Getting Closer to Home

Yesterday was another wonderful day with Aunt Gloria and Les.  She and I went down to the Courthouse to take coffee for the NARFE (National Association of Retired Federal Employees) monthly meeting.  I guess she does that every month.  She wasn't going to stay for the meeting since Lee and I were visiting.  When we finished there she and I went downtown and looked in some of the shops and then left and went to have a cup of coffee.  We had a wonderful time just talking and continuing getting to know each other.  Les finally called to see where we were because he and Lee were hungry and ready for lunch.  We went home and picked them up and went to Pizza Hut for the lunch buffet.  When we got back to her house we emptied the ice trays with the lemon juice and put them in a Ziploc bag.  I took them to the 5th wheel and put them in the freezer.  We visited for a while and I left to go back to the 5th wheel because I was fixing chicken pot pie for dinner.  We had the chicken pot pie, corn, biscuits and lots of good conversation.

We visited for a while and then said goodnight.  They went home and I did the majority of the travel preparations.  I had only a few left for this morning.  We  left their house at 9:00 this morning.  I had to get one last picture of Lee, Aunt Gloria and Les.

Our destination was Hardeeville RV in Hardeeville, SC.  It is a Passport America park.  I had seen the Pink Pig restaurant on the internet and it had been featured on the Food Network.  I told Lee we would have a late lunch there and that would be our meal for the day.  We didn't get to the RV park until 2:30 and they close at 3:00.  When we checked in at the RV park we asked about the restaurant and he was the one that told us they would be closing at 3:00.  He said it was his Mother and Brother's restaurant and if we wanted to place an order to go he would go pick it up for us.  We gave him the money for the food and went to our site.  Before we knew it he was back with our food.  We got a BBQ plate and 1/2 rack of ribs plate.  They both came with Brunswick stew, slaw and roll.  It was great.  We ate and after that we sat outside and read for awhile.  We will be heading out in the morning to Huntington Beach State Park to have dinner with Bill and Nancy Mills.  We are really looking forward to seeing them.  Thanks for traveling with us.

Thomasville Georgia

We left  Marianna, FL yesterday morning headed to see Lee's Aunt Gloria.  He hasn't seen her in probably forty years.  We had a short drive yesterday and arrived at her house in Thomasville, GA around noon.  We pulled up in front of her house with the 5th wheel since we are mooch docking here. She lives on a dead end road and her house is on one side and there is a house on the other side and no turn around.  Well they were both so glad to see each other when we first arrived no thought was given to how we were going to get the rig parked.  With much patience on both our parts and many directions from me and many maneuvers for Lee  he got it parked perfectly.

We look really good sitting next to Aunt Gloria's House.

We had sandwiches at her house and then she took us out to do some sightseeing.  The first place she took us was to see the Big Oak.

She drove through town so we could see all the old mansions.  They were beautiful.  Some of them have been converted to Bed & Breakfast.  When we got back to her house Lee asked her if the tree in her yard was a pear tree and she said no it is a lemon tree.  It has some of the biggest lemons I have ever seen.

She took us out to dinner at Ruby Tuesday and then it was back home.  Her husband Les had to work yesterday and didn't get off until 7pm and had to be at work at 5am this morning so we only got to see him for a short time.  We were going to leave tomorrow but Les will be off so we are going to stay an extra day so we can spend some time with both of them.

We had a lazy morning.  I went over and had coffee with Aunt Gloria while Lee was still resting and then he went over to spend some time with her.  I caught them eating Biscotti together.  She is the sweetest person you could ever hope to meet.

She said we would make some homemade lemonade.  Now that is something I have never done before so I was really excited.  We were all three involved in the process.  Lee picked the lemons for us.

Aunt Gloria cut them and I worked the juicer.  It was really fun.

When we finished the juicing we put the juice in ice cube trays and put them in the freezer.

Now I can put the ice cubes in a bag in the freezer and when we want lemonade we will add a few to a glass of water.  She is going to give us some lemons to take home so I can make more lemonade.  What fun.  She made chili in the crock pot and a pumpkin pie for dinner and I made a Swiss Cashew Tossed Salad and took some french bread.  We came home after dinner because we knew Les was tired since he had to get up so early this morning.  It has been such a wonderful day.

We left Louisiana on Wednesday.  We stopped at a the Okatoma Resort in Hattiesburg, MS.  We put the address in the GPS and ended up on a road where we were supposed to make a right turn on a gravel road that wasn't big enough for the truck much less the truck and the 5th wheel.  I called the campground and he said you can't put the address in the GPS.  He gave me directions to get there and we were successful.  This was a Passport  America Campground so we stayed the night for $12.00.  He wanted us to stay longer.  Lee and I were talking that night and he was talking about a Navy Seabees base in Gulfport, MS.  He was in the Seabees when he was in the Navy.  He was supposed to go to the Gulfport Base but missed out on the opportunity.  We were only about one and a half hours from the base so we decided we would go there before leaving MS.  We stayed at the Southern Oaks Mobile Home and RV Community.  It was a great location run by a retired Seabee Chief.  The majority of the sites are long term rentals but it was very clean and the people were very friendly.

