Moved to a new neighbourhood today....

Our Location: Magic River Rv Park, Long Beach, Mississippi

A warm humid night, a warmer morning threatening to become very hot today. The rays from the sun were extremely warm this morning, with bright blue skies and very dewy grass. As we packed up the inside of the Igloo before breakfast we discussed a few things as Her Royal Highness strutted around making it known she wasn't happy to see things in places they aren't normally. The sight of her cloth sided carriage did not sit well with her. She pulled a pouty face and hid under her royal chair. ~laugh~ We on the other hand continued on as if we didn't see her. Not sure who was trying harder to ignore who. ~laugh~ 

New Dogsled and New Igloo together

After packing up the inside we moved to the outside putting away the hose and electrical cable, backed up the new Dogsled and hitched up with no issues. Checking all the lights to ensure they worked and were happy to see the Christmas tree of red lights as we went thru the blinkers, brakes and 4 ways. Always a good sign. Riley managed after some hard labour to get Her Royal Highness out from the royal chair and into the carriage, then outside into the big white chariot for the short trip today. After that it was slides in, feet up, back up and gather up our leveling boards, etc, and then going around to say our goodbyes. Our first stop was Roy (Marksberry) as we managed to see him half way across the parking lot. Next Miss Pat as she came out in her nightgown to give us hugs and good byes. We managed to track down Vern and Miss Charlotte for more goodbyes, and hugs, some laughs and jokes. Next was Bob and Miss Norma for more goodbyes and good wishes, and a few others that I can't think of their names also wished us safe journey as well. After that it was into the Dogsled, put it in gear and head on out. We pulled out of Bluegrass at 8:56 am. Which made me happy as my hitch itch was getting pretty bad. ~laugh~ 

This cruise ship was docked at the Mobile waterfront...

We managed to get to I-10 within a short period of time and motored along with no issues discussing how much nicer the new Dogsled tows and rides, both of us agreeing it was the best choice and at the right time as well. We're both pretty happy with the new truck!! Even Her Royal Highness didn't put up a fuss at all. In fact she slept almost all the way to the new park only waking up when we stopped at the Mississippi Welcome Centre.  We didn't go into the welcome centre but stopped and got out to have a leg stretch and take a picture of Dogsled/Igloo together as we hadn't done that at Bluegrass. 

Heading down into the tunnel under Mobile Bay

Around 11:00pm we exited the Interstate at Mississippi Exit 28 and within a few minutes were once again on the familiar Tucker Road and heading to the great Magic River Campground. We managed to pull in and find us a spot to park and with help from Swilly we managed to get backed into our new address within a few minutes. As I climbed out of the Dogsled Swilly came up and gave me a huge hug, asking about my Dad. Always nice to have such a welcome. ~laugh~ We managed to get everything set up, plugged in, turned on, hooked up and slides out within a short period of time. They've had some rain here and as we settled in I noticed the front right corner needs to come up some but when I checked it the first couple of times it was perfectly on the bubble. So tomorrow or the next day I'll just tuck the pin back into the hitch, take the weight off the front feet and adjust them a bit, that should fix that problem. Not a big deal just a pain in the......well you know..~laugh~ 

 

Heading further down into the tunnel.

 

After getting everything all settled we once again were back in the Dogsled and heading to the office to pay for our time. Only pay one week at a time here as they may have to evacuate the campground due to flooding and they don't want to have you paid too far in advance. Not a problem, the office is a mile from the campground. After that we wandered down to the beach, parked and went for our walk. It was windy but nice walking along the white sand and the dark water stretching far out into the Gulf of Mexico. We decided the end of the walk would be out at the pier which sticks out quite far into the water. It was a nice walk with the sun beating down and feeling kind of warm but the cooling breeze was just perfect. After leaving the pier and making our way back to the Dogsled we stopped at the Wally's on the beach to do some groceries. We needed a fair amount because we'd kind of held off in Foley until we moved. Home from Wally's we managed to get all the bags into the Igloo and started putting stuff away when we heard a knock on the door. I called no one was home but the folks outside didn't believe me. ~laugh~  It was my good buddy Ron and his lovely wife Sharon come to call. Almost didn't recognize Ron, he has some kind of thing all over his face, looked like fuzz. ~laugh~ They came in for a bit to visit, we heard about their wreck, their new purchase and a bit about how they've been. We'll connect later and many times during our stay here. 

