Christmas 2017

We had a great time over the holidays with the kids, grand kids and Judy at Kyle and Heather's in Houston. The weather turned cold and windy but not nearly as cold as Michigan! Can't believe we did not get a family picture during the whole time we were together - just this one of the pajama family!

The girls broken bones are healed and they are off to Disney World tomorrow morning.  Samantha has a "knee scooter" so she can keep up in the park. Judy left for Dallas this morning to spend New Year's with Mel and Ray and their family - then she is off to Arizona. We heading to Florida and hopefully, warmer weather!

Newman's Castle

I enjoyed "The Nutcracker Ballet" with Emily's Girl Scout troop - all the girls dressed up in their cute Christmas dresses. They earn a special badge by learning "theater etiquette." Unfortunately, the rules book made no mention of not giggling at the male dancers "bum" in his tight leotards!

Judy and Marilou arrived in Houston Thursday night and this is what they brought with them.....

Heather took Samantha to school and several kids, teachers and even the principal were out front having a snowball fight. Poor Samantha with her crutches was a non-threatening target!

We had a fun family day yesterday at Newman's Castle, in Bellville. It was built by a rather eccentric man that owns the local bakery. You make a reservation for the tour but have to stop at the bakery in town to get the directions to its secret location. Brilliant marketing! The tour includes his story telling, lunch and time to wander around and explore the castle and grounds. There is a drawbridge, a courtyard, a dungeon, a great hall and of course a bell tower. He actually lives there. The kids were all given swords to slay the dragons and he gets some of the tourists to participate in the stories. It was a pretty day to be out and about.

Kyle helping to raise the drawbridge!

Happy Birthday, Emily!

Emily's 9th birthday turned into a 3 day celebration over the week-end. Family dinner, friend party and cupcakes for her class on Monday - she'd make it a national holiday if she could!

Her birthday party was at an art studio where all the guests got to paint a picture. Emily chose a jellyfish - a fun project!

The Liskow Orthopedic Clinic

It has been an eventful October for Kyle and Heather. Emily fell off the monkey bars at school and broke her leg - up by her knee - and was in a full leg cast for 6 weeks. The day after she got her cast off and a knee brace applied, Samantha fell at gymnastics and broke her ankle! Heather said she felt like they passed the crutches like a baton in a relay race! Unfortunately, Samantha's injury required day surgery to place 2 pins to stabilize her ankle. Her surgery was on Halloween - she recovered well and went back to school today. It won't be easy - 8 weeks of non-weight bearing and then a boot. But, she is resilient and will manage OK. Long rehabs before they get to resume swimming and gymnastics!

Emily getting her cast off

Samantha had ankle surgery on Halloween

We were planning to leave Michigan on Halloween and were beginning to pack the motor home but, when we heard about Samantha's surgery we rushed to leave early and be there to help. On Saturday, right before we left, I went out on the deck and commented "the leaves are really slippery" - before the words were out of my mouth I had fallen on my butt! Ortho injury #3! But, nothing broke thank goodness - just bruised and sore!

Between the pouring down rain and Samantha's surgery Halloween wasn't as fun as usual. Emily said "first my sister has surgery and then it rains on my second most favorite holiday! Ugghh!"

Autumn 2017

We have been busy trying to finish house projects before we leave for the winter. It has been a lovely fall but it is getting cooler by the day.

The back of our house from the river

We just happened to see this deer soaking in the river!

Judy, Marilou and I went to Chicago the see "Motown the Musical." A fun overnight and a great play!

Carlos and Megan came for Jay's "Celebration of Life" - despite the reason we enjoyed their visit. They helped Roger clean up the trees he has cleared in the back yard and then we went kayaking down the river into Grand Lake.

David James "Jay" Burley - 1961-2017

Our nephew Jay passed away on September 21, 2017 from liver cancer - originally diagnosed with ocular melanoma. At 56 years old it was a life cut way to short. He loved cars and golf but most of all his family Kim and Ryan. We helped them move back to Jackson shortly before he died so they are closer to family as they move forward. Remembering many good times....RIP Jay.

Penny, Heather, Jay, Megan and Missy before Carlos and Megan's wedding

Busy Summer!

We have had a busy summer - working hard to settle in and make our new house our "home" - at least for the summer. Our friends, Mike and Lorraine spent the summer in Michigan and visited for a few days in their motor home. They pitched in and helped us in so many ways we can't begin to thank them enough! Mike helped Roger rebuild the landing from the garage into the house and Lorraine dived into landscaping the front yard! We got rid of the tree that was over powering the front door and planted a Japanese Maple and some new shrubs. Love the new look!

Mike, Lorraine and Mauer

Roger sold the enclosed trailer that we used to move and bought a tractor to "groom" the driveway and clear the woods around the house. Think they will be ongoing tasks! Good thing he enjoys the outside work.

Fall is in the air - 40's in the mornings and 70's in the afternoon. The trees are turning colors. Love this time of year but a little "chilly" for me!

We plan to return to Texas in November. Houston has suffered a lot of devastation from hurricane Harvey and the campgrounds are full. We are on a waiting list, for December, for the one near Kyle and Heather. Their subdivision was untouched by the storm - we are so thankful for their good fortune! Samantha and Emily are finally starting school tomorrow - they are ready! In the meantime we will stay in San Antonio. We are planning on spending the winter in Florida - if Florida is still there after hurricane Irma!

Our New Home!

I am behind on my posts because we bought a house in Michigan and have been busy moving! The end of an era - 10 years traveling the country - but, we are ready to have a more permanent place during the summers. We will still follow the sun in the winter and of course, Texas will always be our second home! We have absolutely loved the "full time" life style and have enjoyed so many wonderful adventures that this decision is somewhat "bittersweet." But, life follows different paths as we age and we know we will be content with the move.

