Merry Christmas!  I know I said I would be better at blogging now that we are here in New Smyrna Beach for the winter but I kept putting it off and all of a sudden it's the 26th of December and I haven't posted anything.
We have been enjoying hot weather since we arrived but we haven't been to the beach but twice.  Not sure why but that will have to change soon.  We have been catching up on Doctor visits and we are both healthy and wise.  Notice I left out the wealthy part. 
We had a lovely Thanksgiving with our friends Ken and Sis.  We decided to cook so I did a 12 lb turkey with stuffing in the oven here in the motor home and made my Mom's coleslaw and Ken and Sis made sweet potato casserole and glazed carrots and we had a nice dinner outside.  It was wonderful and smelled so good while it was cooking.  We were also able to have Scott and Kathleen and their children for a nice cookout.  That was fun with 6 adults and 4 children.  I always forget how much fun it is to have people over and cook for them. 
We have been enjoying out friends now that they got here.  Unfortunately they couldn't get into the same campground as us this year but they are not too far away.  Also we have some friends up in Wilber By The Sea and we have been enjoying their company.  We met them through Ken and Sis two years ago and spend time with them while they are here.  We have been to Aunt Catfish Seafood Restaurant a couple of times.  We all spent the 12th of December watching the boat parade here in NSB.  Fun evening, fun decorations on the boats.
We spent Christmas Eve here in the park with our friends and neighbors.  Sat around a campfire with guitars playing and good conversations.  Christmas morning Jack and I opened gifts and had a nice breakfast then got ready and went to spend the afternoon and evening with Scott and his family.  Great food and good friends.  Scott and his brother-in-law drove all of us around to look at the Christmas lights and then Jack and I came home.  Was a nice nice day.
I just wanted to catch you all up and I will try to keep this up.
Happy New Year!!!

Happy Back to the Future Day.  We are finally settled into our winter home.  We have all our outdoor goodies including my flamingos out and put up our meager Halloween decorations.  We haven't been to the beach yet as the weather hasn't been cooperating.  Either it's a beautiful day and we have some appointments or else it's raining and or windy.  We did go for burgers at the beach on Sunday but the sand was blowing so bad we didn't even venture down to the sand.
We have been having some problems with our Direct TV. We can't get any reception down here.  Don't know if we moved the motor home over some or the trees are fuller this year but it's the first time we have had problems down here.  Jack has spent a good bit of time on the phone with Direct TV and we have had two technicians out but to no avail so we cancelled our Direct TV.  The cable here has been good this year so we do have something to watch.  Thinking of Dish TV with a tailgater now but not doing anything until we have a tech look at the area.  Fortunately one is coming out on Thursday for a call here in the park and will stop by and check us out.
We have been making appointments with Doctors and Dentists so our calendar is pretty full right now.  I have been having trouble with my right arm and shoulder so I have an appointment with an orthopedics group on Monday.  I foresee physical therapy in my future.  Jack goes back to check in with his cardiologist on the 2nd of November and then to the VA the following week.  After that we should be all checked out and ready to party!!
We have very nice neighbors on the right of us.  They are here for the winter also.  The park should start to fill up shortly.  Hoping that Sis and Ken find a camper of some kind and get down here.  Really missing them.
We were lucky to spend some time with Scott, Kathleen and the kids since we have been here.  They were here the first weekend clearing out their town house so we saw them there and then they invited us to their house on a Thursday evening and we went to dinner at a lovely restaurant in Winter Park.  We spent the night and Kathleen took me back over to Winter Park and we walked in and out of the stores along the main street.  What a lovely town.  Nice little stores and great restaurants.
Well, I promised to keep you all up to date on our winter activities so please enjoy and I will write more in a couple weeks.

Hello from New Smyrna Beach, FL.  We made it and I will tell you about that in a few but first I have to tell you about our experience with the Blood Moon and the eclipse.  Jack and I were still at the RV park in Branson on Lake Taneycomo so we walked down to sit on the bench on one of the docks.  As we sat there we were joined by a gentleman and we started talking.  He was probably a bit older than Jack and came to Branson a few times a year from Eastern Missouri.  He had a cotton and rice farm on the Mississippi Delta.  What a joy it was to meet this gentleman.  He was very knowledgeable about Branson but also Missouri and was so very proud of his state.  He was generous with his knowledge and told us all different places we should see.  It is really a pleasure to meet someone who loves the place they live and are willing to share it with visitors.
We left the next day and drove across Missouri and into Arkansas.  We took mostly state highways and so saw a little more of the area than just from an interstate.  Spent that night in West Memphis, AR.  As we drove towards this RV Park I started to get nervous and I could tell Jack was having a few second thoughts but then we drove into the campsite and it was lovely.  Right on the Mississippi River.  That evening we watched the barges go up and down the Mississippi.  What a beautiful campsite.
Tuesday found us driving in four states.  We left Arkansas and went into Tennessee for a short while then through Mississippi to spend the night in Alabama.  Wednesday saw us driving across Alabama to Valdosta, Georgia.  The next day was our short day.  Instead of 274-283 miles a day we only had 210 miles to go to get to New Smyrna Beach, FL.
We got all the way to 21 miles west of NSB when the motor home started overheating.  All the miles we put on this since April 1st and we have our first problem 21 miles west of NSB.  Many many quarts of water later we finally got to our winter home.  We have been setting up our homestead slowly and are settling in.  Stay tuned for our next installment. 
PS  It has been raining on and off but no problems with the hurricane.

