C&D Adventures 2018 (Gordon's Gone, but I am still suffering without my Data) Week 3

My wifi "hotspot" in the park 

9-3-18 Monday

Well it looks like we have a 50/50 chance of being evacuated from Topsail.

Tropical storm Gordon is bearing down on us.

So what do we do?

We got out for lunch and eat at a little restaurant called "The Local Catch".
It's a cute little place and seems to be pretty busy.

My favorite.  :)

The area we sat at had some local art that was quite funny.
The guys have hamburgers and Diana and I have fish and it was agreed upon that the food was quite tasty.

Back at the RV we turn on the weather station on the TV and start watching the latest updates on Gordon.

Ugh, so reminiscent of last year and our watch on Irma. 
The park is busy with people pulling out.
But we also notice that there are still people coming in.
We also notice that there are quite a few spaces empty, so that leads us to think that a lot of people have cancelled their plans due to Tropical Storm Gordon.

We have begun packing up just in case we actually have to evacuate.
Our neighbors on the other side have done the same.
We haven't been as neighborly as we should but we actually met them when they pulled in, but everyone is going their own direction so it makes it hard to stop and talk.

One of the funniest things we heard from Ray and Maria (our new neighbors) when they pulled in was that Maria cried 3 times on their first trip pulling their new trailer.
She hasn't cried once (that we noticed) so far.
I think they are getting this camping figured out!!!!  

9-4-18 Tuesday

Tropical Storm Gordon watch today.

The rains came around 10AM and basically it has rained off and on all day.

The storm threat has passed us and it looks like the tropical storm is going to leave us alone here in Topsail.
They are calling for quite a bit of rain, so it looks like we will be spending time in the trailers.

We got out this morning and went to the grocery for a few things.
The guys are with us, so the shopping was a little different than usual.  LOL

We also tried to get a donut at The Donut Hole but that wasn’t going to happen today.

They had a line out the door of people waiting to eat.
Not to be donutless today,

Diana uses HER "data" to find a Dunkin Donut instead.
We aren't but about 5 miles or less from it, so this hunt was easy peasy.
Just what we needed on this rainy day...sugar!!!

Back at the trailers we stayed in and stayed dry.

I finally finished my book that I had started while we were in Arizona.

I found a small coloring book page I could work on to pass the time away.

Since it was Tuesday it means it’s Taco Tuesday and we go to a local Mexican restaurant and had dinner.

Chuck and Chris had a Bushwhacker and Diane and I had a Top Shelf Margarita.
The guys said their Bushwhacker wasn't as good as the one they had from Harry T's....and our Margaritas were just so so.

When we left the restaurant there was actually a lull in the rain and we made it back to the RVs before it started raining again

Looks like we are going to get rain all night tonight.

Just glad we haven’t had any of the spin up tornado's they were saying were possible.

9-5-18 Wednesday

Light mist this morning so what a perfect time to hit the laundry.




The laundromat wasn't that busy and we knocked out 3 loads a piece fairly quickly.












There is an area by the laundry that is covered in blooming flowers to attract butterflies.
The Passion Vine that adorns the area is absolutely huge.
It always has a lot of blooms and I notice them every time we walk by.
My Dad (deceased for many years now) always planted a Passion Vine in our gardens every Spring.
I grew up marveling at the site of their blooms.
I hope my sweet Dad can see these blooms from heaven because I think of him every time we are here in the park.

As we finish getting our last load of laundry out of the dryers the rains decide to start.
Laundry is done for now and although we all had plenty of clothes it feels good to get caught back up.

After lunch Diana and I decide we are bored.
What else is there to do but go to Walmart.
Both of us buy new coloring books and pencils so we will at least have something to occupy the time while we watch it rain.

We also stopped at The Donut Hole and got some chocolate angels.

Back at the trailers, the rains let up and we were sitting outside under the Biggs awning.
We are sitting there chatting away when Debra and Craig Dickinson came by to see us.

This is the great part of RVing....you meet and reconnect with people that you have met in your travels.
In fact Debra was the person that told us about Topsails in the first place.  

After they left we decided to walk around the park.

