Friday, December 31, 2010

Over the past several days we have noticed more and more people on the fort--the Winter Texans are returning in full force. The day started off with cooler temperatures, but by the afternoon we had one beautiful day.

After our walk, we ate breakfast and got cleaned up. John decided to ride his bike down to the post office to pick up the mail. While he was gone, I made a Jello salad to take to this evening's New Year's party at our church. When John got back, we headed down to the Par 3 for one more round of golf in 2010. There was a group playing the second hole, so we crossed the street and started our round on the 6th. By the time we finished the 9th hole, they were done on the first five, so we had that all to ourselves. I pared the last hole I played, so I ended up the year on a high note. Hopefully that will continue the next time we play.

We spent the rest of the afternoon watching a couple of college football games, and then left for the church. Everyone brought a dish to share so there was plenty to eat. It was a fun evening visiting and playing games. We called it a night a little before 10p.m. and came home to watch the new year come in. We wish you all a very happy and blessed New Year!!




Thursday, December 30, 2010

We were up and out early for our morning walk. John had a 9 a.m. appointment for a haircut, so we had to take our shorter route so he would have time to eat breakfast and get cleaned up before leaving.

While John was gone, I changed the bed linens, started some laundry, and began making bread. When he returned home, John did a few mai
ntenance jobs around the house--one was spaying Home Defense around the windows, doors, and foundation so the insects stay outside where they belong. He then took a walk over to the driving range where he found 30 golf balls and talked with a border patrol agent who was on the lookout for some illegals in the area.

After lunch John went over to Sam's and the guys loaded up a bed and delivered it for some folks who are coming into the fort tomorrow. That job
didn't take very long, so after John got home we headed off to the Par 3 for some golf. Neither one of us had a very good game but we sure had a good time playing.



This evening after supper, John went to wood carvers. Due to delivering the paper for the past two weeks, he has missed attending on Monday mornings. He was anxious to get back to his carving. We spent the remainder of the evening watching some TV and reading.

Wednesday, December 29, 2010

It was cloudy, 61 degrees, and a little on the humid side when we left the house for our walk. After being on the run for the past two days, we thought we would have a nice quiet day at home to get some laundry done along with some other chores.

After breakfast, John worked on the golf cart still trying to figure out why the batteries won't charge. While we were in Uvalde on Monday, we dropped the charger off with a guy who works repairing golf carts. He called and told John that the charger is fine, so the problem must be with the cart. He rechecked the wires once again, and replaced a couple connectors. We'll have to wait until we get the charger back and see if what he has done corrected the problem. While he was working on the cart, Jan called with an SOS--her kitchen sink was leaking. John ran over to her house, worked his magic, and stopped the leak; however, a new faucet is needed.

The sky cleared off by mid-morning, so after lunch John and I headed down to the Par 3 to play some golf. We had just finished the 2nd hole, when Stan Metcalf called and asked if we would like to take a run to Eagle Pass and the Lowe's store with him and Jan. We said "yes" and that we would be ready to leave after we finished our game. Sam Lark hailed us as we were playing the 4th hole, and asked John if he could help with another project. John told him he would stop over this evening when we got home.

The Metcalf's picked us up and we were off to Eagle Pass and Lowe's. After much discussion, we all finally agreed on the right faucet for Jan's sink. John picked up a few other supplies needed for installation and then we were off to Fuddruckers for supper. This was our first time eating there and I must say we will definitely be trying it again. They served one delicious hamburger.

We got back home around 7:30 p.m. and John headed over to Sam's to get the details settled for their next project--moving and setting up a bed for folks who will be arriving on Friday. John returned from Sam's with a bag full of fresh oranges--his neighbor brought them back from somewhere in Texas. We ended our "quiet" day watching some college basketball--hopefully tomorrow I will finally get some chores done.




Tuesday, December 28, 2010

It was almost 20 degrees warmer this morning when we left the house for our walk--if felt like a heatwave compared to the below freezing temps of the past two mornings. We kept waiting for the sun to break through the clouds, but we had one of our rare cloudy days.

First thing this morning we had a surprise visit from Everett and Darlene Endris--we didn't think they would be back at the fort until after the first of the year. It was so good to see them and to catch up on what they have been doing. They will be leaving again in a day or so to head to Arizona for their grand-daughter's wedding.

