Sunday, April 5, 2020 - Morning Walk; Online Church; Pictures; American Idol & Dessert!

Sunday, April 5, 2020 - Morning Walk; Online Church; Pictures; American Idol & Dessert!

Being inside most of the time is making me lazy and I don't like it.  It was 5:30 before I got up yesterday...but after our morning coffee we did walk and it felt great to be outside.  There was practically no wind, and the temperatures were mild mid 40's.  We did have to bundle up a bit more but once we start walking the cooler weather doesn't bother us.  We decided to take a different route today, once around the park, and then around the other half of our park.  

Leaving the RV Park this morning.

Saturday evening the RV parked next to us left, and two others also left either earlier or sometime the next day.  The RV on the other side of the now empty lot is not there right now.  The owner needed a place to leave it while he cares for a family member, so we basically have no neighbors now.  The area to the north and south of us are grassy areas.  

I wish it would dry up so I could walk here in the park during the day.  It seems like just about the time things begin to dry up, and Todd does some work to the roads, it rains again.  Eventually it will dry up and we'll wish for rain - right?

Only one picture in Riverside Park this morning.

 We made one loop through the park, approx. one mile.  As we reached the south entrance we continued on to the area of our park that has a basketball area, tennis courts, Community Center, Labette County Fairgrounds, ballfields, Kamp Siesta RV Park, and then back to the road leading into the park.

The stadium on the right was originally constructed as seating for High School football.  In the late 60's they built a new field on land where the new grade school was built - just catty cornered from the entrance sign to Riverside Park.  The green roofed building is the Fair Board Office. 

The first building on the right is a restroom, used during  the fair and summer ball games.  The buildings to the left are exhibit buildings for rabbits, chickens, etc. during the fair.

These buildings are for sheep, swine, beef, etc.

This is the new horse barn.

Leading the way to Kamp Siesta RV Park

Back side of the horse stalls is an open arena for the horses.

Kamp Siesta.  There are over 40 sites here.  All sites have electric/water.  There is a dump station and restrooms on site.  

Wild redbud trees.

There is a nice pavilion with picnic tables, and some playground equipment for people parked here.  During the fair every single site is rented, typically for a full week.

Restroom and shower house.

This area links the old RV park area to the newer site.

This is the Little League ballfield, across the road from the RV Park.

The newer RV Park area.   This new section was constructed a few years ago.

This is the new Rodeo arena.

 I would imagine most communities that are involved in 4-H and County Fairs have many supporters, with folks that work hard to support these local clubs and events.  I can only speak for our leaders here.  The city has worked with the Labette County Fair Board over the years and I don't think I've ever seen such a dedicated group of people as those serving on the Fair Board.  They have worked diligently to rebuild almost every single building and to keep this fair a very bright spot in our community.  We are fortunate to have such a great group of men and women in our County.

Back in the park, just a few more pictures.  The Arts Council had a couple of metal sculptures built to add to the park.  Buffalo below:

There was an old "worn out" lookout on the park, built many, many years ago - long before my time.  Everyone loved it and people would drive to Oswego to lookout over the Neosho River Valley.  From this area you can often sea eagles, the beauty of the trees during the four seasons, the river changing from dry to flooding, watching the fishermen below, and a wide open view over the area that is often breathtaking.  A former Mayor looked into tearing out the old lookout and replacing it - then made it happen.  One of the main requirements was, it needed to be built out of local rock - to match the shelter houses and swimming pool bathhouse, and to include the same kind of rock designs.  I think the design of the lookout is wonderful.  It's been used by High School students for Senior  and Prom Pictures, Wedding Ceremonies and Pictures, Family Reunions, etc.  A tremendous landmark for our City.

Practically no wind this morning and very foggy.

Another metal structure donated by the Arts Council.  This is the Indian looking out over the valley on his horse, the city's logo.

Leaving the park.

Tennis courts in the background.

Oswego Community Center - notice the city Logo at the far left - to match the metal sculpture in the park.

 As we headed back to the RV Park, I snapped this picture of our former home.  My kids and I lived here, when Dean and I married.  All of the kids were still at home then, so this house was a blessing, with 5 bedrooms.  We added on a third bathroom and a laundry room, an open breezeway and a two car garage.  It was a great home for us.  After the kids left, we wanted to downsize, and moved to another home on the west side of Oswego.  