There are a few places in the park you sure wouldn’t want to be parked at because it’s a lake in front of them.

We decided it was a good evening to make our shish-k-bobs for dinner.

Fresh green beans and corn on the cob accompanied our steaks.

The rains held off until we got everything cooked.
The food was cooked to perfection and it really hit the spot. 

After we finish dinner in our trailer we actually find a movie on the FX channel. 

Money Monster with George Clooney was an entertaining movie.
I am surprised that none of us had ever seen the movie.

500 loud commercials later we finish the movie. 
Are we spoiled or what, usually you DVR the movie or watch on a provider that doesn't require you to watch the commercials.
One thing for sure, it gives you plenty of time to talk and move around during all the interruptions,  look at it this way, you now know all the side effects of taking a certain medicine, and all the new products that you can purchase via the "As Seen On TV" commercials.

9-6-18 Thursday

We are going to have another rain day here in sunny Florida.

Out of pure boredom Diana and I make a drive to Walmart and surrounding shops.
Retail Therapy is a cluster of shops under one roof.
It was just nice to get out and touch things...if you are a shopper, you know what I mean.

I bet you can't guess where we headed after we finished at Retail Therapy.
If you said The Donut Hole, you are correct.

Did we get donuts?
Yes we did....chocolate angels for all our friends....well, actually we only share with Chris and Chuck...LOL
And we also got Pineapple Upside down cakes....and they were very good!

Lunch at the trailer and then an afternoon of coloring in our new color books.

I know you see all the exciting things we are doing as comical, but when it rains on your parade,  you have to make due.








We decide to get out for dinner and Diana had been told we need to go to Fudpuckers.

The place was a typical tourist trap,
Guess we are tourist because we really enjoyed it.

The alligators that were on site were pretty cool to watch.

The food and the punch were quite tasty.

Our waitress “Pepper” was a lot of fun and comical.












As we make our way back towards Topsail, I mention something about wanting to look for some shoes.
I guess billboards still work, or at least for this group, cause Chris sees one that says they have shoes and we are very close, so we dive into the parking lot and check the place out.
I didn't find anything but Chris did.
He got himself a new pair of Keen's.

Back at the park we take a walk so Chris can try out his new shoes out. 
He thinks he is going to like them!!

With all the rains it has become a mosquito heaven here so we didn’t stay outside very long.

We make plans to go to the beach tomorrow as it is supposed to be sunny.

9-7-18 Friday
Its a beach day for us today.
But first we have to check out this lizard that has decided to come out and enjoy the sun as well.
We have actually seen more reptiles this trip than we have ever seen in the three years we have come to Topsail.

We pack up our stuff in our little red wagon and head to the tram.  

The tram is pretty full of everyone that is trying to enjoy this beautiful day.
After all the rain we have had, we are ready for sunshine.  

The beach at Topsail is never very busy, but today we have a good amount of people there.

When we found our perfect spot in the sand we started setting up, and noticed the guy next to us had been building a castle in the sand.
Diana asked him how long he had been working on it and he say only about an hour.
It was really pretty cool and he had put quite a bit of detail in it as well.

We notice that Debra and Craig are there flying their new Pirate Ship flag.

The waters are much more calm than our last beach day.

You can tell the storms have passed and life is getting back to "normal".  

Today is probably the best day we have had since we arrived here.

Our Chef Chris grilled steaks for us and Diana and I fixed veggies for dinner.
Nice to be able to sit outside and enjoy the evening without any rain.  

Storms has formed but all we got was lightening and thunder.

9-8-18 Saturday
Diana and Chris get up bright and early to go down to the beach to see the sun rise.
Chuck and I don't partake but I know one thing for sure...we will see that sun when it gets a little higher in the sky.

Breakfast with the Ranger is at 9am today so we get on our bicycles and make our way over there for breakfast.
This year they had a pretty full house of people partaking in the breakfast.
It is one of the fundraisers they do for the park to get them some added funding.
It is always nice to have someone else cook for you, so why not go!
Enjoyed listening to the Ranger talk about the area and give us information about the park.

