Al and Nita's Travels

One Month Later and One More Round of Chemo Down.

2012-02-05T15:00:00.003-05:00

Well, it has been a month since I last posted here. Things have been going fairly smoothly. Considering I'm on chemo, I think all in all, it's not as bad as I expected. I've had some bad days, but mostly good ones. I'm often tired, but since I don't have to go to work, I am able to take naps whenever I feel the need.

Thursday February 16th will be my next chemo treatment. Then I will be at the half-way mark as far as my chemo treatments. This past Thursday I went in for my counts to be checked. Everything was very good and my counts were high. I saw the PA this time and she said she was amazed at how well I am doing.

Sorry, I don't have more to report, but actually I guess that is a good thing. Thank you all for your comments on here, cards, emails, phone calls, & messages on FB. I really appreciate hearing from all of you. Also, thank you for your prayers on my behalf.

My sister and brother-in-law stopped by the other day and brought me this sweet teddy bear. The people in their church have been praying for me and they have a really neat custom. A teddy bear is passed around the congregation and each person prays for the person mentioned. The tag says "Hello, The Hartford Yoked Parish has hugged me and prayed with me. Now I bring you all the love and prayers I represent. May you find the fullness of God's tender, loving care."

A Different Type of Journey

2012-01-06T08:10:00.004-05:00

In October we were so busy, getting our 5th Wheel packed and our house ready for the winter ahead. We were 95 % packed and almost ready to go. We were excited about our plans and looking forward to going to some areas we hadn't been before.

The day before our planned departure, I received a call from the Radiology place where I had gone to have my yearly mammogram.  They found a dense area on the mammogram and I was asked to come back in for another mammogram and an ultrasound. So, on the day we were to leave, I had another appointment to see the radiologist. No big deal, I thought, these things happen, and I'm sure we will be on our way the next day. This was not to be. After looking at the area on the ultrasound, the radiologist said I need to see a breast surgeon for a biopsy. Still thinking our trip would only be delayed another week or 2, I was able to get an appointment with a surgeon the following week. Long story short, I had the biopsy and it came back positive for Invasive Breast Cancer. It appeared that it was caught early, and the hope is that it hadn't spread. The surgeon recommended a lumpectomy and told me that chances were good that it hadn't spread and that would mean 6 weeks of radiation.

A few weeks later, after numerous tests and procedures, I had the lumpectomy. After the surgery, we were under the impression that all went well, all the margins were clear and nothing had spread to the lymph node. I went back to the surgeon for followup. She told me the surgery went very well and the margins were clear. However, they did find that there was a very microscopic amount that spread to the sentinel lymph node. It was only 1mm. But, this may mean that I would need chemo as well.   So her scheduler made appointments for me with a Medical Oncologist as well as a Radiation Oncologist.

My appointment with the Medical Oncologist went very well. He said he really wasn't concerned about the microscopic amount that went to the lymph node, but couldn't say until further testing if I needed chemo. A test was done that involved sending a piece of the tumor to a special lab in California. The test is called an Oncotype DX. This is usually done with early stage breast cancer. They test 21 genes in the tumor to determine the likelihood of a recurrence. It took a couple of weeks for the results to come in . Unfortunately, my test came back as intermediate to high risk and chemo was recommended.

It seems like a lot of time goes by between all the appointments and testing that has to be done. I have had a bone scan, cat scan, blood tests, and most recently my heart was tested to be sure there are no problems. Last Friday I had my port installed.  We are now all set, and I finally started my chemo yesterday. I feel pretty good, so far, but realize I will have some not so great days. I will have 6 rounds of chemo, 3 weeks between each treatment (should take about 4 1/2 months) followed by 6 weeks of radiation. Of course, I am not happy about all this, but I really want to get this started, in order to get this over with and back to my normal life.

Al and I were disappointed that we are unable to travel this winter, but we are so thankful this was caught early and we know we will have many years ahead to travel. We are also thankful for all the support we have received from all our family and friends.   Many prayers have been said and we are so encouraged that I will be completely cured. This is not the journey we have anticipated, but I must say, it is something we have always known might happen. None of us know when something like this will come into our lives. So, for now we take one day at a time, do what has to be done and pray that all will turn out ok.

I know this is not supposed to be what my blog is about and I am determined for it not to be!   We are hoping to go away again next October and do all the wonderful things we had planned for this year. Many thanks to all our friends and family for your continued support and, most of all your prayers. We love all of you so much!

Dead Horse Point State Park and Canyonlands National Park

2011-04-28T13:46:00.000-04:00

While staying at Arches National Park, Alice and Robbie told us we must visit these two places. They were only a little over 30 miles away, so a day trip was definitely in order. Just when we thought we had seen it all, and nothing more could compare, we visited these two places, and we were unprepared for all we took in that day. Even on the way in to Dead Horse Point State Park, the beauty was such that I kept wondering when I was going to come to the booth to pay the entrance fee. It seemed to be several miles of such beauty that I couldn't believe we weren't already there. Then finally we saw the sign and then the booth. So, we stopped here first and spent a couple of hours before heading to Canyonlands National Park.

You probably think this is a very funny name for a state park. There is a legend about how it got it's name. Actually, there is more than one version, but one of the versions is that cowboys corralled wild mustangs to the point, then chose the ones they wanted and left the rest to die. They were fenced in and couldn't get out, so even though there was water within their close vicinity, they couldn't get to it.

We are at the overlook, so pretty!

I loved the colors here.

I know many people don't believe God had a part in this. How can you look at this and not believe!

Looks like natural stairs. We just loved the rock formations here!

After we left the State Park, we headed a short distance to Canyonlands National Park. Canyonlands is a very large park and there are three districts. Since there are no roads in the park that link them to each other, it would take 2 to 6 hours to travel between them. We visited "Island in the Sky" which was the closest to us and considered to be the easiest one to visit because there are so many overlooks.

There's those mountains again! So pretty and the rock formations are beautiful.

Kinda looks like someone dug this out.

Another beautiful overlook

This is one of those photos I'd love to put in a frame. Loved the foliage here.

Another overlook. There are so many in this park.

Ok, it's hard to choose, but I think maybe this one is it. Aren't the colors something?!

Nice!

Another overlook, something different everywhere you look.

This panoramic photo was taken by Al while at Dead Horse Point State Park. For some reason, it got out of order when I loaded it up. He does a great job on the panoramas. I just loved the contrasting colors here. I have to confess, it has been hard for me to distinguish some of the photos from the two parks. Those mountains are everywhere you go and so are the red rocks.

Hope you have enjoyed our blog this past year. We are now home and I plan to take a break from blogging. We hope to be able to continue our journey again starting in late October. Meanwhile, we plan to enjoy our time here at home and hope to spend time with our family and in particular our wonderful grandchildren.

We are Home Now!

2011-04-21T22:45:00.002-04:00

Al and I arrived at our home yesterday. We had not planned to get home quite this early, but we were dodging some bad weather predictions in various areas. First, when we were in Colorado, snow was predicted, then while in Kansas, where we spent a few days, we learned there were some high winds and possible tornado warnings. We decided the best thing to do was keep heading north and east. So, as planned (although not quite as early as this) we headed to Goshen, Indiana. We felt like we were being chased from one state to another. Not good weather there either, but we stayed for 3 days and then decided we were already close enough to home and that it was the best place to head. Since few campgrounds were even opened yet between there and home, we couldn't wait to get home at that point. It was cold everywhere including here when we arrived. However, the warmth of a nice fire in our home makes everything seem so right. We love being home! We had a wonderful journey these past 6 months. I am in such awe of it all. I know I keep saying that, but honestly we feel so lucky and thankful to have seen so much of this beautiful country this past winter.

Given all the devastation in the Southern and Southeastern states from tornadoes, I am so glad we went the direction we did.   It might be colder here right now than normal, but we expect it to warm up in the days ahead. Anyway, it's nice to be back home and have the warmth of our family around us.

Since we have been busy getting our home settled again, I haven't posted everything from our trip.  We visited Canyonlands National Park as well as Dead Horse Point State Park while at Arches National Park. It was only about 30 some miles from Moab, so it was a must see. I will be doing another post very soon. More amazing photos, I promise!

Have a very happy Easter everyone!  Check back soon!

Arches National Park, Part II

2011-04-17T12:24:00.012-04:00

Notice the beautiful La Sal Mountains. I fell in love with them!

We spent a total of 5 days at "The Devil's Garden Campground" in Arches National Park. Like I said in my previous post, we had a great visit with Robbie and Alice and also went on a hike together. The trail was called "Park Avenue". Robbie suggested we park one vehicle at our starting point and another at the ending point. Since the trail was about a mile, we thought it was a good idea. We took our time and Al and I both took lots of pictures. Not sure it reminded me of the real Park Avenue, but it sure was beautiful.

After our hike and tour of the park we all rode into town and stopped at a nearby RV Park where another couple from the Montana Group, Dennis and Jackie were staying. We all decided to all go into town and stop at a local pub where they were known for their great chicken wings. We all had a great time. All six of us were at the Quartzite Rally in January, where Robbie and Alice were the Wagon Masters, so it really is amazing how many people you meet in one place and run into again in another.

A few days after we arrived at the park, another couple, Laurie and John who we had met while in Lake Mead, arrived at the park. We all got together that night at Robbie and Alice's for a campfire. We were happy that we had a chance to spend some more time with them before we left, especially since they only live about a half hour from our home. Whenever we run into people who have NY license plate, we almost always stop and ask them where they are from unless they beat us to it. They had stopped by our campsite at Lake Mead. Not only did we see them there, we also got together with them in Zion. It seems we are visiting the same National Parks before heading home. Not really a surprise though, because the weather was really getting better at all of these places, so now was the time to go. We met up with them for dinner one night while at Zion. Also, we went for lunch together at a great Mexican Restaurant in Moab one day while in Arches and did a little more touring of the area with them as well.

Al took this beautiful landscape photo of multiple arches. Of course, this is why this is called Arches National Park. There were so many arches there and some were very tough to spot.

Three quarters of the way over on the right, the oval rock is called "balanced rock" Like many of the rock foramtions, you can spot them from various places in the park.

Another of Al's landscape photos

More rock formations, so beautiful against the blue and white mountains!

This is the Park Avenue Trailhead.

More of Park Avenue.

This was one of Al's favorites. It amazed him how the rock is balanced up there. It is appoximately 200 ft. up in the air.

On our hike we saw these three characters. They are called the three gossips. I wonder if they were gossiping about us?

Can you see the arch here?

Our friends and hosts, Robbie and Alice taken just before we said goodbye. We were sorry to go, but all good things eventually come to an end and it was time to move on. We have met some great people since starting out on our little journey and the nice thing is, we know when we say goodbye, we will eventually meet up with them again, perhaps in a different place.

Arches National Park, Day 1

2011-04-13T20:43:00.014-04:00

We arrived at Arches National Park on a Sunday and we knew we had a long drive through the park to our campsite. It was about 18 miles through the park and some of the most spectacular scenery we have ever seen. Our Montana Club friends, Robbie and Alice work at this park during March and April so we were visiting them and seeing this beautiful National treasure at the same time. Like usual, we took soooo many pictures, and there is just too much to put into one blog, so I will do another blog in a few days with more even better pictures. The following pictures are simply ones I took from the truck on our way to our campsite. This drive is called "Robbie and Alice's driveway." Actually, that's what Robbie calls it because it is the most beautiful drive and could you just imagine a driveway like this to come home to everyday? That is exactly what it is like for them for two months of the year, every year. I promise, you will be even more amazed at the photos we took in the days following our arrival.

I decided not to edit these photos, so you will see parts of the truck and most were either shot through our front windshield or out the passenger side window.

This was one of my favorites shot from the truck

Each bend in the road brought us something new and different.

See what I mean!

Aren't these rock formations something.

Lots of arches in this park. Here is one we saw on our way in.

This is our campsite. We have beautiful scenery all around us.

Stay tuned for more pictures of this gorgeous place. There is no way I could do this place justice with one blog entry. This is only a preview, as we were amazed at the enormity of it all. Not shown in any of the pictures, are the royal blue snow-covered mountains against the red rocks, I fell in love with them. They will definately be in my next post. So, check back with us soon. Bye for now.

Bryce Canyon National Park, UT

2011-04-09T22:12:00.000-04:00

This is called Natural Bridge. I loved the setting with the trees peaking through and the snow. I have been trying for a few days now to update the blog, and show you pictures of an amazingly beautiful place we visited, while staying at Zion. Unfortunately, I had very slow Internet where we were, so I was unable to do so. Bryce Canyon National Park is located about 89 miles from Zion, so we thought we would just do a day trip to check it out. All of these National Parks are so beautiful, that it would be a shame to be so close and not go there. We knew it was at a very high altitude, and it wouldn't be too practical to take the RV there, especially since there may be snow. So, we decided to just go for the day. After all, 89 miles is not really that far. The only problem, 89 miles driving in mountains, takes a little longer. Also, once you get to the park, it is a lot of driving through the park, and getting in and out of our truck to see everything. It ended up being a very long day, but well worth the trip. We found the overlooks in Bryce to be breathtakingly beautiful to say the least. I am still in awe over the wonder of it all. It was very cold there, considering it was hot at Zion. The altitude was over 9800 ft. in some areas and there was as much as 3 feet of snow. It was kinda nice to visit snow for a day and then leave it behind. I hope you enjoy these pictures.

These rocks are so vibrant in color, difficult to really capture.

Who does this guy look like?

Are these buildings? I love using my imagination here!

So pretty, don't you agree!

Bryce's Point. This was my favorite overlook here.

