A Good Day In Texas

In 1985 I moved to Dallas, TX from Arkansas where I had lived for 30 years beginning a new life and career.  It was a turbulent time in my life, not one of my better times by any stretch of the imagination.  In the course of the the time I lived in Texas I moved from Dallas to Austin to Houston.  In 1992 I moved with an ex from Houston to Powell, WY and in a couple years after this move life changed for the better.  I have a few fond memories of times in Texas but not many—I am thinking this time in Texas will be a good time.

Michael finished organizing today and low and behold, we have an entire storage bay which is almost empty!!!  That’s unheard of!!  We didn’t bring the kayak this time which frees up a lot of space.  I spent the morning doing laundry (yep, even when you are on the road your clothes still get dirty) and getting a backing ready for the longarm. 

After lunch we made a trip to Lowe’s and came home looking like the Beverly Hillbillies again—we had gutters and eight foot long boards hanging out of the back of the jeep—should have taken a photo!  When we got home I drove back over to Wal Mart minus the boards and got some groceries.

Rollie came home early and we enjoyed a wonderful happy hour outside then dinner—grilled chicken, baked potatoes and fresh asparagus.  After Rollie headed home Michael and I took a leisurely walk around the park admiring the Christmas decorations and the full—ish moon.  

A good day in Texas but it sure was hot and humid for almost December!  We even ran the air conditioning today!!

There, that photo should cool us off, shouldn’t it!

Quilting “Studio” Is Finished

Michael worked hard again today getting the quilting trailer—studio—completely ready.  I helped him get the canvas on the rollers and gave directions for placement of various screws and hooks.  Everything fit and has a place—I think I can happily quilt in my little space!  Tomorrow I hope to find out by loading a quilt.

Isn’t that just the ugliest carpet??

I did walk up to the clubhouse and visit with the quilting group—I couldn’t even begin to find a project to work on, I might have been able to find a sewing machine but the rest of the stuff was still in plastic bins. 

See our Charlie Brown Christmas tree—it looks pretty with all the lights on.

I walked Angel and Zoey (Rollie’s dogs) along with Emmi down to the doggie park today.  Angel is a Maltese weighing about six pounds—she thinks she is a Rottweiler!  

Michael was a bit under the weather today—too much good food and too much excitement I think.  He spent some time looking at the back of his eyelids this afternoon and woke feeling much better.  Rollie worked late and I had a good old southern dish waiting for him when he got home—beans and cornbread.  It’s something Michael won’t eat but I knew Rollie loves beans and cornbread—so we had that with some leftover pork tenderloin. 

Another great day of weather—warm and sunny. Tomorrow and the next few days should be in the 80’s! 

The Montanans Are Moving In

It looked like the Beverly Hillbillies lived here most of the day.  Bay doors open, boxes sitting everywhere, stuff on the grass, stuff on the concrete—the Montanans are moving in!  Michael had only one moment of “oh, my, I think we left one set of wheels and the power advance for your machine at home.”  I knew full well we hadn’t, it was just misplaced in all that stuff.  Sure enough the missing pieces surfaced early afternoon.

The longarm table is assembled along with the carriage and head—new wheels in the process which are supposed to make the machine much easier to move.  Ugly carpet was installed first thing this morning—it is high grade carpet and will make a great cushion plus keep things clean—but that carpet is sure hard on the eyes! 

I spent the day trying to remove most of the travel dust from the rig—made a huge dent but the poor thing still needs some attention!  I think we still had dust from our trip to Hell’s Canyon on Fort Peck Lake over Labor Day weekend!

Tonight Rollie and his ( and Michael’s) boss Rick came for dinner—we enjoyed pork tenderloins, roasted potatoes and broccoli.  Dessert was homemade brownies and best of all—I am back in Texas where they sell Blue Bell ice cream—we did have the no sugar added/low fat kind and it was delicious! 

