Shopping Trips

I have been wanting to get back to Bed, Bath and Beyond for a while, but darn! they are no longer carrying the refills for the Method foaming hand wash that I like so much. But, I did find a rug for the front of the RV and a smaller one for in front of my new chair. I also picked up a few smaller items including a pair of zippered control socks for Forry.

Needing groceries, we went to the Safeway store in Cheney. By the time we finished, I had had it. I thought we could get some Chinese food for dinner, but both places in Cheney were closed. There are a lot more empty buildings in town then there were when we were here last year. We ended up over at the Iron Skillet by Petro. I had my usual spaghetti while Forry ate a chicken fried steak.

We met Chris, one of our Menno family, at the restaurant and had a short visit before we headed home. Time to haul in the groceries and put them all away. My very most favorite task, NOT!

Rainy Morning

Joy was having to look for my rain jacket before we left for Menno for church. It had begun to rain just before we left - the first swipes of the windshield wipers were muddy, then dirty water. The sidewalk going into church had drifts of dirt from yesterday's dust storms.

From what I could glean from Facebook posts, it rained some pretty much all across the state. I think the fire areas may have gotten enough to slow the massive growth of the fires somewhat and at least give the fire fighters a bit of a break.

We took a detour by the ranch after church to check on the wheat that Jeff had sown last week. We could see green in all of the outside rows, but not too far into the field. It didn't look like it had rained enough there to form a crust, so we will just have to wait and see.

We saw the film clip from MSNBC in church this morning showing Rev. Al Sharpton's interview with Pastor Duplessis of Mt Nebo Bible Baptist Church in the 9th Ward of New Orleans that Menno has partnered with over the last years. The quilt wall hanging by the Menno ladies is seen a couple of times and he mentions the support of Menno Mennonite Church (but doesn't say where it is).

I got a chuckle when I reminded folks how ten years ago I had told them they needed to get a tetanus booster before they went to New Orleans to work with Mennonite Disaster Service and that now they needed to get their ten year booster. All of the talk of it being ten years since Katrina sure brings back memories of our work with MDS. Gene talked this morning also of last week's dedication of the two houses built in Brewster this summer after last year's fires. MDS is still working on several more in the area.

We went for lunch in Ritzville with Colleen and Dennis and Earl and had a good visit. Afterwards we stopped by their house to take a look at a wonderful batch of teapots, coffee pots, sugars, etc. that they had recently bought from a retiring antique dealer. Dennis will be giving them a second chance at life by making them into wind chimes. Their jewelry is fun and gorgeous, but until you see Dennis's work area, it's hard to see how much work goes into the transformation.

Another Busy Day

Tonight I fixed my dear departed Mother-in-law Martha's favorite harvest supper. I had found a nice piece of ham (about a quarter) when we were at Costco today. I fried up a potato, sliced several slices of ham which I also fried and sliced some tomatoes. Since we always fixed the heaviest meal for noon, suppers tended to be a little lighter and this was always her go-to meal. Of course, there would also have been bread or rolls and butter and a dessert of some kind.

It might be cake, or ice cream, or a cobbler, but never pie. Pie was for the noon meal. Bless her heart, she could make pies for thirty plus days of harvest, and never make the same kind twice! She'd make two or three pies, depending on how large a crew we had, every day. Even after she and Dad Hardt retired and I took over the cooking, she'd bake pies for us. She said it was her payment for the two of them eating with the harvest crew.

I always looked forward to harvest - just as much as I wanted it to be over by the second or third week. I saved up recipe ideas all year to try during harvest. If something wasn't real successful, oh well, it gotten eaten up anyway, usually without any leftovers,

We sure had all kinds of weather today. The prediction was for strong winds and there were NOAA weather warning of dust storms and fire danger. There was indeed a great deal of dust in the air when we went to Costco. At times, visibility was less than a quarter of a mile. It's a good thing the car wash that I had on my To Do list for this week didn't happen. In the midst of all the dust, we got enough rain drops to really make a mess. This evening the wind is quiet, the skies are blue and we are not smelling smoke.

