CHRISTMAS DECORATIONS!

                                                 Our Texas room almost ready, need to put lights up!

                                                             Christmas Tree in the MH

                                                             Fiber-Optic Outside Tree

                                                 This Snowman is our Grandaughter Desiree!

 Blaken is the Penguin, 1st Snowman is Callie, Hayden is the Snowman and last Snowman is Kennedy

  My Christmas quilt make here at the Resort!

Well they are getting ready for Christmas here at the resort, so we dug out our decorations and bought some twinkle lights! We wanted to put something up that reminded us of our 5 youngest grandkids, that way we would feel they are here with us, as we started digging things out I found these 5 little cardboard snowmen, penguin and santa, perfect! I put the 4 littlest ones on the front of the MH grill and for my teenage grandaughter I gave her a special spot in Papa's plant! Don't know why but we had two christmas trees packed, so put one outside and one in! Also bought a Christmas quilt from the quilt ladies here at the resort, as we were cleaning the craft room I noticed them putting this quilt together and fell in love with it, they asked if I wanted to buy it for $45, I couldn't believe that is all they wanted for it!  They are also making me a queen size quilt for our bed, made in brown shades to match our curtins and decor, they let me peek at it this morning, it is awesome!  

We had some 30 per hour winds for 2 days and thought we were going to lose our canopy, we have it staked down pretty good and several clamps at the top, we couldn't roll it up with the winds the way they were, so we put more support straps on the roof, hoping it would keep it from flapping, helped a little bit, but it got pretty scary for awhile! Craig said as soon as the winds stopped we were taking it down and not putting it back out! I said no way, I love having it out because it is like another room added onto the MH! If it could withstand the 30 mph winds it should be fine! So for now it is still out!  The temps dropped down into the middle 40's last couple of nights but was back in the 80's today! Sun is always shining here! The only complaint is I have about the weather is the wind, blows all the time down here in the valley! Craig hates the wind but is dealing pretty well with it so far, he finally figured our he need to stake everthing down or lose it!

I have been going to the exercise room everyday and started out riding 10 miles a day on the bike, was a little winded and red faced at first, but doing 15-20 miles now and not having a problem, we have also been eating healthier too,we both need to lose a few pounds, even my fat clothes were getting tight, lol, but they are starting to hang a little on me finally, Craig loses weight easier then me just because he's a male and he doesn't even exercise, well, in all fairness to him he can't with his knees being so bad, but he has been snacking on healthy foods and doing good and losing a little!

                                  Went to bingo last night and laughed as Craig was freaking out if I tried talking to him, he said don't talk to me when I am playing, I don't want to miss a number, he was only playing 4 cards, lol! We lost but it was fun anyways! We just finished are 4 days of work so we have 4 glorious days off, so we are planning on going to Mexico tomorrow! Will post pictures tomorrow when we get back!

Gotta go for now, supper and then take Lenny for his evening walk! So until later!

THANKSGIVING AT MISSION BELL!

                                         The dessert table!

                                          The piano lady, she was fantastic!

                                           Sweet lady we set across from!

                                         Some of our fellow co-workers!

                                            More of our fellow workampers!

                                              My meal and Craig coming with his!   

Had a wonderful and delicious Thanksgiving meal! They had everything we would have had if we had cooked it ourselves!  Only thing missing were our kids and grandkids!  But so glad they are enjoying their own Thanksgiving meals! Could only eat about half of my meal, they are very generous with the helpings! 
            Love the lady playing the piano, she played some great music, had everyone dancing in their chairs! Then they had someone's great grandkids get up and sing some hyms! Three brothers and a sister, they were cute to watch as they went back and forth with each other on what song to sing next!
                     All in all it was a pretty good day with a lot of good people!  Now for the band tonight at 7:00! Until then going to relax!
                   HAPPY THANKSGIVING TO ALL! Until next time, have a great day!
                                         

BACK AT THE DON WES FLEA MARKET!

Haven't been on here for a few days because I had the flu and it took a couple days to get back into the swing of things! Still had to work because I knew that Craig would not be able to do it alone, I moved slow and sweat like a pig, but got it done! The 4 days off felt so good, we go back on Sat.  The other couple we work with had a lot of questions on how to do things, we were fine with what we had to do, after all it's just housekeeping, but I guess they went to the managers and had some issues, so we had to go thru a retraining kind of meeting, but it went well and I feel the managers handled it well!  Enough said! 

