http://www.blogger.com/html?blogID=4316350785635987648 Cave Dwellings: Amost had to go OUT of the country to find the warm weather!
Cave Dwellings

Buckhorn Creek, Lake O' The Pines, Jefferson, TX

Saturday, January 4, 2014

Amost had to go OUT of the country to find the warm weather!

MacGyver and I drove 4 1/2 hours from San Antonio last Wednesday to Falcon Lake State Park, North of Roma, TX on the Rio Grande. When we arrived, it wasn’t as warm as we remembered. This darn cold snap had even crept in down here..BUT , shortly our weather has warmed up and I actually sat outside in the sunshine today in shorts…FINALLY!

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So this is our new backyard, complete with sand, cactus, Mesquite trees, fire ants, and…..SUNSHINE!

 

I am trying NOT to get too used to this nice weather….They are calling for a high of 41 degrees Monday and Tuesday down here…HOWEVER..they are calling for –11 daytime high and –17 nighttime high back in Sandwich , IL.  Dennis was a little nervous about our water lines back home.  We did shut off the water in our upstairs bathroom (no need to flood the whole upstairs), but we never shut off the downstairs water…So, Den called our son, Kelly, and he went over to our  house and turned of the water on the main floor and also the water to the hot water  heater..MacGyver is feeling much better now..THANKS, KEL!!!

 

Here are a few more  photos of our site here…This is the 3rd time we have stayed in this site..It’s  one of our fav’s…

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Most of these sites come with a parade of Javelinas, and many beautiful birds…Example is this Green Jay, right outside our back window.!!

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This is the most empty we have ever seen it here..They  have a lovely butterfly garden up by the Recreation Hall…and LOTS of deer.  What I love most about this place is the abundance of wildlife..some pretty scary and some just plain pretty! It is very quiet and at night the Coyotes sing us a few songs in their local language of “howl”. 

We go into Rio Grande City (about 35 miles) to get our groceries at the WalMart and H.E.B. stores.  Rio Grande City is a very old border town and still has some neat architecture..I tried to get a sampling as Dennis zoomed through..(Dennis is all business when it comes time to grocery shop…GO IN, SHOP, GET OUT… and the traffic on Friday was horrendous!!)

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MacGyver has been doing some mean grilling here…I try to give him the night off if the weather is too cold, but lately he is back as the “grillmaster”…Last night we had Cornish Game Hens…

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I would like to do a whole chicken but the darn bird it too fat to get the cover on, so I guess a couple Cornish Hens will have to sacrifice for the better good!

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This is a great park…but if you are looking for “shopping”, or “nightlife”, or “action” ..then this place is not for you…but WE LOVE IT!..Actually, if you love to fish for Bass, this is one of the best Bass fishing lakes in the US…And you don’t need a fishing license if you fish from the shore…

You will also notice a huge presence of our wonderful and brave U.S. Border Patrol…In fact, there was an accident between 2 Marine helicopters here in January 2003 while they were on a night mission helping the Border Patrol..A  plaque hangs in the Park Headquarters, and there are 2 markers with their names and American flags on the  park property .

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Semper Fi…

Thank God we're going to try to continue and effectively defend our frontiers with the Border Patrol, with the Customs Department, with the Coast Guard, with the Armed Forces.

                                                                                                                                                                  ~Barry McCaffrey

30 comments:

  1. You guys are 40 miles up the road from us..we are in McAllen. Small world, and yes it has been chilly, but today was beautiful.

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    1. Ruth..yes, today was wonderful, but the next few don't look so good...

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  2. Better get your oranges out for those RGV birds!

    Say, do you think MacGyver would come and grill a hen for me? Looks delicious. Seems to me that ever since you came down we've had miserably cold weather. What's up with that?

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    1. Judy, I have my orange slices in the trees...and Den made me a hanging flat feeder so those Green Jays can fit in it.

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  3. Kathy and I noticed quite the drop in Temperatures in Florida compared to last year. Like you said it is still better than being back home even though we'll be disconnecting our water lines for a few days. Be Safe and Enjoy!

    It's about time.

