Thanksgiving Vacation 2011

Ron and I had big plans for Thanksgiving -- we were scheduled to go diving in Roatan Bay Islands, Honduras. We have been planning for some time -- arrangements, flights, dives scheduled, etc. -- and then,  emergency surgery took place to fix his shoulder. What was supposed to be a relatively simple procedure (fix a torn rotator cuff) turned into a three hour major deal. Yeah...there was a lot of damage. And then the doctor emphatically proclaimed, "No Sir, no diving for you until after January." We were pretty disappointed to say the least.
Our family had made plans so we decided to make our own revised plan. I thought and thought about it. And then thought that since we both love the Texas Hill Country so much, why not avoid the airport havoc and drive for a vacation in Texas? I found a place to stay on the internet, and blindly made plans ---- taking a chance at a place I haven't been before, but trusting my instincts....it was awesome.

We spent four days driving, seeing some relatives, relaxing in the cool weather and taking in the sights. Horseback riding, shopping, eating LOTS, walking for miles and exploring some park areas. Someday I'd love to live in the Hill Country -- have a place with some goats, chickens, ducks, a couple of horses and a vegetable garden. Oh, and dogs.  A place where grandchildren and come and run around, much like my children made so many childhood memories in Medina, Texas at their grandparents home. Yes....this visit definitely solidified that dream. I really think it will happen.

What follows are a series of blogs of the Texas Hill country and some of our escapades. I hope you like them- and will also probably be sad to see how the drought -- the worst we have had in Texas in recorded history - continues to change the landscape that my children's Pop-Pop lovingly referred to as "God's Country".

Whales and Eskimos

One of the non-negotiable items I listed when looking for my current job 6 years ago was "No snow."  I hate the cold --and snow, in my opinion, is only good if it is crunching underneath a quickly moving ski on a beautiful slope somewhere. No, not a fan of winter. So, how did I get involved in whales and eskimos? A colleague needs some educational outreach research for a project he is proposing in Barrow, Alaska -- which is listed as America's most northern city. It is 300 miles above the Artic circle.A large population of Inupiat Eskimos live there and subsist on Bowhead whales - those are whale bones in the picture above. Bowhead whale populations are suffering from the effects of climate change (as are millions of other species) and my researcher/friend wants to conduct some research on their physiology and changes that are occurring as a result of climate change. Yay. He also wants to do an outreach effort in Barrow schools and develop some curriculum regarding his research and findings. AND, bring it back here and feature findings and cultural aspects at the Texas State Aquarium. That's where I got called  - the curriculum part. And culturally relevant science teaching part. That's what I love. VERY exciting!!!

 If funded, this would mean traveling to Barrow and interviewing students and teachers and doing some other work.

I better start thinking about getting a parka.....

Meet Audrey Anne Lyles

Yes - officially adopted by her Daddy Lt. John Lyles who is in Japan on deployment. That's him on the speakerphone in the background :)  It's an exciting, blessed day for my family in Lemoore. My heart is so full...

So, what's my excuse?

Meet Dan Cnossen in a 'photo-stitched' photograph- - no legs, running the New York City marathon last weekend. That's 26.2 miles through five boroughs. This is Dan on 5th Avenue. Dan finished the marathon in 2 hours, 29 mins. For those of you who don't keep up with such statistics, that is faster than 95% of all marathon finishers. That is faster than my 1/2 marathon time. Dan is in the elite group of athletes.

Dan is a US Navy SEAL, alumnus of the Naval Academy and a member of the U.S. Paralympic Ski Team. He lost both his legs during his fourth deployment as a Navy SEAL in Afghanistan when he stepped on a concealed Improvised Explosive Device (IED) in September of 2009. If you want to see his workout regime (part of it), click here.

I run a little, complain a lot about things that creak and hurt, and will think about Dan before opening my mouth and complaining again.

What an inspiration....

Visit to Lemoore NAS - aka Annie and Audrey time!

Had a super time - our visit was short, sweet and packed with fun times. I have missed them so much but seeing A&A in their idyllic setting made the missing pains go away and become "I'm so glad you are so happy!" feelings!


Audrey learning to play some fun stuff on my iPad - Chicken Balls rocks both of our worlds :)

 
Beautiful Annie sporting the new necklace I brought back for her from Mexico...gorgeousness!

Close-up of Audrey on her new play-yard...there was major bonding time putting this together with her Daddy...I understand she read him the directions :)

Audrey with her butterfly box and contents -- from Mexico. She took it everywhere with her...

We shopped the mall, antique stores, art gallery, ate, hiked around on Saturday and then came Sunday - the Two Cities half marathon. Annie and I registered for this on Saturday --- it was cold, damp and horrible in Fresno that day. We wondered if we were nuts for agreeing to do this...but we are both pretty stubborn gals, and one was not about to back out on the other...so the registration was done and plans were made.

Sunday morning was COLD COLD COLD and we left before sunrise to drop off Audrey and get to Fresno. We wondered as we were walking through cold and blustery winds to the start if this was really worth it. Well...all fears regarding forcasted rain and cold were quelled by Mile One. It was a BEAUTIFUL day ---- perfect for running. No rain, lots of sunshine, and just cold enough to keep us cool. The warm-up jackets and other stuff were quickly stripped as bodies heated up. It was an awesome, awesome day!

Annie dropping off her gear before heading to the start - looking so cute!

...and me - so cold, but excited and ready to get going!

The blue skies opened up, the road warmed and so did we. It was a beautiful day!

 I never get to run and see mountains in Texas - this was so awesome --

13.1 miles to the finish line (half marathon)-- the time flew by, my legs felt strong, and I trimmed a whole 20 mins off my personal best time for the half!!!  I felt AWESOME at the end.

 It was a great day followed by Belgium waffles and cheeze blintzes at IHop! :)

I had a great visit ---- many hugs, smiles and laughs. Can't wait to go back! And planning to run the Two Cites half next year!!!

Loved this!

An incredible photo - National Geographic photographers always seem to capture the very essence of their subject matter.

Next Saturday is my first training session with the Texas Marine Mammal Stranding Network -- we'll be learning about these guys for sure.

Way behind on blogging here - a trip to California, half-marathon in Fresno, precious time with family. Stay tuned....

Lessons

Last winter I lost a bunch of plants in my yard as Corpus Christi actually experienced freezing weather -- NOT  good for our tropical plants. I dug up bunches of them, and replanted this spring. I had a huge plumeria in the backyard, and it was dead. The branches were 'gooey' - a sure sign of 'dead'. So, I trimmed off all the branches and then tried to dig up the plant. I tried and tried and tried to dig up the plant. I couldn't do it - I simply didn't have the strength. So, I did the next best thing -- planted rose bushes around the dead plant.

Last weekend I was outside trimming the rose bushes, and guess what I found??? Not only did the plant make a comeback, but beautiful flowers are blooming on the plumeria.

I couldn't believe my eyes!!!

So often we think something is lost forever, but God has other plans. Perfect plans. Plans we could never, even in our wildest dreams, make ourselves. It takes time, patience, prayer, and faith. The beautiful flowers on the plumeria will always be a constant reminder to not give up hope, but to know there is a perfect plan. And He is going to see it through as long as I can stay out of His way.

Blessed Beyond Measure.