The Answer is Blowing in the Wind...

Those of us who came of age in the sixties heard lots of great music.  As the saying goes: "I may be old, but I got to see all the cool bands."  Well...I didn't actually get to see them all, but I certainly heard them all and I still love the music.

Peter Yarrow, Gail and Christopher Yarrow

One of my all time favorite groups was Peter, Paul and Mary. After they started touring again (and my kids were grown) I made it a goal to see them.  Sadly, Mary died before I could make that happen. Last week, on Friday the 13th, I got to fulfill that dream...at least in part.  Peter Yarrow is still touring and came to Wilmington, NC for one performance and I was finally in the right place at the right time.

Peter invited everyone under 60 to join him on stage to sing
Puff the Magic Dragon.  No...we're not up there.

It was awesome! He did many of their old songs as well as some that are uniquely his. He was accompanied on stage by his son, Christopher and the chemistry and love between them was palpable.  The audience was encouraged to sing along...as we all knew the words...and Jack commented that there were very few heads in the audience that weren't gray. I came away with a signed CD, a signed DVD, a photo and a great memory :)


We finished our evening with a late night snack at the Front Street Brewery.  Best Friday the 13th ever!

Before and After....

When we got back to Wilmington we finally got to see Katie without her braces!

My beautiful granddaughter before and after

April 2013

March 2015

No...this is not about RV life on the road, but grandmas are allowed to brag :)

Back in Wilmington...

It's been a while since I've posted on here. I went into hermit mode while we were in Florida...spent a lot of time reading, FaceBooking, watching TV and sitting outside when the weather was nice.

We've been back in Wilmington now for two weeks, at our home base...the KOA.

We had lunch at the Oceanic...first time we've been back there since our wedding.

I've dipped my toes in the Atlantic ocean ...a bit chilly!





We went to see Katie in her school's talent show.






Mostly...we've spent lots of time visiting with Katie, Jackson, Becca and Davis :) ...and there's more to come.

A Good Christmas but Not Such Good health...

She's a monkey!

I've been lazy busy doing nothing much important things this past month and have gotten way behind on my blog posts...so I'll try to catch up.



Last I wrote, it was almost Christmas. It was a great Christmas! Family, good food and fun. We enjoyed a Christmas Eve family gathering at Davis' dad's house...I always look forward to the company and to their white chicken chili...Jack likes the red.  We had a terrific Christmas Day at Becca's. She made a great dinner and it was so good to have the day with them. It would have been a bonus if Michael could have been there too.

Things went downhill after Christmas.  Jack had started feeling bad right before Christmas and went to the doctor the day after...turned out he had bronchitis. I had a sore throat the day after Christmas and, as that eased up, I developed the worst sinus congestion I can ever remember having. It took us both at least three weeks to get over everything. I barely got to spend any time with the kids...managed to pull myself together long enough to spend one day with them and to have a good bye dinner at Becca's just before we left...but no hugging and kissing allowed. We welcomed in the New Year in PJs!

Baby sitting while Mom's at work...

It semed like we no sooner got there and it was time to head out. We felt awful but made the drive to Florida anyway and got settled in at Pensacola RV Park, where we stayed last March. We've been here three weeks now and have done little...mostly just rest and relaxation...though we made it to Sonny's BBQ!  We're finally feeling okay again, just a bit tired. Did manage to get the fifth wheel cleaned and the laundry caught up though.

Today it was a sunny 65 degrees and I had a wonderful afternoon sitting outside reading while Jack took the truck back to Van Noy Tires, where we bought tires last year, and had a leaking valve stem replaced. We'll be here in Florida until early March, then we're headed back to Wilmington for a month of some family time with Katie and Jackson...Becca and Davis too!

In early April we're going to Greensboro to visit Glen and Joanna and Ken, Matthew and Ciera. By mid April winter should be finished and we're going to West Virginia to see Michael...really looking forward to that...haven't seen him in a year and a half!

It's Beginning To Look A Lot Like Christmas...

We've been back for two weeks...the time is going so quickly! These are the Welcome Home signs Katie and Jackson made for us.

Everyone is over the flu and I've had some good visiting time with both Becca and with Katie and Jackson...and looking forward to more.


Only three days until Christmas. Tree is up and RV is decorated, Christmas cards mailed, gifts bought...they just need to be wrapped.

Our RV...all ready for Christmas...




I went to Enchanted Airlie with Becca, Davis, Katie and Jackson last weekend, it's a yearly tradition for the kids. Jack wasn't feeling well and passed on going...he missed a good time. Happily, he's feeling better now. It was a brisk, clear night and the lights were beautiful. We ended the night with dinner at Brooklyn Pizza, always a treat.


Click photos to enlarge.

Home Sweet Home...

We are back in Wilmington!  Arrived Saturday, settled into our campsite at the Wilmington KOA, our Wilmington home, and had pizza from Brooklyn Pizza that night...it sure tasted good.

Our plans for dinner with Katie, Jackson, Becca and Davis Saturday night had to be delayed...Becca and Jackson have the flu. :(  Sunday rolled around and I couldn't wait any longer.  We went over for a short visit (if you can call three hours short) and I finally got to hug Katie and Jackson!  Didn't hug my beautiful Becca...we waved from across the room, but Jackson is on the tail end of his flu, so I risked a hug or ten! They each made a cool chalkboard sign welcoming Grandma and Mr. Jack home and had them perched in the transom over the living room entry. Katie admitted she climbed up a side table and leaned waaaaaay out to place hers up there. They've both grown taller, but there're still my silly kids.

We met Pickles...their newest cat.  He looked so little in the pictures six months ago, but he sure is a big now...he's also a sweet boy. Toured the house to see what's new, got my mail and all the Christmas gifts I've recently ordered from Amazon, admired the Christmas tree and Jackson's Lego ornaments and got more hugs.  I didn't take any photos, but you know I will!

