All Settled Into Our New Home

I know some of you have been wondering how things are going here in Waco ~ well we finished 8 long days of orientation on Wednesday, August 10.

Thursday, August 11 was filled with lots of emotions.  To get business out of the way first we met with our Unit Manager (UM) Mr. Chris and Mr. Richard (his last day was Friday, August 12th).  We learned how to do our payroll ~ good thing and payday is this Friday.  It has been since the end of July since we have gotten a regular paycheck and juggling things have been a bit tough but we made it!!!  

And many times throughout the day we thought of our son, Royce Alan.  

Picture taken by our son, Brandon, August 2015 when he was in Las Vegas.
He also bought the special bear for Royce.

It is so hard to believe that he has been gone from us for 39 years.  My mnd wanders sometimes to thinking what would his life have been like?  We know what the medical doctors told us at the time of his passing but still this mama's heart wonders.

We were able to text with both Jamie and Brandon and that warmed our hearts.  We are so thankful for both of our sons who are with us today.  We are proud of the young men, husbands, daddy's and friends they have become.  

Friday, August 12th found out getting out of the apartment ~ can you say cabin fever?  We were able to get a check cashed and so we decided to go for a drive to Arlington, TX ~ destination Costco - they take checks :)  We set our GPS for the shortest route from MCH to Costco - we drove through some beautiful country, enjoyed being together, talked about our upcoming week of finally being able to work with the boys here and then we had Costco hotdogs for lunch ~ cheap and tasty!  After spending way too much money yet thankful we had the money to spend we took the fastest route back to our apartment here at Boys Ranch.

Saturday we decided to go to the Farmers' Market here in Waco.  There were lots and lots of food vendors.  We can't wait to go back and get some homemade tamales ~ $17 for a dozen ~ and I can almost taste them.  I won a free jar of garlic/herb spice from one of the vendors because I guessed the answer to a question about a from the 60's/70's ~ Peter, Paul & Mary.  Going to try the spices tonight when I make spaghetti for us for dinner.

We then rode the free trolley around town.  Stopped at Magnolia Farms ~ it was way too busy for us but at least we can say we have been there, done that.  Maybe we will go again when it is not the weekend and maybe it won't be so crowded.

And then we drove around the back side of Boys Ranch to the Branch Davidian Compound.

There are signs on the main gate No Trespassing so we didn't go any further in.  We were surprised to find out the compound is directly on the backside of the Boys Ranch.  None of the staff who are here now were here when the FBI took over Branch Davidian.  It would have been interesting to talk to someone to hear how all that affected, if it did, the Boys Ranch.  We did notice there are still some homes on the property and that they looked like they were being lived in.  We respected their privacy and the No Trespassing signs so we did not drive through the gates.

Sunday, August 14 we had breakfast with the boys and Mr. Scott and Miss Christina (our counter house parents) and then went to church with them at the Main Campus.  It was a great service ~ the pastor spoke about Daniel and how he and his three friends made the choice to follow God even during difficult times.  Next Sunday we will be on our own with the boys ~ it is nice to know where to park, where to sit in the sanctuary (each house is assigned two rows of pews ~ it changes from week to week) and what the service was like.  In two weeks (on our off week) we will be checking out a church here in Waco.  Most of the house parents attend elsewhere on their off weeks.  And that is our plan as well.

In the afternoon I worked on some cards to send out ~ if you want to get on our monthly newsletter please be sure to send me a note through the comments or on Facebook.  In the evening we watched a couple of movies and just relaxed.

And today we finished hanging up pictures in our apartment ~ so get ready for your tour!!

This is one wall in our kitchen.  

This is one corner in our bathroom with two of my earring holders
and the Hear, See, Speak No Evil decoration from our son, Jamie

This is one wall in our bedroom.  The cross-stitch picture was made for us
on our 25th wedding anniversary by my sister Joanie.  Though she refuses to speak
to us we do think of her often.

This lttle sign we have had hanging in our home
since our boys were 6 & 8.
I am sure if they were asked if the saying is true,
they would give a resounding yes!!

Two of my graduation diplomas

 

This is actually 3 pictures but I couldn't get all three in the picture.  

From left to right is my Aunt Cathie & my Dad, Ted ~ there were 7 & 9 we believe.

The middle picture is of my dad's parents at their wedding.

It is the only picture I have of my grandparents on my dad's side.  

This is the corner opposite of our bed.
Pictures of our boys and all the grands are in this corner.

This is in our bathroom.
The two pictures of Jamie and his family
and Brandon and his family when Treyson was born.

And that's it for now.
Next blog will be pictures of our apartment!!

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