On the Road Again Only Different...

We don't close on our house in Norfolk until the last Friday of the month, so we are taking a road trip to TN, AR, OK, NM, AZ, TX, AL and NC to see family and friends.  This post is about our first two days where we went as far as Conway, AR.

We thought, "Why not?"  Maybe we should re-think buying another RV and just take road trips. We shall see, but since we have a three weeks it was a good time to travel and see how we like it.  My hypothesis is, "it will not compare to the wonder and joy of RV living, but it can still be good."

On Day 1 of our trip, we made it to Maynardville, TN for an overnight stop.  We like to get on the road early and crept out of our 5-star accommodations at Goldmanor (Kelly and Jon's house where we are staying) and made stops at Wawa for coffee and McDonals for a couple of egg McMuffins.

We crossed over the Hampton Roads Bridge Tunnel as the sun was rising. Then it was on to Richmond on I-64 over to I-81.  Before we got there we crossed through the Shenandoahs and were greeted with this.

Yikes!  Snow!  It only lasted for about 20 minutes but it definitely got our attention.  We keep thinking we have avoided winter but that hasn't happened entirely.  The last three weeks in Virginia Beach have been a mix of different weather with some warmer days and some cold ones lately.

We pulled into Mike and Joan's neighborhood about 3:30 PM and since we were only going to be able to stay overnight, we better see Helen and Bill first.  Chances are that we would not be leaving Joan and Mike's once we got settled in.  So we stopped in to see Helen who had just returned from Physical Therapy.  She had knee-replacement surgery and Bill had her all set up in an easy chair with her knee raised.  Everything is going well with her recovery except the pain.  Ouch! She did say to much about it but once we asked questions she indicated it is some major pain.  But she is dealing with it and getting a little better each day.

Next stop was Joan and Mike's.  We unloaded our suitcases and air mattress and sleeping bags and it worked out fine.  Mike had fixed dinner and we had some great fajitas and beans.  On our way to Virginia Beach after selling the Roadrunner, we stopped in to see them and they were both ill.  They were much improved and were like their old selves so we were thankful for that.

On Day 2, we headed out of the driveway before six AM and got on I-40 heading west.  We refueled a couple of times along the way.  It is a bit of a shock to fill up on a road trip for under $30 when we were used to filling up the Roadrunner for $250-$300 a pop.  We like the lower numbers.  I noticed its not as easy to take a quick nap in the car as it was in the Roadrunner, but it is manageable.

The weather forecast didn't look too good on our route because of high winds, rain, and the threat of tornados.  We didn't want to do anything crazy, but we kept on eye on things as we traveled. We hit some rain for a couple of hours then it was mostly high winds toward Little Rock, AR.  About noon the east bound traffic on I-40 was backed up for a couple of miles as they cleaned things up from a tractor trailer that over turned.  Not sure exactly what happened but he may have gotten blown into the side rail in the passing lane and went over.  Out side heading west was fine.

We arrived in Little Rock and drove downtown to the Clinton Presidential Library and Museum.  It is one we had not seen before so we were hoping to see it and the Arkansas State Capitol.

The grounds are well maintained and in a great location a few blocks from downtown Little Rock.  On thing that struck me was the size of the building.  I might be the largest of the Presidential libraries we have seen in our travels.

 Both outside and inside the grounds, we saw artwork of Dale Chihuly.  We love his work.

Inside, the security was friendly and we paid the $8 fee before going to the third floor and taking a self guided tour.

 View from the third floor toward downtown Little Rock.

The Oval Office is always an interesting place.  Many of the presidential libraries we've seen have life-size replicas like this one.  For $50 we could side behind the presidential desk and get our picture taken.  Yikes!  We passed on that one.

We weren't able to spend the time it deserved, but we were glad for the chance to see it briefly.  It is one of the more well done presidential libraries we've been to and I was very impressed.

The afternoon weather was a big change from what we had experienced most of the day.  We drove over to the capitol building.  I was closed but I managed to take a few pictures.  

