Didn't Get Far

We got the belts back on but very quickly it was obvious we had more than a belt problem. We are now sitting on the side of the freeway waiting for Good Sam to send us a wrecker. We seem to be having some sort of transmission problem. Thanks for all the comments, guys, we will keep you posted.

New Motorhome??

A newer motor home may be in our future. It is 15 degrees, snowing and we blew belts from the engine again. My poor husband is outside in this weather putting the belts back on. He muttered something about being done with this *&+%$# motor home when he went out the door last. Why do these things have to happen when the weather is the worst--murphy's law??

Buffalo, WY

I had trouble sleeping last night, upset tummy and worrying about the weather today. We were both up while it was still dark and left the campground a little before 8. Last night we (Michael) had made the decision to go up into North Dakota where the weather was just a tad warmer--this morning we decided to go home the quickest way possible, across South Dakota on I94 and down into Wyoming. Dry roads but oh so cold. Poor little Emmi would just shiver when we did our potty walks (I was shivering, too.)

Tonight we are camped in a full service campground in Buffalo, WY. It is too cold to leave the water hose or sewer drain connected. Michael had to thaw the sewer drain cap with my hair dryer before he could get it off so we could both shower. How in the world do the construction workers in this campground live in these tin teepees over the winter?? We had pizza delivered for dinner--it hit the spot, had showers, walked Emmi and are tucked in for the night with all the heaters going. Let's hope it doesn't snow!

This is the scenery around here--looks like winter doesn't it?

Home tomorrow.

On The Road Again

Our classes finished up about noon and we hit the road. Our weather pattern on the way home is nothing to write home about--bitter cold and snow. As Michael has never driven this motor home on snow, he isn't too eager to start. I spoke with Nat, Mike's Dad a few minutes ago and it was 6 degrees at 6pm. Tonight we are once again parked at Lewis and Clark State Recreational Area outside Yankton, SD. It is a beautiful park with lots of fall colors. Tomorrow we are going to go north, yes, north into ND where the weather is not so bitterly cold and there is no snow. We hope to take it easy and reach Billings on Monday night--I have a doctor's appointment and a hair appointment there on Tuesday.

When we got Emmi and I would scold her, Michael would ask her if it was a "woe is me" kind of day, when he would say "woe is me" he would draw out the sounds and it would make Emmi throw back her head and howl--I caught her doing it last night.
We went through a county in Iowa today that had a billboard reading "SAC County Barn Quilt Blocks." I wondered what it was until I saw this quilt block on a barn front--isn't that cool, I want one!

The fall colors in this park are beautiful.

Onward tomorrow.

No Sleep

Many years ago when I moved into an apartment as a young adult I started sleeping with ear plugs being a very light sleeper. My Daddy used to say I could hear an ant crawl across the floor. The state park where we were camped Wednesday night must have sat right on the railroad track and we just didn't see the tracks when we parked. I swear the ground shook when the trains ran and then there was also the whistle. In reality the train track was over a half mile away. I slept better than Michael due to the ear plugs but he had a miserable night.

Thus our spot we chose for last night. When Michael checked us into the state park he accumulated literature about the area and located another little remote park. During our lunch break yesterday we drove out there--it is located about 10 miles from APQS headquarters. So, we were tucked into our quiet little spot--no trains, just a few cows across the road. When you live 22 miles from anything, you are used to the sound of owls, coyotes, wolves and elk, not the noise of traffic or trains.

Our maintenance classes have been great. APQS longarm quilting machines are made totally in the US--how many other companies can say that about their products?? Amy, the person in charge of maintenance for APQS is so knowledgeable about the machines it is said that you can put a phone up to your running machine and she can diagnosis your problem by sound only. We learned a tremendous amount and have more classes this morning.

Today in Montana the temperature is supposed to drop to 6 degrees with another eight inches of snow accumulating. This is early October, not January!

This nest looks like trouble!
Our quiet little spot for last night.

Education Day

I left Saylorville Lake this morning about 8:30 headed for the APQS Showroom in Des Moines. Dawn Cavanaugh is the Director of Education for the company and was teaching what she calls the advanced beginner class. I learned so much today and collected so many great ideas. There were five of us in the class and one of the women is the manager for the Las Vegas airport--what a job and she quilts on the side. Two of the women will be joining Michael and me in Carroll, Iowa at the factory tomorrow for the maintenance classes.

This quilt was pieced and quilted by Dawn and as you can see it won an award. It certainly deserved it!

After my poor brain had absorbed all it could, I thanked Dawn and headed for Carroll, Iowa, a drive of about 90 miles. Michael and Emmi had gone over earlier today with the motor home and found us a great spot on another lake--Swan Lake State Park. One little dog was sure glad to see me when I got there!

The countryside here is beautiful, fall colors, miles and miles of cornfields--I tried to take photos today, now remember I am driving and this is the best I got. The steeple is on one of the most beautiful churches I have ever seen--very old, small white church.

We went into town to the local Mexican restaurant for dinner--not so great--but I didn't have to cook!

Off for more school tomorrow.

Windy and Cool

More rain during the night and today we had a little sun and a lot of wind and clouds. It is very windy!

This is our spot with a view of the lake. The fall colors are really starting to show here, I guess we won't have fall colors now in Montana with all that snow, the leaves will just fall off. In the town of Big Timber 22 miles from our house Nat, Mike's Dad only got a sprinkling of snow and we probably got over a foot at our house--go figure!
Emmi and I decided to take a walk this morning. Michael decided to exercise the fact that it was his birthday and do nothing! There is a walking path from this park all the way, over 20 miles into Des Moines. It was sunny when we walked and just nice--we met another couple out walking a 3 month old Irish Setter that had so much energy. Molly and Emmi enjoyed their time playing together while we visited. The couple left the corporate world 10 years ago and now does wedding photography for a living.

Isn't this the cutest??

After lunch we decided to try and find the APQS showroom where I am taking the quilting class tomorrow. And of course we also had to find the local Costco where we grabbed a quick lunch. Tomorrow I am taking the class and Michael is going to move the motor home over to Carroll, Iowa, about 70 miles, where we are taking the maintenance classes at the APQS factory. I will follow after I am finished with classes.

Tonight I am going to grill steaks for Michael's birthday dinner. Michael liked his new Makita cordless power screwdriver and impact wrench he got for his birthday.