Sunday, July 22 – Saturday, July 28, 2007
Sunday, July 22
Some kind of stomach bug kept me home while Jim and Edith went to church and out to eat lunch. I spent the morning sleeping, but was awakened by a phone call that Jim’s Uncle Raymond had been put in the hospital in Marianna. That was certainly not news we wanted to hear!
Rest of the day is pretty much a blur to Jim and I both.
Just as a matter of record, it was 17 years ago today that Henry H. Colwell, Jr. and John Roark (Becky’s husband) died of cancer. It was a day that caused two strangers to eventually become best friends! Weird how life works out like that sometimes…
Monday, July 23
A morning swim at the natatorium, doing some chores, and preparing for our trip to get granddaughter, Jaycie, in Lubbock kept us busy most of the day.
Tuesday, July 24
Once again we journeyed to the natatorium to begin the day.
Eventually, were ready to hit the road. This year only Jaycie was going to be able to take a summer trip with us. We had hoped that Randi would be able to join us, but her busy schedule as an almost teen-ager kept her in San Antonio this year.
Since Jimmy, Cathey, and Jaycie were all busy in the early evening, we had a Mexican dinner with Becky at El Chico after she got off work. As always, we filled the visit with absurd thoughts, memories, and laughter!
Next stop was the cheer studio where we watched Jaycie and her cheer team practice before heading to the kids’ house to spend the night.
Wednesday, July 25
After getting a relatively early start for Ruidoso, Jaycie, Jim, and I stopped in Roswell to visit my sister Carol and her husband Cal for a short break. It wound up being a lunch stop, too, since Carol fixed some chicken noodle soup for Jay Bird, with ice cream as dessert!
Once in Ruidoso, we checked into our motel room and then headed out to browse the shops
along Main Street. Our only purchases wound up being a shirt for Jim and jelly beans (Dr. Pepper, buttered popcorn, and grape slush flavors) for Jaycie.
Then we all agreed that a meal to take to the motel was in order since we were pretty tired from the traveling and walking…so…KFC here we came!
We all went swimming but then I went back to the room to try to take care of some internet business….oops! Couldn’t get on line! After about an hour’s hassle and run-around, we repacked everything and moved down the hall to another room. It really became quite comical and filled the evening with a lot of silliness!
Thursday, July 26
We had decided that our day would include a trip to the horse races since it was something that Jimmy and John used to like to do when they were young. But, we had left the motel a little early so we went to the Billy the Kid Museum (which was closed) so then we walked over to the Hubbard Museum. Well…we didn’t actually go into the museum…instead we walked through the gardens which were filled with horse sculptures.
Jaycie decided her favorite horse was the Arabian because it was solid white.
About 10:00 we headed to the track without checking to see for sure when the races started. Couldn’t figure out why it was so deserted until we got a program and noticed that the actual races didn’t start until 1:00 PM! Another oops!
This meant we had time to take in a paddle boat ride up at the Inn of the Mountain Gods. We were lucky enough to get a 4 person paddle boat which just meant that Jim had to 
paddle twice as hard! Jaycie took turns sitting beside Jim and me for photo op sessions! We all agreed that an hour on the lake was just a little too long!
We made a quick trip back to the motel to gather picnic supplies before we headed to the races. I think I really expected Jaycie to enjoy one race and then she’d say it was time to go; but that’s not what happened. She loved the whole atmosphere and the horses showing off for the crowd before each race.
Her explanation for this enjoyment was that she loved doing new things and things her friends
hadn’t done. She had a million questions about the races that Jim and I couldn’t answer, like why were horses #11 and #12 not going to race after all, what did the numbers on the board mean, etc., etc.
After the 6th race (by then it was 3:30), we decided that enough was enough and Jim and I needed some rest before our planned night adventure.
About 5:30 we arrived at Bonita City, home of the Flying J Ranch. This is a really unique little glimpse into an old Western setting. There are small curio shops for browsing, panning for gold, riding a horse for kids, pistol shooting (we didn’t let Jaycie do that), and then right before the camp style meal, a good old-fashioned shoot-out between the bad guys and the sheriff. The night ends with a performance of Western music by the Flying J Wranglers. It is really a great way to spend an evening in the mountains!
Friday, July 27
After checking out of the motel, we made the short drive down to Alamogordo, NM, where we were going to make a trek out to White Sands with my niece Lynette, her four children, my sister Carol, and her husband Cal. Since this adventure wouldn’t happen until after Nettie got off work and it cooled down some outside, we spent time in the pool and browsing some shops.
Saturday, July 28
It was almost time to call this trip done. But, first, we made a stop at Lynette’s for breakfast and another visit. Sister, Carol, who has always been the cook in the family, fixed up a small meal of eggs, sausage, fruit, hash brown patties, and biscuits. It’s safe to say that no one left the table hungry!
Along the way, we made some side stops…especially one at Elk, where we found the gate open and were able to get some close up shots of “The Little Kitchen” plaque.
Once back at “home”, we took Jaycie over to visit Edith and the dogs. And, later over to Jean’s for a visit. Highlight of the night for Jaycie was when Jean gave permission for Jim to take Jaycie out in Little Red.
With another travel day ahead of us on Sunday (time to return Jay Bird to her parents), we decided to call it a night after watching a DVD of The Parent Trap.
And that’s it from the Littles for this week…hope it’s been a good one for all of you out there.