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    1. Yes, Kathy and Rick..it was better today, but a few cold days ahead...I'm not scared, I'm from Illinois.

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  4. WhoooHoooo... this brings back memories. It was just 2 years ago this month that we met you at Falcon Lake in 2012.... and you encouraged me to start my blog. Sure glad for that meeting. By the way... have you fixed any of those bacon wrapped shrimp lately?

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    1. I remember that too!! Soooo glad you started that blog...It's addictive, right?...and yes, I have fixed those shrimp MANY times....so good, and thanx for that recipe and sharing those great shrimps!

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  5. looks like you found a great spot to sit in the sunshine for a while!! enjoy the warmth..

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    1. Well, Sue, today was great...Monday and Tuesday, not so much..A high temp of 41 degrees or so...Not usually like that down here.

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  6. Nice looking site you have there. Those Cornish Game Hens look big enough to be chickens!

    We've been very lucky with weather here as its been consistently warm and sunny ever since we arrived. I'm hoping that continues.

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    1. rick, we do have a nice site...and we have been in it for the 3rd time...Weather isn't nearly as good as it has been, but at least we are not in Northern Illinois!

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  7. Was that Javelina wanting to ride the bike? They must not be as mean and agresive as I thought. Boy our Indiana and Illinois are really getting pounded. Thank goodness we are not there.

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    1. Nan....Hope all goes well with you two...It's even cold here in South Texas!

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  8. That yellow bird was SO colorful!! Neat there is all of that wildlife... hope it warms up for you!!!

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    1. That yellow bird has a blue face and some green too...It is a Green Jay...There are lots of beautiful birds here in the Rio Grande Valley!

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  9. For we Snow Birds checking the weather back home it always confirms we have once again made the right decision in heading south. No matter how cold it can be sometimes it is always better than where we came from. No snow shovels or winter tires required........

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    1. Our daughter in Indiana just sent us a picture of their drive..she calls it The Blizzard of 2014...epic, not less!

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  10. I like the animal shots -- never seen a javelina that close. Not the friendliest looking beast...

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  11. Hope you enjoy your stay - warm up on it's way next weekend. We are just down the road in Mission - if you get over this way we know of a couple fun legions that have some cold Busch Lite ready to serve up !! O they might have some rum too!

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    1. Thanks for the invite!.. We like it up here really well..but there are NO VFW's or Legions...Looking forward to the warm up next week!

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  12. It's going to be cool here at the Q this week 60's days and 30's night but still better than KC..

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    1. Totally agree...no complaints here for 41 degrees tomorrow...Suppose to be 70 on Wednesday!

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  13. I could live without that javelina looking at me....he's not real pretty!!! Those hens are looking yummy on the grill...:-)
    Suppose to get down to 9 degrees in LaGrange Georgia Tuesday night with a wind chill of -10. For us poor southerners that's COLD!!!!
    Glad you found some warmth!!

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  14. Well, today it's a high of 43 and the wind makes it feel like 30 degrees...Not exactly what we were expecting in South Texas...Got to wear T-shirts twice in five weeks...

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  15. It's -19 here in Twin Lakes today, I don't even have to go in to work because the doctor ordered all the offices closed! Cory is heading out to deliver pizzas though, hopefully they'll send him back home. He's wearing Smartwool layers and bringing snowpants in case his car breaks down. Ridiculous! In the thirties by Friday, we'll probably be wearing shorts this weekend with temps like that. ;) As for the fire ants and javelinas, it sure sounds better than frostbite right now.

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    1. Pam...I even hate to say, but finally tomorrow will climb back into the 60's after 3 days of low 40's...I know, I know...we are really lucky at that!

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  16. I'm so jealous of those Javy photos....they keep eluding me. Looks like there's plenty of room at the inn....why couldn't Canyon Lake have looked like that when we swung by? Oh well, here's to warmer temps showing up soon!!!

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    1. Ingrid, it was full right up until New Year's Eve...We left the next day..I gotta say that Falcon Lake is a great place to see the birds and pigs...and tomorrow we are suppose to be back up in the 70's...YEA!!!

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