Day 51 – February 25 – Thursday

LAST DAY - BACK IN BRANSON

Well, it’s very obvious that we are back in the cold, cold hills of Missouri. When J.W. broke down camp for our final leg of the trip, he found that the seal in the outside water faucet was frozen so when he unhooked our water hose the Park faucet would not shut off. J.W. reported it to the office. They came down and took care of the matter.

We left the Joplin KOA Park about 10:15 and took the Motorhome and the car to the Truck-O-Mat Wash House at The Pilot Truck Stop in Joplin, to get them washed, ate breakfast and headed for Branson.

Arrived at Branson View Campground around 2:00 p.m. Park Manager Charlie was blowing the Fall leaves out of our site. What better treatment could one ask for. Got everything set up and settled in for the year about 3:30 p.m.

I finally got all the mail sorted and just barely had dinner prepared in time for Survivor. We finished the evening off by watching the Olympics.

Well, vacation is over. We’ve had some bad times and some good times, some sad times and some fun times, some bad weather and some good weather.

But as I read through our blog I am convinced we had a great vacation and did some really neat things. We were able to spend time with our children and grandchildren, whom we are missing and knowing it will be quite some time before we will see again. We were able to spend time with siblings and in-laws and an Aunt and Uncle. There’s just nothing like being with family. We are really looking forward to January 2011 and another winter adventure.

Tune in again next year as we travel to South Padre Island, Tx.
JW, Wanda & Smoky (the cat) We3BRVn

Day 50 – February 24 – Wednesday

J.W. was feeling a little puny this morning so he slept in. We left Ardmore around 10:30. At 10:45 we came to a construction area where about nine Big Dirt Moving Machines were all lined up with the drivers standing next to them with their hands over their hearts and their heads bowed. . . . . JW wondered what was up with that ? ? ?

1:00 P.M. – Just went through the Toll Booth at Bristow, OK, my mom’s birth place. Sure can tell we are getting closer to home. Getting colder . Ugh!

We stopped in East Tulsa for gas at Flying J and got caught up in a construction jam, again. We only lost 12 minutes this time.

Just a note from JW's personal observations - Oklahoma's I-35 and I-44 is pretty much a construction (destruction???) zone all the way from the Red River to OKC and then almost all the way thru Tulsa.

BUT, We’re really liking the lower gas prices. We only paid $2.38 this last fill up compare to $2.89 in Van Horn, TX, a few days ago.

4:15 – arrived at KOA in Joplin. I’m fixing to give Peggy Danner a call so we can go to dinner. (John and Peggy Danner are good friends of ours. They live in Joplin, Mo and both of them worked with us at Silver Dollar City)

5:00 p.m. - met with Peggy Danner at the Downstream Casino just west of Joplin. Had a great visit with her and later (after JW tried to empty the buffet) we met her husband John and had another real nice visit. (John works at the Casino as a Shuttle Bus driver)

Back at the MH watchin' the Olympics and plan to hit the road in the morning for Branson View Campground, Branson.

Day 49 – February 23 – Tuesday

It started raining at 1:20 a.m. The beginning of the rain and snow storm that is moving in. It started sleeting about 7:00 a.m. and the snow hit around 7:30 a.m..
We had a home cooked breakfast before breaking camp to head out to Oklahoma. We got away about 30 minutes ahead of our targeted time. However, we lost that much time (or more) playing RV Rodeo in the Wal-Mart parking lot while J.W. tried to decide which of the eight pumps at the gas station he wanted to use. He finally settled on a spot, BUT he was about 20’ from the pump so the hose just barely reached.
10:35 a.m. and we’re back on the road. Really can’t believe all this snow in Central Texas.

11:05 - just north of Hillsboro, TX. Big accident has shut down I-35 so we have to detour at Exit 370. I can’t believe all these dumb people who can’t or choose not to read the flashing emergency signs that clearly tell them they have to exit at Exit 370, which is a one lane exit. We stayed in that lane from the time we read the warning. But what do 400 other vehicles (both cars and 18 Wheelers) do? They choose to use all four lanes of the freeway, THEN try to cut across in front of us. I don’t think so!!!

