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Saturday, April 28, 2012

Life is very relaxing here

sunrise the 24th

Other than our daily chores we haven't been doing much here.  We read and watch the pond!  Every few days we head into civilization to buy needed food and objects.  Most evenings we take a walk.

Our weather has been awesome!  high 70's to low 80's for daytime temperatures and we usually sleep with the windows open at night.  Because of the breezes from offshore we don't have to many issues with the humidity.

We did go to Galveston Island the other day and it was good to sit on the beach and enjoy our lunch while watching the waves come to shore.  There were only a couple of people around us so all we had to listen to were the gentle waves and the seagulls of course.  I found it odd that there were some pigeons among the gulls...

Not sure why, but Jim still gets up early most days...perhaps it has something to do with Boo.  Jim takes him out first thing and I think Boo is training him well!  They go for a brief walk and get a little exercise too.

We've been here a couple weeks and the baby ducks are getting big.  There is one persistent drake mating with a female and I swear he's going to drown her!  I'm sure there will be another clutch of eggs laid soon...The snowy egret is still hanging around and we've seen a tri-color heron too.  The Quaker parrots have been seen across the pond and flying overhead and finally the other day one was on the platform feeder!  I did get a couple pictures but they're still on the camera.

Wednesday, April 18, 2012

Wind and Rain

We've weathered the storms!   But not without incident....Monday night when we went to bed we discovered water had gotten in and the bedding was wet.  This had to have happened during the day because when I made the bed all was dry!  So we had to strip the bed and remake it.  Sheets went in the dryer and the comforter was draped over my computer stand and a quilt was draped over the kitchen counter. None of these items were WET but we couldn't sleep with them.

Yesterday when I got up I started the laundering process.  Fortunately the down comforter dried over night...don't need no wet feathers!  It felt like that's all I did all day!  I suppose I could have schlepped all of the stuff to the laundry down at the office but I like using my own washer and dryer.

Jim found the source of the water leak on the bedroom slide and took steps to dry it out.  We had to run out and get some sealant so we had lunch out too!

I had a couple books to mail so the post office was our first stop.  Then we headed to Lowe's for the sealant.  Next stop was Don Julio's for a Mexican lunch....not the best place...I think they used Velveeta for their cheese sauce.  The salsa was good, it had a bit of a kick!

Final stop was Walmart to pick up some groceries, a toilet seat and fuel!  With the card diesel was $3.84 not bad when you consider we've seen it higher in this area.  I think I've seen it as high as $4.10!

Back home I continued with the laundering and Jim installed the toilet seat....then he took a nap.

As we went for our evening stroll last night we got caught in a downpour!  We saw the dark clouds approaching from the northwest but it didn't look ominous...the rain that got us came from the east.  So we dashed home so we could get the windows closed and clean up the water once again...and guess what?  the fantastic fans did not close so the bed got wet again!

What's a little rain among friends?  We laughed a lot and cleaned it up....


Monday, April 16, 2012

Kemah Boardwalk

sunrise last Thursday

I think that was the last time we had calm weather.  We've had winds that gusted up to 30 mph  until yesterday when they finally died down and thunderstorms moved in.  No matter we know rain is a good thing!

We knew the rain was coming and just after we went to bed last night a big clap of thunder got us all going!  Boo didn't like it at all....several times during the night he barked at the noise....

baby Mallards with mom here at the resort


Saturday we went to the crawfish festival at Kemah Boardwalk.  It was a fun afternoon wandering the boardwalk seeing the sights and people

wooden roller coaster as seen from the other side of the marina

landscaping is lovely

double decker carousel

one of two trains

Ferris Wheel

We've stayed in for the most part, the wind was really blowing yesterday.  Reading, playing games and watching movies.  I expect we'll be staying in today too.  It's raining again.....

Thursday, April 12, 2012

Leaving Corpus Christi

We left Corpus Christi around 0930 last Tuesday with only one minor mishap.  We for got to take our Paradise sign down and I put the slide in squashing the heck out of it!  Between the two of us we broke it up and removed it.....alas the sign didn't make it.....

We took Texas highway 35 almost the entire way to Dickinson with only a couple jogs.  We drove through the Fulton/Rockport area and northward through some pretty country.  Some farmland with crops already coming up.  We made one stop for lunch

We pulled into Galveston Bay RV Resort and Marina around 1430 and upon first glance we liked it!  They have three prices depending on site location and we chose the freshwater pond.  It runs $400 a month and we got a discount for being military.  They also charge for electric and we left a deposit.  In no time at all we were parked and set up and enjoying a cold beer overlooking the pond and enjoying the breeze coming in off the bay

We ended up going out for dinner and headed to Kemah Boardwalk.  An amusement park with shops and restaurants.  We each got a pizza and a drink and sat outside overlooking the water feature and the folks dashing through the shooting water.

sunset Tuesday
Back home we had to hurry to catch this view of the sunset from the pool area.