Kyle, Heather, Samantha and Emily were here for this past week. We took the girls camping at Higgins Lake State Park and canoeing down the AuSauble River with Ray and Mel; Judy and Marilou; and our friends Mike and Lorraine from Arizona while Kyle and Heather enjoyed a few days in Traverse City. Even though they are city kids, the girls love camping, the outdoors and family game time! Lorraine plays the guitar so we even had a sing-a-long around the campfire!

We are still in a state of "flux" with half our things in the motor home and half somewhere in the house! The painter is still finishing the trim and inside walls so all the furniture is in the middle of the rooms. The kids were a god send in helping to unload the motor home and organize my pantry and make-up!

The excitement came when we returned home from camping and the big slide motor died so we could not extend the slide in the motor home. Consequently, we could not get any of our clothes, shoes, etc out of the closets or do any laundry. I wore the same outfit 3 days in a row! We had to go shopping for underwear and outfits for the girls!

Samantha Kate - 11

Emily Grace - 8

Kyle, Heather and the girls on the back deck

The girls having fun in our big swing!

EAA Adventure Oshkosh

Blue Angels F 18's

The Experimental Aircraft Association sponsors the largest airshow in the United States every July in Oshkosh, Wisconsin. Considering all the years we lived in Michigan and Roger's love of airplanes why have we never gone to it?! It was awesome!

We met our friends, Mike and Lorraine (Mike is a pilot too!) and spent two full days walking around the grounds and didn't begin to see all the airplanes and displays. The Navy's Blue Angels and several other aerobatic stunt flyers performed each afternoon plus many of the old "war birds" flew overhead in formation. The night time aerobatic displays were amazing - fire in the sky!

It was great that Mike and Roger got to go together because they talk the same airplane language! I don't know much about all the different planes but I sure can appreciate the talent, skill and dedication that the many volunteers share and put into building, restoring and maintaining this huge fleet of aircraft. Not to mention the owners and the money involved!
Hard to get good pictures - they are moving pretty fast!!

The Blue Angels in formation

Roger in front of the new fighter - the F-35. Notice the female pilot climbing out of the cockpit! Girl power!

The plane has multiple cameras and the pilots wear $400,000 helmets that allow them to see 360 degrees! 

1940 era B 29's fully restored

Buda by the Pool

Our whole family spent this past week-end in Houston at Kyle and Heather's. Heather, Carlos and Megan went to Home Goods to look at patio furniture for Megan and Carlos. They came back without furniture for them but with a 300 pound cement Buda to "guard" Kyle and Heather's pool!

Carlos and two hefty employees at Home Goods got it into the car but getting it out and to the backyard was another problem! Lots of pondering to formulate a plan, 4 men and a ramp plus our "dolly" finally got her to her new home! She's really perfect for their new backyard!

Aunt MeMe

Life is always fun for Samantha and Emily when Aunt MeMe visits! This past week-end she came bearing a huge pool float and hair dye! Samantha now has bright pink highlights, Emily has aqua tips from her ears down and Megan has an under layer of bright blue!

Tobin Hill Townhome

We have been in Texas for the month of May finalizing the sale of the townhouse in San Antonio. The end of an era! After operating it as a vacation rental for 10 years we decided it was time to "move on." We plan to buy/build a summer home in Michigan. Since we don't want to stay in "hot" Texas during the summer and Austin with Megan and Carlos or Houston with Heather and Kyle were not good options for us - Michigan with family and friends makes the most sense. We will still "follow the sun" and spend fall and spring in Texas and someplace warm for the winter. We are not ready to quit RV'ing but just a natural progression to "stay put" for longer periods of time.

We calculated all of our options for moving - a moving company, a U-Haul truck, or pods - and decided it was more cost effective to buy an enclosed trailer and store our "stuff" in it until we are ready to move into whatever we end up with! So, we are the proud owners of a 8x16 trailer crammed full of most of our earthly belongings!

We don't close on the townhouse until July 10th but figure we can do that by email or overnight delivery. Anxious to get out of the heat in Texas and to begin our search for a house or property in Michigan. Beginning a new chapter in our lives!

Mother's Day 2017

Kyle is out of town on business so we spent Mother's Day with Heather. Roger and the girls made us a nice brunch on the patio and then we went to see Cirque du Soleil's "Kurios" in the afternoon.

The name of this particular show is "Kurios" or "Cabinet of Curiosities." For anyone that has never been to a Cirque du Soleil performance there is no way to describe the unique circus acts. The costumes, the set, the imaginative routines and the incredible talent of the acrobats is utterly amazing! We were WOWED! A fun family time for Mother's Day!

The only sad part of the day was the Spurs game - they lost by 2 points!

Hanging out in Texas

We have been in Texas - San Antonio, Austin and Houston - since the middle of April. Having fun spending time with family and friends.

Samantha had a gymnastics meet in San Antonio during Fiesta. Carlos and Megan joined us on Saturday and we went to the King William Fair then the meet on Sunday morning. Heather and Emily spent the night at NASA with her Girl Scout Troop.

Samantha, in the middle, and team mates

It was nice to see Kyle, Rachel and Avery last Saturday for dinner. What a cutie Avery is!!

Last Sunday both the girls scout troops hosted a Mother's Spa Day at Heather's house. All the girls made brown sugar scrub for their Moms and gave them foot, hand and shoulder massages and did their nails. The Mom's enjoyed fruit, veggies and cupcakes while waiting for their "appointment." It was really nice!

Girl Scouts on Spa Day

Kyle and Heather just put in a new swimming pool and are in the midst of landscaping their back yard. Glad it is warm enough to enjoy!