Thunder Blizzard And Final Thoughts 2015

As I sit here in a very dark room thinking about the lack of electricity and water due to the blizzard we are in the middle of, I thought there was no better time to write my final entry into this years blog.

My Facebook feed showed a picture from 2006 and all the snow we had gotten during this same time. 

I don't remember it being so brutal but I am sure it was. 

The weather has been really very unpredictable this year. 

Right after Thanksgiving we had a terrible ice storm and my poor husband is still trying to clean up all the tree mess from that. 

Our whole perimeter of the house has piles of tree limbs that are patiently waiting to be picked up by the City

The rate we are going with this latest bout I am sure we will have more limbs to add to the piles. 

Only problem is we are running out of room to do this. 

It's amazing how dependent we are on this wonderful current that is delivered to our homes and work called electricity. 

The news reports over 50,000 people in El Reno, Yukon and Piedmont are the worst hit areas. 

It's a mess out on the roads this morning with power lines down everywhere.

This is going to take awhile to get cleaned up and back to normal. 

That's one thing you can always depend on is we all get back up and dust ourselves off and get our lives back to the normal day to day living. 

The ice on the trees are breathtaking. 

We got out for a bit and I took this picture as the daylight was ending. 

As far as this year, I have to say we got to go and spend some great times with our wonderful friends that we ride with

We acquired our new 5th wheel trailer and was able to take it out a few times and try our camping or what I call it glamping skills.  

Thanks to Diana & Chris for teaching us some of the tricks to make our experience even more pleasurable. 

There is a lot to learn as far at hooking up and setting up a trailer.

Speaking of Diana.....not sure how I say this but my sweet BFF has been doing a disappearing act this year. 

I am so very proud of this girl. 

She has lost a whole person in weight. 

Her determination has been over the top and she deserves a whole lot of hugs for her accomplishment. 

My husband worked his final day of work on November 20 and says he is officially retired. 

I hope he is going to enjoy being retired. 

To me it is a bit scary.  

Does that officially make me "old"?!  

Since I have worked all my life it is just hard to wrap my head around retirement. 

I guess I never thought I would ever want to stop working.

Don't get me wrong it could be fun, but I really don't want to spend my day cooking and cleaning. 

I like being around people and I guess that is why I find my store so rewarding. 

We are planning on a few trips in the future and it will be fun I am sure. 

Time will tell how our travels work out. 

We have the new year ahead of us and in true fashion I am sure I will have plenty of trips to blog about. 

I appreciate all the people that touched my life this year. 

I am thankful for our family and those wonderful grandkids. 

They are growing up way too fast:)

It was a good year and I can truly say we had plenty of fun and laughter along the way.

The new trailer has come in handy this week since we are going on day 4 of no power or water. 

We are sitting in the trailer as I write this final entry and proofread my post. 

It's nice and warm and we have TV. 

Thanks to our Dish Tailgater we can watch the Bowl game of choice this evening. 

Here's to 2016 and beyond. 

Can't wait to see what we are in store for. 

Happy New Years to everyone. 

Lone Star Rally 2015 (day 5)

Wow, we actually got some sleep last night.
No "Claire" screaming or knocking!

I think everyone is ready to get home today, and we are on the bikes at 8:30am.
The nice thing about riding in the Dallas, Ft. Worth area this early on a Sunday morning is that there is no traffic.






It is a mild morning and we know that we are probably bundled up too much, but the weather in Oklahoma is a bit cooler than the 52 degrees we are experiencing this morning.


We make our way up I-35 without any problems.

Allen and Doreen suggested we eat lunch in Purcell at a cafe they had been to a few times.














We make our way to Purcell, and we pull into the parking lot of Sonny's Cafe around 11:15.

What a cute little place....and the buffet was really good!
We will have to make a point to come and eat here again!










