Memorial Day

We would like to say thank you to all the service men and women past and present who have served and are serving in our military. If it weren’t for them we would not enjoy the freedoms we all have.

Our camping neighbors, Darren and Vena left this morning heading back to Oakland, Florida. It has been dull around here since they left. We had so much fun getting to know them. Shortly thereafter the other couple we played cards with last night, Ken and Katia, headed home also.

A Memorial Day BBQ lunch was served at the clubhouse at 1:00 p.m. today. We had BBQ ribs, slaw, potatoes, rolls and a brownie.

John and I spent the rest of the day just chilling out. Tomorrow will be a travel day. We will be heading to Jacksonville, Florida to visit with his older brother Harold and his family.

Remember to laugh everyday. Happy trails. Stay safe.

Good times with camping neighbors

Today we drove over to Ponce Inlet and toured the lighthouse. This lighthouse is supposed to be the tallest one in Florida. Making it to the top sure gives your legs a workout but the view is well worth it once you get there. The strong breeze blowing is wonderful.

By the time we left the lighthouse it was lunchtime. John will usually Google the areas we go to before sightseeing and searches for interesting places to eat. The choice today was a dockside restaurant/bar called “Down the Hatch”. The weather was so nice we sat outside on the dock and watched the boats go by. John chose a seafood sampler platter that consisted of fried fish, scallops, oysters, shrimp, new potatoes and hushpuppies. I decided on the shrimp sandwich. The atmosphere and service were both great but they need to learn how to cook fried shrimp. It was very bland and flavorless. John said the best part about his food was the fish. I guess I am just missing the “seasoned” Mississippi catfish and shrimp.

On the way back to the campground we passed through Daytona and saw the Daytona Speedway. Sure wish I was going to a race there.

Tonight we had dinner outside with our neighbor campers, Darren and Vena. We met them the other night when they were setting up on the site next to ours. We have really enjoyed their company. They had grilled some BBQ ribs and had some potato salad. We contributed baked beans and garlic bread. The food was delicious. Thank you Darren and Vena for a wonderful meal.

After dinner we decided to play some 10 Penny. Just before we got started another couple from the camper behind us asked it they could join in. All six of us played cards until after 1:30 a.m. We had a great time.

Remember to laugh everyday. Happy trails. Stay safe.

St. Augustine, FL

This morning started out about 8:30. After breakfast we headed up to St. Augustine to visit the lighthouse and Old Town. Bridget is a member of the USLHS and has a lighthouse passport. We found this on Gypsy’s blog and ordered one before we left MS. Bridget has her first stamp, their website is www.uslhs.org We toured the Light Keepers house and grounds as well as climbing the 216 steps to the top.

From the parking area

Standing on the porch of the Light Keepers house

Bridget going up to the top

View from the top

Usually a picture of Bridget talking to Annie but Terry answered the phone, Annie was driving.

Light Keepers house from the top.

Joe this one is for you, I do exist and having a great time.

After we returned to ground level we headed out for Old Town. It is about 5 minutes from the lighthouse. We parked and asked the attendant for a recommendation for lunch. She said Local Heroes hands down so that’s where we went. The sandwiches were great and reasonably priced. After lunch we continued our Old Town walk. We picked up a couple of bottles of St. Augustine hot sauce for Robert. It is made from the local peppers grown in St. Augustine. He collects hot sauces so this will add to his collection. We also picked up a shirt for Kelsey. We headed back to the trailer around 4:30. I did some more practicing with my dulcimer after we got home. Relaxing for now.

Stay Safe

Daytona Pig Stand BBQ

We slept until around 8:30.  I think this sleeping late is beginning to be a habit.  I sure like it. LOL  After breakfast drove over to Ormond Beach and washed the comforter and sheets from the bed.  Poor Fred ate some pork rib bones and during the night barfed so washing the bed linens was a must.

John filled the propane tanks today and returned the cable adaptor to the Verizon store.  The part did not fit and they had order us another one.  I guess one day we will get the right part.

We arrived in Ormond Beach around 12:30 and while at the stop light John looked over at me and asked, “You hungry yet?”  I knew then that he must have seen the Daytona Pig Stand BBQ restaurant.  You know John loves him some BBQ.  Of course we ate there for lunch.  John had a rack of baby back ribs with beans and slaw and I had the BBQ pulled pork sandwich and beans.  The food was delicious.