I headed off to town for a much needed haircut and then we left for Del Rio. We made deliveries at about four or five places, and then stopped for lunch at Wendy's. From there we finished with the paper--our final stop was right next to the grocery store, so John and I did some food shopping. John has another project to do for our neighbor, so we made one last stop at the lumber yard and Home Depot to check out some gutter material.

John and I unloaded the groceries when we got back home and while I stored everything away, he went over to Stan's to drop off the leftover papers. Looks like Stan will be back on the job next week--he is on the mend.

We spent the evening watching the Eagles lose to the Vikings. We were rooting for the Eagles, but were glad to see the Vikes play such a good game.


Monday, December 27, 2010

Today was paper delivery day again, so we had to be up and out of the house by 7 a.m. It was another very chilly morning as we headed off to Hondo to pick up the Kinney County News. Our first stop of the morning was McDonald's in Uvalde get some breakfast--the hot meal sure hit the spot. From there it was on to Hondo and the printing shop. They were just starting to print the paper when we got there, so we had about a 20 minute wait until it was finished and loaded into the car.

We delivered all the papers in Uvalde and then stopped at Wendy's for lunch before heading back to Brackettville to drop off papers at the post office, library, and other businesses. John and I made much better time this week as we knew where all the drop off spots were located and didn't have to do any back tracking. After delivering a few papers in Unit 37, we were done for the day. We deliver in Del Rio some time tomorrow.

A couple of weeks ago we received an invitation from Ken and Ruth Spencer inviting us to an after Christmas gathering at their home this afternoon. We got back to our place with an hour to spare--just enough time to rest for a little bit and then change clothes and head off to Spencer's. Ruth had quite a spread of snacks and beverages--everyone seemed to get plenty to eat and had a good time visiting. Our evening was pretty quiet watching Monday Night Football.

Sunday, December 26, 2010

Brrrrr!! It was 27 degrees outside when we woke up around 7 a.m. John took one look at the temperature and asked me if I wanted to skip the walk this morning. I said "yes", I didn't even have to think about it. We spent a leisurely morning eating breakfast, doing some reading, and then getting ready for church. Frontier Baptist had a guest speaker this morning as our pastor was out of town visiting with family for Christmas. Our numbers were way down as many of the folks were also away.

Following lunch, we decided to play some golf, so we got in the cart and headed off down the road. If you'll recall, we haven't been able to recharge the batteries in the cart, and today they finally gave out about half way to the course. We pulled off the main road onto a side pathway and walked back to the house. John called Stan and asked to borrow his cart to tow ours home. We got Stan's cart and a chain and then went back to get our golf cart. John hooked up the chain and while I steered our cart, towed it back to our place. Stan gave John the name of a place in Uvalde that can check out the charger--it's a mystery why it won't charge, everything has checked out. Hopefully we will find an answer to this problem real soon.

Stan told us to keep his cart until we can figure out what the problem is with ours, so John loaded our clubs onto Stan's cart and we went back down to the Par 3 and played a round of golf. We got done in time to watch the Packers defeat the Giants. The Eagles have clinched first place in their division. Yea!!

Stan is still not fully recovered from his surgery, so tomorrow John and I will once again be delivering papers in Uvalde and Brackettville. Since there was no Sunday night football due to the big snow storm in Philadelphia, we spent the evening watching movies.

Saturday, December 25, 2010


MERRY CHRISTMAS

We started off the day with our usual morning walk. The temps were much lower this morning, and a strong breeze keep the day cool even though the sun shining.

After breakfast, John started on the gravy for toda
y's dinner while I finished up the jello salad. When everything was finished and ready to go, we had some time before we had to leave for Sandwick's, so we took a plate of Christmas cookies across the street and visited with our neighbor, Neva. She is such a sweet little lady and we enjoyed spending some time with her. Neva told us she would be sharing Christmas with her son's family here in Brackettville.

When we got back from Neva's it was time to load up the food and head off to Sandwick's. We enjoyed a delicious meal of turkey, ham, mashed potatoes, stuffing, beans, jello salad, and much more. An apple pie finished off the meal--we were all stuffed by the end of the afternoon.


