Texas weather has returned to normal once more, or even just a little bit above normal! One thing about the really nasty weather that we have been having lately is that it does help us to appreciate the good weather when it returns. We have had one of the coldest and most snowy January's ever and now February is set to be a record cold month, so far. Most years it is well into moving toward spring again by mid-February so we are more than ready!

One of the nice things about once more having a home base is that we have always been pretty regular in church attendance and with no fixed home one has no church home either. It is one of those things which we really didn't miss all that much while fulltime, but now that we are establishing one once more, we find that it is a very good feeling. I have no doubt that by May, when it is time to head out once more, we will be ready. Even though we are certainly enjoying the reestablishment of some ties to the more fixed society, the fact that we live in a community that is inhabited by others who have also been fulltime and even by a number who own a lot but still live in the RV, goes a long way in the direction of helping to keep a foot in both worlds.

I am way past tired of winter and we are not supposed to get this kind of thing! Actually, I must admit that the snow and cold were not records for the area, but it has been more than 30 years since it was last this way. We only had about 2 inches of snow but the cold was down to 12 degrees so it was tough weather for Texans. It melted just enough yesterday for things to get really icy and most folks here just don't get a lot of practice driving in it. Like most everyone here, we only went out to visit the mail box and even drove to that. Being cooped up inside for as long as we have been the past couple of weeks has been really tiring, but it does seem that Pam found a way to spend her afternoon!

Today dawned clear and sunny and the temperature is rising, finally above freezing once more after more than 100 hours of the cold with no significant warming. One thing that was not in my plans for our new home base was a snow shovel! Actually, I managed with a good stiff broom, but a shovel would have been less work. Looking around, it seems that only a few of my neighbors have one, and those who shovel just go over and borrow one. Anyway, I didn't have much to do and it looks decent for getting out of the house today, so very shortly we will be getting outside. It was kind of nice to be outside for a while, even if it was for snow removal!

We have been doing mostly rather mundane things of late, such as everyone must when settling into a new home, so I have been a little bit remiss on making enteies as I should. I'll tay to get back to a more regular pattern and get this journal moving once more.

As much as we loved our roving life over the past years, we have been a little bit surprised by how comforting it has been to have the knowledge that we do have a place to live, in the event that we should ever need one. I think that there are really several parts to this, although none of them alone are really that big a deal, when combined it was a growing concern, even though not acknowledged. The age of our RV had become somewhat a concern, not because it is worn out, but simply because it has reached a point where things are beginning to require more attention and the owner is becoming less inclined to do much of the work on it! It is kind of funny, but I have discovered an interesting phenomena. With every year older that our motorhome has become, the operator has seemed to age just as much! I used to think little of climbing on the roof to take care of things, but at 68 I am far more cautious and I find that my strength and agility have both slipped more than I would really like to admit.

Then there are things like our health issues that have slowly begun to demand nore attention, even though they are not travel prohibitive. Pam's doctor is a wonderful lady, and she has involved Pam in her medical decisions. But with this increased interest has come a number of new concerns and that means more medical specialists and more appointments. In my case, I continue to have very few medical issues, but I am now a cancer survivor, as I had a melanoma surgically removed from my left ear almost three years ago and that means that I must see a dermatologist twice each year and this is not something that I would even consider failing to do. As a result, the annual doctor visits have slowly become twice annual or more and what used to take a week each spring now requires at least two weeks, each spring and fall.

There have been some very unanticipated pleasures also associated with our purchase of our new home. The community is one of people who are all from the RV world and nearly all have been fulltimers at least for a few years. As such they are our kind of people, but with a permanent tie we see those same people each time and the strength of that bond is far beyond what we are able to develop while we are all on the move. The people here truly care about each other and we have quickly developed a relationship that is as strong as that of any family. When someone needs help with some project, there are usually more people there to assist than can possibly be needed! And the standard thing is for everyone to share any special purpose tools, ladders, or things that may not be required every day.

This has been a truly wonderful experience and one that is far beyond our wildest dreams! So if we must deal with a little bit of snow and some harshly cold weather, then so be it, as this is a very small price to pay for what we have found here.

Itis always a special day when one receives their first visitors to a new home. We have been very busily getting settled into our home and it has now been three weeks since we began to move in. While our son & his family were here just after we arrived, this was our first visit from our RVing friends. Bud & Dayl Davis came up on Friday from their home near Granbury, TX to spend a few days with us. Since this is a residential park, there really are no overnight sites but visitors are allowed to stay on a site if you have room or some of the folks own two sites and let visitors stay on those. One of our neighbors happens to nave a nice site, very close to us which even has a concrete pad. They were so gracious as to let our friends spend the time parked on that site. We had a great time and once more we revel in the wonderful people who live in this RV park. We are so fortunate to have found this new home!

We have been keeping very busy with doing rather mundane things that must always be a part of settling into a new home and with getting to know the neighbors. We have really begun to feel at home here.