Click on the picture below for some pictures of our site at Saddle Ridge

2010 02 05 Saddle Ridge wild hog

An Early Morning Wake-Up Call and A Ride Around the Property - Lake Placid, FL

 Actually, I was already up and had taken Kasey outside, when I heard the strangest noise coming from the back of the house.  Here's what we found as we walked around the house, sandhill cranes.  These two seem to have adopted the place and think the yard belongs to them.  They were not aggressive, and Kasey really didn't seem to be bothered by them.  At least, he didn't chase them.  The cranes make a loud honking sound and they do it at the same time.  I'll try to get a short video tomorrow to post so you can hear them.  They hung around for awhile, and pooped on the back patio, but we didn't see them the rest of the day.  Sandhill cranes mate for life, so I assume this is a male and female.  

 We decided to take an earlier morning drive around the property to see if we could see any more wildlife; and, last night while riding around with Renee, one of the managers, we didn't see the seven horses that are free to roam the property.  She said that's not unusual, but we wanted to see if we could find them this morning.  No such luck!!  There are several  large stands of scrub palms and trees, so they must have been hiding in one of them.  We'll check on them again tomorrow.  But we did see the two draft horses, Annie and Mae, who hang out together.  They don't join the other horses, but they love treats, so need to remember to take carrots tomorrow.  Will post a picture of them later.  There are also two horses who stay up toward the front of the property and especially around the house, in addition to the three in the corral by the house.  The ones in the corral are being treated for various ailments, and the other two are a couple of loners who have teamed up together, but don't join the regular herd.

 

Itchey is on the left; Mama, who is due to foal in about a month, is looking over the fence, and Turbo is in the middle.  They are all very friendly, but not aggressive.  Kasey just ignores them, and they don't bother him.  At least he doesn't try to herd them.

The BIG thrill of the day was the wild hog we saw.  Renee thinks there are 2 or 3 of them, but we only saw one today.  They stay at the back of the property which is about 3 miles from where we are parked.

 

I had no idea they were that big.  And we were probably 300 feet away, and not planning on getting any closer!!!!  :)  He never even looked our way, but ambled off into some denser foliage. 

 Not sure what kind of a bird this is, but he's the last of the wildlife for today.  Need to dig out the bird books.

Also saw a large turtle at the edge of one of the ponds, but he slipped into the water before I could get his picture.

We had quite a bit of wind and rain this evening, but it's just sprinkling now.  Glad the wind isn't blowing like it was earlier.  Looks like we're really going to enjoy our time here, even though it's out in the boonies.  Hope to get some good sunrise pictures tomorrow.  

More later.......

Workamping (not really working) - Lake Placid, FL

I know I've been very lax in posting, but seems we needed some time to just unwind.  We settled in at Little Charlie Creek Campground and reunited with friends we met when we stayed here last February.  It's always nice to see familiar faces and get caught up with everyone.  I'll catch up with our activities for the past month in another post.  Dan has been doing something he's wanted to do for years!!!!  Will post pictures and tell all about it tomorrow.

For now, just want to share where we moved to today.  We are at Saddle Ridge, a 1200 acre gated housing development especially designed for horses and the people who own them.  We are parked in the driveway of the model home to just be a presence here - free rent for 3 months.   The area is plotted out in 10 - 17 acre sections for a total of 98 housing plots.  There are meadows, live oaks, ponds, deer, wild turkeys, armadillos, sandhill cranes, alligators and a herd of 13 rescued horses.   www.saddleridgefl.com

This is the model home on the front of the property with our motorhome parked in the driveway.   Notice the motorcycle is off the truck.  Dan went for a ride around the property

The back patio and back yard with hammock in place.  Yes, that is a horse in the background.  His name is Itchey.  

This is the view off the back patio of the house. 

  

I think we're really going to enjoy our stay here.  We are about 10 miles from Lake Placid, and 20 miles from Sebring, and there are no close neighbors.  But, this is a very beautiful property, and we are looking forward to spending time here.  We'll be meeting the owners on Sunday.  The managers, Jeff and Renee, are who we've dealt with this week when we found this opportunity.  Dan is also hoping to do some Bobcat work, as there are some secondary roads and trails that need to be cleared.  And, Jeff mentioned that they want some picnic tables and park benches built to place around the property.  So, looks like he could be busy.  Of course, those things will all be paying jobs.  

This development was started about 3 years ago, and then with the housing market collapse, there hasn't been much activity here.  But the owners are hopeful that things may be turning around.  We sure hope so.  

So, until next time.......

