Getting Our Mittens On

Winter in the Panhandle was a rough one this year. I’m not complaining by any means, I know how rough it was on many of you. It’s just that this and cold does not compute in my brain.

Of course I should know better by now, but it always surprises me for some reason. We did have some fun with it though. There were nice days. And then there was a day and a half we were stranded on the Island because of ice on the bridge. I did think it was cool though, that unlike Minnesota, when they sand the streets here, the sand has cute little seashells in them! And then there were days like this where Trevor pretended to be a weatherman. I don’t think he’d like that job.

Spring brought us to Georgia for about a week and I have to apologize, Kirk and Joan and Cathy and Scott, among others, I got pretty sick in town that week and couldn’t visit except for a couple of days we had booked already. I hope all is well with you guys and that we’ll see you soon.

We left Georgia and arrived in Tucson four days later to see my best friend from grade school. We were only there a week before meeting up with other friends in Buckeye, AZ.  What a change from cold and wet to hot and dry!  

When we arrived in California, it was still hot, but at least where we were staying, there was plenty of green grass and water. I’ve mentioned Outdoor Resorts Indio before, but this time was especially nice for us because we were able to rent a site on the golf course. We squeezed a lot more of the game in this year compared to previous years. I think I’m getting a little better at it. I’ve progressed enough that I’m not totally ashamed to golf on a real course any longer. Trevor has really improved! It was fun to watch him. There wasn’t anyone around on many of the evenings, so we took advantage of the situation to do a lot of practice. Some nights we played “sink your best ball out of four”. Trevor landed three of his on the green one night, almost getting a whole in one, and then got two birdies and one under par. Of course his shots aren’t always that great.

An added bonus of our site was the neighbors there; very fun and friendly people! There were a couple of ladies in the neighborhood who were making these tote bags. Aren’t they cute? I just love the creativity they put in their designs. I wish I had photos of all of them. And I really like the size. Perfect for toting a book, my sunglasses, a bottle of water, a snack and a windbreaker for when it cools off in the evenings.

 We left Indio on Thursday evening to begin our trek toward Minnesota. The sun was just about to slip behind the mountains when we pulled into our site at Islander RV Resort on Thursday. As Trevor climbed out of the rig to set us up for the night, I was on his heels, camera in hand, making a beeline for the empty site with the best view of the river. We had planned on pulling into a different park more in the heart of the city; both of us expecting this area to be desolate, like Quartzite. We were surprised to see a vibrant, bustling, somewhat beachy city.  At the last minute, Trevor remembered hearing about Islander, so we sought it out. 

After the slides were out and all appropriate cords and hoses hooked up, hunger drove us to seek food in town. We settled on Javelina Cantina just before you cross the bridge into an ocean of city lights.

A clear, crisp, melodic voice of a male singer filled the air on the patio of the Mexican Restaurant where we feasted on quesadillas, taquitos and Jalapeno poppers. We gazed out at the London Bridge, lit up against a clear ebony sky. The bridge spans the Colorado River there as the river winds its way through Lake Havasu City in Arizona. As we toasted the 4th anniversary of traveling full-time, Trevor commented on the encompassing environment we’d found ourselves in that evening. How appropriate for an anniversary of traveling.

As we made our way toward Moab, I was looking forward to getting our mittens on. No, not the warm wooly ones, these:

As if that wasn’t cool enough, we arrived in Moab on Saturday evening. What a gorgeous place! It turns out, there’s a Family Motor Coach Association 4-wheeling rally going on here in Portal RV Resort. I don’t know how we got a site, must have been a fluke thing because they’re filled to capacity here. We don’t own a jeep and I haven’t been 4-wheeling since I graduated from high school a couple of years ago…ahem! I know there has to be a ton of people from RVforum.net here. I’m very sure you’re not on the forum, reading your blog or checking your email (Ernie and Tara) with all the excitement you’ve got going on this week. But we’d love to meet forum members in person so if you just happen to see this, stop by for a quick hello if you can. We’re easy to find. We’re the only site that doesn’t have a 4-wheeler of any kind.

We had all day Sunday to visit two of the many National Parks out here. What amazing stuff!

We visited Arches early in the morning and left just as the crowds were coming in. Then we had a quick break for lunch before heading to Canyon Lands. It was awesome!  We did quite a bit of hiking yesterday, something not on my agenda due to a torn meniscus, an ACL hanging by a thread and a bad case of arthritis in my knee. But looking at all those trails that you know will lead to beautiful places, who can resist? I determined to make some of those climbs, trusting the Lord I wouldn’t have to be dragged out of there. The Lord was faithful and those physical therapy exercises have really paid off. Back in November I could hardly walk through the grocery store.

We’re taking a rest today. Not because I’m in pain. My knee feels great! Just because we’ve been running non-stop for weeks and we just need a night of rest. But tomorrow evening; who knows? Maybe hire or rent a jeep, do a little hiking, take a cruise down the Colorado River…there’s so many possibilities!

Take care, guys! We love you! 

Love, Trevor & Roni