Last Sunday night we went with our great friends Pat and John Neely to the Huisache Grill in New Braunfels, where we have been many times and it was as good as ever.

They have a really unique menu and the service and staff are without question; it is nice to return to a place time and again which doesn't change and will always be excellent. I had the parchment wrapped salmon and Jo-Anne had the pecan dusted pork tenderloin medallions.

And then this wonderful vehicle appeared next door. It was pulled by a pretty nice motorhome and just stayed the night so I couldn't get the scoop ... Florida plates and Parrot head stuff ... Key West, eh. On the top it says, "Live The Dream, Catch the Wave, Enjoy the Ride." Kind of a good philosophy.

Now, sometimes we have had pizza delivered to the door at the park ... well ... this was too much to believe ... must be party time!

Oooo! Here comes the weather better hunker down!

We had planned to depart Bryan and head south to New Braunfels on Wednesday the 25 ... however ... yuk. Because of the huge red blob that appeared on Tuesday we postponed that little trip til Friday the 27th.

Bryan is at the red pointer and the number 4 on the map below and while we rock and rolled a bit we got through the storm OK. We did get about 3 inches of rain and thoroughly checked all the seals in the Flying Scotsman ... only one leak and that was understandable. There was apparently quite a bit of damage in the local area and at least one tornado was spotted that night.



After all that, we did arrive in New Braunfels at the Hill country RV Resort on the 27th after a really nice 140 mile drive down highway 21 as we have done many, many times before.



Right now the plan is to be here for at least two weeks and then head back to the Bryan area for the 13th of February as Bruce gets a crown for one his teeth at our dentist there.

Here's all four of the old folks as we got ready for our night out at Christopher's World Grille last Friday night here in Bryan, Texas.

Christopher's (Christopher Lampos) is the best restaurant and venue for this area of central Texas and has been for many years. We went to his Oktoberfest and this month's theme was Italy ... so .... duh ... we had to be there.

There were numerous courses all paired with wines and all was excellent for the four hour event. Below is the menu which I hope you can read; very extensive and all dishes representative of Italy. There were over 100 folks there on tables of 10-12 and you get to chat with some neat and interesting people. The dishes are served family style and you can take as much as you want as it is passed around.

If you look closely  at the fish dish it is swordfish and I think Jo-Anne had long before the event decided that she would definitely pass on that particular course.

Well .... Here is the proof from the cell photo as she is consuming the last morsel of her swordfish portion! Wow. Anyone who knows Jo-Anne knows that fish ain't her thing, but this dish was so wonderful that she now is saying, "I wonder if Red Lobster has swordfish?" Go figure.

All in all a totally wonderful well prepared and enjoyable evening of some of the finest Italian food we have had in a long time. Next month of course is chocolate ... maybe I can distract her with some Texas BBQ instead ... ya think ... not.

Now for some of the mundane stuff associated with our lifestyle.  The Flying Scotsman, while our home, is still a motor vehicle, needing periodic maintenance and inspections. You can see the RV sticking out of the barn to the right.

Needing the lube job, oil change, and state inspection, in the car, is a half-hour operation at worst and about $40 bucks, right ... not with the big bus .... noooo.

OK, make the appointment with the Freightliner dudes in Bryan at 9am. Wait. This is our home now and we need to do something with the pets for what may be a day long operation ... pet day care, eh, just down the road.

So at 9 Jo-Anne takes the pets to day-care and to hang out at the mall for the day and I unhook the bus from its tether at Aggieland and head for the truck place in north Bryan. I settle in for a long day. The normal oil change is about $400 bucks for this type of diesel and they do a good job at it for the four hour planned time. Oh then the air filter ($100) needs changing so that is another hour of labor and time involved.

When the day is over and we regroup at the RV park it is 3pm and I have spent over $500 on the bus for its routine annual oil change and inspection ... big machine and big process and cost. Then there's Jo-Anne's 6 hour venture at the mall and the pet care.

Wow, but the lifestyle we love!

Here's breakfast this morning as we packed up the Flying Scotsman in a cool and misty rain from the Vineyards campground and headed south toward Aggieland in Bryan, Texas.

Our month here in the Grapevine (Dallas) area has been really great with the holiday season and being able to spend a bunch of time with the new grandson. We will also miss the visits by the local geese who have become very demanding of their daily dog food treat. Buster might not miss it although he gives them a chase now and then.

And I couldn't resist the local kite fliers. I remember kite flying with Leigh and it involved at least a minimum amount of exercise for the both of us to keep it aloft.

OK, above is the 2012 version ... both dad and kid in lawn chairs as they guide the kite around the sky thanks to modern technology and design ... jeez.

And lastly for today as we settle into the new park in Bryan. They've said that it is a dog's life, but Bandit might disagree as he has found a really comfortable and warm spot by the fireplace.

We'll be here for about two weeks to do more doctor, dentist, dog, and parent stuff in familiar surroundings and the plan then is to head south toward the New Braunfels area to see old friends there in our old stomping ground.

HAPPY NEW YEAR 2012!!

To round out 2011 Buster was in his glory on New Year's Eve while we were sitting little Ev and we caught the ol dog before sipping some of the bubbly. And on the last day of the old year the flamingos and palm tree were pretty cool looking in the 65 degree weather.

Finally toward our bedtime of about 9pm the ol pooch reflected our feelings of 2011 and decided to snooze it off before greeting the new 2012.

And here is the new wine toast to the very New Year of 2012 and we assume it will be even better than the great year of 2011.

And to greet the new year, we hope all our friends and family have had a super past year and we wish the best for everyone and a even better 2012.