Sunset in Turner

 Mountain Meadows RV Park - Hungrey Horse

Libby Dam

 Danny& Lexi

Harvest

Beartooth Highway

SEPTEMBER 2016

SEPTEMBER – On the 7th we headed out in the motorhome for our last rally of the season. The first stop was Havre for Dixie to see the Chiropractor. It was a first visit to Dr. Adams and it went very well. Then a stop at Dad's and on our way. We hit rain at Browning and drove in it to our stop in Hungry Horse. It was raining a lot when we checked into Mountain Meadows RV Park. It was a wet hookup! On the 8th we headed to Libby with a couple of stops in Kalispell. First at Pierce RV and then Costco & Walmart. Mike hopped to get a quick check up on the hearing aids but they weren't able to do it. We made an appt for Sunday morning. We arrived in Libby around 2pm. We all went to dinner that evening. We had a fun rally once again. We didn't tow the car so we went with Dave & Sharon Miller to the Libby Dam on Fri. and that afternoon into town to the local brewery. We conducted our last Big Sky FMCA meeting on Friday. Kathie & Andy came from BC. It went well except for Mike, Susie & I all sitting down on the picnic table bench at the same time – causing the table to tip backwards. Mike is feeling the effects in a side/back muscle that he pulled while trying to keep us from completely tipping over! Saturday we went with Dave/Sharon to the Nordic Festival parade and walked around. We had lunch with them afterwards. We left Sunday morning before breakfast to make the 10am Hearing Appt at Costco. All went well and we also purchased a nice Blue Spruce Tree for our yard. On our drive back we hit rain once again and had it most of the drive to Havre. We stopped to see Dad and bought groceries. We decided to overnight at Walmart in Havre so we could go to the movie “Sully” and also pick up a part for Dad on Monday morning. On the 14th we went down to the bar to have a drink to celebrate Steve's Birthday. We also got a call from Timbercreek advising that Dad's eye was looking bad. I made an appt with Dr. Obie for Fri. Dixie worked at the school on the 15th. The 16th we took Dad to Dr. Obie and found out that his left bottom eyelid is inverting inward causing abrasion to the cornea. He said it would not correct itself and that he needed to see someone to have it surgically corrected. In the meantime we must tape it open. From there it was a VA appt at 11am. Dad came home with us so I can put in an additional antibiotic drop and tape the eyelid.....easier said than done! On the 19th Dixie drove to Chinook to to get her mouth night guard. Afterwards she went to Hebbelman's to cut John & Angie's hair. Dr. Obie called and advised that he was able to get Dad an appt on Thur with Dr. Santin, a plastic surgeon in Great Falls. On the 22nds we drove to Great Falls for a 3pm appt. We overnighted at the condo. We went in early the next morning to get our bloodwork done for appt next week. The 24th was the Tristan Billmayer Suiside Prevention Walk. It started at 9am at the Catholic Church. We made the 7.5 mile walk to Turner. The weather cooperated and it was just the right length. Much better than last years 13 miles. There was a great story about it on the KRTV news. Afterwards we had an excellent Brisket dinner in the old Gym and then listen to a speaker. The 26th I drove Dad to Great Falls and overnighted. Dad's surgery was the next day. It was a long day but it all went well. I also had my Mammogram that morning. Doug & Fran were in Great Falls as well. We overnighted on Tue and I drove Dad back to Havre on Wed. Our new living room furniture was delivered on Tue......Mike got it all set up! Another fun filled month!!!

