Monday, March 10, 2009

It's Monday and I'm not at work!! Yippee. Bruce is at work. His day started off on kind of a bad note because he woke up 15 minutes before he was supposed to be there. Oops. I guess he didn't turn the alarm on. Sunday was a lazy day for us. We went to early church at our old church and it felt really good to be there. We knew many of the old faces and in some respects it was like we never missed a beat. One gal told us that before service started she saw me and thought "well there's DeAnn". After church she came up and hugged me and said it was just so normal to see us there that she forgot we'd been gone for 4 years. A lot has changed at Beautiful Savior and a lot is the same. I am excited about getting involved again. Bruce wasn't feeling the best so he laid low most of the day - except for cleaning out a couple of bays and putting the bikes on the back on the RV instead of in a bay. We had both cars full of junk so it was nice to get some of it put away again. I am going to make a trip to the lake to unload a lot of stuff we don't need now. I did laundry because it was about to overtake the bedroom. I also went to the grocery store which is less than a mile from us. What a pleasure that was. The nearest grocery store was about 10 miles from us in Arizona and instead of buying food for a party of 150, I bought food for 2. My $52 bill looked like nothing. I'm not doing much of anything today either. Tonight I'm going to cook dinner at Amy's apartment. The electricity isn't great here so I don't like running the oven and the electric furnace at the same time. I'm pretty much out of cell phone minutes until 3/13 so I can't even talk on the phone. bummer! We just received word that Kim and Aaron Rasko are now the proud parents of a brand new baby boy and a brand new baby girl. We are so excited for them and the rest of the family. I would sure love to get my hands on those babies!! I now have an excuse to go baby shopping. The Activities gang at Quail Run produced an absolutely wonderful luau for about 300 people on Saturday. We are so proud of them and so happy for them to have that behind them. They are now on the downhill slide. Bud and Shelley are thinking about visiting us on the way back to Michigan. We can't wait!!

Saturday, March 8, 2009

BRRRR. It is cold in Merriam, Kansas and I don't like it but I will get used to it!! Life in the RV park is starting to look like normal. Friday we did all kinds of errands and accomplished a lot. Friday afternoon both of the girls came by to see us. We had a nice visit. Then Bruce and I went with Ken and Ginny Taylor to Ponak's for dinner and then to the auto show. Dinner was really good and I ate way too much (so what else is new). We looked at cars for hours. I found three that I like: Mitsubishi Galant, VW EOS (hard top convertible) and a Volvo C70 (Outstanding hard top convertible). I can see me driving any of them and this week while Bruce is working I am going to go drive each of them. All three are comfortable. All three get good gas mileage. All three are comfortable to sit in BUT oh that Volvo is NICE!! I would have to get a really good job to afford the Volvo though so I don't see that in my future. This morning we got up early and drove to Iowa to see Bruce's mom. She got out of the hospital yesterday. She is very weak and her breathing is labored. She was lucid today and was actually better than we had expected she would be. We had lunch with Bruce's Uncle Bob and Aunt Beverly. We were back home by 6:15 p.m. We defrosted the freezer tonight and I cleaned out one cupboard. Now Bruce is working on loading a new map source on the Garmin. The weather forecast says it will warm up tomorrow and I am happy about that.

Thursday, March 6, 2008

DeAnn and Jasmine went to Chris and John's apartment for lunch with Chris today. Chris made homemade lasagna. YUM! Jasmine got to run around in the grass - well the frozen stubble that will be grass someday. Chris is fixing the apartment up so it will look like home before long. About 2:30 Bruce's class finished up so we decided to point the RV north and head for "home" before any more weather struck us. The weather was perfect for travelling and we arrived at Walnut Grove Campground in Merriam, KS about 8:45 p.m. We did make one stop for fuel at BEDO Junction but upon reading the $3.97 on the diesel pump, we decided to push on. YIKES!! Our spot at Walnut Grove is nice and wide and is long enough. That's about all we need. We picked up some of the junk that was strewn all over the RV and made it look like home again. We've prepared a list of tasks to accomplish on Friday. We thank God for all the safe travels we have had over the past four years. As we look back, we can hardly believe that we actually saw all the great places we saw and met all the wonderful people we met but we know it is true. God has blessed us tremendously! We are excited about starting a whole new adventure.

Tuesday and Wednesday, March 4 & 5, 2008

Tuesday and Wednesday were full of learning for Bruce. His class starts at 7:00 a.m. and runs until 5:00 p.m. Those hours are just like Quail Run! As for DeAnn, Tuesday and Wednesday were full of fun! Tuesday morning Chris Adams picked DeAnn up at 10:00 and they were at their first shopping destination (Quail Springs Mall) shortly thereafter. Victoria Secret is launching a new product so of course they had to try it out. Bruce was happy with DeAnn's purchase! DeAnn also found another pair of shoes on the 75% off rack at Dillards. The lettuce wraps and wonton soup at PF Changs were delicious. They stopped at a furniture store, a fabric store and two Hobby Lobby stores in search for bargains to decorate John and Chris' apartment in OKC. The 90% off rack at Hobby Lobby was a hit. Best of all was the fact that Chris and DeAnn got caught up on a whole lot of talking. They are the kind of friends that pick up on a conversation they left a year ago and never miss a beat. Cagney and Lacy were alive and well again! Wednesday, Chris picked DeAnn up about 11:00 and they had lunch at Panera. After lunch they conquered Penn Square Mall and took in the movie 27 Dresses. The theatre held a private showing for them. Wasn't that special? By the time the movie was finished Bruce and John both called to find out where their women were at. Hmmm, I guess they were concerned about all the good bargains from Tuesday. Wednesday night, Bruce and DeAnn met Jack Imel, Byron and Sara Hull, Gale Shelton and his fiancee Eiddy, Kari and Terry Harrington, and Mike and Debbie Simmons for dinner at Charleston's. There was lots of talking, laughing and cathching up going on there. Friends are such a blessing!

