Trying to Play Catch Up

I have been very remiss in keeping my blog up to date lately. We have been really busy with family and great friends.

I ended my last blog with telling JB & Brenda goodbye and and us getting ready to head toward Plains, Ks to spend some time with Dana & Family.

We got a message that Rod & Deb were going to come to Plains to see us…Yeah! It’s amazing where people will stay just to be close to family & friends.That’s how this little RV Park in Plains can be described…it’s not much at all, but our family lives in this town and it is very close for us!!

We arrived at the Star Crest Motel RV Park in mid afternoon and got all set up.

Then we headed over to Dana’s to see her, Russell and the kids. We had a great visit and made plans to go to Dakoda and Samantha’s Basketball game in Johnson the next evening.

The girls played great and unfortunatly lost in the final seconds of the game…

Dakoda

Samantha

After the game we all headed through Ulysses and stopped for dinner at
El Ranchito…yummy…this is the last meal there for a while.

Deb & Rod were going to come to see us on Wedensday but the wind was really high so they decided to hang out in Lamar, Co for an extra day and come on Thursday.

The girls had another Basketball game and Deb & Rod decided to join us…The girls played another great game, but came out a little short in the end…Great game Girls!

Samantha…

Dakoda…

and us trying to watch the game and do some chatting…

Dana made a nice dinner of Roast Pork Tenderloin, mashed potatoes, gravy, salad, and brussel sprouts for all of us.  It was wonderful! Thanks so much Dana! Deb & Rod enjoyed meeting part of our family, I think…

On Friday morning we were packing up and getting ready to head toward Amarillo, TX to spend Thanksgiving with Chris & Dusty and his family. I also had a doctors appointment with an Orthopedic Surgeon about getting my knee fixed.

The trip was pretty un-eventful. Rod & Deb followed us and were set up right next to us.

Saturday, we just kind of hung out and Deb & Rod and Mac & I went to the Big Texan for dinner. This place has a lot of atmosphere…the food was just ok, but the company was wonderful! Mac even ordered some Mountain Oysters and Deb even ate one…LOL I didn’t even take my camera, so I don’t have a photo to prove it…

Deb made us home made Spaghetti for dinner on Sunday night…It was wonderful! After dinner, we drove over by Chris & Dusty’s house to see all the Decorations that they had set up in their yard…WOW…it looked great!

Monday morning Rod & Deb were getting all packed up…they had an appointment with a few of our other RVing friends to spend some time at Cowtown RV Park in Fort Worth, TX for Thanksgiving.

We were sure sorry to see them go, but we had a great time with them and are hoping to get together again this winter in Arizona.

I read on some friends blog that they would be coming through Amarillo on Wednesday and would be spending Thanksgiving at the Big Texan…of course Chris & I said immediately….NO…they are going to join us for dinner. I sent them a message on where we were staying and invited them to have Thanksgiving dinner with all of us. They agreed…

Tuesday I had an appointment with the Orthopedic Surgeon about my knee…after waiting for a long time in the waiting room, I finally got in to see Dr Parker. I really liked him immediately. He checked the MRI, took a few X-Rays and then told me what I already knew…I have a torn Meniscus and a torn Cartilage in my right knee and it needed Arthroscopic surgery. The surgery was scheduled for Thursday December 2nd at 7am.

Wednesday Mike and Leslie Kennedy arrived at the RV Oasis RV Resort here in Amarillo and were parked a couple of sites down from us. We let them get all set up and then went over for a short visit and told them the plans for the dinner the next day.

Thursday,we were up and I was getting things prepared to take to Chris’ for dinner. It was going to be a late dinner since Chris & Dusty was participating in a 5K Run/Walk that morning at 8am.

We picked up Mike & Leslie and headed over to Chris & Dusty’s about 1:30 to help get things set up. Mac & Mike had already been over there about 11am to help Dusty with the Turkey Frying and for Mac to put a Ham in our Smoker.

Mike & Leslie

Dusty’s parents, Terry & Carol

Dusty’s sister, Windy & her husband Shane

and their son, Braydon

Chris & Dusty with Mac…

It was a great day with games after dinner…we played a new game called “A Game of Things” and also played Hand & Foot…it was pretty even..at my table, Windy & I won one game and Shane & Terry won one game.

We are enjoying being here in Amarillo with Chris & Dusty…seems we usually on get to see them about once a year and it is for a long weekend so this has been really nice.

We are also having a great time with Mike and Leslie. I made Lasagna one night and had them over. After dinner we learned to play 10 Penny. I took 2nd behind Leslie but thought that was pretty good for my first game…Mac and Mike didn’t fair to well…lol

I have been trying to get things taken care of to prepare for my surgery. On Monday I went to the Surgery Center to do my Pre-Admission, bloodwork and an EKG. Now I am ready for Thursday.

Yesterday, Tuesday, the 30th, I look out the window and see a Motor Home that I recognize pulling in to the RV Park…Mac runs up to the office to check it out and low & behold…it is Rod & Loyce Ivers from Kansas City. I had read in their blog that they were coming through and staying the night in Amarillo so I sent them a message on where we were staying. Well they never got the message and they came here anyhow…we had a nice visit with them and then let them get all set up.

