Yuma Balloon Festival

Last Saturday we drove to West Wetlands Park to view the Colorado River Crossing Balloon Festival evening glow. There were ten balloons participating this year. They were all lined up in a field. As dark approached, they were blown up and lit. It was a beautiful site to see the glowing balloons in the dark.

The annual event has been taking place in Yuma for 30 years. I have wanted to go in the past, but our resort always has their Thanksgiving dinner on the same Saturday. So, this year due to Covid, no dinner. The balloon event was also changed due to the pandemic. It was a drive thru rather than allowing people to get up close to the balloons. The information online was somewhat confusing, so we arrived early to find out they were not allowing cars into the park until 5:30 pm. The sheriff told us we could park outside and walk in.

That's exactly what we did. It was about a mile each way. The weather was fantastic. We found a bench right next to the balloons, watched them get blown up, and then experienced the glow up close and personal. There was caution tape to keep people back, but we were still quite close. I felt somewhat bad for the people driving through. They got a very short glimpse of a beautiful site. I took a video which I posted on Facebook. I don't know how to get the video from my phone to my computer, so don't have it here.

Saturday and Sunday morning the balloons did an ascension, but we didn't go to that. Kevin is not a morning person (except for golf), so I didn't push my luck. Maybe another year! 

We are actually on the waiting list for the International Balloon Rally in Albuquerque for next October for an electric hookup site on the fairgrounds. I have always enjoyed seeing hot air balloons. Maybe someday I'll get to ride in one!

I haven't been blogging much because there really is not much going on. Our resort has far less people here than normal. Almost no Canadians have come down. The few that are here had to fly in to cross the border.

The golf groups are playing, so that is mostly what we have been doing. Kevin plays in the men's group on Tuesday mornings, we both play in the couples group on Wednesday mornings, I play in the ladies group on Thursday mornings, and we both play in the Friday afternoon scramble. That keeps up pretty busy. We've even won some prize money a few times.

Our resort sponsors a free welcome back dinner every fall. This year they were able to do it Covid style. It was held out in the parking lot. Normally there are about 600 people in attendance. This year we're guessing it was no more than 200. Table were spaced out and only 6 people per table. The food was in to-go containers. There were 2 bars set up with free beer, wine, soft drinks and water. Masks were required. After dinner a band played.

We had a great time. The food was excellent. The theme was Woodstock. They gave out headbands, friendship bracelets and the slap on wrist bracelets. Remember those??

Arizona is known for its beautiful sunrises and sunsets. We've had some winners this fall!

It's been unusually dry this year. There hasn't been measurable rainfall since March. The monsoons never came during the summer. We did have a few sprinkles one day which created this double rainbow and got my car dirty.

It has also been warmer than normal, actually hot at times. I'm not complaining. The weather has been fantastic. I haven't worn long pants since we left Nebraska in late September.

I have been participating in the woodcarving group the past two seasons. The class leader and instructor is Canadian and isn't coming this year. She asked if I would run the group in her absence. Starting Dec. 2nd, I will be doing just that. I don't have much experience, but am willing to help out and make the tools and materials available. We'll see how it goes. I'm not sure how many participants we'll actually have. Masks will be required and the room has a limit of people allowed. If we get too many, they may move us outside under a canopy.

We wish all of you a very Happy Thanksgiving in these difficult times. We will miss our family. 

Stay safe!!

Wonderful Nebraska Visit

In September, we spent 10 days at the campground of Carol Joy Holling Camp in Ashland, Nebraska. Our son Korey is the Program Director for Nebraska Outdoor Lutheran Ministries, and CJH Camp is their main site where his office is located. The campground is not open to the general public, but is available for campers who have a connection to the camp. That includes us as family members of an employee.

Ashland had a very dry summer, and they were about 11 inches below on average rainfall. As our luck would have it, it rained the entire week before we arrived. The sites are grass in a former farm field. There are only a few sites with sewer and 50 amp service, but it is a beautiful place to camp.

Kevin had the truck in four wheel drive as he pulled into our site. Unfortunately, there was a bit of a depression where the back tires ended up when he stopped. As he tried to pull forward a bit, the back tires just started spinning deeper and deeper. Korey had told us that people have gotten stuck before, and the maintenance man Roger has pulled plenty of people out. I called Korey, and Roger was there in no time. He was able to use his truck to get us unstuck. Luckily, it didn't rain the entire time we were there, so things dried out before we left. Roger came and filled in the ruts before we left.

A beautiful spot once we were set up and unstuck.

We saw deer several times, and these turkeys visited daily. At one time, there were eight of them in the group.

