Coconut Chews

Last night heavy winds and lots of rain came through our area.  The tornadoes did not touch down here.  Yazoo City was hit again though.  They have reported lots of damage and some injuries.

The temperatures are supposed to be dropping to a low 29 degrees tonight.  Oh no…….I do not like that. LOL

John finally got a call from the lady at The Back Store letting him know his new chair is in.  Yeah!!!  He will be going to pick it up tomorrow.  I will post a picture of it.  Now the lawn chair can retire back into the basement.

This afternoon I was looking through some cookie recipes on the internet and found one that sounded good and that I had all the ingredients to make.  They were called Coconut Chews.  Let me just say they taste good but they were not very chewy.  The only thing that I changed about the recipe was the flour.  I used self rising flour instead of all-purpose and baking powder.

Plate of Coconut Chews. 

In case anyone would like to try this recipe…..here it is:

Coconut Chews

¼ cup butter
1 cup brown sugar, packed
2/3 cups all-purpose flour
1 egg
1 tsp. Baking powder
¼ tsp. Salt
1 tsp. Vanilla extract
½ cup flaked coconut
½ cup chopped pecans or walnuts

Melt butter. Stir in sugar, flour, egg, baking powder, salt and   vanilla, blending well.  Add the coconut and chopped nuts.  Turn into a well buttered 9 inch square baking pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.  Cut into 16 squares as soon as you take them out of the oven.  Cool.

Laugh everyday.  Happy trails.  Stay safe.

Bob wins at 10 Penny; Tornadoes around us.

Up early this morning and off to my doctor appointment. While I was there the rain moved in but had almost stopped when John came back to pick me up. I was glad because I sure hate getting wet.

I invited Annie over for dinner tonight for pork chops, mashed potatoes, green beans, cabbage and cornbread. She was tired from a hard day at work so I figured she would like that.

Later tonight John and I drove over to Bob and Marcy’s for some 10 Penny. Tonight was certainly Bob’s night to win. He beat us all on both rounds. On the first round he won with a score of 20 and on the second round he had a score of 60. Wow! I guess we will have to have a rematch. LOL

Bob getting his cards ready to put down.

John dealing cards.

Marcy came in second with a score of 90 in round two.

While we were playing 10 Penny the weather radio kept going off. There have been tornado watches and warnings in some of the counties surrounding us. Yazoo City has had some damage tonight in the downtown area. No injuries were reported. The Yazoo City area was hit hard back in April and some people were killed. I hope and pray there are no casualties this time.

Laugh everyday. Happy trails. Stay safe.

Homemade Soup and Cornbread.

Today turned out to be another warm day.  The temperatures got into the upper 60’s this afternoon with no rain.  Yeah!!!!

We did not leave the campground today but did catch up on laundry and other stuff like that.  I cooked a pot of homemade vegetable soup and some cornbread.  There is nothing like a good bowl of homemade soup and cornbread. 

This afternoon John and I watched Runaway Jury and The Client.  Apparently it was John Grisham movie day.  We had never seen Runaway Jury.  It was a good movie and it had been a while since we had seen The Client so we settled in and enjoyed them both.

Tomorrow is doctor appointment day for me. Uck!! I will be glad when all that stuff is finished.

Laugh everyday.  Happy trails.  Stay safe.

Lazy Day.

We were lucky…..last night the temperatures did not drop to 29 degrees as the weatherman predicted. Yeah!!! Instead we woke up to 39 degrees. That is much better. By the afternoon it was 67 degrees….now that I can handle.

Today was sort of a lazy day as we did not get motivated to do anything until after lunch. Then it was off to Wal-mart for a few grocery and household items. You know you can’t put off the Wal-mart run when there is only one roll of toilet tissue left. LOL The crowed wasn’t too bad. We were in and out in a few minutes.

Even Fred and Sockey had a lazy day.

After the Wal-mart run we drove over to Bob and Marcy’s to pick up some things I had left there from Thanksgiving night. Marcy had a bunch of baked ham left over so we brought some of that home too. By the time we got back to the RV it was time to fix some dinner. We had breakfast for dinner…..scrambled eggs with ham, biscuits and bacon. Not a healthy meal but it sure was good.

Laugh everyday. Happy trails. Stay safe.

Gone shopping, John and Fred locked out.

Up at 5:30 a.m. to go shopping with my sister, Mom and Dad.  There were lots of people out.  I was surprised to see more men than usual out there shopping.  Although I did not get but a couple of gifts purchased I did see a lot of people I had not seen in years.  It is always good to catch up with old friends and co-workers.

