Dean and I had a job to do this morning and that was to switch out the parts that Brett picked up for him yesterday. Hopefully, this is a fix for the trailer brakes.
I'm not sure how long it took but it was beginning to get pretty warm when we finally finished. It was quite the process of changing these out - only to find that was not the problem at all.
Next step: check with our RV dealer to see if he had any suggestions. You might remember in an earlier post we have already taken it to a Chevy dealer and it worked for awhile, but then quite again. Dean spoke with Deryl. He told him that Chevy trucks have this problem, and told us they have found a fix to make it work with a magnet. The control unit in the truck sees the magnet when there are electric brakes on a trailer. With hydraulic brakes (which is what we have) there is no magnet. When one is added the controller sees the magnet to send voltage to run the hydraulic brakes.
Based on that information, we drove to Lamar to see if the Farm Store carried any of the magnets. It was a wasted trip - they had none. However, we are headed to Branson later today so we will either check at a farm store on the way there - or on the way home tomorrow. For now, Bentley is sitting until we can figure something out. We decided to bring the car with us to Wichita and Lamar since all of our running around is much cheaper in the Prius than driving the truck. It was nice to have it on the drive to and from Branson plus the other running around we did this week.
We left around 12:30, making our first stop in Carthage at Braum's for a sandwich and something to drink. Soon we were back on the road.
As we were approaching Springfield we were watching these clouds.
We arrived at the Barrington Hotel where Matt & Megan had booked our rooms. They were also kind enough to check us in and get our keys when they arrived so we just had to go up to their room to pick them up. We had the room next to theirs which was convenient.
I changed into clothes I brought for the show. Megan and I went to the Stampede to pick up the tickets I had ordered online. After getting the tickets, we stopped at a nearby grocery store to get a few things they needed. It started to rain just as we pulled in - light, but big drops. When we got ready to leave the store, it was pouring and the wind was blowing!
We decided since we had nothing that would spoil, to just have the guys bring the kids down while we were under the entrance awning and make our way to Dolly's Stampede. Thank goodness for awnings and that we left when we did.
For those of you who have visited Branson you know how the roads are - hills with lots of valleys, and we had to go through a few of those valleys that were beginning to hold water! We made it through, but had we waited much longer, I'm not sure we would have wanted to pass through some of those low spots. Matt drove us around to the front with the idea of dropping us off. Cars were stopped in front of the main entrance, so Matt moved forward where we could get to a walkway where the horse stalls are. We were able to walk under a large covered area to the entrance. Unfortunately, that meant Matt had to walk from the car back to the building. At least he had an umbrella, but I'm not sure how much it helped him the way the wind was blowing.
We listened to Goldwing Express during the pre-show. Dean and I enjoy listening to this family group.
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| Megan, Matt holding Sam, Me, Sarah and Josh (Dean made me get in this picture!) |
It wasn't long and we were being ushered into the seating around the arena of the Stampede. We were near the front of the line so getting to our seats was very easy. We happened to be sitting on the North side this time. There are several competitions throughout the evening where the North and the South vie for flags. The ones with the most at the end of the evening are declared the winners. What a fun time for the kids. From the time we arrived - they were in awe of everything going on around them - from the horses, to the people, to the pre-show where they had popcorn. People were no more than seated than the show began and it continued throughout the next hour and a half. Their eyes were on the arena almost the entire time. Matt and Megan's kids are 1, 3, and 5. We were hoping they would find it entertaining and would enjoy it, so you can imagine how happy we were that it kept their attention the entire evening.
Of course the food was amazing and we discovered that Sam LOVES corn on the cob. He didn't want to let go of it. Here are just a few pictures:
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| Our group - Dean, Josh, Megan with Sam on her lap, Sarah and Matt. |
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| Look at Sarah's smile here. She was elated at what she was watching. |
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| What little girl doesn't love a princess? While it might have been a ball from the 1800's, she only saw a princess! |
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| Sam had a tight hold on his ear of corn! |
Once back at the hotel, everyone was ready to rest after a busy morning, and afternoon on the road, followed by the show. I wanted to try and get the blog caught up. I stayed up until 11:45 and finally put the computer away. The last time I looked at my watch - it was 1:45 and I was still wide awake.