11:45 - and we’re finally at the Exit where we have to detour. We had to go back east four miles to get on I-35E then we took highway 934, a real narrow two lane road, back ten miles to I-35W.

12:05 - and we are back on I-35w. J.W. just breathed a sigh of relief. The snow has not let up, and we lost 45 minutes so we won’t be in OKC until 4:22.

12:30 - it’s still snowing. We stopped and made sandwiches for lunch in a Picnic Area at Shepherds Valley just south of Burleson, TX. That just set us back another thirty minutes. Now we won’t be to OKC until 4:52. The snow quit between Fort Worth and Denton.
2:25 p.m. – We just crossed the Red River into Oklahoma.
At 4:20 - we decided to cut the day short and pulled into Hidden Lake RV Park at Ardmore, OK. We were here on January 9. We’re just going to rest this evening then leave in the morning. We haven’t decided if we will stay in the Tulsa area tomorrow night or if we will go on into Branson. Our trip is just about over. How sad!

Olympics, again tonight - "GO TEAM USA"

Day 48 – February 22 – Monday

It’s our fifth day back in Texas and J.W. still has not seen an armadillo. He just can’t figure it out.
We left our spot in the RV Resort about 11:15 but stopped for propane before we left the Park $3.89 a Gallon, Wow ! ! !). Thanks goodness we only needed 11 gallon. We got to Walmart about noon, did some grocery shopping (first time since February 6) and departed Boerne, TX, at 1:00 p.m.

We are on the north edge of San Antonio now. Guess what I just saw. A 6’ statue of an armadillo. J.W. didn’t see it and it happened so fast I didn’t even get a picture. JW got a picture of it off the internet ( Schertz, Texas - Giant Armadillo )

Oh well, we’ll keep lookin’ for a live (or dead) one.

We had planned to stay in Fort Worth tonight, but due to the late departure from Boerne we chose an RV Park in Woodway, TX. The name of the place is Quail Crossing RV Park in a little out-of-the-way place. The Park has a little lake and an above ground swimming pool, neither of which we will be using beings the temperature is a whopping 41 degrees. Pretty shocking to our system after the 80 degree weather in San Antonio yesterday.

We are set up (before dark, no less) and ready for a good home cooked supper and a night watching the Olympics. “Go Team USA” !

Day 47 – February 21 – Sunday - San Antonio, TX

Before going to San Antonio, to revisit places we hadn’t been since 1988, we stopped off at Denny’s for breakfast. We made it to San Antonio around 10:30 a.m., found a parking place and caught a trolley to the Riverwalk.

Before taking a boat ride on the river, we had chips and salsa with diet pepsi’s at Rio Rio, one of the oldest Mexican food cafes on the Riverwalk. We learned so much history about San Antonio on the river ride and had a really wonderful time.
After making arrangements with Robert and Jennifer, my niece and her husband from Colorado Springs, CO, to meet at The Republic of Texas Cafe on the Riverwalk, for supper at 5:30, J.W. and I went to the Park at the Alamo and just sat for about three hours while we rested and contemplated the happenings at the Alamo so many years ago.

Before our rest in the Park, we had to go shopping so J.W. could get a T-shirt. We also found small key chain pocket knives with our names on them. We seldom ever find anything with our names and especially with J.W.’s spelled correctly. While we were resting and people watching, Rachel Hall, a friend from SDC, contacted us and said she would join us for supper. What an added treat! It was GREAT to see everyone again. And who would have ever thought it would be in San Antonio, TX. We got to see Bradley for the first time, he is seven months old now and such a happy baby. All the children were very well behaved. Kudos to Jennifer and Robert. It is hard to believe that Brianna is almost 5 years old and Bryce is now 3. It was so good to catch up on the news. It had been three years since we’d been together, at that time Bryce was just a baby.
It was also great to visit with Rachel (and share a dessert with her.) Hopefully we’ll get to see her again next year when we go to Port Aransas. It was really a wonderful day and great evening.

We got back to Boerne about 8:30. We will head out for Fort Worth tomorrow. It looks like we’ll be back in rain and snow on Tuesday. I say NO. I had enough of that before we left on this trip, I really don’t want our return to be a mirror image of our departure. I’m ready for Spring. JW says "Bring on the Quartzsite like weather".

