Monday, January 19, 2009

Today was another beautiful sunny warm day so we decided to do a bit of a road trip. We headed into California and took a highway up the east side of the Imperial Sand Dunes then picked up a highway that would have eventually taken us right across California to the ocean north of San Diego (we didn’t go that far west). We crossed the sand dunes and even though it was a week day there were a lot of people out on their dirt bikes, ATV’s etc. racing around the dunes. There were a lot of trailers camped out there, sorry but I just can’t imagine camping in all that sand and having it tracked all through the trailer – it has to be really hard on a RV. We passed more huge motor homes towing trailers with their toys and RV Toy Haulers in a couple of hours today than we have seen all winter – recession – where!!!

Driving West Towards the Imperial Sand Dunes



The Sand Dunes





We stopped at a lookout part way through the dunes and there were a few trailers pulled in there and this little guy was running around on his ATV. The sand was so soft in there we were worried we would get stuck!



After the sand dunes we were in the Imperial Valley where a lot of Canada’s winter vegetables come from, we also came across a huge feed lot, I could smell it long before we got to it!

Just a Small Part of the Feed Lot



We drove through Brawley and stopped there at a Carl Jr.’s as I just had a sudden craving for one of their milk shakes - they are the best. John had a chilli burger then it was on our way again.

We drove up the west side of the Salton Sea, which is a huge inland saline sea but it is totally grungy, looks beautiful from a distance but up close it is dirty and smelly!

Here is how the Salton Sea was created according to Wikipedia:

“The creation of the Salton Sea of today started in 1905, when heavy rainfall and snowmelt caused the Colorado River to swell and breach an Imperial Valley dike. It took nearly two years to control the Colorado River’s flow into the formerly dry Salton Sink and stop the flooding. As the basin filled, the town of Salton, a Southern Pacific Railroad siding and Torres-Martinez Indian land were submerged. The sudden influx of water and the lack of any drainage from the basin resulted in the formation of the Salton Sea.”


We turned west again and drove about 30 miles through scrub country with pretty mountains around and again lots of people camping on the BLM lands. For the life of me I can’t see what is so nice about camping out in the desert dirt with no amenities, but to each his own!!

We then headed north again and went through the pretty town of Borrego Springs at which point we headed back to the Salton Sea. We also passed a lot of vineyards and date plantations on our tour.

Christmas Circle - Borrego Springs



Driving out of Borrego Springs



Looking East to the Salton Sea



Some Rock Formations



We drove through the city of Salton, a pretty pathetic place where there isn’t much happening but we did see this fellow flying around.



This is typical of the landscape outside the Imperial Valley.



At the top of the Salton Sea we turned east and picked up a road down the east side of the sea. We had heard of a RV park called Fountain of Youth and knew it was around the Salton Sea somewhere so when we saw the sign for it we decided to drive through and we weren’t impressed. The lots were crammed together, certainly no privacy to be had there, it was an old park, and the closest town to do any shopping, dining out or find a doctor or hospital is 50 miles away; but with all these drawbacks it was full.

From the Salton Sea we drove down to Holtville where we picked up the Interstate back to Yuma. Going to Holtville we drove through a lot of farm land and saw about 10 different flocks of sheep grazing in the fields.

We decided to go Daz Boys and have a pizza for dinner as it was 6:30 by the time we got back to Yuma.

And so ends another great gift of a day in the sunny south and we look forward to another good day tomorrow.

Sunday, January 18, 2009

Well today was nice but there were clouds in the sky, oh dear, we haven’t seen those in a long time, still it was a nice warm day with a bit of a wind, at least this time it was a warm wind!

I forgot to mention yesterday that I had a real grrrr moment. Before we left Ontario in November I had picked up two new sleeves for my lymphedema as you are supposed to change them every 4 to 6 months, so on Thursday I started one of the new sleeves (as it turns out it was the one I tried on when I picked them up) and then yesterday I opened the second one and lo and behold it was a glove, not a sleeve – NOT GOOD!! I sent an e-mail to the gal at Shoppers where I got them and have asked her to get me another sleeve and have it mailed to me here as I have paid for it and really need it, hopefully she can do that and I am hoping to get a reply from her tomorrow as I know she doesn’t work weekends.

We went out for breakfast/brunch again and today tried Brownie’s Café, it was good and we would go there again for breakfast or lunch but not dinner – no ambience!

After Brownie”s we were driving down 4th Ave. when I saw a Goodwill store so asked John to pull in as I had a few things to drop off, then John wanted to go in and wander around – nothing caught my attention but he bought a modem for $2, don’t know what we are going to do with it but now we have it! From there we went to Home Depot to get a couple of bolts to hold down the phone antenna better then stopped at Circuit City - they have filed for bankruptcy so we decided to see if there were any deals to be had – wishful thinking!!I

When we got back I talked to Kel and Cara (I had talked to Nan this morning) then I went outside to sit and read. Leslie & Garry came over so we ended having a drink and visit with them, nice. They are leaving tomorrow for a couple of days, going to stop at Quartzsite then on to Laughlin for a couple of nights. Garry said his friend had been looking at our old satellite stand so John said $15 and it could be his so Garry called his friend and the stand is now his, an easy way to get rid of it!!

Tonight was not much for dinner – soup but that was enough after a large breakfast at midday. And so ends another great gift of a day in the sunny south and we look forward to another good day tomorrow.

Saturday, January 17, 2009

Like a broken record, today was another gorgeous day in the south. I went out this morning and picked up a couple of groceries then enjoyed the nice weather sitting out and reading, while John did more washing and polishing, we sure are shiny!

We went to Brenda & Steve’s for dinner and had a wonderful meal of Mazillan tortillas (I think that is how to spell it – I am waiting for the recipe to find out for sure). They were really good and we had a lovely evening with great food and conversation.

We are now watching some TV before going to bed. And so ends another great gift of a day in the sunny south and we look forward to another good day tomorrow.

Friday, January 16, 2009

Today was a quiet, stay at home day. I sat outside for a long time reading while John washed the trailer – not really fair for me to sit and relax while he is doing that but he loves cleaning the trailer and doesn’t consider it work and doesn’t want any help.

I went over about 4 to do laundry and what a zoo, I managed to get two washers then had to wait a bit for dryers, that is the busiest I have seen it and all the machines were still being used when I left. Guess that’s what happens when the park is pretty well full!

Linda from across the road came in while I was folding my laundry and said John was polishing the trailer, I thought he was just going to wash but he is also going to do the winter polishing. When I came back he had polish all over the kitchen backsplash so it is nice and clean and shiny again. Too bad it can’t stay that way!!

We are now watching a movie on TV and just having a quiet evening. And so ends another great gift of a day in the sunny south and we look forward to another good day tomorrow.

Thursday, January 15, 2009

Today was another beautiful day, this January sure is a lot nice than the other two January’s we have spent here – much warmer this year so we are not complaining.

This afternoon we went to the market to see if we could get our satellite dish painted as it is plastic and the fellow said the plastic wasn’t a problem and he has pictures you can pick from or you can bring in a picture and he will do that so we are going to go through our pictures and see if we can find one we would like painted on the dish.

From there we went to Wal Mart to pick up groceries then to Fry’s to get our fresh veggies and meat – those are the things I don’t like to buy at Wal Mart. Actually most of the stuff at Fry’s, except for their specials, is a lot more expensive than Wal Mart (i.e. Jack Daniel barbecue sauce is $1 a bottle more at Fry’s).

