And the Annual Trip Begins!😊

Safe and Sound....and Full!

Today didn't begin well, but ended fantastically.  Leta has been coughing like crazy the last few days so when we got up we went to the Urgent Care Clinic but the were not open, even though the internet showed they were, so we went to the other Urgent Care Clinic  in town, where they diagnosed her with pneumonia.   She got about 4 prescriptions and we waited untill they were filled.  We raced home and started working on cleaning out the guest bedroom/storage room until it was time for me to leave.   As I accelerated after backing out of the driveway,  my Coke bottle flipped out of the  cupholder and emptied it self in the passenger seat....of course I didn't have any paper towels or water on the car.

Woody and Bendy arrived this afternoon, they had a bumpy flight with lots of heart rendering dips and drops.  But their adventures were minor compared to mine!  The Buick LaSaber die...just shut off...in a construction zone...in San Antonio!  I  coasted as far as I  could but eventually came to a stop between the entrance ramp and I 10, a very  dangerous location.  I  tried restarting the engine a half dozen times or so, without success.  So I  dialed 911 and reported my emergency to this dispatcher. When lo and behold the engine fired.  And I was able to proceed to the airport for our annual reunion. Luckily their flight was delayed by about 1/2 an hour, and and we were successfully in our rendezvous.   Thank the Lord nothing bad happened to any of us.

Ruddy's Bar B Que  (or the worst Bar B Que in Taxes

As soon as got our greetings and the car loaded,  Bendy fulfilled our first tradition by exclaiming she was hungry, and she needed to go to Ruddy's.  Avoiding the freeways, we wandered to the nearest one.  We enjoyed brisket, turkey, sausage, potato salad, and the sweetest cream corn you will ever taste.  After eating our lunch, on the out door picnic table we finished with a dessert of M&Ms.  (Apparently none of us had given up chocolate for lent).

Home at Last and Fried Ice Cream.

Because the car had acted up, we took back roads home and ended up visiting Luckenbach TX.  We got home to an exhausted Leta sitting on the glider on the front porch, locked out of the house!  We got inside and immediately put Woody to work breaking down the boxes.  Lee Cunningham called and offered use of Charmane's car and he even delivered it!

So Bendy was hungry so we headed to the closest Restaurant Altos de Jalisco where we all sampled  some of the hottest salsa we have had on this trip to date!  After our entrees we shared some fried ice cream with chocolate on it, of course.  Bendy was good, she didn't ask for M&Ms and even though; according to Abby, "they make everything better", Leta didn't ask for sprinkles!

Vacationing in the Rio Grande Valley

11:52PM - McAllen Tx.  Quick up date.  Second day of Vacationing - Birding with BTFF (Better Than Family Friends) Woody and Bendy from Michigan.  They just escaped Michigan's brutal cold spell and something like -7 degree weather.  It was -30 something near their cabin and -40 in the U.P.  It was windy here today but we had a high temperature of just shy of 90 degrees.

We have spent the last two days birding, eating and laughing!  We have seen over 50 species of birds and turtles, alligators, butterflies, "bummies" (bunnies), lizards and dragonflies.  We have visited just a couple of the many(!) birding sites.  We have gotten lost, and had to turn around a few times (darn GPS!), but we have made it back to the hotel everytime so far.

So far we have only done 1 geocache, which we muggled from a bunch of kindergartner kids!! But hey I claimed the smilie,  as we signed the log and returned the cache to its hiding place.  Mr. Wood has added a couple of birds to his life list.  Although we continue to search for the Ringed and Green Kingfishers!

Some of the coolest birds we have seen include the Pauraque, (Boom)  Chachalaca, Common Ground Dove, Herons, oh I'll stop or I will add 30 or 40 more!

I will add more to the blog in a bit,  as it is "a feeding" time again.   Those of you who know Bendy and Wood know what I am talking about.  :-)

Well gotta run (and bird).

A Good Start!

