Boy am I behind on posting on the blog. Sorry, to all our readers. I will try to catch you up on our life.
On our last post while we were in Calera, Al. I failed to mention that Joe Segler came by for a visit. It was so good to see him. Sorry we did not get to see Carolyn. Hope your house sells soon so you can get on the road.
I had an eye doctor's appointment on Friday (the week before Thanksgiving). After returning back to Sun Coast, we pulled in the slides and were headed to Odenville to be with our daughter and her husband for Thanksgiving. Brian, our son-in-law, had the coughing crud several weeks ago and supposedly Yancy caught it from him. After going to the doctor twice they finally decided she had walking pneumonia. Now Allan is coughing up a storm and feeling poorly although nothing ever seems to get him down for long. He made a trip to the VA since we would be leaving soon. The doctor said it is likely to be walking pneumonia. If not, it is a viral infection. I have been trying to take my Vitamins especially C and eating fruits. So far I have not come down with it.
I baked our turkey on Wednesday so it would be ready for Thanksgiving when Brian's grandmother, mother and stepfather came for lunch. We had a good time.
Friday Brian and Yancy had friends over for the BIG football game. Auburn vs. Alabama. Auburn won and we were happy. Brian and Yancy were elated during the first half of the game while Alabama was ahead but not so enthusiastic at the outcome.
We have worked on the truck and trailer, sprucing it up. Katie had a vet appointment to get her rabies shot. She also has "blackheads" under her chin. The vet said it goes along with a plastic allergy. Katie was not a happy kitty. She was very VOCAL. Allan had a dental appointment. His new crown will be ready the week after Christmas. This all seems to be very medical. Sounds like we are all falling apart including the cat. Sorry, maybe too much information??
Yancy and I got a chance to sneak off and do some shopping. You know how ladies like to shop. Allan was happy to stay home and help Brian with projects around the house. Brian stood in line in the cold rain on Black Friday at Sears and got a washer and dryer. Saved over $700. Dave Ramsey would be proud of you Brian.
Today was a first for us. We traveled with me following Allan in the Jeep. This really worked out good. We drove to Berrydale, Florida for a church project. After we crossed the state line, Allan pulled over since we were not sure of the exact location. I drove the jeep ahead and found the turn off for the church and gave him a call that is was ok to continue and I felt he could make the turn in easily. We got settled in and went to church which is presently being held in an old community center building.
Sunday, November 28, 2010
Sunday, November 14, 2010
WORK DONE AT THE FACTORY
We arrived in Smith Center, Kansas on Sunday. Although we were on a work in basis, we were the first to pull in at the factory. There was no one there, but they leave the lounge open all the time. There were two large rooms with TV's, tables and chairs and over stuffed chairs, vending machines, bathrooms with showers and washer and dryer. All the comforts of home. Two other couples (from Canada and Iowa) came in later. We spent the night in our RV. Everyone had to be out of their RV by 6:15AM so they could pull the RV's in the shop and start work.
We took a tour of the factory on Monday. We are very pleased that Peterson Industries that build Excel RV's has not gone out of business as many other RV manufacturers have. We learned that they did down size considerably and stream lined their production so they are producing the same amount of units with half the number of employees. They showed us all the new models they are producing, but we are happy with our Excel model. They have made lots of improvements each year.
Because they were not finished with the work on our RV, we drove to the Ingleboro B & B where we had stayed two years ago. We spent two nights there. The house was built in the late 1800's by a wealthy banker. It later was turned into the local hospital. It has also been a restaurant more recently and now is a bed and breakfast. We had a large bedroom with a large sitting room and a modern bathroom. We had the whole downstairs to ourselves the first night. One lady came in later that night and had a room upstairs. It was very restful for the both of us.
We took a walk downtown to Smith Center, a small farming community. We had to board Katie which she was not too happy about that. We went by each day and took her for a ride and played with her. Several other couples were there that week, one of which was Ken and Sarah Hoenig whom we had met at RV Dreams rally in Branson, Missouri in 2008. Small world. We were just starting full timing on the road and now they are just beginning the same lifestyle. On Wednesday we decided to sleep in the lounge at the service center. On Thursday night they pulled our RV out and we were able to sleep in it. It was raining and we were tired. I think we slept about 10 hours and Katie didn't move from her spot on the bed. We got back up about 5:00AM. There were a few minor things the guys had to finish up and then we were on the road by 8:30.
