Last Weekend Up North

Sadly, Summer is over and it's time to take the RV back to the valley.  We were able to leave the RV on our site when we left 2 weekends ago so it was very easy to get settled in last night.  And that's a good thing because it was only 39 degrees when we arrived!  We woke up this morning and everything outside is frosted.  Dennis took the boys out for a walk in the forest before I even got out of bed!  I guess I was tired. 

It's very cold in the RV.  We have the heat pump going and a small space heater.  Our propane tank shows 1/3 so we want to try to conserve so we make it through the night.  Propane heat is so much better and works well in cold temperatures.  The heat pump doesn't do so well in really cold temps.  The boys are snuggled up one in their bed and one with Dennis.  They are total desert dogs.

We are looking forward to winter camping and hitting the road in the RV. 

The picture above was taken out the door of our RV at 7:30 this morning.  Enjoy!

Independence Day Weekend

View of forest from my recliner

The dogs woke me up about 6 (they tried at 5 and I said NO WAY) and so I took them out to do their business.  It's a rather chilly morning in the forest although you get no complaints from me!  It was nice to put on a sweatshirt to take them out.  We arrived here about 5:15 yesterday after a fairly easy drive up.  I-17 was VERY busy, which is typical for the Friday of a holiday weekend but once we got on 260 and 87, we had no problems.  As we were turning onto Forest Highway 3 and arriving at our destination, a truck with flashing police lights sped up behind us and followed us into Clint's Well.  It was meeting an already waiting ambulance.  Soon after, a chopper arrived and someone (not from camp) was loaded into the helicopter and airlifted most likely to Phoenix.  It was quite an experience.  As we were setting up our site, a bunch of campers gathered near us and at first we thought we were the "entertainment" but then we realized they were watching the helicopter drama. 

It took us some time to set up as we were trying to get satellite signal.  We finally gave up and decided to get out the dish and tripod.  Believe it or not, we spent less time setting that up than we did trying to get the automatic satellite to lock in on a signal!  The best part is that, despite looking ghetto with cables going into the RV through our slide-out, we have 2 tuners and can watch one thing and record another.  We don't get that feature with the automatic satellite as the 2nd tuner goes into the bedroom for a 2nd receiver.

I'm sitting here in the recliner, Dennis is still in bed. Both of the dogs are sleeping in their bed.  I have the window open and am looking at the forest.  I can hear the squeal of hummingbirds as they swirl around us.  It's so peaceful and beautiful up here.  There's a chance we may get thunderstorms today and tomorrow but we really don't care.  There's nothing like a forest thunderstorm to cool things of even more, and add to the relaxation of the Glamping experience.

Please have a safe and festive Independence Day weekend.  Remember the freedoms that we all have and the freedoms that some of us are still fighting to get.  Enjoy the weekend!

Independence Day is upon us

Summer is flying by!  It's nearly July and we haven't even been in the pool yet.  Crazy, I know.  We are looking forward to a 3-day weekend in the pines this weekend.  We leave Friday after work in the Jeep to head up to Sunrise Resorts at Clint's Well for the long weekend.  It'll just be us and the boys, so we are looking forward to some fresh mountain air, some rest and relaxation and perhaps a little Jeeping. 

I'm happy to share that I had my first post-40 colonoscopy on Friday and my results were normal.  No polyps.  Everything looked great.  I'm very happy about that!  I'm waiting on my insurance company to agree to pay for the genetic testing that I'm having done to pre-screen for Lynch Syndrome.  I'm hoping for favorable results from that testing as well!  I'm very thankful for our friends Lisa and Marilyn who were my transportation to and from the colonoscopy which allowed Dennis to take the training class he signed up for weeks prior to me scheduling my colonoscopy. 