Monday, March 3, 2008 BRRRRRRR

If you had any notion that our life would be boring now that Bruce is back to work, you are WRONG. Sunday morning I awakened at 3:15 a.m. in beautiful Las Cruces, NM. We had been told that the weather across the Texas Panhandle and Oklahoma was going to be bad on Sunday so I got on the computer and started researching routes around the worst. At 6:15 Bruce got up and we took off. Everything was great until Amarillo when the wind starting blowing and gusting. About an hour later I turned on the weather radio to learn that we were driving into an area with tornado watches and thunderstorm warnings. The wind blew more and Jasmine got motion sick from the RV rocking. Our RV typically doesn't rock and Bruce rarely notices the wind but yesterday was a different story. I quickly learned about all the counties and cities in western Oklahoma by searching out all the watch and warning areas. Do you know where Cogar, OK is? I do. We sat at a Love's station near Elk City for a little while and let a storm pass. We took off because we realized that another storm was coming up from behind us and we needed to get ahead of it. We drove quickly and quietly down I-40. About 30 minutes out of OKC I called our friends John and Chris Adams who were already in OKC. John said there was a huge line right near Yukon which is right where we were headed. By now it was dark and of course we couldn't see anything. When we got to Yukon the tornado sirens were blaring but we were only 7 miles from our exit to we proceeded onward. I was trying to distract myself by talking on the phone. After the second or third time I screamed in Amy's ear because of lightening strikes she told me to hang up and get in bed and cover my head! We arrived safely at Rockwell RV park amidst tornado sirens, torrential rain, and horrific winds. The second we stopped I put up the antennae and turned on the inverter so I could check the tv weather. I quickly learned that we were on the western edge of the storm and the bad stuff had passed. Whew. Bruce plugged in the electricity and we went to bed! We were thankful the Lord guided us to safety yet again! This morning the temperature is 32. It was raining/sleeting/snowing/blowing when we woke up but now it is only blowing. We are going to go out to breakfast and embrace the cold weather. There is nothing that can stop us from having fun now!!

Saturday, March 1, 2008

We blasted out of Quail Run this morning at about 10:00 a.m. That wasn't exactly early but early enough for us. Bruce had to assemble the hitch and hook up new wiring for the car because we had our hitch rebuilt by the company this winter and he had never reassembled it. We said our final goodbyes and drove off toward the infamous I-10. The trip was uneventful and we arrived at Sunny Acres RV Park in Las Cruces, NM about 3:15 p.m. This is a nice little park that we've visited many times. Our dear friends Bill and Marcia Nation picked us up about 4:3 and we all went to dinner at LaPosta in Old Messila. YUM. The green chili enchiladas are the best. Bill and Marcia are friends we made while working at Habitat for Humanity the first time we were here in Las Cruces. The construction manager introduced us one night at a Lenten service at church. We've been fast friends ever since. Bruce is busy planning our trek for tomorrow. The weather service is forecasting strong storms so we are going to see if we can find a safe way to get to Oklahoma City. Neither of us is excited about the possibility of driving into thunderstorms. Have I ever mentioned that I HATE spring storms? Well, I do. That is one of the reasons I like being in southern Arizona - no tornadoes!

Friday - The rest of the story - February 29, 2008

Oh what a day this was. We had so much fun. After the party this morning Aunt Delores and Uncle Roger, Vince and Shirley Henderson and Charles and Myrna Drost drove over from Coolidge to visit and have lunch. Myrna brought us one of her famous matrimony cakes. We talked, we laughed and we ate. Sounds like the story of our lives! We went to Duffer's for one last lunch and it was good as usual. After lunch we came back to the RV and visited - avoiding what we knew we all had to do - say farewell. We took pictures, hugged and said our goodbyes. That is never the fun part but it part of our lifestyle. By now, the young man was here cleaning the RV. Bruce made an inspection and decided that he was doing a great job. It was 90 here today so that guys was HOT. The motor home looks like a million bucks so it was worth whatever Bruce had to pay to have it done. Even though we had just eaten two hours earlier we were off to Cafe de Manual for dinner with John and Bonnie McMullen, Oscar The Grouch (not really) and Lucille Peterson, Bud and Shelley Wright, Tom and Sharon Peterson, and Jack and Cathy Montgomery. More food, more laughs and more fun. We hurried back to the park so we could all go to the sock hop. We danced. We laughed. We talked. We hugged. We said our good byes and we slipped out the side door crying. We have worked our buns off this winter. We have had many many unpleasant and un-necessary butt chewings. I've had many sleepless nights worrying about this party or that party. We have met numerous wonderful people from all over the U.S. and Canada that have touched our lives deeply. We have met a few people I'd like to beat with a stick. Most of all, we have accomplished our goal and that was to help the residents of Quail Run had a fun-filled winter. Again tonight countless people told us this was their best winter ever. That feels really good. Bruce and I talked that we will very likely never do anything like this again but neither of us can say we are sorry we did it. We are both filled with emotion and are ready for a great night's sleep. Tomorrow morning we will leave for Las Cruces, NM to start yet again another new chapter in our lives. God is certainly leading us on an exciting journey. People can say a lot of things about the way we live but boring is not a word anyone would ever use to describe our life together. We are ready!