Our breakfast didn't last very long today so now our sights are on lunch.
The little BBQ restaurant down the way is going to be our stop for today.
98 BBQ was a nice change from all the fish we have been having.  

After we finish eating we go by a Golf Cart place that we have seen and wanted to check out.  

We looked at electric golf carts and they even had electric bicycles.
The gentlemen that was there working really didn't think we would be buying anything, so he just let us look around.
Heck for all he knows we were going to buy 4 of those bikes.
Chris was really itchin to buy one but alas we walked out empty handed.  :)


We sit outside and watch some football on the outdoor TV.
Diana and I are coloring in our books and enjoying the time together.



During our afternoon a baby squirrel decides he wants to be part of our day.
This little guy is very small and not scared of us at all.
Bronco is doing good with her "leave it" although you know she would really like to chase the little guy like she does at home. 

Later in the day we see there are actually two babies and they make their way back up to their nest high in the tree that is next to our rig.  

Their mom had let them come down and explore the new world they will be living in.

I bet she was just glad to get them out of the nest for a bit!  

All of a sudden out of the corner of my eye, I see a lizard running under our trailer.
Lordy lordy, there is a large snake chasing the lizard.
All this time we are telling Bronco to "leave it" and she is doing her best to do just that.
The lizard gets away and crossing in front of Bronco and once again she has to "leave it".
The snake has slithered under our truck.
Chuck thinks it's time to burn the truck....LOL
You know Chuck doesn't do very well with snakes....and this guy is pretty darn big.
Diana gets on her phone ( because she can use her data) and finds out that it is a "coachwhip" snake.   
Looks like he has slithered over to the walk area between the Biggs trailer and ours.
Not sure that Chuck will be walking through there ever again...ROFL.

Our neighbor Maria and Ray came over and talked a while.
Ray sits with the guys and watches some football.
Maria sits down by us and we get to know her.
Loved listening to Maria's Alabama accent...such a sweet lady.

They are new to the trailer life so we suggested a few groups on Facebook to learn more.

What nice people.

Think we could have some fun with them but sadly they are leaving tomorrow morning.

Dinner was pizza (from Walmart) on the Traeger grill.
I made a salad to go with it.  
Dinner was pretty tasty!

No rain on us today....great day in paradise.  

9-9-18 Sunday

Diana informs us of another snake in our walking path between the trailers.

Chuck is not happy about hearing this.

Afraid of being eaten by a resident snake we take our little path a lot slower and keep our eyes peeled;) and let Bronco lead the way. LOL
Gosh, that's really bad of us...nothing like sacrificing your dog.

Relaxing morning as we sit and watch the squirrels come and get pieces of popcorn that Diana has put out for them.
The larger squirrels knew just what to do with the food, but the babies have no idea.

We notice that Marie and Ray are getting ready to hitch up to leave.

It was only neighborly to go over and disturb their departure and say our goodbyes to them.

We girls had to share some RV thoughts and also make sure we are friends in Facebook before they pull away.

Enjoyed meeting our new “Alabama” friends.

We will be leaving Topsail in the morning.

I think it has been a nice two weeks here.

Only way it could have been better is if I had "data" so I could keep up with the world. (aka Facebook.)

I feel so out of touch.

It’s probably good for me to not have constant availability of the Internet but it really sucks when you are so used to it.

When we get home we will be checking on some options and attempt to get unlimited Internet without spending an arm and a leg for it.

More to come on that process, but for now, we begin to pack up our belongings so we can pull out in the morning and make our way back west.  




Diana and I make one last trip to Walmart to get some food for the road trip tomorrow.
When we get back the guys are standing over by our bicycles looking at something.
Seems the little baby squirrel has decided that he likes our place.
He is actually hanging out on my bike.
Diana comes up to him and he just stands there.
She extends her arm out and he climbs right on up to her chest.
OK, I am about to freak out right now, and I find out later that she was too.....she has a wild animal on her chest.
The little guy didn't seem to care and finally she got him to walk back off her arm and onto my bike.
This was just really strange to have a little guy like this so tame.
By golly Chris was even able to get a picture to prove it.
Check this out!  (Diana was sooooo brave!)