When we pulled in yesterday two of the quilting ladies from this park came over to meet me—they’ve been waiting for this crazy woman who travels with her longarm.  Judy and Peggy were a pleasure to meet and I’m looking forward to getting involved in their group. 

The weather was beautiful today, sunny with a slight breeze and not too hot. 

The new clubhouse being built—it is located only three sites from us and I think it will house another laundromat plus a large meeting room.

  When Michael and I left Montana we brought with us a Christmas tree—a real one.  We put the tree up on the steering wheel table today along with our Nativity scene.  Quickest decorating job I ever did! 

Our neighbor on the left in the above photo is also working this project—he has a truck—Paul and Rollie showed up with a new grill in that truck around lunch time.  As we are going to be living here for a period of time, I left our RV grill at home with plans to purchase a larger one down here.  Rollie was in agreement about the big grill so we jointly purchased one—we just haven’t contributed our share yet!

1859 Miles Later

And we reach our destination!  Yep, it was 1859 miles door to door, that’s a long way and a lot of driving!  We so enjoyed seeing our friends at Lake Medina but were raring to go this morning.  We were pulling out of the RV park and up the steep hill just after 9am this morning. 

Light traffic in San Antonio and then we were on the south side of San Antonio heading for Corpus Christi.  One really tall bridge and a few miles later we pulled into The Palms, our home for a while.  It is different—not what we are used to—lot’s of concrete, strips of grass, neighbors.  We will be fine, we will be better than fine—we have Rollie and Gina here, Michael will be working and learning at something he enjoys and I will be a quilting away.

Parking was exciting!  Michael got the bright idea to park the longarm containing trailer sideways on the lot.  OK, with neighbors, electric meter boxes, water spigots, palm trees—just exactly how do you do that???  With a whole lot of ingenuity!  Parked in the street, unloaded the jeep, unhooked the trailer from the motorhome, re-hooked up the trailer to the jeep.  Michael maneuvered the trailer as far as he could with the jeep.  He had brought along a big wheel to attach to the hitch of the trailer—Rollie, Michael and another neighbor pushed the trailer sideways as far as they could.  Rollie went back to work—when he came home he brought with him a floor jack.  They put this jack under the rear of the trailer, jacked the trailer up off its tires and then rolled the rear of the trailer sideways.  I was saying my prayers the whole time, let me tell you!  At one time the trailer rolled a little by itself and rolled off the concrete into the gravel making a huge noise—scared me to death!  But all ended well, the trailer is at the rear of our site with the door facing the motorhome.  There is plenty of room for the motorhome and jeep plus a patio area. 

Rollie provided dinner—he grilled steaks and shrimp—we had baked potatoes and were supposed to have broccoli but I forgot the broccoli was in the microwave.  Delicious dinner and so good to see Rollie again!  He and Michael discussed oil rigs before we all called it a night.  Emmi and I ventured out to find the dog park. 

Tomorrow I will take photos of our new surroundings—I should have done so while they were moving the trailer but didn’t.  Laying ugly carpet and setting up the longarm is on the agenda for tomorrow.

A Fabulous Day

We both slept like logs last night—quiet, dark park!  That’s one of the things we love about this park, huge sites under live oak trees, no overhead lighting, no traffic noise—none!  We started out to take a walk and ran into so many people we knew, it was 11 am before we ever got back to the rig! 

Eight years ago while participating in Cowboy Action Shooting we met this couple from Maryland, Angie and Ralph.  We became instant friends—they were about to embark on their full time journey.  The first year we came to this park Ralph and Angie joined us.  A couple years later they came to our home in Montana spending a while parked in our driveway.   Although we’ve kept in touch, we have not seen them since then.

They are in the area staying on a friend’s ranch and will come here to Lake Medina for the Christmas holidays.  Today they drove over to spend the afternoon bringing us lunch!  We had a great visit with them and other folks here in the park—folks would see us sitting outside and stop to talk.  It was so good to see them!

Emmi found a new friend—this is Angie and Ralph.

Rich and Carolyn (the lady who taught me to quilt) sitting with Pat and Angie standing.

