Time to Get Back and Go Again ?

 

Any idiot can face a crisis - it's day to day living that wears you out.

 

Thursday rolled around and it was time to return to Portland. My flight was an early one. The plan was to be at the airport by about 5:30 for a 7:00 am flight. Having a flight that early means you lay awake half the night waiting for the alarm to go off and that’s what I did.  After all I didn’t want to miss the flight. By 3:00 am I was wide awake and couldn’t sleep.  If I couldn’t sleep, you can bet Tammi couldn’t sleep either.  We were up much earlier than planned.  She was taking me to the airport for the flight back to Portland. 

My breakfast selection

At least at this time in the morning there weren't long lines at security. It was a snap to get on the other side and settle in for boarding time. I always like uneventful flights even more than I like uneventful RV travel.  With fewer airplanes flying this route, more people wanting to get there and upgrades harder to come by, getting lucky enough to get an upgrade to first is much rarer than it used to be.  However, I did.   I really like being upgraded. I'm always amazed though at the number of people I've sat next to on those early  morning flights who feel just because the alcohol is free in first class, that they need to consume as much as they can and as fast as they can.   The fella next to me drank all the way. Well, I did too but I drank coffee.  He was going to Japan.  He’ll be in real trouble if he thinks he’s going to drink all across the Pacific!!

 

By the time I arrived back in Portland I was zonked.  That’s when the 3 AM wake up time starting taking it’s toll.  The weather upon arrival was quite a bit different than it was in Phoenix and also when I left about a week ago.  You could tell fall was in the air.  It’s definitely time to start thinking about getting the motorhome in shape for that trip south.

Traveling by air is a lot different than traveling down the road.  There are definitely pros and cons both ways.  We’re so lucky we have that option.  This trip has also made me realize how much I’ve missed this kind of travel.  We used to do it frequently.  It was obvious that I was definitely out of practice.  I think we may have to do something about that.

 

Actually, we’ve got quite a few things we need to do to get ready to hit the road. The cabin needs to be secured and we have two girls playing soccer so we’d like to see a few more games.  We’re thinking two or three weeks before we pull out. 

We still aren’t quite sure where we’re going to settle or even if we’re going to settle any place long term.  I’m not so sure it would work out for us.  We can always park hop between the county parks, Elks, membership parks and boondocking.  For some reason I just like doing it that way best.  I think we’ve been trying to force ourselves into finding that perfect RV park.  It might work for our friends but just maybe it’s not going to work for us.  I get hitchitch way too often.  Well, it may not work right now but one day it might.   I think I like the moving part best for now.  Someday .. we’ll find that perfect place if we still want it … maybe.   I also know we need to be someplace in Arizona this year.  Terry doesn’t think we really need to be in the Phoenix area but  a couple hours away would work.  Regardless of whether or not we’re happy with that, it’s where we need to be.  The good thing is that we also have lots of folks we know heading that way.

So now we know kind of where we’re going. The route to get there is still up in the air.  This week the maps come out, clean up and clean out begins. 

The Elks Lodges in Arizona

In the meantime the deer have their winter coats.  Our deer feeder is finished but I know they’re going to miss us just as we’re going to miss them.  They’ve learned in order to get our attention all they have to do is stand in front of our glass door in the morning.  I’m glad they don’t know how to knock or they’d probably try it.  Duchess sure doesn’t like seeing their nose up against the glass.

 

We finally had our little family get together for those three birthdays we had to postpone.  It was tough trying to get it scheduled when all nine of us could attend but about 8:30 Saturday morning we decided it would work at 11:00 that morning.  PANIC!!  I had shopping to do and Tammi flew to the store to put on a lunch spread for us.  Naturally …. I forgot my camera so clicked away on my iPhone.  I have a few mighty blurry shots. 

It wasn’t Sandi’s birthday but since the old folks (Sabrina, Robert & Terry) couldn’t get those party candles to blow out, she decided to show them how it was done.

‘Tis definitely time to think about getting on that road again.  I can certainly tell humidity is in the air and fall is just around the corner.

Blackberries, Raspberries & Birthdays

The secret to staying young is to live honestly, eat slowly and lie about your age.

Happy Birthday, Tammi

Today is another birthday. We certainly have a lot of them between July and September. Even though we’ve already had the party, today is the BIG day for Tammi. So, Happy Birthday!

Honest now ... no more birthdays for a little over a month ... honest.

