Let the party begin!

Well I was wrong about the timing of the stucco. The drywall has to go on first (the pounding on the walls could loosen the stucco) and the doors need to be in so the stucco can butt up to the door casings. The drywall is on and taped and yesterday the doors arrived so I think the next step is the stucco but I’m not sure.

Contractor, Rob, looking at new patio door he just delivered

Not much was done Thanksgiving week since it was a short week for most folks.

The beginning of November I did a sub shop on a rainy evening but the sandwiches were wonderful!

I have been having problems with my eyes so I have been to the ophthalmologist twice in November and the diagnosis is ocular migraines with glaucoma. I’m using eye drops in my left eye and trusting they will help.

Veteran’s Day we met Dawn, Vince and Bethany at Chili’s and the fellows had a free meal. We went at 4:30 PM and that was a great time as we were seated immediately. We had a great meal and Dawn and Vince came to our place for cheesecake for dessert.

November 15 after church we met at the new house for a 'first picnic'.

Dawn getting things ready for our "picnic" in the new house
 

Bethany and Vince getting ready to chow down at our picnic

It was the first time Colby and Krista had seen the house.  Our church had a Harvest Feast on Saturday November 21 and there was so much food left over everyone could have had another meal and there was still leftovers.  We had a fun time and met some new people.

Bethany, Colby and Krista at our 'picnic' in the new house with the drywall installed

November 19 we took the motorhome to Camping World in Avondale to 'rotate the tires' as sitting too long in not good for it. We had a good trip and made a couple of purchases so Larry could make a repair on our fresh water hose reel. He took it out and re-did it and re-plumbed it so it no longer leaks and the rusty bottom is all freshly painted. It looks great like usual as he does a great job!

Larry working in the fresh water bay repairing the hose reel (minus the hose)

Water bay with new hose installed on the repaired and re-plumbed hose reel

Our next door neighbor (84 years old) had a flat tire so Larry changed it for her and also repaired her kitchen faucet and since he wouldn’t take anything for it she gave him a Lemon Meringue Pie from Village Inn for Thanksgiving. It was really good and I like it because he shared with me even though he did the work.


November 22 we went to Colby and Krista’s new house for their Housewarming Party. Their house is really decorated nicely and even though there were 50 people at the party it did not seem crowded. Thanksgiving we were back at Colby and Krista’s and had a wonderful meal with 12 attending. The younger ones had fun playing a game on the TV while us 'older ones' had good conversation. The 'party' lasted six hours.

Colby and Krista's Housewarming Party

Thanksgiving dinner at Colby and Krista's  

Another shot of our Thanksgiving meal

November 29 we again had a meal at the church after the morning service to celebrate 'family'. We had pulled pork sandwiches, potato salad, baked beans and cookies. They had a bounce house for the kids so they had a lot of fun even though the temperature was cool (60º).

In re-reading this it sounds like all we did was eat and party all month!

Wonderful AZ weather at last!

I woke up  Oct 7 to find red spots that I thought were bug bites and tried to figure out what kind of bug would bite me on just one leg above the knee and no where else. 

my 'bug' bites

After four days of confusion, a friend suggested it looked like a rash to her and that set me on a different course.  The following Monday I went to the doctor and she confirmed my then suspicion that I had shingles. 

Full blown shingles

Fortunately God has been very good to me and I had a mild case with very little pain and there are just a few flat spots left.  Another friend said shingles are caused by a vitamin B deficiency so I immediately started taking Vitamin B so hopefully I won’t have a re-occurance as another friend said she got shingles four different times!

We finally closed on the Prescott house and now we have to make a final accounting and mail it to all the beneficiaries for their approval and then everything can be divided up and closing checks sent.  It will be nice when everything is said and done so we can get on with life.

Larry has been enjoying his bike since the weather has turned so nice finally.  Larry has been helping put in a central vacuum in the new house and he hurt his thumb working on it and ended up spending seven hours at the VA to get it looked at.  He has return visits scheduled for Dec.

Working as a team to get the pipes for the central vac cut

Outlet in the hall for the central vacuum

Since the phone plan we are on is changing Nov 1 we can be grandfathered in by upgrading our phones now so we both have new i-phones, 6s and 6s+.  This means we still get unlimited data which is a BIG deal for us since our MiFi uses around 50 GB a month.

Oct 24 we went to the community dinner and learned there are some serious problems and there will be no more community dinners from now on.  In years past the park paid for free Thanksgiving and Christmas dinners but that is no more.  It is a shame that people cannot communicate with one another so feelings are hurt and then everyone suffers.

The house is coming along quite nicely and they should be able to start the stucco spray on Monday. 

