We visited our son and daughter in law yesterday. Love them so much!

Drove to Cleburne yesterday. Started to eat at La Fiesta but it was too noisy, so we went to the Dairy Queen. Stopped at the Wine and Artisan Festival at Cleburne's Historic Market Square. Then went to the Layland Museum.

Confession

I am a Christian

Not just a Christian, a Southern Baptist. I believe in Almighty God, the Creator of everything, including me. I believe in Jesus Christ, Who came to earth as a man and allowed Himself to be crucified in order to pay for my sins. I believe in the Holy Spirit, who dwells in me, guides me, and comforts me.

I can understand why people have doubts. It's a wild story and I've had plenty of doubts myself. But i dont understand how anyone can say without any doubt that there is no God, no heaven, no hell. No one on earth is smart enough to know all that the universe holds.

I believe that we have all sinned. But I believe that most of us are pretty decent folks. I think even the worst monsters have some good in them. And I believe that we are all, every last one of us, so very precious to God. So precious that he suffered a gruesome death so that we could be with Him forever.

I stumbled onto some books of C. S. Lewis when I was very young, and his writings helped a lot in shaping my faith. I think it was Lewis who talked about God being like a refining fire. You might as well ask a fire to cuddle up to an ice cube and expect the ice to remain frozen. He wants us to be with Him, but he is so very Holy, that His Holiness destroys everyone and everything that is not holy. So Jesus, the only human who was totally without sin, covers us with His holiness, so that we can be with God.

Yes. We are sinners. But we are also incredibly valuable.

I have no idea what heaven and hell are like. I don't believe anyone knows. I think that hell is full of regret and torment and sadness.

I don't know much about heaven either, except that God and Jesus are there.  Like the song says, "I can Only Imagine."

But why do we balk at the idea of spending eternity worshipping God? There are many many people here on earth who would sacrifice anything to hang out with their favorite actor or rock star or sports hero. Why don't we want to hang out with the Creator of the Universe? Can you imagine all that He can show us? From colors we've never imagined to worlds unlike anything the most imaginative science fiction writers have ever dreamed.  I've met a few people that I could sit and listen to for hours. How much more fascinating to really learn the heart and mind of God?!!

So that's my confession. I'm humbled by my faults, but I rejoice in the worth and infinite value that God has placed on me.

And He values you in the same way.

At least, that's what I believe. 

From Home to Beaumont, TX to Gibson, LA

Babe Didrikson Zaharias Museum, Beaumont, Texas
Mildred Ella "Babe" Didrikson Zaharias (June 26, 1911 - Sept. 27, 1956) from Beaumont, Texas, excelled in golf, basketball, baseball and track and field. She won 2 gold medals in track and field at the 1932 Summer Olympics, then became a pro golfer and won 10 LPGA major championships. She is widely regarded as one of the greatest female athletes of all time. I've been fascinated by her since I saw the old movie "Pat and Mike" with Katherine Hepburn starring as "the Babe." The museum is small, but tells about her life and accomplishments.  Free admission.
You can find out more here - Brief History of Babe Didrikson Zaharias

Another interesting spot in Beaumont is the Texas Firefighter's Museum. (And it's also free!) The fire hydrant on the right is the largest working fire hydrant in the world, although there are two non-working hydrants that are larger, one in Canada, and one in South Carolina.

We left Beaumont last Saturday, and drove to Hideaway Ponds RV Resort in Gibson, Louisiana. Tiny little town, population 1,849, on Bayou Black. It's not too far from Houma, and about the same distance from Thibodaux. We have mostly stayed around the RV Park most of the week. This area is hauntingly beautiful. Mysterious. Other-worldly. 

There are alligators in these waters. Tim saw one today.
But they don't seem to bother anyone.

Of course, alligators aren't going to scare the fearless Cowboy away from a good fishing hole. Tim's  done a lot of fishing this week. He's also played golf twice, at the Atchafalaya Golf Course. 

He is a happy man.