Day 46 – February 20 – Saturday

Today was off to a much better start. I was up at 7 a.m. feeling better than I’ve felt this whole vacation. J.W. wanted to leave Van Horn by 10:00 a.m. We left at 8:45. We couldn’t find any place to eat so we drove about an hour before stopping for gas and food. Out here in the vast expanses of West Texas stops are few and far between. We fought winds all day and got into Boerne (rhymes with journey) where we will be staying at Alamo Fiesta for the next couple days. This is the same Park we were in on January 9. When we got to town we saw they had a Murphy Station so used our Wal-Mart card for the first time on this trip. After filling up the gas tank we stopped at Chili’s for supper then came out and got set up. J.W. napped while I worked on the blog.

We found out our niece from Colorado Springs and her family are in San Antonio so we are planning to meet them for dinner tomorrow night before they head back to the Springs. We also plan to see Rachel Hall (one of the triple C kids that worked at SDC last Summer)while we are here. We’ll be spending tomorrow on the River Walk. Can hardly wait. Good night for now.

Day 44 – February 18 – Thursday

We went to breakfast with Gerald and Gladys then packed up and left Quartzsite at 11 o’clock. It was a pretty uneventful day. Pretty miserable for me, neck is still hurting, and J.W.’s throat is real sore. The excitement of the day was when J.W. saw a sign that said, “Benson Next Right”. He took the wrong “Next Right” and ended up in the Weigh Station. The attendant gave him a strange look. That was a little embarrassing. Oh well, what can I say?

We were set up at Benson KOA by 4:30 so had time to do some computer work before preparing dinner. It was very important that we be settled in well before 7:00 p.m. After all, it is “Survivor” night. I spent too much time on the computer so didn’t have dinner ready before the show started, but I managed to watch anyway. J.W. said that meal was much better than those he had been eating out. I guess that is “Kudos” to me, huh?

We really enjoyed the evening.

Day 45 – February 19 – Friday

We were off to a bad start today. We both overslept. I’m still feeling pretty lousy with neck and shoulder pain. J.W. is still fighting a sore throat. He does a lot of sneezing and nose blowing. He wanted to be on the road on our way to Van Horn, TX, by 9:00 a.m.. We didn’t get out of the Park until 10:38. By the time we stopped for breakfast it was 11:30 before we got out of town. It was supposed to be a 5 ½ hour day but somehow turned into 7 ½ hours. And, of course, we entered a new time zone just before reaching our final destination. It was a terribly long day, we had to set up in the dark, and had to have soup and sandwiches at 8:45 p.m. Didn’t make for happy campers. We stayed at Eagles Nest RV Park in Van Horn, TX.

Day 43 – February 17 – Wednesday

We decided to spend one more night in Quartzsite. We sure do like it here. We are in a beautiful RV Park, Holiday Palms, and the weather is beautiful. We saw Della, she works at Lumber Camp at SDC, at breakfast this morning. Come to find out, she has known my aunt and uncle for years. She told us Ruth, who works at Trapper Creek Merchants, was in the same Park she was in, so we went over and visited with her for a while. We missed Ellen and Harold, they had gone to Parker. After our visit we went RV shopping, again. We got some RV parts, T-Shirts and other goodies. Gerald, aka Uncle Jerry, was singing in a Jam at our Park tonight. We hadn’t heard him sing before, so we went to the Jam. It was a real treat because we not only got to hear him, but we also heard Della and a good friend of my uncles who hailed from Canada. It was a great Jam. We left at break time because my shoulder was hurting so bad. I had iced it before I went to the Jam, but it didn’t help for long.

Today was another wonderful day on our way home from “not so sunny Southern California.”

Day 42 – February 16 – Tuesday

Gerald and Gladys picked us up this morning and we went to breakfast at Sweet Darlene’s, then went to do some RV shopping. J.W. made a call to a place called “Running Lizard” to see about getting our A/C fixed. (We had called Randy in Branson last Spring, but he never made it out to do the job.) We got an appointment for 1 p.m. so we had to stop our shopping spree to go back to the RV Park. It is now 2 o’clock, the A/C is fixed and it only cost $30.00. Now we are going out sightseeing. Just outside Quartzsite there are some really neat rock formations. Gladys’ favorite is one that looks like a Scottie Dog.

