HARDEE LAKES …JAN 2016

We made it to Hardee Lakes….

on Sat. not Friday as planned…due to severe storms that swept across Florida…it did not clear on my rt. until 3pm …and that was to late for me to leave and not have to drive after dark…so we got out of camp driveway before 8 am…took about 4 hrs to drive a 2hr & 30 min. drive….got Pheebe out of the RV and she was a different dog…i will post aboit that later…below is my site…from the back…that is where the fire pit was so that was that was my social spot…most campfire and potlucks were held there…if you look hard you might be able to see a little black & brown face it the back window….

And here are some of us sitting around the campfire  in our winter attire freezing…it has been a very cold GTG in Florida this Jan. L to R…Tina …my chair…Soos …Nan (from the GRRITS rv group) ..CArol and Margie…

A Dutch Oven potluck…

was held Sunday afternoon…there were actually there different gourps of us here…the DOG (Dutch Oven Group)… GRITTS (an off shut of the FB Women Who RV) and us forum sisters …(WomenRVFourm)…some of the members are in more than one group..

And the food was out of this world …yum yum..this was not a cook off like they had this year..just a bunch getting together to cook & eat…those of us that have no Dutch Oven took a dish of what ever…

And this was Pheebe’s fav spot…like i said she was a different dog when we go to the campground…not carrying on getting hysterical like she has been…now dont get me wrong she was not perfect…she did some wild barking some of the time …but she was being more like a normal dog and being social most of the time..i was so pleased and happy…

Next i will post about the PJ party in the campground bathhouse!!!

All for now thanks for looking and come back soon blessings to all …GM&P

Another Carol…and some Pheebe

After Christmas….

Another Carol came to visit in camp driveway for a couple days…the plan was she would get i site at Wickham Park CG and i would also…but that did not work out as they were full…she has a smaller class C and was able to fit…it was only for 2 days and not much time to do anything..but a really nice visit…we did go to a few thirft stores…we really liked this one …and the name! She had a lot of vintage merchandise thats right up my alley… we ate..yacked…and ate more…i ate too much over the holidays and gained some of the wt. i lost back…below a pic of me & Carol…

 

A couple fat Catz…? out prowling…

And look at this big girl….

being a good girl also…but she was under the influence of Benadryl…and it helped alot…she was just a little growly…no barking or going hysterical ….

She even let the vet tech pick her up off the table and carry her to another room…and she was a good girl the whole time…the vet came in to talk to me…he got up against the wall across from us and slid down on his haunches to talk to me she did not bark but growled everytime he moved…

This is the story…i took her to Florida Aid to Animals…to get flea and heart worm meds…i told them that 48 hrs before she ate something that made her choke the crunching noise i heard sounded like plastic….well they thought she might need an x-ray…and sent me else where… I went to another vet…so after they examined her and ask questions they didnt think she need x-ray…and so we got the meds there…but before i went to FAA ..they told me to give her 1 ml if Benadryl …because of how she acted … anyway… i am beging to see subtle changes in her behavior…will blog more about this later…right now I am getting ready to head out to Hardee Lakes for a GTG with the forum girls…some new from FB …and some of the Dutch Oven gang…i will be gone a week…taking dad for his pace maker check and then on Friday we are off…cant wait…well all for now ..thanks for looking and come back soon … blessings GM&P

BIG CYPRESS ….

We left the….

the Everglades and motored on to The Big Cypress National Preserver…we only passed thru this area ….but there was enough to see that i want to go back…

We stopped at the visitors center to check things out …. again this was just a pass thru and I  want to go back…we got our passports stamped and just a quick look see…then on the boardwalk out side  the VS….

Me on the board walk

The whole way across on rt 41 there is a canal that runs along side…around 15 ft or so wide…i was busy driving at a slow speed trying to see all the wild life along it…mostly birds…also there were people stopped along side the road fishing…on our way out of the VS the man said to us be sure and check out the alligators ….not sure of what he was talking about …we did see a boardwalk and some people up ahead…so figured we would check it out…pic below is Carol checking out the alligators….we seen what he was talking about….

The canal along the road with gators

While we were checking things out we saw the gators…really cool..there were about 8 hanging around this area…we wondered why went all of a sudden they went on a feeding frenzy…some people had thrown a bunch of hamburger buns in the water…i clicked on my camera and started to video the tharshing aournd ….it was pretty spectacular even if was only over buns…i can not get the video here …but i will keep trying…not sure it is wise to feed the gators…but people must do it often because they were hanging like the knew food was coming…

He looks a little menacing doesn’t he…

Below pic of another gator swimming around…let me tell ya these were not little gators …

We called this guy “camo gator” he just seemed to hang aournd with this branch over is nose….

