Got back from Texas the other day. Looooooong road trip but saw lots of interesting things. We went to a family reunion in south central Texas (south of Austin). We all got to see the family farm and other family country land. DD was excited to see so many cows (she took about 150 photos of them!) -- the area is full of small beef cattle ranches. Cows seems to love to look at the camera! In southern CA I only see large dairy operations. My FIL is almost 89 and he was so happy to go back to where he grew up. He saw his brother, nieces/nephew, and lots of cousins (his age). That made it worth the trip. We also were quite lucky with the weather - the weather was in the high 80s but was fairly dry for June. Good for us!





It almost killed me not to have any time to exercise (except for some hiking). There was always someone to take us out to eat! We also toured a Blue Bell creamery (yum). I tried to be fairly careful with portions and with types of food (more veggies than usual). At least I did not gain any weight. But, I did pay for it. I went running yesterday and was almost as slow as a slug.

It was so nice to be in the country - the pace of life is much slower in this part of Texas and I think that is a good thing. This area is a farming area where everyone knows you. We had lunch at a local cafe where FIL saw someone he went to school with as a child! Downfalls --- bigger bugs in Texas! We saw lots of them. Poor DD looks like she has the measles on her legs from all the mosquito bites!

Budgetwise, the largest cost was for gas for our vehicle. DD did not ask for any souvenirs. Her splurge was a trip to the local bead ship. We stayed at Uncle's log cabin and they even stocked it with groceries! Texans are very hospitable. It was nice to sitting in the rocking chairs on the porch reading magazines and even going on an "armadillo hunt." We did not find any except for a dead one on the side of the road. Saw a snapping turtle and scorpions and a baby buzzard that fell out of its nest in the woods.

I would like to travel there again at a "better" time of year. But I think we'll fly. Right now we are hoping that Uncle will come here to visit in August (to escape the heat and humidity).

Well, back to reality -- enjoy the picture of the cows on Grandpa's farm!