Santa Anna Wildlife refuge

Today we went to the Santa Anna Wildlife refuge. It is south of Alamo. We took a tram tour of the place. Did not see any wildlife at all on the trip. They were flooded out a lot of places so we could not do the whole trip. Wish they had told us that. We did see a movie about the place.I took some photos when we first got there of some birds. I though about getting a shirt there but they are so expensive. Here are some pictures

This is a green Jay There was a couple of them only got a picture of one. They would fly around like crazy.

Here is another shot of the green jay. We also saw a Baltimore oriole but couldn't get a good picture of him

Here is what I think she called a tree lizard Never seen one on a tree before

Here is a wild Verona. Think that is spelled right. The flowers are just now starting to bloom. I think the cold weather we had a few weeks ago really hurt them

Not sure what these are but were pretty. Just wild flowers. We saw one butterfly here he is next

I could not get a real good picture of it. When I wanted to take his or her or it's picture would close the wings. They say it is too early yet for the butterfly's to come More in March and April. We wont be here then. Well that about did in the day. We had a potluck  here this evening. Not as big as the one we had at the first of the month. They had a meeting after that one so more attended. Still it was good. I took some meat that I thought was like swiss steak. NOT. It was liver. Glad I didn't take a very big piece. It wasn't to bad. Well that's about it for tonight  Later all Ron Thelma and Eli

Iwo jima memorial

This morning we went to church here at the campground. We were tired yesterday evening and didn't feel like driving all the way to Alamo to church. Was not to bad of a service. Pretty short. He had a good message. We then went into town for breakfast. And then left for Harlingin. We went to see the Iwo Jima memorial.

This is the original one that Dr Felix W deWeldon sculptured. He mad this one and they a cast was made of it  to do the on in DC It is located on the Marine Military Academy here in Harlingin. This is a private school grades 8-12 Cost about 30,000 a year but that includes everything the lady said. I though yea it ought to at that price.  The soldier at the front of the monument that has his hand closest to the ground on the flag pole is CPL Harlon H Block He was born in Weslaco, TX  He was killed in action at Iwo Jima on March 1 1945. He was buried first in Weslaco and later was brought here and buried here

Here is a photo of his likeness. They used a picture to do the faces of the ones that died at Iwo Jima. Of the six 3 were killed before the action was over.

The figures are 32 feet high and the flagpole is 78 feet tall. It really is something to see. I stood there for quite a while just looking at it.  Here is another of the whole thing

One last one for tonight This is his grave marker Had a chain around it and was a little hard to get a good one of it.

We watched a 35 minute video of the taking of Iwo Jima It was very interesting as how the Japs built tunnels under the ground. The area had been used to mine sulphur and so a lot of it was there already. They lost so many Marines in taking that island. Some companies lost their whole company. I had heard of Iwo Jima and seen pictures of the Monument Now we have seen it in person. They at first put up a smaller flag but the big boys wanted a larger one so that is the one they put up. Joe Rosenthol was there when they put up the second one and shot the photo that was seen around the world. That's about it for tonight. We had a great day. Eli says his wasn't so good. But he is happy now Thelma is holding him in the lazy boy. Later all Ron Thelma and Eli

Camper waxed

This morning about 10:00 the 3 guys who washed the trailer last Friday came and waxed the trailer. It still has some places that show where the tree branches rubbed against it when we pulled out of a campground coming down. Looks like I will have to use some rubbing  or polishing compound on it when we get home. Thelma did laundry this afternoon.  We then went to Wall mart to get some grub. I needed bread and we needed some meat and vegetables. Tomorrow we are going back to the flea market that is down by Donna. Will probably be the last time we get there We will leave here a week from Monday and started heading north to upper Texas. First stop is Brakettville to see Fort Clark then on to San Antonio. We will be there for 7 days before heading toward the Canton area for our retiree rally. Think we are going to stay at a passport at first. Then go in one day early for rally. Those plans are still in jello.  Guess that's about it for tonight Later all  Ron Thelma and Eli

Pictures

Here is some of the pictures I took on the so called Dolphin Watch. We might do another one next week They use ducks which are amphibious vehicles. Come from the old navy I think. Sarah the manager here told me about them. The guy that is not doing well was a Teen Director for Indiana NCHA back in the old days. We helped them with a teen queen tea in 1977 in Illinois.

