Cooler, Wet, Windy, Indoor Cleanup

Park Place RV Park

On Thursday, Mar. 13th the day didn't start off the same as we have gotten used to. It was cool and windy, pretty much from the get-go. We did get a bit of rain late yesterday but not much. It was in the forecast again for today, higher percentages. Bill said goodbye to his fellow pilots and club members yesterday at their club meeting so had no need to go to the field today. It was not a good morning for outside visiting anyway! I'm not whining, but the 50F/10C felt cooler unless you were dressed for it.

Good morning!
This is the moment Gibbs realized.....
"I'm 4 now?"

I know Bill puttered outside a bit and then went to fill Black Beauty as well as a spare can for travel. The price at Arco has dropped to a nice $3.29/gal, so that is great. I did my full blocking exercise routine and took Gibbs for his walk. I think that was the best part of the day. Chilly enough for a hoody but not bad at all with the early sunshine. I wanted to tackle a few jobs today inside the Suite so started at the shower. 

First peek at the morning sky

Gibbs was on a mission
and we had a nice walk together.

We have a curved corner unit and the door track and base of the shower get very grimy. It required the whole 'get down on the knees, elbow grease' kind of clean. I'm making it sound worse that it was but now it is shiny clean again. 

Clouds didn't waste time moving in

When I came downstairs and realized it was only 10 am, I tackled the pantry.  The shelves got wiped down and I even discarded a few things that were expired to the point of no return.

It's coming along - quickly

I still had time to go to the clubhouse to work on the puzzle for an hour and a half. 😊 I was glad it moved slower today so I could leave some for another day. Back home, Bill and I had chicken noodle soup for lunch. That hit the spot and by now, it was cool enough that Bill changed from shorts to long pants. That tells you how cool it felt. The rain arrived around 11:30 so when I did run home, it was under the cover of my hoody. The gusts were hitting 30.9 mph so we were glad the gazebo was no longer a worry.

 The before picture doesn't look much different to you than the after picture but to me, it is a big improvement. 

For the afternoon, I spent my time upstairs watching a movie. I'd seen The Choice before but enjoyed it even the second time. Gibbs shared his time between the two of us, Bill was downstairs snoozing and watching his own preference of entertainment. Before I came down to start supper, I searched for and found a recommendation from Bette. I was immediately drawn into Midsomer Murders, getting caught up in the British series. So, thank you Bette!

I ran home in the rain and wind.

Supper was a mixed up deal. there was enough of the ground beef gravy for Bill, so I cooked some wieners for me and mixed up a salad for both of us. It worked well and we were appropriately filled. 😊 After the wee bit of cleanup, we watched our Thursday night programs. 9-1-1, Matlock and Elspeth were on, one right after the other. It was a windy, cold day so neither Gibbs or I minded missing our afternoon walk. 

At least, I enjoyed the movie!

It has been a good 'indoor' day and we all need those. I managed to get some things done that I've wanted to do. We only reached a high of 59F/15C today, which is quite a change for us. Warmup is not far off though. 

Supper was easy and filling.
Good night!

Thank you for stopping by.

The Day Changed for Me, Dreary and Wet. Critters!!

The Ridge

On Sunday, June 2^nd I woke up slowly around 6:30, knowing there was nothing on my plate. I assumed Bill would be downstairs getting ready to go flying, until I opened my blind and saw rain drops on my window. ☹ Ah, that’s too bad but it makes me happy he had a good flying day yesterday. It did mean that he could putter on his planes in the Hangar for the day, he had no commitments either.

A tired little guy this morning.
Good morning!

So, I relaxed in my pj’s and planned my day. First things first meant that I would take my tea upstairs and empty the bag off clothes I brought home yesterday. That also meant that I had to start choosing from what was in my closet and what was in the bag. I did better than I thought and managed to stuff a bag for the next exchange to make room for the new to me clothes. I love everything I got and it’s like having a new wardrobe for 0 dollars. 😊

I decided to make some rice pudding for my Sweetie. One of his favourite desserts but unfortunately, I don’t have raisins. Last time that was the case, I added dried cranberries and he was just as happy with that. So, I put Madame IP to work today and after it was made, I put it into 6 single serving dishes for him. Because I didn’t want to eat the rice, I planned to make keto custard for myself in 5 single serve dishes. Yay!