We’ve not really had what you could call “hot” weather until the first weekend in August. Then on Saturday it soared to 102!  That set a new record for this day.   It seems that August usually brings in hot weather in Southern Washington.  Those three-digit temperatures never last long and for that we're thankful.  Homes with air  conditioning are more the exception than the rule in this area.

 

Right on schedule that’s when the temperature started to rise.  We were dreading it because it meant not only the heat but also the lake areas would be swarming with people.  There would probably be more guests in our area than people who actually belong here. 

Sandi stayed with us four whole nights.  Between swimming in the pool and helping Papa with all his work, we did find time to take a good walk each morning, go swimming, play bingo and eat lots.

 .

..

She's learning to take a picture of everything .... just like me!

Lots of greenery and lots of deer to see.

We made another trip to the storage shed to pick up four more boxes.  I’ll certainly be glad when we get finished going through all the boxes and get that cleaned out.  It’s much more work than I would have thought.  However, the fun part is getting to look at all the pictures I still have.

. 

We loaded a couple buckets in the car and stopped at one of our favorite places to pick wild blackberries.  The bushes were loaded with the berries.  This is definitely the right time of year for them..

.

After cleaning the berries they were put into little freezer bags and stuffed in the freezer.  I had to be a little creative in getting them all in.  Thank goodness we hadn't been shopping for groceries or they never would have made it.  We also had some raspberries so we cleaned and froze those too.  We’re thinking we might go pick some of the blueberries off of Lee’s vines next!!  I could almost make a fruit pizza with all of this.

On Saturday evenings there are usually two events.  One is an outdoor movie.  Folks bring their folding chairs and congregate at the Papa Bear Theater area.  Popcorn is free and so is the movie.  If the movie isn’t to your liking, there is always the bingo game.  Sandi was more interested in the bingo than the movie.  We planned on arriving early to stake claim to a good table and seats.  We figured we'd eat dinner at the little camp kitchen while guarding our seats and table.  That’s what we did.  However, as usual …..  it was fun but we didn’t win a thing. 

 

It’s certainly not been the lazy, hazy days of of summer.  It’s been warm and it’s been busy.

‘Tis life on the road.

Lazy Days of Summer and Another Party

 

Maturity has more to do with what types of experiences you’ve had and what you’ve learned from them and less to do with how many birthdays you’ve celebrated.

Lee and Tammi are pretty used to having one birthday party.  As very small children they had separate ones.  Then, as they became older children we would roll it into one.  Well, we did that until we were told they wanted their own parties.  So, we did that for a while.  Now we certainly feel they are old enough to have that one joint party.  Before you know it we’ll end up rolling Michael’s into theirs and have three birthdays in one … just like we do in September when we have 3 birthdays within 5 days.    

Our kids do grow up!

Last Sunday we had a birthday party for Michael.  Today we had a birthday party for Tammi and Lee.  I took a few pictures but wasn't happy with them.  The lighting wasn't very good.  I suppose I should have used a flash but didn't.  Anyway, just imagine that we were all eating, singing and opening gifts.

 ----

Sandi has been hanging around and helping out a bit.  Between Terry and Sandi they’ve planted eight more arborvitaes, added bark dust and just hung out. Since the arborvitaes were on sale we decided it was probably a good time to get them.  However, it also means we have to be on the ball keeping them watered.  Temperatures have been pushing over 100 and we certainly don't want the plants to dry out.

We got smaller arborvitaes than we did last time.

Babies are all over.  There are quite a number of twins.

Eating outside is sure nicer than inside on a warm day.

In addition to all the work Sandi did, she also spent a deal of time in the swimming pool.  The pool may be huge but in the afternoon it gets pretty full.  At least not everyone is in the pool.  Some are at the lake.  On busy weekends a school bus is rented to transport folks from different areas to the lakefront.  There is normally plenty of parking at the lake but not so when everyone in our little community decides to visit at the same time.

We took the very first bus of the day to the lake.  The place was packed and there were absolutely no parking places.  People were boating, swimming, kayaking and others just reading or watching guard over the food at the many picnic tables.  Families were congregated everywhere.  What a wonderful way to spend the day.

Nice weather will be hanging around for a while.  We plan to take advantage of it.  We just want it to cool down a tad.

‘Tis life on the road.

I remember my mother's prayers and they have always followed me.  They have clung to me all my life.    ~Abraham Lincoln

Okay … I posted this tribute to my mother last year on Mother’s Day.  I want to post it again.

~~

If you are a mother, Happy Mother’s Day to you and especially Happy Mother’s Day to Tammi and Sabrina!!

