Goodbye to Gayle, First Flight, Deal Shopping in Yuma, Cool Forecast

 Pilot Knob RV Resort, Winterhaven, CA

On Friday, Dec. 27^th, I was awake and up first. Simply because I was in bed first last night. Bill wasn’t far behind me getting up and after I’d read a bit of my book, he was in the shower and then joined me downstairs. We walked our walk after he had his first coffee. It was 8:00 when we headed out and decided to go out the park again and down Hwy 80 to the west this time.

The road isn't much to drive on but for walking, it is pretty much
vacant
This Hwy 80 runs parallel to I-8

Looking back towards the park

 We walked a mile before turning back to face the warm sun. It was only 47F/9C but very low winds so not bad at all. We were quite hot when we returned home. I had my tea and we played some Scrabble with each other on our online games before walking over to say goodbye to my sister. Gayle and John were packed up shortly after 10 and that was a good time to wander down.

Sidewinder Road is the exit to take to Pilot Knob RV Park

All rv’ers know that you should never try and visit while others are in the midst of setting up or tearing down. That is courtesy and helps to avoid distractions that create accidents. For me, I know that it only takes one bad experience when trying to get parked in a spot to ruin the whole set up process. The rule is after a quick greeting, please stay away until set up is complete. That applies to us too when friends arrive.

Now there is a great way to advertise

So, after hugs goodbye and a picture of them with their rig, we walked back home. Bill got his Timber plane out as he wanted to fly it while Dave was still here in the park. Dave had never seen it fly. Too bad Ken wasn’t around and as it turned out, the flight was very short. Bill said the old battery wasn’t holding a good charge anymore. Dave was impressed and I was too as it has been a while since Bill has flown and, on the gravel, it was a new experience.

As we walked back, a Dodge charger was pulled over
I can't understand why...........although he was moving by us pretty quickly

We decided to just have toast and/or oatmeal for breakfast as we wanted to get into Yuma for some shopping. I wanted to follow up on a sale for bath towels at J.C. Penney and I also wanted to check out Ross’s, just because. Bill dropped me at JC and after a long search, found the quick dri towels and face cloths to match. There were no hand towels of the same brand so I had to choose a couple of others that would match.

Back in the park, the road to home along the fence line

Saying goodbye

See you two in Quartzsite!

Bill got his plane out and put it together while charging batteries

The prices were phenomenal! $5.99 for bath towels, $2.99 for hand and wash cloths and $7.99 for a bath mat.  Now, we are all decked out and can get rid of some of our old towels. 😊 I walked across the mall parking lots to Ross’s. It wasn’t ideal as I was carrying the large bag of towels but I knew he was off in a different area. I grabbed a cart and went on the search. The only thing I really wanted was a pair of running shoes. Mine, that I wear every morning, are getting pretty beat up even though still comfy.

There it is all put together

Bill was getting his plane ready to fly and waiting for Dave
It looks like he is saying a few words for low winds and a good flight

One of the pictures I took for Bill
The rest, he will use in his next posting

I like this entrance to Yuma

I tried a few on, mostly the same brand, because the price was right. I settled on a black pair that are almost slip-ons but still have some laces too. They’ll do nicely! While shopping, Jo-Anne texted about Happy Hour at their place indoors, so a trend on these cooler days has started. Otherwise, we are all bundling up a little more than some of us are comfortable with. I passed the word on to everyone else since I am the one with everyone’s contact info. I said I feel like ‘Mom’. 😊 That’s okay!

At JC Penney, I found towels

It was a great deal for the towels and bath mat

Back home, I was hungry so had a piece of cheese, some yogourt and a fat bomb. At 3, we made a hot drink and walked next door. First to arrive, first choice of seats so I took a recliner and relaxed. Once everyone arrived, with the exception of the McMechan’s ☹, multiple conversations filled the air. Jo-Anne and Bob had food set out and I had determined that if I wasn’t hungry, I’m not eating, so other than 5 little nuts and bolts, I passed everything by.

My new walking shoes and I'm looking forward to trying them out

 We returned home just after 5 and Bill lit the Weber. Tonight, were grilled farmer sausages with salad. Bill, while outside, dumped our gray water tank. Inside, I made salad on our plates. Opening a pre-made bag of Bacon Caesar salad is a tough job but someone has to do it. As the sausages were cooking, I had to run out to capture sunset photos. Ever-changing.

Along I-8 we always see boondockers out on this stretch of desert

The sky was very interesting just at Happy Hour

A glance back at our site

What a great meal! Just enough and we were full. There is always ice cream and goodies if we needed a snack later. The evening was quiet after dishes. Bill had the television on but Friday night entertainment doesn’t do much for us. I was into my book so after finishing my post, my goal was to get a few chapters completed. As it turned out, we were done dishes by 6:15 so I talked myself into the last scoop and a half of the Oregon Strawberry. Bill opted out.

My dessert before 7 pm

I have enjoyed this day. The sad part was saying goodbye to Gayle and John but there were good moments in shopping and our happy hour to make up for it. Bill and I are really enjoying spending time sitting still this winter, here. As the days arrive, there will be some calm days for Bill to fly his plane and drone and I’m sure some warm days for a pool visit for me. I hope you’ve had a good day.

A beautiful sky tonight
Good night from Pilot Knob

Thank you for your visit!

Last Day, More Wind, Laundry, Puzzle, PVR, Carl’s Jr, and Flight Home

So, today is Thursday, Dec. 7^th.  My first thought when I woke up was ‘oh, darn. Still windy’. My second thought was 'my sister goes home today'. I rolled over and went back to sleep until I got up at 7:30ish. Donna and Gerry were up stripping the sofa bed when I began making tea and coffee. Bill joined us soon after. He first pulled the handles on our black and gray tanks and then folded and secured the room divider. It slides in the garage on a slide tray.

