Jan 1 - HAPPY NEW YEAR - watched Rose Bowl parade and football games in our pjs!! FUN!
Jan 2 - Lota was a little under the weather :(
Jan 3 - Drove to Copper Mountain, Colorado to be with Lota's college roommate, Kristi, and her family. See photos below.
Jan 4-5 - Restful days in a beautiful mountain setting
Jan 6 - Drove home -- great time!
Jan 7-15 - Earnest unpacking and organizing going on, including preparing and mailing our annual 2007 holiday letter.
Jan 10 - RV TRIP 1 - SAN ANTONIO - A ONE-DAY TRIP TO TAKE THE WAGGIN' WAGON FOR WARRANTY REPAIRS. SEE FEBRUARY 2008 FOR CONTINUATION OF TRIP.
Jan 12 - Attended Abilene Philharmonic concert with Navah Perlman as guest artist - excellent concert!
Jan 13 - Happy Monthiversary!
Jan 16-25 - Lota was a little under the weather :( again!
Jan 27 - Ruth Ann's Birthday and Beach Party (kinda chilly, so we had most of it indoors!) See photos below.
Jan 30 - 31 - Lota traveled to Hyperion board meeting in San Francisco
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Feb 1 - Lota traveled back from San Francisco.
Feb 2-6 - Buffalo Gap R&R
Feb 7 - Traveled to Dallas for a lovely stay at an uptown B&B. Enjoyed lovely dinner and checking out the old neighborhoods.
Feb 8 - Closed on the Todd Trail house in Potosi.
Feb 9-10 - Painted and cleaned Todd Trail house, and welcomed Brian, Elly, Kain & Jordan to Texas. Brian began work on the wind turbines - see photos below.
Feb 11-12 - Buffalo Gap R&R
Feb 13 - Happy Monthiversary!
Feb 14 - Happy Valentine's Day!!
Feb 15 - More organizing.....
Feb 16 - Worked all day at the Abilene Youth Sports Expo with our friends (and coordinators) Jon & Nadene.
Feb 17-20 - Lota traveled to Washington D.C. to attend reception for good friend Anne A. as she moves to a new role at IBM. Enjoyed a lovely stay at the Weiman Inn.
Feb 18 - Tom & Ruth Ann's anniversary -- go for a ride in the little red Corvette, and have fun!
Feb 21 – RV TRIP 1 (continued) - SAN ANTONIO, TX. FOR PHOTOS, CLICK THE GREEN BUTTON BELOW.
Feb 23 – Attended the Abilene Philharmonic concert with Byron Stripling playing the music of Louis Armstrong - fantastic performance.
Feb 24 - Buffalo Gap R&R
Feb 25-26 - Lota attended board meeting in New York
Feb 27-29 - Buffalo Gap R&R
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| Wind Turbines west of Buffalo Gap |
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| Largest wind turbine farm in the US |
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March 1-7 - Last week of construction on the RV barn. We're ready to move in!
March 8 - Decided to sell the BMW because we don't really drive it enough. Decided to purchase a used Jeep -- it's alot of fun!!
March 9 - Joined the Abilene Country Club to enjoy golf at two local courses -- let's see if it helps our handicaps!!
March 10-20 - Moved into the RV barn, and unpack most of our remaining boxes -- we really don't like the whole moving process!!
March 13 - Happy Monthiversary!
March 20 - RV 2 - QUICK TRIP TO FORT WORTH TO GET THE RIGGIN' FOR TOWING THE JEEP
March 21 - Washed the Waggin' Wagon in preparation for our first real camping trip.
March 22 - Early Easter Gathering at the Compound. For some really fun photos of the Easter rabbit(s), click on the green button below.
March 23 - Happy Easter!
March 24-31 - RV TRIP 3 - WASHINGTON DC/ORLANDO, FL - For photos from the whole trip, click the green box below.
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April 1-14 - Continuation of RV Trip 3. For more photos, click again on the green button below.
April 15 - Tax Day!
April 18 - First round of golf at the ACC - Fairway Course, followed by Mah Jongg at Nancy's.
