In April 2007 we had sold our home in Michigan and moved into our new fifth wheel trailer to start our adventure of full timing and exploring in our RV. We started our blog so family and friends can track us and see what we are up to. You can double clink any picture to enlarge it.

Monday, August 14, 2017

No more Moe

We enjoyed the rally but Moe ran away.  We made her leash smaller and took her outside and she quickly weaseled out of it and bolted into the woods and brush.  We had all the rally attendees and campground workers keep an eye open for her but no one ever saw her.  Ron & Lois talked with a neighbor outside the park who said they believe they saw her once.  There have been no calls saying she's been seen so Moe is now a Kalamazoo cat, she's friendly so hopefully someone will adapt her.  One individual who doesn't miss Moe is Patches.
We returned to Juniper Hills CG and are in a site near our first site.  Here we are back in the empty campground.
Here (below) it is a few days before NASCAR race weekend.
Here we are race weekend, can you spot our small white antenna dish and US flag?
Here's a view from our front door, we were lucky that the race fans that were suppose to be in that site had RV problems and did not make it.  They were friends with the fans that were camped behind us.
Here's the C130 flyover.
AH.......back to peace and quiet and no smoke.  It was an entertaining week and the fans were very friendly and well behaved.

 

Sunday, August 6, 2017

M&M Rally, Kalamazoo

On the opening night we always have a potluck dinner and then spend some time going over the potential activities.  Judy made turkey sloppy joes for everyone.
                                Lunch at Gun Lake Casino.
                     We had happy hours every day in the shade.
                                          Bumper cars.
                                               Go karts.
                      And the crowd goes wild doing the wave.
One afternoon the group toured the Heritage Guitar manufacturing facility above and below.

We had a good time the 3 days there before the rally started and the 5 days of the rally.  The best part is just relaxing and socializing with our friends.  There were 10 HitchHikers in attendance and 20 friends.  The bad thing is that Moe ran away the second day there.  We had her on a leash and went outside the first time and she weaseled out of the harness and ran into the weeds.  All 20 of us and the park workers kept an eye open for her but no one saw her the next 5 days.  A neighbor outside the park across the street saw her once (she thinks) and they along with the park have our contact info if she is captured.  Moe was an indoor/outdoor cat and now she's an outdoor Kalamazoo cat.  I hope someone adapts her and takes good care of her, she's a friendly cat that likes the outdoors.

We returned to Juniper Hills and cancelled our trip to Nebraska and the HitchHiker Eclipse Rally due to our mobility problems, bad knees, both of us.  Judy is doing better and the doctor said she can put weight on the knee she fell on and injured a few weeks ago but she's still wobbly like I am.  Judy starts rehab Monday and I see the orthopedic doctor Thursday.
Here we are all alone again......until the NASCAR fans start arriving in a couple days.
 

Thursday, July 27, 2017

Juniper Hills and MOR/ryde

Here's Judy relaxing outside and below she's with Moe and the laundry.  Moe loves to go outside a few times each day and stays within a couple hundred feet of home.
One weekend there was a country music festival called Faster Horses at MIS with 40,000+ attendees, Randy & Lisa along with Devyn & Dan went.  Juniper Hills was busy during the festival and we had neighbors below.
Judy and I made a trip to Olivet to check out Devyn's college and a couple local campgrounds.  While we were there we met Ron & Lois (HitchHiker friends) for lunch.
On the way to the M&M Rally in Kalamazoo we went by Elkhart to have MOR/ryde service our suspension.  It only took a couple hours and everything checked out OK.  Then we went to Kalamazoo for the rally.
This was Moe's first RV trip so we put her in the bedroom with Patches and used Velcro to keep the doors closed as we traveled to Elkhart.  When we arrived we opened the bedroom door but couldn't find Moe, we assumed she had found a good hiding spot.  We kept the bed slide in and opened the three other sides and set up for the night.  An hour later Moe came out from under the couch, how she got out of the bedroom we have no idea. 

Saturday, July 8, 2017

Bye bye pasture, hello Juniper Hills, welcome Moe!

A few things have been happening since my last post.  Judy fell two weeks ago helping pack Randy's place for the move.  She cracked a knee bone in her good knee.  A trip to the ER and then Dr. Schuller and now she's HitchHiker bound living in her chair, couch and bathroom.  It's getting better but we don't want to push it and risk our travels. 
Devyn and Dan helped me move out of the pasture and we have been in Juniper Hills CG over a week already. 
Randy sold his place and is very happy about it.  Over a few weeks he's casually moved out and will be moving in with Lisa.  Lisa has big news.......a new Harley, bigger than she is too.  Here they are in her garage checking it out.

The closing is 7/13 so I'll get to cut the grass one more time.  Before we left there was a wind storm one afternoon and that evening when it was very calm......BOOM.  A tree fell behind us and took out the power line to the house.  Our HH power is fine as we get AC from the barn.  The power company worked until 2am to restore power to the empty house.
Devyn will be off to Olivet College in 5 weeks and has already started soccer conditioning.  She and Dan loaded up Dan's enclosed trailer and took the gator and some other stuff down to Jody & Renato in GA.  They drove straight through both ways and spent several days there enjoying there family. 
We made the decision to test Moe living with us.  Randy can't keep her as Lisa has a big dog, she can't stay at Randy's old place as the new owners have dogs and cats.  So, she moved to Juniper Hills with us and is doing OK.  She goes out 2 or 3 times a day here but always stays nearby.   If we were in a busy (normal) CG she won't be out as much.  That will be the real test.
                                            Nap time
 This CG is the deadest and quietest we have ever been in.  In 10 nights we have seen 1 RV come in overnight and leave in the morning.  We are the only RV is this row.  There are several seasonal units here and are occasionally used.  We backup to a swamp and weeds so Moe is very happy out there with the Canadian geese.
    

Sunday, May 28, 2017

The Atlanta gang is here and Devyn's graduation party

Jody, Renato, Brianna and Dustin flew up from Atlanta for Devyn's graduation, they are here for a week.  Judy and I got to take the kids to McDonalds a couple time so they could play in the fun room.  Randy had a tent and bouncy house for her graduation party and he and Renato grilled pork to make pulled pork for the party.  First the bouncy house had to be tested.
        Jody above and Devyn below bouncing in the bouncy house.
          Renato firing up the grill for supper the day before the party.
 
Who said a brother and sister can't work together?  Here's proof, getting the pool ready for the party.
                  Here's Randy and Lisa terrorizing the neighborhood.
The kids were busy washing Devyn's car and Dan's truck.

After the vehicles were clean it time to rest and watch a movie.
Or......take a nap, except Dan.
                                    Time for the party.
 



Matt taking some of the kids for a ride . 
                                       \Time to cut the cake.
 After the party Jody, Renato, Brianna, Devyn spent a day at Cedar Point.   Ya think Brianna was excited?
While they were in Cedar Point we had Dustin and went to the park.
 
 
 

Friday, May 26, 2017

Devyn's graduation

One book is being closed and another about to open.  Devyn graduated from Onsted High School this evening 4th in her class of 132.  Here's the graduates audience. 
                                          Here she comes!
                                     Receiving her diploma.
                                            Happy happy!
Front and center in the group photo.
Happy daddy
The family
                                    Lisa, Devyn and Randy
Devyn and Dan, THE new graduates!