Our home when Dean and I married

 so we bought this house and totally remodeled it before we moved in to it three months later.  

We loved this house and the location, but we had the hitch itch and sold it to full-time.  As most of you know we've now purchased a lot here in Oswego and will eventually build a house there.  

Our grocery store - located nearly across the highway from the RV Park.

At 11 I brought up our church online service and enjoyed Jim's message.  

Afterwards, we had a simple lunch of meat, cheese and crackers, vegetables and an apple with peanut butter.  I have always bought Peter Pan peanut butter.  Dean is not a peanut butter fan.  Recently I needed more peanut butter but no PP anywhere, so I bought a jar of Reese's peanut butter.  It is really good.  Personally, I don't think the taste is that different, but it is a little smoother.  Dean on the other hand things it tastes much better than Peter Pan.  I warned him that Reese's comes in smaller containers and it costs more.  I know one thing, if he gets hooked on peanut butter on his apples I'll be buying peanut butter in bigger jars.

Dean went to the garage, and that was my cue to turn on Joanna Gaine's cooking show.  I recorded it while I was "attending" church.  I really liked it.  She will have a regular cooking show on their new Magnolia network, scheduled to debut on Oct 4, 2020.  I love cooking shows, especially The Pioneer Woman and Trisha's Southern Kitchen.  For the most part they are easy recipes that I would make.  So many good ideas.

Once Joanna was done, I opened the tub of pictures and spent the next 2-3 hours looking through all of the contents.  Oh my, I am overwhelmed.  I've decided I need to find a program that makes it easy for me to get the pictures into Google Photos.  If any of you have used a program like this, or have an EASY way to scan pictures in (several at a time), I would be interested in knowing more.  I have at least 6 of these tubs, maybe more; so this is going to be a huge project.  Granted I will not scan all of them in, but with 6 kids, and soon to be 16 grandchildren, with big families on both sides, we will have lots of pictures we willl want to keep.  

Here's a couple of photos I took a picture of to transfer to Google photos.

Dean and I on our wedding day - Feb 26, 2004 - that's my Uncle Richard behind us.

My sisters and I had this photo taken in the mid-80's. 
Back:  Cindy, Jody & Crystal
Me in front
(the reason I'd like an automatic scanner - so many pictures and it will reduce the spots on the pictures you get from lighting (windows, lights, etc.)

Dean returned around 4:30 or 5:00.  He started the grill, and I made a sausage pizza in our cast iron skillet.  One of our favorite meals.

I ran out of mozzarella cheese, so I added both cheddar and parmesan to what I had.   Delicious!  

I quickly did the dishes and cleaned up, just in time for us to set down and enjoy American Idol.  My favorite Arthur Gunn, from Nepal and now Wichita, KS made it to the top 20.  


Half way through we had dessert - another piece of our brownie pie and some ice cream.  Yum!

Saturday, April 4, 2020 - We are Wimps; Baking Day; Ready for Warmer Weather

Saturday, April 4, 2020 - We are Wimps; Baking Day; Ready for Warmer Weather

I woke up at 5:30 and was surprised it was that late.  I don't think I moved all night.  Maybe it's the cold weather, because I should not be tired - I haven't done anything.  Lol!

After I poured my first cup of coffee, I read through the blog post I finished last night.  I was tired, so I decided to wait and reread it again this morning and I'm glad I did.  

My sister Cindy and I often visit on the phone early on Sat and/or Sun mornings.  She told me she was going to the grocery store later and asked if I needed anything.   Yes, I did.  Yesterday on my grocery trip, I had forgotten we were out of honey, and to look for frozen vegetables.  Fortunately, she was able to get both items.  I am going to make the no yeast rolls again today.  Hopefully I read the recipe right this time and they do not taste like baking powder!!

The temperature was still 34 when I got up and at 7:30 it had not changed.  I asked Dean if he wanted to walk.  I opened the door to see how it felt outside.  It was enough for me to say....let's wait until tomorrow.  Dean agreed.  Yes, we are wimps!  

