About Me

Lee Creek, North Shuswap near Chase, B.C, Canada
We went full-time Rving in October of 2005! We retired from full time to part-time as of the end of 2015. Our present "small but comfortable" Wagon is a 2008 Camper trailer(TravelAir Rustler), pulled by a 2008 Dodge Dakota, 4X4.l. Our home is now a Gated Community Park, in Oliver, British-Columbia, Canada. I retired in 2005 and my Life Companion, Valerie, retired October 1, 2006 from nursing. We invite you to follow and share our new adventures and mishaps. Life is but an adventure full of dreams yet to be fulfilled!

Thursday, January 31, 2013

January 27 to 31, 2013; Weslaco, Texas with Lynden, Charlene, Dave and Louise

JAN  27, Sunday, back to our routine at Snow to Sun
Cloudy in the morning but the sun did come out eventually; very humid and windy from the south-east!  Val did laundry and there was lots, then we went to Costco and Walmart to shop for some wine, meat and a few other items.  I also got a SIM card for my I-phone from AT&T and a “Pay as you go” program.  Our new number is now 1-956-250-8769 but we do still have the old phone, just in case.  We came home in time for Happy hour.  I texted Rochelle to let her know our new number and will call later.  We can now phone and text without having to dial an International number first.  I haven’t mentioned this before but Lynden and Charlene’s dog, Gracie, was euthanized last Friday.  She had diabetes and her organs were failing rapidly so rather than let her suffer, they had her put to sleep.  It was a very emotional day for everyone.

 
JAN  28, Monday,
Clouds, sun and strong winds!  Val went back to her morning routine, exercises then line dancing while I walked Tucker.  Very warm, 70*F (20*C) by 8 AM.  I washed the truck and had our little BBQ propane tank filled.  We went to find a groomer for Tucker and ended up leaving at this place for $40.  We had Happy Hour at the club house with Dave & Louise, Lynden & Charlene, Sylvie and Al.  We had a good time, a few dances then everyone ended up at our place for more fun.  By 6:30 PM, everyone called it quit and we had dinner.  Still very warm outside and windy!  I picked up Tucker at 4 pm and he looks and smells much better.

 
JAN  29, Tuesday, to Mission and Bentsen Park
Hot and WINDY!  I went for breakfast at the clubhouse with the Kirkby’s while Val slept.  They were serving waffles and sausage.  At 10 AM, we all went to Bentsen State Park where a bird sanctuary is situated.  We walked around for quite a while then decided it was just too hot.  It reached 92*F today.  Even Tucker had a hard time with the walk and by the time we got back to the truck, he collapsed in the backseat.  We drove to Riverside Pub where we had a couple of beers and something to eat.  We then went to Los Ebanos Ferry, a historical site where a small ferry is situated and is pulled by hand across the river on a rope system.  The place was quite a bit different than the last time we were here; for one thing, the border crossing on the US side has been expanded, the bar and souvenir place was closed but everything else was the same.  Afterwards, we came home tired and called it a day although we did have a quick drink at H. H with Louise & Dave and Judy & Al.

 
JAN  30, Wednesday
Back to cool temperature; the wind shifted to the north and temperature went from the 90*F yesterday to low 70’s today...really crazy weather but the sun is out!  Val went for her exercises then did some Tai-Chi afterwards.  I did some blogging and banking then walked Tucker.  We learned last evening that Val’s brother-in-law, Paulo, had a heart attack at work.  He will be transferred to Sudbury as soon as the weather improves (Northern Ontario) so our thought are with Paulo, Dori and the family and we wish him speedy recovery.
Our day was fairly quiet, we read, Val went to visit friends and I had a snooze.  At 4 PM, Lynden and Charlene came over for a drink then Louise and Dave joined us along with Judy.  Afterwards, we went over to the Kirkby’s for dinner which consisted of corn beef, carrots, potatoes, sweet potatoes, and cabbage which all of it was absolutely delicious.  Afterwards we played ‘SEQUENCE” but it was no competition so we went back to drinking and burying the girls sorrow for their losses.  We finally called it quit at 10 PM.

