To be quite honest, we’ve not had the best weather this project.  Well, I’d better correct that.  We’ve not had the best weather for Us – I believe Texas in general has been quite delighted with all of the rainy days we’ve experienced.  We’ve had some beautiful sunrises and some spectacular sunset and we’ve enjoyed some lovely afternoons, but by and large if we had a free day, the sky has been dripping. Or Gary’s been recovering from his fall.

So imagine our delight when today dawned bright and clear, and as we had made no plans for our Sunday afternoon it was off to the beach for us!

Even the drive there was quite delightful, as we drove along the Tres Palacios Bay -


Eventually we left the coast (for a bit) and found ourselves driving through the beautiful Texas countryside. Wait – is that a nuclear power plant?

Yep, that’s the STP Nuclear Operating Company. Just so you know.
Soon we were approaching Matagorda Bay

Here we are crossing over the Intercoastal Waterway -

And finally – the beach!

While we could have driven along the beach, hadn’t gotten a permit and instead just enjoyed a leisurely walk, enjoying the (mostly) sunny afternoon.




Here’s one from my phone, with a fun “app”!

We drove a little farther down the peninsula until we came to the jetty -





It was a lovely way to spend the afternoon, and just as we were leaving we ran into one of our fellow Sowers, getting ready for a little bit of a different kind of fun!

Good Luck, Ed!
After we returned to Palacios, we checked out a spot that had been reported to be home to a couple of Roseate Spoonbills. No luck there, but we did spot these Black Bellied Whistling Ducks -


and this hawk, which I believe is a Ferruginous Hawk -


He was stunning as he took off, but you’ll have to take my word for it

Yeah, missed that one.

So, as you can see, it’s been a beautiful day of exploring some of God’s beautiful country here on the East coast of Texas! Glad you could come along!
(and if you’d like to see more shots of the day….. check ‘em out HERE!)

Cool and rainy here in Palacios.  And a cool rainy Saturday means no excuses for getting caught up over here at RV There Yet! So – let’s get started!
First of all – Gary.
He doing pretty darn good. He’s still stiff (and achy) when he goes from sitting to standing, and he can’t actually sit for too long (but that’s not really new, is it?), but he’s been back to work all week, and is well on the way to full back health. (Whatever that looks like for old folks like us!). Thank you all for your continued prayers for this guy!

And just what has he (and the rest of the team) been working on? Well, there has been a fair share of electrical fixes and other odds and ends, but the biggest project they’ve been working on is that Ga-Ga Court. You know, the one he fell from. (For those who are still wondering just what is this Ga-Ga thing, here is a little better description.)  Yes, this was a classic “get yourself back in the saddle after you fall” kind of project.

So here is the stage of construction the court was in when we got here -

And as it progressed through the project -

Yes, that is Gary up on the scaffolding. Remember that saddle thing…..

It still needs a little trim work, but it’s almost done!

Since I was working in the yellow building closest to the Ga-Ga court, I didn’t get any shots of the what the other guys were doing. But I did manage to snag a couple of pictures from one of the other fellows -
A little tractor play goes a long way….

And I’m REALLY glad I wasn’t around to watch what was going on here (and neither was Gary, thankfully!)

So the guys were quite busy, and so were we ladies!
It was an interesting and fun month for us that involved lots of paint and many brushes, but it was quite different than any other painting assignment I’ve had!

For you see, most of us ladies spent the entire three weeks painting surfboards!
Ok. So we weren’t painting actual surfboards, but we were helping to paint the 86 decorative surfboards that are lining the walls of the main meeting room.
Here are a couple of shots of when we first got here -



At first we were just giving some of the boards a coat of “color”, since not all of the designs had been determined

but eventually we were given a bit of the detail painting.

Talk about using a lot of different paint brushes!
Here’s the one I did – with a little help from the overhead!

(the one with the turtle, not the Endless Summer one!)
Along with the surf boards there was also lots of staining and varnishing and even some furniture refinishing.



And at the very end of the project, when everything had to be cleaned up and out of the room, we managed to find one last thing to paint – the “sandwich” sign of a local thrift shop!

Nothing like 4 SOWER ladies crowded around a 3′x4′ sign!
So, here are the surfboards after the room had been set up for this weekend’s guests, all ready to be worked on by next month’s group!





Lots more to paint, but I think we made a pretty good dent in the job at hand!

Enough for today.  Rainy Saturdays are also good for catching up on the laundry, working on some sewing, and even a marathon day of Downton Abbey watching (thanks to a SOWER friend who owns the DVDs!).  But now it seems that it might just be time to think about what’s for supper!

More to come, I promise!

Pssst – if the sun comes out tomorrow, we might even get to the beach after church.  :)

Many thanks for the prayers offered on behalf of Gary after his fall.  He had a reasonably good night’s rest and decided that working was better than sitting around getting stiff.

No ladders. I promise!

He’s moving pretty slowly tonight, and I think bedtime will be early again. Tomorrow is a legitimate day off for us – so he might be just a little more apt to “take it easy.”
Maybe.

Today started quite quietly.  The temperatures had warmed up and the air was still.  The early morning mist surrounded us as we walked to work.

If any day had held excitement, it would have been yesterday when Gary’s job was to repair and change the light bulbs on the lights by the pool.
You know, the kind that they mount on old telephone poles.

But he’s a smart ladder guy. He had that baby tied down on three sides and then once he got up there, he tied himself to the ladder for stability.

And then he had ME hold the ladder. Right. Like I could have done anything to prevent an accident at that point. I was a nervous wreck just looking up at him.

But all went well. Electrical stuff fixed, bulbs changed, lights ready for the swimming season. Phew. Get that boy off that ladder, I say!
So, back to today.
Quiet morning. Thoughtful devotions. Everyone off to work. I was just getting started on the day’s project when someone came running to get me.
Gary had unknowingly stepped on a board that hadn’t been all the way secured and went right through.

To the ground.

Now he wasn’t knocked unconscious, but he knew he had jolted his back badly and was smart enough to just stay still. Choosing rather to be safe than sorry, we called 911, and had him transported to the local ER. Backboard and neck brace complete.



He was seen right away in the ER, and after X-rays it was determined that nothing was broken and, that unless other symptoms presented themselves, it was “just” a back sprain and he needed to keep quiet for the next couple of days. And take drugs as needed for the pain.
I think I knew he was going to be alright when he started asking me if I had taken any pictures (um, I had) and then he wanted to pick one to send to the kids!
I got him settled back in the rig and actually left him there to attend a ladies afternoon sewing function. (He told me to go, honest!)  We had a good dinner and he’s already in bed.
And now, in the quiet of the evening, as I look at those pictures the tears are welling up. So much more could have happened. Yes, he fell. But he was sooooo protected. He didn’t hit anything. And there were lots of tools and boards and obstacles that he could have hit. He was working with a group. He often works alone. Not today. There was a doctor among the volunteers that did a preliminary check. The ambulance was there within 10 minutes of being called and he was seen in the ER hardly a half hour after the fall. God was very merciful to us today.
And I am reminded that while you just never know what the day may hold-
I do know who holds the day.

and His mercies are new every day.

Yet this I call to mind
and therefore I have hope:
Because of the LORD’s great love
we are not consumed,
for his compassions never fail.
They are new every morning;
great is your faithfulness.

Lamentations 3:21-23