I am a little behind on this blog. I am trying to go in order of the places we have visited. Since we left Zion and Bryce, we went to Arches National Park and camped in the campground there. I can't wait to show the pictures of this georgeous place. It was amazing! Canyonlands National Park was only 30+ miles from there so we also visited it as well as a state park called Dead Horse Point State Park. I will be putting up more amazing photos of these wonderful national parks in the very near future. So please check back.

More of Zion and the Tunnel

2011-04-02T22:33:00.012-04:00

On our second day in the park, we took a couple of walks on paths to get some exercise and really take it all in. Throughout the park there are several pull-offs where you can stop and get a closer look. On the first day we missed a couple because there were no places to park. So, luckily we were able to stop at those on the second day. After April 1, there are buses that take you through the park. You aren't allowed to drive through that area yourself. Pretty stream on the way to "Weeping Rock"

Lots of people were enjoying the path.

When we got to the top, I took this picture of the waterfall from the overhang. While under the overhang, water is dripping all around you. It is hard not to get wet.

On day 3 we went to a completely different area in the park. We were on our way to another National Park just for the day, Bryce Canyon National Park. We found out the best way to go, involved going through a tunnel, and the tunnel is located in Zion. The tunnel was built in 1928 and has height and width restrictions. Since we have dual wheels on our truck, we were too wide to just drive through it, and that meant that we had to pay $15 and, they would need to stop traffic and let us go through the middle. It is 2 lanes but, it would be too tight for both vehicles. On our way to the tunnel, we got to see even more beautiful scenery including the picture above and those below.

Just more of Zion..........Isn't it beautiful!

In this picture above, we are approaching the tunnel on our way back home.

Going through the tunnel, there are windows that you can see out. It was hard to get a picture, but I managed to get this one.

We are now approaching the end of the mile long tunnel. I have heard from others that had smaller vehicles , that it feels very tight, when driving with traffic coming from other lane. Being able to go down the middle was pretty neat. We had a wonderful day at Bryce Canyon National Park and we took many pictures. So, check back with us in a few days. So long for now.

Day One Zion National Park

2011-03-31T01:04:00.004-04:00

We are now at Zion National Park. We were very lucky to get a campsite right in the Park. We are surrounded by beauty all around us. Picture above is taken in the campground. We took a ride through the park stopping along the way to take pictures. Many of the pictures I took as we passed by in the car. We went back again today and took a little more time, so I will post more pictures in the next day or so. There are just too many to sort through. So far we have taken over 200 photos, so it's difficult to decide which to post on here. Weather has been nice. Today got up into the 70's and sunny. Gets pretty cold here at night though. Hope you enjoy the photos of our first drive through Zion National Park. You can click on the photos to make them larger and then hit the back button to return to the blog.

Valley of Fire State Park, NV

2011-03-29T09:57:00.012-04:00

Picture is of our campsite here in Overton, NV. We are boondocking on BLM land here. We are surrounded by beautiful views. We are not as close to the edge as we appear in the picture. We were surprised at what great TV reception we had here. I think it was because we were high on a hill. There were only about 6 or 7 other campers in this area, but there was another BLM area a mile down the road where many people were camped. We are only 2 1/2 miles from the entrance to "The Valley Of Fire State Park". We had heard about this place from several of our Montana Owners friends. While at Lake Mead, we were only about 60 miles from there, so it was a short trip for us. We are so happy we stopped here. It is truly beautiful. We took lots and lots of pictures. I hope you enjoy them. We loved all the varied colors of the rock formations. This one, as you can see has a straight line of definition between the two colors.

Wish this picture was a little brighter, but it's so rare we ask someone to take a picture of us, I figured I should post it anyway.

I love the huge rocks here. Don't I look small!

Al and I think the rock on the right looks kinda like a dog. It reminds me of "Nipper" the RCA dog. People who live in Albany area can relate to this.

Loved the way the road is laid out in this picture.

Hope you enjoyed our tour through the park. Here's Al saying bye for now!

The Hoover Dam

2011-03-26T23:06:00.008-04:00

We visited the Hoover Dam a couple of times while in Boulder City, once during the day and also in the evening. We were able to see it from several different areas. We were so amazed at the beauty of it and in awe of the accomplishment achieved when this was built, especially considering it was long before we had computers and all the fancy equipment available today.

Here we are looking down at the Colorado River with the new bridge shown above. These are turbine units on bottom of picture.

I thought this was a great picture taken from a higher level.

Lake Mead looking out from the dam. The white on the rocks show how high the water used to be until about 11 years ago. It is down about 135 feet.

That's Al above

Another view of the Colorado River and the new bridge.

Below are some pictures taken in evening. I loved the effect with the lights.

Another picture of the bridge taken in the evening.

Lake Mead and Las Vegas-Quite a Contrast

2011-03-23T22:12:00.001-04:00

Here we are at Boulder Beach Campground in the Lake Mead National Recreation Area in Boulder Beach, Nevada. We are about 30 miles from Las Vegas and 5 miles from the Hoover Dam. This area is so pretty. I honestly think it is one of the prettiest places we have been since leaving home. Pictures do not always do it justice, but the lakes are so blue and the mountains are muted shades of many different colors. This country has some beautiful areas, all of which are God's creations. We have found on this trip that the country out here in the west is so different than back east. I've yet to see much green in the mountains and yet they are still beautiful in their own way. Until recently, we haven't seen much grass either as the desert is mostly sand and rocks with just a little greenery here and there. Of course, that beats 3 or 4 feet of snow any day.

Below are some of the scenic views we have seen here, many of which were taken from our truck or along side the road after we pulled up. I hope you enjoy!

We decided to visit Las Vegas, so we headed there one afternoon. These pictures below are not shown in any particular order. Some were taken in daylight and some after dark. We decided to park our car in the parking garage at the Mirage. We walked though the place and believe it or not, we did not gamble. Al and I are just not into gambling. For me, it has a lot to do with my upbringing. My mom was so against gambling of any kind. Now, I have gambled a few times in my life, but I never really saw the fun in it anyway. It was dinner time, so we did decide to gamble on the buffet at the Mirage, and we lost. For the cost of $28 apiece, we would have had a better meal at the Golden Coral.

We are going to a concert here tomorrow night (Thursday). Terry Fator is a ventriloquist, impressionist, comedian, and singer. He does over 100 different impersonations and has 16 different puppets. When he sings through his ventriloquism, he sounds just like the singer he is impersonating. I have seen him perform Garth Brooks, Stevie Wonder, Elvis, Sonny and Cher, Louie Armstrong and many more. He won the "America's Got Talent" contest a few years back and now has his own show in Vegas. I can hardly wait.

This is a little blurry, but I liked how it looks at night anyway.

I just love "The Eiffel Tower" It is a replica of the one in Paris, and is just so pretty at night.

We are having a great time here. Our main reason for visiting here was to see the Hoover Dam, and I decided I wanted to do a blog all by itself on that. It is really magnificent to see, and we have so many pictures, it will take me awhile to sort through them all. So that will be our next post.

Lake Havasu City, Arizona

2011-03-20T12:00:00.006-04:00

Public beach in Lake Havasu City.

We have spent the past few days in Lake Havasu City in Arizona. Lake Havasu City is a very popular place for tourists, as it is home of the famous London Bridge. The London Bridge in London, England that was built in 1831 was dismantled in 1967 and put up for sale. Robert P. McCullough bought it and brought it over here. He was the founder of Lake Havasu City and he developed the area as a planned retirement and vacation community. He felt that this bridge would help Lake Havasu City become a tourist attraction. Well, it worked because as a tourist attraction, it is the second most visited place in Arizona. The first is The Grand Canyon.

The palm trees are so pretty here and all over Arizona. I like it when there are a cluster of them and this park had many.

To the right, you are looking at the London Bridge in Lake Havasu City.

There are pathways along the lake on either side. Also shops and restaurants. All are designed to give a good view of the bridge from different locations.

Lots of boats were seen going under the bridge. This guy in center has his own mode of transportation.

We walked under the bridge to the other side to get a different view.

We are now driving over the bridge. Notice there are people walking on the sidewalks on either side of the bridge.

We are camping in an area just outside of town on BLM land. Boondocking has been lots of fun for us and a money saver as well. We enjoy that we are out in the country, yet we are very close to stores. In fact Walmart and Home Deport are just 2 miles away. We have been getting good TV reception as well as Internet and cell service.

Just outside our campsite, we are surrounded by mountains and some interesting rock formations. Al swears this is a face in the rocks. Can you see it?

For a few nights in a row, we enjoyed a full moon outside our site. Last night, however we were clouded over so were unable to see it until later at night when it was very high in sky. This picture was taken the night before. Still really nice I think.

Our campsite at dark. Not too dark to see us though, as the moon is full.

We enjoyed our stay here in Lake Havasu City. We are on the road again and headed for the Lake Mead National Recreation Area in Boulder City, Nevada. We will be very close to the Hoover Dam and Las Vegas. Our time here will be short and we are hoping to see both. However, the Hoover Dam has top priority. We will then be headed in a Northern-Easterly direction, and are hoping to be home by the end of April. We have some interesting places we plan to visit on our way home, so please check back with us.

Yuma Territorial Prison

2011-03-15T20:53:00.000-04:00

While in Yuma, we decided to take a tour of the Yuma Territorial Prison. This prison was operational from 1876 until 1909. During that period, 3,069 prisoners, which included 29 women lived there. From 1910 to 1914 the Yuma Union High School occupied the buildings. They were referred to as the Criminals by a rival football team from Phoenix, because they won the game. Thereafter they referred to themselves as the "Crims."

After the depression the prison fell into disrepair. The community rallied and fought to preserve it as a city museum. Today it is owned and maintained by the State of Arizona as a State Park. It was an amazing place to see, as I wasn't prepared to see what it was like back then to be in a prison. Local people referred to the place as a country club. It is hard for me to imagine why anyone would think so when looking at the sleeping accommodations. Even with the passage of time, you can clearly see that this was not an easy life. Many of the crimes such as, adultery, prize fighting, and selling liquor to Indians, would not even be considered a crime today.

This building holds many artifacts from the prison. Many pictures showing the administrators, prison guards as well as some of the prisoners line the walls.

This is the main guard house.

Main entrance to the prison. I saw these buildings in an old pictures and they haven't changed much in appearance.

Pictures of prison guards and superintendents of the prison.

This small cell held 6 prisoners. Notice the triple bunk on either side. Pot in the center was all they had for bathroom while in cell. No privacy here.

Another area and more bunks.

Hallway with cells on either side.

No......It's not an electric chair. It is a very tattered barber's chair.

One of the prison yards.

Al had to bend way over to go through this. We were told that a movie called "The Badlands" was filmed here in 1958. Alan Ladd starred in it and this doorway was made for that movie. It was made short in order to make him look taller than he actually was.

Not sure what this cell was about, but only 2 beds in here.

I took a lot of pictures while we were here. It was difficult to choose which ones to show. I was thinking that showing what the actual prison was like for the prisoners was the best way to go. I could make a whole other blog on the artifacts in the museum, but I don't think I will. This place really left me feeling very sad. Even though these people did break the law, life here seemed very in-humane to me. I guess I'm glad we visited here, but I don't plan to return for another visit.

Castle Dome Mine Museum

2011-03-08T21:23:00.015-05:00

Castle Dome Mountains.

On a recommendation from friends, Dick and Jackie, we decided to take a little drive about 40 miles north of Yuma to this cute little ghost town. The name of the place was The Castle Dome Mine Museum. It was even better than we expected. The remains of Castle Dome Landing were originally located on the banks of the Colorado River. The property which was previously Castle Dome Town and Mining camp was purchased in 1994 by Allen and Stephanie Armstrong and turned into the Castle Dome Museum. There are over thirty restored and recreated buildings. Seven are original to the Town. Those that were rebuilt, were built from old materials that would match the type of materials used back in the day. At one time there were more people living in this city than in Yuma. The Castle Dome Mountains made such a pretty backdrop to the whole atmosphere. I took a lot of pictures, and it was difficult choosing which ones to put up on this blog.

The admission charge for the museum was $6.oo and for an additional $4.00 we also took a walking tour of the mining area which was located across the road. This included some old mines, a graveyard and more buildings. This is definately a "must see" when visiting Yuma.

Not too much is left of these vehicles. Al says his first car was similar to the one on the right, only it was in much better condition and drivable.

There were neat walking paths between all the buildings. Notice the mountains in the background.

There was great attention to detail in these buildings and you could go in each one. Lots of neat stuff inside.

The Cook House

Kitchen Inside the cook house

This room definitely has a women's touch.

Sheriff's office located here.

More buildings and a courtyard. No grass to mow!

Loved the different roof lines and sizes and shapes of the buildings, as well as the one in center with a stone front.

Yuma, Arizona

2011-03-04T13:13:00.006-05:00

Our main purpose for coming to Yuma was to attend the Passport America Rally held here a couple of weeks ago. The Rally was ok, but not really our type of thing. We had a good enough time though, in spite of the fact that it lacked in organization. The food wasn't great either, but the music was excellent.

There were three different bands playing here at the Yuma County fairgrounds where the rally was held. This is a local band called "Slick Nickel." All of them were excellent and mostly Country music was played.

One night for dinner we were served Cowboy burgers (hamburgers) and giant onion rings. Now, these onion rings were pretty good!!

After the rally, we decided to check out an area we heard about where we could boondock. We are only about 10 miles out of town in an area called Yuma Lakes. It is more of a pond than a lake, but is very nice here.

On our way back and forth to town, we pass by these cute sheep.

Lots and lots of palm trees around here.

We visited the Arizona Marketplace with our friends, Carol and Al from the Montana group. This is a flea market that is opened only Thursday through Sundays. It is huge! We didn't buy much, but did find a few things at a good price.

The two Al's checking out what I call "man toys"!!!

