Winter in Southern CA

Friday, Dec 11 ... The weather is cool (low 60’s for a high) and even got another rain shower last night. The forecast for the next several days is much of the same. We plan to meet Ross tonight for dinner at the Stuffed Pizza Restaurant.
Thursday, Dec 10 ... Spent the day Christmas shopping in order to get the items in the mail to the kids before we leave California for Montana next week.
Wednesday, Dec 9 ... Move day! But only about thirty miles to another one of our membership parks in Desert Hot Springs. We’ll be there until we get on an airplane on the 16th and fly to Great Falls. Sure hope the weather warms up from the sub zero temps they have been experiencing.
Tuesday, Dec 8 ... Happy Birthday to Dad..(we celebrated with dinner last Thursday prior to them leaving). The weather today is sunny but just a bit cool. We made a visit to a local farmers market to stock up on some fruit and vegetables, all grown locally in the Coachella valley. Mike worked on outside stuff around the MH while Dixie did five haircuts.
Monday, Dec 8 ... Believe it or not, it’s raining in southern California. Not only is it raining now, the forecast is to increase in intensity throughout the day. Dixie was hoping to board a flight back to California (Ontario) today, however it was not to be. The morning flight was full of revenue customers so she decided to wait until the 6:00 p.m. Even though the weather was not getting any better, Mike agreed to drive the 90 miles to the Ontario airport to pick her up. Dixie did board that flight and Mike picked her up at the airport. Fortunately, the rain did quit making the drive not bad.
Sunday, Dec 7 ... Mike met with friend Ross at the Stuffed Pizza Restaurant in Old Town LaQuinta to watch NFL football. Unfortunately, in the most important game of the day, the Dallas Cowboys lost to the NY Giants. Dixie spent most of the day visiting Ruthie and seeing some old friends and co-workers.
Dec 1 – 6 ... The weather, even in southern California, has turned cool. No snow like other parts of the country such as Houston, TX. Speaking of Houston, Dixie is there this weekend visiting our dear friend and former co-worker, Ruthie. Ruthie is at the TIRR rehabilitation center after suffering a stroke during surgery to repair a brain aneurism this fall. She is making improvement but sadly, will never be completely herself again. Saturday evening, Mike watched the Big 12 championship game with his boyhood friend, Ross. As the world knows, the Texas Longhorns prevailed and will now play Alabama in the BCS Bowl on January 7, 2010 for the national championship.
Nov 28, 29, 30 ... Saturday evening, all of the family went to a beautiful light show at the California Living Desert. Although the weather was a bit cool after dark, we sure enjoyed the Christmas lights. Much of Sunday was spent at the College of the Desert Street Fair. Dixie’s Mom did very well walking around and viewing the many outdoor shops. Monday afternoon, we went to a movie and saw “Blindside”. It was based on a true story of a black kid from the slums of Memphis, TN who was adopted by a well to do white family. He went on to excel in High School football and later at the University of Mississippi. His name is Michael Oher and today he plays offensive tackle for the Baltimore Ravens. It’s a nicely done story and we recommend it.
Friday, Nov 27 ... We spent more time today at Ross’s condo organizing his golf memorabilia photos. On Saturday, we’ll take many of them to the Bob Hope store that’s located in Old Town LaQuinta. Later that afternoon, Dixie’s Mom and Dad, Danny and his daughter Lexi, visited us at our RV park in Indio where we made burgers and had a good time.