John called his Dad and Sister to wish them a Merry Christmas, and we received calls from our kids. We really miss being home at this time of year, but when we we hear about all the snow (24 inches) and temps in the single digits, we are happy to be here in warmer, sunny Texas.

Friday, December 24, 2010

This morning was warm and very humid when we took our walk--we really worked up a sweat. After we got home, the rain started. This is the first rain they've had here since September; however, it came in just one downpour, and then cleared off. A cold front is coming in behind the rain--suppose to be in the low 30's tonight with a high of 60 tomorrow.

John wanted to play golf again this morning, so off we went to the Par 3. Right now we are just about the only ones playing on it and we can play whenever we want without waiting. We can take our time and, if you hit a bad shot, take it over. After the holidays, the Winter Texans will be here in full force, so we'll be sharing it with more golfers.

Early this evening we attended our church's Christmas Eve candlelight service. Tomorrow we will be joining the Sandwick's and Ralph for dinner, so I baked a pie and made a salad to take for the meal. Tonight we watched It's A Wonderful Life--I just love this movie and look forward to seeing it every Christmas. We wish you all a Very Merry Christmas!!!




Thursday, December 23, 2010

With a morning temperature of 57 degrees John and I didn't have to wear so many layers of clothing when we took our walk. Even though the sky was cloudy, there was no fog or misting like the past couple of days.

After breakfast, we decided to head down to the Par 3 for another round of golf. As we played the course, the winds got stronger and the temps started to drop. By the time we finished, we were both pretty cold--it was a good day for some hot soup for lunch.

Following lunch, John went over to Sam Lark's to install some racks he made for his gun cabinet and ended up also installing a new faucet on the kitchen sink. Since it was so cool and windy outside, we spent the rest of the afternoon watching a movie--The Polar Express.

This evening we went over to Ann and Lyle's for a little Christmas get together. Ann prepared many tasty snacks along with a delicious eggnog. It was a fun evening of meeting new people and hearing many interesting stories. We ended the evening watching some college basketball and catching up on emails and blogs.

Wednesday, December 22, 2010

We took our walk in a heavy fog this morning. As the day progressed, we kept waiting for the sun to come out, but it stayed misty and cloudy the whole day. After being on the go for the past two days, it felt rather good to stay home. I did some laundry while John took care of a few chores around here and made a run to the post office.

Since outside activities were out of the question, we decided to bake some Christmas cookies this afternoon. I mixed the dough and John rolled it out and cut out the cookies. We had a pretty good system going and it wasn't too long before
we had a container full of delicious cookies.


After supper we spent a quiet evening watching some college football and a movie.

Tuesday, December 21, 2010

This morning we woke to gray skies, fog, and light mist. At least it was much warmer this morning when we left for our walk--51 degrees--felt nice and warm after the 30+ degrees of the past several mornings.

After breakfast we headed off to Del Rio to finish delivering the Kinney County Post to the businesses Stan had on his list. We made about 20 different stops and had everything done by noon. Since it was lunch time, we decided to try out a new place for us, Jack In The Box. The place was nice and clean, and the food was pretty good, We will probably eat there again when in Del Rio. It was then on to Wal Mart where John picked up some headlights for the golf cart and a few groceries.

The afternoon was just perfect, so as soon as we got home we hopped in the golf cart and headed off to the Par 3 course. My golf game was much improved today--I shot par on one hole and chipped one in for par on another. Best I have ever played. John also had a string of pars this afternoon. Having a good game every once in a while is what keeps you playing the game even though it seems bad games far out number the good ones.

We were just finishing supper when Ralph Ramsey called and invited us to join him and the Sandwicks sitting around the fire he built in his backyard. John and I grabbed our jackets and headed off to Ralph's. It was a perfect evening to sit outside--no wind, clear skies, and a bright, full moon. We stayed until the fire died down and the night began to turn cool. It was a fun time just visiting and telling stories.

Our evening ended watching some college basketball and starting a new book on my Kindle.

Monday, December 20, 2010

A couple of weeks ago, John's friend, Stan Metcalf, asked John if he would take care of picking up and distributing the Kinney Country Post after he (Stan) had surgery. Well, Stan had his surgery last Friday, so this morning, John and I left the house at 7 a.m. and headed off to Hondo to pick up the newspaper. We arrived a little after 9 a.m. and found the paper was ready to go. We loaded all 1200 copies into the back of the Honda and headed back to Uvalde to start delivering them.

