Christmas at Home

What a wonderful time we had while home for Christmas. The ride home was uneventful, after the fog lifted. Robin had the bed all set up, and the dogs were so happy to see us. Jax slept with us for a bit, then went to stay with George and his Mom. Every morning they came in to give us our morning kisses. I suppose they are missing us now.
Connor came to sleep over on the week-end before Christmas. We have this recipe for old fashioned cut-out cookies that my grandmother handed down. As a child we made them every year, and decorated them. That was a tradition I kept up. Since we've been on the road I haven't made them. This year we had such a good time. Connor counted the cookie cutters and found out we have 70, yes 70 of them. I was surprised at the final count. We had so much fun doing them. Wait till you see the picture. We shared them with Tom's sister, Beckie, and our son's family, and our Moms. There are only 2 left for Tom here. I guess we'll have to cut the recipe down and make them for ourselves while traveling. My grandmother used to have them in her cookie jar all the time. She would cut them out in these great big circle, and sprinkle them with sugar. I remember as a child going to the cupboard for them.
What fun I had baking. I made lots of cinnamon buns and sticky buns. I had taken my bread maker home so I could do it for every one. I also make this good pecan chocolate chip bread. Of course That is one of Robin's favorites. Robin and I also made ravioli. Years ago my mom gave me a pasta maker. I haven't made them foe years, but Robin wanted them for Christmas Eve. I told her she had to help. We made both cheese and meat. She has plenty left in the freezer for later on. She couldn't believe it was so easy to do. Kind of time consuming and tedious, but well worth the effort. We had lots of cheese filling left so we made stuffed shells. Boxed shells. We used some of our sauce from Trader Joe's. It was so good.
Christmas day was really just like it always was. Going next door to Tom's mom's, and having dinner. I had baked the ham and stuffing and made the gravy the day before. I added the sweet potatoes. Mom made creamed potatoes and cheesy spinach. Beckie made some deviled eggs, and her son brought some cookies. Tom and Jenn just have to bring Connor. That's enough for us. Connor shops at school every year. This year he gave me a cute pink bracelet. I told him I would wear it every day. So if you see me with it on and it doesn't match what I have on, too bad.
The day after Christmas we went on over to Tom and Jenn's. Connor showed us his new drum set. He played (?) for us for a bit. Then we got to play Uno Flash. We got it for him for Christmas. Everyone had such fun. Tom says he won't be winning that game anytime soon. You have to think fast and make your move before the buzzer goes off. And you never know when your turn is coming. The game decides. I suggest it for everyone.
Now we are back with Emily after a beautiful day of traveling. The only thing yesterday was a four car accident that was mostly a fender bender that involved a U-Haul trailer. There weren't many trucks on the road, so it was a nice day to travel with cloudless skies and we had fun seeing the different license plates. I'm thinking the other travelers were thinking South Dakota was far away from home. Little do they know, we are home where ever we are. We just didn't have Emily with us. Tomorrow we are on our way South. Hopefully, we will find some warmer weather.

Home for the Holidays

Well, we made it home to Plains, Pa. Emily is in storage in Tennessee. The folks were kind enough to let us keep her plugged in, so the furnace will go on if she gets below 40. She is winterized, and all set to endure the weather till we get back. Tom says we'll head south as fast as possible when we get back. There's no snow, but we'er just not used to the cold. I've been doing some baking. Tomorrow Robin will be home, and we will be making some homemade ravioli. I havent done that in years. We used to have then for Christmas eve dinner. The kids love them. On Saturday Connor will be sleeping over. The plan is to make the Christmas cut-outs that we've made every year since we were married. It's an old recipe from my grandmother, and a family tradition. Tom and I have a system. Connor loves to do them. We have lots of fun decorating them. I think I must have about 50 cookie cutters. Everything from a set a of lips to a cactus to the state of Pennsylvania. I have stopped buying them now. The recipe make so many I wouldn't have room in the motor home. Besides, there's just no room to carry the cookie cutters.
Tonight we plan to go to a basketball game to see Robin's cheerleaders. I suspect we'll be busy till the day we leave. We still have to find a nice day to go to Upstate New York to see my Mom. It will be a day trip for us, but you just never know about the weather up there. It can be nice one minute, and then if the lake effect snow starts you're doomed. We'll just have to pick the right day.
The tree that we usually carry with us was left home this year. Robin put it up before we got home. She then put the garland that we put over the slide-out on her mantle. It looks nice. We'll have to get a nice picture for our Christmas greeting. Maybe Connor will be in it. Maybe the dogs. We'll see. It's nice to be home, but it's probably the last time for a while. We just aren't that fond of the cold. Besides, I have a hankerin' for some gulf shrimp. Maybe even some Louisianna cajan meals. Yum Yum!!! Stay warm if your up north, and enjoy the warmth if your down south.

Adiarsville, Ga.

