April 20, 2019 - Branson to Oswego

April 20, 2019 - Branson to Oswego

Before I went to sleep last night I texted Misti to see if her and Haleigh's flight had arrived in Kansas City yet (from San Antonio where they were for Logan's graduation).  She replied  they were in Atlanta waiting for a plane that was late.  I asked her to text me when she got home as I knew she would be on the road very late/early morning.  I prayed God's protection on them both before going to sleep.  I woke up about 2:30-3:00 and I had not yet received a text.  I didn't want to call on the chance she might already be home in bed.  Satan immediately started putting thoughts in my head and even though I reminded myself I needed to trust God that she was okay my mind just kept churning, and I could feel the worry building in my shoulders and neck.   I started singing "Amazing Grace" to myself and within minutes I just felt God was with me and my mind calmed.  I knew she was okay, and I was able to go back to sleep. 

When Dean and I walked this morning I told him about it.  I still had not heard from her but I wasn't worried.  About 20 minutes after we returned from our walk, my son Marc sent me a picture of a table he recently finished and asked what I thought of it.  Within a few minutes Misti made a comment too...confirmation she was okay.  I'm so thankful for our heavenly Father who meets all of our needs and calms our fears if we just trust him.

We did our normal morning walk of 2 miles.  Dean's vascular surgeon told him to keep up the walking and golfing.  That made him happy!  At least the remark about playing golf did, but most mornings he enjoys the walks too.  I took these pictures yesterday during our walk but forgot to include them so I'll share them today.  The red-buds are losing their blooms and the leaves are coming on, but the white dogwoods are beautiful.  During a drive the other day we saw some beautiful pink dogwoods as well.  They were stunning.  (Unfortunately I didn't get a picture of the those.)

After breakfast, we immediately started putting things away in preparation for our move back to Oswego.  It was about 10 when we had everything packed and the slides pulled in.  All we needed to do was hitch up and we'd be on our way..  We walked over to visit with Frank and Joyce for a few minutes and say our "see ya' laters".  We pulled out of our site shortly before 11.

It was a beautiful day to travel.  

Beautiful blue sky!

Here are a few pictures I took once we moved from I-44 to US96.

The red-buds were beautiful and there were many groves of them.  So pretty!

This was a small park area outside Miller, MO just off the highway.

I love to see the cows out in the field, especially grazing on this bright green grass.

As we entered Carthage, MO I thought this was an interesting sign.

It was close to 2pm when we arrived at Hillside RV Park.  The site we were set up in when we left was open, so we pulled in and quickly got Bentley set up, then off we drove to the golf course to take Misti some medicine.   We visited with her for about 30 minutes before we left. We decided to make a quick drive through the park.   

When we returned home, I made us a sandwich (tortilla with turkey & cheese) and cut up an apple for each of us.

It was nice to just relax for a few hours this afternoon.  I took time to read some emails to catch up with the blogs I follow and did another load of laundry.  About 5:30 Dean started the grill while I got everything ready for him.  We are ready to get back to cooking again.  We love eating out, but we enjoy making our own meals as well.  Tonight Dean grilled filets and asparagus.  I wrapped the asparagus in aluminum foil, added several pats of butter and some garlic and cooked it on the grill, turning it a few times over a ten minute period.  What a delicious meal!

It's good to be home.... in "our hometown" for a few days!  

April 14 - April 18, 2019 - Branson, MO

Sunday, April 14 - Saturday, April 18, 2019 - Branson, MO

Sunday, April 14, 2019 - We arrived at Treasure Lake RV Resort this afternoon.  Our friends Joyce and Frank are parked in the next row over from us.  We visited with them for awhile before we went back to get everything set up.  Later, we walked back over to visit with them for awhile.  Frank and Dean decided they would try to get a tee time tomorrow at Thousand Hills; while Joyce and I decided we would go shopping.


Monday, April 15, 2019 - Dean and I walked just over 2 miles this morning before coming back to get ready for our day.  Frank & Dean had a tee time at Thousand Hills for 10:15 or so, and they left the park around 9:30.  Joyce picked me up shortly after that and we headed to Belks at the Branson Landing.  We spent quite a bit of time looking around there.  After all our time there, we each purchased one blouse.  

Our next stop was at Mulberry Mill in Grand Village Shops.  They have wonderful mixes and they always have samples for tasting.  Joyce and I enjoyed several of them and I even chose one to bring home - Pineapple Pecan Chicken Salad.  It was really good so I'm looking forward to making this.  It's rare for me to spend much time just looking at stuff.  I prefer to go to a store, get what I want, and get out.  Today though, I was enjoying looking at some of the items on display.  I noticed a silicone lid on a 9x11 baking dish.  I tried to pick it up and the entire dish came up with it.  I had to read a little more about this.  I was impressed at how the lid worked and bought one.  The one I bought will fit any one of the four different frying and sauce pans I have, which means I can now leave all of those lids at home.  I love saving space!

We peeked in the Sugar Leaf Bakery, a few doors down. Their menu looks wonderful and you should see the cakes.  It might be a place we'll stop in to eat later this week, if the guys play golf again.

Before we left, Joyce checked with Frank to see if they wanted to meet us for lunch.  They still had a few holes to play before they finished.  We agreed to meet at Garfield's on the Landing.  Joyce and I visited several stores including BassPro, a Home Decor store, and a few others before we finally saw the guys walking towards us.  

