All toes

Stuart has finally got his final birthday present today from Mum and Dad and he is very happy - it is a Rush cycling jersey. See him modelling it in the lounge this evening! Apparently, the 2112 album is THE iconic Rush album!!

We went out for a walk this evening so I could try out my new Vibrams. My little toes do feel a bit weird in them as they don't really appreciate being separated from my other toes. We did a fair walk and I had not too much discomfort. I tried a little trot as well but my thighs are still not totally healed so that didn't last, but Stuart said he could already see that I was running on the balls of my feet. I will slowly progress my barefoot running technique and see how I get on.

While down the bayou we saw the funniest thing. An elderly lady was pushing a bright pink push chair with her two little pooches sitting in. I guess they were just out for the fresh air! It was quite busy along there as the weather was really fine - in the upper 70 degC. I took Stuart to a different place along the bayou that I discovered the other day with Dorte, and it is much prettier as it is more like a park area with ducks, seats and a big wooden pagoda.

We ate outside again making the most of Spring.

Easing the pain!

I am still in quite a lot of pain, my thighs are extremely tender, but tonight I had my massage. I was looking forward to it all day. Even though it was the relaxing massage rather than the deep tissue one, I nearly cried when she used her elbow up my spine and knuckles on my thighs. She said you are very tender aren't you - yes!!! The lady suggested I go in the steam room straight after the massage, which I did. So apart from from the pain, it was great and hoping I will be feeling some of the benefits tomorrow. Thank you Mum for my birthday present. I was also told there is some sort of massage week between the 12-18th April and all massages are half price - might have to take advantage of that :)

Tonight we had BBQ and ate outside such bliss at the moment as it is warm but not humid and no mosquitoes - long may it last! Tonight we experimented cooking the asparagus in a tin foil packet on the grill and it worked a treat with our pork escalopes coated grub rub.

I have just finished watching the Karate Kid (the original) - haven't seen that in a while:) Wax on, wax off!

Have you done your New Year resolution yet?

Today I have fulfilled my New Year resolution - run a half marathon. I wont say it was without pain, but I did it and I did it under my goal of 2 hours 30 minutes.

Yesterday Cecelia and I drove up to Hyatt Lost Pines Resort just south of Austin where the race was being run. We drove down their 3 mile drive which was a very windy road and with lots of steep ups and downs. I said to Cecelia there was no way we would be running along it because I had look at the elevation plot of the race course and it wasn't that bad!

We picked up our race packets, another shopping bag with t-shirt and advertisement. The race was hosted through Zooma. They do races for women, although men are not excluded (54 took part today), and this was only their second year running the race. There were a couple of stalls in the room selling shoes, clothing and other stuff. We got ourselves a free shoulder massage, followed by Cecelia buying some smelly sugar rub (we already have something similar), and then with both bought a pair of Vibrams (for barefoot running) - I will discuss them another day. We spent almost 2 hours wandering around so it was after 8pm before we left and we still needed dinner.

We were booked into a Super 8 motel in Bastrop (a small town off the highway). So on the way back to the motel we looked for food. The first place we tried was 'Chili's', which is quite a large chain place (therefore nothing special), and even at 8:30pm it must be the top place in Bastrop as there was a queue of people out the door and the wait was going to be at least 25 minutes! So we went to find somewhere else. We ended up at a steakhouse, which looked more like a Mexican restaurant than a steakhouse. All we needed was pasta, but all the pasta on the dishes had cream sauce with them - don't need that. We asked the waiter if they could do cream sauce on the side and he said yes. All we drank was water, however it tasted more like toilet water so I had to request 'princess water' (bottled). When he brought a glass of ice with the bottle, Cecelia said don't poor the water in, and she tasted the ice - it was the ice that was grim, so with our warm water we hydrated! Dinner came and you would laugh, the pasta without the sauce looked good, but each plate was served with an enormous soup bowl filled with white (cream) sauce! Cecelia got the photo of it - need to say we didn't touch the white sauce!

Super 8 is a reasonably cheap motel and although the reception looked grim, I was pleasantly surprised with the room. Not to mention the front desk staff was really cheering. The beds were also pretty comfy too. Since we had to be up at 5am it was straight to bed.

