Bay View RV Resort – Rockport, Texas – March 21-27, 2016

Time continues to slip away. Friends continue to leave, some for just a few short months ‘til we’re reunited here again, and some will not be back. We count ourselves blessed to have made friends with so many. 

Monday afternoon we were invited to happy hour at Dick and Fran’s site; they were leaving Tuesday morning for their home in Michigan. (They plan to be back next fall.) Fourteen of us joined them for this special time. The weather was beautiful with a little breeze, although it did get a bit chilly as the sun set. Fun times and good friends—doesn’t get much better than this.

Rather than our regular Stitch and Bitch hour, we elected to help Lynda with the burlap and lace flowers she’s making for her daughter’s wedding in June. It’s quite an undertaking, but we are seeing the light at the end of the tunnel. A couple more days will do it!

We continue to participate in the weekly activities, from Texas Hold ‘em to Yoga and Pilates, horseshoes, weekly happy hours and dinners. We added one more activity last week: shuffleboard!

Newcomers to the park earlier this year, Agnes and Gerry, took it upon themselves to unearth and clean up the shuffleboard courts. Betty Peachey picked up the banner and secured a grant from Thrivent Financial for Lutherans to provide finances to refurbish the Bay View shuffleboard courts. A group of volunteers from the RV park joined the effort with the result being celebrating the Grand Opening of the “new and improved” shuffleboard courts on Tuesday afternoon. About 25 folks showed up to play, watch, and cheer on those who played. Was really quite fun! Afterward we enjoyed grilled hamburgers and sausages, chips and homemade chocolate chip cookies, thanks to Chef Betty and the kitchen team.

Wednesday morning after Yoga, we again helped Lynda with the flowers. Whew! They’re beautiful, as you can see, but we’ll all be very glad when this project is over!

Wednesday’s dinner, preceded by happy hour, was Chef Betty’s rendition of chicken cacciatore, rice, rolls and butter, and rhubarb pie and ice cream. YUMMY! We’re so thankful to have her here for another season. No one went away hungry!

Afterward, Dick returned to the clubhouse to play Texas Hold ’em; he came home with $13 to the good! Yippee!

Weather this week was wonderful, although the temperatures are slowly climbing, as it the humidity. Thursday was no different. That afternoon Dick played horseshoes, after shooing away a mama painted turtle, who was intent on digging a hole in the horseshoe pit to lay her eggs. After some prodding she realized she needed to move on to a safer place.

After happy hour on Friday a few of us trekked to Panjo’s Pizza for what may be the last pizza here in Rockport—at least for this year—for some of our friends. Bob and Sharon, Bill and Arlene, Marihelen (David was fishing), and Dick and I enjoyed pizza, all the while talking and laughing. Seems we never run out of things to talk about…

Saturday brought more sunshine and beautiful temperatures. We didn’t see this, but friend Steve said there was a “hawk boil” circling above our area in the park Saturday afternoon. Apparently hundreds of hawks gather together before their spring migration, circling high overhead. Wish we had seen it!

Our last potluck dinner of the season was scheduled for that night, in the clubhouse. Over 50 people had signed up, so after happy hour at 4:00 we dug into the food. Good stuff! Everything, from jalapeno boats to cheese and olive skewers for appetizers, to marinated, spinach and strawberry, shoe peg corn, pasta and potato salads, to meat loaf, scalloped potatoes, pulled BBQ chicken, Spanish rice with smoked sausage…I could go on and on. For dessert there was apple cake, rhubarb crisp, and a special birthday cake (for friend Karen, who turned 70 on Sunday). I can pretty much guarantee that no one went away hungry!