Robin added flowers to the basket outside
the bnb entry door.
Lovely!

During the cooking, I sat and tallied up our winter expenses. I have a book that keep all the money we spend from the time we leave home to the time we get back to The Ridge. It’s interesting to look back through the pages to see how costs have risen, not surprising at all. It’s good to know where the money goes. Our time in Arizona, after our long traveling is done, is relatively inexpensive (so to speak), it is the trip down and back that is way up there because of fuel.

The drive back on Baptist Church Road
at this time of year is gorgeous!
Talk about green!

It was around 11:20 that Robin texted about cleaning the bnb today. She knew it was short notice but was tied up helping Andrew and just asked if it was possible. Well! Since it is a wet day and I’m not into anything that I can’t walk away from, of course I said yes. I have no qualms working on the Lord’s Day as it is helping someone else and yes, I make a bit of cash in the meantime. Bill was okay with it, since he planned on spending the day working on his planes. 😊

Our laneway was pretty tore up from
the lady turtles, making nests.
Unfortunately, they must have been frightened
off as these holes would have been perfect! 

I had my lunch a bit early and left at 12:15. Bill had come up to the Suite, made a sandwich and was on his way back out again. The drive was about 25 minutes in the gentle rain and traffic was fairly light on a Sunday. I was done cleaning and on my way home by 2:15, which is pretty consistent with each time I go. They’ve added a single bed in the extra room upstairs, which now allows 5 guests instead of just 4. That will add even more possible guest visits.

Bill's rice pudding (not sure why it looks so brown)
and my custard.
Both were very good!

Back home, I had Madame IP make my custard and then while Bill and Gibbs had their snooze, I prepared a casserole dish of scalloped potatoes for supper. It was a good day for it. 

It's hard to see them here, but we watched
up to 7 Chippys at a time out there.

Then this house finch visited for the first time.
She was 'pretty in red'.

Then, as I worked on my blog, I laughed at the antics of the 4, 5, 6 no 7 chipmunks running around outside. It’s driving Gibbs a bit nuts watching them and every time he goes out, he takes off at a run chasing one or two. One came up on the stoop landing outside my window and Gibbs wanted to go through the window at him! 😊 Not really, but he was jumping around behind me. ♥

I was wearing one of the shirts I picked up
yesterday and when I rolled the sleeve up a bit
got this message. Cute! I am often lost so .........fitting.
😂😂

Supper was ready at 6:30 and boy was it a nice rainy-day meal! I did cheat and had some potatoes and corn but it was worth it. For dessert, we had our pudding cups and they tasted great too. We cleaned up dishes and relaxed for the evening together. The rain stopped around 4 pm today and the temperature climbed to a pleasant 17C/63F today before starting the drop to a mild 14C/57F overnight. 😊 There is a lot of rain in our forecast again, but at least the cold seems to be leaving.

Yummy Sunday supper

This was a really nice day, even with a bit of work in the midst. We had a nice chat with our dear friends, Rob and Pat, tonight so that perked us up too. 💗

Oh, and there was this critter.
Good thing Gibbs didn't see him up here!!
Good night folks!

Thank you for stopping by.

Dull and Wet, Good Day to Purge and Repair

The Ridge

On Wednesday, May 8^th, hump day arrived with a different view out of our windows. Clouds, mist, fog across the land surrounding us. Yeuch. Bill was up at his usual time and Gibbs returned to bed with me so Daddy could go about his morning ritual of getting ready for work. I got up at 7 and went through mine. 😊 We were both out the door at 7:30 leaving our responsible security guard on duty with a yummy milk bone.

!

Good wet morning!

Bill goes one way in Ptooties and I head towards Durham. The Mat was empty, just the way I like it. I had texted Sandy last night about picking up a couple of items that were needed for me to do my job and he gave me the information to charge them at the hardware. Bill had asked me to pick up a coupler for our fridge water line so I was going there anyway. I was on my way home by 9. The sky showed a couple of blue patches but they didn’t amount to anything good.

Hope?
Unwarranted hope.