The weather today started out windy and cool in the mid 50’s then started to fall into the low 40’s as the rain started in the afternoon.  We were in Borders Bookstore when I got a call from John saying he and Fred were locked out of the RV.  When I left this morning John was in bed so I locked the door.  Later on John took Fred out and when he went to open the RV door he realized it was locked.  He did not know I had locked the door behind me when I left so he and Fred were standing outside in the cold.  John and Fred walked over to the office but, it being a holiday, was closed.  On his way back he saw a fellow RVer outside of his motor home and stopped and asked to use his cell phone. Luckily we were not too far away and came back to let him and Fred inside. 

Tonight it was leftovers for dinner. Gotta love those Thanksgiving leftovers. LOL

Laugh everyday.  Happy trails.  Stay safe.

Happy Thanksgiving

Got up early this morning and finished getting the food ready to take to Mom Hatch’s for lunch.  We had a nice lunch with Mom Hatch, Aunt Martha and Mary Lee and Family.  Aunt Martha is still recuperating from knee surgery and has some pain.  Hopefully she will feel better real soon.

Tonight we had dinner at Bob and Marcy’s.  Robert, Kelsey, Annie and Terry were also there.  We enjoyed a nice dinner but were too full to eat dessert so we saved that for tomorrow.  Some of us are going shopping early in the morning so we finalized our plans on what time to meet up.  It will probably be a circus in the stores and we probably won’t buy that much but we enjoy watching the people and being together.

John and our son Robert.

Me and Robert.

Annie with Robert. 

 Robert and Kelsey, our wonderful daughter-in-law.

We hope everyone had a safe and Happy Thanksgiving today.

Laugh everyday.  Happy trails.  Stay safe.

More Cooking

Got up early with Fred then started cooking.  By the early afternoon I was finally finished with the dressing and turkey.  We will be going to Mom Hatch’s for lunch tomorrow and then to Bob and Marcy’s for dinner.

This afternoon Annie came by and we went to run an errand or two.  While we were gone John completed a few chores around the house.  Not much else going on today.

Hope everyone has a safe and Happy Thanksgiving tomorrow.

Laugh everyday.  Happy trails.  Stay safe.

Cooking

80 degrees again today!  If it keeps it up we won’t know how to act when it turns cold. 

We made another grocery store run for a few more things.  The store was very crowded.  I guess a lot of people got off early and went shopping.  I don’t want to go back. LOL

This afternoon I started cooking some of my dishes for Thanksgiving Dinner.  I cooked a sawdust pie and broccoli casserole.  Tomorrow I will cook the dressing and turkey breast.

Sawdust pie

Broccoli casserole

John made a carrot and raisin salad and some cranberry salsa.  He started eating those and I did not get a picture.

We watched the finale of Dancing with the Stars tonight.  I was glad Jennifer won because I thought she was the most talented.  Don’t know how Bristol made it as far as she did.  She tried hard but just could not dance as well as the other two finalists.  Oh well, that is my opinion.  LOL

Laugh everyday.  Happy trails.  Stay safe.

Dentist appointments and 10 Penny

Today the temperature got up to 80 degrees.  Imagine that in November.  In Mississippi they always say if you don’t like the weather just wait another day because it will probably radically change. LOL   The weatherman has already forecasted more of the same warm temperatures for Thanksgiving Day.

John and I had our dentist appointments this afternoon.  I will be going back to get a broken tooth fixed.  I really dread that.  It is hard to part with all that money.

Tonight we went over to Bob and Marcy’s to play 10 Penny.  I won the first round with a score of 60.  John and Bob tied second place with a score of 215 which left Marcy in last place.  John won the second round with a score of 60, I came in second with 95, Bob had 105 and Marcy came in last with 245.  I bet Marcy will beat us all the next time. 

Marcy organizing her cards.

Bob getting ready to shuffle the cards.

  John organizing his cards.

Laugh everyday.  Happy trails.  Stay safe.

Jimmie Johnson wins again.

Not much going on today.  Watched the final Nascar race.  Jimmie Johnson won the championship, again.  Five times in a row. Wow! What a record.  I bet he has a good pay check. LOL

This afternoon Bob and Marcy came over and Marcy and I went shopping at the local mall and sporting goods store.  I guess I should say we looked because we did not buy anything.   We just did not see anything we couldn’t live without.

Tonight John and I just chilled out at the camper.  John read blogs and I finished reading a book I started a week ago.

