Sunday, October 30, 2016

CRUISING the Hill Country with Friends

This is another co-worker of mine named Cassie. She's very photogenic. She doesn't get to come out with us very often or hang out so I decided I'd take a picture of her hard at work. She was feeling left out. Can't have that. 





So this year we skipped making our usual trip to Austin or where ever for our anniversary because it's always so hot and decided we'd wait to see if we could catch some cooler weather and meet up with our friends the Jackson's. We did celebrate our anniversary back in September but just didn't travel. Anyway, wow did we luck out! We had beautiful cooler weather all weekend. We had a great time and lots of laughs.
Friday the 21st we got up and headed to Bryan to drop Lilley off at Pamela's to spend the weekend. 
When we got there the first thing she did was run in the back yard straight to Pamela new landscaping that will get mulch today. I just had her groomed the day before and she was just prancing around like a princess.
She is kinda pretty if I say so myself. Her and Sophie will be playing hard all weekend.
From there David and I drove to Sisterdale and we might have stopped at a winery. I might have bought a couple of bottles of wine and David bought a couple too. We went a different way and saw some pretty countryside and homes.  After a few sips of wine and our purchase we headed on down the road to Kerrville. The Jackson's arrive an hour and a half later. David took a nap and I worked on a quilt that's a gift. 
By the time the Jackson's got there we were all hungry and we headed to a place called the Pint and Plow. They brewed craft beer and made homemade pizza. Sounded like a good combination. I actually drank tea so I couldn't tell you how the beer was but I can tell you the pizza was delicious. We all had left overs. Thank goodness for the mini fridge in the hotel. 
Our next mission was to find a pub/bar that had TV's so that we could go watch the Aggie game and have some beer while doing so.
This is Kevin. We're at Wilson's. Like in the movie Castaway. Tom Hanks.. Wilson. It took us a while to make the 
connection. David noticed the picture on the wall and said I know that picture from something. That's when Pam or Kevin made the connection between the picture and the name of the bar.... Wilson's. It did have at least one TV so this place was an option. The place before this was way too smoky. We had seen another spot we were gonna try out but wow before we knew it it was 11pm and we wanted to get up in the morning and drive to Bandera for breakfast.
We got up Saturday morning and headed to breakfast in Bandera at the OST Restaraunt. So yummy good. Pam and I had egg enchiladas which consisted of ground beef, onions and eggs in a tortila covered with chili and cheese. 
While in Bandera we shopped the big antique warehouse and some other cute shops. We even stopped and watched several gun fights of how it was back in the 1800's. It's was loud and smoky. Made me jump a few times when they shot their guns.
The boys decided they didn't want to go into the one of the shops and sat outside. 
David amazed Kevin with his knowledge of all the different plants.

Kevin says it's a green plant with blue flowers and David told him he was close. 
It's called a blue plumbago. 



We made a quick stop at the 11th Street Cowboy Bar just down the way but it was getting close to game time and they didn't have any TV's on. 
The boys ran down the street to check out a couple other places while I drug Pam into Gone Quilting quilt shop. Poor girl was overwhelmed by the fabric choices. She's a Quilt store virgin but she was finally able to pick out 2 pieces of fabric out for me to sew up Bed Pockets for her Mom's bed. I may have to make some for me too. I always have too much debris on my night stand.


picture from chikin coop website
We ended up at a place called the Chikin Coop that had several TV's and David and I already knew the food was pretty tasty.
The gals there were willing to change the channels to the Aggie game so for the next couple of hours we ate, drank and suffered through the game. This was not the prettiest game we've played. Slight loss against Alabama. Grrrr. Pam and I tried to make the best of it. As you can see we were really having a bad time. Not. 



After the game was over we left Bandera and headed to Comfort to hit the Hill Country Distillery where I get my jalapeno moonshine to make my Bloody Shiners/Marys. David joined me in a Bloody Shiner while there this time except he skipped the dashes of Tabasco.
Yum. We sat outside at one of the table and ate pecans. They were everywhere. Finished our drinks in search of food back in Kerrville.  Mexican Food.  Someone got a Corona-Rita...You know a margarita with a beer stick in it. I got tea. Surprise I know. That some was rather tipsy by the time dinner was over. LoL never fear all is good.
Sunday we woke up and we all decided to head to Lost Maples State Park just on chance we'd see some leaf color change. This was one of the views we saw on our drive. We must have crossed the Guadalupe River 20 times or more on our drive.  It was a beautiful drive. Our last stop before going our separate ways was back to Bandera to have some BBQ. 
So our drive home was fun. Yep real fun. We only had to travel 15 miles on I 35 to get to San Marcus but lucky us it was the longest 15 miles ever. There was 2 wrecks ahead of us and they had closed a section of the freeway. Awesome. It was an hour and a half sit at least. By the time we got to Pamela's to pick up Lilley we were tired and hungry. Well David was actually exhausted. 
When we got home Lilley was happy to be at her own home. It didn't take long for her to crash out. 2 days of playing with Sophie wears her out. Our sweet girl. 
This weekend was the Vintage Market Days at the Waller County Fairgrounds. David and I went 2 years ago but this year Pamela asked if we could go. So she met me at the Fairgrounds to browse the market. It was a little bigger than when David and I went. Sorry I'm slacking I didn't take any pictures to show you of the market. But I can tell you there was lots of pretty's to look at and buy if you're inclined. I might have bought something. LOL. You see
David posted this cute little miniature donkey on my facebook timeline knowing I would want it. Yep he was right I did. It was cute and cuddly looking. So since he said no I thought this was a 
good substitute. What do you think? I got plenty of comments walking though the market with him. Everyone thought he was adorable and he is but he's not so cuddly.  LOL