While in the area we drove to the geographic center of the United States.
It has turned cold. On leaving we found the weather producing off and on rain with occasional snow flakes. We spent the night in Topeka, Kansas. Saturday we spent the night in Danville, Missouri and Sunday we drove around St. Louis, Missouri and spent the night in Herrin, Illinois.
The deer population must be down because we saw so many deer on the side of the road and in the back of pickups (hunting season had opened).
Due to rain we spent two nights in Goodlettsville, Tn. We had supper at Cracker Barrel with my cousin, Ingram Howard and his wife, Vickie. It was a very good visit. We made a stop at the Welcome Center in Paducah, Ky.
This brought back many memories. We would always stop here on the way to visit my family in Missouri. This is where Allan almost drove off and left me with a bunch of bikers. He thought I was in the back seat asleep.
We spent two nights in Calera, Alabama at Suncoast RV. We had the hot water heater checked out and a part replaced and Allan took the truck for an oil change. Suncoast will allow you to park free one night with full hookups. You can stay longer if you are having work done there.
We took a tour of the factory on Monday. We are very pleased that Peterson Industries that build Excel RV's has not gone out of business as many other RV manufacturers have. We learned that they did down size considerably and stream lined their production so they are producing the same amount of units with half the number of employees. They showed us all the new models they are producing, but we are happy with our Excel model. They have made lots of improvements each year.
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| From 2010-11-09 |
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| From 2010-11-09 |
Because they were not finished with the work on our RV, we drove to the Ingleboro B & B where we had stayed two years ago. We spent two nights there. The house was built in the late 1800's by a wealthy banker. It later was turned into the local hospital. It has also been a restaurant more recently and now is a bed and breakfast. We had a large bedroom with a large sitting room and a modern bathroom. We had the whole downstairs to ourselves the first night. One lady came in later that night and had a room upstairs. It was very restful for the both of us.
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| From 2010-11-09 |
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| From 2010-11-09 |
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| From 2010-11-09 |
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| From 2010-11-09 |
While in the area we drove to the geographic center of the United States.
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| From 2010-11-15 |
It has turned cold. On leaving we found the weather producing off and on rain with occasional snow flakes. We spent the night in Topeka, Kansas. Saturday we spent the night in Danville, Missouri and Sunday we drove around St. Louis, Missouri and spent the night in Herrin, Illinois.
The deer population must be down because we saw so many deer on the side of the road and in the back of pickups (hunting season had opened).
Due to rain we spent two nights in Goodlettsville, Tn. We had supper at Cracker Barrel with my cousin, Ingram Howard and his wife, Vickie. It was a very good visit. We made a stop at the Welcome Center in Paducah, Ky.
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| From 2010-11-22 |
We spent two nights in Calera, Alabama at Suncoast RV. We had the hot water heater checked out and a part replaced and Allan took the truck for an oil change. Suncoast will allow you to park free one night with full hookups. You can stay longer if you are having work done there.
Saturday, November 6, 2010
BACK IN ARKANSAS AND OKLAHOMA
Nov. 3, Wednesday, we drove in the rain until we passed Little Rock, Arkansas. The sun came out which made a much better drive particularly for Allan. We spent the night in the Old Post Road COE campground in Russellville, Arkansas. This was one of the nicest parks we have camped in.
They have long backin campsites with room for extra cars. There are picnic tables, some of which are covered, with lantern stands. There is plenty of room between sites. There are playgrounds, basketball courts, soccer fields, tennis courts and many more things to do. Although the lake level was low, there is a boat ramp. There is a lock and dam which we observed barges going through the locks.
They can accommodate larger groups with covered pavilions and large fireplaces/grills.
We drove to Stillwater, Oklahoma the next day. Even though the trip was longer it went by fast. After getting settled in, Jim Webster, Allan's cousin, took us to his house for a visit and supper. Arletta had baked lasagna ready for us. Boy, was it good.
Friday they took us riding around the area. Stillwater seems spread out with lots of agriculture activities. Oklahoma State University is located there. Jim and Arletta were affiliated with the university during their working years. We went to a museum outside of town that had so much history. It would take you days to see and read all the information. We had lunch at the famous Eskimo Joes which is a college hangout.