Hi from Branson MO.
Wanted to tell you all about our night in Carthage MO.  We made some new friends here and I wanted to tell you all how nice it is to meet friends from all over the country.  We were in a nice RV Park and parked next to us was a Pace Arrow Vision Motorhome.  In case you all don't know that is exactly what we have.  This one was a bit bigger but the same year as ours. Of course, Jack had to go out and talk.  You all know him.  Was the best thing he could have done.  We were able to connect with Kevin and Sheryl.  We talked decorating and problems and Kevin gave me lots of info on blogging.  So if you are reading this Kevin, thanks a bunch.  Hope to see you sometime.
We got into Branson on Monday and have been enjoying all that Branson has to offer.  We have been to three shows and they were all wildly different.  We have also explored "The Landing" and downtown Branson.
We figured out our shows and decided to go on the Branson Scenic Railroad so Tuesday we booked our tours and picked up our tickets.  Wednesday night we went to see the "Baldknobbers".  This is the oldest show in Branson.  They have been performing for 59 years.  It is a family based show and very heavy into country.  We had a lot of fun at this show and it was a good start to our Branson experience.
Thursday found us up and about and ready for a show in the afternoon.  This time we went to see "Puttin' on the Ritz".  These were songs and dance from the 20's and 30's .  These were very talented entertainers.  We both thought of our parents.  Jack said he could hear his Dad singing some of these songs to his Mom.  I could just see all my aunts dancing and singing!!!  We had a real good time at this show.
Friday we took the Scenic Railroad and I'm sure you all know how much we like to take trains.  This was disappointing.  There really wasn't anything to see except trees.  Now if it was October and the leaves had started to change this would have been beautiful but alas it is only September and everything was green.  We had tickets for Friday night to see the Legends Show.  It was Jerry Lee Lewis, Patsy Cline, The Blues Brothers, Aretha Franklin and Elvis.  These performers were really good also.  This show as a lot of fun.  We sang and clapped and clapped and sang and just had fun.  Could have listened for another hour at least.
Today we walked around the RV Park and looked at the lake then we went to downtown and walked in and out of all the stores.  They are revitalizing the downtown and it was fun to walk. They have a real old fashioned 5 & 10 with lots and lots of goodies to look at.  We went crazy with card and dice games and also candy!!!  Just a nice way to while away 2 hours .  Had dinner tonight at Famous Dave's Bar B Que.  That's located at The Landing so we walked and looked at some stores and they were having a craft show so we looked at some of the booths.
We are camped at Branson Lakeside RV Park. This is run by the city and is a really nice Park.  We love the location of the Park.  We really could walk to downtown and The Landing from here.
Well, you are now up do date with us.  We will be leaving on Monday and making our way to New Smyrna Beach.  We expect to be there by Thursday October 1st. 

Well, now we are up to September 1st.  We pulled out of Wilsonville heading due south.  Went as far as Ashland, OR.  Stayed two nights and explored the area.  Friends of Scott and Erin recommended we see Jacksonville, OR and we spent a nice day wandering around the town.  Very historic and lots to do and see.  We had lunch there and took a trolley tour.  On the way home we rode around Southern Oregon University then went back and got ready to head to California. 
The next day we went to Sacramento.  That was interesting as the only place Jack could find to stay was in the Fairgrounds in Woodland, CA.  Was ok, had all the hookups and we were there for 3 nights but only was in the campsite Thursday night and Saturday night.  We spent Friday and part of Saturday with our friends Pam and Bill over in Castro Valley, CA.  It was so much fun to catch up with them and there was a wee bit of wine consumed. 
Sunday morning we were up and out of the campsite and turned east.  Went to Nevada and then turned south heading to Las Vegas.  Spent the night in Hawthorne, NV.  Really nice RV park and we could walk to Safeway and do a bit of shopping.  Las Vegas here we come.  Got there on Monday and stayed until Friday.  It was HOT!!!  We decided to stay in Vegas and extra day and take a bus tour to the Grand Canyon.  Busy week.  Tuesday we had tickets for Blue Man Group and it was wonderful.  I highly recommend this show.  I wasn't really into it but knew that Jack had always wanted to go but boy am I glad I went.  It was great and we had great seats.  I booked them online and they had a deal so we basically got 2 tickets for the price of one.  Figured the seats would be ok but they were better than ok.  We were in the 4th row center.  One row behind the splash zone.  The next day we had to be at the pick up area at 5:50 am for our trip to Grand Canyon.  Long ride but so worth seeing.  We are glad we took the time and went but next time we would go to the West Rim instead of the South Rim. We didn't get home until 10:45 that night.  Way, way too long.  Needless to say Thursday was a really lazy day.  We just relaxed and then went down town to walk Freemont St and had a lovely dinner at The Grotto in the Golden Nugget.  I highly recommend this restaurant. 
Friday morning we left for Zion National Park.  Had a really nice RV park about 14 miles outside of the park and got ready for our adventure.  Saturday found us heading for Zion National Park at 8:30.  We got in and found a place to park.  Think we were really smart to go then.  There is a shuttle bus that takes you around the park.  It's an on and off deal as they only let cars go so far.  We had a sort of plan and went first to the Museum and watched the film then back on the shuttle and went to the Court of the Patriarchs.  I promise you will love the pictures whenever Jack gets them loaded!  Next stop was the Lower Emerald Pools Trail. That was about a half mile hike one way.  We made it in one piece and then stopped for lunch.  There is a beautiful Lodge there and the food was really nice.  I had a great salad.  More vegis than lettuce and that is unusual.  After lunch we were back on the shuttle and went all the way to the Temple of Sinawava and the Riverside Walk.  This is 1 mile hike one way.  We made it.  Took our time and drank plenty of water.  Temperature was hovering in the high 90's.  We decided that we were good with what we had seen.  Most of the other trails were way out of our league and believe me there are enough pictures to satisfy all.  We were really tired when we got home but it was so worth it.  We had an nice dinner and decided that we could walk up the the RV Park store and have an ice cream since we hiked 3 miles!!!! 
Well, guess what, you are all caught up.  We are working our way to Florida with some stops along the way so stay tuned.

