Busy, busy, busy

Wow, it has been over a month since our last post.  What can I say other than setting up a new residence is a lot of work but also a lot of fun.  We have been busy with projects and meeting neighbors so time sure has flown by.  Hard to believe it is November already.

John's Man Cave is all organized and tidy.

 

John's new tool box/work bench.

Look Butch, John is copying you with organizing his tools by type, size, etc.  Makes it so easy to find the proper tool for the job.

Our landscaping is pretty much done with our limited lot size.  In addition to our three trees and two plants, we have added yard art (ocotillo, coyote, javelina, road runners, and saguaro), some potted plants (cacti, succulents and salvia), a smoke tree and a water fall. We are really pleased with the way everything looks (gotta love it when a plan comes together) and have received many nice compliments from our neighbors.  

I mentioned to John that I liked how some of the swales around here were done with good sized rocks.  John said that would be too much work but then decided that he would line our swale with small rocks.  Really, large rocks would be more work than small rocks????  Anyway, another project was born.  Finding small rocks required nothing more than walking around the empty lots by us and either easily digging them up or just picking them up.  Boy, it took a lot of rocks.  Once the rocks were laid, I suggested using dirt and water to make our own mortar.  That also turned into a project in which we both got to play in the mud.  We are really pleased with how it turned out and now when it rains, the water should just roll out to the street.

After much thought plus the fact that we are no longer in the Slow Lane with our RV, it makes sense to bring this blog to an end. :(  However, we still want to interact with our family and friends so I have set up a blog on Facebook and it can be reached here.  I think I will be more apt to make quickie posts now that we have settled in to a "normal" life. Anyway, we hope you will pop over and "like" us over on Facebook.

Pictures

We were waiting on the outside house painting to be finished before posting pictures. 

The front landscaping is a work in-progress.  So far we have solar lights, a saguaro, and a lizard or two (one fake and others real).  We have a plan but it will take a bit to implement. Once completed, we will post another picture of the front. 

Side landscaping is complete for now with three trees and two bushes.

Living room - we are on the look for a couple of small chairs to complement what we have and to provide additional seating as well as more wall art.

We love our roadrunner.  He was going to be a yard ornament but he is just too pretty to leave outside.

Kitchen and dining - have to admit I am loving all the cabinets (I have a lot of empty shelves), full-size oven, and refrigerator/freezer with all the ice I want lol.  We both love our island and find that we eat there rather than the table; most be the novelty.  That ugly electrical outlet was supposed to have been on the side of the island facing the refrigerator.  It is on our punch list and will be relocated.

Laundry room - again, no shortage of cabinets on the left and above and below next to the washer and dryer.

Main bath

Master bedroom with huge walk-in closet.

Master bath - the tub is a lovely indulgence and is so comfortable to luxuriate in.

Guest room - the room needs some wall art to make it warm and welcoming.

 

John's shed (known as Man Cave around these parts) needs to be completed with workbench and shelving.  John is very happy to have stuff to mess with and is looking forward to organizing his Man Cave.  Pictures to follow when it is all organized to his liking.

So there you have it - our lovely home sweet home.  Are we enjoying ourselves - very much. Do we miss the travel - not really.  In some ways, that lifestyle seems like a lifetime ago.  We have adjusted really well and are looking forward to seeing what the fall and winter here are like.  We've been asked if we plan on getting another RV and the answer is no.  We have no regrets about our four and half years of full timing but we are done RVing.  If we hadn't have traveled, we would never have found this area in which to settle down.  We still plan to travel when the desire strikes but it will definitely be by plane, train, or automobile.  We have so much in this area alone to explore when the time is right.  Life is good.

Alive and well

We have not fallen off the face of the earth.  We have just been incredibly busy setting up our new home.  You knew that was why we had gone silent but had to patiently wait for an update.  Like I said in the last post, waiting bites lol.

To do a quick recap:  With the help of DeAngelo, his assistant, and John, we had the Uhaul loaded by 10:45 a.m. on Monday, September 10.  I have to give credit to DeAngelo as that young man knows how to pack a truck.  As furniture and boxes left, I vacuumed myself towards the door.  After turning in our keys, a quick lunch at Subway, and topping off the gas tank, we were on the road at noon.  Pulled in to the hotel in Bakersfield a little before 6 p.m. The only exciting thing we saw was as we came in to Bakersfield.  There was a truck with a trailer loaded with firewood that was on fire in the slow lane after having a blow out (gators were on the road leading up to the fire).  Thankfully, the guys were safely away from the burning vehicle.  No fire trucks were yet on the scene just one CHP officer.  Everyone slowed way down and got in the farthest lane to get past the inferno.  