AUGUST 2016

AUGUST – We took an Uber car to the Sheraton hotel in Springfield, MA. We walked around town and had lunch and then walked (1.8 miles) to the Exposition center for our meeting with our NW Area FMCA group. Kathie gave us a run down on what would be discussed at the meeting. Afterwards we went to the RV of a couple and had a glass of wine and they gave us a ride back to the hotel. Dinner that evening was at the hotel. The next day, the 2nd we again walked to the 'Big E' (in the rain, with a stop at McDonald's for a quick breakfast). Today was a pre-meeting going over what would happen at the Governing Board meeting on Wed. They provided a box lunch afterwards. From there we took an Uber to the Basketball Hall of Fame. We toured that for a few hours and walked backed to our hotel. We rested a bit and then walked around town some more. We walked through the Dr. Suess park and then stopped at a local bar for a local microbrew. Dinner was appetizers at the hotel. On the 3rd we walked back to the Big E for the Governing Board Meeting (this time in the fog & another stop at McDonald's). The meeting was over by 1pm. We walked back to the hotel and chilled. We took an Uber back to the fairgrounds where we met our NW area group for dinner at Storrowtown Tavern. It was a neat 18th century setting. Mike had Yankee Pot Roast and Dixie had lobster casserole. The NW Area FMCA paid $50 towards our meal! It was fun visiting with the group. Another couple from WA gave us a ride back to our hotel. We got an Uber car early on the 4th back to the Hartford airport for our 8 something flight back home. We made a connection in Denver where we met up with Danny. We arrived in Billings around 1p. Of course the new rollerboard bag has to be checked and it got scratched up! We headed to Costco as Mike had an appt to have his hearing tested for hearing aids. He will test drive some next week when we return. We headed out of Billings shortly after three. We had dinner at the Turner bar and Danny overnighted with us. On the 5th Denita/Steve picked up Dad and brought him to out. We had dinner at Dougs/Frans and he came home with us. On the 6th we had a wonderful Brisket dinner at Denita's. Danny stayed until Sunday, the 7th and drove Dad's convertible back to CA. He is buying it. On the 10th we took Dad back to Havre. The 11th found us driving to Billings once again, this time in Dad's Motorhome for a FMCA rally in Joliet. It was a long, slow drive on the hilly road to Billings. Never realized how many up's and down's there are. We were a bit lat for Mike's appt at Costco hearing but all was well. He got fitted for 24 hr trial hearing aids. We stopped for fuel and then headed for Joliet. We dry camped at Will/Shirley Ketterling's place. We had a wonderful rally with lots of wonderful food provided. On Friday we drove back to Billings to return the hearing aids and do a bit of shopping. On Sat. we drove the Beartooth highway to the top and turned around. When back in Red Lodge we walked through the festival and had beer at the local brewery. On the 14th we headed back home. On Sat. we found out that Buster was in the hospital with heart problems. On early Monday morning we found out he had passed away. On the 21st we headed back to Billings to catch a flight to California for Buster's service. Mike had an appt at the Costco Hearing center first to get fitted for his Hearing Aids. It went quick and we were able to get on our 130 flight to Denver. We arrived in Los Angles later in the afternoon where Danny & Lexi picked us up. He lives just a mile or so from the airport. We walked to a local bar/restaurant and had a great dinner. We overnighted with Danny and in the morning walked the mile down to El Segundo beach. Then we took the convertible and drove to Aunt Marge's. We stopped in Corona and had lunch with Roger & Karen and Sandy. We then went to Sandy's apartment to visit. We had dinner with Aunt Marge and stayed overnight with her for two nights. Tue. we met Roger & Sandy for Breakfast. We visited with Marge in the afternoon and then we all went to the Spaghetti Factory for an early dinner. We drove on to Corona for Buster's Viewing at the Pierce Brothers Crestlawn funeral home. On the 24th we drove back to the memorial park to attend Buster's graveside service at 10am. It was a wonderful celebration of his life and what he meant to so many people. Afterwards we went to their church, Grace Fellowship for a wonderful lunch and fellowship. Our nephew, Casey from Texas flew in so it was great to see him. We also were able to visit with Charity, Andrew & family and Carece & family. We took a different route back to Danny's & drove the coastal road for a bit. We walked back to The 'Tyler Surfboard' store we saw on our walk on Monday to buy Tyler a Birthday present. Danny, Lexi and us walked to the 'famous Mexican restaurant' for dinner. It's not quite as good as in the past! On Thursday really early we got an Uber car to LAX to catch our flight back to DEN/BIL. We arrived in Billing around 1245p. On the 30th Mike had an eye appt with Dr. Obie in Havre. The 31st we went to Chinook to the dentist. We had our teeth cleaned and Dixie had an impression made for a new mouth guard. Oh and in between all that we took dinner to the field for harvest a few times! WHAT A BUSY MONTH!

 Brandon's Change of Command

Just missing Bailey

JULY 2016

JULY – We spent from June 30 – July 5^th at Beavercreek at a great spot in Shambo. We hiked a bit, went to the lake to fish, drove around and just relaxed. Tammy B came from Chinook and overnighted with us on Sat. A very relaxing time was had by all. On that Friday, Doug, Mike & I went to Havre and took Dad to his VA appt. to go over the results of his CT. She felt that he would benefit from having his gallbladder removed and advised us to see a surgeon. We made an appt with Dr. Sparks for the 5^th. Doug & I took him to that appt in the motorhome. The Dr. felt that since he wasn't having any pain that we should not do the surgery at this time. We all agreed.

On the 7^th Steve came over and installed our new Water Softener. Of course it ended up taking more time and parts than expected. But it works! We bought lunch at the 241 Grill for Steve & Shay.

On the 12^th we drove to Great Falls with a stop at Dad's. We did some shopping and overnighted at Doug/Frans. Dinner was at the Pit Stop. At 7a on the 13^th we got on a flight to DEN then IAH and finally AEX. We managed to get on all the scheduled flights. We arrived in AEX around 645p. Brandon picked us up and we drove to Leesville where we met Kat and Nic for dinner at Chili's. We walked in the hot/humid morning on Thur & Fr. (dripping wet). We had lunch at the PX on Thur. On Fri we hung out! Sat. the 16^th we drove to Natchitoches, LA (the oldest town in LA). We went on two plantation tours (Melrose & Cane River Oakland). We had a cajun lunch at Merci Beaucoup! We walked along the river and toured the Louisiana Sports Museum. We had a great day and ended it with a great steak dinner at home. On Sunday the 17^th Mike, Brandon & Nic went to the shooting range on post. Later some of Kat's family came from Houston and we all enjoyed at Spaghetti Dinner.