Sunday: Resurrection Sunday! We attended the First Baptist Church of Rockport, where Pastor Scott Jones’ message was from 1 Corinthians 15:3-6, where the Apostle Paul shared these words: “For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Peter and then to the Twelve. After that, he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers and sisters at the same time, most of whom are still living, though some have fallen asleep (died).” The theme of his message was God is with us, and Jesus promised to be with us forever. The Cross on which he died is the ultimate expression of Jesus being with us. Jesus chose us by dying on the cross to pay the penalty for our sins rather than choosing to go to the Father, thus allowing our sins to be forgiven. By dying the sinner’s death on the cross and rising from the grave 3 days later, he conquered death and Satan’s hold over us. Thank you, Jesus! Here's a link to his sermon.

 

We returned to the clubhouse for the park’s Easter Brunch, provided by Chef Betty and her kitchen team. We noshed on cheesy biscuits with sausage gravy, baked oatmeal, deviled eggs, oven fried potatoes, an asparagus and Gruyere cheese tart, cinnamon and caramel pull-aparts, and special dessert cookies. Almost 50 people showed up for this wonderful meal, and again, no one went away hungry! Mimosas or plain orange juice was available, as well as plenty of coffee. We were so stuffed it was easy to think we wouldn’t be able to eat for a week! Chef Betty outdid herself, once again. She also provided little Easter baskets for each of us, with chocolates and packages of flower seeds in each basket.

Sunday afternoon there were enough Pegs & Jokers players for 2 tables: Jamie and Annie, Bob and Sharon, and Dick and I played at our table; Bill and Carole, Alice, Arleen, and John and Sara played at the other one. Guys took 2 of the 3 games at our table, while the gals came out ahead at the other. Such fun! This was the last game of Pegs & Jokers we play with Jamie and Annie, and Bob and Sharon for this year, as both couples leave us this week. We’ll be sure to save them seats for next fall!

Dick’s walk along Fulton Beach Road, and through our park, have netted some wonderful photos of birds and other miscellaneous stuff. The first 3 collages are from Fulton Beach Road; the next few are from our park. Enjoy!

I love the first photo of the Scissortail Flycatcher! The next is of a Female Ladder-backed Woodpecker, followed by a House Sparrow and a Great Blue Heron.

These next few photos are taken in downtown Rockport, and show nesting Great Blue Herons and a Great White Egret. 

That’s it for this week. Monday we say a sad farewell to Steve and Karen who are heading home to Wisconsin, and Friday to Bob and Sharon who are heading to Missouri (after a short trip to South Dakota to get their licenses, as they’ve become domiciled there like us). We look forward to seeing them again in the fall.

Have a wonderful week, and we’ll catch up next Monday.

Hugs,

RJ and Gail

Bay View RV Resort – Rockport, Texas – March 14-20, 2016

Temperatures this week ranged between 58° and the mid-70s in the morning hours. However, the sun quickly warmed things up, with temps in the low 80s by mid-afternoon. Lots of sunshine and breezes!

 

This week was more of the same: Yoga, Pilates and Sweatin’ to the Oldies for me; walking the park and Fulton Beach Road for Dick, and working on the weekend. On his walks through the park he saw egrets, spoonbills, ducks, tri-colored herons and sandpipers. 

His walk along Fulton Beach Road brought a sparrow hawk, egrets and gulls. 

Monday afternoon he spent a few hours playing Texas Hold ‘em, finishing 3rd & wining $5.

I spent most of Tuesday and Wednesday morning at the clubhouse with friends helping Lynda make burlap and lace roses for her daughter’s June wedding. Lynda bought yards and yards of different shades of burlap, as well as lace. Then, she soaked the burlap in a mixture of water and glue, letting them dry in the Texas sun, resulting in very stiff burlap! Over the 2 days there were 14 ladies helping out: cutting petals (in both lace and burlap), and gluing, and wrapping wire. She needs 144 of them! They'll be used as centerpieces. By the time we finished up on Wednesday she had almost 70 of them done. We figure another couple days would get them all done.

Dick climbed up on the roof of our camper to fix a leak in the skylight over our shower. Apparently when the skylight was installed one of the screws was tightened too much, causing a crack in the plastic. He caulked it, and when we get to Marvin and Shirley’s in May we’ll have the skylight replaced. Wouldn’t you know that the deluge of last week brought it to our attention when water was pooling on the bathroom floor. The skylight extends a bit over the shower enclosure—yup, that’s where the leak was. 

