Monday,
October 1 – Wednesday, October 31, 2012
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Monday,
October 1
Happy 15th birthday to granddaughter, Jaycie.
Happy 15th birthday to granddaughter, Jaycie.
Jim: We began October with the usual daily
chores around the house (Monday has become our unofficial housecleaning day),
and then I joined several of the men from Yantis First Baptist Church for our
Monday night fishing group at Lake Fork.
After gathering at Mary
Parker’s house and deciding who would ride on which boat, we made our way
through one of the small coves and into the main body of the lake to try our
luck. Unfortunately, we all did much
more fishing than catching during the evening, and while I got skunked on the
catching, I did manage to capture some photos of the sun setting over the
lake. The beauty of catching photos
instead of fish is that the clean-up is minimal and I can enjoy the photos over
and over at any time I want.
Wednesday,
October 3
After spending the
morning paying bills, running errands, and generally doing the business that
comes with maintaining two pieces of property, we decided to go out for an
afternoon walk to observe the progress of construction of a new assisted living
facility in the “North 40,” the large pasture north of Mother’s house.
We’ve been wakened very
early during the past couple of weeks by the sounds of large trucks delivering
materials and supplies to the construction site, but we haven’t paid very much
attention to what they were doing, so we were somewhat amazed by the overall
size and scope of the operation. We
don’t know when the new facility will open, but it is evident that it will be
able to serve a large number of clients once it is fully operational.
Thursday,
October 4
Heather called us
several days ago to ask if we could take care of Alexander and Abby during
their fall break from school. Heather
had a conference to attend and Andy was busy at his school. We wasted no time in agreeing to take the
kids for a couple of days. We drove to
Dallas today to pick up Alexander and Abby at their school. Note in the photos that Alexander is sporting
a pair of crutches and a special “boot” for one foot...the result of an
accident while participating in playground soccer at school recently.
While the kids munched
on some treats we had picked up at the World Market before getting to the
school, we returned to Mineola, stopping first at the nursing home so they
could have a quick visit with their Granny.
Mother is always pleased and excited to have her grandchildren and
great-grandchildren come to see her.
After seeing Granny, it
was on to the house for some serious Grams and Gramps time with the grandkids!
Friday,
October 5
Today we went into
full-scale Grams and Gramps mode with Alexander and Abby. First, we had a big breakfast of pancakes
with all the trimmings...something we rarely do ourselves anymore, but is a
requirement when we have company. After
cleaning the kitchen and getting dressed for the day, the kids helped us with
some household chores and running some errands (going to the post office is one
of their favorite activities), and then we all went to the nursing home for a
visit with Granny, who brightens up when she has special visitors.
After or visit with
Granny, we made a Walmart run (to make it an official day) to let the kids pick
out a couple of things they especially wanted.
We are continually amazed and pleased to find that both Alexander and
Abby are pretty picky about what they choose.
Neither of them chooses something just to have it. They give a lot of thought to their purchases
and generally choose something that is very important to them.
When we were finished at
Walmart, we drove by Ladd and Angela’s house so the kids could see the chickens
that Ladd and Angela are raising. No one
was home, so we walked around the place a bit and reminded the kids that this
was where they helped Ladd unload bales of hay the last time they visited.
When Ladd got back to
the house, he gave Alexander and Abby the grand tour of the chicken house, even
letting them go inside to gather some eggs and then help carry fresh water to
fill the watering pans.
The kids spent the
afternoon watching some of their favorite movies (we even got hooked on a
couple of them) and then tonight we watched Hunger Games, the movie that
Alexander had picked out at Walmart this morning. As usual, we were a little concerned that the
movie might not be very faithful to the book, but were pleasantly surprised to
see how well the story was adapted to the big screen. Now we’re looking forward to the next two
movies in the series.
Saturday,
October 6
Abby was scheduled for a
soccer match in Richardson this morning, so we got up early and made the hour
and a half drive back to the house for a visit with Andy before heading to the
soccer fields.
It was a cold and breezy
morning...not a good morning for standing around on an open field, but it was
so much fun to watch Abby and her teammates play a heated soccer match. Abby even got a chance to play in the
goal...something she had never done before, and for which the coach had to give
her some special instructions, but she did a good job.
When the soccer match
was over, we all went to a coffee shop to warm up and have some treats to
celebrate the team victory (and take a few more pictures. Abby presented us with a picture she had
drawn to commemorate our family time.