 
JAN  31, Thursday; To Progresso
It was a cold night @ 46*F (7*C)!  Val went for a walk around the park with Rose-Marie, Debbie and Cookie; they are all training for the big walk in McAllen next month.  After showering we drove to Nuevo Progresso, Dave and Louise came with us, for my appointment at the dentist at 11 AM.  We had lunch down there and walked the streets and looked at all the hardwares.  I bought two more sunscreen for the windows in the car.  I also found a geocache which I had been looking for.  We came home in time for Happy Hour at the clubhouse.  Everyone was there to say goodbye to Lyn & Charlene as they are leaving tomorrow.  It was also Bill’s birthday so a double reason to celebrate not that a friend’s departure is a celebration but I think you know what I mean!!!  Anyway, it ended at 4:30 PM so a few ended up at our place and at 6 PM we went to “LIN’S”, a Chinese restaurant and a great buffet dinner.  Everyone ate too much and we all complained of sore tummy!  We came home and called it a night.

Sunday, January 27, 2013

January 21 to 26, 2013; Rochelle and Kevin's visit

JAN  21, Monday, Rio Grande Valley
Today was laundry day!  We did go to town to shop for grocery then went to “Peckers Pub” for a late lunch.  We came home and had the Kirkby’s over for HH and for dinner.  We BBQ’ed hamburgers with potato salad which we bought earlier.  All went well, we had a wonderful time and lots of laughs.  I showed some of our recent trip pictures which I think everyone enjoyed!  It was a warm day and nice for everyone.  Kevin and I went to find a hotel near here for them, he’s having a hard time sleeping on our hide-a-bed so we ended at the Holiday Inn and got a room at a fair price about 1 mile from here.  So after our evening together, Rochelle drove the truck to the hotel.
I forgot to mention that while on the Riverwalk in San Antonio, a lady came behind us and made a comment about our legs being in form and asked if were runners or bikers!  We told her we walked a lot and did some biking and did thank her for such a nice compliment.  I told Val she was flirting with me but Val said it was in my dreams, shocks!!!

 
JAN  22, Tuesday, to Mexico
We drove to Nuevo Progresso around 11:30 AM with the Kirkby’s in tow.  The parking lot on this side was full and the town was really busy.  We walked the main street and Rochelle and Kevin looked into a couple of boot store.  We stopped for lunch which was really good then Lynden and Charlene left as they were worried about Gracie (their little dog).  I had a dental appointment at 2 PM and finally got out at 3:30.  Val and the kids joined me in the courtyard where we had beer and Pina-Colada.  We crossed back into the US and came home and had HH with the Kirbky’s.  Dinner was BBQ chicken and potatoes with a salad.  In the evening, we played a couple game of Sequence then went to the hot tub for a soak.  The kids left for their hotel around 11 PM

 
JAN  23, Wednesday, shopping in McAllen
After walking Tucker, the kids arrived at 10 AM and we drove to McAllen today for a shopping spree!  Sunny and warm was our sky which made it for a pleasant day.  We went to “Boot Jack” where Rochelle bought a pair of cowboy boots for grand-daughter Hayley and Kevin also got himself a pair.  We went to a mall nearby on 10th St where Rochelle bought more souvenirs for the kids back home.  We came home and I put back-ribs on the BBQ right away while we had HH with the Kirby’s.  Our neighbour Al came over for a chat.  After dinner, which turned out to be very good, we played a game of Sequence and let the girls win as we are true gentlemen!!!

