Off we go to Arkansas for Christmas again. I’d rather fly, but it was too expensive this time around, so we took the shiny new red truck for its first long drive. The entire trip was pleasant without any problems. Here are some pictures from our Christmas Eve party in Wes and Jenn’s house in Springdale, Arkansas. I didn’t take very many pics because I couldn’t get my camera settings correct, so they all turned out kind of blurry and blah. But it was a good time anyway! Enjoyed it very much.

After leaving Arkansas, we stopped in Dallas to visit with Holly’s aunt whom she hadn’t seen in 30 years. That turned out to be a great visit! We met Nabil & Toni Murad (Holly’s uncle and aunt), and their two sons Aly and Jamal, and daughter-in-law Melanie, and the cousins Vincent, Layla, Ava. Ivy just walked in and started playing with Vincent and Layla as if she’s known them for years. That was such a blessing because even though she has 2 cousins near her age in Houston, we never see them and she doesn’t even know they exist! We continued to enjoy the evening with some good food and lots of chit-chat, and even stayed overnight. Next morning, up and at ’em, and met up with one of Holly’s friends at Denny’s Restaurant for breakfast. Then headed on back to Houston.

As for Holly’s side of the family… the usual. Her immediate family never rallies together for holidays or any other reason. A relative said to me, “Well, that sure makes planning holidays much easier for you!” That’s true, but sad.

As for everyone else, this Christmas season turned out nice! It was a sweet spirit and lots of laughs and catching up. I really, really enjoyed it! It was good for me. Thanks y’all! I needed that. 🙂

Well, that was a surprise! Today, I took my mother-in-law to the Astrodome to pick up some chairs they had purchased a couple of weeks earlier. While we were waiting in line to pick up the chairs, a news reporter and her camera man were making their way down the line asking various people in their vehicles for commentary. As they approached, I asked Jane “Do you want to talk to these people?” She said that’d be okay, so we gave them this little impromptu interview from the truck.

December 2, 2013: Some pieces of the Astrodome are in the hands of new owners. Jennifer Reyna reports.

Check out the actual news video clip here: – – – – – > Fans take home piece of Astrodome.

A little backstory: I was really annoyed with these ladies for spending so much time and money on these chairs. They waited 11 hours in line without food to purchase a voucher saying come back another day to pick up your chairs. That’s some pretty heavy duty devotion! Especially to an object with only sentimental value to Holly herself. I couldn’t care less about these chair and, frankly, I think they’re very ugly. Where are we going to put them in the house? Or for that matter, HOW are we going to put them in the house? These chairs don’t have legs! They attach to a wall instead. But the ladies had to have these special chairs to add to the big piles of clutter. So, I predicted these things would just end up in storage at Jane’s house. Sure enough, they went into the garage at Jane’s house. There they will sit for an eternity.

Update: On February 5th, 2016 I dug up this old blog post just to add a note – the chairs are still in storage in the garage at Jane’s house.

I went to the Nose doctor today and had a Turbinate Reduction procedure done. Success! But right now it feels like I have super-congestion in my head. Plus, my nose is bleeding. Blaaaah. Probably won’t get much sleep tonight. Here’s an exciting video on Turbinate Reduction:

My troubles began in the summer of 2013 when I experienced what I thought was allergies or perhaps even a ‘summer cold’. I figured it would run it’s course in a few days or even a week, but the stuffy head and congestion just stayed. And stayed. And stayed. It went on for several months until I absolutely couldn’t stand it anymore. I knew something was not right and needed to be addressed. But after a 2 trips to the family doctor and no relief, I finally looked up a sinus specialist and gave that a try. It took him 3 visits to finally figure out that I had a staph infection in my nose! A simple prescription of steroid medicine cleared it up in a matter of days!

In the process, the sinus specialists told me that I had narrow passageways in my nose that was also contributing to my breathing problems. A previous doctor had said the same thing years ago (as a teen) so I figured that was probably true. He offered to do a procedure called ‘Turbinate Reducation’ where they literally hollow out your nasal passages. I said yes, and let him do his thing.

Was it unconfortable? Yes! But, in my opinion, it wasn’t terrible. He would stick a device up my nose and turn it on for about 10 seconds. It would burn the nasal passageways out a tiny bit each time. Then he would pause for a moment or two, and then do it again. He would even count down from 10 each time to give me an idea of when the paid would be over.

As for the pain itself, it felt like an electric shock and wasn’t unbearable. It made my eyes water a few times, and I clinched the arm-rests of the chair I was sitting very tightly a time or two, but overall it was just about the same level of discomfort as going to a dentist.

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Update: Years later, I’m adding a note to this post (2016) to let you know the Turbinate Reduction Procedure was well worth the time and money. It has reduced snoring quite a bit, and it has noticeably made it easier to breath through my nose. It has even made it easier to blow my nose when I have congestion. There are many drawbacks except for maybe now my nose dries out a little faster and easier than before. I use a ‘neti pot’ or nasal irrigation bottle once or twice a week to flush out the dry feeling in my nose, as well as wash out some ‘crusty boogers’ as my daughter might say. I use the neti pot while I’m taking a shower. It is quick and easy.