The 18^th was Brandon's Change of Command Ceremony. It was a wonderful experience where Brandon and Kat were thanked for their service and Brandon turned over his command of the “Wild Boars” Battalion to another Lt. Col. It's always moving to see our military at work! Afterwards we all went to lunch at Lindo's Mexican restaurant. From there we went back to Brandon's where they packed for their week long trip to Jamaica. We left for Houston around 3p. We had dinner at Rudy's BBQ and then overnighted with Mike & Hope.

The 19^th was travel day. We started our trip out of IAH on the 787 Dreamliner (our first trip in one) leaving at 9am. The flight in DEN was full so we didn't make it on that on. We hung around in the club for a couple of hours and left on the 310p flight ti GTF. We arrived their around 515p. We decided to stay over since we had a few things to do in Great Falls. We dined at the Montana Club and then watched some of the Republican Convention.

On the 20^th we departed GTF at 8am. We stopped at Dad's and picked him up some groceries. We arrived home around 130p. It's great to go but it's always nice to get home! Dad called that evening upset wanting us to come pick him up. Apparently he was quite upset with the staff as they were trying to help him take a shower. I encouraged the staff to let it go for today. I tried calling back but he didn't answer the phone.

The 21^st Doug/Fran came for dinner. They are heading out on a Motorcycle trip on the 22^nd. We will water plants and watch Cali.

The 24^th we attended church in Hogeland.

On the 25^th we received a call from Dad and Timbercreek. He wanted to come out here and was quite agitated. Denita and I drove up to pick him up. The next day I called the VA nurse as I had determined that Timbercreek had run out of his anti-depressent and hadn't been giving it to him. We decided to leave him off of it and monitor. He seems to be doing better without it and his appetite has improved since going off the Diabetic and Cholesterol medication. We went back to Havre for an appt with Dr. Boes on Friday. We took Dad back to his place afterwards.

On the 31^st we drove to Billings to get on a plane to Hartford, CT. While in Billings we did some quick shopping and purchased a new rollerboard bag. We overnighted there after arriving at 1130pm.

 Beavercreek Park

A not so good Selfie!

 Cali going for a swim...actually fetching a stick

Happy 4th of July!

JUNE 2016

JUNE – Worked on getting Dad's Motorhome ready for travel! We drove to Great Falls on the 6^th and overnighted at Doug/Fran's. We stopped at Dad's on the way – we asked Lowell if Dad had been going to meals and he said he didn't even know he was there – so no he hasn't. I also talked to the Administrator, Laurie and she said he hadn't been going down and also recently hadn't been asking for them to be brought to his room. They will begin giving him meal reminders.. Once arriving in Great Falls we did some shopping & went to dinner at the Montana Club. On the 7^th we closed on Dad's Condo in the morning. We got a beautiful flower arrangement from Lorelei. We stopped to see Dad on the trip back.

The 14^th we headed out in Dad's motorhome...we stopped at Dad's and gave him a Father's Day bag and then drove to Aunt Shirley's in Seeley Lake, arriving around 5p. We went to a lovely pizza dinner at the Double Arrow – thanks Shirley. We spent the next day checking out the cigarette lighter issue in the mh. We didn't figure it out! We also went for a walk and stopped to see Ross & Lacene and their new home. We had a very nice dinner that evening with Aunt Shirley. Had a great time visiting and catching up. On the 16^th we drove to Missoula to Jim & Mary's RV park for our FMCA Rally. It was a bit raining the first day. On the 17^th we drove into Missoula and shopped a bit. In the afternoon we took a tour of the Smoke Jumper Visitor Center. It was very interesting! That evening our group went to dinner at the “Buck Snort” restaurant about 5 miles up the road.

Sat. the 18^th we went to the farmer market down on the river and stopped at the Kettlehouse Brewery for a Cold Smoke. We had a quick lunch and shopped a bit and headed back to the MH. Our group had a potluck that evening. The wind was blowing quite a bit and I found that I had a bad allergy to something in the air! The park had numerous tree and flowers everywhere. IT was one of the prettiest parks for vegetation that we have been at in all our travels!