Tuesday was a longer day with an overnight stay in Kingman, AZ.  We got to experience going through a Weigh Station in Arizona.  We pulled up on the scales (still had a 1,000 plus pounds we could have been carrying) and declared that we had household goods and were waived through.  Thankfully, the weigh station was not busy with truckers or it could have been more stressful.  During the night in Kingman, we had quite the thunder storm pass over.  I mentioned to John that I hoped the Uhaul didn't leak (they aren't responsible for damages if they do - imagine that).  Guess we would have to wait to find out.  One surprise of this journey was that the Uhaul got better fuel mileage than we had expected for the whole trip.  It certainly didn't drive like our F-450 did nor did it ride like it either but it got us here safely so you won't hear any complaints from me.

We left Kingman close to 7:20 a.m. and pulled in to Orchard Ranch at 10 a.m.  Funny thing was that the closer we got to Dewey, the faster the Uhaul went :)  MPG's be damned.  After a Welcome Home greeting, the office had us take a golf cart to go check out our home.  We were very happy (understatement) with what we saw.  As the construction crew had not put up the pickets and railings on the landing yet, Mike said that if we got to unloading the Uhaul right away, it would make unloading easier and that we had a temporary Occupancy Permit for our stuff.  However, if the construction crew could get the pickets and handrails up, then not only could our stuff stay in the house but so could we.  Whoa, that was a big surprise! So we hopped on the golf cart (giddy as all get out) and stopped at Rick and Y's to let them know we were there and the news about unloading the Uhaul.  They said they would meet us at the house while we went back up to the office to swap out the golf cart for the Uhaul.  

The construction crew broke for lunch and the four of us set about unloading the Uhaul. Thanks a bunch, Rick and Y, for all your help.  We couldn't have done it without you. While unloading, we did discover that the Uhaul did have a leak but since most of our stuff were in plastic bins, the lids contained most of the water.  My dresser surface did get one spot of water on it and a few items had a few scratches but all in all, not too bad. Shortly after noon everything was unloaded and in the nick of time as the crew was coming back to work.  We took Rick and Y out for lunch and when we returned, the pickets and railings were going up. Rick and Y had dinner planned so we agreed to meet at their place around 6:30 and John and I set to work. Our first order of business was to put our bed together so that we would have a place to sleep should we be able to stay there. We were told before 4 p.m. that we had the Occupancy Permit and could stay in our place.  For real?!!! We kept pinching ourselves because never in our wildest dreams had we thought we would be in our new home on the same day we arrived.  Thank you so very much Mike and Crew!!!!!  The house officially became ours on the 13th.

So unpacking and settling in started on the 12th and we finally got the last piece in place today (guest room now open for guests).  Long days and a lot of fun.  Plus a lot of trips to Home Depot and Lowe's (sometimes multiple trips in one day lol). Whew!  Our home: a few items we had kept from our old home, some new items from our short lived adventure in an apartment, and some new items for the new house.  It feels good . . .  it feels like home.  

There are still some unfinished projects but of course, will they ever be truly done?  The word contentment comes to mind for so many reasons.  My honey has gone 67 days being seizure free (thank you medication).  John is counting the days (23) when he can get back on his bike (not on the road but here in the park for now).  LIFE IS GOOD!  We will try to get some pictures posted soon . . . promise.

Waiting bites

Here we are back in Sacramento just cooling our heels until early next week (we hope) when we start the migration back to Arizona.  Not having a car is a pain in the tush (left it in Arizona).  We had to give Melissa back her car Monday night and decided not to pay $40+ a day for a car rental.  If we want to go anywhere, it is by foot.  Thankfully, we have a lot around us that is within a couple of miles so we are getting some walking exercise while cooling our heels.  We are partially packed and are just waiting until we get word on the estimated completion of our new home.  Yawn . . . it is boring to say the least just waiting.  Rick has been providing us with pictures and updates so it is our understanding that everything is on schedule.  Not yet sure what that really means date wise.  Yes, I will take some cheese with my whine lol.  That is all from here for now.

Back in California

We landed safely back in Sacramento.  Boy, flying sure was a lot nicer than driving that is for sure.  Once landed, we were able to have a nice dinner and visit with our daughter before she caught a plane to southern California for the long weekend.