Really trying to catch you guys up on our summer.  We got back from Hawaii in time for Jack's birthday.  We met Erin for lunch the day before his birthday on the river in Portland.  Had a really great time with her and really enjoyed our lunch.  Was going to split the bill with her but she paid!!!  So nice to have an adult daughter.  Saturday was Jack's actual birthday and we just relaxed and then went out to dinner.  I took him (ha ha) to Cheesecake Factory and so you know that was not so good on our waistlines but really great on our taste buds.  Sunday Jack and I went over to McMinnville OR to the Evergreen Air Museum and spent the afternoon there.  Jack had a pretty wonderful birthday weekend.  Later that same week we went over to the coast for the day.  We had a great time just walking around.  Jack watched this "old guy" catch a 34" long Coho salmon that weighed close to 25 pounds.  He was mesmerized. This was really the first time I have been to the coast and not needed a jacket.  Have I mentioned the heat.  We had a very hot summer.  Almost the hottest on record and it was lovely except that all the beautiful green was brown and the fire danger was in the high high high zone. 
Erin, Jack and I took a ride to Albany to go to the storage unit.  We had a few things to put in storage and Jack wanted another airplane.  While he was looking for what he needed Erin and I went through some of the Christmas decorations and she took some.  She also took two stand up fans for her house.  On the way home we saw an announcement on I-5 that there was a fire in the northbound lane.  Fortunately we were able to take back roads up pass Salem.  We only added about 30 minutes to our trip.  We heard later that they finally were able to open one lane at 5:45.  So glad we took the back road.  That same week we went back to Albany to visit with Scott's parents.  Went to their new house and had a great visit then the four of us went over to the Air and Art Show at the fairgrounds.  When we went outside we noticed smoke and were afraid another wildfire had broken out but it wasn't that, the wind had shifted and this was the smoke from all the fires north of us.  When we went home we noticed that the further north we went the thicker the smoke was.  Back down to Albany a couple days later for lunch with our friends Pam and Doug.  Had a great visit and a lovely lunch.  Spent a couple of hours just talking.  We had a great summer of visits and this wasn't our last but saving that for another post.
Went up to have lunch with Kili and Erin on Tuesday and stayed for Tuesday night dinner with Erin, Scott and their friends.  Such a good time.  We will be on the road the following Tuesday.  We started our pack up or at least we thought about packing up.  Went to John Barleycorn's on Friday night to see Bryan and say goodbye.  Then Monday night we met Scott and Erin back at the restaurant on the river for a farewell dinner.  Time to start our way back to Florida for the winter.  I will pick it up there next time but you are almost all caught up!!

Hi all,
I'm back!  We arrived in Oregon on the 15th of June and parked at the same RV park in Wilsonville, OR that we stayed at two years ago.  We parked, set up and immediately went up to see Erin. We had a nice dinner and visit with both Erin and Scott.  We played with Bozly in the back yard and watched him try to catch the squirrels.  We were really impressed with all they have accomplished around their house.  Of course, as we all know there is plenty left to do.  Later that week we were able to help Erin out with Boz and Scott's brother's dog.  They boys were away at a music festival and Erin had long days so we went up and let the two dogs out and fed them.  They couldn't be more different.  Bozly is hyper active and Carly is a love bug.  Just wants to be petted.  So funny.
We were also able to meet up with Jack's cousin and his wife who were in Portland visiting their son.  We all got together for brunch and now Sean and Erin have met and I hope they keep in touch.  He is there teaching. 
We were able to connect with our friends Susan and Tom and spent 4th of July weekend with them in Springfield OR.  They moved from Hawaii right after we went on the road so we hadn't seen them in awhile.  We had a lovely time and also survived the 4.8 earthquake.  We were sitting out on their lanai and all of a sudden everything started moving.  Susan was inside and she said later she thought a plane had crashed.  Came to find out later on that the epicenter was right over the hill from their property.
Jack had to have some major dental work done while we were in Oregon and so we spent a couple of weeks just chilling out.  He has been a real trouper but I know how uncomfortable dental work is. 
We were able to visit Hawaii for 10 days.  We stayed with Gay and had a good time.  Did a lot of lunches and dinners with friends.  I sprained my knee about 2 weeks before we went so I spent a lot of time with ice on my knee.  Thanks Gay for putting up with us.  We really enjoyed our visit and it was so much fun catching up with friends.  Never enough time to see everyone.  I tried but with a bum knee and needed the ice time. 
Well, quitting for now.  Will continue on maybe tomorrow or Tuesday and get us through Oregon.
Hope you all have a great Labor Day.