Thursday and the first part of Friday 2/28-29

WHAHOO!!! Bruce arrived at PHX about 30 minutes early and for a wonder Jasmine and I were there this time (remember I was an hour late to pick him up in November). He sure looked good to me. Jasmine, however, was mad at him and wouldn't even look at him. She still hasn't warmed up to him but she will sooner or later. She's paying him back for leaving her. I told Bruce last week that if he lived to 250 he'd never be able to repay me for leaving me to do his job. He's started paying me back and I like it a LOT! He brought me a beautiful strand of pearls and pearl earrings to match. He is so good and I like it. I'll bet Zoe (the jeweler) likes it too. You see, since Bruce retired he hasn't been buying jewelry so she was probably really glad to see him and find out that he is back to work. The economy is going to surge!! This morning the park had a going away party for us at 8:30. The residents and our fellow workampers were way too kind to us. They showered us with wonderful words, gifts and hugs. Bill Turner is a singer/song writer and he gave Bruce two of his CD's so I'm listening to those right now. He's good! The residents have had a great time this winter and they appreciated our part in that immensely. Bruce cried like a baby (I know your are shocked NOT). I was dry-eyed until our workampers started talking and then I lost it too. God has given us many new friends and acquaintances that we will take with us in our hearts. Someone told us this is the first going away party they've ever had for workampers. We feel like it was a party for all of the Activities Workampers because every one of them contributed to this winter's success. Bruce and I were truly blessed this morning. That was a spectacular ending to this adventure. Now Bruce is outside getting ready to roll. He HIRED someone to wash and wax the outside of the RV today. Can you believe it? I can't. He really has turned over a new leaf. Our Coolidge buddies will be here in a few minutes and we are all going to the golf course for lunch. I'll write more later. Bruce's Mother is in the hospital with what they think is pneumonia. She went by ambulance last evening. Bruce talked to the nurse this morning and Doris had a restful night. Her heart markers are normal but her white count is up. They've got her on antibiotics and IV's. She's not been well for a week or so and she's really weak. Did I mention that I'm glad to have Bruce home with me again? Well, I am.

Wednesday, February 27, 2008

ONE MORE SLEEP!! Today was a beautiful day in Arizona. The sky was perfectly blue, no wind, no humidty and 80 degrees. It just doesn't get any better than that. I talked to Bud and Shelley this a.m. and we all decided there was no need for me to go to the office. I went for a nice walk with Cathy and delivered some Tupperware from the Tupperware Bingo party. Next Kathy Weyers brought a beautiful card over and wished me farewell. I am looking forward to seeing the Weyers in Kansas City. They are from Nebraska - between Lincoln and Omaha so it is very possible that we will be able to get together again. Great people! Kathy and I apparently look alike because the other day one of the residents called her DeAnn and started talking to her about park activities. I spent the majority of the day cleaning the motor home. I decided Bruce would have a stroke if he walked in and saw how I've been living so I took care of that little project. Jasmine even had a bath so she would smell good for Daddy tomorrow. Jack and Cathy made dinner for me this evening and it was good. Now Snookie is at Jack and Cathy's helping Cathy set up her blog and giving us both a lesson on blogging. Snookie is the queen of blogging in this park. Tomorrow Shelley and I are going to go shopping one last time to get stocked up for the luau. We're going to try to work in a trip to the Chico's outlet one last time. Then tomorrow night at 10:15 Jasmine and I will pick up Bruce from the airport.

Monday, February 25, 2008

Sunday was a lazy day for me. I slept in until 9:35 a.m. - slept right through both church services. Yikes!! Jack and Cathy and I went to the Big Wa for lunch and then printed some pictures from the Valentine's party. After we got back we went to Rick and Wendy Fury's for Rick's birthday party. The party was planned for last week but Rick has been ill. It was good to see him out and about again. We all enjoyed sitting outside to enjoy the warm weather. FINALLY!! Monday I finished up a few things at work and helped Sharon with the newspaper. Really, she did all the work and I just did the proofreading. She is really good at the newspaper! This evening I had dinner with Jack and Cathy. I'm definitely winding down and getting ready for the arrival of Mr. Hoover! 3 more sleeps.

Saturday, February 23, 2008

It was a beautifiul day in sunny Arizona. Jack, Cathy and I went to the Fountain Hills Art Festival and had a fun day. The artists there have very unique products. It's fun to go and see how the beautiful people live and shop!

