On to Texas and the Ball

We believe that one of the most important and significant aspects of our motor home life is the ability we have to visit with our children and their families, and to facilitate those same visits between cousins.  Our married children are each blessed with living near their spouse's family, while none of them live close to each other.  (Oklahoma, Texas, Florida)  So, it's a real treat to be able to "ferry" some of them for visits from time to time.  After leaving Lincoln we were able to spend several days in Edmond, OK with Andrea and her family.  

Here's Ashley celebrating Ryan's 9th birthday with the extended family in Edmond, OK.  

 Ryan's happily opening presents from lots of folks!

We spent five nights in Edmond and played lots of games together, something our families really enjoy and which brings us all closer.  After that we headed the motor home for Texas and more fun.  Ashley spent several days in Kyle, Texas with Abey and his family.

Ashley has really learned to love Scottish country dancing and she worked hard to get herself ready for the Houston Workshop and Ball, her first!  And was she ever well-prepared!  She danced 13 of the 16 dances, and for a relatively inexperienced dancer, that's amazing!  (But then, we all have amazing grandchildren, don't we?)  She was truly the Belle of the Ball; I had to "take a number" just to dance a jig or two with her!

Here she is with Geri Simms and Meg, and standing with Jon Simms at the workshop.

The three of us

Here is the entire Bluebonnet dancer group from San Antonio attending the ball.
Great dancing, great friends!

After the ball we put Ashley on a plane back to Florida and got ready for the next event:
Roger's 50th high school reunion!

We had two evenings of fun, visiting with old friends from over a half-century ago!

Marylee Buchanan and Dick Sanders

This is the picture of my elementary school sixth grade class, yours truly with the sign on his desk.
Many of the friendships represented at the reunion had their beginnings right here!
Dick Sanders (above) is to my immediate right, with Marylee Buchanan just over his right shoulder.

I'm standing with Albert DeBarros and John Anderson-Hensley, still friends after so many years.

Meg's step-mom Marilyn Thurman was 89 in November and we joined her Daughter Nancy from Houston in celebrating at a quaint restaurant in Gruene, Texas: the River House Tea Room.

This year Roger did something not done before: I flew back to Lincoln a second time for a visit with my Brother Randy and our niece Shanna.  Meg stayed back in Texas to spend more time with her Dad, who will soon be 101 years old!



My flight to Lincoln took me through Denver where I had lunch at the airport with our BFF Bonnie Cline.

I stayed about 10 days, saw two more Husker games, played lots of family games and generally just had a good time.  Randy and I went out to eat at a fine local Mexican restaurant, Las Margaritas, the evening I arrived.  On entering the foyer I walked right into two of our oldest and dearest friends from Lincoln days: Sue and George Darlington!

He was a very successful football assistant coach to Tom Osborne for more than thirty years!  A nice reunion after many, many years and what a sweet serendipity!

I saw two more Husker games while there, and I was accompanied to one by our former pastor and good friend Dave Argue.  And it was the perfect time: it was Tom Osborne Appreciation Day!

Shanna has collected a lot of marbles during her life and wanted to see if they were worth anything and just how much.  So she and I made a quick trip to York, NE, home of  "The Marble Museum" where she was able to sit down with the owner, Lee, who evaluated them for her.

Lee is famous in the area, very friendly and informative. Drop by!

In December we headed for Arizona and Roger's teaching at Still University in Mesa.  Each year the university's School of Physician Assistant Studies brings Roger on staff as an adjunct professor to teach  urology and neurology.  The students are fun and avid learners, I love to teach the subjects and it seems a perfect fit.





Here are some of my students from this year's class:

 All have degrees already: most bachelors or masters, but an occacional PhD is in the mix, as well.



They are fun, inquisitive and share with me a love of learning!  In short, it's a joy to work with them year after year.

A fellow teacher Bob McMullen and his wife Amy host Meg and me when we are there, and they have become good friends.  We have many common interests, one of which is a new free community medical clinic they are opening.  We love geocaching and hiking the mountains and small towns of Arizona together; here we are at Globe, AZ, having just found a cache at this church.

I'll close this edition with another of those gorgeous Arizona sunsets. Wish you were here with us!