Nice front door with Larry checking out the doorbell wire, ready for the stucco

                             

House from the road ready for stucco

                                 

The ride from our place to the new house is really nice on the bike now.  Larry has been doing some 'horse trading' and we were sorry we didn’t go on the bike one night last week as it would have been a really nice ride.

Are we in the home stretch yet?

The first week of Sept. was nice temperature wise and we took another night ride on the bike to Carefree Hwy and back and the temperature was a nice 78º.  We are looking forward to cooler weather so we can actually SEE the countryside when we ride!

The second week of Sept. we received an offer on the Prescott house and after several back and forth’s we finally agreed to a price and are waiting to close in the next week or so.  It will be nice to have one 'stress factor' out of the way.

I first had a pick up pizza shop and then I had a pizza delivery shop and third we went to a Mexican restaurant in Scottsdale for a nice evening meal for another shop.  I have decided three shops so close together in two weeks was more than I care to do again so I am planning on taking the month of October off from shops.  We did enjoy the food though!

Pizza from the pick up shop

When I went out to dump the MH I found the black valve leaking so we quickly ordered new valves through Amazon and they were delivered the next day (with Prime) so that evening Larry  replaced both the black and the gray waste valves since they are such a pain to replace.  It got dark before he finished so I 'helped' by holding a light.  He was really glad when that job was done and hopefully it won’t need to be done again anytime soon.  He last replaced them in 2008.  It is one of the “less desirable things” about RVing but not enough to make us quit.

Our five year old printer died (it was printing brown instead of black even though we put in a new black cartridge) so we bought a new one.  So far we are pleased with it and it is much faster than the old new.

Dawn and Vince’s new house broke ground on August 24 and on September 24 it looked like the following picture.  Once they started on it, it has gone like gangbusters!  Larry was talking to one of the framers and he knew our son Todd from Schuck & Sons days in 1990 and was there when Todd was injured on the job.  Talk about a small world!

What the property looked like Aug 24, 2015

Lowering a tress onto the roof with a crane

The property on Sept 24, 2015

We ended the month by meeting our grandson Alex and his mother at the bank to get a bond settled that his great grandmother bought him in 1996.  It was good to see them.

Heat on the downhill?

We started off August by celebrating Bethany’s 21st birthday at Olive Garden.  While her birthday was the end of July we could not all get together until Sunday the 2.  We had a great time and just about closed the place down.  We also celebrated Krista’s birthday and instead of cake, both 'girls' wanted pie so Bethany had a lemon meringue pie and Krista had a pecan pie, both very good.  

Birthday girl at Olive Garden

                              

Bethany's birthday 'pie'

Colby and Krista closed on their new house on Friday Aug 7 and started moving that night.  We had told them we would help them UNLOAD since their apt. was on the second floor with no elevator.  It took them a lot longer to load than they anticipated since many of their boxes were books and they had to go down step by step.  It took them 7 hours to load and with Dawn and our help only 1 1/2 hours to unload.  They both had the next week off to unpack and get situated.  Their new house is very lovely.

Kitchen in Colby and Krista's new house on move in day

Our realtor called on Aug 11 to say the house in Prescott had been broken into and the central vac was stolen from off the garage wall.  The door locks on the slider door and the side garage door were broken and the door knob to the side garage door was missing.  That door standing open was what alerted a neighbor that something was wrong and they called our realtor.  Larry quickly called Doyle who painted the house and asked him to see about securing the house as soon as possible.  He was able to get both doors repaired and secured that evening.  We tried to get rez for a campground in Prescott but all were full up so we ended up going to Verde Valley in Cottonwood for nine days.  Cottonwood is about 5-10º cooler during the day and 20º cooler at night than Phoenix so it was a nice break from the oppressive heat of Phoenix.  We took just the bike and went to Prescott via Jerome on the 20th and then returned by way of I-17 after meeting with Doyle.  Our realtor was away on a mini vacation after being in the hospital for a few days, so we did not see him.  We enjoyed our time in Verde Valley.  The views there are awesome.  They were having power issues so they restricted the 'A' section we were in to only 10 sites open so it was really quiet.  One morning I awoke to an odd sound and when I looked out the door saw a hot air balloon had landed just across the street from us!

Looking out our front door

                                   

The view I had each morning for my devotion time at Verde Valley

 Friday night we went to the campground’s restaurant for the Fish Fry and to hear The Hired Hands Band.  We have been following them for 15 years when Molly was just a little girl of five.  She is now a very talented young lady as she plays five different instruments.

Molly, Jesse and Michele- The Hired Hands Band

                                                              
Vince called us on Aug 18 to say they had their permit to build finally and it would start Monday Aug 24.  I told him if we had known all it took was for us to leave town, we would have left weeks before!