Stan had taken John along with him a few weeks ago to show him where to pick up the paper and all the places where copies had to be dropped off. John wrote down all the stops, how many copies had to be left at each one, and some rough directions on where each drop off spot was located--papers have to be left in Uvalde, Brackettville, and Del Rio. We made 21 stops in Uvalde and had trouble finding only one place. After our final Uvalde delivery, we stopped at A & W for lunch and then headed back to Brackettville.

Delivering the papers here was much easier as we knew where all the different businesses were located, so it didn't take long to get the job done. John dropped a few papers off to individuals living on the fort and then we stopped at Metcalf's to report on what we did today. Tomorrow morning we will head off to Del Rio to deliver the paper--hope it goes as good as today. We were home about an hour when John headed off to another Planning Committee Meeting.

After such a busy day, we spent a quiet evening watching the Minnesota Vikings play the Chicago Bears. Watching that game made us glad to be here in sunny, warm, Texas.

Sunday, December 19, 2010

We are finally on the upward swing with our weather. Today was just perfect with the high in the low 70's. The next several days are to have high's near 80 degrees--time to break out the shorts again. Since it was Sunday morning, John and I walked the golf course which is a shorter route. We can't take our usual longer one or we wouldn't be on time for church.

This morning the choir presented a Christmas musical which was followed by a short message by our pastor. Several church ladies made a dinner of stew, Texas Chili, and rice which was served following the service. There were also some nice, yummy desserts. John managed to sample of little of everything.

Since it was such a nice day, we decided to head down to the Par 3 and play some golf. We ended up playing 11 holes and we both had some real nice shots. As we were finishing up with the golf, Matt called to tell us about the Eagles big win over the NY Giants. John just hung up when his brother, Gus, called from Ohio to talk about the game. Unfortunately, the Eagles were not on TV down here in Texas, so we weren't able to see the game which according to Matt and Gus was one of the best ever played by the Eagles.

We spent the rest of the afternoon watching some football and then settled in to watch the finale of Survivor.








Saturday, December 18, 2010

The cooler weather hung around for another day--the temp was 34 degrees when we left the house for our walk this morning. By this afternoon it was nice outside, but you still needed a sweatshirt, even in the sun.

This past summer our neighbor built a house across the street from us and has it up for sale. We have been wanting to see the inside and today he invited us for a tour. It is a beautiful three bedroom house with a fireplace and granite counter tops. He is hoping for some nice folks to buy it as he lives right next door.

John kept busy today going to the post office, helping Sam Lark set up his new bed, and trying to fix the golf cart. Mike Palmer came over this afternoon to give John a hand checking out the wiring on the charger and batteries. They replaced a couple of wires that looked to be in poor condition. It was decided to run the cart for a while longer and then try charging the batteries. Right now all of them are at full charge and Mike thinks that's why the charger won't kick in when plugged into the cart.

This evening John worked on some things for the Planning Committee and then we watched a movie. Nothing too exciting happening tonight.


Friday, December 17, 2010

The colder weather that had been forecast finally settled in today. It was pretty chilly when we left the house for our morning walk--34 degrees--and the temps only reached the upper 50's this afternoon.

After breakfast, John spent some time working on the project for Sam Lark's gun cabinet. We then went to the post office, bank, and hardware store where John picked up a new shower head to be installed in one of the condo's. On our way home, we decided to stop in and visit the Sandwicks. We haven't had a chance to visit with them since their return from Mexico. The weather was too chilly to sit out on their patio, so we ended up visiting inside.

This afternoon, John went to install the shower head and I baked a dessert to take to the condo party this afternoon. We had about 15 people in attendance and a good assortment of food. With the cooler weather, no one lingered after the sun went down.

We spent a pretty quiet evening watching some TV and catching up on emails and blogs.


Thursday, December 16, 2010

John and I took a different route this morning--we usually only see one or two people, but today we saw many dogs walking their owners. I really mean it--the dogs were walking their owners! The humans were literally being dragged down the road, and the pups weren't even very big. Our walk took us to Unit 37 where Betty and Harlan were already up and out--everyone else must have still been in bed--not a soul was stirring.