We're HERE - Wauchula, FL

We finally arrived at Little Charlie Creek RV Park, Wauchula, FL at 5:45pm.  The orange trees are loaded with oranges.  Will get pictures tomorrow. 
As I said yesterday, the staff at Camping World and Lazy Days couldn't have been nicer or more concerned about getting us out of there, but today seemed like a LOOOONG day.  After installing the new satellite antenna, we were unable to get a signal on the bedroom TV on Thursday, but we were able to watch the front TV which worked great.  So, the guys checked the cable, before it was passed through the roof to the bedroom, tested both receivers, and finally decided to change out the new antenna.  SUCCESS!!!  We have the latest Slimline DirecTV multi satellite antenna which sees all three DirecTV satellites.  We no longer have the pretty black dome on top of the motorhome, but when this antenna is stored, it is much lower than the old dome. 

So we left Camping World with 4 new house batteries; a revamped, cleaned and painted battery compartment; new battery isolater controller; new satellite antenna, 2 new DVR HD receivers; and testing of several systems which we had questions about, all of which checked out OK.  Just can't say enough about the guys who worked on our home.  They were great.  Should have gotten a picture of them.  Especially, Will and Gene, who worked on the TV issues, and Eric, who solved all our battery issues.  Seems that the original wiring was not REALLY done incorrectly, but was not done to maximize certain usages. 

Some things about the fulltiming lifestyle are just like living in a "sticks & brick", but we've learned to go with the flow.  We still don't have to scoop snow, mow grass, maintain a 2800 sq ft house, or go to W**K.  :)

Anyway, we are quite happy with Camping World in Seffner, FL and the staff at Lazy Days for the 2 days we stayed with them and then finding Kasey. 

We are really looking forward to meeting up with friends we met here last January.  But tomorrow is devoted to cleaning, as the motorhome hasn't had a good cleaning for several weeks. 

More later.....

Happy New Year - A detour, but almost to Wauchula, FL

Happy New Year to everyone. We are parked in the shop at Camping World/Lazy Days RV at Seffner, FL, just east of Tampa; having some much needed electrical upgrades to the motorhome, AND we changed out the old TV antenna for the lastest DirecTv HD antenna. Also have 2 new DVR HD receivers. NOOOO, there are not any HD TV's in our future, but we'll be prepared when we do decide to upgrade the TV's.

We did have a bit of a scare last night when Kasey ran away when firecrackers went off in the neighborhood. He was actually at the door, and I was about 10 feet behind him. He just raced away. This complex is about 20-25 acres, completely fenced with only 2 or 3 gates to enter. Most of the space is taken up with several hundred RV's for sale and an RV park. They have 24 hr security here and after looking for him for 2 hours, we finally went to bed hoping that the fireworks would end after midnight. The security people cover the whole area in golf carts. I gave Charlie some treats for Kasey and he said he woud call as soon as he found him. And he did; at 4:10 am. He was at the far north side under some bushes in a fence corner. One of the girls got down on the ground with a treat and he came to her. He wouldn't come out when they called his name. She picked him up and he licked her face. Typical Kasey. He has slept all day today. I'm sure his adrenalin level was really high last night since the fireworks continued for so long.

So thankful we didn't start the new year wihout him. He will always be on a leash now when we go out. Just can't trust him.

The techs still have some things to finish up tomorrow. We should be in Wauchula tomorrow evening or Sunday.

The staff at Camping World and Lazy Days have just been wonderful to us.  Not just with dealing with a lost dog, but they have been great with our motorhome issues.  We've had electrical problems for about the past year, and haven't been able to get things squared away.  Our lead tech, Rich, actually listened and took notes as we explained the battery problems we've been having.  These guys are all so competent and very willing to share what they are doing and being sure that we understand all they are doing. 

Several of Lazy Days security people have stopped by today to see how Kasey is doing after his "ordeal last night."  He has slept ALL day.  I baked Steph's monster cookies as a "thank you" for everyone's help. 

Otherwise, we've watched some TV and just hung out. 

Next post should be from Little Charlie Creek RV Park in Wauchula, FL where we'll be for the next two months.

More later.....

We've Left COLD Illinois - Clarksville, TN

We are finally headed to warmer weather.  Woo Hoo!!!   Hopefully, this will be the LAST winter that we spend in Illinois.  Last year we left in January after a sleet and ice storm.  Today the roads were clean, but it was windy and cold and it snowed last night.  Loading the motorcycle in the truck, cleaning ice off one of the slide toppers and hitching up the truck to the motorhome in cold weather is just not any fun. 

We will be in Wauchula, Florida on January 1st.  Plan to stay at Little Charlie Creek RV Park for 2 months.  Then travel a little further south before heading up the east coast to eventually spend some time with Jennifer and Gene just outside of Boston. 

We spent part of October, November and December at our daughter's in Monticello, IL.  Dan was helping get the cattle barn finished.  I spent a lot of time with Erin and her horse, Mercedes; and cheering Erin on at two horse shows.  Will post some pictures in the next few days of Mercedes and Erin's show pictures.  Mercedes is a grey quarter horse, but Erin rides saddlebreds to show. 

It's been a long day and we plan to be on the road early tomorrow, so I better hit the sack.  Now that we are traveling again, I'll keep up with this blog.  I'm thinking of posting about 3 times a week.  I think that should be more manageable.