The alarm at 5am was painful, my phone alarm decided to work unlike Friday morning when I was late for work because it didn't go off! Neither of us slept particularly well because of being in a strange place, but we showered and got out of the place by 5:30am to go to the parking area to get bused to the resort. The car park was at a school that was getting built so there were no lines in the parking lot. We both laughed that you were getting lots of women to park with no lines to guide them so it was going to havoc!!

I got to go in my first American school bus - you know one of the huge yellow ones. It was very exciting!! Our driver was a little scary as he was very old and seemed to be having difficulty seeing in the dark! Obviously by the time we got to the resort it was still dark at 6:30am and the race wasn't starting until 7:30am (sunrise). We sat around people watching and one of the funniest was a guy dressed in the worst put together outfit I have ever seen. Cecelia described it well, she said 'it was like telling a six year old to dress themselves, and they pick out all their favourite items of clothing!' So this guy had a lurid coloured t-shirt with a flappy shirt, tartan styles Bermuda shots and black and white checked plimsolls. I would not have allowed Stuart to be seen in public like that!!

We ended up nearly at the front of the runners, unintentionally, so we were cross the line in seconds of the 2955 runners. I was tracking our lap times per mile and we managed a sub 9 minute mile, which for me is way too fast especially and that was in the first few miles! The hills started as soon as we left the start gate - please remember I have now lived in flat Houston for a year! It was up and down all the way along a quiet road. We had police everywhere keeping us safe. We had to run up the side of highway 71 for a short while which was fine as all the traffic was slowed but it was quite stinky with car fumes. Then, we ended up going down the resort driveway! Yes, the one I thought we wouldn't have to do! It was as bad as my car was making it out to be! On one of the hills I managed to go into to my anaerobic zone, which means breathing is extremely strained and you can't talk at all! We ran through it, but that was only 5 miles in so plenty of distance still to go. We had to go back on to the same road we had come up on from the start line. And we came over one of the hills and we could just see people for miles and some people already coming back on us - they were fast! I ended up with a sugar goop thing (like warm sugary phlegm!) at mile 8 which was unpleasant but I think needed the energy to get through the final miles. Remember I had only every run 10 miles maximum and that was nearly a month ago because of my ankle/foot issue! Unfortunately, it was between 9-10 miles I had my first walk I saw a big hill and there was no way. Cecelia had gone on by this stage as she is a faster/better runner. The final three miles were hard there was no other word for it. Those last three were around the golf course at the resort but I didn't manage to take in much of the course as I had issues with calf cramp and my foot hurting lots. So I ended up walking and running. It made me so frustrated as I wanted to run but every time I picked up some speed I got cramp and had to walk it out. I read one of the signs at the edge of the course and it said 'pain is only temporary, pride is forever' - well my pride was to do it in less than 2 hours 30 minutes. As I came into the finishing gates I knew cramp was coming and it hit right at the end, utterly crippling, but a lady came up behind me and said keep going so I limped over the line. Yippee, we did it and that was the important thing :)

PS This is picture of a blue bonnet - it is the time of year when Texas turns blue.

So I have just been to the website to see my results, unfortunately there are no photos of me as the only one of me is my legs behind another person at the finish line! The other ones they associate with me, are not me!

So I came 670th out of 2955 (or 632nd of the 2796 female runners) and did the 13.1 miles in 2:24:36. For my age group that was 142nd out of 567. The other amazing thing was they gave the 10km time and that was a record for me at 0:52:11!!

In all, I feel very satisfied with my first half marathon and there is plenty of room for improvement when you consider the first person came in nearly an hour before me!!! Cecelia and I have already decided we are going to try and sign up for another one in Houston next January. I think I will be giving the one in two weeks time a miss and let my foot heal.

All the aches and pain from the race are nothing compared to my hip flexor, but that will get better soon I am sure. I have a couple of blisters that didn't hurt while running but look pretty impressive. I know I will welcome my massage on Monday!

We were back in Houston before 2pm and the rest of the day has been quiet watching a movie and occasionally jumping up to put the cramp at bay! Tonight we went the Lucky Chinese Buffet and just look at my prawn head puppets!!

Ready to run

All packed and ready for Cecelia and I drive up to Austin tomorrow after work. The weather is looking good for Saturday's run, however I am getting increasingly nervous about the prospect of running the half marathon :( I think I am slightly regretting my New Year resolution!