We met up with another couple from our Montana Owner's group, Dick and Jackie. They suggested we go to Lutes Casino in Old Town Yuma. They hadn't been there, but they had heard about it from friends who live in the area. It was a crazy kinda place (a must see kinda place) with all kinds of paraphernalia hanging off the ceiling and the walls. We had a really nice time visiting with them and a really nice lunch. We walked around the town together and checked out a couple of the stores there.

This is the building, Lutes Casino. It really isn't a Casino anymore, just a fun place to go and eat and hang out.

More of Old Town Yuma.

I guess you could say that Old Town Yuma has some modern features. Nicely landscape round-about.

Al insisted on taking this picture of me. It reminded him of Martha's Ice Cream back home! They also have a giant Chicken out in front of the place.

It had been a while since I updated the blog, but we are enjoying it here in Yuma, AZ. The weather has been fantastic. The sun shines everyday and it has been in the 70's and 80's. We decided to hang out here a while longer, as we really haven't checked out the area much, plus we really like it here. Later!

Old Town San Diego-Trolley Tour

2011-02-25T11:41:00.017-05:00

We had a great time in San Diego and only wish we could have stayed longer. On our last day there, we met up with some friends from the Montana Club, Coleen and Ray. We had a great time touring the area. Since Coleen used to live in San Diego many years ago, that was an added bonus. It was a fairly nice day even though it had been raining the day before, and there were forecasts of more rain over the next few days. We were happy to spend time with our friends, and we were able to get a nice tour of the city and now have some ideas of where to go on our next visit. The San Diego Zoo is on the top of that list. We took the trolley ride which last about 2 hours if you don't get off and on. So, since we didn't start until around 12:30 pm, we decided to stay on it and only get off at a couple of locations. The tour guide pointed out places of interest on the trip, and we will probably just drive to the various locations next time we go there.

View of Bay from the San Diego/Coronado Bay Bridge

Another view of the bay and the city

This is the famous Hotel Del Coronado. This is the view from the street side.

There are many museums in this city. This one is "The History of Man"

This is another view from the trolley on the bridge.

We stopped at a Mexican Restaurant in Old Town. We were surprised that we were the only people eating there. It made us a little nervous, but the waiter told us this is their slow time. I don't remember the name of the place, but the food was excellent!

We started our tour in Old Town State Historic Park. Old Town San Diego is considered the " birthplace" of California. In 1968 the State of California purchased this property to preserve it's rich heritage that was considered San Diego from the 1821 to 1872 era. While waiting to meet up with Coleen and Ray, we were able to walk through the town and try to capture it with our camera. All is a short distance. You had your choice of unique shops, historical buildings, and restaurants. This is also where we started the trolley tour, so we also ended our day here and stopped for a fabulous meal at the Mexican Restaurant.

This is the General Store in Old Town

Another building in Old Town

We didn't have time to go into all the stores, but I think they still sell boots here.

We liked this flowered bush. Not really sure what it is called.

Grocery store

I heard this is a good place to eat!

Lots of little stores and shops in Old Town.

Mission Bay RV Resort, San Diego, CA

2011-02-19T14:04:00.008-05:00

View across the Bay from our RV park

Looking down at the row of campers from our campsite. This RV park was in a great location of San Diego, close to everything. Also great because it was right on the bay. We didn't like the fact, however, that it was completely black-topped, also we were very close to the people in back of us.

I took a really nice walk (at least a mile) along this path that was adjacent to the RV park. It went all along the bay. Unfortunately the sun wasn't shining too much, so the pictures aren't the greatest. There were lots of nice homes, not lavish ones, but nice enough for my liking.

This is one of the nicer homes along the path. They all face the water.

Many people had flowers planted. Can you see all the houses across the water? Lots of houses built into a hill. This seems to be very typical of San Diego.

I liked the rustic appearance of this home. It looked so inviting.

Aren't these little guys cute!

I stopped to talk to this friendly couple named Tony and Janice. They informed me they were newly weds. She is originally from Buffalo, NY but has lived in California for many many years now. He is from Las Vegas, NV. They were so friendly and gave me a history of the area. They told me the City or County (not sure which) owns the property these houses were built on, and wants to take back the property. Not sure what that means for the homeowners, but I guess they are protesting it.

We had a very brief stay in San Diego. We needed to be in Yuma by Sunday in order to attend a Passport America Rally I had signed us up for and paid for. We were staying at this Passport America RV Park in San Diego for 1/2 price, but it was only good for 3 days, then the price would go up to $50 per day. This was a little too much for us considering rain was predicted for the next couple of days anyway. It was supposed to rain all day on Friday. So, on Friday morning we packed up and moved near Yuma for the weekend. I really wanted to spend a day at the San Diego zoo, but this wouldn't have been a pleasant experience in the rain. The zoo will have to wait until our next visit. I'm told it rarely rains there and the weather is usually in the 70's year round. Wouldn't you know, we picked the wrong 3 days in the year to go there.

On Thursday, we met up with some friends from the Montana Club. We took a trolley tour of San Diego with them. We had a great time, and that will be my next post.

Visiting Andres and Family in Bakersfield

2011-02-15T20:30:00.003-05:00

Andres and his lovely wife, Masha.

This pretty girl is 9 year old Natasha here with her dad.

We had a great time getting to know Natasha and we hit it off with her right away!

Andrew 3 and his dad stopped by our campsite to see us and check out our accomodations. He felt right at home and liked our little house. Isn't he adorable?!

We had a nice visit with Andres and Andrew at the campsite.

Our last night here and Andres cooked some yummy steaks out on his grill. Nice setup! I wouldn't mind having this outside cooking space.

Yummy steaks and pork chops.

This is Masha's mom, Natalia and sister, Malia, who were visiting from Russia. I think Masha was tucking the kids in for the night when this shot was taken.

Whenever we went there, we were always served Russian tea, and lots of good treats. It is a Russian tradition to treat their company royally. This is Natalia with 2 different teas she mixes together in your cup. Very delicious. Andres is standing by ready to cut the cheesecake.

We left Bakersfield today and are now in San Diego for a few days. We really enjoyed visiting Andres, Masha and their 2 children, Natasha and Andrew. Also, Masha's mom, Natalia and sister, Malia were visiting from Russsia. They had arrived a couple of weeks earlier and were spending a month with them. We were so happy to meet them both also.

On our last night in Bakersfield, we were invited over for a lovely dinner. We had a wonderful time, and it was sad saying goodbye to everyone. Hopefully, we will go back again sometime before too many years go by. Andres and Masha both said they would like to come visit us in New York sometime and we hope they do.

Bakersfield, CA

2011-02-11T13:34:00.022-05:00

We arrived here in Bakersfield a few days ago. After many years apart, we looked forward to seeing our nephew, Andres and his family. We got together with them on Wednesday evening at their home. We met his wife and their 2 children for the first time. We had a very nice visit. Sorry, no pictures yet, but we are going over there again this afternoon and hope to spend more time with them over the weekend, so that will be my next post.

We are staying here at the Orange Grove RV Park. This is a very unusual setting. We are in an orange grove and we are encouraged to pick oranges for our eating pleasure. This is a very nice park and is reasonably priced. The orange trees are located throughout the park and the oranges are the best we have ever had. Very sweet and juicy. Al never ate oranges much, but he really likes these. I guess fresh off the tree is always best!

They provided us with a picker to reach the high parts of the tree. You can catch 4 or 5 at a time in the scoop that is on the pole.

John, a friend of ours from the Montana Owner's club, who lives near Bakersfield, called us and asked us to go to lunch. He took us to his favorite Italian Restaurant, Luigi's, here in Bakersfield. The food was excellent. This is John's favorite dish called the 1/2 and 1/2. Half pasta with meat sauce and half Italian beans. We both ordered it on his recommendation. Of course, it was very good. We hadn't had good Italian food since leaving NY in October, so it was a real treat.

The walls inside the restaurant were covered with pictures. This restaurant has been here for many, many years and visited by many famous people, including John F. Kennedy. All their pictures are on the wall. If you look closely, you will see Al and John at the bottom right corner of picture.

More pictures. It was overwhelming to see so much memorabilia in the form of pictures. Of course I couldn't study them too closely with people dining there.

We stopped at the Buck Owens Crystal Palace. There was going to be a concert there that evening with a group that Al likes " Asleep at The Wheel". We didn't think we could get tickets since the show was that evening, but they just opened up some new seats right up front and center. We decided to purchase the tickets and talked John into going also. We couldn't have had better seats. It is set up like a dinner theatre, as you sit at a table and you can order food and drinks before and during the show. So, our table was right on the dance floor. There was still plenty of room to dance while the band played. We had such a great time and it was such a treat for Al as he really enjoys their music. This is the type of concert I like going to, as it was very laid back. Lots of people were up dancing and that was as much fun to watch as the band. We are a little out of practice when it comes to dancing, but we did manage to get up and dance one dance together.

Another view of the Buck Owens' Crystal Palace

We are standing in front of the bronze statue of Buck Owens. John, me and Al.

Asleep At The Wheel

Visit to Joshua Tree National Park

2011-02-07T17:15:00.000-05:00

Since we were camped just outside of Joshua National Park on BLM land, we didn't want to miss checking out this park. Our time here was short, only 4 days, so we packed a lunch and spent 1 whole day in the park. We drove through almost all of it, but there were some dirt roads, off the main one, that we are saving for our next visit. This park is beautiful. It is known for the Joshua Tree as there are many of them throughout the park. It is also known for it's huge rock formations, and many different plants and wildlife. We really enjoyed our time here. We had perfect weather and beautiful scenery. We had beautiful sunsets, and sunrises (I was only up early enough to see one). At night the sky was sparkling with stars. Having never traveled this far west before, we were amazed at the mountains all around us. Many were capped with snow, while we were enjoying 70 degree days with lots of sunshine.

One of many beautiful rock formations and a few Joshua Trees

I really liked this photo. Took this in one of the many campgrounds throughout the park. Love the small opening at the bottom of the rock. Kinda reminds me of an outdoor fireplace.

We are driving on the park road. Hard to capture in a picture how pretty the mountains are here.

As you can see, the rocks all vary in size and texture. I thought these were very interesting.

Maginificent!

If you look closely, you will see a picnic table. This is a campsite. I would guess for a tent only.

The cholla cactus is one of the many plants in the park. You do not want to come into contact with this one. As is says in this sign, even the slightest touch can cause the cactus spines to penetrate your skin and removal is not only difficult but very painful.

Here is a picture of the menacing cholla cactus. You can walk though the path, but would not be smart to wander off it. The fence and rocks provide a nice barrier.

Part of the San Andreas Fault Zone is located in this park. If you notice the red line running left to right near the bottom this is the location of the fault. Sign says that if you stood in the same spot one year from now, you would likely be 2 inches further southeast than you are today. In six years, 1 foot and in 60 years, 10 feet. Pretty amazing!

Al took this photo. You can tell where the Fault line is by looking at the sign above.

How Many Solar Panels? Never Enough!

2011-02-06T12:31:00.003-05:00

This is Jeff. He is boon docking here in Joshua Tree on BLM land. He is a full-timer and has been doing this for many years. Since we have solar on our Montana, we are always interested in other solar setups and how well they work. If you look at all the pictures and count them, he has 11 panels on three sides of his motor home. That doesn't include the top! He told us how many, but I don't remember exactly. I think there were at least 8 or 9. So, maybe as many as 20 solar panels in all! He has 8- 6V golf cart batteries. He can run just about anything, as you can in your home. He prefers living off the grid and likes visiting areas that are secluded. Check out the pictures below.

Fun Day here in Sunny California

2011-02-03T22:57:00.008-05:00

We may have to go back here and tour the museum. Lots of really old war stuff in here, I was told.

B17 Bomber doing flyover at The General Patton Museum

Al took both these photos of the planes. I guess since he's taller he was able to get a better shot, LOL!

From the road and at a distance, you can see us in the center. Two campers on the right are some guys who are working on the aqueduct. They are camping here while they are working, from 6am to 6pm. They just set up today, and when we said we were looking for a site, they pointed the one out next to them. Very nice guys, nice having them as neighbors.

Picture from our window. Nice view on all sides!

Al captured this sunset picture just outside our camper.

We left Quartzsite and are now in California. Not sure the name of the town, but we are located near the entrance to Joshua Tree National Park. There is BLM (Bureau of Land Mangagement) land here and we can camp for free. With our water tank full and our other tanks empty, we decided to try it out. With the solar working great and a generator as a backup, it was a no-brainer for us. We love the natural setting and the view all around us is so spectacular. What more could we want!

We arrived yesterday and picked a site that was so perfect, we thought we had the best site here. Then we found out, we were on a water aqueduct and they were planning on working on it the next day. We found out from some workers here that we were probably going to be asked to move. There is a pipe that they needed to work on that goes from Lake Havesau in AZ to another lake in Southern California. We missed the sign that was up, and only needed to move a short distance. It is confusing looking at the maps, but after we figured it out, it wasn't difficult to find another good site!

We weren't ready to do any touring of the area yet, as we felt we needed a down day. We did need to get milk and also some gas for the generator. There is just nothing around here unless you want to drive 20 to 30 miles. There was a gas station at the next exit 5 miles east of here, so we knew we could get gas and milk there. We were shocked when the clerk rang up the milk at $5.99 per gallon. Since we needed milk and it would cost more to drive 20 to 30 miles, we decided to get it anyway. Someone has to have his milk to survive!

On our little jaunt, we passed by "The General Patton Memorial Museum". We drove into the parking lot and noticed people standing around outside the building. A man came over to us and informed us that a B-17 Bomber was going to do a flyover at the museum. It was leaving Palm Springs, about 60 + miles from here and headed our way. We got out of the truck and waited about 15 minutes for it to arrive. It flew low enough for us to get some good shots. I guess General Patton pulled a few strings and we were just lucky to be in the right place at the right time.

