Sweet, sweet Duchess!

 

Our wee Scottie lass, Duchess, has not been herself lately. This has been going on about ten days before I called the vet. She started drinking at least a gallon of water a day (or wanted to) and that is not good for such a small dog. There are several health issues that can cause that and none of them are good.

We took her to the vet this week. I had taken in a urine sample and turns out our little gal is diabetic. Her blood sugar was 346, supposed to be same as humans, 80-120. And she spilled over 1000 units in her pee. So there is no doubt that she is diabetic. That's the cause of her excessive thirst. So he put her on 3 units of insulin to begin with. We have to give her a shot morning and evening. We take her back on Monday for a fasting blood sugar and he will decided if we need more testing. It sometimes takes a bit to get them regulated, but once we get the right dose, it will pretty much stay the same.

So while it wasn't the best news, it was not a death sentence. This is something that can be managed. I just hope we can get it under control quickly so she can get to feeling better. She already is back to drinking normally, so that's a start!

Till next time. . .

Dale

Merry Christmas!

We had Mom over after we had unwrapped our presents and we all had breakfast. I had made an egg casserole the night before, so I just had to pop it into the microwave. It was really good.

We exchanged gifts with Mom. I got her a lightweight step ladder she can use to access her cupboards. She is always dragging a chair over and I don't want her falling, so I got her a ladder like mine.

Our dinner at the hall was delayed till 1:30 because of it being Sunday. So after church, all the tables and chairs had to be set up and the people working on the food preparation had to have time to get ready for the big crowd.

We did enjoy our dinner and visited with some friends before coming back home. None of us did much else the rest of the day!

We hope your Christmas involved family and fellowship with your loved ones.

Till next time. . .

Dale

It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas!

Mom and took the golf cart one warm evening and checked out the Christmas decorations in several parks. We went to Sleepy Valley, Dream Valley, Pleasant Valley and our park Restful Valley.

Till next time. . . 

Dale

Life in the slow lane. . .

Winters in south Texas are just that. . . life in the slow lane. While there are many things to do to keep you busy, you can do them when you want and at your own speed. Kind of like my blog. . . . LOL Bet you didn't see that one coming!

We cleaned when we got here and spent time visiting with friends we hadn't seen in a year. We decided to sign up for Thanksgiving dinner at the hall. That way we could have a great meal, see everyone who is back and wouldn't have a big mess to clean up. The dinner was excellent and we enjoyed spending the day with friends.

We have had really nice weather up to Thanksgiving and the week after. Then we had a cold spell and it got wet as well. We actually had some thunder which is unusual down here. The weather just jumps back and forth between cool/cold and warm/hot.

 Shortly after Thanksgiving, mom and I got our Christmas trees up. I have a new white one because the white one I had before turned all
brown. Yuck. It must be from the heat. I could have kept it and put it outside. Lit up at night you wouldn't be able to see the brown on it. But I like my new one. It's prelit which makes it really easy. I just had to put it together. It has three parts that fit into one another and then I put the ornaments on it. Easy peasy. I did put most of my other decorations up. I like manger scenes, so I found a place for all of those.  Mom's little tree goes in the corner and still looks very nice and festive.

I managed to get some sewing done before Christmas. A couple years ago I made bags for everybody except myself. I really struggled to find the fabric I wanted, but when I saw the black/white Scottie fabric, I knew I had found it. I had all the pieces cut out, so I finally was able to put it together. It turned out well and now I have my own. I have fabric cut for 3 or 4 more, so I hope to get those done while we are here this winter.

I also made a new wreath. It really is a "fall" themed wreath. I added a bit of tinsel which made it more Christmasy, but I intended it to be more for Thanksgiving. But since I have no more storage space, it will probably remain on the wall year round. LOL

Mom and I hope to take the golf cart and look at Christmas decorations at some of the parks around. Pictures will follow!

Till next time. . .

Dale 

Moving right along

Once we left the Intracoastal Park, we drove on to Houston and stopped at Advanced RV Park in Pearland. We arrived on Tuesday and went to visit my cousin Jim.

