Our time in Salem, AR

A children’s specialist of some sort comes to daughter Mary’s every Thursday to analyze Bryanna’s progress, so we got to meet her. Very nice lady.

First thing Friday morning Miss Winnie had a new air conditioner installed at Leon’s Auto Repair. This will help us when the temps go up.

Later we drove into Mountain Home (35 miles) for Mary’s doctor appointment. In the afternoon I sorted 2 more very large boxes of baby clothes. Mary’s had a lot given to her.

We also drove to Ash Flat (17 miles) to meet the developmentally delayed day care teacher where Bryanna is driven every day (~7am-3:30pm). She wasn’t in, since no “students” showed up, so we didn’t actually meet the teacher. But they showed us around and talked some about the program she’s in. Came across some Longhorn cows with their calves.

That evening we celebrated Bryanna’s birthday with a small group from the church she’s been attending. It was a potluck, so I brought chili. Then we had a short Bible study. Mary attends this regularly. The church bus picks her up.

We stayed in Mary’s apartment parking lot, so we had no internet, and no blog update. During the night there was a terrific storm, with rain pelting down all night. But we had no roof leaks! However, we did have a leak earlier in the day. The kitchen tap fitting had come loose (probably from all the bumps on the road), and water was collecting under the sink and cabinets. Roger was able to fix it quickly and we mopped up the mess!

This morning we did our laundry and served Mary tacos for lunch. She wanted to spend the rest of the day with her boyfriend, so Rog & I went into town and shopped at the 2 stores that were still open. Miss Winnie didn’t want to go any further and wouldn’t start. Roger was able to get her going using the "house battery", but thinks we may need a new starting battery. We decided to go right to the R.V. park where we had already made reservations. It’s a lovely, secluded park with lots of green and a stream flowing behind us.

So right now we do have internet – and have gotten you all caught up! Looking forward to church tomorrow - our last day in Salem.

Thanks for following our blog and for the nice comments.

Bryanna's 1 now!

We didn't celebrate her birthday today - she has to wait until tomorrow! We're planning a potluck party with some church friends.

Today we walked to the store and library (about 1 mile). I got to push Bryanna's stroller! The weather couldn't be better.

This afternoon we sorted mounds of baby clothes by age, helping Mary get ready. (She has several friends from church who try to help her out.) Then we went to a nearby park. Most of us walked around the small lake.

Last night we spent in Mary's apartment parking lot, but tonight we're in an R.V. park. There's a small stream behind our R.V., the stars are out, and it's peaceful!

Meeting Bryanna, our youngest granddaughter

Last night at about 3 p.m. a mighty gust of wind hit and shook the R.V. It only lasted a short time, but was very intense. Then we had rain. Today is cooler - works for us!

Roger's been working on fixing the blinds by the kitchen sink. He brought a lot of tools and has been using them. I pulled the fridge door handle off, so he "improvised" and fixed it!! (We're a good pair - I break, he fixes!!)

We'll be heading the rest of the 100 miles to Mary's soon. She's expecting us between 2 and 3 p.m.

Driving north through AR on route 9 from Morrilton to Salem, we were impressed by 2 things:

-the many churches – spread along the rural country side. Seemed like 31 flavors of Baptist.

-the extremely winding/hilly roads – Roger said “like riding a 100 mile long rollercoaster ride”. Try it in a motor home for the best experience.

Arrived in Arkansas

Monday we enjoyed a dinner at the Cheesecake Factory in Oklahoma City, OK. Thanks, RJ & Brad! The air conditioning was almost as delightful as the food!! Yes, we have moved into a warm, humid climate. The truck motor's a/c broke down, so we only get air via the RV ceiling a/c. It works okay, but we do appreciate a/c at our daily stops here and there. We hope to find a repair shop that won't require a long stop-over.

The wind has stayed with us, which is nice for cooling when stopped or outside. We’ve seen quite a few signs blown over!! Road work has not slowed us hardly at all, which is very nice. We've only been lost a couple of times - in Albuquerque, NM, and heading out of Oklahoma City - getting on a toll road heading in the wrong direction! Luckily there was an exit in 10 miles.

En-route we saw a route 66 museum advertised, and decided that was something we needed to see. It was a lot of fun – and a little nostalgic!

On our travels, we have slowly added some “luxuries” to our little house on wheels. An overhead fan clipped to the sun visor; a dash organizer and a flag(!). We are still learning how to stash things so that nothing attacks us when we open the cabinet doors.

I did laundry today at a laundry facility. You would think I had never done that before. However, despite my ineptitude, it all got done – even some hand wash items.

