Gary & Diane's Adventures

We're Home!

2011-08-20T18:11:00.000-07:00

We made it back to our house by 1:30 on Saturday. Dogs immediately went into the pool, of course. Then into their beloved crates.

We found lots of ripe cherry tomatoes.

And our Naked Lady lily bloomed! First time in several years.

I learned something about our blog--if you click on a photo, it will get bigger so you can see more detail. Try it on Mt. St. Helens. You'll be able to see the smoke/ash clearly.
It is good to be home, even if it is a bit on the hot side. RV is almost ready to put away for the winter and the laundry is going for Gary's next fishing trip.

Almost Home

2011-08-19T19:50:00.000-07:00

Tonight we are at a nice RV park in Redding called Mountain Gate RV Park. Gary is enjoying the hot tub they installed a week ago.

Tom, you will be happy to know they let us bring our dahlia bouquet into California. In fact, the inspector asked if we were going to the Dahlia Show--I guess a lot of flowers had passed thru today.

The only clouds we saw all day were as we came over the Siskyou Pass. Beautiful drive, but we sure aren't ready for this heat.

Mount Shasta looks totally different than in June when it was completely snow covered.

Lake Shasta was full in June and look how low it is now.

I accomplished a real feat today--for my feet. I finished my black socks. I will never knit with black yarn again! Can't see the stitches so no fun. Tomorrow I'll start on a fun yarn for a new pair of socks as we wend our way home.

Busy time at Mom's

2011-08-18T20:34:00.000-07:00

We got to Mom's on Sunday night. Monday it was lab work in Bellevue. Tuesday was errands and company for dinner. Wednesday was a doctor appt in Bellevue. She will have one more surgery, this time for a parathyroid tumor, in Sept. We learned that the neighbor two houses from her had a break in and they beat him severely when he told them he didn't have any cash at home. Gary installed a peep hole in her door and we are now working on talking her into getting a dog. Preferably one that barks. The neighbors are all worried they will start going house to house since the police haven't caught them.

Last night our nephew, Stephen cooked dinner at his house for us. His view is fantastic--Bellevue in the foreground and the Cascades in the background, as you can see.

The Mountain was out all day (that is a weather report in the Seattle area and refers to being able to see Mt. Rainier). The drive home from Stephen's over the Floating bridge was gorgeous--you can see Lake Washington on the right and the Olympic Mts. ahead of us. Don't worry--I wasn't driving--this was taken from the backseat of Mom's van with Gary driving.

This morning, while I cleaned up Mom's house, Gary decided to hook up the car by himself and as he drove the RV around Mom's backyard he hit a bump. Unfortunately, he had forgotten to bungie cord the dish cupboard. Had a bit of a mess to clean up that set us back a bit in departure time. Only a few dishes were broken--looked worse than it was.

Our timing was still not too bad and we met Norm and Barb in Tacoma (Fife, actually) for a quick visit and lunch at a cute little spot with great food.

They brought us these beautiful flowers from their yard. Harbor Freight is across the street from our RV park, so we bought a bucket to carry them home. They had been sitting in our shower in a dish pan as we left Tacoma and we really wanted to be able to see them, not to mention reclaiming our shower for its usual use.

We were delighted to see Mt. St.Helens as we drove toward Portland. If you look closely you can see a little tuft of smoke (ash?) on the top right of the mountain. It was a great trip for seeing mountains. Only had a few drops of rain as we left Astoria, then cool sunny weather the rest of the trip.

We're back at Hee Hee Ilahee in Salem tonight. Yreka or Redding tomorrow with any luck.

Astoria Regatta

2011-08-14T21:28:00.000-07:00

Our weekend in Astoria was fantastic and busy. We had a great time watching the parade.

Astoria's float won first prize in the Portland Rose Parade.

Love the name of this band--they were pretty good, too.

There were three different bagpipe bands--all wonderful. And this sweet poodle got a dye job just for watching the parade.

We had just enough time to rush home to the RV, walk the dogs and change clothes for the Mayor's Ball Cruise. It was very nice and LOTS of Gary's relatives were there. As we waited to board, this Coast Guard helicopter arrived and demonstrated how they lower someone into the water for a rescue and then showed us how they pull him back up. You can see him dangling just above the water. Fascinating!

Later in the cruise we looked outside to see this Pilot boat (they pilot the huge ships over the Columbia River bar) going around in circles, basically doing a boat version of "wheelies".

To finish off the evening the Regatta sponsored fireworks over the water--spectacular!

This house is typical of an ordinary Astoria house, except for the color. Many of the houses are this vintage. It is a darling town with a relaxing atmosphere and very nice sleeping weather.

Today we went to the Astoria Farmer's Market and got a few items, then headed out to Seattle. A huge traffic jam made the usual 4 hour trip into a 6 hour trip. The dogs were so happy to get to Grandma's big yard and so were we. This is their favorite part of the trip.

An Education in Blackberries

2011-08-12T20:32:00.000-07:00

I'm not talking about the cell phone kind. I'm talking about the kind you eat. Today we drove out to Youngs River Falls--what a wonderful sight!

As we hiked down the hill to the falls we saw all three kinds of blackberries we know. The kind we can buy in California are Himalayan. Up here the weather has been so cold they aren't ripe yet (I found three ripe ones in a huge patch this morning). These are Himalayan leaves.

The larger berry in the red dish is Himalayan. The smaller berries are wild blackberries.

Another kind is Evergreen--they have spikier leaves and a slighty smaller berry, but taste very similar to Himalayan. We only saw green ones today.

The best ones and hardest to find are the tiny wild blackberries. They are a joy to eat and almost impossible to find, even where they used to be prolific. To find two black ones on our hike was so exciting! They hold a burst of flavor in that tiny berry. What a wonderful trip back down Memory Lane.

We also saw Blackcaps that weren't ripe yet. They are similar to raspberries in the way you pick them. We are just missing out on some great berries by being too early.

Red Huckleberries are the "real" huckleberries of the Pacific NW. This bush was out of reach or I would have had a ball picking them. These are also hard to find nowadays. If you squint you can see the red berries in this photo.

We got back in time to go to the Portland Rosarian's Knighting and Rose Planting Ceremony at the Flavel House garden. It was quite grand and very interesting and COLD! I sat there thinking how nice it was to be chilly (a high of 66 degrees and sunny) rather than sweating like we would be at home.

Then it was rush back to change for the Admiral's reception for 800 people at the Maritime Museum where we saw a lot of relatives, some Gary had never met, but they knew his folks. As we stood in line outside we heard the most amazing group of kids playing marimbas. They were from little Knappa, OR and could they ever play! Awesome! It was such a fun day.

One tidbit that was announced today was the Astoria Little League team is in the Little League World Series this week! This small town does great things!

A New Route

2011-08-11T23:00:00.000-07:00

We began our day getting to know the family traveling in this rig. They are a couple just a little younger than us who have adopted 8 kids ranging in age from 2 years to high school. All the kids are at least part Indian. They are taking 7 of them on a fantastic trip that began in Anchorage, where they live. They flew down to Salem and rented this rig, two trucks and a whole slew of bikes. They will travel the West Coast, but no Disneyland for them--they will see historic sites and geographical wonders. The kids were so polite and well-behaved except the 3 year old who is the cutest Dennis the Menace look alike you've even seen--and he behaves like Dennis, as well. It was fun and inspiring to get to know them.

Then we headed out on the days travels. It has been a long time since we have driven the Portland route to Astoria. After we left Beaverton and as we drove thru all the farmland and berry fields, Gary said he's been wanting to take an alternate route to Astoria, so I said, "why not? Today is the day we have plenty of time."

So we turned off toward Vernonia. We drove thru Vernonia, Mist (never could find the town of Mist), Berkefeld and

Olney.

There is an Elk Preserve outside Olney and we were lucky to see a herd of Elk even though it was the middle of the afternoon. They usually only come out of the woods at dusk.

We drove around lots of S curves and saw a gazillion lumber trucks. It was a beautiful drive.

We completed the day by going to the Regatta Queen coronation in the old Liberty Theater that has been beautifully restored. There was amazing entertainment and we were impressed by how exacting the expectations are for the Regatta Royal Court. Being a Rodeo Princess was a lot easier. We spent some time with Mike and Julie and both their kids, Lisa and Nick. It was a real treat to see them.

Yum and Yuck

2011-08-10T15:34:00.000-07:00

The yucky part first--as I was happily walking the dogs this morning in Medford, I felt a "plop" right in the middle of my scalp. Looked up and there was a bird sitting on a phone line that obviously thought I'd be a great subject for target practice. Gary got the worst of it out with a paper towel, but the next thing I am doing is washing my hair now that we have arrived in Salem for the night.

Once again, we couldn't resist staying at this RV Park. The name is such fun to say and the address is Astoria Street. It just seems so appropriate on our way to Astoria.

California has actually finished some fabulous roadwork from about Red Bluff to the border! These smooth lanes were a treat for the RV and us.

The Yum part of this blog is blackberries. I found a huge patch and while the dogs waited patiently for the rest of their walk, I picked enough berries for a pie when we get to Mom's. Her favorite snack is berry pie--any kind of berries.

Tomorrow we are off to Astoria for the 200th anniversary celebration of Astoria as a city--oldest city west of the Mississippi!

Home Safe and Sound

2011-06-29T20:27:00.001-07:00

It was a long day, but we are home and the RV is empty and Tule has already been in the pool. Elsie's priority was to crawl into her crate. Even dogs have their preferences.

The drive today was so interesting with all the amazing cloud formations to see--and no rain.

Lake Shasta was the greenest I've ever seen it.

We drove past what we call the "Lollipop Truck Store". They have every color of truck you can imagine, except plain black or white. The royal blue and lime green ones didn't make it into the photo, but they were there!

One last interesting tidbit had to wait until we got home. In Fred Meyer in Roseburg, OR we saw the biggest marshmallows we had ever seen. Had to buy a bag. On the left is a typical California Marshmallow. On the right is the Oregon gigantaur Marshmallow. Neither of these is a mini-marshmallow, honest.

Now begins the reality of dealing with the insurance regarding the break in. Sigh.

Yarn Country

2011-06-28T21:36:00.000-07:00

Southern Oregon has to be yarn country. We passed a zillion sheep today plus at least 2 dozen alpaca. It was a knitter's dream seeing all that potential yarn scattered along the freeway. The white dots in the field are sheep.

Gary has a quote for you--"Good old Oregon--lowest price of gas on the West Coast and they pump it for you."

Last night we fell asleep to the soothing patter of raindrops on the roof of the RV. Today we drove in and out of rain the whole way to Yreka. The clouds were amazing to see. They were super dark as we approached the Siskyous, then nice and white after we went over the summit. No rain here in Yreka.

Tonight's entertainment was a rousing game of Cribbage where Gary beat me.

Tomorrow--home sweet home.

Finally heading home

2011-06-27T21:35:00.000-07:00

It took awhile to get going this morning. I got up early and made Mom her favorite cinnamon rolls. Then we needed to go to a bank to try to solve a puzzle. We finally got on the road about 1 p.m.

The drive was beautiful, even though we had a bit of rain as we loaded the RV. Mt. St.Helens was out in her full glory as we drove south.

We decided to stay in Salem and I found an RV park on Astoria St. Had to be good if it was on a street named after Gary's hometown. As you can see by the sign it is the Hee Hee Ilahee RV Park-and they are very fussy. It is new and no RV can stay if more than 10 years old.

Turns out it has a very nice hot tub so Gary had a nice soak after his long day of driving.

Another two days and we'll be home, ready to hit the ground running on cleaning the rest of the way up after the break in.

Last night at Mom's

2011-06-26T21:48:00.000-07:00

Today was a gorgeous day--mountains were out in both directions--Olympics and Cascades.

We went to church this morning with Mom, then shopped to fill her frig.

Her neighbor, Johnnie, came over for dinner.

Elsie is feeling better so she spent much of the day down by the barn looking at the goat and the horse. Tule had a ball running back and forth keeping tabs on everybody.

It has been a good trip. Mom is doing very well and has a good prognosis. I am pooped and ready to head home where we'll pick up where we left off dealing with our break in.

Merry Christmas?

2011-06-25T22:40:00.000-07:00

Lutefisk and Lefse is a traditional Christmas dinner--and that is what we had tonight. It was great--Gary tried baking the lutefisk and it came out perfect and a lot less mess. Three people ate all 4 pounds of lutefisk. I have never seen my mother eat so much food at one setting before in my life! The lefse I made was a hit. We all love lefse. I've never served lefse and had no leftovers before, but it was all gone tonight.

Earlier today the yellow bird came back and showed us his back. We were able to identify him as a yellow goldfinch. What a beautiful bird. When they fly away, they do beautiful dips and swirls.

We hope to get to church tomorrow if Mom can wake up soon enough. It was a busy, fun day.