 

Thanksgiving Day on the patio overlooking the Palm Royale Golf Course

Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving, Nov 26 ... The weather is beautiful in sunny southern CA. We had a wonderful Thanksgiving with Dad & Mom and Danny and Lexi. We spent the day at Ross’s condo which overlooks a golf course, a small lake and the mountains. It has a very large patio so we enjoyed the turkey dinner that Dixie cooked out there. After that we went to the pool/hotub. It’s now football time!
Wednesday, Nov 25 ... Yet another beautiful day in paradise, California that is. Sunny, a bit breezy with temps around 80 degrees. Dixie is helping her mom and dad babysit Danny’s daughter while Mike does “computer stuff”. He’s getting up to speed on how to sell some of the golf memorabilia on eBay that his friend Ross puts together. We’ll see how it goes.
Nov 18 - Tuesday, Nov 24 ... We arrived last Wednesday in Indio at the Indian Waters RV park. The weather is very nice; warm and sunny. Sunday, we drove the 250 miles to Phoenix, AZ to pick up Dixie’s mom and dad who had flown in from Great Falls, MT. We drove over on Saturday and spent the night at the Crown Plaza hotel. Sunday morning we visited a Camping World store and then to the Mesa airport to meet them. They are staying with Dixie’s brother Danny in Rancho Mirage. Today we plan to visit our friend Ross’ condo for awhile. It has a balcony that overlooks a small lake, a golf course with the mountains in the background. It’s simply beautiful to say the least. Thanksgiving day will be Danny’s condo and will consist of the usual; lots of food and, of course, football. Go TEXAS LONGHORNS!!

 

Silent Valley RV Resort - 9 miles south of Banning, CA

 

Brandon (second from left) with the Fox Sport guy, Jimmy Johnson in Afghanistan

Tuesday, Nov 17 ... We started our day today with a long walk. The weather is very nice today so it’s a good one to be outside. Mike job today was to polish the mh – or at least part of it! It’s laundry day and other fun stuff.
Monday, Nov 16 ...Happy 10th Birthday to Granddaughter, Adrianna. We took a drive today to the tourist town of Idyllwild. It was 20 miles of more curvy roads! We walked around the town and had lunch there. Upon our return, Mike took on the laborious job of washing the motorhome (including the roof). Dixie spent the afternoon once again on Ancestery.com filling in more family info!
Sunday, Nov 15 ... Today is sunny but cool and very windy. Mike got up around 3:00 a.m. to bring in all the window awnings because they were flopping in the wind. We spent most of the day inside watching church services in the morning and football (Mike) in the afternoon. We did take a long walk around the RV park. Tomorrow we plan to drive about 14 miles to the small town of Idyllwild.
Saturday, Nov 14 ... Much improved weather today with temps around 60 and sunny skies so we took a short hike this morning into the hills around the RV park. Dixie’s brother Danny and his daughter, Lexi came over from the Palm Springs area in the afternoon and Mike worked on “stuff” around the MH. In a couple of days it will be warm enough to actually wash it. It’s been a good day for football because the Texas Longhorns, the Montana State Bobcats and the Montana Grizzlies all won their games.
Friday, Nov 13 ... The weather today is not too good. It has been cloudy and raining off and on since before daylight the entire day. The temperature has not gotten above 50 degrees. But if you’re still in the state of Montana, I suppose 50 degrees is not too bad. We pretty much spent the day inside mostly doing computer stuff. We did remove the bedroom TV from its perch and installed a digital converter box. This was so that we could get some local channels off the antenna since we have none with DirecTV satellite. Unfortunately, we are in a location (mountains) where no channels are available. Dinner will be at the local park restaurant, something we don’t often do.
Thursday, Nov 12 ... There’s a super Walmart in Banning and we need some grocery supplies so off we drove back down the very curvy mountain road we came up on the day before, this time in the car. Later, Mike did some cleaning on the MH and we took a bike ride around the park.
Wednesday, Nov 11 ... Move day! We didn’t have to be out of the park until 12N so we took our time getting things together and preparing the coach for departure. And since our destination of Banning, Ca was only 45 miles away, it was a relaxing morning. When we got to Banning, the relaxing part of the morning was over. That’s because the last 8 miles to the park is 1,000 + ft. climb up the very narrow and curvy mountain road. We’re now at 3,576 feet at the Silent Valley RV Club. This is a park in the mountains with an unbelievable 800 + RV sites. The good part is that only a small fraction of them are occupied therefore we had many to choose from. We found one that looked like it was level enough and that we could get the satellite signal. Well, the satellite part took much patience but the signal was finally located after about 30 minutes. Since it was Veterans Day, I quickly got my U.S. flag up and flying. The balance of the day went well. We met some of our neighbors and did a bit of exploring of the park. The weather is cool but dry.
Tuesday, Nov 10 ... Today is Mike’s 67th birthday! Happy Birthday Mike! He received birthday wishes from daughter Micheala and grandchildren Adriana and Dillon. Also an e-card and phone call from Katherine, and her boys, Bailey and Nicholas. He also received an e-mail from son Brandon in Afghanistan.
Our last day here at Wilderness Lakes in Menifee has consisted of going to the fitness center, washing clothes, washing the car and a visit to the Richardson RV Center in Sun City. I know what you’re thinking but we definitely did not go to look at RV’s but only to purchase a couple of parts from their store. Later we browsed around in a Lowe’s store and this evening we will have a nice dinner at a restaurant in “downtown” Menifee, CA. Although we had to run the furnace this morning we had to switch to the a/c by noon. Today’s weather will be sunny with a high temp of around 84degrees.

