Welcome to 2015

I hope everyone had an enjoyable Christmas and a safe and wonderful New Year's celebration. We are now embarking on our sixth year full timing and expect to enjoy it just as much as the first year. When we decided to sell most of our possessions and travel this beautiful country of ours, little did we think we would enjoy it this much. Many people ask us how it feels and whether living in such close quarters wears on each other. We've found it's made us much closer together. When you're with your soulmate it doesn't matter whether you're in a mansion or an RV. It's two people loving each other to the fullest and enjoying life together. Ours just happens to be while we are traveling. 

As we enter 2015 we see changes on the horizon. For those who may be visiting our blog for the first time, Debi and I have four grown children and five grandchildren. Our family continues to grow however. We are going to stay on the West Coast this year as our youngest daughter is getting married in California. That said, we intend to revisit many of the same places we did several years ago but we intend to spend more time at each place to see things we might have missed the first time around. I hope to share our new adventures with you along the way.

Many people have asked us about our lifestyle and keeping contact with relatives and friends. Having a coach as your home and being on the road most of the year certainly presents challenges. As the grandkids get older we invite them to share our adventure with us during their summer break from school. This allows us to connect with them while presenting them with the opportunity to visit many States, see different places and how different people live. One year we visited many of the actual sites of the Civil War providing them with an up close and personal educational opportunity. Another they simply wanted to swim in all the Great Lakes, so we did the Circle Tour to allow them to do just that. So far, our oldest grandchildren have visited 42 States! Their parents simply fly them wherever we happen to be when they get out of school, then either join us to pick them up or they fly them back home. Skype and cell phones always keep us in close contact with family and friends.

I thank all of you who have chosen to view our travels with us. (Over 75,000 views and counting) I hope to continue keeping this blog interesting and informative. Any suggestions anyone may have, please feel free to use the comment section at the bottom of each page. 

Thanks again everyone...Enjoy the journey with us.....Dennis and Debi

Arizona to California

Let me first apologize since these next few pages are a little, actually a lot, late. I've been pretty busy with the wedding and just haven't gotten back into the swing of things until lately. Enough of the excuses. Here we go.....

We left Mesa headed for California where my youngest daughter has found the perfect man for her and they decided to share the rest of their lives together. She has planned the wedding from the start and has done an awesome job. We are going to join her about six weeks in advance to tidy up any loose ends and help wherever we can. I'm excited ! We decided to stop and visit our boys for a few days before heading north to see the girls. So let's get to it!

On The Road Again !

Quartzsite needs little in the way of introduction. If you've never experienced it from January to February, you have to do it once! Picture rigs of every type and size stretching for miles in every direction all over the desert landscape. Estimates are over a million RVrs  visit this area over that two month span. 

Quartzsite RV Show

As we approach our destination for the night. We plan on staying right on the Colorado River which begins in Colorado, ends just north of Sonora, Mexico and separates Arizona and California.

This is a wonderful park right on the river. Colorado River Oasis is now known as Arizona Oasis. Located right on the Colorado River it has beach access and places to tie up your boat and/or personal watercraft. The spaces are spacious and the pool is heated in the winter. Relax in the spa before returning to your coach for the night. 

We stayed in Space 25 which was not on the river shore. Those sites are reserved months in advance and are booked solid during the winter months and mostly booked during the hot hot summer months as travelers try to escape the heat. We like this park while visiting the Quartzsite RV show as they offer full hookups and we consider ourselves RVrs rather than Campers, meaning we like full hook ups and creature comforts.

After a brief four day stay in So Cal we headed up over the Grapevine and stopped at the Elks Lodge in Visalia.

There are Elks Lodges throughout the United States. Many of these lodges provide camping facilities at a reasonable rate for members. Most of these facilities are not open to the public but there are several regular campgrounds that are. We've been members for years so this was a perfect stop over for us.

Most of the camping facilities offer water and electrical hookups. Most have a dump station on site or nearby. The lodges usually have dining facilities and an open bar. Some have golfing facilities adjacent or on site.

After a short stop in Visalia, we arrived at Lake Minden just north of Sacramento, California. It is a Thousand Trails park and offers all amenities as well as lake fishing and canoe rentals.

This weekend we are going to be treated to a model airplane meet over the lake. A large group of RVrs that travel around the country are meeting here with their planes for competition. They also have hydroboat racing on this lake at regular intervals.

There's lots of open space in the park and it includes a grass ball diamond. My youngest grandchild wasn't sure if he was excited or not. He was waiting for Jasmine to join him for some exercise and fun!

Once the exercise and fun is over, he picked his favorite place to ride. I'm not sure who enjoys this the most, him or me...

Back at our coach, this sparrow decided my coffee cup looked enticing. He came every morning and pecked on the window until I talked to him. Animals and birds can be strange sometimes. Often, I wish I knew what they were thinking.

I'll let you put your own caption on this picture!