Joyce, Ralph, Angie and Carolyn

Pat is 81 years old, retired Navy and still rides that scooter you see sitting behind Michael, his wife Carolyn rides the bicycle—smart woman!

It was a wonderful day spent with friends we haven’t seen in a while.  Tomorrow on to our final destination—Aransas Pass. 

Peace and Relaxation

First of all—Butterbean—thank you so much for the invitation—we are kind of on a schedule for getting to Aransas Pass.  Michael starts work early December and he wanted time to settle in and get the lay of the land so to speak.  We promise to stop by the next time we are in your area, our travel path took us to the east of you this time. 

Tonight we have landed a little earlier than last night—about 5pm we rolled into Lake Medina RV Resort near Bandera, TX.  We have stayed here twice in the past and just love this place.  It is difficult to find—you must drive through a nice subdivision, up and down some really serious hills before topping out at the resort.  It sits on Lake Medina, a lake used for irrigation purposes and with the Texas drought—it is once again almost dry.  The RV resort is owned by a ranching family and this land has been in the same family for over 100 years.  The young couple, Greg and Gina, who own this resort are just the nicest people as are the winter residents.  When we first came here about 4 years ago the people welcomed us with open arms.  We had a motorcycle at the time and the riding gang had Michael out every time they went.  This is where I learned to quilt—there is a woman, Carolyn, who is a perfectionist quilter—she taught me the basics that winter and she taught me to love quilt shops!

We left Wellington, TX about 9am this morning, after yesterday’s long drive, neither of us was in any hurry this morning.  The wind buffeted us about today and the temps were warm.  I have on my flip flops for the first time!! 

Tomorrow I will take some photos—of this beautiful park and the dry lake!

Tough Day

No internet last night, no blog.  Long day, over 650 miles, way too long in a motorhome, driving after dark almost smacked a huge buck deer.  RV parks filled with oil field workers, towns not big enough to have a Wal Mart or other area for boondocking.  Not a good day—today will be a better one!  Will write more when internet is more consistent.

We Landed For The Night

Of course we both had trouble sleeping last night and something or excitement woke us about 3:30am.  We just got up, gathered all the last minute stuff, secured the house and left.  It was a chilly 19 degrees as we were pulling out about 5:30.  One stop in Big Timber for fuel and we were on our way. 

567 miles later we are in Gering, Nebraska in a city owned RV park.  We stayed here several years ago when we were traveling in a 5th wheel.  That night when we pulled into this little park it was 14 degrees and our 5th wheel was frigid.  I have a photo of Michael sitting on the couch in his heavy coat drinking a glass of wine.  Our previous schnauzer, Jazz, was in her bed under a wool blanket.  Tonight it was 46 degrees when we arrived and parked.  The park has gone downhill since we were here before—there seems to be a lot of permanent type residents with dogs chained outside their rigs and no people present.  Not nice!

Having a bit of trouble with the reactivation of our Millenicom aircard so we are using the RV park wifi tonight and it seems to be working pretty well.

For dinner tonight we had Thanksgiving leftovers—yum, again!

This RV park is just outside the Scotts Bluff National Monument--

Onward tomorrow—stay tuned to see where we land! 

Happy Thanksgiving

We had a wonderful afternoon at Lonn and LoraLee’s.  Katie and Laci were there and we were sorry to miss Katie’s husband Michael—he was having Thanksgiving with his parents and siblings over near Livingston.  The food was outstanding—Katie’s turkey was delicious as were all the trimmings—mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, green bean casserole, jello salad—the list goes on and on.  Katie made a wonderful cheesecake and LoraLee made pumpkin pie.  Around 4pm we said our goodbyes to everyone—sad to be leaving family behind but we are excited for this new adventure around the next corner. 

Me, Laci and Katie

Nat and Emmi having one last conversation.

The master carver at work.

A wonderful Thanksgiving day! 

