Our Week in Matagorda

This was the first year that neither of the kids were home for Christmas, so John and I decided to spend the week at the travel trailer in Matagorda. We did not put up a tree. The only decorations were two poinsettia place mats and a Christmas candle.

Inside the Trailer

The weather was not the best. From Sunday to Christmas Day it went from really cold, to warm, to cold, to warm again. Each front that came through brought rain. Low clouds obscured the sun most of the time. And one day the fog was so thick that John and I walked right past each other on the beach and didn't know it.

Foggy Day at the Beach

John's big Christmas gift this year was a fishing light.

Shining a strong beam of light on the water at night attracts the bait, which in turn, attracts the fish. On the nights it wasn't too cold, I joined John for nighttime fishing on the river. Everything I caught was too small to keep, but John caught one keeper trout.

My big Christmas gift was a deck we built for the trailer. I love the way it turned out! It provided us with a nice clean, dry place to sit and watch the comings and goings on the river.


I passed on the kayak fishing this time since the weather wasn't that good, but John didn't let the cold and wind stop him. He caught two nice redfish, which gave me an opportunity to photograph the pelicans at the fish cleaning table.

Patiently Waiting

Fighting for Fish Scraps

Mine! Mine! All Mine!

We left Matagorda sooner than we planned when we got word that my grandmother passed away in Oklahoma. She was 93 years old and a faithful Christian. Though her passing was sad for us, it was a victory for her. I am confident she is in a better place and I am comforted.

But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. ~ 1Cor. 15:57

B&B

This weekend we had an opportunity to spend the night at the Stanley-Fisher Bed & Breakfast in Matagorda, Texas. Our stay was wonderful and I highly recommend the Stanley-Fisher should you ever travel this way.


This historic home was built in 1832 which makes it one of the first houses ever built in Texas. It was constructed for Stanley Rhodes Fisher, an early Texas colonist, signer of the Texas Declaration of Independence, and Secretary of the Republic of Texas Navy. It is likely that Stephen F. Austin and Sam Houston were guests here from time to time.


Current owners, Rik and Peggy Stanley, have beautifully restored this home. Upon our arrival they greeted us warmly and took us on a tour, relating to us the history of the house and its previous owners. At the top of the stairs just outside the room we stayed in is a cozy sitting area for reading (or knitting!).


Tastefully displayed throughout the house are bowls and baskets of shells collected from nearby Matagorda Beach. Peggy told us of some of her other beach finds, which included two bottles with messages inside. One was launched from a cruise ship in the Gulf and the other was launched from New York as a science class project.


After a restful night's sleep and a delicious home cooked breakfast, we were ready for a little beachcombing of our own. John began his search back in the dunes for sea beans. I joined him later, but first walked along the surf looking for shells.


My best finds of the day were a perfect sand dollar and my first sea heart.


After lunch at Spoonbills, we put the kayaks in for fishing at McNab Lake. The fish were hard to find, but John managed to catch two undersized trout and one flounder big enough to keep. I didn't even get a bite. Oh well, there's always next time...

Evacuation Vacation

So how did I spend my time in the Texas Hill Country during Ike?

I had all the time in the world to knit, but I didn't really feel like it. I completed only 17 rows of stockinette stitch on my tee. We bought three movies to watch on DVD, but didn't even open the packages. Our thoughts were elsewhere, so mostly we sat outside and enjoyed our surroundings. The hummingbirds entertained us at the feeders and we listened to reports of the storm on the radio. In the evenings we cooked out on the grill and roasted marshmallows for dessert.

One day we drove into Fredericksburg and while there, I stopped by Stonehill Spinning.


As the sign says, they cater to Rug Hookin', Knittin' and Spinnin'.


The inside of the store is just as charming as the front porch, though I didn't take any pictures to show you.


I browsed for a time, waiting for something to call my name. Right away I knew I wanted to buy one of their aprons. And of course, there was yarn purchased as well. I couldn't decide on anything for me so I had John pick two colors of El Coyote Ranch yarn.


It's a blend of natural colored Rambouillet sheep and Angora goat with a bit of Llama added to the light gray.

He has requested that I cook up a hat for him with this yarn.

Any suggestions?

Comfort in the Storm

All is well with us. We hooked up the travel trailer and escaped to Comfort, Texas on Thursday. The evacuation process went smoothly--no traffic jams like last time. It seems many people decided to stay and ride out the storm.

Sunset

Last night as the sun was setting, I thought of those that stayed behind and said a prayer for their safety. My sister stayed and so did John's brother and family. They both live on the north side of Houston.

We received good reports from both of them this morning. My sister said the wind howled for hours, but her home is in good shape. John's brother was on the "dirty" side of the storm. We've only been able to text message him. He says they are fine, but have downed trees blocking them in on all streets. Neither of them have electricity. We thank God for keeping them safe.

We've also talked to our neighbors that stayed in Needville. There is only minor damage on our street. Our basketball goal was blown over. We've been wanting to take it down anyway, so I don't consider this a loss. A few small tree limbs are down. And power is out on our street, though many in Needville still have electricity.

Moonrise

Hopefully the power will be restored before long. We plan to go home tomorrow if it is.

Hooked on Matagorda

We wasted no time in getting back to Matagorda after our trip to the mountains. My sister joined us, along with our nephew who was over for a visit.

