TRICK OR TREAT AT THE RESORT!

Passed out candy at the resort on Halloween night, we were told that we can expect around 200 kids, well after about 45 min. I was beginning to wonder what was going on, one car at a time, a few kids at a time, I was giving hand fulls of candy thinking they weren't coming, even the experienced residents said they didn't think they were coming this year! Well, all of a sudden they were coming in truck and van loads, all sizes, babies to very tall children, monsters to princesses, superheroes to cartoon characters, all cute! I started running out of candy after generously giving out handfulls earlier! The cute witch next to me had bags full, so she shared with me! I bet at least 250 kids showed up!  I dressed as a witch as did 2 others, so one was the the good witch, the other was the bad witch so I told them I was the moody witch, good and bad!  At exactly 6:30 everyone headed for the party at Trade Winds, the hall was packed, hard to find a place to set, but we ended up sitting right across from a couple from Canada, loved listening to them talk, they started full-timing last year and love it, they sold their huge home and bought a doublewide trailor and a motorhome, but after spending one winter here at Mission Bell they sold the motorhome and bought a park model, they take their time coming here every year and do a lot of site seeing! The resort served hot dogs, baked beans, lemonade, tea and coffee, cupcakes and ice cream cones for dessert, we even got to play a game, best costume prizes were given out also! So much fun, thanks to Audry, Scott and Cynthia, good job!  I was feeling a little sad because this would be the first Halloween not seeing my grandkids dressed up, but we did have an earlier Halloween with them at the campground in Michigan, plus my son sent pictures of the kids all dressed up! 
                                                                   Well, gotta get ready for work, so until next time have a great day!!

VETERAN'S WAR MEMORIAL OF TEXAS!

hn

Eli

tone, James LWatkins, Travis E.

oung, Marvin R.

We went to the Veteran's War Memorial of Texas today!  Located in McAllen about 5 miles from us, well, we went a lot further then that because our GPS took us in the opposite direction and we went about 15 miles out of the way! But we finally found it and it was very touching and worth the trip! It honors the sacrifices made by an estimated 1.4 million Americans serving in all the wars involving the United States from the American Revolution to the current wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Sculptor Douglas Clark has created several sculptures of famous World War II scenes and a tribute to the women of the military!  A series of nine bronze plaques tell the story of the Korean War. Another Sculpture honors Medal-of-Honor recipients.  The names of 3600 Texans who died in Vietnam are listed on a black granite wall.   The newest wall to be added to the Veteran's Memorial of Texas honors those who made the ultimate sacrifice in the latest conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan! This is the dream of Col. Frank Plummer, U.S. Army (Ret.) and other Valley veterans.
                                                       Tonight we will be passing out candy to 200-300 kids, they will be allowed to enter the park, we will be set-up in front of the Ball Room here at Mission Bell and they will have the Trade Winds residents sitting at the entrance way to the park, then afterwards there will be a little Halloween Party at the Trade Winds for the adults, food will be provided, best costumes will be judged! I'm not sure if I am going to dress up or not, couldn't find anything around here, might just wear a witch hat and dress in black! 
                                                     Weather has been perfect, dips down to the high 50's at night and gets up to the 80's during the day, sunshine everyday!
                                                         Well, until next time! Enjoy the pictures!

                                                       

WHAT HAPPINESS IS!

LIFE, LAUGH AND LOVE!

                                          Me blogging away!

     Craig watch Robin Hood outside! And birthday boy with his new plants I got him for his birthday!

