March 17th - Jacksonville, Florida - Happy St. Patrick's Day -
Being the lovely day it is, and since we are here in Jacksonville where we will be getting the oil changed in the motorhome tomorrow morning, we figured we would
kill some time down on the Riverwalk. It's about 11/2 miles of boardwalks with restaurants and shops and marinas on each side of the St. Johns River. To get from
one side of the river to the other we took a water taxi which turned out to be a lot of fun since it not only takes you from one side to the other, but if you so
choose, you can stay on a little longer, and have it take you up and down the river as well. We passed by the Maxwell House factory, which is currently being
revamped since it was built back in the early 1900's, and the Jacksonville Jaguars football stadium. The drawbridge that crossed over the St. Johns River was
quite unique in that the entire center of the bridge lifts up and down on two tracks to accommodate the enormous sailboats and dinner cruise ships that pass
under it.
Being the lovely day it is, and since we are here in Jacksonville where we will be getting the oil changed in the motorhome tomorrow morning, we figured we would
kill some time down on the Riverwalk. It's about 11/2 miles of boardwalks with restaurants and shops and marinas on each side of the St. Johns River. To get from
one side of the river to the other we took a water taxi which turned out to be a lot of fun since it not only takes you from one side to the other, but if you so
choose, you can stay on a little longer, and have it take you up and down the river as well. We passed by the Maxwell House factory, which is currently being
revamped since it was built back in the early 1900's, and the Jacksonville Jaguars football stadium. The drawbridge that crossed over the St. Johns River was
quite unique in that the entire center of the bridge lifts up and down on two tracks to accommodate the enormous sailboats and dinner cruise ships that pass
under it.
February 25th - 2:30am - Operation "Florida or Bust!!" -
We left Phoenix before the crack of dawn this morning. I actually meant to write this when we did leave, but every ounce of my being was fighting getting out of
bed at this hour, so I gave in and stayed in bed. Besides, once Frank crawled out of bed to jump behind the wheel and embark on our cross-country drive, Cody
climbed onto my back and fell back to sleep. If you've ever had a groggy 3 pound bird crawl on you and fall asleep you too would know how hard it is to push off
the sweet thing and climb out from under the warm covers and the comfort of a morning snuggle. He's also nice and warm to snuggle with on a cold morning.
February 25th - 7:30 am -
Cody and I finally wake up and join Frank in the passenger seat. Mind you I am still in my P.J.'s, with blanket and pillow in hand. Don't feel too bad for Frank.
When he signed up for this journey, he was well aware that his darling wife, although she would love to be, is not quite what one would call a morning person, nor
is his bird for that matter. However Cody is a bit more of a morning person than I am since it was his idea to get out of bed, and I just followed along. He climbed
to the end of the bed, tapped my leg and said "Come on!" He then climbed down off of the bed, took a couple steps toward the front of the motorhome, looked
back at me and again said "Come on!" I quickly followed, figuring that if I didn't, he would find a cupboard, or something else to destroy on his journey to find his
father. P.S. Frank did stop for a brief nap at about 5:30 this morning until about a half hour ago. When I noticed that the motorhome was no longer moving, I half
jokingly asked Frank "Did you stop driving to take a nap?" He answered, in a very groggy voice. "No, the roads are just so smooth here in Texas you can't feel
the bus moving." I laughed, but then realized, after a couple snores, that he was dead asleep and had no idea what he was saying.
February 25th - 8:00pm -
We have stopped for the night at a rest stop in San Antonio Texas, a mere 906 miles from our starting point this morning. Frank claims he will sleep until 8am or
so and then start driving again, but we will see if he sleeps that long. Once the man puts his mind to something, no one can stop him. He can somehow still
function all day with only 3-4 hours of sleep, unlike his wife, who is a much more pleasant person after a solid 8 hours of sleep. Trust me on this one.
February 26th - 6:00am - Day Two of the Florida Mission -
Just as I predicted Frank woke up around 6:00 to start today's drive. Cody and I, on the other hand joined in on the adventure around 8:20.
February 26th - 8:00 pm - Hooray! We are in the State of Florida! -
No we aren't home yet, but very close. You never realize just how long the darn Panhandle is until you have to drive across it thinking that at any time home is
just around the corner, or at the I-95 that leads you to home is just around the corner. We should be there by 6:00 or so tomorrow. I can't believe we made it this
far in such a short period of time. The smell of the trees here in Florida are wonderful. It already feels as though we are home, except for the fact that it is
freezing cold outside and it's supposed to be in the 80's. Hmmm! Maybe we took a wrong turn and are driving North, where it's supposed to be cold.
February 27th - 12:15pm - WE MADE IT!!!! -
Yes that's right, we pulled into our driveway at 12:15 Eastern Time! About 6 hours ahead of schedule, and just after our renters left the site. It is a gorgeous day,
a little cold, but hopefully that will change by the weekend. Our friendly family of armadillos are still setting up house under the concrete pad on our lot, so we are
headed to Home Dept to put the little buggers out of their misery, and send them to Armadillo Heaven! I am one of the biggest animal lovers you will find
anywhere, but once they move in and destroy things on my property they've gotta go!!! We tried nicely the last two years to get rid of them, and they paid no
attention to our friendly requests to leave, so now it is WAR! The birds are in heaven being out of their cages and back in the sunshine after three long boring
days of lock-up! Well I gotta go we are headed out on a bike ride around the resort. Cody keeps flapping his wings which tells us he wants to go flying.
We left Phoenix before the crack of dawn this morning. I actually meant to write this when we did leave, but every ounce of my being was fighting getting out of
bed at this hour, so I gave in and stayed in bed. Besides, once Frank crawled out of bed to jump behind the wheel and embark on our cross-country drive, Cody
climbed onto my back and fell back to sleep. If you've ever had a groggy 3 pound bird crawl on you and fall asleep you too would know how hard it is to push off
the sweet thing and climb out from under the warm covers and the comfort of a morning snuggle. He's also nice and warm to snuggle with on a cold morning.
February 25th - 7:30 am -
Cody and I finally wake up and join Frank in the passenger seat. Mind you I am still in my P.J.'s, with blanket and pillow in hand. Don't feel too bad for Frank.
When he signed up for this journey, he was well aware that his darling wife, although she would love to be, is not quite what one would call a morning person, nor
is his bird for that matter. However Cody is a bit more of a morning person than I am since it was his idea to get out of bed, and I just followed along. He climbed
to the end of the bed, tapped my leg and said "Come on!" He then climbed down off of the bed, took a couple steps toward the front of the motorhome, looked
back at me and again said "Come on!" I quickly followed, figuring that if I didn't, he would find a cupboard, or something else to destroy on his journey to find his
father. P.S. Frank did stop for a brief nap at about 5:30 this morning until about a half hour ago. When I noticed that the motorhome was no longer moving, I half
jokingly asked Frank "Did you stop driving to take a nap?" He answered, in a very groggy voice. "No, the roads are just so smooth here in Texas you can't feel
the bus moving." I laughed, but then realized, after a couple snores, that he was dead asleep and had no idea what he was saying.
February 25th - 8:00pm -
We have stopped for the night at a rest stop in San Antonio Texas, a mere 906 miles from our starting point this morning. Frank claims he will sleep until 8am or
so and then start driving again, but we will see if he sleeps that long. Once the man puts his mind to something, no one can stop him. He can somehow still
function all day with only 3-4 hours of sleep, unlike his wife, who is a much more pleasant person after a solid 8 hours of sleep. Trust me on this one.
February 26th - 6:00am - Day Two of the Florida Mission -
Just as I predicted Frank woke up around 6:00 to start today's drive. Cody and I, on the other hand joined in on the adventure around 8:20.
February 26th - 8:00 pm - Hooray! We are in the State of Florida! -
No we aren't home yet, but very close. You never realize just how long the darn Panhandle is until you have to drive across it thinking that at any time home is
just around the corner, or at the I-95 that leads you to home is just around the corner. We should be there by 6:00 or so tomorrow. I can't believe we made it this
far in such a short period of time. The smell of the trees here in Florida are wonderful. It already feels as though we are home, except for the fact that it is
freezing cold outside and it's supposed to be in the 80's. Hmmm! Maybe we took a wrong turn and are driving North, where it's supposed to be cold.
February 27th - 12:15pm - WE MADE IT!!!! -
Yes that's right, we pulled into our driveway at 12:15 Eastern Time! About 6 hours ahead of schedule, and just after our renters left the site. It is a gorgeous day,
a little cold, but hopefully that will change by the weekend. Our friendly family of armadillos are still setting up house under the concrete pad on our lot, so we are
headed to Home Dept to put the little buggers out of their misery, and send them to Armadillo Heaven! I am one of the biggest animal lovers you will find
anywhere, but once they move in and destroy things on my property they've gotta go!!! We tried nicely the last two years to get rid of them, and they paid no
attention to our friendly requests to leave, so now it is WAR! The birds are in heaven being out of their cages and back in the sunshine after three long boring
days of lock-up! Well I gotta go we are headed out on a bike ride around the resort. Cody keeps flapping his wings which tells us he wants to go flying.
January 1st - Figueroa Mountain - Happy New Year!!! -
To ring in the New Year, we thought we would have a fun family day, so we packed up all three birds, a picnic lunch and headed up to the top of Figueroa
Mountain to take in the views. It was a bit windy at the top, and poor little Abbey almost blew off the rocks. Considering that on either side of the rocks were good
sized cliffs, our outdoor picnic quickly turned into an inside the Jeep picnic. Since the Jeep is 'an all terrain vehicle', we positioned it in such a way that we could
still see the great views of Santa Ynez and Solvang below . Next week, the Santa Ynez Valley is supposed to get three or four days of rain so there should be
some snow up here on the mountain. As we headed back down the windy road we met up with a couple cows... ... literally. By this I mean that they were grazing in
the middle of the road, okay so maybe a little off to the side, but still, when an animal that outweighs your vehicle by a few pounds is near said vehicle and may at
any time bolt into the side of said vehicle, it makes one a bit nervous. Needless to say the cow didn't attack us and we safely made it down the mountain.
To ring in the New Year, we thought we would have a fun family day, so we packed up all three birds, a picnic lunch and headed up to the top of Figueroa
Mountain to take in the views. It was a bit windy at the top, and poor little Abbey almost blew off the rocks. Considering that on either side of the rocks were good
sized cliffs, our outdoor picnic quickly turned into an inside the Jeep picnic. Since the Jeep is 'an all terrain vehicle', we positioned it in such a way that we could
still see the great views of Santa Ynez and Solvang below . Next week, the Santa Ynez Valley is supposed to get three or four days of rain so there should be
some snow up here on the mountain. As we headed back down the windy road we met up with a couple cows... ... literally. By this I mean that they were grazing in
the middle of the road, okay so maybe a little off to the side, but still, when an animal that outweighs your vehicle by a few pounds is near said vehicle and may at
any time bolt into the side of said vehicle, it makes one a bit nervous. Needless to say the cow didn't attack us and we safely made it down the mountain.
The beautiful views from Figueroa
January 3rd - The Renters Are Out, HOOOOORRAAYYY! -
Well to spare you all the details and make a long story short, our renters, who for all intents and purposes were great renters for almost two and a half years,
when their money ran out, have left the premises quietly and promptly. Luckily Frank and I have the next three weeks to spruce up the house for the next family
to move in. However this time around we are going to sell it to said family, instead of re-renting it. We have been landlords long enough for both our lifetimes.
Well to spare you all the details and make a long story short, our renters, who for all intents and purposes were great renters for almost two and a half years,
when their money ran out, have left the premises quietly and promptly. Luckily Frank and I have the next three weeks to spruce up the house for the next family
to move in. However this time around we are going to sell it to said family, instead of re-renting it. We have been landlords long enough for both our lifetimes.