Busy, Busy Day

We actually got a smidgen of rain today. It was overcast and felt like rain when we got up this morning. I think I could have counted the raindrops that actually fell. Such a disappointment for an area that desperately needs rain. The wild  fires flared up again today with high winds mid-state.

We made a quick trip over to the storage unit to get our chairs and the dryer racks so that I could have a place to hang laundry. I took the time to do a "cleansing" cycle of my Splendide washer/dryer that I had read about on a couple of Facebook posts. It actually worked! It has not dried so well in a long time!

I stripped the bed (still have to put on the clean sheets). I made a pot of chili for supper. I don't know what else I did, but I was busy all day. Oh, and best of all, Forry took his shower without any help today! He may recover fully from his back surgery yet.

Once Again, On the Road

Our week at Cascade Park was up, so today we moved on to Spokane. We will be staying at Ponderosa Falls as it is part of our K/M membership where we can stay without additional charge for two weeks.

We've done a good job of stream lining things without having the couch. It is much easier to get organized and packed up to move these days - even with the new slide boards that we are using with the new flooring. It was only a bit after ten when we left the park.

 As I was getting ready to back the car out so that we could hook up, I only saw one little girl at the RV across the way. So I hollered over at the lady,"where's the other one? Is she inside?." She looked sorta surprised, then told me she had gone with her Grandpa. Later, she came over and thanked me for looking out for her little girls. I didn't tell her that one of my biggest fears is hitting a child - they dart in and out of places so quickly!

It was an easy jaunt up I-90 to Ponderosa Falls near Exit 272. We've been here so many times it feels like coming home. However, it took a long time to get registered. There was a couple ahead of us that were evidently evacuees from the fires near Repubic. They were pretty uptight and stressed. They didn't like the site they had been given for their trailer, wanted a new one and wanted to stay longer then the two week limit. The staff was trying to be accommodating what with the Labor Day weekend coming up, but anything they said seemed to upset the poor lady more. They were still there after someone else came and got us taken care of. I don't know if they got everything resolved or not...

After I got us all set up and plugged in, the last thing I wanted to do was cook, so we made a quick run up to Gordy's on the South Hill. We split a wonderful beef and red sweet pepper stir fry that was one of their specials tonight.

Family Time

It's been a good week here in Moses Lake with lots of family time. In a discussion with my Niece Becky either at the rehearsal or the wedding, we realized she had never seen the inside of our RV. So I invited her and David and the boys to come by. As we were talking Sister-in-law Cindy said she'd like to see the renovations as well. So Brother Pat suggested they should come down to the park this evening for a picnic - and they did!

Cindy brought fresh mozzarella cheese and basil to go with tomatoes and basaltic vinegar. I had smoked salmon dip and crackers. After touring the RV, we sat outside with our appetizers and visited and watched our Great-nephews play. Later Cindy heated up some au jus and we had roast beef sandwiches, green salad, cantaloupe and watermelon. Becky had brought along cones and ice cream that everyone enjoyed for dessert.

It was a very nice way to end our week's stay in Cascade Park. It's been a very good week!

BLTs!

We had an appointment at ten this morning with our accountant. We almost didn't make it. I was sitting in my nice new chair, drinking my coffee and reading the Spokane Spokesman Review on my iPad when I suddenly realized at was almost 9:30! Fortunately, Forry was already getting up when I went back to wake him and we made it into town on time.

When we were done with our meeting, we went over to Shari's for breakfast. I had the Senior breakfast of one egg, toast, bacon and hash browns which was good. However, Forry was very disappointed in his biscuits and gravy. I asked for an extra dish of gravy for him as the biscuits were barely covered - and he said they were hard as well.

This evening we went over to Pat and Cindy's and had wonderful BLTs with some of the heirloom tomatoes from Pat's garden. Lordy, they were good! They were so big and luscious that one slice covered the whole slice of bread! It was good to have a chance to sit and visit without the commotion of the wedding.

Pat reminds me in so many ways of our Dad. I came home with the same kind of goody bag of fresh tomatoes and cucumbers that I used to get at Dad's house.

Smokey, Hazy Day

It's funny, but the only nice clear lovely day this week was Saturday, the evening of my Niece  Ashley's wedding. The days before and after have been hazy and smoke filled. Today was no different. As I look across the lake, the house and other buildings are indistinct in the haze.