I have spoken of the camp Korey works at in the past. It is such a beautiful place, He is lucky to work in such amazing surroundings. I'm going to give you a little history and tour of the grounds.

In 1974 George and Irene Holling donated 320 acres of land to Nebraska Outdoor Lutheran Ministries in memory of their daughter, Carol Joy Holling. Carol was tragically killed in a car accident on her way to her freshman year of college. Since then, the camp has grown, and tens of thousands of people have benefitted from the programs they offer.

Inspiration Point is located on a bluff overlooking the gorgeous scenery. There is a large campfire pit and benches for events. Under the huge cross is an alter where the ashes of George, Irene and Carol Holling are buried.

In addition to hosting summer camp each year for children of all ages, there are several retreat centers on the grounds. Many groups have events there, making it a busy place year round. The largest is called the Swanson Center. 

Korey's office is the window on the bottom left of the building below. Such a wonderful place to work.

They have a couple of ropes courses which are used for campers, but also by many different groups for team building activities. Korey really enjoys the ropes courses, and sometimes helps out working at them. The building behind the course on the bottom right is the bath house for the swimming pool.

There is a pond on the grounds where visitors can use the boats or go fishing. The open area across the pond is where the annual quilt auction is held each summer. 

Here is a picture of Korey and Cathryn holding up one of the quilts I donated last summer. 

There are different themed areas for the summer campers. Some of the very popular ones are where the campers can ride horses. This is the western town where campers sleep in dorm rooms. There is a gym for indoor activities and other buildings where campers work on service projects.

This is just a small view of what the camp offers. Each morning we took walks among the different areas to explore. It is truly an inspiration of what has become of a generous gift that resulted from a tragic event. Nebraska is lucky to have such an amazing place!!

We spent several days with Korey and Cathryn when they weren't working. We golfed twice on gorgeous fall afternoons.

One Sunday afternoon Cathryn and I worked on a quilt she is making while the guys watched football. Cathryn started this tee shirt quilt several years ago. I've helped her off and on over the years when we've visited. She almost has the top pieced. They she'll have to decide how she wants to quilt it.

Kevin helped Korey do some repairs where the screen door had pulled out of the wood. It looked like the previous owner had tried to fix it with cardboard. That didn't hold up too well.

Because of Covid, we didn't go out other than to golf. It was wonderful just spending time with our kids. I wish we were closer, so we could see them more often.

We've been back in Yuma for over two weeks. It has still been quite warm with highs on the low 100s most days. In a few weeks, it should be cooling off nicely. Once that happens, we have plans to paint the shed and replace the flooring on our front porch. Some activities are being held here at the resort with lots of Covid restrictions. I have a feeling this will be a very low key winter season here at the resort. Better safe than sorry!

Be Safe and Healthy!!

Back in Yuma

It's been about six weeks since I've written a post. Not because I had nothing to say, but because my laptop hard drive died. New, reasonably priced laptops are impossible to buy. I had previously used a company called My Internet Place in Yuma to do a minor repair. I called them, and they felt based on the problems I was having, I needed a new hard drive. So, for $170 I have a new solid state hard drive that is lightning fast, and will hopefully last a long time to come.

Back to our stay in Wisconsin. We stayed until September 8th, and spent two more weekends with our family. We spent the weekend after my birthday at Eric's house. Erin had this beautiful picture made for my birthday gift and ordered me a giant birthday cookie. Thanks, Erin!!!

Back in Waupaca we enjoyed a round of golf on a beautiful August day with Dave and Judy.

Labor Day weekend we went back to Eric's house. The guys went golfing while Erin and I cleaned out some of Eric's stuff in his garage and basement. He's planning to put his house on the market in October. 

We also attended the local races at Slinger Speedway. We all had a great time.

We enjoyed our two months in Wisconsin, but it was time to head back south. I sure wish the kids lived somewhat closer. It's so hard saying good bye for months at a time. Thank goodness for technology to stay close even from a physical distance.

After leaving Wisconsin, we stopped in Iowa for a short visit with Kevin's brother Joe and his wife Julie. Due to Covid, we didn't see our nephew and his family. The next stop was Nebraska. I'll write a post about that visit soon.

Be Safe and Healthy!!

Enjoying Summer in Wisconsin

It's been a while since I posted, so here's what's been happening with us in our neck of the woods. Literally, we are camped in the woods in north central Wisconsin where there are lots of trees and lakes.

We really haven't been doing too much, just enjoying the weather. Yuma has consistently had temperatures over 110 degrees, so we are happy to be here. We've had some rain and humidity, but also many beautiful days. Most of the time, we don't even have to run the AC.

