We're Off And Running

*We've been in the Sacramento area for two weeks.  Going to the shop for fabrication work is a necessary evil.  We'd much rather be back out on the road.  We've planned to be in the area until mid October, so we know it isn't forever:-)  In time we won't have to return but for now we will on occasion...

We left our pad in Rocklin June 7th.  It seems like a lifetime ago...

We've seen so much on our cross country trip it's hard to pick a favorite.

The first few days after we left were long driving days.  First stop Winnemucca, Nevada.  Next stop Park City, Utah.

Our third stop was at a Colorado State Park in Longmont.  We had three nights planned so that we could recharge and relax after driving for awhile.  Our time here went by quickly.  We did manage a day trip to Denver.

Mile High Stadium

downtown Denver as seen from Mile High Stadium

"Are you done eating yet? I'd like my snack now :-)"

street art

The 16th Street Mall offers free bus rides up and down it's entire one mile length.  During our time spent walking the mall we met up with a masked street performer.  He will gladly pose with you for a tip :-)

  
Next stop was Salina, KS for a one night stay.  Then on to Gravois Mills, MO.  What could possibly draw us to this small town?  Our niece's wedding!  The wedding took place on the shore of Lake of the Ozarks where Burk, Ron's brother, lives.  Genevieve was a beautiful bride and her husband, Aaron, looked equally dashing.

Mr. and Mrs. Lawhead

We were more excited to finally meet our grandson, Emmett.  Jessica and Emmett drove all the way from their home in Maryland to be at the wedding.  It was a long and sometimes grueling drive and we are both impressed with how she did it as a 'single parent'.  Mike was attending Officer Training School in Rhode Island at the time of the wedding.  Yep, he's now a US Navy Officer and medical school student! 

that face melts my heart

what all the stylish babies are wearing

tummy raspberries from Grammie

Grandpa got some Emmett snuggles too

Grammie and Emmett

 

Burk, Karen, Geni, Aaron, Rene, Ron, Jessica & Emmett

After the wedding it was time to head east again.  Jessica left the same day we did and I won't lie, tears were shed...  We'll catch up with her, Mike and Emmett in a few weeks.  We spent two nights in Clarksville, TN next.  We had hoped to see some former work neighbors who moved nearby.  Unfortunately John hasn't been in the best of health and has to have dialysis treatments.  Theresa was too busy to make the trip so instead we ventured out by ourselves for grocery shopping and laundry.  Life goes on even when your house is a trailer.

Ron's parents moved to North Carolina in 2010.  When we lived an hour (sometimes less) away we'd spend all of the holidays, birthdays and just any 'ol day possible together.  We miss our family time!  Erika and Guenther weren't able to make the wedding so we decided to make it a priority to visit with them.  The last time we saw them was when Jessica and Mike got married four years ago.  Too long!

Clemmons, NC has a beautiful park which includes a campground.  I saw the reviews and knew to stay away from certain spots due to the levelness of the sites.  I was able to book our spot far enough ahead of time that most of the spots were still available.  Tanglewood Park is more than a campground.  There's a dog park, plenty of bike/hiking/horse paths, arboretum, tennis courts, golf and more.  Camping sites are all FHU and only $33 per night.

Ron's folks came out to our place a few times.  It's nice to be able to finally share our home on wheels with family.  They approve :-)

Ron, Erika and Guenther

       We were also able to see their new home. 

Rufus can be persuasive :-)

PROST!!

Brad and Harda are good friends who are like family.  They moved to NC a couple of years before Ron's parents moved.  They were best friends in Placerville and continue to be best friends in Winston-Salem.  Of course we HAD to see them too!

oops, Brad's head is cut off

oops, Harda isn't looking at the camera

Loosie and Rufus had a blast too!

As it always happens, our time visiting everyone is too short.  We make plans to come back again.  Next time it won't take us four years to get there either.

Before we had left California Ron made a few contacts in North Carolina for PolyMenders.  We knew we'd be gone awhile and that income would be necessary at some point.  A school district in the nearby city of Greensboro hired us to repair several slides.  James was skeptical at first.  He isn't the first so we knew what to do.  We told him if he didn't like our first repair that he didn't have to commit to the rest.  Needless to say, after his initial inspection he gave us even more work than originally hired to complete!  He also asked us to come back another time and he would have more for us :-)

Greensboro is about an hour away from Ron's folks and they happily drove over to see us a time or two.  They really enjoyed seeing us in action as we repaired a slide and climbing arch.

There were weather delays in North Carolina.  Ron and I aren't used to rain in late June.  Our week stay in Greensboro doubled.  But in the end it turned out great because by the time we got to Maryland Mike was back from officer training school :-)

Next post will be about our time spent with Jessica, Mike and baby Emmett.