So here it is the 2nd of September and I haven't blogged all summer.  I left you all hanging in Edmonton and now I want to catch you all up.  We left Edmonton and headed south to Banff area.  We stayed in a nice little town east of Banff and Lake Louise called Canmore.  We went over to Lake Louise and walked around the lake.  It is so beautiful, the color of the lake is such a pretty white green.  Hard to explain but the glacier grounds up the rock to a fine talc like substance and that makes this milky green color.  We went into the hotel and had a bite to eat and then went back to Banff.  True ski town with lots of stores and lots of bars.  We walked around and did a little shopping then stopped for a drink.  Funny story.  We got to the bar which was upstairs and decided to try to sit out on the porch.  We walked out and this couple said they would move over so we could sit down.  The man told Jack he had waved to him while he was taking pictures and sure enough Jack looked at what he had taken and there he was waving away.  They were Americans and sat and talked with us for a couple minutes.
After Banff we went back to Canmore.  We explored Canmore and the Nordic center.  That evening we went out and had ha lovely dinner.  We went over the TransCanada Highway and what a ride.  We have some beautiful pictures of the Canadian Rockies but unfortunately no pictures of wildlife because we didn't see any wildlife.  We entered the US in Washington and spent some time in Bellingham.  We explored Bellingham.  We also visited with Ann and her children.  I have known Ann since she was born and it was wonderful to spend some time with her and her children.  She is a wonderful woman and mother.  We went down one night and took them out to dinner  and had such a great visit we went back down for another evening. 
We left Bellingham and drove to Olympia Washington for two nights.  This was just supposed to be a rest stop but we decided to visit the capital building and the waterfront.  So glad we did. Beautiful capital building and we were able to walk around inside and take more pictures.  Then we went down to their boardwalk and walked around that and of course then had dinner.
The next day we went to Oregon for the summer.  That's a blog for another day.  I promise to catch you up!!  Please keep reading.

Hi,
I know it has been almost a week but the internet service has not been the best.  We had real intermittent all weekend at Ol McDonald's Campsite.  We stopped there so we could go on the Alberta Prairie Railroad.  This is an old steam train that leaves Stettler and goes to Big Valley.  Just about an hour an a half train ride into a small Canadian town that has about 400 citizens.  This was once a railroad town that flourished until they moved the district.  Now it is just a nice small town that works with the Alberta Prairie Tours.  We had such a good time even though there was a train robbery, fortunately for us there was a Pinkerton man on board that saved the day and took care of all the robbers.  We then continued into town and were met by the entire village.  They were there to get the news from the big cities.  We then walked around town and shopped and then went to the town hall where a nice roast beef buffet was waiting for us.  Back on the train by 6 for the trip back to Stettler.  This time we had no robbery but we did have entertainment in the form of a western singer.  We all sang along and the trip home took no time.
We went back to the campsite and the next day was laundry day.  Boy did that place clear out after the weekend.  By Sunday night you could count the campers on two hands.  We then had a lovely thunderstorm with hail and thunder and lots and lots of wind.  This has been some spring for weather!!!
Monday morning we pulled out of Ol McDonalds and headed towards Edmonton.  We were on back roads and saw a lot of the country.  There are some enormous farms and ranches up this way.  We are now in the town of Stony Plain about 15 miles outside of Edmonton.  This is one beautiful campsite in a nice suburb.  We took a walk down Main Street on Monday afternoon and looked in all the shops.  They have painted some beautiful murals of the original town on the sides of the buildings along with the history of each.  Makes for a fun walk.  Tuesday we were going to go to Fort Edmonton but the weather wasn't looking so good so we decided to go to the West Edmonton Mall.  I thing we walked at least 10 miles in that Mall.  It is huge with a hotel, amusement park, miniature golf course and an ice rink inside.  We just decided that we would walk it all and look and that is what we did.  We started around 2 and didn't stop until around 5:45.  We watched the skaters practice and who knows maybe we saw a future Olympic medalist.  This is a lovely mall and for some reason I liked it much better than the Mall of America.  It's on the same order but this is the one I would choose to go to.  We found a nice place for dinner and then came home.  We were both tired by the time we got home.  Today dawned sunny and bright (5 a.m.) and we got ourselves moving sort of quickly and went to Fort Edmonton.  What a fun time.  It is set up in 4 different time periods to tell to story of Edmonton.  The fort is not a military fort but was established for the fur trading business.  After you tour that you move on to the late 1800's and see the beginning of the town of Edmonton with businesses and farms.  The fur trade had slowed way down.  Then you head into the pre World War I era and see how the town is growing.  They have a great movie with sound and movement and snow and all kinds of noise that gives you the history from the native people through the end of WW I.  This was a fun day and we rode another train.  I am really seeing a pattern here with us and trains!!!  We are now resting from our day and will be going out to get Pizza for dinner tonight.  No cooking after a hard day of sightseeing!
Tomorrow we head to a campsite outside of Banff and will be there two nights.  We are going to see Banff and then head west.  We will probably be without much internet but I will try to blogg when I can.  We should be back in USA by the 9th at the latest.  Will keep you all informed.  Until then Aloha!

Hi,
We are in Calgary, Alberta and enjoying our stay here.  But I haven't filled you all in on our "story" from St. Mary's.  Just let me say it is not one of my favorite places.  Truthfully, it is my least favorite place.  I will tell you all and anyone that asks me to go to the western side of Glacier National Park or go to Waterton National Park on the Canadian side.  When you get to the park the Prince of Wales hotel it there.  Unfortunately, it wasn't open yet.  The hotels in the Parks open on the 9th of June.  We went there last Saturday and had just the best time. I would suggest staying in the little town of Waterton.  We had a lovely lunch in town and then walked around and took more pictures.   I'm hoping Jack posts the pictures soon cause we saw Big Horn Sheep just strolling around the yards in the town and then when we took a ride to Cameron Lake we had another Big Horn Sheep walking down the road in front of us.  Was so funny cause each time we took a picture of the Sheep he started running.  I know he was scared but it was like he posed just long enough to let you think you were going to get a good shot and then he took off.  Also, every time we thought we were going to get passed him he run right in front of us.  We just laughed and laughed.  We rode all around the area and then started back and guess what we found in the middle of the road going back.  You guessed it; a Big Horn Sheep!! 
Monday we rode to Many Glaciers and took some more pictures and looked for bear but all we saw was Big Horn Sheep.  I know there were other animals in the forests but they are so thick it is hard to see.
We left on Tuesday and came to Calgary.  We are right outside of the city and yesterday we went into town and walked around and took pictures.  Then we stopped at a nice outside restaurant and had drinks and appetizers (pupu's).  We were so happy we went yesterday because the weather was absolutely gorgeous.  In the low 80's and sunny with a light breeze.  Boy did that change today.  It has been overcast all day and only got up to 57.  Tomorrow we leave for Stetler and our next adventure.  Will keep you posted.

