It’s about time

I was recently reminded by somebody very near and extremely dear to me, ahem, that my contributions to our blog have been a little slim (read that as nonexistent) of late. It amazes me at how rapidly not just the days go by, but the months. I know there is a deeper message there but we’ll leave that for another time. That we have been full time RVers for two full years amazes me.

Let’s begin with our visit with friends in Utah. We had a very fun Memorial Day weekend with Steve, Ashley and their boys. We couldn’t believe how tall and mature their eldest has gotten nor his little brother. Wow. We hadn’t seen each other in years so it was a beautiful and very heartwarming visit. Next we zipped up to Ogden and made a lightening quick visit with Steve’s parents as well as his sister Leigh and her family. A visit to Lincoln and Leigh’s home always seems to include one of Leigh’s yummy Italian meals as well as some Papa and Marmie time with us playing with their brilliant tribe. Leaving with promises for a longer visit in the fall we headed out for Montana and the Pacific Northwest (We kept our promise by the way.

Shep pretty much covered visiting our friends in Moxee. Besides having lots of fun playing games and eating delicious meals with Kathy and Eldon, Kathy and I had a girl’s day out. Along the lines of the old “any excuse for a party” we took off for Issaquah on a “any excuse to go fabric shopping” trip. We had the chance to explore two wonderful shops and I’m proud to be able to say my self restraint was 100%. Hard to do, but I returned to Moxee fabric free. I did not, however, return empty handed. Following a delicious lunch at a local pub, we visited the famous chocolatier, Boehm’s Chocolates. All I can say is that those calories were well worth it. Yum!!

Speaking of calories, we spent 2 weeks visiting with a dear friend and her hubby. Pam and I met in high school and she has never been able to get rid of me. Bill was born in Germany and because his mom taught Pam some wonderful German cooking, we get spoiled with all Bill’s favorites whenever we visit. They have a lively little grandson that keeps us in stitches. Along with his Aunt and her sweetheart, we made a trip to the beautiful Portland Zoo.

Because of a reservation falling through and the lack of availability for any space to park within a 2 hour drive, we had a disappointingly short visit with our youngest son Lew, his amazing wife Lisa and their beautiful two children. (Grandparents are allowed to be proud of their grandchildren, right?) I am always amazed at the artistic talent of our brilliant grandson and the boundless energy of our lovely granddaughter. If only that could be bottled. I’d take a teaspoon every day about 3 o’clock! Since our last visit they added a new 4 legged family member who also has boundless energy and is very very cute. Luna is a golden doodle and a real love. Lots of precious puppy energy. Both Shep and I miss having a golden family member. There will come a time for that but for now, having a dog would both be unfair to the pup and put a real crimp on our ability to be spontaneous and leave the “house” for many hours at a time.

I hope you’ll excuse me if I brag on our eldest son Nate, his lovely wife Heather, and their three bundles of love and energy. Because of the pandemic and etc., we haven’t been able to visit. We miss them so much! Can’t wait for 2022 when we’ll be able to visit once again. It is a wonderful thing to see our sons grew up as we prayed and expected they would- blessed with phenomenal wives, hard working, respected gentlemen who are loving, dedicated husbands and fathers. We stand in awe of them all.

Summer visit is with my little sis, Karen and her every expanding family is always precious to us. It is so fun to observe she and her husband Brent in the role of grandparents. Their 5 littles are energetic, loving, hilarious, and very fun little scamps who love granny and “grumpa”, each other and even us. To see how much they grow and develop both physically and as individuals each time we pass through is amazing.

Leaving northwestern Washington we swooped east and south along the North Cascades Highway. If you ever visit Washington, PLEASE do yourself a favor and spend 2 or 3 days and take Highway 20 loop. Ok, back to us…. We went to see friends in the Methow Valley where we lived for 9 years. One of our friends and adjacent neighbors was in the process of purchasing the home and land we built and developed. This is very exciting for us as we know how much she will enjoy the place as well as how beautifully she will care for it.

After a busy day and quick night, we headed east to northern Idaho will cases of Honeycrisp apples in the back seat.

When we commenced this rambling lifestyle we had a vague idea of what it would be. Now it is interesting to look and see how it has developed. Initially we thought we would go from visiting in family in Washington to visiting family in Arkansas, along with catching up with friends in between. The first few months we were able to see both of our sons and their families and ended up spending the winter where we just went to make a short visit. Then the pandemic hit. Needless to say, our plans to visit our kids were impacted. But you roll with things. Serendipity can lead to wonderful experiences, you know.

Many times during my childhood and youth my mother lamented the societal and population/lifestyle changes which had occurred since her youth. I find I am standing in the place and have the same feelings. The changes in western Washington are grevious to me. I do not feel at home there any longer nor do I feel the peace and ability to relax I once did. Being from dry central Washington, Shep has a great dislike for the rain that I used to love. Somehow, in the past 30 years, I have become a convert to living where it is dry and sunny. One caveat- Moses Lake is not an option for a future landing place.

In northern Idaho we find the same peace we felt as children in rural Washington as well as living in the Methow Valley (without the regular wildfires and choking smoke.) We are blessed to have friends who have become as family there. They live on a large rural hay farm which is wonderful but even better, they have 8 children and a golden retriever to get into trouble with. :-). Following a fun visit there we then headed to Montana where we had a great visit with friends who live in a glorious part of our nation. Steve and Joyce generously shared their home and a very enjoyable and full day trip to Yellowstone National Park. Our visit ended much too quickly we had to zip off to meet the RV park reservation we had made in Utah.

While in Utah I scored a huge coup (woot woot!!) by getting my sweetheart outfitted with a new suit and some coordinating slacks that fit his slender physique. He is quite dashing when he gets dressed up for church.😉😻 With this accomplished, we turned southward to where we sit today in the beautiful Marble Canyon of Arizona. From our campsite we look to the right and see the Grand Canyon and Colorado river and to the left are the the flaming cliffs and crags which are part of the Vermillion Cliffs National Monument. To say the least, we are in constant awe at the beauty and majesty of God’s creation which fills our eyes as well as our hearts.

Here the Colorado river is serene upriver and quickly assumes it famous wildly exciting nature downriver. I have tied a couple of flies and begun re-learning the skills and art of fly fishing, a fun challenge that has yet to produce any trout for the table, but is enjoyable nonetheless. Shep caught two beauties which we kept and enjoyed. He used his own handcrafted spinner lures and they did the tric. Fishing the Colorado here all the fish are wild and are very aggressive when they strike your fly/lure. My dream is for Shep and I to take a guided fishing trip here next year. (Please Santa Baby…) Between now and then, I’ll be working on my techniques and knowledge. Thank you Youtube!

We depart here in just a few days and head for a week in St. George, Utah so we can enjoy their extensive multi use trail system on our bikes as well as make the short run to the beautiful temple in Cedar City in order to do work for several of our family members who passed away many years ago. We leave St. George and as long as Shep can pry my fingers off the walls of the big Bass Pro Shop south of Las Vegas, we’ll arrive before dusk in Quartzsite to settle in to our trailer space where we’ll be for the winter. We look forward to catching up with our friends in the community there and seeing if the snowbirds from Canada actually arrive as expected.

God bless and keep you safe and well until we meet again.🌻🌻