Sunday, July 8 – Saturday, July 14, 2007
Sunday, July 8
Another typical Sunday morning in Artesia…We met Mother, Ernie, and Billee at church. This was our first opportunity to attend the traditional service at the new time – 8:15 am. We were afraid that after a late night on Saturday we might not wake up on time, but we were awake before the alarm, so didn’t have any problem getting to church on time.
With the service at 8:15 and Sunday school classes at 9:30, we were through by 10:45 and were able to get all of us to the Pecos Diamond Steakhouse well before the regular dinner crowd. In fact, we were finished eating before most church services were over, so we didn’t even have to fight the crowd getting out of there.
The afternoon was taken up with some reading and our traditional nap. Then it was time for just piddling around until the end of the day.
Oh yes…the reason for the late Saturday night---I finally completed the wiring hookups for the motorcycle and got the bike put back together (after having parts lying around the barn floor for the last two weeks)…even had time for a short test ride with the bike and trailer (out to the highway and back, but it was a start).
Monday, July 9
We forced ourselves to get out of bed early and get down to the natatorium for our 6:30 am water aerobics and swimming. We really enjoy being there, but some mornings it is a real challenge to get up and get out of the house that time of the day. After our swim session, we headed on over to Mother’s house where I got my morning coffee and visited with Mother, Spike, and Bonita while Barbara showered.
On the way home the bright idea hit us that we
needed to give the cycle and trailer a proper test, so we decided to ride up to the mountains by way of Roswell. We loaded a few things in the trailer to give it some weight, hooked it to the cycle, and took off, stopping first at Wal-Mart for gasoline and a breakfast snack.
The ride up was great…It was sunny and warm until we got to Ruidoso and then things started changing. Intermittent thunderstorms and showers kept us penned down most of the afternoon, but cleared up enough that we got away around 5:00 pm.
The ride back home was more interesting (or should I say challenging) than going up. We hit the fringes of a couple of showers, so I slowed down, not knowing for sure how the trailer would handle. About 20 miles from Roswell a storm front hit…winds up to 45 miles per hour (hitting us broadside), so we slowed down a little and just hung in there. We both believe the trailer gave us a li
ttle more stability than we would have without it, but I don’t want to get in anything any rougher. We finally made it back to Artesia about 8:00…put the bike and trailer away and called it a day…more than enough adventure and excitement for one day.
Tuesday, July 10
It was up and at ‘em again this morning for our swimming session and then a visit with Mother. On the way back to Big V, Barbara said that she had made an executive decision to go into town and do all the wash at the Laundromat, rather than taking all day to get it done. While she did that, I used the carpet steamer that Ernie and Billee loaned us to shampoo the carpet in Big V, something that we’ve been talking about, but one of those things that keeps getting put off.
By noon we had completed all the “gotta do chores,” so we went over and visited with Jean for a few minutes before coming back and Barbara fixed a late lunch (chili cheese dogs and chips…yum-yum!!!) before taking our nap.
The evening was spent out at the ball fields, watching Becky and the First United Methodist Church softball team take on one of their league rivals. Unfortunately, even with a great fan base, the team couldn’t pull this one out. But, a good time was had by all.
Back at the place, we joined Nancy, Jerry, and Jean for a late evening bowl of homemade ice cream before calling it a day.
Wednesday, July 11Happy anniversary today to Heather and Andy in Carrollton, Texas!
We had told Becky at last night’s ballgame that we might or might not join her for swimming this morning. As it turned out, the “might-not’s” won. Although we could have made it on time or just a little late, we voted to stay home and get some work done. I went out and washed the cycle and the Vibe before it got too hot for that particular chore. Barbara worked inside to do some rearranging of cabinets. After living in Big V for a year, we’re finding that some of our early ideas for storage just weren’t all that practical.
Today was lunch day with the clan. We met at Chaos for an hour and a half of good food and conversation…a really nice way to break up the week. With two of her children having weddings in August, Susie always has something interesting to add to the conversation.
The afternoon was spent doing odd jobs around the place. I had to go into town to NAPA to buy some disconnect clips for the wiring on the motorcycle. As I came out of the store, I could see the clouds building up in the west, so I made a quick trip by Mother’s house and then headed back to our place.
About 5:00, it started raining, so we had the bright idea of trying to wash Big V in the rain to save on water. It worked out pretty well until lightning started popping in the area. At that point, we decided that maybe that job could wait for a bit. We went out several times, but kept getting chased back by the aerial fireworks…finally gave it up for a lost cause after getting one side and the back end cleaned up.
Tonight…just a lazy evening sitting in the house listening to the rain and watching TV and playing some computer games.
Thursday, July 12We started off with cloudy skies and cool temperatures. My thought was to try to finish washing Big V this morning while Barbara worked inside. After all, we had finished the passenger side and the rear end last night, so it wouldn’t take long. That’s what I thought anyway. But, when I looked at what we had already done, I noticed that last night’s rains had washed dirt off the roof and it was streaking down the sides. So, there was nothing to do but start the day by cleaning the roof and then moving to the sides. Fortunately, the weather held and I was able to get the entire exterior washed (except for the highest point of the front…will have to figure another way to get up there).