Hello from St. Mary's Montana.  We are camped looking at the east side of Glacier National Park.
Jack and I have a saying when things aren't exactly the way we thought they would be, "It's a story."  Well, let me tell you a story. 
Going from Butte to St. Mary's is not exactly a straight shot and Jack was trying to decide whether to go up I-15 to 44 and across to 89 or to take 287 which changes into 89.  He decided this morning to go up I-15, and off we went.  It was a great ride with hardly any traffic even through the big cities of Helena and Great Falls.  We decided to stop and have lunch at a diner instead of fixing it here and so we stopped at Denny's.  We were sitting in our booth and a nice lady sat in the next booth.  She proceeded to talk to us all the way through lunch.  Not too bad considering Jack and I have been on the road for three days with no one but each other to talk with so you know our lunch would have been very quiet.  When we got on the road I started to look at the map and realized we could get on 89 right past Great Falls.  Let me just say that I was thinking of Jack.  The ride was over our comfort zone of 275 miles and this would be quicker.  We talked it over and decided to catch 89 and head north.  That's where the story begins.  We drove over 50 miles on this two lane road.  Not in too bad a shape but narrow shoulders.  We got to the town of Choteau and as we went around the circle to pick up 89 there was a sign that warned motorcyclists of construction.  Never said a word about cars or motor homes towing a car.  Nooo  so of course we just tooled along.  Hit a little construction but nothing to worry about and then we went around a curve and that's where it got hairy!!!  We were driving about 10 miles an hour over gravel roads and around detours that were dirt with no way else to go.  We thought we were coming out of it when much to our surprise there was another flagman that slowed us down and had us follow a follow me car.  We needed this guidance because it made the big earth movers slow down and let us pass.  Here we were actually going about 5 miles an hour.  I know this wasn't more than 10 or 15 miles but it felt like forever.  We finally got out of that and were sailing along still on 89 and still a 2 lane road but we were moving and no more gravel.  Then we got to Browning MT and saw that 89 was under construction there.  OMG but fortunately the GPS took us around that and we got to the BIA road (we didn't know what that was either until we got to St. Mary's, it stands for Bureau of Indian Affairs).  14 miles to go and we would be camped for 5 days!!  Wooo Hooo.  Then we started up the road and realized it was narrow and curvy and steep and no guard rails and again we were doing 15 miles an hour.  But finally at 4:30 we got to the camp site and that's where we are now.  When you sit outside you see the snow covered mountains and blue blue sky and no clouds and it is amazing!!  This is our quiet time.  Not a lot to do but a beautiful place to do it in,

We have been on the move again.  Monday we left Ft. Collins and started our trek to Canada.  We have been driving through Wyoming and Montana.  There are some beautiful pictures that we got on our travels and Jack will be downloading them soon.  We are in Butte Montana tonight.  We stopped in Casper Wyoming on Monday and Billings Montana last night.  Tomorrow we are going be in St. Mary's Montana and we will be there through the weekend.  We are going to take some down time and try to visit Waterton National Park on the Canadian side of Glacier National Park.   This park is part of the International Peace Park World Heritage Site. We are also going to have some well deserved down time for Jack.  Today's drive was amazing but the pass through a couple of the mountains was a little hairy.  Jack is still trying to unclench his hands.  Wyoming and Montana are two of my favorite states along with Colorado and a few more.  The scenery is just amazing.  It can't be described because there are no words to describe it and the pictures just don't do it justice. 
We are leaving Tuesday for Canada.  We are going to Calgary, Edmonton, Banff and then over to Vancouver.  Not sure how long we will be in Canada but we will be turning off our phones.  If you need us please use e-mail. 
I will talk to you all from right outside of Glacier National Park. 
Good Night!

We spent a whole week in Ft. Collins Colorado and visited with friends from Hawaii who now live there.  Ft. Collins is just a great town.  It has a nice "Old Town" with some real nice shops and restaurants to enjoy.  We arrived at our campsite in Loveland, CO on Monday afternoon and as soon as we got set up we went to Kathy's.  We got meet Zoe, who will be turning 1 next month and looks exactly like her Nonny, Kathy.  What a happy smiling little girl.  We also sat out on the front porch and had wine and cheese and visited with her neighbor Pam and Kristy when she came from work.  Kathy cooked for us and gave us a chance to catch up with Kristy and Gabe and get to know Zoe. 
Tuesday we went to Gabe's coffee shop for breakfast and got to see Kevin also.  He is baking for Gabe and we had a nice breakfast.  If you are ever in Ft. Collins, Colorado go to the Crooked Cup.  You won't be disappointed.  We walked the Old Town and Gay we went to your favorite store.  I bought some cocktail napkins and some post cards.  We spent about 3 hours walking around.  Plenty to see and it was a nice day!!!  We had a nice day and capped it off with Pizza and salad.  Pam came and brought her other friends daughters and their exchange student.  Always fun to listen to young people talk.  Makes you realize that the world as we know it will go on. 
Wednesday was clean, wash and repair day at the motorhome.  Kathy was babysitting and we needed to get some work done around the motorhome.  Was a quiet day and we just hung at home.
Thursday we picked Kathy up and headed to Estes Park, CO.  One of my favorite places this mountain town was hit with fire and floods in the last few years and has still maintained its charm.  Lots of work going on but we walked again around the town and the riverwalk is always fun.  I especially liked the riverwalk because I was able to find a bead for my Pandora bracelet.  We went to the Stanley Hotel for lunch.  This is a beautiful old hotel with lots of history but is also known as the hotel they used when filming "The Shining".  We had a great lunch and then we (by we I mean Jack) decided we should take the road to Boulder and check that out.  Up and down the mountain roads we went and finally arrived in Boulder but couldn't find old town so just drove through the college and saw one of the biggest buildings I have ever seen and it was still under construction so who knows how bit it will eventually be!  We finally found our way back to Ft. Collins.  We dropped Kathy off and went on back to the campsite and rested up.  It was a great day.  Friday was a lazy day and we went out to dinner with Kathy and Kevin.  That was a project.  We thought we would just head to the Golf Course for dinner but that was just jammed with people and had a 45 minute wait so we picked another place and that had a 45 minute wait.  We then went to Texas Roadhouse and that was a 25 minute wait so we waited there.  Had a nice dinner and enjoyed Kevin.  All our children have grown up.  Not sure how that happened.
Saturday we went to the farmers market and back over to Kathy's for dinner.  Dick arrived from Hawaii for the summer and we did burgers and brats for dinner.  What a nice evening.  Sunday we went out for Mexican food.  This is a tradition that started in Hawaii and we all try to do this when we are together.  If we are in Hawaii we go with Gay and the Junks and Dick if he is there.  When in Colorado its the Freitas' and Gabe and Kristy and Kevin (if he's available).  Perfect end to our stay in Ft. Collins.
Monday morning we were back on the road and heading north.  Canada here we come!!

