Our 18th Wedding Anniversary

I'm catching up since my computer was down the last half of December, so bear with me. The first thing I wanted to post was our very special wedding anniversary. December 22nd we celebrated our 18th anniversary. Richard had told me back in November that he had something planned and not to try to guess. Of course I did try, but I never could have done so. I knew we were going away overnight, but that was all I knew. There are several quaint towns around us with B&B's so I thought maybe that was it. I also know there are several really great restaurants in the big cities that we are close to, so I thought that might be it, too. All to naught, though.
The night finally came. Mrs. Bobbie and Mr. Buttons came to our house to keep the boys and we were off...racing to make our reservation time. We headed north past Hico, towards Glen Rose. Just before getting there, we turned off. It was a very cold night and there were predictions of possible ice, but we never had any trouble. When we turned off the main highway, it seemed we were heading into the dark abyss...no lights, except for an occasional house with Christmas lights. The road was winding and I was certain a deer would pounce out in front of us at any moment. We finally reached the entrance to the Rough Creek Lodge Ranch about 4 miles down that road, but we were nowhere near. The entrance was all lit up, but once we entered, we were on a more narrow drive with yet again no lights on the path. The path was paved, but it was not wide enought for 2 vehicles at a time and it was not one-way. Thankfully when we did pass a truck, the land was flat and easy to just pull off to make room to pass. After about 3-4 more miles, we finally saw the lodge and all its lights. It was so beautiful from across the lake, all the white Christmas lights in the trees and on the wreaths reflecting onto the lake. We parked and entered and they were expecting us. I wasn't sure what to wear, but as fancy as the dinner was, the atmosphere was quite casual. I saw an array of fashion from casual skirts to jeans and there were several families dining, so it wasn't just couples. It definitely had a lodge feel with a roaring fire in the fire place. We had a window table which was very nice. The hostess took our coats and seated us. The head waiter and 2 other waitresses called us by name(Mr. Harvey/Mrs. Harvey) every time they asked us a question. I felt very important. The menu is different every day because they fly in different chefs and different fresh ingredients. There is only a freezer big enough to house icecream on the premises. Everything else is flown in fresh daily. We each had a three course meal...Richard had pork loin and I had steak and we both had the most incredible New England style clam chowder. Every morsel was wonderful down to our passion fruit iced tea. And you can see in my slide show that dessert was special. We each had different deserts, but they wrote on both of our plates in chocolate, "Happy Anniversary". The pics of us and my desert were taken by the hostess and emailed to me because I had left my camera in the car.

After we ate, we registered and went to our suite. All the suites have outdoor entries and have the feel of a condo entry. Most are the size of ours, but there are some (like the George H. W. Bush's suite that are larger. Every door is made of a beautiful wood and carved like ours with different outdoorsman motifs. Ours and the Bush's had quail, but there are ones with deer (bucks), bass fish, labradore retrievers, etc. Our suite as you can see from the slide was very very nice! I loved it and we really enjoyed our time. It would be an incredible place to visit with the kids as you can see from the pics I took of the grounds, but it would be pretty pricey. So unless we get another deal like Richard got for our night, we probably won't be doing it anytime soon.

I loved every minute and I have to say I am incredibly blessed by my Lord for the sweet, thoughtful husband he has given me! Thank you, Richard, for a most memorable anniversary! I love you!