Week Five ~ Alaska Trip May 15-20, 2011

We left Dave and Karen’s in the rain, seems to be a pattern developing. Dave snapped this picture of us just before we were leaving. The other one is as we were really heading out…….

Dave wanted to make sure that he got the RV, the truck, HIS BARN, and us. He did well!

We had about a three and a half hour drive west to Winterset Iowa where the Iowa Wild Roses Escapee Club was having their spring rally. Every spring Gene and Sandy Teggatz run a four day computer rally. They did an excellent job. It was four days of learning and fun. We enjoyed meeting some Iowa people as well as some people that were from further away. One couple stopped in on their way home from their winter travels, and we had just met them at Skp Acre in North Carolina! Small world. Some of the members will be going to the Escapade in Gillette WY, so we will see them there. We also met Tom and Debbie McIlwain, Chapter 20 members that I have been corresponding with for several years by email. It was great to finally put a faces with the names.

 

        Private tutoring

Sandy ran a tight ship! She was on board for workshops Monday through Thursday from 8:15 AM to 4:45 PM. Whew! That lady has stamina. She covered working with Open Office, Firefox, Tips on Vista and Windows 7, Picasa, PDF conversion, and photo resizing. Norm presented information on Linux and Tom did a workshop on E-readers. Then we all shared our latest ‘Geek Toys’. What a fun week for computer nerds.

                                                  Tom, Mickey and Barb Tom on E-readers

       Tom McIlwain on E Readers

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

                                          A GPS does what???

What we discovered after we arrived in Winterset is that it is Madison County IA which is where they filmed the movie The Bridges of Madison County. So on Friday we took our map in hand and went exploring to find the four covered bridges that were the closest to us. We also found a Stone School that was built in the late 1800s and a tower that was part of the city park. It was a fun day exploring. We managed to get about and get the pictures taken of the bridges before it rained, again.

Cutler-Donahoe Bridge

   Holliwell Bridge is the longest one.

 

 

 

 

 

  Cedar Bridge you can drive through. The others are blocked off.

 

                                          Hogback Bridge

Next we found the Stone School that was made out of native limestone. It was closed the day we were there, but Phil got some neat shots of the outside. We were both impressed with the condition of the school for being built in the late 1800s.

 

Stone tower that is in the City Park with view from the top:

 

Not only is Winterset famous for being the site of a popular movie and book, it is the birthplace of John Wayne. So of course we had to go find his home:

And his statue:

Quite a bit for a neat little town in Iowa! We left on Saturday, thankfully we did not get stuck, but Gene and Sandy did. That was our excitement for Saturday morning, watching and helping them get pulled out of the mud. We were then on our way north………

Week Four ~ Alaska Trip May 9-14

After following directions and talking with Dave Long on the cell phone, we did manage to find the Long homestead in Iowa City IA. Dave and Karen Long are Escapee friends that we first met in Rayne LA at a Chapter 26 Spring Rally. Since then we have stayed at Escapee Parks in Bushnell Florida and Summerdale Alabama each winter. Dave and Karen have stayed at the same parks and we have gotten to know them pretty well. We always mange to have a good time, eating out, playing cards, touring local attractions, eating out, and eating out. Oh, did I mention that we like to eat out? I have told David that he makes a good social director, because he always finds some fun things for us to do. He did not disappoint us on this visit.

Karen had dinner all ready for us Monday evening. It is always a treat not to have to cook dinner on a travel day. Of course, after dinner we needed to play a few games of Five Crowns. I cannot remember who won. That is never important, just having a good time is important. Tuesday Karen was busy babysitting in the morning so I got caught up on some things in the RV. Phil and Dave puttered around. They went to see some farm equipment that was up for auction and Dave found a canvas cover that he had made years ago that was still intact. In the afternoon we met their grandchildren, Max and Francis.

