Christmas in Goliad

We drove down to Joe and Donna's on Christmas Eve and saw the progress they are making on their RV Park - "Angels in Goliad RV Park".

And another new adventure!

Over the past several weeks, I have been interviewing with two separate companies for the position of General Counsel. One company is in Minneapolis, Minnesota and the other is in Houston. I still have kids, family and friends in Minneapolis and John was game for "moving back" if necessary, but I must admit the film footage of the winter snowfall (and the Dome collapsing) seriously had me worried. Could I live like that again - shivering in the car on the way to work, snow tires, ice scrapers.......Hmmm....... In many ways, I think the decision was made for me because the company in Houston moved quicker in the process. I was offered (and accepted) that job and ended the interview process with the company in Minnesota. The weather has been over 80 degrees and sunny here every day since I made the decision, so I am guessing that is a good sign.

Now, Houston is three hours from where John and I currently hang our hats (notice how Texan I have become over the past 4 years?). John will continue to work at Embree in Georgetown and remain Austin-based. We love this house and plan to retire here (6 months here in the winter and 6 months at the cabin in Wisconsin in the summer.) However, a 3 hour commute (each way) is just too long and since the new company is pitching in relocation dollars, we have been exploring all options - real estate, renting, corporate apartments, etc. Today, we made the decision that (for now) I will live in an RV park in Houston during the week and commute home on week-ends.

I think I may be more excited about living in the RV than I am about the new job - it feels like a life-sized dollhouse. Seriously, once Joe and Donna got into the RV world a few years ago and we started actually looking at some of these, I had no idea how nice they were inside - and roomy! We found this RV in Houston and will have it moved over to my new spot with a view in about 2 weeks. In the meantime, I will stay in a hotel for my first week or two of work. Eventually, we will probably get a condo or townhouse in Houston (at which point we can park this RV in Jarrell which adds more sleeping space for when large groups of friends or family come visit - hint hint). I will have a pull-out couch in the RV and we have the guest bedroom (with pool and hottub) in Jarrell - so visitors can now fly into Houston (and drive back to Jarrell on Friday with me) or fly directly into Austin or San Antonio (and/or fly back out of Houston) in order to come visit Ranch Stange.

Decked the Halls...

Now that Thanksgiving is over, I have decorated the house for Christmas. I love tradition!

A fabulous Thanksgiving

We had a great Thanksgiving. Sean flew in from Des Moines to 80 degree weather and we cooked a feast. Christy made a brussels sprout dish and a Paula Dean pumpkin dessert that was out of this world. Katherine whipped her potatoes into a frenzy, made the gravy, a fresh salad and an upside down apple pie. John's turkey, stuffing and Minnesota wild rice dish were also delicious.

Perfect!

Sean and John do prep work

Cool Fall Morning

It is getting cooler here by the day - the high today is only 70! BRRRRRRRRRRRRR. John took this photo this morning (the overnight low was 30, so the pool was steaming).

Looking forward to Thanksgiving next week - Sean is coming!

Branding

Our boss, Philip (a native Texan) had a few co-workers over yesterday afternoon to help brand the new longhorns (and give the big ones their shots). John (a Chicago native), Christy (originally from Atlanta), Dave (Ohio) and myself (a Minnesotan) put on our boots and hats and went out to his ranch. After we used the ATVs to get the last 2 stragglers into the stalls, the vet arrived. Shots were administered and then we got down to the serious business of branding.

Philip branded himself (the burn looks like a "1") and then he branded the 2 new longhorns. Noone passed out. I believe this is considered a successful branding.

What are those gringos doing over there?

My favorite cowboy

Beep! Beep!

In an attempt to reduce our carbon footprint, we bought a used Mini Cooper last week. John caught these pictures on his cell phone as I drove it home.

Foggy morning

Fall has not arrived here yet (yesterday it was 87 degrees,) but the mornings are getting cooler. This morning it created a low cloud over the ranches we pass on the way to work.

Our favorite snow birds, Joe & Donna are back in town!

View from our room

We spent a glorious week-end on Hilton Head for Emily and Dan's wedding with our favorite group of people - the Dudes and the Divas (more pix to follow).

This morning on the back porch

We couldn't think of names for them...and then it hit us - Sigfried and Roy!

Donkeys in their new home

Donkey Roundup

More donkey round-up pix

We went with Philip to look at small asses (miniature donkeys) for his ranch. These two guys will be perfect company for Philip's horse, Charm.