155: Kissing cousins

For those of you who crave adventure and tales of the road - just bear with me another day or so!  After living in Houston for nearly 45 years, I have lots of friends and family in the area so we had some ground to cover in our "go visiting" agenda. Saturday I spent with my cousins Rita and Peyton, and Vic and Nancy, and then a couple more short visits with Rita's sons Ray and Ron.

And of course, we had some barbecue, because John and Linda were cooking up a storm while I was gallivanting around. So just a few more photos to share of family, food, and the fabulous clouds of the Gulf Coast region. Man, I don't think there's anyplace I've ever been that can whip up a skyscape to beat Houston's.

Linda's pies are always a hit

Home cooking is the best!

First - the smallest gathering to date of our once-monthly potluck social group. Linda and Josue were the originators of this bacchanalia, which waxed and waned as our friendships and partnerships came and went over the years.

Roger, Josue, Linda and John

Roger and I enjoyed catching up with cousins on Saturday.  Vic and Rita are my godparents, and special favorites.  Note the elegance of the antler chandelier - sort of a staple in Texas interiors!  The restaurant also displayed a poster with the boots made for President Truman by the Tony Lama Boot Company of El Paso, Texas.

Typical Texas decor

Famous boots made by Tony Lama

Rita and Peyton took me by to visit with their sons Ron and Ray, my second cousins. I used to babysit these guys!  Now they have little ones of their own. In fact, Ron and Molly just welcomed their second son, Hudson, two weeks ago. He was sleeping, so no photo for now.

We also had a visit with Ray and his wife Carolina.

Ray and Carolina

Ron and Molly

Ron and Grant, age 4

Nancy and Vic, Roger and Kathy, Peyton and Rita