We've been having some challenges with Drama scratching his neck open until it bleeds.  We've had him to the vet twice for it in the last few weeks.  He went back today for a follow up visit and our biggest challenge is to keep him from scratching his neck.  We also have to keep his nails trimmed so that they don't do so much damage when he does scratch.  He's such a drama queen when he's injured.  I think he loves all of the attention he gets when he does it.  Poor baby.  We've had to keep them in the crate during the day because he wears the 'cone' and he can't get out the doggy door with the cone on.  So, we just crate them.  We don't like having to do that, but it's what is best for him.  A picture of the boys - with Drama in his pretty blue cone - is attached.

I hope everyone has a safe and enjoyable Independence Day weekend.  Enjoy!

Is it the middle of May already?

Wow, it's hard to believe that today is May 16th.  This year is going by so quickly.  Before we know it, Christmas will be here.

George and Geraldo came from Ohio to visit this past week.  We enjoyed their visit.  They left yesterday morning to go home.  We've spent the last day and a half recovering from all of the drinking we did Thursday and Friday evenings! 

We have a busy summer ahead of us - at least for the next few weeks!  I am travling to San Jose on business this week leaving Tuesday and coming home Thursday.  Dennis is going to get the RV ready so that we can hit the road Friday after work.  We are heading up to Sharp's Creek, which is on the Mogollon Rim between Payson and Show Low.  We are camping with a bunch of friends.  It'll be fun, as it's supposed to hit 100 this weekend in the valley!

For Memorial Day weekend, we're heading to Mingus Mountain.  We are leaving Thursday after work and staying until Tuesday morning.  It'll be a nice long weekend.  It'll be dry camping, but it'll be fun.  We should have great weather up there! 

For the weekend after Memorial Day, we're taking the motor home down to Tempe to camp out in front of Jeremy & Brandon's house to do more training on the laundromat.  Then, the 2nd weekend in June we are heading up to Flagstaff for a 3 day weekend staying at the KOA.  On our way home from Flagstaff, we will likely take the motor home to Clint's Well and leave it for the rest of the summer. 

We hope to escape the heat as many weekends as possible this summer.  We hope everyone enjoys your summer, too!  Take care! 

Weekend with the girls

This past weekend, I went up to the motor home with Lisa and Lyn.  We hung out, relaxed, had some great food and beverage, and went on an amazing buggy ride.  We went to Blue Ridge Reservoir and Blue Ridge Dam, just a little ways from Clint's Well.  We had to travel about 4 miles on the highway, but there was absolutely no traffic on Saturday!  The Reservoir is about 4.5 miles off of Hwy 87 on Forest Road 751, and the Dam is another 2 miles past the reservoir.  The views were amazing.  I was also awe struck at how close you can get to the actual dam and see on the other side of it.  It's a great place to go for a day-trip from Phoenix, or for the weekend if you want to tent camp in the area. There's also a public RV park, Happy Jack Lodge, just 4 miles away from Clint's Well and it's open year-round.

It was a little chilly up there since it is October, but it was so nice and relaxing.  Dennis and I are going up with a bunch of friends this weekend, and we're bringing our motor home back to Phoenix, since Clint's Well is closing next week for the season.  It's been a great summer, and we are looking forward to winter camping!

Our big trips coming up include Roosevelt Lake in mid-November and Temecula, California for Thanksgiving.  We are looking forward to hitting the road with the motor home!!

I hope everyone has a great rest of the week!  Please visit my Examiner.com page (link to the left) for the full story on Blue Ridge Reservoir and Blue Ridge Dam.  Thanks!

Picture:  Blue Ridge Reservoir

Post Op Update

It's Thursday morning and I'm awake. Barely. Vicodin kicked my butt this morning when I took it at 5:30. It is helping with the pain, though.

My knee surgery went well yesterday. They took me back about 9 and I woke up at 10:55. They immediately got me up and kicked me out. Dennis pulled the car around and we went to Walgreen's to drop off my prescription. He then took me to Arby's for brunch. After picking up the medicine, we went home. It's the funniest thing, the boys HATE crutches! The instant I start using them, they both start barking like maniacs. I tried to use the cane instead, with similar results. It's curious what must have happened to them before we adopted them to make them bark insanely at crutches or a cane!

