December 15, 2008

Burrrrrrrr!! It's cold. Two nights with below freezing is cold for us. Somebody forgot to tell the weatherman that this is Texas and we DON'T have cold winters.
But tomorrow it will warm up again so won't be too bad.

Hope everyone is getting ready for Christmas and not too stressed. I have all of my shopping done and most of the wrapping. We will all be going to Tanya's house this year. Of course, Mom still gets to do a lot of the cooking. Our grandkids are all getting so big....no babies. Justin is 13, Ty will be 13 in March, Zach will be 9 in Feb, Ryan will be 9 in Feb and Casey will be 9 in May.

We went to the River Walk in San Antonio for dinner and to see the lights Saturday. So many, many people. Was a really enjoyable evening.

December 3, 2008

Today is our Friday....we have been working for the last 4 days. Such hard work. HA! But it is fun!! We work with our good friends, Jerry & Sue Brooks. The campground is on the San Marcos River and very, very nice. The owners are a hoot...just the nicest people you'd ever meet!

Hope all of you had a good holiday. We had my Dad's 94th birthday the 22nd and then we to Tan's house for Thanksgiving. It was an absolutely great day as all of our kids and grandkids were there. Mom & Dad enjoyed spending time with the family.

We are FINALLY finished with the Hurricane Ike work. That was the biggest mess we have ever gotten into and believe me, we have gotten into our share of messes before! Don't ever work for or buy insurance from at state agency. All of the coastal counties in all state now have these agencies...YUK! As the storm losses progress they change the rules. Texas had 2 major hurricanes this season so TWIA lost a lot of money. They had us tell clients one thing at the beginning and then decided not to pay for them. If it had been a private company this would not have been allowed. Have been yelled at more than my share this season.

Tomorrow is one of those necessary days...laundry, groceries. etc. This weekend we are lucky enough to have Casey (granddaughter) come stay with us. We will do some Christmas light looking, baking and ornament making. So much fun.

November 14, 2008

Okay, so I am not getting better after all!! We are in Fentress set up for our winter job. This is my kind of work....4 EASY, EASY days working and then 8 days off. What a life!

We do have to go back to Houston today. Can't believe we have gotten ourselves in such a mess. The company we worked for after Ike STINKS!!! Never again. Both All-Tech Adjusters and Texas Windstorm are terrible. TWIA changes rule and regulations as we go along...WHAT?? All-Tech is trying out their own new software in the middle of a storm. We are still only about half way through with the claims we looked at a month ago. I REMEMBER WHY I HATE WORK!!!

Will try to get to this on a more current basis...no promises!!

November 9, 2008

WOW!! Diesel is $2.69....lowest we've seen in a LONG time. Of course, we're in the jeep and regular is almost as much as diesel. We paid $1.84 for regular in Lampasas before we let for Vegas.

It is 9:40pm Texas time and we are on our way home from Vegas. We are so glad we went after all. We had super-fantastic seats at the PBR. We were about 7 rows off the dirt and almost in the middle. We could see everything just great. Watched 2 of the greats retire and several of the best bulls were retired this year. Had such a great time!!!!

Too bad we have to go back to work. The company we are working for this hurricane is terrible. It has been over a month and we still aren't finished with all the claims. We have had things sitting in the office in pending for over 2 weeks. I feel so sorry for the insureds. Of course, we have had our share of people yell at us because they are not going to get paid what they think they should. WE are both ready to go back to being retired!!

Oh well, won't be long!!

November 6, 2008

I am trying to do a better job of keeping this blog current..... soooo here goes. We are somewhere between Flagstaff, AZ and Kingman, AZ. We are on our way to Las Vegas to the PBR finals. With the work situation, we were not sure if we were going this year. BUT we already have the VERY EXPENSIVE tickets, the condo, etc. And more inportantly, I wanted to go. Two of my favorite bullriders are retiring this year and I want to see them ride this last time. Also, need to get autographs for Ryan. At eight, he thinks the bullriding world is wonderful but I am sure that will change as life happens!