Today I received an email that said you should be carb loading so we had some pasta for dinner this evening. I have bought some bananas to have on Saturday morning for the early start - the race begins at 7:30am. We should be done before most people get out of bed! Cecelia discussed that we may have to have a couple of stops on the journey home straight after the race as we will be really seized up sitting in the car for two hours back to Houston!

Last night, 4am, we had a magnificent thunder storm. I kept my eyes closed so I didn't wake up too much so I don't know how impressive the lightening was, but the thunder went on for about a minute at a time and it was so loud the windows were shaking again.

Wish me luck for Saturday and I will let you know how it goes. I will be looking for to the massage I have booked for Monday after work.

Who's a clever boy?

My new LCD for my camera arrived. I cant remember if I said anything but I dropped my camera in the pub the other night and broke the LCD screen! I thought that was it for the camera and was getting ready to having to spend at least $300 on a new camera. Anyway, Stuart managed to find a second hand LCD screen on eBay. The benefit of having someone who has the patience and know how of efficiently searching the net.

Tonight he used his electronic skills and a guide off the Internet and he replaced the screen. His fingers weren't quite as nimble as those that put it together but he has managed to get it back together and it is working - and that cost just $20! It was quite interesting seeing the insides of the camera - but one of the most important things to keep an eye on is the screws as they are tiny. Stuart did drop one on the rug but fortunately found it again - eventually!

It has rained most of the day and nothing much else to report! Oh actually today's lunch was just as icky as yesterday! The beans from yesterday reappeared today with boiled potatoes mixed in with them, over cooked rice and what can only be described a fluorescent chicken curry. Am I being too picky?? If tomorrow is green coloured chicken salad with cold beans I will know where it has come from :)

Hungry Squirrels

Success! The squirrels have found the bird feeder and so now we have something to look at out our front window :)Lunch at work was an all time low today. Dorte and I took one look at it and decided to go down to the canteen in the basement of the building. Cecelia also joined us and when we were down there we discovered half of the office had also had the same idea. So what was so bad .... there was rice with peas and sweetcorn in it, over cooked beans and some grey meat (boiled, fatty beef) - hardly appetizing. My sandwich, on the other hand, was very nice, but not cheap so I wont be doing too often. We then sat out on the steps on the sun so much nicer than being inside all day.

We did a quick cycle along the Bayou this evening as it was just into the 70's - I love the warmer weather.

Snooze you lose!

I managed to turn my alarm off rather than pressing snooze this morning so it was a little rushed to get to work on time! I have just test my phone and it was in fact user error rather than me blaming the alarm for being faulty this morning!

Today the sun was shining while I looked at it out of the office window. It is going to get increasingly difficult to look at the fine weather from inside - I guess until it gets really sweaty :)

Stuart had a busy day of doing errands but the most important thing he did was hang up our new fancy bird feeder on the tree. It looks really smart (sorry forgot to take a photo to show you - because I know you are equally as excited to see it!) Unfortunately nothing has come to have a nibble of it, but we will continue watching!

I could believe the swimming pool at the gym - I had to wait! It seemed middle aged men have decided Monday's are the night to come swimming normally it is only me and one other. While I waited I decided to go into the sauna to keep warm however that was a bad move as when someone eventually got out I went straight from the sauna into the already cold pool - brrrr!

We have just bought another 6 months of insurance for Stuart's car and again we are absolutely shocked by the cost. Just short of $700 for 6 months, and that is approximately $200 less than the last time! I will never complain again in the UK!

Green and Wet!

I am failing at the blog at the moment - very much out of my usual pattern of writing every night after coming home. I can only put it down to laziness.

Well we have suddenly seen Spring arriving, apart from yesterday but I will come back to that! Just when Mum and Dad were here we saw the magnolia trees flower, they have pretty flowers but only for three days so a little pointless in my opinion! But with the blossom has come lots and lots of pollen. I have suffered my first bout of hay fever - described as allergies here! But I am frankly not surprised - the pool had a skim of yellow on it, the BBQ has a fine yellow dust and all the cars on the street are a shade of yellow. The trees responsible, not that I am sure what they are, have been dropping brown dangley flower bits everywhere. Hopefully it will all be over soon :)

This week it was St Paddy's night - Wednesday 17 March. A very popular celebration here - not entirely sure why but the shops go mad with green regalia. Laura planned for us all to go to the Ashford Pub, the Irish bar around the corner from us. It had an Irish Stew competition and promised band, pipes and dancers. Well we never managed to get a stew cooked but we went along after work. By the time we arrived everyone in the bar were very drunk. None of us were up to that considering it was a school night, plus I was still recovering from the previous Saturday night when we had all tried out another local bar where I had decided to take on a pool shark, not once but twice, took the (Blues) band microphone to sing down it and got told to get off a chair that I was dancing on! Less of that though and back to being dressed in green. We have now been introduced to two Brits who have spent the last eight or so years in Calgary and now have been expriated here. Disappointingly there was a serious lack of the entertainment promised!