Tomorrow is dentist appointment day.  Yeah…..that will be exciting. LOL

Laugh everyday.  Happy trails.  Stay safe.

Wii is working again.

John went back to the audio shop this morning so the tech could show him all the bells and whistles the new radio system has.  I know we will enjoy it.

John hooked up our Wii today.  Yeah!!!  He finally had time to go through all the electronic stuff and set it up. 

Annie and I went off to Kohl’s, JC Penny and Borders Book Store.  Annie bought a Sony E-Reader today.  She can’t wait to use it.  We found a few sale items at Kohl’s so we were happy.

Later on John and I made another grocery run, this time to Kroger.  There were a few items I forgot to pick up yesterday.

I finally remembered to get a couple of pictures of the view from our site at the park.   It was just about to get dark.

  This is the view from our living room window.

Laugh everyday.  Happy trails.  Stay safe.

Freightliner gets new radio, Ram gets new owner.

Today was a busy day.  This morning we dropped the Freightliner off to get the new radio system installed.  Yeah….we will have satellite radio again.

John and I had salads for lunch at Zaxby’s then on to the bank to finalize the sale of the Ram.  Then it was on to Wal-mart to pick up prescriptions and a few groceries.  There was a problem with my prescription so I was told I would have to come back later to pick it up.  I was not surprised just real aggravated.

Around 5:00 we went to pick up the Freightliner then drove back to the campground so the man could pick up the Ram.  By then  it was dinner time and we were both hungry so we decided to eat at Cerami’s, our favorite Italian restaurant.  John chose the Grilled Chicken Carbonara and I ordered the Chicken Picatta.  The restaurant is family owned and the food is authentic Italian. 

After leaving Cerami’s it was back to Wal-mart to pick up my prescription.   When the girl rang it up she said it would be $4.00.  That is the cost of generic and I cannot have the generic brand so I asked her to check and make sure it was the real drug.  It was the real drug but the price was wrong.  I usually pay $24.00 for the real drug so I knew they had made a mistake on the price.  I told the girl but she was not concerned and insisted the price was right so I paid the $4.00 and left.  Oh well, I tried to do the right thing.

Laugh everyday.  Happy trails.  Stay safe.

Lunch with friends.

John up early this morning.  Firefighter Marc came by to pick him up.  John is borrowing a vehicle from him while the Freightliner gets an oil change and fuel filter service.  Thanks Marc.  When he got back he drove me over to the hair salon.  I was in much need of help with my hair. LOL

John and I met our friends Bo and Kay for lunch at Alumni House.  They have what is called the fast lunch……supposed to be reading and at the table in 20 minutes.  That didn’t happen. It was more like 30.  The food was good though.

Bo and Kay

On our way back to the campground the car John borrowed died.  He was able to pull into a church parking lot not far from Bob and Marcy’s.  Bob came over and jumped us off and we were on our way.  Thanks Dad. 

Later this afternoon we took Fred to the new vet for the shots he was due and for his yearly checkup.  Fred seemed to like him.  Now he is ready to travel again.

After dinner tonight we went of to Bob and Marcy’s for some 10 Penny.  I won the first round with a score of 85 and John won the second with a score of 50.

Laugh everyday.  Happy trails.  Stay safe.

John’s chair….still NOT here.

Up early again this morning to go to my doctor appointment. Sure hope my thyroid levels are stabilized. This stuff sure gets old.

I called about John’s chair and …….it is still NOT here. Now they are saying it has shipped but will probably not be here until the first week of December.

John sitting in the lawn chair reading blogs. I know he will be glad when his chair gets here.

Talked to my sister today and she is so thankful that her tests were all normal. It was back to work today for her.

I found a new vet to take to Fred to for his shots. I am sure he will enjoy that. LOL

Fred says hello to everyone.

Laugh everyone. Happy trails. Stay safe.

Busy Day.

Up very early this morning to go with my sister to the medical center.  She had a test run and afterwards we stayed at her house until all the anesthesia wore off.  She was comical at times. LOL

John had several errands to run today with regard to selling the Ram.  Later in the afternoon he had a keyless entry installed in the Freightliner. Yeah!!!  I really like that.

Tonight John, my sister Annie and I went to the local Chinese restaurant for dinner.   I think every town has a favorite Chinese place.  This one is small but the food is good.

Tomorrow will be another day for doctor appointments and errands. 

Laugh everyday.  Happy trails.  Stay safe.

Ram is sold.

Up early this morning and off to doctor appointments. Oh that is so much fun. LOL It rained all morning…..that really sucked. John did not have any early appointments so he slept until 9:30……lucky for him.