We had a meeting today at the Friendship hall, coffee and donuts were offered. Audry our activities director introduced herself to everyone. She started out saying "we lost quite a few residents this year and that life is so short, also lost our 54 years old son this year, so remember to wake up each day and appreciate life, don't wake up grouchy and in a bad mood, life is too short so enjoy every moment!"  I so agree, I went up to her afterwards and told her I was so sorry about her son and can't imagine the pain of burying a child! But I do know the pain of loss, I married my first husband 2 weeks before I turned 17 and he was 19, we had 4 beautiful kids together, he worked all the overtime he could get, as much as he loved hunting he'd pull triple shifts so others could go hunting, he'd work every holiday for the double time pay, I asked him not to do that, to take time off to hunt and enjoy the holidays, but he said when I retire I will have all the time in the world to do that, well, he didn't because he was killed at 35 yrs. old by a 17 year old drunk driver while on his way home from work after pulling a double shift, leaving behind 4 children, age 3 to 15, what hurts so much is knowing that he'd never do all the things he wanted to when he retired!  I have learned to life each day like it's my last, I have never passed up having a good time because the house needs to be cleaned or I can work a holiday for the extra money, I have worked holidays and a lot of overtime but that was only if there was nothing else going on! I see so many work way past their retirement age, I retired as soon as I could draw my pension and draw social security, I felt that every day I worked past 62 was one day taken away from the life I really want to be living! Sure money is tight, very tight, but you learn to do without things, pay up as much as you can before you retire, we may have an older motorhome and older vehicles but they are in excellent condition and gets us where we want to go, I refuse to be tied to a home and a fancy car, so many work until they die because of the material things they think they have to have! I want to live like my parents did, they drove old vehicles, didn't wear fancy clothers, they never owned new furniture or appliances, the drove a 25 year old motorhome to do there flea markets in and drove an older van out west to Arizona and Las Vegas, us kids would pray they made it back ok and they always did, half the time we had no idea where they were, sure they missed a few important events with grandkids birthdays or holidays, but their grandkids loved them so much, they named their children after them, it had nothing to do with the quantity of time they spent with them it was the quality of time! They were the kindest people ever, they would meet at a local restaurant in Vassar every morning and people would always seek them out and set at their table, it was always the loudest table in the place! They died 6 months apart and my Dad said he wishes we could all go on a nice vacation together one more time before he died, but he passed before we could do that, but in memory of Mom and Dad us kids took some of the money from the sale of there home and went on vacation together, we made sure we watched a sunrise together in memory of them! We all had a hard time but we knew they would want us to move on! So I guess what I am trying to say here is life IS short so live it and follow your dreams, it may take some sacrifices but it is so worth it! I have the gypsy soul of my parents and the want to see this country, I don't care if we are a little cramped in the motorhome, or we don't drive a new car every year because at the end of my life that isn't what people are going to remember about me, they are going to say "she lived till she died!".  It is Craig's birthday today and when I asked him what he wanted for his birthday he said "I have everything I want, living my dream with you!" Thank God I am with someone who has the same silly dreams I have!  Today we are sitting outside our MH and watching TV as we are reclined in our lawn chairs having a mixed drink! Life is good! 
                             Well, anyways, enough of that, time to get off here and enjoy the rest of the day! Steaks on the grill for supper, cheap steaks, but at least they are steaks, lol! Until next time, have a great day!

COLD FRONT MOVING IN!!

Heard on the weather channel that a cold front was moving across the valley, they call this area the "valley", so being from Michigan I thought it's going to be cold and rainy, but what we got was a temp this morning of 62 degrees, I said to Craig I thought we had a cold front moving in, he said "yep, it's here" I said I was thinking like in Michigan, he said "honey, you ain't in Michigan anymore"! It was good working weather this morning, a little cool and windy, I even put a thin jacket on! But a few had coats and sweatshirts on! I can live with this,will get up into the high 70's later this afternoon! Loving it!

                        Took Lenny to get his haircut and he looks so nice, the groomer said he had several little bites all over him, could even be ant bites! I felt so bad for him because he has been itching non-stop, I thought it was allergies, even gave him a bath in medicated shampoo! She said it is common in winter Texan dogs, takes them awhile to get use to bugs and ants, so we have to check him closer after he goes for a walk! He look kind of  mad in this picture, but honest he just loves his new cut (not)!
                        One thing that we have found out about living the life of full-timers and that is two people can't be in the kitchen at the same time or try to pass in the hall at the same time(we actually got stuck trying to pass each other), we also found out that this place gets dirty faster then a house, if you get something out, put it back, dishes need to be done almost immediately after every meal, sink is too small to let them set, taking a shower is an ordeal, you knock things off the shower shelf, can't let the water run, you wet yourself down then shut off the water, wash hair and body, turn on water and rinse, then shut it back off, then shave, put conditioner on, then turn water on and rinse again, hot water tank is small so to be able to have enough hot water to get thru a shower that is how you have to do it! I really have problems trying to store all my e-bay items, I have two outside compartments filled with games and Christmas items, I have 3 plastic containers stored under the motorhome and 2 huge bags of clothes stored in front by the drivers area! Can be fun trying to find items I have sold, try to have everything sorted so it will be easier to find, but as of right now I have lost a pink jacket that I sold, I have gone thru everything 3 times and can not find it!  I may have to refund the buyer her money, I am going to give it one more day of looking because I have actually lost items before and just before I give a refund I find it, hoping that happens this time too!  People think that this e-baying business is easy but it's a lot of work, I spend at least a couple hours a day shipping and handling items, I pack each item and then print my own shipping labels and then have to print invoices and on listing days I can spend up to 6-8 hrs. a day, especially if it is free listing day or 1 cent listing day, I have to measure each item after the full description, weigh them and figure shipping cost!  It's like a full-time job, but I really do enjoy doing it, I don't know how we would have made it without the extra money coming in from e-bay, it's our fun money, if it wasn't for e-bay we would be able to pay our bills, buy groceries and maybe a few luxuries and that would be about it! I thank God everytime I sell something, I asked him to show us how to make money while traveling so we could sustain this life-style and I believe e-bay is the answer! Craig helps too, he takes everything to the post office for me and does the housework, laundry and shopping while I am taking pictures of my items, which in itself can be very time consuming, I can spend up to 2-3 hours taking the pictures, then fixing them, cropping them, etc., then listing them and doing my shipping and handling! I don't do much e-bay on the days we work except shipping and handling, things have to be shipped with 2 days of selling them! But with all the problems we have in this way of living, we wouldn't trade it for the biggest house in the world, we still have a great life, still no lawns to mow or rake, no snow shovel, no cold to deal with or scraping windows, or driving on snow covered roads, even when this house is messed up, it only takes about and an at the most to clean it from top to bottom! I still pinch myself everyday to make sure I'm not dreaming! I still miss my kids and grandkids everyday, I wish I was rich so I could fly them out her to be with us, going to miss them at Christmas and all the other holidays, but I know they understand and they will be seeing us next year for 6 months, it's not about the quantity of time you spend with them but the quality of time!
                                               We are done working our 4 days ,now we have 4 days off! Craig was getting pretty sore the last couple of days because he was running out of pain pills and was only taking a half pill instead of a whole one, he said he didn't say anything to me because he didn't want me to worry, but all his meds are mailed to him by the VA, and he ordered all his meds on Oct. 9 and they still aren't here so he called them yesterday and they are going to overnight them to him! So today he took his last 1/2 pain pill, hoping the meds will be here sometime today or tomorrow!  It's not hard work it's just that he has to be on his legs for the whole time!  YIPPEE! Craig just got back from getting the mail and his pills have arrived and he was also waiting for his tags for his truck and they came too, good thing because his plates would have been expired by Sunday! He's one happy guy! Me too since he has been driving me nuts about it!
                                                  Well, gotta go do the happy dance with Craig  and it is getting nice out so I guess we are going to sit outside and enjoy the rest of the day!
                                                  So until next time, God Bless!
             