More later......

A Day in the Life of a Fulltimer - Hanging Out at Panera

Yes, I'm killing time at Panera this afternoon.  Freightliner issued a recall for the steering box on motorhomes built between 2004 and 2008.  So I called Truck Center in Springfield last week to set up an appointment  to see if the part needed to be replaced on our motorhome.  I told them that we lived fulltime in the motorhome.  The appointment was set for 8:00am this morning, and I had a dentist appointment at 8:00am.  Not a problem.  It doesn't take two of us to drive the motorhome to Truck Center, and I didn't need Dan to hold my hand at the dentist.  And we knew it shouldn't take too long to see if our steering box was actually on the recall list.  If it was, the part would have to be ordered and we'd have to take the motorhome back another day for a 4 hour appointment.  And Dan wanted to take it to another truck place where he gets the oil and filters changed and thought he would have plenty of time to get that done this morning.  He wasn't happy with the first oil change done at Truck Center and the price was higher.  We had to take it to Truck Center for the recall because they are a Freightliner service center.

So we were up at 6:00am, walked the dog (he was a little confused at having to go outside in the rain and the dark so early in the morning); had breakfast, and finished packing up the items that I didn't put away last night.  Even just driving 5 miles, we still need to stow things as though we are moving down the road.  We do leave some things out on the non-skid mats and several things are anchored down with museum putty, but we still have to go through the whole pre-travel process.   We both left our driveway at 7:30.  I put a load of clothes in the washer at the local laundromat and went to the dentist.  (Small town, don't need to worry about the clothes).  Finished with the dentist about 8:30, dried the clothes at the laundromat, visited with another lady there for about 1/2 hour and finally went back to the house about 10:30.  NO MOTORHOME, NO DAN AND NO TRUCK.  Now, I had been told it would only take about 1/2 hour to check for the recall.  And it's still raining; not hard, but a steady drizzle.

Called Dan and he said they hadn't pulled the motorhome into the shop yet!!!   He told them that we lived in it fulltime as he watched another Mandalay motorhome being pulled into the shop (a 2008 model there for another recall).  The shop guy, whose name was also Dan, said, "Oh, I didn't know that."  So it finally got into the shop at 11:00.  I, in the meantime, was sitting in our driveway with the dog in the car, reading a book.  There is no furniture in the house, and there is a problem with the furnace so we haven't been able to heat the downstairs.  Pete is coming Tuesday or Wednesday to fix it. 

We decided to meet at Denny's for lunch, since all the food is in the Mandalay which is now in the shop.  As I was driving to Denny's, Truck Center Dan called to say that our gear box was NOT on the recall list and we could pick up the motorhome.  Dan had checked about getting the oil changed at the other shop, but they can't do it until 1:00pm. 

Soooooo, that's why I'm hanging out at Panera.  Denny's doesn't have WiFi, or I would have just stayed there.  Kasey is really confused.  He can't understand why he has to stay in the car all day. 

Oh, I almost forgot.  Dan also has to get propane today while he's running around in the motorhome.  We haven't been running the motorhome furnace, but also don't have much propane.  We do have 2 small electric heaters which work real well to warm things up in the early morning. 

Just another day in the life of two RV fulltimers.  The day didn't go as planned, but nothing bad happened; we don't have to schedule another appointment for the recall; and we got the scheduled maintenance done and checked off the list. 

Back to working on the house tomorrow. 

Musings on Our Lifestyle and Back in Illinois

We arrived back in Rochester on Friday, Oct. 16. It is really interesting to see how some things have stayed the same and others have changed after having been gone for several months. There was extensive road work being down on East Lake Drive, the main road we take to get to Springfield, when we left in June. Most of the time the road was one lane during the road work. It was heavily traveled, thus the need to widen it; but it seemed like it was taking forever to finish the work. The work is all completed, with turn lanes, a traffic signal, new grass on either side and one of the smoothest surfaces we've ever seen. And a hike and bike trail. I hope the people who use it every day appreciate all the work that went into it.

Our neighborhood looks about the same. The house looks just like it did when we left (in need of getting the remodeling done). Our neighbor has kept the yard mowed and checked inside occasionally. After getting the motorhome parked and hooked up (we have 50amp and water on one end of the house and access to a sewer drain in the basement to dump the tanks via our macerator pump, we talked a little about our emotions and feelings of coming back to this house. We concluded that we really don't have any feeling one way or another, except the need to get this remodeling done so we can turn the key over to the realtor!! We raised our family in this house. Dan built the house the spring of 1978 after Sarah was born, and all our children graduated from the Rochester Schools. We have LOTS of memories of kids over to visit, birthday parties with grandparents included, Easter egg hunts in the back yard, Thanksgiving and Christmas dinners around our big Amish built dining room table (with card tables added as a daughter-in-law and sons-in-law were added, and then grandchildren). Other memories of each child learning to drive, working at the local grocery store, library and restaurant and then leaving for college or the military, or just to "find themselves". At one time both parents and two children were all in college at the same time. Dan built a house for my parents just one block away so they could be closer to us as they were becoming less independent.

