The Hummingbird is Back

Last spring I put up my hummingbird feeder, and we had a few visits from some hummingbirds. But, not many visits and then none at all over the summer.

I gave up and took the feeder down. Then, last week this poor little hummingbird was flying around my regular bird feeder. I’m assuming he was looking for food and was a bit confused as my regular feeder is red.

So, I got out the hummingbird feeder again, and there have been at least two of them that have been visiting it regularly. I’m guessing they must migrate through this area. Maybe they remembered where they had found food in spring. I think birds and animals are much smarter than we realize.  Here’s one of the most recent visitors.

I’ve also seen several Blue Jays in the neighborhood over the last few days. I wonder if they also migrate, since I saw some in spring, but none over the summer. This guy was in the tree across from our site this morning.

The other evening the sun was just beautiful shining from behind some clouds that were passing through. It’s one of those sights that makes me think of heaven for some reason.

The temperatures have suddenly decided it is fall. On Monday we golfed and the high was 85 degrees. By the way, Kevin and I both had good games. I guess it’s true that the more you play, the better you get :) Today, highs are supposed to be in the 60s and there are frost warnings for the next two nights. The electric heater has made an appearance!

Tonight, we’re going to a Brewers baseball game. They are still in first place, but haven’t been playing too well the last two weeks. I think they will be in the playoffs, but I sure hope they get their mojo back!

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

Quilt Expo

Last year I discovered the Quilt Expo in Madison. I purchased three projects last year, and I wasn’t going to attend this year’s expo because I’ve only finished one of those projects :(

However, I got an email from them saying they needed volunteers. In exchange for 3 hours of volunteering, I got free admission to the show and parking. Well, I just had to go. So, yesterday was the day. My volunteer shift was at one of the Presentation Stages. I helped the presenters with handouts and just watched to make sure everything went smoothly. Easy enough!

One of the presenters was a lady who started an organization that collects sewing machines and sends them to places in need like Africa, Haiti and New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina. Another presenter was a book-signing by author Jennifer Chiaverini who writes novels with quilting as the main theme. Close to 100 people stood in line to get their books signed. Interesting stuff.

There were hundreds of quilts on display in the judging area. This one won the top price. It’s hard to see from the picture, but the detail was amazing. I just marvel at the skill this person has!

 

There were ballots to vote for your favorite quilt that had not already received a ribbon. I chose this one. What a clever idea this lady had. She used baby clothes her daughter had worn. They were applied in such a way that they can be removed if her daughter ever wants to use them for her own baby. Cool!

 

I didn’t spend quite as much money as last year, but I wound up buying patterns for 6 more projects. I need to step it up on the quilting front. I’m very excited about some of these projects. I can’t say more because most of them are for gifts. But, here’s a picture of the patterns I bought.

There is a shop in Beaver Dam called Nancy’s Notions. Nancy has a sewing television show, and they have a big display at the expo. The shop was having a big sale this weekend, and I got a coupon for something free. So, today I went and checked that out. I found the cutest camper fabric to make a tote out of using one of the patterns I bought yesterday.

I wasn’t expecting much for the free item, maybe some needles or thread. I was pleasantly surprised to find out it was a DVD showing how to create fusible art projects. It will be perfect for one of the projects I bought last year and didn’t really know how to complete.

I was so excited and full of ideas that I woke up at 1:00 am last night and couldn’t get back to sleep for 2 hours. I should have just gotten up and started sewing :)

On Thursday I was at Eric’s house painting the bathrooms. One more day and they will be done!  Around 1:00 in the afternoon my phone rang. It was one of those calls every mother dreads getting. Eric’s first words were “Don’t freak out Mom, but I’m driving myself to the ER.”  It seems he got his finger caught in a blower motor and had 3 long cuts on his ring finger.

Eric is an HVAC Technician and gets minor cuts and burns regularly. So, I knew it had to be pretty bad for him to go to the ER. He said it was really bleeding a lot, and that’s what made him decide to go. He ended up getting 18 stitches. About 3 hours later he was home with a large bandage on his finger. He was also happy to show me a picture he took with his cell phone of the injury. It looked like raw meat. Don’t worry, I’m not going to share the picture with you!

He’s doing fine. He had to take the day off on Friday, so enjoyed some extra video game time. I told him that was quite a drastic way to get a day off of work. On Monday, he’ll be back at work. Hopefully, with a little more caution around blower motors.

Our weather has been fantastic this past week. About half of the sites in the campground are occupied for the weekend. A beautiful weekend for those lucky campers.