Two More Sleeps

Yep, only two more and it’s a good thing—I don’t think my poor body can tolerate going up and down those motorhome steps too many more times!!  And the motorhome is full—no more room!  I even transferred most of the refrigerator and freezer stuff this afternoon.

We loaded the jeep--

Michael spent the morning washing the jeep, car and truck.  As you can see the jeep went in the trailer—both the truck and car fit in the garage. 

There was a 30% chance of rain and snow this afternoon and wouldn’t you know it—we got it.  Our nice dry ground for loading stuff is now another sea of mud.  Michael got antsy and took the motorhome down the steep driveway hill to park it in front of the shed closer to the county road.  He was just too worried we might get more snow than forecasted making it iffy getting the motorhome down that driveway.

This afternoon we drove up to Robyn and Claire’s to drop off a key—they are some of our army of caretakers.  It was good to visit with them for a while and they will be missed!  We will miss all our friends and family but are excited about this new adventure we are undertaking.  Keeps life interesting!

  He’s keeping a close eye on us—he just about ran completely over the hill before I snapped the photo—a mule deer.

Storm clouds brewing!

Last Trip To Billings For A While

Michael had a final checkup today after his summer surgery, I had a good haircut before I am forced to go searching for a new hairdresser in Texas and my husband had his first ever drug (as in illegal) screen test!  Our day started with us heading down the driveway before 7am dodging all those blasted deer all the way to town—we were successful today!  Emmi spent the day with Nat.

Things worked perfectly today—we had one appointment at 9am then had a couple hours to kill allowing us to join the other one million people in Costco!!  The person at the return counter told me there were over 200 people waiting for the doors to open and in the first hour over 400 people checked out through the cash registers!!  At Wal Mart we were able to activate the Tracfone—Michael very politely told the lady at the counter, “you have to activate this thing, my wife has lost her patience.” 

On to the haircut with Michael killing time at Harbor Freight.  We then had almost two more hours to kill.  We used them wisely getting Dairy Queen blizzards!!  With way more time to kill than we had errands we decided to just head to the doctor’s office which was performing the drug screen and physical—we were about 40 minutes early—lo and behold, they took him that early!!!  YIPPEE!!  We were heading out of Billings by 3pm. 

We spent some time with Nat visiting and moving pianos around.  Nat restores player pianos and recently got one working—it is so incredibly cool—just flip a switch and the thing plays beautifully.  This is how Nat keeps his brain and body occupied—and how he has reached the age of 90+! 

I have a long to do list for tomorrow—nothing big, just a whole bunch of little things such as cooking something we can heat up quickly for dinner on the road. 

Three more sleeps!

My Mom will probably murder me for putting this photo on the blog but I love it!  Yesterday was her birthday and the family took her to the local Mexican restaurant last night for dinner.  That is her great-granddaughter Elizabeth beside her and her granddaughter Niki looking around the sombrero. 

More Mechanical Work and Taking The Tree For A Ride

Happy Birthday to my dear Mom—the best of Mom’s!!

After our walk this morning Emmi and I were playing basketball when I noticed two small spots of what looked to be fresh oil right where the rear of the motorhome sits when parked out behind the house.  I retrieved Michael and he said what I was thinking—uh, oh.  (Well, not in so many words! )

So, Michael moved the motorhome to in front of the shop, elevating the rear on blocks.  The heater booster pump which he replaced last fall was now leaking again.  A couple hours later and we have a new pump and are good to go.  Yep, my handy/dandy husband just happened to have a spare pump sitting around!  When the first pump died on us Michael found several for sale on eBay—the seller was willing to make him a deal on four pumps—that’s how we came to have a spare.  And we travel with a spare, too!