Tuesday evening Dave and Karen introduced us to the Morel mushroom that grows wild in Iowa. Good eats! We had pizza one night, and chili another evening. Thursday Karen and her cousin took me out to the local Amish stores. We went to an Amish bakery, an Iowa cheese factory and two general stores. What fun! Friday the four of us went to the Button Museum in Muscatine, IA. That gave me a new appreciation of buttons, to be sure. What a process that entailed before plastic buttons were created. They harvested the mussels from the local river, cooked and cleaned the shells. The cooked mussels were either used as fertilizer on the fields or food for the animals. The shells were then used to cut out circles for buttons. The holes were put into the buttons and then they were hand sewn onto cards for retail sale. Each button was handled 32 times before being sold.

From the museum Dave took us to an amazing store that sold some of everything. We had a good time browsing and everyone managed to go home with a find or two. Phil has been looking for some rain shoes, which he found. They came in very handy down the road……

We went to the Button Factory building that has been converted to a restaurant for dinner. Dave, Karen and Phil all had catfish for dinner. I opted for fried shrimp. None of us went away hungry. Phil got this picture of the center paddle wheel boat that we had hoped take out into the river for a cruise. We were a bit early because they don’t start running the cruises until June 1^st.

Saturday morning we headed out. We were going to Winterset IA, about 180 miles west of Iowa City. It was not a bad day’s drive. We did encounter more rain. I know it is spring, but we seem to have a cloud following us around. We arrived safely at the Madison County Fairgrounds and got settled in to a FHU site for the week. We were here to attend the Iowa Wild Rose’s Computer Rally and act as VCRs for the first time. That’s a story for next week.

Week Three~ Alaska Trip May 2-8, 2011

We left Marion NC about 11:00 AM on Monday after having the RV weighed and saying good-bye to everyone. We had a great time at the rally, but we were a little tired. We passed through some beautiful scenery as we traveled through the mountains on Route 40 toward Tennessee. We encountered a two mile backup that cost us about 45 minutes. The only cause we could see was some construction on Route 40 around Exit 15 in Tennessee. We arrived at Overnighter Campground, Athens TN in the early evening. We got set up and had a very quick supper. After supper we took a short drive over to see Pat Martin, our good friend who lives in Athens TN now. We had a great visit and had a chance to catch up on news over a glass of wine. She has made some more renovations to her home and they are lovely.

Pat has a new addition, Jojo, a young dog. He is not a puppy, but a teenager in dog years. He keeps her on her toes, literally! He is quite a handful and he provides company and exercise for Pat.

 

We spent Tuesday and Wednesday visiting with Pat, going out to eat, doing a few errands and getting things done. The air conditioning on the truck had stopped working. Phil found a local shop and took it in for service. All of the coolant was gone, there appears to be a leak somewhere. They were able to recharge the system and it seems to be holding for now. Pat worked on Thursday so we used that day to do laundry, clean some in the RV and just rest a bit. We rented a movie to watch with Pat that evening. We said our good-byes on Thursday evening and then we headed on our way Friday morning.

We traveled into Kentucky and stopped at the Ohio County Fairgrounds. This is a well kept park and we enjoyed our stay. We had neighbors with an interesting tent! Cool.

From Kentucky we went north and spent the next two nights in Remington IN at Caboose Lake RV Park. We had stopped there several times before when we were traveling east to west and west to east visiting Keith when he lived in Minnesota. We had a full hookup so it was laundry time again. All of our three sons called and wished me a happy Mother’s Day. Bryan scanned in pictures of the kids with pictures that they had drawn. Neat idea, it was a treat to get that email on Mother’s Day.

Going west from Indiana we headed toward Iowa City to visit with Dave and Karen Long. I’ll tell you about that visit in Week Four!

Week Two ~ Skp Acre April 23-May 2, 2011

Wow, what a rally! It is hard to believe that the Eastern Multi Chapter Rally known as SKP ACRE (All Chapters Rally East) was more fun this year than it was last year, but it was! There were lots of varied activities and fun for everyone. Final tally was 100 rigs and 180 people attending this year.

