A Merry Christmas to All and To All a Goodnight!

We would like to wish a Happy Holidays to all our family, friends and readers!  We're spending this Christmas on our own, just the two of us.   It's something different, we may miss being with family and friends at times, but it is nice spending it together.

Here are a couple pics of our Christmas decorations. 



That's our cozy little Christmas setup although some people deck things right out.  Here's one display we liked in the park.



We didn't wrap any presents to put under the tree this year.  Our Christmas present to be is the Class A Cat posted previously.  It wouldn't quite fit under a mini 1 foot tree anyway!  We had someone take a look at it for us and it passed the preliminary check.  Thanks Chris!  Also completed an auto check on the VIN, shows it being clear of title and problems.  There were 2 owners from the records and it was registered in Michigan the entire time.  So we secured it with a downpayment, and it looks like I will fly north sometime in the first week of January or so.  It will bring us lots of adventure in the New Year.

Hopefully everyone has a terrific holiday, take care and safe traveling!

Goodnight!

'Tis the Season!

Whoa, need a break.  We are in Miami now, and it's hot.  Thank goodness we are settled for the month.  It lets us focus on work and some maintenance.  Yes, I just changed the anode rod in the hot water heater.  Wow, until a little while ago I had no idea what an anode rod was.  After living in a condo, and leasing a vehicle, well it sort of encourages one to leave everything to someone else to care for.

Now we are pressing forward into the DIY spectrum.  It's much cheaper that way, well... sometimes, and especially useful if you actually learn something valuable and develop corresponding skills.  A new old Class A will be a definite test.

But one must also realize the limit to their own capabilities.  For example, I was a bit stubborn trying to fix a camera, a small Sony point & shoot.  So what do I do...   take it to a repair shop...  NO!!  Actually it would have cost more to repair it than buy a new one.  So instead of buying a new camera, I get the same model, a used one with a cracked LCD screen for cheap.  Ahhh, put 2 and 2 together...  you got it!  Well, in theory it could have worked.  But my thumbs were a little too rough for the delicate ribbon underneath.  Doh... on to camera 3.  Same model again, used, but this one works so far, so I will leave it alone...   until something breaks on it.  But I'm sure I would get one camera working this time, really!

So back to the anode rod, take a look.



It protects your hot water heater from corrosion, and it was quite the job loosening it.  First I had to get a 1 1/16th inch socket.  Just make sure the hot water heater has been turned off for awhile.  There was a fair amount of debris to flush out with the hose as well.



Alright, next post we'll get some pictures of the Christmas decorations displayed out and about at the park.  Cat has a funny story to tell, once she gets the chance.  She will be launching her new site shortly, it has been a mad rush getting product and samples ready.

More coming soon...

Black Friday it is...

We have embraced the American holiday weekend, it beats the pants off the Canadian Thanksgiving and then followed up by one of the biggest shopping days of the year.  Cat loves the chaos but I prefer sleeping in.  The poor suckers camping outside BestBuy at 3am in Maine.  And that takes us to a tragic note.  Three people were killed in the madness of these sales.  One Walmart employee was trampled and two others at a Toys R' Us shot one another over a piece of discounted merchandise.  Come on!  Yesterday was Thanksgiving wasn't it?

So we are looking at the Class A, as Cat highlighted in the previous post, the main reason being the discomfort in moving long distances with a 5th wheel.  No slides is fine, I don't want to have to pack up and move a lot of items everytime we go somewhere.  We're going with an old one since we would have to get another vehicle regardless in June once the lease is up on the truck.   Trading the Escalade makes zero sense...  we're in a negative equity situation, and the prospects of getting that much more money is slim.  So the next step will be to find a piece of land where we can park the Escalade permanently.  I'll have to talk to the bank to see if they'll consider it a primary residence (mobile home), and then work on negotiating a much more favourable - traditional mortgage.  I'm aiming for the least amount of debt right now.