Friday, February 22, 2008

This day started at 3:15 a.m. for me. I had the great pleasure of dumping the black tank at 3:30. Have you ever seen the movie RV? Last night when I flushed the toilet there was a geyser in the toilet. I couldn't believe it so I flushed it again. It happened again. Then I filled the pot with water and flushed it. That made a BIG geyser (fresh water) and now I was soaked. I called Bruce and he had a few things to say and I didn't like any of them so I went to bed. After I was asleep he called and told me he figured out that the black tank was full. Now it seems funny to me but it wasn't so funny last night. When I woke at at 3:15 I was afraid to flush it again for fear that the next geyser would not be fresh water so out I went. I didn't have any water in the grey tank so I closed it, ran the dishwasher and the washer and then opened the grey valve too. By now I was fully awake so I just stayed up. I went to work at 9:00. I finished writing the contracts for all of next year's entertainers. One more thing off my list. IT IS FINISHED!!!!! Tonight was the last food event on my watch and for that I am VERY thankful. The White team did a superb job with the spaghetti dinner. I had my doubts about 1:00 this afternoon. Oh my. There wasn't enough butter to butter the 24 loaves of bread so I headed off to every stupid excuse of a grocery store in Arizona City. All I could scare up was 3 pounds so I ran that back to the park. Now the people working in the kitchen were all arguing about how to do the bread. We had a little pow wow and made a plan. Next we talked about the way the "expert" told us to do the spaghetti. None of us were comfortable with that plan so we changed the plan. The "expert" said the spaghetti needed to be cooked yesterday and that is what the White team did. Today it looked pretty much like a giant lump of goo and we were scared. They dropped it in boiling water for a few minutes and then mixed it in the hot sauce and kept it hot in roasters. They wrapped the buttered and cut bread in foil and heated it all in the oven for 1 1/2 hours. The salad was all cut up this morning and mixed this afternoon. At 5:00 sharp I said grace and we started serving. The food was GREAT!! The spaghetti was very moist and still hot when all of us slaves ate. Nothing could have been any better and everyone had a good time. We all took the tables down and set up for church. Did I mention that I'm thankful this was the last event on my watch!! Bud and Shelley and the rest of the gang will do a great job without me and in another week no one will even remember my name! Tomorrow Jack and Cathy and I are headed off to Fountain Hills Arts Festival.

Thursday, February 21, 2008

Fun Day!! Jack, Cathy and I left the RV Park at 7:00 a.m. for Los Algadones, Mexico. Well, we almost left at 7:00. I had to stop in the office to check something I had done earlier and thought I messed up. It was fine but I just had to know for sure. Anyway we had a nice drive and arrived safely about 10:00. The little VW came through with flying colors. The weather was perfect - not too hot and not too cold - no wind. We shopped and had a great lunch. We got in line to cross the border at 1:55 and did not get to the U.S. until 3:55. ARGHHH!! By then we were hot and tired. That cheap rum I bought got mighty heavy! From Mexico we went to the Peanut Patch in Yuma for some more goodies. Then it was off toward home. We stopped in Dateland, AZ and I had a date shake. Before you say YUCK, I have to tell you that it was GOOD. We've driven past there several times and didn't bother to stop. That was something I thought I should do before we leave the area and I'm really glad I did. I also bought a five pound box of Medjool dates. Bruce will have a nice treat and the rest will be used at the luau here in the park. We arrived back at the RV about 8:15 this evening. We had big news in Arizona City while we were gone today. The very first stop light was installed at the corner of Sunland Gin Road and Bataglia Road today. That was a nice surprise. Tom Peterson babysat for Brandy and Jasmine today. They were both happy as can be when we got back.

Tuesday, February 19, 2008

One day closer to seeing the love of my life!! We are just not at our best when we are apart from each other. Having said that, my day was good. My day started off on a shakey note with a complaining resident. I let it bug me for hours until I was so engrossed in the luncheon/style show that I forgot about the complaining. I'm not sure why I dwell on the negative when there are so many positive comments. Anyway, about 9:15 I buzzed over to Liz Clairborne to pick up all the clothes we were using for our style show. When I got back to the park I helped the Blue Team set up for the luncheon. At 11:30 we served pulled pork sandwiches, cole slaw, chips and cookies to 87 people. We used the pork leftover from Valentine's Day plus one new loin. We covered it with Bill Johnson's BBQ sauce and refrigerated it overnite. We warmed it in big warmers and served it with KC Masterpiece on the side. It was unbelievably moist. YUM YUM. The cole slaw was the kind with the ramen noodles. We used UTZ chips from Sam's. That's the kind with sweet potatoe chips and all different colors. The ladies loved it all. After we ate, one of our residents, Jane Speedy, made a cute "Purse" presentation - how personalities represent different purses. She was good. The models were residents from the park. After the style show I washed the roasters and made did the final cleanup of the kitchen. Then I was off to the office for a lesson with Bub and Shelley on keeping the books. After that I met with Snookie and Marlene to hear a presentation of an idea they've developed for the first week in March. They are putting together a photo scavenger hunt and it is going to be fun. Next, Cathy Montgomery and I returned the cothes to Liz. We eacdh did a little shopping because models got 40% discount on the day of the show. I got a new "basic" black dress. When Cathy and I were almost back to the park I called our friends Scott and Wanda Brady who were coming to visit me. What a surprise I had when I asked Scott where they were and he said they were on Battaglia. I looked over and they were an equal distrance from the stop sign as we were. I led them to the park where we had lots of hugs and Cathy got a tour of their motor home. It is a top-of-the-line Newmar Essex and it is beautiful. Scott and Wanda treated me to dinner at Duffers where we talked and laughed and drank a little too many margaritas (thanks Richard!) Scott and Wanda are the most generous and servant-minded people I have ever met and it was a real joy to spend a few hours with them. After dinner they headed off to Oceanside, California where they have an appointment today. Before Bruce took his job we had both toyed with the idea of hooking up with Scott and Wanda to do serious volunteering with the Spartan Chapter of the Family Motor Coach Association. Maybe later! I'm off to work to see what Wednesday brings me. P.S. Amy found a condo that she loves and the end of March, she will be a first-time homeowner! Congratulations Amy.