For our last evening in Florida we go to Pompano Joes for dinner.
The place is right on the beach, and we got a great seat that looks out onto the ocean.
I really don't think there is a bad seat in the place, but people were waiting to eat outside....heck we felt we were doing just that.
What a great way to end our stay here.

C&D Adventures 2018 (Gordon's Attempt To Ruin Our Vacation & No Data For Diane) Week 2

8-27-18. Monday

We are packed and out of the park by 8:30.

The roads  today will take us to Top Sails in Florida.

We hit several rain showers along the way.

Heavy rains for a very short time.

We get to Topsails around 2:45 and got checked in just before the rush.

As we pulled out from the check in area there were a few people waiting to get in.

We are in the same site as last year.

Diana & Chris are next to us but are on the opposite side this year.

It’s pretty hot and yes it’s humid.

Chuck is getting unhooked and getting us set up.

The rumble of thunder in a distance makes us hustle to get set up before it rains.

Nothing unusual until he plugs in to the electric box.

No electricity.

I call up to the office and they sent someone down very quickly.

The box checked out fine so looks like we have other issues.

Chris comes over and rescues a quite frustrated Chuck.

He takes the plug apart and finds two wires are off the plug.

How this can happen when we just used it this morning is beyond me but sure is nice to have your very own electrician traveling with us.

We sure did appreciate his help.

All good now and the air conditioning is doing a great job and cooling the rig down.

Remember that sound of thunder I spoke of earlier.....well it was just that.

Only thunder.






It was nice to sit back and drink a margarita.
Even more fun to watch Chris grill us some brats on his Traeger Grill.

Enjoyed our first dinner at Topsail.

This day is about over and it’s time to sit back and relax.

8-28-18 Tuesday

We make our way to the beach this morning.

We catch the 10am tram and enjoy the breeze as we ride the one mile trip to the boardwalk.

There is no air stirring at all today.

Going to be hot for sure.

Our first dip in the water felt a bit cool at first but it wasn’t long that we acclimated to it and it felt wonderfully refreshing.

The waves were breaking pretty hard today and first thing, I get hit with a big one and another one right behind it.

Thought I was going to drown. LOL

I told Diana I felt like I had been overdosed with a Neti Pot.

There were just a handful of people on our beach.

Very nice as always.

We pack up by noon and actually were able to catch the 12pm tram back to the trailers.

It is about this time that we are getting notices that we have used 75% of our 15 gig data plan from our cell phones.
It looks like no more surfing on the World Wide Web for Chuck and I.

We haven’t changed to the unlimited plan as we normally have enough but with our travels from last month and now this month we are reaching our peak.  

8-29-18 Wednesday

Lunch at Red Bar in Grayton Beach.
The Bloody Mary's are delightful as usual, and the food was good too.

























As we make our way back west on Highway 30A, we decide it is time for ice cream.
We just so happened to know where a cute little ice cream place is, so we stop and partake.  

We decide to explore the area a bit and drove to Panama City.
The real reason we went that way was to go to Dicks Sporting Goods.
Chuck got him a new rocking folding chair.
Ours from Arizona, although not even a year old are deteriorating.
The piping is flaking away from the sun exposure.

We drove through Rosemary and made our way back to our RV via 30-A.

Air fried chicken wings and drumsticks is for dinner tonight.
I should have brought my big air fryer as it took forever to fix the dinner.
I wish I could say they were as good as the ones I make at home, but they weren't.
Kinda one of those epic fails....seems that always happens when you are cooking for friends.

I am having withdrawal from not being able to use my phone and check on things on Facebook....LOL

Have I said that I feel like I am in the 20th century.

No data. :(

8-30-18. Thursday

Went to the beach at 9:30am.

Looks like we will have rain later today.

Well our beach excursion was cut short.

The skies look really bad.

We actually get on the trolley and make it back to the trailers just before it started raining.

It rained very hard.











Since the beach was done for today we decide to go to the Growler Garage for lunch on 30A.
Someone on one of my Facebook pages suggested it.
Since I am restraining from using data I didn't really do any investigation of the place.  