Meet your friendly registration crew and pick up your SKP ACRE shirts and pins.

Wednesday started out with registration and then we proceeded right into the Pet Lover’s BOF Pet Parade. The weather held for the parade and fun was had by all. Betty Bear and Oscar (in his tuxedo) made an encore appearance after the Escapade in Goshen. Several other pets were also well dressed.

 

After lunch Mark Nemeth presented the first chapter of his seminar series with, ‘Water, Water Everywhere’. Everyone learned the basics of safe water management for their RV.

Wednesday evening was the first catered meal. Countryside BBQ served up some delicious smoked chicken. Wednesday evening, Dan Brown, former director of the Blue Ridge Parkway, offered insights about the area. This was a valuable presentation for everyone. This was Dan’s second time presenting a program for us, and we really appreciate his time and effort.

Thursday morning finished registration and then went right into a great seminar of Geocaching with Joe and Nancy Liston. They had set up some geocaching challenges around the park and area and after the seminar one person was able to find all of the geocache sites. Super! After lunch crafters met to tackle making paper beads to form necklaces and bracelets. There was a lot of giggling goin’ on! Thanks to Patty Mulhall for sharing her creativity. She also did a paper embroidery class on Friday afternoon.

                          Patty, we do WHAT with paper and sticks?

Thursday afternoon was Mark Nemeth’s second seminar on ‘RV Systems, Q &A’. There was lots of information for us to learn from Mark about our RV systems. Following the Social Hour we had a wonderful Pot Luck Dinner. Feeding 180 people in a short time is certainly a challenge. Before we were finished eating, Terry H. McKinney was there with a band to entertain us with some fine traditional country music, and entertain us they did!

This group played from 7:30 P.M. until 10:00 P.M., nonstop and finished the evening with a very memorable rendition of ‘How Great Thou Art’.

Friday it was off to tour the Biltmore Estate. This is the second year that this tour has been offered, but since we had a lot of first time attendees, there were still many people who wanted to make this trip. Spring is a wonderful time of year to visit this beautiful home.

The evening began with a presentation by Steve Masterson about DOVES after which everyone was invited to another Pot Luck dinner, sponsored by the DOVES. Around 7:00 PM the McKinney Washtub Two entertained us. Judy and Whitt are full time Escapees who make their living by entertaining on the road. They were also rally participants. It was a treat to have them with us.

Saturday breakfast was prepared by Betty Bear and her crew. She was up very early to make sure there was plenty of her famous Bear Sausage and Gravy for everyone. It was delicious.

Come on and have seconds, if you’d like……………….

Several local chapters held their business meetings on Saturday morning. In the afternoon there was a Picasa workshop on Managing Digital Photos as well as Mark Nemeth’s presentation on the Smart Weigh Program. The day closed with a Soup Cook Off for CARE, ice cream and finally a great bon fire put on for us by Tom Johnson. There was some wonderful music and fellowship taking place.

Vendors that were present at the rally were Sky Med, Amsoil, The Gardens RV Resort in Tennessee, and Mark Nemeth with the Smart Weigh program.

There are also many fine places to shop and many people spent time touring the local shops, restaurants and tourist attractions.

Tickets were sold throughout the week for a chance to take a whack at the Escapees Piñata and win a $50 gift certificate. There were many swings taken before it was finally conquered by J.C. Webber 111. Proceeds from the piñata also went to CARE.

Omelets in a bag were a first time experience for a lot of people Sunday morning. Everyone was patient waiting for their breakfast to cook because it gave them time for some more sharing with their rally friends. The morning was filled with RV Discussions and the afternoon had a computer workshop on Easy Website Building, Using Weebly. The quilters also found time to meet and discuss projects a couple of times.

 

Sunday evening there was a second catered dinner of Pot Roast followed by the closing ceremony. A DVD presentation of The Many Faces of Old Glory left everyone very moved. There is something about standing together with fellow SKPS and singing our National Anthem together that stirs the heart.

