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January Means Winter in Texas

2012-01-13T17:51:00.000-06:00

We are once again turning on the fireplace each evening. The outside temperature has dipped below freezing for the past few nights, and is headed down again tonight. Today was cloudless, cold, and perfect for a little shopping for boots. Oh, yes, and for using discount coupons and shopping codes to make shopping more fun. I found 3 different colors and heights of boots; just couldn't justify that many boots when I do live in Texas, not Alaska. So I settled on some gray ones for now. My Kohl's discount is good till next Wednesday, so if I decide the cold is not going away for awhile, I may have the justification to go back and find more to bring home and put in the closet.
Lunch was sure a treat at LePeep, even though we ordered from the omlet menu. They have really good omlets and good coffee to keep you warm too.
Ralph has been doing his shoulder exercises faithfully each day. The stretching has helped him, but brings its own downside of a need for icing down for at least 10 minutes and sometimes causes a little too much discomfort about 4 in the morning. It will take time to get past the pain, so he is just toughing it out.

Christmas Joy Multiplied

2011-12-26T11:00:00.001-06:00

Yes, Christmas joy was multiplied by two, if you count the number of days we celebrated with family. It was multiplied by three, if you count the number of precious grandchildren we watched open toys, puzzles, stickers, and goodies. It was multiplied so many times more, if you count the memories made this year just by spending time with the people we love. Fortunately we got to spend time with our children and grandchildren in person. We spent time by phone with other family members. We spent time with friends and family via cards received from across the U.S. from Florida to Texas, Iowa, Pennsylvania, Kansas and beyond. It's so nice to catch up on the latest news, learn of the accomplishments, and just know that life's blessings are being shared with us.
Because Aaron's family was recovering from a bout of viruses and ear infections, they didn't join us for Christmas Eve's celebration at our home. We did borrow Lacey's grandmother's recipe for sweet potato casserole, so they were represented at the table. Madeline opened her presents here, before surprising us by being with us for the night. To wake up on Christmas morning with our sweet baby granddaughter here, who wanted to be held and cuddled, till we headed to her house was such a bonus. Heidi and Ryan's tradition of inviting friends and family for Christmas breakfast/brunch is always good, and this year's addition of Heidi's homemade cinnamon rolls just made it even better! We got to meet some of their friends and a cute little friend of Maddie's as well. On the way home, Aaron called to invite us to their house, saying the girls were feeling better. So after a quick stop at home to pack gifts into boxes, we made a trip to McKinney.
We found Elle crawling to the back of her parent's bedroom, wearing her cute little Christmas p.j.'s. Audrey was still feeling the effects of the cold virus, but she had enough energy to open all of her gifts, read the names for everyone elses's presents, and even help Elle by opening her gifts for her. It was very sweet to see her be so happy for Elle to get her gifts. Even with several bigger gifts, she was most excited to peel the back of all the little foam sticker dots.
For us, this was such a special Christmas. We were able to spend such pleasant time with both of our children's families and loved every minute with the three grandbabies! Pictures follow to prove it.

Maddie loves on her little snowman with green hat.

Maddie trying to figure out what the baby food bottle is.

This girl loves her snack time.

Heidi helped Maddie open a couple of gifts.

Paper wrapping is still one of the best presents.

Ryan was happy to see his baby girl on Christmas morning.

Elle had fun chasing her tiger ball, which was inertia powered.

Audrey had so much fun playing with her Christmas stickers.

Mom and Dad had fun putting Audrey's Disney puzzle together.

We had a Christmas present table for our Christmas Eve dinner.

Colorado Cool!

2011-09-21T12:27:00.017-05:00

Saddleback Mt. house

View from dining room table

Goodbye Texas heat, hello Colorado cool! That was our sentiment when we arrived at the 8200 ft level home on Saddleback Mt., just west of Evergreen, Colorado the last week of August and first week of September. We found a beautiful house that could easily fit a family of 8 or more, but Ralph and I were very happy to call it home for 2 weeks. The daily temperatures ranged form the upper 30's in the early mornings to about 80° by afternoon. We had beautiful views in every direction. Our dining room window allowed us a panoramic view of mountains along with entertainment provided by hummingbirds, bees, and woodpeckers. We learned that woodpeckers can hang upside down on hummingbird feeders and really like sugar water just as much as the bees or hummingbirds.

The kitchen came stocked with spices and foods in the frig. and pantry. If our grandchildren had joined us, we would have been prepared with a highchair and booster chair. Brazilian cherry hardwood floors, tile in the entryway, and warm carpet in the living room and bedrooms, along with lots of artwork throughout the 3 floors of rooms, made it a welcoming place. We even made use of the wood stove a few evenings and mornings.

Carol, Marilyn's sister, came to spend a few days at the house and share some adventures in Colorado. A trainride in Georgetown, a trip up to the top of Mt. Evans to see the mountain goats and sheep, and memorable meals were part of the fun. Just don't ask about ordering "Regional Mexican Food"! Save the Mexican food for Texas! It's pretty sad when even the chipmunks and squirrels turn down those leftovers! Eating homemade pizza at home was much more enjoyable.

mountain goats on Mt. Evans

Can you spot the mountain sheep?

Woodpecker drinking from hummingbird feeder

Daily trips were planned, including visits with cousins to both Ralph's side of the family and Marilyn's. First visit was with Ralph's cousin, Norma and her husband, Van Ricketts, who bought a 40 acre ranch in Buena Vista, CO. when Van retired from his career as a vetenarian and pharmacutical rep. They made amazing improvements, added guest "bunk" houses, and built an outdoor wine cellar with an outdoor oven for future bread baking. Marilyn's cousins, Rod and Donna Hodgson, have a beautiful home in Arvada, with views of Pikes Peak, Denver, and mountains galore to view from their bedroom deck and living room.

Panoramic view from Golden State Park

Fresh snow on the mountains

Panoramic view from our picnic bench at Golden State Park

Trip to Boreas Pass

Scenic drive over the Boreas Pass

Looking over Georgetown

Karen's daughter Holly, her husband, & new twins

Don Koontz's 100th birthday party

Marilyn's former bus driver and only living uncle, Don Koontz

The main reason for going to Colorado this year for Carol and Marilyn was to celebrate Don Koontz's 100th birthday party. He is an amazingly bright, quick-witted gentleman who is very loving toward his 97 year old wife of 10 years, Fern, his former high school sweetheart, and our dad's baby sister. The event was held in a neighborhood park, by a small lake. Aunt Fern's daughters, Karen and Saundra, along with Saundra's daughter, Kendra, and Karen's husband, Ken, provided a meal complete with homemade German chocolate cakes and ice cream. Friends shared fun memories and anecdotes before the time came to an end. We look forward to more visits with friends and family in the future, and we want to explore some new areas of Colorado or Wyoming or maybe Montana next year.

Family Counts

2011-08-21T15:26:00.002-05:00

Before we move on to other projects, we remember how important family time is. The first two weeks of August brought that wonderful reminder. We were so blessed by the generosity of brother Ray's family who shared time with us at Daytona Beach, Florida. The views were beautiful from daybreak till dark, and then even later as fireworks went off over the ocean. Ralph was so faithful to go for his morning walks at daybreaks, with the reward of getting some beautiful pictures of sunrise happenings. A friend has already commented that she copied some of those pictures from FaceBook to use for her personal collection, even recommending Ralph submit several to greeting card companies or advertising companies to use for their own use.

We discovered again how delicious doughnuts are, fresh from Dunkin Donuts, and how much better they become when there are excited children picking out just the varieties they asked Grandpa Ray to get for them. Ray's eyes literally twinkled as he saw how happy he made his grandchildren (and his sister). We learned there is such a thing as a Captain America doughnut that is very special; it has sprinkles and patriotic icing! It was pretty clear how much love is shared between the grandchildren and both of their grandparents. That love continued to be observed as the family enjoyed breakfast casseroles, brownies, tacos, pancakes, pulled pork, etc., etc. throughout the week!

A trip to the local Farmers' Market provided delicious South Carolina peaches, tomatoes, nectarines, and even pickles. Both Marilyns selected pickles from the pickle barrels; garlic dills and sour pickles. Mark wasn't quite prepared for the sour ones, so we got a laugh at his squinted eyes and puckered face. He readily moved on to the garlic ones.

On Thursday, Ray and Marilyn took us to the famous Chocolate Factory used for one of the I Love Lucy's favorite episodes about 50 years ago. After the tour, we sampled something new; dark chocolate-double-dipped potato chips! We may have to take another trip to Daytona, just to get more of those delightful treats. We also sampled their caramels and sugar-free treats. Definitely worth the trip!

From Daytona Beach we traveled to Atlanta, Georgia to visit a cousin of Ralph's, Margaret and Del Shelton. They welcomed us to their beautiful home & made a lovely dinner with Del taking care of the main dish, smoked pork loin. Later they caught us up with their ever expanding family. They have 3 sons, one of whom has 10 children, another has 2, and the third has no children yet. They provided a Headley family history, which Ralph's Uncle Tommy had spent 5 years researching and writing. Since we had not kept up with all of the aunts and uncles for way too long, it was an evening we very much enjoyed. We were even privileged to have breakfast on their deck while we watched hummingbirds diving around to get a drink from the feeders hung a few feet away. The weather was cool enough to sit outside for a little while; something it has not been either before or after we returned home.

The family time had continued since returning. Heidi and Ryan treated us to a fabulous anniversary celebration at their home. Heidi prepared such a delicate pecan crusted Orange Roughy dinner, complete with fresh broccoli, broiled red potatoes, and whipped cream topped strawberries and chocolate cake accompanied with fresh coffee and song! Getting to spend time with them and Maddie made for a grand celebration.

Saturday, we continued celebrating with Aaron's family. Audrey amused us with her sunglasses. She never took them off from the time she got to the restaurant till the time we left. Elle allowed her mom and dad to almost finish lunch before she needed some personal attention. She has changed so much in just the past couple of weeks. She smiles easily when she watches Audrey or her parents.

She lets you know quickly if you lean her back too far. She is a gal who likes to sit up and see what is going on around her. Audrey was ready to take Grandpa up on his offer to come home with him, so hopefully that can happen sometime soon. We have gained new memories and cherished our time with family members for sure. We look forward to spending more time with them and visiting with Carol and other relatives soon!

Happy Birthday, Ralph!