See the 50 Cal Guns on the front. They mean business with this one

One of the dolphins

Two pelicans on a sign

Port Isabel light house. Didn't go up as we were short on time. It had been a long day for us and Eli He was waiting on us to come home. I think it is 77 steps up here. We might go back if we have time.  Today I go a haircut over at the Wall mart plaza 9:95 not to bad about half of what I usually pay. She didn't talk much but that's okay probably couldn't understand half any way.  Well  guess that's about it for tonight  Later all Ron Thelma and Eli

Tour of Brownsville Harbor

Today we went on what we thought was a dolphin watch. We did see some dolphins but they did not jump like the ones we saw last year at Orange Beach Mostly we saw the port of Brownsville and other birds like Pelicans and sea gulls. We were really disappointed. I heard some other ones talking too and they were disappointed too. We  had a great meal afterwards. I was looking on line for another place down there. Don;t know if we will do it or not. Tomorrow I will have some pictures on here. Tomorrow is loafing day. We got up at 6 this morning. You know we don't like that at all. Took us almost two hours to get there. Diesel is up to 3:49 a gal around here. Might have to sell the house or take out a mortgage to get home. Lol. I read where some people think it will get to 5:00 a gal by the end of the year. Its no wonder with all the mess overseas. Well that's about it for tonight. Oh the guy that fell is not doing good. Sara called his wife today and he is giving up. Wont eat or do therapy. Sure hope they  get him over that.  Later all Ron Thelma and Eli

Cook out time

This afternoon we went to some folks trailer and had dinner. They cooked some pork loin. Boy was that good. She also make some potato's in the oven and had some vegetables. One couple brought a cake and Thelma made some cookies this afternoon to take along. This morning we went out for breakfast and met the couple at the restaurant. Had breakfast together. We are now home Thelma is doing Xword puzzle and I am on the computer. Eli just had his supper. Guess that's about it for tonight. This week we have entertainment two night Mon and Thurs. We might stay here another week and then leave toward San Antonio. Not sure just yet.  Later all Ron Thelma and Eli

Not much new

Today we didn't do much. Did take a drive to find some Ropa stores. The ones we found did not have anything we wanted. Tonight at the park they had a ropa style show. The ladies that have bought clothes at the ropa stores modeled what they had bought. Wish I would have had my camera along. We found out where some of the ladies go so we will try that either tomorrow or Sat. Depends on when the guy comes to wash the trailer. Sat there is a sale here in the park. Really don't need anything but will probably look.  Guess that's about it for tonight  Later all Ron Thelma and Eli

A little late

Yesterday we got up early and headed to Brownsville to the Zoo. We stopped at a McDonald's and grabbed some coffee and Egg McMuffins. Then drove about 60 miles to the Zoo. It did not take all that long as we had Expressway the whole way. This is a pretty big zoo. We saw a lot of animals I don't think we have seen before. I am putting pictures on here of some of what we saw

Pink Flamingos standing on one leg These are Chilean flamingos

A White Tiger They also have Bengal tigers...

This is a Golden Pheasant He was so pretty. Thought he was something

Cant remember remember what this one is. Sure was pretty. Liked his crown. Will have to look at my bird book and see if I can find what he is.

Her is some of the cactus here in the zoo. They have a lot of it around here

Here is a butterfly. This was the only kind in the butterfly exhibit. It is too early for the rest. They had a breeding place there

Guess that's about it for now. When I get to a place that has wifi I will upload all the pictures I have taken. Tomorrow a guy is coming to wash the trailer. I wanted him to wax it too. but her can't do that till next week Fri. So will probably have him wash it and then wax it before we leave. Hope this wind dies down some. Eli has a heck of a time when it get real windy almost blows him away.

