Thursday, December 29, 2011

We're Busy Girls Here

We haven't posted anything recently because we've been busy. We had the Christmas Party at the club house. Everyone brought appetizers and and we had live music.

On Christmas day we had a pot luck luncheon. The park owners provided turkeys and ham. The food was wonderful.

On Monday nights there is a JAM session. That always draws a large crowd.

Tuesday night is Happy Hour. That's always a lot of fun.

Wednesday night is card bingo. We have won a few times.

Thursday night Happy Hour again!

Sunday night is Ice Cream social. fifty cents a scoop.

We mentioned at some point in conversation that we were once caterers and shortly after we were asked to put something together for New Years.

Dawn and I have been busy preparing for a the party. It should be fun. We are lucky enough to be able to use the club house kitchen.

Today we did the grocery shopping. I made over a hundred meatballs and we cooked seventy mushroom sliders. We are doing all that we can in advance since we don't have our tools of the trade as in the past. It fun
being able to plan a party and cook again.

We'll see how we feel on Saturday after the party and clean-up is done!!!!!

Friday, December 23, 2011

Sunday, December 18, 2011

Here's Your Sign

We had this made yesterday while at a local arts fair. Dawn has been wanting one for a while and so now we have one.

Santa drove through the park here yesterday

Friday, December 16, 2011

Chores and More

Wednesday night is BINGO night here. It was our first time to play since we arrived. They play it with cards. It is a lot of FUN. Each game cost a quarter to play. There were 20 of us playing so the pot was five dollars each game. On the third game I won along with two other people so the pot was divided three ways. Dawn won the fifth game. She was the sole winner of the five dollar pot. Great news, we can now afford to do laundry!!!!!!!

Yesterday we ran errands. We went by WalMart and picked up a few things. One of the items we bought was a pair of awning deflappers. Another was the awning anchors. These are must haves here if you want to keep your awning out. The wind doesn’t get very high here but just to be on the safe side everyone here uses them.

We also visited HEB and bought groceries.

We arrived back at the fiver in time to unload groceries and put them away before Happy Hour started. I decided to stay home and set up the awning so Dawn went without me.

Happy Hour here is when everyone meets up with a chair in one hand and their drink in the other. Everyone sets in a big circle and visits for one hour. It starts at 4 and ends at 5.

The weather was cool and dreary today. We hadn’t made any plans for the day so Dawn and I went to the laundry mat first thing. It only took about an hour and we were done with that little chore. It didn’t seem like it took that long because our site neighbors were doing their laundry too and we visited the entire time.

We drove home put our laundry up and had a bite to eat. We then decided we needed to get out for a while. We drove to Padre Island. 

We took the ferry over. The fur kids went crazy. They were barking at everything. They barked at the ferry employees, the dogs in adjacent cars and the swarm of birds that were landing on the truck.

We drove around and checked out what they had to offer and then drove back home. 

Tuesday, December 13, 2011

A day in the Life at Rockport

Rockport, Texas
Weather Condition; High 74, Low 62,

We are really enjoying our stay at Coastal Oaks RV Resort. We are still newbies at being full-timers thing. We are learning as we go. We have learned that all parks are not alike. Here at Coastal Oaks, the residences make up a committee. That committee decides on what type of events are held at the club house.

Since we arrived here, they have had a Sunday Ice Cream Social (.50 per scoop, bring-your-own-bowl & spoon), Pizza Party (You call and order your own pizza and have it delivered to the club house), Game Night (cards or whatever).  $2.00 Bingo and Thursday night Happy Hour (bring your own drink and lawn chair).

We have learned that on Monday and Thursday the propane truck drives through. If you need propane, just set your tank out by the curb and attach your check. The propane man will fill it up and take your check ($24.00). 

You need to set your trash out at the curb before 9:00 a.m. and it will be picked up by maintenance.    
A premium site has a concrete pad twice the size of a standard site. You can use a 2x4 as a curb stop so not to get too close to you RV.

There are people that will complain about anything no matter where they are.

There’s sand spurs are everywhere. They are not dog friendly. Our fur kids have snagged their share of theses nasty stickers.

There are tons of jelly fish in the water here. Most are died. This is due to the red tide.  Red tide is a common name for a phenomenon also known as an algal bloom, an event in which marine, or fresh water algae accumulate rapidly in the water column and results in discoloration of the surface water. It is usually found in coastal areas.