2011-07-22T08:08:00.000-05:00

Ralph celebrated another birthday this month! Happy Birthday to our husband, father, and grandfather who is loved by all! Family members gathered at Carraba's Restaurant at Ralph's request for a delicious Itallian dinner. Someone commented later, after seeing pictures that our family is sure growing! Yes, it is and getting cuter too! All three granddaughters provided entertainment for their grandpa throughout the evening. We are so blessed! They are all adorable, so well behaved and pure joy to be a part of our lives.

To watch our children be so patient and loving with their own children is such a reward for us. Yes, our children have grown up! Again, we are so blessed! We couldn't love them more, until tomorrow. Thank you for a special evening to all four of our children and our three granddaughters!

June, A Time For Travel

2011-07-04T14:31:00.001-05:00

Lake Minnewanka in Banff National Park

Castle Mountain in Banff National Park

Athabaska Glacier at Columbia Ice Fields

Moraine Lake in Banff National Park

Lewis Falls in Yellowstone National Park

Lake Hotel in Yellowstone National Park

St. Mary's Lake in Glacier National Park

Three Sisters Mountains by Canmore, Alberta Canada

Vermillion River in Kootenay National Park, Alberta Canada

Athabaska Falls in Banff National Park, Alberta, Canada

Summer began with one more place checked off of places from our list of locations we have wanted to visit; Alberta, Canada and more specifically Banff National Forest in Alberta. For years Ralph has talked of taking the rail trip across Canada through the forest. For Father's Day this year, we decided to take it a bit further and drive to the location so we could explore on our own schedule. We located a condo through VRBO in Canmore, just 10 minutes from the park. It provided so many goodies, especially the dishwasher, laundry, wi-fi, and a comfortable bed inside, plus it was convenient to restaurants, shopping, and getting to the highway. For Ralph, it had a train running just behind us. For me, it had a great bagel shop just a couple of doors down from us; never had a maple pecan bagel before. The trains never blew their whistles and ran through without bothering us. The condo was very well insulated.
Because there was so much snow last winter, the waterfalls were everywhere as the snow was melting. A few highlights included viewing a grizzly bear next to the road in the park, riding a tram up a mountain outside of Lake Louise, and taking a cruise on Lake Minnewanka. Just picnicking in the near perfect weather with the beautiful surroundings of mountains was so special.
Our trip began with forest fire detours in New Mexico the first day, then we were blocked in Glacier Park by roadblocks due to snow still covering the road. We saw major flooding in Montana, Canada, Wyoming, even some in northern Colorado. What a contrast to the drought conditions we encountered in New Mexico and Texas; the worst in over 70 years!
Still, we were thrilled to get home to see our beautiful little granddaughter, Madeline Grace, come to visit and show off her new skill, crawling. She has it down for sure! It won't be long before she is walking as she comes really close to pulling up on the furniture. Now its time to enjoy the backyard pool and keep cool in the Texas July heat.

Campfire Time!

2011-06-06T12:44:00.001-05:00

Ryan often talks about watching children being like watching a campfire. He is so right! Three sweet little girls met to play in our living room yesterday. Everyone watched, laughed, and couldn't take their eyes off of the three little cousins playing happily by each other.

Mary and Andy Gray came to town for their niece's and nephew's high school graduation from the Booker T. Washington Arts Magnet School. It was the first time any of us had met Madison. She is a delight! So glad they came over to see their Uncle Ralph and Aunt Marilyn. Heidi and Ryan arrived in time to give Maddie her first trip to the swimming pool. It was the perfect time to be in the pool; the temperature of the pool was about 86.9° and the outside temperature was about 100°. The late afternoon provided plenty of shade from the oak tree for everyone.

Mary, who obviously learned great manners from her parents, came in to help Heidi and her Aunt Marilyn get supper on the table. Then she and Heidi helped clear the table and clean up the kitchen. Thank you both so much! Lacey fed 1 month old Elle, who woke up just as supper was about over, and who spent the rest of her time sleeping.

After supper ended with homemade ice cream, it was time to go back into the living room and unload the plastic bins full of toys. There was no grabbing, no yelling, no whining by any of them. It was just too sweet watching them play with the floor full of toys. They intently combined the Bristle Blox and giant Legos for a very long time. Audrey took a tip from Madison and took her turn at wearing the green "Little Hat"/lettuce bowl around the room.

Maddie and Madison found the little bumps built into the bottom of the bowl to touch and contemplate. Maddie sometimes makes her cute little growl when finding the bumps. It seems to be her "I'm seriously studying this" sound.

Wish we had more family close by, so we could spend more afternoons and evenings together. Thank you, Mary, Andy, and Madison for coming to visit. Come back anytime!

And Baby (Elle) Makes 3--Granddaughters!

2011-05-17T16:09:00.001-05:00

Can't believe it has taken us this long to get pictures posted of the newest baby Headley to join our family! Elle Evangeline Headley arrived on May 2 to join her sister Audrey Katherine and mother and dad, Lacey and Aaron Headley. How blessed we are to have 3 beautiful little granddaughters, all under 3 years old! Our own children were 3 years and 4 months apart, so these three are very close in age. Elle Evangeline weighed in at 6 lb. 10 oz., and was only 17 3/4 inches long. She has already reached 19 inches long, and is almost back to her birth weight after losing about 1/2 pound during the first week of life. We are so thankful she is healthy. Her head full of black hair was a big surprise to us, even though her daddy has jet black hair, just as Ralph did when we met. Aaron's hair was very reddish blond when he was a baby, so we weren't expecting Elle to have so much black hair. She is a very quiet baby, although she was definitely more active last Sunday than she was a week earlier.
We have been so blessed to keep Maddie, age almost 7 months, occasionally while her parents go to dinner, a movie, or other events. She is at such a fun stage now, babbling happily as she bangs spoons, toys, etc., and sitting for a long time before she falls over. She is such an easy going baby, except when she turns over onto her stomach. Then she is ready to turn back over quickly.

Sisterly love!

Ready to head home!

Daddy's girls

Maddie's usual happy pose.

Maddie doesn't like the feel of Easter grass!

Maddie loves her fruits and veggies now. Next month, she starts trying meats. She plays happily with her toys, and especially likes to swing in the backyard with either of her grandparents. We love it too! It has been such a joy to keep this precious little girl!

Look at that black hair!

Audrey loves to dance!

Audrey, at almost 3 years, has accepted having a new sister, but she is more interested in playing with her chalk, books, and pretending to fly like Tinkerbell.

We hope the three girls get to spend lots of time with each other as they grow up. Our memories of cousins spending time with us are still strong. My family got together so often, it was rare not to have company almost every weekend, or to go to an aunt or uncle's house when they weren't at our house. Most lived within a few miles from our farm. So many good cooks and great laughs as we played card games together. One cousin was very artistic and musical, another was funny, another was always ready to ride our horses. Still others shared their outgrown clothes. What fun it was to go through the clothes, which always looked brand new to us. We loved getting to try on all the "new" clothes. How blessed we were to have such loving, generous family members. Ralph spent a few summers with his cousins in Missouri, helping with haying and farm chores. That built a strong work ethic for later in life!

Elle, at 2 hours old, with Aaron, and Lacey.

Audrey likes Easter baskets!

Springtime in the Hill Country

2011-04-11T12:03:00.000-05:00

Texas Hill Country beckons when spring weather brings bluebonnet blossoms. Well, at least the Hill Country and the weather part worked. The bluebonnets didn't appear so much this year. There was too little rain last fall and winter, actually all of last year. One park spokesman said this was the worst drought in over 50 years. Another person said this was the worst since the 1929 dustbowl happened. The grass was still green, but the area sure needs rain. Our trip to Canyon Lake, San Antonio, Columbus, Brenham, and Washington on the Brazos was so relaxing. No schedules, no agendas; just head out and enjoy the beautiful weather and scenery, birds and wildflowers. Oh, yes, and the deer. Lots and lots of deer everywhere around the resort, around the lake, around the trees, around the state park. Like I said, EVERYWHERE! We will plan to go back, maybe in the fall or next spring. The area is full of little surprises, like the Dry Comal Creek Winery. They make a variety of tasty wines, although they admitted they doen't raise most of the grapes they use.

We learned a few new amusing facts about Texas history, like personality conflicts causing the capital to be moved from Washington to Houston to Austin. We sampled Tex-Mex on the Riverwalk and refilled our supply of Vanilla at the Mexican Market in San Antonio. We even found a matching Jade necklace for a bracelet purchased on the island of Antigua last December. Ralph's favorite stop was a tour of the Shiner brewery. The history of Texas is so colorful in politics, farming, and industry. It's people have shown strength, work ethics, and resourcefulness to make a living for their families. So glad we had a chance to learn more about Texas last week!

View from the upstairs deck of our room.

Feeding the deer was such a treat!

What could be more Texan than bluebonnets and cattle!

Bluebonnets were in short supply this year.

Sunrise at Canyon Lake--Take one.

Sunrise at Canyon Lake--Take 2.

View from our living room at sunrise.

Wind--calm. Humidity--about 25%. Temp.--perfect.

Tiny bluebonnets near Brenham, TX.

Friendly and hungry deer appear in the early morning and evening.

We toured Washington on the Brazos, the first capital of Texas, learned some interesting facts about the Texas fathers, and watched a family of deer sprint across the grass when surprised by curious tourists.

Sisters Are Forever!

2011-03-28T13:09:00.003-05:00

The azaeleas are in bloom.

Heidi and Maddie on the Bella brick at the Arboretum.

Carol's trip to see the tulips.

Waterfalls, ferns, and budding trees.

Yellow and pink tulips make it look like Easter.

Toucan at the Dallas World Aquarium

Monkey island at the aquarium.

Manatee calmly swimming around and around.

Catfish dinner anyone?

T.G.I. Friday's at the West End

Today we are looking back at the fun we had acting as guides for Carol and Gene, It was a great job to have a couple of weeks ago. We went to Babe's for catfish, only to learn they quit serving catfish the previous weekend. The next day we picked up Heidi and Maddie to visit the Dallas Arboretum before having lunch at Fat Daddy's burger house. Always good burgers there. Then it was back to Heidi's to rest up before heading out to another favorite place together with Ryan. Angelo's for pizza and lazagna is always a tasty choice! Maddie was an angel for the whole meal till it was past her bed time. Then it was time for a walk with Grandma. What a sweetheart! Friday was a trip to downtown Dallas for the World Aquarium, which is a 3 story indoor animal exhibit, complete with monkeys, tropical birds, a jaguar, crocodiles, spiders, poisonous frogs, penguins, along with the expected turtles and fish. There was even a tiny little seahorse. What a delight to walk under the fish in one section of the aquarium. A dinner with Aaron's family allowed Carol to meet her second great niece in Dallas. Audrey was a little shy at first, but she surprised Carol when she ordered asparagus vs. the alternative vegetable. She loves her vegetables! She also loves her desserts. So did everyone else. It is a requirement that you sample the cheesecake when eating at the Cheesecake Factory, right? Ralph and I can heartily recommend the double chocolate sundae variety. YUMMMM! Carol's visit was over way too fast, but we are so glad they came to see us. Hope it isn't 3 years again till they come back for the next one. We loved it!

