On the Road Again - Day One

December 27th - Sunday 55 Degrees - Wellsboro, PA

Fifty two years ago today I gave birth to my second child, my one and only son, Gregory Scott Bryant.  The first thing I did this morning was to make a post on Facebook to wish him a Happy Birthday.

After celebrating Christmas with all of our families, first on Christmas Eve at  Susan's house with her side of the family.  It was a bit different this year, as Shawn and Tim has a bet with Sue and  they lost, so they had to wear "ugly" sweaters that were hand made by family members, and they were really good sports about it and wore them with great pride.  Everyone kept in mind that we were leaving for Florida soon after Christmas and gave presents that were really useful for our trip and very thoughtful.  Sue and I spent time talking about Christmases in the past and our kids have all agreed that the most memorable Christmases were the ones that we drove from Ohio to Pennsylvania and spent them with my parents on the farm.  It was a lot of work for all involved but lots of good memories for all involved and I will have to write some of those stories on my Yesterdays Blog later.

On Christmas Day we went to Krista's house for dinner and presents.  We spent a lot of time sitting at the dining room table talking about previous Christmases also and the many memories that we all have from years past.  Lou shared memories of one Christmas when his parents were both unemployed and there was no money for presents, but some how they purchased a truck for him and how  happy he was with it and that he kept it for years after.

Saturday we went to Lou's house to have Christmas with his family.  Twenty-nine people were there to celebrate the holiday.  Casey and Allie came the furtherest coming from Georgia.  It was a nice day to catch up with everyone and stories on what everyone was doing.

We were up  this morning at 8:00, finished the laundry, packing between rain storms, got to talk to my brother a few minutes and were ready to leave our house at 10:30 am, we went to the Fair Grounds  to hook up and then waited until the rain slacked up a little.  Finally, we were on the road at 11:05.  Put in a Willie Nelson tape, Maci curled up for a nap.  We got to Steam Valley and it sure was steamy there, but once we got beyond Williamsport, the rain stopped and beyond Harrisburg, the sun came out.

It was great coming through St. Mary's and not to have to worry about scrapping the side of the motor home.  They did a great job widening the road there.

We got to 81S @ 1:50, really made good time.  Chambersburg, PA  Fort Letterkenny, where my brother had been on Christmas Day.  He visited his grandson and wife there.  We stopped at the last rest stop in  PA to have our lunch and walk around a little and let Maci walk a bit.

We went past James Buchanan's birthplace = Molly Piticher Highway = Mason/Dixson Auto Auction
Quickly zipped past the 10 exits in Maryland and into West Virginia and we were into Virginia where gasoline was $1.85 at Flying J.

We arrived at our destination - Candy Hill Campground in Winchester, VA at 4:30 pm.  Reservation was confirmed and our pull thru spot was waiting for us, same spot as last year.  We got rid of all of our winterization and I put our dinner in the oven.  It was 75 degrees and it started to gently rain, after we got finished.

Our dinner was roast turkey, mashed potatoes, gravy, baked squash, sweet  potato casserole, glass of wine and coffee and cookies.

Tomorrow will be a long drive, it is over 450 miles to our next destination.

View out our front window

Visit to Corning Museum

September 13th Sunday

I have been trying to do some fall housecleaning and have our bedroom and bathroom done and decided I needed to give my shoulder a rest, so we had planned on going to Windmill Market on Saturday, but when we awoke to rain, Lou suggested we go to the Corning Museum, as he knew I wanted to see the Pyrex display, so that was our day yesterday.

I had been employed at Corning in Wellsboro, PA in the early 60's after college and was deeply disappointed to not find one thing in the Museum that was made in our factory.  All of the Christmas decorations that were for sale in their gift shop were made in China!!  Maybe we all need to vote for Mr. Trump.  Indeed, there were many beautiful items on display and much time and effort have gone into bringing the museum into fruition and that can't be overlooked.  Local residents are given a huge discount on admission which was appreciated.  We did spend nearly four hours going through the  museum.

