Wed, Feb 25 - Virginia, Terecita and "the Girls"

Today I spent the afternoon with my oldest sister, Virginia in Azle, TX. We had lunch with my sister-in-law, Terecita and my two nieces, Elisha & Bianca. It was certainly great to see them all again and under much happier circumstances the last time we were together - which was at my brother's (Richard) memorial (their husband & Dad)) in Dec. They all looked terrific and we had a great visit; at least I did & hope they did as well.

After lunch I went to Virginia's for a few hours. it was great to be able to spend some quiet, down time with her. I used to spend a lot of time at her house when I was a kid. Then that evening, I dropped by David & Elisha's (my niece) to see their new baby, Kody, and the rest of the kids, Kaitlyn & Blake. Bianca (another niece, Elisha's sister) was there so I was able to see her daughter, Madisyn for a bit too.

Bianca, Terecita & Virginia

Raymona (obviously NOT at my best),
Blake, (7 yrs) &
Kody (8 weeks, Elisha's two boys)

Kaitlyn (2.5 yrs, Elisha's daughter) &
Madisyn (6 yrs, Bianca's Daughter)

Elisha & Kody

Feb 23-27 Visiting Bryan's Family

We have spent the last week visiting with Bryan's Mom, Irene, sister, Anita, her husband Jay & their two kids, Melanie (2 yrs) & Julie (3 wks). It's been great to see them all again and to meet baby Julie. She is just a doll with big ol' cheeks - very sweet temperament. Melanie has grown ALOT since I saw her last (Christmas 2007) when she was just a year old. She is talking up a storm (some of which I can understand) and has the curliest head of hair (she was pert near bald a year ago). haha

It's been a fairly quiet week. Just sitting around the house visiting with the family & playing with the kids and Hannah & Maggie. Too bad they are still so young and Melanie is still so young, she's a bit leery of them and they are a bit too wild for her still. We've made a trip to Breckenridge Park, just a few blocks away to feed the ducks and also to a local elementary school to let Melanie play on the playsets there. Lots of fun - Hannah & Maggie were mesmerized by all the kids and implements of play there are.

A full five days here and Bryan has only had to fix one screen & a park bench that the pups tore & chewed up, and we had to replace one ball that they got a hold of... I think its great that's all the damage they've done but Bryan is ready to string them up by their little tails.

Anita and Melanie at the swings

Grandma (Irene) & Julie

Uncle Bryan & Melanie

Anita, Melanie, Uncle Bryan and Grandma

Baby Julie & Anita

We are camped at Lake Lavon near Wylie, TX in the East Fork campground. A fantastic Army Corps of Engineers park right on the lake. We are in site 39 and really surprised at how large the sites are and how spacious each one is. We have a terrific view of & easy access to the lake. It is only about 9 miles from Anita & family in Richardson.

Maggie & Hannah as Lake Lavon campground

Camp site #39 at East Fork campground
at Lake Lavon

We leave tomorrow (Saturday) for Monahans Sand Dunes and points south & west.

Feb 22 - Visiting Scott & Family

Today we spent the day with my nephew, Scott & his wife, Dee Dee & their kids. It was a great visit (we thought anyway) and fun to see Kayli & Kale. We went to breakfast at a local Sanger, TX hangout, called Old West - TERRIFIC breakfasts!!!!! I had the Train Robber Breakfast Burrito and still have half of it left! It was just amazing and oh so good, smothered in queso! YUMMY!!!

Train Robber at Old West

After Breakfast we headed back to the house for a bit to let the puppies & poor Rowdy run off some steam. They certainly had fun chasing Rowdy (Kayli's cockapoo) around the yard & sliding down the slide (with a little assistance getting to the top). And they really liked it when Kayli brought out treats to share. We took a quick tour of Lake Ray Roberts and checked out future camping sites then headed to dinner at Texas Roadhouse.

Tomorrow we pack up and head to Lavon Lake near Wylie, TX to visit with Bryan's family in Richardson.

Maggie, Hannah & Rowdy

Kayli & Scott

Maggie getting ready to slide

Maggie sliding

Rowdy on the slide

Hannah getting ready to slide

Hannah sliding

Kale

Dee Dee & Kale

Dee Dee, Kale (4 mos), Scott & Kayli (5 yrs)

Feb 20-21 - Sanger, TX and Ardmore, OK

Feb 20 - After driving through Caprock Canyons State Park, we headed east with a STRONG, STRONG southern wind blowing - great fun driving an RV in gale winds. Poor Bryan. We left the Quitaque around 11 AM and made it into Sanger at 5 PM. About what we had planned, although we made several short stops this time around.