We are currently at Jonathan Dickinson State Park, and it is significantly warmer here than North Florida.  It was the first day we have run the A/C -- instead of the fireplace!  Love this park, it has really grown on us. The first time we came here, we thought it very decrepit, the place is brush filled and has fire charred trees. It's a very dry area and the park often conducts controlled burns.  I really like the area around Jupiter.  It's more laid back before hitting busy south Florida.

A possible new addition....

....and not of the animal varity. Nor human, thank goodness. What is this possible new addition? That would be a 1997 Damon Intruder....that's right, a Class A.

What about Mr.Escalade? Not to worry, we're keeping him. If we were to trade in, we'd take a loss. Not like we want to trade him in either, no way. We figured it would make more sense to get a used Class A in excellent condition and keep the 5th wheel....it's cheaper than getting a new truck for the fiver when the lease runs out this June. That and we are itching for a Class A for more reasons than I care to list on here! I'm sure any one with an A would know about this!

And so, the search has been going on for months....the discussion, the debates, the frustration on what route to take, but it's falling into place. We're currently scouting out some land (not quite sure where yet however, ugh) to park the Escalade on....build a deck around it and use it as a home base. Then in the future we have the option to get a used truck or whatnot to pull it.

Back to the search, we've looked at every RV known to man. From new to used, to literally falling apart. Just trying to gage the differences, the prices of 'fixing them up' and things like that. Well today we found 'the one'. The only floor plan we truly loved. We had recently looked at one of these 'rare' floorplans in person, but the unit itself was pretty run down. Listed for $15,000, thought maybe it would be worth the fix up cost at $5000 less but the seller would never have gone for it. Glad we waited for a while, because today I ran across our guy online....in Michigan. For the first time BOTH Bryan and I went: THAT'S IT! Good sign!

Of course buying sight unseen is risky (we're still having someone take a look at it, with the slight possibility of Bryan flying up for a few hours to see it and back down again), but with the price it's worth it to us. We know we'll be spending quite a bit more fixing it up and taking care of the 'unforeseen problems'. It's listed in EXCELLENT condition, and super clean interior. Enough for me! The only problem is we don't want to put the full amount down....especially with todays, er, 'problems'. What if the dealership went bankrupt?! Very bad. Well we've worked out a plan to get us around it, and have some back ups....we'll see how it goes. Also, we'll have someone to check it out before the full amount is paid, so that's good enough for me!

Enough of the boring stuff, here it is. Putting a deposit down on it soon after we get some terms and conditions out of the way. My mother is freaking out about buying sight unseen, which is understandable. She also manged to get some people all riled up on the RV forum about how stupid a decision it is. But you know, we're kind of a different, er, 'type'. And young enough to bounce back....and pretty damn resourceful if I say so myself;-) Starting off on an RV at a young age was a risk itself, and one we never look back on. All those folks, they've lived and learned through their mistakes over the years. We've only just begun;-)

That being said, hopefully we can write a post in the future that doesn't warrant any 'I told ya so's! I have a feeling we're going to be A-OK.

Meet, Mr. Intruder! Muhahahaha! We may be meeting him in January!

Where are we exactly...

We made it to our destination, good ol' Florida.  Only thing is, we got a little confused, or maybe it was mother nature, because it sure hasn't seemed like Florida the last three days.  It has been freezing, yes freezing in Florida.  Albeit we're in north Florida, near Jacksonville, but these are record lows we're seeing.  It was 30 degrees F the night before, and inland it dipped to 20, that's well below the average nightly tempature of 50 degrees.  It's so mixed up that it was warmer in PEI the last 3 days.  Go figure.  But this cold front will surely break soon, plus we're headed farther south in a few days, then Cat can go outside again;)

Cat snapped a pic of the welcome to Florida sign, but it turned out blurry.  I like this one a lot better.   



 

This is at Fernandina Beach, nice spot, you can drive out on the beach too.  I know you can do that at Daytona Beach too, but for some reason we've passed right by this general stretch of Florida on our previous treks.  We'll hit the beach soon, the water was a little cold though.

Greetings from the deep south!