Monday, February 18, 2008

This is the best day I've had in a really long time! I went to work and about 15 minutes later Cathy came in and said they were going shopping. I wanted to go but almost decided not to do it. Bud and Shelly encouraged me to go so off I went. We went to Chandler Fashion Mall which has everythong anyone can imagine. Dillards was having their President's Day Sale. I got three pair of shoes at 75% off EACH! Then I found two pair of slacks that were actually my size so I got them as well. Next was a pretty sweater. Cathy wasn't quite as lucky as I was. We walked through the mall and made our next big stop at Harry and David. I restocked my soup supply. We got back to the park about 3:00. Bud and Shelley had a good day without me. They are going to do a great job and won't miss me a minute. The three of us went over and got the meat ready for tomorrow's luncheon. I came home and made shrimp salad for dinner. Bud and Shelley and Jack and Cathy joined me. We had a fun evening of eating and laughing. Amy's got big news but I won't announce it until she tells a few more people!!

Sunday Night, February 17, 2008

Last week I was interviewed for a position at the FAA in Kansas City. I checked the status of the application tonight and learned that I was not selected. I have mixed emotions about that. On one hand I am relieved because after the interview, I knew I really didn't want to do that particular job. On the other hand I don't like being rejected. I want to be the rejector not the rejected! Jack and Cathy joined me for some Wild Mushroom and Leek soup this evening. It was yummy. I made it from a mix I purchased at Harry and David. I'll have to get more of those for the cold nights in Kansas City. Jasmine and I are off to bed so I am ready for my work day tomorrow.

Sunday, February 17, 2009

The sun is shining and the sky is blue. Now we are talking nice weather!

Friday was the first day of the transition of leadership in the Activities Office at Quail Run RV Park. Bud and Shelley Wright are now in full-time training. That is a good feeling for me but not such a good feeling for them. Friday night Bill Rinne treated his lovely wife Donna and me to the seafood buffet at Duffer's. Oh yum. Everything was great. I wish I could have eaten more but I was about to explode after my heaping helping of bread pudding covered with caramel sauce. No Bruce, I have not lost any weight since you left! We got home about 6:45 and believe it or not Jasmine and I went straight to bed. I was exhausted. I tried to watch the Celine Dion special but missed all but the first and last songs. I slept straight through until 6:00 Saturday morning.

Saturday morning Bud and Shelley and I went to Sam's to do major shopping for the ladies luncheon, the spaghetti dinner and the luau. They've got an HHR so we had lots of space for "stuff" and we used every inch of it. When we returned to the park we packed everything away in the kitchen and went over to the office to take care of the week's money. Keep in mind that we aren't supposed to work on the weekend. HA. Saturday night we had a comedy night at the park but I stayed home. I'm glad I did because my brother called and we talked for more than an hour. That was a real treat for me.

This morning Bill and Donna Rinne and I went to early church. We took a couple pictures with the Montgomery's and now Bill and Donna are preparing to make the trek back to Kansas. It has been fun having them here and I am looking forward to being able to see them often in Olathe. After church this morning we talked about the fact that there is no place like home for going to church. Even though Bruce and I have been gone from Olathe for 4 years, we still feel the most at home at Beautiful Savior and we are looking forward to worhipping there often.

Bruce went to the condo at Lake of the Ozarks Friday night. Snow is in the forecast for today so right now he is on his way back to Kansas City. Being tied to a work schedule makes it way harder to enjoy a nice little batch of snow.