We said goodbye to Andy
and the kids and then headed back down the George Bush Toll Road to Rockwall
for some shopping and lunch at Chico’s before returning to Mineola. We stopped to see Mother for a few minutes
and then went to the house and collapsed after a fun, but tiring weekend.
Monday,
October 8
We spent the morning
straightening up the house and packing the car for another “little” adventure.
This year marks the
fiftieth year since our graduation from Artesia High School. Earlier in the year, some of our former
classmates decided to plan a 50-year reunion.
Neither Barbara nor I have ever attended a class reunion, but as the
plans developed, I was asked to prepare a memorial for our classmates who have
passed away since graduation. That, of
course, entailed having Barbara teach me how to create a video program.
Today, with our program
in hand and an itinerary that included family time throughout the trip, we
struck out on a new journey, with the first stop in Cleburne to have dinner
with Leah and Ryan. When we got there, we
called Barbara’s sister Nancy to see if she could join us. Nancy wasn’t able to meet us for dinner, but
she an Keylin, her granddaughter, did catch up with us at the restaurant for an
hour or so of visiting.
After the meal and
saying our goodbyes, we struck out for the next leg of the trip, traveling to
Weatherford to catch I-20 and then head west, hoping to get to Eastland to
spend the night. Along the way, Barbara
grabbed the camera to try to capture photos of the late evening sun.
We made it to Eastland
just at dusk and settled in at the Days Inn for an evening of relaxation.
Tuesday,
October 9
Today was just a travel
day, but we weren’t in any big hurry. We
stopped in Abilene for some shopping time at Walmart and Dollar Tree, had lunch
in Post (and vowed to never do that again, since the last three stops there
were lamentably regretful). We made it
as far as Brownfield before stopping for the night.
Wednesday,
October 10
This morning we drove to
Roswell, where we would eventually catch up with Carol. Barbara’s older
sister. Along the way, I turned the
driving duties over to Barbara and tried to get in a little trumpet practice.
I called brother Jerry
to see if he and Jane wanted to meet us for lunch. He agreed that that was a good plan, but
called back just as we were getting into town to say Jane wasn’t feeling well,
but we were welcome to come by the house to visit for a bit. So, with that little change in plans, we
headed to their house for a few minutes of catching up on each other’s lives.
When we had said our
goodbyes to Jerry and Jane, we went downtown for lunch, and then spent a couple
of hours at the Hastings coffee bar and wi-fi room until Carol got off
work. We then met Carol at Walmart,
followed her to her house to drop off her car and pick up some luggage and then
headed off to Ruidoso for the night for Carol's birthday present.
We went to the Apache
Travel Center for awhile and I shot these photos of Barbara and Carol.
After checking in at the
Best Western, we made the scenic drive up to the Inn of the Mountain Gods.
As it was getting dark,
we drove back down the mountain and returned to the motel for an evening
talking and computer time.
Thursday,
October 11
While I was finalizing
some things for the reunion memorial, Barbara and Carol entertained themselves
with a little early morning “photo phoolishness.:”
One of the best parts of
the drive between Ruidoso and Roswell is the beautiful scenery along U.S. 70
and through the Hondo Valley. We kept
the camera busy as we returned to Roswell early this afternoon.
We returned Carol to her
house in Roswell and then headed south to Artesia for the final leg of today’s
travels.
Jerry and Nancy invited
us to stay at their house for the night and we had a delightful time visiting
with them and Becky.
Jerry told us that they
had installed the lighting for the new Baish Veterans Park, which will be
dedicated on Veterans Day. Since it was
a beautiful evening, we piled into their car and drove downtown to see what had
been accomplished since we were here last.
Since Jerry, Nancy, and
Becky had a busy day planned for tomorrow, we called it a night fairly early.
Friday,
October 12
Today was a busy day for
all of us, so as soon as we could, Barbara and I packed the car and headed
first to Baish Veterans Park to see it in the daylight. The pictures we got this morning weren’t
nearly as dramatic as the ones Barbara took last night, but they did give a
good perspective on the park.
The memorial walls are
polished steel, with the names of area veterans water-cut through the steel and
back-lighted so they can be read at night.
There are currently over 600 names on the walls, with more to be added
each year as they are submitted by family or friends.
The sculpture, “Winged
Fire,” was commissioned by Artesia Main Street.