Soothing Rain

2011-06-24T20:36:00.000-07:00

I love being able to hear it rain. Our house is too well insulated, but the RV is perfect for listening to the rain--and we had a lot of it last night. It was such a nice night.

Yesterday was busy all day long with nothing to talk about--plumbing, getting locks changed, hearing aids boosted, etc.

Today Mom got her stitches out and permission to do whatever she wants except soak in a tub. We also did a lot of errands so were gone almost all day.

These beautiful birds came to Mom's birdfeeder--sorry the photo isn't clearer--when I tried to move closer, they flew away and haven't come back yet. We've also been enjoying watching Mama bird teach baby bird how to feed himself bird seed. Today she decided he should feed himself.

Tomorrow family friends are coming over for Lutefisk and Lefse and Swedish meatballs--got the meatballs made tonight. Now I get to collapse with a glass of wine.

Summer is over

2011-06-22T22:04:00.000-07:00

It was a quick summer here in Edmonds--75 degrees yesterday, 59 degrees today.

Gary and Doug enjoyed the cooler weather and played golf today. They look a bit like the Bobsey twins in their matching outfits, don't they?

The most exciting moment of the trip was when the crows started having a very loud fit this evening and we discovered a bald eagle in Mom's tree! The crows were dive bombing it and it just stayed on the same perch. The black blob is the eagle. The close up is fuzzier, but shows the eagle as close as my iPhone could get it. This is the first time we've ever seen an eagle around here!

Summer came today!

2011-06-21T21:42:00.000-07:00

It was a beautiful Seattle summer day today--about 75 degrees here in Edmonds. I heard it got to 80 in the U district, closer to downtown Seattle. There were a few clouds, but the view was still beautiful looking from Edmonds past the ferry to the Olympic Mts.

The dogs got to go in the barn to see the goat and horse. They are so cute together--very good friends. Elsie is really intrigued with them. Tule just seems to think they are more dogs, nothing to get excited about.

Mom and I did errands and some shopping today. Gary planted a rose bush and a rhodie for her this morning and now has some bedding plants to put in pots. This is not meant to be a restful trip that's for sure!

Fun Filled Day with the Peterson cousins

2011-06-19T21:38:00.000-07:00

We had a really super day today. Gary's brother's daughters all came to visit--two who have kids brought them. We had so much fun. The girls are all sweethearts and their kids had a good time, two boys, one 4 year old girl and a baby girl.

We fed the horse and goat--thank goodness the rain held back for the day.

Young Alan loves sports and is quite a climber.

Anders enjoyed feeding the animals in Mom's pasture.

Solveig is a beauty and has a great imagination.

Little Abigail will be keeping up with them all soon.

It was a really cute parade as the kids followed Gary (the Pied Piper?) up to see the RV.

You couldn't ask for a better day!

Baking Day

2011-06-18T20:15:00.000-07:00

Busy day today--got up early to make Mom's favorite cinnamon rolls. Then a batch of shortbread for dessert on Sunday. A loaf of white bread followed, also for Sunday. Interspersed was 4 batches of laundry and setting Mom's hair.

Then the real work began--the messy job. It was time to make lefse at Mom's request. She wants to have a lutefisk and lefse party while we are here, with me making the lefse, of course. Gary did the turning and I did the rolling and 23 pieces of lefse was the outcome.

Elsie is still limping, but feels much better on her pain pills. She wanted to play with Tule, which is a good sign. But she will be sleeping in the house again while Tule sleeps with us in the RV. No more stairs for Elsie until we load her up to leave. She's going to think Grandma's house means a trip to the vet up here. Sheesh.

Friday

2011-06-17T20:18:00.000-07:00

My sister came over and the two of us went to the Edmonds Art Show--I guess it is THE premier art show in the Pacific NW. She bought two items, I just looked, although these fish tempted me. It was fun to see all the great artwork, much of it with a Pacific NW theme.

Gary got more earrings made from my necklaces. I feel like I am in good shape for jewelry now.

Poor Elsie spent the day at the vet--being x-rayed and getting pain pills. She is limping worse every day. He didn't see anything broken, is hoping it is just a bad sprain, but he is sending it to his radiologist on Monday and we will take his x-rays back to the vet who did her surgery when we get home unless she has a dramatic recovery. She is still doped up, just like Grandma. They make quite a pair.

Mom is doing well, but is sleeping most of the time just like I do after anesthesia. No pain pills since she left the hospital.

Mom

2011-06-16T21:14:00.000-07:00

Mom's lumpectomy went well today. We were there from 7 a.m. until 3:20 p.m. Left the house at 6:15 a.m. and got back at 4:15 p.m. Long day and we are pooped. Mom is sound asleep, healing as she sleeps. I had plenty of time to finish one sock and start on another while I waited for the various procedures to finish.

Poor Elsie had so much fun when we first got here, then somehow she injured the same leg as last time. I guess a trip to the vet is in order tomorrow to at least get her pain pills, if not find out what she did. She is acting more lame every day, poor baby. She has been thru so much this past year.

It'll be early to bed tonight. I'll be checking on Mom every couple of hours all night long.

What a great guy!

2011-06-15T21:26:00.000-07:00

My dear hubby worked on my necklaces while Mom and I were at her pre-op appt. today. He took them apart and I now have earrings to match 3 of my necklaces! I am really happy about these. It means I will have matching sets that I can start wearing right away!

The flowers are so beautiful around here--the rain keeps them very happy. This huge rhodie is typical of this area.

Mom's surgery will be at 11 a.m. tomorrow--but we have to be there at 7:30 a.m., which means we need to leave the house by about 6:15. Aaack! I'll be glad when tomorrow is over. I'm taking along a lot of knitting to keep me busy. I hope to finish a few projects.

at Mom's

2011-06-14T22:02:00.002-07:00

We got to Mom's before dark and the dogs were delighted. Elsie ran so much she was exhausted. She headed for the barn to see the horse and got her first glimpse of the goat. Wow! Then she barked for the horse to come out (he had already gone to bed in the barn). She was so happy when she finally got to see him.

Today Mom wore me out driving her to banks, the eye dr, etc. My nephew Stephen brought dinner over and cooked it for us so we had a chance to see him.

Travel Day

2011-06-13T18:07:00.000-07:00

Gary drove thru mist and rain all morning. The rain helps the coast of Oregon grow gorgeous flowers. There were rhododendrons in almost every yard. It really is breathtaking beauty.

We stopped in Astoria for lunch with yet more extended family, Gary's cousins, Mike and Julie. Had a great time catching up and planning for our visit with them in August for the Regatta and more of Astoria's 200th Birthday Celebration as a city.

Gary decided to try a new route so we left Astoria by driving over the big bridge to Washington, then drove along the Columbia River to Longview, past Cathlamet. It was a beautiful route, but very curvy. Elsie wasn't thrilled with our choice of road.

I am really enjoying my iPhone. Right now it is my wifi connection to my computer so I can blog as Gary drives thru Tacoma and on to Seattle. Of course, all the photos on this site have been taken by it, too.

We will be at Mom's tonight, hopefully before dark.

Clouston Family Day

2011-06-12T22:46:00.000-07:00

Today was the day set aside just for my brother and his family--and it was Monte's birthday which made it even more fun.

We made it to the beach so those most industrious could climb the sand dune and run back down. That would be Brenda, Josh and Alex. The dots in the photo are people climbing the huge dune.

Josh had a great idea to use an old toboggan to slide down the hill. Didn't work too well, kind of slid in very slow motion, but Tule learned how to be a sled dog pulling it back to the RV park.

Then we had the height test photo op--Brenda comes just about to Gary's armpit. She was kind of glad he hadn't done any of the hiking as she stood in place for the photo.

Came back to our RV's because there was no wind for kite flying and the rain had started. We played Mexican Train until time to go out to dinner to celebrate Monte's birthday, then back for another rousing round of Mexican Train.

It was a fun day in spite of the rain. We have a great family!

And here's a photo of all six of us at dinner.

Another Fun Family Day

2011-06-11T22:15:00.000-07:00

Dinner with Alan and Karen was great last night. This morning we met them at the Pig 'n Pan in Newport for what has become our traditional departing meal. Love that restaurant and we caught up on more family info (gossip?). It was a fun visit.

Then we made the short trek to Camp Kiwanda near Pacific City. Haystack Rock is the huge land formation out in the ocean. We have beautiful weather and a wonderful clean beach to enjoy.

We bought kites for the boys and we all enjoyed watching Josh and Alex fly them. In the photos we have Gary helping Alex

and Monte helping Josh.

And the dogs didn't get any attention at all--uh huh. They are loving being with their extended family, too. Brenda is snuggling them in this photo.

Alex

Josh

After a nice pizza dinner we enjoyed toasting marshmallows around a cozy campfire while the dogs checked out the bunnies that live at this camp.

Peterson Family Day

2011-06-10T14:32:00.000-07:00

Oregon roads are so much smoother than CA roads. Today has been a much nicer driving day. Elsie has not been happy this trip--kind of an upset stomach, so she is mostly happy when we stop. Tule is happy no matter what.

I sure do like my iPhone--I can use it as wifi for the computer, as well as for taking photos. I remembered my good camera and the new tripod Britta gave me for my birthday, but forgot the cord to connect it to the computer. Too much going on all week for everything to stay in my memory. All the photos on this blog were taken with my iPhone 4G! And many were taken at about 64 mph, since Gary doesn't stop for photos.

This is the view from the front of our RV at our Medford RV spot. It is the Bear River--rushing fast so we could listen to the song of the water.

The cute car was in the next site--loved the bumper sticker on it.

We had lunch in Eugene with Gary's cousin, Lynn. She looked great and we had a fun time catching up on what is going on in her life.

Tonight will be dinner at the RV with Gary's brother and his wife. Another fun family day.

We're Outa Here

2011-06-09T21:02:00.000-07:00

It was a relief to leave this time. Nice to get out of the mess that is our house, even though we have cleaned up a lot, there are still papers to go thru.

Gary experimented today--at 64 mph we only use 7 mpg--at 70 mph we use 6.4 mpg. So we drove a bit more slowly today.

It was much drier outside Redding than we expected.

But Lake Shasta is full! First time in many, many years we have seen so much water there.

And Mt. Shasta is more covered in snow than we have ever seen.

We are now in Medford right next to the river--it is absolutely beautiful.

Uffda

2011-06-09T20:37:00.001-07:00

We had a great weekend at the Vagabundos del Mar Crab Feed last weekend. Then we came home to a nasty surprise. Someone had broken into our house and really trashed the place. The photo is the office--couldn't walk thru there. The master bedroom was worse, clothes everywhere.

The police came to take a report and decided CSI was needed. The CSI was there 3 hours doing his thing. Then we got to dig thru the mess to figure out what was missing. Some was obvious right away--the silverware was gone--silverplate and sterling sets. All my earrings were gone except Easter bunnies, snowflakes and Norsk flags. They left my Solje pin, but took the matching earrings. Didn't find my necklaces. Took Gary's jewelry box. The worst two were my wedding ring and the heart necklace Gary gave me for a wedding gift.

The good part is that we now have very clean clothes, a large bag to donate and nice, neat drawers and cupboards. The hardest part is that we needed to leave Thursday (we discovered this on Sunday) so we have hit the ground running every day to get the house in some kind of order and do all the research we needed to do for the police and insurance company. Now we are on the road to Seattle.

Home Sweet Home

2010-09-18T18:15:00.001-07:00

Home has never looked so good as after last night's RV park. The dogs have been in the pool and the RV is unloaded.

I got a call from a knitter friend as Gary shopped at Cabela's Boomtown. She warned us about the bumpy road between Boomtown and Weimar. But Gary decided to brave it. We soon found out it was a scary thing to do. There were signs warning nothing over 108" could drive on i-80. We are 102" wide so Gary figured no problem. Then we ended up squeezed into this tiny section of roadway for several miles--going 20 mph because the truck way in front was nervous, as he should have been. After that the pavement alternated between brand new smooth patches and extremely bumpy spots. The dogs kept glaring at Gary like he needed to stop this silliness and drive smoothly. Gary counted 9 Hiway Patrol cars between Donner Pass and Baxter--and another 9 just before Auburn for a new record of 18 in one day!

There must have been a bit of rain in the mountains while we were gone. We were amazed at how much green we saw all the way down the hill.

We had a nice harvest from our garden to greet us.

And my knitting accomplishment for the trip was to start and finish this gorgeous scarf.

We'll sleep good in our own bed tonight and so will our girls. It was a wonderful trip, fun times with good friends, fantastic scenery, terrific weather. Life doesn't get better than this.

2010-09-17T20:16:00.000-07:00

As we headed out of Homedale, ID we noticed a LOT of corn. There was corn everywhere in every field.

After such a beautiful drive the last few days, we arrived in the high desert. There were many plateaus as we left Idaho and entered Oregon, and lots more corn.

Then it was more of the same view over and over. Lots of dryness and not much else. It got to the point that a sign like the wild looking cow and hyper deer were exciting new things to see.