Instead of our normal shake, I made breakfast this morning.  We enjoy breakfast burritos, but since we didn't have any tortillas, we had the stuffing for them instead.  Well, almost.  As we were eating them, I realized I forgot to add the cheese.  They were still good, but the cheese would have made them just a bit better.  

Dean just left for the garage.  I am going to meet him down there after lunch.  We are on a mission to find the receiver that goes to our old Tailgator.  After we bought the new satellite dish, we put the old receiver in storage - but what container is it in?  If you could see all of the containers we have upstairs in the garage....well, it may take awhile to find it.  Since we plan to be here for what looks like could be a month or two, or more, I thought it would be great to connect the Tailgator to the bedroom TV.  Then one of us could watch a show in there versus only having the one satellite.  Now, the downside is not all of the channels work well on the Tailgator so we'll see who has to use it more - me or him.  Either way, it gives us options if we want them.

While we are there looking for the receiver, I will also choose a tub of pictures to bring back so I can get started sorting those.  I would love to say at the end of this quarantine time that I accomplished this project totally and completely!  It would at least make me feel better that I made good use of our time away from family and friends.  While our self-quarantine time is up, we are continuing to stay in as a precaution for us and others.  Honestly I do not like to even go to the store, but it is something we need to do occasionally.  I am thankful for those early morning hours available to Seniors.

When Dean returned from the garage, we had our typical lunch as we watched an hour of TV - today was Little House on the Prairie, before I followed him to the garage.  We had to open several tubs before we found the receiver, but find it we did!  He put a tub of pictures in the back of my car, and will bring them in for me when he returns this afternoon.  I am going to make a pie this afternoon and then mix up a batch of the easy no yeast rolls to go with our hash this evening.

After working on the blog on and off to this point, I  stopped to bake the brownie like pie for a dessert to enjoy the next few days.  

A couple of hours later I made the no yeast rolls again.  Hmmm...this time they looked like a Bisquick biscuit, but they tasted much better than the first ones did.  We ate them with a little butter and honey.  As easy as they are to make it's a great recipe if you want a little "bread" with a meal, however we do not want to get in the habit of having bread all the time.  We prefer it to be an occasional treat.

When Dean returned, I told him I would prep everything for dinner (cut up the pork roast into small bite size pieces, and I would do the same with a couple of potatoes) if he would cook the hash.  He agreed.  It's his "recipe" and his always tastes better than mine.  I had never had hash like this before, but it's something we both look forward to when we have leftover beef or pork roast.  

My plate - I like my pork n beans mixed with my hash, with ketchup (I waited to add it after the picture).

Dean prefers his separated, and had already buttered his roll and added honey.

It was so good.  There is enough left for one more serving, which Dean will have for lunch tomorrow.  He is moving around more than I am, so one serving is enough for me.  After cleaning up the kitchen and washing dishes, we watched several Love It or List It shows.  We enjoy most of the home remodeling shows, always looking for ideas for when we eventually have a sticks and bricks home again.

Our dessert was a piece of the gooey brownie pie with a scoop of ice cream.  It was good.  I'm not sure I would say over the top, but good enough I will probably make it again, especially since it was so easy to make!


Good night from Kansas!  

Friday, April 3, 2020 - Grocery Run; Taking An Afternoon Ride

Friday, April 3, 2020 - Grocery Run; Morning Walk;  First Tub of Pictures; Puzzle?; Taking An Afternoon Ride.

Dreary Day in SE Kansas and NE Oklahoma

I woke up early this morning - 4:30.  I rolled over and tried to go back to sleep but after 15 minutes I knew it wasn't going to happen.  It's fine.  This way I can enjoy my first cup of coffee before going to the store a little later.  I want to be an early bird!

I enjoyed my coffee while reading the remainder of the blogs I didn't get to read last night, since I kept nodding off.  We went to bed at 9:30 - it's rare we go before 10.  

Dean didn't get up until after 6, so as soon as he was up, I changed and headed to the store.  I was able to get everything I needed--- apples, almond milk, more hand soap to keep at the kitchen sink since we are using it so often now, four pork chops that were marked down to $5 and some odd cents, and hard salami.  We like the salami with cheese for lunch.  

