A Day At Canton “First Monday”

We visited our old friends and Dreamers Sandy and Weldon. Sandy sells purse organizers and Weldon writes a journal. http://mtnairetravlers.blogspot.com/

Five O’clock came and went and so did 6…7…and at 8 o’clock Sherri dropped a skillet in the sink and I jumped up not knowing where I was or what time it was. I calmed down some after the initial shock wore off and I was fine. She had the coffee going and was doing the dishes from the night before. We had stayed up until 1:30 am playing Ten Penny and visiting. We topped the night off with making reservations at the COE park on Lake Lewisville. Needless to say we were both worn out.

Today we had planned on taking a trip to Canton First Monday in Canton Texas. This is one of the largest flea markets in the world. Our plan was to leave at 8:00 am and stay until noon and then come back home. Well needless to say those plans never came about. Sherri and I were no where near ready at 8:00 am nor 9:00 am. We did manage to leave out about 10:00 and headed straight for the First Monday Trades Day Park via the Post Office. We picked up our mail and dropped off some mail left in our box by mistake. We arrived at the park about 15 till 11:00 and finally found a parking space over where my sister has a booth. We parked in front of their trailer and truck and went in to say hello.

Jim and June make personalized road signs.

My BIL, Jim sells personalized road signs and has a real good business established there. They…as usual were really busy when we walked in their booth. We said a quick hello and I introduced Leslie and Mike to them. We made our way out and into the crowd of shoppers. Sherri and I were looking for a bench to use at our dinning room table and I wanted to get me a new wallet. Found one right off that fit my needs and then it was time to eat. We found a food booth that sold fish and curly fries. That was just what the doctor ordered and so did we.

Fish and curly fries just hit the spot for lunch. 

After lunch Mike and I split from the gals and went to look for tools. We searched high and low and finally found a place that had a few tools. Nothing we could live without so we went on up the hill to a pavilion that had a band playing the pan flutes and guitars. If you know me you know that I love Native American Music. Well they turned out to be South Americans but that is OK they have great music and I bought one of their CD’s.

This group is from South America and play the guitar and Pan Flute…the music is haunting.

We left there and headed back down the hill towards my June and Jim’s booth. We found Sherri and Leslie there visiting with June and Jim and we just joined right in. June and Jim were still busy so while they worked Leslie Mike Sherri and I just visited and had a good time .

We arrived at Chen’s and the crowd was there waiting for a table. The wait was not too long and soon we…

were enjoying some good food and good fellowship

When June and Jim closed for the day we all decided to go to the Chinese Restaurant in town to eat dinner. When we arrived there we found a crowd of folks waiting in line to be seated. The line moved fast and soon we were seated…ordered our drinks and the found our way to the buffet line. The food was outstanding and we ate too much and had a good visit with a lot of laughing.

Soon it was time to say our good-byes to June and Jim and we packed it in for the evening. We went back to the park and parted company for a while. It was a wonderful day spent with family and friends in a place called Canton Texas…

Somewhere in Time  

Kris Leaves

 

Kris admires himself in the entry mirror. He is ready to shoot the bad guys now.

Thursday morning and I found myself driving down to the Park Gate at 6:15 in the morning. I had to unlock the gate for Sherri so she could get out and go to work. This is her last day and we all look forward to her being home so we can all visit and have fun.

This is also the day that Kris goes home. We have enjoyed our little man but he has to go home and go Trick-or-Treat with his family in Carrollton.

Henry Fonda has nothing on Kris…he leaves today to Trick-or-Treat dressed as A Cowboy

Mike Kris and I watched “Once Upon A Time In The West”. It was a very good movie and I had never seen it. Kris shot all the bad guys as Mike and I pointed them out to him on the screen. We fixed popcorn and really enjoyed the time inside…while it rained outside.

Leslie came over shortly before Sherri got home and we visited for a short time and then it was time for Sherri and I to take Kris home. We told Leslie and Mike that we would be back shortly and we headed on out. We dropped Kris off and stopped and got us something to eat. We called our neighbors and set a time for our Ten Penny Game and asked them if they needed anything from the store. We picked up some ice cream and Leslie some coffee and started home.

