Sunday, October 31, 2010

Montana Mikes, MacFarlains & The Wiggle Scooter.

Tomorrow will be a travel day for John and I so today we had restaurant tickets we needed to use.  For lunch we went to Montana Mike’s.  John ordered a grilled chicken salad and I ordered a baked potato with steamed vegetables. 

Tonight Mike, Leslie, John and I went to MacFarlain’s Restaurant for dinner.  We had gift certificates that expire on November 1st and wanted to use them up.  We all had the open faced roast beef sandwich plates with a piece of Branson Traffic Jam pie for dessert.  The pie was very tasty.  It had strawberries, cranberries and rhubarb in it.  I would like to have the recipe.

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On the way out of the restaurant I saw these large peppermint sticks and thought I could stand up under it.  I was almost short enough. LOL

As we walked out through the I-Max theater building there was a vendor selling Wiggle Scooters.  I dared John ride one.  Just look at him go. LOL

 

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They sell these things for $40.00 and claim it is fun for ages 1 to 100.  Oh well it was good for a laugh. 

We all returned to our place to play a couple rounds of 10 Penny.  Leslie won the first round with a score of 180 and I came in dead last with a whopping score of 485.  I did not fair so well in round two either.  John won with a score of 85 and I came in dead last again with a score of 330.  It just wasn’t my night. LOL

Laugh everyday.  Happy trails.  Stay safe.

Saturday, October 30, 2010

Luau, Horseshoes and Dinner Train.

Today was a busy day. Early this morning Mike, Leslie, John and I attended the annual owner’s meeting for Treasure Lake RV Resort at the New Shanghai Theatre. Although business was discussed, entertainment was provided as well as door prizes. The entertainment consisted of The Warnock Sisters, a Marilyn Monroe Impersonator from Legends and acrobats from the New Shanghai Theatre. It was awesome. Mike and Leslie won tickets to the Rankin Brothers Show and John and I won gift certificates to Montana Mike’s Steakhouse.

Our lunchtime fun included attending the luau at the Treasure Lake Clubhouse. The event was catered by a local company. We had BBQ Hawaiian pulled pork, teriyaki chicken, rice, red potatoes, vegetable medley and cake for dessert.

003Mike and Leslie at the luau.

005 John contemplating a second plate.


006 People who dressed up Hawaiian Style for the best Hawaiian costume contest.

007This lady actually works for the park and showed up in a padded hula suit as a joke. It was very funny.

Tonight’s plans were to have dinner on the Branson Scenic Railway dinner train so after the luau we had a little time to spare. Mike and John played horse shoes while Leslie and I watched from outside the fence.

009 Mike ready for a throw.

010 John in the middle of his throw.

Before long it was time to head over to the Branson Scenic Railway dinner train for boarding.

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012 Our train.

014 Mike and Leslie.

016 John and I.

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Scenery from outside the window as we left the train station.

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Picture of the train from one of the dome cars.

026Another picture taken from the dome car.

028 Scenery of the countryside from the dome car.

032 Top side of the train.

035Train entering one of the tunnels. It was getting dark.

We had a wonderful time on the dinner train. As we enjoyed the scenery we were served a meal of prime rib, baked potato, salad, and fudge marble cake. The wait staff and the service were both excellent. Great food, great friends and nice scenery….what a nice way to spend the evening.

Since it was still a little early when we returned to the campground we all decided to play a round or two of 10 Penny. Leslie won the first round with a score of 100 and Mike won the second one with a score of 40. We might have to have a rematch tomorrow. LOL

Laugh everyday. Happy trails. Stay safe.

Friday, October 29, 2010

Farmhouse Restaurant, Candy Store & Haunted Hayride.

Today was one of those days when we were on the go pretty much all day.  Mike, Leslie, John and I rode into downtown Branson to check the mail at the post office one more time before we leave on November 1st.  While downtown John remembered that on one of our previous visits we had eaten at the Farmhouse Restaurant so we all agreed to eat lunch there.  Everyone had the soup and salad bar except me.  I ordered the chicken tender lunch with mashed potatoes and green beans.  The restaurant was very busy but our wait wasn’t too long. 

After lunch we walked down the sidewalk looking in the stores and stopped in a the Old Fashioned Candy Store.  I saw candy in there that I had not seen since I was child.  Of course we all bought some.  It was too good to pass up.

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Front window of the candy store.

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Inside of the store. 

This store was crammed full of every kind of candy you could possibly imagine.  With our candy purchases completed we  headed over to the West Branson area. 

We notice a scenic lookout so Mike pulled off for us to get pictures.

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This is the view point of Lake Taney Como from the scenic lookout.

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The City of Branson.

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The City of Branson, again.

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Flat Clayton came along for the ride today.  If you look just beyond Flat Clayton you can see the Table Rock Dam.

