Soccer Trip to Brownwood TX

It wasn't a "weekend with Dad" but the stars aligned and things lined up so that both kids would be playing soccer within two hours of each other so......    Steve, Helen, and I hopped in the car very early and were on the road to Brownwood at 6:45AM Saturday.  The only stop we made was for Starbucks in Marble Falls.  We needed to be in Brownwood and find the soccer fields for Morgan's 11:00 AM game.

Neither the kids nor their mother knew we were coming.  Morgan arrived just in time for her game.  I guess this is the group huddle.  Morgan is on the far right.  Her team is the Katz.

Morgan didn't start the game.  I think they weren't paying enough attention for their coach but he was patient.  It wasn't really Morgan's idea to play soccer.

Once she got in the game, she looked like she knew what she was supposed to do.

Her fancy french braid worked great at keeping her hair out of her eyes and she did pretty good during the game.  Her team won!

Cameron was "chilling" with his friends while Morgan's game was going on.

Now, he really does know what he is doing.  You could tell his team is two years older than Morgan's just by how they played.

Here he is kicking the ball back into play.

I should mention that it was about 100 degrees out there.  The kids were all tired by the time their games were over.

Cameron's team won too.

We really didn't get to spend any time with the kids but we gave them hugs and they knew we were there watching them so the hours in the car were definitely worth while.

Motorcycle Road Trip Prep

Heads up, the "boys" are getting ready to go on a road trip.

First the wheels have to come off because they are going to get new tires.

Okay, everybody has to be really, really careful moving through the garage because there isn't a lot of support for this body.

The old tires need to come off.  That means breaking the bead that helps hold them on.

Then the new ones have to get put on.  Tire first, then the tube gets slipped in so it doesn't get twisted or pinched.

It's not so easy to get the tire back on.

It's usually a two-person job.  Trying to make sure the tube isn't twisted or pinched.  And then trying to get the tire back on the rim properly.

I think maybe we got it.

Next stop was the motorcycle shop to get the tires balanced.  Funny thing happened on the way home, someone ran into the back of our car while it was stopped at a stop sign.  No, not really funny at all.  Steve did everything right and we are still waiting for the culprit's insurance company to get the repair process started.  Seems that their "client" hasn't contacted them about a claim yet.  Hmmm, police called, incident report filed, other kid's mom was called to scene so can't just blame the kid for not following through with proper action. What's wrong with people?

Motorcycle trip coming up next week.

On the Road Again.....Heading Home

This is the Sister Creek wine I have stored away for a special occasion although I have to admit that getting together with one of my RV friends is really special enough to qualify.

Birdie and I had a last dinner together.  We celebrated with some Happy Camper wine which seemed most appropriate.

What???  You are leaving?   Well, please do come again.  And you can bring the Traveling Longdogs along too as they never bark at us.  I went out after dinner and packed up the dog pen.  Okay, I only used it a couple of times anyway as it was just too hot to sit out during the day.  I put away the camp chairs, grill, and table, and even rolled up the patio mat.  Good thing too.  Surprisingly enough, clouds rolled in, there was lightning and thunder.  Then it fizzled out only to regenerate about 10:30PM when we got gusts of wind and rain!  The power even went out momentarily but I have a surge suppressor so all was well.  It did the power restart delay and then the air conditioner came back on and all was well.  It was all over by the time I shut off my Kindle and closed my eyes.

By mid morning, I was hooked up, packed up, and ready to roll after a stop at the dump station.  On the road again, headed home, darn......I'm already looking forward to the next trip when it will be in the 90s instead of the 100s.

Visit with a Sister and a Visit to Sisterdale, TX

Wednesday, Birdie and I headed cross-country to meet up with our friend Sharon.  Sharon has had a rough year healthwise but she is now on the road to recovery.  We left about 9:30 AM for Kerrville.  Sharon is a full-timer but she stayed with a another RVing friend while she was undergoing treatment.  She just moved back into her RV so there was lots to celebrate.  Birdie and Sharon were laughing at TedE, Sharon's little dog.