Gibbs and I were basically stuck inside for the day. I could’ve gone to the Bunky to paint stones or start a puzzle but Gibbs would have to stay in the Suite in order to be happy. So, I stayed with him. I sorted through the books that I brought home yesterday and was pleased that 16 of them were ones we had not read. Yay! That was a worthwhile haul! 😊

My lunch was a poached egg on keto toast
Yummy!

With that done, I went upstairs to the bathroom and cleaned and purged the cupboards. With a family/friends clothing exchange coming up, I was able to put a small bag together of donations. Then I moved to the bedroom closet. That was a bigger bag and I have 3 weeks to work on the drawers. It is always a fun time and we all seem to find new things to wear while abandoning things we’re tired of or that don’t fit.

Not neat at all, but my goal was
to stitch the hole up so I could wear it.
This is the front

I’m holding onto a couple pairs of pants that are snug but hopefully in a month, I’ll be slipping into them easier. Fingers crossed! A girl can hope. With that done, I decided to take on the challenge of fixing my ‘mouse-eaten’ sweater that I crocheted last year. This’ll be fun. (said tongue-in-cheek) I actually surprised myself and did better than I expected. Mind you, this sweater was never to be worn out anywhere but around the campfires so if it looks messy and disjointed – that’s okay. I hope you’re not laughing! 😊

This is the back

It was 3:15 and time for tea so I made one and sat to start my post. Today, rather than listen to Sirius XM on our radio, I turned on YouTube country music. It was Awesome with a capital A! A lot of my favourite songs with videos but it wasn’t until Toby Keith’s video came on that I broke down. Oh my. We love Toby’s music and ‘Don’t Let the Old Man In’ is a heart breaker with Clint Eastwood. ♥♥ Gibbs kept looking at me because of the tears. Wow! It hit me.

It was an inside day and Mr. Fluffy
spent a lot of it sleeping.

The day didn’t get any better as far as the weather but I did enjoy a quiet day without any interruptions, if you know what I mean. Bill was home by 5:15 and for supper I planned small sausages and beans with toast. Not too elaborate but I knew Bill would be quite fine with that. The birds are crazy out there again today, lots of Blue Jays, Doves and Grackles. The biggest surprise of the day was when I saw a Hummingbird at our new feeder!! Yay! Our plan worked!

Woohoo!
The Hummers are using our new feeder.

The instructions we were given this winter (because we whined and said they didn’t ever come to the new feeder) were to hang out our old ones empty beside the new full one. After 4 days, I’m seeing progress and that’s all I hoped for. This was an expensive feeder that Bill bought me before Covid so we’ve been trying it for a long time. I will be seeing them again this winter to let them know! 😊

This made my day.

Supper was good and after clean up, Bill made his lunch. He is doing okay, being back to work but it is hard on his not so young body. He’s a trooper and doesn’t complain much. It usually takes him a while to get into the swing and remember, he hasn’t put in an 8-hour day since last fall! ♥ We watched country videos together and enjoyed the time together for a while.

Gibbs knows that it must be time for Daddy to come home
and jumps up into his 'watching' chair.
Oh, he still needs his tummy scratched though. ♥

He hears him pull into the lane long before I do.

He may pop down to the Hangar, depends on how damp it feels. We only reached a high of 13C/55F today and that is just ridiculous for May! Oh well, hopefully we’ll have a dry day tomorrow. This has been a good day.

A simple supper but we enjoyed it.
Bill had toast with his.
good night!

Thank you for the visit.

Wet Morning, Nice Afternoon, Scrabble!

The Ridge

On Sunday, May 5^th I wasn’t in a hurry to get up so it was almost 7:30 when I came downstairs. I did remember waking around 5 with an itch on one of my knuckles so I scratched it. Then when it got worse, I figured it was a black fly bite. LOL! They were hitting marks all of yesterday and we were noticing targeted areas today by scratching. Don’t scratch!! Easy to say, not easy to do.

This little fluff bum was quite wet when he came in from
our walk in the rain.
His hair gets so curly.

