FROM THE FOREST FLOOR TO THE BATHROOM SINK

Monday, April 17 – Where in the heck does the time go? We have been here in Livingston for a week and cannot exactly tell you what we have done. It has just flown by.

We do remember that one day we visited Sam Houston National Forest. The forest contains 163, 037 acres in three counties. Marsha has run out of pine needles and needs more…fast! This was a great place to gather her precious needles.

It was a gorgeous day. The entrance was beautiful.

There are tons of walking paths, restrooms, and wildlife.

See these trees…tons of needles. She was thrilled. We collected thousands of needles. She soaked them ALL and for the next three days we cleaned needles. YES, she actually got me to help her…now I am doing woman’s work…GEESH!

Marsha did finish another basket with the needles she had. When she started her new basket, it was going to be a cracker basket for a friend. But, she decided to do some experimenting and decided to keep it for herself. She used some of the pine needles she dyed, and branched out to use color thread. It actually turned out pretty nice.

So if she doesn’t use it for crackers, what does she use it for? Does she really need all this stuff?

We have added a new feature to the sidebar…Google Search. Marsha wanted to add tags/categories to each blog that would help readers search related topics, but was having a difficult time making it work smoothly. She wrote to Rick of Rick and Paulette’s RV Travels and asked him why he doesn’t use tags/categories. He suggested using the Google Search gadget instead. Rick said it is much easier for the readers to use. It will ONLY  search our blog not the entire Internet. Now you can search our site for all blogs related to a specific topic. If you use it, let us know how you like it.

Thanks for stopping by. Hope to see you back real soon. Have a great day!

IS IT TIME TO LOSE SOME WEIGHT???

Tuesday, April 12 – Time for our Miss Phaeton (our motor home) to step on the scales. This morning we have an appointment with the Escapee SmartWeigh Program to have a “Four Corner” weighing of our motor home. They weigh each corner to verify that you are within the weight parameters of the motor home manufacturer and your tire manufacturer.

Escapee has built a nice weighing area near the activity center.

Mark Nemeth is the SmartWeigh Coordinator. Mark had Paul drive around the campground for a few minutes in the MH before the weighing to get the suspension and air bags all loosened up. Paul then pulled slowly onto the weighing pads. 

Mark checked the weight of the front corners. He had Marsha get in the passenger seat before doing the font axle reading.

He then had Paul pull up and stop with the rear axle on the weigh pads.

Here are the results.....Right Front = 5480 pounds Right Rear = 10280 pounds

Before reading.

Rear reading.

Left Front = 5680 pounds Left Rear - 8900 pounds

Mark explained all the readings.

These weighs are well within our weight restrictions. Our front axle is rated at 12,000 pounds and our rear axle is at 20,000 pounds. Our front tires are rated 6950 each and our rears (duals) at 12660 pounds.

You may have noticed that our right rear is the heaviest corner......that is where Marsha's closet is located!.....ha ha!!! That's a joke dear   :=)

Actually, the RR of Tiffin Motorhomes are known for being the heaviest corner. That is where the 6-batteries are located, the kitchen is on that side, most men have their tools in that area, holding tanks are located in the rear, etc.... Paul did say he might move his tools to the other side to try to balance Marsha's closet.....LOL

Paul was VERY satisfied with the results of the four corner weighing. Escapees is providing a WONDERFUL service to RV owners by offering this weighing program. So many RVers are traveling unsafe because they are overweight.

There are four basic reasons why the RV should not be overloaded and more reason to get your RV weighed.

• First, the reliability and durability of the RV will be greatly diminished as a direct result of our demanding that it do more work than it was designed for.
• Second, the personal safety of the RVers, their passengers, as well as others on the road, will be in jeopardy.
• Third, any warranty coverage for what is likely the second largest purchase ever by the RVer may be lost.  
• Finally, and probably most importantly, the legal and financial liability of operating the RV beyond the federal and manufacturer's limitations is more than most RVers are willing to accept.

The weighing costs $40 and is well worth it! You do not have to be an Escapee member to take advantage of this service. To set up an appointment, visit the SmartWeigh website. A shout out to Escapees!!!
 