We had the MH washed and hand waxed on Tuesday Aug 25 since it has been over a year since it was last waxed.  Four hours after the fellow was finished we had a downpour that lasted well into the night.  At least the motorhome was 'protected' even if the nice wash job didn’t last very long.  It was a very reasonable price and was done with RO water since the water at Verde Valley is extremely hard.  Rain water is 'soft' so it didn’t take much to touch up the few spots Wednesday morning before we left.

When we returned to Phoenix on the 26th we stopped at Copper Star Indoor Shooting Range in Camp Verde so Larry could 'sight in' his new rifle and scope.  It is the only 100 yd indoor range in the state.  Larry 'said' we would stop for an hour but it was three hours before we left.  I was talking to the range master while Larry was on the range.  He is a retired Eugene, OR police officer so we were talking about all the neat places in OR that we both have visited.  He said he was last in Eugene in July 2015 at Premier RV Park and because the temps. were near 100º which is unusual for there, that park was having power issues with everyone running their A/Cs all the time.

Larry's rifle and new scope that he sighted in at Copper Star

We ended the month by going to Golden Corral to celebrate Larry’s birthday and our 55th anniversary on Sunday Aug 30.  Then Monday Aug 31 we made two trips to the property, the first at 9 AM to meet with the contractor and septic fellow.  The inspector was just leaving as we arrived and he had approved everything so the contractor said they may be able to pour the footers that afternoon which they did around 2 PM.  We made it up there in time to see the concrete truck washing up.  They will be back in the morning to finish up.  Once the permit was issued, things are really starting to hop.  Hopefully it will continue to move along smoothly.

Larry's candles in two different cakes

Vince and Bethany at Golden Corral

 

Colby and Krista at Golden Corral

Ellen and Dawn at Golden Corral

First footers poured on the new property

Revisiting old places

The A/C on Larry’s Man Cave has made a world of difference!  Where the inside temperature was running from 110º to 116º it now is a pleasant 84º and he is able to spend the time doing his projects without “cooking”.

Larry putting the new A/C in the roof of his Man Cave

Cover that shows inside the Man Cave

We took another midnight bike ride out towards Lake Pleasant.  We returned on I-17 and could immediately feel the different the pavement made with the heat radiating off the pavement.

July 4 we attended the park dinner and Dawn and Vince joined us.  Along with the brats, country fries and beans we had birthday cake, celebrating everyone who had a birthday in May, June and July.

Vince and Dawn at our 4th of July park dinner

We spent a week in Dewey, AZ just to get out of the heat for a few days and it was wonderful!  We took just the MH and the bike.  It was the first time for the new bike on the re-done bike rack and although it did fine getting there and back, Larry has been re-doing it since to make it 'better' since he is a perfectionist.  While we were in Dewey we went to Larry’s Mom’s house twice and met with our realtor for an open house.  We spent Saturday with the Guthries, friends from many years ago and had a great time catching up, studying the Torah, watching a video and enjoying a bar-b-que dinner.

sorry for the fuzz but a picture of the lovely table for our meal with the Guthries

Sunday morning we went to the park’s church service and then went out to eat.  After we came back home, there was a knock on our door and there were friends from OR Coaches for Christ who we last saw in 2005!  I had wondered what happened to them (they went to AK) so it was good to see them again and catch up with what was going on in their lives.  God is good all the time!

On Tuesday while we were in Dewey, we took the bike for a ride to Jerome and ate lunch at a Bar-b-que  place.  As we came out it looked like it might rain so we hurried to leave.  We had about three drops of rain on us but from the looks of the sky behind us we just missed a storm so we were very grateful.  We stopped at another RV park to look around and if we go back north again we will try this RV park as it is less expensive and we should be able to get satellite TV which we could not get in the Dewey RV park because of the trees.  At least they had cable so we did have some TV although not the one channel I watch on Wednesday.

Larry in Jerome looking down at the outhouse that people try to throw coins into!

Outhouse in Jerome with lots of coins around it

Our meal in Jerome

Our spot in Dewey, AZ with the bike loaded for our return trip to Phoenix

We returned to Phoenix on July 16 and so far have been fortunate to have 'somewhat' cooler weather and only one day of rain.  There were actually two days in a row where the temperature didn’t reach 100º!   Of course the rain cools things off but also makes it more humid.   Larry was able to sell one of his projects for a nice profit and immediately ordered a scope for another one of his projects.  All these projects keep him busy and his mind sharp.

Back in Phoenix so Larry can improve the bike rack

The heat is on!

May was a fairly nice month, weather wise but June came in with a vengeance as the temperatures have been hovering around 110º with the lows in the mid to upper 80’s—way too hot for us!  I had an 'episode' and ended up going to the doctor.  It was determined I was dehydrated even though I carry water with me where ever I go, I just wasn’t drinking enough for the hot weather.

We went to see “American Sniper” at Dawn and Vince’s and I recommend everyone see it so they know what really is going on.