Monday morning was the Hitch up Breakfast with lots of SKP HUGS to share. Many people kept Mark and his crew busy as they were being weighed on the way out.

Some wonderful things happened that the committee is very proud of:

*After a meeting with Bryan Rose and several VCRs, a group of enthusiastic people elected officers and decided to reactive Chapter 26, the Carolina Rovers. Plans are underway for their next rally.

*There were several activities geared to raise money for CARE. There was the Bear Gravy breakfast, the Soup Cook Off, the Escapee’s Piñata, a donation from the Solos, a beautiful afghan was crocheted and donated for a raffle by Dixie Peterson, and a donation from the Skp Acre. The final amount presented to Mark Nemeth for CARE was $1000.

*We had visitors from as far away as Australia! Les and Denese Nicholson are SKPS from New South Wales, Australia. They came to the rally and did not know a soul, but they made many friends before the rally was over.

*Our VCR’s Tom and Debbie Abernathy signed up two new couples to ESCAPEES.

*There were several VCRs attending the rally: Bryan and Jane Rose, Tom and Debbie Abernathy, Betty Bear, Vic and Taree Schrubb, Jeanne and Bill Parrish, Keith and Shirley Murphy, Carole and Bernie Patton, and Cindy and Phil Devonshire.

*There were almost 20 SOLOS. The SOLOS were a major contributor to CARE. They held their own fund raiser for CARE and donated about $250 toward the total $1000 collected.

*Mark Nemeth was there from Livingston to present several seminars and then to weigh thirty or more rigs with the new Escapees Smart Weigh Program.

*Crafts, quilting and computer activities were available.

*Chapter 42 had a large group attending.

Planning has already begun for next year’s SKP ACRE. Evaluation forms were looked over carefully so that positive changes can be made. This event is growing and it takes the cooperation of many people to make it a success. The biggest asset of the Escapee’s Club is the members who are so willing to share their time and talent. The SKP ACRE committee would like to thank the many volunteers who helped throughout the rally to make it a success.

Mark your calendar and start making plans to attend next year’s SKP ACRE. It will be held again in Marion NC at Tom Johnson’s Rally Park. The dates are April 17-22, 2012. We’ll keep a space open for you!

Bryan Rose presents a $1000 check to Mark Nemeth for CARE.

Week 1 April 19-25 2011

We left home on Tuesday, April 19, 2011 on our trip to Alaska. Of course, we were taking the direct route, by traveling south first! On Tuesday we left home and made our way south to Bryan’s (our youngest son) home in King of Prussia, PA. We traveled well; the only downside of the whole day was paying the toll for the RV and the truck. That was a total of almost $23. Talk about sticker shock!

We had a good visit with Bryan and family, pizza for supper, always a favorite. The kids are getting big, active in Karate, T-ball and Little League. Their activities keep everyone busy. We left shortly after they did on Wednesday morning, heading to Chesapeake VA to see Craig and family.

We had to do some searching to find a campground near Craig and Denise. After several on line searches I was able to locate a park near their home. We were delighted to find one that was 1.8 miles from their home! When we pulled in I tried calling Craig only to find that he and the kids were pulling into the campground right behind us! They had just decided to take a short ride to see if we were there yet. Denise was working, so it was only Craig and the kids. We had a chance to visit and the kids quickly found some other children to play with and headed for the park’s playground. We stayed there for three days, visiting and doing some errands. There was a Sam’s Club nearby, only took several tries for us to get there. We drove around in circles for a while, but eventually got our errands done and some needed items purchased. They have a very lovely home and had a great visit. Craig and the kids were all on Spring break. Denise worked three days 7 to 7. We were able to visit with her later in the day after she had gotten some sleep. While we were there, we watched The King’s Speech with Craig. It is an excellent movie.