 Well  Later all Ron Thelma and Eli

Winter Texan Lunch

Today was our winter texan lunch. It was at Harolds country kitchen. They have good food. It was a little late starting. After the meal they had a meeting. Next Tuesday we are going on a dolphin and sightseeing cruise. Not big boats but there will be 99 of us on the boat. Think it is a double decker. Hope I can get some good pictues. If not Thelma and I might go back and take a different one. This afternoon they came and installed the shade on the slide. Hope that it helps with the sun and heat. Here we don't need it as we are sitting where the sun doesn't hit it so much. Hope we like it. Tomorrow we are headed to the zoo at Brownsville. Going to start pretty early as it is going to get hot. Oh boy love that. We will get up about 7 and stop at Mickey Ds for breakfast. It will take at least an hour to get there. Maybe more. A lot depends on the traffice on the expressway. On the way home we saw a suv I think it was on its side on the east bound side. They were diverting traffice on to the frontage road. So far nothing on TV about it. Maybe late news. Well guess thats about it for tonight.  Later all
Ron Thelma and Eli

Another great day.

This is the weather we have been waiting on. It was another nice sunny day. This morning we went to Denny's for breakfast and then stopped at the restaurant that we go to on Sat. night after church. They had some jewelry there that Thelma wanted to look at. On Sat. night it is so crowded that you can't even get to it. So we stopped today and I bought her some earrings and necklace that matched. Valentines day you know. Then we came back to the trailer. This evening there was a potluck at the club house. It was good a great variety of food. Thelma made Au gratin potatoes. There was nothing left.  The other day we went up town to see the Tom Landry mural. He grew up here in Mission and went to school here. I tried to get some pictures but it was hard. The color tyme rental place has trucks parked there part of the time and cars also park. there. Here is what i took

The last one shows how long this thing is. Wish I could get a good picture of the whole thing. Well that's it for tonight . Tomorrow we have a winter Texan meeting with FCRV people.  Oh Paul,  Neil is not doing real well. The lady that manages the campground went up Sunday and said if his wife wouldn't have been in there she wouldn't have known him. He has lost a lot of weight. It sounds like it will be a long road to recovery. Later all Ron Thelma and Eli  By the way Happy Valentines day to all

Another day gone

Where has all the time gone. This morning we went to a little restaurant here in Mission. Boy was it crowded. The manager had gone around and asked people that only had two to a table if they minded if they sat someone else with them. We sat with a nice older couple who live down here year round. They were originally from Wisconsin. They have been down here 23 yrs. Not sure  if they have lived full time for that long or have been coming down here that long. While we were sitting with them another couple that we know from FCRV came in They sat at a table for two. When the other couple left I invited them to come sit with us. We had a great chat. Will see them Tuesday for the Winter Texan meeting. Then next Sunday we are invited to their trailer for a get together. After that Thelma and I drove out to find some Ropa stores. Found them but they were closed on Sundays. So will maybe go there tomorrow. Thelma did a couple of loads of laundry and then we went to Logan's for supper. Was good. Well that is about it for tonight.  Later Ron Thelma and Eli

A nice sunny day.

