Summer 2018 with the kids and friends

It was a great summer with the kids and catching up with our friends! We went to Holiday World in Santa Claus, Indiana for a week (stayed at Lincoln State Park). We rode rollercoasters, played at the water park and the kids made friends wherever. We then had a couple of weeks at Floating Mill on Center Hill Lake to kick off summer and another for our birthdays

Holiday World was fun (and hot)

 

Abraham Lincoln's home from the age of 14-21

 

 

 

 

 

Women's Supper Club--so fun to reunite

 

Leeton wanted to eat at the dining room table

 


 

 

 

 

 


Kennah's Birthday sort of kicked things off
 

 

Spring 2018 in Tennessee

Our teenagers

 Return from Dallas--West Memphis Truck Stop (busy)-- Then we got to Nashville the first week in April. Reconnected with friends, took on cheerleader role for Terry O'Donnell after his triple bypass surgery, Charlie Johnson is very ill from pancreatic cancer and we buried Diane Johnson who had been so sick from lung cancer for years. On a positive note, we did dinner with the Kitchels, Barksdales, Gilliams, Grahams and Hunsuckers and the Women's Club Friends. We found the kids great and ready to spend time with us. The Nashville Predators are in the playoffs once again so we again take up the sport--Nick and I text back and forth but couldn't get the Preds past Winnipeg. Terry once again swears off next year--he gets excited.

Leeton's program at the end of school

The Norris Family and Bitz

Leeton turned 8 on April 19th , Holden 6 on May 1st. They had a combined birthday party at the park with Balloon Man and Jump house. This was a huge success with about 30 kids and 30 of their parents. Katie is an amazing Mom and so the party was a HUGE success. 

Great birthday party

A trampoline from Lolo/Bitz

 

 

Leeton found makeup!

We babysat Rae and Carson while Andy and Mary went to Porta Veurta, Mexico with Wootzie and Ed for the first 2 weeks in May. God gives babies to the young adults for a very good reason. They wore us out but were sooo cute and made us laugh every day. Carson is 1 and the best crawler I have ever seen. Rae is 3 and about potty trained and full of spunk. Katie came to town to help during the weekend mid-way and boy did we need the break. We went to Bricks for dinner and stayed in the RV in the driveway and slept in. 

The Renaissance Festival was fun with all 4 children

Holden even took a bow and stole the show
 

Leeton loved her My Life doll

Fun summer fun

Floating Mill is on Center Hill and situated between Hurricane Marina (Steve and Sally) and Rob and Julia's Condo with the added bonus of about 1/2 hour from the Cookeville kids. We stayed there during the birthday party and then again the first weekend of June. Learning the tips of the trade of this very convenient state park.  Lie on the registration form:  38 foot RV's only fit in 5 of the spots according to the form but actually it can fit in most of the 30ft. and up spaces. No matter what they say on the web site--all the spaces have 50 amp. hookups.   They don't care if you show up and have lied (apparently) so there are a lot more places we can book. 

Rylan, Julia, and Robin at the Lakehouse for Kennah's birthday

Peggy, Cheryl, Judy Foster at Green Hills Grille for Woman's Club dinner

Fitz grew a hydrangea bloom 

Julia and Sally

Robin, Steve and Fitz--you can't make new "old friends"

Marge--after we were home a couple of weeks, we heard via email from Vicki Caernal--Bob's wife and Marge's daughter in law. She had gotten the letter (rerouted) that I had sent Marge detailing how we tried to get in touch with her when we were in Dallas/Grand Prairie. She said Marge had "take a turn" and was in her last days. She has little comprehension and they had moved her near them in Waxahachie, Tx. Then a few weeks later she wrote to say she had passed away. Terry and I were sad we had not gotten to see her- seems we were a week late. The memories with Marge are abundant and full of joy. She was a great lady.

Plan summer trips--Wisconsin, Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota, Wyoming, Montana, Utah, Colorado, Kansas, Missouri, home

Dallas/Fort Worth and Marge

We made reservations at Traders Village RV in Grand Prairie for a few days so we could mainly see my step-mother, Marge Leeton.  The George Bush Presidential Library and Cowboys Stadium are also on the schedule. Plus the weather is still lousy in Tennessee.  First goal--see Marge!  Fail! I had a phone number for Marge and had spoken with her at Christmas.  Terry and I spent the next 5 days looking for her but to no avail.  We did talk to people who have talked to her in the past 10 days and she is OK.  Just moved to live nearer "her son" and where they play more bridge. 

Marge is a great grandmother (post script--Marge died a couple months after we were there--
yet another lesson in life--seize the moment we waited too late to go see her)

A great Lady

She knew mother and daddy when they were in WWII this is after they had reunited after their spouses had died.  This is when they met up with Mitch who was part of the crew on the airplane that Daddy and Ed piloted
 

  With a heavy heart we continued to play tourist and see the George W. Bush Presidential Library which is located on the campus of Southern Methodist University.  Beautiful Library and Campus.  We laughed because the GPS said the library was located on smu drive (rather than S-M-U drive).

The George W. Bush Library is situated in the middle of SMU and we spent Easter there

In the foyer, they have a 360 degree video screen showing various points of achievement

A special display honoring the First Ladies was really nice

Then it moved on to his 8 years in office

This is a beam from the World Trade Center after the terrorist attack

I got to sit at the desk in their mock oval office

Beautiful presidential seal

Next day we went to AT&T Stadium and took the VIP Tour through Jerry"s House/Home of the Dallas Cowboys.  We loved it and want to go back for a football game sometime.  Then we rode into Fort Worth and saw the famous Stockyard and Billy Bob's Bar. 

This is a BIG facility--the largest (in size) in the world

This is the view from the "Party" tickets--10,000 individual game tickets where you stand all the time but can walk around

The 6 ton roof only takes 10 minutes to open--Jerry Jones spared no expense

They love Jason Whitten here

Where the team runs out on the field

The field is sorta spongy to walk on

Carlsbad Cavern and we add another state to our repitoire (New Mexico)

Carlsbad Caverns are huge caves under the Guadalupe Mountain Range in the Chihuahuan Desert  It was totally a hit. Fascinating was the hole in the ground which could house  a gigantic army of bats--it must have been a whale of a big cave. An inscription reading "J White 1898" was discovered deep within Carlsbad Caverns in the 1980s. It provides witness to the presence of a 15- or 16-year-old Jim White--a true explorer. We stayed at White City RV at the gateway (7 miles) to the Caverns.

Carlsbad Caverns was wonderful and yes, it was cold and windy



View out the front of the RV at White City

 

This is pretty basic RV'ing but we had water, electric and sewer and it was as close as you can get

On Thursday the 29^th we hiked the 4 miles throughout the cave down then UP! (the elevator was broken?!)and saw spectacular sites.  We were too late to sign up for guided tours but we got the little information guides on the phones—they helped a lot.  But the views were absolutely unbelievable!

Opening to the Caverns--looked a lot easier than it turned out

Huge Column where stalactites meet stalagmites 

Beautiful

Land of the fairies

Giant column with draperies

Chinese theatre