At some point, everything got really foggy
all around us.
Spooky

It was a wet morning, well, everything was very wet first thing indicating it had rained overnight or early morning. So, because it wasn’t raining, Bill went outside to another issue we were having. Today, he wanted to feed the water line up into the refrigerator so we could make ice again. It was damaged when the tire blew. Duncan was out for his walk but when he returned, the two of them got busy.

Then, just as quickly it cleared.
Can you remember one of my first pictures of the pond?
Look at the new buds now.

They had success with this but the job didn’t get finished today after all. They needed a longer piece of hose and a plastic clasp. Patty, Gibbs and I went for a walk before lunch and we almost got to the corner when it started to rain. It was heavy enough to get us quite wet so we turned and hightailed it for home. 😊 We stood under the nose of the suite until is slowed down. Bill and Duncan drove to the Acreage for another bladder of water, this one for our fresh water tank.

Mr. Oriole was back

A couple of Blue Jays too

A little hope up there

We had lunch of bacon and eggs and Bill and Duncan went into town for the parts needed, still missing one when they returned. Patty invited me over for a game of Scrabble and we played 2 games in the warmth of their new home. By 3:30 or 4, the sun was starting to make an appearance so we all went out and gathered on our patio. Jackets were on and off, quite a difference in temperatures between sun and clouds.

Soon the clouds moved away completely

At 4:30, I made my tea and we sat until almost 6 before parting ways for supper tonight. Leftover meatloaf, vegetables, a potato for Bill and dinner rolls. We’ll have pears for dessert tonight, finishing off the can. Bill’s world changes tomorrow so he made his lunch and set it in the fridge for the night. 😊 It will be hard to see him leave for the whole day but Gibbs and I will manage. ♥

The winds died off but that just
made the black flies happier

Supper was good and filling. We cleaned up dishes and relaxed for the remainder of the evening. Duncan and Patty popped over for a short visit before our programs started. Bill suggested a fire tonight but still make it an early night. Sounds good and the wind has died right off. What a nice day. This afternoon we had full sun and a high of 18C/66F.

Supper was good!
Good night!

Thank you for stopping around!

A Wet, Cloudy, Cool Day for a Change 😊 Two Special Birthdays, Trip down Memory Lane

The Ridge

On Tuesday, May 11^th, you must know when I make that statement that I am being totally sarcastic. We’ve had so many wet, cloudy, cool days lately that when we get a sunny one, it will be like drinking a few margaritas! We’ll be giddy as heck. Well, I will be for sure!

At least the sun was trying to greet us

enough already!

Bill was up early to the bathroom and took Gibbs out for his first piddle. He brought him up to our bed at 5 but I was still tired and all Gibbs wants to do is play and nibble on our fingers and faces. He put him back in his crate and rejoined me in bed until 6 when he got up again for work. He seems to think after being in his crate all night that the bed means playtime. Well, it is but not for puppies. 😊

he was shivering this morning so I covered him up

After my sweetie left, I made my tea and sat at my laptop. It isn’t a nice day out there at all, windy and a cool 2C with the odd pouches of rain. My desire for being outside for any length of time has gone out the window right now so I’m really looking forward to Thursday when sunshine is ‘promised’. Gibbs was out for a run around and his business and I fed him at 9. He sure is feeling good, gobbled it right up.

A lot of winged visitors today

I'll be picking up more oranges on Wednesday
By the end of today, he'd emptied the jam

Around 7:30 I called my daughter. Today is her birthday and I knew that she works from home these days so wouldn’t be driving anywhere. 

Happy Birthday, Bridgette 
My brown-eyed girl 💗

We had a nice chit chat again and it sounds like her sweetie is spoiling her right and proper too! 😊 After our catch-up conversation, we said goodbye and I called my step-daughter. Today is also her birthday – 14 years apart.

Happy Birthday, Jess 💗

Proof of our lazy day and this is early

Changing positions a few times to get comfy

He slept and played and slept some more in his bed for a couple of hours giving me the opportunity to bake some healthy desserts for us. I found a recipe for Keto Chocolate Chip Cheesecake Bars and a Keto Peanut Butter Pie so they were my challenges this morning. I was finished by 11 and that made me appreciate getting up at 6:30. The day was still young. They are both in the fridge and/or freezer, looking quite tasty.

