Friday, August 31, 2007

Playtime's Over!

The guest room is NOT ready for guests

This is the area that had to be finished so we could hang up our clothes. The tub will go in the master bath-that is the "What's next"
Sharon and Steve, our good friends from San Jose, spent some time in San Antonio after dropping Bethany off at Abilene Christian
Shelley and Stacey in photo op with Uncle Bo and with Nathan
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Pat's birthday continues with lunch on the porch
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Highlights from August 19-August 30
1. Tomorrow is great-nephew Sean's birthday and we have the great privilege of hosting a Thomas the Train party this Saturday. Steve and Sharon left on Monday and we regretfully returned to the work that somehow didn't get done while we went to Gruene Hall, met good friend Dani at "Bless Your Heart", shopped for antiques, ate at the riverwalk, and watched "The Alamo" starring John Wayne. The guest room was piled high with all the clothes and stuff from the room that is our master bedroom closet/laundry room. Bo hung sheetrock, floated and taped the walls, and I helped prime and paint so we could get our clothes hung back up and have a place for Steven, Michelle, Sean, and Maddie to sleep. Tune in on the Monday after Labor Day to see the finished result and pictures of the birthday boy.
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2. Last Saturday the ladies from Austin (our nieces, Shelley and Stacey) surprised us with a stop by visit when they came to San Antonio to pick up a car for their Uncle Frank. Stacey's friend Nathan accompanied them. It was their first time to see the house and unfortunately we didn't get any work out of them. The paint brush and paint can in the picture were only props for a Kodak moment but they have promised to return and lend a hand one day soon. Shelley would like to take advantage of a First Friday sales opportunity in the King William area with her art. She is doing some wonderful, fun creative work in a retablo style that is catching on in Austin. I will try to include a link to some of her art soon.
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3. One of the best compliments we have had came this week when my friend Mary Dean came to pick me up for lunch. (I love that it is the end of August and I am still celebrating my birthday!) First she wanted to check on the progress we have made since she was here last spring. She went out on the porch to try out my new birthday rocking chair and looked so happy and comfortable, I asked her if she would like to just sit on the porch and have a sandwich instead of going out. She said she would really like that and I was thrilled! This is what we want our home to be-a comfortable, welcoming place for family and friends.
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So, yes, the hard work is worth it. It really is hard work. Lots of it. That is why I am doing the blog this week. Bo has been doing the work of a whole crew. You'll see those pictures next week!

Sunday, August 19, 2007

Since the 4th of July.....




Pat and Kathy work first, then are ready to play


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Dennis signed on for the "Will Work for Golf" package




















Dennis and Donna came to claim their prize




OB goes back in time to when little boys and babies were part of her life .

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Mom got another rocking chair for her birthday
Uncle Doug and Aunt Gloria with OB












Pat with Aunt Martha and Billy Roy - the little bed was Aunt Martha's when she was a girl and OB slept on it when she went to Grandpa's house














Grandma Mattie's pantaloons as modeled by OSHA Babe
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See the Possum? Our latest addition to the list of critters


















HIGHLIGHTS:

No, we haven't fallen off the face of the earth. But we have been to what seems to be its edges. The summer is winding down and a lot has been done. Some of it has been work on the old house. Let's try to summarize (or is it "summerize") and get back on the blog track.
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1. A 2+ week trip to California + a 1000 mile trip to Atlanta + stops to visit aunts, uncles, and dear friends in Alabama, Tennessee, and Arkansas, were sandwiched between two sets of visitors.
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In the days before we left for California on July 13, longtime Dallas friend, Kathy, ignored all warnings of "Visiting the Brockmans could result in Manual Labor" and came anyway. In between morning coffees on the balcony, a bit of shopping at Bless Your Heart and a tour of the historic Steves Mansion, Kathy and OSHA Babe sanded and painted the bead board in the Butler's Pantry. It looks great and is one step closer to being the breakfast nook.