The 19^th we left Missoula for the 100 mile drive to Lakeside. We arrived at Bill & Gloria Brinkman's around noon. They have a house in Mission View Terrace that they purchased last year. We parked in their RV site. Bill cooked a wonderful steak dinner that evening. On the 20^th Gloria & I visited with Jim & Diane Jenks for a bit in the morning. We had an issue with the water in the motorhome so went drove to Gardner RV in Kalispell for a part. We were able to fix the problem, thank goodness. In the afternoon we went out on Bill & Gloria's pontoon boat. We drove down the lake and had a great trip. It wasn't terribly warm but the sun was shinning! They cooked another great meal that evening.

On Tue., the 21^st we left around 830a. It was a rainy/dreary day for most of the trip. We stopped in CutBank for lunch and then at Merlene's beauty shop for a visit. We grocery shopped in Havre and then stopped to visit Dad. While there he told me he had a pain in his abdomen area. It was very tender to touch. We decided I would call the VA and see if we could get in on Friday after his Eye Dr appt. We arrived home around 7pm in the rain.

We headed back to Havre early Friday morning for Dad's 945a appt with Dr. Boes. I cut Dad's hair prior to that. The eye dr decided to take him off all the eye drops for the left eye. From there we went to the VA dr appt. They were able to clear out more ear stuff in the left ear which should help with the hearing. She also decided to stop his Diabetes and Cholesterol medications due to his not eating. He had lost 11 pounds since April 7^th and 17 lbs since last July. She feels that the tenderness is in the liver. We have a CT of the Abdomen scheduled for next Tue. We had to do some grocery shopping & pick up items for Dad. We stopped in Chinook on the way home where I cut John & Angie's hair and enjoyed dinner with them.

The 25^th we spent the day inside as it was cool, wet and windy. We went to Doug/Fran's for dinner and I cut their hair.

I went to Havre early on the 27^th to take Dad to his CT Scan. We were to be there at 9am for bloodwork, however when we were ready to leave the room he decided he didn't want to go to any more doctors. Between Doug, Denita & I we could not convince him to go. I was ready to leave when the CNA, Tolina talked him into it. We were a bit late but were able to get it done. We found out a couple of days later that he has several Gallstones.

On the 30^th we took Dad's motorhome to Beavercreek. Doug/Fran met us there later in the day.

 Lilacs in Bloom

 Graduation

 Tyler with his Diploma

Dad, Aunt Shirley, Jody, Jim & Shelly (Jake was taking the pic)

May 2016 in Montana

MAY – I started work at the school kitchen on the 2^nd. Am suppose to work until school is out on the 26^th. (due to all the issues with Dad, I ended up only working 7 days)

On the 3^rd Mike & I picked up Dad in Havre and drove to Great Falls for his eye surgery (Glaucoma/Cataract) at 1230. After the pre work at the office, the surgery didn't start til around 2p. We didn't get out of their until almost 430p. We ended up having to stay overnight since the DR. needed to see him in the morning. We picked up dinner at McDonald's. We had breakfast the next morning at Perkins and then after the dr appt we left just after 10a. Once arriving in Havre we found out that Timbercreek really are not set up to give Dad the multiple drops he needs. We decided he needed to come home with us for the first week. He is doing pretty good...hungry and is eating good. One drop has to be put in every 2 hrs and 4 others 4 times a day....whew! Worked on the 5^th.

On the 6^th Dixie helped the church serve a dinner at Alvin Wolory's funeral. On Sat. the 6^th Jim & Diane Jenks came to visit Dad and us in the morning.

I managed to work on the 9^th & 10^th and a short time on the 11^th. We drove to Havre where I met with the Nurse at Timbercreek to get them all set up with Dad's eye drop schedule. Dad had a follow up eye appt with Dr. Obie in Havre at 310p on the 11^th. It ended up not being real good news...he had to call Dr. Boes (surgeon). The pressure in the left eye is high and the tube is blocked. The only way to clear it is to go to a more rigorous eye schedule. We must start up on the one we just stopped today and the prednisolone must be put in every hour. Well hear we go again – we decided we must make him go back home with us. He wasn't thrilled but consented. After a trip to Walmart for a drop refill we got on the round around 645. We was very tipsy on his feet and kind of 'out of it'. The past few days he has been sleeping constantly. Only up when I wake him for meals & drops. I am now even giving him his drop while he is half asleep. He also has no appetite so it's hard to get him to eat.

At 4am on the 14^th Dad woke us up saying there was a fire downstairs. This was the beginning of 36 hours of hallucinations. It was horrible to watch the scary ones but he was a very happy talkative person during the other ones. It was like Dad 10 years ago. It was hard on him as he wasn't able to sleep. Doug came over and helped and Denita, Steve, Tyler & Shay stopped over later in the day. In the middle of that John & Angie came by for a haircut. It was Levi's Birthday so we were going to the bar to celebrate but due to the situation, I went down and picked up some burgers to go. Doug left around 9pm, however I was not able to calm Dad down or get him to rest. Around 11p I called Doug and he came back and we drove Dad to the Havre ER, arriving just before 2am. They checked him out and did several tests – they didn't find anything that might cause the hallucinations. The doctor felt that it was the increased Presnisolone eye drops. He gave us 5 anti-psychotic pills and sent us home. We gave him one pill when we got in the car around 5am. It calmed him some but he was not able to sleep until 930a. He slept for most of the day and overnight. Thankfully he has not experienced any more. It took a couple of days but he went back to his current self...sleeping and not eating much.