Must say it will be so luxurious to sleep in our own bed tonight.  We have almost spent almost as much time away from the apartment as we have spent there LOL.  It was very nice to walk in and see all our stuff.  Can't wait to see what it will look like in our new home.  Starting tomorrow, we have a lot of running around to do along with a visit to the dentist for a cleaning, and of course, the most important item: packing.  

Our friends, Rick and Y, are providing us with pictures of the progress made on our new home.  Thanks so much you guys.  A lot was accomplished today: water, sewer and electric connections were made, driveway area was formed and ready for concrete on Tuesday, and exterior marriage (camouflage of the  of the two halves) is almost complete.  The guy who is taking care of the interior marriage of the two halves as well as laying the carpet was there this morning so who knows how much he got accomplished.  When we left this morning, there was a lot of activity going on at our home site.

We did get to walk through the home once the two halves were bolted together last night.  It is still very much a construction zone inside but you can still "see" what it is going to look like.  We are very pleased at how lovely everything has turned out especially the bathtub in the master bathroom.  John took pictures but we left the camera behind and I forgot to download the pictures to the computer last night sheesh.  We've even scored an extra cabinet in the hallway - very nice.  We are very excited to see everything completed on the construction end.  We are both looking forward to making our new house a home.  Lots to look forward to in the days ahead.

Home Arrived!!!!!

We weren't sure if our home would be delivered today or tomorrow.  We found out around 10:30 a.m. that both halves were soon to be on the way.  Woo Hoo!  We grabbed a quick lunch and were surprised to get the call that the trucks were about 20 minutes away.

We borrowed the sales office's golf cart to transport our two lawn chairs over to Rick and Y's for our viewing comfort (never used them LOL).  When we got to the office, the first half came in.  We hustled the chairs over to Rick and Y's and I returned the golf cart to the office while John waited with the camera.  Got to ride shotgun with Kari and we helped stop traffic as first of the halves started the journey to its new home.  I was zooming on my iPhone so a couple of the pictures are blurry.  Mike is leading the way in his golf cart.

The each half had to exit the park to be able to turn around and come in to make a left hand turn.

The left half did a bit of tree trimming as it made its journey down the main road.  Can you spot the greenery?  Also, each half got a bit of cross country travel as they were maneuvered into position to be driven in to the site (a pull thru lol).

Making sure it is placed just right.

You are "this" far away.

Both halves sit side by side waiting to be joined together.  This will happen tomorrow.  The workers did get the left section leveled and the wheels and axles removed today. 

It is a happening when a new home is brought in and neighbors come out to watch.  Sort of like a barn raising must have been like in the olden days.  Such fun!

We've got to give big kudos to those truck drivers in the maneuvering they have to do to go around tights corners and such with such wide and long trailers.

Here is a sneak peek of our kitchen.  Beautiful and look at all the cabinets!!!!

We have to wait to see the other half (living room, master bedroom and bath) once both sides are joined together tomorrow.  We have a HOME without wheels again!!!!

Change in plans :(

Well, our home was not delivered today.  Dang it!  We were advised yesterday morning that our flooring in the laundry room was somehow cut and we had to mutually come up with a resolution.  After talking with the builder's rep, and passing on their "easy" solution, it was decided they were to remove all the linoleum and install Navco flooring (an upgrade at no charge to us) in all rooms where the linoleum was to be.  Consequently, this has slowed the delivery process down.  Now we are being told maybe Tuesday or Wednesday, at the latest, will be delivery day.  In the meantime, the site has been beautifully prepared and sits waiting.  Hopefully, we will be able to see the interior before we fly out Thursday morning.

Fun in Phoenix and more

We set out Friday morning for our weekend in Phoenix at Orange Tree Golf Resort in Scottsdale.  I mentioned in an earlier post that we got a great deal on Hotels.com.  We were very pleased with our accommodations and wouldn't hesitate to stay there again.  

The pool was just outside our room and if we had had suits with us, we would have been out there enjoying the cool water.  Yes, it was hot but at least it was only 103 versus the 115 they had just a few days before.

We spent the weekend "shopping" that is looking at furniture, home decor accessories, and anything else that caught our attention.  Phoenix has just about every shopping experience you could want or need.  We got some good bargains on a few items and drove all around the east side of Phoenix.  We really love the architecture of the area so driving around was fun.  We were also surprised that the traffic wasn't as bad as we had expected.  Guess it was so hot everyone stayed home - yea!