The rest of the week was spent at home both of us were recovering from too many late nights, it has also been really hard to get up for work because the clocks went forward and it is now dark in the mornings. Fortunately, I have not been the only one to get in just on time last week! Saturday morning there was no lie in as we were going off to do a 41 mile cycle with the neighbours. It was a cycling event run as part of the Houston MS150. A training ride for all those taking part in the MS150, like Amy and John, and just for fun for us two. We were in a place called Magnolia somewhere an hour northwest of Houston. It was in the sticks so lots of nice quiet roads to cycle on, with only the occasional idiotic truck driving too fast. Stuart kindly changed my tires on my bike from hybrids to road tires - oh my goodness what a difference. We all set off at 8am with a wee chill in the air and spots of rain, (that was not going to stop us), and well I zoomed off - smooth tires and tightened suspension was easy and poor Stuart spent the the next 24 miles chasing me :) There was a refreshment stop at about mile 22 and we could see the skies getting very black and the occasional strike of lightening. Ok at this point I want to remind you that we are in Texas which is very flat and in the countryside there isn't much except for the odd house and car so nowhere to hide from lightening on a bicycle! Anyway we decided to get going without stopping and as we rode down another straight road the winds picked up and the rain came down, claps of thunder and lightening nearby, and finally followed by hail - not pleasant on the bike, in the end we spotted some trees and went for cover, that backed on to a field of turnips. It was too late to stay dry as we were drenched, and I know hiding by trees is not good in a lightening storm but we didn't have many options. Although we were the first to this spot we were quickly followed by many others, one of which Stuart had to stop before he landed in the turnips! The guy came cycling in shouting something, but we suddenly realised he could get his feet out of cleats (they must have got jammed from mud or something) anyway he looked very pleased for Stuart saving him from turnip face. Finally one of the sag vehicles (basically a support vehicle) came past. We flagged it down and decided to send John back to the start to get the car so he could come back and pick us three up. I should say it was still raining by this time. Another sag vehicle cam by piking up the other two left we us leaving us to try and keep warm. We started jumping around and I began chucking the turnips at the other two :) In the end a final sag vehicle came past and got us but I was really disappointed not to finish but I was really cold by this point. The weather was from the North and had dropped the spring temperatures down to about 10 degC. When we got back to the car I got changed in to my dry clothes (good girl guide - always prepared) and we got BBQ for lunch making us all feel much better.

Today, to make up for the ride cut short, we had planned to go for a ride to George Bush park. It was about 4 degC when we woke this morning but by the time we went cycling it was warmer but the wind was blowing about 20 miles an hour from the NW. It was a hard job out - actually so hard we went from a speedy 12 mph to 8 mph with the gusts. Coming home, Stuart and I reached 28.5 mph and John on his road bike got 30 mph!

This afternoon was spent buying a bird feeder that the squirrels can get into as well, Stuart will put it up on the tree at the front tomorrow and then grocery shopping. Poor Stuart got more stressed in the passenger seat than me driving as w had a number of bad drivers. There was actually a bump in one of the car parks that confused us - just how did you do that?! To make Dad really jealous we saw Orange Roughy at HEB, and had it for dinner. It is a really nice fish and I think we will be buying it again!

Well this week I must eat healthy and not drink - too much! as I have I have got my half marathon on Saturday. Unfortunately I went running last Monday only to discover the side of my foot is still no better but I will keep it rested until Saturday and just hope for the best.

Must get ready for bed as it nearly eleven already!

For those reading through Facebook I actually have a number of older posts you didnt see, but you can see at the full blog site.

End of the holiday

We dropped off Mum and Dad at the airport this afternoon. It seems to have gone really quickly. Dad and I did manage to squeeze in a game of golf yesterday. I managed to bet him, but only just, at least we now know his rib is better so he can go back to golf at home. I will take Stuart along to the course we went to as it was very reasonably priced and although not the most beautiful course in the world at least it got me playing golf again! We went back to Texas Land and Cattle last night for another steak!! and more margaritas.

