On the road, Lighthouses and Historical Discoveries - Port Lavaca, Sabine Pass & Point Bolivar, Texas

Thursday January 22nd, 2015

Happy Birthday to my sister-in-law Julie.  Hope it was a good one.

We got on the road heading towards Bryan's mom in Louisiana.  We have planned tonight and tomorrow in Victoria, Texas and then two nights in Beaumont, Texas before we arrive in Livingston, Louisiana on Monday.  The weather forecast for the next couple of days is not good and it rained most of the way to Victoria.  We arrived safely at Gateway to the Gulf RV Park.
I stayed up late to watch Andy Murray win his 3rd round match against Joao Sousa in three sets. I have been fortunate so far in that his games have been scheduled early in Australia which means they are on here anytime from 9pm onwards.  I managed to watch the first two rounds and get to bed in the early hours.  This one was a little later but still ok although I think all the late nights are beginning to catch up on me.  He is playing well though so that is good news.

Friday January 23rd, 2015

We decided to go for a drive and find Half Moon Reef Lighthouse at Port Lavaca.  In the late 70's Bill Bauer donated the lighthouse and a trust fund for maintaining it to Calhoun County Historical Commission. The lighthouse was moved to his present location and restored as part of an Eagle Scout project.

We got our lighthouse stamp at the adjacent community center and then drove across the road to the Lighthouse Beach RV & City Park.  We wanted to have a look at the RV park and do the walk through the wetland area that is there.  By now the wind had got up and it was starting to rain a little, but we persevered although the wind made it very cold. 

You can see the lighthouse in the distance on the left side

This is the small beach that is there

We went on the short semi circular walkway that goes through the marshland and borders the Gulf of Mexico. 

It was cold, brrrrrr

A lonesome bird

We finished our walk and headed back to the car.  We had wanted to go and see Matagorda Island Lighthouse but we were so cold and the GPS wouldn't recognize the coordinates I had for it so we headed back to the RV, albeit along a different route.  We decided to stop at Olive Garden for dinner and to warm up. Yummy!!!

Saturday January 24th, 2015

It is a year ago today that we had to make the decision to put CoCo to sleep.  It was the best for her but such a difficult decision.  Still think of her often and have wonderful memories of her.

Wonder if they have met in Heaven yet???

We got on the road to Beaumont, it was an uneventful drive, although in Houston the on ramp to the I10 was closed and we had to take the ring road and meet up with 10 further along, so added a few miles.  Got set up and relaxed.  I went to bed early so I could get up at 3am to watch Andy play Dimitrov in round 4.  Thankfully he won in 4 sets.  I went back to bed at about 7am for a couple of hours.

Sunday January 25th, 2015

I got up at about 10am as we had planned on going to Port Arthur to see the Sabine Bank Lighthouse.  Thankfully the weather was a lot better today.  We found Lions Park at Sabine Pass where the lighthouse had been restored and moved to. The park was a little the worse for wear but was full of interesting historical monuments.

This old anchor was a memorial to military members from Sabine Pass who have lost their lives in service.

Here was a victim of recent conflicts

 Here is Bryan by the restored lighthouse.  The original fresnel lens is in a nearby museum which we didn't go to today.

This model of a lighthouse was opposite the park in front of a church.  See the church bell at the top.

We drove back through the oil refinery part of Port Arthur.  The stark contrast between Sabine Pass and the industrial part of Port Arthur is striking. 

We decided to drive down toward Galveston and try and find Bolivar Point Lighthouse.  It was over an hours drive but what the heck we haven't got anything better to do have we. 

We drove through Winnie and thought of our dear friend "Winnie" from our RV park in Las Vegas.

Driving into Point Bolivar was beautiful.

We found the lighthouse. This was the closest we could get to it as it's privately owned now.

Nearly opposite this lighthouse was a county park and as I needed the restroom we stopped there.  It had the remains of battery points of Fort Travis.  We spent a long while walking around and learning the history of the site.  

View of the lighthouse from the park

It was interesting looking at the tankers out in the bay and going into Galveston or Houston. There were plenty of picnic areas and even a camp site here.

This picture is of the back of Battery Davis Historical Bunker

Bryan at the rear of the bunker.  He really wanted to get inside and investigate.

Here he is at the side trying to find a way in.

