Our Winter Country Weekend......

Its been cold in Texas.

Not like the Arctic cold of last year and not like the cold of our states up north.....

and nothing like our Finland friend, Jutta, deals with.

 

So we can't complain about it being uncomfortably COLD!

Samantha knows where to go to keep warm,

around the Dearborn heater in the big bathroom!

And for some reason, Tabitha decided to hang out in the shower to the right of said heater!

It wasn't long before she joined her sister on the hamper.

They love that place!

Bothe of them have been playing Hide and Seek since we have been here.

Tabitha hiding in plain sight.

There she is!

They do keep us entertained.

By Friday night I had 17 stockings cut from my denim stash.

Only 3 or 4 more to go!

Louis Dean worked on his projects and I worked on mine all of Friday,

Then Saturday we went to town.

Tina and Dog are our gate friends. 

They appear every time we pull up to the gate entrance

Our friend, Kimmy, keeps us supplied with dog treats for them,

Every month she brings me a new bag of treats.

It was a foggy day as we left the ranch on Saturday.

And it proved to be a very long day, indeed.

We intended to find a place to fill our propanr tanks and shop at HEB , maybe eat dinner out and come back home.

We went first to Tractor Supply where you can normally get your propane tanks filled.

There was a Dirt Cheap store just a few doors down and I asked Louis Dean to drop me off there.

He did and then he called me after talking to the Tractor Supply people......they were out of propane but directed him to the Uhaul place just 2 miles away. I thought it was safe for him to go the two miles and get the propane and then come back and pick me up.  Then several minutes later, he called me back. "Houston, we have a BIG problem!" He had parked six places outside Tractor Supply. Somehow between going in and coming out - he lost the anti theft devise for the truck and he could not drive without it!

I walked back down to where he was and we checked everywhere.

All his pockets and the floorboard of the truck. The seats. The back seats. In between the seats.

We did not know what to do.

Sherry was about to leave the ranch and go to visit her parents.

I called her to let them know what was going on.

They are so good to us. Sherry said she would pack her bag and they would be there to help us.

Then I called the Dodge house. I gave them the Vin # and found out the devise is obsolete and no way to replace it. They were only open for another hour and he said if we could get the truck towed in, they could wire around the anti theft thing. He was really nice and I asked him, "If you are a praying man, will you say a prayer for us?" He said he was and he would.

We spent an hour walking around looking for that key fob thing.

I searched Louis Dean's clothes - his pockets and even his shoes.

I questioned him like Perry Mason - did you walk up and down the isles at Tractor Supply? Did you go to the bathroom there? We were both at our wit's end......

I could not get WiFi on my phone so I went in and asked an employee and he told me how to get Internet connection. I told him our dilemma and he said no one had turned in any keys.

Louis Dean and I took turns walking back and forth from the truck to the store looking for the keys.

Louis Dean was beginning to feel like he was losing his mind! He went back to the Tractor Supply desk - again - and this time there was a lady there and she said, "We have a few small keys....."

Praise GOD!!! There it was and Louis Dean was thrilled!

We called Dean and Sherry and they were already in Waco......so we decided to meet at Aldi.

We went on to the Uhaul place after getting the truck started and they were out of propane untilMonday morning at 9:00. What is it with all these shortages??

I was so happy to see Dean and Sherry.

It's a wonderful thing to know that your family is there for you.

Words fail me to say how grateful I am to them.

They have opened their property and made us welcome - giving us the very best location for our camper and then encouraged us to send down roots by putting in decks, firepits and a honking big red metal roof and carport and skirting.

Sherry and I are beekeepers together and the four of us are enjoying such a good family relationship.

I could not ask for a better step son and Sherry is like another daughter to me.

We ate dinner together at Cheddar's Scratch Kitchen and I was so relieved that all had turned out well.

It was time for a tasty margarita for me!

We were ready to relax!

At least through it all, we had kept our cool and trusted that it would all work out.

Can you tell how happy we were that this ordeal had a happy ending??

True Love.....and a margarita and a beer.

The food was delicious!

I took all this home with me after only eating the salad.

It was my Sunday night supper.

Louis Dean ate every bite of his!

He deserved it - after the stressful day he'd had!

Sherry went on to Hamilton to visit her parents and Dean stayed with me and his dad as I shoppped HEB and Louis Dean filled the truck tank with diesel.  Dean was amazing in seeming to be at both places at once. He went in with me at the grocery store and then went out to be with his dad as he got fuel.....then back with me at the check out and loaded the groceries.

I admit to feeling scared but I prayed and kept my composure thanks be to God.

Louis Dean was totally off his game and it would not have done any good and maybe a great deal of harm if I had lost my act along with his.

God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. 

And he is.....and he was.....

Dean saw us safely home and I put away the groceries and set things to right here at the camper.cabin.

My Brother Buster sent me a text about the Dallas Cowboy game and I found it on the radio, We tuned in on the third quarter and it was lust the thing to get Louis Dean back to 'normal.'

The Boys won BIG and we both went to bed with gratitude that God works all things out for the best.

Sunday has been a quiet day here at the ranch.

We had our morning coffee, Bible reading and worship service online at Fellowshop Church.

It's been another cold, windy, blustery day.

A good day to stay inside and read and clean.

I love doing both.

I read a few chapters, play a few Words With Friends games, then clean and organize for a while.

What with the mice invasion - now that they are gone - I feel the need to CLEAN and disinfect everything. So I am working from one end of the front room to the other.

I've already cleaned the camper from top to bottom!

Every basket and every shelf has been cleaned.

This book was in one of my 'Book Baskets.'

I'm finding a few recipes to use on my next trip down here.

I dearly love Fall best of ALL so I keep some fall 'debris' up here year round.

I framed the Santa Express Christmas card and hung it in the front room.

It's been a cold day but that little fireplace heater has kept the chill at bay.

Candles put a warm feeling to the room.

I cleaned fully one half of the front room and then set up my art table.

I have all of Monday and Tuesday to paint and am looking forward to finishing up the projects I started in 2021. I do have some good ideas for painting in 2022!

Sherry brought us down some stuffed Poblano peppers and sweet potatoes for supper tonight.

Plus I had my leftovers from Cheddar's.

I rediscovered this book while I was cleaning today.

It has two DVDs that are sound only  so it's like an audio book you can listen to and yet it is a real book with words and photos. Louis Dean and I listened to the first disc tonight.

Things that were so long ago don't always seem so far away.