 
JAN  24, Thursday, to Padre Island
We awoke to fog this morning but it soon cleared and we had a very warm and sunny day!  We drove to South Padre Island today and on the way there, we stopped at a National Memorial where the first battle with Mexico took place over the boundaries of Texas.  We then drove to Brownsville to show them that city then continues to Port Isabel where we stopped for lunch at  “DIRTY AL”, a very neat place with a nice view of Padre Island.  After lunch which was delicious, we drove across to the Island and visited it from one end to the other or I should say until the road ran out.  We visited a State Park at the south end, walked the beach then drove to the North end and walked the beach there too.  It was so nice to be out there under a sunny sky and warm wind.  We watched some wind surfers playing in the inside Bay.  It was time to come home so we drove back to our Park and Kevin had the bright idea to go see a movie so off we went to see “Zero Dark Thirty” (the story behind finding Bin Laden and his killing).  Afterwards, we stopped at the Kirkby’s for a nightcap and eventually made it to bed.  This was the kids’ last day in the valley.

 
JAN  25, Friday, Back to San Antonio
Sunny and warm!  The kids got here at 10:30 AM and after washing the windows on the truck, we left for San Antonio.  We took US 83 to I-35 through Rio Grande City and Laredo.  It was an interesting drive.  We stopped for a late lunch in Laredo and arrived at our hotel, the “Drury” around 5 PM; just in time to book in and have a free Happy Hour at the hotel.  Kevin insisted on taking us to the restaurant downstairs and we had a marvellous steak dinner and shrimps/scallops.  We had a few drinks, went over the English Pub “The Bull Dog”, had a drink there then came home and called it a night.  It is still very warm outside.

 
JAN  26, Saturday, Goodbyes and back to Weslaco.
It was cloudy and misty first thing this morning but cleared up by late morning.  After having breakfast at the hotel (free), we packed our bags, I got the truck out of the garage, parked at the entrance and loaded our bags.  Rochelle and Kevin left theirs at the hotel front desk.  We all went to the mall so that Rochelle could get a couple of items then we drove to the “Tower of the Americas” to see a 4D movie call “Fly over Texas”.  It was interesting but not that impressive, thank goodness it was free although it did cost $11 to park there.  Anyway, the seat would move as things moved in the movie and there would be real fog and mist spit at us from above or behind; that was kind of interesting!  We walked around outside where there were some very beautiful waterfalls.  We drove to the Spanish Governor House and looked around.  We drove back to the hotel where we said our final goodbyes to the kids; hugs, kisses and some tears to see them go.  They will hang around the Riverwalk until it’s time for their departure at 7:30 PM.  We left for the Valley around 2:15 PM and took the shortest route home...4 hrs!  We stopped at this little place for a late lunch, early dinner and to finalize things, I locked my keys inside and had to pay $55 to have it open... could have been worse I guess!  I have to get a spare key and hide it outside the truck!
We arrived back at Snow to Sun Resort around 6:15 PM and found our friends Dave and Louise had arrived...they are next to us.  We had a few drinks and caught up to each other’s news then Lynden, Charlene, Al and Judy joined us.  The party got a bit loud, I’m surprise none of the neighbours complained.  We finally called it quit at midnight and went to bed.  It was a VERY busy day!

Sunday, January 20, 2013

January 16 to 20, 2013; San Antonio with daughter and son-in-law

JAN  16, Wednesday, to San Antonio to meet Rochelle & Kevin
We were up at 7 am under a cloudy sky and cold morning, walked Tucker, got the suitcases out and began packing after showering.  I dumped the tanks, cut off the water and furnace then we headed out after saying bye to the Kirkby’s.  I fuelled at $3, 72, picked up a part at “HOOVER” and headed west on Hwy 83 then north on Hwy 281.  We stopped for lunch in Alice and arrived in San Antonio around 3PM.  We went to our hotel, the “DRURY INN” and checked in, dropped our luggage in our room, #305 facing the “Riverwalk” then headed north to the airport.  Rochelle and Kevin arrived 10 minutes early and after hugs, we came back to the hotel, checked them in then went out on the “Riverwalk” to find a place to have dinner.  We walked a bit afterwards, and then came back to our room for a nightcap which lasted until 12:30 AM when we finally decided to call it a night!  It’s really great to have them here.  It was sunny all day and got to 64*F

