So we moved to Austin, TX., Capital City of Texas.
Austin was a charming university town at that time. Not as developed as it is now. The landscape was beautiful. The university grounds were lovely. Lake Travis was near by. People were friendly.
We rented a house. Luck had it that we had the best neighbors that I had the good fortune of having, an elderly couple, Mr. and Mrs. Wise. They also introduced us to their wonderful niece and her family, the Mortons.
The Mortons welcomed us to their home as their friends.
Every year at Thanksgiving time, we were invited to their ranch and had the traditional Thanksgiving Dinner, with a bit of Mexican touch.
Helen introduced us to Kiwi and avocado.
We had the opportunity to visit a real ranch, with cattle and all. Cynthia was intrigued by their peacocks on the grounds.
Helen Morton invited me to join the American Association of University Women, Austin Branch.
She, a smart and learned lady, did book reviews.
The Mortons became one of our best friends in the U.S., together with the Wises.
For the first time since I came to the U.S., I found some kindred spirits and made friends of my own.
At the rent house, there was a small backyard probably not bigger than some twenty feet wide by twenty feet deep. My city-bred husband decided that he was going to plant a vegetable garden. Lo and behold, he was so successful that he thought he was Farmer Brown or something. He had some very healthy looking Chinese Bok Choy, green beans, okra . . . and a lot of them! He shared his harvests with our friends and neighbors. He was so delighted, he was spending a lot of time tending his garden.
We decided to purchased a home. So we did. We had the builder built a three-bedroom brick home (a track house in a development), on a very large lot - we, new owners of homes, thought we needed the largest lot we could have. And we did.
It was sad to move away from the Wises. On the other hand, I was excited about being a new home owner. Luckily, the new home was not too far from the Wises.
We moved into our new home.
I was pregnant with our second child.
When Melinda was born, I was lost. Your see, I had help after Cynthia was born in Hong Kong. I really did not have to handle a little bitty baby whose head flops here and there.
Now, I was afraid even to give the newborn a bath.
I was in tears. Mrs. Wise came to my rescue. She taught me what to do and showed me how to care for the newborn. She told me that the baby was not as fragile as I thought. And not be afraid. Thank you, Grandma Wise.
We loved the Wises and the Mortons.
And Cynthia found a little friend, so she had a playmate. Her little friend's mother became my friend, Lucy.
Lucy's daughter would come into our home unannounced. One day, I was taking a nap with Cynthia - one of those rare times that Cynthia actually napped. I heard a noise. When I opened my eyes, a little girl was staring at me.
I learned to always lock the door afterwards.
With two kids, a job, and a garden, my husband was not on target with his studies. Eventually, he abandoned the idea of getting his PH.D. But we did stay on in Austin for a bit longer before moving again.
P.S. Did I mention to you Cynthia only cost us Five Dollars, in Hong Kong? We had National Health Plan.
But with Melinda, thanks to our good medical insurance, everything was taken care of, otherwise, we would be in debt.
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