Well we finally got a nice day. I even washed the truck. This morning I was talking to the neighbor guy. Thelma and Eli and I went and got bottle tank filled so was taking it out of bed and was telling him that somebody stole my hub caps.I was looking at the wheel that I had fixed last week and saw that a lug nut was missing. So headed to a ford dealer down the road a ways and got a new one. Put it on and then torqued the nut. Also checked the other ones too. One was a little loose. They torque at 150. Good thing that is all as my wrench does not go any higher. Tonight we went to church then the Mexican restaurant for fajitas. It was for two . We brought enough home for one more dinner. We had beef and chicken. Gary called on the way home and he was trying to get our driveway open some. Couldn't find where to plug in the snow blower to start it. It has electric start which is nice. He said the snow is really heavy. He is to call back so will wait a little more and then call him. Thelma is worried about him. He had to work so it was dark when he got there. Hope it goes okay for him. Last year he wasn't working so he could do in during the daylight. Not sure we got as much snow either last year.  Well guess that's about it for tonight. Later all Ron Thelma and Eli

A warmer day

Today was a bit warmer. We went to a big lots today and looked around. Also went to Target and got a scale. We are trying to watch what we eat so wanted to know if we have lost any. So will keep track now. Other than that we didn't do anything else. Tomorrow we are going to look for some ropa stores. They have clothes that are in bales and you sort through them. We shall see if we can find anything. Later we will go to church and then think we will hit the Mexican restaurant again. Fajitas .  Well not much else. I haven't heard anything about the guy who fell The lady here might try and see them tomorrow according to her blog. Oh we went to Denny's this morning for breakfast. Was pretty good. The waiter was not all that good. Thelma had a heck of a time getting him to get her decaf I had regular and he would come around with that then would say oh I need to get decaf. 5 times he did that Finally another waitress gave her some. Boy that is bad. If you keep our coffee cups filled you get good tips otherwise forget about it   Well that's about it for tonight  Later all Ron Thelma and Eli

Not much new

Today Thelma did a load of laundry so Eli had his  sweater clean. Hope in a day or two he won't need it. It is to warm up here again by the weekend. Next week up to 80. From 40 to 80 what a jump. It sure will feel good. The rest of the day we just sat around. Tomorrow we might drive in to town and see what we can see. Guess that's about it for tonight. Thelma is keeping a diary while we are gone. She said what are you going to put on the blog. I said not much. That is the way it goes. Oh I don't have a picture yet of Eli in his vest. Will take one later and post on here. Later all Ron Thelma and Eli

Windy day

This morning we got up and made coffee and then left for the flea market to pick out the color for the shade on the slide. Got that done and then came back and left Eli out. Oh we stopped at Burger King for a sandwich for breakfast. Thelma has a book Eat this not that. What they recomended they don't make anymore so we settled for 2nd. We left here a little after 11 to go meet a couple for lunch at the riverside resturant. It is on the Rio Grande. And I mean almost right on it. Too bad it was so windy and cold. The border patrol runs up and down this river day and night. The couple that we met are staying at chimney campground. The back of their trailer is right on river. After we ate we went back to their trailer for a bit. While there a BP boat came flying by. Not sure if they were going after somebody or they do that all the time. Hoping we get some good weather as we will go back and have hot dogs by the river. That should be fun. When we left this morning it was 64 degrees. While at the flea market it turned cold and by the time we started home it was 46. Boy what a difference it was. At the resturant three of us had a tenderloin. We each brought half of it home. You take it and cut it in half and fold one piece over and use it on the bun and bring the other part home. Boy is that good. Tomorrow think Thelma might do a load of laundry. We need to wash Eli's sweaters. He has both winter ones dirty. Not supposed to have to wear them here. Now he has on a tshirt and his Kekionga vest on. It was originally Buttons. We took her name off and he wears it now.  Guess that is about it for tonight. Later all Ron Thelma and Eli

Eli's big day

Today Eli got groomed. The place was about 11 miles away. We tried to use the one in Mission but they were booked up for the whole month of Feb. Since we figure on leaving on the 1st of March we couldn't wait. The guy at Mission gave us the name of a girl that used to work there but started her own business in the next town. She said Eli did real good. He looks good and smells good. Thelma and I went to Walgreen's and ate lunch while we waited. Only took 1 1/2 hrs. We were at a burger king so not that far away only took about 10 minutes to get there. He was happy to see us. We did not do anything else here. It is so windy . It has died down some but this afternoon it was really bad. They have had a couple of fires in the area. With the wind they have a hard time getting them out. The other day they had one and had to use grass fire truck to get to it. Tomorrow we are running to flea market to check on awning for our one slide. Then lunch with some friends at a restaurant on the river.  Will have fun doing that. He said today there was a armadillo running around there campground. Hope when we get there it is still around. Guess that's it for tonight  Later all  Ron Thelma and Eli