 
JAN  17, Thursday, San Antonio
We got up at 8 am, I had a shower and took Tucker for a walk then came back up and we all went for breakfast downstairs.  Afterwards, we all walked on the “Riverwalk”, Tucker tagging along, visited the “Alamo”, stopped at a visitor centre to get some info then decided to go for a drink and a light lunch.  Afterwards, we decided to go for a boat ride around the “Riverwalk”.  I had to take Tucker back to the hotel first as dogs weren’t allowed on board.  We did the tour which was longer then I remember for our last time here, stopped at an old bar dating back to 1933 then came home and took a break before Happy Hour at 5:30 PM.  We get hot snacks and 3 drinks each courtesy of the hotel.  Afterwards, we went out for steak dinner on the Riverwalk and had a few drinks while there.  From here, Rochelle wanted a nightcap so we went to “The Esquire”, a local bar established in 1933, right at the end of prohibition.  Kevin decided we should have tequila and a chaser and I think Rochelle had more than she could handled; I’ve never seen my daughter having so much fun and be fun, it was so nice to see.  At one point she declared she had it and we went home; she was very drunk!

 
JAN  18, Friday; San Antonio with Rochelle and Kevin
We were up at 9:30 AM under sunny sky and I took Tucker for his morning walk then picked up a couple of coffees for us upstairs.  Rochelle and Kevin didn’t get moving until noon.  We met them on the Riverwalk for breakfast.  Rochelle was very hung over!!!  No surprise there!  We stuck around the neighborhood and explored the mall, stopped at the “Rain Forest” restaurant which Val hadn’t seen before and we had a quick bite to eat.  We came home and relaxed before Happy Hour at the Hotel.

 
JAN  19, Saturday; San Antonio
Sunny with some clouds!  We were downstairs for breakfast at 9:30 AM  Rochelle and Kevin were already there.  After eating and walking Tucker, we walked to the Alamo Plaza and got tickets for the trolley and went on a tour of the city, the Missions of which we visited one then we visited the Guenther House in the German Quarter and the King Edwards Street.  Back on the trolley for the next stop, the Market Place where most if not all of the items are Mexican related.  We had lunch here then walked back to our hotel, about 4 blocks away.  We each went to our own rooms for a rest and freshen up.  We met back downstairs at 5:30 for Happy Hour where we drank our three free drinks then went back up to the 7th floor where the pool is situated and proceeded to drink beer and wine and share a few laughs.  We finally went to bed around 10 pm.

 
JAN  20, Sunday, back to Snow to Sun RV Resort.
Breakfast, check-out, load the truck and we were on our way by 10 AM and headed to Corpus Christie via Hwy 37.  We stopped at the Lexington Aircraft and Rochelle, Kevin and Val went on board and had a visit while I kept Tucker company.  They returned about 1.5 hour later and we had lunch at a local restaurant near the water.  We drove through the city then headed south to Weslaco.  We arrived at our site around 6 PM, tired and glad to be here.  We sat for a while then went to bed but first, Rochelle and Kevin went to enjoy the hot-tub.

Tuesday, January 15, 2013

January 10 to 15, 2013; Weslaco and Padre Island

JAN  10, Thursday, Weslaco
Do I dare say it is SUNNY!?  We were up early and went for breakfast at the hall with L&C.  Val went for her walk and I took Tucker for his morning jaunt.  We went to town and returned our movies, stopped at Hoover RV for some parts which they had to order then it was to the Post Office to mail a couple letters and home.  We had a late lunch then met the Kirby’s for a game of outside shuffle board.  It was fun and I was surprised how much I enjoyed it.  After the game, which they won, we went inside to listen to the music and had a beer.  We came home, had dinner and watched the tube

 
JAN  11, Friday
Sunny with cloudy sky; lots of fog and dew this morning.  Val did the laundry then we went grocery shopping.  We came home and walked over to the Kirby’s for HH then came home.  A quiet evening then to bed under cloudy sky but very warm evening.

