Nov 28, 2011 Dawn's here!

So...we waited all day - we went to Wally World and got a few groceries, made Dawn a goodie bag (fruit, oatmeal, chocolate, chips), then did some cleaning, dropped a fedex pkg off for the Grand Junction girls, then got naps...all leading up to:

Yep, two very happy girls!  You can tell that I was overdressed, my face is red from the heat, but the smiles are genuine!  We had a fantastic dinner, and over 2 hours of excited chatter! 

I don't know what else this week will hold, but I know we will have a great time, and I plan to enjoy every moment possible.

Nov 27, 2011 Bay Bayou Tampa FL

We are SO enjoying our time here in Tampa!  On black Friday we shopped - very discriminately :)  We found the camera that David wanted, a Canon Ti3 Rebel which was advertised at Best Buy, Target, Walmart - however it was also advertised at North Tampa Photography, Inc., at 1020 W Busch Boulevard - which is an owner operated camera shop.  We bought the camera with an additional lens for less than we would have at the big box stores.  David is a happy camper...ha!

Here are a couple pics he took with the new camera...looking behind our site!

This is the view in front of our site :)

We did some domestic stuff (cleaned out the car, the MH and laundry) and yesterday Cinder went to the groomer, and while she was there I got a haircut, manicure and shopped at Target, Michaels and Best Buy...scored a 600 thread count sheet set (the set on the bed is 4 years old and pretty threadbare) for $35.00, and a faux leather jacket for cool mornings for $15.00.  Felt pretty good about those buys!

Last evening we went to a place called Cody's  Original Roadhouse for dinner - holy moly, we got queso and chips for an appetizer, followed by the early bird special of prime rib with baked sweet potato, salad and yeasty rolls...OMG it was so good!  We haven't had prime rib since we were in Hudson WY back in May!  They serve the salad in these huge stainless steel bowls, and you put it on your plates...it was wonderful!  The prime rib was tender, flavorful and NOT all fat!  Here are a couple pics...yes, the prime rib was mine and it WAS med rare :)

Today is a new adventure - I'll try to take some pics and put 'em up -we're gonna have a blast!!!





Bay Bayou RV Park, Tampa FL

We arrived yesterday, Nov 23 here at Bay Bayou RV Resort - and don't get me wrong, it is a lovely place!  Couple hundred sites, 3 laundry/shower buildings, several ponds, dog park, heated (85) pool, etc, etc.  However, the price is simply outrageous!  The only reason we picked this park is because of the proximity to downtown Tampa so we could spend as much time with our daughter as possible.  With our good sam discount, and an 'early bird week special' it was $483 for 10 days!!!  Whew, we won't be back here again! 

On the good side :)  we are within 10 miles of any shopping you could possibly want - we plan on going out at 10 tonight to Wal-Mart, there are a couple things I want from there, and tomorrow we will go to a wonderful Mall, called Citrus Mall, that has tons of stores - not really to shop, mostly to watch the crowds! 

Today we had a wonderful Thanksgiving feast at the social hall - the park furnished Turkey and gravy, and everyone brought dishes to share.  Surprisingly enough there were NO stuffing dishes, and only 1 mashed potatoes that disappeared long before we got there in line - but there was plenty of sweet potato dishes, I made my slow cooker corn dish, there were even saurkraut balls!  David was in charge of pictures and he didn't take any :(  Anyway, it was a good time with great people and lots of good food! 

Happy Thanksgiving to all - and David, thanks for agreeing to this lifestyle - I wouldn't have it any other way!

Nov 21, 2011 Bushnell FL Escapees Park

We were on the road by 9:45 today, filled up with propane and gas, and headed down the road to Bushnell, home of Sumter Oaks RV Park.  We had 1 pitstop and pulled into the park at 12:05 pm.  What a lovely place!  They have an indoor heated pool (that is pretty cold!), pool table, lending library, craft room, movie room :)


We settled into our spot (right by the activity center so David doesn't have to walk too much), and headed out to Sonny's BBQ pit...Oh man, I so missed their baby back ribs!  We pigged out big time (brought 1/2 of everything home for dinner tomorrow night) and then we just drove around Bushnell, giving it a look see.  We made the mandatory Wal-Mart stop, got very few things but had a good time walking around and looking at all the people shopping like mad!

