Tag Archives: Thanksgiving

And just like that…

November 29, 2025 steph Leave a comment

it’s the last Saturday in November! Life seems to be going at warp speed these days, so I’d better do a bit of a rewind to see just how we got here! Starting with
Thanksgiving!
We joined about 70 other neighbors and their families for a grand Thanksgiving feast on Thursday.

It was great! But what made it very special for us is that sitting around our table (and I have no photo proof of this!) were our kids and grands from Waco! So.Much.Food. So.Much.Fun. Much to my heart’s delight, the gang arrived before The Dinner

and then stayed the night –

so it was great fun as we all fit into our little nest (and a nearby guest room) and enjoyed some close fellowship!

(Gary missed our family photo because he was off working on a Sewer Sump Pump Emergency. But he was there most of the time, I promise!)

Then the week before we were in
Louisana!…
for two weeks, helping out with a building project at one of our favorite ministries – Dry Creek Baptist Camp. They had a couple of decks (16X30 (!!!) and 16×16) that needed to be built, so we joined the team!! And much to my amazement, in 8 days: the posts were installed for the roof cover (10 – 8x8x20 posts), the unit had its skirting installed, both decks were built (including railings and steps) and the area was cleaned up! Phew!
From a typical Monday

to the following Wednesday afternoon –

Success!
The back yard was likewise impressive –
In the beginning –

At the completion –

Since working with giant pieces of pressure-treated lumber (i.e. stinking heavy) isn’t really my forte, I was primarily working on the skirting. This was a first for me, but with a little help from YouTube (and Gary) I think I got the hang of it!

Gary jumped in to help with some of the more technical parts (i.e. cutting to size)

and I also had a great assist from one of the interns when the skirting had to go behind the in-process-of-being-built deck.

(Skirting Tip – do it BEFORE you put on a deck!)

With all of the heavy lifting the guys were doing, I confess it was a mostly light-duty time for me! (I also confess that I didn’t hate that!) During our last couple of days, I was able to help in the kitchen with prep work for their monthly Community Fish Fry (which was excellent as always!).

Now those are my comfort-zone tools!
All in all, it was a lovely couple of weeks! Gary came home tired each day – but it was a good tired – and it was great to see a building project from the start to the finish. Since we had no house chores to take care of at the end of the day, we may or may not have binge-watched the final season of Blue Bloods during our downtime. Plus, we were able to reconnect with old friends and make some new ones along the way!

Meanwhile – back at The Little Texas House –
Gary continues to find things to construct!
There’s the new gazebo on the deck –

(This picture was taken upon our return from Louisiana. Hence the plethora of leaves and acorns!)
He removed the existing walkway cover and built the framing for a roof extension on the driveway cover.

Thankfully, he let actual roofers finish the job.

On a rainy day, he helped me inside, getting some pictures hung while I worked on some Christmas decorations.

It’s beginning to feel really cozy in here!
While he’s been building, I’ve been enjoying my new design wall in my sewing room (which he also built for me!)-

It’s very exciting to me to be able to lay things out like that, even though it will probably be January before I get to sewing those squares together!

Looking ahead, the days continue to be full (and fabulous, I’m sure).
We leave on Monday morning to complete our grandson’s Texas Adventure – four days in San Antonio!
The following week, I leave for seven days with my sister in Pennsylvania. (Who knows what Gary will build while I’m away??)
The week after that is – yes – Christmas and the day after Christmas we leave for a Conrad (post)Christmas Holiday in Destin. Florida.
When I look at my phone calendar (which I am trying very hard to keep current), I have 8 days with nothing scheduled between now and January 5th. I’m pretty sure your calendar has a similar glow to it! I’ll try to pop in here from time to time in December – but no promises my friends!

May these next days be filled with many reminders that Christ is the reason for this season, and that wise men still seek Him!

Family and Friends, On the Road, Sewing/Quilting Projects, SOWER Projects, SOWER Projects 2020, The Adventure

Thanksgiving 2024

December 4, 2024 steph Leave a comment

I’m not gonna lie – it was a lot of driving –

Some of it lovely –

Some of it not so much –

But all of it was worth those lovely days we spent with our Ohio kids and grands!
We helped out a bit at Lara’s house,

and celebrated Thanksgiving Day with friends of Lara’s.

It was a lovely day!
Friday Lara was working, so we ran some errands (yay – a Costco!!) and generally enjoyed hanging out with Alex!

And then came Saturday – the day that ALL the Ohio Conrads got together!

Miles Traveled – 2042
Dollars spent – Who’s counting?
Dollars saved in postage (Christmas deliveries!) – $40.00 +/-
Memories made – Priceless!

It was a last minute decision to head north for Thanksgiving – but we’re oh-so-thankful that we did! Hoping your holiday was filled with love and gratitude also!

PS – We also enjoyed bonus visits with friends in Nashville both coming and going. No photo documentation, but it was still a delightful break in our travels! John & Rosie – we are thankful for you guys, too!