 
JAN  12, Saturday, Val’s walk across the Padre Island bridge
We were up by 7 am.  Val left at 7:30 am with Debbie and three others for Port Isabel, the starting point of the race/walk.  I picked up Lynden and Charlene at 9 am and we drove to Padre Island.  We stopped in Harlingen for breakfast at McDonald then continued on to Padre Island where everything was pretty well at a standstill.  We basically crawled across the bridge (3 miles long) as the walkers/runners used the left lane and we used the right lane.  We saw Val at the crest of the overpass for the Intra-Coastal channel and Debbie about a half mile later.  The bridge was full of people and cars, it was quite a sight!  It was warm too, 80*F and a strong wind cooling things down a bit.  On the other side, we found a parking spot and walked back to the turn off for the runners and Val met us there.  She was quite ecstatic and we told how proud we all were of her.  We drove to where the runners ended their race and met up with Robbie, Cookie and his wife Rose-Marie.  Robbie had a problem with her breathing and we had to call in the EMT on site to provide her with oxygen.  Once she stabilized, we drove over to the “Shrimp-Hause Restaurant” down the road to meet with her husband and the rest of the crew.  We had a not so good meal, a slow and not so good service.  We left there and the four of us went exploring the Island from one end to the other.  We drove back home, dropped off the Kirkby’s and came home.  By the way, Tucker and Gracie were also along for the ride!  We had dinner and Val went to bed early, tired and happy.

 
JAN  13, Sunday
What a change overnight; we went from the AC on to the furnace on this morning and all day.  North wind with a maximum of 60*F.  Absolutely crazy!!!!  And it’s supposed to be miserable like this until at least Thursday, what a bummer!  Val had a haircut by Debbie then did the laundry.  I walked to the Kirkby’s for a visit then came home and watched football.  We had steak and lobster for dinner, bought at Costco.  At 7 pm we went to the hall to listen to the Link’s family play music.  They are from Missouri and were quite good.  We enjoyed the hour and half. 

 
JAN  14, Monday,
Another cold and cloudy day, barely got to 58*F!  Not much happen today, we basically stayed inside out of the cold after our morning routine.  I got our mail today so sorted that out then we went to the Hall for Happy Hour.  Came home, dinner and watched the tube.  We were both in bed by 10 PM

 
JAN  15, Tuesday,
More of the same for weather and a bit colder if that’s possible!!!  GOOD GRIEF!!!  Val took the truck and went shopping with Charlene.  I worked on paperwork, archived some and dumped others.  My neighbour Al went into town and got me propane @$18.75.  Val returned from her shopping spree with Charlene around 5 pm, we had Happy Hours with them then dinner and watched the tube.  To bed by 10 PM.

Wednesday, January 09, 2013

January 5 to 9, 2012; Weslaco, TX

JAN  5, Saturday, Weslaco.
Same as yesterday as far as weather!  We went to the club house as they were having a craft sale and we ended up buying a couple things then had lunch there, baked potato with chili and melted cheese...YUM! YUM!  Val did the laundry and I hung around the club house watching a couple of new board games.  We went over to the Kirkby’s around 3:30 pm and had Happy Hour with them which lasted until 6 pm.  Came home, had dinner and watched a movie

 
JAN  6, Sunday,
FINALLY....some SUNSHINE!  Still heavy clouds but they are breaking up and the temperature was 51*F at 8 this morning.  We did go to 68*F.  We went with the Kirkby’s for breakfast at I Hop then to Donna’s Market.  We walked around and I bought a couple things and so did Lynden.  We stopped at the pub for a beer then came home.  They came over for HH at 4 pm and Al and Judy joined us.  BBQ’ed pork chops for dinner then watched the last rented movie.  L&C went to the club house to watch a movie there.

 
JAN  7, Monday,
Sunny, well until early afternoon when it clouded over but a warm day at 70*F.  Morning routine then to Weslaco to return some movies and pick up new ones.  I fuelled the truck at $3.79 and picked up some sewer treatment liquid for our toilet.  At 3 pm, we went to the rec hall for HH and to listen to music and catch a few dances.  Kirkby’s joined us then we went to their place afterwards for a nightcap then home for dinner.  Watched a couple movies then to bed!

