Hill Country, Texas

April 2nd-We left later this morning to drive to the Hill Country.  I feel so fortunate that we are here when the blue bells are blooming.  We stopped for a picnic lunch in Blanco and had a very nice time at a beautiful little park.  After browsing an antique store for a few minutes, we drove to Luckenbach.

  Willie Nelson put this place on the map and it just has an old country store and a performance area under the old oak trees. We enjoyed some bottled rootbeer while listening to the performer, can’t remember his name but he used to open for Willie.

  We met some nice people that told us about a wildflower seed farm.  We followed them there and enjoyed seeing fields of poppies,blue bonnets and all kinds of wildflowers.

We next went to Fredericksburg.  What an awesome little town.  It was settled by Germans and a high number of people are still German.  Big wide streets, neat shops and great German food.

 From here, we left to drive on the Willow City loop which is a few miles out of town and was recommended for wildflowers.  WOW!!  Every turn was a photo.  As luck would have it, my battery ran out on my camera so I had to use a disposeable.  Ran out of pictures on this but hope a few good ones come out.  The land has scraggly oaks and some cactus with rustic fences which make great backdrops for the flowers.  Not sure if I would find this place especially beautiful other times of year but this time is truly special.  Lot’s of blue bonnets white poppies, Indian paintbrush and asylum.  A special memory was stopping by a stream.  Janae and Stefan were damming  up the stream with rocks, Mark was playing his trumpet and the hill behind them was ablaze with flowers.  I laid down and just rested among them and the sun.  There was a little lane that went down private property that we ventured a short way on.  It was enchanted with all the flowers leading into the mystical, forbidden property.

Tyler, Texas

March 29th, We left today to head back and pick up Miss Jim B.  On the way back we spent the day in Tyler, Texas.  Lanny’s son and family live here so we were able to meet them.  Perry is 11 and Janae and Stefan enjoyed playing with her. 

When we were camping in Vermont, our neighbor, Culley, was a very outgoing, fun Texan who happens to be a pediatric dentist in Tyler.  He had extended the invitation last October to clean Janae and Stefan’s teeth if we passed through.  We were able to make an appt. and what fun it was to experience his awesome facility and receive such tremendous care.  Stefan needed a tooth extracted due to a trampoline accident.  Not only did Dr. Boren do this but pulled strings to have the spacer made and installed in a couple hours.  When we left, Stefan said, “That was a blast.”  How many kids say that after having a tooth pulled?  It was fun getting to visit with him a bit and meeting his daughter and daughter-in-law.  This is one of the crown jewels of traveling, meeting such awesome people.  Thank you Dr. Boren for your generosity, kindness and bigger than life personality!!

As we left town, I twisted Mark’s arm to drive through the azalea trail.  In the historic, established part of town, the large mansions are landscaped with azaleas.  The city posts little yellow signs like you’re looking for a garage sale to go look at the best yards.  Pictures don’t even begin to do the beauty justice.  Very nice!!! Tyler is interesting.  The main drag is loaded with every kind of commercial business seen in every other urban setting across the country.  The neighborhoods are beautiful with lot’s of vegetation and flowers!  It made for a late night drive back to Lanny and Brenda’s.

Leaving Kirbyville, Texas

March 29-April 1st-We spent a couple days regrouping before heading further west.  We enjoyed a few more good meals with our dear friends, some nice drives in Brenda’s convertible and some awesome talks.   Lanny introduced us to a local favorite: Boudain which is pork sausage links filled with rice.   Very good, we’ll have to pick some up on our way out of town.  Lanny is quite a story teller and our last night Janae and Stefan loved hearing about Pecos Bill around the campfire.  This story will be long remembered along with his story of how he was raised by squirrels.  I was a bit tearful leaving as this awesome couple has been so hospitable and loving to us.  How wonderful to see an incredible marriage in action.  Thank you for being such great role models.   Thank you too for the beautiful blue bonnet painting, honey and doberrie jam.  We’re going to miss you (but not the mosquitos).

