Month: May 2016

For those who read my face book page, y’all (Carolinas are rubbing off on me!) know of our journey today.   Bill & I were invited to participate with my son Ray on the “Ride of Pride” trip today.  The truck manufacturer Freightliner selects a trucking company to design a truck to be a rolling tribute to members of the United States military past and present.  This military themed truck also participates in the annual Ride for Freedom, a procession through Washington, D.C. each Memorial Day.   Today, the truck was rolled out from Freightliner and was accompanied by the NC Patriot Guard Riders on a 94 mile trip through select NC cities to be displayed.

          

I was moved by the spirit and meaning of this movement and decorated truck.  The veterans who came to visit at each stop were testament to all our heroes (past and present).  Moreover I was impressed with the PGR who accompanied this truck.  These men and women are dedicated to their missions and are well respected.  They stand guard at fallen heroes funerals as well as visit local veteran communities and volunteer services.

      

Above all though, getting up at 5:00 am, riding in the rain, Bill helping out with staging and setting up display areas … the most rewarding part of this day was riding on the back of Ray’s Harley and feeling so proud of my son for wanting me to share this day with him.

Thanks Ray-Ray !

 

 

What a fun day!  Started out this morning by Ray taking us to the “Carolinas Aviation Museum” in Charlotte.

A lot of airplanes telling the roles each played in shaping aviation history.  The most moving was the US Airways Flight 1549 that was landed in the Hudson River after being hit by a flock of Canada Geese.  Just amazing to see the story and video of how Captain Sullenberger made that historic water landing.

            

After leaving the Museum, we went to the “Carolina Family Restaurant” in Charlotte for lunch.  Awsome vegetable soup.

 

This evening we all traveled to Concord, NC to see the “Haulers on Union Parade and Fan Fest”.  This featured the haulers of the NASCAR teams en route to Charlotte Motor Speedway for the All-Star Race this Saturday.  It was exciting to see all these haulers driving by with horns blasting!

                           

While in Concord, we then went to the “Sushi Queen Sushi & Grill” for suppah.  The Hibachi and Sushi were delicious!

Back home we gathered our gear to get ready for tomorrow’s bike event Freightliner’s “Ride of Pride 2016” Escort to Honor our Fallen Heroes, POW/MIAs, Veterans & Active Duty Military!  The Patriot Guard will be escorting this truck.  It will be my first mission ride on Ray’s Harley motorcycle.  Will be interesting and honoring for sure . . .

Today Bill & I ventured off on our own and went to Mooresville which is appoximately 25 miles north of Charlotte, and,,, the home of many NASCAR racing teams and drivers.

On the way there, we passed by the “Marshall Steam Station”.  It is a coal power plant located on Lake Norman.  It is the 2nd largest coal facility owned by Duke Energy in the Carolinas.  It is HUGE.

 

 

 

 

Speaking of Lake Norman, the route we took (SR 150) runs by Lake Norman in  many areas.  Lake Norman is the largest manmade lake in NC.  It’s sometimes called an Inland Sea and has over 520 miles of shoreline.  Ray & Pam have purchased property on Lake Norman and will be building their dream home there in the near future (indicated on the map).

Once in Mooresville, we went to “Ollie’s”, a discount store which was fun browsing.  We had lunch at “Fields of Greens” which makes the most awsome salads!

     

 We also found a Goodwill (of course)!    

Came back and made a chicken enchilada casserole with steamed zucchini for suppah.  Then we all took a ride to “Cold Stone” for ice cream.  This was the first time Bill and I had ever experienced Cold Stone.  What a treat!  Delicious and,,, only 760 calories!  Yikes!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Bill is still having his fun with Boots, Lucky & Thunder.  He even bought a cat toy today to torment them with tonight.

It’s “Froggers Summer Selfie Night”, so ending this blog so we can see all our Frog Creek friends and share selfies!

P.S. Forgot wanted to add a belated video I received from my 3 grandaughters today!  So sweet!

Didn’t post yesterday as was my birthday and wanted to keep it separate and private and just spent the day with my son and daughter-in-law (as well as my hubby).

Since I had no mail service in Florida on Mother’s Day, my sons had my gifts waiting for me in Denver, NC.  Received a beautiful necklace from Ben and family and a very nice framed sailboat made from sea glass from Ray and Pam.  Very nice.

Did a bit of shopping yesterday and had to go to Lowe’s.  While walking in to Lowe’s, we saw “Greg Biffle” (nascar driver).  I had all I could do to contain myself.  I was quickly educated by Ray to treat him as any other ordinary person going to the store and not to mob him.  I obeyed but, was excited.  Now, had that been Jeff Gordon, I would have ignored all advice and would have chased him through the store!

