Busy ! Busy !

WOW, have we been busy.  That is what we like about Retama Village, you can be as busy as you want or you can just relax and do nothing.  It dawned on us today that we have not had a blog entry in awhile, so lets get caught up ~ !  The weather has been beautiful, 80-90's during the day and 60's at night, perrrrfect.  We have not had any rain in the last 2 weeks and there is none in the immediate forcast !  Our friends Howard and Carlene have arrived and will be staying here until we all leave to head back North to Polson Montana for the summer.  If you have been following along, we met them at the Eagles Nest this last summer and recruited them to host for the resort this summer with us.  Since they arrived we have been non stop !

We hosted a little Super Bowl Party at our site...........................

We used our basement TV !

Motley Crew.

Go Bronco's !

Howard at the food table !

Great friends and good food !  A good time was had by all.  And since Howard and Carli have not been to Mexico, we went there too with a group......................

Margarita's and Chow at El Disco !

Then there was the Mardi Gras Party..............................

Beads, Masks, Drinks, and Food.  (Seeing a common denominator).

Every Friday night they have a Happy Hour / Cookout here.  You bring a dish to share, and what ever you want to grill.  We start the Happy Hour at 4:30, grills go on at 5.  Good times.........

Bren looking quite comfortable !

This last week we went on a Deep Sea Fishing trip on the Osprey.......................................

You can't tell by the smiles, but we were up at 4:30 AM !!

"I am Flying" !  (Titanic reference)

Motley Crew !

Howard, Carli, and us with the boats Catch !

We limited out by 12:30 on an all day trip !  Those are delicious Red Snapper !!

And guess who caught the biggest fish on the whole boat ?  Bren !  Never gonna live that one down.  I did catch the most fish (lots of little ones and some pesky ocean cat fish that are not edible).  We ended up with about 15 pounds of cleaned Red Snapper Filets, Steaks, and Nuggets !! 

Lots of good meals to come !

Right after the fish were cleaned we took the to the Pelican Bar and Grill and they cooked up some of our filets and added sides for $10 !!  They were awesome !! 

We even were treated to an awesome sunset from our deck seating !  A perfect way to end the day !

Yesterday we made a run up to Laredo Texas to pick up a "new to Bren" Mountain Bike.  We sold hers to Carli and found one that fit her better on Craigs list.  And a new city means a new BBQ place, so we went to "Brisket and Beers" a Laredo BBQ Legend.  They did not disappoint.  Probably the 2nd best Brisket we have ever had and Beef Ribs that were awesome too !  We even tried their version of a Popper.  They mix Brisket with Cream Cheese and some spices and stuff them into jalapeno peppers, then wrap them in Bacon and smoke them til they are done !!  Howard said the poppers "were the best thing he ever put in his mouth" !

It was a little house with cool decor !

MMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM !

The smoke house !

Yee Haw !!

Other news, our Daughter Jenny took a new position as Bar Manager at "Lucy and the Wolf" in Northville.  It is a cool little bar and tapa's place.  Stop in and see her if you are out that way ! 3-11 except Sundays....................

And finally our sign of the times.........................

MORE TO COME !

Retama Village

Well we have settled into Retama Village quite nicely.  We have met literally about 100 people and there is always something to do !  Everything from Texas Hold-em tournaments to crafts to pool time and happy hours etc..............  We have also found 2 places to play pickleball and play about 2-3 times a week for a few hours.

About a week ago we headed off to South Padre Island for some fun in the sun.  We had heard about this Hamburger Joint that was Valley Famous called Gonzalez Burger.  Turns out Momma Gonzalez had a grocery store that was not doing that well and one day she was making burgers for her family when a patron inquired if they were for sale.  She said he could have one and he raved about it.  So much that others kept asking about her burgers.  In no time her grocery store turned into a great Burger joint.  Along the way she also found out that a Restaurant required a special licence but a grocery store that sells burgers does not.  SOOOOOOO, she keeps this little corner of the place as a grocery store !

We were first in line at about 10:45, when they opened at 11 am there were 34 in line.  By the time we ate and left it was up to about 60 in line.........