Alright, we've been on the road again and I've been short on my time online.  As per the last post, Cat never got to see Billy Corgan...  better luck next time.   Right now we're in Savannah, Georgia and soon onward towards Florida.

We left Toronto on Monday, and yes, it was cold, and a bit of snow too.  Our border crossing was the quickest one yet, through in a minute flat.  The border guard was cool, he asked if we had any hand grenades or bazookas.  We might need them in Miami!

Generally we keep driving till it gets warm.  We stopped in Charleston, South Carolina for a couple days.  It actually reached 80 degrees.  Stayed at a great State Park on the ocean, Edisto Beach, it's on an island. Checked out Charleston on a drive through and on our way.  Destination Jacksonville for over a week.

Halloween Haunt

Hey, hope everyone had a Happy Halloween...  Hooray!  Ok, enough of that.  We kept it nice and relaxing...  in haunted houses and on roller-coasters through the pitch black haze.  Much tamer than all that getting dressed up and thrashing about among all the drunken ghouls and super-heroes at the clubs!  A change of pace, it made Halloween a little more romantic in the red glowing mist and haunting music.  Canada's Wonderland puts on a good show for Halloween every year.  Everything is more fun in the dark;)









Here's our pumpkin, I call him Two-face, has the split personality going on, depending which side you ask. Not sure if he was too happy parting with his seeds, but I tried a new recipe for roasting them.  Try them with cinnamon and sugar, and a bit of butter/oil.  Mmmm...  caramely goodness.


We have had our fill of cold filled fun.  Now it's the change of the seasons.  Our change-over is standing at T- 10 days and counting.  It's getting close, just a couple more events in Toronto and that'll be that.

Looking in from the outside

Well, the things you own, they end up owning you... as goes the quote from Fight Club. Love that movie.  We still have old possessions weighing us down, scattered over the country.  In a couple provinces anyway.  

And we still have to deal with this junk, errr - I mean keepsakes.  Depends who you ask. Fortunately for good friends, we had stored several boxes and a couple pieces of furniture at 'JC's house.  Now you sorta forget about this stuff, and who really knows where the time goes, but 2 years later and he is moving - selling his house.  That meant we had a fun Saturday.  

Our short term solution was moving it to another friend's house.  Eventually you have to deal with problems. Now we're not total mooches, in return friends have been well furnished.  To make a lesser demand on space, we spent the afternoon condensing boxes and allocating a fair portion to goodwill and the old garbage can.

So now we get to the good part of the story.  The night before we went out for a few drinks, dancing, go to bed at 4 type deal.  We stayed over at our friend's house.  Our boxes to sort through were out in the garage, which is separate from the house.  They were going out for the afternoon, but we were welcome to stay and take care of the boxes.  The key was left inside and the door open, both Cat and I were in the garage when they pulled out.  Fine, kept working away, then Cat walked around to the door to go in....

You guessed it - the door was locked!  No big deal.  Hold on, Cat doesn't have her phone - it's inside.  No truck keys, wallet, food, water...  everything is locked safely away inside the house.  I don't even have a jacket on, and it's raining outside!  Of course, Cat immediately starts to panic.  Having no food or water after a night out...  she is surely going to die!  

This is a great way to test out your resourcefulness.  We check all the doors and windows - locked.  Scour the garage for a spare key...  we're coming up empty.  Cat walks over to a neighbour, tries calling, and there is no answer, it goes straight to voicemail.  I don't think anyone wanted to let her in, she was wearing a hoodie and looked homeless.

Now our gameplan is to break into the house.  The windows are impossible to open, without smashing of course.  We even tried picking the locks.  We've established we are NOT very good burglars!  There is a small basement window that Cat thinks she could squeeze through, but I am very doubtful.  We would need to pry the screen out.  Back into the garage, looking for some tools.  

With all our suspicious movements that blatantly appeared as if we were trying to break in, Cat would have been relieved if the cops showed up.  At least then we'd have warm shelter and water.  No such luck, so back to searching the garage for tools, I found a workbelt.  Magically inside one of the pockets is a cell phone. And it works!  

