Sunday, January 22, 2012

BUSY, BUSY AND BUSIER

Friday, January 20 – It has really been hot here. Here is a photo of our weather gauge. Notice the time…5:28 p.m.

temperature

Saturday, January 21 – Hidden Valley Ranch had a park-wide garage sale this morning, and we had a few items we decided to put out by the street for sale.

garage-sale

This is the smallest garage sale Marsha and I have ever had.....we've had some humungous sales in the past....LOL. We sold most of our treasures and made about $55 which Paul managed to use by purchasing a Pressure Pro tire monitoring system from the neighbor for $50 – a real steal !!! It's something Paul has always wanted but hasn't bought because of the high price. If you are unfamiliar with tire monitoring systems, they keep a watch on your tire pressures (in this case our Honda CRV) while being towed behind the MH and gives an alert if there is a blow-out or leak. It would be easy and a catastrophe to tow the car down the street with a flat tire and not even be aware of the problem.

We closed up the garage sale at 10:00 a.m. because Marsha was participating in a Ladies Style Show Luncheon at the Leisure Valley Clubhouse. She was modeling “Ropa” ware! Of course, she got Paul to work too! He was a server for the ladies luncheon.

4-paul-serving

Have you ever heard of “la Ropa” style show? Here in South Texas (it may be in other areas too) you can go to the Ropa store and purchase new or lightly-used clothing at unbelievable low prices. It comes in bales and you open them up and pick-out what you want. Then you normally purchase the clothing by the pound!

Well, the ladies select outfits from the Ropa and put on a show for the park. It was a sold out show and luncheon. Attendance reached 200 people. Each model wore an outfit and then carried one or two additional ones. The outfits were auction off to the highest bidder with some items going for over $20 and some for as little as $3. Marsha did very well and helped raise some big bucks!!! She looked smashing....don't you think?

First outfit
6-marsha-1st-dress

Second outfit
8-marsha-2nd-dress

Third outfit
10-thrid-outfit

Our friend, Rick, was our auctioneer.
5-rick

The decorating committee did a great job. There were three of these on each table…
1b-door-prie

1a-door-prize

You guessed it. Marsha was a lucky winner of a door prize….AGAIN!!!
1-door-prize

Later in the evening, we attended another Country Dance at the clubhouse. The group was the Renaissance Rockers, a musical group made-up of doctors and other health professionals. They perform a mix of country and oldies. We've heard this group in the past and they are always well received. Another good time in the Rio Grande Valley.

Sunday, January 22 – Our friends, Angie & Rick, recently purchased a home here in Leisure Valley Ranch. We actually arrived here back on December 30 just in time to help them move. As a thank-you to all the helpers, they had a brunch this morning at their place. It's breakfast “in-a-bag.”

As Angie demonstrates
angie-demonstrating

each person was given a plastic bag. We broke two or three eggs in the bag. We then went around a table and placed what ever items (bacon, sausage, mushrooms, asparagus, cheese, etc.) in the bag. You scrunch it all up. We then gave the bag to Rick, who placed them in big pots.

showing-us-how-to-cook

They cook for about 15-18 minutes. All the fixin's come out as an omelet. It was so much fun. They had tons of other stuff for us to eat, even Mimosas! It was a great breakfast and a fun time.

After enjoying the fun at breakfast it was time to relax at home and enjoy the NFL play-off games. A person can get pretty busy and exhausted here in the Rio Grande Valley having fun, so it's nice on occasion to just hang-out at the MH and watch some football.

Our landlord stopped in to visit. He has a Congo African Grey Redtail Parrot that rides all over the park on John's shoulder in the golf cart. Her name is Suzie.

john-and-bird

john-and-bird-1

She's quite the talker and it's amazing to hear her. She doesn't just mimic John, but thinks and creates sentences. For example: “John, Suzie says bye, bye.” She even tells John...”No John, you're wrong.” If she bites John, he'll swat at her (not really connecting) and she says, “Suzie is telling Martha (John's wife) and she'll put the stick to you!” She was chattering up a storm with us.

Don't run out and get one of these Parrots. John tells us they live to be 90 years old! There is a lady a couple blocks from the park that sells thousands of these birds all over the country. That might make a neat field trip!

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

8 comments:

  1. Wow! Your park has GOOD stuff at its yard sale! What a great buy for Paul to get that Pressure Pro at such a bargain!

    You make a great model, Marsha! Ooo, la la. Looks like it was a grand time! So nice of you to volunteer Paul to serve. He was quite handsome in his white shirt and bow tie. We'd have to get Paul's shirt out of winter storage if he were to do that...and horrors, I might have to iron it! So glad he doesn't need it. We call it his funeral shirt...just in case we have to do a funeral home visitation...or I guess dress him in it if it's his funeral. LOL

    Your activities director is no slouch...lots of effort makes for such very nice and well attended events.

    Had a friend back home who had a parrot. Don't know how much he talked but he sure did SQUAWK when she was on the phone. Do John and Martha have guardians in case Suzie outlives them? Sounds like Suzie offers a lot of free entertainment! LOL

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  2. Glad the Ropa auction went well. Nice looking outfits you wore!

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  3. what a great weekend you had!!!! love the clothes! we also don't have the tire pressure kit but are considering it..love the parrot-sounds like a pretty smart one. What a great breakfast..we also do breakfast in a bag...but have never seen anyone else do it...the dance sounds like it was a blast have a super week

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  4. You are having so much fun!! What a deal on the tire pressure monitor. Who is that good looking girl modeling all those clothes?

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  5. You guys are going have to leave there to rest up...lol.

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  6. looks like you two are having a hard time fitting in down there ;)

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  7. Wow-talk about busy. Looks like the auction was fun-Marsha, you look like a "natural" model and Paul, the white shirt and the bow tie was classic. What was that on the auctioneers head???

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  8. Would not be without a Pressure Pro. Saved our butts more than one time.

    I need to learn Marsha's secret to winning door prizes. We are so unlucky at them. A few years back we attended my Human Resource Assn annual Christmas Party. There were 47 people in attendance and 45 door prizes. Two people left without anything - me and Leonard, my hubby!

    My daughters ex-boyfriend has an African Gray. Drove her crazy. It imitated the ringing of the telephone. Perfect timing, perfect pitch. Never knew when it was really the phone or the dang bird.

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