and so we enter into our last week in Muncie IN (8-27-11)

         Somehow the time in Muncie has flown by a lot faster than I thought it would. With shopping, wedding planning and exercising, the days filled up.
   The weather has been absolutely terrific, if a bit warm.  Jess and I have played tennis several times, getting better each time we try- although, in our version of tennis we try to hit the ball to each other.  We've been biking many times, so many, that we are getting a little bored with the bike trail here.  The last time we went, Jess was at work, so it was just Paul and I.  To counteract the monotony, we tried riding significantly faster than we had done before, so we averaged 13.5 mph, and therefore we at least got a better workout for our time.
    We’ve done as much for the wedding as we can at this point. The rest will have to wait until we get to Michigan next week.  Once we get there, we will have a whirlwind 3 weeks before the wedding.
    The biggest excitement we had this week was the arrival of David.  He drove across country with two of his buddies, and they dropped him off here so he could spend a day or so with Jess.  After two days, he left to go to Wisconsin to see his parents for a few days before heading to Michigan.

    Yesterday we started paying closer attention to Irene as she barreled towards New England. As it turned out, although it was a deadly storm, it could have been much worse. I guess that’s easy for me to  say, since it was sunny here all day today and temperatures were in the high 70s.  Oh, and I didn’t lose my electricity. 


Well, Jess has 3 more days of work before we leave Muncie for good on Thursday morning.  She doesn’t have too much time to relax in Michigan though, since she got a transfer and will start working at a Toys R Us in Michigan a few days after we get there!

This week’s activities (Muncie, IN 08-12-11)

      I have Hitch Itch.  Yeah, I know it sounds like an awful condition or something, and really, actually, it is.  My full-timing friends will know exactly what I mean when I say it.  I am ready to move. I want to ride off into the sunset, find someplace new to explore.  I want to find out what’s “over that hill”.  I guess Hitch Itch is one of the reasons we enjoy full timing so much.  After staying in one spot for a while, we love going someplace new. I am already trying to sneak in a 3 day stay in Muskegon on our way from here to Novi. I’m not sure we can do it, but I think I’d like to try.  There is a pair of Bald Eagles that make their home in Muskegon, and I’d love to try and find them.
           Anyway, that makes it sound like I’m not having any fun, and really, I am.  Now that the frantic craziness of moving into the new trailer, moving Jess into the new trailer, and getting  us all situated has abated, we are settling in to a routine that’s quite nice.  Jess and I are determined to fit exercise into our daily regime, and so far it’s working very well-so well that we had to take today off completely.  We have overexerted ourselves.  We’ve done workouts with weights, played tennis (hmmm, not great for my foot), and been biking several times. She is doing great on the bike.  She hasn’t ridden in years, but has already worked up to a 15 mile ride.
    In between all the workouts, we are working on wedding details.  We spent a couple of days building the invitations, staying up one night until 2 am to get them finished, and they have now gone out in the mail.  We’re going over all the details of what needs to be done, and when, so we can start knocking things off the “to do” list and into the  “DONE” pile.  Neither of us has much experience planning weddings, so I hope we don’t forget too many details. 
     Paul has been helping us with the the wedding, when we need him, and when we don’t, he is busy making his modifications to the trailer. He has added shelves, bought things like a quick disconnect outdoor shower faucet,  and piping to rearrange the water system, and has started researching things like water filtration systems, weather monitors, Wi-fi antennas, and bike racks. 
        All in all we are having a great time and enjoying the opportunity to be able to spend a significant amount of time with our daughter before she gets married in September.

Happy Mother's Day!

     So far, it's been a pretty good one for me!  Paul cooked breakfast (as usual) and then we went for a 4 mile walk.  Afterwards, I spoke to my son on the phone for almost an hour.  Can't wait to get to Boston to see him! My daughter and her fiance came over for a late lunch.  David is leaving Muncie today.  He has finished school and after stopping at his parents in Wisconsin for a bit, will be headed to California for an internship in the film industry.

David and Jess

   Paul made it back from Texas with no car issues, after spending a week with his mom. The day he arrived home happened to be Cinco De Mayo, so of course we picked up the kids (in their Lincoln) and headed to the nearest Mexican restaurant for dinner.  The Lincoln he brought back with him is an early (very generous!) wedding present for the kids, from Paul's mother-her 2000 Lincoln LS.  The kids were tremendously excited about their wedding gift, and I admit, its nice peace of mind for me to know Jess has something reliable to drive!  So, thank you Gerry!  