In April, 1999 my friend Kathy and I opened Cinnabar Creek in Big Timber—a sweet little boutique with a coffee bar.  We sold clothing, jewelry, books, accessories, housewares—lots of cool stuff.  On our opening day my Mom and Dad along with my sister Ann and her husband sent us a “congratulations” potted Norfolk pine.  In the past I’ve had great difficulty keeping one of those alive.  This one survived in spite of me—it is now 6 1/2 feet tall!!!  It takes up a tremendous space.  In the past when we’ve been gone for a few months each winter, Lonn would come in the house occasionally and dump some water in the planter—it is really cool—not freezing in our house while we are gone so the plant did OK.  It would have a couple dead limbs when we would come home—we pruned it and each summer it would put out a new top and branches. 

OK—we are going to be gone longer than 2-3 months this year.  LoraLee volunteered to take the tree but when we tried to put it inside a vehicle today—nope, not going to work.  So, I called my friend Nancy who lives only a mile up the road from us and said, “how would you like to have a 6 1/2 foot tree??”  Nancy being the plant lover she is only hesitated a second before saying, “sure, bring it on up.”  So, we loaded it on the back of the Kawasaki mule (it was 50 degrees) and off we went.  Should have taken a photo—we looked quite comical!  

I spent the day baking cookies (six dozen) and finding stuff which needed to go in the motorhome.  It is amazing—you think everything is packed—you open a cabinet and find things that should really go with you.  Maybe we will get it all done!

Oh, and I did spend some time with Tracfone—such a wonderful company and I say that tongue in cheek.  Michael hates phones and refuses to carry a cellphone.  Last fall he gave in and purchased a Tracfone but we let the minutes run out when we came home in March.  Today I tried to reactivate the phone following the instructions on www.tracfone.com.  Not happening—seems I can’t reactivate the phone unless I have a purchased airtime card.  And I can’t purchase an airtime card with a credit card online—I have to go to a retailer such as Wal Mart.   All this because the phone wasn’t active.  I asked the guy (who spoke very poor English), “but I can go into Wal Mart and purchase an airtime card and not even OWN a phone, correct???”  Yep, you can do that but you sure can’t purchase an airtime card online with a credit card and then reactivate the phone.  GEEZ!! 

This guy and his friend greeted me this morning when I opened the back door to let Emmi out:

We are trying to get all our equipment into various buildings for the winter—the John Deere mini-excavator has a canopy which was too tall to go in the garage—Michael solved that problem--

Another busy day before departure!

More Packing

Our only reprieve from packing and other get ready chores was lunch with Nat.  I marinated sirloin steaks in olive oil, sliced garlic and rosemary then grilled the steaks.  Nat and I enjoyed a baked sweet potato, Michael had a regular baked potato.  Dessert was some of the snickerdoodle cookies I was baking. 

The only things left to load are last minute items such as the stuff out of the refrigerator.  Clothes and shoes (yes, Michael, I did take more than one pair of shoes ) went in today.  We are leaving the heat on in the motorhome so stuff doesn’t freeze—wouldn’t be good for the diet coke to explode in Michael’s closet now would it???

Late this afternoon I baked two batches of granola for Michael and did some chores here in the house.  I’m missing my sewing room—it’s all packed in the trailer. 

Only five more sleeps before we head down the driveway.  Let’s hope the weather holds, it was another warm day but windy.

Putting On Miles

I should have worn a pedometer today—as Michael said when he sat down with a sigh of relief, “I think we put on some miles today.”  Right after our walk this morning we started loading.  The longarm is safely in its box and in the trailer.  Sewing machines, fabric, tools, etc.—all in the motorhome. 

Tomorrow I will load clothes, etc.  We should be close to finished by tomorrow evening with the exception of last minute things.  I over ruled Michael on the Christmas tree—even though it is a very small tree, after the holidays the tree has to have a home.  I suggested buying either a live tree and then planting the tree or buying another small lighted tree then donating it to the RV park clubhouse or something.  So, that is what we are doing. 

Chicken fajitas for lunch—very good.  I season a chicken breast really well and grill it.  In my cast iron skillet I sauté onions and peppers until they are slightly charred.  Homemade salsa and we have a great, good for us lunch.