The 11th of June I did another dinner shop and we enjoyed our meal and had leftovers which is always nice.  I have decided one shop a month is good for now since I am not too keen on going outside when the temperature is so hot.  I have stopped walking because of the heat and I’m not a morning person although I did try walking a couple of mornings.  I did have to go back to bed afterwards.  It was still too hot.  I’m beginning to wonder how we survived living in Phoenix for nearly 30 years!  We have decided the weather has changed since that time with so many buildings and asphalt roads adding to the heat.

June 19 was a red letter day as Dawn and Vince finally closed on the property they are buying.  It took 91 days and lots of headaches and setbacks.  To celebrate we went out to eat at Red Robin near the property and then after eating, visited it, sitting in lawn chairs enjoying the view until nearly midnight.  We were shocked how late it was because it was quite pleasant sitting outside with a breeze looking at the city lights to the south and the mountains to the north.  It reminded Larry and me of our place in Tucson that we built in 1979 as we used to go out and sit at night after Larry got off work on the swing shift and view the twinkling lights of Tucson, while it was being built.

Looking north from the middle of the property

Looking north northwest

Looking south from where the house will be

Looking west from the property line

Some of the cacti on the property in bloom

For Father’s Day we went with Dawn and Vince to Golden Corral and also met Vince’s younger son, Alan who looks like his Dad but he is taller.  We all ate too much but that is par for the course when you go to all you can eat places.

Since it seems like we will be staying most of the summer in AZ, we broke down and ordered an A/C for Larry’s Man Cave.  The inside temperature has been 110-116º everyday and that is just too hot for him to get anything done.  It is due to arrive today and Larry was up early in hopes it would arrive early but so far it has not arrived.

Still in AZ

We started off the month of May by going to Chompie's with Vince and Dawn and then went shopping.  The food there is always good and we had leftovers, always good.

Larry took his BMW to Scottsdale for his 600 mile 'check up' and left it there while we went to Prescott for more cleanup.  We ordered new carpet and set up an install date of May 19 then visited briefly with our friends, the Guthries who have returned to AZ from Medford, OR. We also talked to another realtor who recommended we do something about the landscaping and gave us the name of the fellow who does his landscaping.

Larry working hard to clean off the putty that kept this door closed for 20 years

On the 7^th of May I had a delivery pizza shop which is really nice since I didn't have to go anywhere, they came to me.

Delivery pizza that was extra good

For Mother's Day, we met Dawn, Vince, Colby and Krista at Red Lobster.  Bethany had to work but we had a great time and stayed longer than we should have since it was a busy day for Red Lobster.

Krista and Colby at Red Lobster for Mother's Day

Dawn and Vince at Red Lobster

Larry at Red Lobster

We again went to Prescott on Monday (trash day is Tuesday) May 11 and met with Julio, the landscaper and were a little disappointed as nothing more was done inside with the painting. Doyle assured us he would get it done by the 19^th when the carpet was to be installed.

Sunday May 17 we celebrated Vince's birthday at Chompie's with Vince, Dawn, Bethany, Colby and Krista.   We had the back room to ourselves and had an awesome evening, laughing and enjoying each other's company, leaving after they closed the doors at 9 PM.

Larry and Bethany at Chompie's

Us at Chompie's for Vince's birthday

The birthday boy and his cake

Colby and Krista at Chompie's

Since we needed to be in Prescott on Monday and Tuesday we decided to take the MH and spend the night. When we drove up we were pleasantly surprised at how good the landscaping looked! It completely changed the 'feel' of the place.   The inside painting was done and we finished getting everything ready for the carpet fellows.  Both the carpet cleaner and installer came Tuesday and got the carpet done. We decided we needed to spend another night, leaving the windows open to make sure the carpet dried properly and made an appointment with the realtor to list the house.   Everything was done including the outside repair and painting and we left Prescott at 6 PM Wednesday night May 20 hoping we will not have to return anytime soon.

The new landscaping in Prescott

Where we had to park for two nights, very unlevel!

Larry doing the finishing touches to the porch in Prescott

For Memorial Day, Dawn and Vince joined us at the clubhouse for the annual pulled pork BBQ and then joined us on our patio while we looked at pictures we brought back from Prescott.

Our Jet Pack died on Memorial Day and we were unable to get on the internet. The battery expanded to double in size so it didn't work anymore and it would not work without the battery installed. We added a 'hot spot' to Larry's phone for two days while we waited for a new Jet Pack that didn't cost us anything since we were eligible for an 'upgrade'. We are back in business after a few false starts. We still have not decided when or if we are leaving AZ this summer.   We are needed here for a while longer so will be staying.   May, weather wise, was very nice with 100º the first of May and then not again until May 29. That made it easier to stay in AZ during May.