Some red tides are associated with the production of natural toxins, depletion of dissolved oxygen or other harmful effects, and are generally described as harmful algal blooms. The most conspicuous effects of red tides are the associated wildlife mortalities of marine and coastal species of fish, birds, marine mammals, and other organisms.

We have noticed some dead ducks along the water’s edge too. The smell isn’t very nice either.

But with all that aside, we wore shorts and flip flops today. That’s nice for mid December!

Friday, December 9, 2011

Exploring Goose Island

Coastal Oaks RV Resort, Site 411
Rockport, Texas
Weather Condition; High 64, Low 34,

We have been taking care of a few chores

And we’ve also done a little more exploring. Yesterday we drove out to Goose Island State Park. Dennis and Donna (dennisdonna.blogspot.com) recommended we check it out. We’re so glad they did. It is a very neat state park.

Before we arrived at the park gate we came across a herd of deer grazing along the roadway. There were at least a dozen or more of them. They are so graceful.

We drove through the park to see all it had to offer. First of all, the campsites are beautiful. Most are nestled into the trees and isolated from site of the other campsites. The oak trees are beautiful. There are also campsites on the beach.

 This is what we learned about Goose Island State Park. The park consists of 321.4 acres. It is surrounded by the St. Charles and Aransas Bays.

They have a variety of campsites such as, open cabanas campsites with water and electricity. These sites are  located right on the beach overlooking the bay.


They also have campsites in heavily, tree-shaded areas. They consist of water, electric and BBQ grills. There are restrooms with and without showers located throughout the park. 

 They also have a fish-cleaning shade shelter, a double-lane boat ramp and a 1620-foot, lighted fishing pier. They also have a group recreation hall.

Goose Island State Park is located at the southern tip of Lamar Peninsula amid the bays and estuaries of the Texas Gulf Coastal Bend. The mainland portion of the park is comprised of a live oak, red-bay woods which contain yaupon holly, American beautyberry, coral bean and wax myrtle.

 They claim to have a Wildlife observation and photography opportunities include white-tailed deer, raccoon, armadillo, fox, squirrel, cottontail rabbit, and over 300 varieties of birds. The endangered whooping crane feeds on berries and blue crabs occurring in the coastal wetlands around Goose Island State Park.

We also went to see “The Big Oak”. This oak was named State Champion Coastal Live Oak (Quercus virginiana) in 1969, is thought to be one of the largest in the nation. Estimated to be over 1000 years old, the "Big Tree" has a circumference of 35 feet, is 44 feet in height and has a crown spread of 90 feet. 

We also drove along the Fulton Beach Road.

Saturday, December 3, 2011

Coastal Oaks RV Resort, Site 411
Rockport, Texas
Weather Condition; High 79, Low 61,

We really like our new location. Rockport is a very laid back little town. The people are very friendly and the RV park is located in the middle of a residential neighborhood. But it has a country feel to it. We are within a quarter of a mile from the beach less than a mile from the HEB, Walgreens and Wal-Mart.

Everyone here at the park is very friendly. We are making lots of new friends. Most of the people here winter regulars here. This park has only been open for about 4 years and many of the people here have wintered here all four years. The guests here organize get-togethers at the club house. It’s just laid back here.


Today we got out a drove around and did a little exploring. We drove along the Fulton beach road. There are a lot of mom & pop shops and restaurants along the beach.

This afternoon we put up our Christmas tree. It is a cute lil 4 foot tree and fits our fiver perfectly.

 Today was the Rockport Tropical Christmas Festival. It started this morning at 10:00. They had Run, Chalk painting, giant kite flying, tree lighting, Sax Player, Polynesian dancers, birding seminar, whooping crane seminar, many different choirs, pet pageant, illuminated parade and fireworks display.

We went by the park this morning and checked out the kites. It was fun to see all the different types of kites.

We returned tonight to watch the illuminated parade and fireworks display. We sat in the bed of the truck to watch the parade.



It was warm enough that we wore our shorts all day. We are really starting to love it here.