 

 

We made it to California!

Nov 6-9... It’s Friday afternoon and we’re on the Freeway again headed toward Carlsbad, Ca which is on the coast about 30 miles north of San Diego. It’s about a 60 mile drive and we’re visiting Dixie’s Aunt Marge and Don. The plan is to overnight and then drive to the small town of Julian on Saturday. Friday evening we took a long walk along the beach and then had dinner in the condo.
After a wonderful brunch at the condo Saturday morning, we drove the 65 miles to Julian. It’s an old mining town that is at 4,500 feet, and is now home to many shops and restaurants where pies are the specialty.
After a bit of sightseeing, we drove 4 miles out of town to the California Wolf Center where Aunt Marge’s niece works as a volunteer. This is a requirement of her studies at the University of California at San Diego. Quoting from their brochure, “The California Wolf Center is a non-profit wildlife education center committed to increasing public awareness and understanding of the importance of all wildlife by focusing on the history, biology, behavior, and ecology of the gray wolf. This is accomplished by offering educational presentations, participating in conservation programs, and hosting and funding research on both captive and free-ranging wolves. Founded in 1977, the Center is located in the mountains, 50 miles east of San Diego, near the town of Julian, California.” After a short presentation, we were then taken to the area where we could view them, an enclosed area of 1.5 acres. They are fed only twice a week in order to closely simulate life in the wild. Today, frozen whole chickens had been placed around the perimeter. This was done so that we could easily view them. Although most are quite shy, some of them did come up to the fence for their meal. Dixie was able to get some photos that will be posted. There is more information about this effort at www.californiawolfcenter.org.
The drive back, in the dark, on a very busy freeway, was an adventure to say the least, but we made it safe and sound. Dixie’s brother, Danny and daughter, came over Saturday evening for a visit. They were overnighting at a local hotel and going to Lego Land on Sunday.
Today, Monday, we utilized the brand new fitness center at the RV park. We plan to drive to Corona this afternoon to visit Mike’s Sister and family.
Nov 5 ... It’s Thursday morning which means we’re back on the road again (Willie Nelson?). We leave the park at 0730 (I’m sure our neighbors complained when I started up the diesel) and get on the road. But only to the Flying J in St. George for a fuel stop. After navigating the truck fuel island because there was no RV island at this one, we were, once again, headed for our next destination of Menifee, CA, which is near Sun City and Temecula, CA. The weather was sunny and cool in the morning. After lunch in Baker, CA (home to the worlds largest thermometer) we ran the generator in order to run the on board air conditioner. Once in California, as usual, the freeway traffic was, as always, awful. I have no idea how some people can drive in this day in and day out. We got to the RV park around 4:00 p.m. (one hour earlier in Calif) and found a nice site next to the water canal that runs throughout the park. There’s only a couple of problems; there’s a dairy farm close by that is odorous and there are lots of flies around the campsite to contend with. Oh well, at least there is a fitness center on site and wifi in the adult center, and, the weather is nice and our satellite TV works . If only those ducks keep quiet in the morning.