Gerald had a Jam at his RV Park tonight, but my neck and shoulder are still hurting so bad and J.W.’s still nursing a cold so we decided to stay at the RV and watch the Olympics.

Day 41 – February 15 – Monday

We left Hemet right at noon today. We had two coupons for Buy 1 Get 1 Free lunches at the Morongo Casino, so we met Deanie and Bill there for our last visit before leaving the state.

We got to Quartzsite, AZ, in time to get set up before dark. Gladys and Gerald were at a Jam so we went to Palo Verde for salads for supper and made arrangements to meet them for breakfast tomorrow.

Day 40 – February 14 – Sunday

We were supposed to leave Hemet today, but because we wanted to go to the Tram yesterday, we decided to stay an extra day.

We were supposed to have breakfast with Chad, Melissa and the kids this morning before leaving town. However, Melissa took the kids to the LA Zoo so we had breakfast with Chad. After we ate we went to Chad’s to do laundry before our departure tomorrow. We wanted to be back at the Motorhome by 8:00 p.m. to watch the season premiere of ‘Amazing Race’. As it turned out, the laundry was not dry in time so we watched the show at Chad’s house. Because of the delay we got to see Melissa and the kids before we left California.

Day 39 – February 13 – Saturday

We picked Deanie and Bill up at their Motorhome in Banning and went to Billy Reed’s in Palm Springs for breakfast. Then we went to the Palm Springs Rotating Tram for a ride to the top of the San Jacinto Mountains. This is an incline of 2 ½ miles in 10 minutes, from 2500 ft to 8600 ft. We went from 76 degrees to 36 degrees in that same 10 minute time frame. The Tram makes two complete rotations on the trip up and on the trip back down.

We got some real neat pictures of all the snow, but didn’t see any wildlife. When we bought our tickets the clerk told us we would have a 2 hour wait. As it turned out, we had a 3 hour and 15 minute wait. They usually have 500 people a day. Today they had 3000 people.

While we were waiting to get on the Tram for the decline a group of Park Employees wheeled a young boy in that had broken his leg while sledding. We had to wait for him and the Park Employees to board the Tram before we were allowed to enter. We also watched as security handcuffed a young woman who was a bit too inebriated and was causing quite a ruckus. She wanted to know why they were not arresting her husband. When we got to the bottom of the mountain the Cops were waiting to take her to jail.

After the Tram trip we went back to Billy Reed’s for a Valentine Dinner consisting of Prime Rib, Shrimp Scampi, Baked Sweet Potato, steamed veggies, soup, salad and dessert. Today was a very relaxing and enjoyable day.

Day 38 – February 12 – Friday

We got up this morning and went across the Golden Gate Bridge before heading back to Hemet. We stopped at a fruit stand at Mercy Springs and bought oranges, grapefruit and pistachios. The fruit was not nearly as large or as good as they are in the summer months.

We ran into terrible traffic on the 210 on our way home. We got back to Hemet at 10:00 p.m. I sure was glad to get off the road.

Day 37 – February 11 – Thursday

J.W. woke up with a sore throat today. We went to breakfast at IHOP then went to Walgreens to pick up some essentials and some more cold medicine.

We rode the Cable Cars and did some shopping at the end of the line, had lunch at Lori’s, then took the Cable Car back to its beginning point. We went to Ghiradelli’s then rode around San Francisco on the Classic Cable Cars. We got back to our room in time to watch “Survivor”. We got in quite a few miles of walking today and all in all had a very enjoyable day.

