Our dear friends Tish and Kenneth Johnson are happy to report two real joys in their lives: After Tish's long struggle following her jaw surgery, she is finally beginning to see that long-awaited improvement. Their daughter Bee (Johnson) Reno, band director at Kenedy High School, just won a first place award from the National Society of the Daughters of the American Revolution for composing a march entitled "Our Daughters' March - Past and Present."

Gentle readers: "The rain in Spain stays mainly in the plain." But we are glad it's raining in Blanco (and the surrounding areas)! We need to lift up lots of prayers for Leon Coffee! He is having some serious health issues right now. I personally have never seen a smile light up a face like Leon's can and listening to him laugh makes you want to laugh right along with him.

The 13th annual South Texas Gospel Music Association Convention & Showcase Concert was held on Saturday, April 28, at Oak Ridge Baptist Church in San Antonio. After holding the convention in San Marcos for two consecutive years, STGMA returned to the place where its first convention was held. Two Blanco groups, Gene & LaVada Triesch and Jerry & Deanna Dosser, performed at the showcase concert.

Gentle readers: First, a belated but nonetheless heartfelt Happy Birthday to Dot Warrington. Our thoughts and prayers go out to Dot Miller's family as well. She was an amazing woman, whose quilting skills, among many other things, were truly enviable. She asked me once to go with her to a quilting guild meeting – I was unable to and have kicked myself frequently ever since.

Gentle readers: Lots of things to do in and around Blanco County in the next couple weeks, so get out there and do at least one of them, if you can! This little column over the past few months has rapidly become a thoughts and prayers list, and this week is just another sad one - Jim Rodrigue, the former mayor of Blanco, passed away Sunday morning, so my thoughts and prayers go out to Pat and the family, as well as to Pi Stone and her family in the loss of Dillard.

For someone whose major was French and German, one would think I would know better. I must retract my spelling of "roulez" in next to last week's paper; it should have been "rouler," as in "Laissez les bons temps rouler!" for Mardi Gras. Sister Jeanne Therese is looking down from heaven and scolding me soundly – I can hear her now!

Laissez les bons temps roulez (that is Mardi Gras speak for "a good time was had by all")! There's not a whole lot of cheerful news this week, except for the rain and the lovely couple days last week as well as my husband's 58th birthday! As long as he doesn't shave off his mustache, he will continue to look a little older than I am - if he takes a notion to remove it, I am done for.

There was a fantastic turnout for Al Turner's benefit at Redbud Friday night. I hope, from the majorly positive response, that Al knows now how much we all care about him and how important he is to Blanco. “Dry River Gang” played from 6:30 until 9:00pm, offering an eclectic mix of tunes.

First and foremost, our thoughts and prayers go out to Dr. Phillip of the Blanco Veterinary Clinic and his family. He had a truck accident Sunday morning and is in the hospital. His surgery went well and they expect him to be able to go home in a couple days.

Don't forget the BUMC Bazaar and the Kendalia BBQ this weekend. Wurstfest starts this weekend as well. Next weekend there will be a plethora of things to do, and so on and so forth, on into the end of the year (which isn't that far away). This is the first weekend of deer season, so I am told, so watch out for fleeing deer and chasing hunters!

There is so much to do now that it has gotten a little cooler - look for a big drop in temperature when the cold front comes through toward the end of this week, just in time for Halloween! Next weekend (the 5th) is the BUMC bazaar – come visit me in the bakery (where else would I be?) – and then just meander through the rest of the areas.

The highlight of my week - On October 4, 2011, TD Smylie, Jr., and his wonderful wife, Leona (nee Hohenberger) will celebrate their 69th wedding anniversary. Congratulations are certainly in order. There are lots of things happening in the next few weeks. I heard the Wild Game dinner was a roaring success.

I missed my golden opportunity to wish my dear friend Leona Smylie "Happy Birthday," so this is the next best thing. I am blessed for having met her. And in the crush, I didn't get to offer my congratulations to Harold and Florine Lord on their 64th wedding anniversary.

Gentle Readers: Fall is in the air, somewhere! And the weather report says it might be a sort of wet Labor Day Weekend! We can only hope... The kids are back in school and a routine has been put in place. I hope everybody got the teachers they hoped for and everybody's school year is marvelous!

Love is in the air in Blanco. Keep your eyes and ears open! Reverend Wally Hiller was feted for his 90th birthday yesterday at Blanco United Methodist Church. I know for a fact he got lots of kisses (because I was one of the kissers) and was given a birthday party, after church, in the social hall.