TEXAS - we're here!

WOW!

TEXAS IS BIG, LARGE, HUGE, BIG, GIGANTIC, BIG, BIG!

Everything in Texas is just plain old BIG!

The truck pulled into the Lone Star State last week. It was loaded on Tuesday morning and by mid-day (3ish) he was on his way.

The loading went well. We only filled half the truck. That evening and the next day we cleaned and cleaned and touched-up and got the house ready.

We said good-bye to lots and lots of friends and family! One can not image the treats, books, activity pads, CDs, gifts and snacks that were sent our way! WOW - thank you! The kids thought they were riding in Santa's Sleigh.

As many know, we drove both car & truck out here. I worried the night before that I would fall asleep at the wheel; I tend to do that occasionally (that's when Glenn & I would switch)! Well, there would be no trading for the 1100 mile trek! The excitement was great on Thursday morning and we traveled nearly 700 miles to Midland TX (with a few stops along the way). On Friday morning we continued the travel and arrived around 3pm. We swept up a few things at the new house that evening and off we went to stay at the fancy Hilton Hotel in downtown Dallas (courtesy of http://www.hotwire.com/ -- highly recommend it)! We jumped on the beds and swam in the pools. On Saturday, the truck unloaded and by noon we were residents of Frisco Texas. WOW!

Ben & Zach traveled with Glenn and mostly read books and did Power Point presentations on Glenn's computer. Nick, Chris & Emma rode with me and we sang so many songs, I'm STILL singing them today! Some of the favorites were "Chitty Chitty Bang Bang" and "The Mambo #5" and of course listening to the "Star Wars" theme song, over and over and over!

What's Texas like - well it's definitely BIG! Here's a few bits of information that I've picked up over the first week in the Dallas area:


The state was an independent nation from 1836 to 1845. So, when Texas was annexed in 1845 it retained the right to fly its flag at the same height as the national flag. (This is probably the "oddest" thing to see... driving by these incredibly BIG auto lots, to see the two flags flying side by side. Or driving by these BIG banks and BIG churches of every faith imaginable and seeing the flags, side-by-side.)


Dr. Pepper was invented in Waco in 1885. The Dublin Dr Pepper, 85 miles west of Waco, still uses pure imperial cane sugar in its product. There is no period after the Dr in Dr Pepper. (That tidbit of info was specifically for Uncle Brent! You guys need to come visit to get the REAL stuff!) There is even a Dr Pepper Ballfield nearby.

The state's cattle population is estimated to be near 16 million. (But we haven't seen one yet. We have seen more and more diggers and construction equipment than one can imagine. Christopher thinks he's died and gone to heaven!)

Texas includes 267,339 square miles, or 7.4% of the nation's total area. (I guess that's why everyone thinks BIG out here!)

As for all of us - we're doing just fine! The house is beautiful,but then one must not forget that stucco to Phoenix (Mesa) is like brick to Dallas (Frisco). The area in which we live reminds me much of Ladera Ranch (newness, colors, and currently beautiful temperatures). Glenn did do well and there is plenty of floor for guests. (I'm on the look-out for some furniture.)

The boys were off to school on Wednesday and as we get to know our neighbors and members of our church, we're beginning to realize that most of us ARE NOT TRUE TEXANS, and that's okay, y 'all! :)

Halloween 2007

You know... even though I think that Halloween is a silly holiday, we sure had FUN tonight! We had Superman and Dash running through the neighborhood!

There was also a cross between a beautiful ballet dancer and Frankenstein!

We also had a magical candy bowl - whereas most candy bowls empty out over the evening, OURS continued to FILL UP with mostly peanut products! :)

CA Fires

Our (old) next door neighbor in Ladera Ranch sent me this photo. It is taken from the top of the Oakley Building in Foothill Ranch CA where her husband works.

When we made our return to California in 2003 we were in contract to purchase a house right up the street from this company. The price was $450,000 and we declined for WE THOUGHT it was way too small and was just too pricey. (It also had a few issues too.) Well, when we left CA in 2005 the price on this house was over $650. Man... now it's right in the path of fire, fire, fire... who would have known!

She said that the layers of ash have been building up for days around their house in Ladera Ranch. When you walk through the grass, it kicks up clouds of ash! The sun is RED!