Definition: Turbinate reduction (also known as turbinoplasty or turbinectomy) is a surgical procedure that reduces the overall size of the turbinates allowing for airflow which results in symptommatic relief of nasal obstruction and congestion.

Yes, indeed, it does. In fact, it is the second busiest port in the nation (New Orleans being #1 and New York #3). Many people don’t know that. Heck, I didn’t know that and we used to live in a Loft that was just a hop-n-skip down the street from the Denver Harbor/Port Houston. One fine day, though, someone told me it was possible to take a boat tour of the ship channel – and the tour was free! Sure enough, a quick search online confirmed that is a true fact, and you can make a reservation for your free 90-minute boat tour here —> Sam Houston Boat Tour.

Many moons and seasons passed, though, and somehow I just never really found time or excuse to take the tour… until finally this week Ivy got out of school early and I had to scramble to find something for her to do. Scratching my head while mulling over options I said, “Hey, Miss Ivy, what do you want to do with your afternoon?”

She replied, “I want to go to the Port of Houston and take a free tour of the ship channel!”

Great idea, girl! Let’s do that!

Well, okay, she didn’t really say that. In fact, all she said was “I want to play game on your phone.” But touring the ship channel sounded like a better idea to me, so I stuffed her into her car-seat and off we went to Denver Harbor to find the Sam Houston Pavilion.

Found it. Boarded the boat. Set sail.

At first, the weather started getting rough, and our tiny ship was tossed. But we forged on through the pouring rain until eventually the sun came out and the rest of the trip was breezy and pleasant. It is kind of nifty seeing all the big ships up close and in their natural environment. I also discovered why they call Pasadena ‘Stinkadena’ as we puttered past a few oil refineries that were in full operation. Phew! You can count plastic bottles floating in the water, and read the graffiti on various walls for extra fun.

Overall, for what it is, it’s a pleasant and interesting way to kill 90 minutes and see a ship channel up close and personal. Plus, you can’t beat the price!! I recommend it. 🙂

Halloween 2013

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These are just some pictures of things that happened throughout 2013 that I captured with my phone.

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I love this picture! 🙂

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In July, somebody side-swiped the truck! In the night, someone did some nasty damage to the driver’s side door and knocked off the mirror. It appears they actually stopped and picked up the mirror (because I could never find it). Maybe they kept it as a souvenir?

We gave it some thought and decided to just donate the truck to a charity. It had been giving us lots of headaches and hassles, and it was over 10 years old. So it was time to euthanize the Dodge Dakota. We gave it to this charity: Cars For Kids
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Holly grew her first watermelon (August 2013)

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Breakfast at McDonald’s

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Floyd Mayweather!!!!

Ivy and I went to the Galleria for lunch and ran into superstar boxer Floyd Mayweather. A camera crew and a mob of about 20 people were following him down the hallway as we were going the opposite direction. We just stopped and let the mob – and Mayweather – pour around us like a stampede of cattle. He stepped on the escalator and floated gracefully into the sky… or, actually just to the next floor, but for his fans it probably was more like an ascension into heaven.

Actually, I didn’t know who he was. I had to ask. I thought he was probably a rap star or hip-hop artist. Nope, he’s a boxer. Floyd Mayweather and Justin Beiber were also seen at a nightclub in Houston, and Bieber stirred some controversy by drinking alcohol (he’s not 21 yet), and visiting a strip club. Here’s the scoop.
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I remember going to a Vacation Bible School once or twice during the summer and really enjoying it. It was mostly just like a Sunday School class that lasts for about 4 hours. There were puppet shows and singing and craft sessions, and always a little church service geared toward kids.

So school was out for Ivy and I was making a list of things for her to do. So I thought I’d check out the VBSchools in Houston and see what they had to offer. Wow!!! There were bunches of Vacation Bible Schools and many were quite elaborate. VBS has improved a lot since I was a kid! Some even come with musicians and a stage show! It turned out there was a VBS almost every week in the summertime, so we started our ‘tour’ of Vacation Bible Schools right away in June.

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The first one we tried was at First Methodist Church in downtown Houston. They have a cool indoor children’s area that is designed to look like a city street, with each room being a different shop. These guys really had their act together and even provided curb-side drop off and pick up service. Ivy completely loved it and didn’t want it to end.

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It was such a success that I went looking for another VBS and found a big one at Houston mega First Baptist Church. It was a VBS with a theme – Colossal Coaster World. Thousands of kids were at this VBS. It wasn’t quite as personal and was definitely louder, but they had a stage show and plenty of action and hands-on activities. Ivy loved this one too. In fact, we immediately signed up for VBS at SECOND Baptist Church and continued with yet another VBS for another week.

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After that was over, I snooped around for some more VBS action and found a small one at a Southwest Presbyterian Church. We gave it a try and it turned out to yet another VBS that Ivy loved. The theme of this VBS was Sonrise National Park. It was small and nothing elaborate, but the personal attention was excellent. I would pick up Ivy and she’d immediately ask for me to play the Jesus music which was given to her on a CD. We played that CD everyday for a month!