On August 7, the day after returning from the Eastern road trip, OSHA Babe's sister and hubby, Donna and Dennis, arrived for a sample of San Antonio summer. (You may recognize them as the winners of the "Name that Song" contest. Yes, they did collect their margarita on the riverwalk while they were here.) Meanwhile, back at the ranch, the sisters shopped, primped, laughed, visited, poked around antique stores, spent the night (with their husbands) at a bed and breakfast in Comfort, TX, and generally had a good time. Dennis and I played golf twice, got the washer and dryer hooked up, and hung sheetrock in the little room between the kitchen and the back door. OB is ecstatic about not having to go to the laundramat. Dennis and I thought that after he gets through superintending in Washington state, we might start Dos Gringos Sheetrocking Company ----- NOT!!!!!!! That is hard work. We have ordered the Friedrich Memorial Mud Room plaque in honor of your hard work.

Later that week, Uncle Joe and Nettie stopped by after a doctors visit in San Antonio. We enjoy every one of those visits and look forward to more.

2. "So," you say, "tell us about your travels." (Thought you would never ask.) Hold on to you seats for this ride.

The trip to California was prompted by babies - one born in June and another scheduled to arrive in October. OSHA Babe exchanged her hard hat and safety glasses for a mother's helper apron during the trip to San Jose. Adelle and Gabe became parents for the second time with the arrival of Michael on June 25. Gabe's Mom had been there for the birth. We arrived as the second shift. Michael's days consisted of eating, sleeping, and digestive calesthenics. Needless to say, Adelle and Gabe are not getting as much sleep as they are used to. OSHA Babe helped out by changing diapers, doing laundry, and shuttling big brother Colin to swimming lessons and soccer. It took her back in time and she loved every minute of it.

We stayed in Gert and Cornelia's home during the time in California. They were all away when we arrived but had left a key for us. Cornelia returned after we had been there a week. Working around her work schedule and OB's exhaustive social calendar, we did get to catch up on our visiting with her. We missed Gert, Marne, and Danielle but look forward to seeing them in the future. Thanks for your gracious hospitality.

The weekend before we returned to Texas, Pat was part of a group that hosted a baby shower for Heather and Jeff's little one who is scheduled to be here in October. We attended their wedding during the summer of 2006 and are thrilled to see the home that they are creating.

In the nearly 20 days we were in San Jose, we enjoyed the cool evenings, pleasant days, and most of all, the opportunities to visit with church friends and former work associates. I believe that we had at least one meal each day with some of those friends. It was wonderful to hear what everyone is doing. Each of you is very special to us.

I did get my 2007 quota of golf in during the trip. On two different occassions, I joined church and work friends for "All You Can Eat--All You Can Play" at Coyote Creek. One of those days, Jess and I got in 45 holes of golf! In addition to the days at Coyote Creek, Charlie, my former boss both in Mexico and California, graciously hosted 3 of us at CordeValle (a stunning country club nestled in rolling hills just south of San Jose) for a round of golf. Pat and I joined him for dinner and caught up on how our families were doing. If you're going to lug your clubs with you, make the most of the opportunities.

Are you tired yet? Hang on to your hat because we were off again. After landing in San Antonio about 10 PM on July 31, we were on the road at 6 AM the following morning for a 1000+ mile drive to Atlanta, aka the "Eastern Roadtrip", for an Aug 2 closing on the sale of the condo we had bought while working there in 2001 - 2002. We spent 2 nights with Brian, Beth, Ashley, and Katie, dear friends from SBC-Mexico days, and also got to share a meal with Ken, Crystal, and daughter Amy, church friends from St. Louis days.

Then it was off to see relatives. From Atlanta, we drove to near Huntsville, AL to spend one night with Uncle Doug and Aunt Gloria. I guess that they consider Pat to be the prodigal cousin because they rustled up a couple of their daughters and killed the fatted catfish, and we all enjoyed an evening of reminiscing and catching up.

The following morning, they sent us off with a mess of okra to take to Martha and Billy Roy. They live on a beautiful 400+ acre farm in central Tennessee. Pat's Aunt Martha and her husband, Billy Roy, graciously passed on pieces of furniture, some of which have now been in the family for 4 generations. The marble topped dresser, washstand, rocking chair, and bed now grace the house in San Antonio. A quite interesting heirloom that we received is a pair of Pat's Great-Grandmother Mattie's pantaloons. You can tell from the picture above that they were built for comfort, not for style.