The saga of my parents continues. They are still in the process of remodeling their 1997 Teton 5th wheel.....over $30,000.00. WOW!! Of couse, they made these arrangements with and paid Country Tyme before any of us kids knew what was happening. I am having to pick my battles where they are concerned and what they do with their money is not one of the battles. On the other hand, their health is. My mom is bound and deterimed to go back to Brackettville. She would much rather be with her friends than her family. Daddy just goes along to get along as he is very frail and dependent on Mom. We are taking odds on when they will go back. Mom told my sister the 1st of January, if so then I win!!!

Later!!

November 1, 2008

WOW!! I am really not good at keeping this current while working. We are back in Georgetown but still working on getting all the insurance claims filed. What a nightmare. The company we went to work for is TRYING to use their own "new" software. It is not working and they keep changing the rules as we go along. We have claims that have been sitting in their pending for 10 days or more. WHAT??? I am so anxious to get finished with this project...I remember how much I HATE WORK!!

Enough bad stuff....now on to the fun stuff!! We leave 11/5 for LasVegas and the PBR finals. We seriously thought about not going because we won't be finished with work but will just take the ole computer and work along the way. I am more than ready to play again.

We are parked in my folks spot at New Life RV Park in Georgetown while they are having their 5th wheel fixed. Sure wish we could get them to move to Escapees Care Center. IF (BIG IF) they would give it a try, they would love it. My sisters and I are taking bets on how long they will stay before heading back to Brackettville. We plan to leave our "house" here while we go to LV and then head to Fentress, TX upon return. We are going to work 4 on - 8 off this winter, just enough to keep us from getting bored but not overload!! Kinda anxious to get there and get settle for the winter.

Nice to be close to the kids again. Fun going to the boys ballgames, having them stop by on spur of the moment and of course, the school lunch!

Better get back to my fun job!

October 6, 2008

To catch everyone up...we are in Beaumont working insurance claims for Hurricane Ike. We were in Yellowstone when the storm hit and not planning on being back in TX until November. But as they say, money talks! It was just too good to pass up. Right now we are working 7/12's at least. After being retired it is really hard to work those hours....Mike is climbing 10 to 12 roofs each day and I am on the computer until the wee hours. Don't know how long we can keep up this pace...I have us scheduled thru the 14th of Oct. Think we will take a day off then!! At least we are not in the Galveston/Crystal Beech area where all the houses are gone. Mostly we are seeing roof damage and some damage from trees blowing onto houses. Ike was such a terrible storm because of the duration, thank goodness it wasn't any stronger than a 2.

My Mom & Dad are settled in Georgetown. Not too happy about it yet but if they will give it a chance it will be good. Tanya took them to one of Justin's football games, their neighbor invited them to a cookout and Evelyn comes up all the time. Now it is up to them! Daddy is happy because he has a little shed to go out and "work".

Time to get back to work!!

September 16, 2008

We have been at Bakers Hole campground in West Yellowstone, MT for the last week. Our plans were to go on to Custer State Park and my beautiful Black Hills but plans have a way of changing. As I type this we are on our way back to Texas. With Mike being an insurance adjuster, we have been called in as part of the catastrophe team. He does the walking and I do the talking (all of the computer data entry and the actual filing of the claims) so we work as a team. Hurricane Ike did so much damage that we will probably be working for quite awhile.

We spent most of this last week with Sue & Jerry Brooks. Even with both of them having health issues at the moment, they escorted us around Yellowstone. We FINALLY saw wolves! The took us to Red Lodge via Dunraven Pass and Bear Tooth. Such beautiful country. They are such fun people. We have been so blessed this trip to be able to visit with good friends both here and in Seattle.

Finally got our TV fixed, in time to watch the Cowboy game last night. That was a close one but once again we pulled it out! How 'bout them Cowboys!!!

September 8, 2008

Will try to catch up with what has been happening with us for the last 2 weeks. I did go back to Texas for a week. One of our very best friends passed away and I felt I needed to be with his family. We have been thru many ups and downs together. He was only 71...somehow, that doesn't seem old anymore.

I THINK maybe, we have my parents situated for awhile. They are moving to a great RV park in Georgetown, TX. It is not the ideal answer but at least a step in the right direction. They will be much closer to family and medical help. When we get home this fall we will only be about 45 minutes away and my sister is about 45 minutes away. Like I said, not great but better.