Monday, we drove out to where our home is being built.  The homes are built in a former airplane hangar so the interior of the house was too dark for photos.  The crew was on break so we got to check out the interior out without being in their way.  We had some questions about how the master bath was going to look and were very happy with the results.  All the cabinets in the kitchen had yet to be installed so we have to wait for delivery to see how it turned out.  We knew that later in the week would have been better for viewing a more completed home but as we were in Phoenix anyway,we decided what the heck.

Doesn't look like much does it LOL?  Check out all that thick insulation.

We got word yesterday that our home will be delivered tomorrow.  We are so excited!!!!!  Here is a shot of our site all prepped and waiting for our home.

Not sure when interior shots will be possible to post.  We fly back to Sacramento on Thursday (got to get ourselves packed up) so hopefully the crew here will be able to get quite a bit done before we leave and we can post those pictures.  

Also happy to report that John's sleep routine is almost back to normal and he is still seizure free - 38 days and counting.  Woo Hoo!

Dewey, AZ

When you last heard from us, we were setting out on a road trip.  We left Rocklin, CA Sunday morning, August 5, and spent the night in Tehachapi, CA.  Left early (6 a.m.) as we traversed through the Mojave Desert with a stop in Needles at 10 a.m. (106 degrees already - yikes!) from there we drove on through to Dewey, AZ (east of Prescott, AZ).  Talk about tired when we pulled in around 3 p.m.  Our destination was Orchard Ranch RV Park.  

Orchard Ranch has put us up in a Park Model (small set trailer approx. 400 sq feet).  We once again toured their model homes and spent time in the community area of Dewey, Prescott Valley, and Prescott.  Why?  Well, we were pretty sure this area was where we wanted to settle down when we visited here in April but thought the timeline was out about two years or so.  Well, as you well know, life happened and plans changed.  Being here has been good for both of us and our visit has confirmed that this is where we want to be.  We decided to purchase a new manufactured home (double wide lol!) and it is in production as I write.  Our new home is supposed to be delivered August 27.  We can't wait to see it brought in and see how they put the the two sections together.  From what we hear, it is quite interesting and it brings out the neighbors to watch the production.  There is a lot of work to do once the two sections arrive and depending on the weather, it could take two to four weeks before we can move in.  We plan on returning to Sacramento on the 30th and the next time we return, we will be bringing all our stuff with us.  Woo Hoo!

We will give you a sneak peak of our new home.  This is what the front of our new home will look like as we have chosen the same color combination.  The picture comes from the courtesy of Rick Dyer.  No interior pictures until we are in our new home as we have made some changes from the model.  I will say that the interior is very roomy (1,333 square feet) and has lots of cabinets.  We fell in love with the floor plan in April and it has the same appeal now.

Being here at Orchard has allowed us to meet our future neighbors who have been very welcoming.  It gives one a good feeling about the sense of community.  We walk every morning two to three miles within the park and stop in at the model to take a look :)  Friends Rick and Y purchased a home here a while back and our other friends, Bruce and Jenna, settled in at Pine Lakes a mobile home community in Prescott.  We are very lucky to be able to move to an area where people we know are living.  Bruce and Jenna stopped by this afternoon to check out our chosen site and go through the model home.  Bruce had a couple of good recommendations of which we already talked to the office about.  Thanks Bruce. We must add that the sales staff (Mike, Mimi, and Kari) have been a pleasure to work with.

We got to experience our first monsoon this afternoon.  The wind came up, the temperature dropped, hail came down, and then rain with a bit of lightning and thunder.  Due to the monsoons, everything around here is so nice and green.  From where we come from, this time of year is normally brown and dry so seeing everything green is a real pleasure.  The temperatures have been a bit warmer than normal from what everyone says but unless you are out in the direct sun, it isn't so bad. We think the lack of humidity has something to do with it - it's a dry heat lol.

We have to vacate the park model for the weekend.  We got a great deal on a room for three nights at a golf resort so we are going to brave the heat of Phoenix.  Luckily, the temperatures are suppose to be in the upper 90's instead of 115 like they've had for a while lately.  We are looking forward to spending some time looking around.  On Monday, we get to take a tour of the factory where our home is being built.  It should be interesting.  We hope to be able to take some pictures of the process.

We are also happy to report that John has been seizure free for 31 days (keep on working medicine!).  John's body is getting use to the medication so his sleep is getting back to normal.    I do, however, wish we both could sleep more than six hours a night.  It may take being settled in to our new home before our sleep patterns return to normal.

We hope you all have a wonderful weekend and thanks for reading.

