McDaniels Kentucky, Laurel Branch COE campground

Arrived yesterday at 3:33PM..first time we've stayed at a COE (Corps of Engineers) Campground. A 7 day stay is only $66.50, about $7 per day..Now, that's more to our liking, yessir ! Now we see why everyone in the full timing circle like these parks ! The setting here is great..lots of woods and spacious sites. Internet and phones work great. Went to a  local laundramat about a 1/4 ml from the park and got all our laundry done..first time since we left..couldn't get any more dirty clothes into the laundry bag.Tried to get L.P. gas at the suggested General Store but their tank was pulled 2 days ago...Been trying to get our Dish Network "new" HD turbo tv dish, which we just got before we departed, to work and after 3 hrs of attempts to catch a satellite I came to the conclusion that it wasn't gonna happen. Got the feeling that the LNB's are bad. Tried to get a service tech appointment, on the phone and internet, and that's like "impossible" so we'll wait til we go into Leitchfield tomorrow to see if we can find a Dishtv location with a service Dept, most are only in the sell, sell, sell world...gotta fill the LP gas tank in town 'cause it's getting cool during the night and we haven't topped off the LP tank since we left about 3 weeks ago. (& we're low on beer!!) Running outa heat (or beer) is NOT COOL!..or maybe I should say it is!!..Our friends, Jerry & Kathy, are here. Brought us some shaved corned beef this A.M.cause they had an excess of it..AAWWWW!!..Haven't had TV in 5 days and kinda going thru "commercials" withdrawal..LOL.. Our friend, "Billie", is patiently awaiting our arrival in Corbin,KY..looking forward to seeing him. The good news for today is the exhaust system on the motorhome is holding it's own..so far so good!..Gonna have our mail forwarded to us by Terra..we went over what's in it via phone today and it sounds like my "commercial" withdrawal will be fixed when we get it..if it wasn't for 3rd class mail I wouldn't be anybody :)..we found out that there's several COE parks in the immediate area..sounds like some neat touring coming up..there's a dam just around the corner so that'll be a must see...We caught a glimpse of the  Rough River today and it is pretty, as are the mountains and valleys here. Ya really gotta pay attention while driving in Ky. Kinda like a roller coaster effect..long ways down if you screw up..the locals cruise these roads at 55MPH and this yankee is nervous at 40MPH..no wonder Nascar drivers are mainly from down south..absolutely beautiful all over the area..Hope this night finds everyone in good spirits..REMEMBER..LIVE YOUR DREAMS AS TIME GOES BY QUICKLY..Charlie & Heather

Big Bone Lick State Park Union, KY

Mondays are so amazing ! By 9AM the CG was pretty empty, guess everyone had to work today. We had to run into Florence, Ky to get the exhaust pipe fixed (again). Seems that the right side "donut" connection to the exhaust manifold just likes to come loose every year. It was a fairly cheap fix. We'll have to wait and see if it lasts this time. Got some shopping done at Meijers..they are cheaper than Walmart and we see that every time we go to one. Tried another pet supply store for the elusive cat harness with no luck. You'll never guess where we had lunch ???  White Castle..YUMMM!! Got refreshments restocked (critical shopping) and gas for $3.69 mid grade..that's just about what we paid last spring on the way home. Had a nice visit yesterday with our Kentucky friends, the Hartman's..they cooked a great meal for us too.. Southern hospitality at it's best. The hills around us are a pleasure to tour around, the colors are just getting started around here unlike Michigan's 80% when we left a couple weeks ago. Gonna try and catch up with friends in a COE camp tomorrow. Surely do hope the weather stays nice for a driving day. Billy---if you're reading this..we'll be there within the week..Hope all our friends are safe and happy..REMEMBER..LIVE YOUR DREAMS AS TIME GOES BY QUICKLY !!   BYA..Charlie & Heather

Wednesday Oct 12,2011 Lansing Mich

Our 2 day visit in Lansing Mich has been fun. Got a couple visits in with my daughter Shannon and her beau Darrel. Last night we had a casual dinner at a local pub. Called it early as she has school. at MSU, he has to work and we are headin' out. We are headed to Medina, Ohio for a night's stay at Mercier County Campground.. Rand McNally says it's a 184 mile trip so I'm figuring about a 3 1/2 hr drive. We should arrive just in time for happy hour due to great timeing..(grin) By the way, if you're ever in the Lansing area we recommend Cottonwood Campground. It's in Lansing and has a definate woodsy feel to it. I like it because they have "ice cream" in their store :) nice clean park ! Verizon works well and rabbit ears get several TV stations. We are on the hunt for a cat harness & leash. Gonna try to get the cat outside for walks this year. Been reading quite a few blogs where people have success doing this so we'll try it. During this past summer we installed a Vizeo 19" flat screen TV on a wall mount in the rig. It's a great improvement over the previous setup. The picture and sound are perfect and we don't have the hassle of secureing a TV for moving. It's going on 10AM so I better quit yakking and start prepareing for the move..see ya'all in a couple days..REMEMBER..LIVE YOUR DREAMS AS TIME GOES BY QUICKLY..Charlie & Heather