- - - - My Mother

I think we all felt our mothers would be around forever but we also knew they wouldn’t be. Their days are numbered just like our days are numbered. My mom died when she was 66 years young.  She was not only my mother, she was my friend

.

She made sure I had lots of music lessons but I did not inherit her talent.  She could play the piano, the organ and had an amazing voice.  She used her talents often since she was extremely active in her church.  I can pick at the piano, organ and even on an accordion but you wouldn’t want me to sing. 

I did say she had an amazing voice but I don’t ever remember her raising that voice in anger to me or anyone else.   I wish I could turn back time.  Even though we were very close and visited either in person or on the phone every single day, I still wish I had taken even more time to spend with her.  She was the rock who held the family together.  She was the person who loved me more than anyone else.  She was my mother.

So even though she isn’t around any more to wish a Happy Mother’s Day to, she’s he one I feel this day is all about …. my mother.  Some 30-odd years later it still hurts and I still miss her every single day.  Mom, I miss you and love you.

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The other day I drove to Vancouver to wish my Aunt Jenny a Happy Birthday and a Happy Mother’s Day!  She celebrated her 93rd birthday on Thursday.  She’s allergic to flowers so we’ve never been able to give her flowers for any occasion.  We know she likes birds because she has a parakeet named Terry.  The bird came with the name.  She didn’t name it after the Terry we know.  On my way to her house I stopped by Craft Warehouse.  The counter girl helped put together a little gift for her.  It was a birdcage!!

This is Jenny on her birthday.  The next day she broke her hip.   Surgery is scheduled on Mother's Day!  

Happy Mother's Day!

 

 'Tis life on the road.

Happy Birthday, Sailor -- Anniversary Time

Your birthday is a special time to celebrate the gift of 'you' to the world.

Happy Birthday to our sailor boy! Justin’s birthday is Sunday, March 4th! He’s a pretty special boy and we’re very proud of him!!

Justin - in uniform before his time

Justin - in uniform at his time

Today we celebrate the gift of Justin to the world.  It’s a better world because he’s here.  Just ask his grandparents!

--------------------------------------

Speaking of his grandparents .... it's anniversary time so

Happy Anniversary to us!

The last few years we’ve been lucky enough to spend our anniversary celebrating with some of our good RVing friends. We had thought we would be posting a picture of just the two of us at our own little table this year since we thought we didn't know anyone in this area but luck was on our side. We met two SKPs.

03/03/2009 - Salton Sea with Lee and Mary Jane

03/03/2010 -- Pahrump with Linda and Ed

03/03/2011 – Las Vegas with Janice, Jerry, ( US), Sandie and Jim

03/03/2012 - Bullhead City with George and Kellie

Kellie and Robert didn't know it was our anniversary.   We were excited to meet them since they were also fulltimers, 4-wheelers and from the same place we were --- Dallas/Fort Worth area.  I also needed the anniversary picture for the blog  -- you know how it goes!!    We had a great time and found we had so much to talk about and share.  

'Tis life on the road.  Here's hoping the wind stays away long enough so we can make an uneventful trip to Las Vegas tomorrow.

Skating and Laser Tag

I had to stop driving for a while - the tires were getting dizzy.

It’s really nice when I get sent pictures that I can post.  It usually means that I don’t have to fiddle with my own. It’s kind of like being on vacation.  These may not be about our RVing adventures but many times my blogs aren’t just about that either. We have a Valentine Baby.  Actually, she really isn’t a baby anymore.  It’s our youngest grandchild and she turned 15 yesterday on Valentine’s Day.  I guess that tells you the age of our children.  Believe me the age of our children has nothing to do with our age.  If this rate continues, it won’t be long until they’ll be older than us.  You know the Jack Benny thing ….  they keep aging but we certainly don’t.  We just keep getting better. 

Sandi in her Blue Angels shirt

One of things we sent Sandi was a shirt from the Navy base in El Centro.  This is where the Blue Angels practice during the winter season.  Check her out.  Isn’t she a real beauty?  Her future dream is to follow in the steps of her much older cousin (19 year old, Justin) and have a career in the Navy.

Here’s another photo of her day with Mom.  First of all they went ice skating and then they fought out their frustrations with each other by playing laser tag.

Sandi and Michael ice skating.  Did Mom ice skate too?  I have no clue.

Tammi and Sandi -- the laser duo.

Micheal took the picture of Tammi and Sandi. Sandi obviously didn’t do as good a job taking a picture of Michael and Mom.  It was so totally out of focus.