Steve wouldn’t take any money for the satellite stand so we bought him a case of Amber Bock beer and dropped it off on the way home, we ended up having a drink and visit with them.

By the time we got home it was dinner time – where does the day go! And so ends another great gift of a day in the sunny south and we look forward to another good day tomorrow.

Wednesday, January 14, 2009

I sound like a broken record but today was another gorgeous, sunny, warm day here in Yuma, we are really enjoying the weather and are truly thankful we are able to be here and not at home in the bitter cold.

Steve & Brenda got a new satellite dish and tripod so Steve gave us his old tripod which is larger than the one we had so John’s project for today was getting the dish set up on the new tripod – why does something that sounds so simple take all day but it did!!

Yesterday our neighbours took 2 satellite dishes and 2 mail boxes over to Mexico to have them painted so we went over today see how they turned out and they look really nice. One of the mailboxes has a scene with a lighthouse and huge waves crashing in on the shore – that is really pretty. Our dish is plastic whereas theirs is metal so we are going to ask the guy at the Arizona market if the plastic ones can be painted.

I did a light cleaning then spent most of the day outside enjoying the nice weather reading, crocheting and going for a nice long walk. Tough life!!

And so ends another great gift of a day in the sunny south and we look forward to another good day tomorrow.

Tuesday, January 13, 2009

Okay, this weather is absolutely wonderful, keep it coming please – my apologies to all of you back home as I know you are enduring another cold snap!

Today we decided to check out the downtown market, every Tuesday they close off a block of the main street in downtown Yuma and have a market, lots of vendors selling jewelry, t-shirts, fruits, veggies etc. We wandered around the market then went down one of the side streets and wandered around a couple of stores, including an antique, collectibles place but in the end bought some veggies and that was it – the last of the big time spenders!

When we got back we stopped at Steve & Brenda’s so I could meet their new dog, Peppy. He is a Papillon and is a year old, his name was Pappy and they didn’t want to stray too far from that name hence Peppy, he is real cute and now they are trying to train him not to bark when other dogs go by etc. I felt bad about not being able to pet him but I didn’t want to take a chance on an allergic reaction so just enjoyed seeing him without touching.

When we got home I went down and did the treadmill for a half hour and then the bike, I will work my time up slowly as I don’t want to overdo it. It was interesting as when I was walking down to the gym my hip was kind of sore but it didn’t bother me at all on the treadmill so that was good. On the way home I stopped and talked to a couple from Windsor who just arrived a couple of days ago, they were saying they went to Mexico today and it was a 2 hour wait to come back so guess the lineups are back. John & Irma went today and had their satellite dish painted there, it looks nice but will go over tomorrow and check it out better. While I was doing the treadmill John went for his bike ride, and suddenly the day is done!

And so ends another great gift of a day in the sunny south and we look forward to another good day tomorrow.

Monday, January 12, 2009

Today was an absolutely gorgeous day with temperatures in the high 70’s and just a slight breeze, sure do like days like this!

Today was cleaning day, bummer on a nice day, but now that the wind has stopped blowing it was time to clean out the dust and dirt that blew in.

This afternoon John wanted to go out and look for a new hard drive for backups as we have been sharing one and it is full so time to look for another one and then we will each have our own. We went to Best Buy then Circuit City and then I suggested Wal Mart as we had a gift certificate from Kel & Tim that we hadn’t used yet, and yes Wal Mart did have what we wanted at about $10 cheaper than Best Buy so got that and a case for it – thanks for the Christmas present Kel & Tim. We also picked up a couple of groceries while we were there then headed home.

Not a real exciting day but a nice one. And so ends another great gift of a day in the sunny south and we look forward to another good day tomorrow.

Sunday, January 11, 2009

Today was an absolutely gorgeous day, sunny with a bit of a wind.

This morning I started out for my walk and when I got to the clubhouse I decided to check out the gym, amazingly there was no one there so I decided to do the treadmill for a bit. When we were in the condo I often used the treadmill and when I was going to the gym while having radiation I did the treadmill and bicycle, among other things, so I think I will start doing them here again.

About noon we went out for brunch, we went to John & Margie’s which is a new restaurant near the market, we had heard it was good so decided to try it and enjoyed our meal. We came straight home after as there was no place else we really wanted to go. When we got back John went for a bike ride and I sat outside and crocheted, also talked to Nan, Kel and my sister. Not a real exciting day but and enjoyable one.

And so ends another great gift of a day in the sunny south and we look forward to another good day tomorrow.

Saturday, January 10, 2009

Today was another nice sunny day, still a bit windy but not as bad as yesterday. John wanted to buy a wand to clean out the hot water tank so we went out to get that and a few groceries. He found the wand at the Mom & Pop store, they used to be in the Arizona market but when the rent increased this year they decided to rent a spot in the open lot next door to the market. Anyways their prices are good and they had what John wanted.

Next was Wal Mart to pick up a few groceries and John also got a pair of pants and a few t-shirts so my short shopping list cost almost $100 – lol! John doesn’t buy a lot of clothes so I never complain when he decides to buy some, now he needs to find a couple of shirts. From there we stopped at Love’s truck spot and he picked up a thingamjiggy for the radio antenna (can you tell I don’t have a clue about how these things are mounted?).

Our friends Mike & Margie called us tonight and they are enjoying their Florida holiday and the weather has been good. Mike has to be back to work on the 26th so they still have a couple of weeks left so hopefully the good weather will continue.

While at Wal Mart John bough the old James Bond movie From Russia With Love so we decided to watch it – oh, oh, when he went to put the DVD in the player there was the DVD the Long, Long Trailer which Steve & Brenda had lent us, we had given them back an empty case! Will have to return it tomorrow with apologies.

We have always enjoyed the English comedy Keeping Up Appearances (it was one of my mothers favourites also) and it is on the PBS channel at 8 p.m. Saturdays so we try to catch that if we can as it is always good for a few laughs. We have even seen a couple that we hadn’t seen before.

And so ends another great gift of a day in the sunny south and we look forward to another good day tomorrow.

Friday, January 9, 2009

Today was a totally uneventful day. It was sunny but really windy and the wind was quite cool, not a day to want to be outside for long so we spent most of the day inside vegging out.

I went for a walk late this afternoon (I waited hoping the wind would die down) and just did the perimeter of the park as it was still windy and cold. John went for a bike ride but not as long as usual because of the wind. This morning Brenda & Steve brought us a plate of oatmeal chocolate chip cookies – warm out of the oven – they were really good.

Tonight I made tacos for dinner so John wouldn’t have to try to grill in the wind. And so ends another great gift of a day in the sunny (windy) south and we look forward to another good day tomorrow.

Thursday, January 8, 2009

Today was another beautiful day here in the sunny south with nice comfortable temperatures.

We went to the market to see if we could get a booster antenna for our phone, for the first time ever we are having problems with dropped calls and our neighbours said the booster cured that problem so we decided to try one. We got the antenna then on the way home we stopped and we both got our hair cut – I went back to Rosie who cut my hair last winter.

John checked things out when we got home then headed out to Lowe’s to try to find something to mount the antenna on, thankfully I passed on that trip as he spent at least 2 hours in Lowes – I probably would have killed him if I was there!!!!

While he was gone I went for a nice long walk then came back and tried to sit outside to read but it was too cool and I couldn’t get in the sun so I came in to read. By the time he got home and the antenna installed it was late so we had another late dinner, we have been trying to eat earlier and most night we are successful but then there is the odd night like tonight where we are eating late again!! And so ends another great gift of a day in the sunny south and we look forward to another good day tomorrow.