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The best VBS – much to my surprise – was at an Episcopalian Church. I usually associate calm and boring with Episcopalian, but the VBS at St. John’s Episcopal Church was loaded with action, a choreographed stage show each day, and even a singing host by the name of Jenna Kukendall. Jenna has several albums recorded full of praise and worship and children’s music. She travels to various places doing Vacation Bible Schools and other events for kids.

We have Jenna’s album “How Sweet It Is” in our car and Ivy asks for it be played over and over and over. Especially the ‘candy song’ as she calls it – it’s a remix of the classic “Lollipop”

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So that was our Tour of Vacation Bible Schools in Houston in 2013. Success!! Ivy learned a lot and had a good time. I got a break each day for about 4 hours of watching the kid. Everybody wins! We’ll do it again next summer. 🙂

OMG, it’s been 30 years since I graduated!

It was AWESOME seeing everyone again. About half of the class of ’83 was there at the reunion. It was a good time of visiting and comparing aches and pains and photos of kids. I brought my kid with me! Most of the other people had grandchildren her age or older. LOL

I spent some time with my family in Branson afterward, chowing down at Joe’s Crab Shack. 🙂

Last year’s beach house birthday was a success, so we decided to do it again! The house we chose was in a better location, closer to the beach, and a little bigger. We loved it!

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After returning from Galveston, Mom stuck around for another day of fun and activities. we spent some time in the Galleria at RainForest Cafe and hung out for awhile at Discovery Green Park. She also went with me to Ivy’s swim class.

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The ladies also enjoyed an evening at the Ringling Brother’s Circus. I had went to the circus with Ivy about 1 week earlier, so I opted out of a second trip to the circus. But Mom, Holly, Jane, and Ivy all went to the final show on Sunday night. They seemed to really enjoy it.

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In mid-July, my friends Ray and Becky Canatella made the move from hot-and-humid Louisianna to hot-and-dry Phoenix, Arizona. Ray asked for my help in the move and I obliged. He would drive one vehicle pulling a U-Haul and I would follow behind driving their car. It was a two-day drive and about 20 hours altogether, but it wasn’t too bad of a drive. I kind of enjoyed it. We stayed overnight in El Paso, TX and headed into the desert the next morning.

Personally, I like the desert. I especially liked driving through those ‘dust devils’. Some were huge… tornado sized! One in particular was right by the highway and just standing in one position as it spun dust up into the sky. Take a look at this video of a Dust Devil that swept through the Burning Man festival… complete with crazy hippies riding their bikes through it at 3:00:

We arrived to a HOT Phoenix and started unpacking. Lots of stuff! Ray hired two guys to off-load most of it. I was glad he hired them, because if it had been just the 3 of us (Ray, Becky, and I) we’d probably still be there unpacking right now.

On the first day we got to experience a Haboob – otherwise known as a dust storm. These type of storms only happen in the Sahara, Middle East, and Arizona, and the word ‘haboob’ is borrowed from the Arabic language simply means ‘wind’. Ray says multiple dust storms are ‘haboobies‘. It was kind of cool watching everything go dark in the middle of the day. It didn’t last very long, but just enough to say, “I’ve seen a haboob up close.” Check out this video on a huge haboob that ate Phoenix: USA Today – What is a Haboob?. Also check out these massive haboobies on the Weather Channel: Really Big Haboobs.

We took a break from moving and unpacking and enjoyed a restaurant, movie (Pacific Rim), and a visit to the Arizona Museum of Natural History. Then Thursday I hopped on a plane and jetted back to Houston where the temperature was actually cooler. Imagine that; going to Houston from Phoenix to get a break from the heat!

Holly had a few vacation days to use up so we decided to head to San Antonio for some theme park fun. June 10th through the 14th we made our way westward and took in a day of Schlitterbahn and another day at SeaWorld, and also a side trip to the little town of Gruene, Texas.

Both theme parks were great! Each of enjoyed the lazy river at Schlitterbahn and it didn’t take long for Ivy to get brave and go from riding on my lap to swirling down the currents in her own inner-tube. She also rapidly adapted to the kid’s water slides and was making the rounds from top to bottom all by herself. SeaWorld was interesting too, although the day was periodically interrupted by storm clouds. But after the rain passed, I was able to ride the rollercoasters over and over with hardly any waiting in line. Plus, we visited all of the exhibits and watched several shows including the Shamu show as well as another show featuring Beluga whales and high-flying acrobats.

We also threw in a side trip to the little picturesque town of Gruene, Texas which has a popular restaurant called The Gristmill. It’s a nifty-looking historic building situated on a bluff overlooking the Guadalupe River. We watched kids climbing trees and jumping into the river while we ate burgers and some giant onion rings.

Can’t forget to mention the Magic Time Machine restaurant in San Antonio. Robin hood and Velma (from Scooby-Doo) were our servers and even brought out some birthday cookies for Holly. 🙂

Then back to Houston. That was a nice little getaway!

1. Schlitterbahn in New Braunfels, TX
2. SeaWorld in San Antonio, TX
3. The Gristmill at Gruene, TX