Well I have taken the next step towards running the half.  I developed a training plan.  I even sent copies to Lindsay, Stefanie and Mark.    So far I am sticking pretty much to plan, although I have delayed one run and advanced tomorrows run to today.  I was worried the weather might be worse tomorrow, as it was almost 80 yesterday and in the 40's today.  But I wasn't sure if I was worried it might get hot again, or colder....ya gotta love Texas!

Last week I exercised 3 times for 2.4 hours and  9 miles.

I ran today for 3 miles at a pace of 16 minutes a mile.  I need to speed it up just a bit.  My goal for the half is 3:16:30 ok, it is really 15 minute pace for the 13.1 miles, I think that math works...

Went to the library, HEB, stop at Hill Country Optical and set up an eye appointment for Friday.  Did lots of other errands, faxed a form for Leta, cashed a check, redeemed some scratch-off lottery tickets, and did some grocery shopping.  Did some chores around the apartment too.

Made a crockpot of chili and some corn bread muffins for supper.

And finally, designed and ordered a couple of Custom Journals for Leta and Abby to "circle journal".
Here is the final work up.  (Only 1 problem, I spelled Abby's name with an "e".)  Oy Vay!

In the "heart" it says "Yaya and Abbey's Journal - 2014"  Below that it has a quote "Families are like fudge, mostly sweet with a few nuts.  And I am nuts about you!"

Well gotta run!

Super Bowl 7K and weekly Recap

Erica Freezing At Super Bowl Sunday 7K

It was a very cold and blustery day, even a bit of rain in the air. But Adrian Neri, Jarrett Ersch, and myself met in the HEB parking lot at 6:30 am and headed to Lady Bird Johnson Community Park in San Antonio. We met my daughter Erica and picked up our packets. We had planned on being a team of 7 but unfortuneately Sanda and Alex Switzer were unable to attend, due to the recent loss of their husband and father. Erica's Tom couldn't make due to an errrr...unavoidable hangover and good common sense not to out running in 40 degree, raining, windy conditions. We did have a good time with Jarrett leading the team with a chip time of 36:51.0 or 8:28 per mile, Adrian came in next with a time of 40:08.2 or 9:14 pace, good for 11th in his age bracket. Erica came in next at 57:33 or 13:14 per mile, but she ran with me, so I probably pulled down her time. I came across the finish line at 57:37.4 or 13:37. After the race we enjoyed lots of treats with the main sponsor being HEB. The goodies included pizza, wings, nachos, chips, cookies, fruit. We all enjoyed hot chocolate and coffee and other adult beverages were available. There was a good turn out for this race, and they signed up 20-30 people for the bone marrow registry. The race was a fund raiser for "Transplants for Children" charity. We returned to Fredericksburg, happy for a safe race and good day! I was even so motivated, I am considering the Lone Star Half Marathon planned for April 19th.

As for my other goals for the week, I did exercise quite a bit, at least walking! 6 Work outs, for 14.1 miles! But didn't really accomplish any progress on my other goals and resolutions for 2014.

Jarrett Ersch with Spurs Coyote before Race

Yesterday and today - double check

Yesterday pushed carts for almost an hour.  Today got up and walked 40 minutes on the treadmill

Gotta run

Good news / Bad news

Well the string ended at 8 days in a row.  I worked late on the 9th...and promised myself I would work out after I got home....You guessed it,  I sat down and that was it.  Guess I have to work out prior to going to  work.

Now for the good news.  I "worked out " twice yesterday, both times at work pushing carts,  and both times for over a hour.

Also, when I weighed in on Monday I was back in the "one derlands "  : -)

Gotta run

Great start to week 2

Got up, ate a healthy breakfast, and then worked out.  Ran for a half hour on the treadmill.  I had been concerned about running outside as it was cold and foggy and I was worried about hitting a patch of ice and falling.  But by the time I was finshed with my workout, the sun was out and it was warming up.