Part Two...Hotel California?

Our last day or two in Indy I wasn't feeling so well. I thought maybe just the weather change and thinking my body was just adjusting, but alas...I was SICK! So my homecoming wasn't as fun for me at first. My mom got to pick us up from the airport. I was so thankful! We haven't gotten to see much of one another lately, and I wanted her to get a chance to see Marlee before we left. Even though it was very short lived, it was nice! I also got to see Larry and Amy as well! So glad Larry was able to make it! Marlee likes playing with Amy too! I guess I shouldn't make this all about me, because I think they may have been more excited to see Zach! They hadn't seen him in maybe five years or so!! I forget these things sometimes. Once again I also failed in the whole picture taking! I am horrible! One of these days I will get that right. Our car was still at Brad and Dawn's house so my mom dropped us off over there and we said our goodbyes.
We were supposed to meet with Darla the next morning for breakfast, but because I was feeling sick I didn't want to expose her to that. She is five months pregnant and I would feel horrible if she got sick because of me. We did drive by her home and she came outside to say goodbye. Even though it isn't what we planned, it still was nice to see her one last time before heading out to El Paso to visit with my family. We were going to drive halfway and stay in a hotel that night, but Zach decided to drive on through. I was so sick, and so medicated that I just went with it. We finally arrived late that night and Marlee was soooo ready to be out of the car. She pulls on her seat belt and says "stuck" because she wants out of her seat. I felt so bad, but she was so excited once we arrived. We decided to surprise my family with out early arrival and it worked! They were so surprised. My dad was especially surprised and so excited! It made my sick, snotty face smile. My sister and her boyfriend were coming the next day AND my brother and his kids were there too! They are staying in El Paso these days, so it was super to have them around. I hadn't seen my niece Bailey in so long, and only met my nephew Tytus briefly once before. My little brother isn't so little anymore. He towers over me (has for some time)and is now 23 years old. It is hard to realize they are grown up at first. I still nag him like he is a kid...probably should stop doing that, ha! ....sorry Calvin! The whole point of our family gathering was to spend Thanksgiving together and go to Ruidoso, NM to stay in a cabin and ski. It wasn't quite snowy enough to really snowboard and ski, plus I was still sick and had little energy. We stayed in a really cool house. It was huge! There was plenty of space for the 10 of us. We missed having Calvin's girlfriend Alexis, but maybe next time. My parents watched the kids one of the days and we all went out shopping and out to eat downtown. The boys didn't really care so much about the shopping, but I am glad they were there anyway.

This is all of us in Ruisdoso.


This is Bailey and Marlee relaxing and watching some TV.

This is Aunt TT with Bailey and Marlee...checking out the forest and the deer.


Bailey was so sweet to Marlee too! They played so well. Since we have left we will be in the car and she asks for "Baywee". It is so sweet, but sad too because we won't see them for a while. Marlee also enjoyed feeding Tytus. She is very interested in babies these days. She would make and excellent sister one day.

We went our separate ways in New Mexico and started heading towards California. We had a quick stop in Tucson...LOVED IT! I loved the area, the base, the weather. It was so beautiful there. We then headed to El Centro, California where Zach's brother Jeremy lives and works as a Border Patrol Agent. I would love to ride along with them and see what they do on a daily basis. It sounds really interesting. The area is rough and to imagine people from Mexico navigating that terrain just to get across the border only to be sent back...most of the time, is truly a feat. Jeremy took us sailing in San Diego. That was really cool. I had done that many years before and loved it. To say Marlee loved it, I feel, would be an understatement. As soon as she saw the "waher" she was elated! We had to sign in before getting the boat, and it took us away from the harbor a bit and she freaked! She started crying and saying "waher...waher"... She put on her life jacket and practically jumped onto the boat. It was a little chilly, but mostly calm waters, and gorgeous scenery. It was a nice relaxing couple of hours.











It was so strange being in California at that time. It still feels surreal sometimes. I was seeing all these palm trees, and homes in the hillside. It looked as though some people actually blew out side of the mountain just to put their home on it. In the middle of nowhere, with nothing in site there would be a home in the mountain. What do they do for a living? Why did they choose that specific place? All these questions were presented and I was so curious. There were stretches of road that didn't have a gas station for over 30 miles at a time. Even then, the places were bare and kind of creepy. I have never seen anything like that. It reminds me of those creepy hitcher type movies in the middle of nowhere. We did a lot of driving...then, more driving...and more.





Just some of the scenery along the way.




...and more


We also ran into quite a bit of traffic. It wasn't too bad in most places, but once we got with a couple of hours of LA, you could really tell the pace picked up a bit. There was a bad accident about 90 miles from LA where a semi had jack-knifed. It was really bad, but I didn't realize how bad until we actually passed the wreckage. We waited in completely stopped traffic for over four hours. It wasn't fun at all, but to think of why makes it not so bad. At least we were alive and well. I pray for those involved in that fatal accident.



Marlee had rough go of it during that day. She hates car rides...poor girl. Well, we stayed a night in Bakersfield, ate at an IN and OUT BURGER (supposed to be the best burgers ever), but they weren't all that fantastic. They were good, but actually really salty and greasy. I have had my fill for a while. Californians swear by them.
I also had no idea California was such a farming state. From the north to south, I saw loads of farms with livestock, produce, you name it. I also had no idea Beale AFB was as remote as it is. It is like small town, farm country up here. The base itself is like living on a big farm. There are cows in the pastures and you can hunt on base in certain areas. It is huge! Once you go through the front gate, it is 4.5 miles until you reach the BX/Commissary, etc... and another 2.5 miles until you reach housing. It takes 30 minutes just to get off base! Crazy! I haven't taken any pictures of it yet, but am including a few of our TLF unit. It is old base housing, but nice because it is like staying in a fully furnished house, with maid service. Here are just a few pictures of it. I will try to add more later.






