Wednesday, July 1, 2009…Happy 3rd year retirement to us!
Yep! It’s sometimes hard for us to believe that we’ve been playing hooky from school for 3 years; but we certainly have. And, we have no complaints about these years either. It’s been quite a ride, in more ways than one.
Since we’re extremely behind on our journal entries, we’ve made the executive decision to condense these memories into mainly photos and an occasional side note.
Today, July 1st, Jim and I left Heather’s family preparing for their journey to Boston and we took off with Jaycie and friend Kiersten for Holiday Village where we would meet up with daughter Leah who was bringing John’s daughter Randi with her.
It was with a little trepidation and a healthier dose of optimism that we handled 6 people in our little abode for 4 nights and 5 days, especially with the temps in the 100+ each day.
However, it’s one of those life experiences that one says, “Been there, done that, don’t think I’ll do it again!” Don’t misunderstand; we had a tremendous time overall, but…just think about it…that was a house full!
After getting everything unpacked and Big V in shape, we all headed to the pool to cool off.
July 2nd we took the girls and TJ’s grandson, Joseph, to the beach at Lake Hawkins where we enjoyed the water as well as a picnic.
Nights were spent watching DVD’s and gnawing away at bowls of popcorn before calling a day over.One interesting bit of information that needs to be documented for “family history” is the attention that Randi, the oldest granddaughter, received at the pool. Seems as though some young man decided she was worthy of pursuing; however, the feeling was definitely not returned by Randi. Therefore, it was left to Grams to issue his marching orders, which I gladly did, when he arrived at our lot on the 4th intending to make a “date” to watch the fireworks with Randi that night.
The cowboy church that Jim and I attend in Quitman had a roping contest the morning of the 4th; so we decided to give these city girls a taste of the cowboy life. The bottom middle photo was taken by Jaycie’s friend, Kiersten. We were impressed by the photography ability of all 3 girls.
The Fourth of July picnic on the night of the 4th found our lot full with Jim’s mom, Billee, Ernie, TJ, Joseph, Ladd and Angela as well as the 6 of us.
Playing washers consumed some of our time…Unfortunately for Randi and me, Gramps and Jaycie placed 1st, Kiersten and Leah 2nd, and Randi with Grams as her partner claimed last place and were proud of it! Winning is so overrated!
Early on the morning of the 5th Leah headed back to Kansas as the girls and Jim and I travelled over to Cleburne where we had made plans to attend church with my sister Nancy and her family. After church the congregation was having a picnic lunch which we also attended before heading over to Nancy and Tom’s for more visiting.
Leaving Cleburne in our rear view mirror, we made the 2 hour trip to Richardson where we were planning to spend the night and take care of the cats, Smoky and Simba. It was during the ride over to Heather’s that we realized the roaring noise from the rear of Big V was getting louder and it was agreed that we should take the car in to have it checked out!Well…Monday morning brought the news from the Pontiac dealership that the Vibe was definitely not in the best of health! The bearing was burned out in one of the rear wheel hubs, but…they couldn’t fix it since they had to order one of the parts. With this news, Jim and I decided that we should just stay put and find things for the girls to do in the Dallas area instead of returning to the lake as we intended. We had already told the girls that Monday was a day of rest for them and they found different ways to keep themselves occupied!
For Jaycie and Kiersten that meant checking out all the costumes that Abby had in her toy box and demonstrating their creative talents with song and dance routines.
Randi, being of a different persuasion, chose to surf the net and then, somewhat reluctantly agreed to pose for some photos for her grandmother.
It has long been a tradition for the girls that when they stay with Gramps and Grams they make a scrapbook of their visit. Therefore, much time was taken accomplishing this endeavor.
If you’ll notice Kiersten’s entry, it says, “I am mad at Symba” … last night, Jim and I forgot to put the gate up properly so Simba spent much of the night scratching at our doors and meowing…though none of us had the wherewithal to get up and do anything about it. It’s just one of those funny memories that will wind up being a favorite to relate.After a lot of research on Monday, Jim and I decided that we’d take the girls on an adventure Tuesday.
This adventure began with catching the train at the George Bush DART station…final destination…the Dallas Zoo.
The train ride took approximately 40 minutes, but we all enjoyed the experience! Now it was time to hit the zoo! And…what a zoo it was!
Jim and I basically chose this outing just with the girls in mind…not really thinking that we, too, would really enjoy it…just wanted the girls to enjoy themselves… that would be enough for us. At least that’s what we thought…after all, a zoo’s a zoo, right? Nope! We definitely recommend that if you’re ever in the area, this is a must place to go.
With one last set of photos, it was time to board the train for the trip back home to Heather and Andy’s. It would take the girls the rest of the night to get caught up on their scrapbooks.
A last minute phone call from Cathey set Jim and me to scrambling with plans of returning to our lot to get the girls’ belongings. Due to some changes in Cat’s work schedule, she needed to pick up Jaycie and Kiersten on Wednesday instead of Thursday.Therefore, we all hit the road early on Wednesday morning to pack up all the girls’ supplies. All the time Jim and I were praying that the Vibe didn’t decide this was the time to break down!
Once we had everything packed in the car, the girls and I headed back to Richardson while Jim rode the cycle into Mineola to check the mail and see his Mom. Then, he, too, came to Richardson so we’d be able to leave the Vibe alone once it was just the 2 of us again.
Cathey arrived around 2:30 and we quickly loaded up Jaycie and Kiersten’s luggage and they headed out for the trip back to Lubbock.
Randi, Gramps, and I settled down to an afternoon and evening of watching the Gilmore Girls on a DVD that Heather and Andy had. It didn’t take long for Jim and me to get hooked on this series!
We continued this vegetation period through to the next day! So…with nothing particularly exciting to do, and with permission from Randi’s folks, Gramps took Randi on her first motorcycle ride. Their path took them riding around the neighborhood; so Grams’ job was to run (okay, so I didn’t run!) from the alleyway to the front of the house taking photos as they passed by!
On Friday, the three of us journeyed over to a beach at Lake Lewiston that we had found on the internet. Though this beach was not nearly as nice as Lake Hawkins, we did while away some time swimming and picnicking. For some unexplained reason, the camera chose this day to make perfectly yucky pictures and none of us realized it until we got back to the house and started to print them for Randi’s scrapbook.Saturday, the 11th, we drove over to Temple, TX, to meet John and Carol who were rather eager to see their missing teen-ager!
After a breakfast/lunch at Denny’s and enjoying a short visit, we all piled into our respective vehicles for the journeys back home. For us, home once again meant Heather and Andy’s since we’re still waiting on the part needed to fix the Vibe.It was with a grateful heart that we arrived once again with no car trouble other than a roar like a 747 jet coming from the rear of the Vibe.
Our time with the older granddaughters, daughter, and grand friend (what we called Kiersten) was now officially over. And, what wonderful, lasting memories we shared…some we’ll even be able to laugh at years from now!
Alone and awfully quiet in Richardson,
"Family is the essence that helps define our very identity"…on a favorite photo frame
Jim and Barbara