A near collision when the motorhome cut the car off...

We finished putting away the groceries and just kind of settled down to rest and read for a bit, called my dad around 6 pm his time to chat for a bit. Catching up on the family/island news he told me a cousin of ours has passed at the age of 51 from a heart attack. She was the only daughter with 3 brothers. Rest in peace Sherry.

 

The light at the end of the tunnel...

 

 Before we knew it was time to start prepping dinner. That finished it was time to start to cooking. Couldn't get the BBQ to heat up very high due to the wind so dinner wasn't as fully cooked as we like even though I was outside for an hour and a half, we consumed the sausages that I finished frying in a pan and put the rest(veggies and taters) in the fridge to be 'heated, fried' tomorrow for lunch. We proceeded to make a big bowl of fruit and after that a bowl of ice cream kind of topped off the tanks. ~laugh~

One of the many Mississippi Bayou's.

Clean up inside and out, headed off in our direction. That was our day. Wonderful warm weather, bright blue skies and amazing friends!! Can't get much better now can it? 

Thanks for stopping by, feel free to leave a comment. Until next time...be safe, take care.....

Hot today......starting to pack up....

Our Location: Bluegrass Rv Park, Foley, Alabama

(all pics taken with my phone)

Morning dawned with lots of dew this morning but warm. Fog was thick overnight and was also still hovering a bit first thing this morning. Fog advisories were issued last night and this morning, it was just like soup. 

Getting greener every day...

This morning was cleaning day as tomorrow we are moving. So first things first, we cleaned, vacuumed, scrubbed, wiped, dusted, swept and tidied up everything in sight. Always makes me feel good to have a clean Igloo. That brought the time to almost 9 am. We are getting lazy and not rolling out until 7:30 am these days. I'm usually awake long before then but try to stay quiet to let Miss Riley get her beauty rest, kind mother that I am. ~laugh~ 

Trees are starting to push out leaves...

Breakfast was a bowl of strawberries and blue berries, to leisurely pick at while reading our books. No hurry to get out the door, it is Sunday after all. Riley opted to stay home, she's not feeling well. Started last night with just being achy all over. She goes from hot to cold to hot again quickly and since she's too young for menopause I'm sure it's the flu. ~laugh~ So I headed out by my lonesome to S. Pecan Street and did our walk there. The pics are from that walk. 

Flowers are starting to bloom along the roadside

Signs of spring are everywhere, flowers are blooming, trees are leafing out, bees, hornets, and such are everywhere. The grass is green, the sun holds a lot of heat in it's rays and the air is moist. I don't think I could manage in the south during the summer, way too much humidity. At 1:30 pm the temp is 80F/26.7 C and the skies are bluer than blue, with not a cloud to be seen anywhere. Riley is currently napping at this hour and I think I may just have a little lay down myself. ~laugh~ Later when it cools off a bit I'll start unhooking, packing and just getting things kind of ready to take off tomorrow. It's not a far drive but it'll take us most of the morning. We don't intend to travel too fast, and it's pretty much all interstate driving anyway. We'll go north to I-10 and take that west until we grab our exit in Mississippi which I think from memory will be #28 or #29, but I'll know it when I see it.