It's a little after noon and our bellies are full.
This is our final spot with everyone, so we say our goodbyes to Doreen, Allen, Diana and Chris.
Doreen and Allen will split from us here, just as we started this adventure a few days earlier.
Diana and Chris will follow us to Yukon, and continue to their home.

We had a great trip, and glad to say we all made it home safely.
So glad the weather cooperated with us fairly well.
This one is in the record books.
Thanks to all who participated.
Your the best!
(Our mileage was a little over 1200 miles.)

Lone Star Rally 2015 (day 4)

Ever had a couple of sleepless nights?
Well, this visit to Galveston, we have had a couple of them  :(
I sure would like to find the girl named "Claire" that was causing all the commotion in the wee hours of the morning.
Since we are on the Honda and I know they don't make any noise, I am using my imagination and asking Doreen to do our dirty work....you see Doreen's bike is loud!!!
Wouldn't it be fun to find this "Claire" and park right in front of her room and blast her with the pipes....Oh, that is really mean, but between the screaming of last night, and the banging on doors the night before, I think it is only fitting....but alas, it is only in my thoughts....LOL




We awake to exactly what we thought would be going on this morning.
It is raining!
Yep, and we are all prepared for it.































Rain suits and everything to keep us dry are on, and we are ready to point the bikes back to the main land.
Chuck thinks we will just hit spotty rain if we leave around 9am, so that is just what we did.














The rain was actually the hardest in Galveston.
As we crossed the causeway and say goodbye to the island, the rain lets up.
We hit spots of rain, but nothing that bad.
It is so funny to see the bikes heading to the island, and the people on them, are wearing short sleeve shirts, and no rain gear, and we are bundled up like crazy.
We are prepared!










We get almost to the Woodlands, and we stop to grab some breakfast.
Was a perfect time to do this, as Allen shows us his blown out rain suit that he is wearing.
He and Doreen walk to the Walmart and he comes back with a new rain suit.
Frog Togs to be exact.





Our next stop is for gas at Buc-ee's.
The rain is still coming down, but we keep making miles trying to get out of the stuff.
It really isn't a bad ride, but sure would be more fun if we didn't have to deal with the rain.









Amazing what can happen as you drive down the highway.
Somewhere along I-45 ( I swear it said Brueback but I can't even find a name like that on the map) we see a black SUV up on top of a very large hill right off the highway.
The headlights are on, and we see several people standing outside the car.
As we pass, we realize that one of the people are mooning the cars that go by.
It happened so quickly, all we could do was laugh.
Darn, we should have honked!


Allen and his Frog Togs...well let me tell you about it.
Seems he just can't keep his legs away from the exhaust of his bike...so need I say more!!!
He tells us that he noticed as he was riding that it was a bit more air coming in and his shirt was actually riding up.
He said he looks down, and he can see his clothes.
Upon further inspection, he realizes that he has not only gotten one leg too close, but actually both legs.
I think the stop at Buc-ee's was where this said event happened.
I for one laughed so hard when he was telling us about it.
I remember his last adventure with Frog Togs, and I have to say, it had the same outcome....ROFL

That was pretty much the excitement for the rest of the trip.
We actually had gotten out of the rain, and are just dealing with partly cloudy skies by now.
Our destination for the night is Arlington.
We stay in a hotel very close to Six Flags.....and looks like there are a lot of Eagles and Cowboys fans staying here as well.
We are lucky to actually find 3 rooms I guess!

We get settled in and walk to a restaurant that is in front of the hotel.
Enjoyed watching some football and talking about our trip.
Great time for sure.
We got back to our rooms and Allen had to share his fried Frog Togs with all of us.

I was so glad I was able to get a picture of these poor things.

Good laughs for sure. 

Time to get some shut eye. 

Good night.