After breakfast, John went over to Carlson's to cut up some wood for the projects he has for Sam and Jan--he was able to get her's completed this afternoon. While he was at that end of the fort, he made a quick run to the post office. We are receiving a few Christmas cards everyday. It is fun to read everyone's Christmas letters and learn what has been happening with friends and family.

We decided to try a new bread recipe, but found that we didn't have the right size pan, so that meant another trip into town and the Dollar General Store. We found just the pan we were looking for, made up the dough, and let it rise while we ate supper. The baking bread smelled so good, we couldn't resist having a little piece once it was cool enough to cut. It was delicious--best bread we've ever made.

Our evening was spent watching some NFL and a couple of nature shows. Will really be glad when the days get longer and one can get outside after supper.




Wednesday, December 15, 2010

We had one beautiful day again--temps reached the upper 70's this afternoon. A cold front will be coming through over the next couple of days, so we'll be back to long pants and sweatshirts.

After our morning walk, we did a few chores around the house and then headed to Del Rio. John attended the Weight Watchers meeting with me--I thought that was a brave thing to do as he was the only man in the room. From there we went for lunch and then on to Home Depot where John picked up the materials he needs to fix Sam Lark's gun cabinet. Our final stop of the afternoon was HEB for groceries and gas.

Our evening was spent watching Survivor (poor Jane got voted off) and The Sing Off.

Tuesday, December 14, 2010

Shorts today!! It was a beautiful day here in southwest Texas. Even though it was cold when we took our walk this morning, by noon the temps were in the upper 60's.

John kept busy this morning running to the post office, visiting Betty Wright, and getting a new project from Sam Lark. After lunch we headed to the Par 3 for a round of golf. The trees on the course are in full color right now and look spectacular against the blue sky. We both had some real good shots as well as many poor ones--in other words, our normal game.

On our way home from playing golf, we swung into Unit 37 and visited with John and Lois Carlson. Lois is my Weight Watcher's buddy, so I wanted to see if she was going to be able to go tomorrow. She has a conflict, so John will come to Del Rio with me, wait while I attend the meeting, and then we will hit the grocery store. After we left Carlson's we made a quick stop at the RV park to see who was back on the fort. Saw John and TJ sitting outside, so stopped and chatted with them--found out that most folks will be back after the holidays. We also learned that the Tuesday night potlucks have started, so we will put that on our calendar for next week.

John grilled a couple of steaks for supper (they were delicious) and then we settled in to watch the finale of The Biggest Loser.


Monday, December 13, 2010

I was feeling a little under the weather this morning, so I slept in while John went off to wood carvers. After getting a little extra shut-eye, I felt much better and managed to do some laundry and change the bed linens by the time John got home around noon. He said there were only four carvers there today--many folks have gone home for the Christmas holidays.

Since we didn't get our walk in this morning, we decided to take one this afternoon. It was a beautiful sunny day with temps in the low 60's. Shortly after we returned from our walk, John left to attend the Planning Committee meeting--he was appointed to that last spring before we went home to Minnesota for the summer. After such a busy day yesterday, it felt good to just have a quiet one today.


Sunday, December 12, 2010

With the temperature at 34 degrees, we had to bundle up for our morning walk--no shorts today. It was a beautiful day with bright blue skies, but it never got very warm--needed a sweater and long pants.

John and I had a rather full day. After breakfast it was off to church for Sunday service. A delicious potluck dinner followed--there were so many different casseroles, salads, and desserts. Everyone had plenty to eat, including us.

We were back home for only an hour when it was time to head out for the Christmas Tour of Homes. There were three homes on the tour and each was decorated with beautiful mementos, antiques, and art work along with many unusual Christmas decorations. After we visited the third home, we headed off to the Palisado Kitchen for refreshments. From there we went to the Kinney Country Museum where we saw many photos showing some of the history of Brackettville. We never realized this museum was right there in town--we'll be sure to stop back one day when we can spend more time looking at the exhibits.

After being on the go all day, it felt good just to spend a relaxing evening watching some TV and reading. To all our Minnesota friends and family - STAY WARM!!