April 19 - First time in the pool for Cary and Lota - Awesome! How blessed are we? Enjoyed "A Night at the Opera" concert by the Abilene Philharmonic.
April 20-22 - Worked in rose garden, followed by a swim. Click on the green button to see beautiful rose photos in
April 23-24 - Lota traveled to New York for Ikaria board meeting.
April 25 - Swam, then played Mah Jongg.
April 26 - Traveled to a northern suburb of Dallas called Frisco to attend our first Jimmy Buffett concert. We've been officially inducted as "parrotheads"! For the wild and crazy photos, click on the green button below.
April 27 - Good to be back home to the pups (Thanks to Nancy and Gene for dogsitting!)
April 28-30 - Updated website.....
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May 2 - Golf at the Abilene Country Club -- beautiful day! Cary, Lota, Ruth Ann & Tom were invited to dinner at Copper Creek with Randy and Mikea Glenn.
May 3 - Dinner with folks at ACC, followed by a wonderful Abilene Philharmonic concert and topped off with coffee at Tuscany's. See photos below.
May 11 - Mother's Day - Escorted Nancy and Ruth Ann to brunch at Fairway Oaks, and enjoyed celebrating Mother's Day with Eugene, Tom, Cary and Lota. See photos below.
May 15 - Texas thunderstorm hit Buffalo Gap and the Compound hard -- see photos below.
May 16 - Lunch with our Buffalo Gap gang at Hickory Street Cafe in Abilene to commemorate Lovelle's birthday. See photos below.
May 17 - Cary and Lota have dinner at Manchester Pub -- great fun!
May 17-18 - Bobcat weekend -- Lota & Cary moved dirt using our fun little rental vehicle -- see photos below.
May 25 - Memorial Day Barbecue at the Compound -- Buffalo Gap gang, with the addition of Cyndy Montgomery and Don Tilden. Beautiful day in the backyard oasis!!
May 26 - Attended celebration of Coach Miller's Driving School's one-year anniversary at Lytle Land & Cattle Company.
May 28 - Cary and Lota traveled to Washington DC. Enjoyed delightful dinner at Sweetwater Tavern with Kevin and Dana Meier. Stayed with our gracious host, Lori Weiman.
May 29 - Cary and Lota had lunch at Capital Grille in downtown DC with our old friend, Si White, who was serving as CFO of the Grameen Foundation. See photo below. Lota attended an Executive Summit meeting in the late afternoon at the Tower Club.
May 30 - Both Cary and Lota had their annual physical examinations with Dr. Baruch. The day ended with an absolutely delightful dinner with Phil Martin & Barbara Mullenex at their home in Chevy Chase. See photo below.
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June 1-17 - Preparations in process for Callie and family's arrival, including finishing the improvement of Cherry Street (Nancy & Gene's home). For photos and story, please click on green button below.
June 18 - Callie, Jason, Clay, Quinn & Dylan arrived for a two-week stay in Texas.
June 20 - RV TRIP 4 - KERRVILLE, TX. Clay, Quinn & Dylan rode along and watched movies. Parked and stayed at Buckhorn Lake Resort in Kerrville. Visited Eugene's daughter, Teresa, and husband Kerry, at their lovely ranch.
June 23 - Departed Kerrville to return to Buffalo Gap.
June 24 - Lota departed for Hyperion Therapeutics board meeting in San Francisco.
June 26 - Lota returned to Abilene.
June 27 - We terriorized the Abilene Country Club golf course with a "fivesome" - Cary, Lota, Callie, Clay and Brad Hicks (Cary/Callie's cousin).
June 30 - Callie & family returned to Atlanta.
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July 1 - Golf at ACC
July 2 - Golf at ACC
July 3 - Golf at Fairway, followed by Mah Jongg at Nancy's.
July 4 - Mary & Jerry hosted their July 4th bash at their lovely home.
July 5 - Cary, Ruth Ann & Tom hosted the continued celebration of the Fourth at the Compound. Lota was under the weather.
