2019 Reflections

It’s that time of year when we reflect back on a wonderful year of travel and fun! Last January through mid April we were in Mesa, AZ. Unfortunately we had to deal with Bob’s health scare which shook us both up, but resolved itself with time. He also had cataract surgery. During those months we did have some fun, however; I learned to play the harmonica and played in the Mardi Gras parade...

...we took a boat tour of nearby Saguaro Lake...

...and I performed in the park’s variety show.

We left Arizona in April and headed east for Tucson and were able to get to Palomas, Mexico for a little fun.

Unfortunately we suffered a series of motorhome breakdowns that had us limping (or being towed) from town to town while several repair facilities tried to fix our coolant system problems. We were towed to Fort Stockton, TX, then to Odessa where we spent a week.

We broke down again just outside of San Antonio, TX. But once Cummins tweaked something in San Antonio we were good to go. We enjoyed visiting with my sister, Gail, and saw the Witte Museum.

From there we were on to Livingston, TX, Monroe, LA, Tuscaloosa, AL, and then to Loudon, TN where we had our own concert inches from our motorhome.

We were on a series of one night hops on these trips, and while we enjoyed the scenery we were getting a little tired!

We spent the night in Salem, VA at Dixie Caverns, then pushed on to Centreville, VA before crossing the bridge from Delaware to New Jersey.

Being back in New Jersey is always fun, spending time with children and grandchildren as well as friends. Our summer was filled with activities!

South Jersey Spinners and Handweaver’s gathering

GrandCamp in Lancaster, PA

Visiting Philadelphia

We helped our daughter pack for Idaho and she and her family said goodbye to their NJ home.

After a fun filled summer Bob and I headed west again, stopping in Lancaster, PA for a little grownup tourism before continuing to to Pittsburgh.

We found the Warhol museum...

...and toured Kentuck Knob.

From there we stopped at a series of state fairgrounds. We ALMOST got stuck under a too-low bridge in Columbus, OH.

We traveled to Indianapolis, IL, then moved to E. Peoria, IL and then Dubuque, IA where we visited our niece and her wonderful family.

I checked a place off my bucket list when we got to Deborah, IA and the Vesterheim Norwegian American Museum.

Bob and I continued on across Iowa and Nebraska before turning south to Golden, CO. We used that campground as a base to visit the Schacht Spindle Company and Celestial Seasonings Tea.

We even were able to squeeze in a visit to a quilt museum and a tour of the Coors Beer Factory.

In Granby, CO we stayed at a ritzy campground and saw the Rocky Mountain National Park.

Then it was on to Pueblo, CO where we met up with friends Mike and Retha.

From Pueblo we travelled to Questa, NM, visiting the Rio Grande Del Norte National Monument and  taking in the Taos Fiber Festival with my friend Marilou.

We spent a week in Santa Fe and were inspired by a giant loom in the folk art museum there.

After Santa Fe we stopped in Deming, NM for a trip into Mexico and to the dentist whom we see.

And in Tucson we saw our friends Chuck and Linda before moving on to Mesa for the winter. 

We’ve had a lovely fall and Christmas, and I will give more details next time on what’s been going on this past month.

Until then, Happy New Year!

Ground Floor

On Wednesday I made a call to Home Depot’s contractor referral service and told them I needed someone to level our floor. Within a couple of hours I had a call from a local contractor who had time to swing by and look at the floor in an hour. We were in the middle of a three day storm system and his crew was twiddling their thumbs because outdoor work that was scheduled could not be done. The contractor arrived on time, we liked him, and before the day was out we had scheduled him to return Thursday morning at 8:00.

Two men showed up at 8:00 with grinders and a generator (so as not to overload our electrical systems) and within 2 1/2 hours the job was done. Our floor is now smooth and level and we are working on removing dust from everything on the shelves because the plastic drop cloths we taped over them did very little to actually keep out the dust. Each individual item has to be taken down and dusted and wiped with a damp cloth or else vacuumed. The dust even got into sealed plastic bins. It’s a much bigger job thanI thought it would be.

Friday was my birthday and it was a perfect day. Bob left to play golf in the morning and I finished a book I had started, then knitted up this little 6” topsy-turvy doll. On one end she is awake and on the other end she’s sleeping with her dolly.