Saturday, December 11, 2010

It was a perfect southwest Texas day--blue skies, sunshine, warm breezes and temps. We took a nice long walk this morning, just enjoying the beautiful morning. After breakfast we broke out the bread maker and made some homemade bread. We haven't had any for such a long time, so we decided that today was the day to make some--it sure tasted good with butter and homemade peach jam.

The weather forecast for next week is calling for the re
turn of cooler temps, so we decided to hit the Par 3 course again today while the weather was so nice. It's potluck Sunday at church tomorrow, so after our golf game, I baked a cake to take for the dinner.

This evening was the first annual Christmas parade here at the fort. Folks decorated their golf carts and drove them around some of the streets before
ending up at the front gate where people gathered for the lighting of the big Christmas tree. John, along with Dee Smith, were the parade judges--they had to decide which carts were the best decorated and pick first, second and third place winners. It was a difficult decision as some of the carts were very nicely decorated. On our way back home from the parade, we drove around several of the streets looking at the Christmas lights--some home are just amazing!



We just kicked back for the rest of the evening by watching some college basketball and John's favorite, The Outdoor Channel.

Friday, December 10, 2010

The temperature was about ten degrees warmer this morning and that sure made for a very enjoyable walk. As we wound away around the fort, we noticed that over the past couple of days folks have been busy getting their Christmas lights and decorations up. Here in Texas most wait until about two weeks before Christmas to get that done--in Minnesota, we put them up in October while it is still above freezing. Can't imagine putting up outside lights with two feet of snow on the ground and temps below zero.

Stan wanted some modification to the handle on the raffle cage, so after breakfast John went over to his house to get it and brought it back home. He th
en went to Jack's to make the part he needed, came home and painted it, and put it on the cage. The raffle cage is now back at Stan's, ready to be used.

We have a couple of bird feeders in the yard and over the past few days have had many doves coming to them. There have been some woodpeckers, too. It is fun to watch the birds feed and fight with each other over the seeds.


After lunch we went down to the Par 3 course and played some golf. I did pretty good on the first five holes, but after that, it was horrible. It still amazes me how you hit do so many good shots in a row, and then just hit all bad ones. I guess that is the mystery of golf.

We spent the rest of the afternoon and evening reading and watching a few TV shows--in other words, just "vegging out".

Thursday, December 9, 2010

It was a beautiful, but cool morning. We decided to take a different route for our walk and I think we covered well over four miles. Fall has come to the fort--many of the trees have lost or are losing their leaves and others have leaves that are changing colors. At home in Minnesota all the leaves were off the trees by the first week of October. It is amazing how the seasons are so different with each part of the country.

Today was the day we tackled the job of wet mopping our floor. We did it in sections, moving the furniture and doing one part, waiting for the
floor to dry, and then moving the furniture back in place before starting another area. It took us a little over an hour to get it done, but now the floor looks nice and shiny.

After lunch we went to the post office and mailed out our Christmas cards. Glad that job is finally done! Then it was on to the library to return some
books and pick out something new to read. We also made a trip to the Recycling Center--we had accumulated quite a bit to recycle
since we had some left from last spring.

John had started a new project in wood carvers--a snowman. He began it when he got down here and the other night he finished it up. We bought some paints the other day while we were in Del Rio so John could try his hand at painting his snowman. It looks real nice--he did a good job on it.



We spent a pretty quiet evening reading and watching the Colts and Titans. It gets dark so early now that we can't get outside after supper.




Wednesday, December 8, 2010

The colder weather is still hanging on--the temps were in the upper 30's when we left the house this morning for our walk and the daytime high was only in the low 60's. One good thing about the cooler weather, it makes you walk faster to get warmed up.

We were just finishing breakfast when Ralph Ramsey stopped in for a visit. He said he had been over to our place a couple of times, but we were never home. I couldn't visit very long as I had to pick up Lois Carlson for our Weight Watchers meeting.

Before the WW meeting, Lois and I went to Wal Mart (our usual stop each week) so she could pick up some cleaning supplies. I was on the lookout for a pair of heavier socks to wear for our morning walks and finally found some I think will work. While I was at the meeting, John went over to Metcalf's and did some jobs for Jan--he also delivered the completed raffle cage.

We spent the rest of the afternoon finishing up the Christmas cards--they are now ready to go to the post office--and doing a few odd jobs around the house. The evening was spent watching Survivor and the second hour of The Sing Off.

