Family

After a day with showers and a little housework, we wandered over to my brother's in the late afternoon. We found Brother Pat putting new drip irrigation in along the front flowerbeds. Sounds like he and Cindy had spent most of the day planting and doing yard work.

Barbecued steak and asparagus from their garden, quinoa salad and green beans with Gruyere cheese, what a feast we had! It's always good to spend time with Pat and Cindy, catching up on kids and grandkids.

After dinner, we settled in to watch a very good Mariners game. Even had a chance to see Nephew Nick for a bit. It was a very nice day!

Rain

It was a cloudy dreary morning and a bit chilly. It looked and felt like rain, then this afternoon it broke loose. It rained hard for about fifteen minutes, then it was over. It came down so hard, I thought it was hail on the roof at first.

I was glad we had gone out earlier to hook up the sewer and drain the tanks. We had also pulled out the front generator slide and took a look at the front lights. We know that one of the headlights is burned out, but weren't quite sure what it would take to replace it. After checking and making sure all the rest of the lights were working, we decided replacing the light was not a do it yourself task.

The Mariners played the Royals tonight with Felix Hernandez pitching. He's at a point in his career where he is breaking all kinds of franchise records. Seth Smith hit his 100th home run tonight which turned out to be the difference in the game which the Mariners won 1-0.

Another Trip to Town

The way I talk about it, you'd think that "town" was a long way off. It's more psychological than anything. You exit the RV park, take a short jaunt up the road onto the freeway, go over the overpass and you are there.

I was up very early (fiveish) as my arm fell asleep and was painful enough to wake me up. I got up to work it off and watched our neighbors, construction workers, leave for work. Then I crawled back in bed with Forry and slept for a few more hours.

We went back into Teddy Bear Car Care to get the air filter they had ordered yesterday. The tech recognized us from yesterday and was out and had it installed before Forry managed to get into the office to pay for it. That's good customer service!

Since we were in town, we went over to the Outfitter Store to look for some folding three-legged stools to sit on when we're hooking up water and sewer etc. they had what we wanted and even had a new shirt - with a pocket - for Forry. From there we went on over to Safeway to pick up some fresh fruit and frozen stuff.

I picked up fried chicken, jojos and broccoli salad at the deli, so we had n easy supper. They had some strawberries from California that actually tasted and smelled like strawberries, so we had dessert as well.

An Oil Change and Dinner Out

I was doing laundry this morning when Forry decided this would be a good day to get the oil changed in Toad II. I told him that if he would wait until the washer was done, I'd go into town with him. So that's what we did.

Forry likes a place called Teddy Bear Car Care for oil changes as they carry the Schaeffer Oil that he likes (you may remember our search for Schaeffer oil in Phoenix.). There was no one waiting in line for an oil change, so we got right in. They had a new oil filter for the Suzuki, but couldn't find a new air filter anywhere in town. They checked with us, then went ahead and ordered one that will arrive tomorrow morning. While we were there, we had the Toad, which was very dirty from the road grime picked up while being towed here, washed and vacuumed.

After a stop at the post office to drop off Son Sean's very late birthday card and the first half property taxes, we headed back to the RV park. We weren't there very long when we got a text from our friend Katherine saying they were in town and finished with their errands, so they could meet earlier for dinner than the 6:30 we had planned.

We met up with Kay and Dennis at Micheal's On The Lake for a great dinner and even better company. There is something special about spending time with folks you have known for years. Catching up with family news for lives that have intertwined for a generation or more is a treat.

We got back home in time to watch the latter part of the Mariners Rangers game - and the Mariners were winning!

A Weekend With My Sister

I think one of the reasons I like spending time at Sister Sherry's is the lack of contact with the outside world. There is no cell phone coverage down along the Touchet River. Sherry has wireless through the REA, but you have to be in the house to make connection.  So from where we park Auntie Violet at the other side of the farmyard down by the shop, the wifi doesn't reach.

I don't know which of Sherry's critters I enjoy watching more: there are the peacocks, strutting around like they own the world, fanning their tails and screeching their alarm calls; there are the chickens like the little black hen who is hiding a nest somewhere in the shrubs near the RV along with her pretty rooster escort; or the herd of miniature horses eagerly awaiting their evening ration of hay; or the large rescued draft horses grazing across the hillside. Aw, it's easy to decide. It has to be the Sherry's shadows, the three mastiffs.

If you want to know where Sherry is, whether she's in the shop, the green house, or back at the house, all you have to do is look for the dogs. The two females, Corin and Lady Bug never venture far. But Keiko is always torn. He'd love to follow me or come and play , but he can't stand to stray very far from his human.

We took our time getting organized this morning, then drove the 93 miles to Pier 4 RV Resort in Moses Lake where we had reservations through ROD (Resorts of Distinction). They tried to give us a back-in site, saying there were no pull-thrus available (I got the impression they had only certain sites for ROD). But when we got to the assigned site, I discovered that both of the handles on the water spigot were broken off. I called the office to see what they wanted us to do. The ladies from the office came to check it out and decided they needed to move us to a longer pull-thru.

So we are settled in Site 206 and life is good.

Finally - Washington!

About eleven o'clock this morning, we finally did it! It was so nice to see the Welcome to Washington sign. It's taken us a while, but we are finally back in our home state. It was overcast and a bit windy when we left Wild Horse RV Park and headed towards Milton-Freewater. From there it was over the border into Washington. For some reason, the GPS decided that instead of skirting the town, we should go right through Walla Walla. Since there is quite a bit of construction, it asn't the easiest drive.