Coastal Oaks RV Resort, Rockport, TX

This is a review of the Coastal Oaks RV Resort

Our site

The Office

Street view

Pool and Hot tub

Laundry Room

Thursday, December 1, 2011

Rockport, Texas for Winter

Coastal Oaks RV Resort, Site 411
Rockport, Texas
Weather; high 82, low 70

We finally made it to Rockport, Texas.

We didn’t get to leave on Monday due to a family emergency and a sick kitty. 

We left Wednesday morning instead. Our little Squeaky has been sick off and on since September. The vet ran blood work and said he believed he had stomach cancer. He was on several medications and they were no longer helping. On Tuesday we had to have him put down. It was a very sad day for us. We have had Squeaky since he was born and he was 12 years old. We really miss him but we couldn’t let him suffer and longer.

We buried him alongside his dog brother Rocky.

We didn’t get to leave Rockwall as early as planned. It was 11:30 a.m. before we finally got on the road. 

We drove a little over 200 miles before we decided to stop for the day. We pulled into Rocky Branch Park in Somerville, TX around 3:30 p.m. We were told the park had just closed. The camp host told us to go back a few miles and check out Overlook Campground and Marina.  We pulled into that park about 4:00 p.m. Thank goodness; they had plenty of sites available. The sites were long enough that we didn’t have to unhook the fiver. We connected to the 30 AMP, hooked up the water and slid out the slides. We were exhausted. We made ourselves a sandwich and parked our butts in the recliners. We went to bed about 8:00 p.m. That’s right, 8:00 p.m.!!!!!

Know what happens when you go to bed at 8:00 p.m.????? You wake up at 4:00 a.m.!!!!!!

I made pancakes for breakfast and we watched the deer grazed. We didn’t have much to do in order to hit the road but we needed to let it get good and light outside before we hit the road. I’m NOT comfortable driving in unfamiliar territory after seeing soo many dead deer along the road side.
   
We pulled out of the park about 8:30 a.m. We did fine until we got to Victoria. WE first missed the loop and then we got on the loop heading in the wrong direction!!!! Anyway, we finally got it right and arrived in Rockport around 2:00 p.m.

The park is nice and the sites are close but not right on top of each other. Our neighbors are very friendly and several have stopped by to introduce themselves and invite us to Happy Hour.

We’ll give more information on the park in our next post.

Thursday, November 24, 2011

Wednesday, November 23, 2011

Gobble, Gobble

Dawn and I want to wish each and everyone of you a safe and Happy Thanksgiving


We are so thankful that we are able to live our dream and be RV fulltimers

Sunday, November 20, 2011

We Are Busy Girls

Home Turf, Site; Driveway
Rockwall, Texas
Weather Condition; High 76, Low 51,

We’ve been busy since we arrived back on our home turf. Dawn had her blood work and her semiannual doctor’s appointment. I’ve had a lot of dental work done. I had a root canal, three teeth pulled, six fillings and a deep cleaning. My dentist is really gentle and my recovery was quick.

We have cleaned and conditioned the roof of the fiver. We have also taken a few things to storage.

Today Dawn did some laundry and reorganized her closet and I reorganized the basement.  

We have bought a few new must have RV items. We needed new tire chocks. We really like these and they were the only ones we could use because our tires are so close together.

We bought much needed tire covers. Camping World had a sale a while back that these tire cover buy-one-get-one-free.

I have needed this clear drain elbow for a while now. It sure helps when draining the tanks and is really helpful when we clean our black tank.

 This cap has come in handy since we’ve been here. It enables us to drain our gray water into the very large cracks in the ground.

We have a few more chores to take care of before we pull out of here on the 28th.

Sunday, November 13, 2011

51 !

Home Turf, Site; Driveway
Rockwall, Texas
Weather Condition; High 78, Low 63,

I turned  "51" today. How did that happen? It hasn't been that long ago that I learned how to ride a bike. Hasn't been that long ago since I learned to drive a car! Well it hasn't been that long ago that I learned to pull a fifth wheel!

I had a great birthday. The weather was beautiful. Dawn put together a shrimp boil for lunch. She puts shrimp, sausage, corn, onion and new potatoes in a large pot and cooks it up. She also made gumbo with chicken, sausage and shrimp.

We just took over Lisa's house and had a party on her patio. The neighbors (Stevenson's) had lunch with us.
The Stevenson's also have November birthdays so it was one big birthday lunch. 