Saturday, July 6, 2019 - Silver Dollar City; Brett Grills Again
I'm not sure when I finally fell asleep, but I was awake shortly after 5. My first thought was - I'm too tired for a day at Silver Dollar City. But, once I had a chance to get up and move, have some coffee and breakfast at the hotel I was ready to go. By the way, this hotel had a great breakfast: waffles, biscuits and gravy, eggs, bacon, cereal, yogurt, toast, bagels, fruit, juice, and coffee. We were very impressed at how good it was. The staff was attentive and cleanup was quick, almost as soon as the tables were emptied.
Our room was very nice and clean. This is the first time we've stayed in a hotel in almost four years. I do not miss hotels. I like my bed, I like my pillow and I like getting up and having coffee -- my choice of coffee. We have become very spoiled!
We were packed and ready to leave the hotel shortly after 9:00. Fortunately it was not a heavy traffic day when we arrived at Silver Dollar City. Dean and I bought season passes as we expect to be back at least twice before year end - and hopefully at least once through the holiday season.
What a fun day! Again, the kids were great. Dean and I had never been to the Fireman's Landing at SDC and what a wonderful attraction for small children. That is where we spent most of our time and the kids were excited about all of the things there were to do.
Warning: Picture Overload of more Grandkids - But what a treasure to remember this visit by!
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| While Dad took the two older kids on the ride below, Sam tested the waters of the splash pad! |
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| The balloon ride was a hit! |
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| Josh enjoyed the splash pad too! |
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| Sam right after he walked into a big spout of water that covered him from head to toe! |
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| Sarah loved running through the water and was soaked - but happy! |
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| What a handsome guy! |
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| I couldn't decide between these pictures of Dad and Sam - so I had to include both! |
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| Megan/Mom rode the doggy ride with Matt and Sarah. |
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| Matt was a good daddy - and rode this ride with the kids. |
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| Sarah and Josh enjoyed the swings. I had to include Josh and his new smile (below). |
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| Raising their hands as they go up, then they would drop a short distance, repeat a few times before they return to the ground. |
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| Sam thought this little horse was pretty neat. |
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| Dad (or big kid) with Sarah |
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| Josh, Matt & Sarah |
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| There were many soft blue foam balls. The kids could gather up as many as they could get into little bags to carry to the various apparatuses to put them in to shoot. Sarah was shooting this ball to try and hit near Megan and I. |
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| This is where her foam ball landed. I don't think the lady ever felt it. As they left, right in front of us, she shifted her purse and it fell out. |
We rode the Flooded Mine ride and the kids enjoyed it. By now, we were getting hungry so we headed to one of the sit down restaurants near the entrance. Overall the food was pretty good, but the meat was a bit dry. The kids enjoyed it though and that was what this day was all about. Our next stop was the Silver Dollar Saloon for what sounded like more of a cowboy type show. While it wasn't, we still enjoyed it. Sam was looking out over the room and threw his pacifier over the edge. It landed on an empty table below us and fortunately, we were able to get it after the show. I wonder what the people below thought when they seen it land in front of them.
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| Josh wanted Dad to join him in this picture. |
Soon we were back at our cars and each of us headed back to Brett's. Dean and I had to make one more stop at Race Brothers in Springfield to check on the magnet for Bentley. Fortunately we found exactly what we needed, plus they happened to have two bags of hardwood pellets for his new Fire Genie. I had checked places everywhere around us trying to find some before the boys gave it to him and couldn't find any. We were happy to get these today.
We got home in time to see this little princess in her new dress, holding her new tea set. Isn't she a beauty?
Sarah's birthday is July 11, and of course they will be back in New York by then, so Papa and Nana brought her birthday gift to give her while she was here.
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| New dresses! |
Brett was fixing a great dinner for us, grilled chicken and other side dishes. It was delicious and we all appreciated his hospitality this past several days while we were all here. We enjoyed this last evening with everyone before we all head out tomorrow.
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