The “camo gator”

This guy was pretty brave to be looking for lunch so close to this gator!…We watched for awhile but the gator ignored the bird…I seen other neet birds and took pic’s and for some unknow reason…(i don’t think ahead sometimes) i deleted them from my phone…i don’t think at all sometimes….

A brave Egret

The rest of the story…..

This was a whirlwind trip and I did not get to see and do ….so i really want to go back …and after reading about Shark Valley on Sherry’s blog i want to go there also…We left the  preserve thought we might go over and spend the night at Hardee Lakes before parting ways…but we were to tired and just found a WM to boondock at…..Pheebe is now decided she does not like cars and is going ballistic when one goes by…this last 3 weeks i would take her to the side of the road in the grass and say wait for the car…never a problem she would wait…now forget it. Well i wish i had more to say about the Preserve because it looks like a great place to visit…but like i said it was a quick trip…so  all for now thanks for looking and come back soon…blessing GM&P

A new year…...

Taking down the tree….

in the rig today…thought i would show it before i did…got this pretty white tree with light at after Cristmas sales last year at WM…had a Dollar Tree ponisetta bush picked off the blooms and put in the tree…next year i am going all aqua and white…if i still have this lemon rig i will change decor to the sea and call it the Rolling Sea Cottage…

Still having issues with Pheebe…hysterical barking at people i try to distract her but no go…even treats doesn’t do the trick…below is a pic of her with a sock…she loves socks clean or dirty….this one she grabed out of my shoe and took off for the bedroom…i went to check and see what she was doing and this is what i saw…she really is a sweet little dog…loveing and smart….

More  Pheebe her most favorite spot in the whole world …the bed…she is agile and with those long legs she flys right up on the bed….

GTG at Wickham Park Campground…..

Three of us Women RV Forum members had a mini GTG at Wickham mid Dec.CarolB , Margie and her hubby and me…  I know i am late with the blog about it….but hey better late than never… below our rigs Carolb and i shared a spot…

Below Margie and pup Annie …Me…and Carolb with two of her pups ….her other pup was haning out beside me…

We did not do much…just hung out and had a great 2 night visit…Margie brought her golf cart along and one night we road thru the main park to view the 3 million light show…if you were camped you could do the tour free…i did the walk thru last year and is a great Christmas light show….below queen Annie riding in her carriage …aka golf cart…i guess she considers this her very own GC…

More hanging out …l to r Margie , Roger and Carolb…

And the rest of the story….

I stil have more tales to tell of the Everglade and Big Cypress trip…and a few other things…like i have had camp driveway friends visiting…it has been a great Dec. for me…nice way to end the year…for me it was not a good one..thinking about my Maggie girl…so Dec was very good…i am headed to a GTG at Hardee Lakes mid Jan. i was there last year with the forum girls a the DOG (Dutch Oven Gathering) had a good time …but i was still have major spine problems….but this year will be much better as back is much better…the only problem i can see is Pheebe..not being sociable…so i will be busy getting the rig ready to roll…when Carolb came in Dec to supprise me …i figured out my rig was not ready to roll for a fun time on short notice…so i want to change that..i mentioned about it being a lemon…well some time i will tell you about how this  very naive newbe got taken 3 years ago….someday i will blog about it…Making sauerkraut and pork roast for NY dinner a  PA tradition…watching some football and  parades willl fill my day…So wishing you all A HAPPY NEW YEAR…. thanks for looking and come back soon…blessings GM&P

My big news….

The big news…

this little girl in the pic…her name is Pheebe a long hair Chihuahua mix..7 1/2 lbs…long legs for a Chihuahua not sure what she is mixed with….