Day 36 – February 10 – Wednesday

We got up and had a great hot free breakfast at the hotel before heading out for the Capitol. J.W. proved he was a tourister by driving up a road that said “No Turns”. He thought it meant no turn on red. By the time we came to a place where he could turn we were thanking God there were no Cable Cars coming. The “No Turn” sign really meant “No Turn”. After that little escapade we made our way to a Parking Garage about a half block from the Capitol. We managed to get there in time for the 11:00 o’clock tour.
This was not the most interesting Capitol we have visited, but we did learn a little history. We were disappointed to learn that neither Congress or the Assembly were in Session. They have session on Monday and Thursday, so we didn’t see any action. It would have been nice to be in on the Session on Thursday. Governor Schwarzenegger was trying to appoint a new Lt. Governor to replace the one who had stepped down. His choice had passed the Senate but failed to pass the Assembly, which I believe we refer to as the House of Representatives. California is a simple majority state.

We couldn’t get in to see the Governor because they were taking appointments only. But we did get one of his business cards. Our tour guide told us about a truck driver who was upset with the California Government. Back in 2000, while the Assembly was in Session, the man drove his 18 wheeler on a suicide mission through the east wing of the building. His truck caught on fire and exploded, killing him and causing 1.8 million dollars worth of damage to the Capitol.

After our tour to the Capitol we drove a couple blocks down Capitol Mall, which was designed after the US Capitol, to get our picture of us with the Capitol Building in the background.

Then we left Sacramento and went to San Francisco with our palates all ready for a good ole Bucket of Trash at Bubba Gumps Shrimp Co. We checked into the Radisson on the Wharf and set out on our two block trek to Pier 39 and Bubba Gumps.
Much to our dismay, and what a disappointment it was, that they no longer had the original ‘Bucket of Trash’ on the menu. Due to the soreness of my mouth from the cold I was trying to kick, I could not eat their new “Bucket of Boat Trash.” I finally settled for “Steamed Shell Fish” and J.W. got Talapia. The food was good but just not what we wanted. A couple of hours and $100 later we headed back to the Hotel.

The Hotel had great select number beds, but once again the pain in my neck and shoulder kept me from getting a good nights sleep.

Day 35 – February 9 – Tuesday

We got a later start than we wanted on our trip to Sacramento today. We caught a fast food breakfast and drove in rain (great big rain in LA) till we dropped down over Grape Vine Pass into the Napa Valley. (J.W. missed his turn to bypass LA due to the heavy rain. The trip through LA was a nightmare.)

After we hit the Napa Valley rain stopped and we had beautiful weather for the rest of that trip. We got to Sacramento around six o’clock. Got a beautiful room at the Hampton Inn. Once we were settled in we went to “The Old Spaghetti Factory” for supper. I had caught a cold in Hemet and by the time we got to Sacramento it seemed to have settled in my left ear and the right side of my neck. The beds in our motel were super nice but I had a pretty miserable night. I couldn’t find any position to sleep that eased the pain. J.W. slept real good, I slept fitfully

Day 34 – February 8 – Monday

We got up and got everything packed up to take Joyce back to the Airport today. We met Deanie and Bill at IHOP in Banning. After breakfast we all got into our vehicle and headed out to the Joshua Tree National Park before going to Ontario.

It was interesting to learn that Joshua Trees are not really trees at all, they are a member of the yucca family. We saw very interesting rock formations and took lots of pictures. We turned around at Skull Rock and beat path for the Airport. After we had made our U turn we drove a ways then had to stop and let three coyotes cross the road.
J.W. bought his Golden Eagle National Park Pass, so now we can go to all the National Parks and other National events free of charge.

Joyce got to the Airport in good time. After dropping Deanie & Bill off at their car we headed back to the Motorhome to get packed and ready to take off for Sacramento tomorrow

Day 33 – February 7 – Sunday

J.W., Joyce and I met Deanie & Bill and Paula & Darren in Banning for church this morning. Great services. After church we went to lunch at Chili’s. Paula had to work tonight, so she went home to get some sleep. They guys went back to watch the Super Bowl on the BIG screen at Chad & Melissa’s. Deanie, Joyce and I went to Kohl’s to do some shopping. We didn’t shop long because it was too cold, so we went on to the house and started fixing supper using last night’s leftovers. Another great meal. We felt we did OK. We fed 15 people three meals for $150.00. What a deal!

"GEAUX SAINTS" "WHO DAT" ! ! ! YEA

Everybody seemed to be quite pleased with the outcome of the Super Bowl. The evening ended with another BIG screen movie. What a great day!