Well,  little did we know that it was only craft beers.
No food.

We were in the Santa Rosa Beach area on highway 30-A and the La Plata Tacos and Burritos looked pretty inviting.

The empanadas I had were really great.
They told me when I ordered them they were freshly made. 

I think everyone was pleased with their choices.

Back at the trailer we drop the guys off and pick up some groceries and make a stop at Starbucks and The Donut Hole.

Had to get our key lime pie fix!!!!

Back for the evening we fix steaks for dinner.
Chris again mans the grill, and they were cooked to perfection.
Maybe we need to get Chris a chef's hat!

8-31-18 Friday
Today's excursion will take us to Ft. Walton.
We are going to Harbor Freight.
Chris is getting a flag pole and all the fittings to make one for the front of his trailer.
Its a good day to do this as it begins to rain on us again as soon as we get inside Harbor Freight.
The rains are from the tropical storm Gordon.
I am hoping Gordon doesn't bother us and our stay will be the full two weeks that we have planned.
Don't want to have to evacuate like we did last year for Irma.

Chris and Diana have been told they need to try a drink called a Bushwhacker at Crab Island.
Only problem is to get to Crab Island you have to have a boat or be a crab!
It looks like you can rent a pontoon or even ride a taxi over to it, but since it is a really rainy overcast type of day we decide just to eat at Harry T's.

As soon as we sit down and look at the menu we see they have a Bushwhacker on their drink menu.
You guessed it, we have to try it.
I think we have all come to the conclusion it is kind of like a Wendy's Frosty with different alcohols in it.
Very tasty, but also very sweet, or at least that is what Diana and I thought.
The guys had no problem drinking them.  :)









We had another stop to make on the way back.

Had to find a Home Depot to get parts for the flag pole.

Traffic is terrible this afternoon and it is a steady line of cars all the way back to Topsail.

Seems that everyone is making their way to start the long holiday weekend.

When we make it back Chris works on his flag pole.

Wasn’t very long and he had it up and flying.


























I ride my bicycle up to the "free" wifi that the park offers so I can take care of business and check emails etc.
Although it is a pain to not have the internet when you (think) you need it, there is a little bit of a calm feeling that goes with it.
I know I am very addicted to my phone, and this is just a little trial for me to deal with.
And another way to look at it is Diana has a whole lot of data on her "unlimited plan" so we can just call on her to look up all the trivial things we ask daily.  LOL

Tonight we try a local pizza restaurant we had seen.

 Grimaldis Pizzeria  was a great choice.

This place is just a couple of doors down from Starbucks and I had noticed it several times since I do frequent Starbucks as often as possible....LOL (not for the wifi either)
The wait staff were great and this place was really busy when we arrived.
It looks like they have a great following and also note that they have a lot of take out orders as well.
As we sat and waited for our pie we were somewhat entertained by the guys throwing pizza dough in the air to make the crust.  

The pizza was really good and would be a place we could definitely go back to.

As we walked out of the building, we notice a very old Class A RV that seems to always be parked just down from the restaurant.
I had noticed it last year as well, and made comments about it.
We have come to the conclusion that it is a worker in the area that drives his "home" to work the days he works.
There was a guy outside the unit puttering around and letting his dog walk around as well.
Just an interesting place for a somewhat crusty Class A to be parked.



With full bellies we make our way back to the park, but wait....we will pass The Donut Hole as we go home, so we make a quick stop to see if they have any of the chocolate angels that we think we must eat for breakfast.
They are out of them, but we get a few plain glazed and one cake donut to eat instead.
I think we are addicted to The Donut Hole, don't you!

9-1-18. Saturday

Since it is the Labor Day weekend we will hang around the RV Park this weekend.

Chuck and I watched some of John McCain’s funeral.

Diana and I go to the local fish market and get shrimp for dinner.

Another trip to The Donut Hole to get a chocolate pie.
I tell you we are addicted!

Chris and Chuck work on our trailer this morning.

Our water heater will not work on the electric side.

Chris digs in and finds the problem.

Man it looks like we could have had one heck of a fire looking at the wires he pulled out from under the little compartment.

