Tag Archives: Texas

Making the move

Today was Moving Day! We hit the road a little after 8 AM, and after a (more expensive than we expected but oh-so-necessary) stop to fill up our propane tank (think furnace), we were on our way! Somehow even when Google Maps says it’s less than a 5-hour trip (about 230 miles), we managed to get it done in just under nine. But that’s our way. We braved the traffic north of Dallas to make a Costco stop (oy!) and also fit in a couple of short nap breaks. Once we crossed the Red River into Texas
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the speed limit upped to 75 (no, we were not on the interstate), but we just continued to lumber along at our nice steady 62.5. Google Maps does not factor in our lumbering speed. But aside from a bit too much traffic north of Dallas (exacerbated by this week before Christmas timing, no doubt)as we worked in that Costco stop, it was a lovely boring drive. We beat the sunset by about 10 minutes (phew!), got plugged in, pushed out the slides, turned on the heat, and took a real nap (well, the driver did anyway)! We made peanut butter toast for dinner,  scanned for our new channels (yes, we have to learn a new set of channels almost every month), and pretty much just vegged for the rest of the evening!

We have a nice three-week break before our January project and there are some exciting things ahead. Although Lizzie will stay right here for the whole three weeks, just a week from today  Gary and I will be taking a little road trip to Destin, FL to meet up with our kids and grands for the Big Conrad Family Christmas Holiday.  The next three weeks look like this –
12/19 -12/25 – Hanging out in Lindale, TX
12/26-1/3 – DESTIN with the Fam!!!!
1/4-1/6 – Back in Lindale
1/7 – Move to ALERT International (Big Sandy, TX)

Now if we can just live through the Arctic Blast heading this way! So, so thankful for that full propane tank (and a modest collection of space heaters)!

Sweet dreams, friends!

Steph

 

 

A long hard drive

We knew our drive to Oklahoma had a couple of complications, but still, it was less than 300 miles, so how hard could it be?
Although the forecast called for rain, the day started with some promise –
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But it was going to be a broken promise!
Our first stop was getting Lizzie inspected at a garage just 10 miles down the road, so I was going to follow in the truck for the first bit. (Texas RV inspections are pretty simple. Lights, flashers, turn signals, wipers, horn. $7. See ya next year.) Since our next stop was going to involve getting the tires rotated on the truck, we decided to continue in our caravan style to avoid unnecessary hooking and unhooking in the rain.
Yes, the rain had arrived.
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Can you see Lizzie up there? With those bright (newly inspected) lights?
By the time we arrived at Costco for the tire rotation, the rain was steady and the wind was blowing. We did our shopping, had our favorite Costco $3 lunch (IYKYK), and retrieved the truck from the tire center. And it was still raining. So we decided to delay hooking up the truck until we stopped for fuel about 20 miles down  (up?) the road.
By now the wind had picked up too, so after Gary filled up Lizzie (gulp), we found a place to park and waited out the worst of it. The rain finally let up enough for us to get hooked up, and (after we put on some dry clothes) we were on our way! Reunited again!
But there were still 165 miles to go. While we were in a pocket of no rain, the wind continued to batter us.  And let’s not forget about that good old traffic demon. Lots of folks were getting the heck out of Dodge (Dallas!) for the weekend!
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And then, as expected, the rain returned.
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We took a break at the Oklahoma Welcome Center, and considered calling it a day and just staying there for the night. But after the driver took a little power nap, we opted to continue on our way.
Eventually, we got off the interstate which, even though it was still 50 miles to our destination,  made it seem like we were closing in on the prize!
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Oklahoma – thanks for the hint of Fall color, but if you could do something about the utter lack of shoulder, that would be lovely!
Off the main highway, onto the dirt road
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and finally, a full 10 hours from our departure we were parked.
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So it was a pretty yucky, super long trip. But there were some bright spots –
RV Inspection – check
Truck tires rotated – check
Filled up the truck @ Costco – $2.93/Gal (Sweet, right?)
Arriving safely – even if it was a bear of a trip. Always thankful for that!
And a bowl of delicious soup waiting for us upon our arrival. Thank you to our wonderful Group Leaders!
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It might’ve been a long hard drive to get here – but I’m pretty sure we’re going to have a good month! (For a little more about just where we are, hop on over to the Where we are now page!)

Thanks for coming along on our rainy day travels!
Steph

Last day of school

So what do you do when it’s the last day of school even though it feels pretty much like every other day has felt for the last two plus months? You hit up Mr. Snow for some celebratory ice cream!

Welcome to kindergarten and fourth grade!

Then when you get home, you get to enjoy another beautiful Texas sunset as you keep an eye on the the puppy while Mom and Dad have the joy of getting 3 little ice cream stuffed boys into jammies and bed.

Until the mosquitoes get the better of you!

Sweet dreams everyone!
Steph

The house is quiet

which in a household of four little boys is no mean feat! The boys are settled in for the night, Josiah and the other grandma (aka Meemaw) are making a quick trip to the old house, and Abigail is enjoying a peaceful glass of wine and a lovely sunset with a friend on their bedroom deck!

My first full day back in Texas has been a busy delight as I’ve worked on cleaning and organizing the kitchen and playing with some adorable grand boys!


I had a lovely welcome at the Waco airport complete with a big GRAMS sign, flowers and three big boys rushing to give hugs! (There were only 8 of us on the flight from Dallas, so I was pretty easy to spot!)
Once we got to the new house

they had another surprise –

A new puppy!
Crazy, right??
Their other dog, Libby, at age ten isn’t to sure about this little slip of a thing!

However, that little ball of fur is a Great Pyrenees, so it won’t be too long until she’ll be a better playmate!
Although all the critical stuff has been moved (beds, sofa, kitchen table and the washer and dryer, the rest of the ‘stuff’ will be happening in stages. Which mostly means that new boxes will need to be unpacked every day!
It’s been great getting reacquainted with the boys – especially the two littlest! I hadn’t seen little Deacon(7mo) since he was 4 days old!

Yes, my heart is happy!

Stay well and keep washing those hands! It’s always been our best defense!
Steph

Getting Our Kicks on Route 66

I cannot say that we have gone out of our way to explore “The Mother Road” – Route 66. But in our almost 15 years (!!!) on the road, we have bumped up against it once or twice.
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Back in 2008 we followed it for day and ended up in Oatman, AZ – now most famous for their wild burros.
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Many years later (2017) we found it running through the Petrified Forest/Painted Desert
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Right now we are serving at Panfork Camp, located between Wellington, TX and Shamrock, TX. Route 66 goes right through the middle of Shamrock, so you know it’s a pretty big deal in these here parts. In fact, one of the art deco buildings (a gas station with a cafe) was the inspiration for one of the buildings (Ramone’s House of Body Art) in the Pixar Cars Movies.
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(Ramone’s screen shot from this website)
We loved checking out this iconic building – now the visitor center. We may or may not now own a “U Drop In” T-shirt.
From Shamrock we headed East, part of the way on Rte 66 and part of the way on Interstate 40, with Elk City, OK in our sights. Elk City is home to the Route 66 National Museum Complex. Oh my, there was so much to see!
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and really????
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Women did that???

All in all it was great fun to explore this little section of Rte 66! I’m glad we’ve bumped into it again in our travels!