For dessert she made key lime pie, cracker pie and she bought a chocolate cake.


 I really enjoyed the desserts!

Needless to say, everyone was stuffed to the gills after lunch.

It's great having wonderful friends to enjoy these kind of celebrations with.

Crazy Birthday Card

This is the birthday card Dawn gave me this morning. It is so us,

This really fits us too. Makes me think someone might be following us around!!!!


Cruzin2some

Friday, November 11, 2011

Feeling Better

Well, I think I'm going to make it! My face is once again normal size and the soreness is almost gone. We ran errands today. One stop we made was to Baskin Robins. We both needed a good ice cream.
Dawn loves chocolate
I had choc. chip

The heating vent in the kitchen floor broke and we needed to replace it.

We don't have a camping supply store close right now. We took our broken vent cover to Home Depot and found a replace. It was labeled as a mobile home vent cover.We are so happy that it fit perfect.

I will celebrate "51" on the 13th. Our neighbors and Dawn's nephew, Jet also have November birthdays. We missed Lisa's birthday in October so we've decided to make it one large group birthday celebration!!!

Dawn decided we would celebrate with a shrimp boil. That would be shrimp, sausage, new potatoes and corn on the cob all cooked in a large pot of seasoned water. Love It! Dawn had too much time to think about it so we'll also be having shrimp gumbo with bagette bread. Now she's added a shrimp cocktail ring too.

One thing I do know, everyone will get plenty to eat.

Cruzin2some

Wednesday, November 9, 2011

Dentist Visit

I explained to my dentist that we're only going to be here for a month and needed to get dental work done quickly. Well, he heard me loud and clear. I spent a little more then three hours in the dental chair yesterday afternoon. I received a root canal, had three teeth pulled and got my teeth cleaned.

I woke up this morning with a larger face and some soreness. Glad to know I only have a couple of more procedures and I'll be good to go.

Cruzin2some

Thursday, November 3, 2011

Home Turf

Home Turf, Site; Driveway
Rockwall, Texas
Weather Condition; High 56, Low 38,

We started loading up about nine A.M Tuesday morning so that we could leave Daingerfield SP and head back to Rockwall around noon. Well, we’d met a really nice couple from Missouri (Donny and Judy) they were at the site across the street from us. We made quick friends with them. Anyway, Judy came by to visit and brought a cup towel she had crocheted a drawer handle on. It’s very cute and matches our colors great. We got so carried away talking and time was ticking by. An hour later we were back to getting ready for the road.   

Then we met Polly and Paul. They’re also a very nice couple. They were in a site located down the street from us. We started our conversation talking about our fur kids and then Polly mentioned Tyler SP and the dutch-oven cooking they do every first Saturday of each month. Dawn has always been interested in learning how to do the dutch-oven cooking. Well before you know it another hour had past.

It’s been so much fun meeting people along our travels. We have made many new friends in our very short time as full-timers.

Back to the day’s events, we finally did pull out of Daingerfield SP a little after one. We really weren’t ready to leave Daingerfield but we both have medical appointments and needed to get back to Rockwall.

The weather was nice but the wind was blowing when we pulled out. When we arrived at I-30 there were cops, tow trucks and dump trucks at the underpass at the I-30 entrance ramp. We were shocked to see a travel trailer, what remained of a travel trailer that a car had driven through. The only thing that even looked like a travel trailer was the rear bumper and the rear wall. The axels were knocked out from under it and the walls were gone. There was stuff scattered all over the intersections. We later found out that a car had driven through it. We aren’t sure what the cause was or if anyone was hurt. We have searched the web and can’t find any info on it.

It was an awful site. Your heart just sinks. We pray that everyone involved is O.K but it’s hard to believe it could be possible from what we saw.

We finally did make it to Rockwall. We pulled into our old driveway. It didn’t take us long to get set up and we sat back and relaxed for a while.

We’ve been busy since we arrived back into town. We have a lot to get done while we’re here. We both need haircuts; I have dentist appointments for a broken tooth and several fillings. Dawn has her blood work and doctor’s appointments. We need to take things to storage, visit friends and family, wash and wax the fiver, clean and condition the roof and numerous other things. The list goes on and on.

I do have faith that we will get it all done before we head out for Rockport.

