The week before Christmas at Rockport

Tuesday mornings at the park they have the "Stitch and Bitch' gathering for knitting, crocheting and quilting.  I've been working on a project that is way above my skill level.  The pattern requires my full attention so I decided to just do the bitch part.  I tried  and tried to do about 5 stitches and kept having to take them out.  Will have to stay on the road longer than a year for me to make one scarf.
In the afternoon we decided to take a practice run to Corpus Christi, we drove to Aransas Pass then took  a free ferry to Port Aransas, of course we couldn't pass up a brew pub after all it was lunch time.  After lunch we drove to Mustang Island State Park. We walked about a mile up the beach, Luci had the greatest time.  We broke the rules and took her off leash so she could run.  We drove down the island to Corpus Christi, the bay originally was landlocked, in the 1920' s the Army Corps of Engineers dug a ship channel making Corpus Christi Bay the deepest bay on the Texas coast.  Call me crazy but to me a landlocked bay would be a lake??  We wanted to find out where the USS Lexington and Texas State Aquarium were located.  It is quite  a bridge crossing the channel into the city, quite high and long.
Wednesday nights at the park is happy hour and dinner. We've met quite a few people, most of who are from Michigan and Wisconsin.  I played cards (Phase 10) later with a couple of characters, the lady from Nebraska, now mid to late 70's said she started smoking at age 10, she supplied stock for rodeos.  The lady from Arkansas was a barrel racer in her younger years. 
Thursday morning we dropped Luci off at the Salty Dog Doggie Day Care  so we could head back to Corpus Christi.  The USS Lexington, launched in 1943, built in Massachusetts by Rosie the Riveters.
The self-guided tours allowed you on 5 decks, the flight deck with several WW2 vintage airplanes, officers quarters, the galley deck, the lower engine room sick bay and the hangar deck.  Volunteers are available to answer questions.  It is located right on the bay, the waters must get deep quick, it was just a short trip up the ramp to the ship from the beach.  Just down the beach is the aquarium.  We were lucky, just as we entered the dolphin underwater viewing room trainers came in and worked with the dolphins.  Santa was in a large fish tank feeding the fish as sharks swam overhead.
After Friday night happy hour we went with 3 other couples to a "tav" for dinner, I got brave and tried the catfish.  It was a mild white fish, I'd always thought they would taste "muddy".
 
   Photos top to bottom:  Luci playing in the Gulf of Mexico; Gary on the flight deck of the USS Lexington; Texas Marine Aquarium with Harbor bridge in background; Gary walking the plank on the Lex; The Lexington; Santa feeding the fish at the aquarium and the trainers working with the dolphins.

Sunday after the Ice Cream Social we played a game called "pegs and jokers" with 4 other couples, men vs women, the men won just as I was ready to go out.  Our Seahawks lost, thank goodness they didn't show the game in our area.
This morning we woke up to 39 degrees, it was only supposed to reach 55 today, but it topped out at 58 with little wind.  Gary and I picked up 21 geo caches.  I finalized our plans to meet Dan and Charlene in Tucson in January.  We talked with Suzanne, Gary's sister who underwent a double mastectomy last week.  She is doing well, the doctors feel they were able to remove all the cancer.