The game lasted until after midnight…as usual…and then we made reservations for our next stop…Hickory Creek. We got sites close to one another and now are ready for the  big move Sunday. We have a trip to Windstar Casino in the making…

Somewhere in Time

Their Leaving

 

Sherri…sure wish you were here to say good-bye…here is a wave from us to you

What is the deal with 5:00 in the morning. I could hear Sherri talking to Kris this morning but could not make out what the conversation was all about. Soon she was in the kitchen turning on the coffee pot. She said that Kris would not get up to go potty…I don’t blame him! Who wants to get up at that hour and pee if you don’t have to. He did not drink a lot last night so he should be OK on the bed wetting thing.

When their eyes cleared I had them pose for a farewell for now picture

The guys hated to split but then we know we will see each other again soon.

We just could not stop saying good-bye so we drove over to say it once more

John where is you yellow parka?

The eyes say it all…wish you would stay!

Today is the day…the day we have not looked forward to…the day that John and Bridget go back to Mississippi. John has to be back at work on Thursday the 29th. They will drive 5 or 6 hours today and  then get everything stowed away…go to bed and then back to work. John is really hoping this house sales soon. I know the feeling of having to get up and go to work after vacation. That was the only thing about vacations that I hated…was the coming home.

A Tid-Bit from Speedy:

Let me jump sideways here. For those of you just starting out fulltiming…don’t worry about the wardrobe. I don’t know if you have noticed or not but all the fulltimers in my journal that Sherri and I run around with have the same kind of clothes on all the time. Yes we change clothes!…but we don’t dress up for dinner. Matter-a-fact we don’t dress up for anything. When you start out on the road don’t worry about mixing an matching all your clothes just be sure you have enough T-shirts and shorts to do the week. If you have a lot of money you may even have enough for two weeks.

After saying good-bye to John and Bridget we headed over to the barn so Leslie could do the laundry and Mike and I could put the water line in. It looked like rain by this time and we just knew that it would start about the time we got the shovel in the ground. But as things would have it we lucked out and we got the ditch dug and part of the pipe in the ground. We had to go to town to buy 30 ft of pipe to finish plus a hose bib and other connections. While in town Mike pulled into the Sonic and bought our lunch…Thanks from Kris and I to you both!! Taking us to town to get the pipe and connections was nice enough but this was too much. I owe you both for you kindness.

Mike and I got this done in short order. Thanks Mike for you help

Can you get up Mike…it was all I could do to take the picture!

We got back and Leslie finished her laundry and Mike and I got the pipe in the ground. I will let it sit up over night before I put water pressure to it.

We returned to the park and Mike checked his batteries and me and my buddy sat outside. Soon Mike came over and had a beer with me and we visited until Sherri pulled in the driveway. We got ready and went to Mike and Leslie’s for dinner. Wow Sherri and I have been really treated great and we will have to work hard to repay these fine friends for all they have done for us.

 

Leslie and Kris are playing cowboys while Sherri looks on

Yes that is Mike back there…fixing desert! Go Mike Go

We had a wonderful dinner and desert. We visited until Kris got a little rambunctious and we had to leave and get him to bed. Thanks again Mike and Leslie for such a wonderful day…

Somewhere in Time  

 

Another Day of Rain

This is the Arizona room

Woke up this morning with the sound of rain on the Arizona roof windows. Well I started the journal entry off with a picture of the Arizona room. Many have asked what in the world I am talking about when I mention Arizona room. This is designed for winters spent in Arizona where the temps can get rather cool in the morning and the sun coming in through the windows help keep the RV warm. Now you know what it is and you can see that when it rains the drops hit the windows right above the dinning room table.

While I was looking up in the sky a UFO came into sight. It looked like a leaf…but then I am not sure what it was. OK now you say that Speedy has dropped over the edge. After all I have been indoors for two days watching Cartoon Channel.

This UFO came over…was in the shape of a leaf.