Tonight I cooked shrimp primavera and steamed broccoli for dinner.  John and I sprayed ourselves down with bug repellant and sat outside for a while.  I still got bitten.  I wonder what is up with that. LOL

Remember to laugh everyday.  Happy trails.  Stay safe.

Just chilling out.

Up between 9 and 9:30.  Today was sort of a chilling out day.   Fred and I walked around the park twice today.  I got in a  much needed workout on the Wii. Gotta try and keep in shape. LOL

After lunch John and I drove down the coast line to take in the scenery.  There were lots of places to stop off and have picnics or just walk on the beach.

John went back into town to get a few more groceries for dinner.  The weather was so nice we decided to sit outside until dark.  John played his dulcimer while I read.  It was very relaxing. 

Remember to laugh everyday.  Happy trails.  Stay safe.

Atlantis Lands

Orbiter Atlantis landed at 8:48 EST this morning. We were at the North end of the runway. The orbiter is in the center of the picture. If you click on the picture it should open then click on it again to zoom in. The last pictures it is at the tree line. I am hoping that Santa will bring me a 300mm lens this Christmas if not sooner.

Playing cards at Bulow Plantation RV Resort

Today was a travel day.  Up at 8:15 and on the road by 10:30 heading to Flagler Beach, Florida.  We arrived at Bulow Plantation RV resort shortly after noon.  This is a large Coast to Coast park with nice paved roads and shaded lots.  Our site is right across from the clubhouse/restaurant.  How convenient is that?   After getting everything set up we headed into town for groceries and to find the Verizon Wireless store.

John cooked a sirloin steak on the grill for dinner.  While he was grilling I prepared a salad and steamed some spinach.  The weather was so nice we ate outside.  Once dinner was finished John, Fred and I walked around the park enjoying the weather and the scenery.

On Tuesday nights people gather at the clubhouse to play cards.  We walked over to check it out and ended up playing Michigan Rummy with a group of regulars from the park.  They were very entertaining and we had a great time. 

Tomorrow morning we are going to go watch the space shuttle land.  Hopefully we will get some good pictures to post.

Remember to laugh everyday. Happy trails.  Stay safe.

Errand across town

Slept in, well Bridget did. I got up around 8 and Bridget got up around 11. She has been attacked by whatever kind of bugs are here. She took Benadryl which makes her sleepy for a while. I went over to Verizon to pick up an external antenna for the aircard. Still need one more part which we will pick up at our next stop. Well tomorrow is our next stop. We will be moving 100 miles NE to Flagler Beach, FL. We will be there until June 1st. FB is about half way between St. Augustine and Daytona Beach. Check out is 11 am tomorrow.

Stay Safe

Bug Bites

This was a lazy day. We slept very late this morning.

Last night I had to take Benadryl to stop the infernal itching from the “noseeum” bug bites. It seems every time I go out I get bitten. The bites are so bad that I have swollen knots on my feet and ankles. John has been lucky in that he hasn’t been bitten by them at all. What is fair about that?????LOL I must itch alone! LOL

We watched the Nascar Hall of Fame Induction ceremony today. It was a very good program. I think this will be one place we will be visiting down the road. We love some Nascar.

This was one of those days that we did not leave the campground. We caught up on the laundry so it was a productive day. John cleaned and waxed the shower.

For dinner I cooked pineapple honey chicken, rice pilaf and green beans.

Wishing John's brother and niece a very happy birthday today.

Remember to laugh everyday. Happy trails. Stay safe.

Another Great Day

Slept in until around 10, breakfast was cereal and coffee. Headed out to WalMart for groceries for the week. Made hamburgers for our 2:30 lunch. For the new readers, I mix a 2.25 lb pack of 80/20 WM ground beef with 2 cups of shredded cheese, I usually use cheddar but this time used cheddar jack. The jack is a block cheese and has to be grated so I think I will switch back to the pre-shredded. It makes 8-10 patties depending on how thick you like them. After lunch we headed over to Old Town where they were having the fire fighter combat challenge and car show. We left at 5 to go see the 6pm showing of Cirque de Soleil, an excellent 1 1/2 hr show. Reheated burgers for supper. Watching the NASCAR race now. They are going to try to launch the GPS rocket tonight at 11:20, Bridget said we weren't going. That's our day.

Stay Safe

Mission Scrubbed

Made two trips to Lowes for stuff to finish mounting the auto satellite dish on the roof. We purchased the Winegard Automatic Portable Dish and I ordered the mounting plate for it. I mounted the plate on the ladder at the back of the trailer. It will travel on the trailer but by removing one bolt I can bring it down and place it in a 50' radius of the trailer.



