We left on Saturday and traveled to Marion NC. We had thought about stopping part way, but we were traveling well and so we made it all the way to Marion NC in one day. That gave us a chance to set up and visit with Bryan and Jane Rose before the SKP ACRE Rally began. As part of our Easter Sunday celebration we went out to the Countryside Bar-B-Que restaurant for their Easter buffet. It was a good feed. For my Week 2 Report I will post the magazine report that I wrote for the Escapee’s Magazine. Phil was in charge of the Parking Crew and they parked 100 rigs. I helped with registration and also gave two computer workshops, one on using Picasa for digital photo management. The other workshop was on using Weebly to create a simple website or blog. I had a good crowd at both workshops. Phil also helped Mark Nemeth with his Smart Weigh program. The last two days of the rally they weighed over 30 rigs. When our rig was weighed we were only slightly over on the rear axles. We had a pretty full water tank and Phil and Mark seemed to think that made the difference. So, we will not be traveling with a real full water tank any more. Our friends, Cathy and Larry Amroski drove in for the rally. They were there from Wednesday through Saturday. What a treat for us. Cathy and Phil climbed through several RVs and I think Cathy was bitten by the RV bug! Good luck shopping! Larry and I held down the fort at our RV while they were out exploring.

Multi Chapter Rally ~ Marion NC

Multi Chapter Rally Report   April 28-May 2

Everyone seemed to be in agreement that the first Multi Chapter Rally was a huge success. Bryan and Jane Rose and Larry and Marilyn Forbes did a fine job of organizing the rally, arraigning tours, gathering door prizes, and setting up catered dinners. We are all thankful for their many, many hours of work.

Final tally was 85 rigs in attendance with 156 Escapees attending. Some members drove in while their rigs were being serviced, a few just drove in, some members bought NEW rigs, many shopped at Tom Johnson’s RV store with a 10% Skp discount, while others just browsed through the many RV’s on display. Chapters 3, 6, 15, 16, 20, 26, 27, 29, 36, 41, 42, and 51 were represented. Many members from the Solo’s and the Boomers were also there.
We had some new Escapee’s sign up as well as new members to local chapters. Chapter 20 had 15 rigs and 30 members present! Way to go!
Chapter Directors Denny and Susie Orr attended the rally and we were also fortunate to have many club VCR’s in attendance. The VCR’s present were: Bryan and Jane Rose, Larry and Marilyn Forbes, Bob and Betty Bear, Stan and Betty Bober, Tom and Mary Ann O’Bryant, Bob and Molly Pinner, Keith and Shirley Murphy, and John and Janie Sloane.

The Rally Park at Tom Johnson’s Camping Center was more than adequate for our needs. We all enjoyed having a full hook up, a very nice pavilion, super clean rest rooms, and a great little restaurant nearby. The Tom Johnson Café served many of us a great breakfast and at lunch time the onion rings were said to be legendary. The prices were very reasonable.
Chapter 20 was responsible for the parking. Phil Devonshire was in charge and he wants to thank Rudy Mager, Bob Iles, Ira Hanks, John Strasbaugh and Jack Mulhall for their assistance.

The weather for most of the week was outstanding, Sunrise over the campground was beautiful to see, if you were awake to view it!
Early arrivals had a good time catching up on news and going out to eat. Is that a surprise? The Biltmore Estate in Ashville was toured by a large group on Friday. The azalea and other flowers in bloom this time of year really added to the beauty of this day.
A Behind the Scenes tour was also available at the Biltmore Estate and got great reports by all. The spectacular Blue Ridge Parkway was visited by many as well. Friday evening Chapter 20 hosted a Pot Luck Dinner. There was a total of over 50 hungry Skps that attended. Saturday and Sunday evenings were highlighted with catered dinners and Tom Johnson supplied wonderful bon fires for us on both evenings as well. Happy Hours were well attended every evening. A 50/50 drawing for CARE was held during Saturday’s Happy Hour. Paul Reed won the 50/50 and donated his winnings back to CARE.  CARE’s share of the 50/50 was $164, so the total sent to CARE from the 50/50 was $328. A couple of sun catchers were sold for $8, so the total check sent to CARE was $336.

