ON OUR WAY HOME!

                                              ENTERING MARYLAND!

                                           CAMPING IN MARYLAND!

                                         SAYING GOOD-BYE TO MY GRANDDOGS!

                                                 TINY AND SCOOTER!

                           BUFFALO IN MARYLAND BY OUR CAMPGROUND!

                                        HELLO PENNSYLVANIA!

                                                   JELLYSTONE PARK IN PENNSYLVANIA!

                                                  CRAIG AND LENNY RIDING THE TRAIN!

                                                 CREEK AT THE CAMPGROUND

 

KENNEDY AND HAYDEN WAITING FOR US TO COME HOME!

We are heading home to Michigan after an amazing 7 months of seeing this beautiful country! But it isn't over yet, we will be camphosting from May 1st to Oct. 9th in Michigan at 4 different state campgrounds!  Going to be fun because we will be within an hour to and an hour and a half away from family and I sure have missed them. My son Matt and daughter-in-law Courtney have already got their tent out and ready to go camping with us, this will be grandkids Kennedy and Hayden's first time camping! My other son Richard and girlfriend Callie will be getting a tent and joining us also, with grandkids Callie Jean and Blaken, hoping Desiree will be coming also, but she is 15 yrs. old and might not want to join us!  So will try to do a one on one with her, like a shopping trip!  I can't wait to see them all! Got a busy weekend planned already, Sat. will be Blaken's 4th birthday party and Sunday will be Kennedy's 10th birthday party, Friday I have a dentist appointment, so plan on being home by Thursday night and will be staying at the Bay City State Campground until we leave for our camphost classes on Tuedays! 

Seen a lot of family and friends on our adventure, some we haven't seen in years and some we see back in Michigan but all were awesome and we enjoyed our visits with them, cried when I said good-bye to them but then I have always been a crybaby! Looking forward also to seeing my best friend Peggy and have some quality time with her, will be back in time for her birthday at the end of the month! Can't wait to see my brothers Bob and Butch, and sister-in-law Norma, hoping to do some serious camping with them also! 

I do know something after living on the road for so long is that I want to do it again and again! It has been the adventure of a life time and I don't want it to end! This time we will be going to Florida for the winter instead of west, we are trying to set up camphosting jobs for the fall, winter and early spring of 2012 to 2013, so wish us luck! Have already ordered our Woodall Campgrounds 2012 books and have renewed our campground discount cards.  We have learned a lot of thing that we have brought along with us we didn't need, so we will be repacking the MH, we will also be getting ride of our truck and get a lighter weight car, Craig want's to get rid of his wheelchair and get a bike, he hardly ever uses it and it is a pain to load and unload, we will be getting rid of all the extra tables, lights, clothes, etc., live and learn, but we knew that this first time out you will know what is needed and what isn't! We learned that it isn't like camping, when you put out a lot of lights and decorations, especially when you are traveling and on the move, but when we become camphosts for a month to months at a time we will go ahead and put the mat out the sunscreen, reclining chairs along with the campchairs, maybe even hang a few lights, chimes and our campsigns out!

We will be going home to 50 degrees compared to the 80's so it's going to be some adjusting until it gets warmer out, but they have been having some warm temps so hopefully it will warm back up before too long, the nights are still dipping down to freezing temps yet, brrrr, but that's when you appreciate the bonfires!

Well, getting ready to pack up and head for Ohio, so until next time,

God Bless!

BEAUTIFUL VIRGINIA AND FAMILY!

                                OUR MH AT RUSS AND SUSAN'S MANSION!

                                      THEIR POOL, THAT IS THE ALLIGATOR WE GOT THEM!

                                                       MISS SASSY!

                               ME WITH MY FURGRANDBABIES..SASSY..DUDE..AND DESTINY

                                    KEEKEE AND TINY( IN THE FIREPLACE)

                                CRAIG WITH HIS SISTER ELYSE!

                                           MISS DESTINY!

                                       SUSAN WITH HARRY(THE OLD MAN)

                                              RUSS WITH KEEKEE!

                                       HOPE, THE NEWEST MEMBER OF THEIR FAMILY
                                        SHE CAME TO THEM NEAR DEATH AND AFTER
                                        SOME LIFE SAVING SURGIES SHE IS HAPPY
                                           AND HEALTHY!