Lone Star Bike Rally 2015 (day 3)

Refreshed and ready to get back out there, we meet at the pool area of the hotel.
The breakfast leaves a lot to be desired, so we decide to walk over to the MacDonald's that is just around the corner.
We opt for a direct route, which entails a retaining wall that we have to jump off to get there.
This little 5 foot wall was just a little obstacle for us.
Doreen was the first brave sole to jump off and show us it could be done.
Don't get me wrong, in my younger years, no problem, but the thought of bouncing just isn't as easy as it used to be.
We all got a good laugh watching each of us make our way off the wall.
Chuck backed up and I got a somewhat piggy back ride down!
The even funnier part was the people in the drive through watching these 6 people make their way off the retaining wall.
I was laughing so hard and paying attention to everyone, I failed to even get a picture of the whole thing...my mistake for sure...would have been really blog worthy!

Breakfast was a typical McDonald's, but it was miles better than what we would have eaten if we hadn't attempted our great escape from the hotel.  :)

As we make our way back to the hotel, there is a little store we pop in and check out their souvenirs.
We got a good laugh out of the 4 seater peddle carts that you could rent at this shop.
They were so eaten up with rust, I'm not sure a person would even be safe to ride in one.
His sign says they are "new", and if that is so, I guess the salt air really does erode things very quickly!  LOL

We head out on the bikes to go back to The Strand, and I have to say it was a good thing that we took our picture yesterday on the beach, as it is a bit froggy :) today!
Good choice of days Chuck :)



Back to The Strand area, and we park about a block from where we parked yesterday.
We know exactly where we left off, and we make our way back towards the Wharf.
It is really warm today (10:25 am and it is already 81), and the humidity is really high.
You just want to duck from shaded area to shaded area.
In true typical style we get our picture at the Wharf.
Thanks to the lady that took it for us....seems she was looking for someone to take one for her as well, so it worked out great.


Time to eat some lunch, and we go to Fudruckers and eat a burger.
The place had a limited menu for the rally, but have to say, the food was good, and oh, the tea was even better.




We finish looking around The Strand area and head back to the bikes.
We will make our way to The Boardwalk and check out the vendors there.











Parking is very limited in the free areas, and Chuck pulls over to the seawall and we park.
A very nice gentleman from Galveston explains to us about the pay and park app that we need to do to park here.
We had been here and used it before so it was easy to log in and add the motorcycle tag...well, for some of us anyway.
The gentleman that assisted us worked for the township of Galveston and this was his job...to make it easy for people to park and pay!








The vendors are the typical vendors.
We hear them fine tuning a Harley on the dyno machine.
I still hate to hear them rev the engine so high, but I get it!

The heat is really wearing on me, and I for one would like to sit down and chill for a bit.
We find some chairs at Murdock's Souvenir shop and do just that.

Was nice to sit and eat an ice cream and just chill for a bit.
The sea looks really strange farther out.
The sun is shining, but it looks kinda cloudy.



Soon after we leave Murdock's we see what those clouds were all about.
We walk out of a 5th wheel trailer they had on display and can hardly see in front of ourselves.
The fog has rolled in.
Very eerie looking and feeling.
It comes in and then it dissipates.
You blink and it is back.
I guess this is just island life, but for us flat landers, this is pretty cool!





Our time is going to be up on the park and pay, so we make our way back to the bikes.
As we get close to the bikes, we see a paper on ours.
Looks like we have gotten a ticket...WHAT!!!!!

I call the number on the park and pay and ask what the heck.
Well, looks like I failed to put a digit on our tag number and it almost matched the one I had listed, but it wasn't it...so guess what...the nice officer gave us a ticket.

The girl on the other line was very nice, and she changed the tag number, and told me who to contact to try and get this taken care of....heck I didn't want to pay a $30 ticket.

One of the guys on the seaways was across the street and the guys waved him down to come over and help us.
The girl on the phone told me to contact this person and come to find out it was the guy that had helped us when we parked earlier.

He was across the street as well, and the attendants suggest we go and talk to him.
We drive over to him and he recognized us.
I told him about my mistake on the tag number and he said maybe we could get the officer that wrote the ticket to do something about it.