Passing of another month

Sheesh, I do wonder where the days go.  We have gotten into somewhat of a routine in the mornings.  We go out walking each morning and have two designated routes that we alternate.  Does us both good.

John started on medication July 20.  We started my birthday on Tuesday with a visit to the neurologist.  We came away with smiles and some pep to our steps after this visit.  The doctor was very happy that the second sleep deprived EEG again showed no seizure activity combined with John not having another seizure as the probability was very likely.  The medication John is taking is of the lowest dose and so far, the only side effect is insomnia.  This side effect is a bit frustrating for John as he has never had a problem sleeping.  We have found a work around that is allowing him to get around six hours of sleep a night.  At times during the day, John will feel tired but just can't quite nap even though he really wants to.  The past couple of afternoons, he has taken a mini nap or two which is an improvement.  The doctor feels that this side effect will pass with time.  We now have some idea of what to strive for.  The doctor says the ideal thing would be that John be seizure free on this low dose medication.  The goal is to get at least 90 days or more without a seizure.  If John can do that, then the doctor said he can get back on his bike (with helmet) for some easy riding.  That brought a smile to John's face for sure.  Now, if in the meantime, John does have another seizure, then the dosage will be increased and the countdown will begin again.  This could go on until the right combination of medications can be found.  So far, John has 17 seizure free days under his belt woo hoo!  We both feel so much better after having an idea of what to expect and that the doctor feels optimistic about John's prognosis.

I had a wonderful birthday and received calls, texts, and emails.  Thank you everyone.  We both agreed that it was the best day we have had in two months.  

Sunday, we are leaving on a road trip WOO HOO!!!!  We are very excited to do some traveling.  Where to you ask?  You will have to come back next week to see what we are up to.  Until then . . . 

Settling in

I've been hoping for life to settle down for us and had thought we had reached that point what with getting everything unpacked and in place.  We have pretty much made up our mind that we aren't going to stay in Sacramento so that means a move, once again, is in our near future.  Yikes!  Moving is simply not fun.

Our daughter is helping volunteer coach a local recreational synchronized swimming team as they get ready for their championship meet.  As I mentioned before, she is swimming at the Masters level competitively herself.  Sunday evening we went to the rec team's water show. What memories came back while being at the pool seeing all those cute chickies running around with their hair pulled up tightly into buns along with Knox gelatin painted on their hair to make their hair waterproof and stay in place, the sparkling costumes and headpieces, music, and yes, routines.  Oh, those were the days!  Truth be told, we went because we got to see our daughter and her teammates swim one of the routines they are going to compete with in Florida later this year.  John and I really enjoy seeing how happy she is being on the pool deck once again.  

Monday certainly proved to be a trying day.  We went to the Fitness Center in the morning; John was on the recumbent bike and I on the elliptical machine.  About 24 minutes in to the workout, I happened to look over at John and noticed that all was not well with him.  Sure enough, he was having another seizure.  Dang it . . . was so hoping that the first one was just a fluke.  Luckily, there were three guys in there and they got John safely to the floor (bless them).  911 was called and by the time they got there, John was back with us and sitting up.  This seizure was somewhat different from the first and seemed to last a bit longer.  The paramedics sort of pressured John in to being transported to the hospital to be checked out.  The neurologist told us that if John had another seizure, to just make sure that he was safe and as long as the seizure didn't last over five minutes or come in waves, that 911 didn't need to be called.  I had mixed emotions because I knew it was a seizure but John (who wasn't thinking clearly) agreed to be transported.  Once there, they did blood work, an EKG, and a chest X-Ray.  Once again, John is confirmed as a healthy specimen (yea) and that, yes, it appears to have been another seizure.  The ER doctor deferred treatment to John's neurologist as he knew John had an upcoming appointment.  While waiting to get in to ER to be with John, I called the neurologist's office to advise him that John had another seizure.  We learned this morning that the neurologist wants to see him on Thursday.  Guess this means medication will begin as well as the official diagnosis of epilepsy (two or more seizures in a short period of time tips one over the edge).  

Caffeine is not suppose to be good for someone with seizures so John took over a couple of 12 packs of Diet Coke over to the office to share (get rid of) and the staff asked how he was doing etc.  John was a bit embarrassed as I think he thought he would remain anonymous; no such luck honey lol!