We met a neat guy named Jeff who is camping here. You won't believe his setup. I am saving it for my next post. Stay tuned!

Rally Over here at Quartzsite

2011-01-30T09:33:00.011-05:00

Things are winding down here at Quartzsite. Every day more people are leaving. We are allowed to boon dock here for 14 days and many came earlier than we did, so the circle is getting quite sparse. Many more will leave today, and we are trying to decide if we should leave tomorrow or stay until Wednesday, our official last day. It has been a lot of fun, but we are looking forward to some alone time until we go to Bakersfield to see my nephew, Andres and his family. We haven't seen him in 17 or 18 years, so we are really looking forward to seeing him and his wife and children. I promise I'll have some pictures for the family back home to see.

Back home, my cousin Jim, who is only 62 and has been fighting Esophageal Cancer, is now on Hospice. The doctors are now saying they can't do any more for him, so now it is in God's hands. Jim is a fine Christian man and is ready to meet his Maker, but it is so difficult for all of us who love him. He is now at home surrounded by his family.

Many people here in Quartzsite and people who have heard about the circle we formed here, have asked how we got such a perfect circle. My friend, Carol explains how it is done on her blog. She informed me the other day that we are the stars. She demonstrates how we were guided into our parking spot. Check it out on the link below:

http://www.reflectionsfromthefence.com/search/label/Montana%20Circle

More of Quartzsite

2011-01-27T00:16:00.007-05:00

Standing by our site looking down at the circle from inside. Notice all the flags

Al took this picture and the next few pictures from the rooftop of our Montana

This was the official first day of the rally. We all dragged our lawn chairs out to the middle for an informational meeting.

It is so hard to describe Quartzsite. It is kind of a nothing little town that spring alive during the winter months. There are some permanent stores here in buildings, but a lot are in tents. We have only visited a few areas. There is much, much more. Lots and lots of junk, but some good stuff too for good prices. It's just kinda fun being there.

We were entertained by Rocky Watson. He was gooood!!!

Tent after tent

Row after row

Lot's of RVers here, in fact it's mostly RVers!

The Circling of the Montanas

2011-01-22T21:55:00.006-05:00

This is a very quick post, as I wanted everyone to see the overhead view of our Montana's Club group who are boondocking here with us in the desert in Quartzsite, AZ. Not quite everyone had arrived when picture was taken. If you go from the break on the bottom left and count over to the right, we are the ninth one. It is pretty impressive to see how evenly spaced we are. There are hundreds of thousands of people boondocking out here. We are unique with our circle. This is such an unbelievable experience, that it would be difficult to put into words or even in pictures. That has been lots to do here. We have get togethers every evening at 5 and everyone brings food. Every night there is a campfire. Lots and lots of shopping here and unbelievable bargains on anything and everything. Flea market atmosphere. I'll put more pics up in a few days.

Tombstone, AZ

2011-01-19T12:19:00.003-05:00

This is the old Bird Cage Theatre. The Bird Cage was one of the most famous night spots in the west during it's haydays from 1881 to 1889. It was described as the wildest, wickest night spot between Basin Street and the Barbary Coast. This museum is well preserved, and very authentic. It was closed and boarded up for over 50 years, and it then became a historical landmark. Everything it is was intact, and its contents were only affected by passing of time when it was reopened to the public in 1934 as a historical landmark.

This hearse is considered to be Tombstone's most valuable individual antique. It is trimmed in 24k gold and sterling silver. Almost everybody in Boot Hill Cemetery was transported by this hearse.

This is the room where all the gambling took place. It was down on the lower level, and is called the pocker room. In this room the longest poker game in history took place. It ran continuously for 8 years, 5 months and 3 days. Today the poker table still stands as it was left.

We found this poster very amusing. Actually this was for sale in the shop, but I think there was an original one displayed in the museum.

Doc Holiday, Wyatt Earp, Virgil Earp, and Morgan Earp. They were very good actors and put on a reenactment of the famous gunfight. The gunfight at the OK Corral took place on October 26, 1881. Three men were killed in the 30 second battle, and three of the lawmen were wounded. Wyatt was the only one not wounded in the fight.

Picture was taken on the road on the way to Tombstone. Love the rocks here!

This picture was also taken from the road as we drove by going 65 mph.

This photo was taken in back of the courthouse in Tombstone. Both of the Al's closely examinded the trap door from underneath. I guess it's a guy thing! LOL

This was an authentic stagecoach from the 1880's and still operating in Tombstone. There were others stagecoaches, but this one was the only one that was from that era. We didn't take a tour in it because there was so much to see, we didn't really have time. Next visit, for sure!

Streets of Tombstone. They have some live reenactments taking place here during the half hour before the show.

Visit to Boothill Graveyard

These are the graves of the outlaws killed by Wyatt and his deputies

There were lots of headstones that were interesting to read. This was one of my favorites.

We spent three days in Tombstone, AZ with our friends from the Montana group, Carol and Al. We stayed at Wells Fargo RV Park which was located right in town and you could walk into town easily from there. We had a great time visiting with Al and Carol and taking in all the history of this famous town. The whole town of Tombstone is really a museum in itself. We enjoyed walking the streets there and visiting a few of the museums. We visited the Courthouse, the O.K. Corral, The Bird Cage Theatre, and Boot Hill Cemetery. We also took in some of the area around Tombstone. That will definately have to be a future post.

We are now in Quartzsite, AZ boondocking with a bunch of our Montana Owner friends. It got up to 84 degrees yesterday and is already up to 78 today and it's still morning. There are going to be over 60 rigs here when the Rally officially starts on the 22nd. We are seeing old friends as well as new. We are parked between Ron and Rose, who we have met previously and Carol and Al. Once things really get underway here, I will put up some pictures of our setup here. You will be amazed. So long for now!

The Organ Mountains, Les Cruces, New Mexico

2011-01-13T21:48:00.010-05:00

We stopped at an RV park near Les Cruces, NM for a couple of days. The mountains here are beautiful. They were nothing like what I am used to seeing in the Northeast. Totally different, but to me just as beautiful, as you can see from the pictures above.

We met up with friends of ours from the Montana Owners Club, Carol and Al, who were staying in Les Cruces. After having a really nice lunch together at a Mexican Restaurant in Old Mesilla, they took us for a ride up to Dripping Springs Rd. to the Visitor's Center run by the National Park Service. It was so hard to get good pictures of these mountains until we got up there. It was late in the afternoon, and the sun was going down, and it made for perfect pictures. Thank you so much Al and Carol for a very enjoyable day.

Fort Stockton, Texas

2011-01-11T23:33:00.010-05:00

On our way west we stopped for a couple of days at Fort Stockton, Texas. Yes there is a fort here, and we did drive to the parking lot, looked around, and sorry to say we were not impressed. So, since we only had one day to tour the area, we decided against going through the fort this time.

Road Runner sign claims to be the largest in the country, as far as Road Runner signs go.

This is the Visitor's Center. It used to be an old train station.

These metal figurines are on both sides of the visitor's center.

Rocking-Horse Oil Rig displayed on Visitor's Center grounds.

We visited The Annie Riggs Memorial Museum. This was a hotel built in 1900 and now owned by the Fort Stockton Historical Society. There were many exhibits from earlier times in Pecos County. We really enjoyed this. Below are some pictures of some of the exhibits.

This was the lobby. Showcase displayed some items for sale and Al found a really nice belt buckle for only $11.00. I managed to find a really neat kitchen magnet for my collection.

This is the parlor. Notice the two pianos.

Dining room. Hard to capture in the picture all the beautiful pieces in this room.

I just loved the charm of this old kitchen.

These are remains of a Whoolly Mammoth.

There were so many arrowheads displayed in this one room. These are only some of them!

Anyone looking for a saddle?

Courtyard and a restored buggy from the early 1900's.

Enjoying our Last Couple Days Here

2011-01-07T12:57:00.007-05:00

Emma (left), Ellie (right) and Elisha (front) taken in Emma and Ellie's room.

Everson (left) and Erik (right) putting a Star Wars puzzle together on Erik's bed

Fresh Produce Co-op day! A few baskets of produce are still waiting to be picked up.

On Sunday, we plan on leaving the comfort of our family here in San Angelo, and head west toward New Mexico and Arizona. It has been a wonderful visit. I decided I needed to take a break from blogging during our stay here. In fact, I even put the camera aside because I just wanted to relax, take it all in, and really enjoy the holiday.

Today, I was in their home, and I snapped a couple of pictures of the kids for the Aunts, Uncles, cousins and friends to see how much they have grown since last year. They are all getting bigger, and Emma is now taller than me! She will be 14 in March and is still into Ballet! She goes to ballet practice 5 days a week and for several hours at a time. She is very serious about it, and is becoming a very good dancer. Erik (12) is still playing basketball. This really is his passion, and he hopes to be in the NBA when he grows up. Meanwhile, he also enjoys playing with Legos along with his brother, Everson. Ellie (10) is still as cute as can be. She also is in ballet and loves other sports as well. Everson (7) is really growing up. He loves sports and also enjoys Legos. He especially likes anything relating to Star Wars. Little Elisha is now 3 and has changed the most of all the kids. We saw them all briefly in September, but what a change in him since then. He talks much more fluently now, and likes playing with his sisters and his brothers. He seems to have many interests in many different things. He has quite a personality and keeps us all in stiches.

Twice a month, on Fridays, Deja has a fresh produce co-op at her home. She has several friends that go in on it, and she and the kids divide everything up between several different baskets for people to pick up. I got over there a little late, but there were still some baskets left to be picked up, so I was able to get a picture. Nice when you can get fresh fruits and vegetables for a reasonable price.

So we will miss everyone here when we leave on Sunday. But, it's nice to know we have a place to come every year that is a second home to us.

Christmas San Angelo Style

2011-01-04T08:00:00.002-05:00

This sign was in downtown San Angelo. They don't worry about being politically correct here. I find that very refreshing.

This was on the lawn of the County Courthouse in San Angelo. Again, I was pleasantly surprised that this tradition is still alive and well in Texas.

The Christmas and New Year's holiday is now over and, the kids are back to their schooling and a more normal routine. We've had a great time here these past few weeks and being with family for Christmas, made it extra nice. We had an Italian dinner with Doug, Deja and kids as well as Deja's family on Christmas Eve. Deja's uncle from San Antonio came with some friends and his friend, Frank entertained us all by singing and playing his guitar. He had us all singing along and even yodeling. The kids especially enjoyed this, but we all had a lot of fun.

The kids all came over to our little house on New Years Eve. Their Mom and Dad went out to dinner and we invited the kids to come for dinner and a little party. We all watched the movie "Despicable Me" together and had a great time. Unfortunately, the party ended at 10pm and we didn't stay up to watch the ball drop.

On Sunday we all went to church and it was a special occasion because Everson (7) was baptised. I missed his 3 older siblings baptisms because we were in NY and still working. He was happy to have his other grandparents, Trish and Tom there as well.

We will be heading toward Arizona in another week. We have never been further west than here, and are anxious to continue on toward New Mexico and Arizona. I guess the weather hasn't been so great in Arizona lately, but we are hoping it will improve by the time we get there.

Christmas Message to Everyone

2010-12-18T21:46:00.005-05:00

We arrived here in San Angelo this past Tuesday. Al and I have both been a little under the weather with colds, but we are glad to be here for the Christmas Holiday. The kids are very busy now with the Nutcracker performances that 3 out of the 5 are in. Last night was opening night, and I was told it went very well. We have tickets for the last performance which is on Sunday afternoon.

We would like to take this opportunity to wish everyone a very Merry Christmas and a Joyous New Year. I will be taking a little break from blogging until after the New Year. Stay warm everyone!

Boondocking on Padre Island National Seashore

2010-12-12T20:55:00.008-05:00

This is one of two campgrounds at the National Seashore on North Padre Island, run by the National Park Service.

We enjoyed walking on the beach and even driving our truck on the beach

Some campers on the beach were feeding the seagulls

Al took this picture from on top of our RV. All along the beach at the campground there are covered picnic tables.

We had the best campsite. On the far left is a path leading to the beach.

Our truck on the beach. We did a little combination of driving and walking. You can't drive on the part of the beach where the campground is. But you can drive for miles beyond it going south. There were people in RVs camping right on the beach.

I got up early enough yesterday to catch the sunrise over the water just outside our door.

We had a nice time camping at the National Seashore on N. Padre Island. We stayed for 4 days and had really great weather (except for a lot of wind). We were practicing our boondocking (meaning camping without hook-ups). We were totally off the grid as there is no electricity furnished and no water or sewer at the campsite. We were able to get water to fill our tanks, and they did have a dump station there. Since we have solar and a generator, it wasn't too bad. In fact, it was kinda fun.(In fact, we didn't have to use our generator at all). It seemed good to just relax, walk on the beach, pick up seashells, read, and watch a little TV. Not having too much on the agenda can sometimes be a good thing. I must confess, though it was a little hard to get into the Christmas spirit while there, as nothing reminded me of Christmas.

I'm really glad we went there, and we really enjoyed it. But, I must confess that 4 days was just enough for me. I guess I like being closer to civilization. I think it would have been more fun also if there were more people there. Even though the weather was good, not that many campsites were filled, probably because of the approaching holiday, and it just seemed kinda lonely.

We are now in Kerrville, TX for a couple of days, and then we head to San Angelo for "The Nutcracker," as 3 of the grand kids are in it again this year, and Erik is the Prince! We just couldn't miss it and, of course, it's less than 2 weeks til Christmas, so it will be nice to be with loved ones during that special time.

