On my way to TEXAS!
Off to HH in Canton Texas, Bar Z Winery. I really don’t know why I keep trying wine in all of these areas, it’s generally not great. I am not a wine snob, Washington just produces such great wines and they are practically in my backyard! Woodinville to Duvall is 10 miles!
I got to the HH and the views were amazing! It was kind of in a neighborhood, at least behind it there were many McMansions, Texas style! The patio was lovely. I had a couple of hours before closing so I ordered some food and a tasting. OMG! I did not get through two and a half of the four pours, they were huge! Everything’s bigger in Texas! The Roussanne wasn’t bad. I did taste them all, just couldn’t drink them all – and in two hours!
The glasses are large!!
The owner popped out and chatted for a bit, thankfully he didn’t ask me about the wines. He was more interested in Lambert. He asked if he could give him a treat. I always say yes, but with the caveat that he’s VERY picky. The guys said, oh, he’sll take it from me. (I was like – right. It’s a milk bone, this dog does not eat grocery store brand treats.) Of course Lambert ate it, two actually!
I was not plugged in so knew I would awake to no power, which I did. but as soon as I start the van the batteries work. So a quick puppy walk and we are on our way. It’s still a long drive to Flower Mound, so we stopped at a couple of rest areas, for a quick walk, potty break for Lambert and snacks for both of us! And, this was posted at two of the areas in Texas, crazy!
Arrived at Flower Mound!
I am excited to see a friend! I arrived and within minutes I had a nice, chilled glass of California Chardonnay on the patio. AHHHHHH And I know Lambert is VERY excited to meet his two new girlfriends, Sage and Rue!
We unpacked the van, all the food, all the laundry and all my necessary stuff! I was looking forward to a few nights in a bed (for free)! The next day I had an appointment to take the van to Car Toys and have that sorted out. We dropped it off, then got a pedicure. As soon as we were done the van was ready! Perfect timing. Piper dropped me to get it, all is well. The amplifier had died so they replaced it, no charge. (Could it have died because of the battery issues? I didn’t mention that to them.)
The next day was Saturday and my appointment at Camping World in Denton, Texas wasn’t until Monday. I called to ask if I could drop it off early, in case they could start. We did. I walked through the issues with the service manager and hoped this would get resolved. Then on to Alex’s new house to help unpack some boxes. Lambert was getting his share of puppy time; five dogs on half an acre. Living the life!
Birthday and Fun Times!
That evening Piper and Dustin treated me to a wonderful steak dinner at 1845 for my birthday. The meal was awesome, then back to their house to throw knives and axes at a new board against their fence. (I am in Texas!) I sucked at it, not my night. It could have been the wine and the fact that three dogs were running around freaking me out, though both Piper and Dustin seemed to do okay!
We did a lot of relaxing, walking, playing Rummikub, watching The White Lotus. It was perfect! I got all my laundry done, showered EVERY DAY, shocking and ate a lot! We went to a The Hop and Sting Brewing Company with Aidan, Alyssa and Mason, such a cutie. I also got to see Casey again when Abby stopped by to say hello, he’s a real cutie too!
Van Repairs?
Dallas van repairs were a complete BUST! I thought Car Toys fixed the issue, and to some extent they did. I can listen to a book on car play and maps work but I can’t hear a phone call or a text and the back up camera is non-existent. Crap!
Camping World put new coach batteries in the van, so I was super excited that I won’t have any more van issues. Unfortunately they did not get the work completed until THURSDAY! I am sure the Kleider’s are sick of me by now! AND Maddy decided to meet me in NOLA, she lands on Saturday at 6am. This means I have basically a one night stop over to get to NOLA. No problem, I should be able to make it halfway, Shreveport is about four hours away. Then the next day I can get to the Whitney Plantation (Something I have read about and want to see for sure!), stay near there and get Maddy in the morning on Saturday.
On my way to NOLA
NOPE. It took me FIVE hours to get to Tyler, Texas, which should be about a 2 hour drive, traffic, road construction and an accident! So, Whitney Plantation will have to be another trip! I had read about this plantation; in a nutshell, it depicts how life as a slave was at the Plantation. From their website: Whitney Plantation is the only plantation museum in Louisiana with an exclusive focus on the story of slavery…. Learn about the lives of people forced to cultivate sugar and rice on this plantation from 1752-1865. Sixteen original structures, including the Big House and two slave cabins, remain on site. Whitney Plantation features several memorials dedicated to the enslaved people who were forced to live and work here and throughout Louisiana.
Maddy’s college girlfriend, Kirby, lives in NOLA. She and her family are traveling and offered us their house. (YES, another free stay in a real bed!) I hoped to see Kirby and meet the beautiful kiddos I get to see on Instagram. Feels like I’ll be making another trip to New Orleans!
Since the Plantation was out, I decided to go directly to Kirby (and Alex’s) house on Friday night. Maddy will Uber there, so I don’t have to get up at the crack of dawn! All was well driving into the city and then, POW, the skies opened up, like nothing I have EVER seen. Thankfully I was on a 45mph road and I was going 30, go around me locals! In a couple of miles I was in the neighborhoods, my windshield wipers could not keep up. The rain was coming down in SHEETS. It was crazy. I missed my turn, twice, off of St Charles, which I realized the next day was confusing, even in nice weather!
ARRIVED!!!
I grabbed my raincoat, got the dog in the house and tried to unload what I could. Wowza! I was soaked! Kirby had left a bottle of wine and I brought in a few snacks, dinner is served! Their house is beautiful and dog friendly! Lambert was happy to settle on the couch and sleep with me in the guest room. Looking forward to seeing Maddy bright and early…. ummmm, no. Her flight is canceled from SEA TAC. Good Lord! She is able to find another flight through O’Hare (always iffy) and makes it to NOLA around 9am, not bad! I headed out to a local shop for some snacks before she arrived. Thinking, I could live here… if the weather was different. HAHA
Just a couple of observations…
- Churches GALORE!
- Still so many storage units
- Oh, and Jesus Loves Me (In case you were wondering. There were many signs to let me know!)
- Lots of Trump sings (do these things go together? hmmmm)
Don’t know how I missed reading this before! I read about your time with Maddy last week. Sounds like you are having many adventures – I’m always happy to read when you are with friends or someone is with you – I think we need to have some company in life.
I do enjoy the company. It makes things easier for sure!
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