Better late than never..

Hi everyone...I am making a late Merry Christmas post...I have not had
computer...mine bit the dust.. I will explain later...I am just trying to get use
to  this windows 8 ....there is a learning curve to it...anyway better late than
never..can anyone tell me if live writer works with windows 8? I will post more
when I get this figured out...anyone with advice about it please leave a
comment... I can use the help... going to see if i can post a pic..

well that worked...that was my Christmas tree this year...with gifts
after my DD added theirs...we had a nice visit with them ...went to
the beach Christmas morning , opened gifts then had our dinner about
5 or so...we had spaghetti bake, nice big salad and garlic bread..not you
traditional Christmas dinner but was good...and cookies for desert...then they
left headed back to VA on Thrus. So this is it for now thanks for  looking and
come back soon..blessings to all G&M

SAT FUN AND EXCITEMENT…..

Melbourne Fl Beautiful weather High 83 Low 69….
On the way over to the campground…
I made a stop at a Publix…. there is one  on the way… and a Pet Supermarket be side it had the  Florida Animal Hospital out front with these two wonderful birds..This little fellow American Screech Owl..(I didn’t know they had to tell me) such a small little guy…a sweetie…look at the girls hand…he is only about the size of it…

And then there was this stately looking guy… Great Horned Owl ( they had to tell me that also) now he was more the size I thought an owl should be…it took a few min. to get a pix..he kept turning his head away…I was in a hurry and could not ask more questions I had…but I did leave them a donation in their jar….they were there trying to raise funds…

Later on in the…
day after getting set up at the campground we went to the dog park with MM and Harley dog…Every time a new dog would arrive everyone would run over to the gate and meet and greet them…with much barking going on…I wonder what they are saying to each other…

Maggie did pretty good…this was sort of her first time at a dog park…we were there one other day but there weren’t any dogs there…so this was her first interaction with dogs in a large goupe off leash…here in pix below she is meeting up with a fellow that seemed to like her …and there is Harley in the back ground guarding a ball…

And the rest of the story….

We did have some excitement on our walk back…we were walking along minding our own business and these two labs came running up and around us…causing Maggie and Harley and their Mama’s a few frightening moments…they were off leash (first broken rule of the park) and when the guy that was following behind them calling to them…well lets say they were ignoring him …he had no control what so ever over them…we kept yelling at him to come get his dogs…finally he got to where we were and the dogs followed him across the road way and into part of the park that had a sign NO DOGS BEYOND THIS POINT…(second broken rule) we had to stop and catch our breath for awhile..we watched him and the dogs walk all over that area and he never did put them on the leash…I do not seem to have good luck with labs…Well all for now thanks for looking and come back soon…. blessings to all G&M

RV MOD & SOME CHRISTMAS…

Melbourne FL…First day of winter in paradise= High 80 Low 71

Cookies…

I got busy this week and made a couple batches of these cookies…I have made these for my children and grandchildren for years…it is something of a tradition…and now have to make a couple batches so everyone gets some….

Tried something different…
this year…and it did not go over so well…lol…sent out my son and his family their package…then yesterday got a call from son telling me they got the package…and then informed me that I should not mess with his cookies again! It seem that he did not like the peppermint  candy cane kisses that I used on a few of them….

And now to the Mods…
after many, many, to many…knee and back breaking ball retrievals I had enough…so off to Home Depot…I went…Maggie girl loves to play ball in the RV and her balls (for her little mouth) were just the right size to roll under the slide out…so after awhile I noticed she would deliberately roll them under there just to have me retrieve them for her and throw them back the hall…a fun game for her ..not so much for me!!!