January 15th - A day spent with the animals - Santa Ynez, CA -
A friend and neighbor of ours here on Menlo Drive has an animal rescue/rehabilitation sanctuary that is located in the beautiful hills of Santa Ynez. This time of
year her animal levels are low, compared to springtime when all the pens are full, and the feeding schedule is literally around the clock. Frank and I have various
cages that we had in our house here and in our previous motorhome, doing nothing other than collecting dust in our parents' garages, so we packed them up
and took them over to Happy Endings Animal Rescue Sanctuary and set them up so they will be ready to house songbirds, hawks and any other bird or animal
that needs a home in their safe confines. While we were there we were able to play with and feed all sorts of the animals that she is nursing back to health. The
raccoons were darling. They would run around trying to pick up the pieces of fruit that we handed them. The younger raccoon would climb on CC's lap as though
she were a lap dog and comb her hair with her little paws, and dig in her pockets to see if there were any treasures that were being hidden from her. The deer
was sweet and would lean against us through the fence and position herself where we could scratch her head and ears. She would slowly start to get more and
more relaxed as her eyes closed and her ears would start to lay back. She was hit by a car some time back and her pelvis was broken so she cannot leap or
jump, and becoming pregnant would be the end of her. She is now an education animal, and is taken to various elementary schools and will live out the
remainder of her years here at the sanctuary. In the Spring, she will be the momma figure to all of the orphaned fawns that CC will get due to not such lucky
victims of car crashes and hunters. Frank quickly took to one of the horses that was sent here after her human mother was 'sent away, for a couple decades.
A friend and neighbor of ours here on Menlo Drive has an animal rescue/rehabilitation sanctuary that is located in the beautiful hills of Santa Ynez. This time of
year her animal levels are low, compared to springtime when all the pens are full, and the feeding schedule is literally around the clock. Frank and I have various
cages that we had in our house here and in our previous motorhome, doing nothing other than collecting dust in our parents' garages, so we packed them up
and took them over to Happy Endings Animal Rescue Sanctuary and set them up so they will be ready to house songbirds, hawks and any other bird or animal
that needs a home in their safe confines. While we were there we were able to play with and feed all sorts of the animals that she is nursing back to health. The
raccoons were darling. They would run around trying to pick up the pieces of fruit that we handed them. The younger raccoon would climb on CC's lap as though
she were a lap dog and comb her hair with her little paws, and dig in her pockets to see if there were any treasures that were being hidden from her. The deer
was sweet and would lean against us through the fence and position herself where we could scratch her head and ears. She would slowly start to get more and
more relaxed as her eyes closed and her ears would start to lay back. She was hit by a car some time back and her pelvis was broken so she cannot leap or
jump, and becoming pregnant would be the end of her. She is now an education animal, and is taken to various elementary schools and will live out the
remainder of her years here at the sanctuary. In the Spring, she will be the momma figure to all of the orphaned fawns that CC will get due to not such lucky
victims of car crashes and hunters. Frank quickly took to one of the horses that was sent here after her human mother was 'sent away, for a couple decades.
January 12th - John's 40th Birthday - The Red Barn -
One of our very best friends hit the big one today (or at least the first of many big ones to come!) We attempted to throw him a surprise party, but John, in his
infinite wisdom, figured out what we were all up to and let us all know that he figured it out. Anyways... ... it was a very fun evening with lots of old-timer jokes,
good friends, great food and lots of old memories remembered and shared. P.S. Since 50 is the new 30 than 40 is really the new 21, right ?????
One of our very best friends hit the big one today (or at least the first of many big ones to come!) We attempted to throw him a surprise party, but John, in his
infinite wisdom, figured out what we were all up to and let us all know that he figured it out. Anyways... ... it was a very fun evening with lots of old-timer jokes,
good friends, great food and lots of old memories remembered and shared. P.S. Since 50 is the new 30 than 40 is really the new 21, right ?????
Just one of the many joke gifts
Wendy and David
The deer loved her ears rubbed
It's a bit tricky to pick up fruit without thumbs
Frank bonds with the horses
The nocturnal raccoons were a bit sleepy
being woken up while the sun is still out
being woken up while the sun is still out
January 18th - The house is finished and ready to sell -
Almost three weeks later, sixteen gallons of paint, fifteen hundred pounds of trash and green waste to the dump and twenty (plus or minus a few) hours of
scrubbing away cobwebs and three years of gunk, we are finally done. Can you feel the relief in my on-line voice??? If I ever see another paint brush again as
long as I live, it will be too soon. It's a bit too monotonous for my taste, but then to each their own. One plus of these three weeks is that my shoulders and arms
are a bit more muscular from painting ceilings for days on end, and the overhead stretch of the paint roller is a new move I have added to my work-out routine.
We painted the entire inside of the house, closets and garage included, pressure washed the entire outside and repainted all the eaves and fascia. The house
looks amazing, and the backyard is unbelievable. That is... after removing 800lbs of brush, leaves and overgrowth. The Jacuzzi is back to it's old self, so the new
owners will have a complete house, in full working order. The best part of this renovation project is that we were able to do it on our own time schedule, and we
were able to bring our sweet babies to work with us. Cody's favorite part, along with sitting in the tree watching over us, was sharing lunch breaks with Frank, and
eating an entire bean burrito on his own. Abbey would sit with me inside the house, gazing out the windows to her old backyard and attempt to attack Cody every
time he and Frank would pass the window she was in. It seems like an entire lifetime ago that we lived here and had lives in this town. It's a great town, but we
realize that after traveling all this time we really are explorers at heart, and we have found exactly what God always intended us to do.
Almost three weeks later, sixteen gallons of paint, fifteen hundred pounds of trash and green waste to the dump and twenty (plus or minus a few) hours of
scrubbing away cobwebs and three years of gunk, we are finally done. Can you feel the relief in my on-line voice??? If I ever see another paint brush again as
long as I live, it will be too soon. It's a bit too monotonous for my taste, but then to each their own. One plus of these three weeks is that my shoulders and arms
are a bit more muscular from painting ceilings for days on end, and the overhead stretch of the paint roller is a new move I have added to my work-out routine.
We painted the entire inside of the house, closets and garage included, pressure washed the entire outside and repainted all the eaves and fascia. The house
looks amazing, and the backyard is unbelievable. That is... after removing 800lbs of brush, leaves and overgrowth. The Jacuzzi is back to it's old self, so the new
owners will have a complete house, in full working order. The best part of this renovation project is that we were able to do it on our own time schedule, and we
were able to bring our sweet babies to work with us. Cody's favorite part, along with sitting in the tree watching over us, was sharing lunch breaks with Frank, and
eating an entire bean burrito on his own. Abbey would sit with me inside the house, gazing out the windows to her old backyard and attempt to attack Cody every
time he and Frank would pass the window she was in. It seems like an entire lifetime ago that we lived here and had lives in this town. It's a great town, but we
realize that after traveling all this time we really are explorers at heart, and we have found exactly what God always intended us to do.
Along with playing in the trees, Cody also liked showing off on the Realtor sign and playing hide and seek. He would run down the hallway and into the closets.
Once he saw us looking at him, he would do a little dance, run from one side of the closet to the other and pretty much turn into a crazy bird. We were in tears
we laughed so hard at him, and he was having a great time. We finished off today with mowing the lawns and spreading a bit of fertilizer, so hopefully the shades
of green on the lawn will darken. Our fabulous neighbor has agreed to keep up the landscaping until it sells so it will stay in it's current glorious state.
Once he saw us looking at him, he would do a little dance, run from one side of the closet to the other and pretty much turn into a crazy bird. We were in tears
we laughed so hard at him, and he was having a great time. We finished off today with mowing the lawns and spreading a bit of fertilizer, so hopefully the shades
of green on the lawn will darken. Our fabulous neighbor has agreed to keep up the landscaping until it sells so it will stay in it's current glorious state.
January 16th - An Evening of Dinner and Music - Solvang, CA -
We spent tonight with Frank's sister, her husband and their two fabulous daughters, our nieces, Hayley and Torrie along with their darling new puppy, Diesel.
Frank brought his guitar, and the girls just happened to have their very own, so Frank gave them each a couple lessons. Torrie, with her long fingers, enjoyed
learning a few chords, while Hayley and Diesel showed off a few tricks. Maybe by the end of this season the girls will have a few more lessons under their belt.
We spent tonight with Frank's sister, her husband and their two fabulous daughters, our nieces, Hayley and Torrie along with their darling new puppy, Diesel.
Frank brought his guitar, and the girls just happened to have their very own, so Frank gave them each a couple lessons. Torrie, with her long fingers, enjoyed
learning a few chords, while Hayley and Diesel showed off a few tricks. Maybe by the end of this season the girls will have a few more lessons under their belt.
I did the trick, where's my treat?
Wanna buy our old house? Here's the info!
Lunchtime in the tree with Cody
Wanna play hide and seek?
The side yard with full working Jacuzzi
The backyard
January 21st - A final weekend with California friends -
As we get ready to head out on our 2008 tour of the U.S, we said our final
goodbye, for now, to everyone. It was a very busy weekend, but a lot of fun.
Friday night we had dinner with friends in Solvang. Cindy, Rochelle, Shelby
and I hung out in the warmth of the indoors, while Frank and John braved the
chilly evening with a good cigar and a bit of Cognac. Saturday night we
headed a little north and met up with Gwen and Chris for "An Evening with the
Guitar" which was a concert put on by the PCPA Theatre. There were two
groups of players. The first group consisted of three men, who were amazing.
The each played an acoustic guitar, and sounded wonderful together. The
second group were Flamenco style, which we have now learned, is not quite
our taste, but very entertaining. Sunday we spent with friends in Lompoc for a
As we get ready to head out on our 2008 tour of the U.S, we said our final
goodbye, for now, to everyone. It was a very busy weekend, but a lot of fun.
Friday night we had dinner with friends in Solvang. Cindy, Rochelle, Shelby
and I hung out in the warmth of the indoors, while Frank and John braved the
chilly evening with a good cigar and a bit of Cognac. Saturday night we
headed a little north and met up with Gwen and Chris for "An Evening with the
Guitar" which was a concert put on by the PCPA Theatre. There were two
groups of players. The first group consisted of three men, who were amazing.
The each played an acoustic guitar, and sounded wonderful together. The
second group were Flamenco style, which we have now learned, is not quite
our taste, but very entertaining. Sunday we spent with friends in Lompoc for a
bar-b-que with Madison, her parents Tim and Sharon, along with Janice and Ben who we may not see at the end of this year due to the fact that may be being
transferred to a different Air Force Base. Again, since it was a bit of a chilly day, we only braved the outdoors long enough to see Tim's remote control helicopter
take a few laps around the block and then back inside next to the fire, where Uncle Frank and Madison read a few books to each other and we watched the
Patriots break a new record! I guess we shouldn't complain too much about the chilly weather here, since in Green Bay it was literally only 1 degree. Brrrrrrrr!!
This morning we met with our Realtor one last time, joined up with Frank's parents for breakfast and hit the highway. It sure feels good to be back on the road.
transferred to a different Air Force Base. Again, since it was a bit of a chilly day, we only braved the outdoors long enough to see Tim's remote control helicopter
take a few laps around the block and then back inside next to the fire, where Uncle Frank and Madison read a few books to each other and we watched the
Patriots break a new record! I guess we shouldn't complain too much about the chilly weather here, since in Green Bay it was literally only 1 degree. Brrrrrrrr!!
This morning we met with our Realtor one last time, joined up with Frank's parents for breakfast and hit the highway. It sure feels good to be back on the road.
This area gets it's energy from windmills
January 22nd - Palm Springs, California -
We didn't actually stop here this year, but the views of the snow capped
mountains from the highway were beautiful. We did attempt to stop here
last year and take the Aerial Tramway to the top of the mountains and see
them a little closer. After driving up a 16% grade to the point where our
poor little bus' motor was beyond overheated with no outlets to allow us to
turn around, we finally hit the top, only to find that nothing larger than a
Yugo would fit in most of the lots. Where they tried to make us park the bus
made driving down the Grand Canyon look easy. Needless to say, at this
time Frank was a bit perturbed, told the guy what he could do with the
parking lot, and coasted slowly down the 16% grade. The motorhome
obviously survived, but we have sworn never to exit the freeway here to do
anything touristy. Ha! That'll show them!
We didn't actually stop here this year, but the views of the snow capped
mountains from the highway were beautiful. We did attempt to stop here
last year and take the Aerial Tramway to the top of the mountains and see
them a little closer. After driving up a 16% grade to the point where our
poor little bus' motor was beyond overheated with no outlets to allow us to
turn around, we finally hit the top, only to find that nothing larger than a
Yugo would fit in most of the lots. Where they tried to make us park the bus
made driving down the Grand Canyon look easy. Needless to say, at this
time Frank was a bit perturbed, told the guy what he could do with the
parking lot, and coasted slowly down the 16% grade. The motorhome
obviously survived, but we have sworn never to exit the freeway here to do
anything touristy. Ha! That'll show them!