Jim continues to recover from a cardiac event from a few years ago. He has started Scuba diving again and is looking forward to a trip to Cozumel in March to dive in open water. Good luck Jim. Hope that all goes well for you.

On Wednesday, we had a doctor's appointment for Terry with a new cardiologist in Houston. In the past four years, all his doctors/specialists have either retired or resigned, going into other lines of work. A really sad thing to have happen as a result of changes in the health care system. So he has all new doctors. None have known him  before and we struggle to make sure they know what is going on with Terry. But he had a good report and we are good for another six months.

Wednesday evening we headed out to Hobby Airport to wait on Mom's plane. Her plane was almost a half hour early in arriving, so we wanted to make sure we allowed enough time. I was able to get an NPE (non-passenger escort) pass, go through security and meet Mom at the gate. My niece Kellie flew down with her and saw to it that she had good help. Mom was surprised to see me there, and we all got a ride on a cart by one of the airport stewards and we got to baggage where Terry was waiting. Kellie had left us earlier because she had another flight to Las Vegas to catch.

We got Mom's luggage and walked to the car which wasn't far away and off we went. I had made some homemade soup that was waiting for us when we got back and we had a late supper, then off to bed.

The next morning we got up early and drove 300 miles to Edinburg, Texas. It's only 40 more miles to the park, but that would have meant setting up in the dark and I did not want to do that. So we spent the night and Friday we drove on in.

We got to the park in Mission at about 10 a.m. on Friday and worked the rest of the day to get things opened up and all systems running. We got Mom's water and electric and gas all turned on and she was happy to piddle around in her trailer. We carried over her luggage and the few things we had brought with us and she spent time getting things in order.

Saturday morning we left around 8 a.m. and went to Walmart to shop for groceries. Mom wanted to get stocked up on things so she wouldn't have to go for a while. We got a few staples as well.

The biggest challenge for Terry was the golf cart. A battery post had literally been dissolved on one battery. He had never seen that happen nor had anyone else. For 8 years he has gotten it ready to store and nothing like that has ever happened. So he thought it might require all new batteries, because replacing just one will lead to the others failing. But the batteries seemed to be fairly good. Terry got on the internet and found a YouTube video which showed how to "fix" the missing battery post. I took him out yesterday to get what he needed. He came home, performed the fix, and she ran! Best part was that it cost $4 vs $500 for all new batteries! Whoo hoo! O Happy Day! So we put it on charge all day and night and it's fully charged this morning! Hope it all holds. Mom has her wheels back and I am grateful for that.

We continue to whittle down our list of stuff that needs to be done. The Texas Room is in good shape and we are busy getting stuff out for the Thanksgiving season.

All is well here! Mom is happy in her trailer and we are doing well. Duchess has had many walks already. She is always willing to go. She remembers familiar things around here and she is certainly happy that Mom's trailer is occupied again!

Till next time. . .

Dale

Barge Watch!

It rained most of the night and into the morning. We were spending two nights here, so we relaxed and didn't do much except watch the barge traffic.

We are here at a county park at the Ellender Bridge on the Intracoastal Waterway. It is fun to watch the boats go by. We have a lot of barges traveling through this canal, both east bound and west bound. Occasionally you see one sitting back along the side waiting its turn to get through the bridge. In addition to the barges, we have seen shrimp boats and yachts as well as small fishing boats. There are two boat launch ramps in this park for anyone who wants to offload their boat.

The waterway is 1050 miles long and runs from Carrabelle, Florida, to Brownsville, Texas. It is an impressive structure and uses some natural waterways in the course of those miles. The canal is 12 feet deep.

This afternoon we left and went into Lake Charles to the Golden Nugget casino. I'm happy to report I did well. I won enough to cover Terry's losses and my losses from a couple days ago. Whoo hoo! And once I did that, I quit. We had played for about an hour and a half, which was quite fun.

Tomorrow we are headed to Houston where we will stay at Advanced RV Park. And on Wednesday we will be picking up Mom at the airport in the evening.

Till the next time. . .

Dale

Cajun Riviera!

We left the camp near Amite, Louisiana, in the morning and planned a stop at a rest area along I-10, but it was gone. So many rest areas have been taken out and GPS's and maps don't have the information yet. So we continued on.