Thanks to Chris for fixing another one of our problems.

Bronco enjoying Topsail  

I ride my bike to the WiFi hot spot and sit for awhile and get caught up on my Facebook fix. LOL

Have I mentioned that I feel so out of touch with the world due to the lack of restrictions I have placed on myself to attempt to keep our cost down on the lack of data. Lol.

Hey, the struggles are real!

9-2-18 Sunday.

We actually got on the bikes and did a little riding today.

The park is really a great place to ride.

Chris wanted to go to the beach at sunset so we hopped on the bikes and did just that.

The flags say no one is supposed to be in the water but there were actually a few out playing in the fairly large waves.

Another thing we saw was a dog on the beach.

A very large German Shepherd was out with his owner playing fetch.

I guess the rule about no dogs on the beach didn’t pertain to them.

Not the most beautiful sunset but it was nice.

There is a rain storm coming our way so we head back to the RVs pretty quickly.

Our timing again was perfect as we just get back and get inside as the rain begins.
We break out the chocolate pie and eat a slice.
I vote that the Key Lime is better than the chocolate....just my opinion.
Another day in paradise is about to come to a close, and we are still getting rain from Gordon.
The rain is fine and just as long as we can stay here, all is good in our world.

Vacation With The Other Woman Irma(geddon) 2017 (week 3)

Monday September 11th

Winds and rain are coming our way so we get out of Hamilton fairly early.

We made good time and before we know it we are at West Memphis Arkansas.

We even made it under a bridge marked 13'8" and still have all three air conditioners on the rig:)

Diana has been trying to find us a spot for the night and she has had success.

Looks like we are going to Pocahontas Arkansas.

As we traveled Highway 412 I took a picture of the clouds.

The clouds were just another reminder of how Mother Nature is totally in control and so is Irma. 

I noticed these fields of yellow as we drove.

Watching the news later in the evening I found out they were rice fields.

The farmers are working hard to get their harvest done and trying to beat the winds and rain that is due to hit from dreaded Irma.

We make it to the Mulligans RV Park around 2:30 and get situated.

It's not much but we do have full hookups and we are not complaining.

We had dinner at the trailers and our outdoor sitting was cut short due to the tiny mosquito that our neighbor had warned us about.

After messing with the Tailgater Dish and finally throwing in the towel it did its usual thing and started working.

Lookout Branson cause we are coming to your town tomorrow.  

Tuesday September 12th

We are out of the park at 10:00 am.

It's cool and damp this morning.

Very light mist as we latch on.

We stopped and grabbed lunch around 11:40.

Little did we know that the next part of the trip is all curvy roads and up and over a mountain range.

Highway 160 in  Missouri to be exact.
I swear Bronco was even getting a little car sick with all the movement in the vehicle.

We are staying at the Branson View Campgrounds.

Our friends Kathy and Joe Compton are work camping here and she was able to get us a couple of spots.

As we come into Branson the GPS on the Ram decided that she was confused as usual and we took a route that was a bit different than Diana and Chris.

Thank goodness we are in contact via the walkie talkies and I told them not to follow us.

Our route just made a big circle up by Silver Dollar City and we were at the park about 5 minutes after Diana & Chris arrived.  

Kathy checked us both in and made us feel very welcomed.  

It is so good to see the Compton's and do a bit of catching up from when we last saw them at Desert Gardens in the Spring.

We just decided to grill and chill at the trailer tonight.
Kathy was telling us that Joe was getting a show together for a benefit and he was singing.
She also said that he had been talking about bringing out his equipment and singing in the RV Park.
We suggested that he just do that this evening since he had a captive audience.  :)

We walked down to Joe and Kathy's RV and Joe was all set up with his speakers and mics etc.

We had no idea that Santa Claus was Joe's next door neighbor.

This man was the nicest person, and had a story for everything.

Sadly he didn't stay out very long as he said he was battling a headache and was going to go and rest.  

Joe is ready to get his music going and he starts to sing.

He hadn't even gotten through one song and we hear someone behind us yelling "hey, I am trying to watch some football here"......

Shocked and we were giggling about it, but then we realize that the guy was serious.  