I called Mike to see if he would mind taking me over to my barn. He said that he would so he came by to get me and Kris. We went over to the barn to turn the water off. We then went on a tour of the subdivision there. The lake is up well over the spillway and it is suppose to rain again tomorrow. I was hoping to get my water line put in but if it keeps raining there will be no way.

After returning to the park Mike John Leslie and Bridget all left to go to Rockwall to shop. I was asked if me and my buddy would like to go along with them but I knew that would not work so I begged out . Kris and I just hung around the park all day. He rode his tricycle and then we took a hike in the woods. The mud was so bad that we came home. The hike in the woods will be another day.

Bridget drew pictures with Kris while the others got dinner ready

Sherri and Leslie drink a little wine to settle their nerves before dinner

We lined up the shot for our parting picture

Kris jumped in to give us some directions on where to sit and how to act while the picture was being taken.

First shot was not what we wanted…Bridget was trying to take John out of the picture so….

We took a second shot that turned out to be a keeper. John will do a print of this for me tomorrow before they leave out.

The print will go in this frame that was given to Sherri and I by the two other couples in the…

“Dream Team”

 

Everyone returned home about the same time. Sherri from work and the shoppers from Rockwall. We then got ready and went to Leslie and Mike’s home for dinner. Bridget made some corn and Leslie made a roast beef dish in the crock pot. My gosh was it all good and we ate until we hurt. We ate desert and then set out to take a departing picture of the “Dream Team”. Yes this is the last night of fun and excitement with the whole team together. What can I say…tears started flowing and we all were really feeling bad about having to part tomorrow.

As I always say in the end…we shall all be back together…

Somewhere in Time 

 

 

Indoors With Rain Outdoors

 

Well, all good plans don’t always come out the way you want them to. I had planned on me and my buddy to do some exploring today. Mike John and I were going to take a look down in the woods in the primitive camping area and see what it was like down there. I was going to take Kris with me. As things would have it we would have had to go in a canoe. It rained from the time I went to bed until the time I woke up. The lake was out of it’s banks when we got here and now it has surpassed that mark.

Well I knew that I would be home bound today. Me and my buddy would have to make the best of it right here. Cartoons and playing trucks and cars on the floor would be the extent of my time all day. Sure enough that is exactly what we did and I tried to entertain him the best I could. No I have not forgot how to play with toys on the floor. I have had a lot of experience playing every since I became a Poppa. At least with my little buddy I can play boy things and not dolls and dress up. No comments on dress up…you know what I mean.

Leslie came by to check on me around 1:00. I guess she thought I might have gone off the deep end being inside all day long. I told her all was well and that I really did not need to go anywhere. She and Mike left to get her finger nails done and I went back to playing truck driver.

We played ghost for a while too.

That was just about the extent of my day…until Sherri got home and we started getting ready to go over to Leslie and Mike’s house for dinner. Leslie and Bridget took on the dinner duty because Sherri had to work. That is what friends do. You just can’t ask for nicer folks than this. What a great bunch of people to call friends…Dreamer Friends.

We went over to eat about 5:30 and they had everything laid out and looking really nice. We sat and visited before dinner and really had a nice time. Dinner was delicious and Leslie even served it to us!!! Thanks Leslie for being so kind. We are all having so much fun together and I wish it never had to end…but soon  this will be all over and we will all head separate directions…with one thing in mind…meeting up again…

Somewhere in Time

Having a Tuff Time

Sunday

With all  that is going on it has been hard to keep up with the journal. I have the kids here that I have been baby sitting and getting together with friends has cut the time I have to post so I will just have to do the best I can.

 

I had a little extra thing to keep me busy.

If you noticed I have transposed two days…Saturday and Friday. It really does not matter I know that everyone will be able to figure it out. I will just keep on posting and hope that they all fall in order.

Sunday we had a laid back day. I had to take Sarah home and Sherri and the gals took off to shop. Mike road with me into town and after we dropped Sarah off we went by the barn to pick up the clean clothes and see if we could find Mike a screw for the handle on his sewer. The handle came loose and all he needed was a screw to fix it. We lucked out and found one that work.

We left there and came on back to the RV to get ready for the evening of rice and red beans  that John and Bridget were preparing. Sherri made corn bread and Leslie made a green salad.