We returned to Jim and Arletta's house for another great meal and discussion of old family stories and genealogy.
Saturday on our drive to Russel, Kansas we saw lots of wind turbines. Even though it was a very windy day, there was no rain. We were happy today since Auburn won their game with Chattanooga. We are staying up late but will have an extra hour to sleep in the morning.
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| From 2010-11-06 |
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| From 2010-11-06 |
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| From 2010-11-06 |
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| From 2010-11-06 |
We drove to Stillwater, Oklahoma the next day. Even though the trip was longer it went by fast. After getting settled in, Jim Webster, Allan's cousin, took us to his house for a visit and supper. Arletta had baked lasagna ready for us. Boy, was it good.
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| From 2010-11-06 |
Friday they took us riding around the area. Stillwater seems spread out with lots of agriculture activities. Oklahoma State University is located there. Jim and Arletta were affiliated with the university during their working years. We went to a museum outside of town that had so much history. It would take you days to see and read all the information. We had lunch at the famous Eskimo Joes which is a college hangout.
 |
| From 2010-11-06 |
Saturday on our drive to Russel, Kansas we saw lots of wind turbines. Even though it was a very windy day, there was no rain. We were happy today since Auburn won their game with Chattanooga. We are staying up late but will have an extra hour to sleep in the morning.
Friday, November 5, 2010
ON THE ROAD AGAIN
I had my stitches removed. I saw a different doctor who answered all my questions. It may be a year before I get all the feeling back in my nose. The same day Allan and I had our teeth cleaned.
Speaking of cleaning, our carpets have also been cleaned. They really needed it. Since we have washed everything else in the RV, I feel the RV is squeaky clean now. ( I guess this is spring cleaning in the fall).
Yancy, Brian, Allan and I met Joe and Shirley for lunch at Cracker Barrel. We exchanged some articles that belonged to my aunt and uncle.
Sunday we drove to Alabaster to attend church at Kingwood. We had lunch with Butch and Sue and then spent some time with Venus and Josh.
Monday I took Yancy to work so I could use her car to deliver her burnt cabinet door for repairs while Allan drove to Hoover for another dentist appointment. His night guard was broken. Since we were planning to leave the next day for Smith Center, Kansas, we have been working hard to get all errands and things done. Allan filled up with LP.
Because of some mix up on our truck we were not able to pick up our truck until Tuesday morning after Allan went back to the dentist to pick up his night guard. They had our truck for 8 days. We hooked up and pulled the slides in, ran down the hill in the Jeep to vote, said our good byes to the dog and then headed out. It started to rain when we drove through Birmingham and continued to rain all day. By the time we stopped for supper at Captain D's it was getting dark and still raining, so we decided to spend the night in the WalMart parking lot in Senatobia, Ms. We went to bed early since there was no electricity and slept great. Katie didn't move all night either.
Speaking of cleaning, our carpets have also been cleaned. They really needed it. Since we have washed everything else in the RV, I feel the RV is squeaky clean now. ( I guess this is spring cleaning in the fall).
Yancy, Brian, Allan and I met Joe and Shirley for lunch at Cracker Barrel. We exchanged some articles that belonged to my aunt and uncle.
Sunday we drove to Alabaster to attend church at Kingwood. We had lunch with Butch and Sue and then spent some time with Venus and Josh.
Monday I took Yancy to work so I could use her car to deliver her burnt cabinet door for repairs while Allan drove to Hoover for another dentist appointment. His night guard was broken. Since we were planning to leave the next day for Smith Center, Kansas, we have been working hard to get all errands and things done. Allan filled up with LP.
Because of some mix up on our truck we were not able to pick up our truck until Tuesday morning after Allan went back to the dentist to pick up his night guard. They had our truck for 8 days. We hooked up and pulled the slides in, ran down the hill in the Jeep to vote, said our good byes to the dog and then headed out. It started to rain when we drove through Birmingham and continued to rain all day. By the time we stopped for supper at Captain D's it was getting dark and still raining, so we decided to spend the night in the WalMart parking lot in Senatobia, Ms. We went to bed early since there was no electricity and slept great. Katie didn't move all night either.