Tuesday afternoon we went to Wii bowling, but part way through the first game it died. No more Wii bowling ‘til we get another game. Next week shuffle board will replace Wii bowling. 

That evening we went to Panjo’s pizza with friends Bob and Sharon, David and Marihelen, Dick and Fran, and Bill and Arleen. Time is growing short for some of us, as plans are being made to leave for the summer. We’ll have just a few weeks left to enjoy one another's company ‘til next fall. We decided we needed ice cream so we trekked down the block for scoops of Blue Bunny ice cream! Yum!

Wednesday we welcomed Todd and Candy and their dog Charlie (Minnesota) to our site for a visit, shortly before we all walked to David and Marihelen’s for a fish fry. Bob and Sharon joined us. David deep fried lots of Sheepshead fish accompanied by potato salad, veggies and dip, cheese and crackers, pickles and olives, and coconut pie for dessert. We were stuffed! 

 Later that evening Dick went to the clubhouse to play Texas Hold ‘em.

After Pilates on Thursday morning a few of us spent time moving tables and chairs to prepare for the evening’s St. Patrick’s Day dinner. Later in the day we met again at 3:00 to set tables and finish decorating. Over 80 folks came for Chef Betty’s traditional dinner of corned beef and cabbage, potatoes, Irish soda bread, and lots of table treats for dessert. YUMMY-YUMMY! After dinner the park’s Baysiders band played for anyone interested in dancing, or just listening.

Friday’s lunch was at the clubhouse for hamburgers or crab cake sandwiches. Along with the burgers and sandwiches we had veggies and dip, and left-over desserts from the previous night’s dinner. YUM-YUM!

At 4:00 a few of us went to the clubhouse for happy hour. Afterward, David and Marihelen invited us to their place for shrimp dinner. David had gone fishing earlier that day, but was skunked so he stopped and bought 5# of fresh caught shrimp for dinner. We had shrimp and leftover potato salad. O, my goodness! David boiled the shrimp with the heads on, so we had to peel them, but what a treat!!! The shrimp were HUGE! Neighbors Dan and Donna (NY) with their black lab Callie, and Bob and Maggie (Missouri) also stopped by. Lots of stories were shared, and lots of laughter!

Friday night brought a thunderstorm and lots of wind. Power was knocked out in the area for almost 5 hours, from about 4:00 a.m. ‘til just before 9:00. It gets really dark here in the park when the lights are out…  Dick worked most of the day at the office, but met me at the clubhouse at 9:30 for cinnamon rolls and coffee. Then while he went back to work, I knitted; I’m on #5 of 8 baby sweaters, so I’m making progress!

That evening Dick and I went to First Baptist Church of Rockport for The Sanctuary Choir’s Easter cantata, “The Day He Wore My Crown,” and communion. Here’s just a sample of the caliber of music we heard. Hannah Dishongh is the soloist.

Because services at the church were the cantata, Sunday we elected to stay home rather than go again. Dick went to work again (he can only work when he has access to the office computers) and I worked on the sweaters. That afternoon we met at the clubhouse to play Pegs & Jokers. This wasn’t a good day for the gals. There were 2 tables of players, and the gals won just 1 of the 6 games played. Oh, well, there’s always next time.

March Madness has struck our household, so we’ve been watching quite a bit of college basketball, which we enjoy.

Hope this finds you well. Our activities will be winding down over the next 2 weeks, as folks will be leaving for home. We plan to leave May 1 so we’ll see a pretty empty park before then. Summer folks will be arriving later that month.

Until next week, stay safe and healthy.

Hugs,

RJ and Gail

Bay View RV Resort – Rockport, Texas – March 7-13, 2016

Our weeks here at Bay View are winding down. Just 8 short weeks left before we pack up and leave our Texas “home” for new sights and sounds. Friends will be leaving here, too, in the next couple of weeks, with plans to return in the Fall.