Pic for my dad, Graveyard, Produce, dead end....ring any bells? ~laugh~

A quick chat to Roy when I got back from my walk, he moved his truck to the back of his trailer so it will allow us an easier exit path in the morning. Very sweet of him. I had just planned to head the other way and take the loop around the park and head out but he's made life a bit simpler for us. Neither he nor Miss Pat want us to leave. They think we should stay longer. ~laugh~ I of course told Roy that I couldn't stay any longer due to his being too much of a pain in the...~laugh~ Telling him I can only put up with crazy for so long and he's about as crazy as they come. ~laugh~

Looking across the corner from the produce guy....

The afternoon was too hot to work outside so I spent my time reading, while Riley slept the afternoon away. She woke up feeling much better and I wonder if she's somehow gotten run down or something. Around 4 pm we headed outside to start putting things away and getting ready to travel tomorrow. Cleaned up and put away the BBQ, the chairs, the table and unhooked the sewer connection. So except for water and power and a couple of leveling boards, we'll hook up and raise the jacks, and after securing the Igloo we'll be ready to go. Wonder how the cat will like the new Dogsled? I guess we'll find out.

Lots of these little white flowers along the road side...

While working outside we were stopped numerous times when Vern and Miss Charlotte, Miss Norma, Roy and Miss Pat all stopped by to chatter and make certain we don't leave without saying good bye tomorrow. Such nice folks here, always enjoy their company.

Fire Ants build these, and they are everywhere.

Inside I spent some time reading as it's Sunday night so Riley is responsible for making dinner as it's pasta night. Around 6:15 pm she started making dinner, finished eating by 7:00 pm, clean up and I had a shower before connecting with my dad. Skype wasn't working so he called me on the phone. Amazing!! ~laugh~ Usually I call him but tonight he beat me to the draw. 

Live Oaks along S Pecan Street, always green...

So after a brief chat with Dad my day drew to a close. Tomorrow will be interesting with the new Dogsled doing it's first tow for us. Looking forward to the ride.

Thanks for stopping by, hope you enjoyed your visit. Please feel free to leave a comment, would be nice to hear from you. Until next time...take care, stay safe....

Shopping, walking, chatting, and just hanging out...

Our Location: Bluegrass Rv Park, Foley, Alabama

(all pics taken with my phone)

A warm night lead to a warm day. The rain of last night was still falling when I fell asleep and yet there was nothing laying around this morning when I looked out the window to see how high my hip waders needed to be. I didn't even need my new rainy shoes. ~laugh~ 

Cloudy skies on our walk this morning...

Breakfast was a quiet affair and before long we were out the door into the Dogsled and heading out to walk. Now I know you will find this hard to believe but I missed the turn. ~laugh~ I just drove right on past it. I have no idea where my head was while I was motoring right past S. Pecan Street. I did manage to cross the oncoming traffic onto Juniper Avenue, a left at the third stop sign would have taken me right back to where I wanted to go but we were talking and I just didn't turn. ~laugh~ Long story short, we ended up walking where I walked yesterday. We didn't make it quite as far but still managed to get most of the way and still manage to get back to the Dogsled at just about the hour!!! We didn't even miss a turn as it was a straight line walk!!! Impressive huh? 

Can you see the buds starting to show on the tree?

From our walk we once more scooted across the wide lane of traffic and headed south along US 59 heading for the Old Time Pottery Store just down the way. We wanted to pick up a back pack they had there that would allow us to have a small carry all type thing for when we do things like the Navy Base where carrying all those things separately is just a pain in the ..... well you know where it is. ~laugh~ We also managed to look around for a bit, not finding anything else that we wanted to bring home. Turning right out of the driveway bringing us North along US 59 we managed to get the Dogsled to slow down enough to make it into the Hobby Lobby/Big Lots parking lot keeping all four tires on the ground. We wandered around both stores for a bit and once again not finding anything worthy of bringing home. After that we managed to get back to Juniper Avenue which we followed all the way to US 98 and stopped at the little gas bar. Filling up the Dogsled with diesel for our upcoming journey to Mississippi on Monday. Diesel was listed at $2.35 per gallon and I pumped in $50 to bring us from about a 1/3 to the full mark, 21 gallons and few oz, so the tank is a fair size. 