I have more news to post soon. Hopefully good news! So, check back soon!

National Lampoons "Herring" Vacation Part One

Where do I begin? The past few weeks have been a whirlwind of emotions. I think we felt like we couldn't get out of San Angelo fast enough! We did, however, meet some really sweet neighbors the last few weeks we were there. So, that meeting felt very short lived, but as time drew near for the packers the excitement definitely set in. I wish I could say it was a smooth pack, but nothing is ever what you really want it to be, right? The packers took their sweet time packing, left some things unpacked, and forced others to come the next morning to finish. It was a little annoying, but a small step in the process that is never the same each time.

This is Marlee and I watching a movie while the movers pack the house up.


We also made quite the schedule for ourselves during our travel time to California. On Zachary's final day of class we had our final move-out inspection and drove to Ft. Worth to stay with some dear friends of mine, the Tracy's. Marlee had a great time! They have three dogs and two fish tanks. So, you can imagine her two little legs wondering all through their house in amazement. She loved giving out hugs to everyone as well...I believe in an attempt to avoid going to bed, but nonetheless sweet! I wish I got a picture of Marlee with Brad, but I only got one with Dawn.

This is Dawn and Marlee looking at the "Pishes".

The next morning we got up super early and Brad was kind enough to take us to the airport at 5am. We were on our way to Indiana to see Zachary's family and some friends of ours. We had a great time and got to see A LOT of family and friends. I wish we took more pictures, but we were always on the move it seemed and I didn't think of it.



This is Marlee and Ahvay! She is Todd and April's daughter and she just turned 3. They were like best friends as soon as Marlee ran into the house. Ahvay was so patient with Marlee and was so sweet to her. I wish we could have stayed longer. We also got to see JT. He lives in Tennessee, so it was great that he got the opportunity to come up and see Zach and the gang. I will have to get some pics of the boys up soon.
We also got to visit with Zach's dad again, and also get a chance to see his grandma Mona. Marlee had such a great time playing with her tea set and all the fun things Ramona had out for her.



I am also a big Phase 10 fan, so when I found out Ramona was as well....of course we had to play a game! We had a lot of fun playing!




Marlee also got to spend time with her "Poppy" again.

This is a picture of them hanging out and coloring.
She loves hanging out with him. She couldn't get out of the seat belt fast enough to run up to him and give him a big hug! We were fortunate enough for him to stay with us for two weeks just a few weeks before we left San Angelo. I wish we would have gotten a picture of the two of them, but maybe next time!

Zach's mom also had their whole family over to celebrate an early Thanksgiving with us. There were 30+ people there! Crazy, right? I feel as short as Marlee when they are all around too! They are all so tall! It is always fun having them around...I don't get a chance to see them often.

This is Zach's mom with her brother and sisters and their dad.


They had four tables of family, but this picture shows a few of them.

Marlee had a great time seeing them all again as well. She had fun playing with little Leon and also Oscar and Roxy, the dogs, and Crazy, the cat. "Kee Cat...Kee Cat", she kept calling throughout the house trying desperately to pet the cat. Sometimes she would succeed and others she lost the battle. Roxy had a little lobster toy and Marlee played catch with her until she could giggle no more! She had such a great time!


I have only just begun and it feels as though I have written a novel. There is still so much to show and tell.






These pictures were taken at Zachary's mom's house. We had a good time, and so glad his brother Josh was able to be there to see us. He became Marlee's buddy fast. She would walk up to him and grab his hand so she could go upstairs and play. It is so nice to see her with other family members and love them the way she does.

It felt as soon as we got to Indiana we had to get back on the plane and come back to Texas. I will end this post here and start up Part II of our adventures soon! Stay tuned!

How About....

A little girl looks into the pantry with her big doe eyes trying to find a snack. With her sweetest voice she says, "how 'bout...ice cweem....how 'bout...chocwate"? This continues until she figures out that "gogurt" is her best choice. So she shuffles over to the silverware drawer...."how 'bout a spoon".

Tricks or Treats?

Halloween has come and gone and this year was really cool. Marlee had her first trick or treating experience and it was cool to watch. We ended up taking her to the mall because we weren't getting any trick or treaters until the next night and thought she would have fun. She had a blast! We would walk up to a store and she would do her best to say "trick or treat"...came out most of the time as "twi twee", and she always said "thank you". She is such a polite girl. She was dressed up as Tinkerbell and felt so pretty. She loves dressing up and would wear her outfits everywhere. She does wear her tutus out though. She gets upset when we leave and she doesn't have on her "pincess" tutu on. I have to admit it is really cute. I just want it to slow down! It is all happening way too fast. She is turning into a little person.

She doesn't like when it is time to take a nap or go to bed. She immediately defaults to food. She says, "smack...smack". She thinks she can stay up longer because she is eating. I think a couple of nights she wouldn't go to sleep and said she was hungry so we gave her a banana. I think that is when it started. She also tries to rough-house with daddy. She thinks if she plays with him she won't have to go to bed. It usually works for a little bit.

She is talking up a storm as usual, expanding her vocabulary daily. She has a new love for pizza and I have a new love for hearing her say it. It is so sweet. She loves to color and draw circles. She loves going to Dickey's BBQ for their mac/cheese. She knows where it is too! We will be waiting at the light and it is across the street down a ways, and she says, "hurwee, hurwee....let's go"! It is funny. I am running out of time, but the movers will be here at the end of next week and then we will be that much closer to getting outta here! Not sure when I will get the chance to post again with all our travels, but stay tuned as usual!