We spent a quiet day today. Daughter Mary Mae was able to take care of some banking for us when she got the mail, so I was able to take care of some stuff on this end. I do love on-line check depositing - it greatly simplifies my life!

I went ahead and ordered some Simply Human bags for the three waste cans.  I had them sent to General Delivery in Cheney. Hopefully they will arrive there about the same time we do.

I'd like to do some laundry, but it can wait until we leave as well as there are no sewer hook-ups here so we are conserving water. There is a dump station near the park exit.

We did get the new smoke detector put up that we got at Lowes the other day. It's not the Kidde brand that the previous one was. This one not only has an obnoxious sound, but also a verbal warning to get out.

A NOT So Quiet Day

We thought about being ambitious and heading out to Menno for church this morning, but Forry didn't even wake up until 9:30 when we would have had to be leaving. But about ten o'clock I got a text inviting us to join Cle and his wife at Inca's for lunch. Later I got a text saying if we got there first we should get a table for 7-10.

We did so and ended up with a tableful. Fun! Elizabeth and Cle, Reed, Malinda and her son, Randy and Barb, Amber and even Vic in his fancy new wheel chair. So good to visit with everyone!

By the time everyone got fed, it was after one and everyone was ready to head home for naps. We didn't do much this afternoon. We watched a birthday party set up at the tables across the park. They had a huge castle bounce house and a gazillion balloons. They had some pretty good music this evening until the park ranger came along and reminded them of Quiet Time.

Ashley's Wedding Day

Today was the big day at Brother Pat's house. Sister-in-law Cindy and Pat and family have been working on the year all summer and it looked like a fairy-land tonight.

Just a few of the wedding snapshots. Here's Kyle waiting for his bride -

One of the lovely bridesmaids was my nephew Jared's wife Becky -

Nephew Nick ended up carrying the Ringbearer Great-Nephew Jackson down the aisle -

The Matron of Honor, my Niece Becky pulled Great-niece Peyton in her wagon -

Great-niece Payton's chariot -

Great-niece Ellie was one of the flower girls -

 
Jackson waited with  the guys -

For my Niece Ashley to come down the aisle with Brother Pat -

The officiant was Kyle's Step-father -

Mr. and Mrs. Kyle Spies!

It was a lovely evening. Last night's wind and smoke was gone. We had barbecued beef and chicken, salads and fresh fruit along with baked potatoes. We had a chance to sit with my Sisters Dena and Roxy and their spouses Ron and Rich. The tea lights on the tables sparkled as the sun set. You couldn't have asked for a nicer evening for a celebration!

Wedding Day minus One

With all the tents and campers here at Cascade Park, I expected a noisy night, but by nine o'clock it was very quiet. We definitely got a good night's sleep. I was up by 6:30, but quickly went back to bed and sleep. Most of the campers near us pulled out this morning.

When I went outside later this morning, there was a cantaloupe sitting on the picnic table outside the RV. I wondered if one of the departing campers had left it? Or?

Turns out Brother Pat had a breakfast staff meeting and had left the cantaloupe on his way by. He said he knew better than to wake me up...!

Late this afternoon we went on down to my brother's house where preparations for Niece Ashley's wedding tomorrow were well underway. We watched the rehearsal proceedings, visited with family and munched on tacos and burritos from the taco truck that they had parked in the driveway - and enjoyed the margarita machine!

It's always fun to see all of the great nieces and nephews - they are all growing up so fast! In addition to Pat and Cindy's gkids, a good many of Cindy's cousins' kids were there as well. They were having a great time running and playing on the dance floor that was being set up.

It got chilly as the evening progressed. The wind shifted and we could smell the smoke which had kept the skies hazy all day. The fire news has not been good today - we desperately need rain in the Pacific Northwest.

Moses Lake's Cascade Park

We got a fairly decent start this morning. I knew that the checking time at the Moses Lake Park wasn't until noon and we didn't have to leave the Ellensburg KOA until eleven.

But by the time we put everything away, emptied both the grey and black tanks, pulled in the slides, lifted the jacks and hooked up the car, the morning was almost gone.

