7 days before lift off....

Welcome back to our blog. I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas. We sure did.
In spite of the snow and rain and ice and wind. Now to start packing for the trip.
Mel left on his last trip to Billings and will be home again on Tuesday.
I will be putting Christmas decorations and the tree away. Picking out the cloths we will need for the next 3 months of sun shine. And making everything fit into the car.
We bought a small Park Model last year. We only got to spend 2 days in it so I barely remember other than pictures of what it looks like.
We will spent the first night at Terri & Bobs in Des Moines then on the way south.

I won't be writing much this week. I just wanted to invite everyone to stay tuned.
God Bless

Day 84 - Home sweet Home!

Hi there,
We are home. We got here about 4:30 this afternoon. We had a great time with Terri and Bob for a couple of days. Amanda and Aidan play the piano and will be in a program soon. They played their songs for us. Amanda was just elected as Student of the Month. So proud of her. First thing we did when we got home was to take the plants in. Some of the cloths too. My friend, Dixie, came over with a welcome home present, a smile and a big hug. Thanks Dixie. We hurried to clean up a bit and went to church and enjoyed the "Singspiration". Again was welcomed by so many. Gee, it is good to be home. Trey and Russ completely remodeled our bathroom while we were gone. It is awesome. They have a couple of things left to do and then I will post a picture. I will write more tomorrow. Maybe will try to catch up with some emails and phone calls too. Good night and God Bless

Day 82 - Finally Des Moines

Hello, I just wanted to let you know that we made it to Terri and Bob's.
It is so good to see family. But it sounds like more snow coming. uffda!!!!
I guess we plan to go home on Wed. See you then.
Good Night and God Bless

Day 81 - Nice and warm

Sunday.....

We got rolling about 9 this morning. The roads were good all the way. But there was snow, snow, snow all across Kansas. Liberal to Wichita was the worst. The city of Pratt was just full of various kinds of snow plows and people with shovels and they didn’t even make a dent. The highway was clean but none of the business’s or city streets were clean. Lots of cars stuck or just plain snowed under. Cars and trucks in the ditches along the highway. We sure saw why the roads were closed. We were getting low on fuel and hadn’t eaten all day but there wasn’t anything open. But we finally found a place just as the low fuel buzzer went off. This place had sub sandwiches too. The next stop was Emporia KS at a Flying J and guess what???? They had LP. Yippee!!!!! We have heat tonight. We just had a snack and rested for a while and went on. We planned to go to the casino in Kansas City to have the buffet but when we got there the restaurant was closed. We just had another sandwich at one of the little restaurants there. Back to the camper as Molly was waiting for us. It is 11:00 already. I have to get used to the time change again. Tomorrow we will be at Terri and Bob’s in Des Moines. I might not blog for a couple of days so sending and extra hug to last until we get home on Tuesday or Wed. Take care and God Bless

Day 80 - continued

Now, the rest of the story ... Saturday

I40 finally opened up about 1:30. The police were directing traffic that was coming from 4 or 5 different directions. Letting about 20 go from each way at a time. The reason was that there was single lane road construction about 20 miles away so they were trying to avoid a traffic jam. We decided to wait until some of the vehicles got out of there and we got going about 4:30. Well the traffic jam wasn't avoided and it took us 3 hrs to travel 30 miles. We still weren't sure what the road conditions were ahead. My computer showed another construction area on the other side of Tucumcari so Mel chose to go up hwy 54. This road was also closed earlier but was clean now. We got to Guymon, OK at 11:00 and decided to shut down for the night. Still no LP!!!! Mr Heater sure has been good to us.

Day 80 - On the road again

We are in OK. Finally made it out of the storms and closed roads. But it is to late tonight to tell the story so will tell you about it tomorrow.
Good night and God Bless.............PS No, we still haven't found any LP.

Day 79 - Still in NM

Hi everyone. What a day we have had! One problem after another.
We woke up this morning at 4:30 to a terrible gas smell. Mel thought it was
the generator but it was the LP tank. It should have been a full tank but the guy at the RV park who filled it didn't get it in tight and it must have all leaked out.
We run out of LP and none to be found. so no heat and no coffee.
We have a Mr Heater so it is tolerable in here with a jacket on.
The little cubby that holds the elec. cord broke and the cord was dragging on the road and broke it. Mel fixed it so we do have elec.
Molly was sick all day. She is ok tonight.
The roads were terrible. Lots of snow and slush and ice. We got parked and stayed there as the road was closed ahead anyway. (I40) a couple hours later the road opened so we left. Mostly to find some LP. Got to Santa Rosa and the road was closed again. We got lucky with a parking spot. I don't know where everyone is going to park. They are all heaping full. But still no LP. Didn't dare leave here to look further as we would have lost our spot. the Interstate was full of cars and trucks waiting to go in the off ramp so we couldn't turn off anyplace else.
I had no signal on my computer all day nor did we have TV. I had withdrawals.... ha!
We went in for supper. They had BBQ rib special. We both ordered and we waited, and waited, and waited some more. The waitress kept coming to us to say it will be a bit longer. I think it was an hour and a half before we got our meal. But the manager came over and said there will be no charge. The ribs weren't as good as the Pit Stops at home but they weren't bad.
The storm hasn't moved and it is from here all threw the panhandle of Texas and Oklahoma and all threw Kansas. Just where we need to go. So we might just be here all day tomorrow too. We only drove 200 miles since last night.
So send us mail at the TA Truck stop in Santa Rosa, NM :-) We should have stayed in AZ a couple more days.
Good night and God Bless