Wednesday, January 7, 2009

Today was a gorgeous sunny, warm day. This morning John headed out to get propane and his hair cut, he ended up only doing the propane and the hair cut will have to wait until tomorrow. He bought me a humming bird feeder so hopefully we will get the humming birds coming to it. There seem to be a lot around the park so surely one or two will find our feeder!

This afternoon we went to see Valkyrie and really enjoyed it, a good movie. This morning Steve & Brenda stopped by and Brenda said that she thought she had told me the wrong theatre for free popcorn for seniors on Wednesday so I said I guess we will find out, turns out both theatres do it on Wednesday afternoons. There was a real line up when we got there, which we have never seen before, and it was all seniors so guess this is the day everyone goes to the show! I was worried that we wouldn’t get in but it sounded like everyone was going to see Marley & Me and our show was less than half full.

After the show John showed Steve where he buys propane and diesel (the cheapest place in Yuma for both) and while we were there we got fuel as there was no lineup – diesel was $1.899/gallon. I guess this morning after getting propane John couldn’t be bothered starting in another lineup for fuel so we did learn something today, go about 4 in the afternoon as it is the quietest we have ever seen it!

Steve & Brenda came back for a drink and by the time they left it was time to think about dinner – where does the day go! And so ends another great gift of a day in the sunny south and we look forward to another good day tomorrow.

Tuesday, January 6, 2009

Today was another nice, sunny day but cool, the high only reached about 60F (15C), if you stayed in the sun and out of the wind it was very pleasant. This morning we again woke to the sound of the windmills going, (forgot to mention this yesterday); the park is surrounded by orchards and if it gets down to about freezing windmills come on to blow warmer air around to keep the fruit from freezing. The windmills are noisy enough that they don’t wake us but we do hear them when we wake up.

We didn’t go anywhere today but I went over this afternoon and washed the new sheets I bought on the weekend so they are ready to go on the bed. While they were washing I walked down to the office and paid the electric bill and bought a roll of quarters to feed the machines next time I do laundry, then went for a walk. When I came back from doing the laundry John was just going to finish his bike ride so I went for a bit more of a walk, after which we put the chairs in the sun behind the truck to have a drink and Garry & Leslie came over and joined us – great conversation and good company.

We have finished a yummy dinner of teriyaki marinated chicken breasts, salad and baked potato, the dishes are done and we are now just settling in for a quiet evening. John’s I- Pod seems to have given up the ghost, we were listening to tunes and it all of a sudden it decided to seize up, not good, he is not a real happy camper at this moment,.

And so ends another great gift of a day in the sunny south and we look forward to another good day tomorrow.

Monday, January 5, 2009

Today is our son-in-law’s birthday – happy birthday Carl and a belated happy birthday to our sister-in-law Carol – 10 lashes with a wet noodle for me for missing your birthday on Saturday – hope you both had great days.

This morning Brenda and I headed out for a girls day shopping and doing lunch. We had a great time, managed to find a few bargains and had a good lunch at Applebees. We left at 10:30 and got home about 4:15, tired but happy, I think the guys were beginning to think we got lost.

We got our electric bill today - $33.35 for December so we were happy with that and in December we spent $31.80 for propane so all in all not bad considering we run the furnace every morning at least to warm up the trailer and then have the little heater on every morning and all evening. We have also been running the hot water on electric.

We went to Daz Boyz for pizza tonight and then stopped at Fry’s and got a few groceries. It is now time to relax and watch TV or read. And so ends another great gift of a day in the sunny south and we look forward to another good day tomorrow.

Sunday, January 4, 2009

Today was a good hunkering down day, it was sunny but there was a cold north wind so it wasn’t a particularly warm day.

We had a grapefruit this morning and it was nice and sweet and juicy so I think we will enjoy them. The oranges are also very good so I am sure we will enjoy all our fruit.

I did some cleaning and then spent a lot of time cleaning up and revising files on my computer – not too exciting but a job that needed to be done.

John was going to go for a bike ride this afternoon but lo and behold he had a flat tire – darn! He went to Wal Mart late this afternoon (I passed and stayed home) and got a replacement tire so guess that will be one of his projects tomorrow – changing his tire.

Tonight was an easy dinner – left over ham and chicken, can’t beat that for a good easy meal. . And so ends another great gift of a day in the sunny south and we look forward to another good day tomorrow.

Saturday, January 3, 2008

Well, today started out nice and warm and sunny but about 1:00 it clouded over and the wind came up a bit and the temperature dropped to about 63F (17C) – oh well, that is still better than home!

I went over around 11 a.m. and did laundry and again lucked out with only one other person there when I got there and again by the time I was done all the machines were in use. At the Laundromat I was talking to a lady from North Dakota and she was saying they went to Mexico last Monday and waited 2-1/2 hours to come back, guess we just hit a really good day, thank goodness. After I got home and put the clothes away we decided to go out for a while as John wanted to go to the market and get some wire and check out something at Best Buy.

Before the market we went to a place that sells oranges and grapefruits, you can pick your own or buy already picked and today we opted to do the already picked. They had the fruit in huge buckets but we knew we would never get through a bucket of each so we took half a bucket of grapefruit, which was 18 grapefruit, and a half a bucket of oranges (I don’t know how many oranges there were but there were a lot) and all of this for $4. After the market we stopped at Best Buy but John didn’t get anything there then Wal Mart to pick up a few groceries.

When we got back we stopped to see if Brenda and Steve would like some grapefruit and oranges so they took some oranges but can’t eat grapefruit so guess we will be eating grapefruit for breakfast for a few weeks. They asked us to go to Daz Boys for dinner with them but we had picked up a cooked chicken at Wal Mart for dinner – darn as Daz Boys has good pizza.

Our chicken was good and now we are kicking back and going to have a quiet evening of either TV or reading. And so ends another great gift of a day in the sunny south and we look forward to another good day tomorrow.

Friday, January 2, 2009

Boy, I still have to get used to writing/typing 2009 instead of 2008 – that’s always a challenge at the first of every year.

Today was another beautiful day here so I took advantage of it and sat out most of the day reading and crocheting – how’s that for a very laid back day! I was going to go and do laundry about 4 but was immersed in my crocheting and the next thing I knew it was 4:45 so maybe tomorrow.

Dinner is over and we are having our usual quiet evening – some TV, reading etc. And so ends another great gift of a day in the sunny south and we look forward to another good day tomorrow.

Thursday, January 1, 2009

Well, the weather is still cooperating here in Yuma, we enjoyed another beautiful, warm, sunny day, sure hope it continues.

Today was a totally lazy, do nothing day – a great way to start off 2009! It was noon before I got around to having my shower, I spent the morning doing my monthly accounts and on the internet. This afternoon we got the Christmas decorations put away and I went for a nice walk and had a chat with Birdie and met his neighbours who are from London. Turns out they have had two Airstream trailers and now have a Sunnybrook 5th wheel, all of which they have bought from Can-Am so we had things in common to talk about – as we said it is a small world.

When I got back John was washing the truck – looks good, and talking to Garry. I chatted for a few minutes then came in to fiddle around but accomplished nothing. Leslie came over for a few minutes to chat and ask about a couple of books I had leant her and by then it was time to think about dinner, okay, where does the day go!

We talked to both our girls today and I talked to my sister so got caught up on all the happenings back home. We had a ham for dinner – yummy, and the best part is there is enough left over for 3 more meals. And so ends another great gift of a day in the sunny south and we look forward to another good day tomorrow.