Day 32 – February 6 – Saturday

We got up early this morning. Melissa, Joyce and I went to Wal-Mart for the sodas and meat for today.

Darren & Paula got here at 10:45 so they had time to visit with Chad for a while before he had to go to work at noon. Deanie and Bill were the next to arrive, then Leo and Sylvia (my oldest brother and his wife) got here at 11:45, just in time for lunch. We ate right at noon just as was planned.

The siblings had a great time reminiscing. We girls got a new perspective on things as Leo shared his memories. We were pleasantly surprised when Chad got off work early and was able to join us for steak, shrimp, chicken, meatball and little smokie kabobs we had prepared for the evening meal. We added quartered oven baked potatoes, steamed asparagus, and fresh veggies, then topped the meal off with fresh pineapple and grape kabobs. Later in the evening we had a mixture of blackberries, strawberries red raspberries and blueberries served over cake or ice cream.

After the meal Chad and Eric moved a BIG screen (8’ x 12’) into the living room and we watched “What Women Want” with Mel Gibson to end the reunion. Chad made the screen so they could have outdoor movies in their backyard in the Summer months. It was awesome.

We all had a great time and really missed those who couldn't make it. Everybody in the area, except two nieces, were able to attend. Currently, we are tentatively planning our next reunion for the end of January or the first part of February 2011 at Port Aransas (Padre Island, TX). Hope you’ll all start making plans to be there.

Day 31 – February 5 – Friday

Got up and finished getting the Motorhome ready for company. We picked up Joyce (my oldest sister) at the Ontario Airport (about an hour from Hemet), then met Deanie and Bill at Red Robin in Hemet so J.W. and I could eat lunch. We stopped by the Motorhome to get my sleep over items, then on to Chad and Melissa’s where Joyce and I would be staying until after the Reunion.

We decided to stop off at Wal-Mart and pick up some of the food and other things we needed for the Family Reunion, before arriving at our final destination. All of us except Chad (he had to work) went to Hometown Buffet for supper. Deanie & Bill and J.W. all went home, while the rest of us went back to Chad’s. When he got off work we had a “Movie Night”, then it was off to bed. Big day tomorrow!

Day 30 – February 4 - Thursday

Pretty much just hung out resting and trying to get in better health for the upcoming Family Reunion. We did some shopping at Wal-Mart. I bought some Khaki’s and some material to make a pair of pants for work. J.W. went to the Motorhome, I went to Chad and Melissa’s to cut out my pants. She had much more room than I do. It made the job so much simpler. I went back over to our place to do some cleaning so the place would be spiffed up when Joyce gets here tomorrow. I also hemmed a couple pair of jean I had bought.

Day 29 – February 3 – Wednesday

Had breakfast at IHOP with Deanie and Bill then went to $2.50 movies in Banning. We saw, “Edge of Darkness”. This was a good movie which we would recommend. Following the movie we went to Carrows for a snack, because we were planning to eat at IHOP’s Wednesday night special, Buy 1 Get 1 Free. Bill ordered a Cheeseburger and was not feeling well at suppertime. We decided to eat at Der Weinersnitzel then spent the night at the Motorhome nursing colds.

Day 28 – February 2 – Tuesday

Today we had planned to go back to San Diego and see Tom and Diane Collins, however, we did not get a response to our attempts to contact them, so we decided to see if Deanie and Bill wanted to go to Sea World with us. Bill was not feeling well so we decided to spend another day exploring.

We went to the Morongo Casino out in the desert for breakfast. Then we went shopping at Dickies, Camping World and the Mall. We made a stop at Claim Jumper so J.W. could have some of their world famous bread pudding. When we got back to Hemet we had supper with the kids at Los Vasqueros.

Day 27 – February 1 – Monday

We had planned to leave for Sacramento today. I took Cody to school and when I got back to the Motorhome we decided to go to San Diego instead.

We had a wonderful day on the Harbor Walk, where we walked some and took a cruise on a Bicycle Taxi. Spent BIG bucks on Ben & Jerry ice cream, and BIGGER bucks on a Hornblower Dinner Cruise. It was a rather interesting night with only 17 of us on a boat that could seat 300. Needless to say, we all had window seats.