“Don’t judge each day by the harvest you reap, but by the seeds you plant.” Robert Lewis Stevenson
Jim & Barbara
Sunday, July 22
Some kind of stomach bug kept me home while Jim and Edith went to church and out to eat lunch. I spent the morning sleeping, but was awakened by a phone call that Jim’s Uncle Raymond had been put in the hospital in Marianna. That was certainly not news we wanted to hear!
Rest of the day is pretty much a blur to Jim and I both.
Just as a matter of record, it was 17 years ago today that Henry H. Colwell, Jr. and John Roark (Becky’s husband) died of cancer. It was a day that caused two strangers to eventually become best friends! Weird how life works out like that sometimes…
Monday, July 23
A morning swim at the natatorium, doing some chores, and preparing for our trip to get granddaughter, Jaycie, in Lubbock kept us busy most of the day.
Tuesday, July 24
Once again we journeyed to the natatorium to begin the day.
Eventually, were ready to hit the road. This year only Jaycie was going to be able to take a summer trip with us. We had hoped that Randi would be able to join us, but her busy schedule as an almost teen-ager kept her in San Antonio this year.
Since Jimmy, Cathey, and Jaycie were all busy in the early evening, we had a Mexican dinner with Becky at El Chico after she got off work. As always, we filled the visit with absurd thoughts, memories, and laughter!
Next stop was the cheer studio where we watched Jaycie and her cheer team practice before heading to the kids’ house to spend the night.
Wednesday, July 25
After getting a relatively early start for Ruidoso, Jaycie, Jim, and I stopped in Roswell to visit my sister Carol and her husband Cal for a short break. It wound up being a lunch stop, too, since Carol fixed some chicken noodle soup for Jay Bird, with ice cream as dessert!
Once in Ruidoso, we checked into our motel room and then headed out to browse the shops
along Main Street. Our only purchases wound up being a shirt for Jim and jelly beans (Dr. Pepper, buttered popcorn, and grape slush flavors) for Jaycie.Then we all agreed that a meal to take to the motel was in order since we were pretty tired from the traveling and walking…so…KFC here we came!
We all went swimming but then I went back to the room to try to take care of some internet business….oops! Couldn’t get on line! After about an hour’s hassle and run-around, we repacked everything and moved down the hall to another room. It really became quite comical and filled the evening with a lot of silliness!
Thursday, July 26
We had decided that our day would include a trip to the horse races since it was something that Jimmy and John used to like to do when they were young. But, we had left the motel a little early so we went to the Billy the Kid Museum (which was closed) so then we walked over to the Hubbard Museum. Well…we didn’t actually go into the museum…instead we walked through the gardens which were filled with horse sculptures.
Jaycie decided her favorite horse was the Arabian because it was solid white.About 10:00 we headed to the track without checking to see for sure when the races started. Couldn’t figure out why it was so deserted until we got a program and noticed that the actual races didn’t start until 1:00 PM! Another oops!
This meant we had time to take in a paddle boat ride up at the Inn of the Mountain Gods. We were lucky enough to get a 4 person paddle boat which just meant that Jim had to 
paddle twice as hard! Jaycie took turns sitting beside Jim and me for photo op sessions! We all agreed that an hour on the lake was just a little too long!We made a quick trip back to the motel to gather picnic supplies before we headed to the races. I think I really expected Jaycie to enjoy one race and then she’d say it was time to go; but that’s not what happened. She loved the whole atmosphere and the horses showing off for the crowd before each race.
Her explanation for this enjoyment was that she loved doing new things and things her friends
hadn’t done. She had a million questions about the races that Jim and I couldn’t answer, like why were horses #11 and #12 not going to race after all, what did the numbers on the board mean, etc., etc.After the 6th race (by then it was 3:30), we decided that enough was enough and Jim and I needed some rest before our planned night adventure.
About 5:30 we arrived at Bonita City, home of the Flying J Ranch. This is a really unique little glimpse into an old Western setting. There are small curio shops for browsing, panning for gold, riding a horse for kids, pistol shooting (we didn’t let Jaycie do that), and then right before the camp style meal, a good old-fashioned shoot-out between the bad guys and the sheriff. The night ends with a performance of Western music by the Flying J Wranglers. It is really a great way to spend an evening in the mountains!
Friday, July 27After checking out of the motel, we made the short drive down to Alamogordo, NM, where we were going to make a trek out to White Sands with my niece Lynette, her four children, my sister Carol, and her husband Cal. Since this adventure wouldn’t happen until after Nettie got off work and it cooled down some outside, we spent time in the pool and browsing some shops.
Saturday, July 28
It was almost time to call this trip done. But, first, we made a stop at Lynette’s for breakfast and another visit. Sister, Carol, who has always been the cook in the family, fixed up a small meal of eggs, sausage, fruit, hash brown patties, and biscuits. It’s safe to say that no one left the table hungry!
Along the way, we made some side stops…especially one at Elk, where we found the gate open and were able to get some close up shots of “The Little Kitchen” plaque.
Once back at “home”, we took Jaycie over to visit Edith and the dogs. And, later over to Jean’s for a visit. Highlight of the night for Jaycie was when Jean gave permission for Jim to take Jaycie out in Little Red.
With another travel day ahead of us on Sunday (time to return Jay Bird to her parents), we decided to call it a night after watching a DVD of The Parent Trap.And that’s it from the Littles for this week…hope it’s been a good one for all of you out there.
“Don’t judge each day by the harvest you reap, but by the seeds you plant.” Robert Lewis Stevenson
Jim & Barbara
