by laura beth

About 5 years ago, Kenny's cousin James Tavernier moved to the Houston area from Orange County, CA for a job. In the meantime he met & married a beautiful lady, Kim, and had a little boy. Neither Kenny nor I had ever met Kim, her boys Cal & DJ, nor little Ephraim, who is now 3. And so we got to visit them at their home in League City. We had a great time. Aunt Debbie (James' mom) also live close by, so we got to see her quite a bit. Kim is a wonderful lady, Cal and DJ are the most polite, interactive, and well-mannered teenage boys I have even met (and they're cool!), and Ephraim is a laugh-a-minute. James is alright I guess. JK, James.

Their apartment complex had RV parking, which is uncommon but delightful, and so we camped out for several days. The weather and humidity were mild at night, which was a blessing since we couldn't plug in and therefore had no air conditioning in the moho. We swam in the pool almost everyday, ate very well, and went geocaching (Kenny got Cal and DJ hooked on it). We got to meet Michel, a friend of Kim's that we had become acquainted with through our conversations about Eastern Orthodoxy on Facebook. She invited us to a free concert at a park in Houston at the Miller Outdoor Theatre. On the menu the night we went was Accordion Kings and Queens: lots of polka, zydeco, and Cajun music, and an accordion contest. Kim, Michel and I packed lots of yummy food and wine to share, and we all had a wonderful time.

Also, while we were in League City, Kenny suggested that I ask Kim to invite some of her friends over to have a "jewelry party" in which they could buy my handmade jewelry, or I could custom-make pieces for them. It worked out really well, so I hope to do this more while we're on the road.

Anyhoo, we had a super time with the Taverniers, and hopefully they will be able to meet us in Willis, Texas in a week or so while we're visiting my cousins Nick and Sammi Jo, and while James' daughter Ashley is in town.