My two new hats and fan!

     We decided to go back to Don Wes flea market yesterday and get a few more tie-downs for the awning and just take our time checking things out, last time we went we took Lenny and had to rush through so he wouldn't overheat!  We love this place, it has a little bit of everything, Craig bought some Hickory salt, which he has been looking for in Michigan for awhile, so he was happy, plus he got a couple things for the MH, I found me some cool visors that I had been looking for online for awhile, had them when we went to Punta Cana, they are lightweight and in any color you want and oh yeah got me a hand fan, been looking for one of them for awhile too! I swear if you don't find what you want here then you won't find it anywhere!  But while there they were playing some cool country music, I thought it was a cd playing, but it was a guy singing while playing an organ, he was awesome, I videoed it for a little while,but I was getting strange looks, so Craig made me quit! Hehe!
After the flea market we went to the Texas Roadhouse and overate, lol, but it was so good! But it meant 45 min. on the exercise bike, then a long walk with Lenny!
                                                                                              While at the restaurant I got a call from my daughter Susan, she said she got home from work and found her beloved kitten Nacho dead in their bed, she was so hesterical, I felt so bad for her, I know how much she loves her furbabies!  Talked to her this morning and she was still very upset! You know some people would say it's just a cat, but unless you have ever looked in the eyes of your pet and seen their souls you wouldn't understand the pain of losing them! This cat came into her life when she was going through a very rough time, it was a rescue cat that had been thrown out of a window of car!  I told her it was an angel cat, God sent Nacho to her until she was ok!  Angel's come in many forms! 
                                                                                          There is something that I have been noticing here at this 55+ resort, some of the people are so thankful for us campworkers and most take the time to thank us and then there are the grumpy mean and bossy old unappreciative seniors, we wave and say "Good Morning" every day and some acknowledge us and some don't, I don't care I just keep saying Good Morning over and over again until I get some response! I don't think they appreciate how much we all do for them, if they had to hire all the work that is done by workcampers the lot rent would be doubled what they pay now!  I hope that I never become a grumpy and unfriendly like that! I feel blessed and appreciate every day! Craig goes to work in pain everyday and by the end of his 4 days he is pretty sore but he always smiles and says good morning, if they only knew what he has been through!
                      We are going to make the best of today inspite of the fact I am really missing my kids and grandkids today, but called and talked to all of them today!  Well, enjoy your day and have a Happy and Blessed Thanksgiving! We are having our Thanksgiving Dinner at Mission Bell today at 2:00, will get back on here later today and post pictures and let you know how everything went!
                                                                                          

MISSING THE KIDS AND GRANDKIDS TODAY!

Went shopping yesterday and heard Christmas music and got a little weepy thinking about it being the first Thanksgiving and Christmas we will miss with the grandkids and I worry about my youngest son because this is a real hard year for him, I talked to him this morning and asked how he was doing and he said the holidays were hard and I told him I felt guilty that I wasn't there for him, he said don't worry about me Mom, I will be fine, you guys have a good time and don't work too hard! I told him I would be fine and I knew he would too, but I know he will be spending Thanksgiving alone! I have never been away from either of  my sons this long and I know they are adults with kids but I also know it is hard on a them and I admit it, me too. Also it's my Grandson Hayden's 8th birthday next week and it will be the first one I will miss! But enough of that now!  I know that everything will be fine and besides my daughter Susan and her husband Russ are going to be here for Christmas and New Years, so I will be fine and I pray my family will too!  We will make it up to them in the spring and summer of 2012!

 Went to my first Ropa store and it is everything and more of what I was told! A Ropa store is like a resale store gone bad, lol! The one I went to use to be a Kmart store so it was big! When I walked in the door I couldn't believe my eyes, there were huge piles of clothes all over the place and on top of those clothes were people digging through them, I am not kidding, I was told I think they are sold by the pound and there are some items in there that still have tags on them,  but I wasn't about to find out, they also had racks and tables of clothes that were priced from 25 cents to $3, I did find a few things to sell on e-bay and one even had the price tags still on, but they had to be washed right away because everything smelled musty! Plan on going back when I have more time!