Revisiting Goose Island in Texas

2010-12-07T20:27:00.004-05:00

We are spending a couple of days here at Goose Island State Park. Just relaxing a little, as we drove from Florida to here in 2 days. That's a lot of miles for us considering we are pulling a 38' Fifth-Wheel. It seemed good to sleep in a little this morning. We are getting ready to head out to Padre Island National Seashore, which is less than an hour from here. Anyone who read our blog last year, may remember we wanted to go there and try out our solar, but the weather was terrible, and we never seemed to get any sun that lasted for more than a day. So, I have been grocery shopping, doing laundry, and getting ready for 4 days at one of the prettiest places I have ever been. It should be fun. Our solar seems to be working good, and this year we brought our generator as a backup. Not sure if our aircard will work there, so I may not be updating the blog until after we leave there.

The weather forecast is sunny and in the high 60's and 70's for the next 4 days, and I'm hoping for a very relaxing and enjoyable time. We are all stocked up on groceries, and will be heading out tomorrow morning. I'll take lots of pictures!

Ft. Pickens Campground, Gulf Islands National Seashore

2010-12-06T09:43:00.008-05:00

Entrance road leading to the National Park and Campground.......No, it's not snow!

Path from Campground leading to the Bay

This was taken late in the day, so the sun wasn't so bright. Boardwalk across street from campground leading to the beach.

It looks like snow for sure in this picture. I just love how white the sand is here.

The previous 2 pics were so dark that I took this using the flash. Such a beautiful beach!

More of the same beach

Inside one of the buildings at Fort Pickens

Buildings here really show the damage done over the years, don't you think.

Another interesting building at the fort.

Al and I were headed somewhere totally different, and decided to take a detour to check out this place. I had read about it online and was curious, so since it was in the general direction of where we were already headed, we decided to spend the night here. We were so glad we did, as it is really beautiful here. Located on Santa Rosa Island, west of Pensacola Beach in Florida, it is truly a National treasure. We only spent one night here, but I'm sure we will return sometime in the future.

We drove a mile down the road from the campground to see what the Fort was like. It was sad to see how the place has been affected over the years from hurricanes and such. Hurricane Ivan really did a lot of damage here in 2004 when it hit the Gulf Coast. The Fort was closed for a few years after that, and it just reopened in 2009. Ft. Pickens was completed in 1834 and was named after Revolutionary war hero, Andrew Pickens. It was built to fortify the Pensacola Harbor. Famous Apache Indian Geronimo, was imprisoned there from 1886 to 1887. They do offer tours of the Fort, but unfortunately, we arrived there too late in the day. One more reason to return.

Visit with Aunt Edna

2010-12-03T21:34:00.005-05:00

Aunt Edna, looking really good at 93

After Leaving Winter Haven, we decided to drive over to Largo and pay a visit to Al's Aunt Edna. She is 93 and we hadn't seen her in many years. Al called her a few days ahead of time to make sure she would be home. So, yesterday we headed to Largo and stayed there at a nearby RV Park. It was only about 75 miles from Winter Haven, so we were able to set up our Montana in the park, have lunch and then head over to her place.

When we arrived, she did a cute little dance before hugging us both. She was so cute and seemed so happy to have us there. We had a wonderful visit with her and it was so good catching up on things going on in her family as well as ours.

Today, we drove to Quincy, FL near Tallahassee. It turned out to be a horrible drive for us. We didn't realize that the route we took would be a lot of stop and go. What should have taken no more than 5 hours, took us almost 7. We would have had to drive 50 more miles if we went the fastest route which would have been mostly interstate. Lesson learned.

Spook Hill near Winter Haven, FL

2010-12-01T14:21:00.006-05:00

This is a video I got off of U-Tube. I had trouble getting good pictures of this, so I thought this would demonstrate our experience better than I could explain it. Al and I heard about this place from Ed and Mary, friends of ours that stay here for the winter months. When you stop at the white line, put your car in neutral, your car will roll backwards up the hill. We went there with our friends, Wayne and Julie one day this week and tried it ourselves and yes, after we put it in neutral we rolled up the hill in our big truck!

We have been having a great time here in Winter Haven! We got here on Sunday and have been visiting with our friends, Ed and Mary who are our neighbors back home. We also met up with Wayne and Julie, friends we met last year at Goose Island, TX. They came by to visit us on Tuesday and on Wednesday we went to Frostproof, (about a half hour south of here) to see them and we went out to lunch together before checking out Spook Hill. We had so much fun and we can't figure out why this works.

Tonight we went out with another couple from back home who are also staying in Winter Haven. Alan and Brenda. It was Alan's b'day, so they asked us to go out to the Longhorn Steakhouse with them.

We've had lot's of fun and lots of good company these past few days and tomorrow we head to Largo to see Al's 93 yr. old aunt.

Enjoying Thanksgiving Weekend

2010-11-26T20:21:00.016-05:00

We enjoyed listening to Bill playing his dulcimer

Bill and Helen at their home on Thanksgiving Day

Ken and Sandy, friends of Bill and Helen. We enjoyed meeting them and having Thanksgiving together! Bonus....They are both originally from upstate NY!!!

The end of a perfect holiday. Beautiful sunset! Picture taken from Bill and Helen's Patio

Another picture of the Thanksgiving eve sunset.

This is the old sugar mill at De Leon Springs State Park. Now called "The Old Spanish Sugar Mill Restaurant.

Natural Springs swimming pool at De Leon Springs State Park

This is the a different view of the Sugar house overlooking a natural springs lake. Notice the beautiful water falls.

Something different is always fun. There were 2 griddles on the table for the 6 of us to use. They bring out pancake batter in pitchers and you make your own pancakes right at the table. Also, if you order eggs you fix them yourself also. We had a great time!

Sorry folks, someone had to take the picture. Here is Judy, Dennis, Al, Helen, and Bill

We've been having a great time here in Silver Springs visiting with Bill and Helen as well as Ken and Sandy. Thanksgiving was a wonderful time! Helen cooked a beautiful turkey as well as many of the fixings. Sandy's sweet potato casserole was beyond belief. I had to get that recipe! We all contributed to the dinner and I must say it was all good. But the best part was the fun we had with the people we were with. If you can't be with your family, the next best thing is to share the holiday with friends. We are so thankful that we have some great friends like Bill and Helen, and it seems like we are always making new ones while on the road.

Today, we went to De Leon Springs State Park. Helen had told us about this place and she thought we would enjoy the experience. It was about an hour's drive from here. Dennis and Judy, another couple we had met through the Montana Owners Club, met us there. Another great time with really nice people.

Wilderness RV Park Estates, Silver Springs, FL

2010-11-24T12:36:00.009-05:00

Our Campsite here. We are just a short distance from Bill and Helen's place

This is their clubhouse. We are located right next door.

The heated pool in back of clubhouse

Al and I would like to wish you all a wonderful and blessed Thanksgiving!

We arrived here on Monday and we have been really enjoying ourselves with Helen and Bill. They introduced us to Ken and Sandy, a very nice couple who are staying just across from them. They are also here visiting Bill and Helen. It seems Bill and Helen have a lot of friends from all over the country, that they have met over the years. They have had many visitors at their winter home here in Silver Springs. Once you meet them, you can understand why! The weather here right now is 86. A tad warmer than we like, but it only seems to stay hot for a few hours in the afternoon, and then around 5 it starts cooling off.

We are having Thanksgiving dinner with Helen and Bill at their place and Ken and Sandy will also be there. We will be cooking up a storm and it promises to be really good. Good food, good company...........a lot to be thankful for.

I have been lazy with the picture taking, so I will try to post more on here. This is a beautiful place. Helen took me around it in her golf cart, but wouldn't you know, I forgot to bring the camera!

Stayed tuned and again.......Have a wonderful Thanksgiving!!!

Tour of The Citadel with Rob

2010-11-20T10:50:00.012-05:00

On Thursday Al and I took a ride over to the Citadel where both Rob and Vickie work. Vickie works in the Administration Building and is in charge of Payroll. Rob is the Director of Risk Management and Safety. Rob was our Tour guide and he did a fantastic job showing us around the place in a golf cart.

The Citadel is a State of South Carolina Military College. It is run as a military college and the students are taught leadership and character training and live in a military setting. All students dress in military uniforms and must live on campus. About one third of the students who graduate from the Citadel go into the military after graduations. All branches of the military are represented here.

This is the Administration building where Vickie works

This is a tank from a previous war. There are many artifacts from various wars on the campus

These are new students and are called "Knobs". They have the strictest of rules to go by. For the first 6 months they attend the school, they have to walk in single file everywhere they go. They must remain silent when going to and from their classes and they pretty much only go to classes. They don't get to socialize and even when they are in the mess hall, they can only talk when they are asked a question. Notice the hat they are wearing. It is plain and there are no stripes on them. This is how you can tell they are knobs. I felt so bad for them, but it's all a part of their training and everyone has to be a knob before he becomes a cadet.

The beautiful newly renovated library. The inside was really beautiful, I didn't feel I should take pictures while all the students were in there studying.

This is the chapel. I took pictures of the inside, but they came out too dark. It was a really beautiful place and was much larger than I imagined from the outside.

This is the entrance to one of the barracks. Notice the security. There are several of these buildings forming a large square with a courtyard in the middle.

This is Mark Clark Hall. This houses many different things, such as a barbershop, gift shop, game room, post office, billiard room, large auditorium, a reception room. There is also a Catholic chapel on the second floor and guest quarters on the third floor for distinguished guests who visit the Citadel.

Just had to take a picture of Uncle Al with his nephew, Rob. (two handsome guys)

Rob also took us a little behind the scenes. This houses different garages for various maintenance projects.

Rob was responsible for having all these defibrillators installed all over the campus. One of his many jobs is to make sure everything is up to code and to implement as many safety measures as he feels is necessary throughout the campus.

Rob, our fantastic tour guide in his office. Thanks Rob for a great time! We really enjoyed ourselves.

The Market and More of Charleston

2010-11-19T11:34:00.003-05:00

Just some of the many items sold in the Market here.

Even Shoes!

These are grass baskets made here! They are very expensive because of the amount of labor involved in making them. This craft comes from Africa and I was told that is the only other place they are made.

Several different buildings hold many different vendors

This huge cruise ship is docked in Charleston harbor.

We had to try the She crab soup, which is very popular here in Charleston.

Al got a kick out of this, a place for him to rest while I shopped!

We are still enjoying ourselves here in Charleston. Yesterday we toured The Citadel. Rob and Vickie both work there, and Rob gave us a fantastic tour of the place. That will be my next blog post. Tonight we are going over to their house for a "Southern dinner" as Vickie tells us (It's a surprise). We will get to see the whole family including their grandchildren.......Can't wait!

Beautiful Homes of Charleston, SC

2010-11-16T15:13:00.009-05:00

Al and I went on a horse and buggy ride. Our horse, named John took us on a great tour of the city. Below you will see many of the beautiful homes that we passed by. I wish we could have taken more pictures, but it was difficult from the carraige.

I loved the pillars on this one.

How do you like the huge 2 story rounded porch. Many of these homes have 8,000 to 9,000 sq. feet .

Notice the steps on either side of the porch

Another beautiful home

I think the porch is bigger than the house on this one!

As in any city, the houses are close together!

We arrived in Charleston on Sunday, and had a nice visit with Al's nephew Rob and his wife Vickie at there home in Goose Creek. We plan to get together a few more times while we are here and also get together with the rest of their family one night this week. It is always a good time whenever we get together with them, and unfortunately, it's not often enough.

We had a beautiful day yesterday, so we headed to downtown Charleston. We have been there a couple of other times, but always enjoy going back. It seems like there is never enough time to see it all in one day. We especially enjoyed the carriage ride through the city and the beautiful homes we saw. I will post more pictures on the marketplace and other places around here on my next post.

Simply a Beach!

2010-11-13T21:46:00.009-05:00

One of the entrances to the beach here at Ocean Lakes

My new camera lets me take panoramic photos

Just for fun, I erased all the people on this one!

Headed for Charleston today!

Still in Myrtle Beach

2010-11-11T19:14:00.016-05:00

Here is where we had lunch in Calabash, NC. Capt. Nance's Calabash Seafood Restaurant

How do you like this bicycle built for four!

Another cute little house at Ocean Lakes. Notice the one next to it is huge. That is how it is here. All different styles and sizes all mixed together.

More residents of Ocean Lakes!

We are still hanging out here in Myrtle Beach. The weather has been beautiful these last few days, in the 70's and sunny. The beach is so nice this time of year. I will try to get some pics up but haven't taken any of the beach yet.

While our friends, Frank and Sandy were here, we wanted to take them to a town 30 miles away and just over the border, Calibash, NC, Seafood Capital of the world (or so it claims to be). It is the home of the Calibash style of seafood which is very popular here in Myrtle Beach. It is a neat experience, because it is such a tiny town with seafood, after seafood restaurant all next to each other. There are nine or ten in all and so it's hard to decide which one to go to. Unfortunately, it was raining hard that day, so I wasn't able to take many pictures and the ones I did take didn't come out well. We had a very nice lunch and more importantly a very nice visit with our friends. We were sorry to see them go, and felt bad that the weather hadn't been better while they were here.

We went to the Tanger Outlet stores today and walked around. I'm convinced that outlets do not offer prices for less. The Liz Clairborne store was going out of business here, so I went in there as everything was 60 to 80 % off. I still couldn't afford the prices for many of the things on sale there. I didn't even feel that the quality justified the price.

Sunday we head to Charleston. Al's nephew Rob and wife Vickie as well as their kids and grandkids live near there. So we are looking forward to seeing all of them, and taking in the sights of Charleston.