And with a sheepish look saying "You caught me but unfortunately I can't get in"!! I was soooo relieved.

Front & Side View of the Bunker

This was the view across to Galveston.

A wild flower in the grounds.  Does anyone know what it is?

We walked across the park to the East side and remains of Battery Kimble.  Reminded me of the series "The Fugitive" and Mr. Kimble and his search for the one armed man, just because of the name!!!  Shows my age a bit, I guess. :)

Here are the remains of Battery Kimble and Bryan trying to find a way in, as usual……..

There were cacti growing on the roof.

Bryan investigating the side of the bunker and what I think was where one of the guns was mounted.

Serendipity had struck again as we discovered this place full of history purely by chance as we searched for a rest room.  Sometimes getting older has it's advantages. ;)   

We started on the journey home along the sea front.  The houses are all on stilts and many varied seaside colors.  I love these and if we had the money I'm sure we would buy one somewhere on the coast.  We could park Lily under the house and when there was a hurricane warning we could just go inland.  Not sure it would be here but we have found these stilt houses all along the Gulf and Pacific coasts.  I would love it and at the moment it would be either Pensacola area or St. Augustine/Mayport area.  Won't ever happen though but doesn't hurt to dream.

A lot of these had elevators which would help with getting the shopping and us inside!!

Pretty Colors

This one was straight, I was just holding the camera at an angle as we drove along

They looked liked mobile homes on stilts and probably were.

There are a lot of these small oil wells in the fields in this area.

We headed home after a long but interesting day.

Tomorrow we head to Louisiana.

Kingsville - Happy New Year, Ship Decommission, Family members are traveling, expanding, bowling, walking and building bears!!

Thursday January 1st, 2015

Well, at 2am this morning Bryan started to get sick and was up and down the rest of the night.  Unfortunately at about 7am we had to call Brenda and ask her to come and get the girls as we didn't want to risk them catching whatever it was if it was contagious.  I woke the girls up, no easy feat, and got them packed up.  Brenda was there before I even finished packing their bags.  It was a shame as they were so good, but for the best as Lily was not exactly a pleasant environment for the rest of the day.

Hopefully, this does not set the standard for the rest of the year!!!!!   We will try and think positively though.

I watched the Pasadena Rose Parade on TV.  It is on my bucket list so maybe one year we will be there.  I have been to the one in Spalding, Lincolnshire, many, many years ago and really enjoyed it.

Friday January 2nd, 2015

Bryan was feeling a little better today but we just took things easy.  I watched The Library of Congress Gershwin Prize being awarded to Billy Joel.  It is well worth watching this if you're a Billy Joel fan. He is a favorite of mine and I have seen him a few times live in concert.

Saturday January 3rd, 2015

Spent this afternoon and evening thinking of Ian as he was flying to the Phillipines for work.  It is a good opportunity for him to see some of the world but what a long while to be in the air.  He is scheduled to take off at 3.15pm our time and will land in Dubai at 10.10pm and then take off for Manilla, Phillipines at 00.30 tomorrow morning.  Eventually landing there at 8.30am.  Two long flights but he will be in business class and I hear that Emirates Airlines are very good, so will be an interesting experience for him.

Sunday January 4th, 2015

Well, Ian arrived safely so I can breathe again.  We always worry about all the kids when they are traveling.  It has been quite cold here and gloomy and we are low on propane so haven't run our heating but relied on our small heater. Our batteries have been getting low and we're not sure why so we are trying to be careful on the power we are using as well.  Our blankets have come in handy to keep warm but we are not as bad as some parts of the country so we are thankful for that.

There is no one in this area that delivers propane and none in the park so we will have to pack up and go to get more propane.  We had been trying to last until we are due to leave but we will not have enough to cover us for the basics for another 2 weeks so tomorrow we will just have to bite the bullet and go and get the tank filled.

Monday January 5th, 2015

We got up, disconnected the hoses etc. and packed up the minimum so we could bring the slides in and get Lily ready to roll down the road to fill her propane tank.  We were gone less than half an hour but is a real pain.  When we got back we had a message that Ryan & Christina wanted to Skype with us.

Guess what, we are going to be grandparents again.  This will be their first but our fifth.  We are so excited!!!!  Here is the announcement they put on Facebook to announce the news to their friends.

