Stars Align

Once in a blue moon, stars align perfectly:

*Camera batteries charged 
*Lighting (not too bright, not too dark) 
*Little to no wind
*Suitable background 
*Kids in clean clothes 

Madi, age 10, favorite Christmas toy:  BB Gun

Mollie-claire, age 6, favorite Christmas toy: BB Gun

Bode, age 19 months, favorite Christmas toy: Buzz LightYear ("umbuzz")





   

Giving Thanks 2011

I am thankful
for:

long naps...

sea birds...

hot tubs...

good food...

happy girls....

ocean views...

cheddar crackers..

  warm weather...

ferry rides...

 salt water...

& sandy castles.

Ocean Photo Shoot

 Midday sun was too bright...


November wind was too gusty...


I think a few of these are keepers anyway.  Or, maybe I just love the setting?

Endless Summer

The calendar may read November, but when the weather man predicts 85 degrees all weekend, it's another beach day for sure.  


With our spring suits, the water was just right.  The girls boogie boarded for awhile, while I surfed.  I can say that legitimately now, since I am off my knees and on my feet for more than half of the ride. 


I read an article the other day that claimed surfing starts out innocently enough, just like any other hobby.  A few sporadic weekend trips, then the occasional call in sick to work when the waves are good, then you lose your job, marriage, and wind up as a beach bum (the sad kind).


I can totally see how that happens.

A Weekend with GG

Looks simple, right?  Fried chicken, green beans, and mashed potatoes and gravy, compliments of GG. She made this for us during our "back to school" weekend.  I tried to make myself pay close attention to the dipping in milk, dusting in flour, and the frying of the chicken so I could duplicate this meal.  I have tried and I still don't get it.  The crust does not stick to the chicken, and it takes me so long to cook, that people lose interest, the potatoes go cold, and the beans turn soggy.   If I had to choose a last meal, it would be GG's Sunday Supper.    

The girls needed some school clothes so GG was ready to hit the mall with them.  South Padre Island Drive is the road we take to go to the beach, but right before you take the bridge to the sea, you pass two malls, tons of restaurants (like Crab Shack, Grimaldi's, and PF Changs), and all my weakness stores like Marshall's, Ross, Academy, and Target.

We sped through the mall as if we were being timed (or was it because Jonathan was there)?  He is not exactly the best shopper.  The amount of people you have to deal with (at any mall) scares him, and then throw in the fact that it was Tax-Free weekend, all this was almost too much for him.  There were lines just to get into the dressing rooms.  I tried to talk the girls into changing in a hidden corner of the store, but Madi is a rule-follower and wasn't having any of it.  By the time we scored the necessary bargains, J was close to a nervous break-down.  We deceded upon TGIFridays.  I tried to talk GG into splitting a drink with me, so we could better deal with Jonathan, but he vetoed before I could order one.  We told him to just put the mall behind him and try to relax.  He just needed a good lunch and some beach time.

We took the ferry to Port Aransas, drove up on the beach, and all was finally as it should be for Jonathan - no other humans for at least 40 feet.  We boogie boarded long enough to work up an appetite for Mexican food.  MC starts craving queso each weekend afternoon around 4:30 and then starts her campaign to shoot down anyone else's dinner suggestions.  We caved and wound up at a very interesting place in Port A.  We kept ourselves entertained watching the reactions of the other diners as they spotted the lady wearing only her swim suit, no cover-up, no shorts, no shoes.  We are all about self-confidence, but realized that modesty is a very good thing too (as we tried to eat our food with a straight face).  At one point, I caught the eye of some of the family members at a table across from us.  We all burst out laughing and could not stop.    

It's time for another race through mall like we only have 20 minutes-try to score a drink at Fridays-Sunday afternoon chicken dinner- weekend, GG.  We are ready whenever you are!                                        

Cousins, Coastline, & Crab Shack

Since our move to South Texas on August 1st, we have made the trek (55 minutes) to Corpus Christi every weekend, to check out the beaches.  Rockport was suggested a couple of times, so we tried it first.  The town was adorable shops, like the Funky Zebra, quaint restaurants, and a beach with almost zero waves ~ perfect for little kids.  The water seems to be about knee deep for miles and was pretty clear, as far as Texas beaches go.  I developed a small crush on a kite board and could not focus on anything my family said to me when this contraption was in the water.  I fought the urge to ask the rider, "Can I try it really quick?"  (Name that movie).  Rockport, while precious, was not quite right.  As Mollie says, "we need more undertow."

As we headed back towards Corpus, I conviced J-Train to let us take the ferry to Port Aransas.  He was not down with the 45 minute wait, but cooperated.  Once across and driving around the island, he turned and said something that I rarely get the chance to hear.  He said, "You were right.  It was worth the wait."  Now that we are practically locals, we know the back way in and do not even have to ride the ferry over.  Port A is more like college town meets beach, with cheap divey-like restaurants and decent waves.  You see schools of mullet (the silver fish that jump straight up and out of the water as if they are trying to get away from something) following the crest of the waves and wonder how they do not run into people.  It's going to happen, sooner or later - one of us is going to get a mullet across the face.  Right before we left, J-Train got his crush.  It was a yellow kayak.  He could not take his eyes off of it, and has been fantasizing about how amazing it will be to throw it into the ocean, paddle out, cast his pole in, and fish for speckled trout and redfish.

The next weekend we met the cousins at Mustang Island, where the girls had big fun.  They boarded, sand-castled, and mermaided their little hearts out.  We ended the night at The Crab Shack, our new post beach tradition (now that we have done this twice).  Saturday, Madi ordered the crab and Mollie shared with me.  So, there we were, all three of us, bibs on, clackers clacking, and crab shell flying everywhere.  I have converted the girls, but J-Train refuses to eat them, claiming that crab and lobster are the "cockroaches of the sea." 
He watches way too much Discovery channel.