When I went to the checkout I noticed they put up plexiglass between the cashiers and the customers since I was there several days ago.  I think that's a great idea - they need to be protected as much as possible.  They have disinfectant wipes at the front door.  I used one to wipe off my cart handle and then carried it with me to keep wiping my hands as I picked items up.  As soon as I got in the car I used sanitizer and then wiped each item off once I got home, threw my sack away, and washed my hands again.  Overkill?  I am just trying to be diligent in keeping both of us safe.

It was 48 when I got up this morning.  The temperature is now 40, with expected 36/37 temps overnight, but then gradually warming back up.  We will have to bundle up a bit to walk later this morning.  

I walked outside to get in the car and immediately noticed a slight mist.  When I reached the car it had evidently been raining/misting for awhile.  It must have been light or we would have heard it in Bentley.  We turned around and went back inside.  I'm glad we did that as the sky opened up just a few minutes later.  We had quite a bit of lightening followed by some big boom thunder several times throughout the morning.

We had our shakes.  I did a little straightening of things and for the most part I didn't do much of anything the rest of the morning, other than lay a pork roast out to thaw a bit before I put it in the crock pot later this morning.  It will be our dinner tonight.

Dean came back from the garage at noon, where he spent most of the morning straightening things upstairs.   I made a light lunch for us followed by our daily apple.  

It continued to rain.  I told Dean since it was raining I didn't want to get a tub of pictures today.  Once it starts raining it gets pretty muddy at the garage.  We are going to need to have rock hauled in sometime soon.  So instead, we decided to go for a ride.

It was raining when we left

 We headed east to Columbus, KS, then headed south to the Kansas/Oklahoma State Line.  Treece, KS was on the north side of the state line, with Picher, OK was on the south side of the state line.  I used was, because both cities have been abandoned as part of the Tar Creek Superfund Site due to mining issues over the years.  If you are interested, you can read more about it here.

Leaving Kansas (Treece)

Entering Oklahoma (Picher)

Picher water tower, and County Barns are about the only thing left in the former city.  Before the last homes were bought out, a tornado hit the community on May 8, 2008 and destroyed most of the remaining homes, killing 6 people.  

Dean and I had been to Arnold's Flower Shop near LeRoy Kansas that day.  We stopped to see my dad who was a patient at Labette Health in Parsons, KS on our way home.  We could see some pretty dark clouds ahead of us.  When we arrived at the hospital, my dad told us a short time earlier they had moved all the patients out of their rooms into the halls due to a tornado alert.  It was the same storm that hit Picher just a short time later.  I don't think I'll ever forget that day, as he passed away two days later.  

Chat piles in Picher

 From Picher we continued on to the southern edge of Quapaw, OK following it to Twin Bridges State Park in Oklahoma.   Pictures I took on our way:

Mama and her colt in the middle.

Driving over I-44

Do you remember the spoonbill snagging that was going on at Chetopa a week or so ago, well here is the Paddlefish (Spoonbill) Research Center, 4 miles north of Twin Bridges Park.

Paddlefish Research Center
Spoonbill = Paddlefish

A friend's brother had told us a few years ago if we took a road to the Neosho River near Twin Bridges park, we would probably see eagles.  It's a site he learned about years ago when he lived at Grand Lake. 

We drove by this house on the way to the River.  I noticed this engraved sign just to the left of the tree next to the house.  It was engraved with the 10 Commandments!  I loved it!

 We had never driven this road, and even though it was raining and we didn't expect to see eagles today, we wanted to check it out.  Well, this is where we decided to stop - see the muddy road ahead of us in the top picture below.   The sign below says "MUDEATER BEND".  I think we'll come back on a "dry" day, as it may have swallowed my little car!

Twin Bridges gets it names from two river bridges, one on each side of the park, where the two rivers join together as Grand Lake O' The Cherokees.  The two are the Neosho River that runs from the north part of Kansas through Oswego/Chetopa before moving into Oklahoma; and Spring River that comes from north Missouri through Riverton and Baxter Springs, KS and into Oklahoma.  