We are having a great time here at our daughter Susan and Russ's beautiful home! They work everyday and let us have the run of the place and what a place it is, I call it the mansion, it is so huge that the rent out two of the rooms to friends, one to Paula and the other to Shawn!  They took us out to their favorite hang out at Jolly Roger's Friday night, then Craig's sister Elyse,who also lives in Virginia, showed up Sat. and stayed for Easter Sunday!  Russ and Susan are like the hosts of all hosts, we all had a fantastic day!  Monday we took them out to Outback Steakhouse for Russ's 50th birthday! But the best of our stay is our grand furbabies! They have 4 dogs, Harry(the old man)a Cocker Spaniel, Sassy and Dude their malteses and rescued Hope a beagle, who came crawling into their yard about 2 months ago and was almost dead, she had tumors hanging off her and several inside, plus the vet thought she may have cancer, plus she was heartworm positive, but that didn't stop Russ and Susan, they told the vet to do what you can do for her, all the tumors were removed and she has no sign of cancer, she is heartworm positive but it is treatable, she is one of the sweetest dogs you could  ask for, she's so happy and blends well with the others! Then their is the grandkitties, let's see now if I can get this right..the first one they rescued is KeeKee, then there was Mya(who passed away about a month ago) then Destiny who they found frozen on their front porch about 3 years ago, then their is Scooter that Russ found, then Nacho who passed away about 5 months ago, then they rescued Tiny that they rescued after Nacho passed and beautiful Sophia who was almost ferrel but has turned into a loving pet because of Susan's patience to bring her around!  There, I think I got them all!  Anyways they are all so affectionate and loving, but the best thing of all is they all get along good together and all sleep in Russ and Susan's bedroom at night, some in bed with them and some on a giant mat on the floor! Susan has found homes for so many homeless dogs and cats that I have lost track of how many! Every pet has a touching story!
                                     I got a call the other day from another state campground in Northern  Michigan, we will be camphosting for them also, that is a total of 3 camphost jobs we have now! We will be leaving here Monday and start working our way back to Michigan, plan on being there by Friday, our granddaughter Kennedy's birthday party is Sunday and we want to be there for that! Can't wait to see my family, missed my son's, daughter-in-law and grandkids sooo much! Going to be a wonderful summer!  Well, gotta go and get some e-bay items listed! So God Bless!

WE GOT 2 CAMPGROUND HOSTS POSITIONS IN MICHIGAN!!

Entering South Carolina

                                                            Added another State!

                                              Ichetucknee Springs "THE BLUE HOLE!   45' DEEP              

                                                            Craig swimming by the Blue Hole!

                                                         Turtle sunning at Ichetucknee Springs!

                                                "THE SWIMMING SPRINGS"

                                                   BEACH VIEW OF OUR FIRST HOST JOB

                                             LIGHTHOUSE AT OUR FIRST GIG!
                                     

