No running in the halls!

We made it to one of our favorite destinations late on September 7...Abilene, TX  -  the home of our three granddaughters and their parents.   After getting the RV hooked up in a new-to-us campground we headed immediately to their home across town.  We were greeted with hugs as we got started on getting caught up on all the family activities.  We've been busy ever since, taking turns at school day pickup, a few small chores, transportation to classes and fixing some meals.  Having #1 granddaughter with a driver's license and a car only slightly helps the daily schedule.   The girls are older now and school work takes a lot of time, but we have gotten in one evening game of dominoes.                                                 Monday night we gladly accepted an invitation to attend open house at the high school.  Along with Matt and Ann we attended eight periods of five minute classes...switching back and forth between the schedules of Close and Coffey.  There are certainly lots of changes since even our own kids were in school...much of it thanks to technology.

We were like new freshmen looking at the map and the schedule while trying to hustle to the next class before the bell rang.

Jelly Belly, Jelly Belly!

We've been hanging around the Newmar service parking lot since Saturday.  RV friends we met years ago are here as well, so we have enjoyed meals and movies out and some games of dominoes as well as having some good visiting time.  We were not alone in taking advantage of free parking over the holiday weekend as there were close to 30 rigs parked here.  We even got some free samples......

The residents of this Newmar RV travel around the US for about 10 months each year to attend State Fairs, festivals and visiting retailers.

Clip-clop, clip-clop!

We had a wonderful 6 weeks stay in the greater Toledo area.  We were able to see lots of friends and family and we sure did eat a lot!  The weather settled down and it was mostly a pleasant summer stay.  We had a few "ups and downs" working our way through our stay with medical appointments, some RV problems and family concerns, but enjoyed our stay.  Saying good-bye to all we have moved on to Nappanee, Indiana and are camped at the Newmar factory for several days awaiting our service appointment.  To make it all the better, our RV friends Rich and Diane, also 13 year fulltimers are parked next to us and we'll share some adventures over the next several days.  And, of course, in this part of the country we need to watch where we drive (and walk!) as there is always the clip-clop, clip-clop sound nearby...

A pause along the road

We've settled in once again for a several week stay...this time in the area of our old hometown, Toledo, OH.  After leaving Charlotte, MI and our two week stay at Spartan Chassis, we moved on to the Ingham County Fairgrounds in Mason, MI.  While there we were able to spend time with our son in East Lansing and also to do a little exploring in the area.  We enjoyed having Reid and his friend Kathleen for brunch one Sunday as well.  Next stop was Jackson, MI where we parked for several days in front of Mary's Mom's condo.  We had no special projects while there....just thoroughly enjoyed the visit...in spite of the high heat and humidity.  Then it was on to the Toledo area...we spent Sunday night parked in the lot at the Cummins service center so that our engine would be cold when the techs came out first thing Monday morning.  By noon they had replaced all our manifold gaskets and we were on our way to the Big Sandy Campground.  Unfortunately it was raining.  But, we got parked in the same site we have used the last several summers without any problems.  We're looking forward to some time with friends and family.

Free at last!

Well, we "chilled" all right!    We spent 15 night at the Spartan Service Center parking lot....not the most luxurious campground!  We had great 50amp electric service which kept us comfortable in the high heat and humidity, but no water or sewer hookups.  We had arrived several days early for our scheduled appointment and had figured we would be at Spartan less than a week total....so, by day seven our fresh water was about gone and our holding tanks full.  And then to top it all off, Spartan told us we had a cracked steering gear bracket and the coach could not be driven on public roads.  So, that meant no trip over to the local fairgrounds to use the dump station.  One of the office staff happens to run a pump-out service, so for $75 we had our tanks emptied and then drove out in front of the office and hooked a hose up to Spartan's faucet to refill our fresh water.

The new part we needed was ordered and we settled in to await its arrival...along with three other coaches who discovered they also had the same problem.  Coincidentally,  Spartan was also hosting an "RV Owners Training School" which had 5 coaches attending, so with other coaches arriving for service we sometimes had 14 coaches in the lot.  The class attendees were a lively bunch, and got the rest of us to participate in their evening happy hours.   We were also able to spend some time with our son and Mary's mom on several occasions as they live in the general area.

So, after 15 nights we were repaired, paid a hefty bill, said good-by to all our new friends and have moved about 30 miles to the next county and the Ingham County Fairgrounds and will spend a little more time with family before moving on sometime next week when a Flea Market and a Horse Show overtake the fairgrounds.