I also mounted the plaque C-Shift gave me to put in the trailer, I mounted it above my recliner.



















After lunch Fred and I took a nap, Bridget said a long nap. We took a walk around the park after our nap. As the sun was setting we sat outside and I practiced on my dulcimer for a while. While watching the local news we saw they were going to launch a rocket tonight for a new GPS satellite so we loaded into the truck and headed out. Only stop was at an Edy's Ice Cream Shop. The launch was scheduled for 11:28pm but the mission was canceled so at 11:50 we headed back. Arrived just before 1am. That was our day.

Stay Safe

Lunch with Jeremy and Valerie

Up at 8:30 this morning. After breakfast John was off to Lowe’s to get additional hardware to mount the satellite dish.

Around 10:30 we headed off to meet our friends Jeremy and Valerie for lunch. Jeremy and Valerie used to live in Mississippi. Jeremy worked for Madison Fire Department and Valerie worked for the ambulance service. They moved to Florida years ago and we lost contact with them but with the help of facebook we were able to reconnect with them. We ate lunch at a place called Pei Wei. If you have ever eaten at P. F. Chang’s and like it, you would like Pei Wei. During lunch we caught up on all the news old and current. After lunch Jeremy drove us over to the new 16,000 square foot fire station for a tour. The materials used in building this fire station are in keeping with “green building” for a better environment. Thank you Jeremy and Valerie for a nice lunch and for the fire station tour.

Tonight John and I sat outside and waited for the space shuttle to appear in the sky during its orbit. We were finally able to see it as it passed by.

Remember to laugh everyday. Happy trails. Stay safe.

Medieval Times

Today was moving day……just 23 miles.  We are now at Lake Magic RV Resort.  It is a large park with paved roads that will be good for bike riding.  After getting the camper set up John and I road the bikes through the park…..gotta get a little exercise in. LOL

After lunch we drove around the area to see where the grocery stores and such were.  We stopped off at Super Target and bought a few groceries.

Tonight John and I had tickets to attend Medieval Times dinner and tournament.  The food was good and plentiful and the entertainment was lively.  The dinner consisted of tomato soup, half a roasted chicken, a spare rib, large baked potato wedge, garlic bread and an apple pastry. 

Remember to laugh everyday.  Happy trails.  Stay safe.

Fred’s Spa Day

Up early this morning to take Fred to the groomer for a bath and nail clipping. Yesterday I called around and found a place called Pawfection Connection in Minneola, FL (right down the road from the campground). They have a $10.00 special that runs every Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday. The price includes a bath, ear cleaning, nail clipping and gland expression. We were surprised at the low price. While Fred was having his “spa day” John and I went across the street and had breakfast at a place called Friendly’s. The place lived up to it’s name. Everyone in the place was very friendly. After finishing breakfast we drove over to the Super Target where John found a haircut kit. He has decided he will try to cut his own hair while on the road. Once our shopping was complete we headed over to pick Fred up. He is now sporting a bright green bandana. LOL

After lunch John took our bicycles over to a local shop to have a tune up done on them. John was pleased with their pricing also.

The park restaurant was having a fried chicken dinner tonight so we walked over to have dinner. The menu consisted of drinks, fried chicken, baked or mashed potatoes, green beans, cole slaw, biscuits and homemade applesauce with ice cream for dessert. I like to think by walking over and back we walked off some of the calories. LOL

Remember to laugh everyday. Happy trails. Stay safe.

John gets a haircut

The day started out with light rain and cloudy skies.   It rained lightly on and off for a few minutes at a time during the rest of the morning then the sky cleared and the sun came out.

John left before lunch in search of a barber shop.  While he was out getting his hair cut he also had an additional key made for the camper.

Before dinner John, Fred and I went for a walk around the park.  When we reached the front of the park I noticed the couple that I met from Pennsylvania the other day was at home so we stopped by to say hello and visit for a while.   We shared campground experiences and information.  It is always interesting to hear about places other people have visited and very helpful.

Remember to laugh everyday.  Happy trails.  Stay safe.

Relaxing Day

Today was a day for relaxing.  After breakfast John, Fred and I walked around the park.  Later on we settled in to watch the Nascar race.  I was not happy…..Kyle Bush won.  I don’t like him.

After watching the race we went for another walk before the rain came in.  The rain came and went in a matter of minutes and the sun was shining once again.  Gotta love this weather.

Tonight John and I watched some of our favorite shows and spent time on our laptops.  Not much news other than that.