Lot of new rv's coming in everyday, some huge and some not so huge, I seen one come in that was shaped like an egg, so cute but don't think it was over 10 feet long, can't imagine living in that for 6 months.  Still don't have anyone on either side of us yet, but that is fine, got room to park the truck and walk Lenny, he thinks he owns this place, barks at any dog that tries to mark his trees!

Started going to the exercise room everyday this week and riding the bike for 10 miles in 30 mins., tried using the treadmill but I have arithis in my feet and they hurt all night so going to stick to the bike and pool exercises! Still haven't made it to the dance lessons yet! All in time!

Well, gotta go color my hair the roots are getting bad! Makes me miss my best bud Peggy, she has been doing my hair for over 35 years, it was our excuses to laugh and cry together and catch up on all that is going on in our lives! Well, there I go again!

Well, until next time, God Bless!

REASON'S TO BE FULL-TIME RVER'S!

As I meet new people I can't help but ask if they are full-timers or just winter Texans, and if they are full-timers I ask how did they decide this is the life they wanted! So here are a few reasons I have heard:
1. Retired
2. Want to see this great Country
3. Sick of the cold winters
4. Tired of the work that goes with owning a stick house
5. They have kids, family and friends that live all over the country
6. Wanted to be free of taxes, monthly bills,  home insurance, house payments etc.
7. Lost their job and had to sell their home(they said it was the best thing that ever happened to them)
8. Love of travel
9. Life Long Dream
10. Want to live their final years on this earth doing what they love!
11. Why Not?
12. Love meeting new people

                                           Some have been RVing since the late 90's and some are as new as we are! I noticed that they are all laid back, no back stabbing or gossiping, always smiling and friendly, oh, I have met a few, very few, that are not as friendly, but most are as curious about us as we are about them!

                         Our Patio and Mr.Lenny! Looks like I need to sweep again!

                             Our little patio and extra room!

                                Craig doing laundry, doesn't he look happy?

                                                 Our mailbox #263

                                The Giant Ball Room, that is the dance floor!

                                                 Our site and home!

           Our neighbors across from us, no neighbors on either side of us yet!

                    Mr. Lenny mad because I didn't take him with me!

                                         But not everyday is perfect here, there are days that are not as good as others, like the wind here is a pain, blowing over our plants, chairs, things hanging from our MH,things on our tables and almost tearing off our canopy, we have had to stake, tie, nail, clamp, bungie our awning, rug and sun shade down so it wouldn't blow away! I walked around and checked out how others had their canopies secured and asked their advice! Having are canopy out is like having another room added onto our MH, so it is a pain if you can't leave it out, but I think we finally got it figure out! Another problem is the dust, you have to sweep, vacuum and dust about everyday (but I don't) because of the wind, I see people sweeping, dusting, washing their rv's and autos constantly, they have leaf blowers to keep the leaves and dirt from blowing into their areas and many wash down their rv's at least weekly! I sweep and dust about every 3rd day, we scrubbed our MH down once, next time we will hire it done for about $100, it would be well worth it! We love sitting outside and clean up when we need too, we like out MH clean, but we are not chained to it especially when we are on our 4 day work schedule!
                                                                        Love the amenities here, bingo, several different card games, pot lucks, pancake breakfasts, shuffle board, etc. , never lack of anything to do here! We love the pool and hot tub or shoot some pool, sit out under our canopy while reading or napping!  So much to see yet, we want to go to San Antonio to see the Alamo, cross the international bridge into Mexico, spend a day at South Padre Island and take the Pirate ship out to see the dolphins, check out the zoo, but one of the things we like doing the most is "NOTHING", laying around and relaxing and that is something I had to practise because I felt lazy and guilty about it, but Craig has been giving me some tips on how to relax, goes something like this, "will you leave me alone and slow down, God" lol, so I do!
     Well, enough for today, want to go out and enjoy our patio or as some call it our Texas Room and watch Craig barbeque!  So until next time, God Bless!!

       

MY VETERAN'S MEMORIAL!

