There's no place like home

Repeat that, Dorothy style. That's this summer's motto. We found a house and closed on it mid March and were able to finally move in April 30th, just in time for summer. We've been blessed with a gorgeous home far nicer than the one we almost purchased and for the same cost, to boot.  It's funny how things works out.

With a new home, recipes to share, and a Disney vacation mapped out for the summer to celebrate our blessings, I've got a lot of photos coming soon.

Life is good.  I hope you're staying cool in this summer heat.  Stay tuned and I'll see you real soon.

Beginning Again

Today is Saturday. Thanksgiving is a wrap and Black Friday has passed. We didn't jump into that madness and our youngest is of the opinion that Black Friday would be better if it were called "pink Friday." Sure, why not?! We spent the day moving our belongings into a storage unit.

We are officially homeless, though our realtor has found a temporary roof to put over our heads. We will be renting one of her listings until we find something or it sells, whichever comes first.  We are just grateful for a roof over our heads. 

And so we begin, again. 

It's daunting to think about starting the house hunt over. I'm putting my faith in my knowledge that the good Lord is looking over us and is guiding us on the right path. Though his path is not clear to us, right now, and our hearts are broken about losing a house we had our hearts set on, we will follow him. 

Let the journey begin. Say a little prayer for us, if you like. We could use it.

Life, Today, AMAs, and Other Things

Tomorrow isThanksgiving, a day we'll give thanks...so much to be thankful for.  Today, I'm thankful, too, but I've got a few complaints.

I'm sitting in a sea of boxes.  Our house sold this past Friday (thank you, Lord) and our buyers have been kind to let us lease back 'til our closing from a deal that may now fall through because of a seller that is reneging on repairs he'd agreed to in contract, but doesn't want to do anymore. Did I really just put my family in a homeless situation right before the holidays? Mind you, this man doesn't even live in the house...has multiple homes, pulled up in a New Porsche Carrera, but can't afford a couple thousand in fixes.
#he'sameanone #mrgrinch

Hashtags, arghhh! I live in world of hashtags. In the midst of all this turmoil, this is a frivolous complaint, but a complaint just the same. And did you see the AMAs? This, people, is how I know I've aged. I didn't really see one performance that I enjoyed, although I do love Cold Play and Celine did bring tears to the crowd. So many artists I didn't even know and I'm okay with that.  Where's the talent? Where is the soul? I miss the magic. My sixteen year old says  I'm just old.

*sigh*

It's a different world. Bigger problems exist than mine, I know. My heart breaks for all that are victims of terrorism, cancer, greed, abuse.  The climate of the world is different, for sure, this holiday season. I'm so blessed to have a job where I'm refreshed by the pure goodness of little six year old minds.

And no matter where we end up laying our heads at night, I've got a beautiful family to call my own. My little sleepy headed warrior just awoke, five year old hair all tumbled, long pink night gown and my little pony stuffy in hand, to give me sleepy hugs.

I must go and power up with snuggles to face the day.

Happy thanksgiving.

Natural Bridge Caverns, a Texas Sized Cave

Hello, people of blog land.  I'm here to share a little of my Texas with you, today.  In a quick day, trip, we drove over to San Antonio to visit Natural Bridge Caverns.  I have not been since I was a girl, but couldn't stand another moment on the sofa during our school break.  This cave was a nice reprieve and hard to believe such beauty exists just under the Earth's surface.  Take a gander...

At the entrance you see the name sake "natural bridge" resulting from a sink hole.

Dark discoloration, remnants from bats who occupied the cave thousands of years ago.

Meet the newest member of our family

We found this little beauty wandering the streets of a friend's neighborhood near Christmastime.  We called into Lost Pet hotline, searched craigslist, and fidofinder for lost dog ads, etc. and no one seemed to be on the lookout.  She's got some unique markings and our vet said to be sure to ask about those should someone call, but with no microchip or collar we were doubtful anyone would be looking. 

She's was such a sweetie, but when Christmas break was over and we went back to school and work routines we discovered our new friend suffers from separation anxiety.  Could this be the reason she was out on the streets or was she just a crafty escape artist?  We hired a trainer to work with her (and us) and things are going much smoother.  We really appreciate this sweet soul coming into our family.

Can't you tell?!

Spring Beauties

South Texas has seen a lot of rain.  The blue bonnets lining the highways near my house are evidence of that rain. 

Just when you begin cursing all that rainy weather for ruining plans like getting the dogs out to jog, doing home repairs, getting kids out and active, and canceling sports practices & games, nature slaps you with a sight of something beautiful, a reminder that there is purpose for those blessed rains...your plans be damned.

So stop and take in all that beauty and if you're not finding beauty in your neck of the woods, I'm happy to share a bit of mine.  Happy Spring, y'all!

Mon petit Bebe, "If you're a bird, I'm a bird."

Peles Castle Tour

In a long overdue follow up to the Bran Castle tour, I give you my Peles Castle Tour.  The Peles Castle is quite exquisite and very opulent, a much different look than the more medieval Bran Castle.

 

Sitting atop a pine covered hill, Peles Castle neighbors the smaller Pelisor Castle so is convenient in that you can tour two castles in one outing.  However, the cost is pricier than the Bran tour.  You can pay for a guided version in various languages or go with a less lengthy tour with a guide speaking in Romanian.  Since my husband could translate, we opted for this version.  Also to be noted, we paid extra on our ticket cost to be allowed to take photos, but once inside were told that we couldn't use a flash which in so many dark areas seemed like we'd been ripped off considering we'd had to pay to take photos.

It's a good thing I snapped a lot of outdoor photos since the lighting was good.  The scenery around the castle was really my favorite part.  I don't know why, but I was really drawn to the statuaries.

 

 

Look at this beautiful iron work!

My eyes just went everywhere.  The frescoes, the iron detail, the woodwork!  It was all very stunning.

I'll continue our tour indoors in in a future post.  Until then, I hope you enjoyed these photos.  Have a great week.