After taking a number of
pictures at the park, we went to The Pecos Inn, the site of our reunion. We were immediately met by members of the
reunion committee, and after introductions were made all around, we got busy
putting together the memorial table and getting finishing touches on the DVD’s
I had burned for the committee members.
Because we needed to be
in Lubbock this evening, we were going to miss all the reunion activities and
would be able to see only a handful of former classmates. Still, it was good to see folks that I had
grown up and graduated with, but hadn’t seen since graduation night in 1962.
While I was visiting
classmates, Barbara had her own mini-reunion with a friend she had grown up
with, but hadn’t seen since she transferred to Artesia from Hobbs at the
beginning of her senior year in 1961.
She found out that Patsy and her husband have lived in Artesia for 31
years. Not only that, Patsy’s husband
drives the school bus that picks up kids near Jean’s house, where we had the
motorhome parked for three years....small world!!!
While Barbara was
visiting Patsy, I took the car and refueled for the trip to Lubbock and ran a
couple of errands. While driving around
town, I decided to go by the apartments that my family lived in when I started
in the first grade. The first house we
lived in is long gone, but the old apartment complex is still standing. We lived in a small two-bedroom apartment
(No. 7) at the end of the sidewalk...Mother, Daddy, and three boys...don’t know
now how we did it, but we didn’t know any better, so I guess it worked for us.
After saying goodbye to
the folks at the reunion site, we pointed the car toward Lubbock for a chance
to see Jaycie.
As we got close to
Plains, Texas, we received a call from a very excited Jaycie telling us that
she was going to be playing in a volleyball game tonight with the sophomores
(she’s a freshman) and wanted to know if we could be there. We told her that we would be late, but would
put the pedal to the metal and get there as soon as possible.
And...we did arrive at
Lubbock High School in time to see most of the second game and all of the third
game that Jaycie played. Words are
insufficient for the good time we had, so we’ll just let the photos do the
talking.
When the games were
over, we finalized plans for tomorrow with Cathey and Jaycie and then drove
across town to check in at our motel and then grab a bite to eat.
Saturday,
October 13
Today belonged to Jaycie
and a couple of her friends, Kelsey and Skylar.
We first went to South Plains Mall for some serious shopping...
Did we really say
“serious” shopping?
After our mall time, we
went to Chick-fil-a for lunch (a favorite place for all three girls), and then
returned to the motel for an afternoon of fun, swimming, a photo scavenger
hunt, and games.
Sunday,
October 14
This morning found us
visiting Bacon Heights Baptist Church to visit with good friends from our days
in Liberal, Don Baldwin and his family.
I told the pastor that we had done our best to train Don, but...
After church, we picked
up Ann Crane, another of Barbara’s friends from her years in Hobbs. Ann was in town visiting family and was
excited to see Barbara, meet me, and enjoy a mini-reunion at Furr’s Cafeteria
before going back to the motel where she and Barbara got caught up on the years
since they last saw each other.
We had asked Jaycie what she would like to do when we saw her this afternoon. She said she'd like to go to Texas Tech and horse around taking photos. Jim and I thought that was an excellent idea...you know us, we can't ever have too many pictures!
Unfortunately, first rattle out of the box, as I was handing the camera to Jaycie to approve of a photo, I dropped the camera. Might not have been such a bad deal except, Jaycie was up on some stairs and I was below. There went another camera to the big camera heaven in the sky!
Undaunted though, we just used Jaycie's cell phone; but never have figured out how to get the pics from her; so we only have the ones we took before the death of the camera.
Monday,
October 15
After an early morning
wake-up call, we finished packing, loaded the car, and struck out for the long
drive back to Mineola, tired from the many miles traveled, but enjoying the
memories of visiting with family and renewing old friendships.
Wednesday,
October 17
We went to Tyler this
morning so Barbara could take a chemical stress test, since the physical test
she took last month didn’t provide any results.
Now we sit and wait to see what happens next.
However, we did find a new camera! It's our 2nd in 6 months, but since we got the insurance last time, this camera cost us nothing. That's a good thing!
However, we did find a new camera! It's our 2nd in 6 months, but since we got the insurance last time, this camera cost us nothing. That's a good thing!
Thursday,
October 18
While Barbara stayed
home and worked on the house this morning, I drove out to Holiday Villages for
a board of directors meeting. When the
meeting ended, I stayed at Our Little Lot
for a few hours to clean out some of the brush that has grown up in the gully
during the last year and start the first of the burn piles for the season.