Valentine's Day 2008

The Valentine party at Quail Run RV Resort was a HUGE success. I worked 8:00 a.m. to 10:15 p.m. I guess that about does it for my hours this week. hahaha. The Activities Workampers and I served 153 people in 17 minutes. They were absolutely great. I wish I had a video of how that all happened. Things in the kitchen were a little tense until we found our rhythm but boy once we got it we were GOOD! The residents were all seated and we actually plated the food and served them. We served a green salad built on a wedge of lettuce, white and wheat rolls, pork loin glazed with a yummy pineapple glaze, cheese potatoes, green beans dressed with french onions, applesauce, black forest or white forest cake, water, iced tea and coffee. After dinner we raffled off several items and earned $325. YES!! Then we all danced as Ted and Sue Barnes sang for us. Everyone had a great time. It was really fun to be part of such a wonderful team last night. The music ended at 9:45 and by 10:05 the mess was cleaned up, all the tables and chairs were put away and the kitchen was spotless. We were all dead on our feet. I walked home in hopes of getting a great night's sleep but instead of that I was wide awake until around 1:00 a.m. Today I worked from 9:00 to 4:00. How much am I earning? hahaha Aren't they cute? Gary Nottingham and Bud Wright love to clown around. Shelley and Bud Wright are taking over when I leave. Jack Montgomery, Cathy Montgomery, Bill Rinne and Donna Rinne (my personal support team) Barb and Daryl Howard are my favorite Texans. Barb works in the office. Ted and Sue Barnes are from Springfield, MO and they KNOW how to entertain!

Tuesday, February 12, 2008

Shirley Henderson, Garrett Wolfe, Vince Henderson

Sunday, Monday and Tuesday were busy days AGAIN! Sunday, Vince, Shirley and I went to their grandson's baseball game. He did a great job helping his team win. The day weather was beautiful and we had a good time. After the game, the three of us went to Sam's and did more shpoping for the Valentine's Day dinner. We stopped by the RV park on the way home and they helped me unload all the goods. That is a chore I will not miss when I leave here.

Monday was not a good day for me at all. I was stressed over the Valentine's dinner. Luckily Snookie and Lucille (workampers) are taking care of all the decorations, set up and the raffle. The office was busy all day so I had to stay way late to get a few things accomplished. Jack and Cathy invited me over for dinner. After dinner Jasmine decided to poop on the floor and then she decided to pee on the floor at Jack and Cathy's. That was the last straw for that nasty day.

This morning I got up early and went to Casa Grande to finish the shopping for the party. I left at 7:00 and got back about 10:00. I would have been back 15 minutes earlier but I couldn't find the car in the WalMart parking lot. I ended up walking up and down every aisle pushing my overflowing cart. Half the time I was stomping around and the other half I was crying on the phone to Bruce. I was a mess. I got back to the park and put 18 of the pork loins in roasters to cook. Next was the all resident meeting where I got to talk. Another task I won't miss. Shortly after it started the UPS man came to the office with a beautiful boquet of red roses for me from the love of my life. That brightened my day. After the meeting we chopped radishes and green onions. By then all but one of the pork loins was cooked to a perfect 170 so Cathy and I wrapped them in foil and put them in the fridge. It was after 2:00 so I came home. Bud stayed to take care of the last pork loin and babysit the afternoon entertainment. The motor home was a pig stye so I cleaned it up and now it looks great. Jasmine and I are settled in for the evening.

Roses from my lover! Aren't they pretty?

Tomorrow is an all work day and the party is tomorrow night. We'll be cooking for 170 people. Sure hope I have enough meat!!

Saturday, February 9, 2008

Today was a beautiful day in sunny Arizona. Jack, Cathy and I went around the park this morning to the annual patio sales. I found a couple of things that I just had to have for gifts. I came home to clean the RV but I never got around to it. I watched parts of two movies and took a nice nap. I also made ribs and roasted vegetables for dinner. Bill, Donna, Jack, Cathy and I had dinner tonight and then we played dominoes. No work today!!! YEA!!! One week down by myself and three more weeks to go. Bruce spent the morning with his mother. This afternoon his cousin Barry was in Centerville so Bruce got to visit with him for a little while. They hadn't seen each other in years. Melissa flew to Denver today to go skiing. She met her friend Molly and Nathan in Denver. They arrived at their condo about 8:00 tonight. Amy checked out four more condos today but didn't love any of them so she's still in the market to buy. She feels way better today than she's felt all week.

The rest of Friday, February 8, 2008

Tonight was the Rebecca Dawn concert. She is a regular in Branson, MO and travels the Arizona circuit in the winter. She is a fun entertainer and we had a good crowd. I should have taken my camera because there were lots of good shots of her and the men in the park. She's quite a looker and she likes men with bald heads! I got home at 9:45 p.m. and have been working on Activities bookwork until now (11:10 p.m.) I'm TIRED. Bruce is in Iowa visiting his mother. He had dinner with her this evening and visited with his Uncle Bob and Aunt Beverly later. We finally got around to talking about the weather up there. It is supposed to be ZERO in the morning. It is supposed to be 70 here tomorrow. Finally some justice. I just heard on Jay Leno that the whole presidential primary is going to come down to South Dakota on June 3. It's all about South Dakota!! YES!!

Friday, February 8, 2008

The week has been fairly uneventful. I've worked in the office until about 1:30 every day and everything is fine and dandy. Tuesday I went to town and bought another 50 pounds of pork loins to cook for Valentine's Day. Bruce is busy at work and loving it. I was happy to be alone for about a day and I'm ready to have him back now. We are not good apart!! Yesterday I had my interview for an HR Assistant position at the FAA. That was not fun. It is way more fun to be the interviewer than the interviewee. I felt like a babbling idiot with no brain. Shortly after the interview, Vince and Shirley Henderson and I went to Phoenix to watch their grandson's baseball game. Garrett goes to College of Southern Idaho and they are down here for 4 games. Thanks to Gertie the Garmin we made it safe and sound without incident. Garrett's team won 4-1. When the sun went down it got out there. Here are a couple pictures from the game: Garrett is a very quick shortstop. Do you think it was cold out there?