Remember to laugh everyday.  Happy trails.  Stay safe.

Met some fellow campers from Pennsylvania

Got up a little earlier today….. 7:30 …..what’s up with that? LOL

After breakfast, John, Fred and I went on a walk on the nature trail here in the park. It wasn’t a long walk but there was wild life to look at. We saw a crane and a few ducks.

After lunch we went into town and shopped at the Super Target. The produce in this store looked better than Wal-mart’s. I have not tried the meat yet but I bet it will taste better than Wal-mart’s.

John made a run to the RV parts store for replacement light bulbs for the lights over our recliners. He has replaced them so now we can see a lot better.

For dinner I cooked French fried onion chicken, brown rice, steamed carrots and steamed broccoli. Shortly after dinner Fred was ready for another walk around the park. While making my way around the front of the park I saw the couple from Pennsylvania I met yesterday who have been camping for a while. They have not met John yet. It just happens that every time I see them I am walking with Fred by myself. I told them they would meet John and that he really does exist. LOL

Remember to laugh everyday. Happy trails. Stay safe.

Space Shuttle Atlantis

Alarm clock was set for 7:30, after breakfast we were on the road a little after 9. Traffic going was not bad until we got within 10 miles of the Kennedy Space Center welcome center. After a few miles of barely moving we pulled into the U.S. Astronaut Hall of Fame. We parked with the other bazillion people that were there too. We were parked by 11am. We walked around the museum and dined on hamburgers, chips and water. Watched a few presentations and monitored the live video screen for shuttle activities. A little after 2 we walked outside and found an area that Bridget could see from. Bridget was able to see the booster tanks separate from the orbiter with her binoculars, she said it was “cool”.

The first 3 pictures are from the live video screen.

Just before liftoff.

This is a must see event. Only 2 more launch days scheduled. We got back to the truck around 3 and back at the park around 6, the traffic was bumper to bumper just about the whole way back. The RV park has a restaurant that is only open on Tuesday and Friday nights, chicken on Tuesday and fish on Friday. We enjoyed the fried Alaskan Pollock, baked potato, corn fritters, slaw, homemade applesauce and soft serve ice cream. That’s it for our day.

Stay Safe

Vacation Day

About the only thing we did today was go to Kohl's and looked around. The rest of the day was spend at the campground at the trailer. Tomorrow we are heading over to watch the space shuttle launch around 2:20 pm EST.

Stay Safe

Made it to Clermont

Today was a travel day.  We were up around 9:30 and on the road before noon.  The trip over to Clermont was a short one.  Only 135 miles.   We arrived at Bees RV park after lunch.  This is a Coast to Coast park and has a pool, restaurant and laundromat.  Fred and I took a walk around the area where we are parked and came across a duck with ducklings swimming across the pond and also found some blackberry bushes.  I wish they were ripe enough to pick.  I would love some blackberry cobbler. LOL

After getting set up we made a grocery run to the local Wal-mart.  By the time we made it back to the camper it was time to start dinner.  Tonight we had Cajun dirty rice, black beans and steamed broccoli.  Somehow it always comes back to food. LOL

Remember to laugh everyday.  Happy trails.  Stay safe.

Travel Day

Today was a travel day.  Up around 9:00 a.m. and checked out before noon and on the road headed to Lake City, FL for an overnight stay. 

We arrived at Casey Jones RV Park around 3:30.  John set the trailer up and then went to fuel up the truck. 

I cooked some stir fried chicken with vegetables and pasta for dinner and then we both just chilled out.  John caught up on reading some blogs and I watched American Idol.

Tomorrow is a travel day also.  We head out to Clermont, FL tomorrow for a 10 day stay.

Remember to laugh everyday.  Happy trails.  Stay Safe.

Learning how to play cribbage.

Slept late again today…….til around 9:15. Later in the morning John and I went over to the clubhouse to play Cribbage. Last year we bought the game, read the instructions and could not figure it out. LOL This morning we met Bill and Doug who gladly tried to teach us how to play Cribbage. I will just say that we now have an understanding of how the game is played but we need a lot of practice. LOL Thank you Bill and Doug for taking the time to teach us.

After lunch we drove over to Santa Rosa, FL and drove through the Topsail Hill Preserve State Park. The campground was scenic and shady. When we left the state park we decided to drive a few miles up the road and walk on the beach. The weather was nice, probably in the low 80s, and breezy.

For dinner John cooked stir fried vegetables and garlic bread and reheated the pulled pork left from the day before. It was very good. Sounds like I am getting lazy. I might get used to this. LOL

Pictures of today, just click on the play button.