One of the stained glass windows
 

A glass display with crows

One thing I found very interesting was how they made window panes years ago.  I had always wondered why older window panes would have different depths of glass and now I know why.

Glass was poured in a circle and panes were cut from the circle and of course, the glass would flow downward making it thicker at the bottom and around the edges.

We had to walk outside and around several buildings to the library to see the display of Pyrex.  I was hugely disappointed in this.  I have seen more Pyrex in Goodwill stores than here, although it was interesting to see my yellow, red, green and blue bowl set sold new for $2.50.

I don't think a day goes by that I don't use my bowls.

I remember these, but don't have them anymore!

Maybe this all means that I am just getting old!!

This week promises to be cooler, so hopefully with Lou's help I can get some work done outside and some work done inside.  I have ordered a new lawn tractor and it will be delivered on Friday.  This will have power steering so should help me in a huge way.  Lots to get done before the leaves fall.

 

August Happenings

September 13th - Sunday - 53 Degrees low this am and cloudy

The month of August has moved along very quickly.  After we got Michelle moved  into her apartment, Lou fractured four ribs, so he was laid up and not able to do much, so I took over the majority of his jobs and that was a bit much for my shoulder.  I have had an injection into it and am awaiting some relief from the discomfort from that.

We had some days of intense heat and humidity so I took advantage of the A/C and cleaned out cupboards and drawers and found afghans that mother had made and I wanted to make sure that all of our grandkids and greatgrandkids had one that she had made, and all have been claimed with the exception of the blue one.  Michelle thought she wanted the brown one, as she wanted to have a brown sofa, and indeed, she did find a brown sofa that someone had discarded and the price was right, so it was a good choice for her.

We had our drive way sealed and the cracks filled the last of the month.  The young man that did it for us did a fine job and we were very pleased with the job.

Ben McClure's truck and equipment.

They spread it all by hand, therefore, there were no splatters.

We certainly appreciated the fine workmanship displayed by Ben on a very warm day.

Lou celebrated his 89th birthday on the 12th of August.  Krista fixed him a wonderful birthday dinner a day early with his favorite cake for dessert.  Home made German Chocolate.  Actually, we celebrated his birthday on three different days with different family members, at two different restaurants.  A great time of celebrating.

The end of the month found us at our Square Dance Camp Out in Morris, PA.  We had a really good turn out this year, and everyone was eager to help and all of the jobs were done quickly and it seemed like we had time to visit and enjoy out time together.  The weather was cool and we were glad that we had heat in our motor home. 

July Happenings

July 29th - Wednesday - 94 degrees

This has been a busy summer and I realized I have not done many posts and I have not been keeping up my diary, so when I look back for some information, I am going to be lacking, so will get some information down to help me remember the goings on of the summer.

We have spent some time at Lou's Homestead working, he had to have a holding tank replaced and that was finally done, and some of his family came up and helped him with that project, so while they worked at that, I worked at trimming some bushes and trees on the other side of the yard, didn't have many tools to work with, but enjoyed the task at hand.

Roses along the road

Bushes after  some trimming

Roses with the addition of an arbor 

An Oak tree that Casey moved.

The next weekend, Brion, Janet, Casey, Allie, Spencer and Meredith came and they all helped and I can tell you things happened, I didn't have my camera, so didn't have pictures of the work in progress, they were busy every minute, cutting down trees, grinding up brush, hauling wood away, cutting grass.  Janet helped me transplant ground cover to put in the beds that I had cleaned out, things looked so much better.  We got the blueberries all covered up with netting.  Lou and I have to use ladders to do that, but Casey and Spencer are way over 6 feet tall, and they just reached up and did it!!

July 15th we drove up to Fort Drum with Janet and Brion to witness Spencer in the Change of Command Ceremony for the Echo Company.   Spencer is a Captain in the Army, who just became engaged to a lovely gal from Delaware.  We got to see his home in Watertown, which is beautiful and located on a lake and the view from his porch is just beautiful.  It was a very special day for us.