The drive to Canyon Lake was long today, 6 hours but truly beautiful.  I wish we could have stopped Miss Jim B to take photos but our memories will need to remember the big green open fields with cattle, horses, beautiful homes and fields of blue bonnets.  East, central Texas is absolutely beautiful this time of year.

Radonna and boys

We left Dave and Judy’s one evening and drove two hours into Red Oak Texas to see Radonna and her two awesome sons: Ty and Trevor.  Radonna is a dear, dear friend of mine (ours) that I met in Colorado Springs.   I had always wanted our children to meet and we were finally able to do that.  Janae and Stefan loved spending time with them and Stefan especially loved the hand me down lego castle and Viking boat.  We had a slumber party of sorts and loved staying up late laughing to Tim Hawkins.  We went to church in the morning and loved seeing how their church is involved with so many missions.  We had a fabulous Ty lunch afterwards.  I spent the afternoon blogging, Radonna worked on a paper and Mark took the kids to the park.  We got to meet Radonna’s brother, Shane and enjoyed wonderful conversations with him.

A good friend is like a good shoe.  They just fit no matter how long it’s been since you’ve worn them.  That’s what it is like with Radonna.  I love being with her and her family and hope that they will come and see us soon in Colorado. 

On the way out of town, we stopped and took these blue bell pictures.  The lighting wasn’t quite right but what a treat to smell these beauties.  They look kind of like and smell like hyacinths.

Minneola Texas with Dave and Judy

March 23rd-29thWe left today to go visit Mark’s high school friend, Dave Braman and wife Judy.  They live in Minneola Texas which is three hours north of Lanny’s.  East Texas is just beautiful with rolling green hills and lots of trees.  The weather has been just awesome too.  We have really been blessed.  (Since leaving Ohio the last week in Jan., we have had only a day of rain.)  The drive was lovely and what a sight it was to pull into The Breaman’s farm at sunset.  AWESOME!!!!

What a beautiful place!  We left Miss Jim B at Lanny’s and stayed with the Braemans.  They just finished building their dream home and it is magnificent.  We were very comfortable and especially enjoyed seeing the horses grazing right out the living room windows.  Janae and Stefan had their own suite downstairs and Mark and I stayed in the guest room upstairs.  They could easily charge top dollar for this high end B and B.  We felt very spoiled.  Judy had a wonderful ham dinner waiting for us and Janae was ecstatic.  She had been begging me for ham for quite some time.

I enjoyed getting to know Dave and Judy.   They are a wonderful couple and demonstrate such love and respect to each other.  What a peaceful home and haven they have.  It is truly a sanctuary.  Janae and Stefan were so happy hiking, exploring, fishing and boating on their 10 acre lake.  Mark got to spend some good quality time with Dave and as for me, I was preoccupied with job applications. I spent the better part of our visit writing my application materials and contacting references.  Judy was wonderful in helping me streamline my words and both she and Dave were so accommodating and helpful with the internet.  I did however thoroughly enjoy their loggia (outdoor dining area) and spent many hours teaching and practicing in this room.  This is no ordinary room.  It is an enclosed gazebo with screened windows and a fireplace.  It is also home to an orange tree.  Practicing with the curious horses and the warm breeze scented with orange blossoms was just idyllic. Ahh! We also shared several wonderful evening meals here before taking an after dinner hike.

Mineola is a vibrant, neat little Texas town.  About 5000 people inhabit it and the businesses are all thriving.  One day, the kids and I explored the little shops and tried a local favorite: deep fried pies.  Janae was the only one that liked them.

When your children are happy, mama’s happy.  Stefan was so joyful this week and one night before dinner, Stefan came and asked me for some snuggle time.  How sweet it was to snuggle in the guest room with the sun streaming in for a few moments.  Another night for no apparent reason he got out of bed and just danced around and said, “I’m so happy, I’m so happy.”  I said “Stefan are you happy with being on the farm or the people and he said, “both, I’m happy with everything.”  Janae also was her joyful self and as she often does gave me her big bear hug in the kitchen and said, “mama, I love you”.

Our hostess with the mostess

Our last day, we got to visit with some of Dave and Judy’s grandchildren.  Janae and Stefan enjoyed playing with Teagan and Maddox.  We ended our visit with a southern barbecue meal at a local restaurant.