It appeared to be a sad night for the young couple at the table next to us. We were on a three hour cruise and they didn’t speak to each other for the last two and a half hours. Their dinner & cruise was a $200.00 package. They didn’t open their champagne, eat their meal or their dessert. What a night for them?

Oh yea, we saw a really BIG statue next to the Midway. "Don't look up JW" ! ! !

We had a wonderful time. Enjoyed the lights shining on the ocean and got some beautiful pictures. We got back to Hemet just a little after midnight. Kinda late for us old folks.

Day 26 – January 31 – Sunday

Just 27 more days before J.W. goes back to work. So far we’ve certainly not had a relaxing vacation. Bad weather and deaths do not equate to a fun time.

We were up early today and headed to Banning for church at Crossroad Christian Center. The Pastor finished a series on “The Adventure of Knowing the Holy Spirit.”

For lunch we drove 30 miles or so to Riverside so we could eat at the families favorite Mexican Food place, Don Jose’s. Really good food. After lunch J.W. and I hurried back to Hemet for the Football Playoffs at Chad and Melissa’s.

Day 25 – January 30 – Saturday

Today we went to Knotts Berry Farm with Chad’s family to celebrate Cody’s 9th birthday. We had to be at Chad’s house at 7:50 a.m. because we had to stop in Loma Linda to pick up discount tickets. Melissa’s sister is a Deputy Sheriff for LA County, she had gotten the tickets earlier in the week. The kids rode the rides while J.W. and I visited with various employees and took in several of the shows. It was interesting to find similarities of both SDC and CC in the Park. We talked with several employees who knew employees at SDC and others who had visited our Park in Branson. All in all, it was a fun day. The train ride didn’t compare to SDC’s. The Conductor had visited SDC and was highly impressed with our train.
We ate at Johnny Rockets and paid an astronomical price for the meal. When we left the Park we found we could have eaten just outside the gate for 1/3 the price. A one day pass was $60.00 and there weren’t nearly as many shows as there are at SDC. Some of the rides were more thrilling than ours. It cost $12.00 for parking, and there were no trams, trolleys, shuttles or buses to take us to the entrance. And a bottle of water was $4.00. The Park is centered more around Indian Culture and, of course, Knotts Berry Farm jellies and jams.

On the way back to Hemet we encountered our first big traffic jam of the trip. For 17 miles we travelled at 5-10 mph.

Day 24 – January 29 – Friday

Today was spent exploring. We ended up at Idyllwild. A real neat little quaint town tucked away in the mountains outside Banning, CA.

We ate at an interesting place called The Gastronome.

This restaurant is hidden off in the woods on a back street. We sat right next to a fireplace, which we shared with a gay couple that appeared to be celebrating a special occasion. Very interesting to say the least. The meal was great. J.W. thought the bar tender looked like Thomas Jefferson or George Washington in their wigs and coats with tails. As it turned out, he was a gay guy in his normal attire. The trip up to Idyllwild took three times as long as it should have. We stopped at nearly every turn out to take pictures. The trip back to Hemet went quickly, not only because it was getting dark, but the fact is, going down the mountain was just not as scenic as the trip up. Fun, relaxing day.

Day 23 - January 28 - Thursday

Hooray!! J.W. arrived back in California. Flight schedule was quite interesting. I was supposed to pick him up at 4:05. However, due to an ice and snow storm his 12:00 o’clock flight was canceled and changed to 6:00 p.m. He was to arrive in Ontario, CA at 10:05 p.m. When J.W. got up this morning the Hotel Attendant told him all flights had been canceled for the day. J.W. called the airport, they told him all flights after 12:00 were canceled, which of course included his 6:00 o’clock flight. They told him if he could be at the airport by 9:45 he could fly out today. He was to be in Ontario at 2:05. Due to delays in Dallas/Fort Worth he finally arrived in California at 4:05 p.m. What a fiasco, but I was really excited to have him back with me and the family. Other exciting things happened today, but none that could top the flight fiasco.

Day 21 - January 26 - Tuesday

Betty L. Walker 1920-2010 RIP.