CAMPWORKERING JOB IN GAYLORD NEXT YEAR

Live and learn, We should have been looking for a camphosting position at least a month ago, all the places we wanted to host are already taken! We were hoping to have something closer to the Bay City area so my kids and grandkids don't have to drive so far to see us, the best and closest we could find was in Gaylord KOA, but it will be a great place for the grandkids, has a pool, playgrounds, very kid friendly! Talked to the managers and they said they have a housekeeping position available, we will work May 1st to Sept. 30th, will work 30 hrs. a week between the two of us, 15 hrs. a piece, we get a golf cart to use when we work.  Sounds great and you can't go wrong with a KOA. It's going to be quite a change from a 55+ resort to a kid friendly park.  The time line is also perfect, we leave here April 15th, that gives us 2 weeks to get there, we want to go see Russ and Susan's new home in Virginia before we head home, so will be able to spend about a week there before we head for Michigan! 
                 We have had to learn one very important thing while being here "RELAX", after working a 10-12 hr. day to working a 3 hr. day 4 times a week, you learn that it is ok to do absolutely nothing, read a book, take a nap, play on the computer(finding out that I don't spend as much time on FB as I use to) spend a day at the pool, go site seeing, etc.  I always felt guilty because I felt I should be doing more, never thought I would have to learn to relax, Craig has it down pat, lol! But he has been retired for 3 years, so he has it all figured out! People here are all so layed back, it's kind of funny, you see them early in the morning before the heat hits then you don't hardly see anyone again until the sun sets, then they are come out and ride their bikes, golf carts, walking or just sitting outside in front of their campers or trailors! But then again I had to teach Craig to slow down when working, he is use to rushing thru everything, we do as much as we need to in the 3 hrs. we work, they don't expect us to get it all done in one day! The first couple of days we worked he was red faced and sore, now he is going at my pace, besides this place doesn't get that dirty right now!  All in all it is a lot easier then we thought it would be,but once all the winter Texans get here they will be a lot busier and have a lot more to do, they will be having all kinds of things going on here daily, so we may have to pick up our pace up a little! And one thing I have to learn yet and that is to be able to say hi and not stand around talking to everyone, lol, they are so friendly here and want to know all about you or where you're from, you all know me, I'm a talker! But I am getting better at that, found out I can clean and talk at the same time! 
                Heard on the news last night that we have to watch out for the Kissing Bug, yes, I said Kissing Bug, it is a small insect that bites you in the lip while you are sleeping and passes a parasite into your body that can lay dorment in your stomach for years before you have any reaction from it! Isn't that nice, and it is known to be in the valley here in Mission, now I am paranoid of any little thing I see, I check for any sores around my mouth every morning, Craig just laughs at me and says "and you thought tarantulas and snakes were going to get you"!  I also notice that he is always tapping his shoes before he puts them on, we leave our shoes outside, I finally asked him what are you doing, he said just checking for spiders or bugs, they tend to crawl into things like shoes" well, thanks for telling me that bit of information, now my shoes come in with me, I take them off outside but I don't leave them out there!  I seen my first cockroach or palmetto bug(didn't know they were the same thing), I was sweeping up some leaves by one of the entrance doors and there was this huge bug, I told Craig to come and check out this funny looking cricket, lol, he said that isn't a cricket, it's a palmetto bug, I said oh, never heard of them, he said they are another name for cockroaches, they are just bigger and live in palmtrees! I never know if he's joking or not, he always walks away smiling!
                                        Been watching a lot of new winter Texans coming in lately, we have a new neighbor across from us and another one two lots down, have been told that a lot more will be showing up, especially after Thanksgiving.  Lenny is getting better at not barking at every little noise or person that walks by, I think he is just tired of being told to shut up!  He goes and gets his first grooming tomorrow, he's not going to be too happy about that, but his hair is getting so long that he is starting to mat plus he is always hot, needs his nails and ears done too!
                                          We are going out to eat at Joe's Crabshack for supper, can't wait, I am not much of a seafood person but I did notice that do have fish and chips, chicken, steaks, hamburgers, etc., Craig loves crabs, lobsters and shrimp, but as for me I was raised on meat and potatoes, never ate fish of any kind until I got married, not even fish sticks, when you are raised on a vegetable farm you don't get much fish to eat, just the country girl in me!
                                                                Well, gotta go do some shipping and handling for e-bay, I thank God every day for ebay, it sure does help inbetween pay days, I don't get paid until the 3rd week of each month and  Craig gets paid the last week, so it sure helps to have a steady flow of cash coming in from ebay! So anyways, until next time, have a good one!