Hallelujah, we're saved!  Cat makes a couple calls, we finally get through, and learn the where-abouts of a spare key.  It works, we return to the land of plenty, Cat has a bite to eat, and all is well again.  Far from having been in dire circumstances, it gives a small taste of being without, even if it was just for a couple hours.  Testing yourself, new perspectives, they're good things.

Almost that time again

Well, I forgot we had a site...  hmmm.  Actually, what happened to the summer?  It has been a busy, hectic, stressful, uncertain time that we are enjoying!  I have been enthralled by the whole credit crisis and subsequent market meltdown.  I'm obviously 'pot committed', so now the challenge is to gain from the volatile times ahead.



A brief recap of the summer:  following lobster fishing in the spring, we spent 2 months at Southport RV Park in PEI, across the bridge from Charlottetown.  In our opinion, it's the supreme location on the Island.  A bit pricey minus a long term rate.  There is also talk of the park being developed - errrr- turned into condos.  It's happening everywhere!  Apparently half the park is being sold off next year with the future looking dismal for RVing that close to the (mini) city...



Check it out, it's the best spot to catch the firework display on Canada Day.  They usually put on a good show with the Festival of Lights.  We could hear the bands (the Hip, OLP) playing across the water!  PEI actually gets some decent acts.  I'm surprised - since last year Nickelback got cussed out by the local media for dropping the f-bomb.  Come on people, relax a little!  PEI is verrry conservative.





One other note, Charlie had an accident while we were staying at Southport.  He managed to make an escape, clean out the door, apparently his flight feathers had grown enough from his last clipping.  He went soaring towards the sun, and the crows too.  We ran out after him, across the park, it was a matter of less than 2 minutes ---  When we reached him, he was clinging to a wire fence, his head bloody, it looked horrible, we thought he was a goner!  Seriously, it looked as though he was scalped... not sure what happened, if he was attacked by bird -or- animal -or- mangled himself on the fence.  It wasn't pretty, Cat rushed him to the vet, luckily there was a veterinary office directly across the street.  Fortunately Charlie is a fighter, he was back to himself a couple days later, and his feathers have fully grown back except a small bald spot behind his crest.



So yo ho we were off, escaping Cat's favourite Island... and place in general.    We left the end of August, right before Labour day, so that sorta limited our options.  We wanted to stop in Montreal for a couple days but it was impossible to find a spot for the long weekend.  So we kept on trucking straight to Orillia and Hammock Harbour.  Arrived at 3am, woke Cat's parents to a surprise greeting, and crashed outside the gate for the night.  Luckily the previous campers vacated our favourite spot that morning, a day early.

The theory of relativity has been working overdrive the last month.  The time vanished, we have been throwing plans and ideas out the window and off the walls.  It always helps when you condense a year's worth of appointments into a month!  Cat has jumped into a new business project as well... she's off on super research mode.

Back to the plans, they are constantly changing, figure we'll do something different next year, after the truck lease is up (finally).  We never know that far ahead, but settling down in a house is not one of the options.  We may conduct a social experiment, depending on what opportunities present themselves.  As a good read, I recommend the Four Hour Work Week by Tim Ferriss, it touches upon what we are trying to enjoy (maybe even accomplish) in this lifestyle.

Now, I just need to develop the discipline in posting and updates, the same that is soo necessary in the market.  Here's to getting our shit together!

And another marker the seaons have changed drastically...  we observed our first snow of the year.  Yikes!  You know what that means.  Cat said it's time to get outta here.

A long awaited project....

There are a few who know about my 'clean carpet obsession'. The excessive carpet shampooing, the strict rules about shoes coming off, yup I could very well be a carpet nazi! So it was no surprise how excited I was when we decided to rip out the carpet and replace it with vinyl tiles....specifically TrafficMasters Allure vinyl tiles from Home Depot! I have been waiting for this day forever! No more stinky carpets, and all carpets to me are stinky. I don't know why RV companies insist on putting a carpet in an RV, it's just ridiculous, especially with the moisture issue.