We continue to pray for all these dear friends and especially for our family. Hang in there!

Month at a glance (Oct)

It's been another busy month. It just baffles me how the months just roll one into another. Glenn finished up his old job with Intacct Corp out of San Jose and began a new job with RealPage out of Dallas. What's so interesting with this new job is that he'll be working with so many of his old friends in San Jose.

He headed for TX last week (during Fall Break) and will be returning this week. He really went out to look for a rental but instead will be coming back with a house that we are in the process of buying.

No, I haven't seen this house... and most everyone thinks that I'm crazy. "You'd let your HUSBAND pick the house where you're going to live!?!?" Let me explain. This guy I married has an awesome track-record of finding the best house for our family. It just amazes me!

We lived in Chicago from '96 to 2000. During that time we were in a condo while we built a nice house (together)...

then the separation began...

He accepted a job in San Jose (2001) and went out to find a rental and found a really really old house in one of the most beautiful neighborhoods in the Bay Area. We made wonderful friends out there! It was a rental and we lived there for 3 years.

Then we moved on to Southern CA (2003) where he found a really really new house but it too was only a rental and it was nice. We left friends there too.

In 2005 he accepted a position with the San Jose Company once again, but this time he was able to work from a home office. This allowed us to move on over to Mesa, to be closer to family and to have the opportunity to buy an affordable home. He found a beautiful house in a nice part of town. Sent me pictures. Made an offer (after checking with me) and on we came to AZ.

Neither of us have lived in Texas but we're excited for an opportunity to see more of this great country. The boys are also excited, probably more-so than me. Emma keeps asking if Haley and Lindsey (her cousins) will come too. (I sure hope they can visit!)

During Fall Break (since Glenn was gone)... the boys and Emma and I had a good time together too. We didn't do much on Thursday, a few doctor appointments. But on Friday we decided to go to the Phoenix Zoo. We've been to the zoo before, but there's always been more adults than this visit! We arrived at opening (9) and stayed till nearly closing (4).

We ALL had a wonderful time! We were able to see so many animals and just have a nice time walking the park, playing in the water areas, eating lunch, petting the farm animals and best of all - eating ROCK CANDY!

The MOVE

We are in the process of getting our home ready to sell. That should not be toooo hard. We've only lived in it for 2 1/2 years! Well, when we bought the home we bought it "as is" and we never found time to paint a few of the rooms.


The one room Glenn did paint before we moved in was the beach room. The beach room was interesting: it had a beautiful light blue sky with rolling clouds. Then, on the wall, were the THREE LADIES IN BIKINIS. Those HAD to come off even if Zachary assured us that he'd "look the other way." These women were cartoon women, with large busts, big hips and ruby red lips! They were disgusting to us! Glenn began painting over and over and over and over with about 3 to 4 coats of red paint, and then green paint. The room came out nice for the boys... but for resale, NO WAY!

Last week Glenn began taping the room off - to get ready for the 5 to 6 coats of natural beige paint that it would take to cover up this red and green paint. As he began working with the tape and stuff he noticed that the paint "peeled" off very very easily. (Well of course it would, it was vinyl-like and had about 3 to 4 coats.) So our Friday Night Party involved getting all the kids into the room to peel paint! It was like peeling large pizza-sized chunks of paint off the wall - it was easy and fun!

It was a blast till we told Uncle Brent what we were doing. He questioned about the drywall and asked a few "thoughtful" questions that we had never even thought about... what is happening to the texture on the wall? are you taking the drywall off? will the paint stick to what you have left?

Of course "we should have NOT been doing what we were doing" and Uncle Brent came to the rescue last weekend. He and Glenn "re-mudded" the walls and the room is bikini-free, red & green paint-free and READY TO PAINT! Thanks Uncle Brent!

As for the move... we will continue to box and box and hopefully be out before the Holidays! :O

The GECKOS are back!

Summer is ON ITS WAY OUT! The gecko's are back on the back porch! I am so happy to see them, for they only come when the temps are going down, down, down! Lovely!

Whirlpool

This is one of Christopher's treasures. He found it at the park a few days ago and was so so happy when I found it today (it was lost)... it was IN MY DRYER!