Visiting Texas....

It's been a while since I've sat down to blog. Thanks for hanging in there and continuing to read. :)

Well, February 1st I landed in Houston, Texas. It was the day the cold front blew through! When I left Eurpoe that morning it was about 32*F and when I walked out of the airport it was about 36*F!!! And....well, that's cold for Texas! I had a VERY full schedule! (I drove over 2000 miles and was in a 2 hour radius of Houston.) But, Mother Nature had other plans for me! Yes, I had to cancel my Thursday and Friday plans and totally rearrange my schedule. It was a test of my flexibility! I made it through! In all fairness, it was bitterly COLD! It doesn't matter where you are from, it was cold! This is one of my Dad's dogs sitting warming himself in front of the heater! I thought it was hilarious we had to fight the dogs away from the heater so we could warm up! They have a fur coat!

I had many opportunities to see a lot of people! (My appologies if I didn't get to see you. There were a few that, because of the weather, I couldn't reschedule with. :( ) It was an amazing time of seeing people. God has blessed me with friends who have BABIES!!!! I am "honorary Aunt" to some cuties!!! Here's a glimpse of those who blessed me while I was home!

Barbie and Gabriel!!! (13 months old!)

Shelly and Brooklynn!!! (17 months old!)

Aaryn and Rylan!!! (1 month old!)

Rylan was born 6 1/2 weeks early because she heard that I was coming home! And she was big enough and holding her own, so she got to go home during the time I was visiting! So, I got to see her!!

I had a marvelous time hanging out with the families of these little ones! Then I was continually blessed by all the people I got to see! Honestly, there are too many to list! It's amazing how many people I saw! One day I had breakfast with a family, lunch with a friend, shopping with another friend, supper with another family and then to my Mom's to crash for the night!

One Saturday I had a gathering at Mom's for the Cleveland folks! That was great! People from all over came to have some German snacks and visit! My little cuz Matthew insisted on helping clean up!

You know, he looks just like his dad, but I don't remember his dad being so darn cute!!! He's almost 2 and wouldn't let me go during church the next day. It was heart warming!

The teachers I taught with in Buffalo are amazing women! God placed them in my life for the season of my life I needed them most! It built bonds that are life-long. They all sacrificed an evening and drove from all over to have supper with me the last Monday I was in Texas! <3>

The question I got most before I left was: "So, what do you miss most?" My answer: "The sun! and (although I didn't go there much when I lived there) the beach!" I told people in December that when I went to Texas that I was going to go to the beach while I was home! They thought I was crazy! "But it'll be February!" I didn't say I was going swimming, I just said I was going to go to the beach. :) So, I put it on the list and the day before I left I finally made it to the beach! Notice....no jacket! and I took my FLIP FLOPS off to stand in the water! Yes, February in Texas! Amazing!

Now, I'm back on the other side of the "pond". I was glad to be home and see everyone. I got a lot accomplished while I was there. I saw a lot of people. I learned things about myself. It was a productive trip! BUT.....I knew it was time to come back. I knew it wasn't for long that I was going to be there. It's good to be back. I have a goal ahead of me. I'm working everyday to reach that goal....ENGLISH CAMP!!! Besides....where else in the world can you walk home from work and see a little old lady pushing her walker down the road??!!!

Ich liebe Deutschland!!!