The Waiting Game

London, Ontario

On Monday, Apr. 13th our hopes were high and sitting in an rv lot waiting for repairs - we should know better. Things change too quickly and although our appointment for 9 am was made last October, well, that seldom happens. Unfortunately.

Good morning!
Ours was spent in the waiting
room at CanAm.

So, we were all up by 7:30 and ready for the doors to open at 8:30. We had our morning brews made and Bill had his cereal. Because Gibbs knew something was going on, he was very restless which encouraged us to go sit inside the waiting/coffee/tv room.

This was a lovely day!
We reached 25C/77F

Gibbs settles down pretty good in there, as long as passersby come and say hi. Don't come in for a coffee or water without noticing me. 😍 The Suite was moved inside around 11:30 and by then, my tummy was rumbling for lunch. 

Cute sign in the store.
How many meals have been 
more than Well done? 🤭🤔

Somehow we missed the food truck that comes in here so hopped in Black Beauty at 12:30 and drove to Lambeth to get lunch at A & W - again. A few minutes, literally, after we returned to the wait room, Ken and Kim dropped in. It is always so nice to see them.

I'm going to give myself credit here.
This is a GREAT picture!

Because we couldn't get into our home, we all sat comfortably inside and caught up. A couple of hours later we heard the news (not so good) about what the techs were going to do to our slide. It meant 'a few days' in the shop and a matter of pulling the fridge and cupboards out.

This is our sleeping accomodations
for a night or two.
A 2024 new 26' Ember Touring Edition

It gets worse. To get the fridge out, they would have to take the island out and that entails plumbing for the sink and dishwasher. Oh my! The price was about $2,000 more than what we'd planned for. Bill went out with them to see what else could be done, safely, efficiently and less costly.

A nice travel trailer,
roomy enough for 2
but not fulltime. Not us, anyway!

The result was to cut it approximately in half and do a 'fixit' effective job from the outside, underneath rather than from inside. The problem is that part of the floor under the fridge had gotten wet somehow and was bubbled and soft. I sat there, inside, praying for a better option.🙏 Just when you think you have a handle on things. 

I like the skylight over the bed
and all the windows.
There is also a second door off the bedroom.

Oh well, they were kind enough to pull out a new Ember travel trailer for us to spend our one or two nights here in. We moved bedding, towels, toiletries, Gibbs' food, a few dairy products and laptops from the Suite and were set up for the time being. We are fortunate to have this service.

We decided to test out
the recliners and give them
a 4 * rating.

When 6:30 rolled around, we had to find somewhere to get supper so Bill drove back to Lambeth to Tim Horton's. I'd googled their menu, we don't visit there often, and he got the Supreme Stack and a donut and brought me back the Pepperoni Flatbread Pizza and an Ice Capp. Wow! They were both very good.

Confused so naturally, had to be
beside us all the time.
Now that's a face you can't help but love, right?

We didn't connect our Starlink so used CanAm's wifi for blogs and whatnot. TV wasn't important tonight, so we just relaxed with our security blankets (electronic devices) until tired enough to go to bed. Today reached 25C/77F.

Tim Horton's offerings.
I had no idea.
I've never liked their 'too strong for me' coffee.

This is a nice little trailer, and we won't need much for blankets tonight with a warm overnight temperature in the forecast of 13C/55.4F. 

We were quite comfortable. Gibbs is quite confused, naturally, and we're trying to keep him as comfortable as possible. Poor little guy has no idea what's going on. 💕

My pizza in real life
Lots of cheese! Yummy!
I have leftovers of this now too.

This was one of those days that you just chock up to experience. It wasn't a bad day and it was really nice to see our friends again plus the regular staff at CanAm. Things usually work out in the end and soon we'll be heading up home.

A pretty sky as we say
Good night!

Thank you for stopping around!

