Great Week!

I found a shark's tooth on the beach this morning! It's the first one I've found in quite awhile and the only one we've found this week. Not a big one-but one all the same!

This sand crab/fiddler crab met us at the beach this morning-I've NEVER seen a white and yellow one before and he was quite large! I would have LOVED to catch him and take him home to the grandkids-but I knew that would only cause its' death-so I just left it alone.

Well-it's almost over :( But we've had such a great time! We are on the camp grounds waiting list for Labor day weekend-and we are only the third in line. The requests in front of us only want the spaces on the Intercoastal-we'll take ANYTHING!! So it looks kinda good that we'll get to come back real soon! We also made reservations in the middle of September for our anniversary-and we got one of the best sites at the park-right on the Intercoastal canal. Hopefully we'll have our fishing lights by then and can do some serious night fishing! Speaking of-that's what we did last night! We met a young couple who are the new owners of a bait camp down here and they invited us to fish last night under the lights. The speckled trout were just popping and rolling in the water! It was great-but they didn't bite very well :( . I did catch one and I think we ended up with it and 4 sand trout and we're planning to go back tonight. We didn't get back to the camper until right at 2:00 am-really late for us. But it has been SO hot here and I guess everywhere else too. August will be here soon!

Today's Catch!

Our late evening catch of the day! We didn't even venture out until after noon today-We woke up this morning to thunder and lightning! It rained quite a bit-but it all soaked up here, too. Alana said it was really raining hard at the house too-so that is great news! We spent some time in the old neighborhood-they now have a washateria in Gilchrist! We spent quite awhile talking to the man who owns it. Two of his workers walked across the street and into the surf and started catching the heck out of speckled trout! And of course-we didn't have the rods and reels with us! We're gonna try it out in the morning-then gonna ride the ferry over to Galveston and spend the day over there. Don't really have any plans-other than eating somewhere nice!

This is an awful picture-but I'm just so proud of the pedicure I got from Samantha last week. She painted little flip-flops on my toenails since I was going to the beach! My feet are covered with antbites-I got into ants at the house before we left-then on the side of the road when we had the flat on the camper. Well-the fish is ready-I just baked it with butter and cajun seasoning-sure smells good!!

Beach Vacation!

Kaytlynn with her treasures from the beach this morning-lots of small shells and a few clams.

Jordan & Kaytlynn at the boat ramp at the campground-he's bound and determined to catch himself some bait in the dip net.

Our little piece of Paradice for the week-this is a really nice place to camp so far-but it is awfully hot! We brought Jordan & Kaytlynn with us and Ricky, Alana & Kylie came later in the afternoon. We spent a little time at the beach right at dark last night-it was just TOO hot to get the baby out!

But- this is Kylie and Alana this morning-her second time on the beach! She slept through this morning's trip though!

Last night's trip though-she was wide awake and trying to process it all! She slept well overnight-Alana said she only woke up once-and we never heard a peep out of anyone-Jordan & Kaytlynn were completely worn out!

Well-we finally made it-After ANOTHER flat tire-we had one on the camper bring it home from Mom's-and having to turn around and go back into Winnie for another tire-Ended up having to buy 4 brand new ones! It rained on us close to half of the way down-and Alana said that we got a really good rain at the house! YEAH! We finally-well almost-finished the fence around the new pasture and got the cows moved over there on Friday evening-boy were they enjoying the grass! I meant to take a picture of them-but with all the packing and getting ready to leave-I just forgot! Ricky is going to feed for us while we are here-they've already left for home. We lost 3 or 4 hens on Saturday to a neighbors dog-so they will have to be kept penned up until the problem is solved-that leaves us with only 5 or 6 left-so I'll be looking for some replacements when we get back. I hope to find some Araucaunas-we miss the green eggs! We let the horse into the pasture with the sheep so he can have some grass-A man Jeff used to work with is coming to get the horse on Wednesday-no one is riding him anymore and feed is just costing us too much-so he has to go.

We've fished a few times already-here in the canal and at the beach. I caught a small croaker and Jeff caught a hard head at the beach-hopefully we'll get into some bigger/better catches some time this week. Today is Jeff's birthday-so I really wish he'd hang something great! He just came in from walking Rascal and said it's just roasting out there-guess we'll have to wait til it cools off to try some more!

CATFISH!!!

Jeff & Randy put a trotline out in the lake yesterday and this was what they brought home today! Yummy!! They caught 21 nice catfish-about 50 lbs-so 7 bags went into the freezer and we're having grilled fillets for supper! Randy is having to do most of the work running the lines-it's too much for Jeff's back to handle.

Our weather has just been wonderful so far this week-we got some rain the other night. Parts of the garden are coming along nicely-the green beans look great! I've got some okra up-along with a few watermelons and cantaloupe Jeff planted. He butchered 5 fryers last week and they were picked up Monday for delivery-works real well!!