But time marches on and children establish their own homes in 5 different states, our parents do not live forever and our own needs and wants change. I'm not sure our needs and wants change as much as our sense that we now have the freedom and abilities to pursue some of our dreams which may have been put on the back burner. We neither one have a sense of "coming home" to this house.

We so enjoyed our three months in Seattle. Dash Point State Park is actually located on Puget Sound in Federal Way, just south of Seattle; about 25 miles from Gretchen's house. We were maintenance volunteers at the park. Our campsite certainly didn't have the "it" factor as we were parked across from the office and maintenance buildings. But we did have a nice big grassy yard and met and worked with a fabulous group of park rangers and park staff. And we were able to set our own hours independent of the campground hosts, so we could come and go as we pleased. This was especially helpful as Gretchen needed quite a bit of help after Edie was born. Our previous visits to Seattle with the motorhome we had parked in Gretchen and Rodney's back yard in West Seattle, and that was beginning to feel like "home." I'm sure if we volunteer at Dash Point again, we'll feel right at home.

Here are some pictures of our site at Dash Point.


This is the entrance sign on the beach side of the park. Our site was about 400 ft to the right of this sign.

The entrance booth to the beach and day use area looking toward out campsite.  This was my work station on Friday, Saturday and Sunday afternoons as I passed out trail maps, answered questions, gave directions, and reminded visitors of the donation box.  Dash Point SP is supported by the state, but all donations are used for improvements and projects at the park that are not covered in the regular budget.  The 400 acre park is located within the city of Federal Way, and is heavily used by the local neighborhood families. 

Our motorhome is visible in the background.  You can see, I didn't have far to walk to work, and Dan just walked across the street to the maintenance area where he repaired and revamped all the old wooden picnic tables.  He recycled the usable wood and bolts and used other recycled wood that was leftover from other projects. 

Lucy and Grandpa blowing bubbles in our

yard next to the motorhome.

Just relaxing.  Notice Grandpa and Lucy's legs.  The office is in the background just across the street from our campsite.
 

This is Edie and her mom.  Edie was asleep in the motorhome when the other pictures were taken.

As I said before, we felt right at home at Dash Point and look forward to returning in the future.  And we get to see spend more time with our granddaughters and their mom and dad also.

We left Seatle and headed toward Colorado to visit our grandsons in Carbondale, CO.  How about this scene as we approach Redstone Campground in the White River National Forest just 13 miles south of Carbondale?  That's Mt Sopris.  It never fails to invoke a sense of awe in me.  Mt. Sopris is on the northern edge of the Elk Range and its twin summits are 12, 935 ft tall.  It sits at the confluence of the Crystal River and Roaring Fork River, both noted for their trout fishing.  The Crystal River flows right by Redstone Campground.

One of our favorite campsites at Redstone Campground.  And since it is a National Forest Campground we're able to use our Federal Senior Discount Pass and cut the fee by 1/2.  There is a $5/day charge for electricity which is not discounted. 

We really do feel like we've come home when we pull into Redstone. 

And here are Isaac and Elijah

So, even though we no longer live in a "sticks & brick", and we hope to be rid of it very soon; we make each place we stay our home.  Some are more special than others, but we feel very comfortable in our home on wheels.  We have everything we need with us and have found that we just don't have the "wants" that we used to.  Our biggest "want" is that our kids didn't live so far apart (diesel fuel isn't inexpensive), but I can't think of a better way to see this wonderful country, meet new people every day, and spend as much time as we want in various parts of the country. 

More about what we're doing this fall in a later post. 

Till the next time..........

Short Catch-up

I know; I've been VERY remiss in not keeping up with the blog, and I apologize to everyone who so faithfully checks to see what we're up to. I'm working on a "summer summary" and hope to get it posted in the next week.

In the meantime, we've been at Buckhorn Lake RV Resort since last Sunday, enjoying meeting friends at the RV-Dreams.com rally, hosted by Howard and Linda Payne. We really enjoyed seeing old friends and catching up with them. Especially Denny and Char from Bloomington, IL. Char celebrated her birthday at the rally.



HAPPY BIRTHDAY, CHAR! Denny and Char just started full-timing about 2 weeks ago.

We'll be leaving here tomorrow for Converse, TX (near San Antonio) to a Cummins garage to have a vibration in the engine checked out before starting back to Illinois. That's AFTER we get the chassis batteries back from AutoZone where they are being recharged. Seems we been having battery issues off and on for a few months. Something is draining the batteries, and we're not sure just what that is. Soooo, will probably be in another shop before long. That's the downside of this lifestyle, and can be very aggravating when something happens, but the traveling, meeting new people, seeing new places and the views out the front window make it all worthwhile.