Good Morning,
We are in Colorado and have been here for the last 2 weeks.  I have been writing my blog in my head for a week now but never sat down and put it in the computer.  Oh well, here it goes.
We spent the first week in Pueblo, Colorado which is located in the southeastern part of Colorado.  We stayed in a real interesting campground.  Our neighbors really neighed!!!  They boarded horses so we could watch 3 of them from our kitchen window.  The weather was as usual horrible.  We had one day with no rain until evening so we got moving and went to the Royal Gorge in Canon City.  We were driving up to look at the gorge when we saw a winery at Holy Cross Abby.  We decided to stop and look and taste just a little.  That was one of the best decisions we have made.  We walked around this lovely store and tasting room and then I did a little tasting and of course we had to buy some wine and a few other things!!  As we were talking with the clerk he told us about the train that goes through the gorge.  We flew out of there and drove up to the train station, parked the car and started hurrying.  The train was still there and a we were greeted by a couple of the ladies who work for the train.  They asked if we wanted to take the train and when we said yes they called the desk and the conductor to see if they would wait for us to get our tickets.  This was such a lucky day for us. This train ride was so worth the money and we got to have lunch on the train too.  It took a little more than 2 hours and we saw some beautiful scenery.  There is a reason they are called the Rocky Mountains!!!  After the train ride (Jack has some pictures that I hope he will post) we decided to circle around the area instead of backtracking.  This was a good hundred mile circle back to Pueblo!!!  At one point we had no idea where we were.  Jack says it didn't look that far on the map!!!  The next day started out nice so we decided to take a ride to Colorado Springs and find a Costco.  We needed to re-supply and it was sunny when we left.  Colorado Springs is only about 40 miles north of Pueblo so not too far.  We found the Costco and were walking around when we heard the thunder.  Oh well, we were inside and we could just go up and down the aisles and taste all the Costco goodies.  Then we heard this other sound and Jack looked up at the windows in the ceiling and it was hailing.  Ok we just took our time but it didn't stop.  So we checked out and went and stood in the covered area and looked at 2 inches of hail on the ground.  We have pictures of that also and a little film so you can hear the sound the hail made.  Of course, you have to wait for Jack to post them!!  We got the goodies in the car and started home and drove out of the bad weather.  About 5 miles down I-25 the sun was shining and the roads were dry.  But not for long.  We have certainly seen our share of bad weather and it didn't stop on that day.  We stayed home the next day and then on Saturday we went to downtown Pueblo and walked the riverwalk and stopped for a nice lunch.  Sunday we headed for the mall just to have a place to walk around as it was raining again. 
We do have better news for the next phase of Colorado.  We are in Ft. Collins, Colorado now and the weather has been better.  For some strange reason the storms are all around us but not here in Ft. Collins or Loveland (that's where our campsite is).  More to come on our visit in Ft. Collins but now I am going to have my breakfast.

Hello from Dodge City, Kansas.  We arrived here on Thursday in sunshine and have been in sunshine since then.  Of course it is getting ready to rain tonight and probably on and off tomorrow.  We will be on the road for that heading to Pueblo, Colorado. 
Dodge City is cowboy town.  Friday we went to the Boot Hill Museum.  We spent about 3 hours in the museum and walking the town fronts.  We learned about Dodge City and all the scandalous goings on.  We looked at the headstones (mostly crude wooden crosses) on what is left of Boot Hill Cemetery and also learned how it got its name.  The first person buried there was a cowboy who was buried with his boots on.  We learned about the Indians who originally inhabited this area and the Santa Fe trail and all the buffalo that were here.  We learned that the military wanted the Indians gone and so they encouraged the slaughter of the buffalo.  We read the story of Wyatt Earp, Bat Masterson and all the lawmen that cleaned this town up.  On Saturday we took a free trolley ride around the town and out to Ft. Dodge.  Ft. Dodge is the first settlement here and it was a military post established to protect the settlers and those traveling on the Santa Fe trail.  Last night we went to the Boot Hill Casino for dinner.  Lovely evening with great steaks.  Naturally the steaks are amazing we are in cattle land. 
On our tour we were told that the two meat processing plants average 6,000 cattle a day each.  That is an amazing amount of beef!!!
Today we took a ride to Meade, KS to the Dalton Gangs Hideout.  We walked the tunnel that they dug between their sister's house and the barn so the people of Meade wouldn't see them.  We walked around the sister's house and then went to the small museum.  We are all things cowboy and bad guys now. 
We are home now hoping that the thunderstorms blow the other way but not sure that will happen.  The wind is blowing like crazy right now and the dust is like a fog outside.  We are inside with the air conditioner on. 
Well that was our stay in Dodge City.  It was a good stop on our westward journey and Colorado here we come. 

