HILLSBOROUGH RIVER ST. PARK

I did not take pic’s of the rig getting new water pump so I will show you these pic’s of our first camp site.

Well it started of on Monday morning waiting for the water pump to be put in. We went and did a little shopping and stopped for some refreshments! Then went to check on rig…as we seen them taking it out for a test drive. The wanted to keep it for about 45 more min. to make sure everything was ok. So about noon they called said it was ready….so took us then about and hr. to get on the road. That is when the fun and excitement started. We started of using AAA Trip Tix,,, it had us going on I-4 with some road construction. So we turned on GPS and went with that it took us a different way. HAHA.. that ended up taking use to a gated community….stopped at a golf course to ask couple guys where Hillsborough State Park was….their reply was….never heard of it. Whoa….that didn’t sound good…well they helped us…and we found we were about 18 miles away…got there ..wrong gate….was getting dark when we finally arrived….a couple RV Women…Tina and Margie were waiting to help use get backed in….whew…we made it. Thanks so much girls….
This site was great…it had a fence behind us with a walking trail…and a little bridge, was flat and level , fire pit and picnic table.  Of course can’t have a post with out some food. While killing time waiting on pump, we stopped here for a snack. I am having a great time I will post more later….thanks for looking and come back soon.
Blessings G&M

NOT SO GOOD STUFF & GOOD STUFF

Waiting for lunch! While a crab boat was unloading.
Trail at Wickham Park.
Another trail at Wickham. We didn’t walk this one….
Well the good…..going at 8pm to Sanford airport  to pick up my sister her flight comes in at 10pm. She will be here for 2 weeks. I have been trying to figure out some menus for 2 weeks!!! Not sure what all we will be doing , but will find some fun things to do…after all we are in Florida…and its winter..!! The beach will be some of the fun time I am sure.
Now the bad…as you know I am to leave for the WomenRV GTG at Hillsborough River State Park on Mon. Well MySweetDream will be at the doctor getting her engine water pump replace. I noticed the other day when I dropped the battery cell top down the depths of the compartment….that the radiator reservoir was empty. Thought about this for a few days and looked for any leaks under the engine. Seen none. So stopped yesterday at my new mechanic shop….they could not see any obvious leaking…so suggested I bring it in for testing and they put some h2o in. Appointment next Thru. It was iffy going to campground with a leak. I worried all night so early this AM I went back and talked to the tech. He looked under it this time and seen where the leak was….water pump! So I can bring it in early Monday he will try and get it done by noon so I can still go to GTG. So that’s it for now! Enough I would say.
Thanks for looking and come back soon.
blessings G&M 

AT THE FLEA MARKET

Seen this guy at the flea market on Sunday. Made of rusty looking wire. Never know what kind of gator you might run into living in Florida.
I found that eating with plastic utensils is not the greatest. I have reg. silver ware in PA…so don’t want to spend a lot of $$ on more. So got these cuties at the flea. The were only 25  cents each, plastic pink handles. This is all I got, I will get mine to put int the rig when I  go back to PA this summer.
Click on pic to see pretty pink.
And here we have Christmas decorating Florida style! Seen these on our morning walks.
Went shopping this am. needed some food supplies and meds. Working on getting ready for my sister to come on Friday and getting ready for the GTG. I still cant figure out what to do about food for any pot lucks there might be. I don’t think I am ready to do real cooking in the rig yet. I don’t want a failure then have nothing to take!!
I found out my furnace works great! This am it was something like 48. When I went out to the rig about 7:30 when I opened the door a blast of warm cozy air hit me. The furnace was running. I have left my propane on in case on my day trips I wanted to use the stove top. I guess the furnace came on auto when the temp dipped down. I t was pretty quiet  not noisy at all. My DD and SIL had a TT that had a very noisy furnace.
Good book I just read. Stephen King’s 11/22/63
A man stumbles across a porthole to the past, and inlist the help of another to go back in time and try and change history by stopping the assassination of JFK. There is a lot more involved, other side story’s of the main person involved in his life, and how he handles going back in time. This is not like other King’s book that are scary and sometimes very nasty.I stopped reading King because of how nasty they got . I am pretty sure anyone of you would like it….I would share it but it is my DD’s book and she wants it back. It took awhile to read has over 800 pages. I tried not to read it fast, as it was so good I did not want it to end. Now that I am finished I feel kind of lost lol that’s all for now thanks for looking and come back soon.
blessings G&M