Good food was waiting for us at Bridget and John’s house.

After dinner Mike made Bananas Flambé and was it good. He said he almost burned it…well if that is how you get it to taste that good…keep on burning it Mike.

Mike working to made our desert

Next we had a controversy over how tall we were. I was told I was 5’ 10” tall but John said he was…so I found out I am 5’ 8” tall….I am shrinking! Gravity will do it every time. Mike is 5’ 6” tall so we are all shrinking.

 

The measuring revealed that  I am shrinking.

 We finished our desert and then it was time for us to go. We had to get Kris’s bath and get him to bed. We got that done and then we watched Brothers and Sisters. Soon it was time to call it a day and we all turned in. I am sure that there is more to come…

Somewhere in Time

I Know I Have Fallen Behind

Friday

Many of you will find out when you fulltime and you meet up with your friends on the road you will sometimes be having so much fun that you forget to post in your journal. That is exactly what has happened to me this week. We are having so much…non stop fun that I have not had time to set down and type one word in here. That is OK for that is what all this is about…and you should never feel guilty about it.

Moving right along…Sherri woke me up this morning with Kris in her arms telling me that he had an accident last night and that I needed to let him finish sleeping with me. I was in the recliner of course and so I took him while she fixed the coffee. Usually we always take Kris to the bathroom before he goes to bed but we were so busy last night that we just flat out forgot. It was not his fault seeing as how we loaded him up with cold drinks. Nothing that could not be fixed.

Sherri and I drank our coffee together while Kris slept and we made the plan for the day. Mike and I had to be up at the Ranger’s station at 9:00 to see if we could extend. That we knew for sure we had to do. We also new that we had lots of laundry to get done so I took on the job and Sherri was going to get the clothes ready and clean the house. We got that all planned out and then I called Mike to see if he was ready to head up to the gate. We road up there and with good luck on our side they extended our stay until next week. Great! We would have all week long to visit with Bridget and John before they had to leave for Mississippi.

Mike and I left from there and went to my barn to put a load of laundry in the washer. I showed him around the place which did not take long…one barn and a quarter of an acre is not that much. Mike said he would trade helping me put in a water line for the use of our washer and dryer. I could not turn down that trade so we will be going to Home Depot to pick up PVC next week.

We could not figure out why we could not go out then we found out we all had the same cards! How often does that happen.

The plan tonight was…food at our place and a game of Ten Penny. John and Bridget just learned how and were would team up husbands against the wives. We all gathered together about 5:00 and ate hot dogs and chili. It was very good and the game was even better. We beat the girls soundly and even got them on the re-match. We enjoyed our time together and before the night was through plans were made for the next gathering…

Somewhere in Time

Non Stop Fun

 

Saturday 

What can I say…we have the greatest life in the world. Here we are at the State Park with friends and all staying within a stone throw of each other. We could not ask for any better neighbors.

Today I have some more laundry to do. It has been many weeks since we washed so the clothes have stacked up here. I think this should get us caught up for the week. Mike and John went with me and we put a load in and then headed to Brookshire’s to get some Beer and ice. Tonight we plan on another game of Ten Penny…guys against the gals.

Mike and Leslie were having us all over for chicken and rice. Mike’s patio won the contest for best looking patio out of the group! He worked on it all day long and when I got over there to see it I was amazed at how nice it looked.

Mike and Leslie’s site #73

Mike worked very hard to get his patio looking good.

 

Mike and Leslie had a very nice meal for us. We had chicken and rice and a salad to die for. Bridget fixed a layered desert that put about 5 lbs on me!

Leslie works to serve us all our plates…how great is that. Thanks Leslie and Mike for such a wonderful meal.

John and Bridget waiting for us all to be served before they start eating.

John and Sarah went down to the lake to get some pictures of the sun going down before we ate.

We met at their house at 5:30 and Mike and Leslie had everything ready. Here Sherri and I had hot dogs and chili and they have this lavish meal with all the trimmings. Hey it was great! The food was out of this world. We wondered how many people in the park were having a dinner that would match this one. We knew that none of the Scouts would be eating this good.