We got this Christmas ornament for Ryan's first Christmas all those years ago so we will now be able to pass this along to "Stewart Little" as the baby has been affectionately named.

Tuesday-Thursday January 6th - 8th, 2015

Did the usual boring things, food shopping, cleaning, eating - blah, blah, blah.  While we got our food shopping I did look and find an outfit for Hattie.  Remember Mum's white bear.  I wanted to get her clothes to try and keep her clean.  I can wash the clothes easier.  You should have seen us looking through the baby clothes in Walmart for a suitable outfit. In the end got her a 3-6 month Valentines outfit, red with hearts.  It has long sleeves and leggings, perfect. Here's a picture of Hattie in her new outfit and Gonk.  Gonk is a  ????, well a gonk, that my nan made me from curtain material.  Can't remember exactly when I got him but I must have been in my early teens.  That makes him nearly 50 years old.  One of the dogs got hold of him at one time and he lost an eye and has some puncture marks but he survived.  Now both he and Hattie are riding along with us.  Bet they have some stories to tell already!!!!

Friday January 9th, 2015

Today is the decommissioning ceremony for USS McCluskey (FFG-41), Ryan's first ship.  We would have liked to have been there but our travel plans have altered slightly with recent events and Bryan's pending jury service in Florida.  Here is a picture of Ryan in front of the ship today.

He will miss her I'm sure.  Something special about that first ship.  He flew out to Panama and joined her on May 22nd, 2012.  His last day on her will be next Wednesday the 14th.

Here is a VIDEO that Ryan took of his gun on that first deployment.

Saturday January 10th, 2015

We went into Corpus Christi with John, Brenda, Collette, LeeAnn & Aimee.  The trip was primarily to go to Build A Bear to get the girls bears that we had given them for Christmas.

Photo Credit to Brenda - Thanks

We went to Outback for lunch.  Thanks John & Brenda, it was lovely.  After lunch we had a look around Barnes & Noble and World Market before coming home.  Unfortunately, the weather wasn't that great but it was good to get out.

Sunday January 11th - Friday January 16th, 2015

Nothing much going on.

The 14th was Ryan's last day on the McCluskey and I'm sure a sad one as he leaves his first ship.

Clifford Reeves, a local artist, posted this painting of Somerton, Oxfordshire, UK on Twitter.  This was painted from the front garden of the cottage that I lived in there and brought back many happy memories.

Ian arrived safely home from the Philippines on the 16th so everyone is happy.

Saturday January 17th, 2015

We decided to go bowling with John, Brenda, Collette, LeeAnn & Aimee.  It's been so long since I last went I can't even remember when it was.  Bryan hadn't bowled since last August but he hasn't lost his touch!!!  He gave the girls some pointers.

Photo Credit to John Greene, Thanks

Photo Credit to John Greene, Thanks

We had a fun time and Aimee beat me in the second game when we had a friendly challenge between the two of us.  Well done Aimee.  :)

Later in the day, Collette, LeeAnn and Aimee surprised us in the motorhome.  They had been walking at Dick Kleburg Park and saw the RV park so walked over.  We didn't realize that there was a gate at the back of the RV park into the park so Bryan & I decided to join them in a walk over there.  

Walking along the path into the park

The lake

LeeAnn, Sue & Aimee

A pier that was a little the worse for wear.

Picnic tables across the lake

It was a nice little park and we had fun walking through the brush at the back of it.  Here is the entrance at the back of the RV park.  They are building an extension and adding more RV sites here.

We got back to Lily and had popsicles and Aimee danced with me before they had to leave. 

It was a really fun day that we both thoroughly enjoyed and the weather was a lot better.

Sunday January 18th - Wednesday January 21st, 2015

The Australian Open started and so I will have a few late nights staying up to watch Andy Murray.  It's a good job we're retired!!!  

On the 20th, we went to Youngs Pizza with John, Brenda and the girls for lunch.  Youngs is a must have whenever we are in Kingsville.  Bryan went to High School here and loves the "Texicali" sandwich.  I had a "Patootie" potato with shrimp, delicious……..

We spent the 21st packing up and getting ready to leave tomorrow.  Everyone came by to say goodbye, until next time.  Hopefully when we visit next the weather will be a bit better but we shouldn't complain, there are a lot of people having it a lot worse than we are.

Take Care……….