While we were there we got a  phone call from Michelle telling us that she had been selected for a position at Weidner University in Chester, PA.  She is going to run their lab for them starting on the 10th of August.  I was speechless.  This was her first professional interview since she graduated from college.  We are so very proud of her.  She just called me to tell me that she signed a lease for an apartment.  She had sent me pictures of it and was so hopeful that she would get it and she did.  God is looking out for our girl.  Now we will have to look for items to furnish an apartment for her.  Thankfully, this one has all of her appliances, even a dishwasher and washer and dryer.

On the down side of July.  When Lou had his physical Dr. Nespola called and told us that Lou's hemoglobin was very low and he needed to come right in to be crossed and matched for two units of blood, so we did that, and then he had to have a colonoscopy and gastroscopy which he did, but everything was fine, it was determined that his body just does not absorb iron, he was put on iron and will have more blood work done in a week and he will decide the course of treatment at that time.

When Lou brought the motor home over to the house to pack for the Muster, he was trying to get into the driveway quickly and missed the driveway and ended up in the yard and got stuck.

After the wrecker arrived

Stuck in the mud!!

I used my electric chain saw to cut the limbs off the apple tree so we wouldn't mar up the motor home anymore when they pulled us out.  I got my chain saw stuck, and my brother came to the rescue with his saw and helped us finish up the job.  I have to admit the tree looks better with the trim.  We still have to fill in the ruts left by the tires.

The State has repaired the sluice on our property and today when I ran the weed eater, it certainly made that job a lot easier.  I had taken pictures of the damage the rain had done to the sluice and the road and sent a letter and it was no time until they were here and had it fixed.  I was very impressed.

It looks like August is going to be very busy, with Michelle's move, we have two trips to Bath scheduled one for Lou's hearing aids and one for motor home repairs, doctor and dentist appointments, Lou's birthday and lots of outside things to do, that are waiting for cooler weather.  Thankfully, we have made our reservations for Florida and have that task taken care of so that will make planning a lot easier as we go into fall.

The picture at the top of the post, is the replacement of the fountain that I used to have.  Lou and I took the barrel out and put this in its place.  This we can take in during the winter and not have to cover it.

I am off to fix fried green tomatoes for dinner, one of my friends called last night to remind me, it was time to fix fried green tomatoes and bacon, so went out and picked a couple of big ones for dinner tonight.  Thanks, Jim.

SMART Muster in Kinzers, PA

July 23rd -  Wednesday - Beautiful Sunny 75 degrees

We left here early on Wednesday morning and made a detour to get to Carlisle to pick up our three months supply of medication and then drove on over to Lancaster.  Traffic was really dense and we did not reach our destination until after 5:00 pm.  We literately just parked our motor home on our designated site and went to our host's site to have dinner with our group.  The weather was just wonderful for our stay, in fact, a sweater felt good.  After dinner we sat around and caught up on the news with the rest of our group of retired servicemen and their families, then we went back to our motor home and got things unpacked before it got dark.

When I took Maci out for a potty break, I realized this was not a military park, as it was really dark, and I was glad for my leash with the attached flashlight.

We brought along a Netflex movie, Woman in Gold and we watched that on  Wednesday evening.  We both enjoyed it.  Would recommend it to anyone that has not seen it. On Thursday I really goofed off and enjoyed reading my book.  I have been very involved in a Lighthouse mystery that has been over 3000 pages long and I wanted to get it finished and I did just before we went out to dinner at Millers.  Our whole group enjoyed a lovely Smorgasbord meal there.  It is right on route 30 and you can eat your meal and watch the Amish farmers work in their fields at the same time.  They were actively cutting hay at the time.

 The campground was right next to Rough and Tumble and they were hosting John Deer Days on Friday and Saturday, and Lou and I being country folks took in the exhibits on Friday.  In fact, we spent about four hours there.

A few of the John Deere tractors.