Cloudland Canyon is left behind. We thoroughly enjoyed our time there. The folks we worked with were great. It was cold up on the mountain, and the snow we had a couple of days before we left and melted. We came south for about 65 miles, and are camped here at Leisure Time Campground. It doesn'y have much to offer, but our neighbor Joan from How Kola lives here during the winter. We've had a nice chat with her, and then the rain came. The plan was to go to Marietta. Trader Joe's is there. We haven't been to Trader Joe's for quite some time. There are no stores in the northeastern part of the country, so we have to wait till we come south. The idea was to pick up some wine, some spaghetti sauce, and see what else caught our eye. I spied some salsa that looks pretty good, and a big bag of chips to go with it. Tom sampled some of their coffee. If we had gone there last, we probably would have bought some of their other goodies from the freezer section. Everything looked so good.
From there we went on to Sams Club. I wanted to pick up some Chai Tea. Our store in Wilkes-Barre doesn't carry it, but the one in Scranton does. Well, this one didn't either. Tom got some blueberry muffins(one of his weaknesses), and I picked up some pecans for baking at home. The next time I see the tea, I'll pick up about 5 cans of it. I have a mugful every morning, and I'm beginning to get down to the bottom of the container. Maybe we'll be able to get to Scranton in the few days we're home.
Next came Wal-Mart. We picked up and UNO FLASH game for Connor for Christmas. He is such a good game player. He loves UNO ATTACK. Beats us more often than not. Also we added some stuff to the pantry. But of course, that the way it is when you go into Wal-Mart. You always come out with more that you went in for.
Then we went to Gondolier for a meal. Now, there are 2 types of Gondolier restaurants. At the time we didn't know this was a take-out, counter serve type. The one we went to in Tenn. was a nice sit down type. The food was as good as last time, and the meals were cheaper, but the atmosphere wasn't there. I brought home half of mine, but Tom ate the whole thing. He said if they had had bruchetta he would have bought half of his home, too. Then it was time to come home.
It rained all day, very heavy at times, but it seemed to not be bad when we were going to and from the car. Tom just opened a couple of windows. It's getting warm in here with the sun shining so bright. It feels good. Now if we can get Emily up to Bristol, and then drive home, we'll be set for the Holiday. Wish us luck. This may be the last time we try to do this. Oh well, there's no time clock to punch. No time limit to go here or there. When it's good to go, we'll go.

Almost Done at Cloudland

I can't believe a whole month has passed since we came here. Tomorrow stars our last 5 days of work. As of yesterday they have closed most of the campground, and we won't have much to do. The work is never hard. There is only one bath house left open. Tim, the volunteer coordinator asked us if we would come back next year. That mean a lot. He's been very please with the way we do our thing with the other campers and the job we do with our chores. Our answer was that we don't plan that far in advance, we'll have to call next year. It's been pretty cold here at night when the sky is clear and no cloud cover. We've only had maybe 3 or 4 days of rain. The folks have been extremely nice, but folks usually are here in the South. It's been a pleasure to be here.
We have been to Chattanooga a couple of times. If you've never been, I recommend it. It has something for everyone. Good food, lots to do, and free, that's right, free shuttle service. You can park your car and take the shuttle to the aquarium, or just go downtown for lunch. The city has a variety of nice little shops and is utilizing the old warehouse district. They are bringing it back to life. Everything is clean and tidy. We would have liked to go on Sunday to the Market, but we had some other things to get done. Maybe next time. It's supposed to be really nice with lots of vendors.
Our converter stopped working. A trip to Camping World took care of that problem. They had just the one we wanted, so Tom installed it and PRESTO we have all the light we need. Our batteries are all charged up and all is well. While there we took a look at one of the motor homes we had seen on line. For a 2007 Monaco it wasn't in the best shape. I guess some folks don't care how they take care of things. Oh well, when and if we find the right one maybe we'll up grade. That one would have been ideal. I had everything we want. Maybe next time.
We had a great Thanksgiving. Ann, one of the camp hosts, made the turkey and stuffing and gravy. Everyone brought dishes to add to it. I took the sweet potatoes and spinach with cheese sauce. I also made a big batch of the peanut butter fudge Tom likes so much. Well, we brought about 10 pieces home. I guess it was a hit. I told him I'd make more when we get home for Christmas. Robin wants sticky buns, and pumpkin roll. Connor wants shape cookies. (That's what he calls my cut out cookies). The year we went full timing was the first year since we were married that I hadn't made them. This year the tradition continues.
Now I have to go to bed. Tom's been there for over an hour, and we have to be up and out in the morning. The air is so fresh here that you can fall asleep really easy. We'll miss this place. The good thing is....we can always come back.