So at  Home Depot I got a 2x2 furring strip..had them cut it to 6 1/2 feet,,,then home I went got out my tools and started my project…furring strips are rough and have a lot of potential splinters…so go out my laminate router have had it for 20 years or better …it is one of the few tools I have not gotten rid of…any way routed all edges and then hand sanded it until it was pretty smooth…

When I measured for this project it look like it would fit perfect…and when I got it out to the RV and tried it out…was a nice snug fit…so when I was thinking about the routing it  on edges…I wondered if it would still be a nice snug fit…well I went ahead and did it any way and ..yep it was no longer a nice snug fit…so I put some velcro on the ends and it is now attached to the floor and does not move…I still need to stain it…but it works great!!! And I do have a note at the slide button to remove it before sliding out…

And the rest of the story….
To day I am going over to Wickham CG and spend the night…need to empty tanks…and Miss Mermaid said something about some sewing projects…if it is nice out and it sure is going to be a beautiful day…so  need to get ready to hit the road…thanks for looking and come back soon …blessing to all G&M

ON MY WALK…...

Melbourne FL…. High 68 Low 48
On my walk around the park
here are some of the Florida floral and fauna that Maggie and I seen…this is the pond that we park by a lot when we are at the day use part of the park…not the campgrounds…but on the way to the camp grounds…

More of the same pond… there was a lady came by and threw a lot of bread at the edge and in the pond…(not sure that was a good idea) anyway…she attracted birds galore…and I was trying to get some pix of them…but those pix are for another blog…but a few birds in the pix above…

In this part of the park there are no marked trails…just open wooded areas…this bridge is not on a trail but put where you can cross over the creek…

Looking down the creek… I did not see any fish , bugs , frogs in the creek…maybe they just don’t hang around the bridge area….

Looking up the creek from the bridge..I was trying to figure out where the creek came from and where it went…I think it just flows between two ponds…but next walk that way I am going follow it and find out…

The rest of the story…
Not much going on as usual…anything of interest that is…doing some cleaning for DD and SIL that will be here over Christmas day…we had a bunch of rain today (Sun)…now for a cool down…laundry and football day today…my Fantasy Football…I did not win any $$ but did  come in third …so for a rookie grammy was good to me…congrats to Judy (blog bird lady) she won playing FF on her son’s league….link to Judy’s blog ….http://travels-with-emma.blogspot.com/ I don’t know how to do a blog roll so hence the link….all for now thanks for looking and come back soon…blessings to all G&M   

FOR THE BIRDS BLOG

This is the first pelican I have seen at the Home Park since I got back in Sept…A Brown Pelican …I think…

This Great Egret seems to be a permanent resident at the Home Park I see him every time I go there.

Friends at the beach…I met them the other day while walking at the dog beach with Maggie….

I seen this Great Blue Heron fishing while I was on one of my kayaking trips…I think this one was on the Silver Springs River…in Oct.

And again at the Home Park there are these Wood Storks…there are anywhere between 3  to 9 of then hanging around waiting on a hand out from the fisher people…mostly those with casting nets getting mullet for their bait fish…

My first ever in flight picture of a flying bird….taken the other day at the Home Park….

Close up of one Wood Stork…

Great Blue Heron fishing  at the Home Park…there are 2 of these that hang around all the time…a third was there the other day and there was some chasing around the park of Herons  …guess he was a intruder …I wonder if my family in PA are impressed with my bird watching and with all the new birds I have been seeing…

Really not much going on for me right now…made cookies and sent to son’s family …spent a couple days at Wickham …waiting for it to stop raining for a day or two so I can work on my leak…My daughter and hubby are coming for Christmas…they will be here only over night and then they want to go to the west coast of Fl and explore some…I might take the rig and go with them…they only have 10 days and have a lot of driving to do…that’s it for today thanks for  looking and come back soon
blessings to all  ….G&M

SIGHTS AND SITES OF WICKHAM

Rain again…
It rained again last night and this morning…and more to come…not sure what is going on but this is not the rainy season in Fl..but it has rained 90% of the days I have been back here………………below is a pix of a pond and the campground …you see this view as you drive down the road to the campground…

Maggie and Harley on one of our walks around the park…trying to ignore each other…

Another scene of pond and campground ..these pond sites are most sought after for the snowbirds that winter here…


I took some….
I took some pix of a few sites …the sites are large some huge…and here you can pull your RV in at any angle…this one you could go cross wise and have your door and patio facing the pond….

