Back Home Again in Missouri

Guess I should end up our blog now that we have been back in Missouri about ten days. We left Casa Grande with very mixed feelings. We had such a wonderful, wonderful 2 1/2 months there, mainly due to our dear friends, Bob and Judy Howell. Thank you, Bob and Judy, so much for showing us such a good time, for driving us all around showing us sites, for the meals you fixed for us, and for entertaining us. We wouldn't have had as much fun if it hadn't been for you two. You are truly great friends and we are anxious for you to get back to Missouri. We miss you!

We also want to thank Harry and Sue Foster for entertaining us when we were in Mesa. You guys have such a beautiful home there. We were hoping to get together again before we left, but the time just went so fast. We are anxious for you guys to get back also so we can go out and eat and then play some dominoes!

It has been great to get back home and see our families and our sweet little granddaughter, Ella. Now we are anxiously awaiting the birth of our grandson (and so are his parents and sister)!

Our trip back home took us three days. The first night we stayed in New Mexico and the second night we stayed in Oklahoma. Got home about 6:30 on Monday, March 17, 2008. It rained most of the day on Monday. We had a Welcoming Committee on West Gale Road meet us in their yellow rain suits! It was good to see them.

Our last week in Casa Grande went so fast. We spent our last night in Casa Grande by going to Cracker Barrel with Bob and Judy. Left Saturday morning at 6:00 a.m. Larry drove the RV pretty slow as we left the RV park for the last time this year. We are signed up to come back next year for January, February, and March and were able to get the same site.

Thank you all for taking time to read our blog. I wasn't very good at keeping up on it and I apologize for that. Hopefully, next year we will have WiFi from our site and it will be easier to blog.

Until next winter..................The Bowling Snowbirds

Cactus Fly-In and Apache Trail

Monday, March 10, 2008

Last weekend (3/8-9/08) was full of fun activities with Bob and Judy. Saturday we started out by going to a craft/senior health fair at the Southern Arizona University in Coolidge. It was a senior health fair plus several craft vendors. Judy and I sure enjoyed it and the guys just tagged along. The weather was cloudy, breezy, and cool.

About mid-morning we got to the Casa Grande Airport for the 50th Annual Cactus Fly-In. Boy, Larry was in “seventh heaven”! He was grinning from ear to ear all afternoon. There were probably close to 150 small airplanes, antique bi-planes, old military planes, etc. There were airplanes taking off and landing and making pass-by flights all afternoon. We got to see a lot of the airplanes take-off to go home. One of the highlights for Larry was to see a military airplane that was used in Korea and Vietnam Wars called the “Skyraider” fly and to hear the sound of the engines roar. We also got to see 4 antique Stearman bi-planes take off together and they made several pass-by flights in formation. Each time they passed by, they ejected smoke out. Took lots of pictures and 30 video clips. Mike and Scott – bet you can hardly wait to see Dad’s videos! The sun finally came out and by later in the afternoon, it was almost 80 degrees out.

The Apache Trail was on the agenda for Sunday. Bob so graciously volunteered to drive their Jeep as he knew what the road was going to be like; parts of it were gravel, narrow, curvy, and rough (with a capital R). Ha! Fortunately, the day turned out to be gorgeous – clear blue sky and warm temps. The Apache Trail goes through the rugged Superstition Mtns with their jagged peaks, the Sonoran Desert with various forms of cactus, and two beautiful desert lakes—Canyon Lake and Apache Lake. The desert is real green now and has a lot of yellow and orange flowers blooming. The Apache Trail was built to transport materials and equipment, hauled by 20-mule teams from the nearest railroad to the construction site of the Theodore Roosevelt Dam. It was dedicated in 1911 and is the world’s largest masonry dam. On the way to Roosevelt Dam, we went through a town called Tortilla Flat with a population of six! It is a resurrected ghost town and has a café and country store that had once been a stagecoach stop. We had lunch at a restaurant along Canyon Lake and ate outside on the lakeside patio and looked at the mtns. – so beautiful and peaceful. The drive was so breathtaking and scenic. Bob drove over 200 miles that day, but it was so worth it for me. That drive was one of my highlights of our trip to Arizona. Sure hope we can do that again next year, Bob!

Next week will be our last week in Casa Grande. The time has gone way too fast. We have decided to come back again next year for January, February, and March if we are able.

Hope everyone is beginning to warm up back in the Midwest. Will see you soon.