Her name was Diva …but i changed it…i copied this from FB i posted…

Well better llate than never...i know some people from PA wanted to know how Pheebe come about ....So i will try and make this not so long...Carolb and I went "window" shopping Brevard County Sheriff's Office Animal Services....well we spent almost an hr. there looking and feed treats to the doggies...they did not have many small dogs and most of them you had to wait until their week was up...a lot of their dogs are strays so they have to keep them at least a week...soooo as we... were leaving Carol with the super eyes caught sight of a worker with a little bit of brown in her arms...we took a look and stopped her to ask about this little thing that was shaking like a leave...it seems that her and her brother Charlie was surrender by their elderly person they being puppies she could not handle them...so Charlie being a social bug was adopted right away and the little girl Pheebe shy and afraid was soon sent out as a PJ dog...could be returned if I doesn't work out...her new foster had a black lab ...and it didn't work out so the very min. that we were walking out she was carried in... we ask to socialize with her..so we were take to a small barren room to get to know her...she was so very scared of everything that had been happening to her and the over whelming noise of about 60 other large dogs barking like crazy...and all the people when the worker put her down she curled up in a little ball against the wall shaking so much the room might start to vibrate...and if you would even stand near her she would snarl and growl ..I got down on the floor and tried to offer my hand and she just barred her teeth and growled more...but when I first saw her with the worker I offered my hand and she put her little paw on it...so anyway we ask if we could go out side where there was less noise and no other dogs...so the worker after some time was able to pick her up and we went out...I ask her to just hand the puppy to me and not put her down...so I walked away in the grassy area with her in the and after a few min. of holding her and talking she stopped shaking and seem a little more at ease...we got all the info on her and sat out side with her and the worker...I can say that she didn't jumped out at me but by then I knew I could not leave her in that environment for her to shake , shiver and be so very frightened .... and being that she was a owner surrendered puppy she could be taken that very min. and not have to wait a week...so I filled out the paper work and we were connected a forever family... along with Maggie in our hearts and minds eye...another good thing... is that Hiers Chrysler Dodge Jeep dealership where paying all adoptions fees for the first 200 dogs adopted during the month of Dec. that is why they were so busy... I paid not a thing for this little Diva! Well that's our story...and I have one other piece of news but that will have to wait for a bit yet...i will post more later about new family member…She is Maggies baby sister and Maggies is in our heart and minds eye as we go along….i have to tell you that she bonded with me right away …she sticks to me like glue…

Well all for now thanks for looking and come back soon …blessigs GM&P

Test post with new LW…

Hi everyone…i will be blogging again soon …need to test the new Live Writer… I have a lot of news…

When you fly by the seat of your pants….

You get what you get what you get…meaning what ever… We left Melbourne early hoping to miss the rush hr. traffic…did not…Headed south on US-1..to busy so slipped over to I-95 .. thought we might head over to Lake Okeechobee…Carolb wanted to check it out…and since I had never been there …ok…went to  the Stuart area and cut across 76 to 441…looked like 441 followed the shore line around the lake on the east side…got there and started down the road…we thought we would at the south end of the lake hit a Visitors Center that was on the map…drove and drove and around each bend we were sure we would see the lake to our right..but all we seen was a big mound of land and here and there men and truck working hard at something we never did figure out…I think some where between Bean City and Lake Harbor we seen a nice size park…but still could not see Lake Okeechobee…we drove the whole way thru the park…signs saying watch out for gators…so Carol did not want to risk the 3 pups…we stop to talk about our next move …and I told her about the free dump station I seen on the way in…so we went back to use it…might as well get something out of this…all the while we were spitting and sputtering about where is that dang (&^%$%^) Lake….I seen a couple workmen over by a small retention pond..went to talk to them about the lake and what was behind this big mound that we see where the lake was suppose to be the lake was behind it…...but on this side it was mostly swap grass…any way when I got over to them one was beside the pond making a growl like sound…

See the gator….he started out at the end of the red pipe thing ….

as I was watching him I seen an alligator on the other side…he told me he was calling him…and sure enough the gator start slowly across the water toward us…longer story short ..the gator came right up to the shore in front of us ,..then seen it was not a gator calling and disappeared under the water not to be seen again….

He was calling with his hand cupped over his mouth..

As he called the gator got closer and closer ….

We were standing on a bank about 6 ft. above the water and the gator…he did come closer than what you see in the pic above before he went under the water and left …from the noise I have heard on TV that gators make this guy was really good…This was the first encounter with gators…

At one point we stopped at a rest stop and walked the pups and our selves …we did a lot of stopping on this trip…

Carol and her fur babies….

One other place we stopped in pic below …we both found a few things we needed…like we each found a skirt …decided it was much cooler to ware skirts…

Later we stopped near Miami Lakes at a Wal-Mart for the night…

well that’s about all for the first day…as I remember it…Carolb did take me in circles a few times…lol…anyway more to come on this road trip…

Today is Thanksgiving ..Happy Thanksgiving all my family and friends wish I was with any.. all or some of you..…watching the parade…not cooking first time I think in my adult life have not cooked …even when I was alone some years still cooked because I love the Thanksgiving dinner left overs…I eat for a week on them….but since I am on the low fat…low carb…low salt…very low sugar diet…really a life style change in eating…no more TG dinner..I am working on all my new life style changes…all for now thanks for looking and come back soon…blessings to all G&M