Mike and CoCoa stayed in Seattle while I was gone. They picked me up at the SeaTac airport in Tuesday (9/2) and we headed east. We stayed the first night in Spokane. Not getting started until afternoon and neither of us sleeping good for the last week, we decided an early stop was called for! Wednesday and Thursday nights were spent at TwoRivers RV Park at Bonners Ferry, ID. That absolutely a great place.
Then Friday, Saturday and Sunday nights we stayed at Lost Johnny Campground in he Flathead National Forrest. From there we toured Glacier National Park...during the season, there is a free shuttle on the Going to the Sun road but we are too late in the year for it! Oh well, Mike did get to see some of it as there wasn't much traffic. Beautiful scenery but already starting to get COLD!

So now we are "ON THE ROAD AGAIN". This time back to Yellowstone for a few days.

August 24, 2008

We have had the best few days in the Seattle area. On Thursday (8/21) we went to Mt Ranier. Of course, it was overcast and you couldn't see the mountain but it was still a great drive. Then Friday (8/22) went visited with Cathy & Jim Brockamp. After a great lunch, Jim graciously drove us around the area. Gig Harbour is such a pretty area....Mike thinks that would be a great place for his future houseboat. On Saturday (8/23) we did the tourist bit again. We went to the Puyallup market with Cathy, Jim & Lexie. They had a birthday party so we went into Seattle to Pike's Market. The Space Needle line was way too long so that's for another day. It was such a beautiful day to be outside!!! We walked along the wharf and ate at one of the waterfront restaurants.

Today has been off & on rainy all day. Cathy & Jim came over so we could show them our little house. I am trying to convince them what a great retirement this is....workamping is such fun and so rewarding

August 20, 2008

We played tourist in the rain today. Went to Whidbey Island and Deception Pass. Absolutely gorgeous scenery. Saw some of Seattle in the rain but plan to more this weekend when the sun shines. Of course, did have to take some more pictures of barns.....Mike thinks my thing with old barns is a little wacky.

Did spent several hours on the phone with my sister going over the different options for my parents. Unfortunately we are out of options.....they have to have help!!

August 19, 2008

Today is our oldest son's birthday...not saying how old he is because that makes me older. He is a great kid!!!

After many, many discussions with both of my sisters, I have decided to fly home for a few days. I will not be going until the 26th. That is my parents 63rd anniversary so it will be a nice surprise for them. Unfortunately the circumstances are not good so they may not be happy to see me after all. Their health will no longer allow them to live far away from family. They have a few options but are not going to be happy with any of them. This will be a bittersweet trip.

Mike and CoCoa will stay at McChord AFB in Seattle until my return. Then we will continue on our trip with PLANNED arrival in TX in November.

August 17, 2008

We arrived at McChord AFB today with plans to stay about 2 weeks to do our tourist thing in the Seattle area. This a great campground with nice big sites! Also plan to visit with my friend from high school. She has the greatest house...with a basketball court downstairs. But first it's another necessary day...laundry, groceries, wash the truck, etc.

Just got a call from my sister....my mom has been having dizzy spells and they are getting worse. She was to see the cardiologist on Tuesday but she had 2 spells today....they are at the ER now. I am waiting to see if I need to fly home or what. Mother was 92 in July and Daddy will be 94 in November. This may change all of our plans for the rest of this summer/fall and next winter.

August 16, 2008

We are back in the lower 48..... in northern Washington visiting with family and friends for a couple of weeks.

Had an uneventful trip down through BC....the eastern part of BC is so much prettier than the western. Made a stop at Hell's Gate to ride the tram and one at Minter Gardens. The flowers are just beautiful.

August 12, 2008

WooooHoooo!!!! There are grizzlies in Alaska after all. We saw 9 tonight at the bear watching area in Hyder. One of our neighbors went to the bear area at 6am and stayed until 9am this morning without seeing anything....not even the eagles. This evening was a different story!! FINALLY!!

This morning was really rainy so we went to see several glaciers and waterfalls. Alaska has so many glaciers....many, many more than I knew. We have seen flowers growing beside glaciers. UNBELIEVABLE!! And so many absolutely gorgeous waterfalls.