Sunday, October 30, 2011

Productive Day

Daingerfield SP, Big Pine, Site 5
Daingerfield, Texas
Weather Condition; High 68, Low 39,

Yesterday was a productive day for us. We made a run to Mt. Pleasant to Wal-Mart. We picked up a few items we needed and a few we didn’t.

We stopped in at Chili’s for lunch. Boy that was a really good lunch.

When we got back to the fiver, I replaced a running light that was out on the truck and replace both wipers. The wipers were in really bad shape. This extra hot summer heat did a real number on the rubber blades. Next on the list is to fix the washer reservoir. It leaks. That also happened in the heat of the summer.

Today we spent going through cabinets and drawers. We took out everything we haven’t used and some things we know we won’t use. We packed stuff that we thought we might need on the road and we’ve learned we really don’t need some of the stuff we brought. We’ll be taking that stuff by storage next week.

It feels good to clear out unneeded stuff and have some extra room in the cabinets.

Cruzin2some

Thursday, October 27, 2011

Dinner at 5 D Cattle Company

Dawn and I went out for dinner last night. Over the years we’ve driven through the small town of Avinger, Texas, (population 444)  many times and noticed a restaurant that always had a lot of cars and on occasion a lot of people standing outside. We’ve said we would stop in sometime and see what all the fuss was about.
The restaurant is 5 D Cattle Company and Meat Market. They serve BBQ and steaks. The BBQ is hand rubbed with a special blend of herbs and spices and then slow cooked over mesquite coals. This is the only restaurant for miles and it’s one of only four businesses in Avinger.
This is the entire downtown area

We drove to Avinger and had dinner. Let me first say the service was wonderful and the hot rolls melted in your mouth. After we looked over the menu, we both decided on the BBQ. I had the sliced brisket plate and Dawn had the rib plate.

Can I just say, “WOW” I couldn’t believe that they brought our plates to the table and they were loaded. We each were given two plates. Our meat and bowl of baked beans were on one large plate and our potato salad, pickle and peppers were on a second plate. The potato salad was the best.
Sliced Brisket Plate

Rib Plate

The brisket was tender and juicy. Dawn said her ribs were very good too. We ended up asking for to-go containers. We can’t wait to try their steaks next time. 

Cruzin2some

Tuesday, October 25, 2011

Weekend with Friends at Daingerfield

Daingerfield SP, Big Pine, Site 5
Daingerfield, Texas
Weather Condition; Highs 82, Lows 63,

We’ve had company this weekend. Our good friends Ginny and Dena brought their travel trailer out and spent the weekend with us. They arrived Friday morning and stayed until this morning. We had a great weekend with them.

Saturday we walked the trail around the lake. It’s a nice hike and the weather was good.



Saturday night brought thunderstorms that kept Abby awake. When she’s awake, so am I. It rained pretty hard and the wind blew but it only lasted about two hours. They really need the rain here. They are still under extreme drought status. It seems odd to be here at Daingerfield in the fall and not be able to have a campfire to warm up to at night. Right now you are not allowed to have any kind of outdoor flame.

I set up the canopy and moved the T.V outside. We had a nice little setup for our game watching. 

Of course, Dawn did some cooking. We had roast and potatoes, chicken and dumplings, brownies, blackberry cobbler and banana pudding.

Sunday we had some great snack foods to eat during the Dallas Cowboy “ GO COWBOYS” and the Texas Ranger game. “GO RANGERS”

It was a great weekend.

After the girls left, we loaded up all our dirty clothes and went to the Laundromat. It was almost past time to go. We don’t mind going as long as the Laundromat is clean. The one in Daingerfield is clean. While doing our laundry, we noticed some kind of commotion going on in the laundry parking lot.

Seems these four women in two different cars had some kind of disagreement and decided to pull into the Laundromat parking lot to settle the score. These were NOT young women; they were mature women that should have known better. Anyway, it began with some name calling and suddenly they were pulling hair, kicking and cussing like there was no tomorrow. Some poor guy stepped in to try and separate the women. He did a good job and got them separated and back to their separate cars but all of a sudden they were back at it. He again jumped in the middle and got the women separated. This time he held one woman as the others got into their car and left.