 
JAN  8, Tuesday
We had a wind storm overnight, rain early this morning and thunder; now the sky is clearing!  Crazy, crazy weather!  I called BC to have our mail forwarded and I had some wine ordered for when we get home then I went for a walk around the park with Tucker and a bike ride afterwards.  We went to the Kirby’s for HH then to have dinner and watch a couple movies.  The evening ended in more rain and winds

 
JAN  9, Wednesday
We were supposed to have winds to 50 MPH but they didn’t materialized.  It rained all morning and part of the afternoon but eventually stopped and the sun did come out at the end.  We got a surprise phone call from our friends Dennis and Ruth from Gateway who are presently in FLorida and thinking of coming through this way in February.  At 5:30 pm, we went out with the Kirby’s to the Elk Hall for spaghetti, salad, garlic bread for $5.95 each.  We came home and had a nightcap then watched the comedy award.

Friday, January 04, 2013

January 1 to 4, 2013; A new Year begins in Texas

2013 JANUARY  1, Tuesday, Weslaco Texas
We went over to Ed’s site after the party last night and had a night cap with the crew.  We went to bed, finally, around 1:30 am under a cloudy sky and very warm night.  We woke up this morning with a cold wind from the north and RAIN!!! J  They had been forecasting this for the past three days and we finally got it!  We watched the Rose Bowl Parade then Val went to the club house while I watched football, both the Capital Bowl in Florida and the Rose Bowl in California later.

 
JAN  2, Wednesday, to Edinburg  (HAPPY BIRTHDAY ROCHELLE)
Cloudy, cold and raining!  We were up at 7 am, showered, walked Tucker and left at 8:15 with friends Marc and Joanne for Edinburgh.  We went to “WATABURGER”(like a McDonald) for a meeting of Geo-Cachers.  There were about 20-25 of us and the organizer has us exchange little things and distributed travel-bug to whoever wanted one and cache it.  Of course, we did get a couple.  It was fun and we met new people.  The idea to this is to put a face on the names we always find on logs when we find a cache.  We had free coffee for the two hours we were there.  The organizer to this event was a lady who came from Austin but used to live here.  After the meeting, we went to find caches but gave up after two as it was just too wet and cold (48*F; 9*C).  We came home and the two of us walked to the club house as Val wanted to watch/learn a new Chinese board game; I left a few minutes into it...not my type of game!

 
JAN  3, Thursday
Another cold and wet night but it has stopped raining now, just cloudy and 46*F, 8*C at 10 am.  Val didn’t go for her walk as no one was willing to brave this cold morning and I took Tucker our jaunt; everything is wet and muddy!  We drove to Weslaco to return a movie and picked up a few more, then it was Walmart for some groceries.  We drove to Costco where we bought a new Samsung Blue Ray Player as our old one is acting up.  We looked around for the new KOBO-GLO but no luck, I think I am going to buy it on line.  We came home and put the groceries away and replace the old Sony Blue-Ray player for the new one.  We had dinner then watched a new movie.  It never got above 49*F today due to a north wind.  We ran out of propane in the evening and I had to borrow a tank from a neighbour; I don’t understand how this happened but I’ll have to keep a closer watch, especially in cold temperature!

 
JAN  4, Friday, Kirkby’s arrive!
Weather wise; same as yesterday!  The propane truck came around 11 am and I filled both our tanks and the one I borrowed from our neighbour, all for $52.  We bought some vegetables from the guy that comes around our park twice a week and went to town to return a movie.  Upon our return Val decided to go to the club house to do some puzzles.  Everyone I meet is complaining about the weather but not much we can do about it.  Later, Val went to the club house and I was sitting at home reading when there was a knock at our door and...Hold and behold...our friends from home, the Kirkby’s had arrived.  We went over to the hall where Charlene surprised Val and we stayed for the Happy Hour.  Afterwards, we drove to the Palm Hotel and RV Park, had dinner there, all you can eat fish and chips and salads and a few other things.  The place was packed and we had a marvellous full dinner then came home for a nightcap.  We said goodnight and made plans to meet again tomorrow.