Love, Glenda and Larry

Thursday, March 6, 2008

Thursday, March 6, 2008

We are on the downhill side of our winter vacation – only 9 more days of warm weather and relaxation. BUT I can honestly say that I am getting anxious to get home even though it means coming back to colder weather! I am ready to get back home and into a normal routine. I am sure after being home for a few days, I will be wishing I was back in Arizona again.

Last week we enjoyed having Don and Sylvia Kimsey here for a few days. They flew into Phoenix last Wednesday morning, and visited with Harry and Sue Foster in Mesa. Then on Thursday afternoon Harry and Sue brought them to our place. Later that afternoon Bob and Judy Howell had all of us over for a cookout of “Howell burgers” – Bob’s delicious fat (¼ lb. to ½ lb.) burgers. What a wonderful meal we had! Harry and Sue left to go back to Mesa afterwards and Don and Sylvia came back to the RV with us.

Friday we took Don and Sylvia to Eloy where the skydivers are. Bob and Judy met us for lunch. After an enjoyable day of watching the skydivers, we all went to Mission Royale Country Club for a fish fry supper. We had delicious fish and had a choice of regular FF, steak fries, or sweet potato fries. The sweet potato fries were delicious even though I don’t really care for sweet potatoes. We all enjoyed the meal and had a great time visiting. Everyone came back to our RV and had cherry pie and ice cream.

Saturday we took Don and Sylvia back to Phoenix to catch their flight back home. Before going to the airport in the afternoon, we took them to the Mesa Swap Meet and did some shopping that morning. After having lunch at a Mexican restaurant we headed to Harry and Sue Foster’s. Then we all went to the airport for Don and Sylvia’s 5:30 flight back to KC. We all enjoyed having them here and hope they will come again next year.

This week has been rather quiet and relaxing. Larry has been doing a lot of genealogy work – going to the local library and then coming back and working on the computer. I have been busy reading books. I enjoy reading and not feeling guilty that I should be up doing housework, but that will soon end when I get home!

One evening Bob and Judy came over and we played pitch. Judy and I let the guys win two games out of three so they wouldn’t feel bad. Right, Judy! The guys always get in such a bad mood when they lose. Ha! Right, Judy! We also went over to Bob and Judy’s one afternoon for Happy Hour. We have been riding our bikes every day in the late afternoon.

Tonight we are going to a spaghetti supper here in the RV park. It is a fundraiser for one of the activity groups. Tomorrow and Saturday is the 50th Annual Cactus Fly-In at the Casa Grande aiport. It will consist of small antique airplanes, WWII planes, and some military aircraft. Larry is looking forward to that. Judy and I are going to a health/craft fair at the Univ. of AZ campus here in Casa Grande. Sunday Bob and Judy are taking us on the Apache Trail sightseeing road trip if the weather is okay.
Happy Birthday, James (March 5)

Get well wishes to Amanda and Ella! Take good care of them, Mike.

Well, that should bring you up to date on our happenings since I last wrote. Will probably be headed home the next time I write.

Love to all, Larry and Glenda

Picacho Peak, Yuma, and Quartzsite, AZ

Greetings Everyone,

It is time that I write on our blog -- didn’t realize it had been so long since I last wrote. Here it is almost the end of February. How fast the days go by. I am writing this on Saturday, February 23, 2008.

We have spent some time sightseeing around Casa Grande. One day we went up Picacho Peak State Park. Had a picnic lunch and then went hiking on a trail up the side of Picacho Peak about a 1 ½ mile round trip. Not far from the state park is the Rooster Cogburn Ostrich Farm that is open to the public. Stopped there and enjoyed “hand feeding” the deer, ostrich, emus, and larakeet birds. The larakeet birds are a member of the parrot family – very friendly and quite colorful. They gave us some liquid in a little container and the birds would land on your hands, head, arms, shoulders and eat the liquid. A little bit scary for me as I was afraid they would start pecking once they landed on you. They were loud also, but it was fun watching them feed.

We stopped at a Greek monastery on our way back to Casa Grande. The public is allowed in the monastery every day until 3:30 and then everyone has to leave. It was 3:15 when we got there so we didn’t get to tour the grounds. It looked really interesting and what few monks we saw were all clothed in black robes with beards and some kind of covering on their heads. Would like to go back and tour the grounds.

On Valentine’s Day Larry and Bob took Judy and I out for a special supper. We ate dinner at the Cracker Barrel here in Casa Grande. It was very enjoyable and the food was delicious. We spent the day doing laundry – quite romantic! Ha!