Wednesday, April 13 – We had a busy day visiting with friends here at Rainbow's End. We had lunch with Fran & Wayne at the CARE house. This is a semi-assisted living facility here at Rainbow's End.

They live in their MH parked on a CARE campsite but eat meals and have activities at the CARE facility. What a beautiful place they have. Wayne has done a beautiful job planting lots of flowers.

Fran has the cutest bird houses. This one was so unique.

After lunch we wondered outside to see Wayne's birthday gift.....a tree planted on the CARE grounds. Fran picked it out and Wayne planted to replace a tree that didn't survive the winter and draught. Thanks for a delicious lunch, and thank you for picking up the tab, Wayne. What a nice surprise.

When you travel like we are doing, you just do the strangest things some times. Tonight we went with Linda and Ed to play BINGO. They play several times per week. Tonight is at the VFW Hall in Livingston. This was Paul's first experience with “real” Bingo. He's played the game but not as an adult in an “organized” hall. Pretty impressive operation. These people take BINGO pretty serious.

You would think out of nine games we would win at least one BUT noooooooo. Paul, Marsha, and Linda donated their money to the hall……. BUT Ed WON!…….. Way to go Ed.

This picture is for Jeri, our friend. She didn’t win when she played with Ed and Linda either. We wanted to show her who has all the luck. Good going Ed.

Thanks for stopping by. Hope to see y’all back real soon. Have a great day!

ON THE ROAD AGAIN

Sunday, April 10 – Today is our last day in Houston. Monday, after rush hour, we head straight through the heart of Houston on US-59 to Livingston, TX. We'll be spending a week there, visiting friends and getting our MH weighed at the Escapee's Rainbow's End. - our hometown.

But hold on.....today is another adventure! After church we are heading to our daughter's apartment for one last visit with our girls and we meet a “good” friend of Carrie’s, Jay.

The girls treated us to a homemade dinner of grilled chicken, steak and shishkabobs. But, before we ate this, Carrie started us off with an appetizer…CRAWFISH!

Oh my, Carrie is the only one of the five who has have crawfish…so the adventure begins. Marsha has always wanted to try them but I DO NOT! She really dug in. And is happy to report she really liked them.

Kelly wasn’t so sure.

Jay was a good sport about it but I DID NOT like them!

I'm glad to report the Jay is a very nice young man. We barbequed lunch, played some games, and just enjoyed each others company. It was great being with them one more day before we depart.

Since we won't be seeing them at Easter, Marsha celebrated the occasion early.......a visit from the Easter Bunny. She just loves this stuff.......JEESH!  She said to say that the girls love it too. I think we may hear something from about that.

Again, we had a wonderful day at Carrie's house. Nothing better for us to spend a few hours with the girls!

Monday, April 11 – Time to “Hit the Road.” After 33 days here at the Houston Elks, we are pulling out and heading North on US-59 to Livingston, TX. This is the beginning of a two month circular trip through Arkansas, Southern Missouri, Southern Oklahoma, and back to Texas. We're a little nervous about this journey through “tornado alley” at this time of year. We have our weather radio and computers to keep an eye out for troubling storms. Keep us in your prayers for smooth sailing!

First leg of the trip went quite well. Even though the traffic through Houston was a little heavier than expected, we sailed right through.

We arrived in Livingston, TX in less than two hours. Got a great site, No. #90 on the hill.

Bella, our cat, was in Heaven!!! She loves sitting out in the cool grass and watching the world go by. She was out for several hours in the afternoon and several hours again in the evening.

We went over to Ed and Linda Lavin's site for happy hour.

We originally met Ed and Linda in Quartzsite in January of 2010. We've enjoyed hooking up with them several times since. We sat and got caught up with each others lives. They are HUGE Boston Red Sox’s fans. They had the game on but were not happy with the results. Bella came to Happy Hour and loved visiting a new area with all it's wonderful smells and sights. A very enjoyable evening.

Thanks for stopping by. Hope to see y’all back real soon. Have a great day!