Westward Bound - 2019

Before I go forward on our adventures since our retirement I should show our trip to the west coast.  After we got our residence established in Milton, Florida we took off across the United States.  At the time we were towing a Chevy truck with our Harley Davidson trike in the back.  We hauled it from Broken Arrow, Oklahoma to Milton.  Many adventures conspired afterward so I’ll just take you on the next 12 months to catch up.  So, sit back and enjoy the ride along!! 

Florida - Pensacola March 2019

Got to visit with our nephew and niece, Scott and Jennifer Anderson and their awesome boys while they were on vacation in Pensacola.  We had an awesome time except for when Leon was eaten by a giant clam!!  It spit him back out thank goodness! 

Shawn! His little brother was outside playing in the sand so I never got a good photo of him.  Too bad, cause he’s a cutie!

Me and my son Jason Cates!

Visiting with my awesome friend, Ann who introduced us 24 years ago!  Thanks Ann!!

Hitting the road to Tennessee to visit with our son and daughter in love, Robert and Kim.  Got to keep our awesome granddaughter, Everleigh at camp with us.  Our grandson, Alex, was out of town that week.  Charlie boy was with us.  We had a great time!!! 

Everleigh enjoying one of Mimi’s great breakfast feast!!

Headed to Russell, Kansas to wish our son, Brian a safe trip as he was being deployed with the Air Force overseas. Daughter in love, Kayla planned a big surprise party for him!  He was!!!  We had a great visit with our granddaughters, Emma, Scarlett and Jenny!  Other son, Michael and daughter in love, Clarissa are there somewhere and so are other grands, Kaiden, Kameron and Payton.  We’ll catch up with them in another photo. 

Cool cowboy art in Russell.  

On the road again!  Wilson Lake, Kansas.

Headed to Vail, Colorado to help grand baby sit for daughter Liz and son in love Jeff.  They were in a friends wedding, but we got the best part.  Playing with Seba and Maddie in the snow!!

This is ‘somewhere America’?  

May 2019 - Our home in Broken Arrow, Oklahoma sold to the 3rd person that viewed it.  Yay!!!! 

Vantage, Washington on the White River.  This was a beautiful campsite on the 

Bozeman, Montana and surrounding area!  Beautiful!!

Ekstroms Stage Station RV park in Clinton, Montana.  Very cool park.  Nice restaurant in the park. 

Previously back in Kansas at Monument Rocks. 

Bishop Castle.  Hand built by a local resident over several years.  We heard he still stops by to add more to it and signs autographs.  Near Westcliffe, Colorado were we were staying. 

Westcliffe, Colorado

Found this nest in the ground by our campsite.  Not sure if the nest was made there on someone found it and put it there, but not a very safe place to lay an egg?! 

Great cowboy style restaurant in Westcliffe.  Beer was cold and the food was great!

Wallace County, Kansas.  While staying near the Wallace County Museum we encountered a very severe storm.  Hail the size of golf balls poured down on us!  Very scary!!! 

The calm after the storm!

Cowboy gear and half a cowboy? 

On our way to Fort Robinson, Nebraska!

To be continued!  

Covid Quarantine Adventures!

When Covid hit in the United States, Leon and I decided we’d just stay put in the Florida Panhandle where we had been since December and wait out the storm.  However, when the Florida governor decided to open the beaches in May and the second wave of Covid cases begin to climb in the area we decided to hit the road for awhile.  🛣 For us older folks it was just getting to scary to go into the grocery store or anywhere.  We haven’t actually eaten in a resturant since May.  We’ve been on a great adventure since we left!

FLORIDA - February/March/April 2020

It was the first part of February and we decided to drive to Tampa, Florida for a change in scenery from Milton, FL where we had been.  The only place I could find that was not completely booked was at the Lazy Days RV resort. Of course, not only was it a great RV location near Tampa and the beaches but they also SOLD RV’s.  Yes, you guess it, we purchased our brand new and final (no, really, last one) motorhome.  We decided on a 2020 Tiffin Allegro Bus 40.  It was all we have ever wanted in a RV home.  Two bathrooms, plush white leather seating, big screen TV, outdoor TV and this one came with a refrigerator/freezer outside in one of the bays too!  Beer cooler!!  This bus has it all except we didn’t like the Euro chairs that were in the bus we picked out.  We ordered theater seating from Tiffin and made plans to travel to Red Bay, Alabama to the factory where it was made to have them installed along with a list of about 20+ items that needed worked on under our warranty.  They’re never perfect when you buy them new! :).   We bought it two weeks before the whole Covid thing started.  :(.  Well, at least we could quarantine in style!  :). 

We drove back to Milton and stayed several more weeks in and around the area waiting for the virus cases to calm. We stayed at one RV resort on Santa Rosa Bay.  It was the most relaxing RV park I had ever been.  Just sitting watching the bay waters, boats and pelicans/seagulls flying around was awesome.  

ALABAMA - May 2020

  Then the governor opened the beaches!  We decided it was time to go!  Fast forward to Red Bay, Alabama at the end of March.   They were practicing very strict rules for being in the Tiffin maintenance yard.  They checked our temperature when we arrived, had us park and then when they started our service work our temps were checked each time we entered the service bay areas.  Also, mask were mandatory.  

Each day, while being serviced between 7 am and 3 pm we explored the area around Red Bay.  We found out the Coon Dog cemetery was not far away so we set off to see what it was like.  Who knew there was such a special place for those coon hunting hounds!!  It was very sweet. You can tell their owners loved them.  It’s been there since 1937!

LEAVING OKLAHOMA!

Time to start on our way!  Not quite out of town yet, still a few more things to do but hopefully, the middle of next week we’ll be south bound.  Left Mingo Park on Friday morning, March 1st.
We are currently parked out at Sequoyah State Park near Wagoner, OK.  It’s so beautiful out here but the its brrrrr cold!  It’s currently 24 going on 17 tonight!  This morning we got snow!  Hoping temps are better in Florida, LOL!  Of course it will be!  I’m really beginning to love the retired life!  Oh, there are still things that have to be done before we go but not major.  We just want to GO!!

Adventure is out there! Slowly but surely getting there!

Things are beginning to happen for our adventures on the road!   We drove to Milton, Florida earlier this week to get our state of domicile set up.  We’re Floridians now!!  Hoping to drive motor home down in a couple of weeks to get it registered and stay awhile.  Couldn’t believe we saw a Buc-ee’s in Alabama after crossing the Bay.

We’ll be in Kansas toward the end of March to visit with kids and grandkids then on to Vail, Colorado in April to see grandbabies, Liz and Jeff while they are there for a friends wedding.  We’ll probably go back to Kansas to visit with Leon’s sisters and then its off to Indiana in May for a motor home rally.  Memorial weekend we’ll be spending a week in Nebraska at the Ft. Robinson campground for a Schneider family reunion!  In October, we booked a trip for the Albuquerque Ballon Festival!  Can’t wait to see that!!