Tomorrow we start for the lower 48. It should take us 4 or 5 days t reach Washington.

August 11, 2008

We are in Hyder, AK/Sewart, BC. This is supposed to be a great bear viewing place but as with many places in AK this year, the salmon are VERY late arriving. According to the Ranger, the salmon count on the creek was only 139 last Friday when there should have been 2,000/3,000. Soooooo, this makes for few bears. We have seen a couple of blacks fishing and eating berries but no grizzlies.

We went to the Salmon Glacier. It is the largest glacier in the area. Also some very pretty waterfalls. Of course it is raining again.....it just follows us!

OOPS!! Clicked on the wrong picture and can't get it off....that bear picture is from Valdez. Meant to send this picture of an eagle from here.

August 6, 2008

We went to Denali over the weekend. It is a very nice park but it was raining so we didn't see as many animals as I wanted. We took the train from Anchorage to Denali. It is an 8 hour train ride. There is not much to see on the ride but the train trip was fun. We did see several moose (one with the biggest antlers that I have ever seen!!), caribou, mountain sheep and coyotes.

Upon our return to Anchorage we left for Valdez. There were some great waterfalls along the way here. Of course, it has been raining every since we got here. Valdez is a great town...wish we had the grandkids as there is lots of fishing.

Today we went to the a hydroelectric plant where so many salmon are going up stream. There are so many fish that you could almost walk across them. Farther downstream, we watched 2 black bears feeding. So great!! We also went to the Valdez glacier. It is so pretty.

July 29 & 30, 2008

We didn't do much of anything on Tuesday. It was another yucky, rainy day. We went to the rec center and played racquetball. HA! Mike played and I was just in there, mostly ducking the ball!!!

Wednesday we hiked on the beach for about 3 miles. Saw several bear prints but no bear. We did see 2 moose when we can back to the campground. They just kinda ambled around in no big hurry. Beautiful animals!

Check out places to board CoCoa while we go to Denali. Think we have narrowed it down to 3 that we will visit tomorrow before we leave her. Am so looking forward to htis trip!!

July 28, 2008

We have been out of internet for a week so will try to do some catch up and see if we can get some pictures posted.

Justin left the 22nd. We had Tyler until yesterday. Because Tim is a pilot, Ty gets to fly standby free. We had 2 chances this week, yesterday and Tuesday as a backup. We were lucky and he got the only standby seat yesterday. Whew!!! We had so much fun with the boys but we are exhausted....not as much energy as a 12 year old!

We are at Fort Richardson RV park. Have had moose and black bear walk thru our campsite. CoCoa doesn't like the smells but she doesn't bark so haven't had any problems. Not much of a watch dog!!

We ended up buying a small freezer because we have so much fish. The RV freezer would hold it all but that's about all it would hold and I didn't want fish every day for the next month. We have 75 pounds of fish fillets and 24 pints of canned salmon. A very successful fishing trip at Seward! We sent over 20 pounds of fillets home with each boy.

July 21, 2008

Today was a travel day. We left Seward and returned to Anchorage. We are staying on Fort Richardson at the Black Spruce RV park. A really nice site with FHU. Of course, it is raining. There is a lot of bear activity here so we will need to keep a close watch on both the boys and CoCoa. Tomorrow we are going on a moose search!

July 20, 2008

We went on our charter fishing trip today. WOW!!! I caught the biggest halibut -- 52 1/2 pounds! Such fun. We all limited out on halibut. We also caught several rock fish and a couple of large silver salmon. The boys had a great time, actually we all did. The other boats went to a different area and caught their limit of salmon but not halibut. We were all exhausted when we got back to the RV.....long day 5am to 5pm and then had to clean the fish.

July 18 & 19, 2008

July 18th -- We FINALLY caught salmon. We all caught our limit today. We were snagging in the bay. That is hard work but fun and worth it. We canned salmon last night. The boys had a great dinner!! We also hiked to the falls again. GREAT DAY!!