Dean told me Dr. Anderson's office called him and they had to cancel his appointment for tomorrow, due to a death.  They rescheduled it for April 30.  He and Frank also told us how frustrating it was today, as they had to keep the golf carts on the cart paths, because the course was too wet.  Dean said he had walked almost 5 miles going up and down hills all day since they couldn't drive to their ball.  18 holes would be pretty wearing if you had to walk the "hills" in this part of the country.  Dean was exhausted.

Dean and I have not ate a Garfield's since the one in Joplin closed several years ago.  I had salmon, rice and a mixed vegetable dish.  Dean chose fried catfish but he said it was just okay.  He didn't care for the coating on it.  

After lunch, we drove back to the park to rest for awhile.  Later in the evening, the four of us drove a short distance to a Steak & Shake.  Everyone had burgers except me and I chose a taco salad.  Are you beginning to notice a pattern here - we eat, we eat and then we eat some more.


Tuesday, April 16, 2019 - Dean and I both walked again this morning and once again we made it just over 2 miles before returning to Bentley.  As I mentioned in yesterday's post, our day was now free since Dean's appointment with Dr. Anderson was cancelled.

Frank and Joyce have sold a bedroom set they have in storage and wanted to know if Dean could help him move it to the front of their storage unit and of course he said he would.  We headed to the storage unit where we all worked to get the contents moved around a bit in order to get the bedroom set moved to the front, making it easily accessible when the lady who wants it, arrives to take it home.

Our next stop was at Menard's.  I am still on a quest to find a new toilet seat.  Unfortunately they did not have what we wanted, so we'll check out a few other places while we are here.

From there we moved a short distance to Harter House, where Joyce and I both both a few groceries.  

We stopped at a nearby convenience store to get a bag of ice so we could put the groceries in there while we had lunch at Godfather's Pizza.  We all love this place.  Lots of food for a good price.  It's hard not to eat some of those good comfort foods, like excellent broasted chicken, macaroni & cheese, etc.  Instead, I focused on making a salad from their wonderful salad bar, chose 2 small pieces of pizza, some veggies (mixed vegetables and green beans) and a small bite of each of the two dessert pieces I picked out for Dean.  

Our Escapees group has a casual campout at Mill Creek Campground on Table Rock Lake, so the four of us decided to drive out to visit with them for a couple of hours.  We met 4 new people, two sisters who travel together and a couple from Ponca City.  We had a wonderful time visiting with them.  We look forward to attending the campout in Oklahoma with this group next month.

On the way home I mentioned that after Dean has his test tomorrow, (he has to fast 9 hours before the test), that we are going somewhere to eat breakfast.  We asked Frank and Joyce if they would like to meet us.  We agreed to meet at Grand Country Buffet between 9-9:30 in the morning.


Wednesday, April 16, 2019 - We were up early this morning so we could be at the hospital by 8:30 for what we thought was a CT scan for Dean.  Come to find out he had a sonogram instead.  Tomorrow he will meet with Dr Vorhies, his vascular surgeon.  

Frank and Joyce were waiting for us at Grand Country.  The food is really good here.  I had an omelet, specially made for me.  It was good, except I didn't care for their sausage, as I prefer a milder flavor; but overall the omelet itself was very good.  I had several pieces of fruit and 1/2 a biscuit with apple butter.  I love apple butter.  My Grandma Stapleton always made it.  I think of her every time I have some.  Always a wonderful memory!

After we came back to the campground, Frank checked on tee times; then off he and Dean went again, leaving Joyce and I to shop some more.  We went back to Belk's because I decided I should have purchased a different size top yesterday, and Joyce returned hers.  From there we headed to Kohl's, where I found a nice sweater cardigan for a great price.  Joyce found several things there she liked.

By then we were getting hungry so we headed back to Sugar Leaf Bakery at The Grand Village Shops.  We both chose one of their salads.  Mine was Fig & Apple Harvest.  It was wonderful!  Joyce had an Asian salad, and she really enjoyed hers as well.  I would highly recommend this place to anyone visiting Branson.  They had sandwiches and soups as well.  I would have loved to try one of their desserts.  Oh my!

After we returned, I picked up after the two of us - sometimes you'd think we were kids, did a few dishes from our coffee this morning and Dean's popcorn popper and bowls from last night, did a load of laundry, then went back to working on the blog.

Dean was hungry by the time they returned from golfing.  We visited a bit about our day,  then headed out to find him something to eat.  He ended up eating peach cobbler and ice cream at Cakes & Creams, one of our favorite places.  What a meal - huh?  We drove down the strip, then back to the campground.  


Thursday, April 17, 2019 - It started raining last night and it was still raining this morning.  I did some laundry and made sure everything was done before we ate lunch. We left early so we could stop at Harbor Freight.  We had plenty of time and walked up and down every single aisle looking for "treasures".  We left with a few of them too.  We arrived a little early at the doctor's office, and had to wait a bit before we saw him.  The test results were great so we were both elated.  Dean had surgery to repair an aneurysm and have stents put in the veins going to his legs last June.  Both looked great.  The blood pressure on one leg was at 99% and the other at 101% - the doctor said it couldn't be better than that.  Dean will see him again in a year.