Later in the day we took Mike & Leslie to “Buns Over Texas” for dinner. Mike & I had Cheeseburgers while Mac & Leslie had the Chicken Fried Steak Sandwich.

…and then we made a stop at one of my favorite stores…Kohls for a little Retail Therapy, as JB calls it.

This morning Mac & I were going to head out in search of a cane for me to help me get around for a few days….well, Rod & Loyce gave me one to use. Thanks so much you guys!! We will return it to you when we see you in AZ this winter. They will be staying in Mesa.

We visited with them for a little while and then they were off…headed to Albuquerqe..

Rod getting things put up for travel…

Tonight, Leslie is making a Mexican Casserole for us for dinner. I am contributing Brownies…

Tomorrow is my surgery day so it may be a while before I post again…

(((HUGS)))

Garnett in our Rearview Mirror

I know, I know…I always start out my post with an excuse. But I have a good reason this time…lol

We returned to Garnett and got all set up. We were here to get all of our doctor’s appointments and test done so that we could take off for the winter. Our tests took us the whole 2 weeks and we were cleared to take off.

One nice thing that happened while we were home was a luncheon date with Paul & Mary. We met them on Monday the 8th at Oklahoma Joe’s for some BBQ. The food was good but the company was fabulous. Sorry,I forgot my camera so no photos..

On Tuesday morning we were up and on the road headed to Kingman, Ks to see Teri & family. We arrived in Kingman about 2:30 and to our dismay the RV Park was full…Now this is the only place in Kingman with full hookups. We finally drove out to the Fairgrounds and found a camping spot for the night with 30amp electric only. That’s not bad for just one night…good thing Mac put about 10 gallons of water in the RV. We visited with the kids and grandkids for awhile, and then they had a Sports Banquet to go to. They called afterwards and we went back over for a little while.

On Wednesday morning we were on the road to Ulysses to see more kids and grandkids, plus Mac’s sister and family.

We always drive by these Metal Art Sculptures on the way to Ulysses and I thought I would share a few with you. These are lined up just west of Mullinville, KS  along Highway 400.

We saw this big flock of birds…kinda like a scene out of Alfred Hitchcock’s movie “The Birds”….

Also we found out that JB & Brenda were making a detour to come to Ulysses to see us!! YEAH!! We pulled in to the RV Park in Ulysses and had just started setting up when we looked up….

and there they were!   And here are Brenda & I limping to give each other a big hug!

We visited with JB  &Brenda for a while and then headed out for a late lunch at El Ranchito with JB & Brenda, Linda, Dana, Jaelynn and Teri. Had a great lunch and then spent some time visiting with the kids and Linda. Later in the evening we went over to Linda’s to see them, Troy, Dana, Teri, and Cory. Had a great time visiting and talking about older days…

Thursday we took JB & Brenda on a tour of Ulysses and the county. There’s not a lot to see in Grant County unless you like farm land, Gas Companies or Feed Lots.

I hope he at least got a photo to put on his blog…lol. They treated us to lunch at the 620 Grille…JB had the Chicken Fry, and said that was the first one he had ever had.

We spent part of the evening visiting with JB & Brenda in their Motorhome. It was so nice that they detoured through Ulysses to come and see us!! Hopefully we will see them again this winter in the southwest.

Friday morning we said farewell to JB & Brenda….they had to start making their way toward McKinney, TX where they are having new blinds installed on their Motorhome.

We had our see ya later hugs with promises to see each other soon…

and then they were gone.

Mac wasn’t feeling very well so we just went in to the RV. We were supposed to attend a party on Friday evening but Mac got progressively worse as the day went on. I ran to the store and then over to Linda’s to help with some suggestions on party decorations. I got home about 2 hours later and he was really sick. So we cancelled out on the party. Crystal & Samantha brought me some dinner…thanks so much girls! About midnight or so, I started feeling bad….ohhh no! Oh yes, we both had a bought of the 24 hour flu.

Mac was better on Saturday and went and had a dinner with Troy, Dana, Teri, Samantha, Ryan, and Jaden at El Ranchito! Not fair at all…I missed my Chito fix! We always eat there at least twice, but I only got once this trip. Sorry no photos, I was in bed with the flu…

Today we have been pretty laid back. Both recovered. Mac went and washed the truck to prepare for travel tomorrow. We also went to the cemetary and placed flowers in the vases on Jerry’s, Trey’s, and mom & dad’s graves.

Afterwards we went over to Linda & Phil’s to visit and watched a little NASCAR and football.

Tomorrow we head to Plains, KS for a few days with Dana & family.

Stay tuned….

(((HUGS)))

Leaving Defeated

Tuesday evening we all decided that we would just have a big “Left Over” dinner together. We had lots of food and great conversation. We were a little sad as we would be leaving this great campground and wonderful friends the next morning. We sat around the campfire for quite a while…thanks Tony for making such great and relaxing campfires for us!

