We went to the rodeo yesterday. It was spectacular. Those cowboys really work hard. We were in a suite and had a great view of the events. There was lots of good food, wine and beer if you wanted it.
The National Anthem sung by the Houston Boy's Choir was excellent......here's the tail end which is all I managed to get recorded....
And here some of the group shows excitement at the bullriding skills of the cowboys.
After the rodeo there was a concert and the kids liked that....
We drove last Thursday past New Orleans to Slidell, Louisiana and overnighted there. It was a 6 hr drive. Next day we went on into Sandestin - 4 more hours but it was relatively easy with the break in between driving days.
Although the weather was cold we had lots of plans for the long w/e. There was a dog parade on Monday and Mardi Gras on Tuesday. Patch and Maggie got blinged out for the doggie walk and we all had a great time catching beads and whatnot at the Mardi Gras parade. I thought I would be a bit bored by it but, NO! It was a blast and we had a great time.
Patchie and her Mardi Gras adornments
Looking at the coast and beach
not many swimmers
She's working
Brian, Sandy and Bev enjoying CH wine
It's a bloody mary morning
At lunch in Ft Walton Beach
Martinis all around
One couple drove back to Ft Lauderdale on Tuesday and missed the parade. Beverly, Brian and Eric drove back to Texas on Wednesday. An
11 hr drive non-stop at 70 - 80 mph. Ugghh!
Our good old friends Brian and Sandy have a big beautiful new comfortable house on the golf course in Sandestin. Along with another couple, Steve and Linda, we meet there every year. We have been doing this for the past 12+ years.
Forty years ago when we were in our late 20s and early 30s we had many very good times together and we rehash all those memorable events every year. Each year each couple prepares a dinner. I've done Jennifer Shrimp, King Crab, Crab Souffle, tenderloin and several others that don't come to mind right now--(an irritating development). This year I'm making Meatball Stew a la Giada DeLaurentis with my own twist. I saw her make it on TV two weeks ago and I tried it. But, I added lots of green chilis to it because we had enjoyed the Green Chili stew at The Cross-eyed Moose in Cloudcroft NM. It turned out so good that I made it again this week and we're having it for dinner tonight. We'll be having it again next Saturday night.
Here are the meatballs I just made along with Beverly's choc chip cookies and some libation we will be indulging in when we get there.
Too bad you can't see the deviled eggs,...............but,
Here's a pic of a little girl showing her G'Dad
how she can wink. That beats deviled eggs anyday.
It is a really beautiful place and the first thing we did after picking up the kids from school was go to visit the horses. Graham is still not feeling in top form so he did not ride but Evelyn and PK did.
Steph and I will do a trail ride tomorrow.
Someone asked what we would do for dinner and I suggested the club because I like the Wednesday presentation they have . They go nuts with hamburgers and that's what we did. With the time change it is dark in California by 5.30 pm. We were all tired and ready for bed. I did get a pic of Evie and a video too.
These pics don't show how big her eyes are..too bad. She's already telling time, counting in hundreds and doing simple add and subtract maths.
We tried to bring Anna and Colin back to do the Osha Trail while they were here but every time we started out to hike the afternoon rains would nix the project.
Beverly and I did it yesterday and we took little Patch. It was a fine day and we decided we would do the course counter-clockwise to change the routine up a bit. It took 1.5 hrs and Patch walked most of it unaided.
Here are some pics and vids.
Bev finalizing some business deal....
This is a shot of the old tressle from 1900 that was part of the train track from Alamogordo to Cloudcroft
Patch and me on top of the mountain....
Pretty Bev grinning all the way...
Tired old fart taking a break......and his old dog
My sister said she was looking fwd to see more trail hike vids...
And Beverly took a couple for Norma too...
This is a revealing video because I got stung at the end of it. Second time in two months that I've been stung. It ain't easy being attractive.
In El Paso yesterday I saw this truck that had the owners company name painted on it as well as what tasks he handled. Included was refrigeration, installation and DUCK work. It tickled me so that I recorded it. Not a great vid but at the end when all the jiggling stops you will see the word in question.
I got such a great response from the 8.5 hours of work for my last post ( Thanks to Emily, Norma and Bev ) that I will post more of the Martin kids visit to Cloudcroft. We really enjoyed White Sands and here are some vids of that activity:
A swallow's nest..( No, this is not a porno pic )
Driving in.... and several sled rides...
Hope you enjoy these posts of the Martins in New Mexico. We enjoyed having them and look forward to next year.
The first 17 years of my life were spent in Cheshire, England.
The following 17 years were in NYC where I met my life partner Beverly. We had two children in NYC then we moved to Dallas where we had our third child. Subsequently we moved to Cincinnati, St. Louis, Dallas, Midland, Houston, El Paso and back to Houston where we are now living.