Zoom boom crane working at one of the many construction projects on Milfin Road

Home after that to find some lunch and just enjoy the now mostly sunny skies as compared to the all cloudy one when we left. The sun was very warm and I started off sitting outside for about 2 minutes until I noticed Linda the campground owner motoring by in her golf cart, I followed her to the barn where Linda, Jeff and I had a chat about my upcoming departure, a few little business things about any mail coming here for me and traded stories about trucks. ~laugh~ From there I headed back home to sit outside again and didn't any more than get my behind in the chair when Roy next door popped over in his electric wheel chair. We chatted about pretty much everything under the sun which took about an hour or so, during which time both Miss Pat and Miss Norma dropped in, not at the same time though. ~laugh~ By this time I was thinking I wasn't going to get any reading accomplished but then suddenly they were all gone. ~laugh~I of course didn't mind anyone stopping by, as I always love to chat with folks.  I sat outside for about another hour and read but found it too hot and ended up coming inside. 

Lots of construction on Milfin Road

Around 6 pm I started prepping dinner and noticed it was still pretty light outside and when I headed out the door to BBQ at about 6:20pm it was still somewhat light. Love these nights that are longer and warmer. Dinner was Potatoes with onions, and Rosemary Veggies along with Bourbon Chicken breasts. It was pretty good, even if I do say so myself. You'll just have to trust me!!!!

You know it's spring when you see dandelions that have gone to seed already.

A quick clean up inside and out, a dumpster trip, a quick stop at the clubhouse to grab a couple more books, then home to do a few little things to tidy up. Tomorrow will be cleaning day as Monday is moving day. Tomorrow will also be packing up day. 

Never get tired of some form of veggies/potatoes/chicken.

 

Thanks for stopping by, hope you enjoyed your visit. Until next time...be safe, take care....

It was a day....

Our Location: Bluegrass Rv Park, Foley, Alabama

A warm night turned cold just as it was darkest over night. The wind blew and rattled a few things but then the sky lightened, things kind of seemed to calmed down and yet it didn't warm up any until late this afternoon. A very cold north wind blew here most of the day and even a bit into the evening. Lots of heavy clothing in evidence every where one looked!

Start of the Antique Rose Walking path in Foley

Breakfast was a simple affair, and we headed out the door bundled with hoods, gloves and warm hopes for our walk just before 8 am here. We drove about a mile to the down town corner of Foley. Parked our loaner and walked Foley's Antique Rose trail and on further along the bike path. The walk was wonderful, the flowers, shrubs, hedges, cobblestone/brick/cement walkway, fancy welcoming brick pillars, all were very well done and cared for to make an impressive showing even in the dead of the winter, I can only imagine it's beauty in the summer. Our first leg of the journey was face first into the cold north wind. At times it was gusty but at other times only a slight stirring but the gusty was more dominant than not. ~laugh~ We walked for a long time into the wind, our 30 minutes seemed to be a lot longer. I was certain my phone-clock was broken. ~laugh~ Upon turning around we managed to walk back much faster as we had a tail wind, strong at times. 

One of numerous bench/swings along the path

From our walk we came back home to do a few more chores in anticipation of picking up the new Dogsled tomorrow. To say I was surprised was the least I could say. My insurance company told me they could only insure the new truck for 14 days meaning I would have to return to ONTARIO within the next 14 days, have the truck pass all tests and I could license it there and come back if I wanted to. Well that wasn't going to work for me. They suggested I try to find some temporary insurance which I did and managed to get it all handled within the hour. I truly did not even think about that! It's been a learning experience. ~laugh~ So for now I'll have a truck bearing Alabama plates until I get home to Ontario in April, and have it registered in Ontario. I will also have Alabama/US auto insurance until then as well. To get insurance I also had to use an American Address. I asked for and was given permission to use the park here. Thanks to Linda for her generous aid!!!! I wonder how a Canadian trailer plate, and an Alabama truck plate will sit at the border crossing? ~laugh~ Oh well, one issue at a time. 