Wednesday - December 31, 2008

The beautiful weather is continuing and we are loving it – hopefully it is here to stay at least for a while.

Steve & Brenda picked us up at 9:30 to go to Mexico and John and I couldn’t believe it, the parking lot had very few vehicles in it and the whole place was very quiet. Other years the parking lot is full (and it probably holds well over a thousand vehicles) plus there are all kinds of vehicles parked along the roadside – not today! I went to the dentist where Steve went last week and got my teeth cleaned for $15 (how can you beat that!) and I bought a new purse/backpack and a top for over my bathing suit. We bought a litre of Kahlula for $7.99 (the last time we bought it there it was $9) and a small bottle of tequila – last of the big time spenders! To go through Customs we waited less than 5 minutes and the customs guy was even polite this time, John actually said he would go back again and that is something as last year he refused to go because of the long line ups to come back, rude customs officials and all the crowds. I do feel sorry for the vendors there as they must be hurting big time as we have been hearing that it has been like this all year. We came back and had a late lunch so it was about 2:30 when we got home – a nice day.

The rest of the day we relaxed and we had a quiet New Year’s Eve, we did stay up long enough to see the new year in and Mike called to wish us a happy new year. Happy New Year to one and all and we wish everyone good health and happiness for 2009.

And so ends another great gift of a day in the sunny south.

Tuesday, December 30, 2008

Today was another beautiful, warm day here in Yuma – hope this weather continues!

This morning we putzed around and didn’t really accomplish much then this afternoon we went to the RV Connection & Water Place and checked out reverse osmosis water systems for the trailer. We are thinking of getting one but want to price them out at a couple of different places before making a decision. The water here has so much salt in it that it is very hard on the skin, pipes and faucets and we have to buy drinking water and water for coffee and tea, but whether or not it is worth the cost of a system is the dilemma. We then went to Wal Mart to pick up a couple of groceries to tide us over until after the new year and then wanted to stop at a place to pick up some fresh fruit but we were about 5 minutes late as they close at 4 and we got there at 4:05 – darn. Oh well, another day.

When we got home I went for a nice walk then came back and sat out for a while. John was just getting ready to go for a bike ride when Steve & Brenda stopped for a few minutes so had a quick chat with them.

Tonight is another quiet evening of TV, not real exciting but we are past excitement at this point in our lives! And so ends another great gift of a day, quiet, but enjoyable in the sunny south.

Monday - December 29, 2008

Yes, today was more like it – a beautiful day with sunny skies and temperatures in the high 60’s – perfect!

This afternoon we went to the mall so we could mail a letter, we had to weigh it to make sure we had the right postage, hence a trip to a postal outlet. We then went to Target where John wanted to get something (things electrical I don’t have a clue about!) then from there a quick stop at CVS Pharmacy, Fry’s and Lowe’s. Nothing too exciting and mainly it was a John day – things he wanted to do.

When we got back I went for a nice walk then came home and made dinner – Roman Holiday which is another family recipe and an easy casserole.

It is about bed time, I am tired and ready to hit the sack – and so ends another great gift of a day, quiet, but enjoyable in the sunny south.

Sunday - December 28, 2008

Today the weather did improve, it wasn’t as windy and a bit warmer, so we were much happier! Today we have been thinking of Ron & Dee and hope they got safely on the road for their trip to points south and hope Mike & Margie had a safe trip to Florida!

I called Nan about 1:30 Toronto time as she was having the family Christmas dinner today and I thought everyone would be there by then but it turned out that only Kel & her family were there so I had a nice chat with both the girls. Nan was saying that they were experiencing terrible winds and a lot of houses were without power, she was just hoping that they would keep their power when she was having 16 people for dinner - can’t say I blame her for that. I talked to her a while ago and somehow they lucked out, she said all the streets around them had their hydro out and the street behind them was still all dark, but somehow they managed to miss it all and kept their power – talk about lucky. I just talked to my sister and she said they had a good time and the drive home from Nan’s was a lot better than the drive over as the wind had died down going home. We sure wish we could have joined them for this family day but on the other hand we do like the weather here far better than there!

We went to Cracker Barrel for breakfast then went across the road to Yuma Palms Mall as I wanted to return some steak knives to Target. Last week I had bought four Henkel steak knives but when I got them home I discovered the handles were of some sort of rubber material – yuk, so I took them back and got a refund then found the ones I had been looking for with real wood handles – they didn’t have them last week but did today so I am now happy.

From there we went to the Yuma market and checked out a reverse osmosis water system, they seem expensive so will have to really think on this one. I got a sweat shirt and some t-shirts for next summer – big deal. From there we took a tour through Crossroads RV Park – not impressed as it is pretty well all park models, then we went over and looked up Don at Mountain Cactus Park. Had a nice visit with him then headed off to Fry’s and Wal Mart to pick up a few groceries.


By the time we got home it was dinner time – I sure don’t know where the day goes! Tonight will be a bit of TV and early to bed as I didn’t sleep real good last night. And so ends another great gift of a day, quiet, but enjoyable in the sunny south.

Saturday - December 27, 2008

Allright, allright enough of this windy cold weather! As you can guess it was windy and cold again today with a high of about 55F, fortunately the forecast is for warmer weather starting tomorrow – sure hope that weather man is right!

We were going to go to the market today but it was just too cold and windy, so decided we would wait and go tomorrow. I did laundry this afternoon, I timed it just right as it wasn’t busy when I got there but by the time I was done all the machines were in use.

Steve & Brenda stopped by to lend us the movie the Long, Long Trailer, they had said at Christmas they had it and I haven’t seen it since I was a kid (a longggggg time ago) so thought it would be fun to watch it again. They hadn’t seen Casino Royale so we traded, guess we will be watching a movie tonight.

That was it for the day, a good hunkering down day but I’ve had enough of those so hopefully tomorrow will be warmer and nicer for being outside. And so ends another great gift of a day, quiet, but enjoyable in the sunny south.

Friday - December 26, 2008

Today was a nice sunny day but there was a very cold wind, a good day to stay inside and keep warm.

We had a quiet day and late this afternoon John went for a bike ride and I went for my walk, I was quite cold when I got back but kept telling myself that it was much better than Ontario! The weather is supposed to warm up in the next couple of days so we are looking forward to that.

John gave me the DVD The Bucket List for Christmas so we just finished watching it, a good movie that we quite enjoyed. And so ends another great gift of a day, quiet, but enjoyable in the sunny south.

Thursday, December 25, 2008

The forecast for today was for cool and wet, fortunately the forecaster was wrong and it turned into a beautiful sunny, warm day, the only downside being that it was windy.

Santa came and left presents under the tree



John and I enjoyed talking to our children and brothers and sisters so that even though we aren’t there we were able to talk to everyone and wish them a happy day. Fortunately the snow had stopped at home so it was an okay travel day for those who had to travel. Our daughter Nancy is having the annual family dinner on Sunday for all my family so hopefully the weather will continue to co-operate as everyone has to travel to get to her place.

We had a lovely dinner and evening with Steve & Brenda, it is nice to share Christmas with friends when we can’t share it with family. I made baked corn which is an old family recipe and our daughter Kelly hates it, she seemed quite disgusted when I said I was making it for dinner, well, Kel, Steve & Brenda loved it and want the recipe so guess not everyone is like you Kel.

Now everything is cleaned up and it is bedtime, I am tired but it was a wonderful Christmas. And so ends a great gift of a day and we look forward to tomorrow.