Morning entertainment
They found my blue dish of water! Yay!

Donna and I took the sheets and towels up to the laundromat. Unfortunately, every washer but one was being utilized. We drove back home and bided the time by preparing bacon and eggs breakfast for all of us. This took enough time and the boys cleaned up dishes while we drove back up.

And then they fought over it

We had success this time in getting 3 washers and then took a walk around the park. I didn’t have a previous picture of my sister and I alone so we set up a selfie at the lane into the park. It isn’t bad, we are pretty wind blown though! We transferred the laundry into 2 dryers and then walked up to the clubhouse to work on the very challenging puzzle. I guess I’ll be working on it for another day and maybe we’ll get back at it later today.

Our selfie in the wind facing Bullhead Parkway

We folded things and drove back home to find Bill and Gerry sitting inside laughing their butts off. I wondered what they were doing and realized that Bill had hooked up the PVR once more and they were watching a recording of Larry the Cable Guy. Yay! It’s working! At least for now. I made the bed up and then we all sat together and watched a recorded episode of Bill Engvall. Hilarious!

Clem cozying up to Donna - noticed his crossed legs
He's such a little gentleman

Donna sat at Bill’s laptop and printed off their boarding passes. We’d decided that we’d go into town once more later today and have supper at Carl’s Jr. They both loved the food and Bill and I also enjoy their burgers. We were going to have burgers on the Weber if it hadn’t been so windy. The temperature has risen to 68F at 1 pm with full sun so we sat outside for a bit, and held onto our hats.

Some serious competition here

We didn’t have much going on for the rest of the afternoon but we knew Bill would need a snooze since he’d be driving tonight to Las Vegas and back. To make matters worse, he didn’t have a good night’s sleep last night. No reason, just couldn’t sleep. Maybe he was thinking of the timing and responsibility of getting these two to their plane on time. Who knows?

Anyway, Donna, Gerry and I left him alone with Clemson after 3 and walked up to the clubhouse. I had challenged them to a game or two of Scrabble and they both took me up on it. We arrived to find 6 ladies playing Pokeno, I think, so took the Scrabble board out into the dining area. Donna won both games but at least the second one, Gerry and I gave her a run for her money, not being far behind.

I meant to get a picture before sliding them off the board but
you get the picture

Bill walked up after his snooze to see what time we wanted to go out for dinner. When he saw we had about another 30 minutes of play tiles left, he walked back to read more of his book. It was 4:30 when we all walked back and put Clem in charge of the Suite while we went out to dinner. I thought I’d try their Quesadilla steak combo and I was quite pleased with my choice. It was very good!

There is some deep though going on here

The others had their favourite burger combos and were pleased with the price and taste as well. When we got back around 6 Bill hooked up our central vac and Donna sucked some of their clothes into their vacuum bags so they would fit into their suitcases. She didn’t even have to sit on top to zip it up. Ha ha Actually, there wasn’t much more in them than when they arrived.

Clemson talks to Gerry, his buddy
"What is this I hear about you leaving today?"
Donna and Bill reading in the background

So, by 6:30 we were all set to go and had time to relax. Bill was trying to finish his book, Four Blind Mice by James Patterson and with just 20 pages left, I’m sure he’ll do it before we leave at 9:15 pm. I’m still working my way through The Runaway Jury but I am enjoying it now. Donna has also been reading one of our books and will need to take it with her. It is Jeffrey Archer’s Prisoner of Birth.

Las Vegas traffic jam

We loaded into the truck, Clemson too, and made the drive in the dark to Las Vegas’s McCarran International Airport. We were right on time. First thing Donna commented on when she stepped out of the Suite was that the wind had calmed down! Finally! Too bad it wasn’t earlier in the day. Oh well, it is what it is and we made the best of it.

What? They look happy to be leaving us!

It was an uneventful drive, just the way we like it. We gained the hour, as expected, within 5 minutes of leaving home and we watched the temperature drop from Bullhead’s 54F to 38F when we arrived in Las Vegas. In the dark and the traffic, we missed one of our main turns. With the help of the Black Beauty gps and the sweet-sounding lady on my phone gps in the back seat, she got us on track and we pulled into Terminal 3 departures for West Jet at 10 to 10PT.

I was trying to capture the two incoming jets and the moon
Sorry for the blur  -  it isn't your eyes!

We were going to pull in, park and walk in with Donna and Gerry for ‘a proper hug’, but Donna said we didn’t need to pay to park. So, we pulled to the side like everyone else was and unloaded them and their bags. With hugs and kisses we said au revoir. 

We’re pretty sure they enjoyed themselves and we did too without any hardships on either side. It took a bit of adjustment in a small space. We could do 2 weeks another time if they wished to. Our habits are that similar.

Approaching Laughlin, Nevada

Bill and I found our way out and back onto NV163 and arrived at Ridgeview at 12:30 MT, still 53F and in bed within 10 minutes. I was sooo ready for bed. 

We had a wonderful time together and I will certainly miss walking with Donna around the park. It is just as well we are pulling out on Saturday with no one to do puzzles and swimming with. Tomorrow night, they will be safe and sound in their own comfy beds.

Bill got his blue light hooked up with his extension cord
while we were all playing Scrabble

A close up of the Suite in all its glory

The blue Suite and the Moon

I hope you’ve enjoyed your day. Thank you for spending the time with us and my family. Feel free to comment if you choose to!