It was an easy ninety-some miles down I-90 to Exit 176 and off Broadway towards the park. I don't know where the RV's GPS thought the address was, but it tried very hard to send us in the opposite direction! She kept telling us, "when possible, make a legal U-turn!" It's a good thing we knew where we were going, hard telling where we might have ended up.

We missed "the immediate left turn" just past the park entrance and ended up in a parking lot on the other side. Fortunately, the parking lot was big and empty and we were able to easily turn around. We got to the RV site portion of the part and while we were trying to figure out where Site 46 was, the Park Ranger came along in her golf cart and told us that we'd never fit in that tiny site! (Even though the young man I had talked to on the phone had assured me it would be perfect for us.)

She led us around to the other portion of the RV area and had us set-up in Site 76, which I guess, is normally part of a Group Campsite. Instead of backing in, Forry parked us nose-in facing the lake. I had to run the electric and water around to the other side of the RV, but with the new cord we got in Arizona, I had enough to not need to hook up our extra cord. There are no sewer connections here, but we have large holding tanks, so it shouldn't be a problem.

I had picked up a mixed half flat of blueberries and blackberries at Haggens in Mount Vernon the other day. They were pretty tart when I tried them today, so I decided to make a mixed berry pie.. I had the cucumber and sweet onions with sour cream I had made yesterday, so we had those along with some chicken wings for supper. Forry had his warm pie with ice cream, so he was a happy camper.

Ellensburg KOA

A respite day. A bit needed by both of us. We hung out. We did some cleaning and putting away. I helped Forry sort through the last bag of "stuff" he had packed up from his nest by his chair. Some things I could find a home for, a few -very few - I managed to throw away. Some things just went back into his nest.

I took the garbage out. We took showers.

In the morning I'll empty the tanks and we'll pack up again. We are going to Moses Lake's Cascade Park for a week. My niece Ashley is getting married on Saturday at Brother Pat's. We should have some good times with family, especially the great-nieces and nephews.

It got very windy this afternoon. That's not good news for those fighting all of the fires. We got word late today that three firefighters had lost their lives when the fire "blew back". Four more were badly burned. It's scarey out there, all we can do is pray for safety - and rain!

On the Road Once More

It's always interesting when we've parked at Daughter Mary Mae's. They live on a narrow road that takes off from the side of a cul de sac. There are four or five houses on the little road. There is no place to turn the RV around, so Forry has to back out of it. That means I drive Toad II up and park it in the cul de sac, then walk back and guide Forry as he backs all the way out. It means a lot of walking for me. Once out, he can turn the rig around and we can hitch up Toad.

We went north on I-5 to the I-405 cut-off, taking that north until we came to the I-90 turn-off that goes east towards Spokane. It was a bright hot sunny day when we left Mount Vernon, but as soon as we got to North Bend, we could see the smoke from all of the forest fires.

 

It is very scary to see all of the smoke in the air and to look at the map to see where all of the many fires are located. They have finally called up the National Guard to help fight the fires. There have been so many and they have gotten so big that the firefighters are exhausted.

We drove as far as the Ellensburg KOA today. It's one of our favorite stopping places. It was good to get there and relax. We had leftover ribs from last night's dinner out along with leftover orzo salad from a day or so ago, so I didn't even have to do much cooking.

FRIENDS!

We had to make a trip down to the Group Health Pharmacy in Everett today to pick up our three month supply of prescription drugs. It was hard being this close to our friends Leslie and Bill without seeing them, so we called to see if they could meet us for dinner. Bill left work a little early and they met us. We went over to Famous Dave's Bar-B-Q where we left the fellows. Leslie and I walked over to Macy's and I actually found a top and sweater to go with the skirt I bought a couple of weeks ago.

It was so good to see the two of them. We sat and ate ribs and just talked and talked. Then they drove all the way back to Mount Vernon with us so that they could see the changes to the RV. They seemed to like the colors of the new carpet and laminate. They had seen how bad the floor in the bathroom was when they came to see Forry in Spokane after his surgery, so could really appreciate what a good job the fellows had done with it.

Friends like these two are like frosting on the cupcakes of life! I cannot imagine life without friendships like this! Thank you Bill and Leslie so much for joining us today!