It is so hard to believe that April is almost over-it hasn't gotten warm enough yet to turn the A/C on -but it won't be long! The hens are still laying up a storm and I'm hoping that at least a few of the bitties will be hens-they are sure looking like little roosters right now! I lost my big Rhode Island Red rooster-he never really recovered from the coon attack-I've got several of his offspring crowing out there now. I would like to get an aracauna rooster again and some hens-the grandkids like to gather the green eggs!

Big Red!!

Jeff & me went on down to the beach on Friday evening-Friday was just the most beautiful day!! Rain was due to start-but we needed to go down and check on things down there. The sun came up on Saturday morning with a beautiful sunrise-but the clouds quickly moved in. It never rained on us-but was cloudy and a little cool. And boy was it crowded down there this weekend! No one was on the beach-but you couldn't get in sideways at Rollover or any other of our favorite fishing spots! We ended up at the end of Tuna Drive-but weren't getting any bites. Jeff had one of his big fishing rods out and was fishing with a lure. Tim and Candy had come out and Candy and I were sitting and talking-when I saw Jeff's pole just take off! I hollered and took off after it-nearly slipping in the mud and falling down! I could hear Candy laughing behind me-I had to jump a small ditch before I could get to it-But I caught it! I have the bruises under my arm to prove it! I had to fight that big fish to even get him landed and then had to sit down-I was shaking from trying! A guy down there had a net-so Tim and Jeff helped get the fish out of the water-there are big rocks down there and we were scared he'd pull off against them. What Fun!! He was 32 inches long!!

The rain really seems to have set into a pattern here! We stayed home all day yesterday-we came home on Saturday-and worked in the house-the bedroom mostly. We have some remodeling that we never finished-from years back-so I started the cleaning process so we can get in there! The bathroom needs some electrical finished and the tub surround needs to be replaced. The bedroom needs major help-cleaning and the closet door needs to be hung-and not to mention that it needs to be cleaned!! We bought a new bed-in-a-bag and curtains-so it is looking a whole lot better! And we are going to take out the window that is on the deck and put a door there so we can come straight into the bedroom from the hot tub!

The hens are beginning to lay again-We were just about down to having to buy a dozen eggs-whew! I really didn't want to eat those sick looking eggs! They really do seem to be enjoying their new pen! And Jeff's camera picked up just some glowing eyes early yesterday morning-so we put fresh batteries in it last night-we'll check it again this afternoon-hopefully it's a deer! Have a great week!!

Wonderful Weekend!

The flounder & the golden croakers we caught!

Me & the red fish that I caught! The tall palm tree on the right we bought as an anniversary gift to ourselves-it'll replace the big one we lost after Ike!

We had a great time this weekend! The only drawback from the whole 3 days were the MOSQUITOS!! OMG-They were awful! At times you couldn't even breathe without them getting in your nose! And at dark-OFF! was no deterant at all! I believe it was actually an attractant! Anyway-we spent Friday over in Galveston-walked the Strand and drove down to west beach where my grandparent's house was. We ate at Guido's-then rode the ferry back to Bolivar. It was already dark when we got back-we were planning to walk on the beach-but did I mention mosquitos?

Saturday we fished at the beach in the morning-the water was clear as a bell all the way up to your waist and slick as glass! It was beautiful! And I caught my first shark! It wasn't quite big enough to keep-I think Jeff caught 2. Later in the afternoon we went down to the end of our street and fished in the Intercoastal canel. I caught a big red fish! Then Jeff caught a flounder! And between the 2 of us, we caught 8 golden croakers-all in less than an hour and a half! What fun! Then we went down and set on the beach with Anne and Duane until the mosquitos got so bad we couldn't stand it!

Sunday morning, Jeff caught a shark big enough to keep-so we brought it home with the other fish and grilled it last night-yummy! He gave the flounder to his Mom-she loves it baked. And my Mom is STILL in the hospital-she now has gout in her feet-and the foot Doc just won't release her to go home! Hopefully today-he never came in the whole weekend! She is not going to rehab either.

Our first cool front is making its way towards us-it will be a rainy week for us. I'm looking forward to the cooler temps-I just don't want any rain with it-I'd like to get out and enjoy the cooler weather. The hot tub felt really good last night-can only imagine what it will feel like when it does get cooler outside!

Great Labor Day Weekend!!!

Jordan and the stringer of catfish he helped catch!

Me & Jeff on the jet ski's for the first time in our lives!! Thanks Duane for the help!

We had the BEST time this weekend! And it only rained once-about 4:00am on Saturday morning-and the sun came up at 7:00 just like normal! We only fished one time-didn't catch anything. We just spent the weekend hanging out with old friends and taking naps in the afternoon!! Tim's house is up now and it looks great! He's painting it a really pretty blue. Ann & Duane were down the whole time and we spent most evenings down on the beach with them. Their daughter and her husband brought down their jet ski's and we got to ride on them-a first for us! Thanks Christi and Brandon!! We had a ball! And thanks Ann for the pics!! When we got back home, we decided to take the boat to the lake-we hadn't run it in over a year! Jordan went with us. We decided to do a little fishing-and that little stinker caught 2 catfish before Jeff got his hook in the water! He caught a total of 3 and Jeff caught 2-So we had fresh catfish for supper last night! Yummy!!

