The Wheels on the Bus Go Round and Round

Disney with Jenn and family – What can I say, it was Disney World in Orlando, Florida.  We had great weather and loads of fun.  We purchased a four-day pass for Disney and a two-day pass for Universal Studios.  Peyton met Tinkerbelle, Mickey, Snow White, Bell & Cinderella – she was a bit shy with the stars.  We took in the show for Beauty and The Beast and Peyton was mesmerized.  She also got to meet Mary Poppins, Stitch, Chip and Dale, and after a very long wait, Rapunzel.  She was a happy little girl after meeting her favorite characters.  We all stayed in our timeshare in Orlando, Jenn cooked dinner for us while we took care of our dogs.  Everything went well, lots of fun had by all…

Key West - Meeting up with our friends Denis and Mary Umstot …Bill & I camped at Naval Air Station Sigsbee and our friends were at Trumbo which is strictly dry camping.  Bill & I were in a dry camping area waiting on a rotation list for full hook-ups– we started at #178.  Fortunately for us we qualified for the disabled sites and after 2 weeks we moved to a full service site.  That was just too much dry camping for me.

While in Key West we enjoyed fine dinning and some not so fine, rode our bicycles, walked from the Atlantic Ocean to the Gulf of Mexico on Duval Street.  Did lots of window-shopping and made a few purchases.  Life was slow and easy…no stress, no worries.

February 13, 2012 - Today we begin our journey that will eventually return us to the beautiful Pacific Northwest.  We have enjoyed our month long stay in Key West.  For those that have not yet journied this far south, Key West is 90 miles North of Cuba and 128 miles South of the nearest Wal-Mart.  Our weather was warm, dry and lots of blue skies – ok, we did have a couple of days with rain and lots of wind.  We will be heading west across the Everglades and then head North/Northwest along the Gulf of Mexico.  It is very nice to travel when and where one wants to go without the worry of time.  

More pictures available:

https://picasaweb.google.com/102523964098984601768/FunInFlorida2012

Time with family...creating memories

North Carolina and New York – We arrived in the Statesville area of North Carolina on the 27^th of October 2011.  Our first campsite was in Hiddenite - a bit rural and rustic.  The campsites are on dirt, no gravel, and no concrete.  Just an old farm converted to a campground.  The campground itself offered full hook-ups, showers and laundry and a seasonal swimming pool.  Cleanliness is not high on the owners list of priorities.  We managed to stay for one full month before relocating to a beautiful RV Resort on Lake Norman.  Bill and I worked at Lake Norman RV Resort - a total of 20 hours (combined) per week for our site over looking the lake.  We cleaned restrooms, worked in the office making reservations and checking customers in and out.  We enjoyed the experience and look forward to doing something along those lines perhaps next winter.

While in North Carolina we spent most of our time visiting with our daughter Lori and her family.  Bill loves teasing his grand daughters, as they were a bit gullible until they got to know him better.  The girls and I prepared several evening meals…Kayla seems to enjoy cooking and she loved making biscuits.  Katie also cooked with me but she is still a bit young to get very enthused about preparing the meal.  Kayla, Lori and I had a “girls” day out for manicures and pedicures the day of Kayla’s Winter Formal dance.  This year she wore a full-length gown and was absolutely stunning…growing up too fast!

Our daughter Terri and her family drove up from Raleigh NC on three occasions for a weekend visit.  We had a pontoon boat available for use at Lake Norman and we took the families out on the lake.  Some of the children were dragging their feet when it came time to load up in the boat.  However, attitudes did a quick turn around once cruising out on the lake.  Since we had/have no set schedule we were able to drive East to Raleigh NC to visit with Terri and her family in December.  Scott had an acting part in the second grade play at his school.  Great memories.

During our extended stay in North Carolina we did manage a couple of side trips North to New York.  We visited with Bill’s father on his 87^th birthday.  The old man is still as ornery as ever and that’s just the way we like him.  Our second trip to upstate NY was for a memorial service for Bill’s uncle.  The cousins had a wonderful time visiting and reminiscing old times and family vacations.

More photos available with this link: https://picasaweb.google.com/102523964098984601768/NorthCarolinaAndNewYork?authkey=Gv1sRgCJrDx_DPkaupLg