We had a couple spots to stop for the night near Lake Charles, but first we had to cross that high bridge at Lake Charles! The first camp was a motel/RV park which gets really good reviews and we did go by it. It looked like a very nice park and we thought if the other spot didn't pan out, we would come back to that one. We got on down near Sulpur, Louisiana, and crossed over the lift bridge that spans camp the Intracoastal Waterway. We could see the camp on the far side of the canal, but we had to drive on around the curve to come back into it. It is a very nice county park with water and 50A electric for $12 a night. Whoo hoo! Terry's kind of park. There is a bathhouse, but it's not as nice as ours! We are parked right on the canal with steps that lead down to the water.

We can see all kinds of barges, boats, yachts, fishing boats, etc., going under the bridge. It only has to lift the deck when something extra high goes through, so most of the time, it stays down. It's pretty cool.

Yesterday afternoon Terry wanted to go down to Cameron, Louisiana, because he read really good reviews about a restaurant there. I looked up the venue and found it was basically a burger joint and all the fish/seafood was fried, which I don't care for. But we decided to go have a look. What a ride!

It was a bit reminiscent of the drive down to Cousin Gary's place at Leeville, except it was even more desolate and less populated. Water on both sides and marshy grasses. Most of the way was a nice two-lane highway with pull offs and parking areas for you to fish the bayous and canals. And there were a lot of people fishing. There were warning signs for alligators. . . no thank you! We passed through Hackberry, which was the last "town" we really saw that had a grocery/post office, before we got to Cameron.

We first came to Holly Beach, which is known as "The Cajun Riviera." We have heard of this before and were always curious about it. It is one fine beach. You can drive and camp on the beach. There are no high rises, but there are houses on stilts and lots of RV's. One person had rentals at one time and they got blown away by one hurricane, then another finished them off. So now he has some FEMA trailers in there and rents them out to tourists. He said he can't get insurance on any structures there anymore, so he went cheaper. All the roads are still there from before the hurricanes. From my research, the first hurricane to hit the populated beach was Hurricane Audrey in 1957. Next was Hurricane Rita in 2005, and then Hurricanes Gustav and Ike in 2008. Still there are about 300 people who live on this stretch of the Cajun Riviera. It really is an unspoiled bit of paradise where one could sit on the beach enjoying the sand and the winds off the Gulf. There appear to be many RV's on lots, some are rentals, but some may be owner occupied.

We decided to continue on to Cameron, even though we discovered we had to cross over an inlet by ferry! We couldn't remember the last time we were on a ferry! Perhaps the Yukon Territory? But we made it across, watching the dolphins play in the water. One was pushing straight up in the water, then he eventually made two leaps/flips completely out of the water! How cool. He was too quick for me to get pictures, but it was a thrill. We continued on to Cameron and found the "restaurant" Terry had wanted to eat at. We passed. . . I didn't want fried food and there were more restaurants on our GPS. . . . Yeah, we fell for that one. We continued the "14" miles which turned more into 35. The Harborside Seafood Restaurant was supposed to be in a small community on "Big Lake" but when we got there, we found only houses and no restaur

ant. Bummer. We were really hungry by now. We had decided to drive on up the east side of Calcasieu Lake (we are camped on the west side). . . how far could that be? Plenty far we found out. It was a LOOOOOOONNNNNNGGGGG drive and it got dark on us. It was even more desolate than the east side, but we still enjoyed the adventure. Once we got into civilization, we found a Taco Bell and ate a couple tacos before gassing up and making our way back to our camp. It was a FOUR HOUR ADVENTURE, kind of like what the "Minnow" took that fateful day. Ours had a much better ending, and Duchess was waiting on her supper when we got back. She opted to eat first, then go out. . . LOL.

Today we have our window shades pulled back so we can see the activity heading under the bridge. It's raining, as it did for the entire night, but it is supposed to stop later this morning, so it should be an enjoyable day. May head up to a casino later.

Till next time. . .

Dale

Family time!