We ended up on a very long straight stretch in Oregon, similar to the Loneliest Road (Hwy 50) in Nevada.

The Blue Mountain Pass (5293 feet of elevation) was barely noticeable as the view rarely varied.

We loved the name Idaho gave the washboard areas installed on the sides of the freeways--rumble bumps. These are the areas that upset Elsie so she trembles so much she vibrates. It is the perfect name for them.

Norm, we thought of you every time we saw a sign that said "6% grade". Today we saw 7% grade and really thought of you!

Today Gary got a bee in his bonnet that we should skip the nice place at Winnemucca and head to Lovelock. Well, we're here--it is a scary place--about like the one in Oregon that had the sign that said police wouldn't answer calls there. An older couple pulled in next to us and said they decided to stay here because they saw our rig--and the lady at the desk told them we stayed here all the time. This creepy place is costing $28 a night and if you want to use the shower it is another $5. We will use the shower in our rig and save the $5. I suspect we'll be gone earlier tomorrow than any day so far

Our favorite moment of the day occurred while we were walking the dogs around the block near our RV park. Two little girls were having a difficult gime holding back a little Jack Russell terrier as we wandered past. At a critical moment when they seemed to be losing control, one smiled at us and said, "Sorry, my dog likes to eat dogs that are bigger than him." At that point a young boy on a bike rushed in to save them and got control of the dog. We laughed all the way home.

Tomorrow night we hope to be home.

More Amazing Scenery

2010-09-16T19:41:00.000-07:00

We drove from Grangeville to Homedale, ID today. It was another gorgeous route filled with rustic views.

We followed the Salmon River thru Hell's Canyon (couldn't figure out where Evel Kneivel attempted his jump.)

This huge boulder in the river caused us to really think about Nature's power. We saw a sign that said we were on the Oregon Trail--more thoughts of those who endured this wilderness without the benefit of a car or RV.

There was an abundance of forest land, then we came upon lots of farms with nostalgic barns. There were more horses on this route than any other place we've stayed.

We could tell it is Autumn by the splashes of yellow in the trees and orange in the bushes along the way.

As we headed south we discovered we were driving along the Snake River. Then we found this RV park in Homedale that has given us another fantastic view out our front window of the Snake River.

As I wrote this blog we discovered the first insects of the trip--a zillion of them came in when I took the dogs out. We have been swatting them ever since.

Tomorrow we head into Nevada, one more day closer to home.

Lewis and Clark were here

2010-09-15T20:36:00.000-07:00

We started the day thinking we'd only go as far as Missoula. But we changed our minds when we got there shortly after noon.
We ended up going as far as Grangeville, ID.

As we left the campground Gary discovered the Huckleberry Patch had some kind of magnetic attraction to our RV. We ended up with a whole pie that we will nibble on a little each day in honor of my Mother's favorite afternoon snack.

Signs in this language are in several places on the Flathead Indian Reservation. We would love to know which Native Amercan tribe uses this interesting alphabet.

We bade farewell to Flathead Lake again as we drove past. It is so beautiful there we'd like to visit again.

We took Hwy 12 from Missoula into Idaho and found ourselves in the Clearwater National Forest. Lewis and Clark followed the Lochsa River that runs along Hwy 12 the whole way thru the mountains.

If you have any interest in history, this drive is beautiful, moving and inspirational. But it also is VERY curvy for about 130 miles.

The towns we passed ranged from Lowell (population 23) to Stites (pop 226). After passing trees just beginning to turn color, we found ourselves at a beautiful RV park, the Bear's Den, in Grangevale. It was a long, winding day, but so beautiful you should all make the opportunity to see it.

Whitefish

2010-09-14T21:58:00.000-07:00

It was a beautiful day for wandering around Whitefish, MT. Norm rode his bike around a bit while Gary, Barb and I went window shopping. Then the guys found a fly-fishing store while we gals enjoyed our own time.

We saw the last building Frank Lloyd Wright designed. My Dad was totally enthralled by him and the house my Mom lives in was designed by Dad to be in the Frank Lloyd Wright style.

Lodgepole pines are the dominant tree in this part of the state. It seemed strange to see a logging truck full of these skinny trees rather than the huge ones we are used to in CA.

We ordered lunch at a Pizza place that had a delightful young gal taking orders. We all enjoyed talking with her. This sign is the new Montana rule regarding customers drinking alcoholic beverages.

We then took our lunch to a lakeside park and enjoyed a very peaceful environment as we ate.

On the way home from Whitefish we found a place that served homemade huckleberry pie, so we indulged and were delighted with the wonderful new flavor treat.

Barb made another fantastic dinner which ended with a light sprinkle of rain. It was light enough that it didn't deter these Pacific Northwesterners--we just sat there and enjoyed it. Then we had a lightning show, but could not hear thunder so it was obviously far away.

Tomorrow we go our separate ways as we wind our way home. It has been a wonderful experience with long time friends.

Beautiful, Exciting Day

2010-09-13T21:20:00.000-07:00

Today was the day we drove all the way through Glacier National Park. It was a beautiful day with so much gorgeous scenery there is no way I could post all the photos.

There were beautiful wildflowers in many colors. Unfortunately there was also road construction so we knew we'd have some pauses in our adventure.

At our first rest stop we heard about an accident at the construction area. We knew we were going to have a longer pause in our trip than originally planned. A loader driver went over the side of the cliff and had to be airlifted to medical help. It had just happened before we got to the site.

We watched as they hauled him up the hill and the ambulance brought him to Logan's Pass

where the helicopter was waiting to take him to the hospital. We later learned in the split second he realized his rig was going down, he unbuckled his seatbelt and jumped free. He was about 50 yards down the steep hill, but the rig was 700-800 yards down the hill. They will bring it up tomorrow because they will not leave it in a National Park. Added a bit of excitement to our day.

We drove on thru the park, then ate lunch at a place recommended by Sunset Magazine--the Two Sisters Grill. We had a great lunch.

Then we drove on to Many Glaciers Lodge--what a fantastic place. And the animals were in a mood to pose. First we saw a group of sheep and their babies who were curious about what we were doing there (at least the baby was curious). While we rested there Gary and Norm used the binoculars to spot a Mama bear and two cubs. I actually was able to find the cubs with the binoculars!

Then we came upon the huge grandfather sheep--notice the gigantic horns on the one to the left of the photo.

We drove further down the hill and saw a group of photographers hanging around--so of course, we slowed down, too. There was a gorgeous Mt. Goat resting very close to the road--like a photo op.

After all the excitement we headed back toward our RV park. As we drove down the hill from Many Glaciers, several cows ambled out into the road to prove free range opportunities exist in publc parks.

It was a beautiful day with added excitement. As we headed home and stopped for construction we found out the fellow in the accident was lucid the whole time and is going to be all right. Phew! Made our beautiful day complete.

The Birds

2010-09-12T20:50:00.000-07:00

We left Flathead Lake--such a beautiful place.

We made our way to Glacier Park. We're staying in the West Glacier KOA--the view is not quite the same as the last park. Note the burn pile and the old dumptruck and the junk. Oh well. If we look behind us the mountains are gorgeous. We think they installed these sites backwards.

The drive today wasn't too long, but it took us past a fond memory for me. The last time I was in Kalispell was my freshman year in college for the band tour. Today we drove past the church where we performed on that tour in 1964.

We got to our RV spot in plenty of time to do some touring. We went past this beautiful stream on our way to Lake MacDonald. This is a magnificient area. I recommend it to each of you.

At the lake we saw many stacks of rock like this left by earlier travelers here.

We came back to the RV's and made dinner (thanks to Barb).

As we sat there a zillion crows circled above us over and over until they settled in for the night.

After dinner we enjoyed a beautiful campfire as we watched the stars appear.

As we were sitting here waiting for a photo to upload, a fly appeared. As Gary held the flyswatter, waiting for it, the silly thing landed on the flyswatter! And it got away because he didn't know what to do with it!

A day for fish!

2010-09-11T21:21:00.000-07:00

It was 09/11 today and the small town of Polson brought a fire truck out to hang a HUGE American flag to remind us. Barb and I realized neither of us had a flag in our rig so we found one at the local grocery store and took it back to help us remember the day.

Barb and I had a good time wandering around Polson--saw some of the 14 painters who signed in for an official painting day in Polson. We talked with four of them--one is showing us her watercolor.

Gary and Norm finally got their chance to go fishing with a guide. They both caught fish. Here you can see Norm hauling in his first fish.

Gary caught a huge one just inside the legal limit.

So we enjoyed a tasty trout dinner (we don't know why the local Mackinaw trout is pink, but it sure tasted good!

As we sat outside enjoying this wonderful dinner our view became even better with the sun beginning to go down. Life is good.

No fish

2010-09-10T21:10:00.000-07:00

Gary and Norm intended to go fishing this morning. Got up early, took their lunches and drove out to the guide's place. Barb and I made our own plans which included sleeping in. Before we could leave the RV park, they were back--no fishing because of too much wind. It was VERY windy today. So we toured beautiful downtown Polson, MT instead. That took about 10 minutes. We found some very friendly people who told us we were just too late in the year to have anything going on in Polson.

We came back, walked the dogs a few times and rested. Some of us enjoyed the hot tub at the gorgeous RV park. Then it was time to cook dinner. It was Norm and Barb's turn tonight--yummy scallops and veggie stir fry with Norm doing the hard part.

As the sun went down, it also peeked thru the clouds and we enjoyed another fantastic view.

After dinner Gary asked Norm to help him figure out why we can't get all the tv channels on our RV tv. After about an hour Norm decided it was our set up. Meanwhile, Barb and I did the dishes and played Mexican Train. The guys eventually joined us and I lost big time. Barb won the most games.

It was a really nice, relaxing day.

Flathead Lake

2010-09-09T20:52:00.001-07:00

We had a great day today. We began the day eating yummy sourdough blueberry pancakes a la Diane.

Then it was off to tour the area. We found a beautiful yarn shop at Bigfork called Witty Knitters--such nice people in it!

As we left the yarn shop this strange car drove in. We wandered around old Bigfork, then Gary drove us all the way around beautiful Flathead Lake.

It rained all day--a beautiful day--my favorite kind of day. When we got back to the RV a gorgeous rainbow showed us we were home.

Then the big excitement of the day happened--Tule and Loki escaped from the fenced in dog area (Tule figured out how to open the gate). She took off for distant places in the field. Loki came back but didn't want to be caught, just kept running circles around Barb. The injured Elsie decided she should be leashed up and stayed with me while we called and searched for Tule. The promise of dinner brought her back to us.

Gary made us a salmon dinner than would make you drool.

Then he beat Barb and me at Mexican Train while Norm iced his injured knee in preparation for fishing tomorrow.

We're here!

2010-09-08T21:41:00.000-07:00

We met up with Norm and Barb at Coeur d'Alene. Their dog is Loki, named after the Norwegian God of Mischief. What a cutie.

We drove past Lake Coeur d'Alene,. The drive past Clark's Fork River and Flathead River had Gary drooling, ready to go fishing.

I discovered I could put unusual frames around photos on my camera--that is Norm and Barb's RV.

Here you can see Norm and Gary--happy with their fishing licenses in hand.

We got to the most beautiful RV park we've ever seen. It is new and gorgeous with a view!
All the dogs loved being off leash at the little pet area.

Elsie and Loki had lots of fun playing.

This photo shows Norm and Gary sitting outside their RV, looking toward our RV and the Rocky Mountains.

The view out of our front window of Flathead Lake can't be beat.

We reminisced all evening after a great dinner prepared by Barb. Our turn is tomorrow night.

Idaho

2010-09-07T20:08:00.000-07:00

We made it to Idaho today. Most of the trip looked the same like this.

Then we hit Spokane County and trees appeared. Beautiful after a pretty boring day seeing one harvested field after another.

In Spokane we noticed that all water towers and other towers were painted in a red and white checkerboard pattern. Brightened up the area quite a bit and sure made all the towers obvious.

We got to Suntree RV Park and we're parked under a beautiful Mountain Ash tree--lots of pretty red berries.

We got to know some people who used to have our same RV. They came by for a visit and their dog was content to play with our dogs' toys. Our dogs enjoyed having company.

We've already spoken with Norm and Barb--we'll meet at a Safeway parking lot and caravan to our first stop in Montana. Can't wait to see them.

Eastern Oregon

2010-09-06T21:09:00.000-07:00

We had such a good visit at my brother's. And I finally got a photo of my sister-in-law as she and the boys were saying good bye to our dogs.

We headed on our way from Bend toward Biggs. This is what the scenery looked like almost the whole way.

Then we made it to Biggs and the Columbia River. There were some interesting land formations along the gorge.

We saw more trains on this stretch of the trip than any trip of our lives.

About halfway to Pendleton from Biggs there were acres and acres of this particular tree grown as a crop. We're not sure--maybe Cottonwood? Or Birch? Probably Cottonwood.

And for my knitting update--this is how far I've gotten on my scarf using Tule as a backdrop this time. Good dog!