Wednesday - December 24, 2008

Today was an absolutely gorgeous warm day, I even got into shorts this afternoon – gotta love it!

This morning we did a major cleaning (having company is always a good prod to get at it!) and this afternoon I went for a long walk then came home and sat out reading and enjoying the sun. As usual though, as soon as the sun started to go down I had to come inside as it still really cools off.

We are going to have a nice steak & shrimp dinner then a quiet evening, hopefully enjoying some traditional Christmas music.

For all those heading out for the south after Christmas safe travels and remember as Peggi says – don’t drive faster than your guardian angel can fly.

To everyone who is reading my blog – HAVE A VERY MERRY CHRISTMAS AND ALL THE BEST FOR THE NEW YEAR!

Tuesday, December 23, 2008

Today was a much better day, both weather wise and feeling better. Today was sunny but windy with a high of about 64F, quite comfortable.

This morning I got up and did my usual intenet stuff reading e-mails and news from home. John was getting ready to go out and get fuel and propane when Steve & Brenda stopped by to see what they could bring for Christmas dinner. We had a quick visit with them then they left and John went off for propane etc. while I stayed home and wrapped his Christmas presents and had my shower.

John got back just in time to get changed and then we headed out for the show – we went and saw Australia, what a great movie and John enjoyed it as much as I did (I was worried that he wouldn’t really enjoy it and was just going for me). It was a long show, almost 3 hours so it was almost 5:30 when we got out and from there we went to Wal Mart to finish our shopping for Christmas dinner. Wal Mart was a real zoo so it was after 7:30 when we got home - needless to say we had a late dinner.

We are now watching Jay Lenno and it will soon be bedtime. And so ends a great gift of a day and we look forward to tomorrow.

Monday - December 22, 2008

Today was a total write-off both weather wise and just for the whole day in total. My arm was really swollen and sore and I just didn’t feel great and the weather was overcast with the odd rain spit which just added to my feeling of blah.

I laid down in the afternoon but couldn’t sleep but at least felt a bit better when I got up. We didn’t do anything at all today so hopefully tomorrow will be more exciting. Still, it was a great gift of a day and hopefully tomorrow will be better.

Sunday - December 21, 2008

I sure am glad that the movie There Will Be Blood self destructs – it was the stupidest movie I have seen in many years, I didn’t watch it but couldn’t help hearing it on the TV. Apparently Daniel Day Lewis won an academy award for his part, sure must have been hard up for nominees that year!!!

Today was another nice sunny day. still a bit on the cool side but at least we don’t have snow! Our sympathy goes out to all those suffering in the snow and cold back home, we don’t envy you one bit, we just hope that the weather is good for traveling over the next week or so.

I went for my walk today and stopped and talked to a couple from London who had bought their trailer at Can-Am. Then I stopped and chatted with Birdie & Jean who were a couple of doors down from us last year, by the time I got back John said he was just thinking about going out looking for me to make sure I was okay!!

John bought me this pretty little cactus yesterday, adds a splash of colour in the trailer!



John downloaded the 2008 tax program yesterday so today did a fair bit on our tax returns and it looks like we will have to pay very little for this year – gotta like that!!

Tonight we went to Texas Roadhouse for dinner, we had a coupon for a free Cactus Blossom so with that we split an order of ribs and both had cesar salad, a very good dinner – we really like their ribs. Missed you Janet & Dave!

John is just making us a cuppa tea so we will probably just watch the boob tube for a bit before heading for bed. And so ends a great gift of a day and we look forward to tomorrow.

Saturday - December 20, 2008

Today was a nice sunny day but there was a cold wind all day so not a sitting out day, I actually wore a jacket when I went for my walk this morning.

This afternoon we decided to go back to Staples and get another table for the patio, they had nice ones on sale for $15 earlier in the week and we really like the one we bought so wanted to get another one, we lucked out and got the last one today. The nice thing about these is that they fold down flat for travel and are very sturdy – we notice a lot of people use them to sit their barbecues on. From there we went to the mall and John went to Best Buy and I went to Kohl’s looking for a Christmas present for him. I wanted to get him a new Henkel carving knife and we ended up going to Target to buy one and he picked it out so no big surprise there for him for Christmas, but, as he is the one that will use it I figure I’d best get one he liked! Actually it was a set so I get a nice paring knife out of the deal! I also bought a new set of steak knives but when we got home and I opened the package the handles were rubberized, not wood, and I don’t like them so will return them. We stopped at Fry’s for romaine and mushrooms for dinner - Kel & Tim please not that we did not go to Wal Mart today!

John bought the movie There Will Be Blood on a DVD for $2.50 and once you open the package it is good for two days then somehow self destructs so we will watch that tonight. And so ends a great gift of a day and we look forward to tomorrow.

Friday - December 19, 2008

Today was another nice day with temperatures a bit warmer than yesterday but still on the cool side in the shade but it was lovely in the sun.

I got the laundry done around noon, when I got there I got the last 2 washers but managed to get 2 dryers without having to wait so I am not complaining. I came back and sat outside and read for a while, then went for a long walk.

We had an electric outlet in the kitchen which blew the fuse every time we tried to use one of the outlets in it so today was the day John decided to tackle it and see what the problem was; not being an electrical person I can’t tell you all the ins and outs but it took him about 3 hours to correct the problem. Turns out that when our dealer was supposed to make this outlet active whoever worked on it truly messed it up – needless to say that John was totally ticked off but at least he got it working. So much for most of his day!!

We are now having a quiet evening of TV and I think I will finish my book – such a tough life!! And so ends a great gift of a day and we look forward to tomorrow.

Thursday, December 18, 2008

What a difference a day makes – today we woke up to sunshine (even though it was a bit foggy) and although it was a cool day with a high of only 60F (15C) it was still a wonderful day.

I went at 10 to get my haircut and she did a good job but I am not sure that she did a better job than Rosie did last year for quite a bit less; I will probably go to Rosie next time then decide who will do it after that.

I came back and did some cleaning while John was outside wiping everything down, now we are again clean inside and out. We chatted with Gary & Leslie for quite a while then went to the market as John wanted to get an extra key cut and knew that there was a place at the market where he could get this particular key done. I bought a new sweat shirt and we got a sign for the trailer as we had left our old one at home.

From there we went to the Fry’s and Wal Mart in the Foothills and that was the extent of today’s adventures. I did take a couple of pictures of our new wheel covers – real exciting.





And so ends a great gift of a day and we look forward to tomorrow.

Wednesday - December 17, 2008

Well, there isn’t much to say for today. It was rainy and COLD all day so I hunkered down and didn’t do a lot. I had an e-mail from my brother today re the severe storm warnings for pretty well all of Ontario in the next few days, again sure am glad we aren’t there!

John went out and got one of our propane tanks, which went dry last night, recertified and refilled and that was his excitement for the day. As I say, not much to write about today but it was another great gift of a day even though the weather was crappy.

Tuesday, December 16, 2008

Last night it rained off and on all night, nothing too much but it was wet this morning. We saw a little bit of sun late this afternoon and had a high of about 62F (16C), not real warm but not too cold either.

This morning we were lazy, read our newspapers on the internet, did e-mail, etc. About noon we had a call that the wheel for John’s bike was ready so we went out to pick that up, then stopped at Hastings (a book store) and Lowe’s where I got a new entrance rug for the trailer. When we got home John offered to put in the new rug and take out the old but I want to wait until all this nasty rain is over – lol!!