SOUTH PADRE ISLAND!

Decided to check one more thing off our "to do list" while we are in Texas, that was to go check out South Padre Island!  Worth the 75 mile journey, the water was sooo blue and the sand soo white, but it was extremely windy there, almost blew Lenny over, lol!  Loved going over the bridge to get there, kinda reminded us of the Mackinaw Bridge, almost as long, they had warning lights to warn us to watch out for Pelicans, lol, never did see one! They were having the sand castle contests going on while we were there, so most of the restaurants were busy and a lot of traffic, they also had a lot of para-surfing and para-sailing going on too, the skies were full! We wanted to find a nice seafood restaurant to have lunch there but they were either closed or full, besides we had Lenny with us and couldn't leave him alone in the truck too long in the heat, so we decided to try a drive thru and sit in the truck to eat, so here we are in a seafood town and we decided to go to "What-a-Burger" joint (they are all over here), but let me tell you it was the best burger we have had in a long time! I couldn't hardly finish my patty-melt, fed some to Lenny and was only able to eat a little bit of the fries, Craig had a double green chili cheese burger, he finished it but didn't hardly eat any fries either.  On the way home we seen this awesome Dinasaur place, had huge dinasaurs, King Kong, Dolphins and giant seashells, turns out it was a gift shop but it was really cool, took some pictures so I could show my grandkids, my grandson Hayden is crazy about dinasaurs and granddaughters Callie and Kennedy love seashells, Desiree loves dolphins and Blaken loves all of the above, so we got more pictures of that then of the island!
                             We also learned a good lesson today, my daughter Susan warned us to leave the air-conditioning on when we leave, because it will take forever to cool down the MH, well, we decided there was no sense in running the air while we were gone, ugh, it had to be close to a 100 degrees in here when we got back, been trying to cool it down for an hour and a half now, it is still around 80 degrees in here! Never again!!
                                               I have had my family on my mind a lot today, especially the grandkids, talked to them yesterday and realized how much I miss them all, but felt kind of connected with them when we stopped at the Dinasaur place! Hayden's birthday is next month so we think we will run back there and get something special for him!
                                                              I decided to start checking around in Michigan for a workamp job for the summer of 2012, figured I was looking a little too early, but all the places we wanted to camphost or work at are taken, except way upnorth and in the u.p., and I don't want to be that far away from family, the reason we are going back to Michigan is to spend time with family and I don't want them to have to drive 150 miles to see us, so I sent our resume' to several private and KOA campgrounds/resorts!  We actually got an e-mail back from one of them already, they are going to call us today or tomorrow! I guess it's never too early to plan ahead!
                                                                                                  Well, gotta go and give Lenny his bath tonight, he needs a medicated one because he is constantly scratching and he has a rash on his back and belly, plus we have been picking burrs out of him daily, they are unbelievable here, maybe because it is so dry, I don't know for sure, but we are hoping that this bath will help with the rash, if not we will have to take him to the vet's! So until next time!!