I slept in the bed last night, and the boys were pretty good. I was up a couple of times to go to the bathroom and refresh my medication. Both times, they protectively followed me to the bathroom to make sure I was alright. They were nice enough to wake me up at the usual 5:30. Dennis let them out and I immediately sat down and fell asleep after taking the Vicodin. That brings us to now. Thank you all for your well wishes, thoughts and prayers.

Dennis' birthday was last weekend on 8/14. We went camping at Clint's Well with 10 friends in their RVs. We arrived Thursday to enjoy a 3 day weekend. It was FANTASTIC! The weather was great, the company was awesome and the Karaoke.....well, it was fun, too! So much great food, good liquor and fun times. It was amazing!

This weekend is recovery time so that I can get back to the office on Monday. It's also the 1 year anniversary of us adopting Drama and Brother Boy, formerly known as Bubba. They are such loyal and loving companions!! Thanks again for the well wishes for recovery. Have a great week and weekend!!

Pictures: doggies on the back of the sofa; Forest Road 751 near Blue Ridge Reservoir.

Check out my updated Picasa Album from our buggy ride on 8/15/09!!

Hump Day Update

It's Wednesday already. Wow, this week is flying!

We had a fantastic weekend camping. We left home about 3 with Dennis driving the motor home (got it fixed Friday morning - YEAH!) and me and the boys in the car driving behind. We got to Clint's Well a little after 5, after stopping at Mustang to fill up with gas. The weather was glorious! It was 77 when we arrived. We grilled and watched some TV. It got a little chilly overnight, the boys were snuggled into the covers by morning! Saturday after getting up the 2nd time (first time at 5:00 at the request of the boys), I made us some eggs and Dennis made coffee. We went for a buggy ride. It was so calm and quiet in the forest. Dennis went hunting for geodes. He found a few cool ones. When we got back to camp, we gave the boys a rinse in the shower, and I took a shower.

Saturday afternoon, we spent a great deal of time outside on the "patio" enjoying the weather. It was so nice - about 83 degrees. We had perfect shade from the forest, then our awning until sunset. We grilled for dinner, then watched a movie. By the time the movie was over (Step Brothers), it was almost time to go to bed. It was a VERY relaxing day! Sunday, we got packed up and put the buggy and motor home in storage. We left camp a little after 11 and got home just before 1. What a great weekend!

Sunday after we got home from camping, I went bowling with a Wells Fargo group. Only one person showed up. Fortunately, he brought 2 friends so the 4 of us had a great time bowling. It was great to meet some new friends.

Monday was fairly uneventful, except that I got all the way to work and realized I had left my laptop at home. I stopped in my bosses office to let her know I had to go home to get it. We started talking about things going on, and an hour later, I finally went home to get my laptop!

Tuesday I got new tires put on my car. Now I need to go to Honda to get them to do an alignment on my car. It was their car's fault that the tires went bad so quickly (less than 20,000 miles). They fixed the problem that wrecked the tires but wouldn't replace the tires. Now they need to give me a free alignment so that the steering wheel isn't 5 degrees left of center. Drives me nuts!

Wednesday Dennis and I carpooled, so we got to the office at 6:40. I had computer problems, and didn't get logged in until 7:15. So much for getting in early! It was a productive day, and we left about 4. We had a scrumptious dinner, then watched some MMA on VS, I farmed on Farm Town, and we'll be heading to bed shortly. Tomorrow, we're carpooling again. Friday, we'll see!

Pictures of our camp site.

June update

It's Saturday morning, bright and early. June has been a busy month. The first weekend of June, we stayed home and worked around the house and yard. The week of the 8th, I traveled to Charlotte, NC on business. I'm part of the Coast-to-Coast integration team and our in-person meeting this time was in Charlotte. The weather was great - mid-80's but the worst part was the humidity. 75% humidity was horrible! It was a great meeting, and I managed to have a little fun while there.