We have 50% chances of rain daily now through next Monday-we need it-but this morning the weather guy is saying we have to watch for an area down the coast to develop-this is the 7 day window when we have had a hurricane the last 3 years in a row!! We DON'T need that again!!

Have a great day!!

Great Weekend!

The stringer of Gaff-Top all the guys caught-the boys caught some of them,too. And Jeff caught a nice shark-it was big enough to keep the kids out of the water for awhile!

We had a GREAT weekend at the beach! And I almost talked myself out of going! I was just so tired-I didn't even want to make the 2 hour drive. Jeff and I talked almost the whole way and the time flew by! And the beach was just beautiful-the water was calm and just so peaceful! We walked down and talked to Duane and Ann until dark-the builders put the walls and roof on their house this week-it looks SO good!

On Saturday-Tim and Candy and kids-including girlfriends and friends-came down-they put the awning up and we all but stayed down on the beach all day. The guys fished and the kids just hung out in the water.It was so warm-I went out a few times and Candy even went out once. Tom, Angie and Dusty came down, too. It was her first time to come down and they stayed til it was getting dark. Everyone else headed back into Winnie to the hotel rooms they had rented.Tim and crew came back yesterday morning-but nearly everyone was so sunburned-they really didn't want to spend anymore time in the sun! They went over to Galveston and spent a little time over on the Island before coming home.

When we got home-Jeff got to working a little on the deck-It is all level now and ready to start putting the joists in. We got the banana trees dug up and transplanted. Jeff had to start working 10 hour days today-possibly 12 hour shifts. He has to get up at 3:45 am to get ready for work-Yuck! And still no luck on finding a hot tub-but I'm not giving up! Have a great day!

Great Vacation!

Jeff & Tim putting down the pallet of grass we bought-you couldn't believe how much a little bit of green in the yard makes the place look SO much better! We had such a pretty yard before the storm!

The flounder I caught and the 3 croakers we caught early in the week! I was SO excited-I haven't caught a flounder in a long time!

Jeff coming out of the new shed-we still had LOTS of stuff piled around-it looks much better now-still have to finish that painting, though!

We had SUCH a great week!! We did have lots of rain-about 5 inches on Saturday evening after we got settled in-then nearly that much again on Thursday evening with scattered rain showers through the week, but we really didn't let it stop us much! We got the shed finished-minus the paint due to the rain-and still need something permanent for the roof. It does have a least 2 coats of white-but needs a few more. We did get some fishing in-better at some times than others! We rode the ferry on Tuesday and went into Galveston for awhile. Tim & Candy came down on Wednesday-David's girlfriend had to be back home in the Woodlands by 4:00 on Thursday for work-so they took the kids home and then drove back-Bless their hearts-that's way too many miles for me! Then early on Friday morning-Jason & LeeAnn came down with their boat and the fishing really got serious! They had a hard time finding bait on Friday-so Saturday they got after it and caught 3 BIG speckled trout! Tim and me went with them that evening and Tim caught a big one too. They started catching really big gafftop, too. I caught a hardhead. We were fishing several of the reefs in the bay and had a wonderful time!

All the animals here seemed to have grown a foot while we were gone! Jeff will definitely have to butcher rabbits this week! The turkeys surely are a pair-one is now alot bigger than the other. We took the hen away from the bitties-they are completely feathered out now. The calves are growing very nicely! Alana and Ricky did a good job of taking care of everything! Thanks!!

Boy, is it hard to get ready to go back to work this morning! But we were both ready to get back to it this morning. Jeff had stumped his toe on a brick yesterday and scraped it pretty bad. I knew it wasn't gonna feel too good in his steel-toe work boots this morning. When he left for work he said it wasn't just the boots-he'd only worn flip-flops all week!-but that his work clothes hurt him everywhere they touched him!!

Since my internet is SO slow-it'll take a few days to post my pics-so stay tuned for more fish pictures-some are really great!! Have a great day-gotta go get ready for work!

Weekend

We are usually very busy on the weekends-so I probably won't post during them. Normally we go to the beach on the weekends-we have a small cabin in Gilchrist, Tx in Galveston County. But we stayed home this weekend-gas prices have really put a damper on our summer trips! Anyway-Jeff went fishing on Saturday morning with his Dad and one of his brothers-James. They caught 7 catfish.

I spent the morning making eggrolls. I haven't made them in years. My grandmother and I used to sit for hours making them when I was a kid. I ended up with 22 made from pork and shrimp and 24 from deer meat. And I have to say-they are pretty good!

Today has been spent so far putting a new water heater in Julie's house. It has been quite a job-Jeff and Ricky(Alana's significant other) have had to replace some old plumbing that has just been patched down though the years. I had to make a trip into Cleveland to pick up more pvc pipe and fittings-but I think they're finished with it now!