I've got a few ideas on how to do the slideout, which is presenting a bit of a challenge but I don't mind too much. Anyway, here are some pictures....I will update as we go!And yes, I still owe a backdated entry and wedding pictures. Not quite caught up yet;-)

 

First, we ripped out the side walkway carpet, to get a feel of what we were dealing with.

Next was the living room carpet, which not only revealed the padding, but also little 'surprises',

other than the trillions of staples!

The 'surprise' was a couple of water stains due to Mittens accidents during his bladder blockage.

Actually, the stains were from me cleaning this up with the shampooer!

KZ couldn't put tile in because they had to take the slides off. We found a way around this...

CUT the carpet from the wall....

And then the most tedious job; pulling the threads and fibers out with pliers!

Under the padding....

Surprisingly this was the ONLY place with mold.

Oddly nothing concerning the shampooer or Mittens had caused this!

Javex was the cure. No black mold left!

And so the REAL fun began....which was the easy part of course!

Installation of an awesome new floor!

HOORAY! Well, it's not even half done, but I took a picture cutting off the unfinished part. I leave the Swiffer there for a reason....YES that is all I have to use now to clean the floor, and I cleaned the area before putting the chairs back....and had WAY too much fun doing it. It was more exciting than I'd like to admit....

Overall this particular flooring system was easy and fast. The hardest part of it was ripping all the stuff out and getting rid of all the staples. Only a few challenges left until our new floor. I think it looks pretty good!

We chose this type of flooring over the others for certain reasons. Laminate while very nice and easy to install like vinyl, can swell and buckle if liquid is spilled and left for a bit. Not good for the RV....and not good when you have a kitten that likes to play in his fountain and dish....! We didn't go for real tile/real wood because of the weight issue. I have enough clothes and boots pushing us to the limit as is:-P We didn't do the one sheet of vinyl as it would be hard to get down and cut.

With the TrafficMaster adhesive strips, th ere is no floor prepping and it can pretty much go on top of anything. Very cool!
More pictures soon as we finish!

The contrast theory....

Yes, we still owe everyone a backdated entry from leaving Florida and heading up the east coast! I haven't bothered to get any pictures uploaded of our trek until now....

We are settled in PEI, Canada after leaving Florida and stopping in Phily (LOVED IT!) and Boston (HATED IT! The campground was lovely though!). I have many pictures from our trip up and I promise to get those posted soon. Then again, that's what I said about the wedding photos. Go me!

We left our last stop, Boston, in 85 degree weather and drove straight through until we hit a blizzard. I shit you not, it was a full fledged blizzard in PEI. I can't say I was surprised....as this island seems to know when I'm coming, and naturally, it prepares its seemingly endless torture on my poor soul. Ok dramatic much! ?

And sad I was. No, wait, DEVASTATED would be the word. That chest pressure, heart sinking, lump in throat, hazy cloud over your head type of feeling. To add to it, we had to drop our RV off for repairs on the way to Bryans parents place....some last minute fixes before the warranty is up. I failed to get most of the items I needed for a month, as the freezing cold near took the breath right out of us and the slush ravaged our poor sandeled toes. Prepared, we were not....but we didn't expect this kind of weather. Well, I had a hint, but, you know. At least everyone is convinced it's me. Two days earlier people were out in tank tops getting tans. As our friend Kelly put it: "I didn't know when you guys we're going to arrive, but when I saw the weather change like that, I knew Cat was on the island". Lovely huh!

The only consolation are Bryans wonderful parents, friends in Charlottetown on weekends, and of course, yummy lobster. Yet, my sanity still seems to escape me at times. I take the two month downer as an opportunity to catch up on work, but sometimes the depression from the DROP gets to me, and I find myself staring at the ceiling, listening to music that reminds me of happier times on warm sunny beaches....