January 23rd - Firebird International Raceway - Phoenix, Arizona -
Tomorrow starts the 2008 Test-N-Tune here at Firebird. Last night we
stayed in Quartzsite, home of 'The Big Tent' which is the country's biggest
RV and RV supply show. We needed a couple things that you can only find
there, so we did a bit of shopping, spent the night in the hills where the
sunsets and moon rises are beautiful. The camera didn't quite capture just
how close the moon looked or how clear you could the Man in the Moon,
but perhaps you can get some idea. We are looking forward to testing,
since there are quite a few new faces on both teams and the test sessions
are always far more laid back to get to know everyone versus the first race
of the year where tensions are high and everyone is busy. The nights here
are perfect for sitting outside by our new campfire listening to Frank play
the guitar and Cody sing along.
Tomorrow starts the 2008 Test-N-Tune here at Firebird. Last night we
stayed in Quartzsite, home of 'The Big Tent' which is the country's biggest
RV and RV supply show. We needed a couple things that you can only find
there, so we did a bit of shopping, spent the night in the hills where the
sunsets and moon rises are beautiful. The camera didn't quite capture just
how close the moon looked or how clear you could the Man in the Moon,
but perhaps you can get some idea. We are looking forward to testing,
since there are quite a few new faces on both teams and the test sessions
are always far more laid back to get to know everyone versus the first race
of the year where tensions are high and everyone is busy. The nights here
are perfect for sitting outside by our new campfire listening to Frank play
the guitar and Cody sing along.
January 24th - Rawhide Steakhouse and Old West Town -
Kenny and Sheryl, team owners, took the whole lot of us, 30 to be exact, out to dinner tonight. The first day of testing turned out to be a lost day, due to weather
and track conditions, but it made for an early evening off of work for the guys. The restaurant which was once just an open field across the way from the
racetrack has now been built into a huge western town. The different buildings include a saloon, two mercantiles, a horse boarding facility, blacksmith, small bank
and every other item that you would imagine the old west to have, including gunfights every so often in the middle of the streets. Since it was very cold and very
rainy tonight we didn't wander too far from the warm and dry confines of the restaurant, so we will have to come back another day to walk through the streets.
The food, live guitar entertainment and company of teammates was a lot of fun. I can guarantee you all that this year is going to be a lot of fun, with all the
different personalities and humor of the guys on both teams. Not that we don't miss the faces of last year, but it's fun to have a new group to work with. It makes
things feel new all over again. The evening was complete when the balloon man made us a Top Fuel Dragster balloon and a Funny Car one as well, even though
the colors were a little off. The Funny Car balloon made it out the door before I could snap a shot of it, but the Dragster had enough character for both of them.
Kenny and Sheryl, team owners, took the whole lot of us, 30 to be exact, out to dinner tonight. The first day of testing turned out to be a lost day, due to weather
and track conditions, but it made for an early evening off of work for the guys. The restaurant which was once just an open field across the way from the
racetrack has now been built into a huge western town. The different buildings include a saloon, two mercantiles, a horse boarding facility, blacksmith, small bank
and every other item that you would imagine the old west to have, including gunfights every so often in the middle of the streets. Since it was very cold and very
rainy tonight we didn't wander too far from the warm and dry confines of the restaurant, so we will have to come back another day to walk through the streets.
The food, live guitar entertainment and company of teammates was a lot of fun. I can guarantee you all that this year is going to be a lot of fun, with all the
different personalities and humor of the guys on both teams. Not that we don't miss the faces of last year, but it's fun to have a new group to work with. It makes
things feel new all over again. The evening was complete when the balloon man made us a Top Fuel Dragster balloon and a Funny Car one as well, even though
the colors were a little off. The Funny Car balloon made it out the door before I could snap a shot of it, but the Dragster had enough character for both of them.
January 27th - Phoenix Arizona -
We spent one last day of testing with the team, watched them go down the track a couple of times and then headed back to Santa Ynez for a funeral for Frank's
Great Uncle Daryl. It was a beautiful drive with all the rain and the rainbows. There are actually three rainbows in the picture above, but you can't quite make
them all out. The service for Frank's Uncle was very nice, and had almost the entire town in attendance which meant so much to the family. Daryl was one of the
founding father's of the Santa Ynez Valley, he built more than half the buildings and started quite a few of the hotels there, including Pea Soup Anderson's which
had made the Valley almost world famous. He will be greatly missed as his house was where all the holidays were held when the nieces and nephews were small
and all the family reunions of the last few years took place. It was wonderful that we were able to head back for the services before leaving the state. Daryl's
daughter is not only a relative, but a very close friend of mine, in fact we worked together at the bank as job partners for almost 3 years.
January 28th - Abbey Gets A New Oven Mitt -
Yes that sounds like a crazy thing to buy a bird, but for some reason her favorite thing is to climb in the drawer where I keep my oven mitts and tear them to
pieces, so I have learned to get her her own and put it on the floor of her bed. The third picture is what was left of her last one, only 3 months old and the far
picture is what the third picture looked like brand new. Yikes! Apparently an oven mitt ticked her off at some point in her little life and she has taken revenge.
We spent one last day of testing with the team, watched them go down the track a couple of times and then headed back to Santa Ynez for a funeral for Frank's
Great Uncle Daryl. It was a beautiful drive with all the rain and the rainbows. There are actually three rainbows in the picture above, but you can't quite make
them all out. The service for Frank's Uncle was very nice, and had almost the entire town in attendance which meant so much to the family. Daryl was one of the
founding father's of the Santa Ynez Valley, he built more than half the buildings and started quite a few of the hotels there, including Pea Soup Anderson's which
had made the Valley almost world famous. He will be greatly missed as his house was where all the holidays were held when the nieces and nephews were small
and all the family reunions of the last few years took place. It was wonderful that we were able to head back for the services before leaving the state. Daryl's
daughter is not only a relative, but a very close friend of mine, in fact we worked together at the bank as job partners for almost 3 years.
January 28th - Abbey Gets A New Oven Mitt -
Yes that sounds like a crazy thing to buy a bird, but for some reason her favorite thing is to climb in the drawer where I keep my oven mitts and tear them to
pieces, so I have learned to get her her own and put it on the floor of her bed. The third picture is what was left of her last one, only 3 months old and the far
picture is what the third picture looked like brand new. Yikes! Apparently an oven mitt ticked her off at some point in her little life and she has taken revenge.
If you look close you can see Frank and I
Frank reads to Madison
Yes it once looked like the one on the right
February 3rd - Super Bowl Sunday - In California??? -
Yes we are actually in California, however it sure didn't feel like it since the temperature was about 52 with a wind chill of somewhere in the 30's. You'd think we
were actually in New England somewhere watching the game. I will say I love to watch football, not every week, but every so often. This game was well worth it.
Shirl, Candy, Helen and I were the first ones outside sitting in the front row of the big screen TV on Helen and Richard's motorhome with five layers of clothes, a
couple down blankets, and our handy heater to keep us warm. Shirl, as you can tell by the picture, is a Patriots fan, and since my favorite team wasn't in the
Super Bowl this year, or anywhere near as usual, I thought it would be fun to cheer along with the undefeated team. Deep down however, and please don't get
too offended all you New England fans, I love it when the underdog wins. Soon after the game started and all the rest of the gang joined us, Shirl and I ended up
further and further away from the heater somehow and as you can see above Frank, Jim and Meagan took full advantage of it, along with sweet little DeeDee,
Helen and Richard's new puppy and the mascot of the game. She actually only stayed out for about 5 minutes since she is so tiny and it was freezing out.
Yes we are actually in California, however it sure didn't feel like it since the temperature was about 52 with a wind chill of somewhere in the 30's. You'd think we
were actually in New England somewhere watching the game. I will say I love to watch football, not every week, but every so often. This game was well worth it.
Shirl, Candy, Helen and I were the first ones outside sitting in the front row of the big screen TV on Helen and Richard's motorhome with five layers of clothes, a
couple down blankets, and our handy heater to keep us warm. Shirl, as you can tell by the picture, is a Patriots fan, and since my favorite team wasn't in the
Super Bowl this year, or anywhere near as usual, I thought it would be fun to cheer along with the undefeated team. Deep down however, and please don't get
too offended all you New England fans, I love it when the underdog wins. Soon after the game started and all the rest of the gang joined us, Shirl and I ended up
further and further away from the heater somehow and as you can see above Frank, Jim and Meagan took full advantage of it, along with sweet little DeeDee,
Helen and Richard's new puppy and the mascot of the game. She actually only stayed out for about 5 minutes since she is so tiny and it was freezing out.
=
+
February 1st -
Our sweet little Bradley was playing on his pirate ship today. Since the last three weeks his pirate ship was outside in the somewhat sunny weather of the West
Coast, we hadn't yet stuck it to the counter. Needless too say, it toppled over. The sad thing is, is that it was right next to the edge of the counter, and as it fell off
the counter top and crashed to the floor, so did he! Poor Bradley ended up underneath the ship once it made contact with the tile below and screamed like a little
kid for about 20 seconds, ran to Frank's arms and wouldn't leave the comfort of Daddy's shoulder and neck. We of course checked for wounded wings and hurt
feet and ankles, but all seems okay, except for a good size lump on his head, a black eye, and a vengeful look in his eye every time he sees his beloved pirate
ship. It is back safely stuck to the counter with earthquake putty, so hopefully he will brave boarding his vessel once again in the near future.
Our sweet little Bradley was playing on his pirate ship today. Since the last three weeks his pirate ship was outside in the somewhat sunny weather of the West
Coast, we hadn't yet stuck it to the counter. Needless too say, it toppled over. The sad thing is, is that it was right next to the edge of the counter, and as it fell off
the counter top and crashed to the floor, so did he! Poor Bradley ended up underneath the ship once it made contact with the tile below and screamed like a little
kid for about 20 seconds, ran to Frank's arms and wouldn't leave the comfort of Daddy's shoulder and neck. We of course checked for wounded wings and hurt
feet and ankles, but all seems okay, except for a good size lump on his head, a black eye, and a vengeful look in his eye every time he sees his beloved pirate
ship. It is back safely stuck to the counter with earthquake putty, so hopefully he will brave boarding his vessel once again in the near future.
February 10th - Winternationals, Pomona, California -
We have nicknamed this weekend as the weekend of fires. Every morning when we get to work, Frank lights the pilots lights in the kitchen so Eddie and I can
cook lunch for the teams. Thursday morning, one of the burners was cracked just enough to release a stream of propane that burst into flames as Frank went to
light it. The flame was big enough to singe all of Frank's eyelashes off, trim his eyebrows pretty good and singe the hair around his ears and face, but thankfully
not big enough to do any skin damage, aside from a very dry and flaky nose. The second fire of the weekend was one of the Funny Car drivers, Tony Pedregon,
when his car literally burst into explosive flames halfway down the track. The flames burned through his fire suit and hurt his hands a bit, but he was back at the
track in full health with minimal bandages later this afternoon. Our hospitality tent was the center of attention this weekend with a D.J., great music and a full
house. Neither of our teams did too well in competition but it's the first race of the year, so hopefully things will improve and the rest of our Sundays will be better.
We have nicknamed this weekend as the weekend of fires. Every morning when we get to work, Frank lights the pilots lights in the kitchen so Eddie and I can
cook lunch for the teams. Thursday morning, one of the burners was cracked just enough to release a stream of propane that burst into flames as Frank went to
light it. The flame was big enough to singe all of Frank's eyelashes off, trim his eyebrows pretty good and singe the hair around his ears and face, but thankfully
not big enough to do any skin damage, aside from a very dry and flaky nose. The second fire of the weekend was one of the Funny Car drivers, Tony Pedregon,
when his car literally burst into explosive flames halfway down the track. The flames burned through his fire suit and hurt his hands a bit, but he was back at the
track in full health with minimal bandages later this afternoon. Our hospitality tent was the center of attention this weekend with a D.J., great music and a full
house. Neither of our teams did too well in competition but it's the first race of the year, so hopefully things will improve and the rest of our Sundays will be better.