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John snapped this picture while we were at the scenic lookout.   I thought it was a cool looking butterfly.

Tonight at the campground we attended the hamburger dinner then later went on the haunted hayride.  It wasn’t very scary but we had a good time.

We ended the night with a round of 10 Penny.  Tonight was my lucky night.  I won with a score of 195. 

Laugh everyday.  Happy trails.  Stay safe.

Thursday, October 28, 2010

Fred’s spa day.

Woke up this morning to a very chilly 45 degrees. Fred and I did not go on a long walk this morning…..to cold and windy for me.

Later in the morning John took Fred to his spa appointment at a place called Dog Naturals Grooming and Market. Fred got the works…..bath, ear cleaning, teeth brushed, nails clipped and a deep tissue massage…..only $28.00. I could not believe the price.

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Fred relaxing after his spa day. I know….he is spoiled.

Tonight Leslie and Mike invited us over for dinner. She prepared a stuffed pork loin, noodles, gravy and steamed carrots. It was so tasty. Thanks Leslie and Mike for a great dinner. Shortly after dinner we all headed to the clubhouse for some bingo. None of us won but we had a nice time. As soon as the bingo games were over it was back to Leslie and Mike’s for a delicious pumpkin dessert and 10 Penny.

005 Mike teaching Flat Clayton how to play 10 Penny.

Leslie won the first round with a total of 15 points for the whole game. Wow that is a great score. Mike came in second with a score of 90, a great score too. John and I rounded out the bottom two with me being the loser with a total of 350 points. Just terrible. LOL John won the second round with a score of 50 points. WOW. Leslie came in second with a score of 195 and…..Mike and I rounded out the bottom two……me with 410 points and Mike with 500. We just could not catch a break it seems. Oh well, there is always tomorrow and a rematch.

Tomorrow the park has Halloween activities starting early in the afternoon until late tomorrow night. We plan to attend a few of these. It should be fun.

Laugh everyday. Happy trails. Stay safe.

Wednesday, October 27, 2010

Chicken Fried Steak Dinner & 10 Penny.

John and I took Fred on the morning walk today but did not see any deer out.  I did meet an interesting lady who was also walking her dog.  She and her husband travel only six months out of the year now but had previously been full time RV’rs for 20 years. She had some interesting stories to tell

This afternoon we all loaded up in our truck and headed to downtown Branson to the post office to check the mail then on to Walgreens and the local grocery store.  As we walked through the store we started discussing what to have for dinner.  Leslie and I decided on chicken fried steak, mashed potatoes and salad.  There’s no fat in that, right???? LOL

After our chicken fried steak dinner it was time for some rounds of 10 Penny.  We played three rounds.  John won the first one, I won the second one and Mike won the last.  

Sockey the sock monkey wants everyone to know that he is still hanging out in the RV.  He is waving hello to everyone.

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Laugh everyday.  Happy trails.  Stay safe.

Tuesday, October 26, 2010

Bob Nelson Comedy Show

Up early for the morning walk with Fred. This morning John, Mike and Leslie joined in for the walk. There were no deer out only the squirrels.

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This afternoon John and Mike ran a few errands while Leslie and I sorted through and organized her pictures from South Dakota and Colorado.

Tonight we all attended the Bob Nelson Comedy Show at the Barbara Fairchild Diner. We arrived early and had dinner first. Mike, Leslie and John had chicken salad sandwiches and I had the turkey club sandwich. We also tried a couple of their desserts; bread pudding and saw dust pie. Both were delicious. The Bob Nelson Comedy Show was entertaining. He is very comical and talented. The show lasted for an hour and 45 minutes and was worth every penny.


Saw Dust Pie Recipe:

Saw Dust Pie tastes very similar to pecan pie. The first time we had it was in Kentucky at a place called Patty's Settlement Restaurant.

Here is the recipe:

Saw Dust Pie

7 eggs whites, unbeaten
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs
1 1/2 cups pecans
1 1/2 cups coconut
9 inch unbaked pie shell

Mix all ingredients together and stir by hand. Pour into unbaked pie shell. Bake in preheated 325 degree oven untill glossy and set (about 25 to 30 minutes)

Do not overbake. Serve warm with sliced bananas and shipped cream. Serves 6.

Laugh everyday. Happy trails. Stay safe.

Monday, October 25, 2010

Post Office, Mall and Water Show.

Up early for the morning walk with Fred.  I walked on the other trail this morning.  It was still a little foggy when I left and there were deer still out walking round.  Did not have my camera though.  Maybe I will get a picture of them tomorrow.

Later in the day Mike, Leslie, John and I rode into town.  Our first stop was the post office. Leslie took a picture of me with Flat Clayton.

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It was very windy today so we tried to hurry and get the picture.