Romeo and Juliet

Last night's performance of Romeo and Juliet at the Blackrock Amphitheater was awesome. It was the last performance of the 2015 season of the NorthWest Shakespeare Company. It's been fun to see them over the past several years. We recognize many of the actors and participants. It's also been pretty amazing to see the development of our Granddaughter Claire as an actress. For a fourteen year old, she's already gotten quite a theatrical resume'.

This is the scene of the masked party at Juliet's home that Romeo, on the left has crashed. That's Claire as the serving girl with the tray of drinks -

She listens skeptically as Romeo and his cousin plot his campaign to win his true love -

I am so amazed at the way Shakespearean English just rolls off of Claire's lips! Her class will be studying Romeo and Juliet in Freshman Honors English this fall. I think her teacher will most likely be quite impressed at her ability to read Shakespeare's language.

Her mistress, Juliet 's mother, is played by Caroline, one of the veterans of the troupe -

Claire and her Dad went back over this morning to help take down and put away all of the stage and props for the season. It's a big task, but the entire group shows up to make light work of it.

I promised Sister Roxy I would post of picture of Grandson Varick with his short haircut. He was out in the garage this morning crushing aluminum cans for recycling...

After his big day of walking yesterday at the fair yesterday and the amphitheater last night, Forry was really tired this morning - he didn't even get up until after lunch!

Chilly Day

The rain was over, but the damp remained. It was chilly when I got up this morning and had my first cup of coffee. A couple of hours later, I went over to Daughter Mary Mae's house and joined Scott for a second cup. After a while, MM, then Forry and then the Gkids joined us and MM and Granddaughter Claire made Dutch Babies for breakfast. They are so good, but my little oven doesn't do well with them, so they're a treat we usually only get when we're here.

In the afternoon the fellows went to the Skagit County Fair to see the Robotics display that Grandson Varick is a part of. MM and I stayed home and had a lazy afternoon visit before she and Claire and to leave for the amphitheater to prepare for tonight's performance.

Tonight was the last performance of the Northwest Shakespeare Company's 2015 season. Tonight they were doing Romeo and Juliet. Claire had a part as a servant girl. We have seen plays by this company over the past several years. It is amazing how much talent our granddaughter has - it's been fun to see her growth as an actor from year to year.

I did get some good pictures. I'll set up my computer tomorrow to post them on my blog instead of using my iPad.

Journey to Mount Vernon

I woke up during the night to the sound of rain on Auntie Violet's roof. It continued the whole time we were draining tanks, pulling in slides, disconnecting water and electricity and hooking up Toad II. In fact, it rained, sometimes hard, sometimes more showery, all day today as we drove up I-5 through Tacoma, Seattle and Everett to Mount Vernon and Daughter Mary Mae's house.

It's not that the West doesn't need rain, it needs it desperately! But, I'm not sure it had to pick a moving day! By the time we got set up at MM and Scott's, I was drenched. Thank goodness Scott and  Grandson Varick were there to haul the heavy electric cords over to the end of their house where the 50 amp hook-up is.

I had seen Varick earlier this Spring when he came with his Mom to Granddaughter Havela's Hesston College concert, so I knew how tall he has gotten. But, I haven't seen Granddaughter Claire since last summer. She's definitely not a little girl anymore! She's got her Mama's eyes and hair and is a lovely girl with a personality to match. I'm looking forward to seeing her tomorrow night in NW Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet. I just hope the outdoor performance doesn't get cancelled due to the rain like the one tonight did!

Scott and I made an executive decision, took the gkids and Forry and met Mary Mae downtown after work at a place called Tequila and Tacos. The tacos were delicious - the taco truck kind and Forry highly approved their margaritas (the sangria was awfully goo too!).

A Visit to Sister Roxy's

Earlier this spring Sister Roxy and her husband Rich sold their beautiful home and moved to a new home in Panorama in Lacey, Washington. Panorama is a Continum of Care facility. Since we were so close and we hadn't seen their new digs, we went for a visit this afternoon.

And oh, what a lovely place they have! The house has been pretty much totally rebuild and looks out over a common park area. After our house tour, Rich took us for a drive around the community - I think they may just have the nicest house in it! We went to the Pea Patch, the community garden area, and picked cherry tomatoes and some lemon cucumbers and greens for supper.