     I'm not sure where the time went when Paul was gone, but it sure did fly by.   I did go for a bike ride the day I planned to, but it was a long short bike ride.  It wasn't that many miles but the first half  I had a tail wind and on the way back I had a head wind that was so strong and tough to battle that when I put my leg down to stop for a minute, it didn't hold my weight, I was that tired!  Ugh.    Since that day I've gone walking several times and I am hoping to go for another bike ride tomorrow, IF the weather cooperates, which it really hasn't been doing lately.  I must say, after being back in the Midwest for a while, the deserts of the west are growing on me. The constant sunshine, lack of humidity and milder temperatures are fond memories. A lot of my full timing friends are still in the western states, and I admit I am somewhat jealous and can't wait to get back there.  All in good time though.  I wouldn't give up spending time with the kids for anything.
    One of the ways I have kept busy for the last week was by finalizing the specifications for our new Mobile Suite 5th wheel.  Call us spoiled, but we have decided to go forward with the purchase of our "new" new trailer, for a lot of reasons, actually (that I am not going to get into here).  We ordered it last Tuesday and it should be built by mid-June or so.  We'll know the timing better next week.  We went back to the factory to look at interior colors and make those choices, and also to discuss some of the customizations we have ordered.  I can't even post pictures of existing units and say that's what we are getting because some of the changes we're making are changing the look of the interior.  We sort of took one floor plan and substituted in parts that we liked from other floor plans, and then put in some of our own ideas as well.
   Now that we've ordered the 5th wheel, we need to buy a new truck to pull it. Ours won't tow that much weight, so we are looking to get a 2011 F450.  We've gone round and round on this one- debating 350 vs. 450 and 2011 vs. 2012.  It's too late to order one and have it be a 2011, and Paul, after talking to his buddies at Ford, has decided he doesn't want a 2012. They are downsizing the brakes, apparently.  Plus, because of the Tsunami in Japan, you can't order one with a navigation system until further notice.
So, we have been searching dealer lots trying to find one that will fit our needs.  We finally found one in Pennsylvania, and we're hoping its still there when we head that way next week.

Just checking in...

        It sure is quiet around here.  I find myself talking to the cat (its better than talking to myself, I guess!).  Paul flew to Texas a few days ago, and it wasn't the most pleasant day for him.  In fact he was pretty exhausted by the time he got to  El Paso.  His original flight was supposed to leave Indianapolis at 2:40 pm, but we got a phone call from American Airlines, saying it was canceled due to bad storms along the flight path.
         On our way to Indy, we stopped to test drive an F450, which is one of the trucks we are considering buying to pull our "new" home (no decision yet). Our daughter Jess came with us to Indy because she and I were going to do some wedding errands after we dropped Paul off at the airport.  Well, lucky Paul got to do all the wedding shopping with us since he didn't have to be at the airport until 4:15. We registered for tuxes for the groomsmen, checked out the new bridesmaid colors  and  started buying the supplies to make the centerpieces for the tables.
After multiple delays, Paul finally got to El Paso at 11:30 pm, which is 1:30 am EDT.  A long day for him.
   I am tired too, but its because it's hard to sleep at night when there are tornado watches and warnings. Its so spooky to see all the killer tornados there have been.  I feel so badly for the people who have been affected.  Tornados are particularly scary when you live in a trailer.  It's one of the few times that I don't like that my home has wheels, and therefore, nothing anchoring it to the ground.  Last night I had the weather radio on all night, and kept the TV on the weather station, with the sound off.  I had a bag packed and the cat's carrier by the door.  We were under a Warning briefly, but I could see by the radar that the storm had actually passed our town by the time the warning came out.  I did wake up to an incredible wind at about 3 am, but thankfully it didn't last long. 
    After spending yesterday getting caught up on paperwork...well, not totally caught up, but at least I made some great inroads....today was spent doing errands all day.  I didn't buy much, but I was getting ideas for decorations and such for the reception.  Plus, I always seem to need food! I am not sure how I managed to fit more into this tiny little refrigerator, but I did.  I stopped by to see my daughter at work for a few minutes because that's a perk of being here!!  I love that I can see her on a regular basis, if only for a few minutes. 
      I am really hoping that the weather forecast for tomorrow is accurate, because I am looking forward to going for a long bike ride. It's supposed to be really nice out, although pretty windy.  At this point, I'll suffer through the wind.  I need to get outside for a bit!