one is painted differently. Next time we go back to Dothan, I want to see how many I can find. In case you didn't know, Dothan, AL touts being the Peanut Capital of the World! Here is a picture of the one in front of Krispy Kreme Donuts.....



In the evening we went to an auction with John and Betty - what fun. I haven't been to an auction in quite some time. We really lucked out as this was the night that they were having their Christmas spread - wow - talk about some good food! Anyway, back to the auction - I got my daughter Suze, a divided relish dish and my son David a collectible cruise ship plate. Spent all of $5.00! I would love to go to more auctions, but I always feel like I have to buy something and since space is limited guess I'll have to stay away from them this year. When we got home from the auction, John and Dean retired, but Betty and I stay up quite late talking. She is such a great person and easy to talk with. I sometimes miss the "girl talk" time - don't get much chance to do a lot of it with our lifestyle.

Tuesday morning, John cooked a delicious breakfast of cheese omelets, ham, & homemade biscuits. I wonder if they would like two permanent house guests - I could get used to his cooking for me....... Here he is in the kitchen and a picture of John and Betty by their Christmas tree.....



We sure had a great, but short time visiting with them. Maybe we will get a chance to visit them again next year, sure hope so.

Tuesday night we went to dinner at Ron and Diane Nunn's house. Diane slaved all day cooking a wonderful spaghetti sauce. With that we also had Christmas Mice Cookies and Pound Cake. Unfortunately, I forgot to take my camera so no pictures. Eddie and Jessie Wren were also there for dinner. We had a enjoyable time eating, talking, and laughing together with good friends. I didn't mention that Ron is our Pastor. But foremost, he and Diane are good friends. I sure do miss them when we are on the road.

Today was back to normal - laundry, shopping etc. We will be leaving here, Rainbow Plantation, on December 16th, headed to Montgomery, AL for 2 weeks. After Christmas we will be pointing our rig westward with the destination being someplace in Arizona. Come back and check our progress as we head west.

I probably won't post until after Christmas so I want to wish everyone who visits my blog a VERY MERRY CHRISTMAS.