The lady two doors down who is a hairdresser appeared to be home when we got back so I went down and got an appointment to get my hair cut on Thursday morning – sure does need it so hopefully she will do a good job. Just as I came back Steve stopped for a chat – turns out they spent the summer in Utah so we had a good chat about the canyons and beautiful scenery there. Then Gary & Leslie next door came over for a chat; while we were talking to them there was a real pretty rainbow – something you don’t see here very often.

John got his bike put back together and went for a quick ride, quick in that it looked like it was going to rain plus the bike seat was wet and he didn’t find it really comfortable riding with a wet butt!!!

This morning John was working on his pictures and gave me a few he took at Zion plus one of our trailer with the Christmas lights in the front window so I will post them – just call it a mish mash!

Pictures from Zion Canyon







These were some deer we saw at Zion



Our Christmas Lights



Tonight is a quiet evening of reading or TV; and so ends another great gift of a day and we look forward to tomorrow.

Monday - December 15, 2008

Today again started out cloudy and very cool but this afternoon the sun came out and we had a high of about 64F (17C). It clouded over again late in the afternoon and the forecast is for a couple of cloudy, rainy days.

John went for his bike ride today and was again having problems with his brakes grabbing while he was riding so came back and tried to figure out what the problem was. In the fall before we left Kincardine he took the bike in to have a cleaning, tune up done on it and they didn’t put the back wheel on properly – long story short it was something John didn’t have the tools to fix as a couple of parts had broken. We took it to Johnny Yuma’s bike shop this afternoon and they said it should be ready late tomorrow so hopefully it will be and it doesn’t sound like it will be too expensive to fix – thank goodness.

I was going to go out and find some place to get my hair cut this morning and on the way out stopped to talk to Leslie next door for a few minutes and she said the lady two doors down is a hairdresser and does a good job so I think I will try her. She wasn’t around at all today so hopefully I will be able to catch up with her tomorrow and make arrangements for a cut.

Apparently there is a fair bit of theft going on in the park, a few people have had their bikes stolen – one a fellow from Ontario, and yesterday a golf cart was stolen – John makes sure his bike is locked up.

We didn’t do anything too exciting today but as usual enjoyed the day anyways. And so ends another great gift of a day and we look forward to tomorrow.

Sunday - December 14, 2008

This morning was cloudy but by noon the sun had come out although the temperature never got much above 60F, oh well that is still better than it is at home.

This afternoon we went to see Quantum of Solace, lots of action in this movie. It was $4 each for the movie and a bucket of popcorn was $5 with free refills (which we didn’t get – splitting a bucket was more than enough!), sure beats Ontario prices!! After the movie we drove around old Yuma and I was going to take a couple of pictures, but alas my battery was dead – darn.

After the movie we stopped at Fry’s and Mervin’s on the way home. Mervin’s is closing in 7 days but I didn’t see a lot og great bargains.

We saw a Winnebago motor home today which reminded us of Bob & Denise who were beside us the fall of 2006 in Waterloo and then for a week or so were in the same park as us during the winter here in Yuma. They moved to New Brunswick in the fall of 2007 and we have often wondered how they are enjoying winters in New Brunswick, somehow I don’t think they are as warm as Yuma!!

That is about it for today, nothing too exciting. And so ends another great gift of a day and we look forward to tomorrow.

Saturday - December 13, 2008

Today it was pretty overcast until about noon when the sun came out and it remained sunny for the rest of the day with a high of about 68F (20C).

This morning I put a pot roast in the slow cooker and did some cleaning. John was outside all day working – he got the roof of the trailer cleaned off and now the solar panels are again clean so should pick up the sun better. The wheel covers are installed and look really good and his final job was to again try to get a better signal on the satellite which he did without a lot of trouble. After my walk I sat out in the sun for the afternoon reading but again at 4:30 had to call it quits and come in as it was getting too cold to sit out.

John is starting Casino Royale so that is this evening’s entertainment. And so ends another great gift of a day and we look forward to tomorrow.

Friday - December 12, 2008

Today was pretty overcast and coolish with a high of about 68F (20C), still not a bad day.

We got a call that our wheel covers were ready so we headed out to pick them up and because the place we bought them is across from the Arizona Market we had to make a stop there also. I got a few books, which should do me for a couple of weeks, as well as a new purse, other than that had fun wandering around. From there we went to the mall and got our parcel mailed to Ontario and I got some matching pillows for our new quilt and also bought an electric throw as they were on sale for half price.

After that was a stop at Wal Mart, then home. When we came into the park these goats were running around in the front 2 rows, don’t know where they came from but they had quite an audience.



John bought the Dark Knight DVD so guess that will be tonight’s entertainment – if I find it too scary I won’t bother watching it.

And so ends another great gift of a day and we look forward to tomorrow, we have to install our wheel covers but other than that we have no plans.

Thursday, December 11, 2008

Today was another nice day here in Yuma, although a bit cooler than it has been with highs in the mid 60’sF ( 15-18C), but it was sunny so we are not complaining.

Today is our daughter’s 21st wedding anniversary – happy anniversary Nan & Carl.

This morning I heard John get up so thought I would snooze until he was through in the bathroom, next time I knew I woke up and it was 10:00 a.m. – what, this is crazy! Guess I will have to start setting my alarm again.

I have found meal times to be a good time to do laundry and today was no exception, I went over shortly after noon and it was practically empty – perfect! We are now clean for another week.

John thought he would try moving the satellite dish today and try to get a better signal – NOT A GOOD IDEA! He spent all afternoon messing around with it and has no better signal than when he started – what is the old adage – if it works don’t mess with it! Tonight was the Parade of Lights in the park, anyone who wanted to decorate their golf carts, bikes etc. could put them in the parade, must say it was a pretty small parade!

I had an e-mail from my sister today and she got the stitches out of her wrist and all seems to be good so I was real happy to hear that.

And so ends another great gift of a day and we look forward to tomorrow, we have to pick up our wheel covers and want to go to the market, other than that we have no plans.

Wednesday - December 10, 2008

Today was sunny but cooler with a high of about 70F (21C), still we’re not complaining as this is far warmer than Ontario!!

This morning I did some cleaning etc. while John did some outside stuff like burying the cable for the satellite dish. This afternoon Jim & Sonia came over around 2 and we had a great visit, we were able to sit outside but by the time they left, about 4:30, it was getting quite cool – time to put on the sweatshirt!

I went for a walk and John went for a bike ride after they left then we had some leftovers for dinner – real exciting! Tonight I got fiddling around with my I-Pod Touch and downloaded a game, Bejeweled, so will probably spend the evening trying out how to play it.

And so ends another great gift of a day and we look forward to tomorrow, we have no plans so will have to see how the day unfolds.

Tuesday, December 9, 2008

Last night they were forecasting high winds starting in the early hours of the morning and ending around noon – well they were right, I woke up this morning thinking that somehow over night we had been transported to the RGV in Texas – LOL! The winds lasted until late this afternoon – a little longer than forecast but it was a bright, sunny day so other than not being too pleasant for sitting outside it was a nice day.

With the Star Choice set up we are again able to enjoy Canada AM, this morning Jeff & Bev had us in stitches watching them try Seamus’s pomegrante seeds marinated in Goldschlager.