Just Chillin'

Well, we've been parked here in the Spartan Motors customer service lot for a week tomorrow.  Over last weekend we had a chance to chill-out and relax.  We drove to Battle Creek and met our son and his friend, Kathleen for dinner at the Arcadia Brewing Company...a great visit and a tasty, fun place for dinner.  Reid stopped by our place for dinner on Sunday, and we enjoyed catching up with him.  On Monday Mary spent the day in Jackson wih her Mom and Tom worked on little projects around the RV.  Tuesday began our adventure with Spartan.  The "44-point Inspection" discovered that we have a cracked steering bracket and our rig was deemed not road worthy.  A badly damaged inside dual tire was also found and we were strongly urged to replace it.  I guess that's why we have the inspection done...but the dollars always add up!  The usual oil, transmission fluid and air filter changes and lube were made as well.  The steering bracket part has been ordered, but will likely not be here till July 11...so, along with two other rigs facing the same problem, we wait.  At least we have some family in the area to visit.

Wishy, washy, wishy, washy!

Today's adventure was with the washer repairman.  Our combo washer/dryer has not worked for three or four months now.  We had communicated with the service techs in the state of Oregon when our problem first began, and they agreed with our assessment of the problem. Over the phone, they had given directions on how to take the machine apart to find out for sure what the problem was.  When they got to the task of turning the machine on its side in our tiny bathroom, we decided it was beyond our capabilities and we'd head to the laundromat.  Several months later the tech in Indiana quickly diagnosed the problem (exactly what we had suspected) and said it would cost close to $700 to repair and only a couple hundred more for a whole new machine.  Considering that the machine was 10 years old, very well used and has had several other repairs in the last three years we decided to spring for a new one.  It supposedly has a few better features including a faster drying time.  It took about an hour to install and another hour for us to put the cupboard and doors all back together!  So, off we headed to Michigan where we have another service appointment....and are parked without water and sewer hookups...so can't even use the new machine for a while.

Rain, rain, go away!

Good things about being in Indiana.......acres and acres of green things growing, friendly service people
Bad things........rain and more rain,  thunder and lightning, power outages, puddles, construction traffic

But, our door latch has been fixed and we don't need to worry about being locked in or out of the coach, and we have a new floor vent so we don't cut our feet when walking into the bedroom, and a repaired blind that will now cover the window once again.   It felt good to be in a familiar neighborhood in Nappanee and we always enjoy seeing the acres and acres of crops growing and the many neat and tidy Amish and Mennonite farms.  Of course that also means we have to be careful driving among horses and buggies and bicycles.

Checking things off our "to do" list, we've moved up to Elkhart in hopes of getting our washer/dryer repaired after quite a few months of treking to the laudromat.  Time will tell.

Oh, give me a home where the Buffalo roam!

We went for a walk last night around the property of the Downstream Casino which is operated by the Quapaw Indian Tribe.  A large fenced area along the main drive has beautiful flower gardens and five (that we saw) Buffalo roaming around.  Several sat in a big pond - no doubt trying to keep cool in the 98* heat.  We didn't even go inside the casino, but enjoyed our walk and retreated to the RV for the evening, thanking the Indians for their free hospitality and hook-ups.  Today we had a pleasant drive across I-44 through the Ozarks and were happy to see that there was very little traffic through St. Louis...so we kept going!

O-o-o-o-klahoma, where the wind comes sweepin' cross the plains....

We spent two nights at the Fire Lake Grand Casino east of Oklahoma City near Shawnee.  Driving up from Texas, we chose state and US routes and avoided the toll road and were on I-35 only a short distance near Ardmore.  It was a pleasant drive on rolling highways and it was nice to see more and more green fields as we got further north.  Curiosity would have had us drive straight up I-35 through Moore as we have done in the past, but we decided to avoid city traffic and gawkers along the recent tornado route.  As it turned out, it was the one-month-anniversary of the devastating storm and the TV stations all had on-the-scene reports.  They said clean-up is about 40% accomplished.  As we approached Shawnee we did see places where there was much damage as it also touched down in that area briefly.  The reason for a 2-night stay was to break up the drive and we drove into Shawnee on Thursday and to Midwest City on Friday to run some errands.  The Casino has water and electric hookups and we took advantage of that to run our A/C as the temperature hovered in the high 90s.  Typical of Indian casinos, we took advantage of the free soft drink stations and this one also has free soft ice cream…yummy on a hot and quite windy day.             We headed on east again on Saturday morning (missing the opportunity to attend the Elvis impersonation contest that night!) and drove on the I-44 toll road to our next stop at the Downstream Casino at Exit 1 in Missouri.  The casino itself is actually in Oklahoma, the hotel in Missouri and the RV parking lot is in Kansas…how’s that for a Tri-State stop?