Heading South! Nov 2009

Nov 4 ... Since we were a late arrival yesterday, (they close the gate at 4:00 p.m.) we had a 9:00 a.m. check-in with the park office manager. Did I mention that it’s supposed to be 81 degrees and sunny today? After that, we spent some time in the park book store and walking around the park. After lunch we hiked to the Quail Creek Reservoir, a lake about one mile from the park. The scenery was absolutely beautiful. Later this afternoon, we met our neighbors from Washington state and another couple, and had a good time visiting.

Nov 3 ... Today’s start, after spending the night in a small mobile home/RV park in Pocatello, was a cold one with a temperature of around 28 degrees. Luckily, the water hose did not freeze, however, it was all Mike could do to get the 50amp power cord bent enough to get it in a cargo bin. The morning drive went well and after stopping for lunch at Springville, UT which is just south of Salt Lake City. Boy was the traffic a mess through Salt Lake! It is getting to be in the league of a Las Vegas. Four hundred and fifty miles later, we arrived at our park in Hurricane, UT just north of St. George, at about 4:15 p.m. After dinner and a bit of tv, it was early to bed. Thank goodness tomorrow is an off day of driving.

Nov 2 ... Our start today was not exactly the way we had planned it. We got up early on a cold Monday morning in order to get an early start on our trek to California. We had brought the motorhome up to the condo on Sunday and spent about six hours loading it up with all we needed for the trip. Mike decided that we should stop at the Flying J truck stop in Great Falls in order to check the air pressure in the tires. While trying to get air in one of the dual tires, a piece of the valve stem of the Crossfire system broke off. When that happened, he could no longer get air to go into the tire or check the tire pressure. We called Dixie’s brother, Doug who has had extensive experience with this sort of thing and he drove the short distance to the Flying J to take a look. After we determined that the dual tires were inflated sufficiently, we decided it was ok to continue our trip. (The Crossfire company is sending us, no charge, two replacement valve stems.) Fortunately, the rest of the day, although long, went without incident. While in Butte, MT, we stopped for about a half an hour while Dixie visited her cousin Shelly’s beauty shop for a much needed hair trim. We stopped for lunch a bit later down the road and then for fuel in Blackfoot, ID. 415 miles later, overnight was at a small park in Pocatello, ID. We got there about 5:45 p.m. and, although dark now that we’re back to standard time, finally got setup about 6:15. Tomorrow promises to be another long day where we hope to travel 450 miles to St. George, UT where we’ll spend a couple of days before continuing the trip.

A Fall Update

Oct 22 ... It’s hard to believe that we are finally planning to depart in the motorhome to southern California and points in between. The weather is for sure changing toward the cooler end of the thermometer. Earlier this month we had temps in the single digits and for three days it did not get above the freezing mark. It’s time to head south! This Texas boy needs a break from the cold and snow of North Central Montana. We hope to leave around the 1st of November if all goes well.
Yesterday, Dixie had nerve and muscle tests done to determine why she is having pain and numbness in her fingers and parts of her legs. The tests were normal so next Monday she will have an MRI on her neck to see if that is causing the problem.
This weekend we plan to drive the 180 miles to the “farm” where Dixie’s sister, husband and children live. On the way, we’ll stop in at the small town of Rudyard to watch a basketball game of one Dixie’s nephews.