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

It’s Been a Busy Week

Our son Korey, who lives on the western side of Minnesota, arrived for a week long visit last Wednesday night. On Thursday morning the three of us played disc golf at a park in Beaver Dam. Korey has played before, but Kevin and I were rookies. We played with two discs we had found and one regular Frisbee.

Let me tell you, regular Frisbees don’t work very well. We had a good time, though, along with some laughs. It was a good thing we went early as it got up to 90 degrees and was very humid on Thursday, as well as on Friday.

Thursday night we went to my mom’s house for dinner. She has an 80 acre farm. As we came down the driveway, we saw a lot of Canadian Geese on the pond. Once we got in the house, we saw about 30 wild turkeys off the back deck. Then a couple of deer walked through the yard. I was teasing my mom that she lives on a wildlife preserve. This was the view off of her back deck. Turkeys in the front and geese further back.

We hadn’t taken a family picture since last Christmas, so the guys had to humor me. We’re on the deck. The field right behind us was where all the birds you see above were located.

We enjoyed a great evening with my mom, her friend, Richard, and my brother and his wife. And, of course, no one ever leaves my mom’s without eating too much!

Korey gets a week off at the end of the summer camping season to compensate for all the extra hours he works during the summer. I so appreciate that he has come home and spent that week with us every summer since he moved to Minnesota. And, now that our schedule is more flexible, we don’t have to go to work every day. We can enjoy all of his time with us!

Five couples that belong to the camping club we belong to came and camped at our park for the weekend. We’ve all gotten to be good friends over the years, and had a fun weekend. There was lots of laughter, eating, and game playing all weekend long.

On Saturday seven of us went golfing at a course we haven’t been to yet. Korey and I shared a cart. I had my best game of the season. My son must have brought me luck! This morning six of the guys went back and played again. Korey and Kevin shared a cart and had a very good time. Korey has his best game of the season!

The weather could have been better for the weekend. All but two of our sites were full. Thursday and Friday were very hot and humid with some scattered rain. Saturday was a bit cooler, but it rained a few times and was very windy. Sunday was cool and windy with some more showers and temperatures Sunday night dropped to the low 40s. It definitely felt like fall this morning. As is often the case, today when everyone was leaving was the nicest day.

While we were in New Mexico last spring, a piece of metal on our step broke. Kevin fixed it temporarily. This weekend our friend Jim brought his portable welder and a better piece of metal. He had the new piece welded in place in no time, and now we have a solid and secure step. I’ll sand it a bit and spray paint it, and it will look good as new. Better, in fact, since it’s sturdier. Thanks for the help, Jim!

It’s the piece along the bottom that has the rust on it. It keeps the steps from swaying and makes them solid when you step on them.

The other day I got up and looked out our back window. The field was full of geese. Another sign that fall is here. Five weeks from today we will be leaving Wisconsin. I have a couple weeks worth of work left at Eric’s house, and then I’ll be ready for the next adventure.

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

A New Discovery

As we drive to and from Beaver Dam, we’ve noticed a sign for the Wild Goose State Trail along Hwy. 33. We are camphosts for the Dodge County Parks System. The section of the Wild Goose State Trail that runs through Dodge County is maintained by the Parks Department. We’ve seen information about the trail on some of the brochures at our park. So, we’ve been curious about the trail.

It is free of charge and is accessible for hiking, biking and horseback riding. During the winter months, ATVs and snowmobiles are allowed.  On Sunday, we were finally able to ride our bikes on the trail. Spring was cool and wet, summer has been very hot and humid. Sunday was finally a perfect bike riding day. Highs were in the 70s and the humidity was low.

The trail runs along an abandoned railroad corridor, so it is pretty flat. It’s not paved, but most of it has crushed stone to ride on. Much of the trail has a separate trail alongside the main trail for the horses. It was so nice not to have to dodge horse droppings as we were riding. We rode about 11 miles, and really enjoyed ourselves. We’ll definitely do it again. I’m thinking it will be very beautiful once the leaves start changing color.

We have a 3 mile route we walk a few days a week. There are several cornfields along the way. It’s been fun watching the corn grow since we first got here in April. My guess is it’s now about 10 feet tall. I’m 5’ 4”, and it looks like the corn is almost twice as tall as I am. I’m thinking it was a good year for the farmers.

 

 

There’s some kind of tall weed growing behind us. Birds just love to sit on it. I’m thinking there are seeds attracting the birds. Sometimes, there are 4 or 5 of these small birds sitting all along the plant.

 

 

 

Today was overcast and a bit cool. It’s actually raining right now. There is definitely a touch of fall in the air. However, Thursday and Friday is predicted to be in the 90s with high humidity. Maybe it will be summer’s last hoorah! School starts for most districts in Wisconsin on Thursday. Won’t those kids be happy to be back in school with such hot temperatures.