We noticed when entering AR that things greened up considerably. No more desert or tumbleweeds.

Roger has his work cut out every time we rent a spot for the night.

We’re at about 35% of our total planned mileage. Tomorrow we plan to be at daughter Mary and Bryanna's place. Bryanna will be 1 on Thursday, so it's time we met her! We expect internet will be sparse.

We’ve learned a few new words for Scrabble: e.g. “playa” and “bayou”. McDonalds and Walmart continue to be our favorite stops!

Sunday, Monday...NM, TX, OK

After spending Saturday night right on the old route 66 in an RV park in Tucumcari, NM, we headed to First Baptist Church in town. What we didn’t know was that they offered a potluck breakfast every Sunday morning. It’s a ministry of theirs (along with AWANA). So, after joining them for breakfast, we went to our Sunday School class. They were watching a David Jeremiah series.

We enjoyed the service and message.

Then we “hit the road” for Texas. On the way we stopped by the roadside for "bisc-ghetti". I didn't have noodles, so made some biscuits to go with our spaghetti sauce.

In CA, AZ, and NM we didn’t see water by the side of the road (small ponds, etc.) Finally, in TX, we have seen about ½ dozen. It’s really a dry country. We did, however, see thousands of cattle in pens, and “partook” in the smell!! And they are using all the wind we’ve been bucking – lots of wind generators.

In Shamrock, TX, we found the small Baptist Church and worshipped with them in the evening. Everyone was very friendly. After the service, Beverly and Jim took us out for hamburgers. The French fries are hand cut.

And, yes, in Texas everything is bigger. I ordered a mini-hamburger, and it was bigger than any regular size burger I’ve had!

Still in Windy New Mexico

Last night was the coolest so far. The sky clouded over and the wind blew, but we slept very well - the beds are totally agreeable to us. Today the sun has been mostly obscured, but it's still plenty warm. I love going to the back to lay down whenever I so desire (Heather)! I had the slow cooker plugged in all night, and the dinner was still warm when we stopped to eat at noon.

We drove through most of New Mexico and crossed the Continental Divide. The entire day we fought high winds, and arrived in Tucumcari.

Much of I-40 follows along historic Route 66. It's neat to see the old highway come in and out of view as we drive along I-40.

Our goal was the dinosaur museum run by the Mesaland College which we were able to tour.

We'll be spending the night here, but opted to not attend the rodeo. We just can't take any more wind!

In Windy New Mexico

Indeed, the wind has stayed with us - all the warning signs and reports that go with it. We could be drifting along with the tumbling tumbleweed, but it goes across our path - not with us!

We spent the night in Holbrook at a Good Sam R.V. park. Had a great night and good start - about 2 miles. At Safeway Roger became aware of one tire that looked quite flat. We were able to get it fixed immediately in town - a real blessing! This was in the tire:

We left Holbrook and were amazed at the trains - many of them; all very long; with 6-8 engines on each one. Amazing what they pulled!

Once we were back on track, we went to the Petrified Forest National Park. Again we were blessed to be there the week that all national parks are free!! We drove through, stopping at various points.

From there we crossed the highway and went to the Painted Desert. God is awesome!

Here we sit at McDonalds, enjoying the internet and other goodies! Thanks to those of you - you know who you are!

We saw many sheep in CA; in AZ we had to slow down to wait for calves to move away from the road (in the National Park)!!

On The Road Again

We waited until after rush hour to leave Barry & Sue's place. Then we climbed out of Phoenix - up to over 7000 feet! Our first stop was at Montezuma's Castle in the direction of the Grand Canyon. It was well worth the stop! We were told it was inhabited about 1100-1450 A.D. 45 rooms in the "castle"!

Heading east toward New Mexico, we drove by the large Meteor Crater and went in for a look. Roger remembers learning about it in grade school. Quite impressive!

We plan to spend tonight in Holbrook, AZ.

Rail Museum and more

Sue and Barry headed off to work; we did our laundry and headed off to the railroad museum. When we got there it was closed. But there were several volunteers working, and they let us in. Larry drove us around in his golf cart and we even got inside the train car that Presidents Wilson and Taft rode in! Adlai Stevenson used the car for his whistle stop ride in his bid for the presidency. For those of you who want more info about this: http://www.arizonarails.com/Ride_On_The_Federal.html

When Barry & Sue got home, we enjoyed a crock pot dinner - I'm collecting recipes on this trip!!

We went to Bible Study with them, and then came home to play Skip-Bo. It was good to get re-acquainted with them after 10 years. (Sorry about the amateur photographer!!)