Brrrrrr!

2010-09-05T22:15:00.000-07:00

It definitely was cold when we got up this morning. Can you read the thermometer? 29 degrees outside and 44 inside the RV. We soon turned on the space heater. But as soon as the sun warmed things up it was a nice 70 degree day.

We did a tour of downtown Bend. They have beautiful flowers like these here and there around town. It really dresses up the place.

As we strolled along this tree covered with knitted patches jumped out in front of us--Josh tells me lots of people sit and knit in the coffee shop next to the tree, so I guess this is their signature keepsake? And this morning as Gary was playing with the tv he found a knitting show!

Last time we were here there were forest fires so we couldn't see the view. This time it is nice and clear and the view from my brother's house is fabulous!

New Record

2010-09-04T21:40:00.000-07:00

From the time we left home until we crossed into Oregon we saw 16 CHP vehicles--a new record since we only saw 15 last month. We noticed a lot less snow on Mt. Shasta.

Speaking of crossing into Oregon--what a difference! The roads smoothed right out as we entered Oregon on Hwy 97. Such a nice ride after all the bumps of CA roads.

We enjoyed a beautiful trip from Mt. Shasta City to Bend, then had a great time greeting my brother and his family. My sister-in-law hides from the camera even though she is absolutely stunning.

Monte and the boys accompanied me to Juniper Fiberworks--what a beautiful yarn shop! And the boys enjoyed using the shop equipment to turn my skein of yarn into a ball. I got enough to make the Multnomah shawl. Gary stayed in the car with the dogs. I guess he's seen enough yarn shops by now. ; )

Then it was off to the dog park to give the dogs their fun. They had a ball. There was a huge Great Dane puppy named Max who really wanted to play. Our dogs could walk under him without touching him a bit. Then his owner saw Gary petting Max and said, "Oh my goodness! He makes Max look like a chihuahua!" Gave us all a good laugh along with several other people standing around watching their dogs play.

After a wonderful dinner the boys helped us walk the dogs one more time and it is off to bed for all of us. We're ready for another fun day with them all tomorrow.

Heading to Montana

2010-09-03T20:17:00.001-07:00

We're on the road again on our way to meet some old friends in Montana. We had a beautiful ride today, but the weather was not cool.

At Lake Shasta it was 103 degrees!

We are staying at the KOA in Mt. Shasta City--what a darling town. One of Gary's hunting buddies lives here, so Bob and Gary had a nice chat and we all went out to dinner.

At this KOA I realized our dogs can read. They crossed their legs and rushed over to the sign that said "Pet Walk". I've been noticing they seem to recognize that sign at each park before they get close enough to sniff the other doggie smells. Such smart dogs we have. ; )

Somebody at this park is a talented wood carver. Carvings like this are on every post. It is fun to see all the different characters.

I got a nice thank you gift for talking Gary into hauling the spinning wheel for my knitting friend, Tami, on our last trip. This is the beginning of my new silk and merino wool scarf with Elsie being a very patient background.

Home Again

2010-08-22T18:26:00.000-07:00

We made it safely home this afternoon. The RV is unloaded and ready to be cleaned and the first three loads of laundry are getting done.

Gary decided to take a different route home. Since we stayed on Hwy 99 in Corning, he drove home down 99 thru Chico, past his duck club (where the ducks won last year when he broke his ankle) and past this interesting display in Gridley. These bras all represent donations to the Pink Passion Campaign against breast cancer. Sure did catch our eyes!

The weather was cool for here (in the 80's) so we hurriedly unpacked the RV, then harvested what grew in our garden while we were gone--20 ripe tomatoes, one huge patti-pan squash and two large yellow crookneck squash . I think I'll make patti-pan or crookneck bread for the next trip.

Elsie did her usual dash into her crate as soon as she saw it--and she's still there. The big surprise is Tule hasn't gotten in the pool yet. She thought about it, but decided she'd rather come in the house.

We'll be home for about 10 days, then off on the next trip--to Montana with college friends.

Last night on the road

2010-08-21T18:33:00.000-07:00

The raspberries made it thru the checkpoint--they are legal. Phew!

We could sure feel the heat the further south we went. By Redding it was very warm. Mt Shasta greeted us in all ilts glory.
We are staying in a very nice RV park in Corning, enjoying one more relaxing night before we get home tomorrow and unload the RV before the heat hits on Monday.

Ride 'Em Cowboy!

2010-08-20T19:03:00.000-07:00

The road from Astoria to Portland is the bumpiest we've been on in a long time, until you get to Beaverton. Sure had our teeth rattling and we were bouncing in our seats. But the scenery is gorgeous--more trees and ferns underneath--can't get enough of these views.

Then a wonderful sight appeared: RASPBERRIES! I have been looking for raspberries the whole trip and here was a roadside stand and they were beautiful and a lot cheaper than we'd pay at home. Bought a flat so I can make jelly when we get home. I sure hope they don't take them away from us at the border. Maybe I should sacrifice a towel and make the juice tonight?

I am using Gary's computer so no photos tonight. So far we haven't figured out how to put the photos from my camera onto Gary's computer. I tried adding a new app to my iPhone and it messed up the tethering capability so I can't use the phone to connect my computer to the internet. I'll get it fixed on Monday when we get home so it will be ready for the next trip.

We're in Myrtle Creek, Oregon tonight. Not sure how far we'll go tomorrow. We'll play it by ear. See you all soon.

2010-08-19T21:00:00.000-07:00

Today was an excellent day fishing, but no catching involved. Gary still had a great time with his cousin and there is plenty of fish from the other days.

The dogs and I wandered around the RV park and found more blackberries. Elsie came back to the RV to rest and Tule and I picked enough for some yummy breakfasts for Gary. I got some reading done and a bit of knitting. It was a very relaxing day.

Tomorrow we head out on the road home. It has been a great trip

Over the River and Through the Woods

2010-08-18T22:19:00.000-07:00

After another successful fishing trip where he caught one silver salmon, Gary took me on a tour.

We really did go "over the river and through the woods". We drove across the big Astoria bridge and turned left to head through the woods to Ilwaco.

Ilwaco is a cute little fishing town on the Washington side of the Columbia River, very close to the mouth of the river. When I say there are LOTS of fishing boats both in the water and on land here, I am not stretching the truth at all.

This is a typical Ilwaco house.

Then it was back over the bridge. You can see Astoria and part of the bridge in this photo.

To finish off a very nice day, we went out to dinner with Mike and Julie and over to their house for a rousing game of Mexican Train.

I won! Gary lost big time. Fun night! One more day of fishing tomorrow, then we head toward home.

Happy Anniversary to Us!

2010-08-17T19:49:00.000-07:00

Today we celebrated 42 years of marriage. How did we celebrate?

Gary and his cousin caught their limit of salmon. Can you feel me smiling--love salmon!

We wandered around Astoria enjoying the nice cool weather.

Then I got to choose where we'd eat dinner--it was no contest--Mr. Fultano's Pizza! We got there early enough to beat the crowd that arrived about the time we left. Yes, that is a scarf around my neck--when the wind came up the weather went from comfortably cool to Brrrrrr. But I still prefer the nice coolness over heat.

For those of you who think it is only in the midwest where you see "pop" instead of soda, please note what it says on this napkin holder at Fultano's. The NorthWest also calls it "pop". The bottom line says "All you can eat Pizza and POP"

All in all, it was a very nice day.

Peterson's Hauling Service

2010-08-16T20:03:00.001-07:00

After at least 14 trips a day up and down these stairs at Mom's (the very stairs where Elsie was injured), we were ready to head out. But before we did we had to load three boxes of antique books that Mom is sending to Britta. The RV lives down in the backyard at Mom's and the house is upstairs.

Then we stopped at South Center in Tukwila to pick up a spinning wheel for Tami #1 (one of my knitting friends). It is filling the far back and back seat of the CR-V along with two Thanksgiving figures about 30" high that Mom gave me.

As you drive south on I-5, this is the scenery between Olympia and Centralia. I love this stretch of freeway--so beautiful.

Next we met my sister and brother-in-law in Kelso on their way back to Bellevue from a quick trip to the desert. They were bringing a set of Mom's old golf clubs for my nephew. Since we will see him Labor Day weekend, we got the clubs from them--they are traveling in the front seat of the CR-V.

We finally arrived at a new RV park outside Astoria--the Lewis and Clark RV Park. Gary said it is the most even ground he's ever parked the RV on, so he is happy. Then we were off to get his fishing license and a few groceries. Now it is time to crash after a long day. It is nice and cool here after a record high of 96 degrees in Seattle yesterday. We'll sleep good tonight.

A Taste of Edmonds

2010-08-15T09:01:00.000-07:00

It is so nice to have a reilable internet source. Mom and I went to the Alderwood Mall and AT&T set up my iPhone so I can hook it up to the computer to be my internet access. It is so fast and works so well! I'm a much happier camper now.

Mom and Gary and I went down the see "A Taste of Edmonds". It is not at all like "A Taste of Carmichael". The food was the kind you see at a fair (Gary ate a corn dog) and the booths were advertising.

Mom got really tired with all the walking so we sat to rest a bit. Along came a family with a cute baby. I got a shot as she had her first taste of cotton candy. She'd lick it and wave both hands and bounce up and down. She was the best entertainment of the day.

As we drove away we saw this fellow --can you see the huge spikes in his hair? One is broken and flopping over. Right after Gary shot this photo, the guy passed out face first in some bushes. The girl with him took a picture of him in the bushes instead of helping him. Gave us another good laugh.

Downtown Edmonds is not very big--just a couple of blocks in each direction. The city fathers have started a slogan, "Edmonds in Bloom" and lots of houses have gorgeous flowers in the yards. Each major street corner looks like this photo. Absolutely beautiful!

It was a HOT day, 93 degrees. Thank goodness we have a/c in the RV.

Hurricane Ridge

2010-08-12T22:05:00.000-07:00

Today was full of riding in the car through beautiful scenery.

First my dear hubby drove us to Port Orchard to see Debbie Macomber's yarn shop. Of course I bought some yarn for Christmas gifts. it is a nice enough store, but the building housing it is wonderful. Gary heard that Debbie's office is upstairs.

After that long drive, we had lunch with the dogs in the RV, then drove up to Hurricane Ridge. What a spectacular view! All the way up there was something new to see around each bend in the road.

Mom needs help walking, especially up hill, but she won't admit to any pain!

As we drove up we noticed a lot of people standing around staring at the parking lot. Then we saw the very tame deer that were happy to walk up close for a photo opportunity.

Tonight Mom and I played cards for the second night in a row--Rummy. We just played one hand at a time and the winner was the one who won the most hands. Well,Mom won't go to bed until she at least ties me. If I am ahead, we have to keep playing cards.

It has been a great trip to the Olympic Peninsula--I recommend it to any of you who like cooler, gorgeous scenery.

Long beautiful day

2010-08-11T22:41:00.000-07:00

When we started driving today, we had no idea where we would end up. We thought we did, but we were wrong.

First of all we took a wrong turn thanks to the incompetent navigator and ended up at the Log Cabin Lodge where Mom and Dad stayed many years ago.

Then we drove to the Lake Crescent Lodge, our original destination, and decided to drive on to the Hoh Rain Forest. It was beautiful, but I think we are jaded. The Rain Forest looked a lot like Clatsop County in Oregon where Gary grew up. And the drive was longer, but much like driving back and forth on Woodway Park Road, the street that goes past Mom's house. But for the most part the trees in Woodway are bigger.

This is Gary next to some of the most amazing examples of the hanging moss.

We went past this wonderful sign

and here is a photo of Mom and me in front of the Big Spruce Tree.

The ranger at the rainforest gave me my favorite quote of the day. He had been to Sacramento to see his kids and said, "Sacramento is a great place to live, but you wouldn't want to visit there." Way too true.

Gary thinks I am way too easily entertained, but I totally cracked up when I saw this sign on Maria's Mexican Restaurant in Port Angeles.

Sequim, Lavender and Alpacas

2010-08-10T20:07:00.000-07:00

What a fun day--we took the Edmonds-Kingston ferry-quite a feat with the RV and car attached. You can see the dogs helping Gary load the RV and car on the ferry.

It was windy, but beautiful. You can even see a ferry heading to Edmonds from Kingston if you look closely in this windblown photo.

Drove to Sequim, found a very nice RV park and headed out to see the immediate area. First we found a wonderful lavender farm. This lady grows lots of varieties so we could see what is what.

Then we found Happy Valley Alpaca Ranch. This is Bob the alpaca--he contributed the "fuzz" for the yarn I bought. He is also the daddy of the four babies on this ranch. These people are totally in love with their alpacas. The little tour was so much fun. And I'll think of this cute face as I knit a scarf (or something) from Bob's yarn.

Rain!

2010-08-09T14:30:00.000-07:00

We got real rain plus a lot of drizzle on Saturday in Astoria! It was beautiful. Went for a drive--saw so many beautiful flowers--this yard was our favorite.