May 17^th Dad had an appointment with Dr. Boes in Great Falls. He didn't feel that the eye drops caused the hallucinations. He had to build up the eye fluid so we overnighted and saw him again the next morning. We sold the dining room set from the condo while we were in Great Falls.

On the 20^th we went to a graduation party for Tyler and Sara B. at Adam & Shawna's. After that we went to Denita's as Aunt Shirley, Jody, Jim, Shelly & Jake had arrived.

On the 21^st they all came over to see Dad before we attended Tyler's Graduation at 3pm. From there we went to the bar for a beer and then over to Denita & Steve's for dinner. We had a great time visiting with everyone.

On the 22^nd they came back over to our house for a short visit before they left for home!

The 25^th we took Dad to another appt with Dr. Boes – this time at the Havre Hospital. His appt was at 130p but we never got in until after 4p. We got him settled back in at Timbercreek (after 3 weeks with us) and we left for Great Falls just after 5p. We went to Doug/Frans for Pizza and spent our last 2 nights at Dad's Condo.

The 26^th began the last of the packing of Dad's condo. We took pickup loads to give away, packed stuff in boxes and cleaned. Denita, Steve, Tyler and Shay arrived that evening. We moved over to Doug/Fran's.

The 27^th was packing and moving more stuff – the bedroom set went to Doug/Fran's condo for the time being. Lunch break was at the El Commador and that evening we went to Classic 50's for dinner. It was another long day.

Sat., the 28^th Steve & Denita went back home and I cleaned the condo. The carpets will be cleaned next Wed. We decided to to stay the next couple of nights at Doug/Frans and help them with more painting. Mike & I painted the garage and they painted the decks. Their condo is ready to go on the market!!!!! We had drinks at the Sip-N-Dip (our first time) and dinner at Borries on Sat. We came home on Memorial Day after a stop at Dad's for a visit.

May was an extremely busy month for us!!!!!

APRIL 2016 - Back in Montana

APRIL – We spent the weekend in Great Falls going through more of Dad's 'stuff'. The 7^th I took Dad to the VA due to his hearing. When flushing out his ears of wax, they found a piece of his hearing aid (that he hasn't worn in months). It definitely helped.

On the 12^th we drove to Great Falls to spend a few days sorting, giving and throwing at Dad's Condo. We cleaned it up and Lorilei came over on the 13^th to look at it. We decided to list it on the 14^th. We purchased some carpet for our basement steps! We were to leave early Fri. to take Dad to an appointment with Dr. Boes in Havre that morning. We made it about 20 something miles driving in deep slush/snow before we turned around. Denita & Steve ended up talking Dad to his appointment since they didn't have snow yet! He is scheduled for Eye surgery on May 3^rd. We went back to Doug/Fran and helped a bit there and then Fran & I did some shopping. We drove back home on Sat. the 16^th. We visited with Dad on the way through.

We planned a Birthday dinner for Denita a day early on the 21^st at Doug/Frans, however she didn't make it since she had to go on an ambulance run to Havre with Annie.

On the afternoon of the 24 ^th we drove to Great Falls. We intended to leave on Monday but the weather forcast predicted rain/snow mix. We met Doug/Fran their to help them paint at their condo. We spent the week their working and doing some shopping. There had been 3-4 people look at Dad's condo and we received two offered on the 26^th/27^th. We accepted an offer for the full asking price ($310,000 on the 27^th). The buyer is orginally from Great Falls but is living in Washington. Right now the contact says closing will be June 30^th It is a relief to have it sold and for it to have only taken less than 2 weeks. We now have to work on getting some of the big furniture sold! While in GTF we bought a 9/11 gazebo at Shopco and a yard cart at Home Depot. We drove back home on the 30^th. It was Tyler's Senior Prom that evening so I went to watch the Grand March.  

 Cali's new water bowl!

 Bomfire Wiennie Roast in the Desert!

 The final project after all our manual labor!  Looks fantastic!

St. Patricks Day!

MARCH 2016 - Arizona

MARCH....Doug & Fran's friends, Kim & Trace were here for the weekend of Mar 5^th. On the 7^th we all went to dinner at 'The Crossing' (very good). The evening of the 8^th we all went out to the desert and had a bonfire where we roast shrimp & hot dogs. John & Angie, and Les joined us. Doug was on a mission to burn the old wood from the deck. The managed to stay out there until 1am!.

We stained the deck & started packing up.