Sep 18th – We flew to Houston from Great Falls using Delta Connection to Denver and then boarded our former employer Continental Airlines to Houston. The purpose of the trip was twofold. We got to visit Mike’s brother Roger and wife Karen as well as two nephews and their children, of which one we had not met since her birth a year ago. We had a fun time and got to visit their home on the San Bernard River they were in the process of purchasing.
The other part of the visit was so that Mike could have more follow-up test done at the M.D. Anderson Cancer Center with regards to the tumor surgery he had in 2003. The tests were done on Monday and he and Dixie met with his Oncologist on Wednesday. We were thrilled that the tests were all negative and he doesn’t have to return again. The Dr. did recommend he follow-up with an Oncologist in Great Falls in two to three years.
On the way home: As most of you know, being former airline employees, we can still travel at a reduced rate but it’s stand-by only. Well, we were not able to board a flight to Denver until the last flight of the day. This meant that we had to stay overnight in Denver and travel the next morning to Great Falls. Fortunately, the hotel Dixie booked online was a very nice new Holiday Inn.

Sluice Boxes State Park Hike

The 4th of July in Polebrige

Mike and the Waterton Park Hotel

Us at Waterton Park in Canada

Jake, Shelly, & Mike at the Folk Festival

Natl Folk Festival in Butte

Two new posts! Sorry we are so behind!

Aug – 1 -10 ... Wow where has the time gone! This will be two updates in one... we will put pictures of our trip in within the next few days
Our grandson, Bailey’s birthday was the 1st and nephew, Shay’s was the 2nd! Unfortunately we were not able to spend the day with either one! Mom had more fluid removed on the 7th – this time it was 5.4 liters which was almost 2 liter more than the last time on 7/21. On the 8th we went with Doug and Fran on a hike to Sluice Boxes State Park where we had to cross the creek twice (up to our knees). The first time we tried it bare foot but that hurt too much so on the return we went in with our hiking boots. Of course then we decided to stop in Belt where we stayed to listen to a band....the feet were a little cold by the time we made it home! On the 9th it was Dad & Mom’s 56th Anniversary so we took a scenic drive to Holter Lake. We also enjoyed a wonderful meal at Doug & Fran’s.
Aunt Shirley and Cousin Jody came for a visit on Aug 1st and 2nd . We had a great time with them.
Dixie continues to work for Fran now and then and Mike’s new hobby is Ancestry.com where he is researching his family (he’s back 6 generations on the Teague side). We are taking a short motorhome trip this Thur-Sun...another FMCA local rally, this time in Helena.

Jul 1 – Jul 31. On Jul 1 we took a 12 day motorhome trip. Doug and Fran were on their motor cycles and stayed with us for the first week. On the 1st we headed to St. Mary’s in Glacier Park. We spent 2 nights there where we took the tour bus on the “Going to the Sun Highway”. We did a hike and enjoyed some wonderful scenery. We also drove to Waterton Park in Canada – what a beautiful park. While there we took a scenic boat ride that took us back into Montana and Glacier Park. On the 3rd we moved further down the road to the Sundance RV park in Coram (about 6 miles from the park. From there we road the tour bus on the other side of the ‘Sun’ highway to Logan Pass. While at the top we made a long hike to the Hidden Lake overlook. Most of the hike was in the snow - this was a first for us. We saw mountain goats and big horn sheep. We even had lunch with the goats – we had our picnic lunch while they were grazing along side of us. Unfortunately on the way back it rained on us...that was not so much fun! We spent part of the 4th in the small town of Polebrige where we watched a parade. From there we headed to Jenk’s in Lakeside where we met up with Denita, Steve and the kids. On the 6th it was time to move down the road again...Destination was Trout Creek. What a beautiful drive to western Montana. We spent 2 nights there and then drove to Deer Lodge for an overnighter. We had a great time touring the Montana State Prison, a very large Car Museum and the Grant-Kohr Ranch (a natl historic site that was one the largest cattle operations in America) . On the 9th moved to Fairmont Hot Springs to attend an FMCA RV Rally. We also attended the National Folk Festival in Butte where met up with some of Dixie’s cousins. A good time was had by all! The down side was that Dixie’s Mom was admitted into the hospital on the 9th. She got out for one day (13th) and was re-admitted on the 14th with pneumonia. She remained there until the 28th. She is doing much better but still is battling her cancer.
On the 31st we attended an “America” concert at the State Fair with Doug & Fran and Steve & Denita. It was really good!