Well hi all,
We have arrived in Kansas and I thought before I tell you about Kansas I should tell you about Oklahoma.  We got to Oklahoma on the 25th of April and got settled in Lawton, OK.  We were there to see our Hawaii daughter.  Stephanie and I met at work around 20 years ago when she was a young Marine wife living in Hawaii.  We worked in the same office and she just melted my heart.  Such a wonderful young woman.  Through her we met our other Hawaii daughter Anya.  Both their husbands deployed and they developed a friendship that has lasted.  We were lucky when Steph came back to Hawaii for another tour but it has been 10 years since then.  Enough background, just wanted you to know why we decided to spend 3 days in Lawton OK.  Steph came over to the campsite on Saturday evening and it was like we had just seen her.  We talked and laughed and talked some more.  Sunday we went to her home and got to see her youngest son Quentin.  What a nice young man she has raised.  Ethan wasn't feeling well so we caught up with him on Monday evening.  This is was one of the best weekends we have had.  This is family and we definitely won't go years without seeing them again.  We left on Tuesday and drove to Oklahoma City.  We spent two nights there.
Wednesday we drove into Oklahoma City and walked around Bricktown area the headed up to the Business district to see the memorial for the Oklahoma City bombing.  This was so worth the trip back to Oklahoma City.  Jack and I were lucky to get to the memorial just as one of the Park Rangers were getting ready to speak to a school group.  We stood to the side of the group and listened.  We learned so much and this made us appreciate what we were seeing.  Very moving place.  The planners really gave thought to not only the tragedy but to the rebuilding of the people of Oklahoma.  They not only represented the before the bombing but the after also. 
We went across the street and looked at the stature of Jesus with his back to the bombing site and the words "Jesus Wept" inscribed in the base of the statue.  This is built on the site of the rectory of the Catholic Church that is on the corner.  There is also a church on the other corner and each sustained some damage but both churches are still there.
Jack and I walked back to Bricktown area and found a lovely place for lunch.  We ate at the Hudson Public House and I had the best salad I have ever had.  I would love to have it again today but we aren't near Oklahoma!!
The other good news I have is that it hasn't rained since Monday!!!  The sun has been out and we have been able to really enjoy our touring.  Keep fingers crossed that this holds up. 
I will tell you all about Dodge City, Kansas tomorrow.  Think I have said enough for now.
Bye.

Well howdy, y'all!!!  Yep, we are here in Terrell Texas just about 35 miles east of Dallas, TX. and guess what.  It's raining.  We arrived here on Tuesday and found a nice campground.  We are really starting to worry that we are bringing the rain with us.  Sorry, California we are not heading your way.  Right now there is a tornado watch but sounds like it is all on the west side of Dallas.  Thank you Lord. 
We went into Dallas on Wednesday and took the JFK tour on the Bid D fun trolley.  We saw a lot of the areas where Oswald was and where he was arrested.  We did see the book depository and the 6th floor window.  There is a museum there that we were going to go into today but the Mother Nature had a different idea for Jack and I.  We did walk around the historic area and had a nice lunch in that area.  We will be back Dallas.
We headed up to Allen, TX yesterday afternoon and spent the best time with my cousin Margaret Arden and her husband David.  We talked and talked and drank wine and talked some more.  I am so glad we connected with them and were able to get together.  That is the second time on this odyssey of ours that we spent time with a cousin that I hadn't seen for a while.  This is one of the perks of traveling around the country. 
Today was a slow day for us.  It just rained all morning and we knew that the thunderstorms were coming this afternoon so we decided that we would postpone our day in Dallas to the next visit. 
Tomorrow we head to Oklahoma.  Going to see our friend Steph and her family on Sunday in Lawton OK then Monday head up to Oklahoma City. 
Stay tuned for the next leg of our journey.

Hello to all from Mississippi still!!! We have been here since Wednesday, April 8th and will be here until Monday April 20th.  We like the area but that isn't why we are still here.  It has been raining everyday.  Some of you may have seen on the World News that New Orleans, Gulfport, Biloxi and the Gulf Coast has been under a flood and thunderstorm watch and warning every day.  We have decided that we will have to come back to do New Orleans as we can't seem to get a break in the storms.  Rain 10, New Orleans 0. 
We have been exploring around this area when we get a break in the rain.  I told you about Beauvoir and the Rte 90 ride around Biloxi.  Yesterday we had 3 hours without rain so we went west on Rte 90 and explored Pass Cristian, Long Beach and Bay St. Louis.  We stopped in Bay St. Louis and had a drink at a cute little bar and restaurant.  Sat right on the Gulf of Mexico and the view was lovely.  There was actually this round bright ball in the sky.  Someone said that it was the sun.  Couldn't prove it by me.  These are pretty towns that are still recovering from Katrina.  We took some pictures that Jack will load to show you how high the pilings are when they rebuild.  We really noticed the empty lots in this area.  So many historic buildings that are just gone.   I think seeing the empty lots really gets to me.  Every place we drive that is what you see.  It is just so very sad.
We have also been shopping.  I find that we substitute shopping for sightseeing and that gets expensive.  I am ready to tour!!!  We have taken some time to clean out drawers and clean all those things that need done at least once a year. 
We are heading to Dallas on Monday.  Will take us an overnight and then we are going to be tourists.  Can't wait.  We are also hoping to meet up with my cousin and her family.  We will probably be in Dallas until next Saturday then on to Oklahoma.  Stephanie, here we come!!!!
Well, not to much else to report.  Not sure what we will do tomorrow.  Maybe the movies. 
Talk to you soon.