Laundry and entertainment

This morning Thelma did laundry again. Seems like we do that a lot. After she got that done we did lunch and then drove to Mcallen to find this groomer place. Found it. Eli has appointment in the pm tomorrow. He sure needs it bad. This evening we had entertainment at the club house. John Sager. He works in Branson during the spring summer and fall. This is his first year in the Valley. There is a couple of more people that we have heard are down here. They go around to  the different campgrounds or resorts as some of them want to be called. One couple down here that we had at our campvention in 2009 is down here. We also saw them in Branson. They are going to be at the retiree rally in March They will probably head back to branson from there. He was really good. I bought a couple of CD packs 2 Cd's per pack. One is religious songs and the other is a mix of all types. He was also funny.  Well that's about it for tonight  Later all Ron Thelma and Eli

What a bueatiful day

Boy I can't believe what a difference a day makes. This morning we went to Cracker Barrel for breakfast. Had a little money on a gift card so decided to use it. We then came back and sat around till about 1 We then took of for Bentsen state park. This park was given to the State by the Bentsen family. You might remember Sen Lloyd  Bentsen. He was the one that told Dan Quayle your no Jack Kennedy. We took a tram tour and saw some birds. They were not as active today because of some of the cold weather we had. This place was flooded in July 2010. Hurricane Alex dumped a bunch of water upstream and it flooded down here. It came about 3 miles away from the river. Almost to highway 83 A lot of the places are still not fixed up. No money  We saw a few birds.

We can't remember what this bird is. I might find out later as we intend to go back to this place later this month

This is a bees nest. We did not stay here very long. The guide said don't clap or make any loud noises. What a mess that would have been

Golden fronted woodpecker It is hard sometimes to remember what is the name of the bird. We have a small folder that has some in but not all One more picture coming

This is a floating wall. If and when the Rio Grande ever floods again this will come up and keep the water from coming clear into the buildings They are building this levee all along the river. We saw some of this when we were at the estro lano grande state park.  Oh Forgot to tell you it got up to 80 this afternoon It was a beautiful day. We enjoyed it. Not sure what we will do tomorrow. We need to get Eli groomed. He looks like an orphan puppy.  Well That's  it for tonight  Later all  
Ron Thelma and Eli

A better day somewhat

Well at least today we had sun and it warmed up. Thank goodness. Last night about 2 am I woke up and thought it seemed cold. Got up and looked at the thermostat.  61 not good. So shut the thermo off and started again. The furnace started and then ran for about 3 minutes and shut off. Oh oh. So I put on some slippers and coat and went out and checked. Sure enough both bottles empty. I guess when I filled the last tank I forgot to turn the lever back to the tank it was drawing off of. So didn't see that one was empty. Got the electric heaters out and started them up. It kept it somewhat warm. Got up at 7:45 and took the tank down the road and got it filled. 23 $. I had been paying 16,80 at Donna. So only got one filled there. Came back and got the furnace working again. Took awhile. Could here it popping as the air got out of the lines. Then had to restart water heater. All that took was shut it off and turn back on. Then went up to clubhouse for breakfast. After that we took the other bottle to a different place not to far away and got it filled for 17:75  What a difference. We did not have any more ice last night. Just cold Here a couple of pictures from yesterday

This is the truck window Thurs night about 8:00

This is the field in front of our trailer. It really looked pretty when the sun shone on it