Spring is “springing” all through the area; temperatures are warming up, birds are building their nests—all the while chirping away—and young people are beginning to arrive to the area for Spring Break (which goes on all through the month of March). 

Monday’s early morning temps were already in the low 70s by 7 a.m.  I took a day off from Yoga, going into Corpus Christi with friends Lynda and Karen. Lynda was on a mission to find burlap, lace and a few other items in order to make 150 or so burlap and lace roses for her daughter’s wedding in June. Karen and I did a bit of shopping, too. Joann’s and Hobby Lobby were at the top of the stop-and-shop list, and we did stop at Dress Barn so Lynda could look over the dresses, hoping to find something suitable for the wedding. She did! Within 15 minutes we were in the store, she found a dress and tried it on, bought it, and we were back on the road! Whew!

While we were shopping, Dick was walking the park and Fulton Beach Road where he saw Egrets, an Ibis, ducks, and a Cardinal. Afterward, he spent some time working on park business. The wind was pretty brisk, even though it was warm, so that kept us inside for a good part of the day. Dick did venture out to play Texas Hold ‘em for a few hours in the afternoon, while I worked on last week’s blog.

Temps Tuesday morning were again in the low 70s. I headed up to Stitch and Bitch with friend Karen. There were 8 of us there that morning. Friend Bonnie had gone to a gem show in Robstown, Texas the previous weekend, so she was anxious to show off her purchases. Wow! Beautiful stones that she’d soon be making into jewelry. She has quite the eye for jewelry design; I’ve purchased a few items from her myself. These are just a few of the hundreds of pieces and designs she has. Bonnie teaches classes here in the park on wire wrapping. Beautiful!

While I was doing my thing, that morning Dick got our taxes done. Thank goodness that’s done for another year!

Friends Todd and Candy from Minnesota, whom we met in Grand Portage the first summer we were on the road, came to Rockport for the month of March so we met them for lunch that afternoon at Moondog's. They’re staying nearby in a little cabin at a place called Pelican Bay. Oh, and they brought along their Cavalier Spaniel, Charlie, whom we just love. He’s so cool! We noshed on beef brisket nachos, a grouper sandwich, club sandwich and crab cakes. All so good! We hope to see them while they’re here.

That afternoon we again did Wii bowling at the clubhouse. Quite a fun time, if you’ve never tried it.

Dick had to work that evening so I went along to pizza, along with Sharon (Bob wasn’t feeling well), David and Marihelen, Dick and Fran, and Bill and Arleen. Always a fun time with friends.

By Wednesday morning, the rains had begun to fall—actually, it was a deluge! It rained heavy all day. The total rainfall received in less than 20 hours was over 5½”. Sometimes the rain was so heavy you could barely hear the person next to you talking—especially, if you were in the RV. My Yoga buddies and I did manage to make it to the clubhouse, during one of the deluges, to take our Yoga class with Doreen. We were soaked!!

By happy hour and dinner the rain had pretty much abated, but we did drive up to the clubhouse—just in case… Dinner that evening was spaghetti with meatballs in a wonderfully seasoned tomato sauce, dressed salad, freshly baked French bread, and lemon bars for dessert. YUM-YUM! That evening after dinner, Dick went back up to the clubhouse to play Texas Hold ‘em for a couple hours.

Temps had cooled off just a bit, due to the rain. It was just 65° when we checked Thursday morning at 8:30. I went to our weekly Pilates session and Dick walked the park and Fulton Beach Road where he saw another Osprey (or was it the same one he always sees?) and another Cardinal. The roads were still sloppy and the ground was saturated, making for a mess. Yuk! Dick worked for a couple hours at the office, then stopped to play horseshoes, even though the ground was still a bit soggy.