Had a nice birthday.  Pam made a quesadilla casserole with fresh corn for supper which was very good.  She also surprised me with a doublelicious double chocolate cake.Received a beautiful purse (cc) as well as an awsome desk top rhythm clock from Bill.  Ben and family mailed me some survival items (a paracord bracelet as well as a life straw).  Ray and Pam gave me 2 tickets to the NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race for this Saturday night.  Great gifts…… great kids!

Today was a quiet day.  Caught up on laundry and made russian meatballs for supper.  Took a ride to Camping World to purchase windshield wipers for the RV; however, they did not have the right size.  Ended up ordering them on Amazon Prime instead.  $ 40 each!  Geesh!!  That was a wasted trip.

After supper tonight, we played a new game “Tetris Link” with Ray and Pam.  What a challenging game and, alot of fun!

 Bill is enjoying the 3 kitties here (Boots, Thunder & Lucky).  He loves teasing them with toys and laser lights. . .

 

No set plans for tomorrow ,,, (yet).

Today was a travel day.  Left SC around 11:00am and didn’t arrive at NC destination until 5:00pm.

Unfortunately hit a few traffic incidents along the way which delayed our arrival.  A couple gas stops and lunch break also put us behind.  Did see this neat car being towed.  Possibly some sort of antique roadster?  Don’t know but bet it will be nice when restored!

Happy to arrive at Ray-Ray (aka Ray, my oldest son) and Pam’s house in Denver, NC.  I maneuvered the RV back into his driveway under Bill’s sharp eye (and words) successfully.  Ray installed 50 amp service which was a great surprise.  Now we have water and electricity here!!  Anyone know of a honey wagon service nearby.  LOL.

Had burgers, corn and coleslaw for suppah and called it an early night as we’re all tired.

This is one happy mama to be with her son and receive that long awaited hug!  Can you spell H A P P Y ?

Looking forward to an exciting week (Harley ride, zip line, gun range …).  Follow along with us as we experience NC!!

 

Today we headed to Savannah Georgia and explored the many streets of the historic district.  The architecture alone is astoundingly beautiful and the majestic oak trees and magnolia’s lining the center of the streets just magnifies its beauty.  I think we walked a mile in each direction!

First stop was the Girl Scout’s First Headquarters on Drayton St.  Had to visit this and take pictures for our 3 grandaughters who are new to girl scouting.

          

From there, we walked down Bull Street to the Riverwalk.  Watched a HUGE tanker with foreign containers make it’s way down the shipping channel.  Never seen them in transit like that.  Quite a sight.

   

  

Then we headed up to City Market on Broughton Street.

   

 

  Watched pralines and salt water taffy being made in a candy shop.

    

Here we stopped in to Vinnie Van Go-Go’s for a slice of pizza.  One slice was about the size of 2 slices off a large pizza!  Huge.

Alot of history in Savannah and one afternoon did not do it justice.  Need a couple days in Savannah alone.  Another time …

   

       

Back to the car and on to Tybee time (as the natives call it).  Tybee Island has a total area of 5.2 miles.  It’s a great island to take your bicycles to and leave your car parked.  We visited the Tybee Island Lighthouse and, again,,,,, toe-dipped the Atlantic Ocean.

Water was colder here than at Hilton Head for some reason.  We drove around the entire island and visited a few gift shops.  Didn’t spend a lot of time on Tybee time; however, we were able to “check it off our list of stops”.

Back to our campsite and took a sunset hike along the lake shore before calling it a day.

Thanks Georgia and South Carolina for your hospitality… but now time to leave and head further north.

Tomorrow ….. my son Ray’s and Pam’s house in North Carolina.  I’m SO EXCITED!!!

p.s. Bill wanted me to include another picture from yesterday’s visit to Hilton Head….

This was a statue in a pool of water which a duck decided to take a nap upon. lol.

I prefer to include a piece of artwork found in Savannah today. (Different tastes … lol)

p.s.s. Ok, so Bill has informed me that I need him as an “associate editor” on this blog.  Keep forgetting to mention things,,,,, like, today we saw an alligator in the lake in front of us and also, we stopped by a roadside stand and bought fresh Georgia peaches (EXPENSIVE)!  Made “peach smoothies” tonight!  YUM!

 

Changed reservations this morning.  Had been planning on going to Yemassee, SC to “The Oaks at Point South”; however, read some less than favorable reviews and didn’t want to deal with yet another disappointing resort.  Beginning to wonder about these “Passport America” discounted RV Resorts.  So far, haven’t been satisfied.

So instead we were lucky to make new reservations for two nights at “Camp Lake Jasper RV Resort” in Hardeeville, SC.  This place is a GEM!  Our site is lake-side and we love it!