First Overnight Visit

2011-03-28T12:30:00.000-05:00

What fun we had last week! Maddie came to spend the night with us. She was such a fun guest! As her daddy says, she was our campfire. Everyone gathers around and watches campfires. She entertained with her very happy conversations, mainly vowel sounds, especially when she found her thumb to suck on at the same time. She can reach her toes, so her pink, ruffled socks were a source of interest for a very long time. She loves a little musical lion at our house. Her eyes get so big when he gets close enough to touch. She can't wait to put him up close enough to love on. The biggest surprise was when we put her to bed. She just kicked her feet in the crib, talked to herself for a few minutes and played with her little bear rattle/blanket. Then she was sound asleep without even a hint of fussing! Have to admit, her mother didn't do that at this age. We were still rocking her to sleep till she was almost 9 months of age. This was sure a lot easier! We are looking forward to another visit in May. Her mommy and daddy have an anniversary date! We are sure glad she sleeps through the night!

It's Blooming Tutus!

2011-02-25T20:03:00.001-06:00

The lilies and jonquils are up and growing so fast already! Today we spotted an African Daisy actually blooming! So it must be time to add a post to this blog.

This past month has been really busy with meetings, committee stuff for Marilyn and Ralph, and of course, the most fun part, entertaining Maddie!!! When Heidi and Ryan take time for a date, we get to love on Maddie. You will notice in the following pictures, she is wearing her first ballet tutu, complete with flowered headband. Love it, love it, love it! Looks like she is blooming too, with pink petals surrounding her. In another picture you will notice she really can rock blue overalls as well, with Uncle Jim and Aunt Les to thank for them. What a sweet-natured, precious baby girl! She smiles so easily, reaches for her mommy's hair, her toys, and her fingers. Hard to believe she has reached 4 months as of this coming weekend. She plays with her floor gym for a surprisingly long time, pulling things, batting things, and trying so hard to turn over. It won't be long now! She still doesn't like to be on her tummy very long, and has added drooling to her list of accomplishments. Probably getting ready for a few new teeth soon. She loves a little musical lion at our house. Her face just lights up when we put it in front of her. It used to belong to her mommy. It plays "You are my sunshine", which perfectly reflects what Maddie is! She seems to love the music of her little swing too. She gets very calm as she listens to the classical music it plays.

The funniest thing has been her new speech patterns. She voices her "Aww!" sound so loud sometimes; it just made us laugh.

Heidi is so thoughtful to bring her by often. We don't miss the little changes she has from week to week. Sometimes we get to love on both Heidi and Maddie for a bit longer, when Ryan has evening dinners or meetings. We love being Maddie's grandparents! Watching what calm, loving parents Heidi and Ryan are, it is easy to see why Maddie is such an easy-going baby, continuing to bloom beautifully.

In just another two months, we will have another beautiful baby girl to love. She will be in residence in McKinney, so we probably won't see her as often, but we would sure love it.

Maddie's Mommy Has A Birthday!

2011-01-26T12:49:00.001-06:00

I'd love some pizza to celebrate Mommy's birthday!

Jenny, Glenn, and Neal at Lover's Pizza

Jennifer entertained Maddie.

Jesus Loves Me Bow Is Colorful and Cute on Maddie!

Heidi, Maddie, and the Maddie-Bug Cake

Daddy, I'm really ready for bed!

Happy Birthday to Heidi!

Although it was a cold night in Dallas, the pizza, stromboli, and lazagna were hot, tasty, and very Italian at Lover's Pizza. Now isn't that just the perfect name for the place Ryan selected for his wife's birthday meal with friends and family! Heidi has a lot of memories from her 34th year, and year 35 should bring lots of even more fun ones, now that Maddie is a part of her life.

Heidi requested a chocolate cake, so she got one, complete with a "Maddie-Bug" on top. What a perfect ending to a very busy week of early mornings, busy days, short evenings, and middle of the night feedings. Maddie allowed her mommie to enjoy most of the evening, taking a quick nap after arriving at home, but staying awake most of the time, so not to miss any of the special occasion with her admirers.
As Heidi's parents, we know how blessed we are to have such a loving, caring daughter. What a joy to know that she is now a happy wife and mom to her own family! She brings Maddie by for a little while fairly often, which makes our day complete whenever it happens. We love these little surprises, and appreciate her taking the time for her mom and dad.
Love you more each year, Heidi! Praying this is your best yet! Happy Birthday to a very special, very loved daughter!

Christmas in Carrollton

2010-12-25T11:39:00.015-06:00

Christmas 2010 finds Ralph and Marilyn in their living room, watching the fire burning in the fireplace as we look back at the delightful evening we celebrated with our children and grandchildren last weekend. Because this year the McDows will be spending Christmas at their family farm and Aaron's family will be celebrating with Lacey's family, our Christmas came a week early.
Ham, hot rolls, and hot veggie casseroles made the whole house smell heavenly as we prepared to have our first Christmas with baby Maddie. Ending the meal with apple pie and chocolate cheesecake provided a great ending. Maddie smiled, cooed, slept, and joined in the family time together. It is surprising how her little personality is already beginning to develop.
Audrey entertained all of us with her ever growing vocabulary and sweet personality. She was so good to share with her uncle Ryan and Grandpa, even climbing into Grandpa's lap to give him a hug and kiss. Now that is surely one of Grandpa Ralph's best gifts. She displayed her musical talent by playing the keyboard on her new toy from her grandparents.

Grandma Marilyn received a beautiful necklace from Heidi and Ryan, which displayed a white opal (Maddie's birthstone) surrounded by diamonds. The basket of chocolate, candy,and crackers from Aaron and Lacey will encourage us to snack and then get back on the treadmill now to get ready for 2011.

Maddie and Audrey are ready for Christmas

Audrey is ready to play music.

Ryan takes a turn at feeding Maddie.

Audrey is explaining how the toys work to Aunt Heidi.

Florida and More

2010-12-21T12:14:00.004-06:00

New Lightning Fans

Florida 2010 Family Thanksgiving

After celebrating Thanksgiving early with our children and grandchildren, we headed to sunny Florida to accept the generous invitation from Marilyn's brother, Ray, and his wife, Marilyn, to share Thanksgiving family time with their family, and with Marilyn's sister Carol, her daughter, Karen, and grandson, Jake. After traveling 2 1/2 days by car, we arrived in Brandon, Florida to see oranges, tangelos, pineapple, and grapefrut growing in Ray's backyard. We were impressed by the tasty fruit they had grown. They treated us to a Lightning hockey game and some great Cuban sandwiches. What fun we had watching all the little cousins playing together after a fabulous turkey dinner, complete with homemade pies and goodies!

A couple of days later, we headed out for Ft. Lauderdale's port to board the Emerald Princess for a 10 day cruise to St. Kitts, Barbados, St. Lucia, Antigua, St. Thomas, and Princess Cays (Eluthera island). So many beautiful memories from the islands, and so many places to shop! We were not aware the Caribbean was known for diamonds, with so many jewelry stores lined up door to door for blocks! We opted to go for pictures of the scenery instead, along with island tours, whale and dolphin watching, a submarine ride to view the coral reefs, and a narrow-guage sugar train ride. Our pictures show only a small part of the extraordinary vacation we adored.

View from St. Kitts Narrow Guage Sugar Train

St. Thomas Botanical Garden

Antigua historical tour

Taste of Eluthera lunch and Junco Parade

Whale & Dolphin watch off St. Lucia

Yellow Snappers seen from submarine 140 ft. below sea level near Barbados

Counting Blessings

2010-11-21T16:52:00.001-06:00

November is more than falling leaves and temperatures. Taking time for family makes November special for us. Getting to play with one granddaughter and to hold the newest addition to the family the same evening brought pure joy to both Ralph and me. Audrey's excitement over seeing "Christmas lights" in the backyard, the moon, and the "happy pumpkin" made for her to enjoy, was so cute. Maddie's smiles, funny expressions, and contented sounds were precious. Both of our children made decisions to marry people who will bless them, have fun with them, and be partners in parenthood as they raise sweet, sweet babies to be loving, caring people who serve the Lord and his people, for which we are thankful.

Last night, Audrey practiced her latest lesson of saying please and thank you. She warmed Grandma's heart by asking "Can I have more bread, PLEASE!" several times. Grandma made buttermilk potato rolls for dinner, and it was all worth the time, just to see how much Audrey enjoyed every bite. Must admit, the rest of us did too, along with the sweet potato casserole Lacey made, and the green bean casserole from new mom, Heidi. It was a gourmet dinner, from the main course on to the desserts. Thanks to the Pioneer Woman, we had fabulous mashed potatoes to sop up the gravy from the turkey, rubbed with seasonings and olive oil as suggested by the Barefoot Contessa. Then for dessert, along with Ralph's favorite pumpkin pie and Ryan's apple pie, was Chef Bobby Flay's famous pumpkin bread pudding with caramel apple sauce, from his Throw Down with the Pioneer Woman. Talk about rich caramally apple flavor! It was so yummy. No, the original recipe wasn't followed. It had to have a bit of Texas twist with a bit more cream and butter, or is that the Paula Deen influence. No matter. It was a wonderful meal.

Dinner & A Nap

Big Ball Bounce

Happy Pumpkin

Unfortunately, sweet Maddie was ready for her meal at the same time as the rest of the family. Heidi did eventually get to eat, while everyone else was ready for let-the-food-settle playtime. Maddie is growing so fast, getting cuter and cuter, just as Audrey is doing. We are so thankful for our little girls, their parents, and the time we spent with them last night. Can't wait to see everyone open surprises at Christmas. Then it will be on to next year and waiting for our next beautiful granddaughter to be born at the Headley house in McKinney. We are blessed, we are grateful, and we hope all will celebrate this Thanksgiving knowing God's love for them, forgiveness of others, and celebrating his blessings to all. Happy Thanksgiving!