and I got a rustic tree that I hope to use for Christmas on the front porch. Maybe I won't kill it like I did the tree last year. I need to figure out how to fix it up. Pamela bought one too and she's already got ideas. She's such a smartie. She's good at all this crafty stuff.
That's it for now.
Until next blog....“To be nobody but yourself in a world which is doing its best day and night to make you everybody else means to fight the hardest battle any human being can fight; and never stop fighting”
- E.E. Cummings


Friday, October 21, 2016


Wow we finally have a complete deck and cover on the Mini Mansion and on the barn we now have an over hang in the front and a lean to on the north side. It's great having the shade.
Let's see poor David started this adventure what back in November 2015 which turned into a fiasco. Then in May he found someone else who said he could do it but couldn't start right away because of prior commitments then that kinda stretched longer and longer but it's finally complete. Now we can go back and put the outside lights on the barn and start the electrical on the cabin. I think that's the plan anyway. We pulled the table out of the cabin and ate lunch on the deck this last weekend. 
David had gone to Pamela's to help her get some landscaping done in her back yard. Of course the night before it poured and it rained the morning before he got up there. But the work went on. Together they hauled a yard of dirt to the back and built up her flower bed that she had put in back in the spring I think it was. Actually they were playing in mud. I went up after work and cooked dinner for them and we stayed the weekend. Pamela had been getting multiple calls from the hospital to come in to work the next day so her Dad told her to go ahead and go in. Go make money so we can spend it on plants. LOL.
So the next day while she went to work for a few hours he and I went to the nursery and bought some more plants to go with the ones he had already bought and came back to the house and got to planting. She even got a Red Oak tree planted so she'll have some shade one day.  I found a little. LOL 
David has a pretty good eye for landscaping and knows his plants. Before we could even get the plants in the ground the butterflies were attacking the drift roses and lantana. Pamela got home around 3 and we were all done. She was so excited to see her flower bed and new tree planted. She goes "Now I have Daddy landscaping".  Next time they get together they need to get some mulch to spread. She's got 2 crimson red crepe myrtles to plant on the side of the house but David left those for Pamela's yard guy to plant.
These two fur balls got to have the weekend to play and have fun. Pamela had sent me this picture before I got up there. They're so darn cute and loveable.

I have two quilts I'm working on and I can't share either one of them darn it. 
One is my round robin medallion that I have to add borders too. Well I can show this picture. This is Mildred and the medallion she made. I'm the first one to get to add borders. Yikes but I got my idea and the math of the border worked out thanks to my friend Donna Marie and EQ7. Gotta finish before Nov 5 for our next hand off. Can't wait to see what everyone else has done. Of course I don't get to see what Robin Mary Jane has done to my medallion. Shucks.
The other quilt I'm finishing up the binding this weekend while traveling to Bandera to meet up with some friends. We usually meet up with them on our anniversary on labor day weekend but decided we'd wait for cooler weather and we got it. Should be beautiful this weekend.  Anyway this quilt is a gift to a friend so until I pass it on I can't share the actual quilt but soon I promise.  
To be honest I have 2 other quilts I'm working for babies in the oven. Then I think one popped out yesterday so I guess I better get busy on that one too.  These babies are coming faster than I can produce the quilts. LOL

Now for my small info-mercial
MesotheliomaLawyerCenter.org
If you are a Mesothelioma Cancer
Survivor or recently diagnosed with
It, you may find the above link useful. 
The link was provided to me by Katherine
Keys. She has been fighting mesothelioma
for 9 years with the help of MD Anderson and
is now cancer free. She was helped greatly by the
Patient Advocates at Mesothelioma Lawyer Center.
They helped her obtain financial compensation
which helped with her treatments and the quality of life.
She asked me if I would mind posting this link on my
Blog and I’m finally doing so. Hopefully the link might help anyone
else who might read my blog and that might need the help.
Can’t do this for every cause but at least every once

and a while I’ll try. The first time I posted for Mesothelioma was
for Heather Von St. James. She too is a survivor and shares her story thru her blog. You can click on the lick 
for the Mesothelioma Lawyer Center above and you can click on Heather's name for more 
information.
The big "C" is a scary word in whatever form it comes in.My family has been affected by it. It affected my mother-in law and father-in law, it took my Dad, it took my step Mother, and my sister Nancy is a Breast Cancer Survivor now. It took my best friend in 2011.  The list is long and could go on forever if I start including our friends who are battling the big "C" or currently in remission. Take a moment to count your blessings and then say a blessing for those who are affected by the big "C" and their families.

Well that's all I have for now. Hugs
Until next blog.....Ready ..... Set.... Sew