Thursday, March 24, 2022

Texas Trip 2: Day 6

 

Today was our final day in.  I figured we should see where we were staying.  As I said, the view is awesome but I have to say that the place grew on me.


One thing that needs mentioning is the steep stairs going up to the door.  They are wobbly, have just one rail and don't inspire confidence.  But this is your first view of Greg on the trip as we pack up the last of our stuff and head to the airport.


How about a purposeful selfie photobomb?  I mean, you have the lake back there and the family too.  It doesn't get much better.


But, it wouldn't have been the same trip if it wasn't with this wonderful woman right here.  I love experiencing new things with you.  It's weird to think how comfortable this was here.

And we are off!

Well, we thought we were.  The trip back was nuts and after some yelling, screaming, tears, hours and promises not to fly a certain airline again, we made it back home.

Wednesday, March 23, 2022

Texas Trip 2: Day 5

 

 So today was a pretty full day.  We drove around a little here and there but the major stop of the day was Aunt Karen and Uncle Sonny's house (also called Crazy Acres) pictured here.  I still think about seeing my first cardinal sitting on a tree out here almost 5 years ago.  I also remember trying to take some seeds from one of the flowers they have on the property and trying to grow it at home.  I guess I have to settle with memories and photos.

This trip was a little different from the previous year as Texas gained another family member, Grandma Janet. Funny, cute and sharp witted...we now have evidence of where Kerry got her height.  She's due to turn 100 later in July.


Here we got all the girls together.  I love seeing the smiles and there were some great moments shared here.  But hunger called and it was time to revisit an old friend...Rudy's.

 

I had to make sure to get a photo of their menu because it is a blur when you go through the ropes and you want to try so many different things but there is only so much room in this stomach. 

Grandma Janet was a little broken up when we left.  We told her we will be back so she needs to hang around for us.

Tuesday, March 22, 2022

Texas Trip 2: Day 4



 Beautiful view of Lake Belton.  This was a slow and easy day.  We decided to drive around a little and look at the town after seeing where you could pull up an RV and make a weekend of hanging at the lake.  So different from my memories as a kid of having to wear shoes to run out to Lake Mead so the sharp rocks don't hurt your feet.  And now... well... apples and oranges, I guess.

Today we saw a few more new homes being built in the Temple and Belton area and roamed around a little.  I think we are getting an idea of where we are.  Ok, let me rephrase that, I think Greg has a good idea of where we are as I'm not driving during the trip.  I'm a happy passenger.

Monday, March 21, 2022

Texas Trip 2: Day 3

 


 Again, gotta love this view as I'm having coffee this morning.  We have a trip to San Antonio planned.  I really don't know much about the area but the tours should fill in some of the blanks.  Kerry's been there before though.


The four of us took the boat tour on the river walk and did get a history lesson but also it was a chance to just unwind.  Of course, there isn't anything quite like this in Las Vegas. 


Our vantage point for these shots was a little restaurant called Saltgrass Steakhouse where we grazed.  Good food.  I thought we'd be taking some back with us but we killed it off before heading off for a little shopping and the trip back to the lake house.

So, upon our return to the house, our phones started going off like crazy.  My first thought was it was an Amber alert... it wasn't.  It was a tornado warning.  It was heading in our direction and we were advised to not go out and to prepare at home.  We were planning to grab dinner but instead hunkered down and maybe had a few more drinks than we originally planned but it took the edge off.  We learned that the tornado went south of us down to the towns of Jarrell and Elgin.

Knowing we were in the clear, we went out to get some BBQ at Clem Mikeska's.  Good food.  But I really should have tried a sampler of their items to get a better idea of what they have.  Maybe another time.  After all that excitement, we went back and crashed for the night. 

 

Sunday, March 20, 2022

Texas Trip 2: Day 2

 
Today we stopped in to Kendall and Adam's after driving around town for coffee.  They are building homes not far from the AirBNB.  Interesting as you start wondering what the price difference is as home prices are soaring back home.

 

Since we have daylight now, I was able to show the view, which was better than we expected.  You can see the lake just out past the firepit.  This would be our view every morning.  The exterior of the house isn't much to rave about but this is worth it to me.  Our search for Tito's was resolved as a friend of Adam and Kendall's left some at their house and they offered it to us.  Tonight we watched a movie and packed it in for the night.

But it sure was great seeing these smiles today.

Saturday, March 19, 2022

Texas Trip 2: Day 1

 


So, today Kerry and I made our return to Texas.  It took a lot longer than we thought it would...almost 5 years.  This time we brought Kerry's sister Kelly and her husband Greg.  It was a busy day flying in and then we directly drove via rental car to our cousin Sheila's house to meet her fiancee Shawn.

Tacos aren't just a comfort food.  It's the language of love.  And that is what I feel for these people.  Oh, and they provided tacos.  They are getting married in October and we are discussing how we can get back to attend.  We were a bit a bit late getting there as we can't trust our GPS at the moment.  It was great to see Aunt Karen, Uncle Sonny, our cousin Kendall, her husband Adam, their sons Luka and Maverick and a bunch of baby goats (Bonbon and Milkdud)!

We made our way from there to our AirBNB but had to go look for wine and Tito's to stock up.  We found out that hard alcohol has specific places you have to go for it (it's not like Vegas in every 7-11 and grocery store.)  Found the wine and will have to try tomorrow to find Tito's.  I don't want to have to drive to Austin tomorrow (where it's made) to get it.