Monday, February 4, 2008

Today Amy turned 25 years old!! Happy Birthday to my baby girl!! Amy, Melissa and Bruce are at Hikari Japanese Steak House right now celebrating #25. I know they are having a great time. Next year I'll be there to help her celebrate too. Bruce's first day at work was great. He was happy and very upbeat when I talked to him this afternoon. He was excited about all the great people that are working for him. Besides all of that it was 65 and sunny in Kansas City today. It was COLD, cloudy and very raining in Arizona. Poor me! My day was a good one. Jasmine and I awakened about 7:15. I worked from 9:00 to 1:45 and accomplished everything on my list. After work I had a hot stone massage. What a treat! This was the best massage I've ever had. My back and neck have been so stiff I could hardly turn my head and she worked that out. I've also got a head full of whatever and she opened that up as well. Thank you Bruce!! Tonight I ate way too much tuna and noodles so now I've got a belly ache. Jasmine and I are going to wrap up in a blanket and spend the night on the couch.

Sunday, February 3, 2008

This was a nice day of rest for me! Bill and Donna and I went to early church and then Bill took us out for breakfast. Jasmine and I had a short little nap when I got home. I spent the day doing laundry, playing on the computer and watching Super Bowl hype. This evening I had dinner with Jack and Cathy while we watched the game. I already miss Bruce and he's been gone only one night. I've only got 25 more nights to sleep by myself. This morning I woke up and started talking to him but he didn't answer. Imagine that! I think he was really happy when I called him at 5:50 a.m. - NOT! This was not a day of rest for Bruce. Todd Black drove him out to the storage unit this morning to get the Envoy. He went back to the condo and gathered up a few clothes to wear to work and headed for Kansas City. He did a little shopping when he got there and then visited with our friend Kari Swan until the girls got back from Chicago. Bruce and the girls had dinner and now Bruce is staying with Amy. Tomorrow morning he starts his new job. We are about to start yet another great adventure!

Saturday, February 2, 2008

Jack, Cathy and Bruce enjoy a grapefruit from the tree beside the RV.

Cathy, Bruce and DeAnn celebrating Cathy's birthday on 1/29!

Part of our "herd" touring Shamrock Farms - a 10,000 cow dairy operation

The "spa" for the girls. "Where Luxurious Spa Treatment Produces Quality Milk"

Intersting facts.

The milking process is really interesting. These cows know exactly what to do and when to do it.

Our "herd" watching a movie.

Bruce and Jack driving the milk truck.

A calf that is less than 30 minutes old.

After the dairy tour we stopped at John Wayne's favorite watering home!

Janet and John

As you can see, we've had a busy week.

Bruce and Janet left this morning. Janet is back home in Maryland and Bruce is at the condo. Tomorrow he'll go pick up the Envoy, gather up some work clothes and head to Kansas City. He reports for work on Monday morning. When I got home from the airport, Jasmine and I took a nice nap on the couch. At 1:00 p.m. I started working on my January Activity reports. I finished at 8:00. YUK!!! I will not miss that task. Is it March 1 yet?

Thursday, January 31, 2008

Today is another sunny day in Arizona. Bruce, Janet, 65 park residents and I are going to Shamrock Farms this afternoon for a tour of a 10,000 cow dairy operation. I'll bet we are going to smell what goes with 10,000 cows as well! Tuesday was Cathy's birthday so we went to Picacho Open Pit BBQ for dinner. YUM! Earlier in the day, Donna, Janet and I went to Queen Creek Olive Mill to get some more olives and olive oil. Janet shipped a box home and Donn and I loaded the VW. Back to BBQ. We had steaks that were great. It's a little place right inside the front gate of a 70 site RV park. It reminded me of a the lobster pounds up in the NE but without the lobsters. Not much atmosphere but great food. When we got back to the RV we invited several others over to join us for dessert. Cathy had brought a big chcocolate cake home from Sam's. Shirley Witcher (a park resident) had baked Bruce a homemade lemon pie. I had baked cup cakes. We obviously had way too much dessert for 7 people so we called in recruits. The 13 of us got really cozy in our RV and ate as much as we could. Wednesday Bruce got up early and went to Casa Grande hospital to see Uncle Roger. He was admitted the day before with chest pain so Bruce wanted to go see how he was doing for himself. Janet and I went to the hospital later in the morning. Uncle Roger was feeling ok and was waiting for his 4:00 p.m. stress test. We visited for a little while and then someone came to help him with a shower. We took the que and took Aunt Delores to the Creative Cafe for a delicious lunch. After lunch Aunt Delores went back to the hospital and Janet and I went shopping for the park's craft fair luncheon on Saturday. Oh joy!! After Bruce got off work, Bruce, Janet and I went to Vince and Shirley's for a visit. Shirley made us baby back ribs that were just to-die-for. We overate AGAIN!! Bruce has been working in the office all week. He's got some things he would like to accomplish before he leave Saturday morning but time is flying by quickly. I need a few lessons on things with the RV that I have to do in his absence. YUK! I think we are both still in shock over what is about to happen to our life. Another chapter and another adventure!!