It has been hard to pack knowing we are going to be gone longer than usual this time—I keep a lot of food on hand—we live in the boonies—some of it will keep until we return, some of it I had to take with us.  I’ve been successful this year in paring down the contents of the freezers and refrigerators—our motorhome refrigerator won’t be as stuffed as usual!  

It is really hard to believe Thanksgiving is this week—where did this year go??? 

 

It was almost 60 degrees today—a lot of that snow melted! 

It’s Getting Closer And A Heirloom

Departure day that is—one week from today.  Packing begins in earnest now that I’ve finished quilting until we get to Texas.  This morning I sewed the zippers on to the canvas leaders—that chore is complete.  Michael worked at getting more parts attached to the jeep cherokee. 

After lunch we headed to town with a list of errands a mile long.  First stop we dropped off a jeep load of used clothing to the Community Thrift Shop.  Next was a stop at the clinic to pick up quilt tops for quilting from my buddy Mary—these will be going to Texas with us. 

On to the courthouse where the sheriff’s office is located—no, I hadn’t been bad, I was just picking up my concealed carry permit which I had renewed.  And, geez—I want a copy of the photograph they took—best photo I’ve had taken in a LONG time!!!

A few more minor errands and we headed out to Jeane and Steve’s.  Today was the day we were to help Jeane finish with the setup of her little mid-arm quilting machine.  I was also going to show her how to load a quilt and practice some too.  We only had to tweak the frame just a bit then Steve and Mike were off to town for something.  Jeane and I enjoyed playing with the machine—it is so smooth to operate and makes beautiful stitches.

The motorhome is now parked at the back door—ready for loading. 

I was very fortunate to have three grandparents alive well into my adulthood.  My Mom’s mother lived to be 93 years old and I was 47 years old when she died—she was in a nursing home, her body had declined but her mind was still there.  I even remember this grandmother’s Mom—Grannie who died when I was about 3 years old.  One day my sister and I were visiting Grandma—she and I had a special bond, she was a nurse and she loved to quilt.  Grandma loved to show everyone her current projects but that day she brought out this quilt--Her mother, my great grandmother had made this quilt—hand pieced and hand quilted. Grandma suddenly asked me if I would like to have this quilt and of course I replied—YES!!!  We visited a while longer then Ann and I decided to head home—as we got to the car my sister said, “and what made you the favored grandchild today???”  I said, “I have no idea but I’m taking advantage of it!!!”  I love this quilt and display it—there are a couple small tears in the fabric but otherwise it is in great shape. 

My Dad’s parents both died within six months of each other when I was about 30 years old—they lived in a house very near ours as I was growing up—we caught the school bus and got off the bus at their house.  We stayed with them during the summer—both our parents worked.  My brother Ross and Grandpa had a very special relationship and Ross owns and operates the farm my Grandpa owned.  So many children today have no parents much less grandparents—we were blessed as children!

Success On Two Fronts

About 5pm Michael had the engine in the jeep purring—he is so elated!!  And so am I—for him!  I finished up LoraLee’s quilt about 4pm and started working on the canvas leaders for the longarm table rollers.  Had to cut that stiff old canvas the appropriate length, dig out my seldom used serger to neaten the edges and tomorrow or maybe later this evening I will sew on the zippers.  That will conclude any more sewing I have to accomplish before we leave!  On to packing and loading.

It was a beautiful but chilly day here—sunny skies—may that continue until we get the motorhome down our rather steep driveway!  One week from tomorrow we hope to be rolling!

I had about decided not to take any Christmas decorations.  I figured on buying maybe a small live tree along with some strings of lights—calling it good.  My dear husband this morning decided we need to take along the small, lighted tree we have and a few ornaments.  OK—you talked me into it.  He seems to have forgotten that old “you can’t take everything, we weigh too much…….!” 

Looking rather wintery around here, isn’t it??