It's Like Playing Cards with my Brother's Kids....or, Fishing at Roaring River State Park

I am proud of this picture, not that I did anything other than push the button.  This is the cave at the end of the sidewalk which winds around the trout hatchery at Roaring River in Cassville, Mo. 


This is where the mammoth trout hang out, right at the mouth of this cave.  You can buy feed for 50 cents and toss it at them, as if they need more food they don't have to work for.

 This is the view of the hatchery, where they raise a gazillion trout per second by injecting the females with oxygen & then squeezing the males.  In my brain, I still had questions as to how exactly these two separate processes made baby trouts, but thought if the girls were ok with this explanation, then I would be too.

 This is how I spent a good day and a half, watching trout gather around my lure, roll their eyes, and swim away (or not).   Not that I'm complaining.  I could hang out in these surroundings for about a day and half without becoming totally impatient about no fishes on the end of my line.

 Ahhh...they almost look like they did not fight all the way up the serene mountain to the lookout spot and then pose sweetly, for another picture that looks like they are precious angels to each other all the time.

MC is a mini-me.  She fished and fished and fished, looking for that perfect spot, trying to cast into any spot that screams "do not cast here - you will get hung up - & then, someone will have to stop fishing to put another lure on for you, after they warned you to not cast near the tree."

Her first cast, she reeled this in before Jonathan and I had even lugged the rest of the stuff down to the bank.  At this point, we were excited to think that the rest of us would soon be pulling in our limit.  This was beginner's luck or the slowest trout in the river, we realized later.  

You could see tens of trout at each little stretch, you could throw out tens of various lures on top of their heads.  They would look, smell, roll their eyes, and continue on their way or stare you down.  Not fair!  We had followed all the rules and regulations at the park which varied depending on which bait store clerk you spoke with.




Actual quotes from locals:


"If you are going to keep fish, you have to buy one of our stringers for $5.  If not, you don't need one.  But, if you catch and release and a fish does not make it, (and you are caught) you can be fined $500."

"The new game warden is a real young gung-ho guy.  Just keep your head down, sign your permit. If you don't, he asks you if you need a pen, and whatever you do, do NOT crack any jokes." 

"No live bait can be used in zones 1 and 2, only zone 3."  So, we ask where zone 3 is and he says, "it's impossible to get to, snakey, and not good for kids." 

Jonathan had the pleasure of re-luring the girls' lines every ten minutes and I think he only wound up actually catching one fish.  If Johnny is not catching fish, something's off, in my experience.  You look around at the 75 people crowding around the 50 ft stretch of zone 1, throwing every kind of artificial lure permittable by Mo. law in the water, and 99% of us, come up empty? 


I found myself in a conversation with an old-timer. I use that term respectfully, by the way, and am close to being one myself who told me his theory on the lack of trout being caught.  He said that the trout who are making their way down the narrow strip of water called "roaring river" have been caught a few times more than your average fish and have learned to leave lures alone.  This did make sense.  What did not make sense to me was this:  You have 10,000 gazillion trouts in the hatchery.  People drive hours to come and stay and fish.  I understand some of the rules (like making us tag ourslelves like cattle), but why not ease up on the bait choices so the kiddos can catch a fish or two? Or in our case, so the adults can catch a fish or two?




MC had been listening to my "this place is wack with their crazy- no worms- rules" and as we were pulling out of zone 1 to head to the cabin (fishless) she yells out the window:  YOU'RE NOT GOING TO CATCH ANY FISH ON LURES!  I was just about to get on to her for this, but the looks on the faces of the long line of fisherman, permits dangling from their hats, was so worth it.

Maybe I'm just bitter because everyone in the family caught one except me.  In Madi's case, we weren't quite sure what it was, but it sure looked angry.

Our 3rd Child is up For SALE

1721 S. Dewey Avenue
~~~~~~~~~~~~~


I have always been jumping for joy to get out of our previous homes.  This one, is hurting my heart to think about letting her go.   
The gleaming wood floors, new windows, spacious rooms, and giant back yard are what sold us in the first place.  There is a bonus addition that we dreamed of turning into a downstairs master suite.  We never
quite got there, but did get to the following
renovations:





 *Exterior and interior paint in historic preservation colors


*Pedestal sinks in bathrooms


*Totally remodeled kitchen with new stove alcove


*New back door and tile in mud room


*New lighting

*Built in cabinetry running the length of this oversized bonus room (perfect for a media room or a Master Suite)


This room has two oversized windows and two closets.

 *I won this argument:  Do we take out the utility closet and create a stove alcove area with a built in spice rack and task lighting or leave it a dingy closet?


So glad he eventually relented. 

 *My favorite thing here is the deep farmhouse sink, glass front cabinets, and how bright and spacious this kitchen is now

 *Not sure why I felt compelled to show off the newly painted laundry room.  I guess because I wish we would have done this long ago, in order to enjoy it more!






The Details:
*She was built in 1938 and is full of charm (arched entryways, spacious sunroom, single car attached garage). 
*2380 Square Foot
*Beautifully maintained
neighborhood (with great
people on ALL sides)
*Landscaped for the last four
years with annuals so that
little maintenance is required. 
I love sitting on the sun porch,
drinking coffee, and watching
the hosta's, lillies, and tulips
bloom.

As a gift to the new owners, we are including the dining room table which looks just like this one.  It was built to fit the dining area and should stay with our third child, so she won't forget us.