I can't go outside....it's too cold. It snows in May here. And if it isn't snowing, it's raining. And raining, and raining. Did I mention the raining? I know it will be warm soon, maybe at the end of June it will start, but that's when the blackflies come out....they love me and feel no remorse about making me ill for a week or two with blackfly fever. I feel I am a hostage in a room upstairs, too tired to get up, too mesmerized by the five (yes five!) computer screens before me, desperately trying to find the drive to FINISH things.

Yet at least I am surrounded by those who care about me, and those I care about. The animals don't mind it here at all! Mittens has other cats to terrorize, Miphy is settling in, and the birds have free reign of the place, as I have let their wings grow in and they soar about the large bedroom....all are oblivious of the gray un-parting skies.

Furthermore, the satellite internet isn't so great in the rain. I won't even get into our frustration surrounding that issue! I REALLY need to find out if we are still on contract with them. If not, there may be better options now! Thank goodness Telus came out with the same kind of 'unlimited wireless internet' deal as in the US, even if it IS $75. Canada may have hope yet. MAY being the keyword....

And so I am typing here, it is 2:30am. This seems to be dinner time for me. I go to sleep when Bryan rises for fishing at 5am. I wake up when he comes home at noon. I work nights, slowly giving way to the nocturnal insanity that some people experience when they do night shifts. But I know better times are coming, I just have to hold on a bit longer and then it's time to stay in South Port RV Park in Charlottetown. The nearest convenience store is a walk across the road instead of an hour away, and everything is a one minute drive across the bridge. I'm looking forward to the Canada Day festivities and civilization around me. But I am especially looking forward to getting back on the road afterwards, where nothing is permanent or planned too far in advance.

When I think about it, I really have nothing to complain about. I'm one of the lucky ones, and sometimes I lose sight of this fact. Both of us do. It is so true though, you couldn't appreciate the light if there was no darkness.

Like the sun and the grey skies....

A new traveling buddy....

Our stay in Florida is coming to an end. *POUT*

I'm still working on the backdated entries for the last while, from the wedding until now. Slowly but surely getting caught up....
Our time in Florida has been wonderful, and we had good friends to spend it with this time....! While they've been heading up back to eastern Canada, we've spent our time catching our breath and trying to slow time down as much as possible. However, it seems the slower you want it, the faster it goes, and vice versa. Such is life....

For our last few days we arranged to stay in Jetty Park....one of our favorites as most know;-) It was also a great opportunity to trek into Orlando and pick up our *new friend*. That being Miphy, our bearded dragon! I don't know how this came about, but I decided I wanted one. As most know, when I decide on something, well....that's it! Anyway, when adults, dragons are known to be cuddly and interactive....as well as appreciative of human companionship. This little guy LOVES to stand up on his back legs and lean his front ones on the window, and just stare outside. He also loves to curl up and snuggle into a little blanket I gave him on the first night to sleep. Oh, and they are ADORABLE.....some may not agree with this however!

But....just look at this face!

In the car on the way home....

Check out the color....and his being *special*.

Cute!

Oh boy!

Getting him used to my shoulder....he already loves sitting there!

I met a lovely girl online who had a few babies for sale....one of them was nipped by a sibling and lost his hand. Of course, I fell in love with him right away. But of course, I wanted one who I felt I had a connection with, like in the case of Cocoa! (Who for some reason, never got an intro on here, so I'll have to backdate one!) We saw them all in the tank, and while I knew which one I truly wanted, I felt like it was such a DECISION. I could have taken them all....so cute! But Bryan handed me Miphy one more time, and I knew it was quite clear....

He has been a wonderful addition to our *traveling zoo*. Mittens loves him....watches the tank all day. Endless hours of entertainment! The birds are also pleased as the *big white monsters* attention has been (temporarily) shifted. This new friend has also given me a project....as he will need a bigger enclosure as he grows. Thus, we will be building a sort of stackable enclosure for the dragon, the hermit crabs, and the birds, who I wanted to build an acrylic cage for anyway. It will give me more to do in PEI I suppose!






So we all lived happily ever after....