The back area of the house is an outdoor eating area with a built-in barbecue, sink and refrigerator. We sat out and enjoyed the very pleasant weather while we ate steaks, corn on the cob and salads. We had a feast! But best of all, we enjoyed a visit with some precious people!

A Jello Day

We started the day today with firm intentions of going to an RV Park close to Daughter Mary Mae's place in Mount Vernon. After multiple phone calls, we discovered there were NO RV spaces available anywhere near there! Between the County Fair and a soccer tournament and general summer vacations, there wasn't a site to be had.

Okay, Plan B. We could park in MM's front yard. It isn't the best situation for the neighbors, but it works. We just had to make sure Grandson Varick was around to help carry the extra power cord from the coach to the house.

We set out to do that, then looked at the mileage and our endurance level and decided it was just too far for us to drive in one day. Time for Plan C. Fortunately, there is a very nice park in Elma, Washington that is part of the K/M system so that we can stay for free. We will spend tonight and tomorrow night at the Travel Inn Resort. That way we can also go over to see Sister Roxy's new digs in Olympia tomorrow.

Back On the Road

After a bit more organizing and putting things away, we got a lesson in using slide boards on the new floors. The slide boards will keep the slides from marring the new floors as they slide in and out.

This is the shop of Amazing Creations and Kustom Coach Works in Junction City, Oregon. The fellows work together on all projects, but they maintain separate entities.

This is a shot of the entry way with the new laminate on the steps and the new carpet on the sides -
 

 
The new overhead fan in the bedroom. It's made in the shop with the same cherry wood as the coach -

The rebuilt floor in the bathroom -

 
A shot of the bedroom with the beautiful new blue carpet -

And here's a shot of the responsible fellows who did it all in less than a week. That's Scott on the left and Bobby on the right.

We traveled north on I-5 today, all the way to 99 RV Park in Vancouver, Washington, where we are settled in for the night.

New Floors!

Oh my, the new floors are gorgeous! Auntie Violet looks very nice! She has a new fan in the bedroom, a place for my new burgundy chair, a redone bathroom floor, a repaired kitchen sink, a new faucet, and a new cupboard with a drawer that holds all of the built-in vacuum accessories. The TV in the bedroom is also gone and I have a new space for comforters, beach towels and pillows.

I did take some pictures, but my computer desk is still piled with stuff the boys put up while they were doing the floors. I just didn't get to it today. I spent most of the day putting stuff away and wiping down the wood in the RV with Liquid Gold (it was very dusty from the tile demolition, even though the fellows had vacuumed well.)

We made a trip over to Home Depot for shelf liner for the new cupboard and under the newly repaired sink. I bought a new stainless garbage can while we were there for the kitchen.

This evening we made a quick trip to Safeway to replenish our breakfast supplies and get some fresh veggies and fruit. We stopped at Dairy Queen on the way back for hamburgers and Frostees.

Tomorrow we will finish getting stuff put away; get a lesson on how to use the floor protectors when we pull in the slides; then we'll start heading towards Mount Vernon.

German Food

Showers and clean up today, otherwise very quiet.

Gdaughter Kyra worked from noon until 6 pm today. Once she got home we packed everyone up and went to the German Bergarten for dinner. Kyra and Gson Micah has fondue while the rest of us had some form of schnitzel. It was very tasty!

Life With the Gkids - and Their Parents

Everyone was home today. Daughter Dawn and Todd were extremely busy all day. Todd started early this morning on the major plumbing project he is working on. He is putting new septic drains into the bathrooms. In the process, he is moving the washer and dryer into a separate laundry area and using the space they were in to re orient the main bathroom layout.

What it meant to all the rest of us was there was no water available today, nor were there toilet facilities. Todd got everyone up early to do their business before he shut things down, but Dawn and Granddaughter Kyra and I made a late morning run to Fred Meyer for a grocery run and a potty stop. Todd hooked things back up temporarily before supper, but is back working on getting the washer and dryer installed this evening.