The house is very quiet tonight and I am missing them both I just hope the flights go without hiccup. Back to work for me tomorrow and Stuart is off to a conference for the next three days.

Snap Snap!

The weather has improved and the rain has stopped. Poor Dad was suffering from a lack of exercise so we gave him our step machine and bike machine, that you do off a chair. He sat and did it over the course of an hour, and finally could not walk as he said his hips were hurting! He was very pleased as he burnt 20 calories on each session on the step machine!!!

Stuart and I went off to spin class in the morning and that nearly killed me as I haven't done spin for nearly three weeks but it was satisfying in the end. We decided we would buy some rolls on the way home to make a wee picnic and take M&D to Brazos Bend to see the alligators. Last time we went we didn't see any but this time we had seen a friends recent posting on Facebook that said they were back out!

It took about an hour to get there and Dad and I had on the shorts to make the most of temperatures in the 70's. We had our picnic at the lake edge, but far enough back from the alligators!

Following lunch, we went for a walk around Elm lake, and almost immediately we saw our first alligator sunbathing. We left Mum on a bench part the way around - although she was not too happy as she didn't want to be eaten by the gators! Stuart, Dad and I ended up walking all the way around the lake as we passed some people that said the alligators were on the edge of the path - for some reason, even though they are dangerous, the call of getting a closer look drew us further along the path. Just look at some of the shots we got and how close we got. I have to admit I was a little nervous!

Poor Dad's hips were quite sore after the walk and all his mornings excerise so we decided not to go to another lake to look for more gators as we had seen plenty (a family that came past had counted 28 alligators in total)!

That evening we went off to Texas Land and Cattle - a very good steak house with some very good drinks :) Mum enjoyed a margarita on the rocks that was nearly as big as her! Dad has found the delights of light beers, especially when they come Texas size!

They both loved their steaks and wished they could get them like that back home.

Rodeo's in town!

I couldn't let Mum and Dad come to Houston during Houston Rodeo and not go! We decided we use the transportation provided to the Rodeo - a park and ride service. Since we had worked out of itinerary of things to see before the show started at 645pm, we aimed to get there before 4pm. After some issues finding the way into the car park at the park and ride we walked to the ticketing tent only to discover there was no one there - it doesn't open until 5pm! Well that seems like madness considering the outside event runs all day. Anyway we decided to take our chances and actually go and park at the event parking. Because it was Monday and early there was no issues and a little golf cart took us all the way to the ticketing gate, followed by another buggy to the centre of the action. Oh and I should say parking at the event was cheaper than even using the park and ride - where is the sense in that!!!

It was the only day of rain we have had since M&D arrived but lucky it had stopped prior to us arriving at the Rodeo. I was dressed for the occasion in my cowboy boots and hat!! Stuart wimped out and didn't even wear his boot! Our first thing to see was mutton busting! Six year old kids dressed in a hard hat and what looks like a buoyancy aid them laid on top of the ram and told to cling on tight! Most of them were rubbish, but there was one little boy who managed to hold on the full length of the pen. It was very amusing especially when the little kid pulled the ram over on top of them (there were no injuries).

I then discovered the petting zoo - where you could go into a pen and pet the goats, Bambi's, lama, pigs and lambs. I loved it - all the others just stood outside look at me like I was mad. There was a wee pot belly pig who was so fat his belly was dragging along the ground - mind you if you had people bringing you snacks all day you would get fat. It was amazing to see all the different animal getting along so well. I thought it was funny when there was a little goat wandering in and out of the lama's legs.

Stuart spotted a mechanical bull that was available to go on and ride. He said we would both go on it, however it was just me. I had to visit the little ladies room before going on as I was nervous - even though it is mechanical - it is still a bull :) I hung on for dear life and even when the guy decided to make me spin around and around, finally he managed to make me fall off. Then as I was walking off the mat, to my clapping fans, the guy chased me with the bull. I got a high five from the man in the box for staying on so long (I was too scared to let go!). The only downside was that I have managed to rip my jeans between the legs :)

Inside the Reliant Centre there was all the inside livestock show with cows and lots of bulls, and also tractors to Dad's delight! Stuart and I left Mum and Dad watching a tractor technicians competition in the main arena, it was a little dull as teams of three had to fix five faults on the tractors and get them running. We went to look at what else was going on and walk past the animals. Well Mum would have had a fit as there were young kids moving the bulls and the bulls didn't always want to go where they were meant to. I was cowering behind Stuart when they came past - far too close for my liking. Other things going on in the livestock show was enorm ous rabbits, chicks hatching and a birthing centre that had pigs and sheep there with there recently arrived offspring some only hours old.