Five minutes after getting home from the airport that Thursday, I jumped in the car that Dennis had loaded up and we headed to the mountains. Thursday night, we stayed at Clint's Well. It was beautiful there. The temperature was in the 30's Friday morning when we took the boys out. About 10, we pulled out, hitched up the car dolly and car and headed NW to Flagstaff. We camped at the KOA with Rainbow RV and had a great time. The weather was beautiful, it's a great park, and we had a very relaxing time. It was quite windy but we staked down the Easy-Up and sat outside most of Saturday, enjoying the weather. Our site became somewhat of a gathering place for the people we know best from RRV. It was great.

We didn't even make it to the Pride Festival. Saturday morning, we met our friends from Munds Park at CostPlus WorldMarket and did some wine shopping. After we dropped the juice off at the RV, we then took the boys and headed to Camping World to buy some new chairs. We got some very nice lounge chairs and also stumbled on some very comfortable and light-weight chairs for our guests to use. It was time to replace our old lounge chairs and the old-school "Coleman" camping chairs we've been toting around for years. It was a productive shopping trip!

Sunday we headed back to Phoenix because we wanted to get the car dolly back home. We're planning to go to Mingus Mountain on 4th of July weekend and we want to take the Polaris up there. Next weekend we're hoping to retrieve it from Clint's Well.

Monday morning, Brother Boy woke me up at 4:30, pacing on the bed. He then jumped off the bed, so I got up and let him outside. He promptly went out and threw up. Poor thing was obviously having stomach pains - probably over something he ate that he shouldn't have. He came back inside, then got up again and needed to go out. He threw up again. When we came in the 2nd time, he sat on my lap in the recliner for about 30 minutes, sleeping soundly. He seemed to be better after that. I got showered and dressed, but when we were getting ready to leave, Dennis suggested that I stay home with him - so I did. He was pretty lethargic all day but did have an emergency poo-poo around noon which he finished the worst of outside. After that, he slowly got back his happy personality.

Tuesday I worked at home because we had our new recliners and fridge and dishwasher delivered. We got stainless steel to replace our 10 year old fridge and our recalled dishwasher. They look great! We also rearranged the family room to fit the recliners and took out the old recliner. The new ones have massagers in the back and seat and also have a full-chaise which the doggies LOVE. It's nice that we can both sit in front of the TV instead of me having to sit to the side of it. Tuesday night, I put the old fridge (which still worked) on Craigslist. I got about 10 calls/e-mails about it - I think I priced it too low - and Wednesday we sold it for $150. That along with the $150 back from GE on the recalled dishwasher, and the dishwasher ended up being about $100. Not bad!

Friday, I participated in the Junior Achievement Hula Bowl for Wells Fargo. I raised $120, most of which I donated, and had a really great time. Dennis stayed home and hung out with the dogs.

Today, we are hoping to power-wash the back patio and pool, wash the cars and get the new bed frame put together. It's going to be hot today. June has been the coolest June on record since 1913. We haven't had many days over 100 degrees. It's been great! I'm sure it's coming, though! We had a dust storm last night while I was driving to the Hula Bowl. No rain to speak of hopefully that's coming too.

We hope everyone has a great weekend. We'll blog more when we have time. The picture above was taken in the motor home at the KOA in Flagstaff. Aren't they all cute??

Sunday again

What a great weekend! We left Friday after work to head up to Clint's Well again. Our motor home has been parked in the same spot all month. It was still daylight when we arrived. We took leftover chicken from the night before, and dinner was easy! We relaxed, I fell asleep and woke up about 10:30, just in time to go to bed!!