Meanwhile, Barbara was busy reorganizing cabinets and closets inside. Once again, what we thought was the perfect setup a year ago, was not as efficient as it could be.
While we were working, Nancy (and Benji, the faithful family dog) came over for a short visit. Nancy said they were having company during the evening and asked if we wanted to join them for brisket with all the trimmings. You can guess what my immediate answer was. Barbara volunteered to bring a dessert, so then she had to go to town to buy a few supplies while I was busy putting away all the stuff I used to clean Big V.
After that, I finished with the final touches on the Voyager and the cargo trailer…all wires are now in a harness with good connect and disconnect clips…now it’s time for another test ride…just don’t know when or where.
The evening at Jerry and Nancy’s was really great…good company and great food…lots of fun conversation. Cousin Mary, their houseguest, had been a visiting RN in Liberal. While we never got to meet her when we were all there, it was fun to visit with someone who was familiar with the town and the area.
We finished the evening with a rousing game of
Apples to Apples and lots of laughter…what a great way to spend an evening!
Friday, July 13
Happy Friday the Thirteenth everyone! Here’s hoping your day wasn’t as ominous as it sounded.
For our part, it was another day on the road, but one that we thoroughly enjoyed. Jerry had asked us earlier in the week if we would mind taking one of his vehicles and a trailer and going to Alamogordo to pick up Nancy’s birthday present. It seems that Nancy has long wanted a 4-wheeler to ride around the place and to take when they go fishing and camping. So, Jerry purchased one at a dealership in Alamogordo, but was shorthanded at the funeral home this week. Of course, we agreed to help him out.
After our early morning swim and a visit with Mother, we picked up Jerry’s Tahoe and brought it back to our place to hook up a trailer. Then, it was off to Roswell to check on some items for the Voyager at the Kawasaki dealership and to look at some accessories that Nancy might need for her new vehicle.
From Roswell we drove on over to Ruidoso and then down to Alamogordo where we picked up the 4-wheeler and loaded it on the trailer. Then it was on to our favorite eating place in town…Subway. Barbara has a niece who is the store manager and we always enjoy getting a great meal and having some time to visit with Lynette.
We left Alamogordo about 4:15 and drove up over the mountains to Cloudcroft on U.S. 82 and then on to Artesia by way of Mayhill, Elk, and Hope, both of us making mental notes about future motorcycle trips that we’d like to take later…more on that as it happens.
As we got close to Artesia, both of us envisioning meeting Nancy as we got into town and blowing the whole surprise, we got a call from Jean inviting us to join the family for dinner at La Fonda, the local Mexican food restaurant. She also let us know that they had Nancy with them, so there was no chance of us running across her.
Arriving in Artesia, we took the trailer over to Mother’s house where we would store the 4-wheeler until Monday, had a short visit with Mother, and then headed back out to Big V for a few minutes before going back into town to join the family for another wonderful evening of food and fellowship.
Saturday, July 14 Happy 17th anniversary to Jimmy and Cathey who reported that this one was spent all day in the airport just trying to get back to Lubbock from a business trip...
This was a “work around the place morning.” I decided that it was time to tackle some of the weeds that had been growing like, well, weeds with all the rain we’ve had lately. I had planned to use the weedeater, but some of the stalks were just too tough, so the only way to get them was to grab a hoe and start chopping. It was a hot, sweltering morning, so I was grateful that Barbara kept the water coming while I was outside.
I spent part of the afternoon over at Mother’s house doing a couple of loads of laundry and catching up on some ironing that had been patiently waiting for me.
Barbara and I went back over there later to pick up the last load of clothes when they were finished in the dryer…went to the store for a few minutes, and then headed back to the place where we visited with Jean for a few minutes and then got back to Big V where we worked on the journal and watched TV…a nice quiet evening for us and a good way to end a busy week.
“A friend is someone who reaches for your hand and touches your heart.” Author unknown, but it was on an email send to me and we liked it…
Wishing everyone well,
Jim & Barbara
Then, John sent us photos of great grandson Rhett (and Granddaughter, Randi!). Rhett is 6 months old (Randi's 12 and a half! Almost a teen-ager...can't believe that!)
It's amazing how grandparents seem so young once you become one. ~Author Unknown
Jaycie decided her favorite horse was the Arabian because it was solid white.
Friday, July 27
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.
These are photos I took yesterday on our cycle ride.
As the photo above shows, after a lot of close matches, Karen and Jim remained champs seizing the 2007 aluminum foil horseshoe Paul made last year. Becky and I snuck up on everyone and squeezed out a 2nd place finish. Now, the 3rd place position was really in question since the play off game Susie and James versus Jean and Nancy had to be forfeited…we ran out of time and Nancy had to go set up the kitchen for the 27 or so people who were coming to dinner. So…3rd place went to Susie and James by default….we really must start this tournament earlier…or we need to be able to play better so the games won’t take so long…:) 
Collage of the Little family on the 4th of July at the Terpenings…
Left corner: Connie, Jenny, and Ed (her other children were not there)