Gosh this was a lengthy process, but all is well, and we are not convicts or anything, and there are no arrest warrants in Galveston for us.
The officer hadn't batched his tickets, so he was able to just go into his little computer and delete the ticket.
Man, that was a relief.


Very froggy (foggy) ride back to the rooms.
We do a quick turn around and head for dinner
Seems this group is good at eating!

Allen had suggested we go to Guido's for dinner.
It is a very nice restaurant, and it has been on this island for a very long time.
The waiter told us all about it.
He suggested a few things off the menu.
I knew they were known for their crab cakes, and we had eaten them a few years back.

Allen and Chuck went out on a limb and ordered the Golden Tile fish.
I on the other hand was not that brave, grilled shrimp for me....and Chris was in usual form with the fried shrimp.  :)

My food was really good, and I think everyone else enjoyed theirs as well, but Chuck and Allen said they would pass on the golden tile if offered again.  




Its dark and foggy when we finish dinner, and gosh it's 7pm...LOL
Amazingly we are all worn out again, and we say our good nights and end our final night on the island in true fashion.
We are in our rooms early again!!!!

Tonight we are awakened to a girl screaming bloody murder.
It was so bad, I got up and looked out to see if I could see her.
Between the revving of engines and screams, we have a pretty sleepless night. :(

Lone Star Bike Rally 2015 (day 2)

We wake to humidity!
Not raining but sure feels like it is.
The skies are overcast but we plan on seeing sunshine today, so we set out for Galveston Island.

I failed to say that Texas has really had an abundance of rain the last couple of weeks.
When we got close to Beaumont, TX, we could see the remnants of it in the fields and across the roads.

We only had a couple of areas that the water was still covering parts of the road, but sure did make you aware of the flooding the locals had experienced the last week.
It was so nice to see the clouds break up and actually have sunshine this morning.
By around 10am we got to see some beautiful blue skies!
By the time we make it to Port Bolivar, the clouds were all gone, just blue skies ahead for us.

Our ride on the ferry was fun as usual.
It is always a good time to take a few pictures and watch for dolphins.

We exit the ferry and we had already discussed lunch so we head to The Spot for some good food.
The township of Galveston is roaring with bikers and bikes, and The Spot was busy as usual.

We found a table to sit at upstairs, so we made ourselves comfortable and ate our first meal of seafood for this trip.

Although we are early for checking in the hotel, we decide to see if our rooms might be ready early, and sure enough, by 1:30pm we are checked in and getting settled into our rooms.

We all meet back at the bikes about an hour later, and decide to ride to The Strand and check out a few vendors.                                                                                        
As we leave the hotel, Chuck asked if we should go ahead and stop and take our customary pics of our bikes on The Boardwalk.
No time like the present, so we stop and do just that!
(glad we did, because this really was the best day of all to do this!)

Making our way to The Strand was refreshing as usual, as I just drool over the homes that are along the street we ride.
I love all the colors and different styles each home has.
It would be so much fun to own one of these beauties, until the hurricanes come!!!!

Ok, back to reality, we make our way to The Strand.
We park a block away and walk to start our way through the many vendors.
Amazing how many years we have been to this rally, and how we know pretty much where every vendor is located, or not....if they decide to not come back to the rally.

The Strand was beginning to swell with bikes.
We have in the past parked on The Strand, but sometimes it gets so full with bikes, it really is hard to get out of your spot when you are ready to leave.
If you haven't been to this rally, it really is a good one to come to.
The Strand will become wall to wall bikes and people this weekend.
There will be a steady stream of motorcycles riding down the middle of the street in parade fashion, showing off their bikes and/or just looking at all the sites as they drive through.
You have to do it once just to say you did it!