The rain was more of a light sprinkle when we left but it was windy and cold.  We just headed back to Bentley and enjoyed being in the warmth.  I continued working on the blog.

We had planned to have a filet for dinner but Dean didn't want to get the grill out and cook it in this cold, damp weather.  We still had a gift card for Red Lobster that Brett & family got us for Christmas in 2018.  Red Lobster is just across from the entrance to Treasure Lake, so we didn't have to go far.  I was impressed when we walked in - there was no fishy smell at all like I've noticed at other Red Lobster's.  We had a really nice young man wait on us named Garret.  Dean ordered grilled shrimp (on skewers), rice and a baked potato with a side salad.  I really splurged tonight.  They had a 4 course meal for $16.99 - I chose a side salad, bacon & potato soup, my meal was blackened salmon and broccoli, and a dessert of a warm brownie with a scoop of ice cream with caramel and chocolate sauce over it.  I told Dean he had to eat part of it - I almost had to twist his arm off to make him eat some of it - NOT!  I also ate one of their biscuits.  Back on the regular eating tomorrow!!!!!


Friday, April 18, 2019 - Dean and I walked our two miles this morning.  It was cool when we started out, but it warmed up quicker than we expected and it got pretty warm by the time we returned to Bentley.  

After showers, doing a load of laundry and getting everything else done, Joyce called to see if we wanted to go eat lunch with them.  They were trying to decide between Shorty Small's or Cracker Barrell.  We ended up choosing Cracker Barrell.  They have some great lunch meals that are really affordable and very good.  I had a hamburger steak, green beans and broccoli.  I couldn't pass up the chance to eat another biscuit with apple butter.  Yes, Grandma was on my mind again today!  Dean had a pork chop, salad, and hashbrown casserole.  Joyce had breaded chicken fingers and Frank chose the chicken fried steak.  Everyone enjoyed their meal.  I wish I had only eaten half of mine as at 7:30 this evening I'm still full.  

We drove separately to eat, as Dean and I wanted to go Lowe's afterwards.  We are still in search of a toilet seat.  I have never been happy with the one that came with the toilet we had to replace.  I decided it was time for it to go.  We found one at Lowe's we thought would work.  Then Dean wanted to go down the road to Menard's and look around.  I suggested we split up and look at the things we were each interested in as I was sure they wouldn't be the same thing.  When we met up I had a fly swatter and that was the total of our purchases.  The last time I used ours, it broke.  I just happened to see one and I'm glad that I now have something to save me from any lost wasp or some other crazy bug that might sneak in to Bentley.

After we returned, I called Joyce to see if she wanted to stop by to look over our summer travel plans to see if there were any other areas we could coordinate a meet up.  We are already planning on spending a week with them at Yellowstone in August.  We were able to fit in a few days at the Grand Teton's as well.  Hopefully we'll see them back here in Branson some time over the fall.  If not, we'll see them back in the Rio Grande Valley the first of next year.

Tomorrow we will pack up and return to Oswego.  We still have much to do before we leave on our next trip, the first of June.

April 3-14, 2019 - Back in Oswego and it's Go, Go, Go!

April 3-14, 2019 - Back in Oswego and it's Go, Go, Go!

There has been so much going on since we returned.  We've been running since we arrived so here are some highlights of our time in Oswego:

Wed, April 3, 2019 - It was another fairly long drive today.  Once we arrived at Hillside RV Park (our home when we are in Oswego), we were soon parked and set up for our stay until April 14.  No one knows we are here yet - as they all think it will be later in the week before we will return.  

The Bartlett pear trees are really pretty right now.  The next day we noticed the tree had honey bees and butterflies all over it! 

One of the first things we did after getting set up for our time here, was to go to our new property.  Dean has been anxious to see it again ever since we left in December after the purchase.  Amazing how you can look at it with rose colored glasses and just see the potential, but now that realization has set in (even though he's not sorry we bought it - nor am I) he said wow, it needs alot more cleaning out and work done than I remembered. It's just the same as it was when we last saw it, but in the three months we were away, we didn't remember the bad.  But it can, and will all be repaired.
After a quick lunch, I called my sister Cindy but she wasn't at home.  I asked Dean if he wanted to go for a ride as I wanted to stop and see my Aunt Lil.  As we turned the corner, I saw I was going to be able to surprise both her and Cindy - as she was visiting my aunt too.  
They were both surprised.  We had a nice visit.  When I asked Cindy if she was picking Haleigh (my granddaughter) up at school today, she said yes.  I told her we wanted to pick her up instead.  When Haleigh sent Cindy a text reminding her to pick her up, Dean and I headed to the high school.  We were second in line.  When she came out I could see her looking at the truck, I opened the door so she could see it was us, and she screamed and came running.  What a wonderful welcome that was!  I wish I would have thought to have Dean take a picture but I was too excited to see her to think about it.
I told Haleigh not to say anything to her mama we were home.  I asked her to let me know when her mom was home; so we could stop by to surprise her.  Misti called Haleigh on her way home from Coffeyville, where she has clincals as part of her PTA training.  She asked Haleigh if anything interesting happened at school today and Haleigh slipped and told her "Nana and Papa picked me up".  Misti said: what?, they are home?  Haleigh was upset she let it slip but I told her not to worry about that.
We met at Mi Pueblo where we had a wonderful meal.  We had a great visit before parting for the evening.  It was so good to see them both.  Gosh, we have missed our kids and grandkids.