This is a good one

This one is even better

Better yet

The very best 😂

The winged critters are getting more familiar

The crowned sparrow

Keto Chocolate chip cheesecake cookie squares

Keto Peanut Butter Pie

I started my blog and then sat in my chair with my crocheting. That is one good thing about the cool weather, it is getting closer and closer to being something. LOL It was after my blog was written last night that we had a lovely phone call from our Illinois friends. We met Ken and Nancy our first year (2012) in Silver Lake, MI at Silver Creek RV Resort but didn’t really get to know them.

Our 2nd year at Silver Creek RV Resort
2013

Ken and Nancy across the street from us

The second year, we camped across from each other. This was our second trip with our 2011 29’ 5^th wheel Cougar. They had their Frontier travel trailer. We had Clemson, they had 2 boxers. We got along well and planned a yearly meetup by booking our sites close to each other a year in advance. 😊 It seemed that each year after, we all had a different RV .

Third year with our Jayco Designer and first King Ranch

Their new trailer in 2014

The third year, 2014, we met them with our 2010 35’ Jayco Designer, they had a Windjammer travel trailer. See the pattern? We were very much alike! My recollections and pictures of our journeys together make me smile and even laugh. We’d talked a lot in our weeks spent together each year as well as over the phone from our home bases.

2015 We were able to secure a spot beside each other
with our new units

In August 2015, we arrived with our new home, our current Model Suite and Black Beauty. Were we surprised when they pulled in after us with a brand new Grand Design Solitude 5^th wheel! 

Rick and Amy were on the other side of us

The connections continued and we enjoyed our new friendship. We traveled to Michigan one more summer to meet our friends and this year, we each had the same trailers but their son and daughter-in-law joined us with their White Hawk travel trailer. Rick and Amy stayed for just a few days.

Nancy and Ken

At noon hour, Gibbs and I went out again to take care of business and he was rewarded with a treat. When he came inside, he was wandering looking for something to get into so I had to stomp my feet a few times to distract him. Gosh, he’s so darn cute! I made a coffee and had a nibble of cheese and pepperonis. I’d had a bowl of cereal with strawberries earlier so wasn’t too hungry.

Someone found my slipper and dragged it around for a while
trying to keep it from me

The sky is getting darker, heavier with clouds as the afternoon wears on. The wind isn’t dying down any either so it is a good choice to stay inside except for the little guys business. I’m glad we found him, it is giving me a responsibility that gets me up and out for a purpose on a day when I have no desire to move! 😊 Of course, that isn’t the only reason. In his bed, Gibbs continued to sleep in many contortions. We laugh because Clemson never ever slept on his back when he hung his head over the edge.

That wind never let up all day

When the little guy finally moved, at each time he moves after a sleep, we go out. We have a little bell hanging on the door as a few have suggested this as a way to teach him to tell us when he has a need to piddle. Gibbs isn’t quite getting the hang of that but we are persistent and will do our best to have him touch it when we take him out. Yes, we’ve had a few little accidents and some ‘no-no half accidents’ but no, we don’t really want to have piddle mats in the Suite as I believe that encourages him to go in the house.

It was a lazy day and there’s no better proof of that then  my pictures of L.J. Gibbs. I made my afternoon tea around 4:30 and Bill was home by 5. 

Supper tonight was sloppy Joe’s for Bill and sloppy cauliflower rice for me. I’ve eaten quite a few carbs recently so thought tonight I’d go easy on them. Gibbs indicated that he wanted up on Bill’s lap in a subtle way (something we want to encourage) for their naps so I started supper around 5:30.

My sloppy rice meal

We heard a noise outside and it was FedEx dropping off my Wayfair parcel. Yay! There are still a few more things to come over the next few days. Supper turned out to be very tasty and it was also an easy meal. For dessert we each had one of my newly baked keto cookie bars. Another success. With dishes done and Bill’s lunch made, the evening was ours to enjoy. I worked on my blog and we watched NCIS at 8.

Bill's sloppy Joe's

This was a really lazy day for Gibbs and I but we enjoyed the time together with no distractions. 😉

We were rewarded with a beautiful sunset
Maybe this is the start of something special 💗
Good night y'all!

Thank you for your visit.