A TEXAS LUAU

Thursday, January 27 – Another very busy day. Paul rode his bike, Marsha attended aerobics and then off for another two hours of dance lessons. We actually did pretty good. We forgot a few steps. We learned more new steps, and they even threw in the Cha-Cha. We don’t think we want to learn that dance. We already have enough on our plates with the other four dances!

We also hit the Texas Thrift shop. It is about 4 steps below the Goodwill store. Marsha loved the Goodwill store in Ohio. We were looking for something to wear tomorrow night at the Luau. BINGO…Marsha found two shirts, and Paul got one that he will be proud to wear.

This evening we heard the Goldwing Express band. Goldwing Express is made up of Three Native American brothers and their father.

They sing, play and tell funny stories. A segment of their performance is dedicated for their Indian Heritage. Each Brother wears his very own Native American Headdress which represents the Creek Indian Tribe from which their Mother is from.

We really enjoyed the program. When they leave this area, they are headed for Florida. They play all across the country. Their schedule is on their website. If you are looking for some good clean entertainment, check them out.

Friday, January 28 – Where does the time go. We can’t believe it is Friday already! The morning started out a bit different than other mornings. We headed up to the clubhouse at 8:15 to help set up for the Luau that takes place this evening. Paul helped set up chairs and tables, and Marsha helped with decorations. Marsha left early and went to her aerobics.

The Luau began at 5. We put reserve papers on the tables this morning so our group could sit together. We got there about 4:45, and it was packed! Our friends, Lynn and Mike, were in charge. The place looked super.

We voted, and Norm got the best dressed award. Can you see why?

Donna and Norm

Betty and Jay…not sure what those umbrellas are suppose to represent.

Winnie and Les…It’s OK to smile Les.

Just the two of us.

We had a delicious meal from 5-6 and then the entertainment began. The evening entertainment began with a short story about a traditional Luau. We had two “unique” looking Hawaiian men help with the explanation.

 

The Lawn Chair Drill Team entertained us with their “precision” performance. Just by looking at their uniforms, you can probably tell they were very disciplined.

Their final position.

Music and dancing took off after that. We did line dancing, 2-step and even had a lesson on how to do the Hula. We all had a wonderful time. We stayed and help clean up, went home and crashed! How much more fun can one couple have?

Thanks for stopping by. Hope to see y’all back real soon. Have a great day!

HOLA BIENVENIDOS A MEXICO

Monday, January 24 - After his morning bike ride, Paul started on his last phase of his remodeling project. He is installing a drawer in the location of the former table.

He started by removing the wood piece above the existing doors and replacing it with a piece of a different width.....this gives a larger area for the drawer and removes the divider between the doors.

Of course there was electric that had to be moved again.....JEESH! He then built the drawer (nice size 26” wide by 10” deep) and installed it using new slides. He then made the maple front attached it to the drawer box and put on two coats of varnish. Completed the entire job in one day! As usual, when you are concluding a project things start going together nicely and a little more easily..... “when you're done, you get good at it”  .......ha ha !!!!

While Paul was working on his project, Marsha was doing aerobics in the activity center, cooking potato soup, and then participating in line dancing class.

Tuesday, January 25 – Did you figure out what the title of this blog means…Hello and Welcome to Mexico. We took a field trip to Progreso (only one S), Mexico today with Donna & Norm Leech, our landlords and new friends.

Rio Grande River, Border patrol and the Wall. Doesn’t get much better than this for security…LOL

No wait…this is much better!

We have a dentist appointment at 10:00 o'clock for teeth cleaning and our 6-month check-up.

This dentist, Dr. de la Rosa Saenz, comes recommended by several friends familiar with Progreso, MX dentistry. The Dr. and his staff were caring and so friendly. We had good check-ups and thorough cleaning. The dentist had a few cosmetic recommendations for Paul and two crown recommendations for Marsha. Paul decided to wait on any additional dental work at this time (He's had extensive work in the past.). Marsha is going to have two crowns done for only $175/each, a mere fraction of what she would pay in the states. Now get this…we each had TWO x-rays, Marsha and regular cleaning and complete checkup and Paul a deep cleaning and complete checkup…total (drum roll please,)….$60.00. YES, both of us! Amazing!!!

We then walked among the shops enjoying some bargaining with the local salesmen and stopping several places for Margaritas. We ate at the Red Snapper, enjoying some local Mexican dishes. Of course, we had to sample additional Margaritas too!

After comparing prices for some medications, we purchased them at a drugstore that also gave us coupons for free Margaritas next door. Phew.....this shopping is tough!

Marsha, Norma and Donna…and our bartender in the background. He loves his picture taken.

We even had entertainment.