The annual O’odham Tash Indian Celebration Days were Feb. 15, 16, & 17. Several Indian tribes from around the area have a crafts and arts fair. Beautiful crafts made by the Indians. Friday Bob, Judy, and us took in the arts and crafts fair and Saturday morning we all went to the parade. Several tribes participated in the parade and it was fun to watch. That afternoon we attended the all-American Indian rodeo. Among the events were bareback riding, bull riding, barrel racing, calf roping, bronco riding, and the wild horse racing. In most of the events, the animals came out the winners. Ha! The wildhorse racing was especially comical. A team of 3 or 4 cowboys have to catch the wild horse, saddle him, and them ride him to the finish line without falling off or getting bucked off. It was quite a challenge for most of the cowboys, but funny. I hadn’t been to the rodeo since I was a teenager.

Sunday, February 17, was the Missouri get together for people from Missouri who live in our RV park. We all met at a local café in Casa Grande. About ten couples or so attended and we enjoyed visiting with everyone. The general consensus was that we were all glad we were not in Missouri this winter! Some of the people were from the KC area and some were from St. Louis area. Most all of them had heard of Smithville!

Larry and I took off for Yuma and Quartzsite. AZ on Monday, Feb. 18. In Yuma we visited with Bob and Paula Devers. Larry used to work with Bob. They took us around the Yuma area and showed us a date farm and we had a date shake. Was it ever delicious and I don’t even care for dates! Yuma is quite a vegetable farming community. We saw workers picking head lettuce and Romain lettuce. There were also crops of broccoli and cauliflower. We had lunch down in the old historic area of Yuma in a unique old Lupe’s Casino café. After leaving Bob and Paula’s we went to visit Pat and Woody Green, who were spending sometime in Yuma with some of their friends from Washington state. Pat had gone back to Washington for a few days so we visited with Woody and their friends, Ron and Jill Davis. For supper Woody took us and his friends to a Mexican restaurant. The food was great. Then we went back to Woody’s and he graciously let us sleep in their camper while he slept in Ron and Jill’s motorhome. Ron and Jill had recently purchased a fifth wheel, so they slept in it.

The next day (Tuesday, Feb. 19) we drove north to Quartzsite. Quartzsite is a town in Arizona where people go and camp out in the desert without electicity and water or what they call “dry camping”. You can park just about any place and call it home. A lot of flea market vendors and RV vendors park in Quartzsite and set up business during the winter months. About 75% of the vendors had already left Quartzsite by the first of February, but there were still quite a few for us to check out while we were there. It was quite a place to visit, but I sure wouldn’t want to live there. I guess in December and January it is quite a popular place to be if you have a camper – people parked everywhere!

The drive from Casa Grande to Yuma to Quartzsite and back was mostly desert land and small mountain ranges. Because of the recent rains, the desert floor has a lot of green color and some small flowers are blooming. None of the cactus are blooming yet. Sure don’t see any homes or farms around – just cactus and sage bushes. We got back to Casa Grande about 6:30 that night.

The next morning we woke up with sore throats and colds – wonderful. We took it easy and rested up from our short road trip. Thursday we did laundry and stayed around here. Friday (yesterday) Bob and Judy had been wanting to go to the Mesa flea market so we all went up there. It was cool, cloudy, and poured rain in the afternoon. Didn’t help our colds, but we survived and had a fun day. Before leaving Mesa, we just had to stop at Camping World for Larry and Bob. Ha! It is always good to get out of Phoenix by 3:00 because the rush hour traffic begins that early. We left about 3:30 and Bob did a good job of maneuvering through the traffic and getting us safely back to Casa Grande.

Today Bob and Judy and us went to some patio/garage sales but we didn’t find much. An Arizona RV dealer from Mesa had a display of motorhomes and fifth wheels at a parking lot in Casa Grande so we stopped there and checked the campers out. There were quite a few campers. We found a “diesel pusher” that really caught our eye, but way too much money for us to spend right now. Of course, we can always dream! After lunch we went back to the RV park and Larry had a repair job to do with the hot water heater. We didn’t have hot water coming out of our faucets. The cold water worked fine but when we put it on the hot water side, there was very little hot water coming out of the faucet. Larry figured out what the problem was and went out and got the part for it so now we have hot water once again.

Bob and Judy invited us over to their RV to meet some of their friends from the old RV park where they used to stay. Their names are Joe and Judy DuGay from Washington state – super nice people and had such a nice time visiting with them. Hope to see them again before we leave.