Days Off

Today is the second of five days off. The plan was to travel to Chattanooga, Tenn. to see the sights. It started to rain before we rolled out of bed, so we decided to stay home. Tom did some stuff on the computer, and I did my thing. Those of you that know me best, know I like to bake or cook. Well, today was baking. This year I made sure my bread machine came with us. It was sticky bun day today. It was the first time, I tried this in this oven. We haven't tried them yet, that will come at breakfast tomorrow, but I think they came out OK. Let's hope so. Ann and Ron came over to give us some Thanksgiving info, and I gave them half of them. She said only one each, but no one can eat just one. Oops, let's edit this. Tom just opened the buns and is having one with some tea. Now we'll wait for a couple of minutes......He says they are good.
It's always hit or miss with the bread. I was using yeast in those little packets, and the first loaf, which was whole wheat, looked like Cloudland Canyon. Sunk in the middle. The second loaf, potato bread, looked really nice. The third loaf, I tried whole wheat again, didn't look nearly as bad. For Thanksgiving I'll make some oat bread. It's all yummy. I love that machine.
The other day we went to town to eat. We ended up at LaLita's. It's a Mexican restaurant. Tom chose a platter of taco, enchilada, and burrito. I had enchilada, renello, and something else. I can't remember the name. Everything was really good. We hope go back before we leave.
Tonight we find out who goes to the finals on Dancing with the Stars. We have our favorites, as I'm sure everyone does. I hope the best dancer wins. You just never know how folks will vote. I guess we'll just wait and find out.
Tonight we sat and watched the fog roll in over the campground. It looks really eerie out there. Looks likes one of those old Dracula movies. I hope it improves by the morning so we can go to see the Choo Choo in Chattanooga. It should be fun.

Hiking Sitton's Gulch Trail

On Saturday, along with Ron and Ann, we set off hiking on the Sitton's Gulch Trail. Tom followed Ron down the mountain to the parking area to leave his truck, and drove back up to their camping spot on the east rim. From there we hiked on down to see the waterfalls at the bottom of the canyon. The waterfall trail is about 2 miles round trip. Not bad except for the 1200 steps. We only went down, so we went about 600 steps. Then we crossed the bridge to where the Gulch trail starts. It works it's way along the bottom of the west side of the canyon following Daniel Creek. The way the creek tumbles and falls over numerous falls and cascades is so beautiful Tom took some great pictures, and could have taken so many more. We stopped about half way and had a snack and a drink. Although we started off at 11:00 and ended at about 3:15, we had a really wonderful day. After the hike we all decided to go for pizza at Rafael's. It doesn't matter what size pizza you order, you get one free. It was really good. No doubt we'll be back before we leave here.
Yesterday we stayed around home trying to rest our aching legs. We fixed some ribs on the grill. With a side of my cole slaw and some fried okra. MMMMMMM!!! We ate outside at the picnic table. I think the temp went up to about 75. What a perfect day.
Just before I went to bed on Saturday night I received a phone call from Joan. She lives across from us at How Kola. She had some bad news for us. Our friends Butch and Jo Miller from up there were just starting to go full timing in their new fifth wheel. They were excited to be going traveling. Butch retired last year, and when they got the new trailer they thought they had a piece of heaven. Joan called to tell us that Butch had had an apparent heart attack while diving and hit a vehicle on the side of the road. They think he was gone before impact. Jo is in a hospital in Johnson City Tenn. quite banged up. The truck is totally gone, but the trailer seems to be OK. I really don't know much more than that, but we are saddened by the thought they didn't get far. Jo has a lot on her plate right now. Her health isn't really all that good, but she seemed to be getting so much better this summer. We worry about her. Butch, rest in peace our friend.
That's the ups and downs of the weekend. Two days left till we start working. The rain is on the way. I don't imagine there will be many campers out in the bad weather.The bright colors are fading to rusts and browns and are still beautiful. This is a beautiful peaceful place. Some of God's handiwork.

Cloudland Canyon State Park

Here we are at the beautiful state park in northern Georgia. We arrived last Saturday, and started work the next morning. We worked for 5 days, and now we are off for 5. Our jobs are to clean the bathhouses each day, and keep the camp sites clean. Selling wood is, I suppose, is also one of our duties. If someone comes in after the office closes we have to get the nights fee. A golf cart is ours for the month. Oh, I forgot. When we checked in they asked if we could stay on for an extra week. As of right now our leaving date is Dec. 9. Folks here are really friendly and the campers are vary good at keeping things tidy. This weekend is fully booked, and we have a family with 3 little girls next door. It's nice to hear children.
Today we took a trip to a Civil War Battlefield. It's a really nice place not unlike Gettysburg, Pa. Tom wanted to get his America the Beautiful Pass. We were going to get it before we left home, but with getting ready to travel we forgot. The good news is that the state parks in Louisiana take the pass. After Christmas we plan on going there for maybe a month. We'll see. Gotta go get some of that good Cajun food. Tomorrow we plan to go to the lookout path. It overlooks the canyon, and is really stunning this time of year. I'm afraid we'll miss peak season for the leaves, but we missed it by about a week. Believe me, we know how many leaves have fallen, Tom blows out the sights. Sometimes you can't even see where they are because there are so many leaves falling on them. I'm sure it will still be wonderful.
Last night we went to a pot luck dinner. One pair of volunteers is leaving, and we were welcomed. I made a chicken pot pie that came out really good. I also took a loaf of bread I made in the morning. Ann, with her husband Ron, have given us lots of instruction and have have been very nice to us. They work over at the East Rim Campground. We work on the West Rim. She loved the bread, so I gave her the leftovers. There was lots of good food, and about 26 really nice folks to eat it. Including rangers and their families. It seems we'll have a great month.
So many times we are happy to report how many good people we find where ever we happen to stop. Whether we stay for a day or a month. It does the heart good.