We drove into Thibodaux yesterday to do a little sight seeing. We went to the Wetlands Acadian Cultural Center, which is run by the National Park Service. The lady we talked to there grew up in these parts, and was able to tell us a lot about the Cajun history of the area. We also watched a couple of short films, one telling the tragic story of how England expelled them from Canada, and families were separated and many died. So very sad. The other film was happier. It was about the history - and the future - of Cajun music. There's just something about Cajun music. I think it is the happiest sounding "folk" music ever.

I took this picture yesterday at the Acadian Cultural Center.
Then I totally forgot to take any pictures of the displays inside! 

Tomorrow we will drive to Styx River RV Resort near Robertsdale, Alabama. It's about 30 miles east of Mobile, 35 miles from Gulf Shores, and 40 miles from Pensacola Beach, Florida. We are planning to be there for a week. The two things on my to do list there are getting some beach time, and going to Lambert's (home of the throw'd rolls) for lunch. Tim, of course, is planning more golf and fishing. 

Almost Home

Well, I must tell you, I have been depressed.  I think you will understand why when you see this forecast for Duluth, Minnesota, the week we left.

That Cowboy of mine done roped and hog tied me and drug me away 

from all this glorious weather almost a month ago.

  

Well, okay, he wasn't quite that bad. But we did leave Duluth on July 18th. 

And I really didn't want to. 

But next year, if the good Lord's willin' and the creek don't rise, we are planning to spend 6 or 8 weeks of the summer in the cool north. 

Our last day there, as Tim was doing all the hard work of getting the 5er ready to travel, I walked around the RV Park and took a few pictures.  River View is right on the St. Louis River. It's not a fancy place, but we felt right at home there, and we are considering going back to that same place next year.

The St. Louis River. Wisconsin is just across the river.

Yes. The water really was that blue.

The rest of our trip has been pretty slow, although we have managed to do a few fun things. Our next stop after Duluth was Eagle Cliff Campground in Lanesboro, Minnesota, but we drove through Iowa to get there.  

The courthouse in Bloomfield, Iowa.
Tim couldn't even stop to let me take pictures of
their pretty square (no parking for the 5th wheel),
 so I took these as we drove past. 

After we left Lanesboro, we drove all the way to Branson, Missouri.  That was a long, long day. First of all, those Missouri hills were really hard on the old blue pickup. It just wasn't running very well. At times we weren't sure it would even make it up some of those hills. 

Then, the fifth wheel had a blow out. On the driver's side. With very little room to pull over to fix it.

But Tim went right to it, and I tried to direct traffic around him, all the while praying for safety. We hadn't been at it 2 minutes when a car that had just passed us turned around and stopped behind us. The young man went straight to Tim, told him to get out of the way, and proceeded to change the tire, while Tim basically watched. His wife put on her orange vest (she's a paramedic) and stood right in front of me to direct traffic. 

So don't anyone ever try to tell me that God doesn't answer prayer. Those two were a direct blessing from God.  Sure turned our day around!

And you know what else? Old Blue did make it to Branson, and has been running pretty good ever since. But we're still  going to get it looked at by a good diesel doctor when we get home, then we will decide if want to have it fixed or bite the bullet and get a new (or used) one. After all, it is a 2002 model. Yep, we buy 'em new and drive 'em til they cain't be drove no more.

At Branson, we kind of took it easy and only saw two shows,  Million Dollar Quartet at the Welk Theater, and The Six Show at the Hughes Theater. (You can click on the titles to see previews of each show on YouTube). They were both really entertaining. But I guess Six will always be my favorite. This was the fourth time we've seen it. 

My other favorite show in Branson is Smoke on the Mountain, but we skipped that one this time.

After we left Branson, we went to Millwood Landing RV Resort near Millwood Lake in Arkansas. That was another long day's drive, and now that I think of it, the pickup had some trouble on those hills, too.  Again, we just took it easy at Millwood. I've posted about this campground before, we go here a lot. We did go out to eat at the Fish Bowl one night.  

I took a picture of their sign because I thought it was so creative.
The food is good, too. We had the catfish.