A Texas welcome with Lanny and Brenda

March 14-23-We arrived late Wednesday night at Mark’s long time friend and former colleague, Lanny Marshall’s farm in Kirbyville, Texas.  (Lanny had played trombone in the Falcs when Mark first joined and has been like a big brother to Mark).  He and his wife Brenda welcomed us with a big Texas welcome by serving us hickory smoked barbecued pork ribs and coleslaw.  An awesome meal!!  Miss Jim B became quite at home in the little nitch that Lanny cleared for her.  We all fell in love with the beautiful green, land and Janae and Stefan were immediately drawn to the baby chicks.  Lanny and Brenda are now both 4th grade teachers which was wonderful for us.  They supplied us with great books, projects and educational tips.  They have an absolutely beautiful home that they built and since they were still on spring break, we got to help them plant their huge vegetable garden on Thursday.  It was so relaxing sitting out under the big oak trees, planting the garden and walking their property with them.  A sigh in time for our travel wearied souls.  It made us all the more want to live on a farm and enjoy the rewards of this lifestyle.  Stefan was so cute in his cowboy boots and shorts exploring all kinds of bugs and creatures.  The orphaned baby opposums were so cute but helpless against nature.  They died after the rains one night. 

On Friday, Mark and Lanny went fishing in the afternoon and the rest of us went into town to paint pottery.  This was very relaxing and fun.  Janae was very proud of her bowl, Stefan his dragon and Brenda and I our salsa bowls.  Afterwards, we drove 20 miles to the next town to go grocery shopping and a Subway dinner. 

Saturday, St. Patrick’s Day was a huge highlight as we got to go on an Air Boat ride in the bayou near the Louisiana border.  This was nothing short of a blast especially when we zipped at 55 mph and drove on land.  Stefan said it was better than Disney.  Our colorful driver was a proud Cajun and he enjoyed sharing some of his background and history with us.  He likes to wrestle alligators and he shared how he put an alligator tooth around his baby’s neck to cure his colic.  In the afternoon, we visited Shangri La, a beautiful botonical garden.  I think azaleas might be my favorite flower. When walking around, Stefan said, "Mom, don't  you just love nature?" Besides being beautiful, this garden is Leed certified:  acronym for leader, energy, environmental, design.  It was fun to learn that in the visitor center, the carpet was made out of corn stalks and the deck out of sawdust and recycled milk jugs.  A very philanthropic man named Lutcher Stark stared Shangri La.  Some meaningful quotes we encountered were:
"Drink in the beauty and wonder at the meaning of what you see." Rachel Carson
"The little world about us has within it all the joy and happiness that we need." Jens Jengen.

Lanny and Mark are preparing to feed marshmellows to the gators

When Lanny and Brenda went back to school on Monday, we settled into a nice routine of practicing and school ourselves.  I would go first thing in the morning to their home and practice then come back to the camper and have a late breakfast.  Janae and Stefan would then go to the house to alternate piano practice on the grand piano and math.  In the afternoons we worked on their projects.  On Monday and Tuesday, they did their cereal box book reports and the rest of the week, they worked on their history diarama reports.  Janae did hers on Stephen Austin and recruiting the colonists to Texas and Stefan did his on the Alamo/Texas Revolution.  Two great ideas given by our 4th grade teacher hosts.  Janae and Stefan anxiously waited for Lanny and Brenda to come home.  Janae said, “I wish they were retired, I like being with them all the time.”
 

Brenda is quite a cook and though I made a few dinners during the week, hers were quite the hit.  A shrimp concoction she made up and gumbo that was out of this world.  We got introduced to Blue Bell ice cream and fell in love with the old fashioned vanilla with fresh strawberries on top.

Lanny made quite an impression with Stefan by making a sword with him in his workshop.

New Orleans

Houmas Plantation

These pictures should be at the bottom as they are from day two of New Orleans

We left Monday morning, March 12th for Texas.  I convinced Mark to stop at New Orleans since it was not very far out of our way.  I had never been there and had hoped to experience the rhythm (couldn’t resist) of the city.  We found a Good Sam Campground 5 miles from the French Quarter. It was a little bit of a shock to go from waves to intense traffic noise but the price was right and it was close.  It did have a big security gate around it which helped us feel somewhat safe.  It was a long drive and we pulled in at around 8:00 p.m..  After a late supper, we hit the sack to get ready for our big day.