Dinner was what was available so that meant fast food. Mum, Dad and I had a burger while Stuart had alligator on a stick - yuk!! We even managed to get Mum to drink out of a bottle! Unfortunately we had a fair walk to the stadium for actual show, although Mum managed to walk all the way it was pretty hard on her. However, when we got there we found a man with the wheelchair and he popped Mum in and we got escorted to our seats very quickly going in a back entrance - the benefits :) Our seats were very good with a centre seat to see the whole arena. There was a number of competitions run including lassoing calves, wrestling them, bucking horses and bulls. I think my favorite was the bucking horses and bulls. It was amazing the guys staying on these animals but also what was amazing was the guys who controlled he animals after their rider had come off. As for the horses, there was two horseman that would get next to the bucking horse and release its bucking strap, the horse would then become placid. The bulls never became particularly calm and actually on occasions started to chase the rider as well as the rodeo clowns (they are the ones that are there to distract the bull from the rider). There was a man in a barrel but disappointingly none of the bulls charged at him!

Following the rodeo show there is a concert every night. On our night it was Tim McGraw! Yer we didn't know who he was either but apparently he is quite a popular country and western singer. We decided we would leave as we had seen the main event but while we were waiting for Mum's wheelchair we could to se e the first few songs and it was very noisy!!

Never too old to party!

What day are we now?

Friday was a quite day there were clouds in the sky most of the day and although we must have been in about 16 degC you still can think it as being chilly here in Houston. Mum and Dad were dressed in their coats reading their books outside - absolutely determined to sit by the pool every day! Later in the morning Mum, Dad and I went off to Macy's to buy Mum all her Elizabeth Arden goodies (to Dad's dismay - the Amex getting hit again!). I had not managed my run in the morning as I didn't want to get out of bed, Stuart had managed to get up and go to spin class, so in the afternoon I drove M&D to the bayou so they could go for a stroll while I went for a run. It worked fine although when I came back they were shivering on the park bench - I told them a run would have warmed them up :)

Stuart made curry and naan bread for the evening meal which was yummy. However, that was not the only bread he made that day he also make ciabatta which we had fresh out of the oven at lunchtime - hmmm. We finished off the evening with a game of 'appletters' (Angus' Christmas gift to Stuart!). Poor Mum had a challenging game as she managed to pick up every consonant in the pack so was having a hard time coming up with words, fortunately we had the scramble two letter word cheat sheet when we all got really stuck!

Saturday was party day. I had organised a group of friends to come around to meet Mum and Dad - most of these folk have featured in the blog at sometime or another, and to celebrate Stuart's up and coming big birthday (although he did not want me to call it a birthday party!). Dad and I went off to the supermarket to get all the food. He was an excellent trolley pusher and enjoyed being able to go and ask people where to find different items. Because the store is sooooo large it took us at least one and half hours to get around! By the time we got home, Stuart was chuntering for his ingredients and the first one he pulls out the bag is wrong - I got flat leaf parsley rather than corriander!

It was blue skies and Mum was sunbathing by the pool as the temperature climbing into the seventies. We got some lunch from the deli down the road and sat out enjoying the sun before Stuart and I had to get back to cooking and preparing. Just as Mum got into her bathing suit the pool man arrived! so she hid in the kitchen while we waited for him to do his stuff. We sent Dad out to watch what he did and try and find our net for the pool which we could not find the day before (he told the pool guy we blamed him for taking it!!!). Finally with the pool crystal clear Mum braved to put her feet in, and well,that was short lived as it was freezing (like we have been saying all week). However, Dad said he thought it was fine and got his trunks on ready for a dip. Mum and I both told him he could not jump in as we were worried he would have a heart attack! So he dutifully walked in one step at a time - getting colder and colder. Although it was the quickest length I have ever seen he managed it! The first swim of 2010 in our pool.

