Going Home

I had the chance to fly home to visit Mom and Dad this past weekend.  I was excited to see the brick with Dad's name on it at the Veterans Memorial Park in Boerne.  

All three of us kids are so proud of our dad and all the things he has done in his life.  He is someone that loves to help people.  He is a humanitarian to the core.  He is not happy sitting still and he has a heart the size of the universe.  (Of course, if we knew the brick would be that large, we would have come up with some smarta** comment to write on it, for sure...).

The extra cool thing is that the park is right across the street from the Catholic Church where Shey and I were married.

They did a wonderful job with the plaques and remembrances.

We hung out at the house on Friday evening, after Taco Cabana, of course.  Then hit the Saturday market in Boerne.

We found a couple neat things, including a rosary bracelet, that I LOVE.  I  went back to pick one up for a very special friend and wondered if Amber would like one.

Just chillin' with my TX homies

Dad drove back from the market and Mom and I strolled the main street in Boerne, had a fantastic lunch, then walked home.  I had picked up an bottle opener for Dad that was made from an antler and I wanted to get him some bottled beer on the way.  So.....Mom and I walked with our goodies we purchased and a six pack of beer.  It turned out that the bottles had twist off caps, but we insisted on using the bottle opener anyway.  Funny!


Me and Mom.

This dude looks just like David Grohl from Foo Fighters.  Ya' know, from the video "Learn to Fly"?!

Anyhoo, I got in touch with my sister-in-law Amber and she said she could meet for breakfast the next morning.  She is a wonderful person and I don't get to visit with her often enough.  I got to spend time with Glenn and Kenneth and Christina on our last two visits, but not with Amber.  So, I was glad she was available.

I got up early and stopped to pick up some flowers for the cemetery, then met Amber at a cafe in Comfort.  The cafe wasn't open yet, so we went for a walk around our hometown and picked up a sweet stray dog along the way.  We could even hear a marching band in the distance, I thought we might be in a parade.  Breakfast was great and it was nice to catch up.  Amber and Donnie have a barn where they host events https://www.facebook.com/pages/Violas-Ranch/494733127250728
and she needed to meet someone to give them a tour.  So, we said "goodbye" and I headed down to the cemetery.

There are a lot of special people resting and remembered here.   My grandfather, Albert Pankratz.  My Aunt Dorothy and Uncle Ace, Uncle Gene, Uncle Bill.  Aunt Tina and Uncle Harry.  Aunt Marie.  Shey's Oma and Opa.  And the list goes on and on and on.  Walking through here and placing flowers brings back so many good memories of my childhood.  They were nearby while we fished, climbed trees, played baseball, explored, danced and so much more.  I'm thankful to have been raised around these people.

Shey's Oma and Opa were very special people.  Opa was funny and Oma always had great stories and neat old pictures to look at.  I loved having them come to visit us during the short time Shey and I lived in Comfort after we were married.

I got back in touch with Amber when I finished up my flower deliveries.  She was free, so we decided to drive back to the market in Boerne and go for a walk.  I had thought she might like the rosary bracelet and she did!  We walked and talked a bit more, with some chocolate thrown in there somewhere.  Very good times!

Next, Mom went with me to pick up Dad's Christmas gift.  As we were driving around and looking at old homesteads and Christmas lights, I put my window down and we heard music.  We found where it was coming from and this guy, Chris Cruz, was playing.  Wonderful musician and the beer/wine was yummy, too.

 We came across this guy, too.  He isn't from the area, but said his Toyota had been hit and he was stuck in Boerne for a while???  It was a little hard to follow his ramblings.  Something about his boots and business cards and he was trying to sell a sketch of himself.  Interesting conversation.

Mom gave me her green dress that she wore for a date when she first met my Dad in California. (just a few years ago)  This dress was in the closet in the upstairs room at our house growing up and I always loved it!  It's my favorite color and I'm so glad it fits!  Probably won't wear the sports bra with it next time, though.

More walking in lovely weather.

And when I got home, this came in the mail.  Mom and I saw them at the Saturday Market in Portland, Oregon.  She found the guy and had him send me an oil lamp.  We are using it every evening and love it!

Here's to many more visits with a great family.