We also got to go to First Baptist Church in nearby Ashdown, and heard one of our favorite preachers, Butch Riddle. First Baptist probably doesn't know it, but we consider this one of our "home churches" - we try to have one we always attend in all the places we camp over and over again.  

So, on to Glen Rose, Texas. Thank goodness the roads between Ashdown and Glen Rose are pretty much flat. This was another long day of driving. But we did get to stop at Buccee's, and that's always a good thing.

And, now, you are pretty much caught up. It's been a wonderful summer, full of blessings and awe at all that God has created. Tim got to play a lot of golf, I got to take a lot of pictures, and we both learned some new things about our nation and the amazing people who live here.

But it sure will be good to get home!

July 16, 2018 - Duluth

I have dreamed of traveling my entire life. Not to Europe, or South America, or China, but all over the U.S.A. Washington D.C. New York. San Francisco. The coast of Maine. The diverse cultures and landscapes of our country have always fascinated me.

But. If you had told me that one of my most favorite places would turn out to be Duluth, Minnesota, I would have said, "Du-what?" Duluth was just never on my radar.

We ended up here on the way to somewhere else. Now we are talking about coming back here next year. The climate, the people, the scenery, the small town/big city feeling. We love it all.

Yesterday was our last full day here, so we crammed as much into it as we possibly could. It was a busy day for us old folks.

The North Shore Scenic Railroad

First stop was the North Shore Scenic Railroad, where we got on board for an hour long ride along the coast of Lake Superior. I had never been on any train other than the little kiddie trains in parks and zoos and the like, so it was very exciting for me just to be on an actual vintage passenger train.  The short trip was narrated and told about the history of the area we were seeing, which was very interesting.

The tracks.

Lunch! 

Our next stop was the Corps of Engineers Maritime Visitors Center at the Duluth Port of Entry. We were happy to find a restaurant right next door, because we were hungry. And the food here was really good. 

The CoE Maritime Visitor Center and Museum

View from the top of the Visitor Center.
You can barely see the lighthouses in the distance.

The piers that lead out to the lighthouses are long enough and wide enough for all kinds of activities. There were people walking dogs, riding bikes, roller blading or just, like us, taking a leisurely stroll, enjoying the view.

The city of Duluth.

I was trying to get a good photo of the seagulls on the rocks,
but I was too far away for my phone/camera.

This is the Aerial Lift Bridge. The entire road part lifts up to let boats go through.

We met this nice young man and his rabbit out by the lighthouse. 
I got to pet the bunny.
I think he thought I was kind of strange
when I asked if I could take his picture.

After our walk out to the lighthouse, we decided to go home to the 5er and rest a bit. After a short nap (yes, we are old) and a quick supper, we went out for the second half of our day/evening. This time, Charlie Chihuahua got to go with us.

The Skyline Scenic Parkway is a 20 mile drive along the ridge above Duluth.
There are loads of great views of the city, with Lake Superior in the background.
I really need to get a better camera for this kind of shot.

Skyline Parkway also goes through several neighborhoods.
These houses are typical of the area.

This one was a lot fancier than most. Beautiful.

The last part of the Parkway is Seven Bridges Road. I won't bore you with the story behind the bridges, which is really only interesting to the local citizens. But the bridges, and the scenery were lovely.

Coming back into town, our next stop was the Leif Ericson Rose Garden. So gorgeous.

Here's Leif. I guess he's guarding his garden.

  

When we were at the Visitor Center earlier in the day, we noted that the next scheduled raising of the bridge would be at 10:30 pm, so that was our last stop of the day. Yes. Grammy and Poppy stayed out after dark. On purpose. And we stayed awake. It's a northern miracle.

The bridge lowered so that cars can cross.

Partially raised.

So, that was the end of our very busy day. We have had so much fun here. The people are incredibly friendly and proud of their town. The population is over 86,000, but it really feels more like a small town than a large city. The only traffic jam we encountered was near the port area when the bridge was up. And the normal summertime temp here is in the 60's and 70's. Bliss.

I really hope we get to return next summer, and stay longer. 

Our next major stop will be Branson. Where it will be hot. But always fun.

A comforting thought as we travel, on the road, and through life.