Frank and Suzy hard at work
New driver Tommy with Brandon and Kenny
The crowd was dancing
February 12th - Two Springs RV Park - Palm Springs, California -
Back when we were in Quartzsite, Arizona, we received a coupon book with free nights stays at various RV parks around the country. Most of them were 'stay
two nights get one free', but the coupon for Two Springs was 3 days 2 nights absolutely free, so we took them up on their offer. As our good friend Shirl says "If
it's free, it's me!" We now see why they were giving out this promotion, since they are pretty much in the middle of nowhere, and the sites are very barren. You
can buy your own site here, much like our place in Florida, but the amenities are scarce, as is the greenery and the only water view is that of an old half dried up
man made pond, but it does have a few goldfish in it. You also can't build much on your site here other than a storage shed and dress up the cement area of
your pad with stonework or pavers. The first day we were here the weather was gorgeous. It was about 85 degrees so we took the top down in the Jeep and
drove over to Palm Springs for lunch and a walk around the town. Palm Springs is a very nice town with lots of stuff to do, but again if there aren't green hills and
meadows and lakes and wildlife I can leave it behind. The views of the mountains are pretty, but you see a great deal of the wind generators as you look across
them, so those take a bit away from it, and considering they have hundreds and hundreds of the wind generators I have to believe it must get pretty windy here.
Tomorrow we might drive to Indio and look at the Outdoor resort there. We have heard it is an amazing place with lots of lakes and the sites are all customized.
Back when we were in Quartzsite, Arizona, we received a coupon book with free nights stays at various RV parks around the country. Most of them were 'stay
two nights get one free', but the coupon for Two Springs was 3 days 2 nights absolutely free, so we took them up on their offer. As our good friend Shirl says "If
it's free, it's me!" We now see why they were giving out this promotion, since they are pretty much in the middle of nowhere, and the sites are very barren. You
can buy your own site here, much like our place in Florida, but the amenities are scarce, as is the greenery and the only water view is that of an old half dried up
man made pond, but it does have a few goldfish in it. You also can't build much on your site here other than a storage shed and dress up the cement area of
your pad with stonework or pavers. The first day we were here the weather was gorgeous. It was about 85 degrees so we took the top down in the Jeep and
drove over to Palm Springs for lunch and a walk around the town. Palm Springs is a very nice town with lots of stuff to do, but again if there aren't green hills and
meadows and lakes and wildlife I can leave it behind. The views of the mountains are pretty, but you see a great deal of the wind generators as you look across
them, so those take a bit away from it, and considering they have hundreds and hundreds of the wind generators I have to believe it must get pretty windy here.
Tomorrow we might drive to Indio and look at the Outdoor resort there. We have heard it is an amazing place with lots of lakes and the sites are all customized.
February 13th - Outdoor Resort, Indio, California -
WOW!! What a difference between parks. This outdoor resort is beautiful. You
hardly feel like you are in the dessert anymore with all the grass, flowers, trees
and lakes that connect. You can take your boat from your own private dock and
drive to the pool, or the restaurant or the bar. Lots of people had peddle boats
which looked like the way to go. You could travel via water and get a bit of
exercise as well. The sites are truly customized. Some people have put close to
a million dollars in upgrades on these sites and have everything from a sushi
bar to full gourmet outdoor kitchens to their own pools and spas in the backyard
with swim up bars. It was nice to see and quite impressive, but it's still in the
dessert and the dry heat is not to our liking. And the beach isn't 5 miles away.
WOW!! What a difference between parks. This outdoor resort is beautiful. You
hardly feel like you are in the dessert anymore with all the grass, flowers, trees
and lakes that connect. You can take your boat from your own private dock and
drive to the pool, or the restaurant or the bar. Lots of people had peddle boats
which looked like the way to go. You could travel via water and get a bit of
exercise as well. The sites are truly customized. Some people have put close to
a million dollars in upgrades on these sites and have everything from a sushi
bar to full gourmet outdoor kitchens to their own pools and spas in the backyard
with swim up bars. It was nice to see and quite impressive, but it's still in the
dessert and the dry heat is not to our liking. And the beach isn't 5 miles away.
February 14th - Valentine's Day at Glamis -
We joined up with a group of friends here at the sand dunes of Glamis just about 150 miles outside of Phoenix, Arizona which, handy for Frank and I, just happens
to be our next stop. With two sand cars and 8 quads we all have a vehicle to drive around the dunes, or ride with someone else. Yesterday, we ladies took a long
ride all around, which was perfect since it hasn't gotten too busy, and all the sand dunes don't have any tracks on them since the wind shifted the night before and
smoothed them out. We were out for about 2 hours, and had a great time. Eventually the guys met up with us, and we all went a little further into the dunes and hit
the bigger ones. One dune, which was incredibly steep made Stephanie and I a bit nervous, so we stopped for a moment at the top, noticing Greg and Frank
behind us Stephanie quickly turned her quad around. Not knowing what Greg was planning, I crept forward on my quad slowly hoping by just leaving the brake off,
the quad would slowly get enough momentum down the tip of the hill. Just as I thought I might chicken out, Greg pushed the back of the quad and over I went. All I
heard was "use your back brake" off in the distance. It turned out to be quite an exhilarating ride, and I only had to use the brake a bit. By the end of the day we
all went up and down it about a dozen times and then headed back to camp. It was just about dusk, so we lit an enormous campfire and hung out outside until the
evening winds picked up again. Once the wind hit we all headed inside where Stephanie baked a ton of enchiladas for everyone. The wind isn't too fun at night,
but it makes a great new set of dunes each morning, and wipes away all the tracks of the crowds from the day before so the sand dunes are smooth again and
the angles and steepness of all the hills are different. It's like having a new set of dunes each day thanks to the mighty wind.
We joined up with a group of friends here at the sand dunes of Glamis just about 150 miles outside of Phoenix, Arizona which, handy for Frank and I, just happens
to be our next stop. With two sand cars and 8 quads we all have a vehicle to drive around the dunes, or ride with someone else. Yesterday, we ladies took a long
ride all around, which was perfect since it hasn't gotten too busy, and all the sand dunes don't have any tracks on them since the wind shifted the night before and
smoothed them out. We were out for about 2 hours, and had a great time. Eventually the guys met up with us, and we all went a little further into the dunes and hit
the bigger ones. One dune, which was incredibly steep made Stephanie and I a bit nervous, so we stopped for a moment at the top, noticing Greg and Frank
behind us Stephanie quickly turned her quad around. Not knowing what Greg was planning, I crept forward on my quad slowly hoping by just leaving the brake off,
the quad would slowly get enough momentum down the tip of the hill. Just as I thought I might chicken out, Greg pushed the back of the quad and over I went. All I
heard was "use your back brake" off in the distance. It turned out to be quite an exhilarating ride, and I only had to use the brake a bit. By the end of the day we
all went up and down it about a dozen times and then headed back to camp. It was just about dusk, so we lit an enormous campfire and hung out outside until the
evening winds picked up again. Once the wind hit we all headed inside where Stephanie baked a ton of enchiladas for everyone. The wind isn't too fun at night,
but it makes a great new set of dunes each morning, and wipes away all the tracks of the crowds from the day before so the sand dunes are smooth again and
the angles and steepness of all the hills are different. It's like having a new set of dunes each day thanks to the mighty wind.
February 16th -
This afternoon we ladies took another ride to the "smaller dunes" on the other side of the road. From a distance the other side of the road looks like a bunch of
little trees and green bushes, but the closer you get the more the purple and pink start to show. By the time you get over to that side you are surrounded by
these beautiful bright pink and purple fragrant wildflowers. It's amazing that these flowers can bloom in the dessert with virtually no water all year long. Soon after
we left, a couple of the guys found us and we all headed back into the big dunes to explore. Funny how that seems to happen each time we girls go out on our
own. We ended up going down a few big dunes, but today I was much more confident, and Stephanie and I each had a radio in our helmets, so we could talk
each other over the next hill, or up the following dune. About two hours before sunset we all drove over to watch what they call The Sand Drags. Coming from the
very organized and regulated Drag Races of the National Hot Rod Association, we figured there would be some rhyme or reason to these drag races, but no,
hmmmm imagine that! It is pretty much a free for all where all the different sand cars race down a long and mostly flat area of the sand. There is one area that
has a bit of a bump, and this is where we parked the cars and watched since this is the spot was where all the cars and quads got air. Before we parked John did
drive his car down the drag strip, and it was exhilarating! When the car lifts in the air and comes back down it is the softest landing you can imagine and yet the
greatest roller coaster feeling ever. Greg went down the drag strip about a dozen times in his car and got quite a bit of air, as you can see in the last picture. We
used John's car as tiered seating so we all had a good view above the strip. After sunset The Sand Drags end, so we drove back to camp and John made carne
asada tacos that we all enjoyed by the campfire again. Tonight the wind was completely still so it made for a nice late evening with good friends.
This afternoon we ladies took another ride to the "smaller dunes" on the other side of the road. From a distance the other side of the road looks like a bunch of
little trees and green bushes, but the closer you get the more the purple and pink start to show. By the time you get over to that side you are surrounded by
these beautiful bright pink and purple fragrant wildflowers. It's amazing that these flowers can bloom in the dessert with virtually no water all year long. Soon after
we left, a couple of the guys found us and we all headed back into the big dunes to explore. Funny how that seems to happen each time we girls go out on our
own. We ended up going down a few big dunes, but today I was much more confident, and Stephanie and I each had a radio in our helmets, so we could talk
each other over the next hill, or up the following dune. About two hours before sunset we all drove over to watch what they call The Sand Drags. Coming from the
very organized and regulated Drag Races of the National Hot Rod Association, we figured there would be some rhyme or reason to these drag races, but no,
hmmmm imagine that! It is pretty much a free for all where all the different sand cars race down a long and mostly flat area of the sand. There is one area that
has a bit of a bump, and this is where we parked the cars and watched since this is the spot was where all the cars and quads got air. Before we parked John did
drive his car down the drag strip, and it was exhilarating! When the car lifts in the air and comes back down it is the softest landing you can imagine and yet the
greatest roller coaster feeling ever. Greg went down the drag strip about a dozen times in his car and got quite a bit of air, as you can see in the last picture. We
used John's car as tiered seating so we all had a good view above the strip. After sunset The Sand Drags end, so we drove back to camp and John made carne
asada tacos that we all enjoyed by the campfire again. Tonight the wind was completely still so it made for a nice late evening with good friends.
February 15th -
Today was full of wild rides. John and Greg both took their sand cars out so Frank and I went with John. Apparently John's transmission wasn't built as well as it
should have been, because half way up a fairly good sized hill that shouldn't stress the car at all, the transmission went out. Of course we were turned at an
angle so it took the three guys from John's car and the two guys in Greg's car to turn the car around, get it pointed straight down the hill and tied to Greg's sand
car for the tow home. Once back at camp John, Frank and Greg drove over to the parts store near by, haggled down the price of a new transmission, took it
back to camp, and with the help of Julio, Steve and Rick, the five of them took the old engine and transmission out, replaced it with the new one, put back the old
engine back in and took it for a test drive. The first time out John only had one gear, so back in the shop it went. The "shop" was the sand car backed into Greg's
trailer as far as it would go with the front wheels of the car lifted up on the back tires that were removed and replaced with smaller tires for the time being. By the
end of the evening John's car was back to it's old self, and actually better than before since the new transmission was a step or two above the old one.
Today was full of wild rides. John and Greg both took their sand cars out so Frank and I went with John. Apparently John's transmission wasn't built as well as it
should have been, because half way up a fairly good sized hill that shouldn't stress the car at all, the transmission went out. Of course we were turned at an
angle so it took the three guys from John's car and the two guys in Greg's car to turn the car around, get it pointed straight down the hill and tied to Greg's sand
car for the tow home. Once back at camp John, Frank and Greg drove over to the parts store near by, haggled down the price of a new transmission, took it
back to camp, and with the help of Julio, Steve and Rick, the five of them took the old engine and transmission out, replaced it with the new one, put back the old
engine back in and took it for a test drive. The first time out John only had one gear, so back in the shop it went. The "shop" was the sand car backed into Greg's
trailer as far as it would go with the front wheels of the car lifted up on the back tires that were removed and replaced with smaller tires for the time being. By the
end of the evening John's car was back to it's old self, and actually better than before since the new transmission was a step or two above the old one.
February 18th - One last night in the desert -
This evening was the perfect finale to the weekend. Frank and I took a ride
with John and Andrea, since the four of us hadn't been out together in one
vehicle all weekend. We found a really great jump out in the dunes that was
the perfect drop where we stayed airborne and weightless for about 3-6
seconds. We tried to find the same jump on our way back home, but since all
the sand looks the same it is quite hard to find a certain location unless you
mark it on your GPS, which we failed to do. We had a potluck dinner with Rick
cooking the meat, which included shrimp, tri-tip and bratwurst, with each of
the other couples bringing a side dish. We had a very fun group photo
session with the crazy guys posing all sorts of ways with a new face for each
shot. The first few shots everyone smiled, but with our guys, we knew the
nice smiles wouldn't last, and we were right. One sequence we took from a bit
of a distance, and the other a little closer. Some are not quite family friendly
so they have been left off the web page, however a few of our weekend
attendees wanted them posted. Earlier today, after most of our neighbors
vacated, I got a great shot of our campsite from the down slope of the dune
that we were all camped on. Yes the picture looks as though we were parked
in the middle of the sand, but we are all actually on very secure pavement
with a light layer of sand between our wheels and the pavement below, or at
least it appears that way, we will let you know in the morning if it's as easy as
it looks to get back on the road. P.S. No worries, we all got out fine with no
one needing any assistance.