The sun had come out that day, making for a beautiful afternoon, with mild temperatures and a slight breeze—perfect for a happy hour at our camper. Joining us were Steve and Karen, Bob and Sharon, Dick and Fran, Steve and Marty, and David (Marihelen wasn’t feeling well). Such fun! As our days together grow ever shorter, we tend to want to get together as often as possible. 

That evening we went to the clubhouse for more Pegs & Jokers, with Bill and Carole, Jamie and Annie, and John and Sara. The men won 2:1 over us gals. Dang.

Friday morning the temps were still a bit cooler, at 62° at 7 a.m. Friends and I did our Yoga to a DVD at the clubhouse, while Dick walked the park and Fulton Beach Road. After the rains the birds were out in full force; he saw Egrets, an Ibis, and lots of Spoonbills. We ran to Walmart to pick up a few items I needed to make bars for the park’s craft and bake sale to be held Saturday morning. Later, while I baked, Dick rode the motorcycle for about 2 hours, covering 65 miles. On the ride he saw Egrets, deer and an Osprey. Because he was on the motorcycle he didn't have an opportunity to photo the deer.

Later, we headed to the clubhouse for happy hour with friends. We’ve made such good friends here, and most plan to be back again in the Fall.

Saturday morning’s temps were lower still, reaching only about 60° at 7:30 a.m. But the sun was shining, and it promised to be another beautiful day. At 8 a.m. I headed to the clubhouse, weighed down with my bars for the bake sale, the lighthouse afghan I had been trying to sell for 8 years or so, and my knitting (which I planned to do while sitting). Dick worked in the office for most of the day.

That evening singer Bo Rivers returned to Bay View. Bo is quite the entertainer, singing Willie Nelson, Roy Orbison, lots of other country, oldies, pop and rock. What a fabulous time! 80 to 90 people showed up for over 2 hours of fun. People were dancing and laughing the entire time. Here’s a sample of the evening’s entertainment.  And one more. So sorry some folks missed it.

Then…we had to turn the clock forward loosing an hour. Ho-Hum! We always take care of that business before we go to bed, but by 3:30 a.m. I was still awake. After finally getting to sleep, I didn’t wake up ‘til after 8:00 Sunday morning, and Dick didn’t awaken ‘til close to 9! That meant we missed church for the first time since we arrived here in November. To partially compensate, I made a hearty breakfast of sausage and eggs, raw fried potatoes and toast. Then, Dick went to work.

At 2 p.m. I met him at the clubhouse for the ice cream social and a few games of Pegs & Jokers. There were 12 of us playing, meaning 2 tables with 3 couples at each. Our table hosted Bill and Carole, Alice, Arleen (who played for the guys), Dick and me. The gals won 2:1 at our table. Table 2 hosted Sharon (Bob wasn’t feeling well), Lynda (who played for the guys), Jamie and Annie, and John and Sara. The guys won 3:1 over the gals. That evening Dick returned to the clubhouse to play dealer’s choice poker. (He won a whole 45 cents!)

That’s it for this week. Maybe y’all need to think about coming on down to Bay View, too!

Love ‘n’ hugs,

RJ and Gail

Bay View RV Resort – Rockport, TX – February 29-March 6, 2016

Time continues to fly by. Already we’ve seen the first week of March go marching by. Unbelievable! However, Spring is springing!

Monday morning’s temps were in the mid-60s, heading to the high 70s later in the day. While it was still cool, I attended the Yoga session at 9:45, followed by Sweatin’ to the Oldies at 11:30. Whew! Dick took a walk through the park and then along Fulton Beach Road, seeing Snowy Egrets, Herons, and a Kingfisher. It was really windy, so the Kingfisher had a really bad hair day! Ha!

That afternoon we went to Gary and Pam’s for a farewell happy hour. Tuesday morning we would be saying farewell to Pam and Gary, Robert and Lynn, Marvin and Shirley, and Randy and Jeri. All plan to return next year, but it’s still an emotional time.  