July 8 - Despite thunderstorms in Charlotte, NC, Selina, Karlie & Kacie (Tom & RA's sister-in-law and nieces) arrived for a long weekend in Texas.
July 10 - Nancy & Cary hosted Selina, Karlie & Kacie for horseback riding at Renee's farm in Trent. See photos below.
July 11 - They had so much fun horseback riding, they did it again! The group celebrated Tom's birthday by going to the ACC for dinner. See photos below.
July 13 - The Harmons returned to Charlotte, NC.
July 14 - RV TRIP 5 - GREAT SMOKY MOUNTAN NATIONAL PARK, TN/ WASHINGTON DC/ HILTON HEAD, SC/ STONE MOUNTAIN, GA/ BUMPASS, VA/ KANSAS CITY, MO/ OKLAHOMA CITY, OK - For the story of this trip and photos, please click on the green button below.
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Aug 1 - 21 - Continuation of RV Trip 5. For more and the photos, click the green button below.
Aug 23 - Made a quick trip to Lubbock to trade in our BMW for a 2008 Lexus RXh400 (a small Hybrid SUV). See photo below.
Aug 25 - Attended the American Idol concert in Dallas. For story and photos, click the green button below.
Aug 26 - Shopped for "back-to-school" clothes and shoes, as well as school supplies, for Christina's family.
Aug 29-31 - Ruth Ann and Tom make quick trip to Charlotte, NC.
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Sept 1 - Enjoyed attending the 27th Annual Chili Bowl (Chili Cookoff) at the Old Settler's Grounds in Buffalo Gap. See photos below.
Sept 3-6 - Departed for Ft. Collins, Colorado, with Cary driving Nancy's red Ford Escape (to give to Tiffany), Lota driving the new Lexus (to drop off in Lubbock for minor repairs) and Ruth Ann driving the Prius. For story and photos, click the green button below.
COLORADO TRIP
Sept 11-15 - Ruth Ann & Tom enjoy a few days in Seattle.
Sept 13 - Happy Monthiversary! Enjoyed dinner, a classical Philharmonic concert and coffee with the Philharmonic gang.
Sept 18 - Golf at Fairway
Sept 21 - Repaired greenhouse.
Sept 22 - The Buffalo Gap gang attended Tucker's volleyball game, followed by an early birthday dinner for Cary at Rosa's.
Sept 23-26 - Lota attended Executive Summit retreat at Keswick Hall in Charlottesville, VA.
Sept 26 - Happy Birthday, Cary! - Enjoyed dinner at ACC - fun!
Sept 28 - Golf at Fairway
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Oct 4 - Lota reunited with four high school classmates, Lynlee, Tammy, Suzann and Nancy Ann. Enjoyed a trip to San Angelo where a delicious lunch of Mexican food followed some pretty intense shopping! See the photo of these long-time friends below. Later, Cary and Lota enjoyed dinner, the "All Rachmaninoff" Philharmonic performance and coffee with the Philharmonic gang.
Oct 5-9 - Prepared Waggin' Wagon for trip to Austin.
Oct 10- Departed for RV Trip 6 - Destination Austin. For more about the trip and photos, click the green button below.
Oct 13 - Happy Anniversary - 18 years!!
Oct 18 - Attended live performance of "A Prairie Home Companion" at ACU, with dinner afterward at Copper Creek.
Oct 19 - Golf at Fairway
Oct 21 - Golf at ACC
Oct 24 - Depart for long weekend in Dallas/Ft. Worth to celebrate our friend Cyndy's wedding. Stayed in a wonderful B&B in downtown Fort Worth called Etta's Place. Enjoyed dinner at The Vault Mediterranean and a new play by the Tuna guys - "Tuna Does Vegas"!
Oct 25 - Cyndy and Don's Wedding followed by cocktails with friends before the reception at the Crescent Club.
Oct 26 - Attended baby shower for Jessica and Brenn (Betsy & Barry's son).
Oct 28 - Early voting
Oct 29 - Lota departed for Ikaria board meeting at corporate headquarters in Clinton, New Jersey.