This evening was the perfect finale to the weekend. Frank and I took a ride
with John and Andrea, since the four of us hadn't been out together in one
vehicle all weekend. We found a really great jump out in the dunes that was
the perfect drop where we stayed airborne and weightless for about 3-6
seconds. We tried to find the same jump on our way back home, but since all
the sand looks the same it is quite hard to find a certain location unless you
mark it on your GPS, which we failed to do. We had a potluck dinner with Rick
cooking the meat, which included shrimp, tri-tip and bratwurst, with each of
the other couples bringing a side dish. We had a very fun group photo
session with the crazy guys posing all sorts of ways with a new face for each
shot. The first few shots everyone smiled, but with our guys, we knew the
nice smiles wouldn't last, and we were right. One sequence we took from a bit
of a distance, and the other a little closer. Some are not quite family friendly
so they have been left off the web page, however a few of our weekend
attendees wanted them posted. Earlier today, after most of our neighbors
vacated, I got a great shot of our campsite from the down slope of the dune
that we were all camped on. Yes the picture looks as though we were parked
in the middle of the sand, but we are all actually on very secure pavement
with a light layer of sand between our wheels and the pavement below, or at
least it appears that way, we will let you know in the morning if it's as easy as
it looks to get back on the road. P.S. No worries, we all got out fine with no
one needing any assistance.
Meagan, Jim and Frank huddle by the heater
Sweet little DeeDee
The resorts private lake
The poor empty lake needs some rain
Our campsite in the dunes
Suzy and Andrea ready to ride
Bradley and Julio get to know each other
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Parrottrek Journal 2008
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February 23rd - The San Francisco Giants stop by -
The new driver of the Monster Funny Car Team, Tommy Johnson Jr., is
friends with a few of the players on the San Francisco Giants and since
tomorrow both the teams go lots-o-rounds and pick up lots-o-points. The
Monster team has the rival Rockstar Energy Drink team first round, so we
are all hoping to beat them that way we can at least say we are the fastest
energy drink out here. Arizona evenings make for some of the most
gorgeous sunsets with the jagged mountains in the distance, and the bright
orange and red colors in the sky.
The new driver of the Monster Funny Car Team, Tommy Johnson Jr., is
friends with a few of the players on the San Francisco Giants and since
tomorrow both the teams go lots-o-rounds and pick up lots-o-points. The
Monster team has the rival Rockstar Energy Drink team first round, so we
are all hoping to beat them that way we can at least say we are the fastest
energy drink out here. Arizona evenings make for some of the most
gorgeous sunsets with the jagged mountains in the distance, and the bright
orange and red colors in the sky.
March 7th - Orlando, Florida -
Today was another beautiful day, and to our happy surprise a bit humid as well, so we headed down to Orlando to visit our good friends Rick and LaVerne, who
are taking a break from full-time RVing and working at a campground in Kissimmee and managing a fun leather goods shop in Old Town, Orlando. Before we
stopped off to see them we went to a Log Home Show to see all the latest places to build and new layouts. They were all amazing places and the cabins
themselves are beautiful, but since we are far from ready to sit still for any length of time, we will forgo the brochures for now. After the Log Cabin Show, we
stopped off and had lunch at Jimmy Buffet's Margaritaville at Universal Walk and then headed to Rick and LaVerne's store since they both were working the night
shift. The other day our 'Fun Committee" here at The Great Outdoors threw a Fun Fair in one of the rally areas on the banks of Lake Judy with all sorts of
entertainment including a somewhat off key Elvis, stilt walkers and all the different activity groups showing off their goods including the 'Hookers' who had all their
crochet and knitting projects for sale and a fund raising scavenger hunt to help raise money for the soon to be built Nature Center. The people here are all great!
Today was another beautiful day, and to our happy surprise a bit humid as well, so we headed down to Orlando to visit our good friends Rick and LaVerne, who
are taking a break from full-time RVing and working at a campground in Kissimmee and managing a fun leather goods shop in Old Town, Orlando. Before we
stopped off to see them we went to a Log Home Show to see all the latest places to build and new layouts. They were all amazing places and the cabins
themselves are beautiful, but since we are far from ready to sit still for any length of time, we will forgo the brochures for now. After the Log Cabin Show, we
stopped off and had lunch at Jimmy Buffet's Margaritaville at Universal Walk and then headed to Rick and LaVerne's store since they both were working the night
shift. The other day our 'Fun Committee" here at The Great Outdoors threw a Fun Fair in one of the rally areas on the banks of Lake Judy with all sorts of
entertainment including a somewhat off key Elvis, stilt walkers and all the different activity groups showing off their goods including the 'Hookers' who had all their
crochet and knitting projects for sale and a fund raising scavenger hunt to help raise money for the soon to be built Nature Center. The people here are all great!
February 29th - Happy Leap Year -
In hopes that NASA isn't leading us on, we are really excited about the Space Shuttle Endeavor launch date of March 11th. Yes we will be here and yes we will be
able to watch the Space Shuttle launch from our backyard. Not only would this be an exciting thing to see on any sunny afternoon, but even more exciting since
the launch time is, as of now, set for 2:31am. Our plans are to set the alarm for 2:00am, and watch the NASA channel. As soon as they call for "Go for Launch"
we'll run into the backyard and watch in shoot into the air in our jammies and so back to bed. A lot of people are driving out to the ocean to see it, which is only 5
launches are still going on. We've heard they may stop as early as 2010. Let's just hope the weather holds up and NASA doesn't 'reschedule' the date. In order
to understand a little more about the history of the Space Shuttle we went to Kennedy Space Center today and read up on all the history of the various shuttle
launches over the last few decades. After visiting a bit of space on land, we hit the beach where I read a great murder mystery book as Frank flew his kite.
In hopes that NASA isn't leading us on, we are really excited about the Space Shuttle Endeavor launch date of March 11th. Yes we will be here and yes we will be
able to watch the Space Shuttle launch from our backyard. Not only would this be an exciting thing to see on any sunny afternoon, but even more exciting since
the launch time is, as of now, set for 2:31am. Our plans are to set the alarm for 2:00am, and watch the NASA channel. As soon as they call for "Go for Launch"
we'll run into the backyard and watch in shoot into the air in our jammies and so back to bed. A lot of people are driving out to the ocean to see it, which is only 5
launches are still going on. We've heard they may stop as early as 2010. Let's just hope the weather holds up and NASA doesn't 'reschedule' the date. In order
to understand a little more about the history of the Space Shuttle we went to Kennedy Space Center today and read up on all the history of the various shuttle
launches over the last few decades. After visiting a bit of space on land, we hit the beach where I read a great murder mystery book as Frank flew his kite.
February 28th -
This has got to be the most amazing place in the country, and trust us, we have seen far more of this country than the average bear! Just this morning on my jog
I saw an entire flock of turkey, including a gorgeous Tom. At first he was quite sheepish as he ran from one hen to the next to see what they were doing, but as
soon as he saw me, he went into protective mode. His entire head turned from a light red color to a deep blue and then to purple. After this, all of his feathers
began to fluff up, his tail went straight into the air, his wings began to hit the ground and he charged at me! Doing the little bit of reading that I have done on wild
birds, and having a few of them in my motorhome, I knew that if I looked bigger than he, he would back off a bit, perhaps! Yes he did back off once I raised my
fluffed out and beautiful, and lead them into the forest where they would be safe from this crazy looking bird wearing a tank top and shorts. Of course the entire
time this was happening I had my camera poised, and even got a bit video of him in all his grandeur! After my jog I came home and Frank and I along with Cody
and Abbey walked down by our lake to visit a couple neighbors. All of a sudden Frank said, "We need to go back!" "Why is that?" I asked, and looked in front of
us to see an enormous alligator sunning himself on the banks of 'Lake Charlie' as I have dubbed it. We quickly turned around, and on our way back home met
some new neighbors who gave us a tour of their newly built home to get a few ideas for ours, that if we ever do tire of the road we will build in about 5 or so years.
Heading home we saw a family of deer walking across the lawn and down to the lake for a drink. They must be fairly used to people being around them because
they didn't run off into the woods until they all had a nice long drink. They were beautiful to watch so very graceful.
This has got to be the most amazing place in the country, and trust us, we have seen far more of this country than the average bear! Just this morning on my jog
I saw an entire flock of turkey, including a gorgeous Tom. At first he was quite sheepish as he ran from one hen to the next to see what they were doing, but as
soon as he saw me, he went into protective mode. His entire head turned from a light red color to a deep blue and then to purple. After this, all of his feathers
began to fluff up, his tail went straight into the air, his wings began to hit the ground and he charged at me! Doing the little bit of reading that I have done on wild
birds, and having a few of them in my motorhome, I knew that if I looked bigger than he, he would back off a bit, perhaps! Yes he did back off once I raised my
fluffed out and beautiful, and lead them into the forest where they would be safe from this crazy looking bird wearing a tank top and shorts. Of course the entire
time this was happening I had my camera poised, and even got a bit video of him in all his grandeur! After my jog I came home and Frank and I along with Cody
and Abbey walked down by our lake to visit a couple neighbors. All of a sudden Frank said, "We need to go back!" "Why is that?" I asked, and looked in front of
us to see an enormous alligator sunning himself on the banks of 'Lake Charlie' as I have dubbed it. We quickly turned around, and on our way back home met
some new neighbors who gave us a tour of their newly built home to get a few ideas for ours, that if we ever do tire of the road we will build in about 5 or so years.
Heading home we saw a family of deer walking across the lawn and down to the lake for a drink. They must be fairly used to people being around them because
they didn't run off into the woods until they all had a nice long drink. They were beautiful to watch so very graceful.
An Astronaut walks above us
March 3rd - A Curious Crane -
As we drove home this afternoon, we noticed a beautiful crane walking in the road. As we past him, he began to follow us and eventually ended up in our front
yard and right in front of me. Luckily I had my camera ready. He was even prettier close up. Once he saw Frank with Cody, he walked closer and closer to them.
At one point Frank walked to the other side of the Jeep since the crane came so close to him and Cody and he wasn't quite sure what Mr. Crane would do once
he was within reach of our Cody. The crane didn't seem too aggressive, since after he saw Frank and Cody walk away, he wandered back to me, stopped for a
minute and then continued down the street. At one point he was so close to me I could have pet him, but not knowing if he would bite, I refrained.
As we drove home this afternoon, we noticed a beautiful crane walking in the road. As we past him, he began to follow us and eventually ended up in our front
yard and right in front of me. Luckily I had my camera ready. He was even prettier close up. Once he saw Frank with Cody, he walked closer and closer to them.
At one point Frank walked to the other side of the Jeep since the crane came so close to him and Cody and he wasn't quite sure what Mr. Crane would do once
he was within reach of our Cody. The crane didn't seem too aggressive, since after he saw Frank and Cody walk away, he wandered back to me, stopped for a
minute and then continued down the street. At one point he was so close to me I could have pet him, but not knowing if he would bite, I refrained.
March 4th- Cocoa Beach -
We took a very nice drive down the coast a bit to Cocoa Beach. The beaches here have white fine sand with turquoise water, and all sorts of plants around the
dunes that lead to the water. We stopped off at Satellite Beach, which is named for his spectacular views of the satellites that are launched from Kennedy Space
Center, went through Ron Jon Surf Shop where we bought new bathing suits and then headed home to meet some friends for Happy Hour at the restaurant here
in our resort. After dinner the weather was still great and the sun was still out, so we took another long bike ride with Cody and Abbey in tow. I sure love it here!
We took a very nice drive down the coast a bit to Cocoa Beach. The beaches here have white fine sand with turquoise water, and all sorts of plants around the
dunes that lead to the water. We stopped off at Satellite Beach, which is named for his spectacular views of the satellites that are launched from Kennedy Space
Center, went through Ron Jon Surf Shop where we bought new bathing suits and then headed home to meet some friends for Happy Hour at the restaurant here
in our resort. After dinner the weather was still great and the sun was still out, so we took another long bike ride with Cody and Abbey in tow. I sure love it here!