So until next time,
Safe travels to everyone leaving the rally today and tomorrow.

Just a Short Note

Just a quick note to let everyone know that we are doing great. We are getting acquainted at Dash Point State Park (located on Puget Sound)just south of Seattle. We'll be volunteering here until the end of September before heading off to the RV-Dreams rally in Kerrville, TX. www.rv-dreams.com

We've actually had a very good spring - still don't have the house ready to sell - but in this market that's probably just as well since we're not interested in taking a loss on it at this time. Our neighbors are doing a wonderful job taking care of the house and we really don't have many expenses with it.

We left Rochester on June 2 and arrived here on Tuesday, June 23. I'll post more this weekend with pictures of our grandsons in Colorado and granddaughters here in Seattle.

More later.......

Just an Update on our Whereabouts

As noted on the sidebar, we are parked in the driveway at our house in Rochester, IL. We arrived back here last Tuesday. Dan has been working on some of the remodeling in the house, and Gail has been doing some sorting in the motorhome and finishing some sorting and disposal of things in the house. We really need to get the house ready to sell.

Will write a post this week about some of our travels the last few months. We'll be leaving Sunday for Talladega, AL and the Nascar race at Talladega Speedway, then back to Rochester for more work.

We are looking at some campground hosting opportunities in Washington for the summer, but haven't settled on one yet. Our new grand daughter is expected in about one month, so we want to spend some time close to Seattle this summer.

More later.......

Snow, Snow and More Snow, But We're Leaving Anyway

We woke up to about 1/2 inch of snow at the Beever farm, with more snow falling. But we will not be deterred from heading off to warmer weather. :) We left the Beever house about 8:30am with the trunk of the car packed full of all the things we had taken into the house. The roads were snow-packed, but traffic was very light. Another reason for traveling on Sunday.

Upon arrival in Rochester, we carried everything from the car into the motorhome and covered the bed with it. The outdoor temperature was only 26, so we didn't put the slides out so we could get around the bed to put clothes away. Just didn't want to put any strain on the cold hydralic system. But the bed is literally covered. Since Dan had already loaded the motorcycle on the truck, he just had to add the bikes to the truck and then we could hitch up. No problems with that, so we were able to leave Rochester at 11:00am. The roads were pretty snow covered until we reached Vandalia. That seemed to be the southern edge of the snow storm that passed through last night.

Stopped in Ramsey, Illinois at the Ramsy Cafe for lunch. That's become a regular stop for good homecooked food. The temperature hovered around 28 all day, which meant we started the generator so we could run the furnaces. The dash heater just can't provide enough heat in very cold weather. Decided to stop at Paducah, Ky for the night. We don't like stopping after dark and driving on the snowy roads does take its toll. Went to Cracker Barrel for supper and picked up a couple of things at Walmart, then watched some TV before bedtime.

Will head on south tomorrow toward Bushnell, Florida. Dan's brother, Larry and Phyllis, are on their way to Bushnell, and his other brother, Dave and Nigel, are on the way to St. Augustine. We'll stay somewhere south of Atlanta tomorrow night. Checked the weather for Bushnell, FL and it should be in the 70's for the next few days. WOW!!! From snow to 70 degrees in 3 days.

So until next time......

Almost Ready to Go South! YEAH!!!

Plans are to leave Sunday for warmer weather.

We spent Thursday in Rochester doing some maintanence on the motorhome, and getting haircuts. We took some of the stuff we've accumulated here at the Beever's back to the motorhome. Still have to take our clothes and a few personal items on Sunday morning. Didn't realize how much stuff we had brought into the house until I started gathering it all up.

Dan had a loading ramp installed in the bed of the pickup truck to load the motorcycle, but was having some issues with the battery and getting it to work correctly. So he went back today and the good guys at Trailer Masters were able to get things in proper working order and even threw in some free parts. Dan has always had a lot of confidence in their work and they sure came through again. And the local propane dealer came to the motorhome and filled the propane tank. We'll fill the water tank about 1/2 full Sunday morning, just so we have some water on board. Don't want to run the risk of freezing before we get out of Illinois.

Plan to stop at Walmart or Sam's Club at Clarksville, TN (near Fort Campbell) Sunday night, then try to get to southern Georgia on Monday. I'm looking forward to staying about a week in one place, just to unwind and get the motorhome all cleaned up on the inside. It was washed when Dan had the oil changed a couple of weeks ago, but the inside is really a mess. What with being on the farm and the wind, the inside is really dusty and then we moved it back to Rochester. Even if it had been here at the Beever's, it's been to cold and messy to leave the slides out to clean.

Dan's brothers are headed to Florida, so we'll meet up with them sometime in the next few weeks. And we'll be going to the Daytona 500!!! YEAH, first Nascar race this year.

I'm sure there'll be some tears when we leave here, but it's time to get back on the road and resume this lifestyle. Changing backyards, open sky, beautiful sunrises and sunsets, meeting new people, visiting new places and just enjoying each new day.