Enjoying Day Ten

London, Ontario

On Sunday, Apr. 12th I woke from what I know was a great sleep. Gibbs moved about the same time as I did and came up to give me a morning kiss and cuddle. It was 5:40 am so I told him that it wasn't time, to go back to sleep. He listened and stretched out between us until 6:30. 

Good morning!
While visiting with our guests,
Gibbs settles on my lap.

There was nothing to get up too early for so I went back to sleep myself until 7 and got up even later. Our Keurig coffee maker was acting up when I made my tea, it kept shutting off, so Bill did some magic (we're not sure what he did!) and it was back to normal. Yay!

Charlotte and Cory
Notice how Gibbs squeezes in too.
💕

Around 10:15, Bill's second oldest daughter and hubby, Charlotte and Cory, dropped out for a visit. It was really nice to see family and since they live in London, it was great they made the trek across the city. There is so much construction at every turn that it takes a while to go anywhere. We appreciated it!

A nice picture of
Dad and daughter
Oh, and Gibbs.

We had a really nice visit for a couple of hours and after they left, we had a quick lunch and Bill drove across town again to check out the hobby store's last day's sales. He did come home with a couple of things for a great price. While he was gone, I put on Rain Man, an oldie but good movie.

A look out our window on 
a cloudy Sunday afternoon

While watching, I worked on a greeting card that I'd bought months ago for a sister-in-law. It needed to have my personal touch added so I used some of my paper techniques to spruce it up. I like how it turned out. 😉

A little attention to her
dress and shoes and she's good
to go in the mail.

After a quiet afternoon, we left Gibbs in charge and drove to New Sarum Diner, about 20 minutes from where we are staying. We met Keith, another good friend, and had a great home-style meal. It wasn't necessary but he wanted to treat us both. Delicious and a I brought a doggy bag home too.

Our drive took us past the
St. Thomas Municipal Airport

On the way home, we swung back into London to Derrick's home (again northeast area-we are in the southwest) so Bill could pick up a new (to him).............airplane. LOL We returned home to Gibbs just before 8 and when I filled his food dish, he gobbled it up. 🐕

A nice little restaurant
with lots of choices of good food.
Thank you Keith!

I watched the latest episode of Hope Valley, a series that I am enjoying, and realized that I must have missed it last week. Oh well, I'll catch up on it one day this coming week. Today has been nice, catching up with family and a friend and tomorrow we'll find out what is happening with the Suite.

Bill and Keith had the
turkey dinner special.
I had liver, onions and bacon
and the potato bacon soup.
It was all very good!

We had a mild day of 17C/62.6F and periods of light and heavier rain. Tonight will also be mild enough that we shouldn't need any heat. Still a few days of warmth and rain ahead.

It was great to see Keith
again.
Good night!

Thank you for your visit!

Day Ten, Home Country Roads

  London, Ontario 

It was 6:40 am on Saturday, Apr. 11th when I first woke up. I went to bed last night with a hitch in my lower back again so did nighttime stretching. It felt much better this morning. 

Good morning!
All packed up ready to pull out.

I got washed, dressed and joined Bill downstairs. He was already in full motion, no grass will ever grow under his feet! We'd planned to leave by 8 and we're packed, hooked up and pulling out by 7:59. We seldom ever miss a deadline. We make a great team. 🥰

The Veterans Glass City Skyway Bridge
Toledo, Ohio

It was a cool night and morning, only 41F/5C under a mostly cloudy sky when we left the park.  We got into I-280N and then soon after, got on I-75N. It was just 20 minutes later that we left the state of Ohio and crossed into Michigan. 

Approaching and crossing
the Ambassador Bridge

A few rough patches of highway and soon we were approaching the original Ambassador Bridge and crossing the Detroit River. No line at all at the border guard crossing, asked 5 easy questions and wishes us welcome home. 1 minute tops.🥰

The sun was showing promise
but didn't win the battle until later in the
morning.

Wanting to visit friends in Wheatley, we followed directions to their place. Because they live on a short dead end street, Bill backed the Suite up about 300' (?) to and into their driveway. 