We moved on from Buccaneer State Park in Waveland, Mississippi, to the Natalbany Campground in Amite, Louisiana. We are here to visit cousin Gary and wife Jo. Normally we stay at their house, parking in the back yard. That wasn't possible this trip because three months ago, about August 20, this entire area in Louisiana was hit with over 30 inches of rain in a very short period. It was an "unnamed" tropical storm and it wreaked havoc on the entire lower part of the state. Gary and Jo woke up to three feet of water in their yard. Jo's office where she works on advertising specialties was full of river water. The house is built up off the ground on pylons three feet tall, so they were fortunate that they had no water in their house. The water lasted 36 hours and then receded. In addition to Jo's shop being inundated, their outbuildings and barns had nearly three feet of water in them and much of the equipment and tools stored there are probably ruined. Their Prevost bus in the backyard had water in the storage bays, but none in the coach itself, but the generator was flooded and it does not work. They worked tirelessly to get Jo's shop cleaned up and three weeks later she was able to get back in and work.

Today we toured some of the hardest hit areas around Denham Springs which Gary said left 55,000 residents with significant flood damage or homes totally destroyed by the water. Driving down through the streets of town, we saw piles of debris piled up on the sides of the road. In some subdivisions, only one lane was passable due to the debris. Gary said these were not the first loads set out by the road. People would haul ruined goods out, then when they started working on their homes, they would put out ruined dry wall and insulation, etc. So many of the debris piles were the 3rd and 4th piles of debris set out for the trash company to pick up. It was heartbreaking to see this. The Wal-Mart there was flooded and is still not open. . . three months later. Many businesses were closed and not likely to re-open. So much debris.

We visited a friend of Jo's and her husband. Gary and Jo's travel trailer sits in the back yard of their once flooded home where they have been living. When they first had to leave, they went to a shelter. They were moved to three different shelters. When Gary and Jo learned of this they took their trailer over and set it up for them. All their possession they were able to keep are on their covered patio. They were one of the lucky ones. They had flood insurance and insurance on contents, but it still hasn't been easy. They still have not gotten a settlement but are expecting one. While we were there, the gentlemen thanked Gary and Jo for their help and generosity in loaning them their trailer. He said one man told him he and his son had to move in with his sister and brother-in-law who is charging them $900 a month to live with them. And all he provides them for food is hot dogs and bologne while his family sits at the same table and eats steak in front of them. Gary told him they can keep the trailer as long as they need it, even if it's a year. This couple was very grateful for the kindness shown them.

Gary and Jo had barely cleaned up their place from the flood when they were in a terrible auto accident on I-12. I reported about this in an earlier blog Winding down, , ,, so I won't repeat it here. But they are recovering. Gary is able to drive, although his arm is still in a cast. Jo is still in a wheelchair because a broken bone in her leg needs to heal before it can bear weight. They seem to be doing well and are able to get around. Jo also has a motorized cart with which she can go out in the yard.

It was great to see them considering all their recent trials. We are glad they are recovering well and looking forward to the days ahead.

Till next time. . .

Dale

Unfinished business

 We saw a flock of birds in the morning that were circling around above us. The were soaring and it seemed odd they would be doing that. A closer look revealed they were pelicans. They soared in circles for several minutes before moving on.

We had paperwork we needed to finish on the Flex. Our mail forwarding service helps us get our vehicles registered and I had a phone appointment with "Karen" to get that accomplished. She called right on time and we filled out the paperwork. Next up was finding a bank or a credit union where I could take money from my account in order to purchase a cashier's check. We have been surrounded by Wells Fargo banks coming across Florida and Alabama, but now that we're in Mississippi, they cannot be found. And we needed a credit union service center if there were no banks and there wasn't one of those either. So once I got everything ready to mail, we drove back east to Gulfport to a Wells Fargo, got our cashier's check, then went next door to the post office and mailed off the paperwork to South Dakota. Our stickers for the plate transfer should be to us within the week.

Getting back to Gulfport, we took the road along the beach, not sure what it's called. . .perhaps the Beach Highway. I took a lot of pictures. The water was so calm and the sky really bright blue. The sun was shining. . . oh my. . . I could live here, except during hurricanes! We stopped at Bay St. Louis and took pictures of the harbor and the Angel Tree, where some residents and one dog, a Scottish Terrier, took refuge from Hurricane Katrina and survived! It wasn't on the waterfront then. We crossed the bridge at Pass Christian and before long we were in Gulfport. It was a beautiful drive.

