Catch Up Time

Yes, I know, I've been slacking in the blogging area :-(  I just haven't been very inspired to write lately.  Plus, life seems to be keeping me otherwise engaged.

After we left Jessica, Mike and Emmett, we headed back to North Carolina.  We had some work to take care of but planned a six night stay so we could also relax a bit.  We returned once again to Jones Station RV Park.  We were there last year and really enjoyed the peace and quiet.

When our time was up we headed about an hours drive further west as it was closer to Ron's folks.  Another quick three night stay at Tanglewood Park Campground.  Our day of departure sure had a stressful twist to it.  A tree limb decided to break away from the tree and fall onto the rear of our trailer!  How dare it :-/  It clipped the corner of the roof, damaged the ladder, took off our flag pole and buckled the rear bumper.  As of today we are still waiting on repairs-the RV repair shops aren't eager for work, I guess.

the limb measured 11" diameter!

it would've missed us if we were only a foot more forward in the site

a second limb decided to fall before we were packed up, sigh

For awhile we were the talk of the campground.  People were coming over making sure we were all right.  Before we had enough time to hitch up, another section of tree decided it was coming down too.  Thankfully it fell onto the grassy area behind the rig!  The strangest part was the fact that there was absolutely no wind whatsoever and no indication that the limb was in distress.  The park ranger mentioned that they assess all of the trees in the winter and cut away potential broken limbs.  Unfortunately for us they missed this one.  But, we are safe and that's very good!

By early August we find ourselves once again in Oklahoma to visit with Alex, Kana and Benji.  It was good to visit with them all.  Of course, Benji was the main attraction :-)  While there Ron also helped Alex with the clothes dryer.  It had gone on the fritz about a week earlier.  With Benji in cloth diapers, it was quite a pain for them to be without it.  The guys went on the roof and cleaned out the vent pipe, but that wasn't the issue.  Ron ordered a part from Amazon, but that wasn't the issue.  A third diagnosis was the correct solution.  The door catch was too loose and when the tumbler made the door jiggle in the slightest little bit, it would shut off.  So a simple ten minute fix did the trick.

Ron and I look forward to seeing this little cutie pie again :-)

After a couple of long driving days we landed at Meteor Crater RV Park.  It's just off I-40 a little east of Flagstaff.  It's one of the spots I've wanted to visit for quite some time.  I wrote about it back in January 2015, before we even had a rig to call home.  Lucky for us we got there early enough in the day to visit the crater.  Pets are not allowed, although they do have crates you can put them in while you visit the meteor site.  We opted to leave Rufus at home instead.

From the website: "Meteor Crater is nearly one mile across, 2.4 miles in circumference and more than 550 feet deep. It is an International tourist venue with Outdoor Observation Trails, Air Conditioned Indoor Viewing, Wide Screen Movie Theater, Interactive Discovery Center, Unique Gift & Mineral Shop, and Collision! 4D Experience Room."  Unfortunately we didn't have enough time to visit the museum in depth or see the movie.  Be sure to give yourself enough time for these free perks.

it's quite impressive and worth the stop

far off in the distance is a house sized rock displaced by the impact

we were treated to a gorgeous sunset that evening!

Meanwhile, back in Oklahoma, Alex promoted to the rank of Major.  Ron and I are very proud of the man he has become.  His commitment to family and country exceeds our wildest dreams for him!!

Benji, Alex and Kana

This road trip ended in August on my 56th birthday.  We left in May, three months on the road seemed to go by too fast.  It's back to the parking pad in Sacramento for a few months.