And at this one you could pull any way you want …nice privet site door facing the foliage..at any angle…

And at this one you get a good idea at how big they are…again any which way you want it…T

And the rest of the story…..
This is a nice little park tucked away on the central Florida coast…not far from the many big attractions the are in central FL …Disney and all that is over towards Orlando only about 45min to an hour…up I-95 or take US-1 for more sights along the way  to Cap Canaveral ..Kennedy Space Center…and it is only about 6 or so mile to the Atlantic Ocean… Also I did not count them but I would say very least there are 50 geocaches planted here if you like Geocaching...Any way it is what I call my home campgrounds and I am very lucky that it is so close…only 5 miles from dads…and I can come camp for a get away  and not have to spend so much $$ on gas… Price wise it is cheap compared…I am leaving today going back to dads…not sure when I can come again to stay…Christmas coming and all…but still will do day trips here…free get away just not over night…so thanks for looking ..have a fun day and be safe in your travels…blessings to all G&M

MINI-MINI WICKHAM GTG…

Got to Wickham Park …..
campground around noon…wanted to get there earlier but didn’t work out…visited with Miss Mermaid…and took a hike thru the woods…Florida woods not like northern woods…MM class C down this loop road you can see just the very front top on the other side of the white car ..way down there…It was a little cool with a breeze... sun was peaking in and out so was not to bad...Kind of nice for hiking ...

These pics were taken this morning after rain most to the night started  after 1 am…I did not sleep well so was in the know when it started.…no awing, chairs folded up, rain on table cloth…rain drops and nuts falling on roof…

Still raining this morning…this is the view out our window…hope it will clear up later…looks like it might looking at radar on weather bug…

Maggie waiting out the rain so she can go visit Harley Dog…yesterday there was some baring of teeth, snarling and attack mode going on…when some treats were given out and one was found lying about...they both wanted it....food is ok with Maggie sharing..but treats is another thing…anyway no harm done…except to the mama’s…they were up set  Maggie really likes to go see Harley and MM but then when she gets there she likes to ignore Harley...much to his displeasure because he is only 3 years old and still in puppy mode and wants to play...

And the rest of the story….
We are done with breakfast and now waiting for no more rain drops to fall…Will go down the loop and see what MM is up to..I looked at the Geocaching map last night and seen there are a couple of caches close by…think I will try and find them …introduce MM to Geocaching if she is up to it…well as I type this it is getting brighter out (no sun yet) and the only falling water is from the live oak tree limbs that are hanging over us…so will go now and try and have some fun times at Wickham! Have a wonderful day and thanks for looking and come back soon…blessings to all G&M

THANKSGIVING DAY IN FLORIDA…

Happy Thanksgiving ….

from sunny Florida!!..Well some sun and clouds….My day will be cooking turkey, dressing, mashed tata’s, sweet tata’s, fresh cranberries, brussel sprouts, crescent pin wheels, and some pie…and I think I will finish up the wine I opened up at Silver Springs…if it is still good that is… it will be just me and dad …with lots of left overs!!! …some of this cooking was done yesterday…so I will have time for the Macy’s parade and my football games…Maggie waiting for turkey!

Missing my…..

family this time of year…they are spread all over…mostly up north…this is a pic of me (on left) and my sister (on right) at my grandsons wedding …2011 …they had a booth set up and  take your pics…then you  leave a set of pics for them and take a set with you…really cool idea…no one in my family wants their pic on my blog …but my sis doesn’t mind so here we are … also missing my brother big time…

Donna and Nancy

A cloudy sun rise at the home park…pretty Florida pink…there are so much beauty in Florida..I had no idea…until I moved here…and the rivers are something else…I seen a pic on a blog the other day of the river in Rainbow  Springs…the water was so clear that the kayaks that were parked at the launch looked like the were floating on air…the Women RV girls are having a GTG there in March I hope to go…maybe I can get a pic like that to show you…

So….