Thurs, April 4, 2019 - I had an appointment to get my hair cut this morning.  I kept thinking I would find someone to trim it before we returned, but I never did.  I guess I'd rather just have Marla do it.  She did a wonderful job as usual.  I enjoyed being there too - it's great to see so many people I know coming and going, especially after being gone for several months.  I took time today to get things I pack for travel, back out and in place and do some much needed laundry.

Friday, April 5   Dean and I walked in the park this morning.  I took this picture on our way to the park.  

Foggy, but Sunny morning!

I sent this to Dean this morning - it does make a difference who you travel with.  He's a great travel partner!

After our walk, breakfast and showers, we made a little road trip.  First stop was Pittsburg to pick up our mail.  As we left Oswego, we decided to call Brett to see if he might be able to meet us for lunch.  It so happened we caught him at a good time, as he was getting ready to leave for his annual Air Force Reserve training.  He said he would be heading our way shortly.  After we picked up our mail and mailed a package at the UPS store in Pittsburg, we met him at the Mall Deli.  I've done a pretty good job of sticking to my diet even since we've been home.  We had a nice visit with him and are so glad we happened to catch him before he left.  After we left Brett, we headed to Joplin where we stopped to see my step-dad and his wife.  We had a really nice visit and it was so good to see them after several months.
Our last stop before heading home was Sam's to pick up a couple of Project Prom prizes for my daughter and the PP committee.  We needed to get a few things there as well, so the stop worked well for us too.

Saturday, April 6 Kamron and Jaxson came to spend the day with us.  It was good to see those two.  We have missed the grandkids so much and can't wait to see our Wichita and Columbus grands too later this month.
We had a good time talking, laughing, cooking, doing puzzles, playing cards, watching some TV and going to Aunt Misti's house to play outside.  

Dad brought the kids down.  My son Marc, Jaxson and Kamron

Kamron & Jaxson - sidewalk chalk

Jaxson & Isaiah - notice Jaxson using his left hand to add another color into his name.  My dad was a leftie, and so is his Papa Bill (Misti & Marc's dad).

Bubbles

Look at that big bubble!

Jaxson - he is growing so fast!  More bubbles - they had so much fun chasing bubbles, especially Jax.

After wearing them out (or maybe after they wore us out-lol!), Dean and I took Kamron and Jaxson back to Parsons, where we met Marc and Jen at Shredder's BBQ for dinner.  It was good to spend time with them.  The meal was good, but the company was even better.  

Sunday, April 7th  I went to church with Cindy.  I spent the afternoon working on the blog from the time we left North Carolina until arriving in Oswego.  While I didn't get it finished I made a good dent and got several pictures cropped to include as well.

Monday, April 8th  
Dean left about 9 to play golf and I spent most of the morning working on deep cleaning in the bedroom.  At noon, I had lunch with my good friend and former co-worker Carol at Pizza Hut.  It was great to visit with her and catch up.  We are hoping we can find an evening we can get together for dinner with our husbands as well.  
Later in the evening Marc, Jen and the kids stopped by to pick up a few things. Kamron showed us her newest medal from the golf tournament she played in today.  We are so proud of her.
Kamron started playing golf last year.  She is now playing in golf tournaments with other junior high students from other schools in the area.  She has played in  5 tournaments to date (as of April 17th) with a 6th, 4th and 3-3rd place finishes.  Dean and I are hoping we can make it to one of her tournaments soon.
Dean has to take the RV to Pittsburg tomorrow morning to have the tires aligned.  We spent some time putting things away in preparation for that.  He plans to leave at 7am, so the more we get done tonight, the less we have to do in the morning.

Tuesday, April 9th.  Earlier in the week I asked Cindy if everyone was planning on me hosting our sisterfest on Sunday.  She told me that she couldn't and she didn't think Jody could either, so I called both Jody and Crystal and yes, they both had plans.  I was a little bummed about it, but I understood.  I am not here all the time and they are used to making other plans when I'm gone, especially since they didn't know when I was coming home.  
I asked Cindy a few weeks ago about going with me to my doctor's appointment in Vinita and if we could spend the day together.  She agreed, and she picked me up at 7:40am. It was still dark when she picked me up.  After I got in the car I made some comment to Cindy, and heard a snicker...I turned around and Jody was in the back seat, I turned further and so was Crystal.  Those sisters of mine kind of told me a little story to keep me in the dark about their surprise this morning.  I got a little teary eyed that they did this.  
10 minutes before we reached the clinic in Vinita, I received a call from the receptionist to tell me the doctor needed to cancel my appointment this morning.  She asked if I could come in this afternoon but I told her I already had plans for the day.  We rescheduled for Thursday morning at 9.  Fortunately, they did say I could go ahead and have my blood drawn this morning, since I fasted for that.
From there we drove to Joplin where we shopped, had lunch at Logan's and then stopped to see Larry (our step-dad) and Verna.  We had a nice visit with them before heading back to Oswego.  Wow - what a great day it was!
Once we returned Cindy was going to the high school to watch her granddaughter Dani play softball.  Since Dean had already left for Parsons to watch grandson Tucker's tennis match, I decided I would go with Cindy to watch the game too.  What a great game it was!  I sure enjoyed it.  It reminded me of all the ballgames we attended with Misti and the boys.
When I got home Dean told me he couldn't find Tucker at Parsons, so he finally sent a text to Renae - apparently there was a change and the game was in Independence instead, so he came home.  He was really disappointed.
Jennifer posted this picture of Kamron with her medal from a golf tournament.