Sergeant Michael Frederic May gave his life in honorable service to his country. He committed himself to God, Honor, and Country in keeping with the tradition of Special Forces soldiers. He died with his teammate, William Anthony Evans, as an American hero.
June 7, 1947 to March 2, 1969
POB: Vassar, Michigan
On November 8, 1991 a group of former Special Forces soldiers met at the Bruce VFW Post, St. Clair Shores, Michigan to form a Michigan branch of the United States Army Special Forces Association (SFA). The small group of charter members elected a board of officers to lead them. The newly elected board, President Bob Slivatz, Vice-President Al Davis, Adjutant/Secretary Dewey Laguire-Quinn, and Treasurer John Southard responded to a desire to adopt an identifying name for the new SFA Chapter LV. They led other founding members, Dick Shevchenko, Steve Adolph, Mike Reyes, Charles "Bud" Asher into the chapter's initial course of business to adopt a personal identity. Steve Adolph proposed the Chapter 55 adopt the name of Michael F. May, Michigan's only Special Forces soldier to never return from the Vietnam War. In a vote taken that day SFA Chapter LV became known as the Michael F. May Memorial Chapter.

Christopher E Esckelson

Vassar, Michigan

December 28, 2006

Age Military Rank Unit/Location 22 Marine Cpl USMC Reservist Saginaw , Michigan

Killed while conducting combat operations in Al Anbar province, Iraq . Vassar post office will bear name of town son who gave his life in Iraq Vassar Postmaster Stacey Middleton, right, hugs Michelle "Mitzi" Hill, mother of late Marine Cpl. Christopher E. Esckelson of Vassar, during a dedication ceremony Tuesday that named the Vassar Post Office after Esckelson. "I still cry every day," said Michelle "Mitzi" Hill, 49, the fallen Marine's mother, of Tuscola County's Juniata Township.Mitzi Hill, a 23-year employee of the U.S. Postal Service, works as a mail carrier in Vassar, walking a 12-mile route each day. The late Marine's father, David E. Esckelson, 49, of Vassar, donned the dog tag his son wore when Cpl. Esckelson died in Iraq. David Esckelson also wore his late son's desert camouflage "cover" cap. "It's hard on us, but an event like this is all good," David Esckelson said. "You have to look at it that way. "I'm just trying to remember my boy, and not let him be forgotten." Two different era's, two different wars, two different hero's,  both from Vassar, my home town!  I went to school with Mike May and he was a friend of my first husband Rollie and mine! He died 37 years ago, his body was never found or returned! Vassar remembers him by having the Mike May Memorial Race every year and with a plaque by the water fontain in downtown Vassar! Christopher Esckelson was killed in action 5 years ago, serving with the 1st Battalion of the 24th Marines in Iraq, he died around 2:45 p.m. Wednesday, three days shy of his 23rd birthday. In honor of Chris they named the Vassar Post office after him, his mother has worked there for 25 + years! His father passed away about 2 years ago! I remember sitting with my Dad as he laid in the hospital about a week before he died, I was talking to him and noticed him staring out the window and when I asked him what he was staring at he said "the flag, look how it waves in the wind, isn't it beautiful" I looked at it and then back at him and he had tears in his eyes! I thought to myself, I finally seen the flag thru the eyes of someone who fought and seen many die in honor of our country, I have never looked at our flag the same since! As we travel I thank all our vets for protecting this great country and our freedom! NEVER FORGET THE SACRIFICES OF SO MANY!

"We must be willing to get rid of the life we've planned, so as to have the life that is waiting for us!"