On the Road once again....

The travelers returned from Peru and Merrick returned from camp...all about the same time last Saturday afternoon.  They were all tired.  Close and Ann managed to bring home food poisining or some sort of bug and had quite an adventure on the three plane flights and 24 hours it took them to get home.  We retreated to the RV until Monday.  The next two days were busy with errands and running the three granddaughters to dance, horseback riding and school projects and doing a little "lifeguarding" around the pool, fixing meals and doing laundry.  Today Mary had her checkup with Dr. Rocky and he was pleased with the progress of Mary's eyelid surgery and cleared us for travel.  So....we hit the road...not planning to do much driving each day...and heading first to Newmar in Indiana to pick up some parts.  We came through some heavy rain and wind, but luckily it didn't last long and by the time we got to Wichita Falls it had stopped.  Hopefully we're headed to sun and cooler temperatures!

Have bags will travel!

But this time, we're not the travelers.  Last Friday, our daughter and two oldest granddaughters drove to Dallas and from there flew to Peru with the Spanish Club from the high school.  We are getting daily updates via Facebook and Skype of their adventures.  It is winter there, so they have escaped the Texas heat, and they are finding the high altutude somewhat of a challenge.

Our granddaughters are a couple of those dots at the top of Machu Picchu.

On Sunday, we tagged along as our son-in-law drove the youngest granddaughter to YMCA Camp.  She was excited to stop at Culver's for lunch (a favorite from their time in Illinois and a rare find in this part of the country) and then to get to camp where she will be riding horses all week.  The camp also posts on Facebook and Twitter daily and also puts several hundred photos online daily!

Residents of the "Eskimo Cabin" at YMCA Camp
Merrick is at the rear.

Meanwhile we are keeping busy with a few chores and enjoying a slightly slower pace for the week.

Rocky on the road

We've been keeping busy here in Abilene doing all the same stuff....driving the girls around to their various activities and keeping up with their last week of school schedules.  They're Free!  So let the summer activities begin!  Close and her friends like to go to "The Doghouse" which is the fitness center at the high school which is open to all the athletes to keep up with their conditioning over the summer.  Since the coaches aren't allowed to coach the kids, there is a "trainer" on board to delp them do what the coaches prescribe.  Merrick lives for her horseback riding lessons and spends a lot of time in the swimming pool (happy that grandparents are on hand to be lifeguards.)  Coffey, with her learner's permit in hand, will drive us anywhere we want to go!  We've enjoyed hanging out with the family, doing some chores around the house and cooking hot dogs and S'mores at the fire-pit.

Today we met Rocky.  He is an opthomologist, and was the second doctor we'd met today.  The first was a dermatologist who performed a MOHS procedure, removing basal cell cancer from Mary's eyelid.  After doing that procedure he decided that his buddy, Rocky, should finish the job, so he sent us down the road to another office.  He introduced himself as Rocky, and from all the diplomas on the wall, we think that's his real name.  Both doctors were great guys with efficient and friendly staff and we feel so far, that they did an excellent job.  Time will tell, I guess.  Meanwhile we're dealing with one of those "rocks in the road."

S'Mores anyone?

We had a pretty "laid-back" weekend once the dance recital was over.  On Saturday, we joined the McCurdy's for grilled burgers at dinner time.  Afterwards, friends arrived and enjoyed the pool.  At sundown it was time to gather at the fire-pit and make S'Mores.  On Monday we were in charge of transportation to horseback riding lessons, making lasagna in the crockpot for dinner and a few other chores before the evening meal and games following.  The last week of school coming up!

A busy week

Our days since earlier in the week continued to be fairly busy....we continued afternoon "bus service" from the Jr. Hi and the High School, and some dinner preparations to follow.   Thursday we had a cloudy, windy day and by dinnertime it wasn't looking good at all.  Our drive back to the RV was made exciting as the thunder, lightning, wind and rain ramped up to mega-proportions.  Once we got back to the rig, we brought the slides in to protect the canvas "toppers" and spent the rest of the evening "rockin' and rollin'."  Friday was a bit cooler but by Saturday it was hot and sunny once again.  On Friday there were more costume alterations to be made for the dance recital, and on Saturday afternoon we went to the Abilene Civic Center for the grand performance.  It was a well organized and quickly moving show.  Merrick and Coffey both did well.  We celebrated afterwards with dinner at Red Robin and a rousing game of "Herbie" back at the house.  With no big plans for the holiday weekend, we should have some restful days.