Today I celebrate my 63rd birthday. No real plans. Kevin will be grilling us a nice steak dinner, and we will play bocce ball this evening. A nice relaxing day!

We are enjoying our new Grand Design Reflection fifth wheel. So far, we are quite happy with it. There are a few minor things we will have taken care of under warranty when we get back to Yuma; but overall, it's a great unit. On one of the nice sunny days, I took this photo of clouds reflected in the back windows of our Reflection. Artsy, don't you think :)

In July we spent a weekend at our son Eric's house. We met his girlfriend Erin and her son Tyler for the first time. We had a great time, and are so happy Eric has this great lady in his life. We also visited with my mom at her home. Here are some pictures we took in my mom's backyard.

Eric, Erin and Tyler came to the campground a week later, and we had another fun weekend together. This coming weekend we are going back to Eric's for another visit. It's great being able to spend time with family.

Due to Covid, we haven't been doing much. We did enjoy a round of golf last week. These cranes were enjoying the day at the course as well.

We play bocce ball here at the campground with a group of friends on Monday evenings. On Tuesday evenings, Kevin plays cards with a small group of guys. They play a game called Sheepshead, which I believe is pretty much only played in Wisconsin. There are five guys here that play. On Thursday evenings we play pegs and jokers with a few couples. So, plenty to keep us entertained. I've also been working on a north woods themed bedspread quilt for the bed in our new fifth wheel. We take a walk most every morning, and do plenty of reading. Love our Kindles and free ebooks from the library.

So, as you can see; we are enjoying the summer here. Not really much to blog about, though. Just a relaxing, quiet place to hang out during this trying time in our country and the world. Sure hope next summer will be more normal.

Don’t wish upon a star – Reach for one!

Happy 4th of July

Well, this Independence Day is like no other. When my parents immigrated to the United States in 1958, they came to a country where they had high hopes of freedom and opportunity. I still believe this is at the heart of our values, but improvement is definitely needed.

We wish everyone a happy and healthy 4th of July!

We left Yuma on June 26th. We stayed at campgrounds in Winslow, Arizona; Albuquerque, New Mexico; Colorado Springs, Colorado; and Big Springs, Nebraska along the way. Arizona and New Mexico had strict mask laws in effect. Colorado and Nebraska were more relaxed; but everywhere we went, coronavirus was obviously a major concern.

While at our stop in Big Springs, Nebraska, I noticed an attraction on the Roadside America website. If you're not familiar, the site lists all kinds of quirky or unusual roadside attractions throughout the country. When I think of it, I check to see what's around areas we visit. The Flying J Truck Stop in Big Springs  has a caterpillar made out of tires at the back of the building. A cute find in a small town in Nebraska.

The campground we stay at in Big Springs is called McGreer Camp. It is on a working farm, where they've added about 30 sites at the edge of their property with full hookups and a bathhouse, conveniently located right off of I-80. We've stayed there every year as we travel to and from Arizona. Usually we are coming through in spring and fall, and it is never busy. They have an honor system box, and we pay without seeing any owners.

This year we are much later than ever before. I didn't call ahead figuring it would not be busy. When we got there, the owner told us it is the beginning of wheat harvest time, and they are often full during July with wheat harvest workers. As the harvest was just beginning, they had room for us. This unit pulled in next to us. It looked like a group of several young guys who move around harvesting wheat. We sure haven't had a neighbor like this in any of the campgrounds we've stayed in. Always something new and interesting to see when you're on the road.

This was the truck they used to tow their home on wheels.

It is so nice to have our home behind our truck as we travel. At every rest stop, we used our own bathroom with no fear of contamination. We made all of our own meals, and slept in our own bed. We felt very safe in our little home on wheels.  The new fifth wheel has performed beautifully. Other than a few very minor items, we are very pleased with the quality and workmanship.

Our final stop on this first leg of the trip was the Carol Joy Holling campground in Ashland, Nebraska. This is the camp our son works at. The campground is not open to the general public, but is open to camp supporters and associates. We have a 50 amp site with water. There is sewer at the site next to us, but we didn't have a long enough hose to reach the water if we took that site. So, we'll hook up on Monday and pull forward to use the sewer in the site next to us. The campground is more rustic than most private campgrounds, more like a state park. We don't have anyone near us, it's so nice and quiet, and we've seen wildlife.  The best part is it is close to Korey and Cathryn.

 During our previous visits, we've stayed at a private campground because Kevin was concerned that our larger fifth wheel would be too heavy for the grassy sites here. When we arrived, the ground was a bit soft due to rainfall the night before. With the truck in 4 wheel drive, we had no problems pulling into the site and getting set up.