I know this life-style isn't for everyone and have been asked several times "why or how did you's decide to become full-time rver's?" I know a lot of this is has already been posted in earlier postings but I have been talking to a lot of full-timers here and love listening to their stories and how and why they decided to go full-time and they all say the same thing, it wasn't an overnight decision, I tell them it wasn't for us either! I also get a lot of friends asking how do they get started, the first thing I tell them is that it isn't for everyone, you have to have a desire to travel, be able to let go of material things, learn to live in a small place and learn to walk sideways, lol, but most of all you and your spouse have to share the same dream and be able to get along in small spaces, there is no escape!  The first time I even heard about people who actually lived this life-style was about 5 years ago when a fellow employee was retiring and I noticed he had his house up for sale and was having an auction sale to sell all his belongings, then I heard he bought a new MH, I asked him what in the world was he doing and where is he going to live, he said "we are going to live in our motorhome and become full-time rver's" I said how are you going to support yourself? He said "we are going to be workampers until our house sells" and then he explained where they were going and about their first job, I was hooked from that time on! Craig had been retired for about 3 years already and he asked me "so what are we going to do when you retire?" I told him I wanted to sell everything including the house and buy a motorhome and be full-time rver's, he almost fell out of his recliner, he said "that is something I have always wanted to do too, but would have never asked that of you"!  Then I started researching on the internet and reading books about it, joining rving sites, reading full-timer's blogs and looking for a motorhome and at first we talked about should we buy a motorhome, fifth-wheel or a travel trailor, what would be the best way to go, so I talked to a friend that had a motorhome and he said that he likes the motor home because you get more storage and you don't have anything to unhook or back in, what he liked the most about a motorhome is that when you get to the campground and it is raining you don't have to get out and set up camp until the rain stops, I asked him about gas mileage, he said that if you buy a big gas eating truck to tow your fifth-wheel or trailor then you are stuck driving that everyday but with a motorhome you park it and use your tow vehicle to do your site-seeing in and in the long run you may end up saving money, so that settled it we decided on a motorhome, I also talked to my father-in-law about what size to buy, he has owned large motorhomes for years, he said that you are going to get 8-9 miles to the gal. no matter what size you get, you might get a little better gas mileage with a 20' then a 36' but it isn't worth the space you lose to save a buck a gal. So that is how we decided on a motorhome!  I knew we could not afford a new motorhome so we looked for the best used one we could get for our money, the first one we looked at was this beautiful 36'  1997 dolphin with dolphin decals on both sides, I have always loved dolphins and fell in love with it and so did Craig, he loved all the storage in the basement and the big 12' slide but I didn't want to buy the first motorhome we looked at, so we looked for another 6 months, drove all over Michigan and nothing came close to the price or quality of that Dolphin, so we bought it! We also found out that 1997 was the last year the made the Dolphin with actual dolphins on the side! So then we started to tell friends and family, most thought we were nuts, some envied us, some followed our example! From the time we decided to do this our life was never the same, we ate, talked and slept full-time rving, I would sit there and start crying when we talked about it, Craig would say why are you crying, I would tell him that I was so afraid it would never happen, he said yes it will, think positive!! Financially it was going to be a challenge and we knew it, we knew if we didn't sell our house right away it was going to be tight and nothing in Michigan was selling, so we started looking for someone to housesit, someone we could trust with our home and furnishings, thank God for Facebook, a dear friend had just left her husband and was interested in housesitting, she would take care of all the expenses except the taxes and insurance! Once we made this decision it seems like everything fell into place for us! We told our grandkids that we were only going to be gone for 6 months in the winter and we would be back in Michigan to spend the summers with them! We love Michigan and will always go back there to be with family and friends, Michigan is beautiful in the spring, summer and fall, there are still things we want to see and thanks to my friend Malia, who I met online thru a full-time rving site, I realize that I miss Michigan and need to revisit a few places and discover a few others, strange thing is that Malia is from Texas and visiting my Michigan as I am from Michigan visiting her Texas!  But my real drive to live this life-style is my parents, they loved to travel and were always gone and all they had was a 20 + yr. old motorhome to travel the flea markets of Michigan and in the winter they drove their older conversion van to travel out west, I remember watching their video's after they passed and I got to see a side of them that I never knew, they laughed alot and kidded back and forth with each other, there was even a little flirting going on, they were living their life to the end! 

                                             Well, at least our Motorhome is newer then this!

                                                                   Us living our Dream!

MY DAD!

MY MOM!

      Yep this isn't the life we planned when we got married but it is the life we want to live! Oh, we still fight but it lasts about 5 minutes and then we move on, yeah, it's tight in this motorhome but we love it, everything is in it's place and there is almost a place for everything, yep, money is tight and we live on less money then we ever have and it get's scary at times, but it's worth it to live our dream, we can't wait to sell the house so we can relax a little more about finances, so glad we paid off most of our credit cards, but the house taxes and insurance takes a big hunk out of our monthly income! But we are doing just fine and living every moment of this crazy dream of ours! Today we are doing nothing, I am going to get out one of my books and start reading it, Craig is going to do one of his favorite things by dozing in and out as he watching old movies or sci-fi! Lenny is going to do what he does best, stare out the window and growl at everyone that goes by!
                                                                      So until next time have a great day!

