Well, I can't totally agree that everything is larger in Texas, but I'm sure some things are. We have family in East Texas and have been there on visits several times in the past ten years. While usually hot and humid during this time of year, the cold, wet weather followed us over from Alabama. Lena's parents, who we lived with for a year after we got married, picked us up from the airport in Tyler, Texas. They moved from Northeast Ohio to East Texas a few years...

From here on out, Huntsville, Alabama will always feel like home. I joke when people ask about where we are from because we have moved around from various places all throughout our lives, even before we got married. Life is like that sometimes. We only spent a year in Alabama, and during that time we even left many times to visit other places. But it was a significant year in our life together and impacted us a lot in many ways. Changed us a lot in many ways. Ou...

On to Portland, or rather southern Washington just on the other side of Portland, Oregon. Lena's grandfather and his wife live in a little town named Ridgefield, Washington just north of the Oregon border. They are both in their early 90's and don't get out much these days. They are content in their home and living as independently as possible. Whenever we have a chance to visit them, we take it. And whenever we are spending time with them, it's almost like being...

I've always enjoyed the Pacific Northwest of the United States and not just because it is where I grew up. It's always a beautiful place even on the cloudiest of days. Of course the weather did not disappoint. The clouds and drizzle that are so characteristic of Seattle were fully present upon our arrival. And, yes, everyone there bragged about how nice the weather was before we arrived. Although I moved away years before, we always go back for a visit. My paren...

The very first stop on our grand family USA tour was Grand Junction, Colorado. Whenever I visit, I always think of retired folks and ranches. It's actually a very beautiful little town set in a beautiful valley with hills and cliffs surrounding it. The Colorado River runs through parts of it and so do several train lines and a canal. We found out that the canal is used for irrigation. During our visit it was very full and looked like it could have overflowed its ...