After my appointments I went back to the RV and John was ready to go. We met with some of his former co-workers from Renaissance Mall (also firefighters) and went to Biaggi’s for lunch. I know John enjoyed spending time with them and catching up on all the news.

This afternoon we returned Flat Clayton to his home in Madison. We enjoyed taking him along with us on our travels. I am sure Sockey the Sock Monkey will miss him.

Here is Sockey just chilling out in the RV. He wants everyone to know he is still around and up to his tricks again. LOL

Later this afternoon John and I went by the Central Fire Station to visit with some of the guys on A Shift then on to Upton Tire to see our son Robert.

Last night John posted an ad on Craigslist for the Ram and received a call this morning from an interested party. This afternoon at 4:00 p.m. the man came to test drive it and bought it. I know he will love the Ram it is a great truck.

Laugh everyday. Happy trails. Stay safe.

Time with C-Shift, Christmas Belles and 10 Penny.

John and I went to Central Fire Station to have breakfast with the C-Shift guys this morning.  Bacon, eggs, biscuits and sausage gravy…..it doesn’t get any better than that.  It was very tasty.  After breakfast we hung around and played a round of 10 Penny.  We had a great time. 

This afternoon we attended a play called Christmas Belles at The Black Rose theater in Brandon, Mississippi.  One of the Ridgeland Police Officers that is a friend of ours was in the play.  It was a very comical play about Southerners putting on a Christmas play in their church in a small Texas town and all the drama that goes with it.  It was very funny.

Tonight we went back to the fire station to have dinner with the C-Shift guys.  They invited us to have steaks with them.  John baked a Cream Sherry cake and some brownies to take for dessert.  The food was great.  Afterwards it was time for a rematch of 10 Penny.  John came out pretty well but I came in towards the bottom in most of the rounds.  Oh well,  there is always the next game. LOL  It was fun hanging out with them.  Thanks C-Shift for breakfast, steaks and fun times.

Laugh everyday.  Happy trails.  Stay safe.

Happy Belated Birthday Terry.

Annie came by and picked me up to go shopping this morning. We had to pick up a baby gift for a friend who is having a baby shower this afternoon.

While we were gone John cleaned the truck up to get it ready to sell. He did turn the 30% chance of rain into 100%. Hopefully it will sell while we are in Mississippi.

2006 Dodge Ram Mega Cab

Tonight we went over to Annie and Terry’s to join them for dinner and to give Terry his belated birthday present.

Terry holding his bow and arrows we found while traveling through Colorado. Happy Belated Birthday Terry.

Laugh everyday. Happy trails. Stay safe.

Back in Mississippi.

Today was travel day for us. Our destination ……Timberlake Campground in Brandon, MS. We actually got up early and were out on the road by 8:22 a.m. WOW…that is early for us these days.

We made it to our destination around 3:00 p.m. and got set up. We drove over and met Annie, Bob and Marcy at a local McDonalds for dinner. Then it was on to Matt’s house to pick up the Dodge Ram. We will be putting it up for sale while here.

Later we returned to Bob and Marcy’s for some rounds of 10 Penny. They have not played since we were here back in August so they were ready for a rematch. Annie decided to finish a crochet project and just watch us play.

My Sister, Annie, joking around behind me as I organized my cards.

We are always joking around.

John and I tied for first place with 50 points and Bob and Marcy tied for last place with 175 points. Don’t think that has every happened. Marcy won round two with a score of 50 points. Wow, that is a good low score.

Laugh everyday. Happy trails. Stay safe.

Veterans Day

Thank you to all the Veterans who have served and are serving our country. Without your sacrifices we would not be able to enjoy the freedoms we have.

Caught up on the laundry today since tomorrow will be travel day for us. Back to Mississippi.

This afternoon we went on a Wal-Mart run as well as a drive around the area to get some pictures. Tuesday when we were riding around I saw a sign that said Rail Car Apartments and noticed the old rail cars but I failed to get pictures. The group of rail cars have been made into individual apartments. Today I got pictures of it. I would love to see the inside of one of these. From the outside they look very rustic.

This is the sign at the entrance.

Side view of the apartment complex.

Another side view.

Later this afternoon we were able to meet Johnny before he went to work. We took a picture of him for Carol. The Fuzion Fifth Wheel picture from yesterday’s blog belongs to them. We hope to meet up with them on the road one day.

Here’s Johnny.

We hope to get an early start tomorrow as it will be at least a five hour drive and we want to get set up before dark.