Gary had a wonderful time at his reunion dinner. We got to see lots of his old friends, plus a few relatives. Nice night.

Our next door neighbor at the RV park has MS so used this hand pedaled trike for exercise. Very interesting machine.

We left Astoria by way of the Farmer's Market where Gary splurged on these yummy crunchy potatoes. Of course, I had to help him eat them so he wouldn't exceed his carb limit. hahahaha.

Got to Mom's--dogs were so excited to see her they ran up the stairs to the house. Elsie tripped halfway up the stairs and sure enough, tore the acl in her good hind leg. She saw the vet here and we have the x-ray with us to show the surgeon. She'll be going in for surgery after we get back from all our trips. In the meantime, we'll be using the dog ramp even for the RV. Poor dog. This is usually the best part of the trip for them--they love to run around their private acre, sniff noses with the horse, etc. Elsie is not a happy camper, but is sure being good natured about all this.

Fish!

2010-08-07T17:21:00.000-07:00

The tired, but happy fisherman arrived back from a successful salmon fishing trip with his cousin. He caught his limit of 2 salmon, but is taking the retired guy's easy way out--didn't bring his catch back with him, took them to a professional who is cleaning, packaging and flash freezing them for him. It's a rough life.

We've been pretty sure for a long time that Tule the yellow lab is nearsighted--this proves it. She has been trying to make friends with this stuffed dog every time we walk past.

We went for a photography walk and the dogs learned quickly to sit and wait while I took photos of flowers. They look so pretty!

Blackberries are just blooming and beginning to set fruit here. Sure glad we got to pick some in Medford where it was warm enough for them to be ready to pick.

Russian Thistle like this used to sell for $15 a bunch of 5 at Frederick & Nelson's. They are beautiful, but VERY prickly.

Gary's evening was spent bowling with his HS classmates. I opted to stay home and knit since I will spend Saturday evening and Sunday morning with them. The dogs and I totally relaxed. It was a good day.

Note: This is Friday's blog--due to off and on wifi at this RV park and a malfunctioning aircard, I haven't been able to keep up. I'll try to get another one up before the weekend is over.

Catching up on the last few days . . .

2010-08-06T12:16:00.000-07:00

We were out of range for either phone or wifi at the RV park near Newport, so no blog for those days.

We traveled a new route from I-5 to Newport--by way of the Umpqua River.

This was truly a beautiful route to travel--so many trees and glimpses of the river, only very tiny towns--the kind where you can't blink or you'll miss them. Many of the small towns had huge hanging baskets that are flourishing in the cool weather. Gorgeous.

In Newport we were delighted to learn we would not only see Gary's brother and his wife, Alan and Karen, but their middle daughter was there with her 5 year old and 2 week old baby daughter. Gary loved snuggling little Abigail and I had a ball playing with little Alan.

We all met at the Pig n Pancake for a long breakfast (where else can you have fried clams for breakfast?) and lots of visiting. Of course, Arissa and little Alan wanted to meet the dogs, too, so we didn't leave Newport until afternoon.

Another beautiful drive up 101 with a quick stop in Tillamook. The Cheese factory was so crowded we just walked the dogs and continued on to Seaside. After checking into the RV park, Gary bought his fishing license and we had dinner with his cousin and wife, Mike and Julie--always fun.

This morning Gary and Mike are out fishing, the dogs are sleeping comfortably and I am blogging after sleeping in and getting a bit of knitting done. Actually, I got a lot of knitting in while Gary drove the past three days--finished my yellow socks and got started on a Christmas gift. The dogs and I took a nice long walk to the Outlet Mall in Seaside.

The weather here is nice and cool--we love it. The locals say it has been winter-like all summer. They have only had about 2 really nice days during June and July. It is definitely my kind of weather!

A New Record

2010-08-03T19:58:00.000-07:00

We started this trip after a really fun weekend with our niece and her family. The boys and the dogs had so much fun our dogs ended up wearing their toenails down so far from all the running around the pool they were bleeding! Now that is having too much fun!

The flowers on our RV table were a gift from them.

We left our house close to on time this morning--nice drive all the way with a spectacular view of Mt.Shasta.

We set a new record today--in all of our many trips north, we rarely see California Hiway Patrol vehicles--today we saw 15 from our house to the Oregon border! Usually if we see one in California we are lucky. Gary kept the RV very close to the speed limit.

We are staying in our usual Medford spot, found lots of blackberries so had to pick some for Gary's breakfast for the next few days. Yummm! Curves is in very close walking distance, so I managed to get some exercise in after I walked the dogs and before I fixed dinner.

Tomorrow we head to Newport for dinner with Gary's brother, Alan. He got word from his cousin that salmon fishing is great--he may get to go on Friday already! Mom would love a fresh salmon dinner when we get to her house.

It was a perfect day for driving--beautiful scenery all the way. Gary loves to point out the various crops to me as we meander thru California on our way north.

the Land Yacht and the Church campout

2009-08-02T22:42:00.001-07:00

I wasn't planning to blog about this weekend, but so much happened I had to blog it.

The campout was lots of fun. It began with Nick coming out to greet us with "you brought a land yacht!" There were lots of tours of the "land yacht"--all ages. The great thing about this campout was the number of teenagers that came. We all loved it! We have great kids at our church.

The rangers came by to tell us there was a real bear problem and they emphasized the "no coolers anywhere the bear can see them" policy. So our RV ended up being the Bear Locker annex. And still at 3:30 a.m. Saturday morning a bear found a pickup in the campsite next to ours where some people left a garbage bag in their truck and the bear had a great time picking thru the appetizers.

But that was nothing compared to Sat.night. As we were having our usual singalong after the potluck (thanks to Pastor Tom) we got word that a bear had invaded a campsite nearby--before dark! They had just finished eating dinner and as they got up from the table, the bear strolled in and clambored up on the table to eat their leftovers. We saw their video (one of them had the presence of mind to record the invasion). Very scary!

A family that is related to our people from our church attended with their new basset hound, Tank. He is a real sweetheart, only 15 months old. They've had him 10 days. He was rescued from a foster home where they blasted him with buckshot, tore his ear and one pad on one foot. He'd had surgery and they were still picking buckshot out of him. He was the nicest dog, fell in love with Tule and Elsie. Those short little legs and big feet managed to climb into the RV so he could be with them. And every walk saw all three together for their exercise. I can't imagine anyone treating such a sweet dog so viciously. Heck, I can't imagine someone treating a mean dog that way, let alone a young sweetie like Tank.

Aaron brought a half dozen dutch ovens and prepared dozens of yummy dishes over the weekend. It was a real education to watch him and it all smelled heavenly. Now I want to try some, too!

Saturday evening as the condo campers were leaving a boy rode up on a bike, burst into tears and asked for help because he was lost. A bit of creativity and reassurance got him home by dark. He sure asked the right group for help.

Sunday saw the church service under the trees and the potluck leftovers feast. Then we headed home for a good swim after unloading the RV. The dogs loved all the attention, but were happy to be home and so were we.

I don't think we've ever had this much excitement at a church campout. It was quite a weekend.

On the way home, Elsie found a new place to sit. After she scooted as far under my legs as she could, she poked her head up between my knees and sat there the rest of the way home.

We're Home--

2009-07-07T22:10:00.001-07:00

It was an easy day today since we stayed in Boomtown last night. Right next to the fenced in dog area there were the most beautiful Russian Thistle plants blooming. They are so prickly it is awful, but the blossoms are very pretty. They grew in our pasture when I was growing up and I didn't appreciate them then. When I was in college I saw them for sale for $15 a stem (about 3-4 blooms on a stem) in Frederick and Nelson's (a nice dept. store in Seattle way back when). I was shocked that anyone would pay for a "weed". I was tempted to pick some of these, but I knew the border crossing would have a fit if I was caught bringing weeds in to California, so I will make do with the photos.

The people who stayed right behind us last night also had a Southwind (2008) and had lots of questions for us. We each toured the other RV to see the differences. This was their first trip so we were able to show them adjustment we've made. Ours worked well this trip--except for leaks under the sinks caused by all the bumpy roads we traveled. It was very nice to have a trip with a working motorhome.

We got home early afternoon to find a lizard in our pool, hanging on for dear life to the leaf basket. Gary let him go in a flower bed, then we kept the dogs inside.

Staying inside was fine with the dogs--they tested out their crates (kennels) we left behind --Elsie stayed in her crate most of the afternoon. Then they moved to the beds by the fireplace. It is so cute to see them embracing their "real" home and acting so happy to see their "stuff".

We got the RV mostly emptied and started on the huge basket of mail. Tomorrow I'll catch up on bills.

It is good to be home. Thanks for joining us in our travels--

Almost home

2009-07-06T21:45:00.000-07:00

Today was a long driving day on the "loneliest road" (Hwy 50) again. We took the same route last year on our way home from North Dakota. But last year it was brown and this time it was green, which made the trip much prettier.

We noticed all the small towns we drove thru had American flags flying on every corner.

Another thing we noticed was the "cattle" warning sign. Nevada's cow is less placid and more angry looking than Arizona's cow in the photo from July 4.

We saw beautiful wildflowers on prickly stems with prickly seed pods in several patches along the way.

We arrived in Boomtown after 6 hours on the road in time for Gary to shop at Cabela's. This was one of the top three parts of our trip for him (fishing with his cousin, Mike, the Grand Canyon and shopping at Cabela's).

Tomorrow will be a short trip home. Phew!

Getting closer to home . . .

2009-07-05T20:37:00.000-07:00

As we drove today we saw a lot of nothing--dry land with brush and a very few trees. Lots of it was straight road, only the ups and downs created a break in the monotony. Then we came upon an accident where someone must have fallen asleep at the wheel. And a short time later we came upon a cow in the middle of the road. As we approached and some of the first cars we'd seen approaching all day showed up, the cow meandered slowly back to her calf who had decided to stay behind the fence. That was the big entertainment of the drive. Oh--plus the GPS got confused several times on the way and would have liked us to drive into a cliff a couple of times.

Elsie really doesn't like it when Gary drives over the bumps that keep you in your lane. She has pushed and squeezed and now rides completely under my legs and feet. It gets a bit crowded for me, but at least she hasn't pushed me out totally until the last half hour of each day's ride.

As Gary tried to pick out our camping spot for tonight (I know, luxury camping) he spotted this cat tied to a stake and realized we could not park next door to a cat. We moved on down next to a very nice couple with a new puppy. The dogs have been having a ball and haven't spotted the cat yet.

Okay, I admit it . . .

2009-07-04T21:45:00.000-07:00

Gary is in better shape than I am. At an altitude of 8800 plus feet, I had a bit of trouble breathing. Gary was able to hike at his usual speed and I had to stop and rest now and then.

We drove to the Grand Canyon past some amazing scenery. In the Kaibab National Forest, there were miles and miles of beautiful trees, then miles and miles of burned trees from a fire in 2006. Gary clocked over 7 miles of dead trees. We stopped to read some of the informtion along the way. One point they made was that the Aspens need fire to reproduce. If there were no fires, Aspens would die out. After all the wildlife signs we've seen, we had to laugh at this one of the cow. Unfortunately you can also see some of the burned out trees behind the sign.

The Grand Canyon's North Rim was fantastic! It was a clear day and you could see forever. My only problem is that I have never been thrilled with heights. The only things holding my rubber knees up were the butterflies in my stomach. It was wonderful to see the sights, but once is plenty, thank you.

As we left the Grand Canyon we noticed that tent caterpillars are killing the Aspens in great numbers. Funny that we didn't notice that on our way up. Sad to see.

We noticed several hoses being set up at the lodge at the Grand Canyon. We were told that since fireworks aren't allowed in the National Parks, the park workers have a water fight for everyone's entertainmenet on the 4th of July.

As we drove home we could the Grand Staircase (look in the distance). The clouds were getting pretty thick and shortly after we walked the dogs a huge rainstorm hit with lots of thunder and lightning. I love the sound of rain on the roof of the RV.

When it was over we drove to the local park to see the festivities, then back to a restaurant for dinner. It was a cute place--note the photo of Gary in the huge chair. He said he felt like Edith Ann on Laugh In (And that's the truth!) They had lots of fun decorations and Gary's dinner was good.

We played some cribbage (Gary won again!), then sat outside to see Kanab's local fireworks, which were pretty spectacular for such a small town.

Dogs have good memories

2009-07-03T20:11:00.000-07:00

Last night we stayed at the same KOA in Salt Lake City as we did last September. Tule and Elsie led me straight to the dog walk area, then tried to find each cat they'd found last fall. They were only there one night last September! Amazing.

As we left Salt Lake City we drove past the Great Salt Lake.

As we drove on we went past a sea of purple that was a beautiful field of lavender.

We were heading south, at first down a freeway, then on a narrow old highway. It was amazing to see that all the land to the right (west)of the road was desolate and dry. Everything to the left (east) side was green and lush, even the mountains were green on that side. This went on for many miles.