DON WES GIANT FLEA MARKET!

Went to the Don Wes flea market today to find some tie-down clamps for our canopy, we have it tied down to the ground and staked but we still need clamps to keep it from flapping! We were there for about an hour or so and didn't see half of it, the pictures above are from just one dealer, I would have took more but they were giving me funny looks so I put the camera away!  We did find what we were looking for and for half the price we would have paid at Camper's World.  We plan on going back when we got more time to just wonder around, Craig bought some tomatoes and Mexican spices! I seen some awesome purses and things for the grandkids, there was absolutely everything you could think of there!
                   Been putting our resume's together and adding a few more things to it. Really like this place and thinking of applying for next year to come back, but also want to see different parts of the country too, so just looking at all our options!
                                                 We played card elimination last night, didn't win but was still fun, today they had an ice cream social but we had such a late supper that we were both way to full to go! Maybe next time!  Never have to worry about having anything to do here, always something going on! I brought several books to read and haven't got to one of them yet! 
                                                      Going out for an evening walk, so until next time God Bless!!

SOME OF THE BEAUTIFUL CACTUS AND PLANTS AT MISSION BELL!

                                           This are my favorite group! So many different kinds!

                                         These are by the office and on the way to the pool,
                                             that is an Aloe plant in the front!              

                                             Now this is so much prettier in person, it is
                                             about 3' tall and is green with little purple flowers
                                             inbetween the rows, the top looks like a whole separate
                                              plant, this is another one of my favorites ! 

                                       One of my favorite cacti, it is bigger then a basketball!

                                                                  Beautiful red bush!

                                                      Not sure what that is but it sure is pretty!

    The front of the huge Friendship Hall and Ball Room! Some of the Palm Trees are so tall I couldn't get them in the all in the picture!

                                       Oh My, I see a Reflection of a Michigan Rose! ^

                                                So many different varies in one little yard!

                                       Check out these cacti, I think that is a Christmas plant
                                         in the back,  but don't quote me on that!

                                                                Isn't this little yard beautiful?

         This last plant is from Hawaii, the lady that has it doesn't remember the name of it but she said it is the plant that the Hawaiian's make lei's out of!

                                Thought I would walk around the park today with Lenny and get some pictures of my favorite cacti and plants!  Would have got a lot more but Mr. Lenny had a picker in his foot and refused to walk any further until I got it out, which isn't easy because he thinks I am the one causing the pain and he kept nipping at me, but I finally got it out, you see among these beautiful plants are yucky burrs, one other problem I had with Mr. Attitude is that he wanted to pee on the plants I was trying to get pictures of, so I couldn't stay too long at each site because I didn't want him getting a cactus thorn in his, well, you know what I mean!
       We had a free pizza today from Papa Murphy's Pizza, they gave a bunch of coupons to the Mission Bell office to pass out to all the workampers! Another one of the perks!  It was different then any we have ever had, you tell them everything you want on it then you take it home and bake it yourself! Aside from the fact that the oven heated up the whole MH, it was pretty tasty! Helped to have a couple ice cold beers with it too!
                                             We went to bingo last night and didn't win a dime, but it was still a lot of fun, it is only .25 cents a card, it was over around 8:00, time enough to get home and watch our shows, besides we had to work in the morning! Our last day for 4 days, went pretty fast! 
                                               We love it here so much, I was mentioning to Craig that I understand how people come back here year after year, the only complaint I have about this place it that it can be pretty windy at times and they could use a little more rain because it is so dry!  Finally after 3 weeks we don't feel like we are on vacation and will have to leave for home soon, it feels more like a way of life now, except we don't have none of the worries that comes with taking care of a home, so much relaxing time, but strange thing is we are always busy, but it is doing things we want to do not what we have to do!  We planned on going to shoot some pool at around 2:00 and just realized it is 4:30 already, you have no idea what time it is because you don't care, lol!
                                           Well, gotta go, I guess we are headed for the pool hall! Until next time, God Bless!