The first known hot water heater

Notice the gas lamps hanging from the ceiling.

Natural gas pump that came from western PA.

Sleigh used to deliver mail.

Old washing machines

No ones knows what this wagon was used for!!

Wagon

Instead of a sand box, this is a kernel corn box.

On Friday evening we went to Rainbow's Comedy Playhouse for dinner and the stage show.  Lou and I had never been there before.  It was a good dinner and the play of "Too Many Cooks" was wonderful.  We were amazed to find that our waiters were the actors in the play and they did a wonderful job.  We had wonderful seats, center front, thanks, to one of our members that was kind enough to make reservations for all of us.  Lou and I both ordered Beef Wellington and it was very tasty, the beef was very tender and served hot.  Our salad dressing was creamy apple and that was tangy and a nice change.  All in all this was a very nice mid week Muster.  It was decided that we would not have one in August, everyone seems to be very busy in the upcoming month.  Lou and I will be setting off for our square dancing campout at the end of August.

Cheatham Annex - Williamsburg, VA Northeastern SMART Muster

June 10th - Wednesday - Hot and humid 91 degrees

We arrived at this Naval base on Monday and did we ever have a difficult time finding it.  For some reason we could not get the address into our GPS and then we found the signs leading to the campground small and hard to read; however, once we arrived at the FamCamp and saw a familiar face, all of that was forgotten.  We had made our reservations last January and thought we were scheduled to be across from our friends, but found we were on the other end, never the less, as you can see we have a lovely site and finally a site that is on concrete and we will not be tracing in sand.

I am spoiled, I like staying in FamCamps, as they have security and lots of lighting, so when I go out to walk Maci at night, I don't have to worry, we just go for a hike and we are close to the woods and I love it.  The first night we were here, I talked Lou into going for a walk and we ended up taking a blazed path in the woods after dinner and I thoroughly enjoyed it, no bugs, light breeze.  We found out later that it was a five mile walk, but we did get a ride back home once we came out on the main road, after we did the five miles!!  Or it would have been dark by the time we reached our RV, thanks goodness for our friends that had been out to dinner.

We have about 20 rigs in attendance and have met many different people and renewed acquaintances from other Musters.  It has been very hot, high 80's and low 90's with a breeze until today and we don't have a breeze today.

Sign in front of Museum

Yesterday Lou and I took another retired Army couple with us and we drove to Fort Eustis,VA and toured the United States Army Transportation Museum.  We all found it very interesting, as it was established in 1970 and takes the visitor through history from 1700 with the Conestoga wagon and ships that served in the Revolutionary War to the Iraqi Freedom.  All of us saw things that brought the building of our country home to us.  It was interesting to go with Bernie, as he was in the Army through the Korean War and Vietnam War and had many things on a personal level to share with us.
There was a display regarding the Red Ball Highway and I found that interesting, as my deceased husband patrolled the highway while it was in existence.

Betty, Bernie and Lou at the entrance of the Museum.

1941 Plymouth (I think)

The Conestoga Wagon, originally built in Pennsylvania.

Trucks used during World War II along the Red Ball Highway.

Sign along the Red Ball Highway.

Motorcycle like Lou had.

Helicopter used in Korean War. 

Trucks in Vietnam.

Experimental aircraft!! 

Gun Truck - The only one to return from Vietnam. " Eve of Destruction"

Desert Storm

Rail Pavilion

More in the Rail Pavilion.

Another reason Lou and I found this museum interesting, is Lou's grandson was at Ft. Eustis for training at one time, and is now a captain in the Army in Logistics and it give me a little better idea of what his title includes.

We spent about four hours there and enjoyed all of it and would recommend it to anyone.   We saw several children as we went through it and they seemed to be enjoyed their tour also.

Last evening Lou and I suggested we eat at Captain George's in Williamsburg, and Dick Tracy said that he would drive, so six of us dined at the seafood buffet and enjoyed our meal and came away with very full tummies.  Lou and I had eaten there when we last visited Willaimsburg and remembered the luscious meal we had.  Tonight we all get together and have a pot luck meal, then pack up in the morning and depart for home.