BOUGHT SOME STUFF

YEA…..I got my RV patio matt today! We took a ride to Viera FL to the WM there. It is a very big and very nice one….much better that the one here. I wish the matt  was green, but the tan will do it matches the graphics on MySweetDream. It is reversible 9x12.The black things are carrying straps.
They have so much at this store. It is only 15 mi. away so might be doing more shopping there, also Michael's and Hobby Lobby near by. So I got a large cutting board for the sink, been looking and looking for a large one. and a few baskets for drawer storage and and a basket for the fridge to keep things in place while traveling. Got a couple apple place matts at the $ store.
Then stopped at Cici’s for lunch buffet. This is not on my healthy eating plan, but once in a while won’t hurt! Poor Maggie had to wait in the rig. Not that she eats people food anyway. Well that’s it for today,,,thanks for looking and come back soon
blessings G&M

GETTING READY!!!

Work day today getting read for the GTG.….stared with vacuuming and cleaning the rig…got that done cleaned and organized the big bay in back. Took out the cooler I got last summer when I had the van. Works plugged in to the cig lighter or elec.Guess I don’t need it now that I have a fridge. Decided that I would put a few drops of distilled water in my batteries. They were down some form the first time I looked in them. And they nag me all the time. Thought I would bite the bullet and get it done. Well all well and good until, I dropped the lid of the engine batter down in the depths of the compartment. UGH, UGH….UGHLY….words flew about. Everything is tightly compacted in there, could not get my arm and hand down to get it…I see it but that’s it. Got a long stick with a ball of tape on the end of it…tried that for about 30 min. Dad came out said why don’t you try putting some of this Goop on it and see if you can get it. Well when all said and done about 30 min later I snatched it out with the Goop covered stick. Dad then took the lid and cleaned it up for me. Sorry but I did not get any pic’s of this incident. But got some of the clean organized bay and other areas of a sparkling clean rig,.
Clean bay.
Found my camera that was lost for about a month.
More clean things.Passenger seat area. This rig is now 6 years old and I can not believe how clean and new it looks inside.
When I traded in the van I kept the matts that I had just bought….I put those small ones that is usually for the back seat floor, on the steps of the rig. It sure is helping keep the sand at bay.
One week from today I should be at Hillsborough  St. Park. !!!

PARK REFLECTIONS

These are some pic’s that I took on some of our early morning walks. There are many lakes and ponds in the park. Click on the pic to make it bigger.
Reflection (up side down palms) As Judy says cool beans !
More reflections . With a sunrise coming on.
A pair of Sandhill Cranes that live in the park.
Sat. the 19th…not much happening to day , cloudy and rainy. Did 3 loads of laundry and that’s about it. I was sitting here flipping thru the TV channels and ran across a Kennedy conspiracy program. Funny that I lived in this history and seen it unfold live on TV. Also funny that my DD gave me Stephen King’s book 11/22/63. About that time in history. Now I use to read King but have not in the last 15 years. His books got to nasty for me…but so far this one is ok and I am hooked ….check it out.I am reading it slow, it has over 800 pages, and I don’t want it to end. lol Think I will go to the Super Flea Market on Sun , need some clamps and clips and will look for a patio rug. Blogs, surfing the net, and TV will be my evening. How fun.
All for now thanks for looking and come back soon.
blessings G&M

WICKHAM PARK CAMPGROUND

This is a pic of the start of loop A. We were parked down this road. Even tho I have not been camping in any other campground I think this is a very very nice one. You can check it out your self. http://www.brevardcounty.us/ParksRecreation/Campgrounds/Wickham/Home
Here is more of the loop. Most of the lots are nice size. A lot of trees oak and palm. Paved roads. Sand and grass make up the lots.
You can see how large some of the sites are, lot of room between these two.
And in this pic you can see that in most of the sites your can park at any angle. Click on pic to see better.
Some nice prime sites by the many lakes and ponds in Wickham Park and campgrounds. This is a great park for over night also. But even better to spend some time. There are peeps that spend the winter here also. I can not think of anything too bad about this campground. It is very close to a lot of attractions including Disney. A good place to be central Florida along the Atlantic coast. The Space Coast it is called. Tons of shopping all over I love going to the Avenue in Viera about 15 mi from the park. I plan on spend a good deal of time at this campground while keeping an eye on dad. All for now thanks for looking and come back soon.
blessings G&M
PS...There a ton of geocaches in Wickham Park. I have found maybe 20 or so.