Day 2 Route
(remember you can click on any image to enlarge)

We drove through Turkey, TX (see photo below) and saw camels just outside of Vernon (we think, we really can't remember). Overall it was a very uneventful trip - just lots and lots of cross-wind that Bryan had to fight the whole way.

Downtown, Turkey, Texas

Traveling is such hard work

Camels - hard to take a photo at 65 mph
There were about 5 and then further
along we a few more.

We are camped about 1/4 mile from my nephew's house (Scott), at the Wagon Master RV Resort. This photo is "courtesy" their website, www.wagonmasterrvpark.com and doesn't look at green right now. It is a nice campground, typical of a private rv park. However, we both agree the sites are pretty spacious for a private RV park - very well spaced apart, although there isn't anything inbetween the sites so there isn't much privacy. Also looks like several of the rigs hae been here a while, all are very well maintained and clean.

Wagon Master RV Resort, Sanger, Texas

Dee Dee had to work late so after we set up at camp, we headed to their house to use their shower and let the puppies play in their back yard. Once Dee Dee got home we rounded up the kids and went to a great Mexican food place called Ernesto's on the other side of Lake Ray Roberts. Very tasty.

Feb 21 - Dee Dee had to work today (Saturday) so we decided to meet up with my sister, Iwona and her clan in Ardmore, OK. We'd planned to spend the whole day but they had a family 'crisis' to deal with on Donald's side so we were only able to visit for a couple of hours over breakfast. It was great to see them all again, my nephew Damon came too (and bought us all breakfast, thank you very much) whom I hadn't seen in YEARS!!! And my niece Brandy came with her five kiddos (well, three of them are in their late teens so maybe they aren't kiddos anymore) and I hadn't seen Brandy in ages either! It was GREAT to see them all and see how grown the kids are. A great highlight was being able to meet finally meet Rainie & Stormye (3 yrs old), my twin great-nieces that Brandy is trying to adopt (its a long sordid family story that I might share someday - but suffice it to say those kids are in the best of hands with Brandy. They are thriving!!!) and of course to see my three other great-nieces that Donald & Iwona are trying to adopt as well. I just can't believe how grown up Brandy's three kids are - Cody is 18, Katherine is 17 and Victoria is 16 - holy moley, I feel OLD!!!

Below is a photo of all of us, sans Damon, he escaped before I got a group shot.

Here's a breakdown:

(l-r) Victoria (16), Friend, Katherine (17) and Cody (18)

Rainie (3), Brandy (38), Stormye (3) and Kennedie (6)

Kennedie (6), Iwona (sister, and I wouldn't dare tell), Seana (8)

Donald (again, not telling) &
Damon (not sure, but younger than me & Brandy)

Seana, Donald, Damon, Bryan, me, Peyton (11) and Rainie

Feb 19-20 - First Stop: Caprock Canyons State Park, Texas

Feb 19 - Today we helped get Grandma set up with a home nurse and got Grandpa scheduled to see his physical therapist, made a call to Phillips Lifeline to get them both the "life alert" type system and hit the road around 1 PM (MST). Our first stop (after filling up with diesel in Portales) was Caprock Canyons & Trailways State Park in Quitaque (prounounced kitty-qway), Texas - well we may have had a couple bathroom stops before we got there, but that was our first overnight stop.

We decided, since we still aren't working, to take a road trip back to Texas to see Bryan's new neice, Julie and my new great-nephew, Kody, along with all the other family members there. Grandpa's scare got me to Pep ahead of schedule but now we are back on track. The plan flucuates slightly (Caprock was a last minute addition) but the plan is/was to go to Sanger, TX for a few days to see my nephew, Scott, & his family, take day trip up to Oklahoma to see my sister, Iwona and her clan and then head over to Lavon Lake near Wylie, TX to camp while we visit Bryan's Mom & sister (& her family) in Richardson. While there, I'll venture out to visit another sister, Virginia in Azle, and my niece Elisha & her new baby in Lake Worth. After we've had our fill of family, we'll head south (for a change of scenery) to Big Spring, on to El Paso, Las Cruces, NM, Elephane Butte Lake, and then home. At least that's the plan thus far.

