Erika and I had such a blast picking up pecans, taking daily walks (almost every day) and having dinner a couple of times. Both of us are at TT Colorado River.
On November 1st we had a shower that resulted in a beautiful double rainbow (the double rainbow is not showing up clearly) behind our RV. I have always considered the rainbows the signature of God . . . that He would never destroy life with a flood again.
One morning when Erika and I headed out we were astonished at the number of webs along our path. They were bejeweled . . . wet with dew and glistening in the morning sun. We assumed that the webs that had major damage were a result of a great bug haul for occupying spider. Usually they were not present. But the ones we did see looked very plump. NO skinny spiders . . . NONE!
We were amazed at the differing sizes, some no larger than a quarter and others that spanned spaces between trees . . . approximately 4 or 5 feet wide. Some were on the ground and others high above our head. I had to use my zoom on many that were either too high or too far into the brush.
I was able to catch some great light on a lone tree one evening.
The fog one morning was the greatest backdrop for a large curious buck.
Erika an I also found some caterpillars getting ready for their BIG change! Kate helped me out with the identification and even provided photos of the resulting metamorphosis.
We found a beautiful feline by a RV at the river. It greeted us in a friendly manner and then returned to the step at the RV for the door to open. Tony fed another that took shelter in the c... that spanned our drive. I did not get a photo of it . . . it was very skittish.
One day at the end of our river trail, Erika and I spotted a leaf attached to a thin twig, attached to the tree by an invisible spider thread, just a couple of feet off the ground. I took several photos and plan on entering it into an upcoming Juried show.
On another walk we spotted some small mushrooms clustered at the base of a large pecan tree. A few days later the mushrooms had opened into grand umbrellas.
The deer absolutely astounded me. They were so unfurled by the cars occasionally driving by and the dogs being walked by campers, and so eager to make friends with people who shared deer corn.
On the 6th, Erika and I headed out for Columbus (to see the quilt). We made it down to the court house in Columbus so that she could see the quilt displayed inside. A large grasshopper on the exterior wall surveyed us as we walked past. We had lunch at the Latte Columbus and visited the huge oak with the 28 ft. circumference trunk.
We visited Becky's cafe the morning Erika and William left, checked out a very old cabin across the street and shot photos of an unusual Lantana.
Erika also went with me to visit Mom on one of my trips. We enjoyed reminiscing about old times. It was great having company on that long ride.
The super moon was near the 13th and I took several nice photos.
Tony and I discovered a dog run down by a pond and took the puppies there for a free romp. They love being off their leashes.
On the 15th it was very chilly outside . . . we started a fire in our pit and were joined by friends. It was great to sit by the fire and enjoy the warmth. The only down side is to smell like smoke all night.
We were greeted by some birds on the lake that I had not noticed before . . . American Coots. They were very distinctive in their markings.
On the Wednesday before Thanksgiving my cousin, Jeannie, and her husband, David, came down. Tony and David played golf while Jeannie and I headed for Galveston to check in. They brought their sweet puppy, Emmy down with them and I enjoyed playing with her. The Galvez had a huge gingerbread house on display and I managed to take a couple of photos of it while she was checking in.
Jeannie and I ate lunch at Mosquito Cafe and enjoyed the beautiful sunshine outside. After arriving at Mom's Jeannie proceeded to help me drag out Grandma's china for Thanksgiving dinner. I made two pecan pies for the dinner . . . with the fresh pecans Dad shelled.
Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday of the year. We have a reunion of the surviving family on my Dad's side and have now included some from Mom's side and a few friends from our area that did not have family near. We had 16 in Mom and Dad's community room. It is such a beautiful setting for our get togethers.
Besides Mom and Dad, cousin Jeannie and her husband, David, Tony and me, my brother Dean had his youngest son, Jason, oldest son, James, James' wife, Angela, their son, Noah, Brenda (Jason's mom), her mom Barbara, friends, Rose Mary and Frank, and Tony. There was more food than the group could eat in a week. It was delicious and the most important part was the wonderful fellowship.
Dad's birthday was on the 27th and Mom's is coming up on the 12th of December. Time marches on and seems to fly faster and faster each year. I am missing some photos and may add them later but for now I am going to get caught up and send this to publishing.
Columbus friends . . .