2010-09-14T21:05:00.000-05:00

Time to update the blog. We just returned from the beautiful mountains near Idaho Springs, Colorado. For those of you unfamiliar with the Colorado Gold Rush way back when, it began in Idaho Springs, so the whole town still has most of the interesting stores, buildings, and colorful homes that were built about that time. Lavender, teal, yellow, pink; all were colors of homes, usually more than one color on each home, yet it added to the appeal of the little mountain town of 2,000 people. The house we stayed in was about 9 miles up the mountain from town, about 8500 ft. above sea level, which meant we had much less oxygen than we are used to in Dallas. Hikes through the 16 acres of the property were the best I have ever taken in a forest. The pine needles acted as mulch, providing a spongelike surface on the clean, forest floor. We had huge picture windows in the home, with no curtains. No other houses or roads were visible from the house, although it wasn't far to either, once we got back to the road. So many adventures were awaiting us from this springboard. We drove to the top of Mt. Evans a few times to see the incredible views, look at the flocks of mountain sheep and mountain goats. It is the first time I could have reached out and touched them, as they were so close and unafraid of us.
We explored a gold mine and museum, took a train ride in Georgetown. We spotted a bridal party headed into a mountain meadow to take pictures. We went to Denver and walked through their Botanic Gardens, had lunch in the garden, then visited the Denver Mint for a 30-minute tour of how U.S. coins are made. On most mornings Ralph took long walks, often went fishing in the two streams on the property, before leaving for an afternoon adventure, or a picnic by one of the many beautiful lakes nearby. The house wasn't fancy, but had a great library of books for Colorado adventures & Colorado cooking. It had everything needed in the kitchen for me to have fun creating goodies using the fresh fruits, veggies, bread, jams, and other goodies from the local Farmers Market. After leaving the 107° temperatures in Dallas, the 30° at night and 60-70° in the daytime was heavenly! The stars were so numerous, the moon was full, and the sky was clear on almost every night! Can you tell we enjoyed our trip?
We stopped in Kansas to visit Marilyn's sister, Carol, who gave us a great tour of Beloit. She doesn't stay still long! She was helping her church begin an afterschool program once a week for elementary children. She hosted us, then left for the State Fair the next day.
The final stop on the way home was in Wichita to visit some long-time friends, Ed and Kathy Gray. They took us to a favorite Mexican restaurant, Abuelo's. It provided the perfect ending to a vacation we so enjoyed!

Back Home & Surprise Company!

2010-06-27T21:16:00.000-05:00

Vacation in Yosemite is officially over! We made our first trip to Costco, the Farmer's Market, and the grocery store since returning to Texas! The refrigerator has once again been filled with goodies! Just in time for company! After talking with Heidi and Ryan early in the afternoon, they joined us for dinner! We always love it when our kids come over. Short notice means they get pot luck! Glad they are always OK with that, and we are too. I have heard that called 911 meals, but they're good even without the planning. We ended up with fajita spiced-marinated, grilled chicken, roasted red potatoes, fresh, locally grown, corn on the cob, mixed summer fruit, with fresh chocolate chunk cookies and coffee to finish off the meal. Hurray for all the summer vegetables and fruit! Ralph can grill chicken like that any time! It was delicious!!

We have lots of scenic pictures from the Yosemite trip. One was of a tree where I think my mother had her picture taken many years ago. Sequoia trees are so big and live so long! Ralph sorted through the many shots to narrow them down to the final 40 choices or so. They are on his Facebook page if you would like to see them. I will put just a few up on the blog. It was a relaxing trip with plenty of beautiful waterfalls to see, giant trees, a few black bears, so much desert to cross, and even a forest fire near Flagstaff viewed from a distance. We arrived home to 100°+ temperatures. It's good to be home, but we miss the cooler temperatures of California!

Happy Memorial Day

2010-05-28T16:29:00.007-05:00

This weekend is Memorial Day weekend. We remember those who have allowed us to have this weekend of freedom and all the other days of freedom throughout the year. We also are remembering our parents, examples of love unending and unconditional. They both had health and family issues throughout their lives, yet loved their children always, always encouraged our independance, always loved when we made time to call or take a trip home to visit with them. Hopefully, as years go by, our children will retain great memories of their time growing up, knowing that we supported them with unconditional love. We love their calls and visits, and are thankful that they live closer to us that we were to our parents after we graduated from college. The time with our granddaughter is always too short. It is so much fun to watch as she reaches new milestones. We are so excited to know another granddaughter will be joining our family in the fall. We are looking forward to meeting baby McDow, especially after seeing her kicking and moving her arms around this week during a sonogram appointment. What a special gift to observe her movements before she is born. Thank you, Heidi and Ryan, for creating another beautiful memory. Below are some of our other favorite memories.

Heidi's newborn picture.

Aaron's newborn picture

Easter in the backyard in the 90's

A new house for newlyweds

Two of our favorite family pictures (Ralph is reflected in window)

Lacey, Aaron, & baby Audrey

Audrey at 20 months

This weekend is great time for memories of many kinds. We have been blessed daily as children, as parents, and as husband and wife. We remember our blessings of family, friends, and freedom. Wishing everyone a happy Memorial Day!

2010--The Year of the Wildflower

2010-04-15T11:08:00.001-05:00

Spring always brings the urge to plant flowers, and to go view flowers someone else planted, not to mention traveling to see the fields and roadsides covered in bluebonnets, primrose, Indian paintbrush, and more. After visiting the Dallas Arboretum in early April, it is hard to believe we had still not had enough color. We headed for the Texas Hill Country last week to see some of God's handiwork. The pastures were amazingly beautiful, filled with pastel flowers in some places, vivid stretches of bluebonnets and/or Indian Paintbrush in others. One field south of Granite State Park, on Highway 127, had acres and acres of bluebonnets blooming at their peak.
The stops in San Antonio, Brenham, Kerrville, and Fredricksburg each brought their own highlights. Great food in all places, for sure. The tour of the Blue Bell Ice Cream Factory was a fun stop for sure. The best meal had to be the German Weinersnitzel, hot potato salad outside in the yard on Fredricksburg's Main Street at the Sterling Silver Restaurant. The favorite flower area was the Willow Loop, outside of Fredricksburg, for flower viewing. Although we have traveled the Loop several years, this year was like no other; it was incredibly full of bluebonnets, Mexican Poppies, and so many other beautiful flowers. We're now ready to see what Ennis has to offer!

Picnic in the Park

2010-03-17T21:10:00.001-05:00

Riding was OK for Audrey for a little while.

Audrey had to try out all the slides on the playground! Daddy and Mommy were very patient, following her from one slide to the next.Audrey took a very long walk with Grandpa and Grandma.Riding got boring, walking was more fun, according to Audrey! Heidi and her four-legged friend, Lily.

Saturday was slightly cool in the shade, but just right for a walk in the sunshine! We met Heidi & Ryan, Aaron, Lacey, and Audrey at a nature park for a picnic and a long walk. Audrey provided entertainment before and during the walk. She is really increasing her vocabulary by the day! We may go to the park again for a walk, but it will be time to head home for a nap after walks! Did I mention we took a very LONG walk, up and down hills. It was definitely time for some frozen yogurt when we reached the end of the trail. It was such a nice afternoon to spend time all together. We are looking forward to a few more before Aaron and Lacey head to N.Carolina.

Spring Blooms In Dallas

2010-03-17T20:49:00.000-05:00

Perfect day in Dallas for playing tourist! So we went to the Dallas Arboretum for the "Dallas Blooms" event. Ralph got some pictures, then it was on to Heidi's for a melt-in-your-mouth fresh salmon dinner. That girl can cook! Ryan did well with his assignment of mashed potatoes, too! Enjoy the pictures.

Fields of tulips and pansies!Jonquils, Hyacinths, tulips, and more!PansiesAzaelas

Hyacinths and pansies!

Let It Snow, Let it Snow!

2010-02-12T11:23:00.000-06:00

New record for Dallas--12.5 inches of snow! Never has so much snow fallen here at one time since weather records have been kept! The last record was in 1971. That was when Ralph and I were moving here from Kansas. The delivery truck was delayed in Oklahoma due to the snow. It had a skylight which leaked and damaged the new sofa we had just purchased. The next time we had lots of snow was the year we moved in this house, 1978. We have no plans to move this year, but Ralph got some great pictures of our little duck "moving" around in the pool with his little cone cap made of snow. Ralph also took pictures of the trees loaded with snow. It is now 11:00 a.m. and some of the snow has gone from the bigger trees, but we have plenty of snow left on the roofs, shrubs, and furniture in the backyard.

Heidi's Birthday

2010-01-25T13:52:00.007-06:00

Glad Ryan's mom, Gay came to celebrate her birthday, too!

We have four such good-looking kids and granddaughter!

Heidi got lots of help unwrapping gifts.

Audrey knows about smiling for the camera!

Posing is just too much fun!

Happy birthday to Heidi and Gay McDow! They share the same birthday, and we all were blessed to share their birthday celebrations as a family on Saturday evening. As usual, Audrey entertained all of us with her sign language, new vocabulary, and just being Audrey. Children and grandchildren are so special. Heidi requested a Mexican taco dinner with chocolate cake. Yes, the cake went home with Heidi so Ralph and I can get back to the regular diet plan, because, I have to admit, the dark chocolate cake sure tasted great with some Bluebell ice cream and chocolate dipped strawberries! It would be very tempting to have more of it for breakfast.

Christmas Company Time

2010-01-02T19:45:00.008-06:00

Preparing to be a Cowboy fan with the football.

Audrey was great help in unwrapping gifts.

Grandma and Audrey reading an "I Love You" book recorded by Grandpa and Grandma.

More gifts to unwrap! What a great game!

Ryan and Heidi got a gift that Heidi had requested.

So this Christmas we made plans, changed plans, made plans, changed plans, and enjoyed seeing our kids and granddaughter. Flexibility is a good thing at holiday time! We got to enjoy 3 different Christmas get-togethers with Heidi and Ryan. All three times were wonderful with very different menus, ranging from a gourmet breakfast with Heidi's casserole with a side of cinnamon rolls and buttermilk pancakes, to Heidi's Mexican taco soup and tamale dinner, to a more traditional ham dinner with one of Grandma Hodgson's signature desserts; Cherry Deluxe Dessert. On Sunday evening, Aaron's family came to visit along with Heidi and Ryan. What could be more fun than to watch Audrey begin to recognize everyone and to begin saying "Amen" when grace is said before dinner! She passed out gifts to the family, including her aunt and uncle. We are still enjoying a bit of the candy and cookies made for Christmas, although we did put them in the freezer to keep them out of sight. Hopefully that will slow down our desire to have some on a daily basis, but the CCA Candies and chocolate Whoopie Pies call our names occasionally, so we have to get one out to be sure they are still good, right?