Brandon at the begining of the 56 mile biking portion of the Iron Man

Hike in Beaver Creek Park

May 11 – Jun 30 ... Time just fly’s by!!!!! We attended a very nice Memorial Day celebration at the local Veteran memorial. Senator Tester spoke & a wonderful Irish tenor sang. We took a camping trip to Beaver Creek park out of Havre the weekend after Memorial day. We had a group spot & enjoyed camping with many friends and family. We even caught some fish (something we haven’t done in a long while). The weekend of Jun 13th we drove to Calgary and flew to Kansas City to visit Brandon, Kat, Bailey & Nicholas. Brandon was in a ‘half Iron Man completion (that’s 1.2 miles of swimming, 56 miles on a bike and 13.1 running = at total of 70.3 miles). He did very well – just completing it would be a major feet for most of us! We had a great time visiting with them & Kat’s parents that were also there. Upon our return we were able to spend a couple of days with Aunt Marge & Uncle Don that were visiting from Calif. Later that week our friend, Ross (Mike’s old classmate) came for a visit on his way to Canada. He had consigned some of his golf items to us that we are attempting to sell at the local Farmers Market on Sat. mornings. We have been there twice & did manage to sell a few items. We have to be set up by 7am so it’s an early get up for us retirees! Dixie stays busy with Mom’s doctor appointments and helping her out. Mom continues to have chemo on a weekly basis & is doing pretty good. In between that Dixie gets a few days of work in with Fran. Mike stays busy at the gym & doing odds & ends. We have a few tomato plants going & are enjoying the nice weather on our back patio. Denita & family were up from the farm this past weekend. We went to a talk at the Lewis & Clark Interpretive Center about Meriwether Lewis & also to the Baseball game. We are preparing for another RV trip. We leave on the 1st for a 12 day trip to western Montana & a FMCA rally.

This is on the grounds of the hotel we stayed at in Seattle. It was actually a Conference Center.

Brother Doug & Sister Denita .......Celebrating Denita's Birthday

View of the Buffalo Jump

This buffalo jump is said to the be largest in North America. It is about a mile long and it was activly used from the years 1000 - 1500. It was last used in 1830.

Happy Mother's Day

Apr 19 – May 10 ... Since the last blog update we have celebrated 3 family Birthdays – Denita on the 22nd, Mom on the 24h and Brandon’s on the 8th! Happy Birthday to all!

Dixie made the trip to Seattle with Mom, Dad, Doug and Denita. If we’d had Danny with us it would have been like old times. It was a fun trip all in all. We drove around Seattle a lot. Mom’s doctor visit didn’t reveal anything new but the decision was made to go back on the weekly chemo treatment regime. The doctor did run some more bloods tests to compare the tumor markers. Doug and Denita went back on the train and we stayed a couple of extra days so they could do another biopsy (which was done on her 76th Birthday --- what fun). As of yet we haven’t received the results. Mom has had 2 chemo treatments since we have been home and it feeling more bad side effects from this round. She is very week and tired.

Dixie was home for a week and then went with an old friend (Merlene) to Helena to a “Hair Seminar” that was held on Sun/Mon. Haven’t been to one of those in 20 plus years. It was fun! The weather is slowly improving but we have had some rain. We are still stuck in the 50’s with a few 60’s. Dixie is anxious to plant some flowers & tomatoes but will have to wait another week or so for the nights to warm up. Mike, Dad & a cousin went fishing at Holter Lake this past Tue – they were suppose to come home with fish for dinner but they had no luck. Today on Mother’s Day we attended church and then Mom, Dad, Mike & I and Fran went to brunch. Since the weather was so nice we drove about 20 miles to “First Peoples Buffalo Jump State Park”. We toured the visitors center and hike the 3 mile loop up to the top. It was very interesting. We need to get back into ‘hiking shape’ as we are now a little tired out!!!!