After visiting for a while, we headed to the Kerrville Cracker Barrel where Sharon and I had breakfast for brunch while Birdie had vegetables.  I didn't manage to get photos of all the great food but Sharon had some huge blueberry pancakes with blueberry syrup along with eggs and sausage, juice, and coffee.  I only mention this because it is so wonderful to see her appetite has returned and she is gaining back a little of the weight she lost.   She is looking good and enjoying a new lease on life.  She's still doing physical therapy and it is definitely paying off.

After brunch, we returned to Sharon's RV park where we visited and Birdie and I put together a new barbeque grill Sharon had gotten.  She took a picture of that and shared on FB so we don't need to reshare that butt shot here.  lol.

Soon it was time for us to head back to Canyon Lake and our own RV's but......we got a little distracted when we drove through Sisterdale.  Now I have driven through there before and even stopped at the winery but it seems that they have spruced things up and have more going on in this small stop on the road. It's located on FM473 (north of Boerne and east of Comfort).  The farm and ranch community was established in 1847 and had 25 residents in 2010.

They have a dancehall built in the late 1800's.

There is also a Dancehall Bed and Breakfast next door.

The Trading Center and Saloon was busy.

This is also the location of the Sister Creek Winery.

The winery is housed in the old Cotton Gin which was built in 1885.

You are invited to wander through the winery using the self-guided tour sheet.

This is the first room with a few barrels.

We were lucky enough to arrive when wine was being bottled.  It's a down home operation with friendly staff that are happy to answer your questions.

Sorry for the blurry picture but this gentleman was fast as he loaded newly filled bottles into cartons.

The man in the green shirt is filling several bottles at a time from different spigots.  The gray machine puts in the cork.  The fancy gold covers over the corks will be added another day.

In addition to wine tasting, selling, and producing, there are also some handcrafted items for sale.

After a tour of the winery, next up was some wine tasting....I bet you already guessed that.

The man up front was very friendly and engaging so we enjoyed the experience.  I guess I should have added convincing since we each purchased a bottle.

Our next stop was the Sisterdale Market right across the street.

It's an eclectic little market with several rooms to wander through.

We each bought some homegrown tomatoes and she threw in some peaches as a bonus.  They were a couple of days old but she didn't want to have to make another batch of cobbler that night after work.  She said they were delicious and she was absolutely right as we sliced them up with a dab of ice cream for dinner.  Mmmmmm.

All in all, it was a wonderful day.  The best part, of course, was visiting with Sharon and getting to see how well she is progressing.  Birdie (earlier in the year) and Karen (through the final treatment process) were both the kind of friends everyone should be lucky enough to be blessed with during rough times.  And Sharon is a tough lady who will be traveling again.  The trip to Sisterdale was just icing on the cake.

Labor Day Weekend at Lake Pointe

We had a great weekend.  Steve and Helen arrived Friday morning and we set off to visit Wimberley, TX.

We had a great lunch at Wimberley Cafe on the Square.  Then we set out to walk around even though it was really hot.  It was Steve and Helen's first visit.

We stopped to rest a few minutes in some comfortable outdoor chairs at a cute pet supplies store. Then we checked out the Kiss the Cook store.

Carolyn....they moved your horse and he's under wraps for some reason.

Steve and Helen picked up Cameron and Morgan on Friday night so Saturday they were out walking the dogs.

We spent lots of time at the pool.

Because it was very hot!!!

Nobody got much sleep on Saturday night.  Morgan was overtired and just couldn't get to sleep and you know what that means.  It was a rough night.  Cameron and the furkids slept through it all but the rest of us, not so much.  I told Morgan she was very lucky that this was not her first camping trip with Grandma or it might have been her last.  lol  Ordinarily, both kids are very good campers.  Everyone slept in Sunday morning.  Then were was lots more swimming.  And we all enjoyed ice cream time at the park office.  Steve and Helen took Cameron and Morgan back to meet their Mom on Sunday evening because they had to go to school on Labor Day!

Monday morning was a big swim workout for my professional triathlete DIL Helen.  She is just a blur as she cuts through the water doing laps.

Steve was taking a break with a magazine in the shade by the picnic tables near the pool.

Birdie came over and Steve cooked hamburgers on the grill for all of us.  It's quiet now because Steve and Helen had to head back into town.  I'm sure Birdie and I can find something to get into the next couple of days.