In between he Saturday cleaning, Dawn used the leftover crab and the fresh corn we had gotten during our trip to the coast to make a batch of corn chowder this morning. We enjoyed it outside with homemade corn bread.

The Gkids spent a good portion of the day binge watching the latest season of Dr Who on NetFlix. Kyra had to go to work at three at her job as a life guard at the Croc Center in Salem.

Another Quiet Day

We spent another quiet day today. Granddaughter Kyra even made us crab omelets for breakfast!

Bobbi from Kustom Coach called to say the work on Auntie Violet would be finished by late this afternoon. They had fixed the water pump and even figured out what had gone wrong with the TV. We are spending the weekend here, then will go down to Junction City on Monday to get the coach. I am anxious to see how it looks with the new laminate floor and carpet.

I do hope my new burgundy chair doesn't stick out like a sore thumb!

A Trip To the Coast

We went for a day trip today over to the Oregon coast. We were going to take Grandson Micah with us to look at an RV park that sells lots. Fortunately Granddaughter Kyra offered to go as well so we had a second driver. Forry's doctor started him on a new med that has a side effect of drowsiness, so he was out as a driver today.

We took I-5 south to Hwy 22 which took us over to Lincoln City. From there we went south to Newport where we toured Pacific Shores. Pacific Shores describes itself as being "a Luxury Motorcoach Resort on the Spectacular Oregon Coast."  It is indeed a beautiful place, with lots of gorgeous motor homes as well.

When we arrived at the resort, the staff gave us a list of available sites and a map. We slowly drove around and up and down, looking at all the sites that were for sale - and all of the other ones as well. The grounds are beautifully landscaped, maintenance is part of the Owner Association's dues. The park has an association that manages it. I tried to get a copy of the association rules, but their computer was down. They did promise to email me a copy...

On our way back to Keizer, we stopped at Barnacle Bill's in Lincoln City and bought fresh crab. We also stopped at a fruit stand and purchased corn, peaches and a few heirloom tomatoes. Ky and I went over to Safeway when we got home and picked up some sourdough French bread to go with the crab. We definitely had a feast for dinner tonight! There is nothing quite as good as Dungeness crab!

A Down Day

We needed a down day today. We've been pretty busy the past few days, with a lot of lifting and loading and driving. I spent a couple of quiet hours sitting outside with my cup of tea before Forry and the kids woke up.

Grandkids Kyra and Micah entertained us the rest of the morning with some hilarious u-tube videos on Netflix. I got ambitious enough to sweep the kitchen and dining room and finally mopped the kitchen floor, but that was the last of my ambition for the day.

Tale of a Chair

One of the changes we are making to our RV is taking out the couch, which is very uncomfortable, and replacing it with a recliner that fits me and some storage cupboards. Today was our day to go shopping for the Lazy Boy Wall Away chair that I wanted.

We found a Lazy Boy Gallery fairly close to Daughter Dawn's, only about five miles away. At the last minute, Granddaughter Kyra asked if we wanted company and hopped in the car with us. She had just returned last night from Illinois where she had been visiting with her sister Havela and her new niece Kahlyn, after attending the Mennonite World Conference in Pennsylvania. So we were very glad toget to spend time with her!

We made it to the store and since I knew exactly what I wanted, it didn't take long to decide on the perfect chair. It came in a brown fabric, a brown leather and a burgundy leather. I choose the burgundy to give Auntie Violet a pop of color. They thought they could deliver it to Junction City on Thursday which would be good timing for the boys in their remodeling project.

But, like usually happens, when the clerk placed the order, it turned out that they could not deliver it until next week. But, we could pick it up at their warehouse - fifty miles away in Tualatin. Kyra suggested we trade vehicles with her mother as there would be room to haul it in the back of their van.

We met Daughter Dawn for lunch and ended up trading vehicles. Ky ended up driving to the warehouse where their crew loaded the chair for us. Then she drove all the way back to Junction City where Bobbi and Scott unloaded it and put it in their shop.

Boy, did the RV look different then when we left her! The fellows had just finished taking out the last of the tile and the carpet. They had rebuilt the floor in the bathroom and were sweeping up all of the debris  when we arrived. They had the new flooring laid out on the shop floor and I think I'm really going to like the laminate.