Remember to laugh everyday. Happy trails. Stay safe.

Happy Mother’s Day

Slept in late this morning and had grilled cheese sandwiches for breakfast. Received Mother’s day wishes from our son Robert, sister Annie, niece Mary Beth and brother-in-law Bill. Thank you all for the calls and texts. We called Marcy and Mom Hatch to wish them Happy Mother’s Day. We would like to wish all the mothers a Happy Mother’s Day.

Thank you John for doing all the cooking and cleaning today and making my Mother's Day a restful one.

Sadly, our friend Brenda Strider’s mother, whom has been in the hospice passed away this morning. We visited with Mack and Brenda last weekend while in Hattiesburg, MS. Please keep Brenda and her family in your prayers during this very sad and difficult time.

John prepared “taters-n-onions” to take to the potluck lunch that was held at the clubhouse at noon. The main dishes consisted of various potato dishes, corn casserole, cole slaw, pulled pork, carrots, black-eyed peas, green peas and deviled eggs. For dessert we had chess pie, key lime pie, derby pie, cherry pie, apple pie and a dump cake. Everything was very tasty.

After we returned from the clubhouse John washed dishes, vacuumed and washed the bed linens. He was a busy man today.

Later in the afternoon John, Fred and I went walking through the park. By the time we returned from our walk it was time for dinner. Last night John cooked a pork butt so we had BBQ pork sandwiches. They were very good. We followed dinner with bike rides then played a round of 10 Penny using the new set that “Dawg” gave John as a retirement gift. Now we are just chilling in the camper watching TV. It is a hard job but someone has to do it. LOL

Remember to laugh everyday. Happy trails. Stay safe.

Bingo Night

Slept late again today!!! Wow, imagine that. John drove into town to purchase a 50 AMP extension cord. While on the way there he got caught up in the traffic for a triathlon which meant he was delayed for almost an hour.

After lunch John and I drove back into town to pick up a few things from Wal-mart and some steaks from Winn Dixie.

While John grilled steaks for dinner I fixed taters and onions and squash. The weather was so nice we decided to eat outside. Later on we rode bikes until it was time to play bingo at the clubhouse. We came close to winning a few times but someone else beat us to. LOL

Tomorrow there will be a potluck lunch at the clubhouse at noon.

We received an email from Arlene (Leno) saying they had returned to TX and would be back Monday night, unfortunately we will be heading out Tuesday morning so we will have to catch them down the road.

Remember to laugh everyday. Happy trails. Stay safe.

Defuniak Springs, Florida

We slept in late this morning then started getting the camper road ready for our next destination….Defuniak Springs, Florida.  We arrived at 3:00 p.m. at Sunset King Lake Resort.  This is a Coast to Coast park that is well maintained with a restaurant, clubhouse, chapel and boat dock.  Tonight they were showing an outside movie at 7:30 p.m.   The weather is quite nice here with a slight breeze.

This park has great roads to ride bicycles. I brought my bicycle but John didn’t have one so he drove into town and purchased one at Wal-mart.  Now we can ride until our legs fall off. LOL

Tomorrow we plan to drive into town and walk through the historic district.  It should be interesting.

Remember to laugh everyday.  Happy trails.  Stay safe.

Big Daddy's

Got up at 9'ish and after breakfast I headed out to Quail Creek golf course in Fairhope, AL. After playing my usual, finished hole 18 with a 61. While this might sound very good I must tell you I only played the back 9 holes. Back at the trailer Bridget made a lemon meringue pie but it had to cool for 4 hours, huh. I had lunch and sat outside. After a short nap in my outside recliner Bridget and I took Fred for a walk around the park. Some readers of our blog, Mike and Gerri, suggested we try Big Daddy's Grill in Fairhope. Don't let the looks keep you away, the food is great. Bridget had the grilled shrimp basket which comes with hushpuppies, coleslaw and ff's or onion rings, she had ff's. I had the blackened shrimp basket with onion rings.

Big Daddy's






















































We sat out back on the deck, our table was shaded with a light breeze. It was a great evening, thanks Mike and Gerri.

Tomorrow is a travel day so on the way back we filled up the truck. Bridget called Annie at the gas station and the conversation continued on back to the trailer.




















I try to get a picture of them talking to each other. On to DeFuniak Springs, FL in the morning. We hope to meet up with Kevin and Arlene. RV-Dreamers that are workamping at Topsail State Park.

Stay Safe