 

Tuesday morning temps had risen to 69°. Dick worked while I went to our weekly Stitch and Bitch session. I’m still working on the baby sweaters. (As of today, 3 down, 5 to go!) Then, Dick and I had breakfast at Whataburger on our way to do laundry. It’s so good to get that out of the way, and it takes only about an hour and a half to get ‘er done. Dinner that night was at Panjo’s Pizza, with David and Marihelen, Dick and Fran, Tracy, and Bob and Sharon. Yummy stuff!

We decided to take a driving tour of Rockport, to see the Great Blue Herons and Great White Egrets nesting in the tops of the Live Oak trees. So cool to see the herons stretching out their necks in their mating dance.

Of course, we just had to stop at Dairy Queen for a bit of dessert on the way home.

Last week I forgot to include this photo that Dick took while walking along Fulton Beach Road. This lovely creature was just a few yards from the road.

Temps Wednesday morning were again in the high-60s, making for another beautiful start to another beautiful day here in the Coastal Bend of Texas. While I Yoga’d and sweated to the oldies, Dick walked the park and Fulton Beach Road. He saw Egrets, Great Blue Herons, and a Sparrow Hawk, along with lots of smaller woodland birds. Not getting enough of seeing the birds, he hopped on his motorcycle, riding to Lamar to take in the Whooping Cranes, Sandhill Cranes, Spoonbills, and Black-bellied Whistling Ducks.

That evening was happy hour and dinner at the clubhouse. This week’s menu was Pennsylvania-style chicken pot pie, rolls and butter, and rolled strawberry-filled cake. Yummy! After, Dick played Texas Hold ‘em ‘til 9 p.m. I spent the evening knitting.

Goliad, Texas was our destination on Thursday for the day, bringing along David and Marihelen. Temps had already hit 70° by 7:30 a.m., and were headed to the mid-80s. Nevertheless, we took off at 10 a.m. with our first stop at the historic Presidio La Bahia in Goliad.

The Presidio La Bahia was originally founded in 1721 on the ruins of a French fort, and moved to a 2^nd location along the Guadalupe River in 1726. Just 21 years later it was moved to its current location on the San Antonio River. By 1771 the entire Presidio and its mission were completely rebuilt in stone, and had become the only Spanish fortress for the entire Gulf Coast from the mouth of the Rio Grande to the Mississippi River. The civilian settlement near this fortress was named Goliad, believed to an anagram of Hidalgo, in honor of the patriot priest Miguel Hidalgo, father of the Mexican War of Independence.

The Presidio was captured by insurgents twice during the Mexican War of Independence, each time defeated by Spanish troops. By the end of 1821 Texas became part of the newly formed United Mexican States. In October 1835, days after the beginning of the Texas Revolution, a group of Texan insurgents marched to LaBahia and after a 30-minute battle, the Mexican garrison surrendered. The Texans gained control of the Presidio.

During the siege of the Alamo, Texan command William B. Travis asked La Bahia commander James Fannin several times to bring reinforcements. Fannin and his men attempted a relief mission, but abandoned it the following day. After the fall of the Alamo, General Sam Houston ordered Fannin to abandon La Bahia, which he did on March 19, 1836. His relaxed manner of moving out culminated in being captured and imprisoned in the Presidio, by the Mexican army, under orders from General and President of Mexico Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna. On March 27, 1836 the Texan captives were marched outside the Presidio walls and executed. Colonel Fannin was the last to be executed. A memorial wall was erected adjacent to Presidio to memorialize Colonel Fannin and the men who were so brutally massacred on that fateful Palm Sunday.

After walking through this monument we decided lunch should be next on our agenda, so we headed into Goliad to the Hanging Tree Restaurant, located directly across the street from the historic Goliad Hanging Tree. We noshed on catfish and fries, a chicken sandwich, and a chef salad. Sure filled the void!