 

What a talented person Bridget is! She could not hold all her cards so she used her feet to play. We were all so impressed.

After eating we headed to our place to play Ten Penny. We played two games and the gals won both of them hands down. Once again we had so much fun and laughed so hard. Well you just had to be there…

Somewhere in Time   

More of the Same on Thursday

 

Here it is Thursday morning…time to move on and it is still raining…which makes for a very nasty tear down. The sides of the slides will be wet and the electric cord sewer hose and water hose will be wet and mucky. I just hate to move on a rain day but then I guess we really need to so we can get to the State Park before the weekend crowds come in.

Morning coffee… 

Sherri and I sat and had coffee this morning. We discussed picking up our granddaughter who has been biting at the bit to come and spend the weekend with us. She wants to use our computer is the only reason she wants to come…we are really a bore to most of our G-Kids. I guess that is OK we get to see them and that is what we enjoy. She is no problem…she sleeps till noon and then spends the rest of the day on the computer…eats very little and does not take up much space.

Plans being made…

Our G-Son Kris also wants to come and spend some time with us so we can spoil him. He knows he gets what ever he wants and no questions asked. I guess this is what G-Parents are for. Anyway we are trying to put together a plan on picking them up for the weekend…with Sherri working we have to figure out how to go…with only one vehicle to go in it does make for a challenging plan.

Getting ready to move 

We will be moving on today to meet up with John and Bridget at the State Park. Mike and Leslie will be traveling with us and we hope to get there and settle in before 4:00 o’clock. We will see how early we get out of here and see if this rain lets up some. No matter what… we have a great adventure ahead of us.

Kris arrives

Janet brought Kris by and dropped him off. Now we have a passenger with us. We have not seen Kris in over a month. It was sure good to feel those arms around my neck telling me he loved me. OK so I am a softy… I can’t help it.

Problems

We got here but there is one problem. They can’t accommodates us for a week here…just tonight! Boy is this a bad streak of luck. The Boy Scouts have the park taken up and that is not good for us. The Ranger told Mike and I that we would have to return at 9:00 Friday morning and see if we could extend our stay that long. So we got our sites for one night and then we would have to come back tomorrow and see if they had any cancellations.

Got settled in

We got settled into our sites and soon after that John and Bridget came over and the fun started. Bridget had us all over for a catch-up visit and we had so much fun and the laughter was non stop. Jennifer, our daughter and her husband came by. They dropped off Sarah and joined in the laughter for a bit.

The Kids got here and dropped off Sarah. They met Bridget and John Leslie and Mike.

We laughed until it hurt just telling stories about what had happen to all of us since we last met…a week ago

It was time to head home and we all parted company. Mike and Leslie hung back to teach John and Bridget how to play Ten Penny. We said our good-byes to our kids and then we closed out this day with more memories stored up…

Somewhere in Time 

 

 

Another Day of Waxing

 

Up up and away…out of the bed into the kitchen…flipped the switch on the coffee pot and back into the bed to get a wink or two more. That was the routine this morning. Another day faces us and we are looking it right in the eye. Fire…Ready…Aim…is our motto this morning.

Do I sound energetic this morning? Well I am…life is good and I want to stay alive and enjoy what the good Lord has given me. We are so lucky to have all the things we have and the friends that we have made in the past 3 years have meant so much to us. No one could have more that would make them any happier than I am with my life.

I hope that everyone out there is looking at all the good things the Lord has given you and not looking at all the hardships. You know what the sailor said about hardships when he fell out of the crows nest…

Moving right along…I am going to work some more on the wax job this morning. The weather is just perfect for cleaning and waxing the house. We use to wax the inside of our stix and brix but now we wax the outside. This is the one thing  that will keep that RV looking good no matter how long you have it. And while you are waxing the outside look closely at your seams and the caulked areas. This is where you will find any breaks in the caulk that could lead to a water leak later. One of the biggest causes of pre-mature RV failure is water leaks. Be sure to inspect closely each and every time you clean and wax the house.