March 11th - The Launch of Space Shuttle Endeavour -
There is almost always a Space Shuttle launch scheduled around the dates that we are here, but the last three years it has always been a few days before we
arrive, or a few days after we leave. Lucky for us this visit our timing was perfect. We started the evening out watching the sunset as we had dinner outside, and
ended the evening by watching what appeared to be the sun rising at 2:28am. Knowing that we might fall asleep before the launch took place, we set our alarm
for 2:00am and went to bed. We didn't sleep too much though, since there is a channel here locally that shows all the goings on inside the Space Center and all
the preparations that go into suiting up the Astronauts and getting them inside the Shuttle. The area that these men sit in appears to be very very tiny and the
computers around them are very very many. I took a few pictures of the TV to try and show you what it looked like, but the interior Shuttle shots didn't turn out too
well. Since I wanted to watch the actual launch live, and not through the lens of my camera, I only got a few shots of the actually blast off as well.. We turned up
the TV inside the house and ran outside once the countdown began. As soon as the lift off took place it got amazingly bright. We saw the Shuttle for about 10
seconds, and then the cloud layer swallowed it up. Soon after we lost sight of it, the ground began to tremble and shake and the windows rattled next to us. Once
the sky went dark and the trembling stopped we went back inside and watched the camera that was attached to the side of the Endeavour that showed it leaving
the earth and finally breaking away from the launch engines. It was a very impressive sight all around and well worth staying up for. Next time we will drive out to
the ocean and see it.
There is almost always a Space Shuttle launch scheduled around the dates that we are here, but the last three years it has always been a few days before we
arrive, or a few days after we leave. Lucky for us this visit our timing was perfect. We started the evening out watching the sunset as we had dinner outside, and
ended the evening by watching what appeared to be the sun rising at 2:28am. Knowing that we might fall asleep before the launch took place, we set our alarm
for 2:00am and went to bed. We didn't sleep too much though, since there is a channel here locally that shows all the goings on inside the Space Center and all
the preparations that go into suiting up the Astronauts and getting them inside the Shuttle. The area that these men sit in appears to be very very tiny and the
computers around them are very very many. I took a few pictures of the TV to try and show you what it looked like, but the interior Shuttle shots didn't turn out too
well. Since I wanted to watch the actual launch live, and not through the lens of my camera, I only got a few shots of the actually blast off as well.. We turned up
the TV inside the house and ran outside once the countdown began. As soon as the lift off took place it got amazingly bright. We saw the Shuttle for about 10
seconds, and then the cloud layer swallowed it up. Soon after we lost sight of it, the ground began to tremble and shake and the windows rattled next to us. Once
the sky went dark and the trembling stopped we went back inside and watched the camera that was attached to the side of the Endeavour that showed it leaving
the earth and finally breaking away from the launch engines. It was a very impressive sight all around and well worth staying up for. Next time we will drive out to
the ocean and see it.
March 8th - Port Canaveral -
The best part of only being here a few weeks a year is that there are always new places to explore. Today we drove to Port Canaveral, where all sorts of cruise
ships that head down to the Caribbean or the Keys and out to the Bahamas load up. We had lunch at a restaurant called Fishlips, that was recommended by
some friends, since it has the best view of the port and all the ships that pass through it. It reminded me of a restaurant out on the wharf in Santa Barbara called
Longboards that we frequented during our years in California. In fact Longboards was the scene of our first date many moons ago. After lunch we drove over to
the Canaveral Locks that are just North of the port, but since there wasn't any traffic coming in or going out of the Locks and the weather today is a bit chilly, we
headed back to the warmth of the car to explore more of Port Canaveral. We found quite a few roads that led to different beaches so we will have to check these
out on a day that is a bit warmer. All the locals say some of these roads lead to some of the most beautiful and private beaches. I can't wait to see them.
The best part of only being here a few weeks a year is that there are always new places to explore. Today we drove to Port Canaveral, where all sorts of cruise
ships that head down to the Caribbean or the Keys and out to the Bahamas load up. We had lunch at a restaurant called Fishlips, that was recommended by
some friends, since it has the best view of the port and all the ships that pass through it. It reminded me of a restaurant out on the wharf in Santa Barbara called
Longboards that we frequented during our years in California. In fact Longboards was the scene of our first date many moons ago. After lunch we drove over to
the Canaveral Locks that are just North of the port, but since there wasn't any traffic coming in or going out of the Locks and the weather today is a bit chilly, we
headed back to the warmth of the car to explore more of Port Canaveral. We found quite a few roads that led to different beaches so we will have to check these
out on a day that is a bit warmer. All the locals say some of these roads lead to some of the most beautiful and private beaches. I can't wait to see them.
On this afternoon's bike ride we left the birds at home and took the nature
trail around the park. Since there are so many different animals on the nature
trail is it best not to bring your own with you. At the end of our street sat a
baby alligator sunning himself in one of the storm drains. As we entered the
nature trail we saw a grey and brown bird that blended in with the dead palm
leaves on the side of the river and a lizard hanging out hunting for bugs in
the tall grass, Later on the trail we saw an Osprey sitting on a telephone pole
looking for anything that might be scurrying on the ground below. After a
couple laps around the trail we headed home and took the birds with us on a
lap were we noticed a young Heron fishing in Lake Charlie. If you look close
in the picture you can see that in the first shot he has the entire fish in his
beak, and in the shot below he has the entire fish in his throat. We saw a
family of turkey vultures walking down the street searching for a bit of lunch,
as another came in for landing right in front of us. Another feathered friend
we ran into on the ride was Max, another Severe Macaw, just like Abbey.
They didn't seem to notice each other too much, except that Max liked to
show his wings off, as Abbey just sat there and stared at him. On the other
side of the park we noticed a nest in one of the tall trees, and a momma
feeding the little inhabitants. We couldn't tell what kind of birds they were, but
figure they were Ospreys due to their coloring and size. Note to self... always
pack the binoculars in the basket of the bike... This place is better than any
zoo since the animals are all in their natural habitat without any fences or
cages and you never know who you might see and where eating what.
trail around the park. Since there are so many different animals on the nature
trail is it best not to bring your own with you. At the end of our street sat a
baby alligator sunning himself in one of the storm drains. As we entered the
nature trail we saw a grey and brown bird that blended in with the dead palm
leaves on the side of the river and a lizard hanging out hunting for bugs in
the tall grass, Later on the trail we saw an Osprey sitting on a telephone pole
looking for anything that might be scurrying on the ground below. After a
couple laps around the trail we headed home and took the birds with us on a
lap were we noticed a young Heron fishing in Lake Charlie. If you look close
in the picture you can see that in the first shot he has the entire fish in his
beak, and in the shot below he has the entire fish in his throat. We saw a
family of turkey vultures walking down the street searching for a bit of lunch,
as another came in for landing right in front of us. Another feathered friend
we ran into on the ride was Max, another Severe Macaw, just like Abbey.
They didn't seem to notice each other too much, except that Max liked to
show his wings off, as Abbey just sat there and stared at him. On the other
side of the park we noticed a nest in one of the tall trees, and a momma
feeding the little inhabitants. We couldn't tell what kind of birds they were, but
figure they were Ospreys due to their coloring and size. Note to self... always
pack the binoculars in the basket of the bike... This place is better than any
zoo since the animals are all in their natural habitat without any fences or
cages and you never know who you might see and where eating what.
The wiggley fish fights for his life
But alas, in the end, the fish looses!
Look alive and they will keep walking by
After we toured the two vessels, we walked around the 155 acre park with Cody to look at all the different planes and tanks and weapons that they have collected
for the museum over the years. In one section of the park, they offered helicopter rides around the city and ocean. The couple that ran the helicopter rides were
very intrigued with Cody, and asked us to come over to show him to them. After they checked him out, they offered to let us take a picture of him in the helicopter.
for the museum over the years. In one section of the park, they offered helicopter rides around the city and ocean. The couple that ran the helicopter rides were
very intrigued with Cody, and asked us to come over to show him to them. After they checked him out, they offered to let us take a picture of him in the helicopter.
March 21st - Mobile Alabama - U.S.S. Alabama and U.S.S. Drum -
For the past three years we have driven past the enormous battleship the
guessed it, Alabama. Since we have lots of time to get to Houston, Texas,
we decided to spend the day touring it and the U.S.S. Drum, a submarine,
which both were active in WWII. With so many decks and levels to explore
inside and out it was hard to decide which tour to take. Lucky for us, all
three tours that we read about, were included in the purchase of a ticket.
The USS Alabama was a city within itself. It had it's own post office, surgery
center, medical level, church, brig and lots and lots of guns, varying from
hand guns all the way up to enormous canons that shoot out shells that can
travel 21 miles to hit the target it's aimed at. We sat in the turret with all the
different pedals and cranks to aim the barrel wherever you wanted in
wartime. The only thing that it had more of than guns, was sailor bunks.
There were sailor bunks everywhere to house the 2500 enlisted men and
officers that it took to run the Alabama. They had dozens and dozens of
rows of cots in the dinning areas that would raise up to the ceiling in the
daytime and drop down at night. The cots were four rows high and about 25
across. Don't expect to have much privacy on one of these things. The
U.S.S. Drum only housed 65 men and 7 officers, but their bunks were just
as close together with far less amenities. Below Frank is sitting in one of the
officer's quarters that was pretty much the size of our closet in the
motorhome, very tiny, and where I stand steering the ship, also doubled as
the officer's mess room. Both of these locations left very little elbow room.
For the past three years we have driven past the enormous battleship the
guessed it, Alabama. Since we have lots of time to get to Houston, Texas,
we decided to spend the day touring it and the U.S.S. Drum, a submarine,
which both were active in WWII. With so many decks and levels to explore
inside and out it was hard to decide which tour to take. Lucky for us, all
three tours that we read about, were included in the purchase of a ticket.
The USS Alabama was a city within itself. It had it's own post office, surgery
center, medical level, church, brig and lots and lots of guns, varying from
hand guns all the way up to enormous canons that shoot out shells that can
travel 21 miles to hit the target it's aimed at. We sat in the turret with all the
different pedals and cranks to aim the barrel wherever you wanted in
wartime. The only thing that it had more of than guns, was sailor bunks.
There were sailor bunks everywhere to house the 2500 enlisted men and
officers that it took to run the Alabama. They had dozens and dozens of
rows of cots in the dinning areas that would raise up to the ceiling in the
daytime and drop down at night. The cots were four rows high and about 25
across. Don't expect to have much privacy on one of these things. The
U.S.S. Drum only housed 65 men and 7 officers, but their bunks were just
as close together with far less amenities. Below Frank is sitting in one of the
officer's quarters that was pretty much the size of our closet in the
motorhome, very tiny, and where I stand steering the ship, also doubled as
the officer's mess room. Both of these locations left very little elbow room.
Cody was a little nervous of the propellers above him, but he stood still long enough for one shot. The funny thing of the day, is that he wasn't afraid of the
enormous cargo planes in fact he wanted to fly next to them and even stood on one, but the little blades of a M*A*S*H unit helicopter scared him, go figure!
enormous cargo planes in fact he wanted to fly next to them and even stood on one, but the little blades of a M*A*S*H unit helicopter scared him, go figure!