The Hanging Tree is a Texas-style symbol of justice. For 24 years the court trials of Goliad County were held under this big oak tree. Death sentences were carried out immediately, usually within a few minutes. As you can see there are/were many handy “noose-worthy” limbs available. (Years later, in 1857, this tree also served as gallows for a number of impromptu lynchings during the “Cart War” between Texans and Mexicans. The cart wars were caused by ethnic and racial hostilities of Texans toward Mexican Texans, who had built a successful business of hauling food and merchandise to and from San Antonio and other interior towns via oxcarts, more cheaply than their Anglo competitors.) No tally was kept for how many men died in The Hanging Tree, but some estimates range into the low hundreds. 

After lunch Marihelen and I walked through a few of the local shops; she made a few purchases…I made none.

Then, we all trekked through the historic Goliad County Courthouse, originally built in 1894 at a cost of $67,888.95 with limestone and brick. A 1902 tornado forced the courthouse to be used as a hospital and morgue. Then, a 1942 hurricane destroyed the clock tower. Finally, in 1964, the courthouse was restored to its original carved staircases and walnut wainscots. We wandered through and up to the 2^nd floor courtroom, which has been restored to its original beauty, including the bench seating.

Then, we trekked across the street to the Goliad museum, which houses artifacts from over 150 years. The museum is located in an 1871 meat market, and it features a variety of exhibits on local occupations, farming, and ranching. Early Texas life displays include Indian artifacts and tools, some military memorabilia from the Texas Revolution, World War I and II. Life of the 1900s is represented by displays of fashion, schools, children’s toys, photos and furniture. This was the 2^nd time Dick and I had visited the museum, and both times the docents were very informative.

We returned home around 4:30, in time to rest up a bit before going to the clubhouse for an evening of Pegs & Jokers. Ten of us crowded around a table to play, but unfortunately the women couldn’t come up with the cards to beat the guys. They won 3:0.

Friday morning’s temps were cooler than they had been u days, just 59° at 7:30. I headed to Yoga and Dick took a walk through the park and along Fulton Beach Road. Again, he saw egrets, herons and the Sparrow Hawk.

We had burgers in the clubhouse at noon, then at 4:30 grabbed David and Marihelen and went to the annual Oysterfest celebration, benefiting the Fulton Volunteer Fire Department. Two huge tents were set up in Fulton along the water, one for crafts and vendors, one for food and entertainment. The doors opened at 5:00 so we were there just in time to beat the crowds. In addition, there was a midway full of rides of all sorts for all ages. (We did not ride.) We walked through the craft tent, purchasing the obligatory Oysterfest t-shirts. We also bought a cedar sign to hang from our 5^th wheel that reads, “RJ and Gail, RVNomads.” Marihelen made a few purchases, as well. Then, off to the food tent where David downed a dozen raw oysters; Dick, Marihelen and I noshed on fried shrimp. All the while we listened to the fabulous music of Purple Sage, a country rock band. They were really good! Live music went on all weekend, as well as the sale of food and beverages. We were home by 8:00, leaving the festivities to the crowds.

The temp Saturday morning was 67° at 7:30. The day was only going to get warmer—almost 85° by mid-afternoon. Dick worked; I knitted all day, needing to get those baby sweaters done! When Dick returned home we sat outside, drawing an impromptu happy hour crowd: Steve and Karen, Steve and Marty, Bob and Sharon, Dick and Fran, and David (unfortunately Marihelen wasn’t feeling well). Such fun times with good friends.

Sunday morning Dick and I went to First Baptist Church of Rockport. Guest missionaries were there from the International Mission Board, serving in Romania. They shared not only the good things God is doing in that country, but also the needs facing the people there as well. 

After a quick stop at Walmart, Dick went to work ‘til 2:00 when we met at the clubhouse for an afternoon of Pegs & Jokers. There were enough folks for 2 tables. Women won at our table 3:0. The guys won 2:1 over the gals at the other. That evening Dick again played poker at the clubhouse, being the big winner coming home with $4.60. Yea!

Whew! Another full week gone, and we’re well on our way into another. We hope this finds you well. Feel free to drop us an email if you have time. We’d love to hear from you!

Hugs,

RJ and Gail