Tonight was the final
rehearsal of the Lake Country Symphonic Band in preparation for our concert on
Sunday.
Friday,
October 19
It was another beautiful
fall day, so with everything under control at the house, I drove back out to Our Little Lot to do some more mowing,
trimming, and raking in the gully.
There’s still a bunch of work to do, but it’s looking a lot better out
there.
Saturday,
October 20
Since the next few days
were going to be very hectic, we decided we’d have lunch with Mother at the
nursing home. We took a laptop over and
hooked it to Mother’s TV to show her pictures that we have taken lately.
We haven’t taken any
good pictures of us together lately, so this afternoon while we were semi-dressed
up, we decided to give it a shot...here’s the result.
Yantis First Baptist
Church is beginning a series of revival services tomorrow. Tonight we had a church dinner in the
fellowship hall to kickoff the event and give everyone an opportunity to meet
our revival speaker, Stan Coffman, and his wife. Following the meal, the men all met with
Stan, while the women went to the sanctuary to hear Stan’s wife speak.
Sunday,
October 21
We were totally wrung
out from the activities of the week, so we didn’t make it to the church
service. Instead, I prepared for the
fall concert of the Lake Country Symphonic Band that was presented at the
Select Theater in downtown Mineola.
Thursday,
October 25
We got up early this
morning and made a run over to Lewisville to visit Terpening family
members. Susie was visiting Paul,
Stephanie and the boys, and we wanted to be able to spend some time with all of
them. Since we had missed some birthdays
this year, we took some things for the boys to play with.
When our visit with
Susie and the kids was over, we decided we’d drive south to downtown Dallas and
surprise Heather and the kids at their school at the end of the day. The surprise worked, and we had a great time
visiting at the school and then going to TCBY for a treat and then Subway for
some sandwiches.
Friday, October 26
Today was cold, grey,
and rainy, but there was a PGR funeral up in Winnsboro, so we loaded up in the
Caliber and joined or brother and sister Patriot Guard Riders in honoring the
life, service, and family of Otha R. Hamilton, who served in the U.S. Army
during the Italian Campaign of World War II.
Mr. Hamilton earned the Theater Medal, the World War II Victory Medal,
and a Good Conduct Medal through his service.
In visiting with one of Mr. Hamilton’s sons, I found that every
generation of the family since Mr. Hamilton’s grandfather has been represented
by someone in military service. The East
Texas Patriot Guard Riders were proud to honor this patriot and his service to
our nation.
Saturday,
October 27
One of the neighbors
organized a block party for the residents of Heritage Square today. We missed the party a couple of years ago,
but were happy to join with our neighbors today to enjoy a beautiful fall
Saturday and some great hamburgers, hotdogs, and all the trimmings.
Sunday,
October 28
In addition to our
regular Sunday services, today was the YFBC annual fish fry and Fall
Festival. Readers will note that we have
a lot of activities at the church that are built around dinners, but that’s
just the way it is, and we enjoy it very much!
Monday,
October 29
We don’t have any photos
of today’s activities, but this morning found us at the East Texas Medical
Center Cardiac Care Unit where Barbara had a heart catheter procedure. The doctor found that that she had about 75
per cent blockage in her primary heart artery, so he inserted a stent. Fortunately, the procedure was very
successful and by tonight, we were back at home and Barbara was resting
comfortably.
Wednesday,
October 31
This morning we received
an invitation to attend the dedication of the Baish Veterans Park in Artesia on
November 12. Shortly after receiving the
invitation, I got a phone call from one of the committee members asking if I
would consider playing Taps at the end of the ceremony. It didn’t take long to assure her that I
would be honored to represent Bugles Across America in sounding Taps at this
very special occasion.
The weather lately has
been just beautiful, so we took some photos of Mother’s flower beds to show how
out-of character everything is this season.
Note that there is even an azalea blooming at the end of October...something
almost unheard of.
No doubt we will be
paying for this beauty in a few weeks!
“If you have a good
name, if you are right more often than you are wrong, if your children respect
you and your grandchildren are glad to see you, if your friends can count on
you and you can count on them in time of trouble, if you can face your God and
say, “I have done my best,” then you are a success.” – Ann Landers
Enjoying the season in
Mineola and Wood County,
Jim/Dad/Gramps &
Barbara/Mom/Grams