Waccamau Indian Pow Pow

2010-11-07T20:11:00.030-05:00

Men dancing a traditional Indian dance

This is the beginning of a parade honoring veterans. Notice the American flag on left and the POW flag on right. In the front and middle, is their own flag (which doesn't look like a traditional flag). It was announced that it was supposed to be higher than the American flag. Well, they were here first!

This cute couple were sitting behind us. They asked where we were from and told us they used to own a Campground in the Adirondacks. She looked so great with all her turquoise, and even her nails were painted turquoise.

Veterans marching in the parade.
Loving the colors here!

Another dancer and another great costume.

This is called the Shawl dance.

I liked this guy's costume. There is a whole group dancing here, but it was easier in most cases to get individual pictures.

More dancers

Even the kids get in on the dancing. Aren't they adorable!

Looks like this guy was representing the Calvary.

This poor little guy was exhausted!

Another lovely lady!

Today was such a beautiful sunny day that we decided it might be fun to go to the Indian Pow Wow taking place in a little town about 3o miles from here. We had heard about it on the local news and since Al has always been interested in American Indian history, and we had never been to one before, we thought it would be a great way to spend an afternoon.

We were not disappointed. It was very entertaining to say the least. We thoroughly enjoyed ourselves. The music, the costumes, and the dancing, were all wonderful. Knowing that a lot of it has been passed down from generation to generation made quite an impression on us. It was nice listening to the stories that were told and watching the Indian children as they participated as well.

At every pow wow, they honor the veterans and invite them to come up and march. They have a song they sing about the different wars, and I couldn't help but notice the children were singing them and knew all the words to the song.

There were many vendors there selling everything from jewelry, to toys, to leather goods. I enjoyed looking at the turquoise jewely. After a few hours, we decided to head back. We had a very enjoyable afternoon and look forward to attending another one sometime in the future. These Pow Wows are held all over the US by various Indian tribes. It was well worth the $3 admission fee.

Ocean Lakes Campground, Myrtle Beach, SC

2010-11-03T20:10:00.011-04:00

These are our Campsites here at Ocean Lakes, Frank and Sandy on the left and we are on the right.

Our friends, Frank and Sandy

One of the cute houses in the campground.

These people are ready for a big party. Many of the houses are built up on stilts, and the lower part houses their cars, etc. Another use, a huge bar!

Sign above the bar says "Margaritaville"

More pretty houses

There is always new construction here.

We are now at Ocean Lakes Campground for a couple of weeks. We have been here several times in the past as we used to vacation here during our working years. This has to be the largest campground we have ever been to. There are almost 900 campsites as well as over 2500 leased properties. This place is like its own community. There are houses in here on the leased sites, some very luxurious and others very modest. Sometimes they are side by side.

Our friends from Massachusetts, Frank and Sandy arrived on Tuesday. They are leaving on Friday, so we have been spending time with them going out to eat and taking in the sights. We went out to our favorite steakhouse tonight and had a great dinner. We are having such a great time with them both. It's always a good thing when we meet up with good friends. They are headed to Florida for the Winter months.

Will write more later on our stay here at Myrtle Beach.

On the Road Again-Clarksville, VA

2010-10-30T11:18:00.016-04:00

View of Lake from our campsite

Pretty little town of Clarksville getting ready for Halloween

I'm sure the kids will enjoy these clowns. These two ladies are really getting into the spirit.

Merchants in Town are all dressed up for the little trick or treaters who came to town on Friday night.

These adorable little ones are checking out their treats. I'm sure they have already decided this holiday is a keeper!

This is a local insurance company. This gentleman says it is his second year living in Clarksville and he really enjoys this tradition.

These shop owners are dressed for the season, though not in costume. The little pumpkin boy makes up for their lack of costumes, don't you think!!

I got a big laugh out of this one. This lady has her treats in a trash barrel. When we came back a little later, she was giving out the treats to the little kids. Would you believe she was giving them little sandwich bags of Cherrios?! I hope it wasn't a used garbage can.

So, here is is my first blog on this year's journey

Al and I started out on our trip on Tuesday, October 26. We decided with all the work involved in shutting down the house and packing up the Montana, that we needed to just chill for a few days. So we are here in a Corp of Engineer Park, on Longwood Lake. It is one of many parks located on the John H.Kerr Reservoir, a 50,000 acre lake which extends up the Roanoke River. The Lake is located partly in Virginia and partly in North Carolina.

So we are chillin and getting our little house in order for the long winter. Everything got packed in and needs to be rearranged a little. Yesterday we took a trip to Durham, NC and stopped at a Best Buy. Al decided I needed a Kindle electronic book reader, normally sold on Amazon, but now can be purchased at Best Buy. I had a bunch of books I hadn't read and forgot to bring, so since I had been thinking of getting one anyway, we decided to go for it.

The campground here is really nothing to brag about except it is only $10 per night for us. It does have water and electric and is overlooking the lake, but is very woodsy and rustic. Actually, though, it is just what we need for now. We have gotten very spoiled since we've had the RV and it's just nice sometimes to be in a more natural environment. This afternoon I plan to start reading my Kindle book, but decided I can't until this blog is updated.

Clarksville is an adorable little town here. I wasn't expecting much when we first went into town, but was very surprised at how charming it is. Population is less than 2000 here. We found out the stores were planning a special night for the little trick or treaters downtown. All the merchants get dressed up as well and give out candy. We stopped by and got some pictures mostly of the shops and shop owners. We got there early and the kids were just starting to get there.

Headed for Myrtle Beach on Monday!

Life at Home

2010-08-20T18:00:00.001-04:00

Mike and Holly and their 3 kids came for a visit. This is Mikey 12 with his 2 little brothers Christopher (now 6 mos)and Nicholas 2 1/2. Christopher was born on Mikey's birthday, so he chose his name, with some help from the parents. Wasn't that a great birthday present.

This is Alfred at his First Communion in May. He looked really handsome, but unfortunately the picture I took is kind of blury.

Sam and Angie's little girl, Katie at her first ballet recital. Doesn't she look adorable.

Brother Will gives Katie a big hug after her performance. He was so proud of her.

Little Abigail turned 2 yrs old. She loves Lady Gaga and of course Mickey Mouse! She is such a smart little girl, it's hard to believe she is only 2.

Will attended the Double H Ranch. It is one of the Paul Newman camps for kids who have suffered serious illness. We attended the Talent Show on his last night there. I wasn't able to get any pictures of him as he was too busy with all that was going on. He had a great time and we were so happy to see him finally able to be a normal kid again.

Well, I hope you don't mind seeing mostly pictures of the grandchildren. That's what being home is all about.

So, keep reading as I'm finally getting around to blogging again after only 4 months!!!

I know, I know........I said I'd post here from time to time, but for some reason, I haven't been as motivated as I was when traveling. We are keeping busy with the day to day things. I used to hear people who are retired saying "I don't know how I ever found enought time to do everything when I worked." Such is our life lately. I'm not complaining and I'm rather enjoying it. It seems to be all about family, as it should be. Everything from birthdays, first communions, ballet recitals, cookouts and just all the normal stuff people do especially in the summer. It's hard to catch up on everything, so all I can do is highlight a few of the things that we have been up to.

We bought a house last year that was about 20 yrs old. It's in really good shape, but this summer we have been doing some updating. Our nephew, Anthony, who does professional painting for a living, is painting our interior during his spare time. He is doing a great job. My perfectionist husband insisted the ceilings even need to be painted (even though I think they look fine), so that is being done as well. We've been putting up new window treatments, and trying to make it look a little more like a home. So far, we don't have up any wall art and after being here for a year (minus 6 months on the road), I'm anxious to make our little place more like a home. Our next big project is to install hardwood floors in the Great room, hallways and kitchen. Can't wait to see the results. I may not want to leave here in October. I do love having a home to come back to and we are hoping to get everything done, so we can do some traveling during the summer months as well.

The house we bought is in a community of about 60 homes. One of our neighbors recently gave us a listing of all the people who live here. As I was looking through it, I noticed an old friend of mine lived just around the corner from me. I hadn't seen Nancy in over 20 years since I married Al and moved away from this area. I decided I would walk by her house to see where she lived on my way to the mailbox. As I passed by her house and turned the corner headed toward the mailboxes, I saw a lady heading toward me with mail in her hand. Everyone is so friendly here, so of course we spoke and then as soon as she smiled, I knew it was Nancy. It was just so great to see her again and catch up on things. Nancy is a very warm and upbeat type of person who I always enjoy being around. Unfortunately, there is always things that happen during that span of time. We both had lost our parents and sadly, Nancy husband passed away 2 years ago. I felt so sad in hearing this news, as they had a wonderful relationship and he was such a great guy. Nancy and I are hoping to see lots more of each other now that we live so close. It really is too bad that we lose contact with people due to travel distance and busy lives.

Al and I joined a gym and I started a weight loss program through Weight Watchers On-line. So far I have lost over 20 lbs and Al has lost some without trying that hard. I guess it's because I'm cooking healthier and also the exercise helps tremendously. We enjoy going to the gym together and keep each other motivated. My weight is coming off very slowly, but I'm told by the experts at Weight Watchers that that is the best way to loose it.

Last week our friends, Frank and Sandy from Massachusetts came for a visit. They also have a Fifth-Wheel and belong to the Montana Owners Club. We had a great time visiting with them. They had never been to Lake Placid, so we took a trip there one day and also up to Saranac Lake. In our younger years, Al and I used to love going canoeing and fishing in Saranac which is just one town further than Lake Placid.

It won't be long and we will be starting our travels again. There is always so much to do to get ready for our trip. We still aren't sure where we are going, but would like to go to Arizona, New Mexico and California and probably on our trip back, we will stop in TX to see our family there. We are planning on going south first checking out The Outer Banks, and maybe Myrtle Beach, Charleston and Hilton Head then Florida, and then we will head west. Of course these plans are subject to change as they often do.

Home Sweet Home

2010-04-22T22:00:00.001-04:00

It really seems great being home. We had a wonderful journey for the last 6 months, but for me especially, I was very anxious to get home and see our family here. I'm also just enjoying our home. The first day, I walked from room to room just to take it all in. I guess that's because I've been living in such a small space that this place seems huge to me. Our home isn't large, it's rather small, but after being in our RV for so long, it seems huge to me.

We now have our 5th wheel in the driveway, and it just fits with no room for our vehicles. We are allowed to have it here for a few days until we get it unloaded, then we move it to a lot here to store it. Unfortunately, Al twisted his knee on our trip home and has been unable to do much since we arrived home. We have lots to do right now, but he can't do too much. I have been bringing things in from the camper little by little, doing laundry and grocery shopping. Our yard is full of pine needles and leaves which normally he would have taken care of by now. It's very frustrating to him as he likes to do these things himself. Hopefully this weekend some of our family will be coming and I'm sure will pitch in and help. As much as I hate yard work, I'll probably get out with the rake too.

I'm not sure how much posting on the blog I will do now that we are home. Unless something interesting is happening, I may take a little break. I hope you will check from time to time as I still plan to continue blogging, just not as often.

Visit to Family in Virginia

2010-04-18T19:29:00.010-04:00

Aunt Teen seated in front. Liz, Cindy, me, and Ruth Getting ready for our delicious turkey dinner at Cindy's House

We had a great weekend. We decided to stop in Roanoke to see my Aunt Ernestine who I affectionately call Aunt Teen. She is now 86 years young and still holds her own in a conversation. She is a wonderful person in so many ways that it is difficult for me to put into words what she means to me. Nine years ago, my mother, suffering from Dementia and on Kidney Dialysis, needed someone to look after her. My father had Prostate Cancer and was in and out of the hospital. We knew that both of my parents were not going to be with us much longer. I lived an hour away and had just started a new position at work. My sister lived closer, but also worked part time and had a teenager at home as well. We both were managing as best we could to deal with all the issues, taking turns going back and forth and many times spending the night there. When my aunt found out the situation, she insisted on coming and staying with them. She was a godsend and we were so appreciative of her help. She was not young and she had the appearance of being frail, but this wonderful lady really rose to the occasion. She did everything she could to make our situation so much better than we could have ever hoped for. She cooked, cleaned and basically ran their household. She was a wonderful friend to both my parents and her presence made their situation so much easier on both of them. She stayed there for over 2 months, and I don't remember ever hearing her complain about anything. You see, my Aunt Teen is not only a Christian, but she practices her faith on a daily basis, and in all facets of her life. This was not the first time she stepped in to help someone in a similar situation. This has been a way of life for her. Well, I could just go on and on, but I think you get the picture.

I was also excited to see her daughters (my cousins), Ruth, Liz and Cindy. They all live close by to their mother, and as she is now getting up in years this is a blessing to her. She has a really nice little apartment in daughter Liz and son-in-law, Blake's home. Blake and Liz have only been married for 8 years and this is the first time I met him. I am so happy Liz found such a great guy and if you ask me, he's pretty lucky as well.

Friday night we went to Cindy's house. Cindy cooked a delicious Turkey dinner and we had a nice visit with Aunt Teen, Cindy and Ruth. On Saturday we visited Liz at her home for a while and then we all went over to Ruth's to see her new apartment. Ruth just moved to Virginia a couple years ago from NYC and was excited to show us what a great apartment she had for a fraction of what she would have paid in NY. It is amazing to me how much less housing is in different parts of the country, especially compared to NYC. Later in the evening we went out to dinner at Olive Garden with Liz and Blake and Blake's kids as well as Aunt Teen and Ruth. Cindy's daughter and family rolled in on Saturday evening from NY State, so she stayed home and cooked for them.

Now we are headed home. We are staying tonight near Allentown, PA and it will be a five hour drive to get home tomorrow. We are really looking forward to being home again.