Well, that has brought us up to date so far. Hope everything is going well for all and please forgive me for being so long in updating our blog. Thank you for the e-mails from back home.

Happy Birthday to our sweet granddaughter, Ella, who was two years old on Valentine’s Day. We sure hated to miss her birthday party, but we thought about her all day!!!

Happy Belated Birthday, Brad LeFever

Happy Anniversary, Jack and Judy Ruble

Happy Birthday, Mom Bowling

Until next time, Love to you all – Larry and Glenda

Pictures above – (1) Quartzsite, AZ; (2) Picnicking at Picacho Peak State Park; (3) Larakeet Birds Feeding; (4) Friends Bob and Paula Devers and Molly; and (5) Woody Green and Ron and Jill Davis;

Driving, Dancing, and Dining

It is finally “shorts” weather and guess what -- somehow or another I failed to get my shorts in the camper! They are probably still hanging in the closet, but I know I had them ready to pack. I couldn’t believe it! Guess I will have to run out tomorrow and buy a couple of pair. Did manage to bring a couple of pair of capris with me. Larry got his shorts packed before we left. The temperature got up to 78 degrees today! How cold was it back home? (I’m sorry – just had to ask)

Today (2/10) we were invited up to Harry and Sue Foster’s to spend the day. We got up there about 10:45 and had a great time visiting with them. Sue prepared a delicious lunch. After lunch we spent time out on their front patio until it got so warm from the south sun that we went inside – (sorry about that Midwesterners). We left about 4:00 and came back to Casa Grande. They have a lovely home in Mesa.

Yesterday was also a beautiful day. In the morning Judy Howell and I, along with a friend of Judy’s, went to an annual craft fair at Mission Royale, a ritzy neighborhood in Casa Grande. We all found something to buy – aren’t you surprised! After shopping we stopped and had lunch at Mimi’s Café, which has recently opened in Casa Grande. Bob Howell and Larry went to another RV park to their patio sales. Then they went out to lunch. Last night we all went to the clubhouse for a country western performance by a couple who are friends of Bob and Judy’s. What a fun evening! Not only was their singing great, but we also got to dance. Larry and I hadn’t danced that much since Mike and Scott’s weddings. It was also fun to just watch the other couples dance, mostly country western dances – some couples were really good. During their breaks from the show, the singers would come and sit down with us and visit. After the show we got to visit with them also. They are from Springfield, Missouri and perform out here during the winter at several different RV parks. They not only sing country western but also hits from the 50’s and 60’s. They performed for three hours.

Friday night the four of us went to a restaurant for fish and chips. It was an all-you-can-eat dinner and we enjoyed it. Then we came back to Bob and Judy’s 5^th wheel and played pitch. Judy and I won all four games!!! We were so proud of ourselves – usually the guys win most of the time.

The weather last week was pretty cool until Friday and it sounds like next week is going to be much nicer and warmer. Usually by about 11:00 it has started to warm up (if the sun is shining) and then about 4:30 it starts cooling back down quickly.

This coming week we hope to get over to Yuma and Quartzsite for a couple of day. We have some friends that are camped over there. Yuma is about 3 hours from here and Quartzsite is about 1 ½ hours north of Yuma.

Well, I will sign off and get to bed.

Happy 60^th Birthdays to Dale Fine and Sylvia Kimsey!!!!

Until next week – Love, Larry and Glenda

Greetings from Casa Grande

Another week has passed and we are starting on Week No.6 – can’t believe how fast the days and weeks are passing. Like they say, time flies when you are having fun!

Last Tuesday afternoon Bob and Judy Howell got back from KC. We were glad to have them back again. They were glad to get back from the cold and snowy Midwest, but they did have a good time with Jason and Dawn and their sweet grandkids. They came over Tuesday afternoon for Happy Hour, and then we had supper together.

On Thursday (1/31/08) Ron and Jan Ford came back through from Bakersfield, CA where they had been spending time with Jan’s sisters and their families. This winter weather kind of played havoc with their travels both going and coming back. They really had to listen to the weather forecasts. They nicknamed their selves “Gloom and Doom” because it seemed like bad weather followed them everywhere they traveled, besides some other unfortunate happenings along the way. We didn’t know if we really wanted them back here. Ha! Ha! Just kidding, Ron and Jan -- we had a great time with you and loved having you here! I had invited Bob and Judy over and we all had supper together here.