Crafters were not to be denied. A small group of quilters managed to find each other and work on some cutting and stitching. Sue Spahn taught a class on One Stroke Painting and everyone left with a completed project, either a wine holder or a visor. Patty Mulhall instructed an eager group on pin prick card making while Phil Devonshire shared his knowledge of making aluminum can spinners. A fun time was had by all.
There was also a presentation on Thursday evening about the Blue Ridge Parkway. Dan Brown, a former top executive of the National Park Service, supplied us with driving tips, places of interest, and some wonderful history of the parkway. Vendors from MASA, Magna Shade and Fantasy Tours were on site as well.

Monday arrived with some VERY HEAVY rain, our only bad weather day. Most everyone was able to find an umbrella or two in their rig and make it to the pavilion for coffee, doughnuts and hitch up hugs. Many people left as scheduled but there was a fair number that decided that departure could wait for a sunnier day.
On Sunday afternoon anyone interested in continuing the Multi Chapter Rally next year had a preliminary meeting. It was decided that there was enough interest to continue planning for next year. So on Sunday evening committees were formed, officers were elected and serious planning began. Janie Sloane coined the acronym of Skip ACRE (All Chapter Rally East). So, the Tom Johnson Rally park, Marion, NC. has been reserved for next year 2011. The same time frame too, being April 28 - May 2, 2011. Rumor has it that the Bear's (Betty and Bob) are going to do their famous Sausage Gravy and Biscuits next year at this Rally.....Oh boy, we can't wait!!! BEAR GRAVY!!! Should be a great time for sure!!! Stan Bober, webmaster has already been busy updating the Rally Info Site and adding pictures of this year’s rally. There will be more to come I am sure, so keep checking the website at: http://sites.google.com/site/rallyinfosite/ .
As with all Escapee events, it was the fellowship, the caring and sharing, the willing volunteers, and the Skip hugs that made this a special event. Every Skp that attended made the rally special in some way. Thanks to all that planned, contributed and attended. See you next year!

Pictures contributed by Bob and Molly Pinner, Jack Mulhall, and Phil Devonshire

February~March ~April

  Good friends, lots of eating, bluegrass music, crafts and more. We had a super time and we were very busy. We stayed at the Escapee’s Rainbow Plantation in Summerdale Alabama until March 20, 2010. We heard bluegrass music at the Plantation, at Wales West Campground, at The Biscuit King and at the Gulf Shores United Methodist Church. We thoroughly enjoyed each performance. We also went to an excellent stage production in Gulf Shores called Red Hot Hollywood. This featured song and dance from the early days of movies to the present. What a great show that was. Staying at the Plantation is so much fun because we have made so many good friends that travel through the park during the winter.

   Of course we went out to eat often, enjoying the seafood that the area offers. We also made a couple of visits down to Billy’s Seafood and bought shrimp that was freshly caught. What a treat. They boil it and ice it for you right here.

   Bryan’s son Matthew had a school project that he shared with us. We were asked to take Matthew’s shadow, Flat Matthew to a few places with us. We were asked to take a few pictures, write a short journal and send Flat Matthew back to school. What fun we had with that! After Flat Matthew had been to the train, the beach, the bayou (to see an alligator), a scooter ride, a visit with Flat Tony Stewart, a ride on the trolley, and finally to the Mississippi River bank in Natchez MS, we sent him back. We enjoyed that assignment.

   I continued to do beading projects, I also learned to do pin prick card embroidery, and silk ribbon embroidery. I will have to keep practicing these crafts at home so that I don’t forget how to do them. It is wonderful that everyone is willing to share their talents with others. While I kept busy Phil kept us with his walking every day. He has walked at least 450 miles this winter.

   Phil and I went to the computer group on Thursday morning of each week. We have fun with this group and usually learn a lot. Toward the end of our stay I was asked to do a presentation on using Picasa. Wow! I quickly brushed up on my Picasa skills and got permission to use a handout that I had gotten at a computer workshop earlier this year. I had fun presenting this workshop to over 30 people. The fact that the Park had bought a projector this year really made the presentation easier.