“You don’t get to choose how you are going to die, or when.  You can only decide how you are going to live now.”  Joan Baez

A Near Disaster

With all the mud we have it’s necessary to wash Emmi’s paws in the mud room sink every time she comes in the house—for some reason this seems to make her wild!  The minute I put her feet on the floor she madly dashes around hoping up in the chair, down out of the chair, around the chair.  As all this mad dashing was going on I heard a thud.  I turned around to see what had happened and saw my laptop on the floor—it had been sitting on the ottoman in front of my chair.  Emmi in her wildness must have knocked it off the ottoman—thankfully it landed perfectly on it’s bottom with the screen in the correct position.  And everything still works—whew, that was a close one and my laptop will not be left on the ottoman again!

Even though I spent the entire day quilting I did not finish LoraLee’s quilt.  But I got close enough to finished—I know I can finish it tomorrow.  Michael was more successful—he got the jeep engine back in—not all hooked up but back where it’s supposed to be. 

Joan asked in a comment in last night’s blog what Michael would be doing in Texas.  He will be a mechanical technician during construction of an off shore drilling rig—which is being built on land. 

A very gray day here—cool too, mud doesn’t dry out well with those conditions.

Last night after writing the blog I went downstairs and did some packing—fabric, longarm tools, etc.  Filled two bins so far—Michael said I can only put three bins in the trailer with the jeep, everything else has to go in the motorhome.  I had hoped to get everything related to sewing in those three bins but I’m not sure that’s gonna happen!

Mom received her quilt as did Pat—both were very pleased and I’m very glad!  Here’s some photos of Pat’s--

I loved this quilt but given Pat’s expertise with a gun I decided to send it back to her instead of keeping it! 

Quilting And Engines

Michael informed me this morning I had only six days before we depart!!  I think I shrieked something like, “oh, no, I have much longer than that!”  If you factor in two trips to Billings, a trip to help Jeane with her quilting machine and Thanksgiving, yes, we have six days!!  Well, I eliminated one trip to Billings—I will go to the dentist in Texas when I have nothing but time.  So, I have seven days before the pink motorhome rolls down the driveway—I think I am truly in full blown panic mode!!!  In an email this morning Rollie said I better get that quilt finished or Michael might put the quilt, longarm and me in the trailer to finish while going down the road! 

Michael worked on the jeep engine all day and has it ready to put back into the white jeep cherokee we purchased this past spring.  He’s one tired dude tonight!

“Modern Firearms are a better investment than precious metals and a lot more fun to admire..... I picked up 6 new ones this summer.”  This was a comment on yesterday’s blog left by our good friend Mike McFall—spoken like a true man!!!!  We just have to agree to disagree Mike!! 

I made great progress on LoraLee’s quilt today—once I changed thread colors on the backing all was well and it was fun to quilt.  Should have it finished tomorrow.

Emmi And I Are Hiding

I think Michael is ready to go—he has started packing stuff such as the rails to the shorter longarm table, the ugly carpet, air conditioner and various other things.  Emmi and I decided we might better lay low in case he decides to stuff us in that trailer.

Michael was surfing the internet tonight and said, “here’s some investments you will like.”  I’m standing in the kitchen thinking, “what in the world is he talking about—he does all the investment stuff—what investments I might like???”  Seems he was reading an article on Fox News which said put 10% of your money in gold, silver and platinum.  The article also said put 5% of your money in diamonds.  All righty then!!  I’m liking this new investment plan—when can we go shopping???

I loaded onto the frame the last quilt I am going to do while here in Montana.  Managed in spite of some thread breakage issues to make good progress. 

We warmed up to above freezing today and are now in a sea of mud.  The wind, of course, is blowing gale force. 

Our granddaughter Laci is back in the US after her two year tour of duty in Italy.  Her next assignment is here on the air base in Montana.  Tonight Lonn, LoraLee and Laci came for dinner—we were all groaning and moaning—ribs, Brenda’s cheesy potatoes, and a salad.  Very good dinner if I do say so myself.  Laci looks great—she has matured into a beautiful young woman.  She placed her orders tonight—would I please make her some poppy seed salad dressing and would I hem her pants.  Yep, it’s good to have her home.