Melissa’s grandmother was also buried today in Minnesota. And, a great big Happy Birthday to Cody! Meanwhile, back in Hemet I spent the day with Chad. He was sick today so stayed home from work. He used a couple boxes of Kleenex blowing his nose and started looking like Rudolph. Cody turned 9 today. We celebrated with a nice meal and gifts in the evening.

Day 22 - January 27 - Wednesday

Happy Birthday Melissa! J.W. made his way back to Tulsa where he will catch a plane back to California tomorrow. An ice storm is to hit Tulsa around noon tomorrow. His flight is scheduled for 12:00 p.m. I slept in this morning. Chad got the kids off to school and himself off to work. I picked Deanie and Bill up from the Repair Shop while their car was being fixed. We had breakfast, did some shopping and just hung out until the car was done. Melissa got back from Minnesota today. Got a call late this evening informing me that J.W.’s flight has been changed to 6:05 tomorrow night and he won’t get into Ontario until 10:05 p.m. Deanie wasn’t sure she and Bill could take me to the Airport, so I made arrangements with Chad to go with me. Sure hope he is not delayed by the weather. If he doesn’t get out of Oklahoma before the storm hits who knows when he’ll be back. We are scheduled to go to Knotts Berry Farm on the 30th to continue to celebrate Cody’s birthday. We went out to Steer & Stein tonight to celebrate Melissa’s birthday.

Day 20 - January 25 - Monday

J.W. finalized funeral plans today. I fixed Cody some pancakes for breakfast. After the kids were off to school and Chad was off to work, I did some shopping and more cleaning on the Motor home. I had to be back to Chad’s house by 3:30 p.m. when Cody got home from school. The evening went pretty fast. Cody did his homework then we played more games before bedtime.

Day 19 - January 24 - Sunday

J.W. attended church services at the First Baptist Church in Oswego today. This is the same church he had preached at several times in the past when Pastor John was out of town. That was in our pre-SDC days. This was one of the things we had to give up due to our work schedules. Following services he went back to Parsons, ate at El Pueblito, one of our favorite Mexican food places. He then retired to his room to watch the football games. He was quite pleased with the outcome, which you are well aware of if you have been on Facebook. I enjoyed another day with the grandchildren. We went to the Park, which was flooded. The kids played until their clothes and shoes were sufficiently soaked, then we headed home to get the kids dried out and dinner prepared before Chad got home from work. I had a nice visit with my son and we played some video games after the kids were tucked in for the night.

Day 18 - January 23 - Saturday

Happy Birthday Gari Sue! Today is my daughter’s birthday and I just couldn’t resist . I am having a wonderful time with Cody and Natalie while J.W. is moving his mother’s things from the Nursing Home in Oswego to storage and making funeral arrangements. Melissa is on her way to Minnesota and Chad is at work. This day was a busy one with cooking meals, cleaning the Motor home, and learning Wii and Play Station 3 games. I am learning to be a good loser. Can you believe that an eight and a five year old continually beat the socks off me?

Day 17 - January 22 - Friday

12:30 a.m. and we just got reservations for a flight out of Ontario, CA at 2:05 p.m. today. My sister and brother-in-law went with us to the Airport. We got there in good time. J.W. had to change planes in Dallas and arrived in Tulsa, OK at 9:30 p.m. CST. After picking up a rental car he drove to Parsons, KS, the closest Motel to his home town, Oswego, KS. I stayed at my son’s house in Hemet, CA to take care of the grand kids while my daughter-in-law went to Minnesota to her grandmother’s funeral. She passed away on January 20, just one day before J.W.’s mom.

Day 16 - January 21- Thursday

My, oh my, oh my!! How time does fly. Here we are, actually ending Day 45 of our vacation and have not posted anything since day 15. So here goes, we will do some backtracking and try to play catchup.

January 21

Yesterday we received word from the Nursing Home in Oswego that J.W.’s mom was not doing well and they suggested we put her on Hospice. We got her on Hospice today, and J.W. has been trying to get a flight to Kansas. We have been getting updates about every 30 minutes on her condition, and just got notification from the Airport that all flights have been canceled due to the rain. We got a call at 9:50 p.m. reporting that his mom had just gone home to be with the Lord.