I added a few pictures from Florida over the winter. Album is cleverly named "Florida".

We are in Gulfport Mississippi staying on the Seabee base.  They have a really nice camp site with concrete pads and grass.  Just really different from sand.  Don't have to sweep as often!!!  We arrived here on Wednesday and will be here until Friday, the 17th.  We were going to leave on Tuesday but the weather has been lousy and we want to visit Mobile, Alabama and New Orleans.  Right now it is pouring rain and thunderstorms are coming and going.
We have been exploring Gulfport and Biloxi.  Friday we took a long ride down Route 90 which runs right along the coast.  The devastation from Katrina is still evident when you drive along the coast.  There are so many empty lots, some of them have historic signs so you know that the houses that used to be on the lots were many many years old.  Also there are a lot of casinos.  When they first allowed casinos they had to be on the water in boats but now they are big hotels and casinos. 
Friday, we went to Beauvoir the home of Jefferson Davis.  What a beautiful piece of property.   We took the house tour and the docent was telling us that Katrina brought the water level up 24 feet and the house is built 23 feet off the ground.  So there was 1 foot of water inside the house.  They have completely restored the main house but the two side houses were destroyed and they have reproduced them.  There are beautiful gardens in the back of the house and they keep animals.  We were watching a new baby goat and its Momma.  So cute.  The baby kept getting out of the pen and the Momma would bleat and bleat to get the baby back.  After the last Davis died the home was used as a home for Confederate veterans and their wives until 1954.  Really is an interesting site.  We watched a movie on Jefferson Davis in the museum.  Was quite interesting also.  After we left Beauvoir we decided that it was too early for dinner so we went to one of the casinos.  You all know how that turned out.  We donated some of our dollars to the cause.  Oh well, we tried.  Then we found a good place for bar-b-que.  Jack had ribs and I had pulled pork.  Both were very good. 
We lazed around on Saturday.  But we did go do a little shopping.  Jack was looking for Tonic Water and was having a horrible time finding it.  We ended up going to WalMart and Jack got to see his first Walmartian!!!  He said there was actually a women whose boobs were hanging out of the bottom of her shirt.  Guess all those pictures are true!!!
Today we decided since it was supposed to rain we would just go over to Kessler Air Force Base and go shopping.  Nice Exchange here I guess because it is a training base.  Much nicer than any that we have been in since we have been traveling.  We also took a ride through the Veterans Cemetary (it's a Jack thing) and past the huge VA hospital. 
Ok enough with the tour stuff. I gotta tell you all that we are definitely in the South!!!!  Biloxi is having a special election to elect a new mayor and these are just a few of the people running.  There's FoFo, Windy and Cono - the males running and then there is Dixie - the female - just to name a few.  Only in the south!!!!
Well, that's enough for now.  Hopefully Jack will post the pictures we have been taking so you all can see them sometime in the next few days. 
Will keep you posted.

Hi,
Well here we are on the road again.  Took us a couple extra days as we had to have some work done on our motor home and it took a little more time than we thought.  We spent 3 nights in 2 different motels in New Smyrna Beach but bright and early (early for us that is) Saturday morning we were traveling.  We traveled west through some of the state road in Florida and saw some pretty horse country and lots and lots of trees.  Only one alligator and that was right around New Smyrna Beach but quite a few signs for crossing bears.  Seems Florida has their fair share of bears but we didn't see any of them either.  The Ocala area has some of the most beautiful horse farms I have ever seen. We spent Saturday night in Panacea, FL in a small RV camp on the Apalachee Bay.  We had dinner in a nice restaurant on the bay and enjoyed the view and the birds but not the no see ums that were biting us!!!
Sunday we packed up and headed for Tyndall AFB Fam Camp.  We lazed around Sunday afternoon and met a couple heading east.  We visited with them for quite a while and then realized that we needed to make our Easter dinner.  Finally sat down to eat around 8.  We had a small ham so we were in the spirit.
Monday we decided to see what Panama City was like.  We started at the historical area of Panama City and walked around a huge antique store then went for lunch at a San Francisco style deli.  Lovely lunch but all this eating out isn't helping my WW.  I am working on a way to do better with that but that's a blog for another day.  After lunch we tool the scenic route to Panama City Beach which is a few miles west of the city.  That was crazy.  It is still Spring Break and the streets were jammed with kids.  Not sure what the ages were as they all look to young to us.  We came back in late afternoon and lazed around outside for a while and then had dinner.  Quiet evening for both of us.  Today was let's check out the beach on base and then hit the Commissary and Exchange.  The beach is quite lovely but it is a good mile walk on a boardwalk out to the beach and then it must be 1/4 mile of beach to hit the water.  Pictures will be posted hopefully soon.  Jack needs to get to work on that.  We went to the commisary and exchange and just picked up a couple of things to get us through the weekend.  I am trying to cook as much as possible.  Came back and relaxed until dinner then just vegged in front of the TV. 
We will be leaving on Wednesday, April 8th and going to Gulfport MS.  We have reservations in Gulfport until Tuesday April 14th.  We figure we can visit Mobile, Gulfport, Biloxi and New Orleans from this RV park so stay tuned. 
Well, goodnight all and I will be back!!!!