The party food was coming along well and we had enough to feed the five thousand, as always. Mum helped me make marmite pin wheels to introduce our American friends to the delights of the brown sticky stuff. (Stuart was less pleased by this idea as it meant using some of his marmite stash - he has four jars still and he is still adamant that is not enough to last him until May when I go back to the UK!).

By 6:30pm we were sitting waiting for our guests to arrive. Although we were only about 15 in total the noise was pretty spectacular. And once we got them to start eating - well nobody left the kitchen for the rest of the night! We have introduced Dad to Budweiser Select, a low calorie beer (just 99 calories) because dry cider is a rare and expensive commodity here. He was happy on those, Mum with her whisky and water and then nearly everyone else on Shiner, a Texan beer, except me. I am about the only girl not drinking beer! Mum and Dad managed to circulate the room well getting to talk to everyone I think. It was finally time for the cake - obviously Stuart was kept in the dark about this as he would have never agreed to it beforehand! Dad and I had managed to buy a very fancy cake at the supermarket - a Strawberry mousse with layers chocolate sponge, decorated with strawberries and cream. Everyone sang happy birthday and to give Stuart his credit he did not look mad at all!! Although, he did have the horrible task of trying to cut up this very wobbly cake for everyone (Dad had his own special bowl of strawberries and raspberries). Our last guests left us at just after to one in the morning. Both Mum and Dad partied until late in the night with Dad only finally going to bed at 12:30am because I had turned off his alcohol tap (i.e. I told him he was not allowed anymore beers!).

This morning Stuart and I went out for a bike ride with the neighbour. I was meant to be doing an 11 mile run but I have done something to the side of my foot so no running just now. We left at 8am, and Mum said she would do some house cleaning while we are out :) By the time we got back, two and half hours later, the house was spotless. Even Dad had been doing his bit using my horrible dirt devil vacuum cleaner. Actually, I should say Dad has been a wonderful dishwasher emptier, and now he has got the hang of where most things live we can leave him to it. Lunch was eating party food, before we heading off to the museum of natural science. We decided to just view the permanent exhibits, so for Stu and I that was free as we are members, and Mum and Dad got a senior citizens discount, not to mention an additional discount because we are members. Dad and Stuart went off to see the oil and gas exhibit that is sponsored by lots of oil companies and tells you all about the industry from how oil is formed to how you get it out of the ground. I think it also talks about alternative energy sources as well. So while they did that, Mum and I went to look at the minerals and gems. It is a fantastic exhibit with lots of pretty colourful, shiny rocks and enormous jewels loaned to the museum by wealth families. Mum really enjoyed it but we decided one exhibit was enough as lots of standing on your feet. On the way home I showed them where work, although we could go in as I did not have my pass with me.

Tonight we are off to have some Texan coo, at Texas Land of Cattle :)

One small step for man .....

Mum and Dad have definitely brought the good weather with them - another blue sky day. I went for a run (the first one since Sunday!) while everyone got going. We decided to go to NASA for the day. NASA is down in Clear Lake about 50 miles south east of us. So we went down that way late morning, to have lunch and then go for all the tours at the space centre.

Stuart used the sat nav to guide the way which resulted us in getting to know a small part of I-45 very well as the first lunch place had changed names when we got there so we went for our second choice - La Madeline. It is a 'french style' place that does soup, sandwiches and salads. It was quite good and filled a space, (boom boom!) Following lunch we introduced Dad to the wonders of chewing gum. None of us thought it would stick to his dentures - but it did and not half!! (the only solution was to put them in the freezer when we go home).

NASA was fun, the first thing we did was go on the tram ride which took you out to all the different building where things happen. Most of the buildings from the outside looked like nothing, just concrete with no windows. Our first stop was mission control. They said if anyone is not fit enough to walk the stairs to take the lift. I accompanied Mum in the lift, and when we reached the third floor - we got to laugh at the rest of the group that were huffing and puffing as they reached the top. Poor Stuart and Dad finally arrived at the top and said we had done the sensible option! We sat in those comfy chairs on the other side of the glass from mission control, like you see in the movies. We were looking on to the 1960's centre and on the two TV screens we could see the more modern one and the international control centre. The guy told us that when they sent up the Apollo missions they had mainframe computers that only had 1mb of disk space. He used the example that it was like uploading one digital photo on the way into space and one on the way back. Pretty amazing! We then went off, on the cold windy tram (there was a sea breeze), to see the mock up centre. In there, there was all the modules that the astronauts train in including the shuttle and moon buggies. Our final stop was at Saturn 5, and it was huge - just look at the size of the engines (there are five of these things at the bottom of the rocket). It is incredible to think how much of the rocket doesn't make it up to the moon, as most of it is discarded before it gets out of the earths atmosphere.