Our feet are tired and it is time to head back towards the hotel.
Once again there is a Mexican Food Restaurant next door, so we park the bikes and walk over to have some dinner.
I can truly say, I have had better food at other places, but hey, it was close!
After we eat we walk across to The Boardwalk and walk on the beach.
There are a few shells to be had, so of course we picked some up.
Back across the street we notice a frozen custard store and of course we have to go check it out.
It was quite tasty, as it was a mix of Italian Ice and Custard.  Yummy!
Yes, Rita's we liked you....6 thumbs up!


We have had a full day, and we are all tired.
Sounds like we are getting old, but really it was a full day of walking and playing.
Time to chill a bit and get our energy back for tomorrow we have more vendors to check out.
Goodnight world.

Lone Star Bike Rally 2015

Hard to believe that this year is about over.
The Lone Star Rally is always our last big hooray before the year ends.
They have moved the rally back a week, and you just never know what the weather is going to be doing at the end of October, and for sure the first week of November.
It looks like we are going to have smooth sailing leaving Oklahoma, but there is a threat for rain on Saturday, and that is the day we are planning on setting sails back north.
With that all said I will tell you a bit about the trip we just had to Galveston, TX.

We leave the house at 9am and are meeting up with Doreen and Allen in Purcell, OK.
Diana and Chris are going to get a later start and hoping we will meet up before we reach our destination for the evening.

We pull into our designated meeting spot in Purcell at 10am.
Doreen and Allen had just gotten there as well.
The weather is overcast, and I for one was glad I put on a light pair of thermals on to make my ride just perfect.

By the time we make it to Gainesville, TX, we decided to stop at Cracker Barrel and have lunch.
The food was typical Cracker Barrel, and was very tasty!
I had gotten a text from Diana and she and Chris left their house at 11am.
I checked their location as we finished lunch, and they were about 120 miles away from us.

Our route is to take Highway 82 out of Gainesville and then go south on Highway 69 towards Tyler, TX.

Diana and I are in communication via text and I make sure they know what exit to take and what highway we are on, as we are hoping that they can eventually catch up with us.

The overcast skies stayed with us until we got on Highway 69 and we finally saw sun!!!
My two shirts, and multiple layers of jackets were finally getting a bit warm.

Diana text and say they have made it to Highway 69 and I told her she would finally warm up, and sure enough she text and asked what that bright thing in the sky was...LOL

We stopped for gas in the town of Emory, TX., and I had seen a Dairy Queen,  and I suggested we have a little bit of ice cream.

I informed Diana that they were closing in on us, and we would just wait at the DQ for them to show up.
It wasn't much over a 30 minute wait and they indeed showed up.
So glad they were able to catch up with us, and not get a speeding ticket either!
According to Chris he had Angel their Goldwing flying below the radar!
Our little group of 6 people and 4 bikes are now complete.
Lets get on the road.

Our travels were good and we really made some good time until we hit Tyler, TX.
It was a little after 5pm, and we got right in the middle of their rush hour.
Now you wouldn't think Tyler could have a very big rush hour, but let me tell you.
It took us all of 45 minutes to get out of that town.
Golly, it was really busy!

By now, the sun has set and that time of night you start worrying about critters.
I had noticed a few deer feeding in some fields but nothing close to the road.

Luck was on our side, as a guy hauling a load with his truck passed us, and he drove a nice steady speed.
Chuck got behind him and we followed him all the way to Lufkin, TX.
When the guy finally turned off in Lufkin, I wanted to thank him for being our front door this evening.
We make our way around the bypass to our home away from home this evening.
As luck would have it, there was a Mexican Food Restaurant right next door to the motel.
Didn't have to twist any of our arms to have a drink or two, and eat some good food!

All in all a great day of riding.
So happy that Chris and Diana caught up with us!
Tomorrow we head to the island.  :)

Fall Break Camping with the Grands

We took a trip back to Arkansas and stayed at the Wanderlust RV park once again.
This time we had a full house.
My mom and step-dad made the trip as well.
The Wanderlust RV park has some wonderful little cabins on their property, and we were able to get a cabin for my mom and dad to stay in.