                                           BEACH SCENE FOR FIRST GIG

                                               BEACH FROM ON SECOND GIG

                                                    BELOW IS THE BLUE HOLE CAVE

We left our friends Annette and Barry's in Homasassa Florida after being there for a couple of weeks, had such a good time with them, couldn't ask for better hosts and friends, we left there and headed for a camground in Branford about 100 miles from Homasassa! Branford was a place my husband lived for a couple of years in his youth, he wanted to revisit Ichetucknee Springs and his old rental house, well, the house was torn down, so we went to the Springs, they were awesome, there is a cave under water called the blue hole and the water was so clear you could see all the way to the bottom, but I was surprised at how small it was, you had to walk about 1 mile to see the blue hole and the swimming springs were about 2 blocks but very small for swimming! Craig swam by the blue hole for old times sake, I watched and videoed it, lol, I can't swim and it was very deep! We left there and stopped to visit my childhood friend Maria and her husband Wayne, visited for about 2 hrs. before we had to leave, they have a beautiful home and we had a wonderful visit! We left there and stayed at the Harmony Lake campground in Georgia, beautiful campground with a lake, but it was so tight that we could hardly get our slide out and the bugs were horrible! But it was just for the night we got in late and were exhausted so we didn't sit outside anyways!  We decided to get off the road early yestesterday because Craig's back was bothering him and he just wanted to get off the road and rest up a bit, we are at the Lake Marion Resort & Marina campground in Santee South Carolina, nice place with a pool, putt-putt golf, a fishing lake and has cabins for rent and not as many bugs! We will be leaving here around 10 or 11 today, hoping to make it to my daughter Susan's by tonight, but we still have almost 300 miles yet to go, we don't like driving that many miles in a day, to hard on the motorhome and us! So we will play it by ear and see what happens!  We are so excited to see her, her husband, our granddogs and grandcats and their new home!
We got two great camphost positions in Michigan, the first one is right on lake Huron on the edge of the bay. The park contains 183 acres situated on the end of a sandy bay. It has been referred to as the "Cape Cod of the Midwest", where the water is shallow and warm for swimming. We start there on May 31st to July 14th! Such a beautiful place and all we do is smile and greet campers, check the bathrooms to see if they need cleaning and let "THE RANGERS" know so they can clean it, no more cleaning or physical labor for us anymore, Craig can't anyways with arithis in his shoulders now, they said all we have to do is smile and be friendly, have coffee hour every Saturday and enjoy talking with the kids and people in general, well, talking is what I do best, Craig has lots to share about his experiences with nature! Our second camphost gig is Aug. 27th to Oct. 9th on a 1000 acre park with almost one mile of shoreline along a beautiful lake. It has 400 modern, hardwood-shaded campsites, a mini-cabin, sandy beach, fishing, boat launch, picnic area. Self-guided nature trail. Ungroomed trails for hiking ,rowboats, canoes, paddleboats, small motorboat and pontoon rentals and a metal detecting area. We will be there for their fall festival where campers decorate their campsites for Halloween, we will be helping with games for the kids and passing out treats that are provided by the rangers and again they want us to just put on a smiling face and greet everyone coming in, no cleaning or physical labor! It is what we have prayed for, we realized after being in housekeeping in Texas it wasn't what we wanted and when Craig's shoulders began to give him pain and his arms were going numb, we realized physically he couldn't do it, his doctors told him he will lose the use of his arms permanently if he continued doing that kind of work! We knew that financially we had to do something or we wouldn't be able to continue this lifestyle, especially with the price of gas, also we can only stay in a state campground for 2 weeks and would have to move, well, this way we can stay longer and not have to pay! LIFE IS GOOD! We are signed up for their camphost classes at Higgins lake for two days, they will provide us with a campsite for 4 days free while we attend classes plus all meals for the two days of the classes!  This will also look good on our resume! I will let everyone know the name of the Campgrounds as soon as we are for sure locked in, we have signed the contracts so we know we got them but feel it is best to wait for now! We also have reserved a 10 day stay at Bay City State Park in July with our sons and their families, which will be inbetween gigs, this way we will be close to home and get Craig's veteran's visits taken care of but most of all we will be around the kids,grandkids,family and friends, plus we can take care of business around town also!  We will probably being staying there also as soon as we are done with our classes, our granddaughters birthday party is May 21st and my grandson's 4th birthday is on the 17th, plus my son's birthday on the 11th! So as you can see April is going to be an important month for us!  We have missed my family so much and realize how important quality time is with them, next fall we plan on camphosting in Florida for the winter, not that far from Michigan that way, plus with the price of gas it will be financially more affordable! 
           Well, time to pack up and head out to our next adventure! Until next time God Bless!

                      

Heading for Virginia Soon!

                                               MONKEY ISLAND
                          

                                            CRAIG ENJOYING THE VIEW

                     OUR CAPTAIN BARRY AND THAT'S MIKE IN THE BACKGROUND!

                                           GETTING SOME RAYS!