WOW, that was crazy. We found out later that the guy breaking up the fight was the son of one of the women fighting and had pulled in to stop it. I know he’ll have a few bruises tomorrow!

That was about the most excitement we’ve ever had at the Laundromat.

Tonight we are watching the Texas Rangers play.


Cruzin2some

Tuesday, October 18, 2011

Not Enough Time in a Day

Daingerfield SP, Big Pine, Site 5
Daingerfield, Texas
Weather Condition; Highs 64, Lows 43, cloudy, dry

We spent a couple of weeks on our home turf. We ran lots of errands and did some visiting. Dawn’s Aunt Sella passed away on Sunday night.  She was 86 years old and was a sweet loving woman and she was also a wonderful cook.  Tuesday evening we spent at the funeral home. Wednesday was the funeral.

We’re so very grateful that we were back on our home turf. It seems the good Lord has put us in the right place at the right time.
Thursday afternoon we met a friend for lunch and then I had a dentist appointment after that. I had an upper tooth break in half a few weeks ago. The entire back of it broke off. It hasn’t really bothered me until a few days ago. The dentist said it has turned into an abscess. I am now on antibiotics for a week or so and will see the dentist the first of November.

Friday we spent at the hospital. My little brother had gallbladder surgery. His wife was out of town and his daughter is in college. His daughter came in Friday evening. That meant Dawn and I played nurse until Sunday. His surgery went fine and he was a very good patient. Dawn cooked and I did laundry while we baby sat my brother.

Sunday morning we loaded up everything and hooked up our little home and drove to Daingerfield SP.

We left Rockwall about 11:30 and arrived safe and sound at Daingerfield about 2:30.

This park was packed when we got here. We ended up with a site we’re not crazy about but it will do. We are moving to a better site on Thursday.

Also the manager from the Rockport CG called and said she had a cancellation on a premium site and asked if we were interested. Heck Ya. That is great news for us.
Cruzin2some

Saturday, October 8, 2011

Winter Reservations Worries

Lake Lavon, Lavonia COE Park, Site 43
Wylie, Texas
Highs 85, Lows 72 Cloudy, Windy and Dry

We have been trying to make reservations in Rockport, Texas for the past week. The problem we are running into is the park is either already booked for the winter or no one answers the phone or returns our calls. We are getting a little frustrated. A few of the places we called have waiting list. We are 22nd on the list at one of the parks we are interested in. We are finding that snow-birds make their reservations a year in advance at these places.  It seems that once you find a park you like, you make your reservations as quickly as possible to guarantee your site for the following winter.

We’re new at this snow-birding thing and we’re definitely learning as we go!

We just want a warm place to stay this winter that isn’t a parking lot type of park. There are a lot of those types of RV parks along the coast. We’re planning to tour the east coast area this spring and staying on the coast of Texas puts us in a good position to start our gulf coast/east coast tour.

Cruzin2some

Thursday, October 6, 2011

Back to DFW

We're back in Texas. We drove back yesterday. We left Oklahoma City about 11:00 yesterday morning and drove back to DFW. The wind didn't do us any favors. We were driving against a strong wind all the way back. We landed back in DFW area about 4:00 p.m.

It warmer here then in OK City but it's not too bad either.
 
Travel Safe Dawn and Denise

Monday, October 3, 2011

Rockport Texas

Looks like we might be spending our first full-timers winter in Rockport, Texas. Never been there but it seems like a nice place to visit for the winter.

Travel Safe Dawn and Denise

Saturday, October 1, 2011

A Common Cold?

Haven't posted because we've been out of commission. We caught some kind of a bug and it has kicked our butts. We've been trying to find the turn off button for the mucus factor that have set up shop in our noses. We've both been drained of all our energy and have only moved from bed to recliners for almost a week.

We did make a visit to a local minute clinic and that was a terrible waste of time. The NP told us it was just a common cold and we needed to just rest and would recover in a week or so.

I'm not a doctor, but when you ache all over and your sinus are overflowing and your ears are stopped up to the point of deafness, it seems like more than a common cold.

In four days Dawn and I have gone thru four boxes of tissue and three rolls of toilet paper. Now we need a 55 gallon drum of lotion to rub on our very raw noses.

We are planning to spend the winter in south Texas. We just haven't decided what area of south Texas.

Travel Safe Dawn and Denise