Wednesday morning we were up and getting the RV ready to travel…Kevin & Arlene came over to say their see ya laters and off they went! Chuck & Kathy were by also to say..See ya later, and also John & Sandy. Tony came over to see if we needed any help and when it cam time for our goodbyes..him and I were a little teary eyed. We have had such a great time here and it sure is hard to leave this wonderful place.

Well, we took off about 10:30 on our way to Sikeston, MO. The drive was pretty un-eventful…we like it that way..lol. The trees are really starting to change colors. Everything is so pretty…

We arrived in Sikeston and got all set up for the one night that we would be staying.

I just knew that a trip to Lambert’s was in our future for dinner…and I was right. We went over to the office and they called the Shuttle for us, they came and picked us up and we had a great dinner. I had the Chicken Dinner and Mac had the Liver & Onions(yuck)…

After we got back to the RV we just watched TV and made our plans for Thursday’s travel plans.

Thursday we were off by about 9:30am…that’s early for us..lol. We had about a 4 hour drive to Rogersville, Mo to The Silver Bell RV Park where we would be staying until Monday morning. This is a nice surprise park for us. The sites are all pretty level and paved streets…and only $22.00 a night! we got all set up and went out to a nice Chinese Buffet for dinner.

and this one is for our friends Paul & Mary…

Back at the RV Park we started making plans on what we would do for the next few days…and it was decided that we would go to Camping World and then Springfield on Friday.

Views of Silver Bell RV Park

We headed off to Camping World where we spent the Gift Certificate that Mac had won at the Escapade…and a whole lot more..lol

After leaving Camping World, we headed back to Springfield to stop and look at a Motor Home that we saw on the way to Camping World…WOW is all I can say. It was a 2010 Itasca Elipse…42’ long and with the perfect floor plan…I loved it, well everything but the price tag..lol

Saturday, we got up and took our time getting around…Mac asked if I wanted to go to Branson to see if we could catch up with John & Bridget, who are some RV-Dreams friends that we chat with, and of course I said YES. So I sent them a quick message on Facebook and we were off. We found the RV Resort that they were staying in but they weren’t home. We drove through the park and stopped by again to see if they had come back, but they hadn’t. We left one of our cards with a little note on it and decided we would do a little shopping at the Outlet Malls.

We both found a new pair of shoes at the Skechers Outlet, and then headed over to the other Outlet Mall so I could go to the Kitchen Store. While I was inside, John called and asked if we were still in town, and if we were would we want to come back by and maybe have dinner with them if we wanted.

So off we went back to the RV Resort and met John & Bridget in person for the first time…this was a bonus visit because we also got to meet Mike & Leslie Kennedy, and Joe & Betty. We all sat around and visited for a while and then we decided to go out to dinner at the Majestic Steak House…We all caravaned…and when we got there, they were closed! So off we went to another Steak House. The meal was just okay, but the conversation with new friends was wonderful. It was like we had all known each other for a long time!

John & Bridget

Mike & Leslie

Joe & Betty

and all of us!

After dinner and a lot of conversation we decided we had better take off since we still had about a 60 mile drive back to the RV park. We had such a great time! Thanks everyone for including us in the great day!

Sunday we were up and had decided that we were going to Seymour to try to see some of the cousins…we only caught up with Sheryl & Sandra. We visited for a couple of hours and then headed back to the RV Park so we could get everything ready to travel on Monday to Garnett.

We were up pretty early on Monday and on the road to Garnett…very easy trip. Everything went fine until we got to Garnett and started setting up….and then everything went to Hell in a Hand Basket…the power in the RV was all messed up. Mac checked the breaker box and we were getting very high voltage. The power would come on in the Living Room area and then go off and the power would come on in the Kitchen…we started shutting things down, but not before the surge protector on the desk started shorting out and smoking…what now…well we unplugged the power and headed over to the Motel for the night. That was the worst night’s sleep in a long time. The bed was horrible and just the worry.

First thing Tuesday morning Mac called an RV Repair and he said all their Tech’s were out on jobs but someone would call back after lunch. Well 3:30 came around and no call so Mac called them back. Tech’s were still out and someone would be over early Wednesday morning.

Well Wednesday morning the Tech showed up and right away him & Mac knew what the problem was.  We had had our RV at the Heartland Factory in September for some warranty work done, and while they were working someone snagged some wires, pulled 3 hot wires partially out and the ground wire completely out.

Mac had ran the generator on Monday morning for a few minutes before we pulled out of the RV Park in Mo. Well the power couldn’t switch back over. The Tech fixed us all up and then Mac called Heartland to tell them what happened. They would only agree to re-imburse us for the Labor charges…well I guess that is better than nothing. Even though it fried out Infared Heater, Toaster Oven, and our new Ipod Radio docking  station.

I had my doctor appointment on Tuesday afternoon for my knee. I have twisted it three times in the last 6 weeks and it is really sore. I went to the doctor while in TN but wanted to wait until I got back here for the MRI. I have it this coming Monday and will see what happens next…

Stay tuned…things will probably be interesting…LOL

(((HUGS)))