See you down the road

Bad Blogger

Jo Wishnie started one of her recent posts this way - "Bad Blogger, Bad, Bad Blogger". I should title this one - "BAD, BAD, BAD, BAD, BAD, BAD Blogger". But there really hasn't been much to post about; just a flat tire on the feed grinder (2 times)and discovered right at feeding time; diesel engines (without block heaters) that won't start in the below zero weather; cattle that need to be fed and watered daily especially in the below zero weather; frozen water lines to the washer; slippery roads; hay to be hauled over the slippery roads; blood samples that need to be processed in the lab; anxious cattle owners awaiting lab results from the aforementioned lab; etc.

BUT, Stephanie and I were just talking today about all the things we've accomplished in the 3 1/2 months we've been here and the list is much longer than the above mentioned problems. AND, even though we had planned to stay in the motorhome the whole time we were here, but had to move into Zachary's bedroom, THANKS, Zach, we have enjoyed our stay here in the country. Albeit, Dan left the farm at age 17 and vowed to never move back to a farm, he has adapted very well to his miscellaneous farm chores. And since he likes driving big trucks, I think even he would say he's become quite accomplished at driving Jon's new truck and hauling 12 BIG round bales of hay on the hay wagon. Should have taken a picture, but just never had the camera ready when he pulled in the driveway. And he was very mission oriented to get the hay unloaded and go back for the next load, so I missed the pictures.

Jon's lab office is completely moved to the new office in the basement and we have helped streamline the office work for his lab. We've all settled in to a routine and really don't get in each other's way very much. We've been chauffeur for Erin to after school events; spent some quality time with Taylor (he and Grandpa enjoy watching car shows on TV and discussing all the pros and cons of various engines and perfomance specs) and enjoyed being with Zach when he's been home from the University of Illinois.

This next week will be really busy as I finish setting up some things in the office and make sure Ashleigh is comfortable with all the changes.

The big challenge will be finding all the things we've brought into the house. We've tried to keep them in the bedroom or on the dining room table, but I'm sure there will be something to retrieve when we return in May for Taylor's high school graduation.

And I've really enjoyed spending Sunday afternoons with Stephanie and Erin at their riding lessons. I've always loved horses and really wanted one as a child. I wouldn't want to work as a stable hand, but I've sure enjoyed wiping down and brushing horses. Soooo, I would like to end this post with a video of Stephanie riding Thor and Erin riding Lady; but have had a TERRIBLE time uploading videos to blogger. Guess I'd better review the tutorial at http://www.geeksontour.com/ again. Will try to upload video tomorrow.

Looking forward to seeing some of you down the road
More later........

Freezing Rain, Snow, Ice, Sleet, More Freezing Rain - YUCK!! FINALLY Warmer Weather

We've had all of the above for the past two weeks. The country roads have been especially icy and slick, especially when it rains and then refreezes. And the dogs seems to go "in and out" more when the weather is messy, so we've washed a lot of dirty old dog towels.

I been very remiss in not posting. But with working all day, mostly data entry and computer stuff, I just haven't been very motivated to keep up the blog. And there hasn't been too much new stuff to report. Jon's lab business is picking up due to a new genetic disease test he has developed for Angus cattle, so I've been helping with the increased influx of blood samples and trying to upgrade the office procedures.

Dan is about finished with the basement remodeling, has been hauling hay bales for the cattle and working on the "Dad do list" for Stephanie. And we're still having a few minor issues with the motorhome.

But, on the upside; we have our own bedroom in the house (it's actually Zachary's, he's sleeping in the bonus room); Jennifer and Gene arrived safely on Christmas Eve, after several flight delays in Chicago; Jon's parents were able to make it over for Christmas Day (Jon met them in Monticello and drove their van out to the country due to the icy roads); we are all healthy; AND the temperature was up to 58 today!!! Makes for more mud for the dogs to get into, but sure beats ICE. Currently, the wind is blowing about 30 mph out of the south, but the temperature is supposed to be in the high 30's for several days.

Erin and Stephanie have riding lessons again on Sunday. Stef will be cantering this week on Thor and Erin will get to ride Mattie. She has been cantering for a couple of weeks on Thor and is really doing well. I'll try to post videos Sunday evening of their lesson. The internet connection is not real good, but will try.

We are still planning to leave here in about 3-4 weeks. Looking forward to some warmer weather. But we've really enjoyed this long stay with family.

More later.....

We Didn't Sign Up for This!!!!!!!

This was the view out the kitchen window on Sunday afternoon. Kasey and Maggie enjoying the sunshine and waiting for the FedEx man to arrive with dog biscuits. What a life. :)

From Mansfield Snow Riding Lessons

And THIS was the view on Monday morning.

From Mansfield Snow Riding Lessons

Silly us, to think we might make it through December without snow. And if you're within 30 miles of I-57 which runs north and south through eastern Illinois, you can bet the wind will be blowing. And there are no gentle winds in eastern Illinois.