Saturday was a sunny morning. It was gorgeous. We changed the tire on the buggy (took off the spare, put the tire we got from Ron on) and went for a buggy ride! We took the boys and went on both some old and new trails. We tooled around the forest, running into some ATV riders and other UTV riders. We stopped at one point and let the dogs walk around while Dennis scoped for rocks and treasure. It was very pleasant and awesome to be in the middle of the forest! We continued on and ran right smack into a nice storm. We got rained on and hailed on. It was some big hail - M&M Peanut sized. We stopped and put on our ponchos and covered the boys up with the towel they were sitting on and waited for the worst to pass. Once it did, we headed back to camp.

When we got back, Dan (the manager) reminded us that there was a lunch at 1 - burgers & brats, mac salad, beans, watermelon and cream puffs - all for $6 each. So we decided to head down and have a bite to eat. It was good! After lunch, we got back on the buggy and went out in search of some "geodes" that Dan said were in the area. After going down a very treacherous rocky hill, we came upon a clearing that had lots of gorgeous rocks. Dennis found several geodes - whole and partial. He was in heaven! The boys and I hung out by the Polaris, enjoying the outdoors. This is where I snapped the above picture. I could spend all day in the forest. It's so peaceful and serene. We eventually decided to head back and found our way back to the main road. As we approached camp, it began to rain (again). That was it. It was official. Saturday night was going to be a curl up on the couch watching movies night.

We watched Wall-E and baked some chicken. It was a relaxing night. Dennis made us a frozen strawberry margarita - the best he's ever made! It had fresh strawberries and fresh bananas in it. Delicious!

Today we had to pack the motor home up and move it off our site into storage. We got everything situated and headed for home about 10:45. We made it home about 12:30. The boys had a grooming appointment at 1:30 and while they were getting their hair done, we had some lunch at Dickie's BBQ pit. It was good! Then we went to Walmart and got some stuff that we needed. By the time we got back to the groomers, the boys were almost done, so we waited.

The rest of our day has been relaxation. I spent some time in the pool and scraped the calcium off the tile. It looks so much better! I've done some farming on Farm Town (Facebook) and now we're watching TV. We hope everyone has a great week.

Memorial Day

We had a great Memorial Day weekend. We left Friday after work. Our friends Jim and Greg went to Clint's Well as well as Brandon and Jeremy. Jim and Greg weren't towing a vehicle, so we asked them to tow our Polaris and trailer, which they graciously did. It was great to finally get it up there! It rained most of the way up there, and rained all night Friday. When we arrived at camp, we noticed that a truck and travel trailer were stuck in the mud in the meadow across from the camp sites. Genius!

Saturday we went for a Buggy ride and the other guys came in Brandon and Jeremy's Jeep Wrangler Rubicon. It's lifted and ready for off-road. They had fun in the mud just like us! We only had one spot that was scary and they were at risk of sliding off a hill into a watering hole. Fortunately, Brandon's expert driving got them through without drowning the Jeep!

It started raining again Saturday afternoon and rained all night. Sunday it was clear when we woke up, and was gorgeous all day. We took a buggy and Jeep ride and the trails were surprisingly dry - except for the occasional mud hole. I took the picture above of Dennis and the puppies overlooking a cliff into a canyon. It was so cool. The boys enjoyed the ride, since they didn't get to go Saturday.

Sunday night we had a nice dinner to celebrate my birthday. Greg and Jeremy had made cupcakes earlier in the day and lit candles and sang Happy Birthday to me. It was awesome. After dinner, Jim and Greg went home and Jeremy and Brandon came over and we played Sequence Dice. It was fun.

It was beautiful today when we got up. In the spirit of "planning your next meal while having the current one" we decided at dinner last night that we would have pancakes for breakfast this morning. Jim and Greg made pancakes and sausage/bacon. We also had some fruit. It was delightful to sit outside around the table having breakfast. It was great until the storm clouds opened up and dropped rain on us. We cleaned up quickly and went back to our own motor homes.