Till next time. . .

Dale

And on we roll. . .

I hate the process of buying anything big, and that includes cars. This particular deal was stressful just because the toad we  had was failing fast and we needed to make a decision and make it fast. And not only that, but it had to be something that could be towed behind the motorhome, the right weight, able to carry what we had, etc. We really wanted to buy another small truck, but none fit the bill. So we started looking at cars. The one main criteria was that we had to be able to put the spare motorhome tire in the back. It is 39 inches and very few cars have that kind of space.

But we found it in a Ford Flex. The one we found was even the right color. There are a few things it is lacking, but we actually can add those items on, so we are good to go. We didn't want brand new because it's going to be towed behind the motorhome and get dirt and rocks thrown at it, so we were lucky finding a 2014.

Today was the day. The mechanic had installed a base plate and did the wiring, so when we left the campground, we drove to his shop so we could hook it up. Everything worked! Lights worked, auxiliary brake, etc. So we started up and headed out. We drove about 80 miles to Waveland, Mississippi, and are camped at Buccaneer State Park. We have been here before and there aren't too many people here, but it is the middle of the week.

So we are happy to report that all is working well and the toad performed well. We ran over to the casino for dinner. Buffet for $27.95, but tonight was HALF OFF! Whoo hoo! So we ate and then played some slots. Nothing was happening for me. Terry was up a bit when we left, but we had some fun.

Till next time. . .

Dale

Prayers for family. . .

This summer we learned (about the same time that Daddy died) that our daughter-in-law's father had been diagnosed with lung cancer. The stage and the fact that it had already spread did not bode well for Percy. While we are here in Mobile we received word that he had passed away.

While we were there in Melbourne, we were able to see him. He was obviously thinner, but we were surprised he took such a bad turn and died just a week later. We were all at the pumpkin patch to help Brynlee pick out her pumpkin.

Please keep Megan and her brother and mother in your prayers as they transition life without their patriarch.

R.I.P. Percy.

We are surely hoping for a better year next year. Starting in July, we lost my Dad, then my niece's dog, then our Butterscotch, then my sister's father-in-law and now my daughter-in-law's father. We've paid our dues this year, I think. Here's hoping for a better 2017.

Till next time. . .

Dale

Mobil in Mobile!

We are at a very nice campground by the name of "All About Relaxing." An odd name for a campground, but it fits. It was built by a couple who were fulltimers and set down roots here and built a campground. It is very nice, very upscale with a price to match. But they are exceptionally nice people and they have a great little campground. It's very clean and with a lot of different amenities. . . swings, hammocks, shelters nicely appointed, etc. Everything is very clean and they do keep some workcampers busy. They are in the process of retrofitting their large building for an activity center which will be nice when it's done.

We came here on the recommendation of Mike who is going to install the base plate and the wiring on the Ford Flex. We were there Friday and he ordered all the parts and said they would be in on Monday. Then on Tuesday morning, he will do it all. He said it would be done by noon.  We are staying here till the job is done, then planning on heading out Wednesday. We hope to visit with Terry's cousin Gary and wife Jo in Zachary. They are still recovering from that horrific wreck they were in on September 10. We won't be staying with them this time, but will visit for an afternoon. From there we head to Houston for Terry's cardiology appointment and to pick up Mom at the airport.

We are still in the Mobile area, but are on the east side, so when we leave here Wednesday, we shouldn't have a lot of traffic. Well, I mean it should be better since we are west of town proper.

We lounged around yesterday and today and spent some time with Duchess since we've felt like we abandoned her those hectic days when we were negotiating for that car. She's a sweetie and continues to do well now that she is all alone.

Till next time. . .

Dale

THOUSANDS SLAUGHTERED IN MASS POISONING!

Terry says that's what the newspaper in the "ant world" will read once they discover what we did to them!