Yesterday I spent the day working at Eric’s house. I was able to finish applying the texture paint to the walls in both bathrooms. So, next week I’ll actually be painting the final color coat on the walls. Yippee, the job is almost done.

Our park is almost booked solid for the weekend. We have 5 families from our camping club coming to camp with us. And, our son, Korey, will be home for 5 days. So, we should have some fun and busy days coming up. I’m looking forward to it!

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

A Bit of a Milestone

I originally started this blog about a year and a half ago for three reasons. The first was to let our family and friends know what we were up to. The second was to share our experiences in pursuing the fulltime RV lifestyle. And, the third was to have a journal record of our travels.

I did a lot of research as we were contemplating and dreaming of this new life. I learned so much from other blogs and RV forums. I wanted to possibly help others who were thinking about going fulltime by sharing our experiences.

Today my page view counter hit 20,000 and I have 60 followers. Most of the followers are not family members. I am blown away by that. I know there are blogs out there with hundreds of followers and many more page views, but I never expected so many people to be interested in what I had to say. It is a humbling and exciting feeling for me!

Another unexpected bonus from blogging has been the “virtual” friends we have made. We’ve actually met three couples in person who started out as blogger friends. And, we’ll be working at Amazon this fall with one of those couples. It truly is a small world.

So, thank you to all of you who have signed up as followers or who just stop in once in a while to see what we’re up to.

The weather has been nice enough lately to sleep with some of our windows open. This morning was a sure sign that the fall season is close. About 6 am a large flock of Canadian Geese flew over the campground, honking like crazy. Soon after that, two large birds, some type of crane, were in the field behind us making an incredible racket. I had no idea cranes were so loud!

So, it looks like the birds are on the move. That means we will also be on our way pretty soon. Only six weeks until we are back on the road. It doesn’t seem that long ago that we arrived here to find snow on the ground!

Today two of my friends came out for a visit. I used to work with these two ladies about ten years ago. It was great to see them. Thanks, Sue and Judy, for making the drive out to see me!

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

Trifecta, Hat Trick, or Turkey?

Call it whatever you want, but Kevin had three pars in a row during our golf round today! And, on the first three holes, no less. Usually the first hole or two aren’t that great until you get into the groove. He also had his best score of the season, a 46!! He thinks it might be the best score he’s had on the front nine at Kestrel Ridge Golf Course, which is where we played today.

I had some great shots and some lousy shots, so what else is new. I did have some very good holes and then two really bad holes. Overall, I can see that I’m improving. It’s amazing how the more you play, the better you get. I guess it’s true that practice makes perfect.

It was a beautiful day. Columbus High School is near the golf course, and I could hear the marching band practicing on the football field. It brought back some very fond memories of when our boys were in the high school marching band.

Last week was the Dodge County Fair, and we had several sites occupied by people who told us they were going to the fair. Yesterday was Demo Derby day at the fair. Late in the afternoon, this vehicle came into the park. I didn’t ask how they placed, but it sure looks like they were involved in the demolition part of the derby!

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

A Fabulous Weekend

We had a very enjoyable weekend. First of all, the humidity has finally dropped, and we had beautiful, sunny days which allowed us to take some comfortable walks again.

On Friday Kevin went to the pre-season Green Bay Packers football game in Green Bay with a friend.  They had a great time, and the Packers won.

This was the weekend the camping club we belong to had their August outing. They were only about 40 minutes from us, so I drove to the campground and visited with everyone yesterday.

Kevin stayed behind to man the campground. Only about half of the sites were occupied this weekend. However, the Quonset hut was rented on Saturday for a family reunion, so Kevin stayed in case those people needed anything.

Today, we took out one of the rental paddle boats we have here at the campground. It’s been so hot this summer, we hadn’t wanted to take one out on the lake until now. We paddled around for a little less than an hour, and it was great. I definitely want to go again. Here we are before we pushed off from shore.

 

 

It was interesting to see the lake houses from the lake side. We’ve been walking past many of the houses on the road for months now. Most of them are nicer looking on the lake side.  Here’s our home as seen from the lake.

Here’s part of the campground as seen from the lake. If you look closely, you can see a few of the campers that were still here. We sure have a beautiful location.

Much of the lake has homes along it. Here’s a view of the north side of the lake. For some reason, there is no development on that end.

As you can see, the water is not very clear. We’ve been told that’s because it’s a very shallow lake. Three different times I saw a fish jump up out of the water. Cool! Kevin said they were carp. I don’t think I’ve ever seen a jumping fish before.

Near the pier was a cluster of lily pads. They are so pretty.

That’s the end of a wonderful weekend. We feel so fortunate to be living this life!

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