We went to the Heritage Center on the base on Friday.  It was very interesting and Lee had a great time.  He got to see some of the base.

We left there to find a place for lunch.  We decided on Tony's Brick Oven Pizza.  We had the lunch special which was salad and two pieces of pepperoni pizza.  It was great.  Then we took a ride along Beach Road.

We drove to Biloxi and saw the lighthouse.

We headed back to the 5th wheel for a quite night.  We got up this morning went to Cracker Barrel for breakfast and then started out to Thomasville, GA to see Aunt Gloria.  This is Lee's Aunt who he hasn't seen in a very long time.  We stopped at the Florida Welcome Center we saw this awesome truck that was the  tow vehicle for a 5th wheel.  How would you like this for you tow vehicle?

The Welcome Center  had a replica of a Blue Angels Jet and we were able to get a picture of it and the Florida Welcome Sign.

We are in a campground in Marianna, FL.  We wont say much about it.  It was way more than $12.00 and not worth $2.00 but it is only for one night and we will be on the road again tomorrow.  The positive is that we are together in our own bed tonight.  All is good.

Still in Lousiania

We decided last night we would stay another day.  This morning we got up and Lee was going to start the generator and be sure it was still working.  It would not start again this morning.  We got about another quart of water.  We had purchased gas at an Exxon station in West, TX before we left and that must be where we got the water.  It had run fine until then.  After we got the water out this morning it ran fine.  We were going to call Jim and Elizabeth and let them know we were still here when Elizabeth called us.  We made plans for us to meet for us to take them out for lunch.  Elizabeth suggested Southfield Grill.  The food was delicious.  Lee and I had chicken fried steak which came with three vegetables and bread.  We were stuffed when we left.  We said our see ya's and went to Bass Pro Shop.  We love walking through there and just looking.  We purchased a few things but not much.  Then we headed back to the campground which has a little zoo.

It was really neat.  We enjoyed it and I'm know children really like it.  We saw hawks, owls, foxes, peacocks, pigs, deer, goats and a pony.  He and Lee really connected.

When we got back we had to find somewhere to get propane for one of our tanks on the 5th Wheel.  Lee took it off and we headed out to Bayou Propane.  Mitzi went along on the ride with us.  When we got back he ran the generator again.  When he was finished we walked out to the pier.  The water is so low.

We took a picture of our 5th Wheel from the dock.

It was really great here.  We will be leaving in the morning headed to Thomasville, GA to see Lee's Aunt Gloria. More to come.

Lousiana Bound

Sunday morning was beautiful in Livingston.  We were both excited because we were headed to Bossier City, LA to see our friends Jim and Elizabeth.  We haven't seem them in five years.  We met them when there daughter, Carolyn lived across the street from us in Wilmington.  Carolyn and her family moved to Columbia, SC five years ago.  Everything was going as planned until we got ready to put the big slide in and it didn't work. This happened to us when we were leaving the RV-Dreams Rally in Tennessee in April.  When it had to be repaired then Carriage sent extra switches.  The spare switches weren't easily accessible since we were preparing for travel but he did quite a bit of unpacking and got the switches.  We have to take all the panels out from under the sink in the kitchen to get to the switches.  After several hours of work we are now ready for travel.  We called Jim and Elizabeth and told them we wouldn't be able to meet for lunch but we should be there around 2:30pm.  The route we took had no rest areas, picnic areas or food places that were big rig friendly.  Finally at 1:00pm we found a convenience store that had a large parking area next to their building which we were glad to see.  We went inside and fixed us a sandwich and had chips, pickles and a drink.  We walked Mitzi and were back on the road again.  We had decided to stay at the Harrah's Louisiana Downs Racetrack.  Elizabeth had checked and it was free.  We arrived there around 4:30.  It was a great spot for free.  Lee tried to start the generator and it wouldn't start.  I tried the slide and nothing.  We are both trying to stay calm.  We decided we should probably find to find a campground where we had electric and Lee could work on the slide and the generator.  We called Jim and Elizabeth and told them what was happening and she asked if we would have time to come over dinner. I told her we would and we would call her when we got checked in at the campground.  I called the Cypress Black Bayou Park and Recreation Area and they had a site that would accommodate our rig.   We got set up and left to go have dinner with Jim and Elizabeth.

She made a casserole, Swiss Cashew Tossed Salad and Apple Crisp with whipped topping.  It was wonderful.  They made all the challenges for the day disappear.  Jim said he would come over Monday morning and help Lee try to fix the slide and they would look at the generator.  