Ron and Jan were interested in going to the big flea market in Mesa since they missed going up there with Dave and Jan Legaard and us. We called Cheryl Simms to see if she you like to go with us also. Ron and Jan hadn’t seen Cheryl in a very long time either so we stopped in Gilbert and picked up Cheryl and headed toward Mesa for the flea market. We enjoyed shopping at the flea market and, again, found several bargains that we just couldn’t pass up! After spending about three hours there, we had covered the entire marketplace and had lunch. An orange and grapefruit orchard stand was our next stop. Then we headed out to Scottsdale where Cheryl grew up and she showed us around. It was a very unique area. Being close to Glendale where the Super Bowl was to be held, there were a lot of Super Bowl activities going on in Scottsdale and lots of people on the streets. Cheryl took us to a favorite Mexican restaurant for dinner and the food was fantastic. After dinner we dropped Cheryl off at her home in Gilbert and headed back to Casa Grande. It had been a long day but we all agreed we had a great time!

Saturday (2/2/08) was another busy but fun-filled day. The four of us met up with Bob and we all ate breakfast together at the RV Park’s weekly Saturday breakfast. Judy was going to a Red Hatters breakfast with some ladies from the RV park. After breakfast Judy joined us and the six of us went walking all around the RV park checking out the patio sales that the park was having that day. Each of us found stuff to buy (and probably sell at our next garage sale, ha!). We started out in Bob and Judy’s golf cart, but it was a little too much for the four-seater to handle. It sure did look funny with all six of us hanging out of the golf cart.

Saturday was a beautiful sunny day so for lunch Bob and Judy suggested this café that had a garden patio where you could eat your lunch outside. While we were all sitting outside enjoying our lunch in the sun, we wondered about our family and friends back in Missouri. We have been trying to convince Ron and Jan that they need to get a fifth wheel or a motorhome so we took them to a consignment lot and went through the campers they had. Then we came back to our CAMPER (just for you, Bob) and grilled some hamburgers and Polish sausages for supper.

Sunday morning about 6:00 Ron and Jan headed back towards Missouri. We hated to see them leave but know they were anxious to get back to see their granddaughters besides other family members. It had been a month since they left Smithville. We spent the rest of the day just relaxing and then watching the Super Bowl game. Stopped in to see Bob and Judy for a few minutes when we were out on our walk.

Today we woke up to a cloudy, cold, and rainy day. Decided it would be a good day to eat breakfast out so went to Cracker Barrel and then did some shopping before coming back home. Rained most of the day until about 2:00 this afternoon. It is supposed to clear up and be really nice the rest of the week.

Well, this has brought you up to date on our happenings.

February 5 – Happy Birthday to Kari and Jim!!!

The Snowbirds

Latest Happenings

Today has been a cloudy, cool, and rainy day. It got up to 63 degrees, and sounds like tomorrow is going to be about the same. Yesterday was a beautiful day and got up to 78 degrees. Was almost tempted to get the shorts out!

Last Friday Dave and Jan Legaard and us went up to Mesa to the big swap meet (flea market). We didn’t get all the way through it, but found lots of bargains – didn’t we, Jan! There were so many vendors and some good prices also. Larry and I hope to get up there in February and check it out again. After spending all our money (Ha,Ha), we went to Harry and Sue Foster’s home. Then the six of us went out to lunch. Wanting to get some fresh oranges, Harry and Sue took us to an orchard close by and we loaded up with oranges and grapefruits. Then we headed back to Casa Grande.

Yesterday morning Dave, Jan, and Ishe loaded up their fifth wheel and headed towards Missouri. We sure hated to see them leave also. We had a great time camping with them and doing things together, mainly eating at buffets (ha)! We have been having “buffet” withdrawals since they left! Dave and Jan, thanks for the good times and have a safe trip back to Missouri!

Today we went up to Gilbert, which is a suburb of Phoenix, to visit Cheryl Simms, who used to live in Smithville with her husband, John. After John passed away, she moved away to Springfield, MO and then to Phoenix area. She has a lovely beautiful home in a gated community. We hadn’t seen Cheryl in about four years and it was great to spend the day with her. Cheryl was born and raised in the Phoenix area and has a sister who still lives there with her family. We had a really good visit and hope to get
together with her again before we head back home.

Well, that is about all of our happenings this week. We are looking forward to Bob and Judy being back here, probably by Tuesday night. Hope the weather has started to warm up for you back in the Midwest.

Happy Birthday Traci and Gena Kaye!!!