The kids didn't want me to leave (and neither did I) but we have lots more visits to look forward to.

Giving Thanks in Myrtle Beach...

Pensacola RV Park

When I last posted we were still in Texas.  We've come a long way since then! We left Beaumont ten days ago and drove and drove...all the way through Louisiana right into Mississippi...spent the night in Gulfport, MS at Campgrounds of the South and continued on through Alabama into Florida.  We stopped for a break at Pensacola RV Park where we'd stayed for five weeks late last winter.  We spent four days recuperating from the long drive before moving on.  Our luck ran out just a little...temps dropped to 27 and our water hose froze, but it thawed quickly with no problem. We were going to travel northeast, but the only possible place to stop was around Auburn, AL and, wouldn't you know, there was a home game that night! Not a single spot available, so we continued east on I-10.  Then the rains began.  We drove in the rain to Lake City and made an overnight stop at Oaks 'N' Pines RV Park.  A second rainy drive through Georgia to Walterboro, SC.  We stopped at New Green Acres RV Park last year and liked it...this year it was drowning.  Our campsite had six inch deep puddles, and it kept raining. Stayed an extra night hoping the rains would stop...they did, only to start up again as we got ready to leave the next morning.  We drove north, out of the rain and arrived in Myrtle Beach day before yesterday. Eleven hundred miles in eight days and we're exhausted...but just in time for Thanksgiving in Myrtle Beach!

Myrtle Beach

Today is Thanksgiving...our second one in the RV...and we've come full circle back to where we were last Thanksgiving...Myrtle Beach, SC. We knew we weren't going to be in Wilmington for Turkey Day and, as I was trying to figure out where we would spend the holiday, I realized we could go to Myrtle Beach. Crazy as the place is, we love Myrtle Beach...oceanfront camping, more miniature golf courses than you can count, the ocean, a pancake house in every block and, did I say ocean?  Pirateland Campground runs a special every Thanksgiving...four nights for $99...and we decided to take advantage of it, even added on an extra week.  We are five campsites back from the ocean and I can hear the sound of the surf every time I open the door or windows.  For me, being by the ocean is truly relaxing.  It's a bit crowded right now, but most everyone will be gone by Monday and we'll have the place to ourselves for the rest of the week.

Thanksgiving has always been a favorite holiday of mine...good food, family, no decorating or wrapping presents, just being thankful for what we have...and as I think about it, I have a lot to be thankful for.  I have a terrific husband and a wonderful family, as well as an awesome new family out in California.  I'm retired and reasonably healthy. I have a life that some people only dream about...traveling around the country, doing what we want, when we want.  The last year has been amazing...I've seen so many things I'd only heard about before now.  We have a comfortable place to live, all the necessities of life and a few luxuries.  Is our life perfect?  No, but if I listed the negatives it would be a pretty short list...the main one being that I can't have my family close to me on this cool journey we are taking.

We will relax this coming week, do some housekeeping, and then go on to Wilmington. It's been six months since I've seen Becca and the kids and I can't wait!  I'm more excited than a kid at Christmas! It's been even longer since I've seen Michael and my brothers...but unfortunately we'll have to wait until snow season is gone to make those visits.

Traveling is great...so is coming home!

You Mean We're Still in Texas?

From Amarillo we drove southwest on 287 and stopped for the night at Wichita Falls RV Park...flat pull-thru, gravel sites long enough that we didn't have to unhitch the truck.  A quick stop, then back on the road in the morning,  We picked up I-20 in Dallas and talked about the things we'd like to stop and see the next time we are in Texas...like the Grassy Knoll and the Texas Book Depository.  For those of us over a certain age, Dallas will forever be synonymous with the assassination of JFK.

We drove a bit farther and stopped in Tyler, Texas to rest a couple of days.  The 5 Star RV Park is not a 5 star resort, it's a no-frills campground with gravel and grass sites...and they had only one back in site left...but it served the purpose. We had full hook-ups, including cable, for the Passport America rate of $17.50.  Perfect to relax a few days, which we needed.  We arrived on Veteran's Day and, of the many restaurants that offer free meals to veterans, there were three in Tyler...Olive Garden, Applebees and On The Border. Jack's a Viet Nam Veteran and he chose Applebees.  It was a nice break for us and it is always nice to see honor paid to our veterans.

We rested, got caught up on laundry and did some much needed grocery shopping while we were in Tyler.  We encountered a Walmart Neighborhood Market, the second we've seen. They are Walmart grocery stores and so much nicer to shop in than the super WalMarts when all you need is groceries. Hope this is a trend that works its way east.

The Polar Vortex, or whatever has been bringing the unseasonably cold weather across the country, was catching up to us.  It was time to reconfigure our travel plan again as temps along I-20 were getting down to the low 20s and even teens in places.  We experienced frozen pipes and a cracked water pump in Wilmington last winter and don't want to repeat the experience.  We'll wrap our hoses once we get settled in Wilmington this year, but it's hard to do on the road with the constant stopping and going every couple of days.  So...from Tyler we went farther south yet, to Beaumont, Texas and I-10. If we have to go any further south we'll need a boat!

You KNOW we didn't take either exit!

We are at the Hidden Lake RV Park waiting out the rain before we hit the road again. Big, paved, level pull-thru and back in sites with patios, a lake and very friendly owners.  A great quick stop and, once again, $17 with Passport America.  This is first time we've seen rain since mid July...almost forgot what it's like!

What was originally supposed to be a quick drive through the Texas Panhandle has turned into a ten day trek through the state in search of above freezing temps. Our next stop will take us out of Texas...