Christmas Trails

2009-12-23T09:22:00.005-06:00

Last night we visited new territory for us--Prarie Lights Christmas Display--near Joe Pool Lake in Grand Prarie, TX. It took about 30 minutes to get to Grand Prarie, using the George Bush Turnpike, then another 90 minutes to get the last mile or two to the park. Yes, there were that many people going to see the lights. Yet it really was worth the wait! The lights were beautiful and the weather was so nice, we didn't mind; well at least not too much. Here are some pictures of the over 4 million lights we saw in the almost 3 mile drive. It was much different than Branson's display, but definitely worth going to see. Just be sure you don't drink a lot of liquids before you go. Maybe don't drink any liquids for the whole day before you go!

Back From Branson

2009-12-07T20:29:00.010-06:00

Laura, Alexys, and Duane feeding the fish while Shiloh sleeps.

The Christmas tree at Silver Dollar City.

The night brought cold rain and beautiful lights.

The saloon show was so much fun!

Newly met cousins, Donna and Rod Hodgson with us at the tower of Shepherd of the Hills during the Tour of Lights.

Family photo at College of the Ozarks.

Gene with Carol on the phone--looks about right!

One final trip for 2009! We headed to Branson, MO. just after Thanksgiving to spend a few days with Marilyn's brother, Jim and his wife, along with their children and grandchildren, along with Marilyn's sister, Carol and her friend, Gene. What fun to visit Silver Dollar City's shows and to see another great performance in Branson by Shoji T. Now that really isn't his last name, but I'm sure, but if you are in Branson, this is a show worth going to see. There is only one Shoji show. So many costumes, songs, dancing, and true entertainment! We enjoyed lots of shopping, visited the fish hatchery with niece Laura, her husband, Duane, and their two sweet baby girls, Alexys and Shiloh.

Food? Yes, there was plenty of that too. The trip to the College of the Ozarks restaurant was a definite highlight. Another big event was meeting a distant cousin and his wife from Colorado. They definitely fit right into the Hodgson profile; witty, fun, and so delightful to spend time with, just not long enough time to get to know them. Rod and Donna live in Arvada, CO. close to their 3 grown daughters and their grandchildren. The unusual thing was how much Rod reminded us of another cousin that lives in Kansas. We have been exchanging recipes since returning home. I can hardly wait to try Donna's monkey bread and gingerbread cookies!

The Tour of Lights was amazing, and the hot chocolate at the gift shop was perfect to bring the evening to an end.

Now it's time to finish decorating for Christmas and prepare for parties here. We are looking forward to spending Christmas with our precious children and children in love, along with our wonderful granddaughter, Audrey. She is old enough to open Christmas presents this year all by herself! We have been very blessed with safe travel and wonderful family times this year!

A Hero Retires!

2009-11-03T19:05:00.006-06:00

Tony's Shadowbox includes medals from his grandfather's service.

Family in attendance at Tony's retirement.

Random received his father's first coin in an emotional ceremony.

Sherri presented Tony with his own action hero.

Tony is retiring after 20 years of service!

Tony presented flowers to his daughters.

Tony received an engraved shell, he brought back from a mission in Afghanistan.

Tony's official retirement cake.

Our condo in Destin. We would go back!

Laura and Duane enjoy the reception with Shiloh.

Alexys is ready to party!

Shiloh, ready for Uncle Tony's retirement .

Genie Katie Bree and Little Mermaid Landree

Pelicans coming in for a landing

Sunset on Miramar Beach at Destin, Florida

We were reminded last Friday who qualifies as a hero! At our nephew's retirement ceremony in "Sunny" Florida, we learned just a little bit of what he has been doing the past 20 years to keep us safe, secure, and free! We knew he had taken several assignments to places unknown to his family, working on projects he couldn't comment on, and serving in some way to care for airplanes. What we found out on Friday was that he had very dangerous missions, always worked as a teammate and leader, kept things organized and working, won many awards for his service, and will be greatly missed by his fellow airmen. Tony Hodgson, son of brother Jim Hodgson and his wife, Les, said good-by to his duties as a Master Sargent in the Air Force. He spoke of love for his family and country during the ceremony. It was a remarkable tribute to Tony. The reception afterward was relaxed, complete with lots of Tony's favorite foods, especially his Grandmother Hodgson's meatballs.

He has already started the next phase of his life as a civilian. He will continue to work with the Air Force as a contract worker with a company in Florida, but will sometimes have to travel to other offices in Charlotte, or elsewhere. One of his first duties as a civilian was to clear out camo uniforms and boots. His wife, Sherri, is looking forward to using the closet space for other things! His kids had plenty of plans for him as well, starting with trick-or-treating, and taking son, Random, to a dance cotillion.

We had so much fun with family members on the trip! Jim and Les took us to several Don't Miss restaurants where we sampled lots of fabulous seafood. We had a chance to spend time with beautiful little grand-nieces, Alexys and Shiloh, belonging to Laura and Duane Epp. We took a trip to Niceville, where we were entertained by Debbie and Kirt and their two cute kids, Emily and Jason. Jason and Emily were so sweet to find toys appropriate for Alexys to enjoy. Brother Ray, thank you for dinner! What beautiful memories we brought home after walking on that white, Destin beach!

Pennsylvania, Virginia, & Tennessee Travel Sites

2009-10-19T15:42:00.009-05:00

Pennsylvania may have the Liberty Bell, Independence Hall, and Betsy Ross's house, but Virginia also has beautiful fall leaves right now! Ralph's collection of pictures from our adventures in the historic Mid-Atlantic states will show you why this may not be our last trip to this area. The hills, mountains, and historic sites were just waiting to be photographed, and he got a lot of great shots! No, I won't share them all here, but hopefully, you will get the idea of how many things we saw in our 9 days of travel.

Valley Forge, Pennsylvania

Virginia Skyline Drive in Shannendoah Park on a foggy day

Visitor Center of Valley Forge.

12-man huts at Valley Forge

A few of the 1200 deer at Valley Forge

Bedroom in Washington's rented house at Valley Forge

Ralph and the Liberty Bell in Philadelphia

The "Upper Chamber" for the Senate in Congress Hall on the second floor.

The Representatives' Hall on ground level of Congress Hall

King of Prussia Mall--2nd largest mall in America

George Washington's rented residence at Valley Forge

Famous Chocolate Kisses Street Lights in Hershey, P.A.

Candyland Live--It's Not A Game, It's Real Chocolate Inside!

Harrisburg, Capitol of Pennsylvania

Ralph in front of Dinner Cruise Paddlewheel Boat

Watchin' Audrey Walk

2009-09-27T17:01:00.004-05:00

I can walk all over the house by myself!

Listening to the A, B, C song, baby rock ladybug version.

Watch me get my video going!

One more time, square, circle, triangle. Ok, just one more time...

Audrey has reached new milestones; walking and climbing stairs! She was happy to demonstrate both of those skills for us, along with showing us how well she can use the TV remote. No, she doesn't pick out exact channels to watch, but she knows that the silver buttons get her videos to go, that is if Mommy or Daddy are there to help a little bit. She has also mastered the shape container. She can drop in the shapes and turn it to the right side quite quickly,if it isn't already on top. Her sign language has at least 3 words now. She has "more, drink, & finished" down very well.

We so enjoyed listening to her try out new words beginning with "ba" and "da". She watches whatever is going on around her with such intensity. Mommy and Daddy definitely have their little shadow paying close attention to everything they do and say, as was evidenced by Audrey's attempt at crossing her arms when her mommy did the same thing. She even let them know she was ready to go for a ride in her car by trying to put on her seatbelt all by herself. And did I mention she enjoys being a girl? She likes getting her hair done in pigtails and pony tails, tiny though they may be! Being a grandparent just gets better and better!

Moose and More

2009-08-27T17:18:00.008-05:00

Bull moose in Roosevelt National Forest

Cow moose and calf

Our road trip to Pike's Peak.

View from the front window of our house.

Hike up the canyon wall from our house.

Colorado's sky was so blue!

One of Ralph's fishing spots.

Train trip to the Royal Gorge was a great experience.

Train trip to the Royal Gorge had wonderful scenery!

View to the south of the house

The original title for this blog was "Sheepless in Colorado", but Ralph wanted the title to reflect what we did see instead of what we didn't on our Colorado trip. We hunted for moose down a long, National Forest road. We found cows and calves, even a bull moose who popped out of the forest while we were eating our picnic lunch in the park. Even though we continued to look up to the rocky ledges daily, we never spotted Big Horn sheep this year.

Adjusting to the cool mornings, fireplace-warmed mornings and evenings, and beautiful, sunny days as we toured the Front Range area of Colorado came easily. For those of you who are unfamiliar with the area, it is north of Denver, west of the eastern plains of the state. We stayed in a 3 bedroom mountain home, built by a local real estate developer who lives next door. I've never had so many dimmer switches in one house before! What a perfect place for a mountain get-away! It was far enough away from the city lights to see every sparkling star in the heavens at night, yet close enough to head in to Ft. Collins for lunch with only a 20-25 minute drive through Poudre Canyon. It provided incredible views of the Poudre River, complete with white-water rafters, tubers, even families out for an afternoon picnic in the calm areas. Did I mention the screeching Great Horned Owl? There seemed to be two who glared at us and let us know they preferred privacy in their forest. They screeched each evening as the sun disappeared to let us know we were intruding.

We loved re-visiting Rocky Mt. National Park again to view the large herd of elk, although we spotted 2 large bull elk feeding near the moose in the Roosevelt Forest. One of Ralph's favorite memories is his accomplishmnet of hooking at least one trout every time he went fishing. He still has a little shoulder reminder that he fell in the river about the second morning he tried out his new wader boots. It was a most relaxing, blessed vacation. Now back to reality!

Enjoy the pictures!

Our granddaughter is a year old!

2009-08-01T19:43:00.003-05:00

Big Red Is Home!