That is my tid-bit of information this week. I am just full of it…so says Sherri. I try to convey any and all things I have learned over the last 35 years of RVing. I hope that this RV last 12 years. I had a MH for 7 years and it was in good shape when we sold it. I kept it waxed and clean and changed the oil and serviced it at the proper times. I think if I do the same for this unit I will have it at least 12 years…now that will make me…75…Do people live that long??? I don’t know if I will still be traveling at that time but in case I am I want to have a nice RV behind me.

Now the truck that is a different mater. I don’t think I will be able to run this truck 12 years. If I average about 30 thousand miles a year….that will be around 370 thousand miles counting the 40 thousand I have on it all ready. Maybe I could cut back on my traveling in the later years and keep it around 250 thousand miles? Oh well time will tell. I might be long gone before then so I am not going to worry about that.

I did take a walk today before the waxing took place. The air was crisp this morning and the wind was blowing out of the south. There was no hint of warmth in the air but it sure kept me wide eyed as I trudged around the outside of the park. Did another mile today…did not get the second one in. I will try again tomorrow. I was walking 2 miles a day for some time but then I got off for a while and now I just do a mile. I guess that is still good with my bad legs. I should be back to two miles before long and I hope I can hold it there.

I have never been good at bird pictures…but I keep trying. This fellow hangs around the ponds all day eating. I am surprised that he can even take off in flight when I get close to him.

I passed by the office on my walk and thought I would snap this picture of the unattended office. They have posted all the information you need to get settled so really why have someone in the office…ever. I spoke with a neighbor that has been here for 8 months and he said he has never seen the owners….what is that all about.

 Here is another tid-bit of information. You will not find this park on any WEB site so don’t bother looking. I am doing a review of the Park on RV Park Reviews so that somebody that needs to know will be able to find this place. It is a good location for a Dallas visit. I also use this park when I have VA Hospital appointments.

What do you know…I just got a call from Mike and Leslie Kennedy. They are in Cleburne Texas trying to get their RV fixed and because they did not buy it there Funtime RV does not have time to look at their unit! Now is that not the pits. Mike wanted to know where we were and said that they might as well come and stay a day or two with us. I told them that we were headed to Lake Tawakoni on Thursday to hook up with John and Bridget and they said what the heck they would just follow us there. Hey we are going to have another rally! Stay tuned this could get interesting.

Mike and Leslie arrived here about 2:00 and pulled in one site over from us. I told them as soon as they got set up and ate lunch to come over and we would visit until Sherri got here. If they want to we will go into Terrell and eat some BBQ. How cool is this…the party is still going on.

An the answer was….OK lets go…and we did. Sherri arrived back and Mike and I were sitting on the patio having a beer when she arrived. She went over to Leslie’s to give her the “Toe Wiggle”…this is something Bridget Leslie and Sherri came up with…don’t ask.

Eddie Dean use to own this restaurant. He is the guy that catered President Bush’s dinners at the ranch when he was governor and then President…

Good food and a great visit with good friends is what it is all about. Mike fit right in with all these folks discussing stocking shelves and re-sets…Mike use to do that for a living.

 

We carried the conversation right on out into the parking lot and then it was time to go home.

We all loaded up and took off to Terrell to meet the rest of the group at Ranch Hand BBQ. We had a wonderful dinner and a very funny time talking about how much we all were eating and why it was OK for us to eat so much. I think tomorrow night will  be a eat at home…very small meal deal. We really don’t eat out this much but when you have so much going on and Sherri is working sometimes we over do it.

 

We were going to have a beautiful sunset and I caught this shot while driving home. 

We returned home after stopping at the Shell station to get Mike’s ice and Sherri’s Lottery Ticket. We were invited over to Mike and Leslie’s and had a fun time visiting and checking out their toilet…not what you think. Mike has noticed a leak around the bottom of the toilet and he and I were trying to see what it could be.

Mike and Leslie were so nice to invite us over for a visit before we all turned in for the night. They had been traveling all day but still asked us over…Thanks for a great time.

Tomorrow we take the fireplace out to see why it stopped working. It is suppose to rain all day tomorrow so we will work inside. Until then stay tuned and see what we fix or tear up…

Somewhere in Time