A "bad" self portait on our 19th Anniversary

View of Space Needle from our hotel room

View of Lake Union from the Seattle Cancer Care Alliance

Happy Anniversary to us!

Mar 22 – Apr 18 ...Another month goes by. We made the trip to Seattle for Mom’s doctor appt but didn’t find out much. The doctor ran some more tests and told us to come back in three weeks once he was back from vacation. We ended up staying 4 nights. We had dinner with Micheala, Adriana & Dillon one night and visited some of Mom’s cousins & a friend in Graham. Our hotel was across the street from the Space Needle so the view was good. We made a quick trip to Pike’s Place Market but that was about it. On the way back we overnighted with Aunt Shirley in Seeley Lake. Life since then has been pretty routine. The weather is improving so we got out patio all set up and even fired up the bar-b-que grill a couple of times. The weekend of the 4th we went with Mom & Dad out to the farm for a visit with Denita and family. We took in a couple of Tyler’s basketball games while there. We had a nice anniversary dinner on the 7th at Dante’s and took a drive on the river road and saw a beautiful sunset. Easter weekend Denita and family came to Great Falls. We hosted a bar-b-que for the family on Sat. and we had a lovely dinner at Doug & Frans on Sunday. Danny and Lexi were suppose to come up from Calif. but unfortunately were not able to.
Dixie, Doug & Denita will be driving with Mom & Dad to Seattle on Monday for Mom’s appt on Tuesday, Apr 21. We hope to determine what treatment Mom will receive at that time. Mike will stay home this time and hold down the fort! He also intends to get the motorhome ready as we are anxious to go somewhere with it soon! At this time it is uncertain how long we will be in Seattle.

Mike at "Showdown". We watched the skiers come down this run. It was pretty windy and cool so Mom didn't think much of the idea of going outside for a photo - so I had to settle for 'Mike'.

March came in like a lamb!

Mar 1 – 21 ... Our March weather has been pretty nice with just a few days of cold temps. Today (21st) it is 65 degrees and we are heading out for a bike ride. On the 15th we took Mom and Dad and drove out to Showdown, a nearby ski mountain. We enjoyed watching the down hill skiers.
Mom’s doctor decided that she should go out to Seattle to see another doctor for a consultation. We leave tomorrow for an appointment on the 24th at the Seattle Cancer Care Alliance. The cancer clinic here is affiliated with them. We are hoping for a new treatment plan and a little more info on her type of cancer. Dixie has been working for Fran doing the medical billing while Doug and her are on vacation. It gives her something to do with her time. Mike goes to the gym and messes around at the motorhome to occupy his time! We did have a scare with Mom – she had some fluid removed from her abdomen area one day and that evening she had went into insulin shock. Her blood sugar took a dive (for the first time ever – normally it is very high). We ended up called the paramedics and they gave her a glucose IV which brought her back around! We know now what symptoms to look for.
Also this month we attended a few more basketball games. This weekend we took in some of the Charlie Russell Western Art show. That brought people from several states to our city. Tomorrow we will drive to Moses Lake, WA and then arrive in Seattle on Monday. We plan to be there until Thu. where we will visit some friends and family in addition to the doctor appointment!

More February in Montana!

Feb 9 – 28 .... We’ve kept busy the remainder of Feb. We attended a few basketball games (Levi’s and Jades). Dixie joined “Curves” and Mike continues to go to his gym. Dixie has been working for Fran and will fill in for her while Doug and her go on vacation. They plan to be gone from the end of Feb for 3-4 weeks. Dixie continues to go with Mom to her cancer doctor appointments weekly. She had a CT scan on the 20th which showed that the tumor has not gotten any smaller. That was very disappointing news. The doctor feels that the chemo has not really been helping so he is referring her to a cancer center in Seattle that they are affiliated with. We are waiting to hear when that appointment will be. Brother Doug had to have surgery this month to remove a kidney stone, then had a blockage in the stent (it was not a fun time for him!). The weather has been back and forth – most days have been pretty nice 30’s-50’s with a few snow days thrown in. We are ending Feb with snow and some cold days. We are just about ready for spring!!!!!