One thing that I have learned in this whole seizure business is that most people think all seizures involve convulsions.  They do not.  Grand Mal seizures are the ones with convulsions.  John is not having those type of seizures; thankfully, as what he does experience is tough enough.  For those who wonder if epilepsy runs in John's family, we are wondering that ourselves.  John's sister was diagnosed with Simple Partial Seizures at the age of 58/59. John is now 58.  Interesting coincidence isn't it.  Her symptoms are totally different from Johns' as she gets a warning (aura) and doesn't lose consciousness.  The good news is that medication works for her.  Losing consciousness causes one's driving privileges to be revoked  - period.  For the record, John has not driven and will not be driving anytime in the foreseeable future.  That is one limitation that he is fine with as he doesn't want to cause harm to us or anyone else.

We don't know if the exercise brought on the seizure because John works out hard and might have tripped something or if it was going to happen anyway at that time.  From what I've read, I'm not sure if the neurologist will even know.  The sleep deprived EEG along with three minutes of hyperventilating was suppose to trigger a seizure and it didn't.  I'm wondering if they should do another EEG with John working out on a stationary bike.  Maybe that would help them learn where in the brain misfiring is happening.  No harm in asking the doctor.  

The brain is very complex and something like 70% of all seizure problems can't be readily diagnosed as to a cause.  Not very comforting is it?  Especially in wanting a "fix" for your loved one.  Some of the medications side effects can be worse than the seizures so we have been told - great.  I just pray that the medication will help arrest the seizures once started. By the way, thanks for your thoughts and prayers, please keep them coming this way.  They are great medicine for the two of us.  :)

Adjusting to this new way of life is tough on both of us.  So many things that John loves to do, he now can't.  I now worry about the next seizure and where/when will it happen.  After this second seizure (45 days from the first seizure), we both felt vindication in our decision to sell the fifth wheel (some might have thought we were a bit hasty).  The truck was sold today and I'm driving a new to us 2011 Ford Fusion SEL.  What a change from the truck lol.  The last major piece of our former lifestyle is now gone.  

Adios June

This past month has brought us a lot of emotional ups and downs so both of us are elated that June is over.  

When we were settling in to the mobile home park, we met a lovely older couple, Klaus and Rosie.  Klaus has his own experiences with seizures and took John under his wing.  We always loved a visit with them as they both "get it" as to all the changes that this one 15-20 second episode brings to our lives.  I know John really appreciated Klaus' friendship.

The condensed version of our lives this month:

• Doctor/medical tests
• Rented storage unit and moved items out of the rig and into storage
• Sold fifth wheel
• Looked at apartments
• Temporarily moved in to John's sister and brother-in-laws house while they are on vacation.  
• Rented a lovely one bedroom apartment that has double the space of that of our fifth wheel not to mention a full-size refrigerator, full-size oven, full-size washer and dryer, and a dishwasher.
• Cancel this and that related to the RV and notify the SD DMV of the sell
• Take truck to body shop for cosmetic repair and dealing with adjusters and insurance co.  Why do they have to make it so difficult????
• Rented a car to drive while truck is in for repairs.  
• Furniture shopping. I find it ironic that this time four and a half years ago we were divesting ourselves of such items in anticipation of our full-timing lifestyle.  We seem to have come full circle.

Why sell the trailer you might ask.  We knew our full-timing days were over and then we realized that the maintenance of the trailer would require John to be up on the roof or ladder frequently.  Not good for someone who already had one seizure and we don't know if he will have another (so far so good).  We got an opportunity to sell the trailer so we took it.  By doing so, this will allow us to move forward with the new direction of our lives.  While John still has medical things pending, the close proximity of family and location familiarity just makes Sacramento feel like this is where we need to be for now.  Hence, the need to get an apartment what with selling our home out from under ourselves (lol).  We will be living in an area that is "new" to us and within the close proximity of anything and everything we could ever need or want.  This will allow us time to settle in and let our emotions settle down before making any more major decisions.

One of the hardest things for us to wrap our brains around is that we aren't full-time RVers anymore.  We enjoyed the travel but most of all we enjoyed the people we met along the way.  So many of these special people have reached out to us over this past month.  We have greatly appreciated all the calls and emails.  Thank you from the bottom of our hearts.  We hope that we can beat the odds and stay in touch with those of you who are still on the road.

So July will find us settling in to a new reality.  We are ready and looking forward to setting up a new home and to see where life will lead us as we go forward - a new adventure! We are so thankful to still be here together that all we know for sure is life is good!

