Long and Winding Roads

A little over a week ago, I left my daughter's home in Kingwood to allow them to return to some normalcy and to get on with some of the other reasons that I came to Houston. Julie is doing extremely well with her recovery and has returned to her hectic schedule. In fact, tomorrow she'll be driving to Nacogdoches, Texas to the campus of Stephen F. Austin. She's finishing getting her degree online but must be on campus a couple of times a year. If I remember correctly, I think its about a four hour drive through East Texas. It's a beautiful drive. Speaking of driving, when I left north Houston and my daughter and son-in-law's home, I headed straight for the water. Galveston Texas. Near and dear to my heart. I stayed with my dear and close friends, Vandy and Sue. Always a busy time. Always. From dinner at Sonny's corner store to dinner at Louie's Bait Camp near Hitchcock and a few other fun things.......it's always a treat. The last night there we went out on Sportsman's Road so I could photograph the sunset over Galveston Bay, not the Gulf of Mexico. It was breathtaking. I got many good shots along with photographs of roseate spoonbills and white egrets in the wetlands. Unfortunately, this computer is NOT cooperating and I'll have to post photos upon returning home. Aaargh. It was so wonderful to spend some time by the water. It is totally silent looking out over the Bay where we were. I commented that I if I lived out there I would never go into town and would become a haggled tooth old hag. Of course jokingly (I think) Vandy said that I was already that.......hmmmm. Tuesday morning saw me on the road early to drive to College Station to spend the day and overnight with my delightful, oldest granddaughter Jessica, who turned 23. What fun to just hang out, eat a good meal and do a little shopping. But mostly it was sitting around and talking. I also got to see her new apartment. She'll graduate in May from Texas A&M. Of all my grandchildren, she spent the most time with me growing up. We have a delightful bond. Wednesday mid-day saw me back on the freeways returning to Houston to stay with my friend Martha as I awaited my appointment with the eye surgeon who is going to do laser cataract surgery on my eye. The surgery was already scheduled for the 10th but it has now been moved to the 12th as he is doing another type of procedure. Now I realize that cataract surgery is no big deal. I'm only concerned because I only have vision in that one eye. He has assured me that that is not uncommon and all will be well. Whew. Another reason for my initial planning of being in Houston at this time was to celebrate the 16th birthday of my grandson Christopher. He is the son of my daughter Jennifer. What a treat to see him so grown up. It has been almost a year since I saw him. When he walked into the restaurant, I almost didn't recognize him. Oh my, what a handsome young man. Christopher was born several days after his mother was diagnosed with acute myologenus leukemia. She was seven months pregnant and we all held our breath that he would be born healthy, which he was. He's a special person, gentle and kind in nature. He reminds me so much of his mom, Jennifer. So much. My brother and sister-in-law joined us for lunch. So it was a small, but meaningful birthday party. Another fun thing that happened, gosh it has been a busy week, was going to the Mucky Duck on Friday night to see Chris Smither entertain two SRO concerts. I was with my other dear friends Amanda and Patrick. That's a long story that I'll save for another post when I CAN include the photos. It HAS been a whirlwind week with many miles traveled. Yesterday, trying to drive from Houston to the NASA area south of Houston, the traffic reminded me of why I hate being on freeways, especially on the weekends. The coming week won't be as jam packed with activities but more in preparation for the eye operation. I'll also try to finish up any things on my list of things I need to do while here so that when all is over with recovery, I'll be ready to head back to Mexico. Stay tuned for the photos I couldn't post of the sunset, spoonbill, Jessica and Christopher. Documentation of a delightful and delicious time!