When we arrived at the Meaher State Park in Spanish Fort, Alabama, we knew there was an ant problem. Hey, we've dealt with fire ants before and had poison with us. But these weren't fire ants. They were not "mound builders." So there is no place to lay down the poison. Well, we did mark the wheels on the motorhome, then pull forward so Terry could lay down grit around the tire area, then I backed into position so the tires were protected.

BUT, those little devils crawled up the electric post and the water pipe and crawled in on the electric cord. Sheesh. And let me tell you, COMET does not work. That's what everyone was using, but we found active ant trails making a path right through the stuff. We had thousands of them in the bathrooms, so I put Terro traps out for them. My goodness, they loved the stuff, but there were just too many that I couldn't stand it. I found an ant trail on the carpet in the bedroom, so I decided action was needed. We went out and looked all around. We found two trails and they were headed up the mudflap in back at the only point where it touches the ground. Then they crawled up the flap and along the top of it to the two chains attaching it to the motorhome, then into the coach. Grrrrrr. They are resourceful, I'll give them that. So we decided since we hadn't eaten yet, we would go out and grab a bit to eat and buy some spray. When we got back, we sprayed all those areas. A decrease in inside activity was already noticed from our earlier efforts and we continued sweeping them up till 11 p.m. when we went to bed. In the morning, they were all but gone.

Today we will be moving across town to another camp closer to where we are having the base plate installed on the Flex.

Till next time. . .

Dale

A new TOAD!

In "RV'er" talk, a "toad" is a vehicle you tow behind your motorhome so that once you reach your destination, you have transportation. For 10 years, we have towed our faithful 2003 Sport Trac behind the motorhome and she has not given us a bit of trouble. But when we had the final tuneup before leaving northern Indiana, our mechanic said it was time to look for another vehicle "in earnest." It seems the little truck has three timing chains and they were rattling. He said it was impossible to tell how long it would last, but if the chains broke, it's expensive to fix. . . like REAL expensive. The only way to replace them is to pull the engine. That is about a $2-3000 job. A new engine is about $5-6000. So ever since Bruce told Terry that he has been on pins and needles hoping that the truck would last. All the time, that noise the chains make is getting louder and louder and lasting longer and longer.

So once we left Brandon's, we have been scouting around the larger cities where we stop and checking out vehicles. We really wanted another small truck, but there just is not one on the market today that fits our needs. So we started looking at cars. The problem is that we carry a spare tire for the motorhome in the truck, so it has to fit in the backend of the car. What we found that fits the bill is a Ford Flex. We test drove one in Mobile and ending up buying it. We feel like they made us a fair trade on our Sport Trac and we brought it back to camp and starting putting everything in it that had been in the truck. Amazingly, it all fits. We will be making a space for the tire in the basement of the motorhome, but that won't happen till next summer.

It's a very nice car, an SUV actually, with 3rd row seating. So we can carry the grandkids now, which makes me happy. We have found a few things that we want to add to it. It isn't brand new, it's a 2014, but we didn't want new to tow behind the motorhome. It looks like new inside/out, so we are very happy with it.

Our salesman had a friend from high school who has an RV shop with his parents and he is going to put the baseplate on the Flex and wire it for lights as well. He cannot do it till Tuesday, so we are moving across town to be closer to his shop.

Till next time. . .

Dale

Fun with the Kids!

We spent the week at Brandon and Megan's and babysitting some, so the grownups could go out. We always enjoy doing this for our kids.

One day I went with Brynlee and Megan and Megan's Mom, Diane, to Orlando to the Discovery Science Center. It is a children's science museum and is probably the largest one I have been in. It was really nice and there were many activities for the kids to get involved in. There was an archeology dig that Brynlee liked, but she didn't like the dinosaur skeletons that were on display. Those scared her so she had to hide her eyes when we moved!

We also went to the pumpkin patch on our last weekend there. It was fun to see the kids picking out pumpkins. Brynlee couldn't make up her mind, but she ended up with a small white one I think.

It was a treat because her Grandpa Percy came. He has been taking chemo for cancer as hasn't felt like getting out, but he wanted to come. He told me it was an annual tradition and he couldn't miss it.  I think he enjoyed getting out and we enjoyed seeing him.

Till next time. . .

Dale