Day 78 - more pictures

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We got to nephew, Shannon & Chris's place about noon on Wed. Chris was working but Shannon and us went to lunch and had a nice visit at their home until it was time for him to go to work. Shannon is an officer with the AZ Highway Patrol. Mel had the privilege of a ride along. He rode with Shannon for the day and seen many interesting things. Lots of tickets were issued. When Chris got home we went out for supper at a Chinese place in Camp Verde. Their little doggies and Molly had a ball playing together. Molly got so tired that she slept almost the whole day today. (She is as out of shape as I am and not used to the nonstop running she did.) Shannon is building a huge garage. His neighbor helped him on the roof. We said our good byes about 9. The pretty rock cliffs were at the NM border. The temps dropped steadily as we traveled. Then the snow storm........ I think we should have stayed in AZ a few more days!!
Good night and God Bless.

Day 78 - Picture problems

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What a day. We went from mountain beauty to a dust storm. Heavy clouds started to fill the sky and just as we crossed into NM the snow started. It was such a wet snow that it stuck to the windshield wipers so we couldn't see. We stopped for about an hour. It seemed to let up so we took off again. Only got about 40 miles and the snow got heavy again so we stopped for the night. We are in a Petro truck stop in Grants NM.

I am having trouble getting pictures on so will put more in another post. I suppose the pictures of earlier in the day will show up first. Oh well....

Day 78

We are in a snow storm . We just got into NM. I don't know how much farther we will go today. So far the roads are ok but the temps are dropping. 33 degrees now. More tonight

Day 76 - Heading out

We are almost ready to go. Mel is hooking up the 5th wheel. We have a few things to put in and we are gone. We will stop for the night just north of Phoenix and go to Shannon and Chris' in the late morning.

I might not write for a couple of days. Take care everyone.

Hugs........................PS - Good guess Dixie J. I owe you. :-)

Day 75 - One more day before we leave

The picture of the unknown was actually many many of these moths enjoying the heat of the big lights at the Blythe race track. My camera must not take fast motion as all I could get was the streaks. I thought it was kind of funny. This one landed on my shoulder and Audrey took this picture. Someone guessed pretty close but I have no idea who you are. Send me an email.

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We got the last of the stuff moved into our new place. Now if I had it all put away I would be happy. I will finish that job tomorrow. The 5th wheel is all packed up and ready to travel. Early Wed. morning we will hook up and head out.
I washed a couple more loads. Molly got a bath. She is white again.
I have been so upset with the TV cable here. I could barely see my shows tonight.
Then we find out that it is the TV and not the cable that is the problem. I guess we will have to add a new TV to our list for next year.

Those of you in the storms... stay warm and safe.
Take care and God Bless

Day 74 - We are here. uffda!!

Hi, We got moved to our new winter home. With a little..... should say a lot of help from our friends. I hate moving almost as much as I hate laundromats!
Most of the outdoor stuff was stored in the shed. We will bring all that over next year and sell the shed. It took 2 pickup loads and a car load to bring our stuff here. There is still a little bit left to do tomorrow.
(I have to explain what is a pickup load.... There is a big generator and the 5th wheel plate already in there so can only use about 1/3 of the box.)
We have decided to bring the 5th wheel camper home after all. We just hated to leave it unwatched even though I am sure it would be ok. Besides I don't think there would have been enough room in the pickup to bring home everything we needed.

We worked all day with the move and then AG, Audrey and us went out for supper.
Came back home and put more stuff away. The TV doesn't work the best. We aren't going to get Dish until next year. So I washed cloths and unpacked. Yes, I washed cloths in my own washer and dryer. :-)

It was soooooo windy today. The dust flew so much we couldn't even see the mountains. Tonight the temp dropped. Not sure to what but cold. Oh well, we found out the furnace worked. The weather forecast in the Dakota's and down is unreal. I hope none of you get it.

I am going to see if the bed works. So good night and God Bless.....

PS.....
I didn't get any guesses on yesterdays picture so will wait one more day to give you the answer.

Day 73 - We got it!