                                             CRAIG ENJOYING THE DAY

                              MY FRIEND ANNETTE WITH TRIXIE AND ME!
                                          BELOW; ME AND LENNY IN ANNETTE'S POOL

   

Had a great time here with our friends Annette, Barry and Richard for the last two weeks, they made us feel so welcome and had a lot of fun! Went out in Barry's boat and seen dolphins in the wild, it was so very awesome, enjoyed the best pizza ever, oh, can't forget Trisha and Mike, Annette's daughter and boyfriend, had some fantastic meals together. But it is time to move on now because we got a new gig in Michigan as campground hosts, we have to be back in Michigan by April 25th for our camphost training for two days! So we are leaving Thursday morning and heading for Virginia, we want to stay at Ichetucknee Springs by Lake City before we leave Florida, then we want to stay a night in each of the Carolina's also, hoping to get to Virginia by Sunday or Monday! My daughter and her husband have been working there butts off getting their already beautiful home in shape before we get there! We also want to be back in time for our granddaughter Kennedy and grandson's Blaken's birthdays in April, my son Richard's is on the 11th but can't possibly make it by then! Have missed too many birthdays and holidays but will soon be home to celebrate the summer together, my son Matt and daughter-in-law Courtney have already got a new tent and all that goes with it so we can spend as much time together as we can, called my son Richard and told him to pick up a tent also, he was going to get one in the next couple of days! I believe a family that camps together stays together, lol, nothing like bonding in the woods! 
                                          I have been busy listing a lot on e-bay and selling quite a bit, but problem is I have bought a lot while here and now have to make room for it all! But, hey, it's gas money!  Can't wait to hit the road again, getting hitch-itch! I can't wait to see my daughter and son-in-laws new home, can't wait to hold my grandbabies again, been a long winter for them, but am proud how they all survived some rough times while we were gone, they are tougher then I thought!  Well, supper is ready, so until next time, God Bless!

TEXAS, LOUISIANA,MISSISSIPPI, ARKANSAS, FLORIDA!

                                                  HELLO ALABAMA & FLORIDA

          CRAIG AND LENNY ON THE BEACH OF THE GULF OF MEXICO IN MISSISSIPPI!

                   ME AND LENNY ON THE BEACH TOO!

                                               OUR DOLPHIN WAITING FOR US!

                                                      A BUTTE IN TEXAS!

                                              MY DASH WITH ALL THE BOOKS I USE!

                                            HELLO LOUISIANA

                                            CAMPGROUND IN LOUISIANA

                                                 HELLO MISSISSIPPI!

                                                     ENTERING MISSISSIPPI!

                                  ADDING ARKANSAS AND FLORIDA TO OUR MAP

                                             SUNSET IN FLORIDA CAMPGROUND!

 Left Arizona a week ago, took us 3 days to get thru Texas, and 4 to get thru the rest, we left Mississippi this morning and went thru Arkansas and made it to Florida today!  Louisana was so so, a lot of swamps, but we didn't drive thru New Orleans because of the flooding going on there right now, Mississippi was beautiful, we drove along the coast and stayed at a the Buckaneer's State Park, in was right on the Gulf of Mexico, beautiful, we could of  stayed on the gulf side for $15 more, but it was very foggy out and couldn't see much anyways until morning when the fog cleared it was and it was awesome, the sand is so white and the water is so clean!  We finally was able to stop alone the road and walk on the beach, looked just like the beaches in the Caribbean!  Was only in Mississippi about 2 hours and Arkansas for about an hour and a half, we drove along the bottom of each state on I-10!  Made good time today, should make it to our friends in Homosassa by late tomorrow or early Sat.
                                  I included a picture of all the books I have on my dash, I use everyone of them, Woodalls is for letting me know where every campground is in every state, most even have the prices, I use the Next Exit so we know what is off each exit, gas stations, camping, stores, restaurants,etc. I use the Walmart book so if we need to boondock or need a few items I know where everyone is in every state and last but not least is our Escapee's book, we are skp members and get up to half off rv resorts that honor our memberships, we have saved a lot of money this way, helps a lot, especially with the cost of gas right now, we are paying between $3.56 to $3.89 a gallon and it is a killing us, there are days when we are putting $200 a day in the tank! Hoping and praying the fuel prices go down by the time we leave Florida! We try to save by eating most meals in the motorhome or fast food places, we stay only at state parks or Skp parks!  Been cutting back on the souvenirs too! But we will be staying put at our friends for about 2 weeks before we head to our daughters in Virginia, that will save us a lot on gas, we will give them money towards our expense for staying there! I also use travel books from AAA travel. Well, tired and ready to hit the bed! Until the next time God Bless!