Sunday 10-09-11 Croswell Michigan

We've been at my  friends' house, John & Kathleen,  in Croswell Mich for 2 days and have enjoyed the visit. Good gab, groceries and a breakfast put on by the Croswell Fire Dept. The weather has been perfect. We love it here. You can see deer in their front yard morning and night. Just a few minutes ago I stepped outside and a deer was 50' away from me and gave me that " You lookin' at me? " look, but didn't budge. John is getting ready to winterize the pool. Heather said she might jump in til we looked at the thermometer and it was 55F..I think she had a change in mind ! Can't say that I blame her cause I got the chills just thinking about it..BBBRRRR!! Then I remembered that she's done the Polar Bear Dip. Maybe she needed a hole in the ice to tempt her some more...We're gonna pack it up in the A.M. and drift towards Lansing , about a 2 1/2 hr drive, to visit Darrel and Shannon, my daughter. We'll only stay a couple days at Collingwood RV CG, and then start South. We have some friends that'll be at a COE ( Corps of Engineers ) camp in Kentucky that we'll try to hitch up with when we're in that area.

10-06-11 Enroute..Mt Pleasant Mich

Yohoo !!! The  winter adventure began yesterday..We took our time winterizeing the house and packing the last items in the motorhome. Got out of Houghton Lake about 2PM. Pulled into Mt Pleasant Chippewa Campground by 3:30PM and got settled in and celebrated with a happy hour, then a geezer nap..gotta be prepared for the shuttle pickup to the casino up the street :)..Heather had the luck and me??? I don't wanna talk about it.(down $60)..got back to camp kinda late via a wobbly course..of course..Had a great sleep in and did some running around town..had to buy a new power cord for the computer as our crapped out and had a great lunch at Applebees..Back at camp we did a quality check on the beer stash (grin) and napped up again for another stab at the casino...tonite was my nite and not Heather's..I see a new computer on my list..(WOO-HOO!!)  Tomorrow we head East to the Thumb to visit some dear friends in Gagetown and Carsonville and Croswell for a few days..Hopeing to see a few long lost friends too..Gotta renew my American Legion membership in Croswell, a great little club. Some of the American Legion posts down South have Campgrounds and it pays to belong. Same thing with the Eagles organization..The colors of fall are just gorgeous at this Camp, we sat out at the picnic table this afternoon and enjoyed the beauty and the birds and the quiet, not too many people here, I think about 5 campers. The weather is perfect.  Hope you all are with us on the journey. REMEMBER..LIVE YOUR DREAMS AS TIME GOES BY QUICKLY..Charlie&Heather

10-2-11 Sunday T minus 4

Our much anticipated take off date is only 4 days away. You'd think we'd be better well trained but the excitement is definately there again. Our minds are in high gear and most of the packing lists are done.
Monday we'll dump the house fridge and start the house shutdown and move into the motorhome that evening. Tuesday the water system will refresh the motorhome and then be winterized.  Wednesday is takeoff day..YEAH !  Our cat, Hooter, knows somethings up. I think I saw her packing a bag yesterday and she's hanging around the door with a silly grin on her face  ! She's been pranceing around the house a little light footed too.
    I wonder if other snowbirds go thru this emotion every year? You really don't realize how much work gets accomplished til you're on the road and have time to settle into a travel routine again.
   First stop is going to be Mt Pleasant Soaring Eagle Casino Campground as usual. Hope they've got lots of $$$$$ for us ( LOL) . The weather is supposed to get better and into the 70's which is good news. I'm glad to see that the gas prices came way down  and especially away from our hometown, Houghton Lake. Maybe that's a good omen !
   Are you ready for the winter adventure? We hope you'll follow along with our ramblings.
REMEMBER..LIVE YOUR DREAMS AS TIME GOES BY QUICKLY !!  luv y"all

9-29-11 Thursday 1850 hrs T minus 6 days

We always look at our takeoff date like a Rocket launch..Hence the titile..We're at the handshakes and hugs phase of our lives again..After 3 years of this it's to be expected and we really treasure the moods and emotions. Had a few people tell us they were looking forward to the travel blog firing up again and actually we are too ! You've already heard us make fun comments about "the lists" and we're sure other "snowbirds" are doing the same thing. Someone asked us tonight  "what day are you takeing off?" and we said  "we think Wednesday"..We really don't know for sure and we think that somehow it bothers people, but we spend a whole winter like that..Why are dates and appointments so important to everyone, especially when they are retired?  This all took awhile to get used to but once it's accepted it really is relaxing. My buddie "Billie" is waitng patiently for us in Corbin KY and we're hoping he'll flow into this relaxed lifestyle with us this winter. he's planning on caravaning with us this year..I've got another almost fulltimer friend "Mike", in Illinios, that we'll probably hook up with this winter, somewhere. See? No appointments..When anyone gets into this lifestyle they eventually learn "to relax" and I really believe it'll let you live longer (&happier). Todat we got all the bathroom and dry goods loaded. See? A little bit at a time. Hope all of you are attaining your goals and dreams..REMEMBER..LIVE YOUR DREAMS AS TIME GOES BY QUICKLY.