Laugh everyday. Happy trails. Stay safe.

Golf Day

Woke up to the sound of rain and 58 degrees this morning. Soon the rain was gone and sun was out. The temperature rose to the upper 70’s. That’s my kind of weather.

John went to the golf course here at the park and played 18 holes. It was still wet since it had rained this morning but he had a good time. He shot a 102 which is down from his 120. Yeah!!!!!

John was on the RV Dreams chat room last night talking with Carol from Texas when she noticed we were in Arkansas. She asked where we were in Arkansas and when John told her she asked him if he could see a Fuzion Fifth Wheel in the park. Carol’s husband Johnny is temporarily living here while working in the area. What a small world it is. Today when John was on his way to play golf he stopped by to say hello and meet him but he was already gone. He will try to stop by and meet him again tomorrow.

Johnny and Carol’s Fuzion Fifth Wheel.

Tomorrow I plan to get some pictures of the surrounding areas.

Laugh everyday. Happy trails. Stay safe.

Trip to Texas

Woke up to sunshine and 50 degrees. A very nice change from the colder temperatures from the last couple of days.

We made the Wal-Mart run to get our prescription refills today. I am happy to say that this time it went smoothly. I guess there are some Wal-Mart pharmacies that actually have good customer service.

After we left Wal-Mart we drove over to Texarkana, TX to pick up some books they were holding for me at Books-A-Million. While there John and I got a Pumpkin Pie Latte. That is as close to drinking coffee as I get.

On our way back to the campground we drove through a State Park that was close by. The sites looked well maintained as all of the ones we have looked at recently. John noticed a sign that said “Danger….Alligators”. “No Swimming or Wading”. We did not see any as we drove through. I would like to get a picture of one….from inside the truck. LOL

Later in the afternoon Fred and I went for a walk and I took a few pictures of the park. I tried to get some pictures with the pretty trees in it.

Our site.

The view from our site.

Pavilion across the pond from the camping sites.

Rental cabins a the front of the park.

View of the side of the park we are parked in.

John said he was going to try his luck on the golf course tomorrow. The temps are going into the upper 70's.

Laugh everyday. Happy trails. Stay safe.

On to Ashdown, Arkansas

Today was moving day for us.  Our destination is Millwood Landing Golf and RV Resort in Ashdown, Arkansas.  Before leaving this morning Bill, Tambra, John and I had breakfast at The Rock, a local family owned restaurant.  We had a great visit with them.  Thanks Bill and Tambra for the hospitality.

We arrived in Ashdown, Arkansas around 2:00 p.m.  While John was setting up I met the couple parked across from our site.  They are British and live in Canada and are heading South for the winter.  When John finished setting up he walked over and we shared travel stories with them.  They were very entertaining and interesting.

Later in the afternoon we went into town to make a grocery run.  Instead of Wal-Mart we went to the local Brookshire's store. I am sure before we leave the area we will probably make a Wal-Mart run. LOL

John grilled some brats for dinner and tonight we are just chilling out.

Laugh everyday.  Happy trails.  Stay safe.

Mount Magazine State Park

Today we took a road trip to Mount Magazine State Park. Mount Magazine is the highest point in Arkansas at 2,753 feet. The drive took about an hour but it didn’t seem that long with the beautiful scenery to look at. We stopped at the visitor center for information on the park and then proceeded on to the lodge and restaurant to have lunch.

Flat Clayton and I standing outside the lodge. It was very windy.

Side view of the lodge.

Bill and Tambra enjoying the scenery behind the lodge.

Flat Clayton behind the lodge.

The tree in the middle of this picture is the famous lodge cedar tree because of its odd shape and that is grows from between a rock. It is the image that appears on the lodge employees’ shirts.

Bill standing next to the famous cedar tree.

John and I on the rock behind the lodge.

The restaurant at the lodge.

After having a great lunch and enjoying the scenery all around the lodge we left to explore the rest of the park.

John and Bill

Bill attempting to climb over the ledge. He was just joking around.

Flat Clayton at the entrance of the park.

It was late afternoon by the time we left the park. There is a nice but small campground in the park. We drove through it and will probably stay here in the future.

When we made it back to Bill and Tambra’s I remembered that I had not posted any pictures of their cows so I followed Bill out back to get a few.

We will be leaving tomorrow for Ashdown, Arkansas as we make our way back to Mississippi. We have enjoyed our visit with Bill and Tambra very much and look forward to visiting with them again real soon.

Laugh everyday. Happy trails. Stay Safe.