CHANGE OF PLANS!

Well, change of plans, we planned on heading north Sunday around 3:00 PM, but something came up, so we wouldn't be able to leave until Tue. or Wed. But that's ok, we have been killing ourselves in this humidity and heat, we can slow down now that lift-off day has been moved up 2-3 days.  Yesterday we spent the whole day washing the motorhome, I even crawled up on the roof so I could reach places I couldn't on the ladder, because of the heat and our ages and Craig's disability(why I was on the roof and not him), we could only stand it out there for about 1/2 hr. at a time. Today I was out there first thing this morning and did all the window, you don't realize how huge the windshield is until you are up there washing it! Plan on doing the inside windows when we are on the road, Craig is going to wax the bottom part tomorrow!  Our Escapee club packet came so we can now put our stickers on, plus we bought a stick on USA map that we can put on the back of the motorhome, I love it, as we go thru each state we add that state's sticker to the it!
                             So excited as the time approaches, can't wait until we are on the road headed for Texas, heard that it is extremely hot there right now, so am glad we don't have to be there until the middle of October! 
                              My best bud Peggy cut my hair and hi-lited it so it will be easy to take care of while we are gone, really like it, hopefully one more cut before we leave Michigan! Also got all of Lenny's(our spoiled pup) shots updated, got his flea meds, heartworm meds, all of his special food, his license and oh yeah, can't forget his storm pills! Getting his is haircut around Aug. 10th and maybe one more time before we head out!
                                        Got the new plates for the motorhome, plus filled the tank,  it was .20 cents cheaper in the morning then by the time we got there in the afternoon, but we did get .20 off a gallon with our Kroger's card discount, so in the end we paid $3.69 a gallon, $199.00 to fill it, ugh! Topped  off the propane also, but that was only $10 since it was already half full!
                                                              The house is 99% empty and the motorhome is 99% full, unbelieveable how much we have packed in there and still have room to spare, found me some cool containers that fit great in the closets and under the table without cramping us or looking like clutter! We still have to put water in the holding tanks, but we don't want to fill them until we are ready to leave, don't want the water too old and warm, we don't actually fill it all the way because of the weight, just enough to get us thru until we get where we are going, then we fill it the rest of the way. 
                                                                Well, I guess that's it for now until the next step in our adventure! Thank you to all my followers and all that read my blog, I promise the postings will get more exciting as we finally head for Texas, plus we will be posting pictures of each and every exciting adventurous site we come across! 
                                                            

THANK GOODNESS FOR RV FRIENDS!!

Well, the count down begins, 6 days before we begin living in our motorhome, have had a hard Monday so far, first the lawnmower died, then the garden tub faucet has to be replaced, because of the type of tub it is we need a special kind of faucet, an expensive one, lol, of course, and also a special kind of tool that only a plumber has, so more money, then to top it all off, I noticed a big puddle under the motorhome, ugh, we just spent a fortune getting the transmission fixed, thank God for my son Matt, who works for the auto repair shop that did the repair, he stopped to check it out and said it's not a serious problem, just have to take it in to replace the gasket and it is still under warrantee! We were in such a state today, it was like "what else could go wrong", but I said a special prayer and things started to fall into place!  So we vacuumed and shampooed the carpet, dusted and polished the wood,packed a few more items, stored a few more, tossed more and gave some more away!  House is looking empty and the Dolphin is getting full, not to mention the garage, surprising how much room we have in there now, even after putting some of Sue's (house sitter) things in there! But the best thing today is my RV buddy Jerry from MissionBell resort in Texas where we will be going to campground host was able to help me link my blog to my facebook, after a couple of hours of having me try different things we were successful! He has the patience of an angel, I am so computer challenged!  Thank you so much Jerry, I owe you!  That is the kind of people that are out there living their dreams and willing to help us newbies!! So let's hope for a better day tomorrow! Until the next blog, have a great day!

PACKING, PACKING, PACKING!!!

Well, one week left until we are official living in our motorhome for a year, we turn over the keys to our house and hit the road in the Dolphin(motorhome) next Sunday July 31st! First we head up north for a month, staying at a friends house off and on, then some boondocking and staying in some campgrounds until we head for Texas. A lot of mixed feelings about leaving my family and friends for 6 months, I know I am going to miss them so much but have been trying to spend a lot of quality time with them all, I know they understand that we will be back and we are only a phone call away and there is always the internet! We have been packing, sorting and packing some more, what to keep and not keep, toss or not, give away or take, am I taking too much or am I not taking enough!  Excited about what is ahead of us, sad about leaving my home that I love and have it just the way I want it, fear of the unknown but what I fear the most is not doing this at all, I keep reading my full-time friends blogs and see how happy they are and how they could never go back to their old lives after living on the road and I know that is what we want too! I also know I am turning my house over to a life long friend and her children, I know they will take care of my house, she is as excited about moving in here as I am about leaving it! I only wish it had been cooler this last week while we packed the Dolphin, so hot carry things from the house to the garage and Dolphin, could only take a few trips out before we were soaked in sweat, so we did it slowly! It was a real eye-opener when Sue (caretaker for the house) showed up with a trailor full of furniture and had the cable company show up to hook up the phone, cable and internet for her, lol, I said ok, no backing out now!  We were all so hot and sweaty but got the job done! Made me also realize that this dream is about to come true for us!  The weather is a lot cooler and not so humid, still hot, but bearable, so hopefully we can get a lot done today! 
Well, gotta go and get busy,  until the next blog, which I hope I will be doing on the road, see you then!

MOTORHOME IS GETTING PACKED!

Ok, good and bad news, good news is that we took motorhome in to have them fix a few things and do a tune-up, change oil and other fluids, charge air conditioner, etc.,while changing the oil they found metal parts in the oil pan, said it was from the transmission, so glad they found it before we headed out across the country, they said we wouldn't have made it out of Michigan, bad news is that we had to put some big money into it to get the transmission rebuilt, thank God my son works there and they gave us a big discount, saving us about $500! But we can travel with confidents now and know we can go anywhere and back without any serious problems, they went thru everything, bumper to bumper! So our Dolphin is home now and getting prepared to hit the road! We have been unpacking it and repacking it, cleaning it today, going to wash the outside and wax it! Also been packing things up from the house and putting them in storage totes so they can be stored in the garage, oh yeah, did some major cleaning and tossing in the garage, gave a lot away to family and to Goodwill, threw bunches out, the garbagemen are starting to hate us, lol! Got the gal that is going to be staying at our house while we travel coming over Sat. so we can go over everything with her!  We have 2 weeks to get everything done before we are our living our dream! Went to the doctor and I am in perfect health, he said my vitamin D levels are down, but taking my vitamins daily should fix that plus I will be getting a lot of sunshine soon, lost some weight but need to lose more, but that is the story of my life! Craig is all set up with the Vets Administration for his health needs, Lenny(our dog) is going to the vets Monday to get his shots, tests, meds and records for the road! Kind of funny that Craig and Lenny both are going to the Vets now! Never been busier or happier in my life. Got my last check from work, retirement from work will start next week and Social Security will start in Aug., paid off many bills so we will have more money flow coming in! Phew! Have I left anything out? Oh yeah, been trying to do something with kids and grandkids every weekend, getting some quality time with them before we leave, hoping to take them up north camping with us before we leave Michigan in late Sept. Plan on doing some boondocking and staying in a friends yard up north until we leave! We are exhausted but happy, it is amazing how much we have accomplished in 2 weeks since my retirement! Well, I think that's about it for now, gotta go, got lots more to do!