On the Road Again --- Dover AFB,DE - Little Creek, VA

June 7th - Sunday - Sunny 75 degrees

After a very busy week at home, taking care of three septic tanks and having lines dug up at Lou's homestead between rain storms, we were off to do some traveling.  We left for Dover Air Force Base on Thursday, as we wanted to go through the Air Mobility Command Museum there.  We tried to make a reservation to stay with our RV there, but after reading the many comments made from fellow RV'er we decided that we would try someplace else and ended up staying at Killens Pond State Park and that was a good experience, although I missed the security and lighting of a Base when I took Maci out at night.

Some of the planes we could see from the observation tower

On Friday we toured the Museum, it was rainy off and on and really chilly, so we didn't spend a huge amount of time outside.  We did have a volunteer that took a "shine" to us and gave us a special tour by taking us up into the observation tower and that was special to be able to see all around the base.  We got to see the C-124 plane, that Lou flew on during his career in the Air Force.  It always amazes me just how huge that plane is and I was able to secure post cards to send to the grandkids so they can see it in flight.  In the picture I have posted, Lou is standing in front of the plane.

This tells about the plane.

The Museum reminded me of the Marines museum; however, this one pertained what Dover AFB had to do with each of the war efforts, so it was on a much smaller basis.  All of it is housed in a World War II hanger.  One point of interest was a flight simulator.

As we were coming into Dover, Delaware on Thursday night at 5:00, we stopped to get gasoline, when I heard sirens and then motor cycles with police on them to stop traffic.  It was for the procession of the  Vice President's son Beau Biden's body.  It was a very long procession that consisted of at least ten motor cycles with police in front of the SUVs, limousines, hearse, more SUVs , ambulance and a fire truck.

You can see some of the black vehicles on the street.

The next day we left for Cape Charles.  I actually don't remember a lot of the day, as I  picked up a 24 hour bug and was really sick and slept the day away.  Lou was able to park our RV at Jeanine's house so Maci and I could be comfortable while he attended the wedding of Scott Wivell and his new wife, Rachel Taylor which was held at Mimosa Farm.  Lou rode with his sister, Lenore and her son, John and was able to chat with them and get caught up on some family news.  I had looked forward to this wedding since last January when we received the invitation and Lou forgot to pick up his camera to take with him, so he tried to describe it to me the best he could.

When he and Lenore returned I felt a little better and we chatted a little before we left for Little Creek

Naval Base in Norfolk, VA.  Thankfully, we had made reservations here and our spot was waiting for us and our camp host helped Lou get backed into our spot and set up.

We came through the tunnel under the Chesapeake Bay which is always interesting and amazing and the Bay was beautiful.  The rain had finally moved out

Isn't it pretty?

Last night while we were reading we had a knock at the door and when I opened the door there stood Spencer and Meredith.  Her parents live close to here and we knew Spencer was flying down from Ft. Drum for the weekend, but certainly didn't expect him to appear at the door.  They had great news, they had become engaged that morning on the beach.  They were both beaming!  We are so happy for both of them and wish them many years of happiness.

Today we visited Douglas MacArthur's Museum and Memorial in Norfolk.  We watched the movie of his military life before we took the self guided tour and we found it all very interesting.  I did not know that his father had been a military man also.

The entrance.

In the Memorial the General and his wife are buried there.  Jean, his wife did not die until 2000, she lived to be 102.  On display in the Museum was his jeep along with his car.

He chose a Chrysler over a Cadillac. 

His uniform and a few of his medals!!

Willis Jeep

After we finished at the museum we came back to the base and went over to look at some of the large ships, they just amaze me.

One that happens to be in for repairs.

Tomorrow we leave here and drive to Williamsburg,VA for a North Eastern SMART Muster that will last three days, and if we have internet I will try and post from there.