Guess there won't be anymore singing this evening.....oops!!!!!  

Sadly it wasn't even "quiet time" in the park.

Geez we were just having a little fun and Santa that lived right next door said it wasn't bothering him.

Will be interesting to see if there is a complaint at the office tomorrow! 

We retire back to the trailers and sip on a "Irma-Rita before retiring.

Wednesday September 13th

We girls wanted to do a little retail therapy today so we got the guys to take us to The Tanger Outlet Mall.
Can't say we found any bargains, but we got to walk around and shop a bit.

Not a lot of places to eat there so we opted for a Hot Dog place.
We had a terrible hot dog...  :(  
You ask how can you screw up a hot dog???
Not sure but I sure have eaten better!
What is a shopping spree without going to Walmart.  

We stopped and grabbed some of the necessary items we needed.

We chose to eat at the trailers this evening and get ready to go to our first show in Branson.
Joe and Kathy are going with us this evening to see The Baldknobbers .
They were even able to get us free tickets to the show...(thanks to Kathy and Joe)
We really did enjoy the show and even more appreciated them getting us into the show at no cost.

Joe mentioned Andy's Frozen Custard, and all our eyes lit up.

A first for us!  (and we even have an Andy's very close to our house in Yukon.)

Wow, is all I can say.
I got the James Brownie Funky Jackhammer with Chocolate Ice Cream.....need I say more.  :) 

In sugar overdose now, so it is time to call it a night. 

Thursday September 14th

Today we explored some of the shopping areas around Branson

Last night at the Baldknobbers show they had mentioned a knife place and of course the guys ears perked up at the word "Knife",so we headed there this morning.  

It was in a shopping area that had a Coleman Camping Outlet Store.

First time we had ever been into one of them, but we came out empty handed.  

The knife place was mixed into a crafters mall so we walked around and checked out the local items.

The guys were totally disappointed that the knives didn't turn out to be much at all.

Diana found me a coffee pot cover that I had been wanting, so we didn't go away empty handed.  :)

Chuck found a coat at the Leather Store he just couldn't live without.  

Not like he is going to need it anytime soon, as it is in the high 80's here today.

There was a Mexican Food restaurant in the center and it was time for lunch, so we just went ahead and ate there.

The lunch fajitas were really good.

Back at the trailer we talk to Kathy and Joe and they are up for another show tonight.

Kathy suggested one and our plans are to go to eat around 5pm at Fudruckers, and then head to the show after we eat.

The first show we were planning on going to was Sold Out.....so we resort to Plan "B".

None of us are sure what that plan was but we are sure we can come up with one.  

Plan "B" ends up being The Billy Dean Show.  

Again we got in for nothing, as our friends Kathy & Joe worked their magic....this is getting to be kind of nice.  :)

The show was really good and I for one had no idea how many of the songs that Billy Dean had written in his lifetime.  

It was a very nostalgic evening.  

And guess what!!!!
It was right across the street from Andy's Frozen Custard, and I am sure you know the rest of the story.......yes we did partake once again.

I even had a repeat of last night, but I failed to say chocolate instead of vanilla ice cream.

It was good, but I think I prefer the chocolate version best!  

This is our last evening to get to spend with Joe and Kathy as they are traveling to their home town of Lamar, MO for their first "official" singing gig.

Their names are in lights at the Thiebaud Auditorium and as the markee says it's "Compton's Karaoke Journey.  

All donations are going to the Hurricane Relief.  

We are wishing them luck and hope they have a great turn out.  

It can't be unsaid that we have truly enjoyed spending a few great days with these two as they have really shown us a good time while we stay in their campgrounds.  

At least we have been able to forget the word "Irma" for a few days  :)

Friday September 15th

Our plans are to go to the old downtown area and walk around, but first we need to address a tree limb that has been on Chuck's mind ever since we parked the rig.
He is concerned that we are going to run into it when we pull out on Saturday.

Chuck goes and talks to the front desk and explain his concerns.
It isn't very long and here come 3 guys down with a saw.
It is agreed that the limb needs to go.
If one of the guys had his way, he is convinced the whole tree needs to be removed....LOL

Limb taken care of and it is time to get on our way.

