rvingfulltimewithtomandella

2018 December 09 Sunday

2018 December 09 Sunday in Bee Cave and Liberty Hill, Texas

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32° overnight that turned into a windy, overcast 45° day.

We attended worship and Sunday school today. It will be the last time until after Christmas because of the work schedule.

We also sang in the choir today. The Bell Choir did the special music this morning. It was wonderful.

At Star Hill Ranch, Bee Cave, Texas I sat in the cold on a bale of hay in the back of an old truck.

And I had a great time. There were some children but the real joy to me were the adults who came with such excitement to see Santa. And, no they were not drunk.

God bless you and g’nite.

Visit my daily devotions blog https://MusingsDevotions.wordpress.com/

And my sermons blog http://ThomasEWilliams.blogspot.com/?m=1l

2018 December 08 Saturday

2018 December 08 Saturday in x Cedar Park, Round Rock, and Liberty Hill, Texas

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37° overnight with drizzly fog in the morning.

We had a “Breakfast with Santa” this morning which started at 8:45. I read to the children, sang, and told some jokes for the parents benefit. Then we got some pictures. We had a brief break between the breakfast and the regular photo shoot.

The line quickly wrapped around the set and stayed there all day. I tried to keep it moving at the speed that the photographer could handle the sales end. If they had had all three of their stations working, it could have gone faster. I still took time with each child and never made them feel rushed. I only had a couple of little ones that I couldn’t calm down.

The rain stopped but not until after there was some serious localized flooding. Even after the rain stopped the clouds remained. And the temperature is set to drop into the freeze zone tonight.

Originally I was scheduled to work a couple of hours tonight at the Outlet mall. But we received a text that we didn’t need to. We also were asked if we could work at the Domain tomorrow. However, I’m already booked at Star Hill Ranch in Bee Cave Texas.

Home was cold when we got here this afternoon/evening. I turned the heater on but it was taking a while to warm up. Do we crawled under the covers and watched TV or played games on our phones. Early to bed …

God bless you and g’nite.

Visit my daily devotions blog https://MusingsDevotions.wordpress.com/

And my sermons blog http://ThomasEWilliams.blogspot.com/?m=1l

2018 December 06 Thursday

2018 December 06 Thursday Cedar Park, Round Rock, and Liberty Hill, Texas

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44° overnight with drizzly fog in the morning. Reached a rainy 49° in the afternoon Flash flood warning in affect until midnight.

I woke early this morning, did my Bible study and wrote my MUSINGS© for the day. I then checked my INR*and called it in to the reporting agency.

When I saw the sink full of dirty dishes that needed to be washed before we could make breakfast, I made an executive decision to grab breakfast on the go. Sonic was closest.

Today was the day for crying babies, it seems. Ella explains how to bring the little ones to Santa. Hold them facing you. Set them on Santa’s lap and moved out of the way of the camera. But most don’t listen. They bring the child up and say, “This is Santa.” And then try to pry a frightened child or if their grasp.

Yesterday we received a package in the mail. It was a vest from the company that I’d ordered a vest from. Only it wasn’t the vest I ordered. It was a vest ordered by a Thomas Williams in North Carolina but shipped to me. I wonder if he received mine. There is no phone number to call only a website to try and get it straightened out.

After being Santa at Lakeline mall from ten to four, we headed to the Round Rock Outlet mall to work until seven.

I had to make a stop beforehand to sit up a low tire. We didn’t have a lot of time to get there, so I didn’t get it completely pumped up. After I got off at seven, I found a station where I could air it the rest of the way. Without a gauge I just eyeballed it.

We left home at 8 a.m. arrived home at 8 p.m. crawled into bed shortly thereafter.

God bless you and g’nite.

Visit my daily devotions blog https://MusingsDevotions.wordpress.com/

And my sermons blog http://ThomasEWilliams.blogspot.com/?m=1l

*The international normalized ratio (INR) is a standardized number that’s figured out in the lab. If you take blood thinners, also called anti-clotting medicines or anticoagulants, it’s especially important to check your INR. The INR is figured out using the results of the prothrombin time (PT) test. This measures the time it takes for your blood to clot. The INR is an international standard for the PT.

2018 December 05 Wednesday

2018 December 05 Wednesday Cedar Park and Liberty Hill, Texas

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30° overnight and reached a high of 51°. Had to scrape Friday from the windshield again today.

Nice sunrise this morning

But it sure wasn’t fun tho drive straight into with bumper to bumper traffic

It got better when we changed direction

Arrived at the doctor’s office about a half hour early. We always try to do this. Sometimes we are in and out before our appointment time.

We were in the waiting room for only a couple of minutes.

And we got in and Ella’s follow up for her stress test and echo cardiogram we both good.

We were soon on our way toward the mall. Santa want overly busy today but it was interesting. I had a man come in shake my hand and say, “Thank you for what you do.” He explained that he had a daughter with autism. They had been to see me/Santa last Sunday during the Caring Santa event. He was grateful for the experience they had that day. I’ll admit it made me tear up when he said that.
Today I also had a mom bring to boys ages four and two. They both came running to see me and gave me hugs. We did the usual visit and photos. When Mom went to look at the photos the older boy went with her. The younger one just stood there leaning against my legs. After a while he turned and wanted back up on my lap. He sat there for a little bit then got down, grabbed a book and climbed back on my lap. When Mom came to get him he didn’t budge. She said, “Come on, it’s time to go.” And he still didn’t move. She had to literally grab his hand and pulls him away. This sort of thing happens every year. Done kids just don’t want to leave Santa.

I was also contacted today and asked if I could fill in at another mall in the evening for the next several days. So I will be working the opening shift at one mall and the closing at another. Going to be a long couple of days

There was interesting sky on the way home.

We stopped at the church on our way home. Wednesday night is choir practice night. Once a month we celebrate the birthdays and anniversaries that occur in that month. Tonight was party night and our anniversary is this month. We ate but did not stay for practice.

God bless you and g’nite.ll

Visit my daily devotions blog https://MusingsDevotions.wordpress.com/

And my sermons blog http://ThomasEWilliams.blogspot.com/?m=1l

2018 December 03 Monday

2018 December 03 Monday in Cedar Park Texas

38° start that reached 57 windy degrees.

I started some corn and potato chowder in the crock pot before we went to work this morning. The house smelled so good when we returned in the evening.

This was the Western sky this morning. It was more impressive than the sunrise.

The clouds in the East looked like this as we headed to work

And they looked like this on our way home. Not much changed.

Both of us are now 98% over the coughing and hacking and my voice is back to normal. I’m so glad that Santa no longer sounds like Oscar Grouch.

I brought home more letters to Santa that I’ll read and scan into a digital file. For those that added a return address, I plan to send them a personal letter from Santa after Christmas.

God bless you and g’nite.

Visit my daily devotions blog https://MusingsDevotions.wordpress.com/

And my sermons blog http://ThomasEWilliams.blogspot.com/?m=1l

2018 December 02 Sunday

2018 December 02 Sunday in Cedar Park Texas

Caring Santa at the mall. Lots of children of all ages came to see Santa today. For some it was their first time. Some of the parents were in tears. A news crew from KXAN TV was there to film and interview.

We were hungry at the end of our shift. A stop at IHOP cured that.

Then it was on to the laundromat to clean our clothes. With just three white shirts for Santa to wear and a seven day work week, you visit the laundromat often