Sunset on Laguna Beach

On the patio of a 3rd floor condo overlooking Laguna Beach

A view of Lake Mead from Callville Bay

The end of our California Trip!

Jan 27 – Feb 8...On Tue., the 27th we drove around 60 miles from Danny’s to Aunt Marge’s in Riverside. We stayed with her until Fri. We walked, shopped, had a lunch and dinner out, went to a ‘happy hour’ party at some neighbors and picked some delicious grapefruit and oranges at Dons. We also enjoyed some ‘down’ time reading a book on the patio watching the golfers go by. On Friday it was time to move on – this time just 15 miles to Corona to visit Sandy & Buster (Mike’s sister). While there we all went to the movie “Last Chance Harvey” which we really enjoyed. Our niece and family came over for dinner. We had fun playing with the kids (3,4 & 7). Sunday we attended church with them then drove 50 miles to Laguna Beach. Marge and Don were at their time-share condo, which was on the 3rd floor with the patio looking out to the ocean. We enjoyed the Super Bowl there and stayed for 2 nights. It was great to see the ocean again and soak up some sun! On Tue., the 3rd it was time to head north. On our first day’s drive we detoured around Las Vegas and saw Lake Mead. That evening we overnighted in Mesquite, NV (390 miles). The next day’s drive was just over 500 miles with an overnight in Idaho Falls, ID. The last day (Thur) was only 360 miles so we made it to our condo by 2pm. We had great weather for the whole trip and thankfully the snow was pretty much gone when we arrived home! On Fri. we got back in the car (with Dad & Mom) and drove about 80 miles to Levi’s basketball game in Box Elder (which they won). Sat. & Sun. was back to normal...the gym, church and the family up for dinner.

A view of the Arnold Palmer Course on Sunday of the 50th Bob Hope Classic

This is a view from where our booth was. The 1st and 10th Tee was right behind us

This photo is our booth....Southern Golf Enterprises

Lexi and Dixie getting ready to blow out the candles

Lexi riding horse

Our Trip to California

Jan 15 – 26...The roads were great on our drive to California. We had a wonderful evening visiting with the cousins in Butte. The next day we drove for 12 hrs with just a few fuel stops and a quick lunch stop. It was a long day! We overnighted in St. George, UT (710 miles from Butte). The next day was just over 400 miles but still a long day. We arrived at Danny’s in Rancho Mirage around 5pm. We met up with our friend Ross on Sat. and began the process of setting up his golf memorabilia booth at the 50th Bob Hope Golf Tournament. The tournament started on Tue. We manned his booth at the PGA West Arnold Palmer Course for the first 3 days by ourselves while he and another helper had a booth at 2 of the other courses used. We saw a few celebrities & watched a little golf but mainly worked in the booth from Tue-Sun. We had perfect weather until Sun. afternoon when the wind started blowing. Dixie was even able to get Arnold Palmer’s autograph (not something we like to do) on a pencil sketch photo of him. Arnie was this year’s host of the tournament. It was fun but we were glad when it was over as we are not used to getting up so early (had to leave the house by 7am) or being on our feet all day. Lexi has been with Danny since Tue so we have enjoyed spending time with her. On Sat. Dixie went to watch her ride horse at a polo field. It’s a special session for Autistic children – Lexi goes on most Saturdays and loves riding the horses. They do some teaching and balancing while on the horses. We spent time with our RV friends from Chicago and also enjoyed a few dinners out. We celebrated Dixie’s Birthday on the 21st with an Italian dinner. We’ve had a great time so far. Tomorrow we will drive to Riverside for our visit with Aunt Marge & Uncle Don. We plan to stay in CA for another week. We are not looking forward to returning to the below zero temps and snow just yet!

Mike (the Texas boy) shoveling snow! There's a first for everything!

A collage of our family photos, taken after Christmas