Wednesday morning we were both up in time to enjoy the sunrise.  This view is from our patio


sunrise Wednesday
sunrise Wednesday
It's very quiet here and we have ducks with chicks, a snowy egret and Quaker Parakeets.  More pictures will be forthcoming!

Sunday, April 8, 2012

Happy Easter!

Saturday's Sunrise
Again we were up shortly after 0700.  Don't know how long this will last but it's kind of nice having my morning coffee with my honey.  Once breakfast was over I got busy and stripped the bed and started washing the sheets.  I did the dishes also.  

Then we went to the commissary for a few items.  Jim found some Summer Shandy beer.  He's been waiting since last summer for it to be in stock.  

Back home we put everything away and I continued with the laundry and fixed us some dinner.  Jim cooked a pork chop on the grill and I made some stuffing, steamed some broccoli and carrots and reheated some turnips.  After dishes were done we were both ready for a nap....


Blackhawk doing a flyby over the water
Red Breasted Merganser
Early evening we went for a walk and saw this duck and heron.  also a dolphin swam by but he didn't surface long enough for a picture.  The breeze off the water was wonderful but if you wanted to spend time out there you needed a jacket.
Blue Heron

Corpus Christi Sky Line

Saturday's Sunset

The sky was ever changing but it was so clear we could see Corpus Christi across the bay and eastward we could see the barrier islands

Today we again got up early, around 0730...maybe it's the sea air!  We had a lazy morning and decided to go to the mall after lunch.  I fixed a stir-fry and after the dishes were done we headed out.  

I guess it being Easter Sunday the stores were closed.  We did find a Bed Bath and Beyond open and bought a couple things that we needed for the soda machine.

Not much else happened today.  We're just enjoying our stay here.

Hope your Easter was special for you.

Time for a walk!

Friday, April 6, 2012

Touristy Morning




Jim and I were up shortly after 0700 this morning.  That's right I said Jim was up!  He got out of bed first and took Boo out for a walk.  During Breakfast I asked if he had any plans and he said no.  So I did some searching and found some old homes to look at downtown at the Cultural Center.  Unfortunately due to the Holiday weekend none of them were open to explore, but we strolled the grounds and took some pictures.

this one needs some TLC and did you notice the Dish on the roof?

USS Lexington

Afterwords we drove down to the waterfront and looked at all the boats, big and small

At the Marina there are several restaurants and we chose Landry's.  Jim had fried seafood that came with a salad, fries and onion rings.  I splurged and had seafood gumbo, we both washed our fine meal down with a cold beer.

The afternoon was spent napping, reading and walking. Did a load of laundry this morning and another one this afternoon.   I watched my soap then sat outside for about an hour leafing through magazines and enjoying the lower temperature and breeze.

The campground has more folks setting up for the weekend.  Even have a few tents set up near the beach.  It's fun watching them dealing with the wind!

We both like being near the water....



Thursday, April 5, 2012

Leaving the valley

Bentsen Palm RV Resort sure is pretty this time of year!  All the bushes and plantings are in full bloom and the butterflies are thick.  To bad it's already getting hot.  The days are creeping into the 90's and even without high humidity it's way to warm for me



Last night we had one last dinner with Anne and Scotty.  We had Subway Sandwiches that Anne picked up after dropping items off at their storage unit.  We've all been busy getting our rigs ready for travel.  It was good to sit and relax and enjoy their company.

ready to go!
Not sure when we'll see all the friends we've made here as we don't plan on coming back to the valley for any extended stays.  Other than to visit and catch up with friends there's no reason to come here.  We've seen and done just about all you can.  Hopefully we'll see them as we travel and there's always the internet to keep in touch.

We managed to slow ourselves down enough this morning to keep our departure later than normal.  We couldn't check in at the base until after two so we figured if we left around ten we'd be good on time.  Our drive was uneventful, just the way we like it.  There was a slow down for an accident clean up.  Not sure what caused it but an 18 wheeler went off the road and tipped over.  No problem at the inspection station.  I guess we don't fit the profile.

Around noon we stopped and had some lunch, then back on the road to finish our journey.  We saw some wildflowers but nothing spectacular....and I saw a couple Cara Cara's...

Once we pulled onto the base, Naval Air Station, Corpus Christi we headed towards the marina where we checked in and got our site.  I don't think it took an hour and we were set up drinking a cold beer and watching the jack rabbits.  We've also seen some gulls and pelicans.
our view of Corpus Christi Bay

I have some pictures to post but we have awful wifi here but I'll keep trying!