Eventually we came upon amazing geological formations near Bryce Canyon Park. It was quite a trip. We are now in Kanab and tomorrow will head for the North side of the Grand Canyon. Can't wait!

Wyoming Has Warts!

2009-07-02T17:11:00.000-07:00

There were some interesting land formations that look like warts on our route today.

It was a mostly dry looking day, both no rain and no greenery.

Then we came upon some beautiful green landscapes and off in the distance was a thunderstorm. It was fascinating to watch the lightning as long as it stayed so far away. Gary kept saying, "I hope we aren't going to be driving into that storm."

We did drive into rain, but no thunder or lightning yet. You can tell Gary grew up in rain country. After we arrived at Salt Lake City, he decided it was time to wash the RV and CR-V. It was pretty dirty from last night's rain on top of all the dust of Gillette, but washing it in the rain? You have to be from Astoria to do that!

We came upon more telephone poles and I realized how much I'll miss them when they are all gone. They bring back memories of childhood as Dad drove us thru endless miles of farmland in Montana and North Dakota where the only thing to see was telephone poles and Burma Shave signs. I already miss the Burma Shave signs.

After noticing Rest Areas on our trip, we have decided Idaho has the most beautiful designs. Their buildings are gorgeous. Wyoming has only a few rest areas, but lots of these signs where you can pull over to take a break. Nice for the dogs, but we were sure happy we had the Motorhome for that purpose on today's ride!

Antelope Watch

2009-07-01T19:06:00.001-07:00

Gary spent the day today hollering "There are two antelope over there, look to your right!" or "There are three (four, five, etc) antelope out your side window." I finally figured out how to spot them myself. It was great entertainment for him--he didn't get tired of driving at all today. Of course, as we got on the freeway in Gillette, the family of mama duck and six ducklings that crossed the freeway right in front of us woke him right up. They did get across successfully, thank goodness.

We drove past the continental divide and are at a KOA up very high. The mountains are gorgeous.

We got to Rawlins, WY and headed for the laundry room. I met a nice lady from Wisconsin and we had a great time chatting as we waited for our laundry. She finished first and got home just in time. I didn't. Gary showed up with hangers to let me know it was not only pouring down rain, but it was raining sideways. We ran thru the raindrops with clean towels wrapped over our clean laundry.

Gary wants you to know he is bringing a horse home from Wyoming.

Someone left it near out RV as we were packing up to leave.

We won again!

2009-06-30T20:19:00.001-07:00

There was another raffle at the Rally dinner tonight and Gary won again! This time it was an adapter for 50 amp to 30 amp electrical. It was another fun night. We sat at a table with a couple from Folsom! As you can see in the photo it was a huge group--over 400 rigs and with the grandkids some people brought it was over 800 people. Considering it was the first rally ever for this group, we were all very pleased. Good entertainment, nice conversations. Lots of fun.

Today was windy and rainy. I was out buying groceries when the wind came up, full of dust. I opened the back of the CR-V to put the groceries away and my fabric grocery bag was sucked out by the wind. A nice young man caught it for me and I put it back in, way in the back this time. By the time I grabbed my first bag to put in, the pink bag had blown away and was moving so fast nobody could catch it. I looked for it as I drove away, but it was nowhere in sight. I’ve never seen wind that would grab things from inside and take them away. By the time I got back to the RV Gary had taken photos of the wind blowing the dirt up into the air and the rain coming down to meet it. Sure glad we got the car washed yesterday. Duh.

Right now I am watching a lightning show above the grandstand that we can see from our door. Elsie is helping me watch for lightning. It is far away as the thunder isn’t loud and comes long after the lightning strikes. It is beautiful!

We had a great time at this rally--didn’t hurt that we won two prizes! Tomorrow we are back on the road, heading in the direction of the Grand Canyon.

We Won!

2009-06-29T20:52:00.003-07:00

At these Fleetwood rallies they always give you a raffle ticket and usually we don’t win. Today we won! Our prize was a Breeze fan that can adapt to a dog crate or just be used in the RV. It is great!

Many of you noticed when the Bee reported that Fleetwood filed for chapter 11--we were all wondering what was going to happen to the company. Today we found out. AIP is buying Fleetwood and it will become a smaller private company. The deal should go thru by the middle of July. When AIP heard there were 400 Fleetwood RV’s here in Gilletter at the first Fleetwood Motorcoach Association national rally, they told the new president of Fleetwood to get out here. So he came and spoke very eloquently about the future of Fleetwood. It will be interesting to see how it all plays out. We do know there will be changes, but the name will still be there and there will still be motorhomes. Maybe not Southwinds like we have, but something will exist. We didn’t know that Fleetwood has been number one in retail sales for Class A motor homes for 21 of the last 22 years. It was a very interesting meeting.

Last night we looked out the window to see out next door neighbors in this pose. I had to ask if I could take their picture. The big lab was so happy to be sharing the lawn chair. It outweighs our dogs by quite a bit.

Tonight was one of the banquets. The food was good and the entertainment was great. They were two guys who sang oldies from the 50’s and 60’s so many of us sang along. The best part of the evening was the very end when they sang “I’m Proud to Be An American” and the whole Fleetwood audience stood and held hands and raised them to sway with the music and sing along. It was a very moving moment. This is a patriotic group and we are happy to be part of them.

We all got back to our motor homes at the same time so there was a real party at the enclosed dog park. The dogs had a ball and so did their owners. Now it is time for bed where I’ll be singing (in my head) “I’m Proud to Be An American”.

2009-06-29T20:52:00.001-07:00

A Million Dollars worth of RV's

2009-06-28T19:42:00.000-07:00

As we walked the dogs along the row of RV's, Gary asked me to take a photo of just a few of the RV's in this park. This photo shows over a million dollars worth of RV's even in today's dollars!

I told you the restrooms are pretty primitive--the photo of the cream and grey building shows the restrooms and showers at this RV park.

Note how red the dirt is on the roadway. The freeways we traveled in Wyoming were all this red color, too.

Gary and the dogs are standing in front of the dog park. It is large compared to most RV parks.

After buying a lot of great stuff at the rally, we drove around Gillette which has a population just under 20,000. It was interesting. Then we got home to walk and feed the dogs and watch them play with the chew bones (after dinner treat that is like brushing their teeth, only louder). They are playing tug of war with one of them in this photo.

It was warmer here today, but we are so glad we are not in Roseville. Gary saw that it was 109 today. We were only about 85. Phew!

Gillette, WY

2009-06-27T21:01:00.000-07:00

We made it to Gillette and the Rally. The trip here was beautiful--more green, but not many places to stop along the way.

When we got here we were a bit dismayed to see how crowded this RV park is. It is basically a parking lot. The rest of the facilities are nice for meetings, though. We have seen a few people we met in Pahrump in February.

An interesting thing we saw yesterday was a fellow who was doing a long bike ride--from Indiana to SF--all by himself, staying in the smallest tent I have seen. He said he usually eats the powdered meals, but was splurging on a tuna steak the night we talked with him in Sheridan. I told him about Dennis and Keith J.'s trip and he was fascinated.

I'll leave you with a photo of the last of a beautiful sunset. It'll be a fun few days, even if it is a bit crowded.

2009-06-26T20:03:00.000-07:00

We drove through beautiful scenery on the way from Bozeman, Montana to Sheridan, Wyoming. Saw a few raindrops but mostly green pastures and lots and lots of horses. Idaho and Montana qualify as horse country.

We drove past Little Big Horn where we were refused a reservation because it is the re-enactment of Custer's Last Stand this weekend. Everything was full.

It turns out we were lucky to get a reservation in Sheridan this weekend. It is Buffalo Bill Days and the KOA is packed. This place is nice and has cute little bunnies that live under the cabins. Elsie really, really wants one of them!

It was nicer outside than inside so Gary and I sat at our picnic table and played Cribbage for the first time in years. I used to beat Gary with no problem, but he wants it documented in this blog that he beat me two times in a row. Of course, this means there will have to be a rematch when we have time.

Tomorrow we will arrive at the Rally in Gillette, Wyoming. It will be a busy few days, so not sure if there will be time to blog. I'll try.

Green, Green, it’s green they say . . .

2009-06-25T21:00:00.001-07:00

It was green all the way from Pocatello to Bozeman. Lots of irrigating going on in every field. It was beautiful.

The rivers were all totally full to just above flood level. I’m sure that helps keep all the fields green.

As Gary took the dogs for the final walk of the evening last night in Pocatello, he discovered a wonderful farm next to the RV park. There were donkeys, a burro, llamas, an emu, goats, a horse, a dog. A little girl and her grandma came to feed them and they all came to the fence.

This morning as I took the dogs for their first walk of the morning we saw the goats gathered near the snow plow/mini-bulldozer (not sure what it was) and the biggest goat was sleeping in the bucket! I rushed the dogs home and grabbed my camera, but it was too late, He had gotten out and was waiting at the fence by the time I got back. The smallest one was still resting under the bucket. It was such fun to see all the unusual animals--and the dogs were so good! Sometimes they amaze me.

We finally did get the A/C working last night. Tonight is perfect inside. It was VERY windy today and a teensy bit of rain fell here in Bozeman. It is nice and cool outside. Someone is shooting off fireworks in the field behind us and Tule does not like it one bit. You'd never know she is a hunting dog.

It has been a very sad couple of days with the passing of Ed McMahon, Farah Fawcett and Michael Jackson. Their families are in our thoughts and prayers.

Pocatello

2009-06-24T18:50:00.001-07:00

Today started out looking a lot like driving up I-5 through N. California. Then we started seeing lots of plateaus off in the distance.

When we made a dog potty stop I saw the biggest dandelion head I’ve ever seen.

And it was beatiful up close.

All you former farmers--is the last photo a horse-drawn plow? Gary thinks it is. It was a decoration at the RV park where we stayed in Nampa, Idaho.

We have been spoiled by all the cool weather. It is 82 outside and 92 inside the RV right now. Our A/C is not working right, might be the electricity at this RV park. I think we’ll sit outside and play cards while the open windows in the RV cool the place down a bit. Then we’ll turn on the generator and see if the A/C will click on.

More family time--

2009-06-23T18:39:00.000-07:00

We had a great time with my brother and his family in Pendleton. The dogs were in their glory because Josh and Alex don't have a dog and would like to have one, so they showered attention on Tule and Elsie. Those boys are such nice kids--we hated to see our time together end. Today I remembered to take lots of photos and Josh took a few with my camera including one with the timer. If you look hard you can see Elsie licking Josh's ear after he rushed back to be in the photo of the whole group. When he was setting up the camera, the dogs were posed perfectly, but both moved to greet Josh as he rushed into the shot. Josh is the one in the hat and Alex is the blonde one.

Tonight we are in Nampa, Idaho. We are just a bit past Caldwell which has the distinction of being the furthest west Gary had ever been when we got married. He had gone to Caldwell as a junior in college with the PLU team to play in a basketball game (he was a center with a great free-throw record). The photo shows what it looked like as we traveled from Oregon to Idaho.

Tomorrow is Pocatello, Idaho--will blog again if there is a signal.

Pendleton

2009-06-22T22:29:00.001-07:00

Today was a long day on the road-took 6 hours to get here, plus time for a couple of stops for the dogs. The trip was beautiful until we got past the Columbia River Gorge. This photo is typical of the scenery along the gorge. When we left the gorge area we encountered large flat areas of farmland that looked pretty much the same for miles and miles.

We made it to Pendleton around 3:30 for a fun reunion with my brother and his family. Josh and Alex were delighted to help walk the dogs and the dogs were equally happy to see them. Monte and Brenda look great and we talked a blue streak. In fact, it was so much fun I totally forgot to take photos. Tomorrow, I promise photos--Gary said he'd help me remember to shut up long enough to get some family photos.

It was a great day fishing . . .

2009-06-21T20:16:00.000-07:00

. . . just not so good catching. No fish again today. Gary is very glad he got one the first day (one a day is the limit). But he still had fun with his cousin and that is what counts.

Interesting weather here today--either it was sunny or pouring down rain. The rain only lasted 2-3 minutes. Every time it was nice, I took the dogs out for a walk and ended up wet by the time we got back to the RV. I love the rain, but would rather not have to clean up muddy footprints from a wet walk. I know, I'm too picky. hahaha!

Every time we drove into Astoria we went past this house. Evidently they have a real fascination with plastic floats. Floats are what you see decorating the tree and telephone pole.

We went to dinner at Pier 11--a cute place on the waterfront in Astoria. From our table we could watch the ships go by on the river. Whenever a ship comes into the Columbia River from the ocean, a Bar Pilot goes on board to guide them through the proper river channel. Then he gets off and a River Pilot replaces him to guide the ship up the river to Portland. As we ate dinner a Pilot boat (small tugboat) went by and pulled up alongside a ship. If you look closely at the small boat next to the huge ship, you can see a black spot halfway up the side of the ship. That spot is the River Pilot going onboard. Looks scary, but it was fascinating to see.