The 17^th we went to Mexico where we all went to the dentist. Mike, Doug & I had cleanings. Fran & I had a filling. Lunch was at the street taco place (Lupita's – found out that they have a truck now on Fortuna near Walgreens).

Doug & Fran left on their second bike ride on the 18^th. Bob & Cheryl came for a visit on Friday. We barb-b-cued steaks that evening. On Sat. we went to Bernardo's for a pizza for lunch and then went to the Arizona Market Place to wonder around. That evening we went to Lute's for dinner and drinks. We sat around the fire that evening. On Sunday we made breakfast and then they left.

The 21^st Mike & stained the remaining fence and casita porch. We started early but it was still hot...it's in the 90's now. We had been dog sitting Cali while Doug & Fran are gone. They came back on the 23^rd! She spent time at our place or we had happy hour down at her place!!!

On the 25^th we went to Les & Janet's for dinner. We met Kary & Pauline Andersen. He was originally from the Hogeland area and they live full time in Yuma.

Sat. was more packing. We started loading Doug's trailer with STUFF!

We went to 11am church on Easter and then went to John & Angie's for dinner at 1pm. They had 20 people in attendance. We all played a card game called 31 after dinner. (we used to play it as kids with Chet & Nora Boardman).

Monday, the 28^th.......final packing. We helped Doug & Fran move their 5^th wheel over to Glen & Norma's – under their 'cool cover'. We finished packing and cleaning. We decided to head out a day early.

Tuesday, the 29^th – leave day! We made one last trip to the gym at 715am. We stopped of a quick breakfast at Doug/Fran's and were on the road at 1030a. Destination is Mesquite, NV. We stayed at the Virgin River. Doug and Fran arrived a few hours later than us.

30^th – Our destination was Pocatello....Best Western hotel. We made a lunch/shopping stop at Ikea in the Salt Lake City area. Doug/Fran arrived shortly after us and we all had a drink at the hotel and dinner at Applebees. It was a nice hotel.

31^st – Arrived in Great Falls! We stopped for a wonderful lunch at Twin Bridges. We overnighted at Dad's and Doug & Fran stayed at their condo.

 Painting the Park Model

 Doug, Fran, Marilyn, Dixie in Mesa

Doug & Mike at the Wells Fargo Museum in Phoenix

JAN _ FEB 2016

Jan-Feb ...We started the year out continuing out Southern theme....You have to have Black-Eyed Peas for good luck and Cabbage for Wealth. We did enjoyed both!

On the 2^nd Dixie went with Doug & John in Doug's plane for a 1.5 hr ride. Some of the restricted air space was open that day. We flew over the Barry Goldwater where the military has mock villages and even a mock aircraft carrier landing strip. We saw several drone airstrips as well. From there we flew over the GM tracks that are used for testing and then on the the Yuma Proving Grounds. It was pretty neat to see all this from the air – something that you can't see from the ground and wouldn't be able to see again in the plane. From there we had lunch at the Copper Miner. On Sunday, the 3^rd we drove the car to Borrego Springs with the motorcycle group. We met a group from Indio there (including Mark & Danielle). We had much there and then drove to Indio to visit our friend Henerietta (our first visit since Glyn passed away). We made a Trader Joes stop and then went to Danny's to overnight. He was in PVR so we didn't see him. On the 4^th we stopped to have coffee with Henrietta and then drove back to Yuma.

On the 6^th Fran and I joined the local Gym where Mike has been going. The first class about did us in....a bit sore the next day.

We had rain a couple of days this week!

We spent a few days getting some flyer's and for sale info done for the motorhome. We put a sign out by the gate with some 'take one' flyers, put it on Craigs List, RVT (a RV sale site) and put a flyer in a couple of restaurants in the area. It's start....we will see what happens. Mike also cleared everything out from the bins in the motorhome to clean and reorganize!

On the 8^th we helped Doug & Fran paint their Casita. It looks really great – totally changed the appearance. After that we went out for a Mexican dinner.

The 10^th we went to church again at the First Christian Church. Mike watched football wild card games.

The 15^th we drove the motorhome to Quartzsite to the RV Show. We parked at the paid area so we could be near the tent with our “For Sale” sign on the motorhome. It cost $40 but was nice to e within walking distance of the tent. We visited Bob/Cheryl on the afternoon of the 16^th. We enjoyed dinner and the evening with them. While there we also went to see Ji & Linda's new place and Dixie cut Cheryl & Lina's hair.

While in Quartzsite we went to the tent a few time and also did some other shopping. Dixie stocked up on some jewelry supplies. We had a couple of people look at the motorhome. We drove back to Yuma on the 19^th.

We listed the motorhome on Ebay Classified for the Yuma area and shared it on Facebook.