We ventured on to downtown Branson to a shopping mall.  On our stroll we saw a Brookstone’s and decided to checkout the new gadgets.  John tried out the massage chair.  I think he fell asleep for a few minutes. 

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Flat Clayton wanted to try it out too.

While walking along the main thoroughfare we heard an announcement for a brief water show at the dock area so off we went to see it.  Music started playing and the water and fire shot up with intervals of the music.  Very cool to watch.

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We browsed through a few more stores then left to make another Wal-mart run. Gotta love Wal-mart.

Tonight John and I went over to Mike and Leslies for dinner.  We had some delicious brats, steamed squash with rice and sautéed’ mushrooms.  For dessert we had lemon blossom cake that John had baked earlier in the day.

After our delicious dinner we watch the movie “Mad Money”.  No 10 Penny tonight. 

Laugh everyday.  Happy trails.  Stay safe.

Sunday, October 24, 2010

Betty and Joe heading back to Kentucky.

Up this morning to warm temperatures….just great for the morning walk.  Today Fred and I had company on our walk.  John, Betty and Joe joined us. 

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I had to stop for Fred to take care of business so I was able to get a couple of pictures.   On our walk we passed the lodge where breakfast was being served unfortunately we forgot our wallets.  We finished the walk and had just enough time to get our wallets and drive back to the lodge for biscuits and gravy.  Yum Yum!!

Shortly after breakfast it was time for Betty and Joe to head back to Kentucky.  We enjoyed their visit so much.  It is always fun getting together with them.  Hope to see them again real soon down the road.

The rest of the day was spent just chilling out and doing house hold chores.  John even managed to get in a nap. 

Tonight Mike and Leslie came over for the nightly rounds of 10 Penny.  The first round was a tough one for Mike and I.  We were the bottom two with John emerging the winner with a score of 80.   But…..the second round…..was a good one for Mike and I.  We were in the top two…..and…..are you sitting down?????   I won with a score of 50!!!!!!!  Yeah!!!!!! Finally. LOL

Laugh everyday.  Happy trails.  Stay safe.

Saturday, October 23, 2010

Betty & Joe and Mac & Nette.

Betty and Joe arrived shortly after midnight. Yea!!!!!! They are here. It is always good to see them.

After getting up and getting dressed John suggested having the breakfast buffet at Starvin Marvin’s. We stopped next door to see if Mike and Leslie would like to come along. So off all six of us went for the breakfast buffet. Once breakfast was complete we started searching for something to do.

Our first stop after breakfast was The Butterfly Palace. This was an amazing place to experience the life of the butterflies complete with a 3-D movie, emerald forest mirror maze and a walk among the butterflies.

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Mike trying out a safari hat at The Butterfly Palace.

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Looks like that bird is trying to take John for a flight. LOL

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Looks like that bird landed on Mike’s head.

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Betty and I at The Butterfly Palace.

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There were also a few birds in The Butterfly Palace.

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This butterfly landed on John’s head.

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Our next stop was the Branson Tourist Center to see if they had additional information on shows and events going on. Of course they offer free tickets if you tour one of the time share places. We were not interested in any of that.

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Joe waiting at the Tourist Center. Got his shades on and ready for adventure.

On our journey of riding around the Branson area we found a unique gift shop called The Country Barn. It is located on Highway 265 just three miles from Silver Dollar City. We finally found some great tasting fudge. All the other stores in the area are more expensive and do have the quality that we found here. John and I bought two types. The Country Barn also has crafts created by local artists and miscellaneous food items as well as the delicious fudge.

We did not find a show that we were interested in seeing. The only one we considered was Six but there were no seats for a group left available so back to the campground we went.

When we pulled up our site we noticed a card on the door with a note. Mac and Nette came by for a visit while we were gone. John called them too see if they were still in the area and within a few minutes they were here. This was the first time meeting them in person. We know them from their blog. After visiting for a while thoughts turned to dinner. Somehow food always comes up. LOL Our first choice was Majestic Steaks which is in the building where Mesquite Charlie’s used to be. Three truck loads of us traveled over the Majestic only to discover that is was closed. Our next choice was Montana Mike’s. The service was good. Some of us ordered prime rib and others ordered sirloin. John and I ordered the large sirloin steak and split it. It was a little tougher than I would like but had good flavor.

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Mac and Nette at Montana Mike’s.

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Our waiter was nice enough to take a group picture for us.

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John’s plate.

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My plate!!!! Not really…..we split the steak.

There is no way to eat all of that. I cut a small portion off and took a lot home.

We said our goodbyes to Mac and Nette in the parking lot. It was great to meet them after following their blog. I know we will meet up with them again on the road somewhere.

Betty and Joe will be leaving tomorrow morning to head back to Kentucky. Wish they could stay longer. We enjoy their company so much.

Laugh everyday. Happy trails. Stay safe.