Family and Friends, Pictures of the Adventure, The Adventure

And just like that

November 25, 2024 steph 4 Comments

We’re in the last week of November!!
This little guy turned seven months today –

and this beauty starts her

~~second~~ third decade tomorrow –

There is also some big holiday happening towards the end of the week, but you probably already knew that!

Last week we decided to make a ‘quick’ trip to Columbus (OH) for some sweet family time over the Thanksgiving weekend. We’ve tracked down our hats and gloves and heavy(ish) coats, packed up some of Christmas items we had ready, and will be heading north pre-dawn tomorrow. The computer is not coming, so once again – it will be quiet here. Maybe I’ll do better in December!

Happy Thanksgiving, my friends! May the peace of our Lord fill your hearts as we all reflect on the blessings we have been given!

Pictures of the Adventure, RV Life, The Adventure

It’s about time

November 22, 2023 steph 3 Comments

It’s a funny thing about the way folks spend their time at a campground. All around us we see folks with their camp chairs out, grills at the ready, and bikes parked waiting for that spin around the lake. Their kayaks are loaded up and the fishing poles are ready for the next big catch. Somehow our time at a campground has a different flavor.
The first thing Gary did with his time was to empty out all the bays on the passenger side of Lizzie, clean them out, take stock of what was there and get them all reorganized and repacked.

Then he cleaned out the truck and worked on a couple of small repairs. Next he moved to the other side of the rig and tackled his tool bays.

He got it all back in –

Yes, this man has a good variety of tools!

Meanwhile…my time was spent at my computer working on that Year Nineteen memory book or (happily) sewing away on a quilt!

Oh, we’ve taken a drive or two

and checked out the dam that actually makes Lake Seminole.

There have been walks and naps and easy meals – exactly the way we like to spend our time at the campground.
But there is another thing about the time here at East Bank Campground. It’s really hard to tell exactly what time it is! We are right on the line between Eastern and Central time zones, and our phones are very confused! They seem to change time zones at will. We’ve kept the analog clocks set at Eastern (since that is the official time of the campground), but there is still confusion when we check our phones. (But let’s be honest- it doesn’t take much to confuse us these days!)

Tomorrow, even though there won’t be any turkey or precious family around our table, we’ll be taking time to be thankful for all the blessings the LORD has given us in this crazy life of ours. And we’ll be praying that whatever your Thanksgiving may look like – you’ll be giving Him the thanks also!

Pictures of the Adventure, RV Life, SOWER Projects 2022, The Adventure

The Week Between

November 25, 2022 steph 3 Comments

The Founding Fathers of the SOWER Ministry built a week ‘off’ between each SOWER month’s projects. And we continue to relish the genius of that plan. The other beautiful part of that plan is that we are allowed to remain on the project if we choose during that week off. Our fellow SOWERs pulled out early in the week, but since we are only moving about 14 miles down the road, we’ve been hanging out at the Ranch. And it’s been a good week!
We got to greet some new young horses that had just been picked up in New Mexico,

Hello, Delta and Mesa!

We got to meet some very shy kittens –

This is my attempt to reach through the gate to try and get a picture of the litter.

E for effort?
My time was spent mostly in front of my sewing machine (yippee!), and Gary decided to tackle a job down at the arena. A new hospitality center is being built in the front of the arena, with two wings and a central gathering area where the front of the arena is.

(The two white buildings coming out from the arena are part of the new construction. Contractors are working on that – we’ve just enjoyed watching the progress!)

(They are filling the looks-like-Styrofoam-because- it-is walls with concrete!)
The plan is to put big viewing windows at the front of the arena so folks in the gathering area can view the arena. Gary’s job was to frame out those window areas.

I believe there will be four sections, each with five tall (35X85) windows. Now, the actual wall hasn’t been cut away except in certain areas, so you’ll have to use your imagination on this picture Gary took of the five windows he installed today.

Lest you think I was only working at my sewing machine while Gary was hard at work, he did need me to help when he was cutting and routing out the boards for the windows.

(And quite the fashion statement I was, right?)
Gary was having a good week figuring out the best way to get those windows installed, I was happily sewing away on some UFOs (unfinished projects), and to make the week especially lovely, we joined our host family for Thanksgiving Dinner.

It was the first time for us to be at a Golden Corral for Thanksgiving, and I have to say the food was great, the fellowship sweet, and there were no dishes to wash (or stress in preparing things!). It was nice to be doing something totally different since we couldn’t be with any of our kids and grands.
Tomorrow we pack up and head down the road. As I said earlier, it’s just about 14 miles down the road, so it will be a ‘light packing’. Things still need to be battened down as usual, but more stuff can just be put on the bed instead of being put ‘all the way’ away. I spent today doing laundry and getting my sewing stuff put away, so tomorrow morning should go smoothly.Â And there’s no rush to get out.