21^st - Dixie's Birthday...Dixie & Fran attended a presentation at the library on outside decorating. Then Doug/Fran & us drove into Yuma and shopped a bit and then had a drink at the Bird Cage in old Yuma and then a wonderful dinner at the Olive Garden. The food & service was great!

On the 22^nd Mike & I went to the movie, '13 Hours'. We got a facebook message from people we used to work with in Houston (Jim & Venita Provience). They are interested in the purchasing the motorhome. Doug/Fran hosted a get together at their place for Les Simmons, Chuck & Julie Harrison, and Marilyn Kristoff & here sister. We barb-b-cued burgers and enjoyed the fire.

On the 23^rd we talked on the phone with Jim/Venita and they want to purchase the MH. They told us they would talk to their bank on Monday. Dixie painted on the back of Doug/Fran's Casita Mike didn't feel good – coming down with a cold. He worked around the MH

The 24^th we attended church and then went on a Walmart run. We started cleaning a packing some items in the MH.

The 26^th we got a message from Jim/Venita that they were not able to get a loan as they wanted 40% down on a used motorhome...deal is off! I must have jinxed it by taking pictures out of frames in the MH. In the afternoon, I went shopping with Doug/Fran and then we stopped by Bob/Carols place to pay them for the time share use. After that we met Mike at Crazy Earls and then to Applebees for dinner.

On Wed. , the 27^th I was sitting outside in the morning and a man stopped by inquiring about the motorhome. He was looking at it for a friend. They were both from Corvalis, MT. Ed Reed and his wife Gail rent down the street. He called the potential buyer, Richard Peter's and he was very interested. His wife would was out of town but would be back that evening. We were excited!

The next day we spent 50 minutes talking to them on the phone. Shelley (the wife) had seen our MH on the RVT website as well. They really want the MH. They called back in the afternoon and we came to an agreement on the price and completed a Bill of Sale

On Friday the 28^th we made called to our Lender and their bank and finally worked out the details for payment. We contacted our bank and set up a check for our part of the payoff. Dixie and Doug painted 'Cali's' Shed to match the Casita.

Sat we also started packing. We are able to rent the park model on our site for the next two months.

We started moving stuff on Sunday the 31^st. We packed boxes to stay in Yuma and some to go home. We spent Monday packing/moving, Tuesday cleaning and finished up on Wed.

Richard and Shelley Peters arrived on Wed. around 5pm We went over a few things and gave them the keys to what has been home for over 10 years! They stayed in the motorhome that night. They really like it and are happy with the purchase.

On Thursday we went over the workings of the motorhome and went to lunch with Richard & Shelly at the Eatery. I now have Mike's cold and feel yucky! Doug/Fran came over for dinner.

The Peter's decided to stay until Sunday morning due to weather.

The remainder of the weekend was spent answering questions and getting the Peter's ready for the trip back to Montana. The left early Sunday (2/7/16) morning. It was quite strange seeing our home driving away from us! Oh well, a New Chapter begins....... We attended church after they left and kicked back the rest of the day.

On the 9^th and 11^th we painted at Doug/Frans.

We all went to Mexico on the 10^th for Camilla's dentist appointment. We enjoyed lunch at El Gourmet and listened to the music. It was quite hot while standing in line. Mike said a couple of times he didn't feel very good. Well we were almost to the gate when he fainted. He scraped his chin and knee but recovered pretty well. Not enough water and 2 beers in the heat is not a good combination for Mike.

On the afternoon of the 12^th we had some friends from our FMCA group for Happy Hour & Appetizers. Clumps, Oagles, & Wallings attended. We had fun catching up.

Feb 14-19 we spent in Mesa at Bob & Carols timeshare. They gave us a great deal – it was a two bedroom and cost us each $75. While there Marilyn Kristoff came to visit us and we had drinks at the condo golf course & then went to dinner at the Texas Road House One day we took the light rail from Mesa and went to the end of line. On the return trip we got off downtown Phoenix. We had lunch at Jimmy Johns and toured a really neat Well Fargo Museum. The train was a great way to see the area...ballparks, ASU, downtown, etc. That evening we met Diane Brady for dinner at Nandos for Mexican food. We has a fun time visiting and catching. up! And a big thank you to Diane for treating us! Also while in Mesa we drove around and did some shopping! On the trip back we checked out a little town called Roll that we were told has great steaks. We never made it back but will definitely try it next season.

The 21^st we went to church to the early service. Monday was another trip to Home Depot with Doug/Fran and we all went to Cracker Barrel for lunch. Tuesday & Wednesday Mike helped Doug with building the new deck

The weekend was party time. Sat. we went to a jam session & dinner at Glen & Norma's. Sunday was a party at Dan & Julies for Randy Ross's retirement party.

On the 29^th Mike went to the Dermatologist. They did a biopsy on his sore. Results showed pre-cancerous lesion. On the 10^th he went in and had it removed. He needs to follow up in 2 months. Appt in Great Falls for May 19^th.