As usual the downtown area is a very busy spot in Branson, 

We have to park quite a ways from the downtown area, but that gave us a chance to walk through some vendors that were set up off the main street.   

What visit isn't complete unless you check out the 5 and Dime.

It was complete mass hysteria in the place.  

We were able to escape without even purchasing anything.  

Our lunch today was at The Branson Cafe.

What a tiny place but the waitress could sure make their way around.

If you need to go to the potty, you follow the yellow line through the kitchen and back to the back of the place.  

Since we have totally messed up our diets with the Andy's ice cream, we might as well indulge and have a piece of the chocolate pie for lunch.  

It was really good, but at least Chuck and I shared a piece instead of getting a whole piece to ourselves.  :)

Time to relax before we got to our show tonight.

We have tickets for The Dixie Stampede Dinner Attraction

Dinner and a show, can't beat that!   

The lines were quite long when we got to the will call area, but it really moved quickly.

By the time the guys got the vehicle parked and walked up we had gotten the tickets. 

Kathy told us to be there by 4:30 for the pre-show.  

We did just that, and enjoyed the entertainers.  

Just like cattle, the bell rang and we were all herded into the arena area.  

We find our seats and the experience of the evening begins.

The show is really interesting and the bonus is that you are fed as they entertain you. 

The food was very good as well.

It is served without forks knives or spoons so your hands are your utensils.

The servers were really great and were able to take care of the people in a timely manner.  

I am so glad that Diana suggested this show, as it was really a fun time and I think we all enjoyed the whole experience. 

Back at the trailers we finish our evening with the last of the "Irma-rita's.

This is our last night to spend away from home, as we are heading back to Oklahoma in the morning.  We have really
had a great trip, even with Irma trying her best to ruin it.  

One thing about us and Diana & Chris....we can always find an alternative plan....it just takes some thinking on all our parts.  

We are blessed to have such great friends to travel with.  :)

Saturday September 16th 

Getting out of spot was a breeze now that the tree limb is gone.

Chris on the other hand had a little bit of a fright.
He opened his electric box to disconnect the trailer and grabbed a frog.

He said he wasn't sure what he had grabbed and he jumped back to see the frog leave.  

Thank goodness it wasn't a snake!

Our GPS was a bit confused as we pulled out and we got into a small traffic jam, but it didn't last too long.  

When you are pulling a 43' plus size rig the U turn that Lupy is suggesting just isn't going to happen.  

Traffic isn't bad after we finally get out of the Branson area. 

We had a bit of a scare as we were driving the hills outside of Branson.

When topping a hill there was a very very slow moving truck in front of us, and Chuck had to slam on the brakes.  

About that time we see Chris passing us on the left side.  

So glad he did, as we had to come to almost a complete stop due to this guy.

Chris is now in the lead, and Chuck tells him to keep on leading....its our time to follow  :) 

We stop at a Rest area for a quick lunch and keep making miles.  

Our last stop was at the midway on the turnpike between Tulsa and Oklahoma City.
I had just opened the door to the trailer and I heard this bang.
In my mind, I thought maybe Diana had closed her door on the trailer.
She comes around her trailer and asked if I saw the accident.
Seems a truck driver hit the back of the trailer rig that was parked next to them.
So that was the bang I heard.
What a surprise to the driver that was sitting in his rig minding his own business.
He was nice enough to help the driver that hit him get his truck straightened out and on down to a parking spot.
It didn't do any damage to the parked truck, but I think there was some fender issues with the truck that hit him.
Excitement for sure.

We make it home safely and so do Diana & Chris.
What a wonderful 3 weeks even if "Irma" tried her best to ruin our Florida vacation.
Already planning for next years great adventure to Topsail...we will be able to book it in about a month.
Hopefully hurricane season will be a little less active in 2018.

Hope that Diana & Chris enjoyed their trip as much as we did.
They are the "best" friends we could ask for.
So glad we have such great friends to make memories with.


Chuck and I will be heading to Arizona mid October, so I am thinking we will have some Blog worthy post to write about.