LAST DAY & A DUMMY

Well here I am on the last morning of my shake down camping trip. Learning how to do the dump! My trusty blue gloves on I am ready to pull the leaver. I did learn that you keep the tanks closed while camping until they fill, up then you empty them. I have been worrying an wondering where I was going to store the hose after done. Then MM said don’t you have an out side compartment for that?? I said don’t think so ….she said what is that under the slide out? I looked and low and behold there was a small compartment just the right size….lol…guess that is where it will now live. The dumping went on with out a hitch.
Some inside living over the weekend. Piece of vintage material with palm trees on it…using it for a table cloth.
Now you are asking what is that ladder doing under my window??? Well this is one of my stupid things of the weekend. I locked my keys in MySweetDream. Went over to tell MM about my dilemma …she ask if my window was open…it was …so she said slide your screen back and see if you can see where they are and if you can get them. Dummy me did not know that the screen slid back! Got MM ladder and a grabber and grabbed them up. And embarrassment and $$ were saved !
Late Sat. afternoon one of the big boys showed up. Now  my RV looks really big when parked dads drive way, but next to these biggies…its really little. Bob & BJ full time in this beautiful RV. Talked to them a couple times but didn’t get to know them as I left the next day. BJ did a great job giving Bob help backing in. Slick as whistle.

Well that’s all I have now about my shake down camp. I had a great time and can’t wait for the next time. Going to the park after this is just not cutting it. All for now thanks for looking and come back soon
Blessing G&M

CAMPGROUND 3RD DAY

LONG POST: A close up of my patio area at our shake down camping experience. I really  need to get a patio rug and more lights. The small table on the right is one of those, that the table top rolls up and the bottom squeezes up like those chairs in a bag. Then the whole thing fits in a bag. Yard sale $5 like new.

A little house  keeping pic….this is the kitchen area. Much improvement is needed to make it my home on wheels.

And you can’t have a camping blog with out some food. This is my first attempt at making green fried tomatoes. Made in my new little camping electric skillet. Cooked out side.

And here is poor little Maggie at the vets. She picked up an eye infection some where along the line, hope it is not at our camp site , as I  reserved it again for Feb. Late yesterday afternoon she woke up from a nap and her eyes were matted shut. Had to put warm compresses on them so she could open and see. Again in the middle of the night and this morning. So off to the vet we went. Click on pic to enlarge and see her blood red eyes and its not from the camera. On meds now.

Sat. up early and did our walk. We walk around the two loops of the campground and a little ways into the main park. Had breakfast, shower, now about the shower, yesterday was cold …well let me tell ya it was “HOT” Sat.…I turned on the hot water heater while I had breakfast. I guess I did not know which way the faucets turned (thought I did) scalding water came rushing out…fumbling around with faucets trying to open door to get out …what a time I was having…..I have a little red chest! After that fiasco, did some house keeping, and now ready for what ever the day brings. House keeping in rig is nothing like house keeping a double story 3 bedroom house in PA! I like this much better!! MM ask me to dinner to celebrate my first camp. So we had dinner by electric candle light and the white lights she had up around her patio and umbrella. She made a delish gumbo, friend made wonderful salad, and I made green fired tomatoes.First time they said they were good, (ate them all) I thought they were bland. I made some stuffed dates and we had some wine …and a great evening ! So that’s all for now thanks for looking and come back soon

Blessings

G&M

CAMPGROUND SECOND DAY

Here is the ranger station at the Wickham Park campground. It in the area of the main park as you come in the main gate. Very helpful and nice rangers. They take care of the main park as well as the campground.
Here is a pic of MySweetDream with her new flamingo and palm tree lights hanging. Looking around at other campers I see that more outside decorating is needed.
When I was packing up getting ready to leave, dad came around with this battery Coleman Lateran. Ask if I wanted it he said someone gave it to him and he never used it. So I said yes I’ll take it! Good for outside or boon docking.
Slept pretty good  …got up early, normal time went for our walk…fix breakfast, got shower. Now about the shower…it was a cold one…we did not get the propane done the first day.Oh also got the TV on. Found the booster switch after much hunting, under a cabinet by the outside door.Not at all near the TV. So turned on the TV ..finally got it figured out..then later turned it on …nothing.. the remote would not work…so later went over to MM site to see if she had some batteries so I could check see if that was the problem. Was not. So I kept switching the batteries out…and all of a sudden it started to work…has been ok since.I got great reception with just my antenna. Visited back and forth with MM, took a couple walks, put up my cool flamingo and palm tree lights. Then later MM came over and we turned on the propane we lit the stove, and turned on hot water heater. Everything works good. Fixed dinner a couple sliders cooked with my new mini elec. frying pan (yard sale $5 was new) and a salad. Did dishes with my nice hot water! Was excited when it got dark so I could turn on my lights! Looking good! I guess that will be enough for today so thanks for looking and come back soon
blessings G&M
ps don’t forget to right click to open pic to see larger size.