Total Route Map as of Feb 20
(remember you can click on any image to enlarge it)

Feb 19's Route Map to Caprock Canyons

Caprock Canyons State Park is a really nice park - the camping sites (at least the RV ones) are terrific - HUGE spaces, with lots of privacy. There are sites with eletric and water hookups (some are 30 amps & others are 50 amps). Prices seem reasonable - $15 for 30 amp and $20 for 50 amp service. We were/are a bit confused about the Day Use fee - it seems you need to pay it even if you pay for camping but... its confusing. Maybe you don't have to... Anyway, we made online reservations for a 30 amp site but got in late and set up in a 50. We went back the next day to pay but they said to forget it. The picnic tables are covered with a wind break & are on a cement pad, there is a pole to hang up your lanterns. There is also a fire-ring but I cannot imagine there ever being a time you could have an open fire in that area. It just seems WAY to dry. There is a nice bathhouse with showers too. Down side to the sites - grass-burrs, stickers to you Texans. Lots of them. This is the first time Hannah & Maggie have encountered stickers and they are not fans. It's almost funny to watch them, they don't really know how to pull them out, so they stand there on three legs, then try to stand on two because ALL their feet have stickers. Eventually they just sit until one of us rescues them.

Feb 20 - Caprock Canyons State Park is also home to the official Texas state bison herd. However, we only saw a few of the bulls and that was from a distance. This parks hosts miles & miles of hiking, biking & equestrian trails. Unfortunately our time here was short and we only saw what we could see from the scenic drive. Maybe we can come back sometime and explore more. Spring & Fall are said to be the best times to visit.

Hannah, Raymona & Maggie, camp site 27

Campsite 27

Start of the scenic driveThere is a small "lake" (Lake Theo) located within the park (that I neglected to get a photo of) and at the visitor center there were photos of fish hooked from there that were huge!!! Lots of tent camping in very scenic locations, the RV campsites weren't scenic but private.

Hannah & Maggie Playing on the bed

Camping is exhausting!!!

It took us about 5 hours to get to Caprock from Pep. Some of the drive was boring but once we got to the edge of the caprock the scenery really improved.

Feb 16 - Ready To Roll, Got our Travelin' Shoes On

Well Hannah figured out she can get in the chair. And Bryan got the camper (& puppies) ready for our trip...

At their vet appt on Friday, 2/13, they weighed in at 21.8 lbs (Hannah) and 22.8 lbs (Maggie) - at 13 weeks old.

Feb 14 - Another Grandpa Report

What a Happy Valentine's Day today is!!

The mass they removed came back benign - well, they didn't say "benign" they said "it looked good" so we are assuming benign's the word to use - no cancer at any rate! YIPPEE & praise the Lord!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

All of Grandpa's doctors have released him except for the lung doctor. We are hoping that we hear from him today. Lung Doc took another set of chest x-rays this morning so we are waiting on those results. Grandpa's hospitalist said that if the lung doc released him then he could go home today... So we are hoping we see the lung doctor early enough today to get Gramps home. Otherwise, maybe tomorrow. Grandpa thought he was a bit better today than yesterday. He sure looks great!

Grandma is really sick, a nasty sounding cold which I'm sure she got from this ice-box where she's been staying (hospital room). A woman staying with her husband next door to grandpa's room sounds as bad. Brenda & Les are going to take her on home today since it seems like Grandpa is going to get released today or tomorrow. Grandma needs to get home & in bed. At least her legs aren't as swollen as they have been.

When Grandpas is released I'll drive him home in Mom & Dad's car and Mom & Dad will follow with their 5th wheel.

That's the news for now.

Feb 12 - Grandpa Report - GREAT NEWS

Grandpa's surgeon just came out of surgery and said that Grandpa came through with flying colors - they did not have to crack open his chest!! YEA!!!! Said the mass (we'll find out in a day or two if it is cancerous) was in his neck and a softball sized lump in his chest that had pushed his heart & lungs off to the right-hand side. But they were able to pull it all through the incision on his neck. Hopefully this will help his errartic heartbeat and troubled breathing. His surgeon said that if it wasn't for his heart he would release Grandpa tomorrow but wants to leave that up to the cardiologist.

Praise the Lord and the power of prayer (and good doctros)!!!!!! Thanks for all your prayers and good thoughts. He 'ain't out of the woods' yet but hopefully well on his way to the meadow. :-) Keep on praying!!!

Feb 11 - Grandpa Report

The cardiologist couldn't get the scope down Grandpa's throat. It was too contricted due to the mass. They wanted to take a look behind his heart before they did the 'heart shock' in order to make sure there weren't any blood clots. But since they couldn't scope it, they decided to just not do the heart shock. However, they are still planning on doing the surgery to remove the mass.

