New Iberia to Fort Smith and back, then to Rockport, TX

A lot has been going on since I last updated the blog, but I'll try to briefly cover the past three weeks to catch everyone up on our lives.

We were at my brother and sister-in-law's for about a week, enjoying their hospitality and good food—I'll swear we must have gained five pounds each while we were there!

We then returned to Fort Smith (without the motorhome) to find a new place for Roger's mom and to get her settled. That turned out to be a real challenge. Because of the way PSP affects her, she actually needs 24-hour care with assistance every time she has to get out of bed, chair or to the bathroom. She's far from being bed-ridden, but could fall at any time--and with her arm in a cast, she's unable to do much of anything for herself. Her condition puts her physically, but not mentally, in need of a nursing home. We thought we had exhausted all her options for assisted living when we received a phone call from a new place that offered to provide her with all the help she'd need. Brookfield is, so far, an answer to prayers! The facility is beautiful, food is as good as any restaurant in town, and the staff is caring, accommodating and absolutely wonderful! We only hope that the progression of her PSP will be slow enough that she'll be able to stay there for a long time.

With the help of Roger's brother, Rick, we got her moved on January 16 and after a few days were comfortable enough with the care and assistance she was getting for us to return to New Iberia to pick up the motorhome and proceed to Rockport, TX.

We've always come through Galveston on our way down, but much of the road between here and Galveston Island was destroyed by Hurricane Ike, so we took I-10 to the Sam Houston Tollway to TX35. Couldn't find an RV park when we were ready to stop for the night, so ended up sleeping at WalMart in Bay City.

We arrived at the Enchanted Oaks RV Park in Rockport on Thursday, January 22.


Our friends Bobby and Melba, Joe and Barbara, and Dick were already here and we were welcomed with a sunny day and temps in the 70's (not the 50's as it was when these pics were taken).

Enchanted Oaks is a small park (27 total sites) with a very rustic feel.

It could use a little TLC (and a LOT of brush-cutting!), but the sites aren't just lined up side by side on a “parking lot” like so many of the others in the area.

I think we'll enjoy the month we plan to stay here, especially for the price we're paying and the fact that some of our best friends are here.

Friday we all went to the Big Fisherman for lunch (and again today for $2.25 chicken fried steak!) and then Bobby, Melba, Roger and I went to Port Aransas for a drive and a walk on the beach. It was a gorgeous day and the salt air and sand did a lot to relieve the stress of the past few months. The weather has cooled a bit for now, but is supposed to be back in the 70's tomorrow. We're looking forward to more days of beachcombing, visiting with our friends, and enjoying all the things this area has to offer.