2009-07-18T11:49:00.004-05:00

For the past week we have been driving around in a new, silver 4 cylinder Escape, not because of a plan to save gas, nor because we are planning to invest in a new car in the near future, but because our red Explorer was in for some repairs. Actually, we were getting error messages on our navigation system. Funny thing, though, after they called us to tell us they had ordered a part, which would mean spending another day without Big Red, we received another call the next morning with more news. Big Red had a visitor during the night who wanted a navigation system! Someone broke into our car, along with several others, and stole the navigation system. To get to the systems, they had broken out the back window on the passenger's side. Silly me, I wondered why they didn't break out the front window, but Ralph explained they would not have wanted to work in all the broken glass, so they broke out the window farthest from the system. So now we are the proud owners of a new navigation system, with even newer goodies than the one that was stolen, a new back window, and are in possession of Big Red, all washed, cleaned, and even undented in a couple of places where there used to be little dents! We are happy to see Big Red back where it belongs--in our garage! Ralph has been working on restoring all of the pre-set addresses for places we like to visit, like friends' and relatives' homes, along with vacation destinations. While we liked the gas miserly Escape for driving around town, we are spoiled by Big Red's ride for long trips. Welcome home, Big Red!

Happy Birthday, Ralph

2009-07-13T11:38:00.006-05:00

What a fun way to celebrate a birthday! Ralph relaxed in the pool with his family on a hot, July in Texas afternoon. He requested a Tex-Mex dinner, so he got cold burritos and seven-layered dip along with his favorite queso for his appetizer, followed by his favorite chicken enchiladas, black beans, and other goodies. Finally he wanted a carrot cake, so after removing most, if not all, of the calories, along with his favorite Blue Bell ice cream, he annnounced his birthday was a great day! What a blessing to spend time together! Happy birthday to you, Ralph! You are loved!

Computer Crunch

2009-07-07T21:15:00.004-05:00

Ralph is getting excited about celebrating his birthday next week. No, he's not quite ready for Medicare, give him one more year! For his birthday, he just wants his computer to live again. It has had components die this week, or at least go to the Intensive Care unit. He has lost his CD and DVD drives, as well as the battery in his UPS. Possibly the UPS issues affected his other issues. He is wondering if the hard drive is dying, but can't back up to a CD anymore, so it is a good thing he has been doing that occasionally, as well as having some major flash drive backups. Aaron put this computer together when he was living in Lubbock, so that has been about 6 years. It has been a great computer, didn't have freeze-ups till just lately, and so dependable till now. Tomorrow will be experiment time to see what can be done for it.

The Incredible Shrinking Ralph

2009-06-08T09:55:00.007-05:00

Before surgery profile on March 27, 2009
After surgery on June 8, 2009

Before surgery front view on March 27, 2009
After surgery on June 8, 2009

Many people have inquired about Ralph's lap-band surgery and his weight loss so far. So, here is where he is for now. He had already lost about 10 pounds in January due to an illness, then lost another 10 pounds when he went on the first pre-surgery liquid diet in April. Plans changed from an April surgery to a May surgery. He lost another 10 pounds when he went back on the second pre-surgery diet. Following a successful surgery, plus the unexpected repair of a hyatil hernia during the surgery, he returned to a post-surgery liquid diet and lost another 14 pounds in a week and a half. He will weigh in again this Wednesday. We have discovered that there is truth to the fact that if you put someone on just over 600 calories per day, they WILL lose weight! He is now on soft foods, and occasionally more solid foods, and is a much happier camper. The best part is that he is officially off of his diabetes and high blood pressure medicine! That is such a big praise! It was one of the main reasons for going the surgery route!

His weight loss will slow down now that he is on more than liquids. He will go in next week to have his lap-band filled and tightened. That will keep the amount of food consumed at one time to a regulated amount, like 1/2 cup. The goal is for him to lose about 2 pounds per week, which is a healthy amount of weight to lose in a week.

He has begun using his I-Touch to track his calories, protein intake, carbs, and various nutritional information. Can't say that we had even considered using it for that when it was originally a Christmas gift, but it works very well with an app. he downloaded from I-Tunes.

So now he is ready to go shopping for new clothes to fit his already smaller frame. (I think he liked hearing at church yesterday how much YOUNGER he looked already from some of the ladies!) Yes, you will get a picture when we have taken one later today!

Audrey's Introduction to Grandpa's Pool

2009-05-25T13:44:00.006-05:00

Audrey floating backward in her seahorse floatie .

She discovered its nose and eyes were fun to squeeze.

Cheerios were her favorite snack for the afternoon.

Audrey brought her mommy and daddy for a visit last Saturday. It was great fun to watch her splash and grin as she played in the water. She loved being in the pool, even though it was supposed to be her nap time. She even tried kicking her legs to swim, once she was out of the floatie. Drinking the pool water did not turn out to be such a good idea, but she did try, just to check it out. We look forward to watching her back in the pool many times this summer.

Rain Makes Happy Backyard Resort

2009-05-18T16:58:00.009-05:00

Hydrangeas and potted oregano and basil

Assorted flowers

Perinnial Salvia

Spring Lilies

Butterfly Iris(Also known as Fortnight Lily)

Tropical Red Hybiscus

Tropical Orange Hybiscus

Coriopsis

Purple Altimaris

White Lilies

Gladalias

Yellow Day Lily

White Altimaris

Sweet Williams

We have been waiting for sunny days to come again. The news yesterday stated that the last weekend without any rain was April 4th and 5th. Fortunately, the rain quit and the sun was shining brightly yesterday. We initiated the pool for summer swimming! Ralph heated the pool just a little, so it is now a relaxing 84°. That is my minimum temperature for stepping in water higher than my knees! The backyard lilies are beginning to bloom in radiant colors of yellow, orange, white, pink, purple, and we will have red ones again soon, we hope! The hydrangeas have long been one of our favorites and there are pink and purple ones on the same bush this year. Miracle Grow has done its thing again! The hybiscus are popping open like crazy. My sister says they absolutely drink the fertilizer and water to stay happy. I think she is right!

One More Trip For Flower Power

2009-04-22T12:14:00.005-05:00

Lookin' through Texas at Bluebonnets!

Brenham Bluebonnets

How about this for a guest ranch? Lillian Ranch

A true Bluebonnet Trail!

We made a quick trip to Fredricksburg and Brenham in search of fields of bluebonnets! Yes there still are some in mid-April!

East Texas Flora

2009-04-05T17:58:00.007-05:00

Want a perfect get-away for a couple of spring days? Head to east Texas and southeast Texas. We decided to look for the famous blooming dogwoods and discovered not only beautiful dogwood, but the Tyler Azalea Trails. Wow, the homes on display are something else! Indian Paintbrush, azaleas, iris, pansies, tulips, dogwood, wild dasies, spirea, and other flowering trees and plants were incredible, even a few bluebonnets were in full bloom! Have a look! We will be reserving the last weekend in March next year for east Texas, especially Tyler!

This was the beginning of the first trail in Tyler complete with Southern Belles for picture taking.

The Southern Belles in the backyard of another home.

Same backyard, just a little further toward the gazebo that overlooks the creek !

I think these are mock orange--like we used to have at our house when we were growing up, if not, they're still beautiful, and yes, they are in the same backyard!

More of the backyard closer to the house!

Below is a small garden with edible plants mixed with flowers.

Blooming dogwood trees with white azaleas at a different house.

This is one small part of the yard of another house!
Another house, more azaleas!

The white flowering tree is a dogwood, with azalea bushes and wisteria.

Another house on the tour, with a variety of plants, mostly azaleas.

Bluebonnets on a rural road in east Texas followed by Indian Paintbrush.

Roadside flowers near Palestine.

Audrey Visits Grandparents

2009-03-22T18:59:00.003-05:00

Audrey found things to pull!

She found a gramma to laugh at.

A pose for Mommy and Daddy.

Enough, now it's time to play!

Dallas Arboretum In Bloom

2009-03-10T15:51:00.010-05:00

What a beautiful day to visit the Dallas Arboretum! With rain forcast for the next few days, we thought we should get over there before the flowers were drenched and wilted! Here are a few of the pics Ralph took.

To Hawaii and Back

2009-02-19T16:56:00.013-06:00

Aloha!

Yes, I learned to make a Lei!
Here is the Golden Princess.
Ralph got some great moon shots, morning shots, and island shots.
We returned last night from our 15 day trip to Hawaii and back. Beautiful scenery and fun side trips on 4 islands, but we both are still "rocking" as if we were still minding the waves.

Here are some pictures of leaving L.A. and the island of Hawaii's Big Island. We took a great tour of "the King's Valley". It was very much the way it has been for the past 200 years, not like touristy places on the islands. We saw taro growing, drove through rivers, and our driver, wearing a "Lost" t-shirt, gave us many samples of flowers as we drove along. He lived in the valley, along with the wild chickens, wild pigs, wild plants, and knew a lot of the people who live there. He had killed 5 wild pigs, using bows and aarows, on a mountain trail about 2 weeks earlier with about 9 of his buddies. They smoked the pigs before returning down the mountain.

In Honolulu, we took a submarine ride to observe the little fish. We dived to 100 ft. below the surface and saw sea turtles, a white-tipped shark, lots of colorful little fish, and artificial reefs. We took in a dinner cruise with a great performance by several dancers and musicians.

Kauai is one our our favorite stops. We toured the sugar cane fields and back roads. Our driver grew up there and took us to spots for snorkeling, blowholes, viewing sea turtles coming in, and whale watching, he took us through a very long tunnel dug to save time transporting sugar cane, and showed us lots of wild chickens and more bumpy roads!

Maui was a beautiful island. The whales were everywhere! We took a whale watching trip, though it was hard to get pictures of them breeching. It happened so fast. Maui had the Iao Valley where King Kamehameha fought a bloody, final battle to win the island of Maui to control most of the islands. He never captured Kauai. It is a beautiful valley. Four people found out the real meaning of Aloha, as they didn't return on time to the bus. They were left while we went on to another sightseeing place. You will recognize the red flowers; they are huge poinsettias. There were also lots of papays and avacados, pineapples, and other tropical fruits on all the islands. Everyone made it back in time to do a little shopping and get back on the ship. None of us were really ready to leave Hawaii, but had to head on to Ensenada, Mexico.

There is an American law, the Jones Act, that requires ships to pay their employees minimum wage and other expensive charges, if the ship doesn't dock outside of U.S. waters before returning to a U.S. port. So we went to the LaBoufidora, or Blowhole, and visited the Ensenada Convention Center, that was built in the 1920's as a hotel and casino. It is where the drink, Margarita, was invented and named for the girlfriend of the hotel's owner in the 1930's.