Traveling on the Natchez Trace

2010-04-12T15:33:00.009-04:00

At one time the Natchez Trace was just a wilderness road. Traders traveled this route as it was the most direct route from Natchez, MS to Nashville, TN. It was the most heavily traveled road in the old Southwest. A clear path was beaten down over the years and by 1810 many improvements were made to the road. Many Inns were built along the Trace. The Natchez Trace we now know and love, runs parallel to the old Trace. It was started in the late 1930's and is a very peaceful and scenic drive. No commercial vehicles are alowed on this parkway, but RV's are allowed.

This is what the road looks like. Even though it's not a divided highway, there isn't a lot of traffic and you are only supposed to go 50mph. It was a very peaceful drive. I just love some of the overhead bridges. There were several like this one.

If you click on this one, you will see the mile post number. Every mile there is one. See the 50 mph sign. Some people passed us because we tried to drive the speed limit, but most people did obey the law on this road. Also, see the wildflowers along side of road.

Wildflowers aren't as great as in Texas, but it's early yet!

Pretty view here of lake!

This is a scenic pull-off area. There are many pull-offs along the route and most can accomodate our RV with no problem.

Dogwoods were in full bloom!

Redbuds too!

We stopped for the night at Meriwether Lewis Campground. Owned by the National Park Service. It is one of three campgrounds on the parkway. It is free to stay here. We have a nice drive-thru site, a picnic table and a grill here. No electric, but water is available. We are depending on our Solar for tonight. So, far it's running great! This is a very peaceful setting.

Tomorrow we will be headed to Knoxville, TN for a couple of days and then to Roanoke to see family on Friday for the weekend and hope to be home by next Monday or Tuesday.

Natchez, Mississippi

2010-04-10T18:41:00.012-04:00

Our campsite at Natchez State Park

The Melrose Mansion

These buildings were the slave quarters

A typical room in the slave quarters. There is a bed in this room also.

Now we are on to the Grand Indian Village. This sign tells how the houses were built of mud and pole construction with grass roofs.

Here is a replica of one of these homes

This sign explains the Indian Mound which the houses were built on.

The Great Sun's Mound

Another Mound in the distance

We arrived in Natchez, MS yesterday afternoon and will be leaving here on Sunday. We are staying at the Natchez State Park, just one mile off the Natchez State Parkway at mile marker 8. We plan to continue our trip on the Parkway on Sunday, but needed a couple of days to relax and unwind. I will be doing a separate post on the Parkway as we travel along it over the next few days.

We decided to check out a couple of historical places in the area. First we went to Melrose, a cotton kingdom estate once owned by John McMurran and now owned by the National Park Service. Mr. McMurran had the estate's mansion and outbuildings constructed by a combination of free and slave labor. Melrose was considered by many to be the finest home in all the Natchez region. The slave houses are located behind the main house and of course we not nearly as elaborate.

We also visited the Grand Village of the Natchez Indians which has been designated a National Historic Landmark by the National Park Service. Between 1682 and 1729 the Grand Village was the center of activities for the Natchez Indians. There is historical and archaelogical evidence that this Indian Mound site is the actual place where the Grand Village was located.

There is lots more to visit in Natchez. We will definately revisit this place in the future. When you only have 1 day, it is difficult to take everything in.

This and That & Heading North

2010-04-06T22:31:00.015-04:00

Love these bikes to tour the area. Some of them carry more than just two people.

Several of these Gazebo's throughout the shore area

Sunbather's enjoying the beautiful day on the beach

Kids skateboarding in a nearby park

Lots of places to sit and relax and enjoy the water

This is the restaurant in Port Aransas where we had lunch the other day with Wayne and Julie. The place didn't look to inviting, but the food was wonderful.

I think Julie is checking out the place and wondering if we should go in or not!

We went to the Aransas National Wildlife Refuge one day and sadly after spending a few hours here, we only saw a snake and a deer. We did, of course see some birds far away. We have seen more wildlife right at Goose Island. We could have seen the alligators but we weren't that interested since we had seen some at Brazzo's Bend last month. We were very dissapointed.

This peacock belongs to someone who lives on Goose Island. We are always driving by and seeing it out in the yard. We didn't get to see him with his feathers displayed, but I think he looks beautiful anyway.

Tomorrow we leave here and are hoping to be on the road by early afternoon. First we are going to a place in Corpus Christi to get tires for our 5th Wheel. Al noticed some excessive wear on one of the back tires and feels there is a possibility that we may need to find out the reason before putting on new tires. So we made an appointment with a garage that specialized in Trucks, trailers, buses, etc. They also sell tires, so we hope to get 4 new ones for our trip home. It's always best to be careful when it comes to safety issues.

We've been having a good time here. We toured around some and checked out areas we hadn't been to when we were last here. We rode along the shoreline in Corpus Christi one day. Lots of people were out enjoying the beautiful weather. We went out to lunch one day with Wayne and Julie and out to dinner with them tonight. Of course, Al needed to go to Dairy Queen for dessert afterwards, and no one seemed to object. We always have so much fun with this couple, that we sure are going to miss them. We said our goodbyes tonight, because we will be leaving here early in the morning.

We will be taking our time going home and plan to stop in Roanoke, VA to see family there. We plan to make a few other stops on our way home as well. Now that we are heading toward home, I am getting pretty anxious to get there and see everyone we have missed for the last several months. Of course, the grandchildren are on the top of that list, and especially one we haven't even met yet. And I miss our place there, so going home is a really good thing!

Wildflowers of Rockport Cemetery

2010-04-01T11:02:00.008-04:00

We are back at Goose Island near Rockport, TX for about a week before we start our trek toward home. My friend, Julie had mentioned in an e-mail to me about the pictures she took of wildflowers at the local cemetery here. Then another friend, Helen had posted some pictures of them on her blog, so I just had to go see for myself and take my own pictures. We were headed out for Pizza with Wayne and Julie, so we all decided to stop there on the way.

Every year during the wildflower season, the cemetery here doesn't get mowed until the flowers are gone. People come from all over to see the spectacular site. It is so beautiful as the whole place is just covered with flowers and the headstones are just peaking through.

Of course, the blue bonnets are also in bloom (blue bonnets are the state flower). We saw lots of pretty wildflowers on the highways as well on our way here from San Angelo. As most of you know, Lady Bird Johnson was largely responsible for all the beautiful wildflowers grown on medians and along highways throughout our country.

The Sheep-& Lunch with the Girls

2010-03-29T17:33:00.013-04:00

We arrived in San Angelo last Wednesday. We have just been relaxing and enjoying being with family again. We decided it would be fun to take the kids to lunch. So on Friday the boys went with us and unfortunately I didn't bring the camera with me, so no pics. We had a great time anyway. Today was the girls turn, so they picked this Mexican Restaurant pictured above, located in town.

After lunch we went to the Visitor's Center in San Angelo. This is a picture in the back which is nicely landscaped and right on the Concho River.

Here is the front of the Visitor's Center.

We stopped at the Eggemeyer's General Store in San Angelo. A neat little store that seems to have everything. It would definately be a good place to find a unique gift for someone.

Some of us remember "penney candy". There was a nice collection of all the different kinds of candy we enjoyed as kids. They even had candy cigarettes (Yuck!)

Emma is really serious about her ballet. This is one of her practice studios. She has been in many different performances in San Angelo. Every year she performs in the Nutcracker. Just this past year, she has learned Pointe. She loves ballet so much that she is always dancing around the house and if you have a conversation with her expect a twirl or two during the conversation. She is now 13 and is a little taller than me at 5'4". She is as sweet as she is pretty!

All around town they have these adorable sheep. I guess this area used to be known for its sheep and wool. So, many businesses have decorated them and they are scattered throughout the city. The lovely young lady here posing with this one is 9 yr old Ellie.

Another one we drove by.

This one is called "Common Cents" If you click on it, you might be able to see why it's called that. It is covered in pennies. This was one of my favorites.

Rally Over-Back to San Angelo

2010-03-25T11:06:00.003-04:00

Well, we finally got to enjoy some of the events at the Montana Rally. They had a White Elephant gift exchange which was loads of fun and there was lots of laughter. Also on Tuesday night we went to a catered BBQ dinner. We had a good time in spite of our bad start! There were a couple of people we knew there from previous rallies. Ron and Rose from California were there and it was really good seeing them again. It was also nice to put faces to some of the names we have read about. We also got to meet Myrna and Bob. Myrna reads my blog, so I knew I had to meet her. We sat with them at the White Elephant Gift Exchange and finally got to visit with them. We are familiar with most of the people from the forum through their posts, but had not met most of them. They were a friendly group of people and we look forward to seeing them again in the future.

We left there on Wednesday after saying goodbye to Bill and Helen. They were staying an extra day and were headed to explore Fredericksburg some more. Like I said in a previous post, they always seem to find the neatest places. They are very good at smelling the roses along the way wherever they go!

It was only about 150 miles to San Angelo, our next stop. We needed our grandkid fix, so we are here until next Tuesday, camped out in their yard. Yesterday, when we arrived we had help from Erik and Ellie in getting the camper in the right spot in the yard. And of course, lots of company in and out of our little house throughout the day. We all got together for an evening meal after their Dad got home from work. It really seemed good to be back with our family again!

Luckenbach, Texas

2010-03-22T11:19:00.013-04:00

This is in back of Post Office, a little bar area and in the corner (not shown) an area where you will sometimes find musicians playing especially during the week.

Helen is looking to buy a cowboy hat and I think this one sure looks beautiful on her!

We met Casey. She and her hubby own the hat shop here! Casey is originally from Johnstown, NY (a town near my hometown). She says she ran away from home after a fight with her father 30 years ago as a teenager. She wanted to follow Waylen, Willie and the Boys! She ended up in Luckenbach, and met the man of her dreams and has been here ever since, (except for the times she and hubby have spent travelling all over the US). She finally spoke to her father after 27 years just 3 years ago and he has come here a couple of times since to visit.

This is the Post Office. It had all kinds of things you can buy and a bar in the back room where singers and players get together and play.

One of their outdoor stages. Since it was so cold outside today, it was held inside the saloon.

When we were at the restaurant in Fredericksburg, Bill told us before we leave we might want to use the restrooms there as we might not like the ones in Luckenbach. Gee........I don't know why!

Helen and I sure think we have the most handsome dudes here!

Thomas Michael Riley and his band...........They were GREAT!!!

Most of us have heard the song "Luckenbach, Texas" sung by Waylon Jennings that became popular, over 30 years ago . Well, there really is a little town that the song is all about. It's only a short drive from where we are staying here in Kerrville. Since Al and I both have been sick and are now feeling better, Helen and Bill, friends of ours from the Montana Group asked us to lunch and a little side trip to Luckenbach. It was a rather cold windy day, but the sun was shining. First we stopped in Fredericksburg, which is on the way, to have some lunch at a German Restaurant. Fredericksburg is a German town and in my opinion it's one of the nicest towns we have seen anywhere. They were having "Trading Days" in Fredericksburg so it was very busy. It was so cold and so busy, I neglected to get any pictures of the town. I promise next time we go back there, I'll take some. It's a must see, if you are traveling through the Hill Country in Texas.

When we arrived in Luckenbach, it felt like we were in the middle of nowhere. But there were tons of cars in the dirt parking lot. Bill and Helen are the best tour guides anyone could ask for. They have traveled the whole US and seem to know where every little hidden place of interest is. And this place sure hit the top of our list! It's a very unpretentious place. You know right away why you are here. You are here to hear some of the countries finest music and taking in the sites around you is just an added bonus. Most of us remember Willie Nelson's "Farm Aid" concerts. They were held here until 1993 until it was decided the place wasn't big enough to accommodate the crowds and it had to be moved elsewhere.

Nowadays, there are singers and bands that go there every single day and perform for whoever happens to be there. Many of them have written the very songs that sung by some of the top performers in the industry. Today's performance was given by Thomas Michael Riley and his band. We thoroughly enjoyed their music and had a wonderful time! Oh, one thing I forgot to add about our day here is......It was all free! You don't have to spend one penney! In todays economy, why not take a ride out there if you have nothing else to do. I don't think you'll be disappointed.

We had the greatest day with our dear friends, Bill and Helen. We were so happy to get a chance to spend a day with them. We got back to the campground in time for Happy Hour at the Rec Hall and finally had a chance to meet some of the Montana people here at the rally. We only have 2 more days left to the rally, so we are looking forward to the last couple of nights events and meeting even more people.

Rally in Kerrville

2010-03-19T00:55:00.006-04:00

We were supposed to arrive at the Rally on Monday, but over the weekend we started having problems with the truck. At first Al thought it was the brakes, but on further inspection he discovered a bearing that needed replacement. It's Sunday, and of course nothing is open, and we are in a very small town. Luckily, he spoke to one of the camp host here and he was able to direct Al to a garage just a few miles away. Al called there first thing Monday morning and got right in. They were really great and he was out by noon. It was an expensive fix, but worth it to know we are safe to travel.

We decided to wait until Tuesday to go to the Rally. It didn't officially start until Wednesday anyway. We drove to Kerrville and really enjoyed the scenery along the way. The hill country in Texas is really pretty. I won't say as pretty as the Adirondacks, but beautiful country anyway.

Not too much was going on on Tuesday, but we did get to visit with a couple of our friends here before heading out to dinner in the evening.

The next morning I woke up sick, with a stomach bug. Not sure if it was something I ate at the restaurant or just a bug, but I was very sick all day yesterday, and today I felt somewhat better but not great. So, we missed the first night festivities, "The Meet & Greet". I was supposed to be in charge of the "Potluck Supper" on Thursday night, and still did not feel well enough to attend. Luckily, 12 couples had signed up as volunteers to help, so it went off smoothly without me. I can't tell you how disappointed I was to miss this and everything so far. I have been looking forward to the rally for a long time. Things like this happen sometimes, so I'll just have to move on. We have some other fun things planned and I'm sure by tomorrow, I'll be back to normal again.