Wednesday, April 10
Originally we had planned to take Dacy and Tucker to dinner tonight but they had a conflict so we will meet up with them tomorrow.  I continued cleaning our bedroom and then moved to the bathroom.  I was pretty well worn out by the end of the day.
Later this evening I was looking at Facebook and ran across this picture.

That is Kamron on the left with the bright blue shirt and khaki skirt, with black visor.  

This picture was taken at the golf tournament in Pittsburg yesterday by our former City Administrator Kris McKechnie.  Her son Jackson plays golf for the Pittsburg Dragons and is in the 8th grade.  Kamron and Jackson were playing in the same tournament.  I sent Kris a note to let her know that was Marc's daughter.  Hopefully, we'll get a chance to visit with her when we make it to one of Kamron's tournaments.

On Thursday the 11th, Dean dropped me off at City Hall for a meeting they were having on health insurance.  I am still on the city's plan as a retiree, and a change is being made in carriers, so I went to hear the details.  Dean picked Haleigh up from school and took her to Columbus to get her hair trimmed, and her nails done in preparation for this week's Prom in Oswego.  

Mom wanted a picture when Haleigh talked to her later.

Misti had to leave this afternoon to attend a required conference as part of her PTA training in Wichita.  Haleigh is staying with us while she is gone.  After the insurance meeting was over, I walked over to the courthouse to see if sister Crystal would mind giving me a ride back to the RV Park.  I really appreciated her doing that.  
After Dean and Haleigh got back we left again, back to Columbus to pick up Dacy and Tucker so we could all have dinner together at the local Mexican restaurant.  We had a great visit.  Their Prom is also this Saturday evening.  Haleigh's promenade will start at 6, and Dacy and Tucker's is to start at 8 - so we are pretty sure we will make it for both of them.

Friday, April 12th  Dean went with me to Vinta today for my rescheduled doctor appointment.  I was able to download the results from my blood test on Tuesday evening and I was very happy with the report.  The doctor changed a couple of medications and wants me to come back in 7 weeks and have another blood test to see if additional changes are needed with one of my prescriptions.  
I needed to get some prescriptions filled, so while we were waiting, we took the time to go to Atwood's and the local Ace Hardware store there in Vinita.  We didn't find aything at either one but we enjoyed looking.
After picking up my prescriptions we drove back to Oswego.  After some lunch we went to our local hardware store where I found two of the things we looked for while we were in Vinta - an indoor/outdoor thermometer for Bentley and a simple metal paper towel holder that I want Dean to install under the bathroom sink.
Haleigh is staying after school tonight to decorate for Prom, so Dean and I drove to Altamont to eat at MJ's Burgers.  Dean had a burger that looked delicious while I enjoyed another grilled chicken salad - which was really good!  Haleigh got back a little later and we enjoyed visiting with her about the prom preparations and our plans for tomorrow.

Saturday, April 13 - It's a big day for three of our grandchildren today.  It's prom day in Oswego and Columbus.  After breakfast and Haleigh showered, I took her to a friend's house, where her friend's sister applied Haleigh's makeup for prom this evening.  Once I picked her up, we had lunch, before she and I left again, this time to head to Columbus for a hair appointment.

We received a text from Renae that Dacy and Tucker's promenade had changed to 6, due to the expected rain later this evening.  With this change they suggested that any others besides parents not attend to watch the students come in since it is being held in a small venue with very limited space. I called Renae and she suggested we come to Columbus at 4 in order to be there when they take the before pictures.  I wasn't sure I'd make it, but Dean planned to go for sure.  As it turned out Misti made it back just as we started taking pictures at the park for Haleigh and her friends, Kaitlin and Heaven.  Dean went on to Columbus and I took pictures here in Oswego with Misti.  It's too bad they happened to be on the same day and ended up with events happening at the same time.
We took some great picures of Haleigh and her friends and Renae sent us some great pictures of Dacy and Tucker.

Pictures of Haleigh, Katelin, and Heaven.

 All of these pictures were taken in our beatuiful city park.

My daughter, Misti and her daughter, my granddaughter, Haleigh.  My heart swells looking at these two beautiful ladies.

Tucker & His Date (Dacy's Friend)

Dacy & Her Date (Tucker's Friend)

Do we have beautiful granddaughters or what; and that grandson?  We are truly blessed!

Tucker, Dacy and some of their friends.