July 19th -- This was our glacier cruise day. Such a good day. We saw sea otters, sea lions, harbor seals, humpback whales, orcas, porpoise, puffins and several other birds! SO MUCH FUN!! We also saw the Hubbard Glacier and the Bear Glacier.

July 17, 2008

Cold, rainy and just plain yucky!! We went to Soldotna. Beautiful drive even in the rain. We went salmon fishing while we were there...caught some fish but were not able to land them. That is really hard work. If you tug to hard, it tears their month...if you don't tug hard enough, they get away! We are learning all of this the hard way. Did have a great time with the boys.

Then we played cards all evening.

July 16, 2008

Today has been a stay inside day. It has been cooler and rainy all day. The boys are having a movie marathon. All 3 "Pirates of the Caribbean" movies and "Fools Gold" for Grammy. We have played several card games, also. Had forgotten how hard it is to keep 12 yr olds occupied. They have really been good considering!!

Today is my mothers 92nd birthday. If you saw her, you would not believe she is that old. Hope I am as healthy and look that good when I am her age.

July 15, 2008

Today was a searching for bear day. We hiked about 4 miles back thru the woods to a stream where they are known to hang out but no luck. We saw lots of evidence of recent activity but no bears. We did see lots of salmon spawning and some great waterfalls. We plan to take the boat out tomorrow morning to try again.

Today was Ty's first day here so we showed him the sea lions and sea otters. Still looking for moose for Justin. So far, our best place to see them was in town and on the base in Anchorage.

We'll be up there a couple of days before he leave so maybe!!!

With all of this hiking, you'd think that I would be shrinking to nothing but no such luck. Oh well, such is life!

July 13 & 14, 2008

The flowers up here are absolutely gorgeous! Got so many ideas for different hanging baskets but have no permanent place for them. The ONLY bummer about full-timing! Well, not really... sure miss seeing the kids and grandbabies on a regular basis! Thank goodness for cell phones and the internet.

We went fishing on Sunday but didn't catch anything. The sea lions were cruising the area so no fish! It was fun watching the sea lions. We also saw several sea otters munching away....such cute little critters!


Monday we stayed close to the RV to find out exactly when Tyler was coming in. They missed the connection to Las Vegas so he had to fly out of Phoenix. His plane arrived in Anchorage at 12:30 am. Since it is a 2 1/2 hr drive to Anchorage, we decided to leave about 8:30 pm so we would have plenty of time.....NO SO!!! We sat in traffic on the Seward Highway for 2 1/2 hrs because of a fatal accident. We were late pickup Tyler. The airlines was so great. They called us to tell us not to worry as they had heard of the accident of the news. We finally got home around 4 am.

July 12, 2008

Whew!! Today we hiked to Russian River Falls....5+ miles. Justin has so much more energy than we do, don't know how much longer we can keep up with the kid. We are having so much fun with him and he has been so good.

July 10, 2008

The hike to Exit Glacier was great. It was a little over 4 miles (NOT the short 1 1/2 miles we were told). We did the entire glacier viewing walk....had to cross a couple of streams balancing on the rocks....Surprise!!! I didn't fall in. Got to actually get close enough to touch the glacier.

This afternoon we went looking for salmon. They are slowing coming up this year. We did find several streams that are starting to get quite a few showing up. Tomorrow we are going to try fishing in Bear Lake. The guys parked next to us fished there today and limited out. Fresh salmon for dinner tomorrow night.

July 9, 2008

Beautiful weather in Seward. I wish our TX family would remember the time change!!! Our daughter-in-law called this morning at 5:30!! She did have exciting news so she is forgiven.

We watched a sea lion steal the remains of today' catch, and the sea gulls try to steal pieces from him! So much fun. Also, saw both sea and river otters, eagles and a fox. There was supposed to be a black bear in town but we didn't see him. We did see several beautiful waterfalls.

Tomorrow we are planning to hike to Exit Glacier. Short 1 1/2 hike. Should be fun!

July 8, 2008

All of the charter boats caught their limits yesterday....good news. As long as Justin can fish, he is a happy camper!

The flowers here are beautiful. We are used to things being burned up by this time of year. No rain in TX and daily showers here. Everything is so pretty and green.