To family and friends….

Happy Thanksgiving !!!

Love from Grammy N Maggie

 

TECH & TURTLE….

Out the front door….

at the Little Park…AKA Jimmy Moore Park…this little park holds base ball field , tennis courts, kiddy park with picnic, and this pond with fountain…it is kitty corner from WM and in a busy business area…this taken out the front door the other day in all that rain…and cant forget the bathrooms…one thing I like about Florida..is all these wonderful parks tucked away all over the place…in business area, residential areas, along the water ways and causeways…and all very well maintained by Parks & Rec…truly amazing compared to where I come from PA…I just found 2 more not more than a mile form dads the other day…a lot of these parks I find while Geocaching…another plus for this great hobby! A lot of people come here for their lunch hr..most just sit in the car and eat…

I replaced this….

Air stick…

With this…

MiFi 4G both Verizon…So far I am happy with this speedy little device…but after reading on blogs and forum…I hope it performs well on the road…if I am reading right you can buy some kind of booster for it..???

And at the Camp Driveway…

We seem to spend a lot of time here…so far so good with the neighbors…Maggie and I have been sleeping in the rig…dad just keeps the house way to warm..Maggie is up panting and wanting water most of the night…and she keeps me awake running up and down the bed trying to find a cool spot…in the rig I can open the windows there is always a nice breeze blowing thru….dad put in all new windows in his house with no screens…no opening windows…

And also who says you cant see wild life in Camp Driveway in the middle of the city!! This little guy parked himself under the steps yesterday..

Maggie was beside herself trying to get up close to him/her…here is a close up don’t know what kind he is…

The rest of the story…

Will be some what busy this week…dad is expecting some company to stop buy..don’t know when…I probably wont be here…as I am going to Wickham Park campground on Friday, Sat. leave on Sun….MM is over there and will see what she is up to…all for now thanks for looking and come back soon

blessings to all G&M

RAIN…DAMAGE...

This system ….
sat on top of us for 2 days…the little mam shows where I am….radar via my cell phone…love that weather bug…

This is what you saw for 2 full days and night…we got over 6in of rain…here we are sitting at a little park where Maggie and I use to come for lunch…first time we have been here in the rig…

And this is the trouble …..
that this this system caused …I think this was a problem at some point in time  before because of the two screws….I had not drove the rig for a day and when I went to the home park this rainy day I got out and walked around to open the door and seen what looked like someone had thrown coffee all over the door and fender…after looking around and up I seen “coffee” dripping from this area…and it was hanging down somewhat ….this does not look pretty and I am totally upset…standing in the rain  looking at this mess…ugh..

I got back in the driver seat and continue to look out at the pouring rain and how it was coming down over the cab over…upon further looking and wondering…I see what looked like a gaping hole on the edge of the over hang and it looking like raging river of water was rushing into it…as seen in pic below…but when I checked it out later when the rain stopped .. it was just a thin crack in the caulk…

Sitting there watching it in the rain..it looked like to me that the water entered that crack and ran down the inside edge and soaked the wood underneath that strip that runs across the over cab…soaked so bad that it was full of water pushed the one screw out and pushed down the strip and let the discolored water run out…I think that there is no damage inside the rig…all contained in that area…

I took the rig to a local RV repair shop…they got up on the roof also and said right above the damaged area was a small crack in the caulking....could possibly be running down there…but the amount of water was small if any…What I would like to know…from your RV’ers out there …if you think my calculations might be right..and any ideas on repair..my repair idea is clean out caulking and redo..the repair man replace the screws for me and said that when he screwed them in that they “caught “ so there is undamaged wood to work with…so please comment and tell me what you think and would do….thanks for your help…blessings to all G&M..