Across the waters of the Detroit
River, there were lots of vessels.
That is the new bridge coming together
in the background.
F-a-n-c-y!

We wanted to be sure to see Marlene and Benno before heading home. They always make a point of stopping to see us whenever they can and we would be only 30 minutes from our normal route on the 401. It was a really nice visit for an hour and at 11:20 we were on our way to London. 

It's always good to be back on our
homeland.

Gibbs checks our surroundings.

12 noon came and went and I could feel myself dozing off a  bit when Bill asked if I wanted to stop for lunch at the Dutton En Route (aka Service Centre/Rest Area). I knew I was hungry so at 12:30, we pulled off and feasted on Uncle Burger Combos at A & W.

We're so happy to have been able
to stop and see Marlene and Benno
on our way home.

We arrived at CanAm around 2 pm and got into our usual spot out front of their building. This is fortunate for us as it means we can connect to power for the time period we are here. We have a couple of invitations for dinner out so worked out best with our 'hosts' which day was best.

We stopped at an En Route and
took out A & W combos for lunch.
Gibbs enjoying the green grass.

Such a beautiful day! The sun is brilliant in a totally blue sky and even though the temperature hasn't surpassed 10C/50F, it is very nice and was a perfect day for driving. We left the clouds behind in Ohio it seems. 😀🤭

We rested for the afternoon after talking to the service techs about a couple of issues with a slide. At 4:30, we confirmed dinner plans and headed out across the jumbled city. Jim and Sharon have been friends for a lot of years and we'd been invited for a meal and a visit!

Sharon presents us with a pretty table
and a yummy meal.
Love the salad idea!

It was a nice catchup and even nicer when another long time friend, Derrick, was able to join us on time to share dinner with all of us too! It was 8:30 when we all said our goodbyes and headed out. Always a pleasure to see everyone again.

The drive home seemed faster, less traffic, but Bill obliged me by driving past our former home on Metcalfe Cr. Aaaah, it was a nice little house and it looks like it is now being looked after again. 💕 Gibbs was waiting for us when we arrived home and went out for his piddle.

Bill and I bought this home in
2004 and sold it in 2016
when we moved into our
Suite fulltime.

It was a wonderful day! We've had such a sweet  journey back to Canada; it was 12 days ago that we left Park Place RV Park in Quartzsite. Seems much longer! We reached a high of 11C/51.8F (correct, Jim? 😉). Quite nice, actually.

The busy city in lights.
Good night!

Thank you for stopping by! Don't forget Bill's update on the trip here.

Last Night in the United States (Day Nine)

 Stony Ridge KOA, Perrysburg, OH

On Friday,, Apr. 10th I woke up when I heard Bill and Gibbs going out at 6. Sigh*, no need to get up at any given time this morning. 😏 I'm sure I sound like a wimp but it kind of feels like after a work week, this would be Saturday. 6 days of up and at 'em.

Good morning!
Not a sunny start but
a warm, relaxing start.

Bill was making his coffee when I woke again at 7:25. I knew he wanted to be on the road by 7:30 so I came downstairs to say goodbye, as did Gibbs, and he was off to Toledo for his RC Expo. One member of his old flying club, Forest City Flyers was going to be there, but other than that, he would be alone.

Gibbs searches for good smells
in the leaves.

He knew what he was going for and so is always happy on his own if that is how it works out. Gibbs and I did our stretches, got up, dressed and I came down for my tea. While having that, I watched a couple of videos online before getting washed and dressed for my day.

Taking a breather behind
the Suite
Gibbs doesn't understand the
selfie countdown. 😂

Leisurely. Sigh* 🤭 Much to Gibbs' dismay, I got the central vac out from under the bed and did a thorough job of vacuuming upstairs and down, reaching under the slide-outs as far as I could (which isn't far) to capture the dust bunnies that traveled with us from Arizona.

These extra long sites are
wonderful for big rigs.