They told us everything was working correctly, but most of the people on this cruise had been on several cruises and they were all in agreement that this was not the same level of noise or rocking! This ship is going into dry dock for 3 weeks in April for refitting. It needs new carpet, new upholstery, and definitely something done to make it quieter sailing with less rocking. We have been on five trips, but this one was the rockiest. It was the Pacific, so that may account for some of it, but it did get pretty rough a few days with 20-30 ft. swells.

Yes, we know how to adjust to being back. We dropped off the luggage and headed for a Tex-Mex fix at Christina's within 1 1/2 hours of arriving in Dallas. The nachos and enchiladas tasted so-o-o good! I can't remember when chips and salsa tasted so perfect! Great trip, great memories, great to be home!

Heidi's Double Digits Birthday

2009-01-21T12:37:00.006-06:00

Heidi's birthday provided a perfect occasion for a get-together at their house. Heidi took her birthday off; a company policy. She made good use of it with a day of pampering. Aaron, Lacey, and Audrey arrived a few minutes after Ryan brought Heidi a beautiful birthday bouquet. Audrey was wearing her cute little green jogging outfit given to her by Ryan and Heidi at Christmas. We went to Angelo's, a restaurant with great Italian food. Audrey watched wide-eyed as her mom and dad drank Cokes and ate pizza. She played and entertained herself, almost falling asleep by the time we left. We then went back to the house for cake; strawberry with cream cheese icing. It was so much fun to decorate her cake with chocolate covered strawberries and cookies, with just enough room for the #33 candles. Heidi discovered some delicious Vanilla Dark Roast coffee to go with cake. What a nice evening! Happy birthday, Heidi!

2009-01-14T16:59:00.001-06:00

Score: Ralph--1 Squirrel--0

A week or so ago we noticed something had made a couple of tiny slits in the seat cushion of the swing by the pool. Now please understand, this was the swing that had been my pet project earlier this fall. It is the swing that had a custom-made cover, created , handcrafted, and proudly displayed in the backyard! It made the swing look so much more impressive with a pattern instead of the bland, beige cover that originally came with the swing. Because the wind and heat had literally destroyed the canopy as well as shredding the original seat cover, leaving a perfectly, well almost perfectly, good cushion, it was felt the time spent in recovering the swing would be well worth the effort. Then a few days ago, Ralph discovered one of the small slits had become a hole, the size of a large baseball! We debated what type of animal had damaged the swing and strongly suspected our non-paying local tree resident, Senor Squirrel. As Ralph went out yesterday, he spotted Senor Squirrel shopping for insulating material from the swing. The squirrel must have heard the weather forcast about the cold front headed this way! He headed out quickly, but Ralph called a halt to his shopping plan by pouring WD40 around the hole, which we found keeps animals from returning. Guess they don't like the fish oil smell. Ralph took one more step to keep the squirrel from continuing to "feather his nest" with the stuffing by taping a couple of poles together and removing the nest from the tree. It had been there since last year. We will see if the squirrel tries to even the score by rebuilding the nest, or creates another hole in the cushion, but for now, Ralph has scored one for the swing!

2009-01-08T20:13:00.000-06:00

Amazing!
That doesn't even come close to describing the concert we attended last Saturday! We attended a concert in the American Airlines Center. What an awesome concert by the Trans Siberian Orchestra! We loved everything from the beginning to the end; the music, musicians, lights, and fireworks! It should probably become a new Christmas tradition for our family! I had to look on Youtube for a link to share some of what we heard as we couldn't take pictures or movies there. Thank you, Heidi and Ryan for allowing us to share the incredible afternoon concert! Can't think of another concert we have ever enjoyed more.
Click here for a sample of the music. Click here for a concert example. There are lots of videos on YouTube, but they don't begin to give you an inkling of the real thing! They rank at the top for entertainment. By all means go the next time you get a chance!

2008-12-31T12:43:00.000-06:00

Trip To Frisco Lights
So what do you do between Christmas and New Year's Day besides look at the after Christmas ads? We decided one thing to do was visit the Frisco lighting display in the old downtown/new downtown area. Linked to a radio station playing Christmas music, the lights flashed to the rhythms. There were other about 3 blocks of buildings in the light display, as well as the trees in the park area. It was awesome! Enjoy one of the movies Ralph made.

It's all about the grandchildren!

2008-12-28T17:43:00.001-06:00

First Christmas with Audrey--that's the title for this year's Christmas get together for our family. What fun to watch her as her Christmas toys were opened and began to entertain her. It is the first time we have seen her get so excited about reaching for toys. Can't believe she has reached 5 months old today. We are so blessed to have our children (all 4 of them!) and granddaughter close enough to celebrate holidays and spend time together!

Branson In Winter

2008-12-04T16:45:00.000-06:00

Although Thanksgiving in Carrollton was beautiful and fun with family, we headed to Branson, Missouri to spend time in a colder climate the following weekend and a few days with Marilyn's brother, Jim, his wife, Les, and their daughter, Laura, her husband, Duane, and baby Alexys. We just didn't know how much colder it was going to be! When we awoke on Sunday morning in Springfield, Mo., there was snow falling softly, but consistantly throughout the morning while we prepared to leave for Branson. There was about an inch of snow on the roof and windshield of the car as we left. See the picture of our Mariott in the snow.
What fun awaited us as we watched Laura and Duane's little girl, Alexys. She loves playing with things that make music or noise. That included the doorstops in the condo's living room. I do believe she is going to be a musician or a technician of some sort.
While in Branson, Jim took us to the 2 1/2 mile lights trail at the Shepherd of the Hills park. It was awesome! Here are some pictures.

We went to three great shows while we were there. The one called SIX was most unusual. The singers didn't use background music or instruments. Six brothers sang acapella, accompanied only by beat boxing. The Dolly Parton Christmas Stampede show was much like the first show we saw there a few years ago, just used more Christmas decorations for the barrel racing, pig races, and other events. Dinner was still great, and the show was very enjoyable.

We brought the cold air back to Dallas with us. Tonight we will listen to Christmas music at the Dallas Symphony. Maybe that will warm us up.

Early Thanksgiving at Our House

2008-11-23T17:20:00.001-06:00

Thanksgiving came early at our house this year!

This marked the first time our very precious granddaughter came for the holiday, and in fact, the first time she had come to visit our house since her birth! She was the center of attention, naturally, and focused on people when she heard them speaking. She really noticed when her uncle Ryan spoke, probably because she wasn't as used to his voice. He has been traveling when we got together at Aaron's house a couple of times. She provided everyone with smiles, though she was still recovering from her stomach virus from the previous week. She is beginning to want more formula again, which is a great sign that she is growing and getting back to her normal happy self.

She made Aunt Heidi happy as the picture below will show. It was great to have everyone

together if only for a few hours. We look forward to Audrey's first Christmas. Her bright eyes are always looking around to be sure she doesn't miss anything! As everyone says, "Being a grandparent is a special blessing," and we certainly have been blessed! Our family is blessed by our children, our children's spouses, and our latest blessing, Audrey Katherine.

Oklahoma and Arkansas Autumn Leaves

2008-11-05T12:17:00.000-06:00

After deciding we can travel during the week as well as the weekend, we decided to take a quick trip to view the autumn leaves up north, well, at least north of Dallas. Monday morning we headed toward Oklahoma's Kiamechi Mountains, then took a right turn and headed into Arkansas following the mountain valleys and passes. These were familiar to Ralph as he used to travel between the many small towns of southeast Oklahoma on a regular basis when he was a Ford Service Representative. That is where he was traveling just before Heidi was born, so you know that was just a few years ago. The leaves were beautiful as were the mountain views. The trip was short, but great. Ralph got a few pictures, but mainly just enjoyed the trip.

Hill Country in Autumn

2008-10-25T13:13:00.001-05:00

October's weather is perfect for exploring the Hill Country of Texas. The first pictures are of our stop at the Dr. Pepper Museum in Waco. It was a surprise to know you ordered a"Waco" if you wanted the soda fountain jerk to make you a Dr. Pepper drink. Dr. Pepper has a well in the museum that the workers used to throw empty bottles in. It took 47 crates full of bottles to clean out the well by U.T. archeology students.

The next two pictures are the birthplace of L.B.J. at Stonewall, Texas, or Johnson City, about 15 miles east of Fredricksburg. It was a perfectly beautiful day to be there. We drove through the L.B.J. Ranch and toured the Texas White House office. Great guide with interesting trivia. Note the money on the shelf. It has LBJ's face on the dollar bill. It was a joke by the Sec. of the Treasury serving LBJ. The little car was amphibious. LBJ liked to drive his guests fast around the ranch and often radioed for a different car as he had damaged the one he was driving. There were several Lincolns on display.

The following pictures are from San Antonio's Mi Tierra Restaurant and Bakery, home of Heidi's favorite place for pumpkin Empanadas, and of the River Walk and Rio Casa restaurant, which is where Ralph and I had dinner before returning to Austin.

Back in Austin we toured the Bob Bullock Texas History Museum. It has 3 floors of everything you could possibly want to know (and more) about the history of Texas. Everything from the flags to the occupations, crops, weather, hurricanes, people, animals, and even movie history! There is way too much for a one day trip! The round picture is embedded in the marble floor rotunda and viewed from the third floor. The number of Texas symbols included was amazing.

Hope we can tour more of Texas next fall!

State Fair of Texas

2008-10-04T15:30:00.000-05:00

We discovered there are perks to being over 60! You get in free at the state fair, as long as you go on Thursdays! We drove down this year and visited several exhibits in the food and fiber building, the esplanade, the women's exhibits, a cooking demonstration, and the building that has every gadget you could possibly want, as well as lots you really don't want. We turned down a $200 steam mop, and an $800+ electric skillet that matched our Saladmaster pots and pans. We found our favorite State Fair snack--the Fletcher's corny dog. Later we made our way to the big attraction for this year, the chicken-fried bacon strips. For $5, you got about 6 half strips of bacon; very salty, very crispy, and very greasy. Our advice--stick to the corny dogs! They cost less, there is more to eat, and they are much better!
Our day was getting warmer by the hour, as well as Ralph's hip getting more sore by the minute, so we decided to head home after about 4 or 5 hours. We will plan to head back next Thursday for the car shows.
Sorry, no pictures, we took no cameras. You just have to imagine Big Tex in his jeans and plaid shirt greeting visitors to the fair.

Another project done!

2008-09-23T19:32:00.000-05:00

Today we finished up a project that began last week. We re-covered the old backyard swing. What started out as a simple plan, as they all do, turned out to be a little more time-consuming, and used a lot more fabric than originally figured, again as most fun projects do. For our first attempt, using creative pattern making, it turned out pretty well. We won't be starting an upholstery business any time soon!