We didn’t plan any tours.  We just decided to meander and eat our way through the day which turned out to be a good choice.   The city bus picked us up across the street from the campsite and after a seemingly long, start and stop ride, we transferred to the canal street car.  We then walked to the French Quarter (Vieux Carre, old square).

The beignets and au lait at Café du Monde were amazing and lived up to their reputations. This business is a part of history as they have been serving beignets and coffee since 1862.  We enjoyed devouring these treats as we sat and watched the boats on the Mississippi River.  Learned that New Orleans is called the crescent city due to its position on the Mississippi River. We then were able to enjoy a street performance of some very muscular, acrobatic stunt men.  The final act featured the star performer jumping and flipping over many audience participants.  The weather was beautiful and we enjoyed strolling through the French Quarter, watching a movie on jazz funerals at the New Orleans Jazz Historical Park, listening to several street jazz peformers, shopping in the French Market, trying praline candy, eating Muffulettas from Central Grocers (very good but the olive spread was a little salty) and visiting the St. Louis Cathedral (beautiful).

We stopped at the Calbildo and spoke with a woman who answered some of our history questions.  We learned that the Creoles settled New Orleans.  Historians disagree if they were of pure Spanish, French descent or a mix with African and Indian Cultures.  At any rate, after the Louisiana Purchase, many Americans moved to NO but there was tension with the Creoles not wanting them there so the Americans built their homes in the garden district.   The Cajuns came from Canada and they were ousted by the British when they didn’t want to hail the King.  They settled in Maine and came down to Louisiana because of the French connection.  However, they seemed to settle more the outskirts of New Orleans.  Also, learned that the powers at be in DC didn’t think the Creoles were capable of self-governing.

Late afternoon, we walked down Royal street on the way to the St. Charles Streetcar.  We enjoyed stopping at several antique shops.  One in particular  had a beautiful piano, worth $225,000.  Janae and Stefan both played it, pretty cool, Billy Joel plays it when he visits the store. Stefan found a Roman coin from 300 B.C. and I enjoyed the antique chandelier store.  We enjoyed feeling the breeze as we rode the St. Charles street car to the end of the garden district.  Beautiful antebellum homes.  We took an ice tea break at a deli before riding back.  We stopped at the Audubon Park and enjoyed its beauty.  A good tubist was practicing under a big tree and we were serenaded by Bordogni.

We decided to see if we could get into

Preservation Hall for the evening concert and by accident ended up on Bourbon Street.  Oh my!  Kids look straight ahead.  Not a good experience at all.  Couldn’t believe that it was like this before dark.  At any rate, made it to Preservation Hall an hour before showtime and it was obvious that we wouldn’t get in so  headed for dinner. Ended our cuisine day with jambalaya, red beans and deep fried seafood.  Kids loved the jambalaya. I especially loved dining in the open air setting.  On the walk back to the streetcar, we were treated with an excellent, seasoned performance of some top jazz musicians of Stella by Starlight.  A nice treat after hearing some of the more raw, street performers today. 

Wednesday morning at we took a jaunt out to see the rebuilding process from Hurricane Katrina.  Lot’s of rebuilding.  Interesting new designs and colors.  Brad Pitt and Angelina have been behind this.  Still a lot of empty lots and homes needing repair.  Saw several groups helping clean up.  After all these  years, can’t believe what it would have looked like.  My one regret is I  wished we would have seen the Imax movie on the hurricane yesterday. It would  have had more of an impact on the kids.  Also stopped by a cemetary, very interesting to see the above ground burials and did a quick walk through of the Sculpture Garden near the Art Museum.

Stefan said, “The best thing about New Orleans is the food, jazz and shopping”.  I couldn’t agree more wholeheartedly.

On the way to Texas, we stopped at The Houmas House Plantation, once the largest sugarcane plantation in America and its