Time to leave to go pick up Justin from the airport. YEA!! We are about 2 1/2 hrs from the airport.

July 7, 2008

We are at the Military Resort in Seward. We have done so much during the time we have not had internet. We have seen several moose (up close and personal) as well as black bears. We didn't have any bears in our camp site but some of out neighbors did.

Justin will be here tomorrow for 2 weeks. We have lots of fishing planned. Tyler will be here next week for 2 weeks. We have a charter fishing trip planned while both boys are here. Hope we catch lots of fish!

July 3, 2008

WOW!! We haven't had good internet for sometime so haven't been able to keep up the blog. Will catch it up with pictures when we are able. We are in Anchorage at Elmendorf AFB FamCamp until we go down to Seward on the 7th. Tyler and Justin will join us there for the good fishing.

Yesterday, we had a moose amble right thru our camp site. CoCoa didn't even bark....some watch dog.

Will try to keep up from now on.

June 19, 20 & 21, 2008

To say that the internet up here is sporadic is an understatement!! Even tho the park we are in says they have internet, that doesn't mean it works. Very frustrating!!!

We are still in Whitehorse. Mike decided to change the brake pads on the RV before we go any farther. He has been watching the RV brake pads closely because of how hot they got when we lost the brakes on the truck. No problem.....wrong...they had to order the pads because we have disc brakes. They should be here Monday and we'll be off again!

Today was another rainy day so couldn't really do much outside. We had planned to hike around the lake but that will have to wait until tomorrow. We did get about 2 hours of sunshine so we took the scooter for a long ride. Unfortunately, didn't make it back before the rain started! COLD!!

Friday - June 20, 2008
Today is our beautiful daughter's birthday.....Happy Birthday, Tanya!!! We rode the train to Skagway. It is a great ride and the scenery is breathtaking. We saw several bears along the tracks. Skagway is almost totally a tourist town. Their main income is from the cruise ships.
3 hours there was plenty of time.

Thursday - June 19, 2008
Another necessary day...house cleaning, laundry, etc. We tried to buy brake pads for the RV to no avail. We finally found someone to order them for us. They should be here Monday, then Mike can get them changed and we will be on our way again.

June 15, 16, 17 & 18, 2008

Today is the first time we have had internet for several days. Either the campground didn't have it or it was not working. After we crossed over into the Yukon, we lost cell service. We will be in Skagway Friday so it SHOULD resume.

Wednesday - June 18, 2008
We toured the SS Klondike. The last working paddlewheeler in the Yukon. There are several museums in the area. Great walking trails around the town.

Tuesday - June 17, 2008
We arrived in Whitehorse a day ahead of schedule. So far, the road has been good, the truck is getting good MPH (12-14). Whitehorse is the capital of the Yukon. There are 32,000+ people in the Yukon and 23,000+ live in Whitehorse. Didn't see much wildlife today but the lakes and rivers are beautiful.

Monday - June 16, 2008
We made it to Watson Lake. Saw more bear (one really close), several coyotes and elk. The scenery is just breathtaking.

Sunday - June 15, 2008
We stayed at Laird Hot Springs. The springs felt so good. They were hotter than the normal spa but felt great. We saw several animals today. Bears, Stone sheep, caribou, deer but no moose! It has been a really good day.

June 14, 2008

Today is the day!!!! We started on the famous Alaskan Highway or better know as the AlCan Highway. Of course, it is raining! The road is really pretty good...we did not know what to expect as we had heard so many different reports. It is 2 lane and paved. Of course, some areas are worse than others. There are some fairly steep grades but just take it slow and easy!

We didn't see anything but coyotes, hawks and ravens.....no bears or moose. We stopped for lunch and one of the other couples didn't and they had 2 large black bears cross the highway in front of them. Gonna stop feeding Mike!

June 13,2008

Toured Dawson Creek ---- mile 0 of the Alaskan Highway. Most all of the people in our campground are headed to Alaska so we kinda all travel together but if you want to stop, you can and just catch up later The people next to us are from Florida, the guys behind us are from Labrador, some others are from Arizona, etc. Nobody else is from Texas tho. Beautiful sunshine and warmer temps today so we were all able to sit out and visit.