Spring is in the air!

Spring, and pollen, are definitely in the air!

In a matter of days our landscape has morphed from a view of gray sticks to shades of lime and emerald, ornamented with the best array of wildflowers Texas has seen for years. The approach to spring has seen wild swings from days in the high 80's to freezing temps at night. I don't know how the plants can keep track of what season it really is, as the humans have had some difficulty!

It's been awhile since we updated this blog, so we'll have to go back a few weeks for an overview.

We had freezing overnight in the first week of March and all that chilly wind and weather gave our birds a hefty appetite - they nearly ate us out of house and home! The feed store actually ran out of large bags of sunflower seed so I know we weren't the only ones feeding them.

The chill was followed by 80 degree days in the second week of March. Somehow the strange weather really suited the wildflowers and we've had a bumper crop.
Here's a view we pass daily as we take the boys home from school.... it's classic Texas!

Babies in bluebonnets

We have some varieties of wildflowers in the yard that we've never seen before! We've also had a range of insects enjoying the flower nectar, and now, in April, the hummingbirds have arrived.

They are a little ahead of schedule - not sure what that means for the summer ahead of us

The range of temperatures left us a little confused as to what to do with the garden, but the weeds solved the dilemma and completely overtook it.

We were able to rescue the broccoli and cabbage - good crops for this strange weather! But the garden itself had to wait until this April to be released from the stranglehold of unwanted greenery. Steve's working on a new drip water system so we're trying to plan the plantings around the placement of those delivery lines. Too much hand watering happened last year, and that cuts into play time!

In the meantime, Steve's main entertainment has been mowing, and mowing, and maintaining all the equipment it takes to manage all this greenery! With two riding lawnmowers, two DR mowers and a tractor, there's always something that needs a new battery or some other "fix".

March was a busy month - sister Dawn visited for a week and it was a good chance to catch up. She was also able to connect with a few of her friends who live in the area. She timed her visit well this year and caught the beginning of the wildflower season.

Her visit was immediately followed by our Spring break camping trip. With Texas weather as varied and unpredictable as it is we have a real challenge planning camping trips. Because of the popularity of local campgrounds we have to make reservations months in advance, and then just hope the weather cooperates. As it turned out, this time it did!

Our preferred spot in South Shore campground on Lake Bastrop wasn't available, but the one next door was, and it turns out we like it better!

Really.... How can you beat that view? Grass, water and lots of sand to dig in.

The site was great for the boys, with plenty of room to play hide and seek behind the bushes, ducks to watch, frogs hopping and little fishes swimming around the edges of the water.

The trail beckoned and after scouting the route with the dogs the boys decided to try their hand at riding their bikes on it.

Jax's bike did ok, until it popped a tire, but Raylan had a difficult time with the bumpy terrain and decided he preferred his scooter on the paving. I don't blame him!

The weather cooperated and Skot and Kendra were able to come out and join us in the late afternoon for burgers and toasted marshmallows. We had a great time, and we're hoping we can fit in a lot more outings like this in the future.

I followed the camping trip almost immediately with a bit of knee surgery. It's only been three weeks but I'm almost back to my previous operating levels. The weeds didn't slow down a bit while I was recovering, so there's a lot of catching up to do!


In February I took a glass class at  Green Devil glass studio up in Austin. Kendra had given me a certificate for the class for Christmas and they are so popular it had to be scheduled a long way ahead. The class was really fun!

I hadn't melted any glass since chemistry class in high school, and it wasn't as "artistic" as this. I learned a lot, and came home with a glass flower, but I don't think I'll take it up as a hobby just yet - my craft room is already too full!

More photos of the camping trip and wildflowers in the album.

A NEW RV..............NOT!

While taking the year off of travel due to helping out with family and health stuff I started looking around at different RV's.  Our 15 yr. old Arctic Fox is in reasonably good shape but needs some TLC in the near future.  An active mind is a terrible thing to waste but usually ends up costing money!!

We considered a bunk-house model of trailer or motorhome so the grandsons would have a better sleeping arrangement.  I looked at dozens of floor plans and we looked at several models at RV dealerships in the area.  Other considerations included a dual AC hookup due to the summer heat, and a little shorter trailer to access tighter camping spots.  The motor home idea was quickly dropped due to the cost and any bunkhouse type was at least 32 ft.  which is the same length as the current trailer,  An additional motor to service and the likely need for a different vehicle to pull behind.

In my research I found that most travel trailers are advertised as Lite and have noticed compromises in the frame construction and lack of storage compared to my Arctic Fox.  Most have outdoor kitchens which I don't need or want.  I found none of the shorter (less that 30 ft.) bunkhouse trailers acceptable and the ones with acceptable storage to be 35 ft. or better.  It is interesting that in the central part of the U.S. most trailers are larger (35+ feet).   RV parks and the Corp Of Engineer Parks and State parks have larger spaces than what exist out west in a lot of govt. campgrounds.