We did some Christmas cards then headed out this afternoon to get them in the mail, the first stop was at Wal Mart where John wanted to get a couple of prints made to enclose in one of the cards, then a stop at Cracker Barrel to buy a quilt for our bed (our Christmas present to each other) then Hallmark to mail the cards, Fry’s for some groceries then another Wal Mart to pick up a couple of last minute items. While I was waiting for John at the last Wal Mart I was standing beside the cooked chicken stand, couldn’t resist as I figured Pico de Gallo chicken sounded a lot better for dinner than left over sausage!

Dinner is now over, the dishes are done and a little bit of TV or reading is in order before heading for bed. Sure can’t figure out where the days go, they but they do seem to fly by.

And so ends another great gift of a day and we look forward to tomorrow, we are looking forward to Jim & Sonia’s visit but will first have to get the place cleaned up before they arrive.

Monday - December 8, 2008

Today I was a wuss – at 9:15 a.m. when it was time to go for pool aerobics the temperature was 48F so I chickened out – now am I a wuss or am I smart? Today did warm up to the low 70’s with lots of sunshine – all in all a nice day.

I decided that today was P Day (Pedicure) so headed out shortly before noon to get my feet feeling good – wow, now I think I could walk on air they feel so good. I went to Wal Mart on Avenue B as that is where I went this past winter and I was lucky to get the same fellow today as I had then – he does a really good job. There was a lady there waiting to get a pedicure that I thought I recognized, she ended up sitting at the next spot so we got talking and sure enough she is in our park and goes to pool aerobics so that is where I recognized her from. I told her I was going to go this morning but thought it was too cold – she laughed at me and said the pool was really nice – okay, okay I will go on Wednesday.

After my pedicure I wandered around Wal Mart for a bit and picked up a few groceries and a red bow for the trailer then headed to Beall’s. Monday is senior’s day at Beall’s so you get an extra 15% off and the only time I will go is without John so today was a perfect day to check it out. I didn’t really find anything much other than a pair of capris and a couple of glasses but had fun wandering around checking everything out.

When I got home John said he had spent all day trying to get my e-mail working with road runner, it turned out to be something really stupid and simple that was causing me not to be able to send out e-mail through Outlook and road runner but at least now I am good to go – many thanks to my wonderful hubby! If I had to do the problem solving I am sure my computer would now be a broken mass on the sidewalk!!!! (Do you get the impression I don’t have a lot of patience?)

I am looking forward to spending a bit of time reading tonight as it doesn’t appear that there is a lot on TV. And so ends another great gift of a day and we look forward to tomorrow although we have no great plans, will just see how the day unfolds.

Sunday - December 7, 2008

Today started off cool and cloudy but about 1 p.m. the sun partially came out, we are not complaining as it was still a heck of a lot better than the weather in our part of southwestern Ontario!! John got our Star Choice set up so we can now get Canada news – hooray (I think)!!

We went to Cracker Barrel for breakfast, my, what a busy place that was but we did enjoy our breakfast. While waiting for a table we ran into Tom, a fellow we golfed with in the Tuesday morning scramble so had a good chat with him. After breakfast we went to Kohl’s and got some new cushions for the trailer – sure do brighten it up.

We decided to go over to Desert Paradise and see if Jim & Sonia were there, and after much looking we finally found them – they have bought a park model trailer so were not where we expected to see them. We had a nice visit and they are coming over here on Wednesday for a drink and visit.

By the time we got back it was think about dinner time, we are now finished with dinner and the dishes so a quiet evening is ahead. Actually, I was talking to my sister so John did the dishes – do I sound like I am arguing about that?

The 11 o’clock Ontario news is on and they are just covering another major snow storrm in Wellington County – ask me if I miss it!!!

And so ends another great gift of a day and we look forward to tomorrow although we have no great plans, will just see how the day unfolds.

Saturday - December 6, 2008

Wow, today was one of those quiet, at home days where nothing exciting happened. It was a lovely day with lots of sun and temperatures in the low 70’s’sF.

We didn’t move too fast this morning, but today John did manage to dust the outside of the trailer, work on hiding wiring for the cable TV and internet, putting lighting around the patio etc. and I vacuumed, dusted and then sat outside and enjoyed the lovely day while reading.

A fellow from Comax B.C. stopped this afternoon and chatted for a while and I walked around the park this afternoon – a start to my exercise program. John went for a bike ride late this afternoon but due to the fact it was getting dark he kept his ride quite short. Hopefully he will get in a longer ride tomorrow.

And so ends another great gift of a day and we look forward to tomorrow although we have no great plans, will just see how the day unfolds.

Friday - December 5, 2008

Today was another beautiful day here in Yuma with a high in the mid 70’s and some wind, certainly not hard to take!

We left shortly after lunch to go to the Yuma market, not just a fruit & veggie market but a market that sells every from A to Z. The market is open Thursday to Sunday and is a fun place to browse. Today I got a new supply of t-shirts but that was about it for the market. From there we went to Sew Masters and ordered wheel covers for the trailer then on to the RV store for some light bulbs – real exciting eh?

On to Yuma Palms Mall where we went into a couple of stores but found nothing too exciting. I needed some stamps so we stopped at the Post Office in the Hallmark store which we have found to be far less busy than any other postal outlet in Yuma. I needed some stamps and couldn’t believe it when the gal told me that they only had $0.69 stamps and I needed $0.72 so I would get the $0.03 stamps for free, the same for international stamps so I ended up getting $0.34 in free stamps – could you ever imagine this happening with Canada Post!!!!!

By the time we got home it was too cool to sit outside so I came in while John did some fiddling around outside. We are now through dinner and it will soon be bedtime – where or where does the day go!!!

And so ends another great gift of a day and we look forward to tomorrow although we have no great plans, will just see how the day unfolds.

Thursday - December 4, 2008

This morning it was pretty overcast and cool but it did get sunny by about 11 a.m. and we had temperatures in the mid 70’s – sure do like that.

I forgot to mention yesterday that John filled the truck at $2.169/gal for diesel – sure do like that price!

John again spent the day washing and cleaning the outside, the truck is now nice and clean, the trailer is clean and shiny and WE CAN SEE OUT THE WINDOWS! I got out the crystals and the Christmas decorations as well as sorting out my clothes so I can get the winter clothing put away for a few months.

I walked over to the office about noon to get some quarters for laundry and mail a couple of cards then walked by the laundry room and lo and behold it was pretty quiet so I came back and got the laundry loaded up and headed over. I got there just before it got busy again so was lucky to get it done so early as last year I usually went around 4:30 when it was quiet. It is $0.75/load to wash and $1.00 to dry – a good deal I think. I enjoyed sitting in the sun with my book while doing the laundry, such a tough life.

I took a few pictures on my walk today:

Main Lap Pool



Volleyball Court



Tennis Courts



Neighborhood Centre and Small Pool





Our Trailer



Two days here and I am totally frustrated with their internet as sometimes it works fine then other times it is as slow as molasses in January, so about 3 o’clock we headed over to Time Warner to sign up for their internet again this year. We were really surprised when we walked in and got waited on right away as usually there is a long line of people waiting to get served, so John is now in the process of trying to get it all set up again. It is a good deal at $29.95/month (no taxes) and works really well (or at least it did last year). On the way home we made a quick stop at Wal Mart for a couple of items I forgot to get yesterday.

It is time to think about starting dinner, so I had best get at it. And so ends another great gift of a day and we look forward to tomorrow although we have no great plans, will just see how the day unfolds.

Wednesday - December 3, 2008

Our first day in Yuma was a beauty, lots of sunshine and warm temperatures – sure do like that!! The high today reached about 78F (25C), as far as I am concerned that is about perfect.

