Thursday, July 31, 2008

TO ALL THE KIDS WHO SURIVED

TO ALL THE KIDS WHO SURVIVED
the 1930's, 40's, 50's, 60's and 70's!!
A E-mail from Lesley I got today.
First, we survived being born to mothers who smoked and/or drank while they were pregnant. They took aspirin, ate blue cheese dressing, tuna from a can, and didn't get tested for diabetes. Then after that trauma, we were put to sleep on our tummies in baby cribs covered with bright colored lead-based paints. We had no childproof lids on medicine bottles, doors or cabinets and when we rode our bikes, we had no helmets, not to mention, the risks we took hitchhiking. As infants & children, we would ride in cars with no car seats, booster seats, seat belts or air bags. Riding in the back of a pick up on a warm day was always a special treat. We drank water from the garden hose and not from a bottle. We shared one soft drink with four friends, from one bottle and no one actually died from this. We ate cupcakes, white bread and real butter and drank Kool-aid made with sugar, but we weren't overweight because, WE WERE ALWAYS OUTSIDE PLAYING! We would leave home in the morning and play all day, as long as we were back when the streetlights came on. No one was able to reach us all day, and we were O.K. We would spend hours building our go-carts out of scraps and then ride down the hill, only to find out we forgot the brakes After running into the bushes a few times, we learned to solve the problem. We did not have Playstations,Nintendo's, X-boxes, no video games at all, no 150 channels on cable, no video movies or DVD's, no surround-sound or CD's, no cell phones, no personal computer, no Internet or chat rooms....... WE HAD FRIENDS and we went outside and found them! We fell out of trees, got cut, broke bones and teeth and there were no lawsuits from these accidents. We ate worms and mud pies made from dirt, and the worms did not live in us forever. We were given BB guns for our 10th birthday's, made up games with sticks and tennis balls and, although we were told it would happen, we did not poke out very many eyes. We rode bikes or walked to a friend's house and knocked on the door or rang the bell, or just walked in and talked to them! Little League had tryouts and not everyone made the team. Those who didn't had to learn to deal with disappointment. Imagine that!! The idea of a parent bailing us out if we broke the law was unheard of. They actually sided with the law! These generations have produced some of the best risk-takers, problem solvers and inventors ever! The past 50 years have been an explosion of innovation and new ideas. We had freedom, failure, success and responsibility, and we learned HOW TO DEAL WITH IT ALL! If YOU are one of them CONGRATULATIONS! You might want to share this with others who have had the luck to grow up as kids, before the lawyers and the government regulated so much of our lives for our own good . While you are at it , forward it to your kids so they will know how brave (and lucky) their parents were. Kind of makes you want to run through the house with scissors, doesn't it?!

Wednesday, July 30, 2008

Lance's 39th Birthday

View this montage created at One True Media Lance's 39th Birthday I have been over playing on http://www.onetruemedia.com/ It is real neat check it out. Click on the Thumbnail above to see a Montage I did of Lance's Birthday party last year.

Tuesday, July 29, 2008

Inks Lake State Park, Texas

Inks Lake State Park
After going to Blanco State park we decided to keep on going.
We went up to Inks Lake State Park.
Papa and Jelly Bean.
The park boasts beautiful outcroppings of ancient, granite-like rock, called gneiss, making the park one of the state's best geological wonders.
My Little Man
Wonder what he is thinking about?
History: Inks Lake State Park is 1201 acres of recreational facilities adjacent to Inks Lake on the Colorado River in Burnet County. The park was acquired by deeds from the Lower Colorado River Authority and private owners in 1940 and was opened to the public in 1950.
It was starting to sprinkle and it was getting late
so we had to take off.
I did get some cool photos of a double rainbow on the way
home threw the van window.
Can you see both of them?
We plan on going back and camping and doing some fishing too.
From a web site:
Fish species in 803-acre Inks Lake: Bass: Guadalupe, Largemouth, Striped, White Catfish: Channel, Flathead Crappie: White Shad: Gizzard, Threadfin Others: Bluegill
We also want to go check out Longhorn Cavern Sate Park. Wanted to this day
but, we all did not have on good shoes to hike threw a cavern.
From a web site:
Longhorn Cavern State Park features Longhorn Cavern, a Texas Hill Country wonder created over thousands of years by the dissolving and cutting action of water on the limestone bedrock of the area. Fossil remains show that many Ice Age animals once occupied the cave.
As one of Texas' river-formed caverns, Longhorn Cavern is full of wonderful and exciting discoveries. You will experience natural wonders such as Crystal City, an area of the cavern that is adorned with calcite crystals that were formed by standing pools of calcium-saturated water.
Sounds neat doesn't it?