We talked a bit about staying here and not going to Tampa until Sat or Sun, but I want to go shopping on Black Friday, and really there is nothing here!  So, we will keep to our original schedule and leave Wed morning. 

We came back to the park and started out to 'social hour'.  For those of you who are NOT Escapee's, all Escapee parks have social hour at 4 (except LSC who has social hour Mon - Wed - Fri).  Well there were only 5 other people there, and they were all new like us!  They tell me that they have a 10 am coffee every morning and that is when everyone gathers to chat - we shall see tomorrow morning! 

When we came back to the MH, there were 3 beautiful Sandhill Cranes (per a park member) who put on quite a show for us - they were literally 6 feet from us.  They began to dance, with 1 at a time jumping into the air and waving their wings, each taking a turn - it was fascinating!  We felt very privledged to see the show! 

We're in for the night now - see ya'll tomorrow (I'm back in the south, I can talk like that now:)

Nov 20, 2011 SC to FL

We started out this morning about 9:30 am.  We debated last night stopping at St Mary's GA and then after looking at webcams around Jacksonville, decided we would just head south...and that is what we did!

Once again it was oatmeal with blueberries, then about 10:30 we stopped and walked around, had an orange and started down the road again.  By 12:30 we were in Callahan, FL and had missed all the Jacksonville traffic!  The plan then was to stop in Starke FL, have a late lunch/early dinner at Sonny's BBQ (a fantastic chain - where I used to work in Venice FL for a while). 

We got to Starke and pulled into the KOA, which is where the fun began.  First they said - oh no, you can't stay here, because we don't allow chows...we said no problem, we'd go on down the road.  However, they have more than half of their spots empty, and after we went through a song & dance where the man came out to the MH and Cinder wagged her tail at him and did the sit command perfectly, they decided we could stay.  After the usual Keep On Adding fee of $39.00 we parked in a very nice pull through site.  We hooked up the water and elec - oh yeah, we had to turn on the AIR CONDITIONER 'cause it was 86 Degrees!!!  We then unhooked the car and got ready to go into town and get us some BBQ...and wouldn't you know the danged car was DEAD!!!  No lights, no horn, de nada!  Good Sam Emergency Road Service got a call, and I got put on hold - she came back after 8 mins and said that she was trying to locate a provider, could I hold - yes...20 mins later she says she found someone and they would be here in 45 mins...sigh.

We came into the MH and each had a nice icy beer and some cheese and crackers.  The garage guy came and jumped us, and we were off - first to Wal-Mart to have them check the battery, 'cause we bought an expensive one from them last July!  They tested it and said it was fine.  This is the second time it has died on us in 2 months, so we are going to have to get it looked at by a Chevy garage to see why it is draining the battery. 

So...we stopped by a wonderful fruit market, got some fresh huge navel oranges, some fresh tomatoes, a watermelon and a couple banana's.  Yum!  Then we stopped at Wendy's for some dinner...'cause we were not hungry for BBQ any more :( 

Tomorrow we are heading down the road once again...next stop, Bushnell FL - one of the Escapee parks :)  Looking forward to it!

Nov 19, 2011 Hardeeville SC

Last night we stayed in a campground...somewhere after Columbia SC - it was an OK park, but yu only got a discount if you stayed 2 or more nights, was about 15 miles off the interstate...we learned from this experience!  The park we originally were to stay at, which I had researched and knew exactly where it was - David was feeling good so we kept on driving - then we stopped for gas and decided we would use his campground app to find a local campground...huh!  I won't say never again, but it really was out of our way...

This morning we were on the road at 9:45.  We had wonderful oatmeal with blueberries for breakfast, so we had good fuel to travel on :)  We drove until we got to Exit 8 in SC, Hardeeville, where we had called for a spot - and what a gem!!!  David said this was the best place we ever stopped - beautiful long wide spot, no leveling necessary!  It is passport america and we were allowed to use it even if it was a Saturday!!!  Woohoo - $20 for full hook-ups with cable and wifi!!! 