 I was able to narrow down my research to two acceptable trailers.   A Winnebago 29DDBH  and a Nash 29S.  Both are similar in length to my current trailer.  The Winnebago has a double slide the greatly expands the interior space but comes with a outdoor kitchen and limited exterior storage and the bathroom can't be accessed unless the slides are open.  The Nash is a "older style" non lite designated trailer that has a heavy duty frame and plenty of outside storage.  It doesn't have the outside kitchen.  The Winnie can be optioned with the dual AC but that option is not listed on the Nash website.  Such an option requires a 50 amp. service.

The cost of  "quality trailers" are not cheap.  You can find plenty of cheap trailers out there but they are built poorly and will not last the long term.  The cost of the Winnie would be somewhere between $35,000 and $45,000.  It is a new model so there are no used ones out there.   The Nash is built by Northwood the same company that built my Fox.  A 2017/2018 model is listed for $29,000 and a new one is in the same ballpark as the Winnie.

Based upon this research and evaluation of my current trailer we are sticking with the current Fox.  When traveling w/o guests it meets our needs.  We have made several alterations to the floor plan that works for us, have added solar, and now have an auxiliary AC for the bedroom.  We were concerned that after the bathroom flood a few years ago we could have problems but those have not surfaced.  It is structurally sound.  It has been paid for for many years.  We have portable bunk cots that fit in the living area for the boys when they are with us.  I am not convinced some of these Lite trailer models will hold up in the long term however the Winnie and the Nash are the exception.

We plan on giving the interior and exterior a detailed cleaning/sorting,  replacement of springs and other suspension components and inspection of the roof seals.  Painting of the exposed metal and resealing seams as needed.  Our trailer has been stored under cover all of its life and I feel that has been the reason it has weathered the 15 years fairly well. It's crazy that the NADA book lists its current value as only $5000 to $8000.  I may spend a thousand or so bringing it up to date.

Who knows what tomorrow may bring but we plan on sticking with the old tried and true Arctic Fox 30U. Northwood no longer makes the floorplan but it had a long run and used ones are hard to find.

One of our large Oak trees has been showing health issues for some time.  It did not seem to be getting any better so we decided to remove it.  Unfortunately it was located between the shop and the house which made it necessary for professional removal.  Hated to see it go but wanted to eliminate the worry about it falling onto the house or shop.  The tree service folks were professional and completed the job in a few hours.  The guys reminded me of the logger/outdoor types I knew in Oregon.

Since Christmas we have been doing projects around the house, maintaining equipment and helping out with the grandsons.  Winter is still here but spring will be quickly approaching which will involve several "opportunities".  Plans for tree work, gardening and trailer projects abound.  No long term trips are planned at this time but we have a camping trip planned for spring break in March and Daphne will be heading to Oregon for her visit with the "Feathered Friends" in April.

Future plans are as usual in "Jello".............take care all!

Merry Christmas one and all!

Holiday Greetings from Texas!

We hope this finds you well and enjoying the holiday season! The antique snowmen on our garland are the closest we've gotten to snow so far, so it's a typical Texas Christmas

This was an unusual year for us - no traveling for us this past summer! It seemed a little strange, but we were so busy we adjusted fairly quickly. We had already decided to stay closer to home this summer so we could be here for Raylan’s fourth birthday in July, but Kendra’s on-going battle with chronic Lyme disease curtailed her ability to drive, so we’ve been filling in as often as needed for appointments, picking the boys up after school, etc. She’s getting good medical care, but it’s a long battle.

Summer was busy – We doubled the size of the garden and had a couple of small construction projects around the place. Steve’s mom came for a month so she’d be here for Raylan’s July birthday, as well as for a reunion with her brother and sisters. Visitors from Arizona, and several overnighters with the boys kept us entertained. There are always construction projects, small and large, cooking and gardening projects, and lots of playing in the sand when the boys are here. We enjoy every minute we spend with them!

Friends from Nevada visited in October, and then the anxiously awaited Halloween celebration! I stayed here for the event and was able to see the boys enjoy their costumes and the fun at the Bastrop holiday party.



While we were celebrating Halloween, Steve went to CA for his mom’s 90th birthday celebration. She’s doing really well, and we’re so grateful that she’s able to travel here so often so the great-grandsons can get to know her.

She was able to join us again this year for Thanksgiving and for Jax’s birthday in early December. It’s hard to believe he’s seven already! Time seems to move faster every day.

So that’s our 2018 in a nutshell. We want to wish you a very Merry Christmas and a healthy and Happy New Year! 

The Worshams