Dacy

Tucker

Sunday, April 14 - Dean met Misti at the Community Center this morning, where she was completing the last of the cleanup from Project Prom last night, so he could transport a couple of items she could not get in her car back to her house in our truck.  He stopped to get me so we could go by to see her before we leave later today for Branson.  Misti and Haleigh are leaving early Wednesday morning for Kansas City, where they will fly to San Antonio, TX for Logan's granduation from A school.  They will be back on Friday, and we will return on Saturday morning.
I'm sad I will not be able to go with them on this trip.  I miss Logan so much.  He will be going to Camp Pendleton, California from San Antonio.  It's hard to even think about not seeing him for awhile.  
Once we got back we secured the last items inside, so we could close up the RV.  We were just getting ready to run a couple of errands before we hooked up, when Kamron called to see if we wanted to go eat lunch with her and her mom at Pizza Hut.  We couldn't pass up another chance to spend some time with them, so we met them there.  We were thrilled they called us, and we had a wonderful visit.
After we returned to the park, we were hitched up and ready to leave in 10-15 minutes.  We began the drive to Branson and arrived by mid-afternoon.  We have friends who are also staying at Treasure Lake and we are looking forward to spending time with them while we are here.  
I sent a text to let them know we were leaving the office.  Joyce waved us over near them and we found a site in the next row over from where they were parked.  Dean and Frank had plans to play golf on Monday so Joyce and I will do some shopping.  

March 29-30, 2019 - Nashville, TN - Two Rivers Campground - Hop On/Hop Off in Downtown Nashville; March 31-April 1, 2019 - Paducah, KY; April 2, 2019 - Salem, MO - Visiting Friends

March 29-30, 2019 - Nashville,TN - Two Rivers Canoground - Hop On/Hop Off in Downtown Nashville

We left Douglas Headwater Campground shortly before 9am this morning to make a 211 mile drive to Nashville.  

We originally chose Nashville as a quick stop as we make our way back to Oswego.  However, after our successful hop on, hop off bus tours of New Orleans and Savannah, and our discovery that Nashville has one too - we will be staying two days.  We love the tours as we are able to see so many things without having to maneuver our dually through these busy cities.  

We arrived at Two Rivers Campground near 12:30 (Central Standard Time) - yes, we are getting closer to Oswego, still home to us.  It can be confusing when you are traveling and passing into and out of states with the many time changes.....

Approaching our campground and the beautiful flag next door at Camping World.

While we were waiting to check in we noticed they actually sell tickets for the Hop On/Hop Off and they will pick us up right here.  Great!  Soon a cashier was free and they had us checked in quickly.  By the time we backed in to a site, it didn't take us long to set up the minimal amount of things for two days here.  We had not eaten lunch yet so I made a romaine lettuce salad for me (bacon bits, cheese, grapes, almonds and avocado - anything I could find to throw in it that sounded good, and it was good!)  Dean ate the last of the chicken salad and most of the remaining marcaroni/cheese.  The frig is almost cleaned out.

After lunch we headed back up to the office to buy our tickets for tomorrow and Dean wanted to look around in the "store".  We also asked for directions to the nearest grocery store, which happened to be a Kroger's.  

There seem to be a lot of Kroger Grocery Stores in this part of the country.  We loved the store and the lady who checked us out was so nice.  She gave us a complimentary discount even though we didn't have one of their cards - saving us about $3.50.  I bought stuff to make a pizza while we are in Paducah - our next stop.  I will make another cauliflower crust and this time, we will have a meat lover's pizza.   (Note:  I found out later, from our friend David, that our Dillon grocery card will work at Kroger's - well, now I know!)

We returned to the campground and just relaxed for the rest of the evening.  It's supposed to rain tomorrow around noon so we are praying that it holds off until later in the day.  


March 30, 2019 - Hop On, Hop Off Bus - Downtown Nashville

We were at the campground office about 10 minutes early in order to catch the 9:00 bus.  I came prepared for rain, but the most we ever had were a few sprinkles.  We were very grateful for that.  Our bus driver was Jack and we really enjoyed listening to his stories about various places we passed along the way.  

It was an hour ride from Two Rivers Campground to Downtown, which included two stops:  the Opryland Hotel and the Wyndom Hotel/Condominiums.  There was a huge cheerleader event taking place at the Opryland Hotel - they had four traffic officers directing traffic and cars were EVERYWHERE!  It was a nightmare.  The parking was so backed up, some cars just let the occupants out with mom or dad, and walked while the driver determined where and how they would get parked while waiting on all those ahead of them.  It made us so glad we chose to take the bus.  The bus driver told us the parking fee at the hotel is $39 a day.  Wow!

We arrived downtown, making our first stop at Station 1 just a few minutes after 10.  With the traffic situation I'm surprised we weren't later than that.  We picked up a few more passengers at the main station and continued to add a few each time we made a stop.  

I was surprised how many people were already in the downtown area so early, but it was minimal compared to the numbers we seen at the end of the day.  Soon we were heading out to our first stop.  We stayed on the bus the entire tour so we could decide if there was any place we would like to stop after lunch.

Items to see at Stop 1 included Hard Rock Cafe & Gift Shop, George Jones Museum, Wild Horse Saloon, Cumberland River, West Riverfront Park, Ghost Ballet, and Nissan Stadium.  You couldn't miss Hard Rock as it was across the street, Nissan Stadium was to our right and it loomed over the Cumberland River.  I would have enjoyed the Riverfront Park and the Stadium if the weather had been nicer....it looked as if it could rain at any minute and the wind was chilly this morning.

Stop 2 - The Country Music Hall of Fame, Music City Walk of Fame, Music City Center.  We visited the Hall of Fame last time we stopped here four years ago.  We thoroughly enjoyed it and would recommed it to country music enthusiasts.  

Stop 3 - Johnny Cash Museum, Goo Goo Cluster Shop, and The Nashville Symphony.  In the past I would have gladly tried a goo goo cluster, but I figured it had way more sugar than I wanted.  Here's a little history about the Goo Goo Cluster.