................#1...Can you tell me what the 1st picture is of? I will buy a Pepsi for the first one to tell me ....... Answer tomorrow.....
#2....Beautiful sunset...
#3....Winner of the Legends car race. He is about 14...
#4....Second place was an eleven year old. He already has 7 years experience racing...
#5....Mel and AG watching the race
#5....Audrey too

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It was a good day today. We finalized our purchase. The park model is ours.
There is even a desert full size gulf course at the park. Now we will have to learn that game. The papers were signed to late in the day to do any moving so tomorrow will be a busy one. We met the Wilson's in Blythe for supper. We ate at the Sizzler then on to the race track. Tomorrow #5 will win!!! Way past my bedtime so good night and God Bless.

Day 72 - Another move soon

Large bloom on cactus. It was awesome! ..........
The Blackwood Bro.



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Hello
It has been quit the day. We got half our business done and hopefully the other half will come tomorrow. It will depend on how good the US post office is???????
I might as well tell you what we did. I think most know by now anyway.

We bought a park model. This is a camper that is permanent in one spot. 38 foot.
no steps. Our 5th wheel is 29 foot and steps to go into the small bedroom.
Not a real fancy one but nice. It has a washer and dryer and even a dish washer.
Lots of cupboards and closets. Just enough yard to fill with plants.
If we can finalize everything tomorrow we can move in before we leave for home.
We have to leave on Wed. morning. Our 5th wheel is for sale. I wish this would have come available weeks ago. It is in a RV park called Wagon West. About 4 miles from where we are now. We still have our Travco so we can spend time with that this summer if we have the need to travel.

I spent most of the day packing. How did I ever get all this in this little space?? Tonight we met AG and Audrey in Quartzsite at a Blackwood Bro concert. One of them is the son of one of the original Blackwoods. They are a Southern Gospel quartet. It was a great evening.

Did you see who got pole in the Sprint Cup race this Sunday???? Goooo Mark Martin!!

Good night & God Bless

Day 71 - Hot

Hello everyone, It was 97.4 degrees on my thermometer today. That is hot.
Mel cleaned out the storage places under our camper. The basement as it is known by.
I watered my plants, washed my hair and made a crock pot stew. Our friends, Ag & Audrey came for supper and brought a grapefruit pie. Oh was that good. We took them to see the extra business we are into..... (are you wondering?? ;-) We enjoyed the Gospel Jam tonight. So many have left the park and the musicians that are left still sound so wonderful. The Blackwood Bro will be performing at a church in Quartzsite tomorrow night. I hope some of you know of these gospil singers. I can't wait to hear them in person.
Good night & God Bless

Day 70 - ??? days left in Brenda

Picture... See who I met in the grocery store?? It was Mark Martin. ha!!
Just look a little to the left.
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Hi everyone, How was your day?
We visited Adams, MN friends in Big River, CA. They had a wonderful lunch for us and lots of grapefruit and oranges to take home with us. (Some for you Dixie J) On the way back home we stopped in Parker for a few groceries. Mostly dog food. We then had some business to take care off. I will tell you all about it on Friday. It is good business.
But because of this we will be staying here a few more days. Now plan to leave next Wed. Hey Trey & Russ, you have more time to finish the bathroom. :-)
Then we went to AG & Audrey's RV in Ehrenberg for a delicious chicken supper.
We played a dice game...can't remember what it was called, but I lost!!!
Home again and talked about the new business we worked on today. Good night and God Bless...........................

Day 69 - 4 days left in Brenda

Hello to all. We had another 90+ day. But I liked it. Almost as nice as our Minnesota summers!! We met our friends, Audrey & AG, in Quartzsite. Shopped around a bit but it was really hot so we didn't stay long. We all came back to our camp and visited a while then went to the Corn beef and cabbage supper. We almost missed it as we got there at the wrong time. But sure was a nice meal. Tonight I had to keep switching channels as American Idol was on one and Dancing with the stars was on another. I voted for Shawn and Mark and Little Kim and Darrick on Dancing with the Stars and voted for Allison on American Idol. It was country music night on American Idol and only Allison sounded country..........Terri, your blog pictures were awesome. Hello to all the Speirs.
Happy St Pattys day everyone. Good night and God Bless

Day 68 - 5 days left

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Good evening,
It was beading this morning and I actually got my project finished. We made a eye class holder. A necklace like thing. I think I could actually make a necklace now.
This afternoon I worked on the bracelet that I started a couple of weeks ago. Almost done. The rest of the day was pretty quiet. It got pretty warm. 91 degrees. Might be even warmer the rest of the week. We had a pork chop supper. After clean up I working on my bracelet again. Now 24 is on so gotta go.
Good night & God Bless

Day 67 - 6 days left

Hi everyone, How was your Sunday? It was good here. about 80*. After church we went out for lunch then home. Just a quiet day from there. The Wilsons stopped in after supper. Not much else. Terri and her family left for a visit to NY today. We are thinking of you guys. Have fun.
Good night & God Bless