Oct 30 - Board meeting, followed by return to Buffalo Gap.
Oct 31 - Halloween -- Booooo!
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| Tammy, Lynlee, Nancy Ann, Lota & Suzann |
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Nov 1 - Today was supposed to be RV Trip 7, with the destination being Lubbock. On the way to Abilene, we got the "check engine" light and decided to take it directly to the local Freightliner mechanics. While we were disappointed that we couldn't take the RV to Lubbock we were incredibly happy to finally have the emissions system "fixed" by the complete replacement (under warranty, thankfully) of the regeneration system. So, with a quick transfer of luggage to our car, we traveled to Lubbock for the Texas Tech v. Texas football game. The final score was:
Texas Tech 39 - Texas 33
with the final touchdown being scored by Tech with 0:01 left on the clock. Unbelievable! Below are few photos, including our gracious hosts, Jerry and Kristi.
Nov 2 - Enjoyed a wonderful brunch with Jerry, Kristi, and Kristi's parents, Wanda and Jimmie. Made it back to Abilene in time to watch the football game between Dallas and New York.
Nov 3 - The Buffalo Gap gang treated Lota to an early birthday dinner at Abuelo's with lots of "Life Is Good" presents.
Nov 8 - Lota and her former classmates met in Abilene for lunch and shopping.
Nov 13 - Lota picked up Lori at the Abilene airport, and went to Copper Creek Restaurant for some contemporary Texas cuisine and excellent wine.
Nov 14 - Dinner and Mah Jongg at Aliceann's with Nancy & Gene, Lori and Cary & Lota.
Nov 15 - Dinner with the Buffalo Gap gang at Nancy's -- awesome Mexican fare and margaritas!
Nov 16 - Nice easy day, except that Lori shellacked Lota on the tennis courts, after which it was time to ride in the four-wheeler and enjoy a fire in the firepit. See photos below.
Nov 17 - Lori departed Buffalo Gap after promising to return in warmer weather to enjoy the backyard oasis. And a good time was had by all!
Nov 21 - Reconnected with Christina Salazar, and discovered our calling (that was and is helping Christina and her seven children get on their feet and stay there). See The Salazar Story 2008 and The Salazar Story 2009 .
Nov 25 - Delivered refrigerator and groceries to Christina's family.
Nov 27 - Happy Thanksgiving at the Compound with the extended Buffalo Gap family.
Nov 28-30 - Intense work on getting Christina's home clean and furnished.
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| Lota & Lori enjoy a crisp fall evening at the Compound! |
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| Lota, Jordan, Lori & Molly enjoy the sunset around the firepit. |
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Dec 1-5 - More work gathering household items for Christina's family - and laundry, laundry, laundry - see The Salazar Story 2008.
Dec 6 - Abilene Philharmonic presented their fourth annual "Christmas Celebration" concert. Before the concert, we dined with our friends at Lytle Land & Cattle Co.
Dec 11 - Lota traveled to New York for Ikaria board meeting. Enjoyed a lovely cocktail party with a view of Central Park south and dinner at a great restaurant, "81" on the upper west side.
Dec 12 - Lota attended board meeting in Manhattan, and enjoyed a nice evening on Broadway.
Dec 13 - Happy Monthiversary! Lota returned from New York, and enjoyed dinner with Cary. Nice to go, but even nicer to come back.
Dec 24 - Santa and his helpers visited our nephews Kain & Jordan, our neighbor Spencer, our adopted family The Salazars and our high school friend's (Lynlee) grandchildren Skyeler, Kylene and Londyn. Following Santa's visit, we enjoyed hors d'ouerves and cocktails at Nancy & Gene's. For photos, click on the two green buttons below.
Dec 25 - Tradition for our family continued as Nancy & Gene came to our home in pajamas, and joined Ruth Ann, Tom, Cary and Lota for the opening of the stockings. Our family then celebrated Christmas over lunch, and enjoyed football games and looking at all the bounty Santa brought!
Dec 31 - Enjoyed a quiet New Year's Eve at home.
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