The Nashville Symphony (here & below)

Stop 4 - Ryman Auditorium & Chet Atkins Statute - if we had more than one day here, I would have chosen to tour the Ryman Auditorium.  It has an interesting history.  

Stop 5 Legislative Plaza - Tennessee State Capitol & Military Museum  -  This is another stop I would have chosen to tour if time allowed.  I told Dean we could easily spend a week here with all there is to see and do in the area.  

Tennessee State Capitol

Military Museum

Stop 6 Musicians Hall of Fame - We didn't get off the bus so I can't tell you too much about this stop.  Possibly it will be an adventure for another day.

top 7 Farmer's Market - It was a huge area with all kinds of goods brought in both fresh, cooked, and crafts of all kinds.  We did not go in, but you could see the activity and some of the areas where folks had their items for sale.  At this point, I believed I could have enjoyed something at every stop on the tour.

Stop 8 Marathon Motor Works - home to Antique Archaeology (The American Pickers).  Dean and I have been here several times.  

Stop 9 Centennial Park - One of the prettiest parks I've ever seen.  It's amazing!  If you have the chace: Go!  Go!  Go!  It will be worth it, especially late March, early April as the flowers and bushes are really beginning to, or are in bloom.  It was a beautiful park, with families, couples, young people either playing games, enjoying picnics, walking, or just lounging around the area.  This is also where The Parthenon is located.  This entire area was gorgeous!

Add caption

Beautiful park

The Capitol Buildig from afar.

Stop 10  Vanderbilt University - Start of the Natchez Trace, West End Methodist Church - each of these have their own wonderful stories.  You'll need to take the tour as I can't tell you everything!

Stop 11 - Hot Chicken - Nashville is known for their "hot chicken".  If you want to know where the name came from - visit Nashville!  Hattie B's is the most famous.  On the last tour we took of the day, there was a couple who wanted to get off there.  The driver told him he would stop, but he wanted them to know they would be standing in line for a long time, but they still wanted off.  As we approached the traffic signal where we had to stop, we could all see the line that was well over a half block or more long.  It was much longer than our first trip around.  I hope they enjoyed their chicken though.

Stop 12  - Belmont Mansion - The house has over 36 rooms and 19,000 sq. ft.  Another stop where I'd like to visit and tour one day.

Stop 13 - Bobby's Idle Hour - Music Row, RCA Studio B where many famous musicians recorded, including Elvis Presley.  

Stop 14 - The Gulch - Station Inn is a music venue, Biscuit Love (a restaurant serving breakfast from 7am-3pm) and Two Old Hippies.

Stop 15 - Union Station - Frist Art Center, Hume-Fogg High School and the Customs House.

After making our way around Nashville (about 1.5 hour trip), we got off at Stop 1, because by now we were hungry.  I asked a couple of people (one at the campground and our bus driver) what were some of the best places to eat in downtown.  Both of them said Jack's, so that is where we headed next.  It was just a few blocks away and the crowds had thickened since we left here.  There was a line at Jack's but honestly it wasn't too long until they took our orders.  They cut your meat selection for you, and then you go through a buffet of sorts, where they provide you with helpings of your choice.  I chose brisket, green beans and fried apples.  Dean chose ribs, cole slaw and fried apples.  We both thought our meals were pretty good.  I probably should have gone with pork shoulder as it might have been more tender than the brisket.  You just never know how brisket is going to be.  Dean's ribs were very good he said.  We chose to set upstairs since it was so crowded with people coming in.  We both had leftovers, so I carried them in my handbag (at the bottom) with paper towels wrapped around them, hoping they would not spill.  (By the way, they traveled quite well.)

In the short time we were eating our lunch, I am sure the crowds had more than doubled in size.  It's crazy downtown.  Last night there was a Zac Brown concert, today they had another big event occurring, and in two weeks they will be holding the NFL Draft here.  There is a large event almost every day, and sometimes two or more.  Since spring breaks are still occurring, I'm sure that contributed to the crowds today as well.  The other thing that amazed me were the number of Batchlorette Parties going on.  It was absolutely crazy.  It was alright to see, especially from a bus, but crowds are not our thing!  The driver said they often refer to Nashville as Nashvegas now.  

Many restaurants had patio areas as this one above.

Look at the traffic, see the buses or pedal bars to the right and left - they were everywhere.

Parking lot full of cars - many large buildings downtown

Interesting building downtown

As we passed by this buiding with the sign about Hats and Boots our driver told us, many women buy boots when they come to town, put them on and toss the shoes they brought with them.  Later on in the evening, you see them walking down Broadway carrying their boots and barefooted because they have no socks and they have worn blisters on their feet.  True?  We can't say, we didn't stay that late to check it out. 

The building above and the one below are restaurants with some famous singers names on them.  Kid Rock, Jason Aldean, Luke Bryan and Blake Shelton were all near each other.  Dean asked the driver why they would build restaurants and have the hassle.  From what he told us, they give their name and get a % of the profits.  Easy money, I guess!