These are pieces of ice that fell off the tree by the trailer. Sounded like hail

This is another one of the field in front of us. It looks nice but the people around here had a heck of a time. A lot lost power and then they were having rolling blackouts due to the fact a lot of people were using electric heaters to stay warm.
Well guess that's about it for tonight. We went to Alamo for church and then went to a Mexican restaurant about a block away. It was good. We saw some people have a meal where you make your fajitas. I asked the waitress about it and they set it up for 2, 3 ,4 people. Think we will have that next week.  Later all Stay warm up north or wherever you are.  Ron "Thelma and Eli

Ice

Well we got the ice they had predicted I found it out this morning when letting Eli out. Well it was on the truck last night went out and took a couple of pictures. I posted a couple on FB. Will put some more n here tomorrow. Didn't get them ready to post yet. When I let Eli out the carpet on the step was frozen this morning. Hit the bottom step and my feet went out from under me. Landed on my butt and elbow. Little sore today. We did not go anywhere today. It is supposed to be cold yet tonight and then warm up. Another cool spell to  come in next week but not like this. When the sun came out today the ice melted off the trees and hit the roof of the trailer. Sounded like hail. Yesterday a guy asked if I wanted some oranges they were picking to keep them from freezing. This morning I was up at the office and one guy asked if we like grapefruit said yes. Come on down and pick some It will freeze if not. Thelma and I picked a big bag of them. Used a picker on a pole worked pretty good. So we probably have a at least a dozen or more. Well guess that's about it for tonight. Think we are going to clubhouse in morning for breakfast and then maybe do some sightseeing. Try to find where some of the stuff is. Church tomorrow evening. Will be a little bit more drive than before.  Later Ron Thelma and Eli

Another cold day

Well it was and is another cold day. 28 right now at 827 our time here. What is with this stuff. I think I'm going to sue the State of Texas for this cold stuff. They had freezing rain east of us here today. Shut down one of the highways So far we have not got any of that. We went to a dollar general today and got some garbage bags and zip lock bags. Went to a grooming place to see about getting Eli done and they cant take him till march  Need to find another place There is one in McAllen which is not real far. This one in Mission would have been really close. During the night Thelma got up to use bathroom and said no water. Sure enough the hose was frozen. I went out with a hair dryer and thawed the faucet out and then filled the tank. Will use it till it warms up over the weekend. It will warm up on Sat. Thank goodness. Eli is beginning to think we are back in Fort Wayne.  Thelma thinks we should get a patch for winter camping. some of you know what we are talking about. Think we will hunker down here again tomorrow. Might see what is going on at the clubhouse. Later all Ron Thelma and Eli

Cold Day

Hey something is wrong here. I came to Texas to be warm. Don't want this 30 stuff. Glad propane is cheap here. We went to Walmart today and got some groceries. It is about a mile from here. Tomorrow we might get out and do a little driving around. Check out where some of the stuff is. I took Eli on a little walk today but only made one loop around the campground as it was too cold. Eli likes to go and stop every bush on the way. He did real good. Has on  his winter sweater now. That should not be either. At least he doesn't have to see snow. Guess that's about it for tonight  Later all Ron Thelma and Eli

We are moved

This morning we went to the restaurant down the road for breakfast. Sat with another couple for the campground and had a good chat. Came back and finished getting ready to hook up. Unhooked water electric and sewer. We left about 11:10 and got here around 11:45 maybe a little earlier. This place is a lot better than the other one. They even have a pool and hot tub. I don't think we will us either one for a few days as it is going to get cold down here. I know it is better here than up north. After looking at wane web site and their face book page. It sounds bad up there. Hope everyone is okay. We had talked about doing something tomorrow but it is too cold to do anything. We will hunker down here. I need to do a few things on the puter so will work on that. Need to start taxes too. Think we have everything .  Gary has sent the stuff to us so We have it now. Got mail here today. I had
Gary send it to here since we would be here when it arrived. He mails it on Sat and it gets here on Tues. That isn't too bad.  Guess that's about it for tonight   Later all Ron Thelma and Eli