It was a nice drive home. We didn't encounter any traffic until Pioneer Rd, which is between Anthem and Carefree Highway. Traffic was stop and go all the way to Dixileta, where there was a 3 car pile up in the left lane. We had to pull over twice for emergency vehicles to get through. We saw one lady on the ground on a board and several other adults and children standing on near the cars. It was probably one stupid driver who messed up the last 10 miles of our trip home! The rest of our day was spent relaxing. The dogs were exhausted from the weekend. They slept solid for about 3 hours when we got home. Poor babies!

We each took time today to remember our men and women who have and continue to fight and die for the freedoms we enjoy. Their sacrifice shall not be forgotten. We hope everyone had a wonderful Memorial Day weekend! Summer is here!!

Dennis Job Update

Happy end of week! I have an exciting update for you regarding Dennis. He accepted a job yesterday with Wells Fargo as a QA Analyst in Home Equity. He'll be monitoring recorded phone calls and providing feedback for coaching and improved quality. He starts on 5/18. Tomorrow is his last day at the temp job and he'll have a week off before starting the new job. He'll be working in my building, so we're planning to carpool. He's happy to finally have a permanent job lined up.

We are heading up to Clint's Well tomorrow after work. The weather is supposed to be glorious - 79 Friday, 43 low; 77 Saturday, 42 low; 77 Sunday. It doesn't get any better than that!

Have a great weekend. Thank you all for your love, support, and good wishes over the last 4 months since Dennis got laid off. It means a lot to both of us!!

Great weekend!

It was our first weekend in the pines for the summer. It was a great, relaxing time. We were the only ones in the park except for the workers. It was fabulous! The Manager allowed us to leave our motor home on the spot for the month to make it easier for coming back next weekend, and for Memorial Day weekend.

We have no Internet service there (Verizon) but we did have cell service (Sprint). There's an Alltel tower up there and according to Verizon, they're going to be opening it up to Verizon customers but so far, nothing. The new manager is putting in high-speed wireless Internet along with an Internet room in the cabin, so we will have access to it if we want to take the laptop to the lodge. It'll do!

The dogs loved the park - especially the elk droppings out in the grass. Gross! We contemplated letting them off the leash to run around, but I'm quite sure they would have either 1) stopped at the first pile of elk poop and got distracted or 2) ran around in it and gotten it all over themselves. So we thought better of it. There were fresh droppings in the grass this morning and on the edge of the forest so we definitely had elk at camp last night. Too bad we couldn't see them!

We hope everyone has a great week. We're looking forward to heading back to Clint's Well this weekend. Take care!

Friday morning

Good morning! Long time no post.

We've been very busy since we got back from our Easter camping weekend. We've done some work on our house and yard in preparation for summer. Dennis' sisters Joan and Sheryl were here for about 6 days. While they were here, I took them to Sedona for a day trip. They spent time in the pool and just enjoyed our weather. It was really great to spend time with them. We played lots of games, had some cocktails (imagine that) and sugared up. It was fun. They left Tuesday morning and the rest of the week has been spent getting ready to go camping.

Today after work, we're heading up to rim country to camp at Clint's Well. We're planning to leave the motor home there so that we can go back up for Memorial Day weekend. We're also planning a trip to Flagstaff in mid-June, then a dry camping weekend at Mingus Mountain for 4th of July weekend. Beyond that, not sure where we'll be but know that it will be somewhere in the cooler country!!

The dogs are doing great. They love being outside. We'll see if that continues when it gets hot. We've had an amazing Spring. It's been very pleasant while cool at night. It's awesome. We got the dogs in August so they didn't get a lot of experience with our 110+ temps. They are such cuddlers! When the ceiling fan is on, they cuddle up with one of us - or each other. It's so cute.

We hope everyone has a great Friday and an awesome weekend! My immediate family is heading to Louisville for Derby Weekend. They're going to have a great time. Blog more later!