Later, Bob and I went out to dinner at a local vegan restaurant called the Cutting Board Bakery and Cafe. The food was so good and the people who worked there were very friendly and helpful. Bob enjoyed his “chicken” and waffles and I had the roasted vegetable wrap. We will go back.

Bob spent yesterday working to waterproof the back door jamb of the loom room. We discovered when we pulled up the rug that water has been seeping in during heavy rains. Once that is done and we finish removing all the concrete dust we can start laying the floor.

Projects Galore!

Bob and I have been so busy over the last week and a half. We attended the Manager’s Party last Tuesday with hundreds of other people. It was a beautiful evening; we sat with a group of friends and listened to the live band and had a meal and drinks. We even danced!

On Thursday I painted the bedroom a soft gray color, but the room is not finished so I’ll wait to show you pictures when it is done. Bob is painting the dressers and I will be putting up new curtains as well to bring a little color into a very white-looking room. I will show you the headboard I’ve been working on, though. We bought it at a thrift shop for $10; it was solid cherry but was a little dinged up. I painted much of it a nice turquoise color and then distressed it and added an antiquing glaze and I’m thrilled with the way it came out. I have plans to make some coordinating pillows so please don’t judge me on the sad ones you see here.

I spent much of Friday weaving up samples for the class I’ll be teaching in January. Aren’t these tiny rigid heddles cute? They are made by Handywoman and are only $7 each, making it a very affordable  way to give weaving a try.

Later on Friday I joined a painting class and had a lot of fun with my friend, Marie, who is in choir with me. I’ve signed up for another class in January and am looking forward to it.

Last spring we had the AC and furnace replaced with a split system. Unfortunately the one in my weaving room had to be located in a very awkward spot and it really bothered me, so my wonderful husband built a cabinet to cover it and center it over the door. I think it came out great, don’t you?

Today we had a bit of a setback in our projects. We were all set to install a new laminate vinyl flooring in the weaving room and when Bob ripped up part of the carpet he found that the floor is really not level. This is not good. We’ll have to see if we can have someone level it out for us before we can proceed with the floor installation. Which means the room will have to be EMPTY and there’s not a lot of places I can put my stuff. We’ll have to move everything to the living room, I guess, while the floor is being leveled. We had hoped we could just work section by section when laying the laminate but to get the floor level we can’t do it that way. Ah well...

What’s Up?

Where has the time gone? Let’s catch up, shall we? Halloween is fairly quiet at an over-55 community, as you may imagine. No trick-or-treaters at the door! The park does put on a party for those who are interested but Bob and I aren’t really party people. We did, however, enter Auggie in the Halloween Pet Parade and he went as a taco, courtesy of his friend Tucker who gave him the costume.

Next to Auggie is another taco (or taquito, since he’s quite a bit smaller) named Willie. And they are facing off with the Mariachi band. Such fun! Auggie loves dressing up and is a real ham.

My photosensitivity lasted for over a week following my eye surgery but a follow up visit with the retinal specialist showed that my vision in that eye is gradually improving. It feels fine now and I have no restrictions on activities so I have returned to the gym. It feels good to get back on the treadmill and the bike.
While I was staying inside to avoid the sun I was able to do a little knitting and I made this gnome.

Every home needs a gnome, don’t you think? He looks good next to my Dala horse.

I had a meeting with the activities director here at the park and I was given approval to teach a band weaving class in January. I’m looking forward to it. There was a lot of interest when I demonstrated weaving last year so I hope I get some students.

Take a look at the new dishwasher Bob installed.

It’s a beauty, and works well. We are also working hard on the bedroom; I painted the walls on Thursday and Bob will be installing an updated ceiling fan and will paint the dressers. I’m still working on the design and we’ll most likely put shelves up, too. Photos to follow as it all comes together.

Activities have started and I’m busy with exercise, choir, Bible study, and Fiber Arts. It’s a good kind of busy and I’m slipping right back into a schedule. Today Bob and I went to Phoenix to a Scandinavian Festival and then to the Container Store. Afterwards we found a great little place to eat called the Green New American Restaurant.

Everything they serve is whole food plant based and it was yummy. Bob loved his Po Boy sandwich and I had an Indian rice bowl.