Monday, January 28, 2008

A few days have past and I haven't taken time to post a blog but here I am. Friday I spent the majority of the day working on my job application. YUK!! Friday evening we hosted our first fish fry at Quail Run. We had contracted with someone else to do the cooking. All was well until their burners wouldn't work properly. The food was great and but they finished cooking about 1 1/2 hours after they were scheduled to finish. Several of the residents brought wine to help them pass the time while they waited for their food. That helped! We got the room cleaned up and ended our work day about 9:00 Friday night. Saturday morning we both went to the office briefly but quickly left the office. We went to Phoenix and did a little personal shopping before we picked our friend Janet Nieto up from the airport. We stopped and had a bite to eat on the way home and went directly to the concert. Dave and Daphne played at the park Saturday night. Dave was the lead guitarist for the Doorights (Barbara Mandrell's band). Daphne was voted the female Gospel singing artist several years ago. The concert was a sell out! After the concert we helped pick up the chairs and we were home by 10:00. Sunday morning we slept in and went to 10:15 church. After church I actually cooked lunch. It rained like crazy all day so we just stayed inside. We watched Titanic later in the day. Bud and Shelley came over for cocktails. We talked and laughed a lot. They stayed for dinner. Today Bruce worked in the office all day. Janet and I went for a nice walk. Lounged around and then went to town to buy groceries for the park. We've now got enough Pepsi products to last to the end of the year. We also got more popcorn and several more pork loins for Valentine's Day. This evening Jack and Cathy joined us for dinner. I submitted my job application to the FAA. I also found several more jobs I can apply for if I get ambitious. I don't think I'm too excited about going back to work. I like playing!!

Thursday, January 24, 2008

Another day and more changes. Bruce has his reservations to fly home February 2. We also have our reservations at Walnut Grove Campground so we'll have a place to live in the RV when the RV and I arrive there the beginning of March. We had another busy day at work. The Activities group hosted all the resident volunteers for a hot dog cookout today at noon. We made some really yummy baked beans to go with the hot dogs. I have a hot dog recommendation: Oscar Meyer XXL Premium Beef Franks. After we cleaned up the kitchen Bruce and I worked in the office. Bruce remembered to have one of the workampers check the popcorn supply for tonight's Bingo and of course we didn't have enough so we ran to town for popcorn and some more cheap pork loins for Valentine's dinner. When we got back I worked on the newspaper until 8:00. Bruce came over about 7:30 and worked until 10:00. He just got home a minute ago and I asked if he brought the car home. Well he forgot it so he walked back up there to get it. He is way over cooked! He's back and we need to talk!

Wednesday, January 23, 2008

This has been one full day!! I went to town today to make a bank deposit, print some pictures, get a hair cut and buy groceries for tomorrow's volunteer luncheon and Bingo. It was my lucky day because everything I need for work was on sale. SCORE!! I even purchased the pork loins for the Valentine's Day dinner. While I was working in town, Bruce was busy putting out fires in the park. That's the mundane part. Now for the meat of the day. Bruce was offered and accepted the position of Contract Site Supervisor for the Washington Consulting Group at the Kansas City ARTCC. In other words, Bruce is going back to work full time in Olathe, Kansas. Last week he accepted a position with the same company but that was a travelling job. Friday he was called about the Olathe job and his selection was announced today. We are waiting for the written offer but everything else is finished. Bruce will fly back to Kansas City the end of January so he can report for duty on February 4. I will stay here and work. Originally our plan was to have me work until the end of March but Bruce decided he didn't like that idea. He will fly back here the end of February and we'll both go back to Kansas City in the RV. Two of our workamper couples have volunteered to be the coordinators for the month of March. All of this will afford me the opportunity to try to go back to work until I am 55 so that I can retire with an annuity at age 55 instead of waiting until I am 62. Melissa actually found me a job opening at the FAA today. I am going to submit my application and we'll see what happens. Is your head spinning? Mine is. Our life is about to change drastically. If you would have told me two weeks ago that we were both going back to work full time, I'd have laughed right in your face. We bot feel like God is directing all of this. We are simply along for the ride.

Monday, January 21, 2008

This day started with a royal chewing from the Park Manager. She was not happy with the performance of some of the workampers. I got too ugly with one of the housekeeping workampers. No excuse - just too ugly. The manager told us she hoped we didn't all leave on April 1. I couldn't help myself. I told her she better not be standing in the driveway! Then Bruce got too ugly with the Activities workampers. No excuse - just too ugly. This was not a good start to the week. We both worked in the office until 4:00 and called it quits for the day. The sun was shining and it was a whole lot nicer outside than inside so we were thankful to enjoy a few minutes of fresh air. Tonight we had a fish fry with Jack and Cathy and Bill and Donna. We ate all kinds of yummy fish that Bill White at Lake of the Ozarks before we left in September. Donna made a great batch of hot German Potato Salad and Cathy made a super duper tossed salad. That was a nice end to a not so nice day.