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| Arkansas and colors |
I decided that one of my subconscious rationales for residing in the Ozark mountains of Arkansas is my affinity for the Blue Ridge Mountains surrounding the Shenandoah River valley in VA--the rolling deciduous and pine forests that blanket clear mountain lakes and rivers.
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| View of Table Rock Lake from rear deck of our house |
Daisy and I came here to rest a bit before continuing on to the Rio Grande Valley in southern Texas for the winter. We cleared out the rest of the boxes in the main house but left the boxed pictures still encased and in the garage for us to unwrap when we return in the spring. However, it does appear to us that with our different tastes, and number of decor items, we will need to have revolving eclectic design exhibits within the house.
Daisy's new friends here invited her to a girls' day out at one of the largest craft shows in this area. A good time was had by all and she did not bring back to much stuff to display here.
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| War Eagle Mill craft show |
Daisy and I met with several friends here and even took overnight and day trips to visit others while in Arkansas.
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| Carol from Holiday Island |
Carol and her husband David and I met in the Holiday Island campground. We were both using the campground as a staging place while our homes were under construction. David passed away suddenly and my friendship with Carol has continued and now includes Daisy. They are as alike as two peas in a pod, including both starting their careers in home economics.
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| Joe and Judi from Oklahoma |
Joe and I met on the road in Texas. As fellow winter Texans we quickly connected. Judi had not retired yet and Joe and I spend much time on the golf course and across the dinette table. Their non-winter home is just across the state line. We trade off visiting in the summer season.
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| Ralph and Mary Ann from Texas |
Mary Ann and I first met in the Air Force. We were both stationed in Tucson, AZ. I got out and she stayed in and met Ralph. They both retired from the service and are now based in San Antonio. I do love the history, food, and people of this city. It is one of my favorite layover stops.
While in Arkansas, we replaced the shocks on the F-350 and rotated the tires that are taking a heavy beating from the load it is now carrying. This firmed up the stability of the truck camper (TC) and reduced the sway. Before I towed 16,000 pounds and although I am not towing anymore, we now have a payload of 4,100 pounds in the truck bed.
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| I had to separate the command module from the warp drive for maintenance |
One of the short trips we took from Arkansas was a quick run to Missouri for a surprise birthday party for one of Daisy's relatives....Eva Nell.
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| I will not text how old she is.... |
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| I still have not...... |
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| Eva Nell and her daughters from CO, IA, LA, FL |
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| I keep trying to get stories on Daisy |
Back in Arkansas, Daisy and I did more unpacking into the house. All we have left is wall hanging items to accessorize the place. The problem is that we have more items than we have wall space to accommodate them. We decided to wait until spring and to use our time better by taking a Thanksgiving trip to Alabama to visit the grandboys.
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| You know I had to find a state sign somewhere! |
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This trip we decided to leave the truck camper in Arkansas and use the car. Michael flew in from Long Beach, CA. We picked him up in Panama City, FL for the family gathering in Enterprise, AL.
Our next door neighbors in Arkansas came from a Florida beach town, so we decided to look it up on our way to Alabama.
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| Temps were in the low 70s and very warm in the sunshine. |
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| We found it, Jim and Val! |
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| They gave this up to be my AR neighbor...Boy! |
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| Sunset on the Florida Gulf coast |
Daisy and I spent a night at a beach hotel and picked up Michael the next day for the 2-1/2 hr. drive to Matt and Shannon's for the holiday festivities.
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| Matt, Josiah, Levi, Shannon and Nutmeg the wonderdog. |
The grandboys were waiting for us. But I must admit that I have been upstaged by my son as their favorite playmate. I have forgotten the skills of making body-part noises with your hands and great paper airplanes.
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| Josiah showed me how slow I was. |
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| Levi offered me his helmet to protect the hair I had left. |
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| Even the dog made a fuss over Mike |
Well the big day came. Shannon did as much as she could before Thanksgiving to advance prep the meal, but in the final hours we all participated in getting other dishes prepped for cooking.
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| Matt had the bird duties using a recipe that he had learned from me :) |
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| This is roasted root veggies with a special honey Dijon olive oil dressing. |
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| The boys helped make the cloverleaf rolls. |
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| Daisy was the giblet gravy maker after explaining to Matt what a giblet was. |
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| We gave thanks for this and.... |
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| these from Shannon's home bakery. |
We all blessed the food and stated what we are thankful for. Brother Levi had to be reminded that the food was getting cold.
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| I am thankful for this... |
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| and this... |
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| and this... |
After dinner, Daisy and I had to go for a walk to discover what the people of this little town gave thanks for!
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| See what she is holding aloft. |
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| Yep a little critter |
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| There is a story... |
Daisy and I wanted to take the family out to eat. We asked Josiah and he wanted to go to a Thai restaurant for Pho noodle soup.
We asked Levi where he wanted to go for a snack after school and he specified the ice cream shoppe.
Daisy and I returned Mike to the airport and departed a few days later for Atlanta and a professional educators conference. Before the conference began we visited our friends in the Decatur, GA area. They took us to a great local southern seafood resturant. Good oysters and great beer cannot be beat!
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| Regina and Scott |
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| Daisy and me at an evening reception. We do clean up nice. Me especially... |
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| We stayed just across from Olympic Park |
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| Delegates from Virginia Tech |
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| Former presidents of the family and consumer sciences division |
Daisy was well known at this conference because she has been very active in the professional aspects of career and technical education.
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| Former presidents of the ACTE national organization |
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While in Atlanta I also had a personal high. I was just playing with a search program and was able to find a great childhood playmate that I had not talked to in decades.
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| Me and Chucky |
We had a safe and non-eventful journey back to southern Texas. Upon arrival, our neighbors Karen and Dan wanted to have a belated celebration of our wedding by hosting us to one of their favorite eating places. As they say, a good time was had by all.
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| Good people from Oklahoma |
We did a little more decoration of the site to make it a little more appealing.
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| Notice the pots behind the truck. |
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| They add a little color and disguise the stabilizing blocks. |
We have had great travels with family, friends, food, and fanfare. On the Thanksgiving trip we covered 2,697 miles and 6 states. Christmas is coming with another trip and festivities to follow.
Merry Christmas to all.
Stay tuned....