   My Tennessee friends, Pat and Nancy, were vacationing in Natchez and then over toward Tallahassee Florida. We met them in Mobile Alabama. We had a great lunch and then we toured Fairhope Alabama with them. It was great to see familiar faces.

   On March 20 we said good bye to all of our Alabama RV friends. Then traveled to the Chapter 26 Rally in Hattiesburg Mississippi. Here we spent a wonderful week with lots of music, campfires, games, crafts, and good eating. A fun time was had by all.

   Toward the end of March we headed toward Natchez Mississippi. This is the third spring that we have visited this beautiful city. We toured the antebellum homes of Melrose and Elms Court. Next we traveled up to Vicksburg and toured the museum, the battlefield and the city. This is also a lovely city and we had a good day.

   Finally in early April, spring seemed to be here at last! The azalea and the red bud trees have been late to blossom. We left Natchez and continued up the Natchez Trace Parkway until we reached Pat’s in Tennessee. The spring flowers and trees are beautiful and we enjoyed the Easter weekend here.

 

   We were planning on staying out until early May, but I felt my home calling to me. So, we will be leaving tomorrow for home. We have had a wonderful winter, although cool. We will be taking several trips to RV rallies throughout the spring and summer, but it is time for us to be home to see family and friends there.

  I am not sure when the next entry will be. Probably after our trip down to Marion NC the end of the month to the Eastern Multi Chapter Rally. Until then, stay safe and healthy. God bless you all.

Good Friends, Beading and Bears

Sorry to be so late with news. I have not posted because we really have had a pretty quiet winter. A good deal of the time we have been snuggled up in the RV, trying to keep warm. The first two weeks in northern GA were quite cold, as they were everywhere. We were running heat a lot. We did get out in the wonderful sunshine, when it was there. While we were trying to keep warm, I taught myself how to make the quilted Christmas ornaments. They were a challenge.

We visited with friends, went out to eat, saw a couple of movies, and so on....We saw AVATAR in 3-D. It was all that the media said it was. We also went to see SHERLOCK HOLMES and we were not as impressed with that flick. Our friends, Cathy and Larry, came down from South Carolina to visit on a weekend and we had a great time while they were there. Phil and 'the guys' went shopping at the tool stores a couple of days, so naturally 'the girls' went to lunch and shopping as well. Country Oaks remains one of our favorite places to be in the winter.

In February we headed to Alabama and back to the Escapee's Park in Summerdale Alabama. This is always like coming home because we have made so many wonderful RV friends here. Phil was busy for a while helping our friends Jon and Pat La Pointe insulate and sheetrock the ceiling of their shed. I was busy beading and building a teddy bear. He is sewn together by hand and his head, arms and legs are jointed.

Every year I try to learn something new here. There are always craft classes going on. I have worked with some people on their computers and we have gone out to eat A LOT. Of course, then there is always someplace to go to listen to Bluegrass Music as well. Last Sunday we were invited to go to the Gulf Shores UMC to hear Stained Glass Bluegrass. When we arrived (an hour before the performance) there was already a very large gathering waiting for the doors to open. They are able to seat about 750 people and Sunday was the fourth night that this event was sold out. Quite impressive. We really enjoyed the performance. Yesterday we traveled down to BILLY'S SEAFOOD and bought two pounds of jumbo shrimp, right off the boat. They even cook it for you. We came home and our friends Jean and Tom shared their Italian Pasta Salad with us while we all peeled and ate shrimp. It was a treat.
Spring comes early in this part of the country. We are eagerly looking forward to the wonderful displays of azalea and red bud trees. The good news is that there is no drought wherever we travel!
Phil is still walking about 5 miles each day. I am feeling fine and hope to stay that way! Next update will come toward the end of March, we will be on the road again at that time. We hope that this finds everyone well. God Bless until next time.
Cindy and Phil