The Best Shells Are in the Surf

Dylan found some nice shells and John found some fish.

Uncle John Shows Dylan His Catch

Later, Dylan showed off his fishing skills by landing the largest fish of the day--a 12" black drum. (I'll let John post the fish picture on his blog.)

Showing Us How It's Done

Auntie Elizabeth found the honey hole and caught more fish than anyone.

First Cast

I caught nothing, but I did hook Dylan into posing with the sock I'm knitting.

Not as Big as My Fish

It's grown to just past the heel--almost a keeper.

Mountaintop Experience

As wonderful as the Wool Market was, the real reason we were in Estes Park was to experience Rocky Mountain National Park. This was our third visit in four years.

One of our favorite spots in the park is Moraine Park. We put our fishing skills to the the test in the Big Thompson River that snakes its way through here. I wasn't experienced enough to outwit the fish.


But John was able to fool three of them into taking the bait. This was not easy to do because this stretch of the river is heavily fished and everything caught must be released. This beautiful brown trout was the largest of the three he landed.


We saw more elk this time than we ever have before. A herd of about 50 were grazing nearby while we fished. I didn't notice them until I heard the calves calling for their mothers. Look carefully and you'll see them in the foreground of this picture.


Later, as we were driving through the park we saw this magnificent elk. He was causing a traffic jam as everyone was pulling over to take his picture.


Trail Ridge Road took us above the tree line to the snow-capped mountain peaks.


The drifts at the Alpine Visitor Center are still quiet high. And the temperature is still on the cold side. Can you tell I'm shivering?


We didn't catch any fish at Lily Lake to take photos of, but this ground squirrel was kind enough to pose for me.


And this duck swam right by my fishing spot, so I took his picture too.


Everywhere you turn there is something beautiful to see. It's easy to fall in love with this place.


Rocky Mountain National Park is a true mountaintop experience.

Estes Park Wool Market

The Wool Market officially opened at 9:00 in the morning on Saturday, but John and I got there earlier than that. The picture below shows the setting for the event which is held at the fairgrounds in Estes Park, Colorado.


We decided to check out the animals first. They were housed in barns and tents. There were sheep, goats, llamas, alpacas and angora rabbits. Most of the animals were getting last minute beauty treatments.

I'm not sure I like how this "hairstyle" turned out. The head doesn't seem to match the body.


Next it was on to the vendor area.


Just about everything a fiber fanatic could want was for sale in this one big barn. There were fleeces, roving, spindles, spinning wheels, looms and much more. I looked at some of the fleeces and roving, but I was most interested in yarn.


I tried to walk past the Brooks Farm booth, but the beautiful colors pulled me in as they always do.

And then I made the mistake of touching the yarn. I was goner after that. However, I did show a bit of restraint by waiting until I had shopped all the other vendors before I came back to make my purchase. I didn't want to blow my fiber budget too early, especially since Brooks Farm is a vendor at the festival I usually go to in the fall.

The next booth that caught my attention was Plain & Fancy Sheep & Wool Co. Their yarn is gorgeous. Should I buy this color? Or maybe that one? They are all beautiful.


Right after I made my choice and paid my money, I ran into fellow Texan and blogging buddy, Suzann Thompson and her daughter Eva. It was the first time for us to meet in person, though we've been visiting back and forth on our blogs for about three years. I would have loved to have taken her polymer clay button making class that she taught the day before, but it was filled up by the time I found out I would be at Estes. I'm happy we at least had a chance to talk for a while. Suzann is just as nice as I knew she would be and it was a treat to meet Eva as well. Our meeting was best part of the Wool Market for me.


Our next stop was the sheep dog demonstration. It was interesting and we learned a few things about the training of these dogs.

It was close to lunchtime by now, so we headed over to get some food. John and I tried the lamb kabobs. They were very good. For dessert we had a strawberry banana smoothie. Delicious!

And then we decided it was time to go. I left with an armful of yarn, a Wool Market baseball cap and a smile on my face.

1600 yards Plain & Fancy (100% Wool)
800 yards Brooks Farm Yarn Willow (70% SW Wool, 30% Bamboo)

Colorado

We arrived in Colorado this afternoon.


The weather is beautiful and we're looking forward to being outside most of the time. Lots of fishing and hiking is planned along with a shopping trip at the Estes Park Wool Market on Saturday. We're here until Monday and then we fly to Salt Lake City.

The sock I started has grown a bit. I took a picture of it at the pond in Longmont where we fished tonight. It's hard to see, but the stitch pattern I'm using is garter rib. It's an easy stitch, just perfect for travel knitting. The yarn is Happy Feet by Plymouth Yarn Co.

I won't be on the computer much this weekend, but I'll check in when I can next week. See you then.

Family Photo Album

This weekend, John and I traveled to Oklahoma to visit our son Matt and celebrate his 20th birthday. We stopped in Fort Worth on the way to pick up our daughter Robyn. Her husband, James, couldn't come because of work and we sure have missed him. Matt's girlfriend, Carly, was able to join us after work on Saturday.

We've had fun, but now it's time to say goodbye. Usually after a visit like this, I get home and realize we forgot to take pictures of everyone. But, this time I have several nice shots to add to the family photo album.

John

Carly

Me and Robyn

Matt--The Birthday Boy