After that very strong drink, we headed to the Red Snapper for some delicious lunch. Marsha loved the hat-shaped lights.

This is a very popular bar in Pregreso. They have a pair of these pants that couples or friends can crawl and get their picture taken. We passed. Not enough Margaritas yet.

Now here is something you don’t see on too many walls back in the good ood U.S.A. Very popular in Mexico.

This was the biggest parrot we ever saw on a swing. It must have been 4 ft. tall!

This guy was amazing. He painted these small spoon with his fingers. The designs are awesome.

For some reason, Paul and Norm kept begging us to go into this place. The girls stayed strong and said…NO!

Just another stop on our Margarita tour. His guy had a super voice.

Then on our way back to the USA, we stopped at the store to get a couple bottles of adult beverages to take home.

We really enjoyed our day in Mexico with Donna & Norm and will be returning in two weeks, if not before, for Marsha's dentist appointment. Thanks friends for showing us around Progreso, MX.

We will have more pictures of our visit in the next blog.

Wednesday, January 26 - Busy, busy, busy. Started the day with Paul cleaning Norm's workshop and Marsha heading to aerobic class. Then Paul rode his bike and played some Pickleball.

We then went to a couple tire stores to price motor home tires. One thing me MUST do while in RGV is purchase new tires. It's not that they are “warn-out” but the fact that they are over five years old. Motor home tires are suppose to be replaced after five years due more to drying and cracking from sun and lack of use rather than being worn-out. It's more a safety issue then anything. Soooooo, we found a good place and price for tires and made an appointment for the first of next week.

We then did some shopping/running around at the Texas Thrift Shop for some Hawaii shirts for Friday's Luau and then headed to Pharr for..........are you ready..........................Country/Western Dance Lessons! The lessons were being held at Tropic Star Campground today from 3-5 p.m. It was GREAT! One of Paul's “MUST DO” while in RGV is to learn Texas 2-Step and other country dances. The lessons include 2-Step, Texas Waltz, Swing and Country/Western Polka. The lessons are held at three different parks on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursdays and last 2 hours. On Thursday, they substitute Country Cha Cha for the Country Polka. We did well and want to go a couple times a week for the next couple of weeks. With that, Paul hopes to cross-off “Learn to Dance the Texas Way” off his Bucket List.

Not to sit around, after a quick salad for supper, Marsha headed out again for Bingo!!! She's met Donna in the Activity Center at the park next to ours for the games. Paul......he sat and did nothing!

Thanks for stopping by. Hope to see y’all back real soon. Have a great day!

FRESH ORANGE JUICE, LEMONADE OR LIMEADE…YOUR CHOICE.

Friday, January 21 – Paul varnished the new drawer cabinets and desk today. Took most of the day because at least two coats are required with drying time in-between. He also cut down the size of the ottoman so it would fit nicer in the motor home setting. Now we have to find a source for a small, free-standing, dining room table....anyone with a suggestion, let us know!

Marsha started the aerobics class yesterday. She didn’t come home breathing very hard. She said it is a mild workout. She was told on Thurs. and Fri. they do a 3-mile workout. The workout on Mon.-Wed. is different. She will report on the difference in the next post. She is certainly loving this weather!

We went up to the activity center for happy hour this evening and only two other couples were there. What's with that????? 

Saturday, January 22 - Paul cut and installed the counter top today. It really turned out nice. This was cut from the table that he removed at the beginning of the project. Looks like it was always there!

He also made some finishing touches to the desk including a hole with a wire chase port and felt on the underside of the sliding top. Now a few incidentals and the desk and drawers will be finished. That leaves only a drawer where the old table was removed and the project will be completed.

We attended the Bernie & Red Show at a neighboring RV Park with Betty & Jay Crane. This is a rather famous entertainment couple here in the Rio Grande Valley. This is their ninth year appearing in the RGV. Next they go to Mesa, Yuma, Casa Grande and Tucson, AZ in February and March. They sing and tell amusing stories. A pretty good show!

Sunday, January 23 – We attended church this morning with Betty & Jay. It was the Mission United Methodist Church in Mission. Boy, what a crowd.....there wasn't an empty seat in the house! We attended the 9:30 service and all stayed for Sunday School except Paul. Both the worship service and Sunday school were very enjoyable....especially attending with good friends.

Paul then finished the cabinets and desk. He finished the top by caulking around the edges and then installed the drawer pulls. He then unpacked and installed the new printer, leaving the technical part to Marsha. She loaded the software on both our computers, and we now have WIRELESS printing capabilities.....Neat!

Lexmark Prospect Pro 200 series. This is a wireless (although you can use a USB cable), print, copy, scan, fax, photo printer. We can print double sided, print color or all black, and print multiple pages on one sheet of paper. It is a great printer for a super price.