Tomorrow we break camp and head to Pendleton and a visit with my brother's family. I'm looking forward to some serious knitting time as Gary drives.

History

2009-06-20T22:06:00.000-07:00

Blogger is giving me a bad time. Yesterday I couldn't get photos to upload at all. Today I can get them on the blog, but can't place them where I'd like to. So--first you see Foxgloves blooming on a hillside.
Second you see the "World" cruise ship.
Third is one of the batteries at Fort Stevens with Gary standing on top as he toured the battery.

Foxgloves are blooming all over the Pacific NorthWest. Lots of colors everywhere.

Today was full of history. We went to the Scandinavian Festival in Astoria--lots of history there--ancestry, etc. While we were there we ran into some of Gary's relatives and some people who graduated from HS with him. Then Gary drove me around Astoria showing me where he and other family members lived when they were kids.

Mike and Julie are volunteers that greet ships that come into Astoria. Today was a big day--the "World" cruise ship docked in Astoria and they spent 3 hours greeting the people on board and directing them to sights to see in Astoria. The "World" is the cruise ship that is a floating condo with VERY expensive suites. People buy their condo on board and can live there year round if they'd like. It sounds like many of them have homes elsewhere, too (plural--"homes" not "a home"). Mike and Julie learned a lot while they were on board today.

It was really interesting to hear their adventures with greeting cruise ships. It boggles the mind to hear that around 3000 passengers and 2000 crew come ashore each time a cruise ship docks here. The population of Astoria is only 10,000.

After the Astoria segment of our day, we stopped at Fort Stevens and toured some of the military batteries which were manned in WWI and WWII. The biggest historical event that happened at Fort Stevens is that it was the only place in the continental USA that was hit by a Japanese shell during WWII. Fort Stevens is very close to the KOA park where we are staying in Warrenton.

The grand finale of the day was pizza at Fultano's Pizza. You get more toppings on your pizza at Fultano's than any other place where we've eaten pizza. Very yummy and on our list as a "must stop" place whenever we come to Astoria.

Last day of fishing is Sunday. Here's hoping!

Raindrops, so many raindrops . . .

2009-06-19T21:22:00.000-07:00

Feels like ra-ai-ain drops, falling from the sky-yyy.

I enjoyed the soothing sound of rain falling on the roof of the RV while Gary was out getting skunked on fish today. I spent some time knitting, took the dogs for a nice walk in the cozy rain.

Then I drove in to Astoria. I walked up one side of the main street of town, then back down the other side.

I found a yarn shop and bought one more skein for my "trip" vest. Also got an Astoria t-shirt.

Julie got some clams and invited us over for fried clams for dinner. Gary thoroughly enjoyed stuffing himself. What a treat! And we got to see Mike and Julie's daughter Lisa who came home for Father's Day weekend.

Tomorrow is our day for the Scandinavian Festival. Can't wait!

He got one!

2009-06-18T21:16:00.000-07:00

Today was the first fishing day and Gary, Mike and Julie all got a sturgeon! Gary was so pleased. We now have 20 cans of smoked sturgeon. They still cost us over $3 a can, but that beats $12 a can in the store. Two more days of fishing to go--here's hoping! Smoked Sturgeon is the best food anywhere!
Mike, Julie and Gary holding cans of sturgeon.

Mexican Train kept us busy tonight. Julie won. We sat outside in 60 degree weather, enj0ying every minute. We just finished, Mike and Julie left and the rain began. I love listening to it hitting our roof.

Mike and Julie are volunteers who greet the ships that dock in Astoria. Since cruising to Mexico has been rerouted, Astoria is seeing a lot more ships arrive, so they stay very busy. Do you remember “Goonies”, the movie from the mid-80’s? Well, evidently the people who cruise do. There are more inquiries about where the house from Goonies is than any other question. Now there’s a movie to show at your movie nights, Britta!

Raindrops keep falling on my head--

2009-06-18T06:52:00.000-07:00

Wednesday began with a bit of an adventure I’d rather not repeat. I let the dogs out in Mom's backyard before 7 a.m., then Elsie disappeared. I called and called. Then I put Tule in the house in case there was a gate open. I checked all the gates, kept calling and finally found her hiding behind some gladiolas. Goofy dog was playing hide and seek! She acted like she was so pleased about having fooled me. I was not happy!

Rain hit us as we drove from Seattle to Astoria. Chehalis was quite wet--looked beautiful! It was cloudy, but dry when we arrived in Astoria.

Between Clatskanie and Westport someone is growing a lot of cottonwoods as a crop for the paper mill. There are several fields of cottonwoods in various stages of growth. Some have already been harvested. They are grown just like a corn crop. They grow so fast that they work well as a crop. Between 5 and 10 years after planting they are ready to harvest and plant some more. They are planted very close together in straight rows, just like corn. It is a good use of empty fields and no old-growth timber is used (for those who are worried about that). I don’t think I’d like to be here in Spring when they bloom. Hay fever nightmare! But the farmers are delighted to grow a crop that works here when other things won’t grow.

Mike and Julie came over for a visit and to plan the fishing trip for Thursday. More on that when they get back.

I tried to post this Wednesday night, but no signal. This morning the signal comes and goes, so photos will have to wait for a stronger signal day. ??? Oh well. Here are the words for yesterday.

Pacific NorthWest at its best

2009-06-16T22:09:00.000-07:00

The weather has been perfect here--in the mid-70's, no rain. Unfortunately there have been just enough clouds to cover the mountains.

Today I took my Mom to the heart doctor (went well for a 94 year old), after which we had lunch with my sister. Then after I set Mom's hair I went to the local yarn shop while she was under the dryer. (yes, I got one skein for my "trip" vest). Gary had fun shopping at a few fishing stores for beads and lures, etc.

Then we went to my nephew, Stephen's, for dinner. He made a great salmon dinner. Steve is a multi-millionaire who lives in a batchelor pad in Bellevue. Check out the view behind Steve and Grandma. Nice. While we were sitting on the deck eating dinner a bald eagle flew over --I sure wish my camera had been handy then!

The last photo is Steve's folks, my sister and brother-in-law. It was a nice visit, if short. Tomorrow we head back to Astoria and some fishing with Gary's cousin.

A Ferry Boat Ride to Poulsbo

2009-06-15T21:35:00.000-07:00

Actually, it was a ferry boat ride from Edmonds to Kingston, then a drive to Poulsbo, but we had a great time.

Or maybe I should say Grandma and I had a great time. Gary doesn't really like to do all the shops so he sat outside with the dogs while the two female humans shopped. But this part of the trip was his idea, so he is the hero. And the dogs loved all the pats and attention they got as they sat by Gary waiting for us.

As we waited for the ferry we saw two amazing things--huge lumber trucks leaving the ferry and a bomb sniffing dog. Each time we were in line a bomb sniffing dog came by to check out all the vehicles getting ready to load onto the ferry. We hadn't been on a ferry since 9/11 so it was a surprise to all of us.

There were beautiful flower baskets and pots in Poulsbo, which is a Norwegian community. The Sons of Norway puts on a pancake breakfast once a month and a lunch every Wednesday! This is one active group. They also have a Lutefisk dinner in November, following the Lutefisk dinner put on by the Lutheran Church in October. Plenty of lutefisk in this town! We enjoyed strolling along the waterfront.

Yes, there was a yarn shop--and the owner grew up in Citrus Heights!

When we came home we wandered thru Grandma's pasture. Two trees were killed by bark beetles and she just had them cut down. Can you believe how much firewood she has? Of course, there is a bit of work involved before it can be burned.

From Oregon to Washington

2009-06-14T22:08:00.000-07:00

We started out in Oregon today heading from Warrenton to Astoria. In this photo you can see the Astoria bridge and much of Astoria.

We went across the bridge from Oregon to Washington at Longview.

As you arrive in Washington the first thing you see is a Weyerhaeuser lumber operation.

Then we arrived in Edmonds, north of Seattle at my Mom's. The first photo is the view from her back door to the barn.

The next photo is looking from the barn toward the back of the house and the patio. You can see Tule on the grass. Elsie is already exhausted from running back and forth to see the horse, so she is on the patio peeking thru the railing. The dogs will sleep well tonight.

A day or two ago I told you about Britta's comment as a small child about the big trees in Grandma's back yard. This photo shows Gary next to a couple of trees and a first generation stump in her yard. He is there to show just how big the tree is. It is just one of many that size. After a great dinner at a restaurant on the waterfront in Edmonds, we are pooped and ready for a good night's sleep. Tomorrow will be great, but that will have to wait for tomorrow's blog.

Newport, OR

2009-06-13T21:09:00.000-07:00

We had a great visit with Alan and Karen. This morning we ate at the Pig 'n Pan--super breakfast! Then we found a darling little shopping area near the world famous aquarium and don't you know we found another yarn shop! This little shopping area is worth a visit--very cute nautical themed store fronts and good stuff in the stores, too.

Didn't get much sleep last night--huge rainstorm complete with thunder and lightning that sent Tule to the foot of our bed in fear. You'd never know she is a hunting dog that isn't afraid of guns. I felt bad for the young couple next to us in a tent with a 3 year old and a 2 month old baby. I thought of camping with my folks and being told the rain won't come in unless you touch the tent fabric. Of course, I touched the tent fabric just to see if they were right. I'm pretty sure the three year old did, too.

After the yarn shop visit we headed on up the coast past more wonderful scenery. We always stop at the Tillamook cheese factory because you can get great cheese--flavors we can't get at home--and there is a nice parking area for RV's.

By the time we got to Astoria (at the Hammond KOA RV park) we had heard from Gary's cousin, Mike so we all went out to dinner after a drink at their house. It is always fun to see them and catch up on all the latest family info. We are only here one night, then on to my Mom's tomorrow. But next week we will be back so Gary and Mike can go sturgeon fishing together on Mike's boat.

Nice, cool weather here--I am so glad I finished my Malabrigo wool sweater. I am getting lots of use out of it!

Oregon Coast

2009-06-13T08:52:00.001-07:00

Today we found beautiful weather all the way up the Oregon coast--gorgeous views and beautiful wildflowers were abundant. I missed the rain we expected, but you can’t have everything.

Scotch Broom grows wild up here and is considered a nasty weed, but it sure looks good to see all the cheerful yellow along the roadways.

Every bridge we crossed in Oregon had a beautiful beginning and end--not the usual boring bridge style we see in California. This is one example.

I forgot to mention Scotia while we were in California. We took a side trip thru this little town that is supported by a lumber mill--what fantastic buildings make up the business district. You can tell wood supports the town. This photo is the city movie theater. Absolutely beautiful--

Elsie has discovered a new favorite place to be while we travel--under my legs squeezed under my seat as far as she can go. It gets a bit uncomfortable, but she insists on scooting in there each time I am up front. Goofy dog.

Gary was very sweet today--stopped at three yarn shops for me! I had to buy yarn, of course. Must support the economy!

This posting is late because there was no signal for phone or computer in this RV park. It is a beautiful park, but not too many modern amenities. I love the sign at their entrance:

Dinner tonight was with Gary’s brother and his wife, Alan and Karen. We had a good time catching up on all the family news.

Lots of photos today

2009-06-11T21:01:00.002-07:00

We saw some wonderful things today. We started off the morning noticing this rig in our RV park. We heard it come in---really,really loud.

We missed a lot on the Redwood Hiway because I took a nap and Gary didn't want to wake me. We decided to stop in Ferndale for a walking break for the dogs and us. I found a Yarn Shop! Bought some sock yarn--even ventured outside my comfort zone into lavender --note the color, knitting friends.

Gary got too hungry to go on so we splurged on the best pizza ever at this cute little hole in the wall. If you are ever in Ferndale, I recommend their pizza enthusiastically.

Then we drove on and stopped to see Paul Bunyan. There is a man somewhere who talks to everyone who walks by as if he is Paul Bunyan, the sound comes out of Paul's head--he made sure to tell us our "puppies" were welcome inside the gift shop and on the trail.

As we drove on thru the Redwoods I was reminded of Britta's comment as a four year old the first time we went to Yosemite. She said, "Wow! These trees are almost as big as the ones in Grandma's back yard." And she was right. I thought of that over and over as we drove thru the big trees.

We finally got to our destination in Crescent City in an RV park right by the beach. Gary had the bright idea to let the dogs off their leashes on the beach. Remember, these are labs--sure enough, they went right into the salt water, then ran to the loose sand so they could get totally covered in sand. I gave them a bath before they were allowed inside the RV. What a mess. Note Gary's new hat in the photo on the beach.

Heading up the Coast

2009-06-10T21:08:00.000-07:00

We managed to leave Roseville at 9 a.m. today. Had a nice, easy trip along Clear Lake and ended up in Willits at a KOA. This place is great. They have a petting zoo and a fenced in doggy park. As our dogs were enjoying the dog park a horse whinnied. Elsie went into alert mode and got very excited. She knows the horse at my Mom's and could hardly wait to find the horse she heard. We found not only a horse, but a cute little pony that was only a tiny bit bigger than our dogs. It was very friendly until I had the camera with me. Sigh.