San Antonio-Revisited

2010-03-13T23:05:00.008-05:00

We decided since it was a beautiful day yesterday, it would be nice to go to San Antonio for the day. We were there in early January when the temperatures weren't too great, and the River at the Riverwalk was being cleaned. So it was kind of a mess there, and we originally planned on going back there when the weather improved and staying at a campground there. Our plans changed and we are staying at Canyon Lake which is only about 50 miles away.

So, we got there in time for a lunch at Rita's Mexican Restaurant at the Riverwalk. We also wanted to go to the Marketplace, which is a Mexican market where they sell everything and anything. It was quite a walk from the Riverwalk to this place, so we really got our exercise and were pretty tired at the end of the day.

There were lots of different stores inside and out.

Lots of pretty things here. It's a good thing I don't have room for any more stuff!

Shirts, purses, you name it........They have it!

I thought this was an interesting display!

See, they even have a food line with my name on it!

As we were taking the steps to the Riverwalk look who is here sitting on her nest. She totally ignored us, so it was easy to snap a picture.

As you can see, the Riverwalk is much nicer and cleaner than it was in January. We took a boat ride while there. See the boat in the background. They have several of these boat and they run continuously throughout the day.

Check out this picture, I took it as we were on the boat going under a bridge and looking up. When you look up at it, you will see it looks like a card standing on end with no sides. However, it is just an optical illusion! Very interesting to see in person. They pointed it out to us while we were on the boat ride. We went back to look at it from the walkway and it still appeared that way.

Visit to New Braunfels

2010-03-10T12:31:00.007-05:00

It was a beautiful sunny day yesterday. It actually got up into the 80's! Al and I decided to take a ride to New Braunfels. We had heard it was a nice town to visit, and we needed a couple of things at the store anyway. New Braunfels is a little German Town, population 40,000+. We walked around the downtown area which was busy for a weekday. We found it to have unique little shops and some nice architecture. The Gazebo in the center of town was barricaded off for some reason, so you couldn't go to the cute little park that was there.

This is the County Courthouse. I just loved this building. It reminded me of some buildings back East, except for the top which appeared to be more of a Spanish influence. If you look to the left of the building, this is the annex of the Courthouse. I thought it was interesting that they would choose red brick as this building was actually attached to the Courthouse.

When we first arrived we parked right across the street from the New Braunfels Railroad Museum. As our luck always seems to be, it is only opened from Thursdays through Mondays and is closed on Tuesdays and Wednesdays. So, we were unable to go in. We did, however walk around the outside and were able to get a few neat pictures.

Here is the Steam Locomotive! There is something majestic about these old trains that are so lacking in the more modern ones.

Now, to us, this is the most significant picture of all! If you can't see what the sign says, click on the picture for a better look. Railway Express Agency, which is no longer in business, is where Al's father worked for many, many years. In fact, Al worked there with his father for a short time before going into the service, and then again after he got out for a year or two. We are always looking for any memorabilia of Railway Express, and seldom find anything these days, so we thought it was pretty neat!

Potter's Creek Campground on Canyon Lake, TX

2010-03-06T16:36:00.018-05:00

View of Canyon Lake

That's us from roadway taken from our truck

Can you see the sailboat?

This is a group camping area. Three sites are linked together. Good for families and friends.

Overlooking some of the campsites

I took this picture when we first arrived, standing in our doorway looking out.

We arrived here on Wednesday. It was a nice drive from Brazos Bend and we saw some pretty country on our way as well as when we arrived here. We had checked this place out when we were in San Antonio 4 years ago. It seemed a little remote, but we loved the scenery here. This is a Corp of Engineer Campground, and we get to stay here for $9.00 per night (sometimes it pays to be considered a senior). Not bad for such beauty that surrounds us, is it? We are about 50 miles from San Antonio and less than 25 miles from two other rather large cities, San Marcos and New Braunfels.

Yesterday, we took a ride to San Marcos, as we knew they had a Sam's Club and there were a few things we wanted to pick up. Al needed to go to Lowe's and an auto supply store as well. I managed to do a little shopping for myself, something I don't get to do much lately. Before coming home, we stopped and had dinner at Johnny Carino's, an Italian chain restaurant. Al liked it better than Olive Garden for his favorite dish, Chicken Parmeson.

With the price of our campsite being so reasonable, and our need to conserve at least a little, we decided we will stay here until the rally. We are leaving here and going to Kerrville on March 15. After the rally we will head back to San Angelo on March 24. We get another chance to see the grandkids, and of course their mom and dad, whom we also love dearly. We got a good dose of them for the 6 weeks we stayed there through Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year, but we would like to see them again before heading home.

Thought you might like to see some pictures of the campground and the lake here. Pictures never quite capture it. There appears to be a hundred or more campsites here and they are nicely spaced apart. Most have lake views, and some (including ours) are right on the water.

Brazos Bend State Park

2010-03-02T21:48:00.017-05:00

Here is our campsite....nice and level

One of the cute little baby alligators!

Yikes! This is a Western Pigmy Rattlesnake! Glad he's not running around!

Warning sign! They also tell you if you have a dog, keep on a very short leash!

Doesn't this look peaceful! (Great Egret)

This is the path we walked on where we spotted the alligators!

I think this was the largest of the three alligators we spotted.
(we weren't that close, across the pond, but I zoomed in and then croped the photos)

This alligator was in close proximity to the other alligator

Can you see the turtle?

This one is a little harder to capture on camera even though we were closer to it! We didn't want to get too close!

We left Galveston Island on Sunday and headed just 60 miles northwest to a state park not far from Houston. Brazos Bend State Park is not like any park we have ever stayed at. Wayne and Julie told us about this place and suggested we might enjoy seeing all the wildlife here, and in particular, the alligators. Brazos Bend is a paradise for nature lovers. They have a nature center here that is run primarily by volunteers, so we headed there first. They had several venomous snakes and some baby alligators there. We even saw a tarantula. All these critters were live, so I'm really glad they were in glass enclosures. The baby alligators were adorable. They were born in August. We talked to the ranger there and he suggested which trails to take and where to look for alligators. Not only are there alligators here, but all kinds of wildlife.

We went on a couple of different trails. The first one we saw mostly birds, but we enjoyed the scenery. It was so peaceful walking on the paths and just being surrounded by all the sounds of the different birds. We stopped home for lunch and then headed out on another trail, where there were supposed to be alligators. We were told they like to come out on the banks of the pond and lay in the sun. Since it was a sunny day, we had hopes of seeing at least a few. We didn't have to go far and we saw two in fairly close proximity to each other. One was fairly large and the other one was huge.

We headed back to our truck and saw another couple headed out on the path we just came from. We told them about the two alligators we found, and they told us about another one not too far from where we were. I'm sure we could have found more, but we figured three was enough for one day.

We had a nice time today. We also are enjoying our campsite here. This is very peaceful, and our campsite is very spacious. We are just relaxing tonight and getting ready to hit the road tomorrow. We will be headed to Canyon Lake and staying at a COE park there.

Johnson's Space Center

2010-02-26T17:56:00.018-05:00

Arriving at The Space Center Houston

Nose of Space Shuttle displayed in Visitor's Center

Inside the Shuttle

The Orion Space Suit worn by the astronauts

The Historical Mission Control Center (Best I could do because of the lighting)

Looking through glass at the Space Mockup Training Facility

Picture from the tram approaching Rocket Park

The Saturn V Rocket in sections for display

Here at Galveston Island, we aren't far from the Johnson's Space Center in Houston. Less than and hour from here, it was a nice adventure for the better part of a day. So, yesterday we left here late morning and arrived there around 11:30 am. We figured since they were opened until 5pm, we would easily be able to take in everything in one day. Well, we were wrong. We could have purchased a yearly pass for just a few dollars more, but we aren't sure when we will be back in the area again.

We arrived at the Visitor's Center called "Space Center Houston" and walked around to see what there was to do first and decided on The Starship Gallery and watched a film titled "On Human Destiny" This film was very good as an introduction to the space program. It brought you through the various stages in space exploration through the years. Watching the first walk on the moon again was so much fun. The astronauts were practically dancing up there (well jumping around would be more acurate). One part that was particularly chilling was the Challenger exploding and the reaction of those that were at Mission Control when it happened. These are trained professionals and you could see the shock and saddness on their faces. I think we all know where we were when this happened.

We went on a Tram Tour that took us to through Nasa's Johnson Space Center. Before getting on the tram we had to empty all our phones, cameras, wallets, watches, purses etc into a container (much like at the airport). Al had a large western belt buckle and he had to remove it from his belt. When you think about the fact that there are thousands of employees at Nasa, you realize the necessity for this type of security. Once we got on the Tram, we were on our way to Mission Control. This was the Mission Control that was used in the earlier days. It is now considered the "Historical Mission Control"as it has now been replaced with a more modern Mission Control. We didn't get to visit the current one for some reason, and I had read that that was supposed to be included. It was pretty amazing to be there and know all the things that happened there during the early days of space exploration.

Our next visit was to the Space Vehicle Mockup Facility. Here is where the astronauts train. For obvious reasons, they can't do their training up in space, so there are various types of equipment that duplicates the space experience. It was quite an elaborate operation. I can't imagine the billions of dollars that went into this facility, let alone on the real thing.

Our next stop was to the Saturn V Complex at Rocket Park. The man who gave us the presentation was a retired Rocket Scientist. The rocket he showed us was a 3 Stage Rocket and was actually to be used as Apollo 18. Unfortunately, Apollo 18 will never happen do to the fact that the program ran out of money.

The Auto Tram tour was supposed to take 1 1/2 hrs, but we were actually gone for 2 1/4 hrs. All in all it was a very good tour and we learned a lot about our space program. When we got back to the Vistors area, we were tired and it was almost 4pm, so we looked around at some more displays and decided to call it a day. We would like to go back maybe next year or the year after and see all the things we missed.

Galveston Island State Park

2010-02-23T14:57:00.007-05:00

Path to the beach from our campsite

Galveston Island Beach

Our campsite with Cabana

We arrived here on Saturday, and it was cool and windy. Wind is a big thing here in Texas, no matter where you go. Yesterday was a nice fairly sunny day, so we went out to the beach, and I picked up some sea shells. Then we headed into town, and stopped and got a few groceries. We checked out an Italian Restaurant that looked good, and decided we would go there tonight! I have been dying for some good Italian food since we left New York over 4 months ago. We did find a place in Rockport that had great pizza (NY style).

One nice thing here is, you can see the ocean from our campsite, and the sound of the waves lull you to sleep at night. Unfortunately, this place was severely damaged by Hurricane Ike in 2008. They used to have many more sites near the beach, and now I would estimate there are only about 25% of them remaining. It is sad to drive around the area and see signs for Restaurant's and businesses with nothing remaining other than some concrete. Many places have been rebuilt in a relatively short period of time! There are also many beautiful homes that appear to be new.

It's been a rough year for Texas as far as the weather goes. I guess it's been the same for many southern destinations. It still beats battling the ice and snow and frigid cold temperatures at home. We really don't mind cold as much, as long as there is sunshine! Regardless, we are having a really great time.

On Thursday, we plan to go to the Johnson's Space Center in Houston. It is only 25 miles from here. That will be another blog, that's for sure.

Back home we are excited about our new little grandson, Christopher. Unfortunately, we will have to wait to meet him in April. We miss all the grandchildren back home, but before we know it, we will be back to our former life in New York. It's nice to look forward to things. We will always look forward to going home, and we will always look forward to our travels. Life is good!

Blessing Hotel Coffeeshop, Blessing, TX

2010-02-21T09:58:00.006-05:00

Sign at side entrance of Hotel

Buffet set-up

Here are the two wood stoves keeping the hot food warm

Front entrance of hotel

Front desk of Hotel

We left Goose Island, feeling very sad. We loved it there, loved the friendly people, the scenery and the peacefulness. But, it was time to go. So we said goodbye to Wayne and Julie, and headed toward Galveston Island. Wayne had suggested that we should stop in Blessing which is right on our way. They have a very unique little place called "The Blessing Hotel and Coffee Shop." He told us all about it and it sounded like a great idea and I just knew it would be good "Blog Material!"

It was almost noon when we got there. We weren't sure what door to go in, so we went in the side door where there was a sign for the coffee shop. Upon entering we saw tables with lots of people sitting at them and a buffet-type set up. There were two old wood stoves, that reminded me of a stove my grandmother used to have. On top of the two stoves were lots of pans with steam coming out of them. Next to the stoves there was a long table with salads, fruits, bread etc. Beverages and desserts were set up on another table. No one came up to us to greet us, so we just stood there and took it all in until one of the guests hollered out to us, "Just git yerself a plate and help yerself!" So, we did!

The food was wonderful. Southern cooking at it's finest! I don't know how they do it, but Southerners have a way of making vegetables taste the best! I went back for seconds on the vegetables. There were three meat dishes, many vegetables, potatoes and gravy, rice, etc. This was all made from scratch. For just $8.50 the beverage and dessert was included and you can go back for as much as you want.

There were lots of bikers there as well as local people, but people come from all over to this restaurant, according to the owner. I chatted with her after the meal and she gave me a brief history lesson. She told me that until 1983 the guests helped themselves to the food right off the stoves in the kitchen. However, the health department stepped in and they were no longer allowed to do this. They now cook in the kitchen on more modern stoves, but use these wood stoves to keep the food hot. This restaurant has been featured in Southern Living Magazine and has had many things written about it in the papers.

The hotel was built in 1906 by Jonathan Pierce. who also founded the town. According to different records I have read, Mr Pierce wanted to name the town "Thank God" because two railroads intersected there. The post office decided against it so he named the town "Blessing" instead. The hotel is still open for business.