Tuesday, December 7, 2010

The weather was still chilly today and we had to bundle up a little more for our walk this morning. Once the sun rises, it helps to take the chill out of the air, and by the time we are finished our route, we are plenty warm.

John needed a latch for the raffle cage he has been making, so after breakfast we headed out to Del Rio and the Home Depot. We found a latch we thought would work, checked out, and then went across the street to Wal Mart where we picked up some milk and a few other things we needed.

When we got back home, John installed the latch, and fini
shed up the cage. I think it turned out pretty good.


With that project finished John worked on our golf--one of the front tires kept going flat. He removed the tire and took it into town to the repair shop. It was fixed within about 15 minutes, so now the golf cart is good to go. I spent the afternoon uploading pictures to Shutterfly and making our 2011 calendar. I have just a little more to do then I can order the calendar--I am running out of days before l will need it. We spent a quiet evening watching The Biggest Loser and some college basketball.


Monday, December 6, 2010

The cold front that came through the other night was still around today. It was 30 degrees this morning and the temps made it to only the low 60's by this afternoon. We didn't take our walk this morning as John had to be ready to leave the house by 7 a.m. Stan will be having surgery, so he asked John to help out with their newspaper--picking it up from the printer's in Hondo and delivering it to the different outlets in Uvalde and Del Rio. So today was the day for Stan to show John what needed to be done. John sure hopes he can remember everything.

Since John was gone all day, I did laundry and gave the house a good cleaning. I also got the Christmas cards ready to mail--just need to go to the
post office tomorrow and get some more stamps.

Late this afternoon Axis deer came into the yard. There several bucks and a set of twin fawns. They hung around for awhile before moving on acr
oss the road. We spent a rather quiet night watching Monday Night Football and working on the computer.



Sunday, December 5, 2010

Another cold front came through last night and even though the sun was shinning all day, the temps remained on the cool side. We got our morning walk done, ate breakfast, and then headed off to church. Since it was the first Sunday of the month, we had Communion. More of the winter Texans have returned, so attendance was up this morning. There will even more returning after Christmas.

Following the service, a group of us went to Julie's for dinner. They have an excellent buffet and the brisket was delicious. Sam Lark called when we g
ot home and asked if John could come over and help assemble his new electric fireplace. It went together pretty easily and Sam had it running in no time. While John was gone, I did some work on the finances and Christmas cards, and watched some NFL.

Over the past few days we have had three does come int
o the yard and bed down for the afternoon. I can walk out on the deck to photograph them and they don't even run off. They must know we are harmless.



All in all, it was a pretty quiet, relaxing day. We spent the evening watching The Amazing Race and Sunday Night Football.

Saturday, December 4, 2010

As we returned to the fort yesterday afternoon, we saw a sign advertising a moving sale for this morning. We found that the address was on our walking route, so we left the house a little earlier in order to reach the sale when it opened. There were several people at the sale when we got there, and after looking over everything, we decided there was nothing that we needed or could use. We continued our walk back home with empty hands and money in our pockets.

John spent his entire day making a raffle bin for Stan Metcalf. His friend, Jack Simpson, has some power tools, so John went over to his shop to cut out some of the parts he needed. I was called upon this afternoon to provide extra han
ds to help with some of the assembly. My day was spent writing our annual Christmas letter and working on the Christmas cards. Hopefully I will have them ready to be mailed this week. It always feels good to get that holiday job out of the way.

This morning John called to me to come outside and s
ee the tarantula that was sitting in the grass. Now, I'm not one of those people who freaks out over spiders (snakes are another matter), but I must say I approached this one with extreme caution. John wanted me to photograph it, so I used the telephoto lens to get a close up--there was no way I was going near it.


In between writing Christmas letters and building raffle bins, we managed see some of the college championship games. Tonight we watched the Nebraska and Oklahoma.

