Where has the year gone?

Settling into our new summer home at Timberline CG near Bloomington, we had a fun-filled summer with lots of family and friends, especially after a very soggy and muddy spring.  After camping and/or vacationing in and around IL, IN, MO, VA and AR, we hitched up the buggy to start our winter travels via a month-long stay in Crozet, VA so we could visit and celebrate birthdays with the Lokker clan. The girls kept us busy with their activities like ballet and soccer and spending a few nights with us at the Misty Mountain RV Resort.

We also enjoyed spending time with our good travelling buddies, Tim & Trish,

who happened to lay-over in VA before the 4 of us headed down to Gulf Shores AL.

Some of the landmarks in VA that we were able to see include: Monticello, Colonial Williamsburg, the Bunker at Greenbrier and Quantico.  Thanks, again, Mary Kay!  You're a great tour guide.

We arrived at Luxury RV on Nov. 29th.  On the 30th, Tim and Trish, joined us in kicking off our shoes and walking along the beach to enjoy the sand and surf.

 On the downside, we found out the following day that the county we're in is experiencing Red Tide, which is very rare for this part of the Gulf Coast.  Ughh, no wonder the 4 of us were coughing so much.  We're hoping this algae will depart before the end of the month so we can explore Ft. Morgan, the Blakeley battlefield and maybe the Estuarium on Dauphin Island.

We're looking forward to celebrating Christmas with Clay, Kim, Kenley, Chase

and other family and friends.  After a "rocket run" up to Bloomington, we'll hurry back to AL so we can caravan with the Mather's to Weslaco, TX to spend the rest of the winter in the Rio Grande area.  Of course, we'll be keeping close watch on the weather thanks to the El Nino that may bring the southern states a whole lot of rain while our northern states have a milder winter.

In the meantime, may you all enjoy a very Merry Christmas and a healthy and safe New Year.

From Good Winter to Goodfield to Good News!

Well, as you can tell from our last few blogs, Tom and I had another good winter.  This time we were back at the start of our FL, TX, AZ rotation in the sunny state of FL.  Stayed at 2 different campgrounds this time. December through February kept us busy while at Lakemont Ridge in Frostproof.  On March 1st, Tom and I parked our buggy at Sunshine Lakes in Port Richey and enjoyed LOTS of time at the various beaches along the Gulf.

Getting our last gasp at the beach we stopped in Elberta AL for a week to visit the Gulf Shores area.
Of course we had to hit the Flora-Bama and explore some lesser known spots with our friends Don & Gypsy.

  
After leaving the southern states, we went to see some Suite friends in Indiana so Bob could take care of some warranty work for us. Thanks for everything, Bob and Cherri!

On the morning we left, I was in awe of the many wonderful tributes all along the roadway throughout the Lynchburg area honoring the life of 19 year-old Lauren Hill.  She was the young lady who made national news after being diagnosed with a brain tumor but keeping a positive attitude in achieving her goal of getting to play on her college basketball team before she became to frail to do so.  She passed away while we were there and it was obvious that she was loved by many.

So, from IN we scooted on down to the Singing Hills CG in Cave City KY.  We took a couple tours at Mammoth Cave and then another tour of the National Corvette Museum.  Mammoth Cave is (ready for this, Tim?) H U G E!!!!  

At the Corvette Museum, we got to see where the sink hole swallowed 8 showcased Corvettes in February 2014.

Well worth your time to visit if you're in the Bowling Green KY area.  And, you can't miss it because it's a large bright yellow cone-shaped building with a bright red steeple shooting skyward out the middle of it.

We got back to central IL in time for our first Sangamon Valley Campers Club camp-out at Jim Edgar's Panther Creek State Park.

It was a great weekend playing "catch up" with those who got to join us, including previous SVC members and co-workers.

Left Panther Creek on April 19th in the rain (terrific weather until that morning) and set up in our new "summer home" site at the Timberline CG (formerly known as Yogi Bear's Jellystone) in Goodfield IL on April 19th.

 I already love being here as it's only 1/2 hour away from our IL kids and grandkids instead of the 1 1/2 hours from Petersburg.

Speaking of Petersburg, our good news is that we sold both of our lots at NSPOA to a very nice couple who are excited about changing it up to meet their needs.  After hearing their plans, I look forward to returning sometime down the road to see what they've done to it.  Tom and I have enjoyed family and friends during our many years at the cg but discovered that, with all the activities going on w/family and our 2 camping clubs, we really weren't there too often.  We'll miss our NSPOA friends but hope to stay in touch.

Even though we're "way up here", we still plan to make occasional trips to Springfield and hope to see everyone sometime this summer before we head to TX next winter. And, if you're ever in our neck of the woods, please come visit us. Have a great summer!

Beach baby, beach baby...

The nice thing about being retired and living in our home is that we're able to easily change plans. Originally, we had hoped to spend the month of March w/our travelling buddies, Tim & Trish, somewhere in the Keys.  Unfortunately, none of the campgrounds we could afford had any openings until April.  So, T&T headed home early and Tom and I headed west so we'd be closer to the Gulf.

Arrived at Sundance Lakes RV Resort on the 1st to a street party right across the street from us.  Tom had lots of help backing the Suite into our spot while other merrymakers danced, ate and enjoyed the cg bands.  What a nice welcome, eh?

Yep, this cg is about 70% Canadians but they're sure a friendly lot!  When we're here at the cg, we're enjoying playing golf (Tom), pickleball (Cheryl) and Euchre (T&C).  Away from the cg, we've played a round of miniature golf at Congo Safari, saw a couple of manatee up close (they're HUGE!) at Homosassa Manatee State Park, tried new restaurants and visited w/our friends, Rick & Ellen, at The Villages and Don & Phyllis at Zephyrhills.

Of course, we've been Beach Bums at 6 beaches along the Coast with our 3 favorites being Fred Howard in Tarpon Springs,

Clearwater Beach in Clearwater and Manatee Beach on Anna Maria Island.  It's been fun watching a few dolphin come in fairly close to the shoreline and watching a lot of "spring breakers". We even saw a Sand Shark some guy caught

and a couple dolphin feeding off a school of fish at Manatee Beach on March 25th.

 Hudson, Honeymoon Island and Sunset beaches were OK but nothing we'd go back for.

With our time getting short, we plan to play mini-golf on the 28th and put our umbrella up one more time at Fred Howard on the 30th.

Fun with Family and Friends

After spending fun times with our children and grandchildren over the holidays, we're enjoying some good sunshine and pleasant temps in Frostproof.  Even though Tom and I have been to FL many, many times, we're still enjoying sightseeing and trying new restaurants with Tim & Trish and other friends from back home.

Sightseeing highlights include the Fleamaster's Flea Market and Fisherman's Village in Ft. Myers; learning some interesting facts about Florida's Natural orange juice in Lake Wales; enjoying an impressive low "fly over" of F18's at the Avon Park Air Force Range;

watching a hawk & falcon exhibit plus a Cowboy & Indian shoot 'em up at the Spirit of the Buffalo Pow Wow

and going to the Wachula Peace River Pro Rodeo.

And this is only January!

The end of February will be lots of fun as the Lokker clan plan to come visit us old folks for a couple days.  I remember when our kids were probably 8 & 11 and we spent Christmas with Tom's Mom & Dad in New Port Richey.  When we left their campground, I made the comment to Tom that it was strange being around all those old people.  He said, "You know in a few years that's going to be us." Well guess what...we're those people, but loving every minute of it!

We'll be here through February and then will head to other parts of FL throughout March before heading home sometime in April.