To celebrate Easter Sunday, today we drove into Houston and attended Lakewood Church, pastored by Joel Osteen. With our schedule and the fact that Sunday
morning church services aren't always an option, we have been listening to Joel via podcasts for months, and were delighted to actually be able to attend one of
his sermons live. WOW!! What a church. We had heard it was large, in fact one of the largest growing churches in America. We had also heard that the church
had recently moved to a building that was the old Compaq Center and at one time was the home of Houston's basketball team, but when we walked in we weren't
quite prepared for the enormity of the sanctuary, which by the way seats over 22,000 people and was packed once the service began. Since we had no idea
where to go and we had arrived early since we had no idea how long it would take to drive here and park, we went to the information desk to find out what to do
and around the myriad of nursery school classrooms and fun kid's areas, we found the entrance to the lower level of the sanctuary and explained to the usher
and around the myriad of nursery school classrooms and fun kid's areas, we found the entrance to the lower level of the sanctuary and explained to the usher
that this was our first time attending and we were curious as to what to do next. After graciously meeting us, he lead us to seats in the fifth row with a bird's eye
view of the pulpit. The pulpit was surrounded on each side by rows of pews for the choir and had an entire orchestra in the middle of the stage that held a slowly
spinning globe that shows Lakewood's hope of reaching all corners of the earth through their ministries. Since they are currently being broadcast on the radio in
was previously a concert hall, the sound system was great. You felt like you were in the middle of a concert. Once the choir and orchestra were finished the stage
lowered into the ground and a pulpit lifted up as Joel entered. Since we were so close to the front and the lights were dimmed during the service we had forgotten
the size of it all until we turned to exit the sanctuary, which is the last shot above. After the service we explored the building and all it's many levels a bit more,
including the bookstore where I bought a perfectly sized new Bible so Frank and I no longer have to share his, which is what we have been doing for the last three
or so years, since my old Bible went MIA after we moved into the motorhome. It was a great way to celebrate the day and we hope you all have a wonderful Easter!
morning church services aren't always an option, we have been listening to Joel via podcasts for months, and were delighted to actually be able to attend one of
his sermons live. WOW!! What a church. We had heard it was large, in fact one of the largest growing churches in America. We had also heard that the church
had recently moved to a building that was the old Compaq Center and at one time was the home of Houston's basketball team, but when we walked in we weren't
quite prepared for the enormity of the sanctuary, which by the way seats over 22,000 people and was packed once the service began. Since we had no idea
where to go and we had arrived early since we had no idea how long it would take to drive here and park, we went to the information desk to find out what to do
and around the myriad of nursery school classrooms and fun kid's areas, we found the entrance to the lower level of the sanctuary and explained to the usher
and around the myriad of nursery school classrooms and fun kid's areas, we found the entrance to the lower level of the sanctuary and explained to the usher
that this was our first time attending and we were curious as to what to do next. After graciously meeting us, he lead us to seats in the fifth row with a bird's eye
view of the pulpit. The pulpit was surrounded on each side by rows of pews for the choir and had an entire orchestra in the middle of the stage that held a slowly
spinning globe that shows Lakewood's hope of reaching all corners of the earth through their ministries. Since they are currently being broadcast on the radio in
was previously a concert hall, the sound system was great. You felt like you were in the middle of a concert. Once the choir and orchestra were finished the stage
lowered into the ground and a pulpit lifted up as Joel entered. Since we were so close to the front and the lights were dimmed during the service we had forgotten
the size of it all until we turned to exit the sanctuary, which is the last shot above. After the service we explored the building and all it's many levels a bit more,
including the bookstore where I bought a perfectly sized new Bible so Frank and I no longer have to share his, which is what we have been doing for the last three
or so years, since my old Bible went MIA after we moved into the motorhome. It was a great way to celebrate the day and we hope you all have a wonderful Easter!
| The many rows of seats that were full just moments ago |
The welcoming entrance to the church
April 2nd - San Antonio Texas - The Alamo -
Today's history lesson involved learning all about The Alamo. In the 1700's
it was called Mission San Antonio de Valero and was home to missionaries
Spanish military stationed a cavalry unit at the former mission and the name
was changed to the Alamo which is Spanish for cottonwood in honor of their
hometown Alamo de Parras. During this time they also established a
hospital on the site which was the first in Texas. In December of 1835,
during the Texas Revolution, Ben Milam led the Texan and Tejano
volunteers against the Mexican troops that were currently occupying the
Alamo and forced them to surrender only to return to battle with Santa
Anna's army two months later, when Anna and his men scaled the walls and
overtook the Alamo after 13 days of gruesome battles. The grounds of the
Alamo are kept up to preserve it's look from the 1800's, including the
cannons that were added and the hospital used during the battles and
thereafter. Once we finished touring the Alamo, we walked through the
upper levels of the city and then the lower levels, which follow the banks of
the San Antonio River with parklike walkways and all sorts of shops,
restaurants and wildlife. We stopped for lunch at one of the restaurants and
then went for a boat ride that takes you through all the waterways as your
pilot tells you how it all works including how during a storm they can lock up
the river, or drain it completely if it begins to flood the city. He also told us all
Today's history lesson involved learning all about The Alamo. In the 1700's
it was called Mission San Antonio de Valero and was home to missionaries
Spanish military stationed a cavalry unit at the former mission and the name
was changed to the Alamo which is Spanish for cottonwood in honor of their
hometown Alamo de Parras. During this time they also established a
hospital on the site which was the first in Texas. In December of 1835,
during the Texas Revolution, Ben Milam led the Texan and Tejano
volunteers against the Mexican troops that were currently occupying the
Alamo and forced them to surrender only to return to battle with Santa
Anna's army two months later, when Anna and his men scaled the walls and
overtook the Alamo after 13 days of gruesome battles. The grounds of the
Alamo are kept up to preserve it's look from the 1800's, including the
cannons that were added and the hospital used during the battles and
thereafter. Once we finished touring the Alamo, we walked through the
upper levels of the city and then the lower levels, which follow the banks of
the San Antonio River with parklike walkways and all sorts of shops,
restaurants and wildlife. We stopped for lunch at one of the restaurants and
then went for a boat ride that takes you through all the waterways as your
pilot tells you how it all works including how during a storm they can lock up
the river, or drain it completely if it begins to flood the city. He also told us all
the different historical scenes of the San Antonio area, and even a few Hollywood ones, including the Bell Stage where a part of Miss Congeniality was filmed. He
completly from the roots and trunk of a single tree and another tree growing straight out of the side of one of the restaurants. Since it is Spring, there were all
completly from the roots and trunk of a single tree and another tree growing straight out of the side of one of the restaurants. Since it is Spring, there were all
sorts of ducklings swimming along the river and even a momma suck still sitting on her unhatched eggs. The boat ride was a little over 40 minutes long and
finished up floating through the middle of the town mall. Since the Final Four of the NCAA will be playing here at the Alamodome this weekend, there were all
sorts of basketball players walking through the mall. The were pretty easy to pick out since they were all about 4 feet taller than me. Luckily we will be out of town
before the big crowds begin to storm the city. Weekdays really are the greatest times to play tourist.
completly from the roots and trunk of a single tree and another tree growing straight out of the side of one of the restaurants. Since it is Spring, there were all
completly from the roots and trunk of a single tree and another tree growing straight out of the side of one of the restaurants. Since it is Spring, there were all
sorts of ducklings swimming along the river and even a momma suck still sitting on her unhatched eggs. The boat ride was a little over 40 minutes long and
finished up floating through the middle of the town mall. Since the Final Four of the NCAA will be playing here at the Alamodome this weekend, there were all
sorts of basketball players walking through the mall. The were pretty easy to pick out since they were all about 4 feet taller than me. Luckily we will be out of town
before the big crowds begin to storm the city. Weekdays really are the greatest times to play tourist.
April 4th - The Windsong Way Twins -
Recently, a darling set of twins was hatched to a beautiful set of Sandhill
Crane parents at The Great Outdoors. These twins were hatched right on
our very street. Twins are very rare with sandhill cranes so the entire
neighborhood has created a special bond with these beauties and is
keeping us informed on all their goings on. They are a little over a month
old now and doing great. The picture on the left is of them at about two
weeks old, check out their crazy wobbly legs. The picture on the right was
about two days ago. I think the daddy was the one that walked up our
driveway while we were home looking for food for his expectant bride since
the neighbors say he has gotten very friendly.
Recently, a darling set of twins was hatched to a beautiful set of Sandhill
Crane parents at The Great Outdoors. These twins were hatched right on
our very street. Twins are very rare with sandhill cranes so the entire
neighborhood has created a special bond with these beauties and is
keeping us informed on all their goings on. They are a little over a month
old now and doing great. The picture on the left is of them at about two
weeks old, check out their crazy wobbly legs. The picture on the right was
about two days ago. I think the daddy was the one that walked up our
driveway while we were home looking for food for his expectant bride since
the neighbors say he has gotten very friendly.
April 14th - Albuquerque, New Mexico - Get Your Kicks on Route 66 -
As we head East it's always amazing to see the scenery change. Las Vegas is rather flat with not much to see with it's lack of greenery. Once you hit New
Mexico and enter Texas it goes back to the flat desert look of Nevada, but a little more green begins to appear. Last night we stopped off at a great spot just off
Route 66 where they have an enormous lot, just for RVs to park for the night at no charge. I took a walk this morning to see what else was around, but quickly
headed back home since the temperature was 37 degrees and no amount of arm pumping or speed walking seemed to warm me up. As we drove today both
Bradley and Abbey sat out with me playing with the blocks and enjoying the pretty mountain views. It's so nice when everyone gets along in the bird world.
As we head East it's always amazing to see the scenery change. Las Vegas is rather flat with not much to see with it's lack of greenery. Once you hit New
Mexico and enter Texas it goes back to the flat desert look of Nevada, but a little more green begins to appear. Last night we stopped off at a great spot just off
Route 66 where they have an enormous lot, just for RVs to park for the night at no charge. I took a walk this morning to see what else was around, but quickly
headed back home since the temperature was 37 degrees and no amount of arm pumping or speed walking seemed to warm me up. As we drove today both
Bradley and Abbey sat out with me playing with the blocks and enjoying the pretty mountain views. It's so nice when everyone gets along in the bird world.
April 7th - Las Vegas, Nevada - A Night with the Nephews -
Our dear friends Chris and Karolyn have a passion for rescuing Basset Hounds. Dudley, who is about 15 years old, Louie who is 5 or so, and the newest addition
to their family is George, who is not yet a year old. Not having met George until this visit, we were anxious to meet our newest nephew, so Chris and Karolyn's was
the first stop on our list once we hit town. Frank and I brought them some puppy cookies to celebrate the new pup, and to our surprise the three nephews had a
toy for the birds as well. It is a small blue ball that as soon as it rolls it begins to talk. It says things like "Come here puppy!" and "Hey, that tickles, don't do that"
when you poke it and then it laughs. Bradley took to the new toy right away and staked claim quickly. In fact when Abbey went to play with it, Bradley ran at her as
if to say "get away from my toy." Needless to say since it does talk and laugh and growl and bark it is only allowed to be played with for about an hour at a time to
keep Mommy same and all the birds alive. Chris' parents came over for dinner and brought their little dog Billy. Billy was very curious about Bradley and watched
him very closely all night. She would get as close as she could without him biting her little nose, and when Frank would stand up with Bradley on his shoulder Billy
would leap into the air about a foot and a half to try her darndest to get as close to him as she could. We adults were laughing so hard at her. The picture turned
out great. She is farther off the ground than she is tall. We had a nice dinner outside with all three dogs sleeping in their puppy beds by the pool.
Our dear friends Chris and Karolyn have a passion for rescuing Basset Hounds. Dudley, who is about 15 years old, Louie who is 5 or so, and the newest addition
to their family is George, who is not yet a year old. Not having met George until this visit, we were anxious to meet our newest nephew, so Chris and Karolyn's was
the first stop on our list once we hit town. Frank and I brought them some puppy cookies to celebrate the new pup, and to our surprise the three nephews had a
toy for the birds as well. It is a small blue ball that as soon as it rolls it begins to talk. It says things like "Come here puppy!" and "Hey, that tickles, don't do that"
when you poke it and then it laughs. Bradley took to the new toy right away and staked claim quickly. In fact when Abbey went to play with it, Bradley ran at her as
if to say "get away from my toy." Needless to say since it does talk and laugh and growl and bark it is only allowed to be played with for about an hour at a time to
keep Mommy same and all the birds alive. Chris' parents came over for dinner and brought their little dog Billy. Billy was very curious about Bradley and watched
him very closely all night. She would get as close as she could without him biting her little nose, and when Frank would stand up with Bradley on his shoulder Billy
would leap into the air about a foot and a half to try her darndest to get as close to him as she could. We adults were laughing so hard at her. The picture turned
out great. She is farther off the ground than she is tall. We had a nice dinner outside with all three dogs sleeping in their puppy beds by the pool.
George and Louie nap outside with the boys
Bradley plays with his toy as Abbey watches
Free camping, always a great thing!
April 17th - The Motorhome hits 200,000 miles - Dickson, Tennessee -
Our faithful bus has hit a milestone. Well actually not quite, since everyone who has ever been around these
motorhomes has told us that at 200,000 miles the motorhome has just been broken in and should give us many more
hundreds of thousands of miles. All I have to say is I hope those words go straight from their mouths to God's ears!