Friday, December 3, 2010

It's funny the way things work out sometimes. The repairman that was suppose to be here on Monday had called Wednesday and said he would be here to fix the dishwasher on Friday morning. Since he was coming from Del Rio, we thought that would be sometime between ten and noon, or even later. We had finished breakfast and John was just getting out of the shower, when I saw the service truck pull into the driveway. I warned John that we had company and let the guy in to fix the dishwasher. He must have left Del Rio at first light to be at our place before 9 a.m. It took about 15 minutes for him to replace the heating element and he was ready to go
.
As he was leaving, John asked him if he knew how we could check whether our golf cart charger was getting power. Clayton (we learned his first name by now) said he would be happy to check it out. He got out his testers and went to work. He ended up taking the charger apart and cleaning all the contacts and circuit board, and didn't see anything wrong with it. They reached the conclusion that the golf cart batteries need to run down more before the charger will kick in when plugged into the cart. Clayton suggested just running the cart for awhile and then try charging it. What a nice guy--John even called the appliance service center and told Clayton's boss what a good employee he had working for him.

After lunch we decided on a quick trip to Uvalde to look for a full length mirror for the bedroom and found exactly what we were looking for in Wal Mart. It was then back home to make a pasta salad. It was decided earlier in the week to have a condo party this afternoon to celebrate Jim Palmer's 85th birthday. We had a good turn out and fun visiting with folks who have just arrived back at the fort for the winter.

This evening John went with Stan into the school to watch the 7th graders play basketball. While he was gone, I caught up on emails and watched a little TV.


Thursday, December 2, 2010

Today was a perfect Texas winter day--blue skies, bright sunshine, and temps in the low 70's. Unfortunately, we couldn't take our walk this morning as we had to leave for Del Rio by 8:15. John was trading in the old golf cart batteries and they had to be at the shop in time to be picked up when the new batteries were delivered. When he dropped the batteries off, he was told the new ones should be there within the hour. We had many other errands to run, so that wasn't a problem.

Our first stop was Home Depot to pick up several items John needs to do a couple of jobs around the fort. Then we made a quick stop at Wal Mart and then headed to HEB for some groceries. By the time we were finished shopping, the
batteries were ready to be picked up.

While I put the groceries away, John worked on the golf cart. He cleaned under the seat where the batteries are stored--gave it a good scrubbing and then hosed it off. Then he installed the new ones and hooked up all the cables. Good news--the golf cart runs. Bad news--the charger still is not working.



John and I decided to give the golf cart a test drive to see how the new batteries made it run. We went over to Unit 37 to see the Sandwicks--they had been in Mexico the entire month of November. Their car was gone, so we kept going down the street and stopped in to visit with Chuck and Lois Endris. From there we made a quick stop at Wright's and then swung by Sandwick's again. We found them sitting on the patio visiting with their neighbor's. They had just returned from San Antonio. We stopped in to say a quick hello and then headed back home so John could eat supper before going to wood carvers. The golf cart ran like a charm--we just have to be able to recharge the batteries when they run down.


Wednesday, December 1, 2010

Brrrr!! It was a cold night with the low hitting 29 degrees. The temp reached 30 degrees by the time we took our walk around 7:15 a.m. John finally had to put long pants on--the shorts just wouldn't cut it this morning. We walked our shorter route as we both had things planned for today. This morning we had our first turkeys in the yard.


After breakfast, Stan Metcalf picked up John and they headed off to Del Rio. Stan knew a gentleman who runs towing and repair shop that might be able to help John with his battery problem. After some discussion, it was decided the ba
tteries were bad and he had to order new ones. They will be in tomorrow. (John got a tester and checked the batteries when he got home, and sure enough, they were all bad. The batteries are over five years old and that is about how long they last.) John will be delivering newspapers for Stan when he has his surgery, so today they went over the route in Del Rio so John will know where to take the papers. They also did some other errands and didn't get home until late in the afternoon.

While John was busy with Stan, Lois Carlson and I
went to Weight Watchers. Lois and her husband, John, are finishing up a remodeling job, so while we were in Del Rio we shopped for some light fixtures and mirrors. We stopped at Wendy's for some lunch and then hit Wal Mart for a few items we both needed.

Our neighbor, Neva, dropped in for a little visit after we got home and brought us a plate of homemade brownies. Every time she comes over she brings us some of her delicious baking--she is just the sweetest lady.

This evening we watched Survivor--can't believe two people quit with only 11 days left to go--and some other favorite TV shows. Also, completed the jigsaw puzzle.



Roofing Being Done Everywhere!!

John and I have been keeping pretty busy over these last several weeks.  Our weather has turned quite warm, but the nights cool down very ni...