The first morning, I saw these two turkeys walking behind our site. They've been back a few more times since then.

About ten minutes later, this doe and her two fawns walked along the edge of the woods. By the time I grabbed my camera, they were in the tall grass, and it was too high to see the fawns, but you can see the ears of one of them in front of the doe. So cute!!!

Last night there was a beautiful full moon rising behind us. I really like it here, and hope we can stay every time we visit.

Yesterday Korey had the day off of work. We went to his house, and brewed beer. This year we are making a peanut butter porter. Korey and Kevin did most of the brewing, but I helped. Cathryn had to work, so she missed out on the fun. We sat out in the garage for the 3 plus hours it took to get the beer ready for the fermentation process. Temperatures were in the low 90s with very high humidity. The sacrifices we make for a home brewed beer!

Here are Korey and Kevin removing the bag of grains after the first step. The beer is now called wort. The next step was adding malt, and then hops after that. After each step, more cooking is required.

Korey and Cathryn have the sweetest golden-doodle dog named Remy. He is about 1-1/2 years old now, and seemed to remember us from our visit last fall. He loves to be petted. If you stop, he gives you his paw. Here he has his paw on my leg. I love Remy!!

Today we are going back to their house to play some board games. Tomorrow they are coming to camp, and we plan to pick raspberries in the woods. Hopefully, there are still some there. I'll take some more pictures of us together.

I am so grateful to be able to spend this time with our kids again!!! 

Happy Father's Day

We'd like to wish all you dad's out there a Happy Father's Day.

I haven't posted in a while because like everyone else, we've been staying put. We have gone golfing, done a lot of reading, I've been quilting, we've worked on some puzzles, and are waiting for things to get better. Arizona and Yuma have had a huge spike in the virus in the last few weeks. I think we are hitting the peak.

On June 10th we celebrated our 43rd wedding anniversary. Our friends Brad and Martha invited us to join them for lunch at the Moose Lodge. It was taco salad Thursday. There weren't many people there, which was nice for social distancing. The meal was delicious, and we had a great time celebrating with friends.

We have also gone tubing on the Colorado River with Brad and Martha and a few other people. We bought some tubes at Walmart. The small group meets at Gateway Park parking lot in downtown Yuma. The guys shuttle cars to Wetlands Park, several miles away and come back. We walk down to the river, plop ourselves into the water on our tubes and float for about an hour. It's a lot of fun and very relaxing.

There is a company that does some longer tubing trips. We see them loading up at the park when we get out. Lots of people crammed into vans with no distancing, and most are not wearing masks. No thanks. We like our way much better.

The weather continues to be hot, mostly between 100 and 110. We do our activities early in the day or later in the evening. During the day we stay in the air conditioning. The other morning we played 9 holes at the course here at the resort. We started about 8 am. On the 9th hole, we saw a coyote come trotting out onto the course from down in the wash. He ran behind us, and wandered down the 8th fairway. He was rather skinny and young looking. He didn't seem bothered by us. We sure weren't expecting to see that.

We have a bougainvillea bush in our backyard. The hummingbirds like to visit it.

I've been working on some quilts I started during the winter. This one was the mystery quilt activity in January. We are told how many yards of different fabric we'll need, and given an idea of the color variations needed. I chose southwest themed fabric. Here's the finished product. I really like it, and will keep it over the back of the couch.

This one was a panel I saw at the local quilt shop. I liked it, and added the borders around the panel. It will go on the back of the love seat.

The great news is that we are leaving Friday to visit our families in Nebraska and Wisconsin. The campground in Wisconsin we had reservations for in July and August is open, and we are welcome to come. They are restricting activities, but that's not a problem. We're there to visit our families. We're also excited to be taking our new fifth wheel on a trip. The poor thing has just been sitting in storage waiting for us.

Our first stop will be in Nebraska to visit our son Korey and his wife Cathryn. The camp Korey is program director for cancelled summer camp. That's so sad for the kids and employees. Korey is still working, and they are trying some scaled down and virtual activities.

The main camp he works at has a campground. It is open, so we will be staying there this year for the first time. Previously, Kevin did not feel comfortable going there because our fifth wheel was so large, and the sites are grass. They do have full hook-up, 30 amp, though. We'll only be there for five nights, so we're going to give it a try.

Kevin and Korey have plans to brew some more beer while we're there. From there we're off to Wisconsin to see our oldest son Eric and his friend Erin. We'll also be visiting with my mom, brother and his wife, and Kevin's sister.

This has been the longest we've been in one place in the last ten years. I definitely am feeling hitch itch, ready to hook up and hit the road!!!

Stay safe!!!