Buescher State Park Camping

Two weekends ago, we had a lovely time camping with some of our friends & discovering a new state park (on our 101 List) at Buescher State Park, about 1.5 west of Houston.



Zoe had hurt her leg earlier in the week, so it was just Mia on this trip & good thing- she was a lot to handle in the woods!



We lucked out & I had rented a nice little Premium Shelter. It was very privater and very secluded, had decent view of the water & was perfect for camping in the spring/fall when the weather can suddenly get very cold or rainy.



Inside was very nice- tons of windows, lined with cedar, nice big fan with bright lights, big picnic table & a handy broom.



I loved opening up the screened windows each day & being able to keep all of our food inside without having to pack it up each night.



I think this was a fairly recent update to this particular site. The old picnic table was still there, plus a nice big new one, a grill and a garbage can.



It took Mia a while to figure out the whole 'being tied to a tree' thing.







She quickly learned the 'chill out in a chair' move.



But even better was the 'climb into H's lap' move while we waited for our friends to arrive after work on Friday.



She did great for the most part- not wandering off too far when we took her off leash, not barking at the many noises, and being semi-well behaved for a puppy.

Part 2 coming tomorrow...

GOOD NEWS OF THE DAY: All of our indoor Christmas decorations are up!

Married for 1,001 Days

Since my last update in June in 2008, when were were at the half-way point, we've made some great progress on our 101 Things in 1,001 Days of our marriage. We didn't get them all done, but certainly had a ton of fun trying new things on our 101 List & learning during the first 1,001 days of our marriage.

6- Go to a NY Yankees Game (June 2007)
7- The biggie this year as our trip to Brazil & Argentina for our anniversary (February 2008)
9- Attend 2 Plays: Phantom of the Opera & Mauritius
10- We started our garden! (April 2008) & will did it again this year
11- Music library is really coming together on my iMac with iTunes & our new living room stereo system (Dec 2008)
12- Decorate H's office (all of 2008)
14- H to start a 401(K)
16- Start a journal ( blogging )
18- Build a substantial savings

20- Subscribe to a magazine (Newsweek)
21- Visit the dentist
22- Install a Sprinkler System (Jan 2009)
22- Install a sprinkler system (Jan 2009)
23- Join the University of Houston Alumni (January 2009)
26- Clean the carpet
30- Plant some flowerbeds (definitely this spring)
31- Fondue with friends (done twice)
34- Read a fiction novel (You can see that I've done that several times over)
40- Take a photography class (June 2007)

44- SCUBA certification (completed July 2008)
46- We went to the New Orleans Jazz Fest (April 2008)
47- Run everyday for a month (did this, but might do it again)
50- Write and publish a technical paper (presented it in Detroit)
51- Get Professional Engineering License (studied & I passed!)
52- Finish home entertainment system (January 2009)
54- Go to a small town fair & rodeo
57- Subscribe to a travel magazine (we loved Budget Travel)
60-Bake a Cheesecake (1st attempt in November 2008, will try again!)
62- Visit Alabama (Trip for Thanksgiving 2007)
65- Go to an art exhibit (saw Da Vinci) & went to the Art Festival several times
67- Girls weekend (Labor Day 2008 in Colorado with Stephanie & Wine Weekend in 2009)

69 -Austin City Limits Festival (Oct 2009)
72- New grill for the house
75- Organize garage (officially done January 2009)
76- See Dave Matthews Band in Concert (and did this again!)
68- Redecorate our bedroom
71- Give blood
72- Pay off debt
76- Cut Christmas Tree (completed in 2008)

81- Fly a Kite (Feb 2008)
83- Go to a Houston Dynamo Game (July 2008)
84- Rent 10 classic movies
87- Go on a picnic (several times)
88- Couples Massage was awesome (October 2008)
89- Watch a Parade (Houston Rodeo Parade Nov 2008)
94- Try new ethnic restaurants (Mediterranean, Vietnamese & Spanish)
97- Ice Skating (did this with his cousins, but might go again)
100- Visit the Messina Hof Winery (Harvest & Stomp in July 2008)

ON GOING ITEMS

41- Cook 1 new meal a week (I've done a few & plan on doing a few more)
48- Visit grandparents every week (I've been better, but not great about this)
90- Review monthly budget (we're been pretty good about this)

101- Go to the driving range together (we've been a few times)

COMING SOON

13- Hot Air Ballon Ride- it's booked for our trip to New Zealand
27- Go fishing with my dad (Hopefullly this Spring)

45- Camp at 3 New Parks (our 3rd will be this weekend)

GOOD NEWS OF THE DAY: Headed out to South Dakota today for work.