After loading the pickup, the San Antonio Clampetts, Rufus and Minnie, were on the move again. About 300 miles later, we stopped in central Arkansas to visit our dear friend, Tressie. She has been a mother to both Pat and me as well as a grandmother to our sons. We went to church with her on Sunday night and she got us out the door bright and early Monday morning for the 650 mile trip back to San Antonio. Boy, were we ever ready to be home for a while.
Then, company arrived. (See Item 1 above.)

3. The house was basically in order when we returned. I was devastated that no work had been done on the house while we were gone. I thought that this would be easy and automatic. But no, you actually have to be here to get work done. Oh, well. We'll keep plugging along.

The installation of the washer and dryer was HUGE! Thanks, Dennis, for the idea to move the dryer to the outside wall. It sure made the venting easier. In addition to the sheetrocking in the Friedrich Memorial Mud Room, I had a couple of guys start sheetrocking the two remaining bathrooms and master closet. There is still taping, floating, texturing, priming, painting, wainscoating, tile, fixture setting (including the clawfoot tubs). Does that sound like we're nearly done?

4. The cats survived our absence. Two neighbor boys (probably with help from their Mom and Dad) fed them while we were gone. Bad Girl and Grey Girl are back to eating and napping and think that life is good.

Speaking of cats, we did get an update on 3-legged Little Leo. You will recall that he was the first of the neighborhood cats to befriend us last October. At that time, he had four legs. Tragedy struck and he had to have a hind leg amputated. (I still subscribe to the theory that it was a covert terrorist attack that did him in.) Our tenderhearted neighbor, Mary Alice, and her family cared for Little Leo during his convalescence and now report that he is at home with her parents, their two other cats, and a couple of dogs. He is reported to be getting around fine when he's in the house and able to climb and run well when outside. He has figured out that if he jumps up in Mary Alice's Dad's lap, he can usually watch TV and get petted all at the same time. He thinks that is pretty cool.

We have added an opossum to the list of critters around here. This one was climbing around in our back shed one evening. Possums sure are ugly.

We dogsitted (sat?) this past weekend. The neighbors who fed the cats went to the coast for a weekend and needed someone to take care of Pippi, an older, female Chihuahua. It only took her 2 days to train us that she was a lap dog. How could I resist those big, soulful eyes? (And the dog was sweet, too.)

5. Did you notice the rocking chairs on the front balcony? Buck and Katy presented OB with an additional rocker for her mid July birthday. A matching one from OB's favorite contractor showed up at the same time. We now have 4 rocking chairs out on the balcony just waiting for company. One of them has your name on it (if your name is "Cracker Barrel".)

6. Did you hear anything about San Antonio and rain? Last week, Tropical Storm, Erin, came through and left 8 inches of rain in parts of town. We got no damage. The grass really needed it. God sure does a better job of irrigating than we can do.

7. There are 3 little green oranges on the tree that was so loaded last season. I had not noticed any blossoms on the tree and assumed that there would be no fruit this year. If these three oranges are all we have this year, we'll have to give them names.


NEXT STEPS:

1. More visitors are on the way. Steve and Sharon (from San Jose) dropped their daughter off at college in Abilene and have scheduled a few days in San Antonio. Stay tuned for their entry into the Tobin Hill visitors album.

We have a birthday celebration scheduled for Labor Day weekend. Sean, my sister's favorite grandson, is bringing his sister, Maddie, along with Mom, Dad, and Gran to San Antonio for the long weekend. A Thomas the Train cake is to be ordered for the party. Dad Steven is scouting a football game that Friday night and is letting me tag along. That takes me back to 1971 - 1976 when I did that for a living.

2. Bathrooms need to be completed.

3. Painting needs to be done after baseboards, door and window trim is sanded.

4. Door work needs to be done. We're awaiting a bid on that one.

5. Blinds have arrived and need to be put up.

6. We need to Throw away, throw away, throw away all - checks, financial records, etc. There may not be enough dumpsters in San Antonio to do it all in one week.