 We journeyed to Hilton Head Island (SC) this afternoon.  Lots of rich communities and lots of stores.  The Island was incorporated as a town in 1983 and is home to more than 30,000 residents.  It is named for William Hilton who, in his ship, discovered it more than 300 years ago.  But, more importantly, it’s where my Dad played tennis many many years ago.  Dad was an avid tennis player up until a couple months before passing at age 78.  I’ve always wanted to see the Island since.  Today was the first time visiting here.  I have no idea at what resort he played at but know he was here (and probably with me here today as well).

We went to Coligny Beach Park.  First toe-dipping in the Atlantic Ocean!!

     

They had a great outdoor market with lots of vendors and cute shops.  

Had a small ice cream sundae at a cute shop decorated with cows!!

       

 

While walking around, we kept hearing a band playing but couldn’t find it anywhere.  Suddenly, looked up and discovered that they were playing on a roof!  Neat!

     

Returned back to our campsite and cooked suppah.  Bill made a campfire and ,,, day is done.  Tomorrow, we explore Savannah, GA which isn’t too far south from where we are.

 

 

       

Arrived in Brunswick, GA this afternoon.  Did not unhook the car from the RV as only here one night and had already explored this area last fall.

We have been to Jekyll Island as well as Saint Simons Island and loved them both.  Jekyll Island was having a “Shrimp & Grits” Festival at the time which was enjoyable to attend.   It will be September 16-18 this year if anyone is in the area.

We did have a “visitor” (or tag-a-long) today however.  One of Frog Creek’s frogs had decided to stay with us and we discovered him in the shower.  I locked Bill in the bathroom and wedged a towel under the door so as to not let the frog (or Bill) escape.  He did manage to capture it and proceeded to take it outside and shoo’d it quite a distance from the RV so as not to return (hopefully).  Hope it likes it’s new digs in Georgia!

          

We had a neighbor pull in beside us later this afternoon and was towing an antique Austin Healey sportscar.

    What a sweet car!!!

Nice to dream about and wish upon ,,, but until then, we’ll just motor on down the road with what we have ~

Well, that’s all for this quiet day folks.  Tomorrow we find Yemassee, SC!  Looking forward to a bit of exploring the coastline there and maybe hit up Hilton Head Island and possibly south to Savannah.

Day started out slow, took a walk around the campground and then decided to ‘hit the road’.  First went to the Central Florida’s Visitor Center in Davenport.  Very impressed!  A lot of displays as well as useful brochures (in English too!)

Not too far away, we discovered Webb’s Candy Factory.  Did I tell anyone how much I LOVE chocolate?!  Didn’t buy any though….. I was good. 

We then went north towards Orlando and,,,, yep!  Found a Goodwill Retail Store!  A huge percent of ‘Floridians’ shop at Goodwill.  I learned from the best (cough,,cough,, Debbie).

Our next stop was to Lake Buena Vista to visit Disney Springs (formerly Downtown Disney).  This was our first time there.  WOW!  So many shops, restaurants and entertainers wrapped around a lake.  This place is HUGE and best of all …. it’s free entrance.  We were being frugal today and had packed a picnic lunch so didn’t visit any restaurants.  Gotta save some $$ (after yesterday) for the rest of our trip North!

     

     

     

Well, it’s our last night in Florida.  See you next winter!   Next stop tomorrow … Georgia!

P.S. Forgot to mention ~ Bill found a new lady friend ~

“Miss Lego”!

                   

Arrived at Mouse Mountain RV Resort & Campground in Davenport, FL yesterday.

Ventured out to do a little exploring our 1st day here and found the “Visitors Flea Market” in Kissimmee.  Huge indoor market with lots of vendors … but no bargains were taken.  Bill did try to befriend a “tiki totem” though.

While in Kissimmee, we also visited “Old Town”.  A neat area with lots of unique shops but, basically deserted of people.  Maybe because it was in the heat of the day and 90 degrees outside!  I’m sure it was more populated at night.

 Today, Bill took me to DISNEY WORLD for a pre-birthday celebration!

          

 Yes!  We were “kids again”; but that being said, reality set in as our knees and hips gave out after about 5 hours of walking around.  We’re not as “young” as we think we are!  Bill got to see his idol “Goofy”making the trip there worhwhile!

 

He completed the day by taking me to “Boston Lobster Fest” for an all-you-can-eat buffet of lobster, crab legs and prime rib (along with many side dishes & desserts)!  SO STUFFED!  But after all that walking, we had to replenish our bodies didn’t we? 🙂

GREAT DAY!

P.S.  Note to self … be more careful when picking up brochures (to be sure they are in “English”)!