Until next time!

First Week in Mesa

Well. We have had a very busy week. We arrived on Saturday the 19th and immediately started transferring food from the motorhome (parked next door) to the house. We got the refrigerator and freezer contents transferred, then the canned goods, teas/coffee, spices, and baking supplies. It took all afternoon. We made up the bed and called it done for the day.

On Sunday we moved over all of our clothes, and on Monday we got books and the craft closet. We discovered when we arrived that our AC wasn’t working, but fortunately the temperatures stayed under 85 and got cool at night so we were fine. The repairmen came on Tuesday and fixed everything so we are nice and cool.

On Monday I went to see a local retinal specialist to address my retinal wrinkle in my left eye. And I had surgery to remove the wrinkle on Thursday, so that’s behind me. The procedure wasn’t nearly as bad as I expected it to be; as I write this it is Saturday evening and my eye feels pretty good. They sure used some heavy duty dilation drops because that eye is still dilated but hopefully I’ll be able to go out in the sun in another day or two. The blurriness will take a while to resolve, though, and I have two kinds of eye drops to use four times a day. So my hopes of having the bedroom all painted this week have flown out the window. Maybe next week I’ll be able to paint.

Bob has been busy. Apart from getting the RV ready for storage he has installed a new outlet in the cabinet next to the sink in preparation for our new dishwasher (yay!) that has already been delivered. Hopefully it will be in sometime this week but we are still waiting for the cord to arrive.

So we are starting to feel settled, and hopefully next week will be much easier!

Tucson, AZ

Bob and I drove from Deming, NM to Tucson on Wednesday, entering AZ and changing time zones.

This time of year Arizona is three hours behind the east coast (where most of our family is,) so we had to adjust our internal clocks one more time. The good thing, though, is that Arizona does not change clocks so on November 3rd when the rest of the US “falls back” we won’t have to. At that time we’ll only be 2 hours behind the east coast.

We love to stop and visit with our friends Chuck and Linda who winter in Tucson and we’ve been having so much fun. While Bob and Chuck focused on a building project, Linda and I spent Thursday making the rounds of fabric, cross stitch, and yarn shops. I was able to get supplies for several projects that I’ll work on this winter.

This sign was in one of the yarn shops and gave me a chuckle.

On Friday we attempted to go see the largest steam locomotive ever to come to Tucson but the line of cars to drive past it were so long that we gave up and went to lunch.

We heard from someone who parked and tried to walk in to see the train that pedestrians were being turned away. Bummer. But we did find a great little Mexican restaurant for lunch and later went to a yard sale that had hundreds of items for sale. Can’t beat that with a stick!

Linda and I worked on finishing the assembly of her temperature blanket and now she only has to crochet an edge around it.

Tomorrow Bob and I will arrive in Mesa, this ending our transcontinental trip west. There will be lots to do for a few days to settle in but then we’ll be able to relax and start enjoying our Arizona winter.

To Deming, NM and Palomas, MX

Bob and I left Santa Fe Monday morning, driving through some beautiful New Mexican landscapes to get to Deming. At one point there was desert to our right and the lush green valley watered by the Rio Grande to our left.

I never tire of looking at the mountains of New Mexico.

Deming itself is not the most picturesque area of the state but it’s a good spot to stay if you are planning to visit your dentist in Mexico. Here we are only about 45 minutes to the border. This time we bypassed the $5 parking and found the free lot right next to it. The US Customs agent had told us about this lot when we were here last time. You have to drive behind the $5 lot, then follow signs to the free lot around the corner. It really wasn’t much farther to walk, either.

Once through the building at the border (you simply walk through, no need to show passports) you will see the Pink Store ahead on your left.

Turn left right before the Pink Store and you see the dentist on your right.

Easy peasy! Bob had his teeth cleaned for $40 and I had a cleaning, x-rays, and a filling for $160. I’ll need a new crown in the spring when we come through again.

We had lunch at the restaurant in the Pink Store and had fun shopping around. Then we headed back to the States, walking through Customs. This time of year there were no lines for Customs at all but in the winter there can be lines.

On Wednesday we head to Tucson where we’ll spend three days with our friends Chuck and Linda.