Three story restaurant (Kid Rock's)

We returned to the Trolley stand to find we had missed our ride back to the campground by just 10 minutes, so we decided to ride the trolley again.  We had a different driver and it was interesting that even though the information was pretty much the same, each person has their own spin on how they present it.  This time around we got off at the Marathon Motor Works (home of Antique Archaeology).  Dean enjoys watching their show and he enjoys visiting here.  We were really surprised at the number of new shops in the building from when we were here just three years ago.  Dean loved looking at all of the machinery on display in the hallway as we walked through the building. While we didn't find anything we needed, it was a really fun place to look around.

We had to wait a little while for the next trolley.  This was our third driver and he was a HOOT!  He had the whole bus wound up.  Tony came to Nashville as a musician a few years ago and is still looking for the big break.  I sure hope he makes it.  He was a lot of fun.

Back at Stop #1, we still had a little over an hour for the final trolly to take us back to the campground so we stepped into a cafe right next door.  We ordered chicken nachoes and water, and enjoyed people watching until it was time to board our bus back to the campground. We've been to many, many places but we've never seen so many people in one place - literally up and down Broadway Street as far as you could see, both along the street and upstairs of many restaurant/bars.  I was glad Jack's was a quiet place in relation to the "Honky Tonks".  It's not our thing.  We enjoy having a conversation without having to yell at each other.  

We could easily spend a week or two in this area.  Besides Nashville, there are many other things to do in the area. 



March 31-April 1, 2019 - Duck Creek RV Park - Paducah, KY

We left Nashville at 10:20 and made it to our next stop at 1:00.   We were thankful for a short drive today compared to the last few moves. 

The Ohio and Mississippi Rivers were flooded, but they had dropped recently.  We learned later that one of the roads leading to the Ohio was closed for a short time.  As we neared the bridge we could see there was alot of debris right at the edge of the road and a crew was pushing it off the roadside toward the ditches.  Evidently water had been over this road.

There are many barges lined up waiting to take their loads up the river.

Water is still near the road - you can see where they were pushing the debris off the road to the shoulder

Ohio River

More barges waiting (above and below)

The barges were backed up and there were many waiting along the banks for the chance to move again.

Water outside the banks of the Mississippi River.

Mississippi River

For the most part we just stayed in for the day and evening.  It was 46 when we arrived and it was even colder in the evening.  We had to turn our mattress pad on again.  We are really ready for some spring temperatures.

The next morning we had our breakfast and I worked some more on cropping pictures and choosing the ones I wanted to include in the Nashville post, before we decided to get out and take a look at the Ohio River that runs right by the old downtown area.  From the water levels we saw on our way in yesterday we are sure they probably had some high water levels here too.

As we arrived in the downtown area we immediately noticed the gates were in place all along the flood wall.  

We love the flood walls in downtown Paducah with painted pictures of this city's history.  You can see one of the flood gates at the end of the street in this photo.

Another floodgate closed.

We did find one spot at the far end where we were able to get a peek at the river.  The water level was up but it was not near the flood gates.  (Later we talked to someone at a store we stopped at.  She told us it had flooded about 2 weeks ago, and they were keeping the gates up as they were expecting more high water from the flooding up north.)

We found a spot we could see the river from - it was high but not flooding.

The park we are staying at is nice enough, but it is $35 a night.  I found a Passport America park not too far from here, so we decided to drive there to see if it would work for us in the future, as we often take this route back to Oswego.  Tween the Lakes RV Park and Campground is nothing fancy.  It's fairly new, with concrete pads.  We believe it would work fine for us at the price of $15 for just a night or two.  I think we'll give it a try next time we are in this area.

Once we returned to Bentley, I made a meat lover's pizza and even though I messed up the crust a bit, it was still pretty good.  


April 2, 2019 - Salem, MO - Visiting Friends
We left Paducah, KY at 9:00am and arrived at our friends David and Donna Williams at 1:45pm.  

Another fairly long drive for us, but we are looking forward to spending time with these friends.  We first met them at a Heartland RV Rally in Oklahoma a few years ago.  We spent some time with them at another Rally in Branson while they were full-timing.  You might remember when we sold our house, I mentioned we both closed on houses the same day in 2017...they bought their house the same day we sold ours.   It had been a while since we had seen them, almost a year.  In the meantime their RV caught fire and totally burned last fall while they were packing to attend a rally.   They had taken some things to the RV and went back inside to get some more items.  When they returned it was on fire.  They never determined for sure what caused the fire but for now it has ended their RV travel.  


Donna fixed us a wonderful dinner, and on top of that she made a delicious coconut cream pie - one of our favorites.  Afterwards we went out to walk around their property.  They have a beautiful home and a nice piece of property.  Donna wanted some chickens, so David built her the cutest chicken house for them.  There was a small building already on the property and they have converted it to Donna's "She-Shed".  It is so cute!

After our walk, we visited for a bit before we retired for the night.  

The next morning Donna made a wonderful breakfast casserole that was absolutely delicious, along with a fruit bowl.  David had a french press and he made us a cup of coffee with.  It was very good.  

After visiting a while longer, we took a few pictures before we pulled in our slides to make the last leg of our journey back to Oswego.

David and Donna

Their dogs Baxter and Bailey wishing they were outside with us!  Bit of a reflection..sorry!

Thanks again David and Donna for your hospitality.  We enjoyed it and the wonderful meals you provided.  


We returned to Oswego for several days, and now we are in Branson, MO for follow-up visits with Dean's doctors from his surgeries last summer.