....and then the dreaded *Thursday* came along....the day we were supposed to leave and head back up north. Oh, but we (the Jetty Park staff and I, and to some degree Bryan) knew that this would not come about! We extended our stay for another week....an early B-Day present for me! Bryan will have to suffer the long drives for me, but that's what marriage is about....men suffering. Am I right or am I right?

;-)

And so, I will be at the beach until I have to be dragged away, kicking, screaming and crying!
Until then, happy travels, I will write to you from the road on the way up....
However, if you don't hear from me again, I will most likely have frozen to death and suffered horribly beforehand. </end dramatics>

That, or I just procrastinated....!

Happy Easter!

Hey hey,

 I haven't written a post in ages, thanks to Cat for keeping things going.  I like the wordpress platform back on, I had been doing my own journal but I said screw it for awhile, after the server was hacked and I lost my content. 

Spring is here and it is getting to the turning point on the compass, we're leaving our current campground west of Miami tomorrow morning.  From here on out we will be heading progressively North.  Cat dreads when we start heading "up" but I enjoy something different.  We can take a few days here or there, we'll be stopping in Ft. Lauderdale next, then West Palm and back to Cocoa Beach for a bit, although for less than a week in each spot. 

It was a nice rainy Easter weekend, with a little thunder, and lots of food.  It sure beats the snow, I did the "home-cooking" ham and sweet potatoes.  Anyone else think RV ovens are useless?  Ours doesn't even light anymore but no matter, the only thing it ever cooked decently was the turkey last Christmas.  It would burn the bottoms of any dish and leave the top raw, so you have to flip it.  Well, we use ours as a wine rack and beverage holder.  The best thing I bought was a big toaster /countertop oven, one that fits 12" pizzas.  Everything cooks perfectly.  http://www.proctorsilex.com/cgi-bin/main/co_disp/displ/prrfnbr/1688/sesent/00/6-Slice-Toaster-Oven

Plus it sure beats burning through propane, that built-in oven would take forever to cook anything.  Cat really wishes it was possible to swap it out for a dishwasher.  No affordable option, and we have absolutely zero room for a countertop model.  So it looks like I'll be stuck with the duties for the unforeseeable future.  I don't mind, anyways, more later. 

Maybe even throw in some wedding stuff at some point, we're just completely done with it for awhile.  Definitely glad to have all that behind us, it was no small task.

A little update....

Well I figure I owe everyone a little update....after all, it HAS been a month since the last post! We are on the verge of getting everything in our life on track, organized and 'updated'. Right now we're staying near Fort Lauderdale after a 9 day stay at John Pennekamp in the Florida Keys, and previously Jon Dickenson SP in Hobe Sound as well as Long Point Park (again!) in Melbourne Beach. I promise I'll write a post highlighting our stay at each place soon. For now, I'm still tweaking the blog as well as a couple of other sites that have been on the back burner since the planning of the wedding....

Oh yes, I promise wedding pictures shortly too....can't forget that! I don't think people believe the wedding existed, but it did....I swear! Ha-ha!

Stay tuned for more to come. And while you're at it, sign the new guestbook, located on the right sidebar:-)

Blast Off!

I had my camera pointed in the wrong direction when I heard everyone exclaim 'Ohhhh there it is!' Thankfully I was able to recover quickly and catch the shots that I did! Kristy, Will, Bryan and myself walked out to the fishing dock at Manatee Hammock in Titusville, where we were staying with the rigs for the week. We accidently booked the time when the launch was set to go....bonus!

The weather was looking bad, or at least it was on the radar....there was a 60% chance that the launch was going to be scrubbed....but I had a feeling the entire day that everything was going to be ok! The sun stayed out, the Thunderstorms never showed, and up went the shuttle in a blaze of fire into the deep blue sky while everyone watched in awe. I was shaking so badly, I could barely hold the camera. I think I must have felt the nervousness of those men being shot into the sky. It was quite miraculous....see for yourself....

Camera #1

Camera #2

Awwwwesome!