Gary disconnected the CR-V and we drove a winding road to Fort Bragg and Mendocino.

I always thought wild Rhododendrons were unique to Washington state, but we saw lots of them along the road.

Fort Bragg was pretty ordinary, but Mendocino was so cute. Lots of old houses with gingerbread. We found a beach with lots of wildflowers and a beautiful view of lots of birds. Gary meandered way out on a ledge that was too scary for me!

Home Sweet Home!

2009-02-23T15:41:00.001-08:00

We had an easier trip home than we thought we would. Very little rain or wind and lots of blooming things to see. The orchards are full of blossoms, pink and white.

There are wildflowers blooming along the freeways.

Gary got sleepy, so I suggested a stop in Kingsburg where he could take a nap and I could check out the Scandinavian shop that is jammed full of temptation. We both enjoyed our break.

Now it is unload the RV and get the laundry done before we leave Thursday morning. Trips are fun, but it feels so good to be home.

Heading toward home

2009-02-22T16:30:00.000-08:00

We had a great visit with my Mom and sister and brother-in-law in Thousand Palms. Gary and Doug played golf while we women went to the Palm Desert Street Fair at the college. Found a few fun things to buy.

Today we took it easy and meandered out of the Palm Springs area heading toward Bakersfield. The wildflowers have started blooming in the last week. Very pretty seeing all the green fields filled with wildflowers after all the desert dreariness.

Had a scary moment as we drove. As a fellow in an older RV passed us he drifted too close and his mirror hit our mirror. Just before that Gary had been complaining about being sleepy. The crunching sound sure woke him up! The fellow did pull over when he found a wide enough spot and the mirror was just bent back and not broken, so we all drove on, with a readjusted mirror. We sure felt fortunate it was only the mirror that was hit.

We are back in Orange Grove RV Park and this time we are in the back row facing an orange orchard--so beautiful and private looking. Elsie is having trouble relaxing, though. We saw a squirrel when I was walking the dogs after we first arrived--that was way too exciting. Now she is sure she sees some squirrels or bunnies in the field we are facing and she needs to defend us against the invaders that might come rushing out of the field to our rig. Now and then Tule joins her, but mostly it is Elsie on guard and Tule sleeping.

Tomorrow we are on the final leg of our trip--it'll be good to be home, even if only for two days before we head for Britta's.

Goodbye Pahrump, Hello Palm Springs

2009-02-20T22:29:00.001-08:00

The view from the door of our RV in Terrible's Lakeside in Pahrump was really lovely. You can see the lake here as I stood on our steps. Usually you saw it full of ducks, too, but I was too early this morning when I took this shot. I think the ducks were still asleep.

Some travellers with a sense of humor had this "dog" on a leash outside their RV, next to a water dish. Very cute. We met a couple who traveled with a lab that made ours look small plus the biggest Great Dane I have even seen. When they told us the dogs sleep downstairs I guess I looked confused because they then explained they have a 5th wheeler and consider the bed the upstairs. I am still learning the RV lingo.

Our route took us through Barstow. Gary had seen several signs for a 50's cafe so he decided we had to stop there for lunch. We thoroughly enjoyed our stop at Peggy Sue's Diner. It was so cute! Lots to see, even an original 50's section that looked a lot like the restaurant my folks had when I was little. It was a real stroll down memory lane. Good food, too.

Now we are in the RV at Cathedral City (near Palm Springs) after a fun family dinner with my Mom, my sister and brother-in-law. Tomorrow will bring golf for Gary and a trip to the street fair for Mom, Carol and me.

Death Valley

2009-02-19T20:37:00.000-08:00

This trip has been so much fun!

Check out the tow car used by some of our new friends. It is a Smart Car. Gets 40 MPG in town, weighs 1700 lbs, only cost $17,000 brand new. Cute as can be and the really surprising thing is that Gary fits in it! I couldn't believe my eyes! And there is an amazing amount of storage room in the back. Very cute, economical little car.

Today we drove to Death Valley. More yucky scenery, but the geology was fantastic. Caves, lots of tilted mountains, borax flats--lots to see.

We enjoyed touring the two museums at Furnace Creek.

Tonight was our last dinner as a group and there was entertainment. My goodness, what great entertainment!
It was a tap dancing group of local ladies all over 50. In fact, only one was in her 50's. Several were in their 60's but the majority were in their 70's. One lady was 83! Check out these photos of them performing for us. The fellow who sang while they did costume changes had a wonderful voice. The whole evening was great--the whole week was great!

Las Vegas

2009-02-18T21:00:00.000-08:00

Today we hit the road in the car to see Las Vegas. The last time we were there was over 30 years ago, so we saw lots of changes. And now that we've seen it we've had enough. The only money we spent was for lunch. The geology on the route there was fascinating. Still would not say it is pretty, but very interesting--lots of caves.

We made it back just in time for dinner. We have met so many fun people at this rally. A few of us spent the evening playing "Pass the Trash" and laughing a lot.

Short blog tonight--tomorrow I'll take more photos and share some interesting details.

Brrrrrr!

2009-02-17T21:20:00.000-08:00

I guess the brothel tour was quite interesting. They have a printed menu of what services they will provide. Everyone who went felt they got a real education. None of them could believe they really were in a brothel. Lots of giggling going on among them at dinner.

Instead of the brothel, we toured beautiful downtown Pahrump. This billboard is at one of the busiest intersections in town. It appears that the main businesses in town are fireworks and brothels.

There are several plastic life-size horses set around this park. The dogs are convinced they are real and love going up to sniff them. Tule got brave enough to jump in their faces. Elsie keeps wondering why they don’t bend down to sniff noses like the horse at  Grandma’s does. She stares and stares at their faces.

Gary thought it would be funny to take the dogs right up to the many very tame ducks that
populate this park. Tule darn near dragged him right into the water. I wish I’d been quicker with the camera. He was right at the edge and Tule was almost in the water--would have been if he’d allowed it. Took all the strength and balance he had to rein her in and keep himself out of the water. This photo was taken just before Tule lunged at the ducks.

After all the walking in the very cold weather, the dogs vied for front position by the little heater as we all took naps.

We brought our Mexican Train set to dinner and several of us played the evening away. Also learned a new card game called “Screw Your Neighbor” (alternate name for playing with children is “Pass the Trash”. It was fun! Tomorrow will bring another game challenge for the evening.

Blowin' in the Wind

2009-02-16T19:12:00.001-08:00

Another windy day after we got thru Barstow. Plenty of rain, too. Snow in the Tehachapis. The high desert is interesting, but we sure don't see beautiful when we look at the scenery. This area is really ugly.

Elsie seems to not be able to grow a winter coat, so I knitted her a sweater. She was happy to wear it as we drove today thru nasty weather. I love the rain, but I can do without so much wind.

We arrived at Terrible's RV Resort about 3 p.m. Got to the first meeting of the Rally at 4:30--met some great people. They told us about the tours offered. We passed on the tour of the brothel! Really--they are doing a brothel tour! I think Gary would have liked it, but I showed distinct displeasure. We'll do the Death Valley tour instead. Gary insisted on that one. This is quite a group. It'll be a fun few days.

Rolling Along With the Tumbling Tumbleweeds

2009-02-15T17:36:00.000-08:00

We seem to chose lousy weather for traveling lately. The wind today was something else. Gary figures we used about 30% more gas today than it would usually cost. If we'd had a tailwind would we have saved 30%? Saw lots of tumbleweeds, even drove over one when there was no way to move around it. No damage, thank goodness.

Had a great lunch at Harris Ranch with Dennis and Jenny. They are heading the same direction we are, so we made arrangements to meet there for a nice break (if a bit windy). Had a huge yummy lunch, so dinner will be very light tonight.

We are staying in Orange Grove RV Park in Bakersfield tonight. This is the end of the harvest, so Gary picked the oranges that nobody else was able to reach and will enjoy them the rest of the trip. At this RV park which was created in an orange grove by cutting down every other tree, anyone who stays here is encouraged to enjoy the oranges. They smell heavenly.

Tomorrow we are on our way to beautiful downtown Pahrump!

We're home!

2008-12-29T14:41:00.000-08:00

We made it all the way back to Roseville by about 1 p.m. and are almost all unloaded. Good to be home. Goofy Tule was so happy to be here she rushed into the pool so she is still wet. Elsie was smarter than that. No more mishaps so far. Now we will make an appointment to take the RV in for repairs---again.

One last Scrabble game last night and I finally won! Not by much, but at least I have one game in my favor for this trip. I didn't have to be totally humiliated. ; )

When we got here, Britta discovered a flat tire on her car, so she is in getting it repaired. Then we will get Erik to do Christmas with him and she will go home and it will be quiet around here. It will seem dull after our adventures on this trip. But right now dull sounds pretty good.

Happy New Year!

Almost home

2008-12-28T18:20:00.000-08:00

We made it to Woodburn RV Park outside of Salem last night. Britta beat me at Scrabble again, then we went to bed to be awakened by a very loud wind and rainstorm. It felt like the motorhome was going to blow over. Elsie slept through it, but Tule was really nervous. It was too loud for Britta to sleep, but Gary slept right through it with no problem.

Today we have driven through rain and clouds with very little snow in patches way off the road. The further south we go the less snow we see. Rain has been the most prevalent weather with a big squall at Roseburg. It didn't snow until we got to Dunsmuir. We are now in a very cold, but only misty Redding.

When we got to Medford we discovered we had run out of water. Evidently a handle was bumped and it drained out as we drove. I neglected to mention that we had to call a locksmith Dec. 26. When Gary and Britta were loading the RV somehow the door locked with all the keys inside. This last few days have been less than fun. Someday we will laugh about all the things that went wrong.

In the meantime, we are enjoying relaxing this evening. Even the dogs are pooped. They did a LOT of running at Mom's. The horse and Elsie made friends and would stand nose to nose to visit, but that required a lot of running down to the barn anytime someone said "the horse is out". Tule would run out with Elsie then stand at the top of the hill and watch Elsie run. Our yard will be boring by comparison. But we will be happy to be home and unpacked tomorrow.

It Happens Every Trip

2008-12-27T16:16:00.000-08:00

Yesterday started with rain, but soon turned to snow--almost all day. We did get Mom to the bank and in to pick up her repaired hearing aids, but otherwise stayed inside and did little things for her. We undecorated her tree and got it to the basement, cleaned off the steps again and ate a lot of leftovers for dinner.

Today we got up early ready to get on the road and as Gary put up the levelers the inevitable happened. The right rear leveler wouldn't go up. But this time it wasn't the shear pin, so it needed to be cranked up a quarter turn at a time. Gary rebelled and said this time he would let Good Sam do the dirty work. So I sat on the phone for an hour and they told us someone would be out in 3 hours. At 3 hours and 15 minutes we got their follow-up call and told them nobody had arrived. So they tracked the fellow down and he showed up two hours later. Then he discovered he didn't have the correct tool and Gary discovered the automatic wrench he bought doesn't work. So to make this long story a little shorter, we left Mom's a little before 4 p.m., determined to at least make it to Portland. Since we had everything loaded, it would have been a pain to unload and stay with her one more night. Got lots of little things done for her (she "needed" a batch of cinnamon rolls, we washed towels and sheets, etc). We don't have working levelers, decided it was enough to get them all off the ground so we could get home. We've certainly had enough experience traveling without levelers in this rig. It will go back in to the repair shop as soon as we get home. I think we need to be reimbursed for the storage area it hardly ever uses. Sigh.

So we are on the road in the rain with lots of crunchy snow along the edges that is slowly melting. The good thing about the snow is that we didn't track any dirt or mud into the RV or Mom's house. Everything was nice and clean until today.

I am able to receive email again. Britta gave me a wonderful Christmas gift of a new hard drive, installed by her! Of course, it took longer than expected to save all my data to an external hard drive because my computer had a glitch. But it is now done and I am very happy to be able to get at all the emails I got while it was out of commission. I went from 40 gigs of hard drive space to 233 gigs! Very nice!

With any luck we will get home on Monday. Sure hope so!

Merry Christmas!

2008-12-25T21:54:00.000-08:00

We had a wonderful Christmas Eve with my family (except my brother and his family because he was afraid to drive from Bend --fear of getting stuck somewhere along the way). Today we woke up to more snow falling and looking so pretty. It was warmer today, about 37 degrees, so some of the old snow was melting while the new snow was sticking. We braved the messy roads and got to see Gary's brother's daughters and their families today. It was so much fun catching up on all the news. Then came the hair raising drive out of the neighborhood in Ballard and back to Mom's. It was a great day, although Gary was ready for a nap by the time we got home.

We hope you had a super Christmas, filled with blessings from above. Happy Holidays from the snowy Northwest!