While Stuart went off the crash a couple of shuttles (dont panic only in the simulator) - apparently landing is harder than it looks, Mum, Dad and I went to watch a movie with real footage of the different missions in space, followed, more importantly by, the moon rocks! I could never cope in space, I would be continually banging myself on all the metal surfaces, not to mention it looks so claustrophobic! All of us touch 3.8 billion year old moon rock (we really wouldn't know if it actually came from the moon!) but they also had some specimens behind glass and it looked just like you would see on earth - pretty cool. We also had fun looking at ourselves in the mirror to show you what the gravity would do to you on other planets - I liked Mars as it made me tall and thin, Jupiter made us look short and fat!! Stuart and I tried on the astronaut helmets - they are not very comfortable :)

Tonight Dad treated us to a nice seafood dinner at Denis. It had extremely good ratings on B4Ueat. I still have half of mine left in the fridge (my doggie bag).

Glorious sunshine to start the holiday

M&D safely arrived in Houston yesterday after a relatively uneventful journey - which is just the way you want it when planes are involved! Mum came out of the doors at arrivals in her huge Texan sized wheel chair pushed by a young lad (who apparently talked to himself the whole time!). It was so wide you could have fitted the both of them in it. Poor Dad was about to have a hypo after the guard had told him he filled out his immigration forms in incorrectly. Anyway, a dextrose tablet on route back to the house kept him right.

It was about twenty past seven by the time we collected them so we weren't sitting down to dinner until nearly nine o'clock, amazingly both of them had got a second lease of life in spite of being 3am back in the UK. When Dad finally decided the pillow was calling, Stuart and I were ready for our beds!

This morning there was no movement until 7am and we were already awake and chatting when we heard the kettle click on. You could already tell it was going to be a nice day, although chilly at just 5 degC, the sky was cloudless. I decided a gentle day was in order as I expected the jet lag would kick in later in the day. In the morning we had already got Dad in to the swing of all things Texan - how do you like him in the cowboy boots - very cool :) Shame we didn't have the hat out as well.

Mum just liked our Mexican gardeners hat!

Stuart wanted to show Dad the 'Hunting, Shooting, Fishing' shop at Katy Mills (a huge outlet shopping centre). So big and full of everything you want to go HSF - Stuart described the fishing section as a 'forest of rods' and it really was! Mum and I went off girlie shopping, although we didn't see anything at Katy Mills we did have better success at our first stop - Ross Dress for Less - where we got Mum a funky pair of sunglasses (Nine West have you know!) and a pair of trousers for less than £30 :) Dad has bought a pair of sunglasses off for $5, Dad has described these as the comfiest sunglasses he has even worn (Stuart bought them for a joke!).

By the time we got home for lunch it was easily in the high teens and in the garden it must have been up into the twenties. So while Stuart prepared shrimp quesadilla's for lunch we sat out enjoying the sun. I think that was my downfall, as I am now very red, but ironically the peely-wally Scots don't seem to be burnt at all.

To walk off lunch, it was followed by the dog walk without the dog! We went down the bayou. Dad took a lovely picture of the muddy waters :) It was in the sun and just glorious with only the odd cyclist to watch out for.

After, tea time still exists in Houston, so back for a cuppa whilst sitting in the sun again, I should say the whole time we were in the sun Stuart was hiding in the shade :) It wasn't long before Stuart was making us all a frozen margarita (he managed to get hold of margarita mix suitable for diabetics - i.e. no added sugar). By that time Dad and I had eventually finished our first game of darts. It took us some time - one has to admit - we only did from 101 but getting the double 1 to win was a challenge. I got there in the end 1-0 to me :) Stuart joined in for the next game and the same problem trying to aim for the double caused us all problems, however, Dad threw the winning throw!!

Since it was such a beautiful evening there was nothing else for it - we got the grill going for the first time this year. Stuart, aka chef, did pablano peppers (slightly hot big peppers), grilled sweetcorn, flank steak, burgers. Well we ate very well and are now very stuffed, not to mention the amount of alcohol consumed to wash it down with!

They are both in bed now while I write this. Tomorrow we are choosing between NASA and the science museum.