Monday, July 28, 2008

Blanco State Park

BLANCO STATE PARK, TEXAS
July 9th, 2008 Saw A photo like this But with people in the water in a Texas state travel guide. Showed the hubby and we just decided to go check it out. When we got there it only had one spot that had a bit of a water fall along the whole wall. It did not look like the photo's I saw at all. I was disappointed! Did not help that I slipped on the rocks trying to get to the waterfall to take pictures and hurt myself good It stills hurts a little bit. Thank goodness I did not take my good camera out there with me but, a throw away waterproof one. Still need to have it developed. These are the pictures I took that day
Lil Red Swimming Jelly Bean Podunk try to catch little fishes Up river.
Directions: The park is located on the south side of Blanco, 40 miles north of San Antonio on US Highway 281; turn on Park Road 23 or 48 miles west of Austin on US Highway 290 to US Highway 281, then south on Park Road 23. The park is only 4 blocks south of the town square.

Friday, July 25, 2008

On the 4th of July

On The 4th of July 2008
We went to my Brother David's house to spend the evening with him and his partner and friends. He lives in Lakeway, Texas (Austin). It was nice to sit and watch the fireworks over Lake Travis.
The Family
Little Red and Auntie Ann
Little Red looks just like Uncle David!
The Hubby and my Podunk kid
We tried to get photos of the fire work's but, I am no photographer, and had no idea what I was doing! Even hubby tried we got Lot's of blurry photos then I forgot to set the camera back and the rest of the ones with the kids doing the sparklers came out all blurry too.
Thanks David we had a good time. We Love you Guys!

Thursday, July 24, 2008

The Ride Home

A few snap shots from the ride home.
Jelly Bean is under that blanket from Nana somewhere.
Mr. Guitar hero himself trying not to smile.
My Happy Little man.
We stoped at Bucees...... had to after seeing all the bilboards about it.
The billboards are cute and that beaver is just too adorable. We saw lots of Billboards in the 3 hour drive from Houston to San Antonio. It kept us entertained. I found these pictures online of some of the billboards.
I have been in one before but, the guys have not.
Here are some words from reviews online that I looked up, wish I could write like this. It sounds like me though, LOL! I cut and pasted some words and added some of my own.
I'm a little shocked at how amazing a gas station can be.
The parking wasn't nearly as bad as I thought it was going to be. Sure, it was crowded, but not overly so and it was definitely possible to find a spot anywhere. And considering how many cars were in the parking lot, the store itself was pleasantly uncrowded. That is mostly due to the fact that it is ENORMOUS!
The best part is they got everything from Dippin' Dots, candy, a deli case full of every kind of jerky you can think of, fresh deli, higher end sou verniers, and of course gas - 20+ aisles of pumps.
The left side is a bunch of touristy junk and by junk I mean I wanted it all, but was able to walk away without any of it.
The right side was the obligatory snacks and other devilish temptations.
In front of the deli is a computerized sandwich-ordering system, where you can order a sandwich custom built to your specifications, from the bread to the spread to the meat. You can also select wraps, hot dogs, chicken fingers, tacos and burritos. Here’s also where you can order a brown paper bag filled with freshly fried chips.
The photo below I found online.
The women's room is enough to make a girl swoon. There are rows and rows of stalls. When the stall door is locked, the outside says occupied, much like an airplane. Best of all, nearly everything is automatic, from the flushers to the soap and paper towels.
The picture above is of the baby Changing station and waiting area in the ladies room at Buc-ee's. That poster, the throw and the bench it's on are all for sale. The ladies room is also an arts and crafts gallery!
A photo of all the stalls in the ladies room. Those white dispensers are hand sanitizers!
http://www.bucees.com/ here is a link to their web site.
We even ran into one of Papa Bexars co-workers from the Sheriff's Department too. It was nice to meet you Goodwin and your partner after talking to you on the phone so many times.
We had a goo trip back home from Houston.

The Ferry Boat Ride June 28th, 2008

Galveston, Texas to Crystal Beach From the web site: Galveston Island to Port BolivarThe Galveston-Port Bolivar ferry is the bridge between two segments of State Highway 87. South of IH-10, State Highway 87 is the only highway around Galveston Bay. The free ferry service provided by TxDOT is the only way motorists can cross the waterway between Bolivar Peninsula and Galveston Island. The line to get on was real long. So we just parked and walked on. Much quicker that way. That way we did not have to drive off the boat and turn around to get back on. We just stayed onboard and watched the cars load and unload real neat system they have. It was a Great free thing to do we enjoyed it.
What a mean look from Podunk. He did cheer up later on.
We Got to see the Dolphins! That was exciting.
DOLPHINS!!
Cool Photo of the TEXAS Flag
The boat was double-ended with a pilothouse on each end,
and the Captain changed from one pilothouse to the other to
go in the opposite direction.
The Boat did not have to turn around! How cool is that.
On the way back there where lots of seagulls. I think Lance
liked watching them.
Just Me.
Silly boys! See there Podunk with a smile.
It was also VERY windy on the way back
Hold on Lil Red!
Don't Blow away.
I am holding on Tight Mom!
SUPERMAN
here is a link to read more about the ferry