Very nice gazebo along the path as well

I also called Mr. Manley (the sales rep at the dealership) to set up an appointment time tomorrow to pick up my new toy. Tomorrow at 9 am we head down to the dealership to give back the loaner and pick up the new to us Dogsled. Then it's off to the DMV  here to have it plated, as it's already insured. 

This nice wooden bridge was strung with small clear lights for night time lighting

After chatting with Mr Mark Manley I headed off to Absolute Insurance to get my insurance slip. Nice lady named Wanda was very helpful and I have insurance that I pay monthly until I don't need it any longer. I also tried to cancel my insurance for the old Dogsled with my insurance company back home, that has been a real pain in the ass. They sent me an electronic form that I have to print, sign, scan and send back, except I don't have a printer and I don't know any where to do that. So I tried a different angle, I wrote out a cancellation letter, took a picture of it and sent that to them. Nope, wouldn't accept it, I need to SNAIL MAIL them a letter saying I cancel my auto insurance. Hmmm...Insurance is a pain, isn't it?  Can you believe it's barely lunch time?

Beautiful bright read flowers on this bush. You can see it in the gazebo picture as well.

Lunch time and I was starving. Had a huge garden salad for lunch and tried some new Sundried Tomato with Basil thin crackers. They are delicious. Going to have get some of these to take home with us. Good stuff. ~laugh~ 

Camellia's are everywhere, there was pink, white and white/pink mixture in these bushes

I managed to get outside and read for a bit this afternoon as the sun warmed up the air and the wind died down to just a light occasional breeze. I even had to come inside to change from jeans and heavier shirt to capri's and a light t-shirt. It was that warm. Managed to help Miss Pat next door to carry her laundry into their 5'er. She said she could manage but she has a bad leg and would have had to make a couple of trips. I managed to do it in one. 

Holly trees complete with berries

About 4:30 pm I came inside and began to prep dinner. Sat down to read some more and enjoy a new to me book. Pulled the big door shut when I came inside and shut all the windows as well. It was colder in the Igloo than it was outside. ~laugh~ The days are getting to have more daylight hours as I've been noticing a bit more each day. It's not dark here at 6 pm but it's just dusk. It used to be dark before 5. 

Pretty flowers just at the beginning of the path

Outside about 6:30 pm to BBQ dinner. Was colder than I expected but still not too terribly bad. I used Riley's new chair which helps to block the wind. The wind blowing up the leg of my jeans was chilling me to the bone until I wrapped a blanket around my legs. After that I was pretty toasty. 

Dinner was excellent. We thought we'd do without the potatoes tonight.

Dinner tonight was Sweet Basil-Rosemary Veggies and Chicken Breasts smothered in Roger's BBQ sauce. It was excellent. We both enjoyed it. I couldn't eat my entire piece of chicken and like last night I put half in the fridge again. I think one of us will be having it for lunch tomorrow. It's good stuff. 

This has been our mode of transportation since Monday, a 2016 Chev Equinox full loaded

Managed a quick chat with Ed our neighbour, he's all excited about seeing our new Dogsled. ~laugh~ I think he's more excited than I am. He's leaving on Saturday and was disappointed that he wasn't going to get to see it. I had to laugh, told him it's just a big white truck. ~laugh~ I will admit, I'm a bit excited myself. ~laugh~ 

Seemed funny to be driving around with lots of window stickers and no plate. ~laugh~

A quick clean up inside and out, trip to the dumpster and a quick shower for me rounded off the evening. Edited some pics and write this blog will pretty much end my night. I'll play a few games on my iPad and then wander off to dream land. 

That's it for the day, nothing to exciting but it was interesting to say the least. ~laugh~ Thanks for stopping by, hope you enjoyed your visit. Please feel free to leave a comment. Until next time...be safe, take care....