Ralph's installation of the fan and light, isn't ready for pictures yet. We have some painting to do on the ceiling. Ralph had to do a little sheetrock work around it as the new box was smaller than the old one. We will get to that in the next 30 years, I am sure, since it only took 30 years to get the first step done.

Fall Has Arrived

2008-09-15T14:06:00.000-05:00

What a perfect fall day! 73°, blue skies and a light breeze. It just doesn't get too much better than that for Texas in September. Ralph and Marilyn did their volunteer project this morning by mounting a new baby changing station in the ladies' restroom at FUMC. For just a 4-screwhole project, it took two hours to finish. That's because the holes had to be drilled with masonry bits, and go through metal studs behind the wall, not to mention finding the studs in the first place! We will go back later in the week to mount a second one for daddies to use in their own restroom. :)
Now on to another honey-do project at home. When Laura and Duane were here, Marilyn asked him to see if a vent fan could be installed in the master bath, since he is an electrician. With his encouragement, we purchased one today and plan to put it in now that Marilyn has finished re-grouting and sealing the bathtub. That was another much longer than planned project, but it is finally done, and hopefully never-to-be-done-again projects. Pictures will follow when it is finished!

Barbed wire sculptures

2008-09-04T15:06:00.000-05:00

Audrey Update

2008-09-02T17:27:00.000-05:00

Audrey is now five weeks old, and adorable! She didn't enjoy Texas Land and Cattle, but let everyone know she was glad to get back to her own sofa and her friends, the bright lights and white blinds behind the sofa. She stares at the light and the blinds a lot. Now she has begun making little sounds; something she didn't do a week ago. Plus, she is holding up her head to look around for quite awhile before collapsing on Gramma's shoulder. Grampa had fun getting Audrey to follow his finger left, right, up and down. She is definitely growing and staying awake a lot longer between naps. Here are a couple of the pictures we took last night.

Fishing again!

2008-08-23T21:49:00.000-05:00

Ralph has gone fishing a couple more days this week, and found the yellow spinner he purchased locally to work best. He got a strike from a large trout and caught a small one yesterday. The Poudre River is clear and beautiful. There are lots of tubers using the river here, as well as a few kayaks and rafters. They come by the busload from Ft. Collins. Did I mention all the cows at mile marker 118? We know to watch for open range livestock always, but can count on 118 to see cows every time. I use his fishing time to catch up on reading and computing. Here are pictures of the river, canyons and mountains.

August Animals

2008-08-23T21:41:00.000-05:00

We have seen quite a variety of animals since leaving Dallas. We mentioned the bear in New Mexico, but we have now added more to our list of wildlife. We have pictures to prove it. We’ve seen antelope, deer, bighorn mountain sheep, elk, buffalo in feeding pens (wondered if they belong to Ted Turner, as he is supposed to own a bunch of buffalo ranches up here), grouse, bluebirds, hummingbirds, hawks, trout, wild turkeys, red foxes, and even a couple of llamas. There were beautiful wild swans in a couple of places this week, and today we saw flocks of some of the largest snow-white pelicans I have ever seen out on islands in a lake by Walden, Colorado. By the way, Walden is the Moose capital of Colorado. We still are looking for the elusive moose. People told us they were nearby a couple of times, but we still are waiting to find them. Hope we see them before we leave.

2008-08-23T21:36:00.000-05:00

Ralph went fly-fishing. It is so quiet here, except for the tourist traffic. We’ve traveled through canyons and over mountain trails. I ‘vee been getting creative since learning the kitchen here has one large bowl, no knives except for table and steak knives, and one baking dish. Ralph bought a new skillet, which makes clean-up easier. There is one large saucepan, one pasta-like pot, and one very well used baking sheet. Guess vacation is not supposed to be about spending a lot of time in the kitchen, and the stove works well. The furniture is simple and very comfortable, so we are enjoying our cabin. The neighbors are great and have provided fresh from their garden onions, green beans, and zucchini. They also gave us some fabulous sweet corn from another neighbor’s garden. This is a friendly community! Ralph met an artist's wife today. The artist created life-sized sculptures of elk, moose, bear cubs, and mountain sheep out of barbed wire. They look very lifelike. We will get pictures posted of some of them.
Monday, August 18 Today had lots of purely Colorado adventures. We headed into Ft. Collins to visit one of the most modern breweries for Anheiser Busch. We saw the Clydesdale horses, toured the brewery, and visited the sample shop and of course couldn’t miss the gift shop. Didn’t know they had 26 different varieties of beverages, all made in this one place. They send out 18 train car loads of beverages every day. Even more interesting was the history of the company. It was the son-in-law of the man who bought a failing company who really turned it around and made it successful. He was a people person to be sure, and worked very creatively to keep the company going for several years when prohibition hit, which happened just as the company was starting to be profitable. He was extremely patriotic and sent beer to troops in camouflage green cans during the wars, past (and present). During emergencies, the company stops beer production in one plant and bottles water for areas like New Orleans during Hurricane Katrina’s first few weeks. We tried samples during our afternoon tour of the Celestial Seasons plant in close-by Boulder. They make over 100 varieties of tea, along with organic products and body stuff like shampoo, lotions, soaps, candles, etc. We tried about 8 different teas, though they invited us to try as many as we wanted. They offered to provide a check-off sheet so we could have a contest to see how many varieties we could try in an hour. We passed on that plan, though we did save our “beautiful” souvenirs from the tour. Won’t tell you what that was, but everyone got one who took the tour. They make over 1.3 billion tea bags per year! That is a lot of tea, and now they have started roasting coffee. Both places we visited today had blueberry, mango, lime, and pomegranate flavors, so you know they are keeping up with the latest in popular flavors!

2008-08-23T21:33:00.001-05:00

Saturday, Aug. 9
Ft. Collins has no Costco! And yet we survived! (There is a Sam's) We could tell we were no longer at Dallas’s altitude of less than 500 ft. by the time we arrived at the top of the stairs to enter the cabin! The elevation here is closer to 6000 ft. Today’s highlights include hummingbirds around the cabin, along with the robins, bluebirds, squealing red-tailed hawks swirling around the cabin and the surrounding mountains of the Poudre Park Canyon.

2008-08-23T21:29:00.000-05:00

Colorado Cool!
Friday, August 8
It’s August in Texas and the weather is hot, hot, hot! Colorado here we come! We left for Ft. Collins on August 8, headed for our favorite Holiday Inn Express in Raton, New Mexico that night on our way to Ft. Collins. About 10 miles east of Raton, looking for more antelope herds, we spotted a large, golden black bear headed toward the mud. Ralph took pictures as the bear sat down in the mud, then dug for something in the mud before moving back toward the hillside. That was our highlight for the day! Here are some pictures!

Grandparents--Its Official!

2008-07-31T22:28:00.000-05:00

We became the proud grandparents of Audrey Katherine Headley at 3:05 on Monday, July 28, 2008! We fell in love with her about 3:25 when Aaron carried her into the nursery for us to see for the first time. We saw her get her first physical and her first bath. The Dr. gave us a "two thumbs up" and mouthed the word "perfect" after examining her from the tip of her head to the very soles of her feet--and definitely checked everything thoroughly inbetween! Audrey weighed in at about 6 lb. 14 oz., and measured 19" long. She captured our hearts as we watched her bright eyes absolutely dance for several minutes in the nursery. She was so alert and even though there is a lot of soundproofing in the nursery there was a hint of a nice healthy cry on the other side of the glass. After her bath, she settled down quickly and closed her eyes.

On day 2, the little wrinkle in her forehead was almost gone, and by day 3 she had the perfectly shaped head and beautiful little face of an angel. She can make the most faces per minute that you can imagine with such a cute little mouth. It reminded me of Heidi's little bitty mouth that always made me think of a little rosebud. Oops, Gramma is getting sentimental. I'll try to watch that. Lacey and Aaron are ready to take their little doll home and try to get more than an hour of rest at a time. They have had excellent care, and from what they said, they have had great food as well. Guess they will have to begin eating some of their Costco food for the next few weeks now! We have enjoyed getting to know our little granddaughter, and look forward to watching her grow and change, and do lots of cute little baby things in the next few weeks. Oh, yes, there will be pictures attached, we are grandparents, right?

VBS Week

2008-07-25T07:59:00.000-05:00

Is it Friday already? Wow, what a busy week. Every afternoon at 4:00, or shortly thereafter, Marilyn has been going to cook for about 100 people, and their kids, who work at VBS for FUMC. There have been from 4 to 6 other people helping, too. The menues has been great. Monday was chicken fingers with rice & veggies. Tuesday was homemade pizza, which was fantastic! Wednesday night we had great brisket with ranch beans and hot rolls. Last night was beef and chicken Taco salads with Mexican rice, chips, queso, and a surprise for dessert, empanadas! They were the best empanadas ever, made by a man in Hurst. There were other great desserts, too, including homemade cake, extra fudgy brownies, hot tripleberry cobbler and ice cream. Considering almost everything except the desserts were started at 4:00 daily and dinner was served at 5:30, it was amazing that so much got done in such a short amount of time. Tonight is a baked potato bar with lots of different toppings, including taco meat, chicken, brisket, --Hmm, what a great way to use up the week's leftovers. Sounds like a plan to me.
After that Ralph and Marilyn took pictures of individual kids at VBS. They took over 250 by Wednesday. Then Ralph took about 35 last night, so they have to be printed before we go back for the final night.
The theme this week is Power Lab. The experiments have been fantastic and the kids have been so excited by the fizzing, the exploding Mentos, the slimy goo they made by adding water and shaking, even walking on cornstarch and watery goop in a tub! They have had fun in dramas, and watched chipmunk videos. Marilyn is changing gears tonight and doing the final experiment with about 15 groups and showing videos to them as well. Only thing is, the materials for the experiment are missing. Guess it is going to be an interesting evening.
It has been so much fun for everyone there. Its rumored that next year is a space theme!
Good thing we have time each morning to go swim and do a few things around the house, even got the carpet shampooed this week!
Now if the baby will come on time it will be the perfect ending to a great week!

Entry into Blogging

2008-07-17T15:27:00.000-05:00

We are entering the blogging era. Our kids are doing it, so it must be fun. Our friend, Carolyn, said we should try it

The Headley Grandparents Blog

2008-07-17T15:20:00.000-05:00

Welcome to our blog! Since our kids have become bloggers, it is time we joined in on the fun! Will see how good we are at this!