This morning John headed out to get a haircut and pick up some supplies for washing the truck and trailer. While he was gone I got busy with the cleaning and was about ¾ done when he arrived home after about 3 hours. When I was finished I had my shower then went out and sat in the sun with my book for about an hour, then we headed out to get groceries.

It was about 6:30 p.m. by the time we got home so had to scurry around and make dinner.- we are now cleaned up from dinner and enjoying a bit of TV before heading for bed. I didn’t even get my camera out of its case today, so no pictures, hopefully tomorrow.

And so ends another great gift of a day and we look forward to tomorrow although we have no great plans – oh yes, hopefully we will get to Time Warner and sign up for Roadrunner Internet as the wi-fi here in the park is pretty slow and aggravating.

Tuesday - December 2, 2008

It was much easier to get up this morning with a temperature of about 50F (10C), sure beats yesterday mornings temperature! It was about 10 a.m. when we got on the road and we had a good drive to Yuma with most of it being on secondary highways. There were a couple of rough spots but on the whole it wasn’t too bad. It was partly overcast most of the day but we don’t mind that on a driving day.

We opted to take Nevada/California Hwy. 95 down to Interstate 40 then go across to Arizona 95 through Lake Havasu, rather than having to cross the Hoover Dam. To go across the dam would probably be slow, plus they would go through the trailer etc. – who needs that hassle! Last year we let “Alice” (our GPS) guide us and she sent us down US 95 in California from I-40 to Parker – never again as it was the worst road we have ever been on. Today she tried to send us that way again but we opted to drive a bit further and go through Lake Havasu where we knew the road was pretty good.

Lake Havasu



Along The Colorado River Between Lake Havasu & Parker









And for Dave - Emerald Canyon Golf Course





Boondockers Outside of Quartzsite



I took a few pictures on the way but mostly it was pretty boring. The drive from Quartzsite to Yuma always seems so long and boring – not much for scenery today with it being overcast.

We arrived at Del Pueblo and will be here until late March – by then we will be ready to move on!! The trailer is filthy both inside and out and the larder and fridge are empty so the next couple of days will be spent rectifying those problems, as well as catching up on laundry. I did a real quick vacuum when we got here but the heavy duty cleaning starts tomorrow.

I just had an e-mail a while ago from my sister and she was discharged from hospital about 6:45 p.m. so that was good news.

And so ends another great gift of a day, please join us again to see what life in Yuma is like.

Monday - December 1, 2008

Wow, December already, where does the time go! This morning I woke up and without even looking at the clock knew it was 6 a.m., which is 8 a.m. home time, and when my sister was scheduled for surgery on her wrist which she broke last Monday (she is on blood thinners so had to get that under control before they could do the surgery). I was awake for quite a while worrying about her (me, being the person who always told my mother that worrying doesn’t change anything and is a waste of time!!!) Where was someone to tell me not to waste my time worrying? I finally went back to sleep but had really weird dreams so slept fitfully. When it was time to get up, I didn’t want to – the temperature was 26F (-3C), who in their right mind wants to get up with it being that cold!! We finally did get up but were in no hurry to get hooked up and on our way, John waited till it was at 32F (0C) to start hooking up so it was about 10:30 when we got on the road.

I thought the drive would be boring today but it was far from that, it was a pretty drive across the mountain to I-15 then some pretty scenery along the interstate. We entered Arizona after Utah (for about 26 miles) and went through the Virgin River Canyon – stunning scenery.

Once into Nevada we stopped at the Visitor’s Centre in Mesquite and the fellow there told us there was a lot of construction through Las Vegas on the interstate so suggested an alternate route. The route was nice except for about 25 miles where there was some construction, and if there wasn’t construction there should have been as the road was terrible. The good thing was that there was very little traffic and lots of nice scenery.

Today's Scenery













And We Drove Along Lake Mead









The high today reached 69F (20C) which suited us just fine. Tonight we are at Canyon Trails RV Park in Boulder City, NV and at 9:30 p.m. (Mountain Time) it is still 56 F (13C) – we are really glad to back into warm temperatures! Boulder City is actually on Pacific Time but seeing that tomorrow we will back on Mountain Time we are just continuing on in that time zone. John was in 7th heaven tonight, he actually barbecued dinner in his t-shirt, sure has been a long time since he has been able to do that.

I waited until about 9:30 p.m. Ontario time to hear how my sister is and having had no e-mail from my niece I called her. She said her mom had come through the surgery okay and hopes to be home tomorrow, I sure feel relieved to hear that.

And so ends another great gift of a day - do come back again to see what tomorrow brings.

Sunday - November 30, 2008

Today was another beautiful sunny day here In Utah with the temperatures depending on where you were – today we were in lower altitudes, therefore, warmer temperatures.

We decided to check out Zion Canyon today and found another beautiful, scenic national park. The drive there was through pretty countryside but nothing outstanding, there was a lot of traffic, don’t know where they were going to or coming from!!

The east road into Zion presented more picturesque scenery than the main highway, and once into the park we had a pretty drive and an interesting tunnel to traverse. The tunnel is 1.1 miles long and was completed in 1930, there are no lights in the tunnel but there are a few large windows that provide air vents and there are many twists and turns. We were okay to go through with the truck but anything larger requires an escort and our trailer could not go through as the maximum length is 50’ for a combined vehicle. A larger vehicle must pay $15 for a permit for the tunnel (which is good for two trips) and they don’t actually get an escort, all other traffic is stopped from going through at the same time as the larger vehicles have to travel down the middle of the tunnel. Once we excited the tunnel we were into a long descent with lots of switch backs and tight curves – I certainly wouldn’t even want to THINK about taking our trailer through there.

Tunnel Entrance



Virgin River



It Looks Like Ice But Isn't



And Of Course There Are Always the Interesting Rock Formations











Once into the canyon we went to the Visitor’s Centre and found out that there were shuttle buses running, these buses go to the end of the canyon and you can get off and on at any of the stops (and are included in the admission fee); the buses weren’t running at Bryce as they are done until spring so were surprised to find them running at Zion. We decided to take the shuttle as this would give John a chance to enjoy the views. We took the shuttle right to the end then got off to walk the trail to Temple of Sinawava, okay I thought I could walk the trail but after about ¾ of a mile, with no end in sight, I called it quits and John continued on alone. When he returned he said the view was disappointing so I hadn’t missed a lot. My hips were both kind of sore and stiff today so I decided not to over do it, how I miss having all my own parts and being able to walk as walking was something I always loved to do. Hopefully I will build my strength back up in Yuma so I can do the walking again.

The weather in the canyon was lovely, in the sun it was in the high 60’sF but cooler in the shady areas, still very pleasant.

We got off at one other stop but again it was a walk to see the view and we wanted to get well out of the canyon and park before dark so we didn’t do any other stops. On the way back I was talking to the shuttle driver and she said this was the last day for the shuttles and this is only the second year they have run in November (but only on the weekends). She said they were so busy on Friday and Saturday (Thanksgiving holiday) that it was like in the summer, traffic congestion galore! Parking areas and viewing pullouts are quite small and they all seemed congested today so heaven only know what they would have been like on Friday and yesterday. We also saw quite a few deer and some wild turkeys but couldn’t get good pictures through the bus window. The park is open year round and the shuttles start again the first weekend in April.

It was about 6 when we got home, so a long day. I had some left over spagetti sauce in the freezer so used it for dinner – a nice dinner of comfort food!

I am having trouble keeping my eyes open so will end this now; and so ends another great gift of a day and do come back again to see what we have done.