And Casper needed to be fed at 7:00 am. He really didn't know what to think of the snow. I do the early morning feeding and try to get him to eat grain (he'd rather suck on my fingers) and Erin feeds him about 4:30 when she gets home from school.

From Mansfield Snow Riding Lessons

And the rest of the cows can't get to the grass, so they have to be fed everyday and the water tank freezes, and it's just plain COLD.

From Mansfield Snow Riding Lessons

The upside is we both have paying jobs for the next month, no campground fees and we are staying with family while waiting to get the refrigerator repaired in the motorhome. The new part has arrived, but the roads were just too snow packed Monday morning to drive the 15 miles to the repair facility. And the slide covers had ice on them which would have made it very difficult to retract the slides. We did have lots of sunshine on Tuesday with temps in the mid 30's, so the slides are now in and Dan will drive it to Mahomet on Wednesday. Sure hope this part will solve the problem, but the service manager really thinks the control panel needs to be replaced; however, Dometic doesn't want to send a control panel until several other things are checked out. Sometimes, you just have to jump through hoops. At least we're not stranded somewhere. We just moved into Zachary's bedroom (he's off at college)and since we're both working here at the house, we don't even have to travel to work. Unless you count going down the stairs.

AND, we're really enjoying getting to spend time with family. Stephanie and Erin are making progress with their riding lessons. Wasn't able to upload videos, but here are some pictures. The first is Erin cantering on Thor. He is a 21 year old horse.

From Mansfield Snow Riding Lessons

And Stephanie trotting on Mattie. She's a nine year old Morgan.

From Mansfield Snow Riding Lessons

So, even though it's cold and windy and more snow is expected Wednesday afternoon, life is good. We'll probably be leaving here around middle to late January. Dan gave US tickets to the Daytona 500 for my birthday, so we need to be in Florida about February 8th or 9th. The race is the 15th.

Will post again in a few days. Hopefully can get a video up of the riding lessons.
More later..........

Casper, The Halloween Calf

This is Erin feeding Casper. He now takes 1 1/2 bottles twice a day and is quite lively when we arrive at his pen. Yes, he does act like we are momma cows. Butts his head against us and follows us around. Will post riding lessons videos tomorrow.

Be sure to read the post following this one for an update of our comings and goings and to learn more about Casper and the riding lessons.

 

Long Overdue Update - Bugs, Pony Express, Detour to Grundy Center, Iowa - Now Back in Illinois

I started this post after we arrived back in Illinois around October 1st, but couldn't seem to get it finished. So rather than just trash it, I've left in what I'd already written and decided to just go on from there. So please bear with me as I try to reconstruct the past few weeks.

We left Denver on September 25th and stopped at a Minooka Park (COE)at Wilson Lake about 55 miles east of Hays, Kansas. We had planned to stay a couple of days and unwind and just enjoy the lake view. However, the bugs and tiny gnats were so bad, and the sand flies covered Kasey's back when I took him out that we packed up quickly the next morning and left. I have never seen so many gnats. We arrived there about 5:00pm, and I opened all the windows to enjoy the fresh air, but when the sun went down and with the lights turned on we were invaded by gnats. I put out my gnat trap which I use if we have problems with fruit flies and also started using the fly swatter. Sure did mess up the ceiling. Had to wash it off the next day.

We decided to go through St. Joseph, Mo and visit the Pony Express museum. We stopped at Lewis and Clark State Park, south of St. Joseph near Rushville, Mo. Nice park with large sites, 30amp electric; and we were charged the senior rate. In some states you have to be a resident of the state to receive the senior rate and others just look at your gray hair and ask if you qualify. :) Go figure.

On Thursday, Sep 25th, Jennifer had called to tell us that her mother-in-law's husband, Fred, had had a stroke on Wednesday. Fred and Ginny had met and married in 2003 after both had lost their spouses to cancer. Ginny had moved from Waterloo, Iowa, to Fred's house in Grundy Center. Ginny and her first husband, Gene's dad, had an RV and had traveled a lot. Ginny continued to travel after his passing. She introduced Fred to the RV lifestyle and he took to it like a duck to water.

The stroke ended up being very severe with Fred loosing consciousness and being placed on life support. He passed away on Saturday morning. Needless to say, his passing was a terrible shock to everyone who knew him. We detoured through Iowa to be with Gene and Jennifer and offer any help and support that we could. We first stopped at a state park about 10 miles from Grundy Center, but Ginny insisted that we move the motorhome to her house and park in the driveway. Fred had put in a 50amp service for their 5th wheel so we were able to use it. Fred will certainly be missed.

