Show & Tell

Hi all -- Dianne here.  We're still in the middle of finishing the inside of our little coach house.  The photo above shows the view from our front windows.  The empty lots across the street will someday be built with coach houses like ours.  For right now, our view is beyond to the finished casitas (RV port homes) in our neighborhood.


I hate to rub it in to my friends back in Indiana, but the weather here has been beautiful this winter; sunny skies and 70s for the most part.  We're still hanging out in shorts and t-shirts most days.

Last week the work on the coach house was mainly insulation, drywall, mud & tape.  The workers are very meticulous, and are doing a fantastic job.


The inside of our motor home is piled with boxes (sink, faucets, water softener, ceiling tiles, microwave-convection oven) and there is more stuff stashed under the motor home (another sink, air conditioner, etc.).  We'll be living in a mess until it can be installed or at least moved into the coach house.

Today they are installing and painting the woodwork.  Next they will be painting the inside, and then installing the floor tile.   By the end of this week it should be looking good. 


 We haven't met with Raul's cabinet maker yet; I'm sure that will take a while.  Our appliances will be delivered February 7.  No more laundromat for me (at least while we're in Texas).  Soon we should be able to have our furniture POD sent here from the storage facility in Indianapolis.  

Today we had another big delivery:  A rustic "Texas" bar set for our patio.  Roger found these on line (I'm including a photo of the logo so you can find the web site if you're interested).  

We had electrical outlets installed at counter height on the outside wall in back, and this bar will be really handy for fixing margaritas and serving snacks under the pergola.  The back of the bar has drawers and doors with shelves inside for storage. 

 The matching rustic cooler-on-legs has an Igloo cooler built in, ready to ice down our Texas Shiner beer!  The handle is in the shape of a longhorn steer head and the top is decorated with more stars.  


The set is made from old, weathered barn wood.  Both the bar and cooler have bottle openers attached.  We think these are pretty cool!  

We've attended a couple of neighborhood get-togethers, and Roger has become a "regular" at the Retama Friday morning men's breakfasts.  I did a sneak photo of Roger and some of his breakfast pals out in front of our motorhome the other morning. 

For those of you up north who are starved for greenery by now, these beautiful orange vines grow along the fence rows here.  We have one in our back yard along the fence.  I don't know what they are, but they're sure pretty. 


Another nice feature of Retama Village (and the adjacent Bentsen Palm Village RV park) is that they share an organic garden area. 

 Anyone can sign up for a free garden plot.  I plan to sign up for one next year when we arrive, so that I can get my gardening "fix" next winter. 

 This long walkway is on our way to the dog park, which is also shared with the adjacent RV park.  Along one side is the organic garden area, and along the other side is a row of young citrus trees of all varieties.  I'm assuming that when they are big enough to produce fruit, that it will be free for the picking by residents of both the RV park and Retama Village. 

Speaking of the dog park, it's a fun daily gathering place.  The palapa and chairs are in the middle.  

Here's a shot of Chaplin just entering the dog park, to give you an idea of just how LARGE it is.   You can just make out the palapa in the distance.  Plenty of room to run at full whippet speed, when he's in the mood.

Then, there's another large area on the OTHER side of the palapa; plenty of room to toss balls and frisbees to eager dogs.  And beyond that, in a separate fenced area, is a full set of agility equipment.  This is truly doggie heaven; it was one of the reasons we bought a lot at Retama.


Roger and I are still healing from the loss of our beloved Jasper, but it's getting better.   Chaplin seems to be doing all right; we don't think he's depressed, but it's hard to tell.  The dog park helps, because he has lots of opportunities to socialize with his pals there.

One of Roger's favorites at the dog park is Jagger, a standard poodle who is very friendly and loves to play.

The whippet picture of the day is a shot of Chaplin meeting and greeting a beautiful sheltie named Bandit.  There are dogs of all shapes and sizes, and they all get along and play well together.