We then went for a bike ride and got some oranges, lemons, and limes at Norm and Donna’s.....yummmmmmmm!

The oranges are DELICIOUS!!!

 

The lime tree is in continuous fruit. We picked several large limes but there are small limes

and parts of the tree just in flowers ready to produce the lime.

Can you guess what type of tree this is?

See those HUGE things hanging from the branches. They are LEMONS! We have never seen such big lemons…just amazing!

It was then football time. We watched Green Bay defeat Chicago, but our real interest is the Steelers vs the Jets......come on JETS!!! They are getting killed at the time of this post…Oh boy!

Paul enjoying his his new work area.

Thanks for stopping by. Hope to see y’all back real soon. Have a great day!

FINALLY MARSHA ARRIVES IN MISSION…LET THE PARTY BEGIN!

Sunday, January 16 – WOW....I've had enough....this women's work is TUFF! With Marsha returning home on Monday, Paul started his day by getting the motor home in top shape. He dusted then ran the sweeper. After building cabinets, he had to sweep inside the cabinets and give the carpet an extra close cleaning. Then there were dishes to wash, bathrooms to clean (including the toilet... :=) tile floors to clean, mirrors to wash, and last....FOUR loads of laundry.....JEESH that was a tough job!

Paul cleaned up the shop Norm so graciously allowed him to use. This was really a great opportunity for him to be able to use the workshop....THANKS NORM!

He then fixed Marsha's bike....bikes have been Paul's major mode of transportation around the RV Park. He rides his everywhere....trying to keep up with the golf carts of the regular residents...ha ha!

Then he spent the rest of the afternoon sitting and relaxing in the 80 degree sun. Bella loved it too!

Monday, January 17 - Well, this is the day Marsha flies home to Mission, TX. As most air transportation goes these days, it wasn't with out many trials and tribulations.....better let Marsha tell all about it!

Where do I start? My plane was to scheduled to leave at 10:35 for Chicago. Arrive at the Akron/Canton airport about 9:15. Got checked in, went through security then saw this…

 

You see the ONE that says DELAYED…guess who is suppose to be on that flight. It now says 10:46, but in reality it was 11:35 before we hit the tarmac. I guess when I fly this time of year, delays are a way of life. Patience is going to be the buzz word today.

For those of you that haven’t been in Ohio in January, this is what it looks like from the air.

Pilot say, “We are about to land.” I look out the window and see this…

This is NOT good news. They are moving snow off the runways…what could this mean for my flight to Houston? SURPRISE…I am the 2:00 p.m. to Houston or am I?

I guess the good news is I could have been on the 12:06 and been cancelled all together. After this delay sunk in, I realize that I will now miss my connecting flight to the Rio Grande Valley Airport in Harlingen. So, I find the Customer Service area for United and got in line with all the others. The man in back of me counted 80 people in from of us…oh boy, this is going to take a while. He just arrived from Hong Kong and his St. Louis flight was cancelled…not a happy man!!! Finally an hour and a half later, I got a standby ticket for the last flight out of IAH Airport to Harlingen…Hallelujah.

Well, we boarded for Houston at 5:30 and lifted off at 5:50…forget the 4:15 time! Once in the air, I looked out the window and saw this beautiful view.

It looked like the edge of the Earth. How beautiful!

Once I arrived in Houston, I ran to the gate and got the last ticket for the 9:20 p.m. flight…YIPEE! Plane left on time…MIRACLES DO HAPPEN! I was in the last seat, last row…who cares, not me, I am going to warm weather. Paul met me, and the rest is history.

While Marsha was battling her ride home, Paul was enjoying the sunshine playing Pickleball with some of the neighbors......he likes to add that his team won all the games. Not bad for a rookie! Of course after strenuous activity one must replenish body fluids and electrolytes with a couple Margaritas....ha ha! Then Mike, one of Paul's new friends, had Paul help at the Activity Center setting up tables and chairs for tomorrow's craft show and a park wide garage sale. Now this should be a fun activity for tomorrow!

Tuesday, January 18 – SUN, SUN, SUN…Marsha couldn’t get enough. What a difference a day makes!

Paul spent the day showing Marsha around the campground and Mission. We did some shopping, meeting new friends and just enjoying the day. Marsha just can’t get over that one day she can be in 18 degree weather and the next 80…amazing!

Happy birthday to our sister-in-law, Katie! You never age!

Thanks for stopping by. Hope to see y’all back real soon. Have a great day!

REMODELING…CABINET MAKING – FINAL CHAPTER

Monday, January 10 – Back to the cabinets. I started the drawers today. That Kleg pocket screw jig I am using sure is nice. The drawers came out tight and square with a minimum of fuss! Nice addition for anyone's shop, I believe!