Neosho River above/Spring River below

I just happened to take this picture as the guy was jumping from the dock onto the boat. I'm sure glad he didn't slip!  Click to enlarge it.

From Twin Bridges we moved on to Fairland, OK.  I love their water tower.

Lots of low hanging clouds today

It was a nice ride, and good to get out of the house for awhile.  

This is the route we took today.

I put a pork loin roast in the crockpot a short time before we left.  It was perfect when we returned.  I steamed some cauliflower, made cheddar cheese potatoes, and deviled eggs to go with the roast.  I'm not sure if we were just super hungry or it really tasted as good as it seemed.  We'll use the leftover roast for hash in the next day or two.  It's one of our favorite meals.  It's now 6:45pm and it's 34 outside.  The weather should not change much between now and tomorrow morning. It is supposed to gradually warm up every day this week.  I hope it dries things out.  

My sister Crystal called and we talked for nearly an hour.  It was good to catch up with her.  I really miss not being able to get together now that we are back home.  We are so close, yet so far away!  

Good night to you all.  May God Bless each one of you!

  

Thursday, April 2, 2020 - Beautiful Morning; Another Busy Day

Thursday, April 2, 2020 - Beautiful Morning; Another Busy Day

We left for our walk in the park a little after 7 this morning.  The sky was putting on a show as we left the RV park and drove east on the highway.

As we drove into the park this morning - this was our view.

 As we made our way around the first loop,  here's the next view.

The leaves are growing fast - you can see a big difference every day now.

Our swimming pool bathhouse.

Swimming Pool

I love this little area and the tulips were just gorgeous this morning.

So beautiful!

It was a beautiful morning, and even though it was windy it was not too cold!  We are supposed to have temperatures in the 80's next week.  I'm not quite ready for weather that warm, but I'll take it over anything that is 45-50 or below.  

Back home, I made our shakes, then did the morning chores.  I already had another load of laundry to do - it accumulates way too fast.  

I took some chicken thighs and a leg out of the freezer so they could thaw for dinner tonight.  Dean will grill them, along with sweet potato fries, and deviled eggs; that we will follow with white chocolate pudding and 2 small white chocolate chip cookies for our dessert. 

I made a few calls and discovered that we can use the incorrect 1099 even though they didn't hold KS tax out for 3 months.  The online program I am using will adjust the tax rate based on our income - and sure enough that is what happened...the state tax increased.  Overall it was quite easy.  I was able to finish up everything and get our 2019 taxes filed.  Woo-hoo!  

Next I wrote a letter to the company that "thinks" we live in Texas asking them to make changes for the balance of 2020.  I explained we still reside in Kansas, and only use a mail service out of Texas so we can get our mail while we are traveling.  Mike suggested we move our residence to Texas.  We seriously thought about that when we decided to go full-time.  After giving it quite a bit of thought we decided it would be too much of a hassle to change so many things back when we are no longer full-timing, knowing we would return to Kansas.  

After filing the tax return, we had a light lunch followed by our daily apple.  I'm going to need more apples after our lunch tomorrow, so I better head over to our grocery store in the morning before the weekend arrives.  I'm starting to get low on almond milk as well, but we are in good shape otherwise.

Tyler at Robison Automotive called to let us know they have finished the repairs on the car, so we went down to get it.  I put hand sanitizer on, came home and then used Lysol on the inside of the car, and the outside doors.  Is it overkill?  I don't think so.  

It's been a busy day, and the list of things I made that I wanted to get done is quickly dwindling.  I think I'll be ready to get my first tub of pictures tomorrow so I can begin the process of sorting them.  While I'm not looking forward to it - it's not because I don't want to get it done - I'm going to have a terrible time deciding what to keep, what to give the kids, and more importantly what to get rid of.

While I'm at the garage tomorrow I'm going to look for a puzzle as well.  I think I'd like to have one here in case I need a break from pictures.  

Our dehumidifier quit us over the winter.  Once we were back in Kansas we realized we needed a new one soon.  The humidity can get pretty high here, especially when those fronts start to move in.  I ordered it over a week or so ago.  It arrived today.  Dean used sanitizer on his hands, then sprayed Lysol on the shipping box, as well as the box the dehumidifier came in.  All I had to do was plug it in and it started working.  These are great devices.