Our son, daughter-in-law and 2 grand kids also came along for the trip.
The grands haven't "camped" before, so it was time they got to check everything out, and since it was the kids Fall Break, what a better time to do just that.











Eureka Springs is a great place to explore.
The weather was just perfect, and allowed us to have evening camp fires.
The smores were cooked over the camp fires.
One evening we even popped pop corn.










We traveled the trolley downtown and shopped.
We drove to the train depot, and took a short train ride on a very old train.











The conductor was a lot of fun....he even asked our grand daughter to marry him.
Her reaction was priceless!











The trailer accommodated the group fairly well.
The kitchen would get a bit cramped, but once I let my mom know that I had it under control and all she had to do is sit and relax, all was good!!!



The grands actually liked staying at my moms cabin better than sleeping in the top bunk of the trailer.

The grands got to go on scavenger hunts and look for bears and all the things you do when you camp.
Our dog Bronco enjoyed being led around by the kids as well.















It was just nice to get away and spend some quality time with the people that we love.

Fall break is over and it is time to go back to the real world way too soon.

RIP Baby Belle 2015

I find myself writing about another one of our fur babies that has cross over the rainbow bridge.

Belle was way too young for this horrible disease called "pemphigus" to take her so early.

Our first visit to the vet was to see if she had an allergy issue.
We had just lost our Roxi, and I really wondered if she was having issues because of this. 

After trying to isolate the food, and her continued decrease in health, the vet suggested we get a core sample and send it off for evaluation. 

The results were not what we wanted to hear.

She was diagnosed with pemphigus, which is basically an auto immune disease very similar to humans.  

She was put on high doses of steroids to try to restart her immune system.

This wasn't working and she continued to lose her hair and muscle tone.

I would laugh and say we have a Mexican hairless!
I can't tell you how many baths this poor girl got in the following months. 

Since the steroids weren't working they added another medication.

I can truly say Belle was a very strong and determined dog, just like her breed is known for.

Sadly she continued to get worse and worse, and we took her to the vet the morning of Sept 24th and Dr. Roach said he felt it was time to let her go.

Belle was known for her typical Heeler style.
She would  nip at people's heels when they would let their guard down.
She was quite cautious of who she would let into her world, not that she didn't like you, but she wanted to make sure she was keeping me safe.

Belle was her moms Velcro dog, and followed me everywhere.

She really was "my" dog.
If you know anything about this breed, this is a trait that is again typical Blue Heeler.  

Belle came into our hearts as a little fighter at the ripe age of 5 weeks, covered in fleas and ticks.
My husband had heard about a guy that wanted to get rid of the pups and arranged to get her for me as I had always wanted a Blue!

She can never be replaced in my heart and I am so thankful to have had her as my side kick.

She leaves behind her newly acquired sister "Bronco" and her mom and dad.

We will miss her spunky little attitude.

Belle at a young age playing with her sisters.  Sadly they have all crossed the Rainbow Bridge.

Bikes Blues & BBQ 2015 homeward bound

Time for this group to go back to the real world and make our way back to our homes.
We had plans on leaving fairly early, but the fog is so thick, we hang around for a while for it to lift.
The ride home was just that....point the bikes to the west and head home.












I wish I could speak about some fun something we did or saw, but really it was just a nice typical ride home.
Sundays are always that way it seems.
You can even see it on the faces of the people in the cars that pass or you pass.
Everyone has an agenda and it usually has something to do with getting home so we can all get home and get ready for the work week.
I am glad to be able to say that everyone made it home without any incident.










Only thing I thought was really kind of funny was when we stopped at the midway on the turnpike, notice the sign and where we had the bikes parked.
Guess we can't read!!!!!
Rebels, just rebels  :)








Seems like we all had a great time, and can't wait until our next trip together.
The next trip we have planned is the Lone Star Rally in Galveston, TX.
We will be heading south the first week of November.
Thanks to all who participated in the Bikes, Blues and BBQ 2015 trip.