Tuesday, January 11 – Glad to be in SOUTH Texas. The weather in much of the country is frightful, even North Texas got snow.....brrrrrrr. It is going to cool off here in the RGV for a couple of days getting down in the 40's. The wind picked-up early this morning rattling the awnings over the slide-outs. Thank-goodness it is suppose to be back up in the high 70's by Saturday. Marsha will not be happy to arrive on Monday to cold temperatures!

Paul finished the drawers this morning. All that is left to do is add the drawer pulls. We'll look around and match are existing hardware.



Now back to the desk. Paul wasn't happy with what he had for the top of the desk. He started out with a pull-out keyboard tray, but didn't like it, so he tore that out and is playing around with a couple different ideas. He tried a lazy susan mounted in the front corner so the top swivels out......nope don't like that either. Next is a sliding top......hmmmm ....maybe that will work. Have to have the “engineer” work on that a bit!



Thursday, January 13 – Not only did Paul not like the computer tray, but he decided he didn't like the desk layout at all.....so he tore it out and started all over with a different design. So far, he likes the new layout better. It's a little bigger and works much better. He spent all day running around and getting additional material and then re-engineering the desk. He's still not done....will finish it tomorrow.

He did get a little sidetrack this morning. With temperatures in the low forties here in South Texas (that's a brrrrrrrrrrrrrrr), when he went out to start the car, it moaned and groaned, not being very perky. Dag gone it…battery is dying! So, knowing if he didn't replace it today it would fail on the way to pick-up Marsha at the airport in a couple days, so he went to Auto Zone. They tested it (yep, it's bad....orginal 2005 battery); battery replaced. Marsha better get home soon.....I'm running out of money!



Friday, January 14 - Paul got an early start on finishing the desk today. He is determined to complete the desk portion of this project TODAY! The sliding top turned out great. Paul thinks it will work as planned and he should be very happy using it. He finished the desk, as hoped, all except filling the nail holes which he will do just before the staining and varnishing.










The weather has begun to return to “summer” style conditions. It's been cold (lower 40's) and drizzly the last two days. Paul went for his daily bike ride and was happy to see people getting outside enjoying the warming weather. This weekend we're suppose to get back to the great weather the RGV is known for.

The votes are in! From our last blog, we posed the question…Which of the Weavers is in the wrong place for this time of the year?  DUH…Marsha was the winner…if you can call her the winner. Canton got more snow on Tuesday and Wednesday. She isn’t looking forward to saying good-bye to her family and friends but can’t wait to get to the warmth of Mission and Paul.

Back in Canton, Ohio – Marsha had to deal with her sinus infection all week. She had a terrible headache all week and swelling and pressure around the eyes. FINALLY, on Thursday the meds kicked in and she felt much better. She actually met with Pastor Bruce, had him bless her prayer shawl and delivered it to Aunt Johanne at the nursing home. Aunt Johanne was thrilled with the gift. We hope it brings her warmth and comfort.

Since she hadn’t been out for over a week, she kept her dinner date with her Stark State College divas. Marsha was an Assistant Professor at the College while the girls were growing up. Her schedule worked great with Paul’s teaching schedule. One of us were always with the girls. No day care or babysitters needed. The Divas (a name Marsha calls all her friends) had lunch at a local restaurant, Samatha’s. Lots of catching up and laughter went on during the dinner. Thanks gals for a wonderful time!

Pam, Shirley, Connie and Marsha



Even though she got to see some of her friends, Marsha is disappointed that she was not feeling well for so many days that she didn’t get visit with her other dear friends, Red, Sharon, Stephanie, Cindy, LeighAnn, etc. She promises next time she is in town there will be some h--- raising going on!!!


Friday, January 14 – Well, she over did it yesterday. Marsha needed to make a quick trip to the grocery store and get her dad some medicine for his cold before she could lay low the rest of the day.

BUT…before she could go to the store, she had to dig the driveway out. She did the entire driveway by hand. Great workout! The picture doesn’t show the depth of the snow but there was about 6” of snow with a layer of sleet on top. The winds didn’t help maters. YUCK!



Dad has a terrible cold so she is playing nurse. Some crazy cold/flu is going around.
Marsha is starting to get her things together for her flight to Mission on Monday morning. Our sister-in-law, Chris, is off work on Monday so she has volunteered to take Marsha to the airport. That is great news for her dad. He can now stay in and keep getting better!

Marsha says, “Last post for me from Canton.” “Next time I make a post it will be from sunny Texas!”

Thanks for stopping by. Hope to see you back real soon. Have a GREAT day!