Coffey's pirate costume, minus the big hat,  and Merrick as a "techno-robot"

Into the routine

It didn't take us long to get back into the "Abilene Routine."  On Monday Tom provided the school pickups and then drop-offs at dance and horseback riding in the late afternoon.  Meanwhile, Mary got dinner started for the family plus Alex (Close's friend).  Once dinner was over, the McCurdys headed to the pool to cool off.                                    

Tuesday morning we reported to the "mega-church" across from the Wylie Jr. High to attend the Awards Day for the 6th grade.  Merrick received two awards.  From there we headed to the McCurdy house where Mary spent some time making final adjustments to Coffey's costume for her dance recital coming up this weekend.  Evenings the rest of this week will be busy with rehearsals for the recital in which both Coffey and Merrick will participate.   

                         

Mindful of the tragedy over the last several days in Oklahoma, we watched the weather here in Abilene.  We had some extremely dark clouds, high winds, spits of rain and the temperature dropped about 20*.  Luckily, that is all that happened, and by late afternoon it was sunny and 80* once again.

Abilene, Abilene, Prettiest town I've ever seen

Well, maybe!  But we were glad to arrive here this afternoon and get settled in our familiar campground.  After relaxing a bit from the windy drive, we headed over to the McCurdys.  As usual, the family was involved in various activities...Matt and Coffey spent the sunny 100* afternoon at tryouts for a softball team, Ann and Close tended to various shopping chores gathering stuff for their trip to Peru, new swim suits to meet specifications for Merrick's stay at a camp and groceries.  When we all were finally together Matt cooked burgers on the grill for us and the family enjoyed a dip in the pool.  A pleasant end to a great day!

I can see for miles and miles and miles and miles!

We woke up early today, even without an alarm clock.  Our bodies must still be on the “get up early for golf” schedule.  We walked up to the clubhouse/office to pay our electric bill and check-out and joined some other RVers for homemade cinnamon rolls.  They may have been homemade, but they didn’t compare in the least to Mary’s Mom’s rolls!!!  We went through the morning routine checking the tow hitch and running the car through its gears, checking the vehicle lights and signals and were on the road a little before 9:00 MDT.  We cruised past Las Cruces and through El Paso, then switched drivers for the ride to Van Horn.  Mary’s cousins, Bethann and Geoff called on the phone while we were stopped for lunch – finally catching up on messages we’d left earlier in the week asking if they were at their New Mexico house.  Since we’d passed on by several hours earlier, we were glad to hear they are still in Virginia.  This drive from Arizona to Abilene is through 800 miles of rock, thorns and scrubby bushes.  We can see for miles and miles and miles and miles in any direction!  We arrived at the Escapee’s Tra-Park in Pecos, Texas around 4:30 CDT (we’d lost another hour today!).  The park is in an area of Texas that has lots of oil drilling going on and they have leased many of their sites to oil workers, and it’s a pretty “bare bones” park in the Escapee’s system.  The park is quite full, but at least they keep some open sites for travelers.  This is where we were parked when our engine failed last fall.  Hopefully we’ll be on the road in the morning with no problems!

The Wheels on the Bus go 'Round and 'Round!

After sitting for seven months, the engine started and the wheels turned!  Hooray!!!   At about 8:00am this morning we pulled out of a very empty Palm Creek Golf and RV Resort and headed east on I-10.  We had enjoyed the last six weeks or so of a more “laid back” routine in the park.  Day by day residents departed and by the time we left there were very few people still in the park.  In season the poker games have about 80 people playing.  It’s now down to about 15…and we’re not sure where they come from because as we ride around the park, it looks nobody is around.  For several weeks playing on the golf course was free…and we took advantage of that daily.  The day we left, however, the “back nine” was closed due to all the new construction going on.  We are looking forward to seeing all the changes around the park when we return in the fall.

Our first stop today was at the “Speed-co” just six miles down I-10 from the park.  We had some service done, but they weren’t able to do everything we wanted, so we’ll have to arrange some service stops back east.  From there we continued east, stopping at one of the prettiest rest areas on the Interstate, Texas Canyon, for a lunch break.  It felt good to be back on the road!  From there it was on to Deming, New Mexico and an overnight stop at the Escapee’s “Dreamcatcher RV Park.”    

We pulled into the park just at 5:00 New Mexico time (we’d lost an hour entering NM) and found a space in the almost empty park.  Almost immediately a neighbor came over and asked us about our Ford Escape.  Seems he burned up the transmission in his Escape for the second time just the other day.  We’ve met several people this way!

Our destination tomorrow is Pecos, TX.