It was almost five when we got back to Dawn's and she was already getting chicken thighs ready to barbecue. We put together an orzo salad and some peppers to go with and had another lovely meal. It was a another good day!

Auntie Violet is Coming Apart!

It took us a while, but we made it over to see Bobbi and Scott at Kustom Coach and Amazing Creations near Junction City. By a bit after noon, Auntie Violet was starting to come apart! Between them, the guys had unbolted the driver and front passenger chair and taken them out so that they had more room to work. Then the carpet started to come up!

They had helped us load what we needed into the car and hauled everything loose out and put it in the   shop on a table. We tried to get everything possible out of the way for the work crew. By the end of the week, Auntie Violet will have new floors and some nice blue carpet in the bedroom.

After moving what we could, we headed over towards Keizer and Daughter Dawn's home. Son-in-law Todd and Grandson Micah were busy working on their bathroom remodeling project. Dawn soon arrived home from her job with the Public Health Department. It wasn't long before we were sitting outside enjoying barbecued ribs and sweet corn.

River Life RV Resort

It was a shorter day of driving today. We got a fairly early start and drove into some much cooler temperatures. We even had a few -very few - drops of rain. Still it is nice to be out of the stifling heat. While it was hot alteady when I was outside disconnecting things, it was much nicer about two o'clock when we checked in here at River Life.

When we were here before, there was a big construction project going on. We stayed a couple of days while we were waiting for our new DVR to arrive. We watched them putting up walls and then we watched when a bad windstorm came up over the weekend and blew those walls down. Now there is a huge church with a large attached two story building. They were moving furniture into it today. Lots of cars, trucks and trailers hauling things.

There are maybe twenty-five or so RV sites with full hookups. We are wondering whether they will continue to be open to the public or will just become part of this church retreat complex?

We are sorting and putting away stuff tonight. It will take the guys a couple of weeks to redo the floors, put in the new kitchen sink, etc., so we are packing to go stay at Daughter Dawn's over in Keizer.

Portland Fairview RV Park

We are on the road again! We left from Sister Sherry's a little after 10:30 this morning and pulled into the Portland Fairview RV Park about four this afternoon. It was an absolutely gorgeous day to be driving down the Columbia Gorge. The water of the mighty Columbia was bright blue. There were boaters and swimmers and picnickers. By White Salmon where the wind was stronger, there were people kite skiing as well as a few on sail boards. There were fishing boats, sail boats and even a couple of canoes. It was a lovely hot summer Saturday and people were enjoying the water.

It was a lot of driving today, but Forry fared quite well with some short naps at rest areas along the way. It was still quite hot when we arrived at the RV Park. By the time I had the water and electric hooked up and the car shut down, my bandana sweat band was soaked through again. But at least it keeps the sweat out of my eyes...!

This looks to be a lovely park with nice long pull-throughs. We 'll only be spending the night, then will go on in the morning to River Life RV Park which is close to Junction City where we'll be getting the work on the coach done.

A Day At the Farm

I have always been in awe of my sister Sherry. She's a year and one-half older than I am and was a year ahead of me in school. Many years later, with us both in our seventies, she is still awesome. We literally dropped in on her Thursday afternoon and spent the day with her yesterday.

Sherry loves animals, especially her dogs. She currently has three of the large, slobbery, lovable mastiffs living with her. Corrine is my favorite apricot color, Lady Bug is a dark brindle and Keiko San is the traditional fawn color. This hot weather is very hard on the big dogs. It got to 105 on our thermometer, though it may have been hotter as our thermometer is in the shade of the awning.

The girls are quieter, knowing enough to lie down in the shade, but Keiko still wants to play. He brings his bowling balls over and does his best to coax you to play soccer with him. He will go stand in one of the low horse troughs full of water to cool off a bit, then he's ready to go again.

We didn't see much of the horses (many of them rescues) this trip. They were hanging out under any of the shady places they could find in the valley. The peafowl, who are in the annual process of losing their tail feathers, definitely made their presence known with their cries of "help!"

We only had a day to spare as we are supposed to be in Junction City, Oregon on Monday morning. But, sometimes phone calls aren't quite enough and you've just got to stop in and get a hug!