My friend Betty posted a picture of this cloudbank on Facebook, so I ran out to take this picture.  Betty and I are not too far apart - by the way the crow flies.  

With this picture I am going to bid you goodnight.  I haven't had a chance to read any blog posts today, so that's how I will spend my time the next hour or so, while we enjoy our evening snack.

Thanks for following along.  I'm so thankful to be in Oswego where we feel relatively removed from much of the world right now, and safer.  God is always with us, and I am very thankful he is!    

Wednesday, April 1, 2020 - Somewhat Busy Day

Wednesday, April 1, 2020 - Somewhat Busy Day

I went to bed early last night and slept in until 5:15.  That doesn't happen often but when it does, I guess I need that extra hour or so.

Our first quarter of the year has already passed.  April 1 - who was tricked with an April Fool's joke; or, who did the tricking?  

We walked early this morning, shortly after 7 since we need to have my car in for repairs at 8 this morning.  

Taken from our front door step.

As we drove into the park.

 We've had beautiful walking weather, and today was no different.  It was in the low 50's this morning, with only a light breeze.  We were so busy talking I'm not sure if we got exactly 2 miles in, but it was at least close.  We needed to get back home so Dean could follow me to Robison's Automotive, so they can work on my car.  I used sanitizer to clean the steering wheel, door handles inside and out, the "joystick" that serves as the gear shift, plus anything else I thought they might need to touch in the vehicle.  They hopefully will go over it too, but I just want to know I did my part.

First thing we noticed was the caution tape around the playground equipment.  Under the circumstances I believe its a wise decision.

Just a pretty shot with the pink clouds in the background.

 We had a busy day.  Dean worked on the RV.  He took the hood off our fantastic fan, cleaned it, then checked all the caulking; replacing any that looked like it was needed on the roof, then cleaned out the air conditioners with some air pressure.  Overall, everything looked pretty good.

They called about my car; it is definitely the strut.  The part will be in tomorrow so hopefully I'll be back on the road by Thursday afternoon.  Not that we really have anywhere to go, right?

I spent almost the entire morning and early afternoon working on our 2019 taxes.  I took a plunge and decided to prepare and file them myself this year.  It's wasn't that difficult, it just took time to read through and make sure I understood and did it the right way.  I was almost done, when Dean asked me about one of the companies he received funds from.  He told me they had sent two 1099 forms this year.  I didn't remember seeing two, but I went back through the papers and yes, there were two.  I wasn't sure why that would happen, so as I was comparing the two, and then compared it to the ONE we received last year, I realized what caused it.  

When we changed our mailing address from the UPS in Pittsburg, to Escapees in Texas, they quit withholding state tax from Kansas.  Since Texas has no state income tax, they sent two separate forms, one for Kansas and one for Texas, and there was no state withholding tax withheld.  That is not what was supposed to happen.  We do not claim Texas as our state of residence.  It is still Kansas.   

This is not the first time where a company has changed our residence from KS to TX, but we caught the others before the end of the year.  I'm not sure why this one was missed, but it was.  It is often difficult for companies to understand that just because you have a mailing address in another state, it does not mean you live in that state full-time.  We travel 5-7 months out of the year but we always return to Oswego, Kansas where we spend the most days in a year.  Even though we stress the TX address is only a mailing address several do not understand that it is different than a physical address.

I called the company to explain our situation. A nice lady who answered the phone listened, then put me on hold a couple of times.  Apparently, at this time they do not have the ability to have a physical address and a mailing address.  She said someone would contact me within 48 hours.  

I need to submit a letter explaining our mailing and physical address situation in detail, so tomorrow that will be a priority.  

We went to one of our local restaurants offering meals for pickup.   We stopped at Big Chief's drive-in for a cheeseburger casserole.  It was very good.    

We usually watch Mountain Men and Cowboy Way on Wednesday evenings.  Dean's the TV fan, and I enjoy parts of both shows. 


The sunset is still pretty but more clouds this evening, than last night.

This old building is on the adjacent property, to the south.  I'm not sure what it was used for so I a going to have ask around and see what I can find out.



Goodnight from Oswego!