When we bought our house it had 125,000 miles, so we haven't actually put too many miles on it compared to the
previous owner, but hopefully someday we will have put more miles on it then it came with. By then there may not be too
much of this great country we haven't seen. As we scan the horizon in front of us, which happens to be the outskirts of
Nashville, Tennessee, we realize to our amazement and happiness, that we are becoming quite familiar with this part of
the country. The eastern side of Tennessee is one of the most beautiful drives we encounter. In just a few miles we will
head down I-24 towards Chattanooga, where the views get even more beautiful due to all the trees with their multitudes
of colors and flowers everywhere and the numerous waterfalls that line the side of the highways in the rocks.
Our faithful bus has hit a milestone. Well actually not quite, since everyone who has ever been around these
motorhomes has told us that at 200,000 miles the motorhome has just been broken in and should give us many more
hundreds of thousands of miles. All I have to say is I hope those words go straight from their mouths to God's ears!
When we bought our house it had 125,000 miles, so we haven't actually put too many miles on it compared to the
previous owner, but hopefully someday we will have put more miles on it then it came with. By then there may not be too
much of this great country we haven't seen. As we scan the horizon in front of us, which happens to be the outskirts of
Nashville, Tennessee, we realize to our amazement and happiness, that we are becoming quite familiar with this part of
the country. The eastern side of Tennessee is one of the most beautiful drives we encounter. In just a few miles we will
head down I-24 towards Chattanooga, where the views get even more beautiful due to all the trees with their multitudes
of colors and flowers everywhere and the numerous waterfalls that line the side of the highways in the rocks.
April 17th - Chattanooga, Tennessee - A Walk in the Park -
We are settled here in beautiful Chattanooga, and since our sweet birds have been cooped up for three days while we drove, we promised them lots of fresh air
once we got here, so we all, minus Bradley who hates being outside, let alone walking through unknown territory, set out for a walk around the park and the lakes
nearby. As we approached one of the lakes, we noticed a momma duck in the tall grass with what appeared to be two or three babies from a distance. As we
approached, more and more little heads began to pop up out of the grass, and quickly jump into the water. They were darling how they all lined up right behind
their mother in a perfect line and scooted across the lake. Every so often the trail of babies would get a ways away from their momma, and they would all start to
run across the water to catch up, which would in turn cause the first run to ram into Momma's fanny. It was quite sweet to watch. On the other side of the lake was
a pair of Canadian Geese. One looked as though he was pointing at the flock of baby ducks and talking about them since his wing was outstretched and he was
hollering about something. Tonight we will meet up with our friends Kate and Joel who moved here almost a year ago with their little girl Lily, can't wait to see them.
We are settled here in beautiful Chattanooga, and since our sweet birds have been cooped up for three days while we drove, we promised them lots of fresh air
once we got here, so we all, minus Bradley who hates being outside, let alone walking through unknown territory, set out for a walk around the park and the lakes
nearby. As we approached one of the lakes, we noticed a momma duck in the tall grass with what appeared to be two or three babies from a distance. As we
approached, more and more little heads began to pop up out of the grass, and quickly jump into the water. They were darling how they all lined up right behind
their mother in a perfect line and scooted across the lake. Every so often the trail of babies would get a ways away from their momma, and they would all start to
run across the water to catch up, which would in turn cause the first run to ram into Momma's fanny. It was quite sweet to watch. On the other side of the lake was
a pair of Canadian Geese. One looked as though he was pointing at the flock of baby ducks and talking about them since his wing was outstretched and he was
hollering about something. Tonight we will meet up with our friends Kate and Joel who moved here almost a year ago with their little girl Lily, can't wait to see them.
The ducks wanted nothing to do with our bread
April 22nd - La Hacienda Restaurant - Commerce, Georgia -
What started out as Frank and I going to dinner with friends Len and Ellie to celebrate both of our wedding anniversaries at a great Mexican restaurant across
from the Dragstrip, ended up being quite the celebration with 25 of our friends from the NHRA circuit, that we travel with throughout the year, with a couple
birthdays added to the celebratory evening. We had such a fabulous time with grande margaritas and the best homemade salsa and freshly baked chips
anywhere East of the Mississippi. This weekend's race in Atlanta is historically one of the wettest races of the year, which translates to lots of rain delays, so cross
you fingers and hope that not only do both of our teams get in the race, but we get all the necessary rounds in and not have to be here after Sunday night.
What started out as Frank and I going to dinner with friends Len and Ellie to celebrate both of our wedding anniversaries at a great Mexican restaurant across
from the Dragstrip, ended up being quite the celebration with 25 of our friends from the NHRA circuit, that we travel with throughout the year, with a couple
birthdays added to the celebratory evening. We had such a fabulous time with grande margaritas and the best homemade salsa and freshly baked chips
anywhere East of the Mississippi. This weekend's race in Atlanta is historically one of the wettest races of the year, which translates to lots of rain delays, so cross
you fingers and hope that not only do both of our teams get in the race, but we get all the necessary rounds in and not have to be here after Sunday night.
April 19th - Dinner with the Treicks - Lookout Mountain, Georgia -
At the top of Lookout Mountain we found the quaint little neighborhood of Kate, Joel and Lily along with her up and coming little brother, Jack. All the homes here
have such character and are all unique to each other versus the cookie cutter tract homes most of the country is accustomed too. We had fun playing with little
Lily before she headed for bed and then once tucked away for the night, Kate prepared a delicious dinner that we all enjoyed along with their friends Mary and
Steve as we caught up each others happenings since we last were together. It's always wonderful to be able to meet up with good friends across the country To
see more photos of our fun weekend and all the adventures of the Treick family, visit their blog at www.treick2008.blogspot.com.
At the top of Lookout Mountain we found the quaint little neighborhood of Kate, Joel and Lily along with her up and coming little brother, Jack. All the homes here
have such character and are all unique to each other versus the cookie cutter tract homes most of the country is accustomed too. We had fun playing with little
Lily before she headed for bed and then once tucked away for the night, Kate prepared a delicious dinner that we all enjoyed along with their friends Mary and
Steve as we caught up each others happenings since we last were together. It's always wonderful to be able to meet up with good friends across the country To
see more photos of our fun weekend and all the adventures of the Treick family, visit their blog at www.treick2008.blogspot.com.
AAACCCKKK!!! A super scary sea monster!!!
Lunchtime in the stingray tank
April 20th - First Presbyterian Church -
We went to church this morning with Kate and Joel and what a gorgeous church it is. Poor Frank got lost inside of it after he dropped me off to find a parking
views as we made our way up. Kate, Lily, Frank and I took a nice long walk around the neighborhood and stopped off at Lily's grandparents house just a few
doors down. After our walk we ordered pizza and after dinner Lily and I read a few books while we all watched the Lakers beat Denver in the playoffs. Joel was so
festive, he even wore a Lakers uniform shirt. Thanks guys for being such fun hosts and tour guides.
We went to church this morning with Kate and Joel and what a gorgeous church it is. Poor Frank got lost inside of it after he dropped me off to find a parking
views as we made our way up. Kate, Lily, Frank and I took a nice long walk around the neighborhood and stopped off at Lily's grandparents house just a few
doors down. After our walk we ordered pizza and after dinner Lily and I read a few books while we all watched the Lakers beat Denver in the playoffs. Joel was so
festive, he even wore a Lakers uniform shirt. Thanks guys for being such fun hosts and tour guides.
Beautiful Rock City
and all the pretty butterflies
Frank, Ellie, Len, Vicki, Philly and Kurt
Vicki, Philly, Kurt, Ellie and our waiter Jose
Caroline, Carolyn, Richard and Helen
Carol, Diana, Betty, Dave, Ken and Steve
April 27th - Atlanta Dragway -
This race is very often nicknamed Hotlanta since the temperatures here in Atlanta can be very high and very humid. I vote that we change that nickname to
Rainlanta since all it seems to do is rain! Race cars can still race in the heat, but the rain stops everything. We won't talk about our teams and their lack of much
participation in the rounds of Sunday other than the fact that the Monster car pretty much turned into a ball of fire each time it tried to go down the track and the
guys are beside themselves about this and how to fix it from happening at the next race. Seeing the team so down in the dumps is very hard for their road mother
to watch. But on the upside, we were able to tear down our hospitality fairly early and get off of work with enough time to walk to the starting line and watch the
final round. A couple of our teammates from last year transferred over to the Matco Tools Top Fuel Dragster team this year, which is driven by Antron Brown,
which was in the final round against the Army team. Since Tony Schumacher, the driver of the Army team, and Frank have hit it off quite well and hung out a few
evenings this year with their cigars and guitars we had no favorites going into it. However, since Army is such an amazing team, and virtually impossible to beat,
unless something goes wrong with their car, watching Antron beat Tony in a hole shot, which means Antron left the starting line first and was never passed by the
perfectly working Army car to get the win, was a thing of beauty to witness live from the starting line standing by the teams cheering. Thank God the rain stopped.
This race is very often nicknamed Hotlanta since the temperatures here in Atlanta can be very high and very humid. I vote that we change that nickname to
Rainlanta since all it seems to do is rain! Race cars can still race in the heat, but the rain stops everything. We won't talk about our teams and their lack of much
participation in the rounds of Sunday other than the fact that the Monster car pretty much turned into a ball of fire each time it tried to go down the track and the
guys are beside themselves about this and how to fix it from happening at the next race. Seeing the team so down in the dumps is very hard for their road mother
to watch. But on the upside, we were able to tear down our hospitality fairly early and get off of work with enough time to walk to the starting line and watch the
final round. A couple of our teammates from last year transferred over to the Matco Tools Top Fuel Dragster team this year, which is driven by Antron Brown,
which was in the final round against the Army team. Since Tony Schumacher, the driver of the Army team, and Frank have hit it off quite well and hung out a few
evenings this year with their cigars and guitars we had no favorites going into it. However, since Army is such an amazing team, and virtually impossible to beat,
unless something goes wrong with their car, watching Antron beat Tony in a hole shot, which means Antron left the starting line first and was never passed by the
perfectly working Army car to get the win, was a thing of beauty to witness live from the starting line standing by the teams cheering. Thank God the rain stopped.
The Treick's home neslted in the mountains
Sweet Lily entertained us all before dinner
April 18th - The Tennessee Aquarium - Chattanooga Tennessee -
Lily met up with Frank and I at the ever fun Tennessee Aquarium today
and played tour guide along her mother Kate. The four of us had a great
time. Lily and Frank especially enjoyed playing in the petting tank. Frank
liked to pet the stingrays and fish, while Lily just liked to splash in the water
and laugh. Next after the petting tank, and a little drying off, we headed
into the butterfly area. They have hundreds of the most amazing
butterflies. So may different colors and so many sizes. They were a bit
tricky to photograph since they didn't sit still for too long, but they were
awesome to watch. Next came the penguin encounter. It appeared that
second to the petting tank the penguins were quite intriguing to sweet Miss
Lily. She loved running around from one area to the next looking at all the
fun swimming friends. One of the penguins floated right above us watching
her for a good 5 minutes. As our underwater adventure continued, our
fearless tour guides led us into the deep waters of the oceans where there
were all sorts of sharks, beautiful tropical fish, seahorses in every size
along with every other inhabitant of the great blue seas that one could
imagine and even a few that we never even knew existed. For example,
one thing I had never seen before was the ever intriguing seahorse to the
right. It looks more like a piece of seaweed that has come to life than an
animal, but when a predator is looking for lunch he has a great
camouflaged cover.
Lily met up with Frank and I at the ever fun Tennessee Aquarium today
and played tour guide along her mother Kate. The four of us had a great
time. Lily and Frank especially enjoyed playing in the petting tank. Frank
liked to pet the stingrays and fish, while Lily just liked to splash in the water
and laugh. Next after the petting tank, and a little drying off, we headed
into the butterfly area. They have hundreds of the most amazing
butterflies. So may different colors and so many sizes. They were a bit
tricky to photograph since they didn't sit still for too long, but they were
awesome to watch. Next came the penguin encounter. It appeared that
second to the petting tank the penguins were quite intriguing to sweet Miss
Lily. She loved running around from one area to the next looking at all the
fun swimming friends. One of the penguins floated right above us watching
her for a good 5 minutes. As our underwater adventure continued, our
fearless tour guides led us into the deep waters of the oceans where there
were all sorts of sharks, beautiful tropical fish, seahorses in every size
along with every other inhabitant of the great blue seas that one could
imagine and even a few that we never even knew existed. For example,
one thing I had never seen before was the ever intriguing seahorse to the
right. It looks more like a piece of seaweed that has come to life than an
animal, but when a predator is looking for lunch he has a great
camouflaged cover.