MMMMMMMMMMMMMMM !  Awesome burger !  and HUGE !!  Next time we will split one.

South Padre Island was beautiful.  We drove about 18 miles up the beach and found ourselves a nice little spot to lay in the sun and enjoy the surf !

After some fun and sun we went to the South Padre Island Brewery for some brews...................

Good ice cold beer.  Hit the spot !

Here is a saucer / plate that Bren made at a craft class here at the park.  It turned out great !

We have also continued the tradition of Tuesday night chicken from Popeye's,  Thanks to Shannon and Debbie for this bad habit !!  It is the best chicken !!

 We also went with a group from the resort on a riverboat cruise on the Rio Grande River...............

That is the Texas State Patrol boat in the background.  Three 300 HP outboards and 3 Machine guns...

We also walked over to Progresso Mexico last week with some friends and explored the little boarder town.  Very nice, real safe, and some good buys......................You literally walk across the bridge, pay 50 cents and you are in.  On the way back its 25 cents ???

 Welcome sign area............

 Little bars all over the place.................cheap too !

 Lots of dentists and pharmacys !

Draw our own conclusions from this pic............. LOL !

Speaking of Bren, she had a birthday yesterday !!  Happy Birthday Baby !!

The sign of the blog !

More to come !

On the Move !

We got back to our beach side residence after the Holidays and prepared for our move to Mission Texas in the Rio Grande Valley.  But just before we left there was one more Jeep club meeting to attend.  Pretty good attendance and the weather was ok, overcast and 60's..........

A good time, but found some more do dads that I will have to get for our Jeep !

Last Monday we hit the road for Mission.  What should have been a 5 hour run down the coast, ended after about 2 1/2 hours.  While cruising down the highway we suddenly lost most of all of our engine power.  I could only get the rig up to about 30 mph.  The computer on the engine sensed something wrong and put us in limp mode.  After pulling over and shutting down for a bit, we fired it back up and things seemed fine.  About 5 minutes down the road we had the same thing happen.  Not wanting to hurt the rig we called Coachnet and discussed the problem with their technical advisors. They suggested we tow to the nearest shop in Corpus Christi.........

 STRESSFUL !!

"In the Shop"

It was determined that an Intake Sensor went bad.  Since we were in the shop we had some Preventative Maintenance done as well (oil change, lube, fuel filters, etc...).  Not a cheap outing !

So Tuesday last week we arrived at Retama Village, our home for the next 3 1/2 months.  In Florida we are called Snowbirds, but down here we are "Winter Texans" !!  We were pleasantly surprised to find the Village more than we expected.  Our lot and coach house are huge and beautiful !!

 Our Lot !

 Dining area and Coach House !

 Our outdoor lazyboys..................

Inside the Coach House !  Full bath, mini kitchen, fold out couch for company, TV, and more lazy boys !

The grounds here are crazy beautiful........

 Pool !

 It has a channel to the "conversation pool" ! and large spa !!

Patio and the million dollar club house in the background.  It has a Pool hall, Kitchen and Dining area, a Library, Card Rooms, Laundry, Fitness Center, and Hobby Room !

We have probably met over a 100 different people in the last week.  Everyone is so nice.  We even hooked up with the area event coordinator (Vicki) and hit a few of the "Winter Texan Honky Tonks" !

Buchanan Dance Hall - HUGE !  We still remembered our two step lessons from 20 years ago !

Mission Bell Dance Hall - Biggest Dance Floor in the RGV !

Excaliber and the famous 1 man band !  Medium size honky tonk !

Don Chilo's, small family run local Honky Tonk !  Yes that is spray foam on the metal roof !

 From the outside, we almost drove right by.  Nothing more than a pole barn, but cheap beer and lots of fun !

Since we arrived we have been very busy staying active.  We have been Mountain Biking, Pickle-balling, Swimming, Walking, and participating in the Village activities.  They have Hold em poker and even Euchre on Wednesday nights !!

Here is our "sign" of this post.  Live by it !  We do !

More to come !