We went for a walk around the park and to drop the garbage off and got caught in the huge rain storm of about 25 light drops of rain. It was expected to storm yesterday afternoon but nothing came of that either. The sky looks like it could rain at any time but nothing yet.

I only saw one of these
Grape Hyacinths 
but one is enough for a picture!

By 10:30, I was hungry enough for breakfast so fried an egg, added cottage cheese (thanks Kim!) and rolled it up in a tortilla. Oh my, quick, easy and tasty. Bill texted just before 11 that he was on his way home and within 20 minutes, drove up. Gibbs was happy to see his Daddy. Yes, I was too. 💕

Kim suggested cottage cheese 
on a fried egg so I tried it.
Yum!

We relaxed until lunch time, had a wee bite and drove into Perrysburg (about 10 minutes) and picked up a handful of things at Walmart. I wanted to get more of our 0 or 1 gram carb bread before crossing the border. They don't have this brand at home. We had luck and came out with 3 more loaves. 👌

Driving through town, that
sky looks menacing.
We never did get the rain Bill said
Toledo got earlier.

We went in to Dollar Tree to check on craft items and came out with a new idea for my quilling. We also needed a greeting card for a grandson's birthday. Bill took advantage of a cheap(er) diesel price in town too, paying only $4.89/gal instead of over $5 everywhere else. 

I didn't see any interesting wood
patterns at Dollar Tree but
these printed canvas boards could
prove to be fun.

He also picked up a jug of DEF which Walmart was out of. By the way, he did find the item he wanted at the show so was truly a happy camper! We sat down and figured out what we'd purchased this winter, which didn't amount to much, and he and Gibbs dozed.

He has no interest in Miss Piggy
while traveling but sure loves her
back here in the Suite.

While they slept, I had my shower and made a cup of tea. Gibbs and I went for a walk earlier when Bill filled a propane tank up near the park office. Handy to have and now we're topped up for the next few days. It's going to be needed for a couple of weeks for sure.

I couldn't get a good picture,
but the American Cardinal visited 
next door.

Bill had his shower and I made some adjustments in the fridge jars, moving cans of pop out into the half empty carton in the 'garage'. Boxes are a great idea, and I plan on picking up baskets for next fall's travel. I appreciate the suggestions and will just see what works for us best.

Supper. Bill finished the fries
from the freezer.

With being fulltime, we have everything.....not just a few months worth of food items so it's a lot to secure for travel days. Not many more to go though this spring, yay! Supper was very good. Air fried sausages, leftover hamburger helper and Spanish style cauliflower rice. 

The sun tries to make an
appearance.

One little piece of peanut butter and pecan fudge for dessert. We watched tv until bed time with a hope to get moving early in the morning. This was a nice day and to finish it off, the sun has tried to make an appearance just in time to set. We only had a high of 63F/15C with a drop off overnight and tomorrow.

Our sleepy boy,
Apr. 10, 2024.
Good night!

Thank you for joining us!

A Short Travel Day Eight

 Perrysburg, OH

Last night I was up late, 11:00, an hour past my usual bedtime. I had a tea when we arrived at the casino with my supper so wasn't sleepy enough at 10.

Good morning!
This was last night and worthy of a picture.

On Thursday, Apr. 9th I was awake at 8 EDS time thinking it was only 7. We forgot to change the bedroom clock. 🤭 we watched Survivor and were on the edge of our seats waiting to see who got voted off.  It didn't go our way. 

Today, we move on under cloudy skies.

Bill checks for tire pressure every morning before we pull out and with that done we were on the road a few minutes before 10. A short 200 mile drive today and then a rest day with no movement, except some shopping. 🤗

Overpasses, not as fancy as in NM
but still very nice looking.

It was windy, but a tail wind from the south helping our mileage along! The sky was partly sunny and partly cloudy, 64F/16C. We stopped for fuel before leaving Anderson at a Mudflap Speedway and hit I-69E soon after. This section of the interstate started out not 'too' bad but still not good.