John update and more

June 4 through the 8th was busy with doctor appointments and medical tests for John.  The MRI showed no brain tumor and no evidence of a stroke - yea!  John was able to get in to see a neurologist on Thursday (once again, due to a cancellation or we would have been months from an appointment).  The neurologist believed that John experienced a Complex Partial Seizure and scheduled him for a sleep deprived EEG on Friday.  We just learned the results of the EEG yesterday and was told that the brain showed no seizure activity.  Good news but also bad news because we still don't know what caused the seizure in the first place.  The neurologist said that sometimes a person can have a random seizure in their lifetime or if John is to have another, it could happen within the next three to four months.  If he goes past that period without a seizure then he has a 30 percent chance of having one within the next five years.

The neurologist wants John to have another EEG in the next two to four weeks.  We will meet with the neurologist again on July 31.  So we will have to just wait and see what happens between now and then.

Still waiting to hear back from the insurance company on the issue of truck repairs so that all is still pending.  We are thinking about trying to sell the trailer while here in Sacramento.  We have no idea how long a process that might take but other than the summer heat (tomorrow 106*), we are fine and there is no pressure to have to leave.  We now have a good reason and the time to clean out all the nook and crannies and further divest ourselves of our worldly goods if need be.  

Thank goodness for air conditioning.  Amen!!!!

In to see doctor

Thanks to a cancellation, we were able to get John in to see the doctor this afternoon.  Our doctor agreed that John most likely had a seizure and that there were going to be a lot of tests ahead.  We told him we expected such.  He also told John that he would have to report the seizure to SD Motor Vehicles.  John told him he understood and that he had no intention of driving.  Seeing a Neurologist will be next on the schedule and once insurance approval is given, an MRI to start with.

The insurance adjuster is coming out tomorrow to look over the truck so that ball will also get rolling.

So our new reality begins.

In a blink of an eye . . .

Life can and does change that quickly.  John and I were headed down to Klamath Falls to do some sightseeing and shopping on Friday.  I had the handheld gps out as we wanted to do some geocaching as we went along.  I told John that there was a geocache about a mile up the road and when I looked up, we were on the shoulder of the northbound lane. I asked John what was wrong and got no response.  I quickly realized that we were in grave danger.  I was imploring/pleading with John to stop but soon we were crossing back over the lanes heading south on the shoulder (how we missed a row of mailboxes I don't know).  In sheer terror I was screaming at him to stop.  We then crossed back over the lanes and down in to a field where we were running over brush, being bounced all around, having bushes and trees whacking the truck.  I knew we were going to die and thought of our dear daughter.  I then heard a voice in my head say "turn off the ignition" and I did.  Divine intervention - I believe so. Thankfully, bless fully we soon came to a stop.  

In a panic, I kept crying out  . . . John, John and Oh my God and the like.  I started looking for my phone to call 911.  John turned and looked at me with absolutely no look of recognition.  I asked him what was wrong, was he having a heart attack, what?  He looked back towards the windshield.  The next thing I knew he was out of the truck looking at things.  Two guys that had been working on the house across the street heard the truck going through the field and were right there when I got out of the truck (they also pulled back up the barbed wire fencing we plowed over).  I'm no where close to having any composure and there the three of them are talking and working together to pull brush and limbs (2-3" diameters) from out under the truck, looking to see if the truck was leaking any fluids, if the frame was broken - anything that would keep the truck was being driven. Thank God for the Ranch Hand Grill Guard.  We bought the grill guard as we were fearful of hitting a deer.  Most likely it saved the front of the truck and our seven radiators from being destroyed and kept branches and limbs from hitting the windshield.

No visable damage to the truck was seen other than cosmetic damage with lots of scratches, a cracked right dually fender, broken front hubcaps, and our Pace Edwards bedcover was broken.  The guys helped get the truck out of the field and said they wanted me to drive up and down the road for a bit to make sure the truck was drivable.  While I wasn't particularly eager to drive, I knew that John wasn't getting behind the wheel again. The truck drove fine and we thanked the unnamed angels for their assistance.

Miraculously, we had missed a telephone pole by a few feet and we stopped about three feet before a deep wide ditch.  Had we landed in that ditch, we would have flipped and who knows what would have happened.  Highway 97 is a busy route with lots of truck traffic.  That we crossed the two lanes three times when there were no other vehicles on the road is nothing short of a miracle.

It was a tough drive down to Klamath Falls for me.  I was as shaken to the core as one could be but I knew we had to get to Klamath Falls.  As we headed south to Klamath Falls, we talked about taking John to the hospital.  We knew he had to have had a seizure and knew that it would require a lot of medical tests.  He wanted to be in Sacramento with our family and our old family doctor.  As he was himself again, I couldn't argue with that too much.