CAMP GROUND & FIRST DAY

I ran around getting some last min. things before going over to the park.….in the end I forgot Maggie food.Did not need the level blocks I went to Home Depot last min. to get. This poor young man, had to cut 2 boards 2x10’s before got what I wanted…I think he was new….
Wickham Park camp ground we got there about noon. Check in is at 2 but no one was in my site so they let me come early. So got there, two sites down from MissMermaid…got backed in not to hard, nice big spaces. I will post more about the camp ground its self later.
First did the water hook up, the the sewer much easier than I was thinking about it. Got some organizing done inside. Thinking this will be ok..worried for nothing. Did awning and some chairs set up got the 2 ton picnic table moved…all this with the help of MissMermiad and friend…The picnic table is new and heavy! Had ham & cheese sandwich,fruit for lunch. Sat around visiting with MM. Maggie and Harley are not the best of friends, but they tolerate each other so it will be ok…First night sleeping in rig bed with 4 in. of memory foam… nice I could not post on a day to day bases because of no GB..so now its hard for me to remember everything. Well that’s it for now thanks for looking and come back soon.
blessing G&M

DearMissMermaid VISIT

Maggie Moos and Harley the Bark Ranger Dog. lol…MissMermaid of the Dearmissmermaid blog…invited us to visit her and Harley at Wickham Park. Since it is only about 5 mile from dads I went on over. Had a great visit , MissMermaid is a delightful,nice lady. During the visit it was decided that I should do my shake down camp there and she would hold my hand lol lol. While I set up and all. So I made reservations for Jan 10 – 13. This should be interesting !! Maggie and Harley did ok, but it will take some time on Maggies part for her to get to the best buds stage….she is a little scary cat (dog).Looks like Maggie is sniffing Harleys butt, she isn’t she would not get that close to him…

So the other morning I klutz that I am…I spilled milk on the seat of the dinette. So I took the cover off and what a job that was. It was on the foam skin tight. I was not looking forward to putting it back on. So washed and let it air dry. 

Well low and behold It was not that hard. I just looked it over and figured out I needed to fold the foam in half best that I could and slip it along the seam. Didn’t take long at all. It’s not good as before but very passable.

Today Wed the 8th I have cooked and gathered up all my food stuff for the next 4 days. It seems like I have enough for an army, but I am used to eating 3 meals a day. Got clothing, Maggies stuff, dishes , pots , all kitchen things that I could think of. Plugged the fridge into dads shore power and it is working great. I was told it took at least 24 hrs to cool down. Worked on finding homes for things with the A/C on and that is working great also. I am happy camper!! (almost). I will do my blog on Live Writer daily and post when I get back. I have run out of my Verizon GB’s. I am going to McD’s in the morning to post this.  All for now thanks for looking and come back soon

Blessings G&M

GREAT BEACH DAY

We spent a beautiful day at the beach the other day. The waves were looking good, but not many out in them I think it water is a little cold right now.

We were at the dog beach, lot of dogs this day,so had to keep Maggie away from them. She does not do well with strange big dogs, ever since a black lab got her by the throat a couple years ago. Here she is taking in the rays & waves, lol. I need to get a child’s chair for her. You can see she took over mine. 

Here she is laying beside me taking a nap. Forgot her rug to lay on.

So I am really trying to eat healthier. It is a hard go for me..I was doing so good all spring and 1/2 the summer. I was almost totally of sugar, pasta, white breads, etc. Now it seems doubly hard to get back on track. This was my lunch grapes, left over chicken (from noodle soup) lettuce and dad’s home grown tomatoes. Did not fair so well for dinner. But I keep trying. Yesterday stayed at dads and did house chores laundry and such. Today went to Wickham Park and had a very nice  visit with MissMermaid  and Harley dog of Dear Miss Mermaid blog. I will post about it tomorrow.  That’s all…thanks for looking and come back soon.

blessings G&M