May 31
Today we made it to Ken & Susie Collins’ place in Aubrey, Texas. What a lovely estate! (Minus the goats next door – LOL) Susie has a real knack for using antique pieces in decorating a warm and welcoming home. Loved her watermelon kitchen–subtle, but as we spotted them we looked for more. 🙂 Barry and I enjoyed some relaxing pool time with a refreshing beverage. Susie was working an estate sale today, but will be home later.
I was excited to meet Susie and have this opportunity to get to know her, whereas Ken I’ve known for many years. I met Ken when I began teaching at Heatherwood Middle School. He was the best building security guy, a dependable friend, and a great guy ready to help out wherever needed. He knew ALL the kids. They all loved Mr. Ken! (As did the staff!) He often organized a staff golf outing in the spring, and hosted many staff parties at his home. I was very happy for him when he told me that he and Susie started seeing each other.
When Ken mentioned today that Susie played pickleball, I stopped dead in my tracks! I instantly bonded with her and she wasn’t even here! LOL
Saturday evening after dinner, the four of us played the game “Play Nine”—a golf game. Susie won. 🙂 It was so much fun! We could probably figure a way to do this with a regular deck of cards – but it would be more fun to just get the game. That way we’d always have the directions with it.
Cool bug on the porch: A type of mantis?
We had so much fun with these two, that we were able to cancel the night at the Dallas Elks to stay here one more day and night! It helped that we aligned politically. 🙂
On Sunday, we all went to Dinkers Pickleball (indoor pickleball). We played pickleball for nearly two hours! Ken hasn’t acquired the addiction, but he claims he had a good time today—better than he has had previously. He made some great shots.
MORE pool time!
After dinner we played “Hand and Foot”. Guys vs Girls. The girls won by a landslide. 🙂 This was Barry’s first time ever playing this card game. He really like it!
We loved the automatic card shuffler we used tonight! Worked flawlessly. Susie and Ken have a lot of antique finds from estate sales. He showed us this old card shuffler:
Ken fed us well from the time we arrived, and even sent us off on Monday with a container of his delicious homemade chicken noodle soup! This will be perfect for an upcoming night on the road!
Barry and I were both really glad that we were able to reconnect with Ken & Susie while we were in the area, especially since we missed each other when we came through the area last year! We need to stay in touch better. I should have taken more pictures throughout our stay, but we were totally in the moment enjoying their company. 🙂
Tomorrow we go to the Dallas area to begin a visit with my good friend, Dean Weldon from Oak Harbor, WA
👍🍉