We traveled on to Illinois after Fred's funeral and stayed at our house in Rochester for about 2 weeks. Dan did some more work on the house getting it ready for sale. Since about the middle of October, we've been at our daughter's house south of Galesville, IL. Galesville consists of a huge grain elevator and a few houses. Our son-in-law, Jon, has been trying to get the basement finished to expand his lab and move his office downstairs and asked Dan to help. He had a couple of different people working on the basement, but they only worked part time and couldn't seem to get it finished for him. AND, his fulltime employee left in August for grad school and he needed someone to help get things back on track after nearly two months of either not having someone in the office or having a person who wasn't really the person for the job. ENOUGH SAID. And Stephanie had a "Dad, please do list" for her dad. Soooo, Dan has been drywalling, painting, hanging ceiling, wiring, and just generally getting the basement finished and doing some long overdue touch up stuff for Stef.

I've been working fulltime for Jon. He did hire a new person and we've been very busy checking in blood samples, mailing results for the past months and just generally getting things in order. And the new office in the basement will be ready to move into this weekend, so progress is being made.

And while we've been at Stephanie's, the refrigerator in the motorhome decided to quit. We are now waiting for a part from Dometic and will take the motorhome back to Mahomet (about 10 miles from here) to finish fixing it. We stayed in the house while the motorhome was at the rv shop to diagnose the problem and will do so again while they finish it. Illinois weather has been pretty cold this past week, so we've had to burn propane, but at least we are at the kid's house. Our house is nearly empty; no food, no linens, no TV, no nothing. So if the motorhome was in the shop in Springfield, we'd be in deep trouble; especially with the fridge out of commission.

We are also bottle feeding a calf. His name is Casper, since he was born on Halloween night. His mom didn't claim him and we found him in the pasture the next day. (For those of you who don't know, the Beever's also raise Hereford cattle). And Jon's lab processes blood samples from several breeds of cattle with various genetic defects. But back to the calf - He has turned out to be a very sturdy little guy who has decided that I am his mother. I feed him every morning about 7:00 and Erin feeds in the afternoon. We are trying to start him on grain, but so far he'd rather have his bottles.

Erin started horse back riding lessons about 4 weeks ago and Stephanie has joined her. The riding stable is about 15 minutes from their house. They started on a 31 year old horse named "Tuna". Erin has graduated to Mattie, a 9 year old Morgan horse. Sunday afternoons are now spent at Lowrey Stables. I'll post pictures of the calf and horses tomorrow.

We haven't been working on our house, but with the market so depressed, we've decided to just leave things as they are right now and go south after the first of the year as we did this past January. Not sure where we're going, but that's the beauty of full timing. We'll for sure be following the sunshine, especially after spending part of the winter in Illinois.

Will sign off, with more updates to come from the farm.

Back to Denver

We left Redstone Monday morning at 9:10am, early for us. We (Gail) always say we'll be on the road by 9:30 and we usually leave about 10:00. Not sure what takes so long, because we typically spend about 25 minutes getting things put away and another 10 minutes getting the truck hooked up to tow. :) I think we spend too much time watching the Today show while eating breakfast. Anyway, we surprised ourselves this time. Had an uneventful drive to Denver. Stopped at a rest area for lunch, stopped for fuel and drove a whole 197 miles and arrived around 2:30. And we're in the same site that we stayed in in June. And our campground hosts remembered us from our June visit.

The weather is perfect. High 70's and low 80's and lots of sunshine. Right now we plan to leave here on Thursday morning. I spent today cleaning the inside of the motorhome. This campground has paved roads and concrete parking pads, so I thought I should get rid of some of dust we collected in Utah and western Colorado. Love staying in national forests and on BLM land (the price is right and the scenery is unbeatable), but the gravel and sand sure make for a dusty interior. Even the vertical surfaces had to wiped down. And I washed the throw rugs and some towels. We put three small rugs on the dash when we're parked because Kasey likes to lay on the dash and look out the front window. The rugs help control his shedding, so we don't have dog hair flying all over. He spends a lot of time outside and loves to watch the comings and goings in the campground. He really enjoys people coming over to pet him. And we do get lots of visitors because of him. He's a real part of our family; even if he does shed enough for a whole kennel of dogs. :)

We're going to dinner with Jean and Steve tonight, so better get this posted before they get here.

More later.......

Camping with the Boys, S'Mores and Moving On

After a very busy week of grandkid sitting and going back and forth from the campground to Carbondale and back again, we had a very relaxed Saturday. Tim, Karen, Elijah and Isaac came out to the campground Saturday afternoon for a weiner roast and s'mores. The boys really seemed to enjoy themselves as you can see from these pictures.






We'll be leaving Redstone on Monday, the first day of fall, and heading on toward Illinois. Sure will be hard to leave these boys and this beautiful scenery. So here are some more pictures of the drive from Carbondale to Redstone. I just can't get enough of this. :)

View of Mt Sopris going south from Carbondale

Crystal River looking north

Crystal River looking south

Another mountain



View of mountains from our campsite

View of our campsite from our front door


So it's back to the flatlands of Illinois for now.

More later........