We took the truck down to the Ford dealer in Klamath Falls.  They put the truck up on the rack and confirmed that there was nothing structurally wrong with the truck; only cosmetic damage.  They told us we were so lucky to be in this big truck because anything else would have left us severely injured or dead.  John has no recollection of the event other than a sense of bouncing while on the other hand, I got the full terror of it for 15 to 20 seconds (seemed like a lifetime).

Saturday afternoon we made the decision to leave Sunday morning before a storm rolled in. I'm so thankful that I had driven the truck and trailer.  I was getting nervous about driving in the mountains.  John assured me that he would coach me so I put my big girl panties on as there were no other choices.  As with so many things in life that we make bigger than they are, the mountains were not as intimidating once I was driving through and over them.  My darling John coached me wonderfully (we do work well together) and I got us safely to Sacramento.  What a relief.  The lesson here is that both partners need to know how to drive the rig period.  Stuff sometimes happens.  If you aren't occasionally driving your rig, what are you going to do in a situation like this?  Who would you call that could drive your rig as more people don't know how to drive big rigs than do.  I implore you: be prepared.

We had always agreed that when one of us couldn't/wouldn't drive we would be done with full-timing.  We had been discussing the possibility of coming off the road in the future but now the decision has been made for us.  Our travels will have to be done differently.  John will need to be tested as to what caused the seizure and most importantly, he will never drive again.  Nor does he want to as he feels terrible that I experienced the trauma while he was no memory other than seeing the resulting aftermath.  John also wouldn't want to be responsible for injuring or killing anyone by his driving.  

We feel so blessed and thankful that neither one of us were injured and that we still have time here on earth.  John will be tested and treated, the truck will be repaired (that's why we have insurance), and we are staying in a mobile home community were we feel safe.  We felt so blessed before but even more so now.  Life is good.

Sorry this is so long.

Hugs to all.

Crater Lake

We decided to head off to see Crater Lake today so I packed us a lunch to take figuring that we could find a picnic table near the lodge for lunch.  As we got closer to Crater Lake, we were surprised to see snow alongside the road.

When we got to the turn off, there was a sign that said the south entrance was open but the north entrance was closed.  Whew, glad we were entering through the south.  The handout we were given by the ranger said that the west rim drive was only partially open and the east rim was closed.  Good thing we hadn't planned on driving the rim.

With remnants of snow around the lakes edge, the lake was beautiful.  It was 59* and warm. We couldn't have picked a better day.  Check out the reflections of the rim and the sky on the lake - breathtaking.

Crater Lake gets an average of 44 feet of snow a season.  This past year, they got 56 feel of snow.  Here the gift shop is nearly surrounded by snow.

This shot was taken near the lodge.  Pictures just don't do the lake justice.  The color of the water is spectacular.

Spotted this old Dodge 8 will rumple seat up at the lodge.  We saw them drive away and the guy riding in the back was all bundled up with jacket, scarf, and hat.  It might have been cold but it looked like it would have been fun to ride in the back.

As all the picnic tables were still under snow, we ate our lunch in the truck.  A fellow South Dakotan stopped by to say hello.  She resided near some lake we never heard of (now there's a surprise).

Crater Lake fun facts (taken from NP handout):

Deepest lake in the US

6.02 miles across - maximum

4.54 miles across - minimum

1,943 feet deep at deepest point

Holds 4.9 trillion gallons of water

Tallest point on rim 1,978 feet above lake

Lowest point on rim 507 feet above lake

Mazama is not an extinct volcano

On our way back home, John got this picture of Mt. Shasta (over 100 miles away) peaking up way in the distance.

We also stopped at this pretty little creek called Crooked Creek.  The creek was running crystal clear.

Once we got home, we went to sit outside for a while.  There are various sizes of chipmunks running everywhere and they aren't the least afraid of humans.  So much so, that they seem to expect you to feed them.  One was so persistent that I had concerns about him bitting one of us or running up our legs, that I went in and got a spray bottle.  John smacked him once in the head with a stream of water and he pretty much left us alone after that.

We also have Stellar's Jays that also aren't shy about begging for handouts.  These guys appear larger than the Stellar's Jays we have seen in the Sierra Nevada mountains.  

After a barbecuing dinner, which we ate outside, we enjoyed the evening sitting outside until the bugs got to bugging us.