jdkinley

Our daughter has had a yearning for years to visit Ireland. She has had a picture from Ireland, huge poster a Christmas present from her brother, hanging in her living room for years, got it when she was in high school. So when she announced that she and Kris were saving to go, we were excited for her. After graduation from her tough MBA program this spring, the trip would be the perfect reward. Then she asked if we would come and house sit (in our old house, still not sold, and now being rented to the kids.) Of course we said Yes. Oh, and take care of the 70 lb chocolate lab, Sophie. And the two outside cats. So we knew the priorities--animals then house. We contacted our camping friends Dave and Bonnie Lodge and ... read more

We visited Ohio in April and posted pictures of the snow. We figured, going back over Labor Day...couldn't possibly have bad weather...right? Actually, the weather there was fine...a bit cooler than expected, but delightful. However, the Florida hurricane kept us checking on family and friends who were in the path and worried until we heard all had survived and were fine. This was our fourth trip up this year. As mentioned in a previous blog, Mom had a stroke in late December and after a brief hospital stay, was in a rehab/nursing facility right on the grounds of the retirement community where they lived in Chagrin Falls. Unfortunately, she did not respond well to the rehab and with increasing issues from dementia, it became obvious she would not be going back to the apartment to live; ... read more

My father is downsizing and moving to a smaller apartment, still in the retirement complex. We wanted to help so planned to get there early to help pack, move and get him settled in. We didn't get away until early afternoon on the first day and got just north of Knoxville where we found a Walmart and settled in for the night. A write-up in a review said it was "quiet" and "far from the road". Must have been a different spot; it was noisy, we had over a dozen 18-wheelers pull in for the night, and we had rain and heavy winds. Not restful. So next morning we got up in the dark and headed through the mountains in rain, fog, wind and taffic, mostly trucks. We arrived Thursday late afternoon, set up, then drove ... read more

Every spring we unwinterize the RV and after putting in some clothes, load it up with food and take off for a weekend or longer but near home to ensure we haven’t forgotten anything and we will be ready to take off for longer trips. This “shakedown” is always a fun time, a bit fretful lest we forgot something or worse, forget how to do something. That’s why we stay close to home, so we aren’t caught out far away cursing our ignorance. This year we got the coach ready and had water on board, hot water heater primed (don’t want to burn the tank out by not having water in it!) and checked the tires professionally for air and condition. We loaded the staples, put in a few clothes, and added a new electric heater. ... read more

Right after Columbus Day, we left AL and headed north to see family and friends. Our first visit would be with friends Kurt and Annette in NC. We had last seen them this spring in FL and since then we both had endured problems with our RVs and had to have them repaired. Annette had undergone surgery for back issues and we really wanted to see how they were doing and visit them in northern North Carolina. So we followed our usual path through Chattanooga and Knoxville and north on I-40. But instead of continuing on I-81 to VA, we headed east on I-40 towards Asheville, NC. We'd been over that road a number of years ago, but apparently we were a) younger or b) had forgotten what is was like. It's a lovely road, lots ... read more