By the time we got set up it was 1:00 - and we were starving!  On the advice of our campground host (and some research on line) we went to THE PINK PIG...OMG, I had bbq chicken, slaw & brunswick stew, David had pulled pork with same sides.  It was so good we asked it we could buy a quart of the stew for dinner, however they were running low because they were slammed...nevertheless, here are some pics of the restaurant and our food (sorry, we were eating when I remembered the camera!)



11/17/2011 Mt Airy NC

After two days driving, David was ready for a day of rest, so we slept in, and by the time we got out of the MH today it was almost 11 o'clock!  We went into Mt Airy and I got a shopping fix in :)  We had a great time walking and browsing - we had lunch at Snappy's Lunch http://www.visitmayberry.com/Snappy_Lunch_.aspx which was the first place from Andy Griffith that had a mention on the show.  They are famous for their pork chop sandwich, but we had hot ham & cheese, recommended by our waitress. 

Don't forget, you can click on any of the pictures and they will come up larger for better views!

We also stopped at Floyd's Barber Shop, Opie's Candy Shoppe, and more that I can't remember - of course we stopped at the T-shirt Souveneir shops :) 

We hit the local Wally World for some groceries (I did buy some wonderful stuff at the local stores to eat, unfortunately nothing very healthy!) and we came home for naps.  The campground manager said we should have dinner at The Depot, http://codycreek.net/index2.php#/home/ and we are SO glad we did!  What a wonderful place, and fantastic food!  I had the special of Bourbon Glazed Steak, Baked potato and corn with hush puppies, David had the shrimp stir fry with rice and baked beans - the food was every bit as good as the pictures :) 

We're now snuggled back in the MH, watching TV and having a cup of tea - it is very cold here right now - yesterday when we got here it was tshirt and shorts weather, now it is see your breath weather!!! 

Tomorrow...well, let's see, we're going on down the road.  David, Darling, thanks for the memories!

Nov 15, 2011 On the road again!

So...a quick update on what we've been doing!  I've dealt with financial planners, insurance agents, bank reps, until I am very sick of it all!!! 

We finished the kitchen, with the back splash being finished on Friday, Nov 12 - just in time!

I had wonderful lunches with Debbie & Donna, both good friends in school with me, and also both Hospice ee's...you don't get better than that.  I had a terrific lunch with my friend Marsha - the food was so so but the company was fantastic!  We went to Oakhurst for Smorgasbord on Friday night with Nancy & Harry - hoorah!  I took my cousin Donna to Italian Oven for dinner, then to bereavement group at Hospice house.

We cleaned, packed the motorhome, cleaned, and continued to say goodbye to wonderful neighbors - Jim & Carol, Georgia and Eddy, Larue and Ron! 

We finally got out of town at 11 am and headed to Sutton WV, which is about 168 miles.  Well, by the time we arrived at the campground, we were both SO exhausted!  David has not been feeling well, and he has been coughing his head off.  Needless to say, it was a very uncomfortable first day of our trip.  However, we got up this morning to rain - heavy rain, so we got around and had a decent buffet breakfast, then hit the road. 

We stopped at Mayberry Campground in Mt Airy, NC the home of Andy Griffith.  We parked, walked Cinder, got showers and headed out to a wine/beer tasting place.  Hhhmmmm, I sampled 6 wines, and David sampled 4 beers...we bought 3 bottles of very nice wine!  Have to have a glass of wine now and then right?

We had an amazing dinner at a place called "GOOBERS' where the food was amazing - and I forgot to take pictures!!!  I promise food pics will be in future postings!

That brings us up to date - I'll post a couple of pics to bring us up to date as well.

Kitchen Dining Bath floors



Countertops and backsplash

 Yep, this is our Halloween snow storm!

 The cousins - Donna, Jill, and me :)

Oct 23 2011 Tribute to Dad

On October 23, 2011, Dad passed away peacefully at home.  We were very fortunate to have had 10 pain free weeks with this wonderful man, doing everything he wanted in that time.  We went to orchards, rides, restaurants, picnics, and mostly had a lot of porch sitting time!

We could not have done this without the help of Hospice,who I am convinced are Angels on earth.  They made it possible for me to be able to keep Dad pain free and comfortable even at the end.

Dad - miss and love you every day - and Mom, you too!  Here are some pics of my wonderful parents.