Thursday & No Snow

After seeing photos of the snow in Des Moines and hearing about the freezing temperatures, we're very grateful to be here in Texas. Since we're heading up to Iowa at the end of next week, we'll have to dig out the sweatshirts and winter coats buried in storage underneath the camper.

Yesterday, we drove to Fredericksburg to do a little shopping. It's in the hill country about 1 1/2 away. Still looking for a grab bag gift for Christmas. We questioned going since it was windy and in the upper 30s. But the sun was shining, so we took off. Our neighbor, Dana, went along for the ride. Along the way, we stopped at an Apple Farm/Store and toured an RV park in the foothills. There were herds of deer all over the place. Texans like to think that everything is BIG in Texas, but their deer look like miniatures compared to the ones in Iowa. A friend made the mistake of asking if they were miniature deer. The local Texans were just a little touchy about that.

We ate lunch at a small German restaurant in Fredricksburg. Found out that I'm not that fond of cooked red cabbage (especially with vinegar). Prefer my red cabbage raw and in a salad. Sharon had sauerkraut. She didn't think she'd like the spiced noodles since the server told us it had bell peppers in it. Well, of course, I tried the noodles. I couldn't find the spice nor the bell peppers. They still tasted good, though. The schnitzel was great. Overall, a great meal.

We then went touring the stores. A lot of different little stores including a general store and five and dime. Very interesting. And, yes, I did find a grab bag gift. We found a german bakery, also. They told us 3 of their most popular items. The most popular was the pretzels. So, of course, we bought a pretzel. Did I mention they know how to do pretzels, here. They have pecans, walnuts, and brown sugar mixed in the dough. After baking, they're covered with a cream frosting. Can hardly wait to try them.

It is chilly here. The mornings have been in the upper 30's and during the day in the 50s. The locals have said that this kind of weather is just usually a couple of days and in January. More rain/drizzle is expected. Doesn't it figure, our first winter away from Iowa. But, still better than 14 - 16 inches of snow and sub zero temperatures.

With the weather so cloudy, we've been working on organizing more things within the camper. Finding homes for a few items that we brought with us that we just couldn't live without. Since we were gone yesterday, I'm sure the guys picking up the garbage were really disappointed that our can wasn't full this morning. (They go around every morning checking out the garbage cans.)

Didn't take any pictures yesterday but thought I'd just include one from before. Taken from our camper on a late cloudy afternoon.