I do like this water tower.

A few 'oomphs' here and there that make us grit our teeth. The fridge bars I use for traveling are really getting on my nerves. They don't seem to be holding things in place but I do have some other ideas that I'm going to try so I'll let you know! We've been doing this for 10 years so I've tried lots!

Ahead of my narrative,
the following pictures have us at
Stony Ridge KOA in Perrysburg, OH
Luckey Road on the left
Entrance to the park on the right.

We took Exit 21 onto US24E and what an improvement! The pavement was smooooth when we crossed into Ohio around 11:45 am. Seems the morning went quickly and I guess it did since we didn't start out until almost 10! It was nice to have a slower start though. 😀

These flowers are
White and Yellow Trout Lilies

Eventually, we took Exit 68A onto 475S/US23S. We weren't long and we were taking a few momre exits. 1A, 193 to put us briefly on I-75N and then a right turn onto Fremont Pike in Perrysburg. We were an hour early for park entry so pulled into the Hobby Lobby mall parking lot and ate lunch. It was 1:15 pm.

Nice little cabins here with
sleeping quarters only.
I peeked in this one's window.

Gibbs was anxious so at 1:55 we headed to our destination on Luckey Road. The Stony Ridge KOA is not inexpensive but it is very convenient for our needs. Being this close to Toledo allows Bill to quench his thirst for the RC Expo this weekend. Yes, once in a while, he likes to partake and I don't mind the break here in the park.

The laundry room.
$2.50 for each machine.

We pulled into our drive-thru site #602 easily. It is a nice long site and we paid extra for the guarantee of having a good one out of the mud. A couple of times we've left it up to them and had to either park in muck or ask to be moved because of water puddles. 

An attractive, country style store and office.
The daffodils and tulips are lovely.
Yay for spring!

This makes us happy! (like Jamaicabehappy - reference for my Park Place gals) We got plugged into power and the wind was visible but had calmed since this morning in Indiana. Bill poured himself a Coke Zero and we nibbled on a couple of pecan treats. 

Our site, lots of room to
park the Suite and Black Beauty.

It's early, 2:45 so Bill and Gibbs went upstairs for their snooze and I took myself for a walk. My leg seemed to stiffen up from the 3 hour stretch of travel with no stopping. My walks aren't very long, one for me, one for Gibbs, one for me etc. 😂 

More spring sightings.

Bill and I decided to do our laundry today rather than wait for Friday. Tomorrow will be busy enough. So, after mine and Gibbs walks around the park, we drove up to the laundry room at the office/entry. Pricey, compared to Park Place but we have 2 big loads so it is necessary. 

Bill noticed one of BB's tires
was low so topped it up.
Gibbs watches and learns.

I walked up 30 minutes later to transfer and then we drove up again to retrieve the dried clothes. The robins are out and plentiful here, so lovely to see spring in this manner. Also, squirrels, nuthatches, daffodils, tulips and oh! Chatter between 2 American cardinals!

You can't tell but that is an
American Cardinal in the top picture.
This squirrel ran ahead of me and then
climbed the tree where I couldn't reach him.

For supper, hamburger helper since I have ground beef thawed since Monday. I added mixed vegetables to spruce it up a bit and pretend I don't see the pasta! I've really fallen off the wagon some days so can only hope I get back on after I'm home. 😂

Sometimes, you need a back scratch.
Sometimes, you need Mom's attention
and a tummy rub. 💗💗

It was filling and tasty. We did the pots and put everything else in the dishwasher. Bill finished his blog, you can check it out here, and I worked on mine while we watched Elspeth and Matlock. Bill's step-mom, Marilynne, called tonight and that was nice to check in with her.

Hamburger helper for supper

This was a great day and although there could be some wet weather and cooler days ahead, we enjoyed the 72F/20C temps we had today. It was mostly cloudy so there was no sunset to photograph.

 (another video that may not play but I had to try)

                               Good night!

Thank you for your visit!