The anetheisiologist came in to talk to Grandpa and she is a bit concerned about the constriction - his esophagus & trachea is pushed off to the right side, it looks like THAT lump is the tumor but the mass is actually on the left side of his neck. She indicated that they might even have to do the (I have no idea how to spell this & I'm too lazy to look it up - sorry) tracheotomy if they can't intubate him tomorrow.

We are all praying his heart rate slows with whatever medication the docs gave him and that this all goes well. Hopefully, they will be able to remove the mass without having to crack his breastbone. That sure would make his recovery faster.

Please keep praying for him.

Feb 9 - Grandparent Update

First (as I've gotten questions), I didn't contact WMR today to check on Pressie - I'll give them a call tomorrow to see if she was adopted and if not, to let them know we won't be able to pick her up for fostering for a while.

Now for the grandparents....

Grandpa was sent to Covenant Hospital in Lubbock, TX this morning for more testing on the mass they found in his neck & chest cavity. The doctors were hoping to do an biopsy of the mass, which is pushing his esophagus & trachea off to one side and pushing down on his lungs & heart; however, due to his age (he'll be 92 in August) they are hesitant to do the biopsy. One of the radiologists that read his CAT scan thought it was a goiter, while the another thought it was something worse (as in cancer). His heart is also beating WAY to fast (it was 125 bpm when he headed to Lubbock) and they cannot get it to slow down, he also has a low white blood count. So things aren't looking great. We'll know more tomorrow as they have a few tests they can run on the mass instead of the biopsy. He will also be looked over by a cardiologist since the Portales, NM docs think he suffers from congestive heart failure (CHF) and/or something called A-Fib (I guess is how you'd spell it), where his upper heart beats really irregular and doesn't allow the blood to flow properly.

Grandma (she's 87) isn't faring much better - she suffers from diabetes and has for years, her legs have been swelling and last weekend one actually split and leaked fluid for about 18 hours (of course you couldn't get her to the emergency room at all). A few years ago she had to have a pacemaker which has helped a lot but recently she has been short of breath; today she went to her heart doctor today and he said that she too suffers from CHF & A-Fib and that is a large contribution to her fluid retention. This doc put her on oxygen full-time and wants to see her back in 5 weeks unless her leg bursts again... then she has to go to the emergency room immediately. She went on to Lubbock to be with Grandpa, the doctor that put in her pacemaker is also Grandpa's cardiologist now so he will check them both out while they are there.

We should know more in the next couple of days, I guess. My parents were going to pull their 5th wheel to Lubbock for Grandpa's hospital stay but the doc there said not to just yet, as there may not be anything they can do and will just send him home in a day or so. We are hoping the mass is just a goiter that can be treated in Clovis with radiation. But my family, being my family... we worry that it's going to be the worse option.

Please keep them both in your thoughts and prayers, they certainly need it.

Feb 8 - Family Updates

Today is my Mother-in-Law's birthday!! Happy Birthday Irene!! She says she isn't doing much since she is helping Anita take care of the new baby.

Yesterday I was going to volunteer at the Watermelon Mountain Ranch adoption event at Oakwood Homes, & take in Pressie to see if she could find her forever home. But at 9 AM we got a call from my parents and my Grandpa was admitted to the hospital in Portales. He was having trouble breathing and was so weak that he couldn't get out of bed at home. They called an ambulance and he was brought in to the emergency room. He has been diagnosed with congestive heart failure and they found a lump on his throat which could be contributing to his choking whenever he eats anything. Anyway, he will have CAT scan this afternoon and hopefully we'll know more tomorrow.

We dropped Pressie off at the adoption event and headed on to Portales. We'll probably head home tomorrow or Tuesday morning. I'm too scared to call WMR to see if Press was adopted or not - not sure how I'll feel either way. Happy she found a home I'm sure but very sad, and if she didn't then a bit bummed that she didn't find a home. Poor baby, i just cried when we dropped her off. My sister, Shirley, & her husband is moving to ABQ and said they would take her once they get in town.

Kody's Quilt

Great-Aunt Mona & Kody's quilt

Whew - finally, and only 1 month and a couple days late. :-) I've finished Kody's (my newest great-nephew) quilt. I tried a new pattern for me that contained triangles and well... I need practice with lining up triangles, the corners aren't so good but unless you really look hard, the oopsies are hard to see.

Anyway, it was a fun one to make and now I'm off to the next one.

Here's some pics.

Quilt back