They had to have a cup of coffee to discuss the situation.  No need to rush into anything.  Elizabeth was coming to pick me up and we were going to have a girls day.  When she got here this morning she had made sandwiches for the guys for lunch and had ours was in the cooler in the car so we could decide where we were going to eat.  It was a great day.  I had so much fun with her.  We went back to her house and I got to see the travel trailer, house, yard and then we had lunch.  We called the guys and they had gotten the slide and the generator fixed.  Elizabeth and I did a little more running around and then we headed back to the campground.  We thanked them for a wonderful time and said we would let them know if we decided not to leave tomorrow.  We also said we would not wait five years to see each other again.

                                                               Lee, Elizabeth, Jim

                                                                  Me, Elizabeth, Jim

After they left I put all the things back in the cabinets from the slide out repair and we just sat outside and relaxed.  Lee got out the grill and we had steak and baked potato.  I think we will stay one more night.  The price is right and our site definitely has the "it factor".  Thanks for following us.

Huntsville

We went to Huntsville on Friday to see the Sam Houston Museum.  I was like oh no not another museum but this one was very interesting.

The first building we saw was the bear hunting lodge where he stayed while bear hunting.

We then moved around to see his law office.

After seeing the law office we went to the kitchen.  There were students from a school there so they were showing actual demonstrations of how things were in the 1800's so we were got to see cooking in the kitchen on coals.  She was making cornbread and popcorn for the schools children.

Then we moved to the demonstration of the musket and shotgun.  These were for hunting.  He put black powder in the shot gun and had the students say fire in the hold and fired the gun.  Boy was that loud.

The next stop was the Woodland Home where four of their eight children were born.

The last stop was at the Steamboat House where he died in 1863 and his funeral was held in the parlor.

When we left there we were both hungry so we decided to see if we could find Margarita's Restaurant.  It was recommended by our friend Judy.  The food was great.  We were both stuffed when we left.  Thanks Judy.

Our last stop would be to see the Sam Houston statue.  It was a short drive from the restaurant.  The statue is 67' tall.

We headed back to the Escapees RV Park in Livingston.  We had to stop at Walmart for a few things and H-E-B for fuel on the way back.  It was a great day.

Today we just hung around at the Escapees Park for a down day.  We will be leaving Texas tomorrow after six months headed to Bossier, LA to see our friends Jim and Elizabeth.  Thanks for following our adventure.

Port Aransas

On Monday we headed out to see what there was to see in Port Aransas.  It is definately a tourist town but we found some really nice places to stop and look at the water and see if anybody was catching any fish.  Our first stop was Ancel Brundrett Pier.  Most of there piers are small and you fish free.  There wasn't much happening there except this big ship that passed us.

We went to the City Park and it also had a little pier.  People were fishing off the pier and off the bank.  The most interesting thing here was this pelican that appeared to be just waiting to have his picture taken and some turtles swimming right beside the rocks.  I took pictures of them but you can't see them in the water.

When we left there we went down Beach Drive and drove out on the beach just because we could.  You can't drive on NC beaches like you can in Texas.  So while in Texas do as the Texans do.

Then it was off to find something to eat.  We wanted seafood and Tom the workamper who escorted us to our sight said Kody's was a good place for seafood.  We both had a fish and shrimp combo basket and it was delicious.  We were really craving seafood.  Haven't had any good seafood since we left the NC coast in March.

After lunch we rode down to the Horace Caldwell Pier.  There was only a few people fishing and they weren't catching any fish but we found another pelican just waiting for a picture so we couldn't resist.  They are so neat.

We went back to the campground and decided to go and sit out on the beach for a while and then back to the rig for sandwiches.

Tuesday we drove to the Padre Island National Seashore.

 Lee has a Senior National Park Pass and a Passport to your National Parks book.  We get in free with the park pass and we get stamps for the book at each park.  Right now the Texas coast has red tide which is killing the fish and makes peoples nose burn, eyes burn and causes a cough.  The red tide appeared to be worse there than it was in Port Aransas.  There was a lot of dead fish.  The beach there is very dirty. They say it is because the currents in the Gulf of Mexico wash object from all over the world onto the beach.  They say they clean it daily.  The drive there and back was beautiful.  It is miles and miles of flat land and dunes. When we left there we drove back to Padre Island (not the National Seashore) and had lunch at Doc's.

We both had clam chowder and a salad because we were making Shrimp Creole for dinner.  Our friends Dick and Judy had invited us for dinner before we left West and Dick made Shrimp Creole and gave us the recipe.  It turned out really good for the first time.

We had decided we would go to the beach on Wednesday but not before I did our laundry.  I got laundry done and we had a great afternoon on the beach.  This morning we hooked up to head to Livingston.

We had to take the ferry from Port Aransas to Aransas Pass.  We weren't quite sure about that but it was okay. This was a first.  We took up almost one side of the ferry.

The drive to Livingston was great except for Houston.  Glad we weren't there during rush hour.  We are staying at the Escapees Park here.  Thank you for following us on our adventure.