 Dad's 82nd Birthday at TimberCreek Village in Havre

 Staying Warm around the Firepits

 Christmas Dinner Table

Christmas Eve around our Firepit with the new fire glass 

Doug, Dixie & Danny

Decmeber 2015

DEC ...We decided to fly back to Montana to attend Harold's memorial service on the 8^th and surprise Dad on his 82^nd Birthday (on the 8^th as well). Doug, Mike & I drove to Palm Springs on the 6^th and overnighted with Danny. We took an Uber Car to the airport at 430a the next morning.. Our flight left at 7a. We spent a couple of hours in Denver and arrived in Great Falls on just after 2pm. We spent the afternoon doing errands there. That evening we received bad news from Henrieta, Glenn had passed away that day. It was very sudden. He was in hospital just down the street from Danny's on the very night that we were there. We will sure miss seeing Glenn every year!

On the 8^th we went to Breakfast and then packed up Dad's convertible and went to the church at noon. We were able to visit with the cousins prior to the service. It was a very nice service and luncheon. We left around 3p to drive to Havre. We surprised Dad and then had supper with him in the dining room. It was nice to see his room and visit with the residents at supper. Lowell & MaryLou (Dad's cousins) are there as well so we saw there apartment as well. We had some Pecan Pie that we brought at Dad's. We left around 7p to drive to Hogeland, where we stayed at Doug's.

On the 9^th we went to our house to pick up a few things. had a Pizza dinner with Steve/Denita/Tyler/Shay. We got snow on Thursday night and Friday so we decided to go to Turner and get our car to drive back to Greta Falls. We waited around until we knew if Doug was going to be able to fly his plane to Great Falls. It was foggy and low clouds. It took him three attempts but he finally got out after 3pm. We drove and stopped in Havre to visit with Dad. We got to Great Falls shortly before Doug made it. We picked him up and ran more errands.

The 12^th was travel day. We took Mike to the airport to 6am for his UA flight to DEN/PSP. Doug and I went to Holmans and waited for daylight before we would leave in his plane. Luckily he put it in their hanger the night before due to predicted frost. We taxied out at 803a. The weather was pretty clear. Due to weather in the west and east we took a different route – via Cody, Wy. We skirted around several mountain ranges and made a fuel/restroom stop in Price, UT. The scenery around Red Lodge/Cody and through most of Utah was very spectacular. The worst weather was in AZ where we hit a dust storm, making visibility poor. We arrived in Yuma at 245p. Mike, however was delayed in Denver due to snow and de-icing. He then had to drive from Palm Springs, arriving at 7p. All in all it was a good trip to Montana and back.

The 18^th Doug/Fran & Mike/I hosted a party at Doug/Fran's... There were 14 of us. We had fun visiting around the firepits. Speaking of firepits, Mike & I ordered fireglass for ours and took on the project of replacing the lava rock. It turned out quite well! It really changes the look of the fire.

We got our few Christmas gits in the mail the 16^th/17^th. I didn't send cards/letter out this year – decided Facebook pretty much tells everyone what we do! We did put up some Christmas decorations in the motorhome and lights outside.

The 20^th we went to Church at a large church called 'First Christian Church' We really enjoyed the service and message. Afterwards we went the the AZ Marketplace do pick up a few things.

The 21s were went with Doug, Fran & Cali for a hike in the desert/Gila Mountains. It was a good hike and used some muscles that haven't been used for awhile. We received a package from Kat,...(A nice 'Wild Boars' -Brandon's Battalion -throw).

23^rd – Danny drove down from Rancho Mirage for Christmas. We went to John & Angie's for Christmas Caroling. We also listened to Leonard play his guitar and sing. A good time was had by all.

24^th – We all went to Christmas Eve Services at 2pm at the Gloria de Oro Lutheran Church. We came back and had a great meal that included Fran & Doug's Seafood Chowder and Pumpkin/Pecan Cheesecake that Danny brought from the Cheescake Factory. We went to George and CoraLee's after dinner.

25^th – We cooked Christmas diiner and had John & Angie over. Doug cooked a brisket and we had cheesy potatoes, creamed corn, layered salad and Pumpkin Earthquake Cake....it was a southern theme! Around 530 we all went tot he “Howling at the Moon” out in the desert. Every month on full moon night there is a party in the desert. There was even live music! It was a beautiful moon and a fun time!

It was very windy on the 26^th so we stayed in most of the day. Danny left early that morning.

We started paining Doug/Fran's gates on the 29^th and continued until New Years Day!

For New Years Eve we went to Blaisdell's Steakhouse on Fortuna and had a wonderful steak dinner. From there we had tickets for a dance with a live rock-n-roll band with 50/60's music. We had a fun time dancing and listening to the music. We made a short stop at Micky B's before going home. We made it til 130a...that hasn't happened in many years!