07Jun 2013 by Lboll

Three State Parks Three States in Six Nights

Traveling

On our way from Wisconsin to Ohio we were lucky enough to stay in three nice state parks in three different states. Our first and my favorite was at Two Rivers, WI on the shores of Lake Michigan, Point Beach State Forest. Each of these three state parks had biking trails so we did a lot of biking but Point Beach by far was the most challenging for Joe and I. There were 6 miles of hard packed gravel trails going through thick forests winding up and down very hilly terrain. This trail took us into the town of Two Rivers and if we would have followed a paved path along the shores of Lake Michigan for another 6 miles we could have ridden to the next town. Joe and…

06Jun 2013 by Lboll

Minnesota – April 18th to May 23rd, 2013

Traveling

We arrived back at Dakotah Meadows in Prior Lake, MN on April 18th just in time to take our granddaughter, Cate, for five nights while her parents had a bit of a vacation before the new baby arrives. We hadn’t seen Cate since Christmas which made her taller and wiser. I know I often say how Joe and I are so blessed and she is definitely one of our true blessings. Life was filled with Cate for five days and did we have fun and slept very well every night. One of the first days we had about 6 inches of snow (welcome back snow we called it). We dressed all up in our warm clothes to make a snowman. Joe and I haven’t made a snowman in years. One…

18Apr 2013 by Lboll

Ohio

Traveling

After having such a great family time at Easter with Joe’s family we headed a little south to Cincinnati to Winton Woods, a Hamilton County Park. We have stayed at Winton Woods for the past 7 years when we visit our son Zach and his wife Lauren. Great place to stay but as in all great things it seems to change over time. Each time we go back, we normally stay twice a year for two weeks, we find things just a little bit disappointing. The last two times we have found the campground not as well taken care of. Mostly it seems that there is just more garbage lying on the grounds and in the fire pits. On our site we had to pick out large pieces of broken…

01Apr 2013 by Lboll

Travelling Towards Family

Traveling

As full-timers we cannot always be with family when we want. We decided to fly back to MN at Christmas to be with our kids and new that it would be spring before we would see them again. We talk to them regularly on the cell, facetime our granddaughter Cate almost every week, text message a lot but it just isn’t the same as seeing their faces in person or putting your arms around them. I’m told by other full-timers who have been doing it for many more years than Joe and I that it gets easier. I hope they are right or I’ll just be buying more airline tickets. So travelling towards family is traveling home no matter where that is. We made our way to Charlotte, NC to…

12Mar 2013 by Lboll

Short Visit Through South Carolina

Traveling

I do so love South Carolina! This is our third visit to this state and I hope we have many more ahead of us. Charleston was our first destination. Our third visit to this city and we could easily come back again. I jokingly asked Joe if we won the lottery if he would buy me a house in historic Charleston and as a true gentleman as Joe is he said “Of course!” We both love the history in Charleston and the beauty of the historic district. We spent two days exploring the city by touring bus, a ferry to take us to Fort Sumpter and just exploring the city for six hours on our own by walking the streets. Charleston has done everything possible to make the streets safe…

06Mar 2013 by Lboll

Nine Days in Georgia

Traveling

We know now we are definitely moving north. The weather has changed and we need to run our furnace or the space heater every day. Of course, we still don’t have the snow they have back in Minnesota so we can’t complain but it is just a little different from the 70’s and 80’s we enjoyed all winter in Florida. As we drove along the Georgia coast we went through marsh lands, large live oak tree groves with Spanish moss hanging from the branches, and many islands. Our first stop was in the Golden Isles, a group of five islands, St. Simons Island, Sea Island, Jekyll Island, Little St. Simons Island, and Brunswick. We stayed at a nice private campground called Coastal Georgia RV Resort. Nice place to stay and…

21Feb 2013 by Lboll

Saying Good-bye to Florida

Traveling

I forgot to mention in our last entry about our breakfast with our old neighbors from Minnesota. Clyde and Mary lived next to us in Jordan for many years. When we sold our house they started talking about buying a 5th wheel and working out of state while living in it (they are a few years younger than us). About three months after we left they had a 5th wheel in their driveway and have been working in North Dakota during the warmer months. They still have their home in MN but live almost full-time in their 5th wheel. They are spending the winter months in Texas but road their Harley to Florida for a week. We caught up with them the last day before they headed back to Texas…

13Feb 2013 by Lboll

The Beauty of Central Florida’s County Parks

Campgrounds, County Parks, Full-Time RVing

We are just wrapping up a five week stay in four of central Florida’s county parks. Each one was different in size and beauty. Each one was different in the people that were staying in them. The first one was in Palm Beach County, John Prince Park, Lake Worth. This was the largest of the four parks we stayed in. It was 700 acres with 300 campsites and miles of paved biking & walking paths which we enjoyed daily that went around lakes and past huge oak trees full of birds. The park was winter home to a couple of hundred snowbirds mostly French speaking Canadians. We were put in the part of the park where people came and went. First weekend we were there we were surrounded by families…

04Feb 2013 by Lboll

Our Dog Ivy

Traveling

Our hearts are breaking with the loss of our beloved dog, Ivy. She has been our constant companion for the past 15 ½ years. She had slowed down very little considering her age but these last two weeks we knew something was very wrong. One of the hard things of being on the road with an older dog is finding a competent veterinarian. After a bad experience with the first vet we took her to, we found a wonderful vet that told us that she was 99% sure that Ivy had a brain tumor. We took her home with a lot of sadness and decided to do the wait and see thing but before we left the vet’s office she gave us the “what’s better for Ivy and not us”…

15Jan 2013 by Lboll

Kissimmee Prairie Preserve State Park, Okeechobee, FL

State Parks

We just came out of a 10 day stay in no-where land. Kissimmee Prairie Preserve State Park is 40 miles from the nearest town and it truly sits in no-where land. This 54,000 acre preserve is very unique. Besides its vast size it is home to 12 birds that are classified as endangered such as the Grasshopper Sparrow but also so many other birds. It also is known for migrating butterflies and a premier location for stargazing. There are more than 100 miles of bicycling, hiking and horseback trails. But if you go out on a trail you have to be prepared for snakes, alligators and water that can be waist deep that covers the trail. Also during the winter months on weekends there is a ranger-led prairie buggy tour…