But soon we were through town heading for the Farm and Sister Sherry's. I gave her a call from Touchet and she had the gates open, waiting for us. We got parked and hooked up. Forry was able to help with the electric, so it went fast.

Sherry went back to the house and let the dogs out. Soon Keiko, Corin and Lady Bug came running up to say Hello! Keiko has filled out and is taller, longer and wider than the last time we saw him six or seven months ago. He is an absolutely gorgeous fawn colored mastiff. Corin is apricot and Lady Bug is a brindle, so Sherry has the full complement of mastiff colors.

We sat outside, enjoying the sunshine and the birds and the strutting peacocks and chatted. Then it was time for potato salad with the first of the Walla Walla sweet onions and fresh asparagus. Afterwards Sherry and I went out to do chores visiting the chickens, miniature horses, the llamas and the miniature burros.

Forry had put up the satellite antenna, so we'll spend the evening watching the Mariners game.

And Another State

Since we drained the tanks when we got home last night, we just had to put everything away this morning and we were ready to go. We had further to go today, so we ended up not getting into Wild Horse RV Park until a little after three.

Leaving Idaho, we followed I-84 into eastern Oregon. We drove alongside the Snake River for a bit, surprised that it wasn't flowing fuller. There were many herds of cattle - mostly black - along the way. Lots of mommies and babies. We passed a few dairies, lots of horses and a flock of sheep. As we headed into the mountains, we even spotted a small group of elk grazing along the road.

In contrast to the Snake, the Grand Ronde River was flowing full and fast. We could see snow on the distant mountains, but the road in the portion of the Blues we drove through was bare. It threatened rain all day, but we only had about a half hour of showers. Just enough to get rid of some of the bugs on the windshield.

We have stayed at Wild Horse RV Park many times. It is part of a casino, hotel, golf course, museum complex run by the Umatilla, Cayuse and Walla Walla Tribes. It is just a few miles outside of Pendleton, perched on the edge of the farms. It's in a lovely spot with green grass, flowers and trees. We briefly considered taking the shuttle over to the casino for dinner, but it seemed like it took too much energy. It rained hard for about an hour, maybe enough to wash some of the road grime off. I stuck some frozen Mac 'n Cheese in the oven and we settled in to watch the Mariners game on TV.

Dinner With the In-Laws

Well, with Daughter Dawn's in-laws anyway! Janny and Jerry drove in from Parma to have dinner with us tonight. It was so good to see them! Janny told someone at work today that they were going out to dinner with their son's in-laws and the lady gave her a funny look and said, "Why?"

I guess we are very fortunate. We like and enjoy both of our daughter's husband's parents. We would no way drive through Idaho without stopping to visit! It was good to catch up with all the kids and their families. One thing about it, we commiserated with each other about how old the kids were getting and how old that made us...

It was hot again today, I read one sign that said it was 93 degrees. We got showers this morning, then watched the Mariners beat Cleveland to take the series. After the game, we found an Albertson store and got groceries. It was hot enough bringing them in that we turned on the A/C and took a nap before we got ready to go meet Janny and Jerry.

We drained the tanks when we got back to the RV park, then we were going to watch TV. We watched Grey's Anatomy and that was it. I can no longer stand to watch Scandal as it's gotten so violent and we quit watching How to Get Away With Murder last season for the same reason. Oh well, time to curl up with my iPad and read...

On to Meridian

The Pacific Northwest seems to be having an unseasonably warm Spring. It was HOT here in Idaho today!

Knowing we did not have a long drive today, we got a leisurely start this morning. Anderson Park is a  lovely spot with all of the green grass and flowering shrubs and trees. (Can you tell we've spent too much time in the desert?!) We sat drinking our coffee and watching all of the bird life.

We finally headed on down I-84 north through the Treasure Valley, heading for the Boise/Meridian KOA. We went by acres and acres of pastureland, irrigated fields and dairies. We saw another band of twenty or so pronghorns in a draw. Most of the drive is still at over 3000 feet, but it is definitely Spring.

We pulled into the KOA a little after one o'clock. There had only been back-in sites available when we made our reservation, but the front desk clerk told Forry it was was his lucky day. A pull-thru site was now available. We are in Site 3, not too far from the front gate. 

The Mariners won their game with Cleveland 3-2 this afternoon. That was a good thing. We Skyped with Granddaughter Havela this evening - and watched Great Granddaughter Kahlyn come scooting across the living room floor to "talk" on the computer. She really moves fast! And we got all kinds of smiles!

And Now, Idaho!

Forry was feeling well-rested this morning, so we decided to keep going. We looked at the distance to Boise and decided we didn't want to drive that far in one day. We looked at RV parks along the way and found one that sounded nice and had good reviews in Eden, just outside of Twin Falls, Idaho. Anderson Camp is just off the freeway (I-84) with a Sinclair Station. It also has a small cafe with half a dozen tables that serves hamburgers and pizza.

We were assigned a long pull-thru site at the far end of the park. Most of the sites are grass and there are many flowering trees. It's a very pretty place and very green. The crew was setting sprinklers to water the lawn. When she moved one, it sprinkled Auntie Violet. The gal was extremely apologetic, saying she'd be right back with a towel to wipe the coach down. Forry assured her it was just fine, her sprinkler was nothing compared to the road grime we have picked up along the way!

The Mariners are in Cleveland today, so we were able to watch the game this afternoon. But darn, they lost 2-3!

I walked over to the office after the game and ordered us a sausage, mushroom and onion pizza. They made it up while I waited and I carried the very hot pie back to the motor coach. It was good - and I didn't have to cook!