We thought we could drive some more and continued on I-40 to Conway AR where we got a motel for the evening.  After two hard days of driving, we went to dinner and then back to the motel and hit the sack.  

That's all we will relay for now and I'll save some more for the next couple legs of the trip to Tucson. Thanks for joining us on this adventure of the Roadrunner Chronicles!

Changing Gears, Downsizing, and Questions?

We've thought about this day and it is finally upon us.  We wondered how we'd feel about it when the time finally came to switch things up.  The time is now here.

We're going to be selling the Roadrunner and downsizing.

Depending on how things work out we'll be moving to the next stage of our lives. Getting another but smaller RV is part of our plan at some point, but we have other things on the To-Do List before that happens.

To-Do List for the next few months:

• Sell Roadrunner
• Go to Virginia Beach for a few weeks
• Look for/buy a house? 
• Take a road trip out west?
• Return to VB and find a place
• Buy a used Class C
• More RVing (part-time)

After we get to Virginia Beach, an option for us might be to take a road trip out west.  We're thinking of traveling in the CR-V from Virginia - Arizona and return. We may stay with friends and family along the way.  Then we could return to VB and see where things are.

Here's some questions we've heard so far with some quick answers:

Why are we doing this?  Why now?
We definitely have mixed emotions about this but wouldn't be doing it if we ultimately really didn't want to do this.  The main reason for doing this is to be near and involved in our grandkids lives as they get older.  Harrison will soon be 2 and a couple of weeks after that Brooks will be 4.  They like having us around and we like being with them,  so we feel like now is the time to make some changes.

We also like being near our kids.  We enjoy spending time with Kelly and Jon and working on projects.  Adam and Melissa are only a few hours away too, so that is another bonus.

How Did We Decide on this course of action?

Last summer we started talking out loud about the possibility of changing from full-time to part-time RVers.  We believe grandparents can have a positive impact on kids lives and want to be those grandparents.  We discussed lots of things but the bottom line is that we love RVing and yet love our grandsons more.  The best choice is for us to cut back on our time on the road and spend more time with them.

Are we road-weary?
No!  We love being on the road, but we are focused on a higher priority for the next few years.  We fully intend to continue with RV living as often as we can.  We think that will mean trips every few months for a few weeks.

How do we feel about the change?
Mixed emotions, meaning we loved every minute of full-timing but we need to do this.  We need to be present and move on.  We look forward to the adventures ahead and learning how to "settle down" again.

How long have We Been on the Road?
We have been on the road since May 2009.  Looks like we will end this stint of full-timing just shy of 10 years.

What kind of a place will you get?
We are thinking a small 1100-1500 sq. ft. single family house, not a condo or townhouse.

Do You think you will full-time again?
Don't really know, but we wouldn't be surprised if we do when the boys get older.

Will you keep blogging/writing?
Absolutely!  I have lots of posts that I've started and are begging to be completed. I love writing and am learning a lot with the forthcoming book.

Where are you in the process of selling the Roadrunner?
We have had extensive exchanges with the buyer will get together in a few weeks.  I think they'll be pleased with what they're getting.  It looks like a win-win and we will do what we can to make that happen.  If that doesn't work for some reason, we'll go back to plan A, which is advertise and actively market it beginning in April.

What's next in the coming days? 
Cleaning, polishing, and emptying the Roadrunner, packing up things and preparing the Roadrunner for sale. Also I'm working on our forthcoming book: "The Wonder of RV Living," Roadrunner Chronicles, Vol 1 and continuing to write more blog posts.  We still have so much to tell of the places we've seen and where we've been.  And I have more ideas for the next manuscript.

It's been a real joy and quite a ride.  And we're looking forward to the days ahead.  Thanks for joining us on this edition of the Roadrunner Chronicles!

Last Few Days in Casa Grande

Our time in Casa Grande was filled with a lot of interaction with friends and family.  My brother Marty and wife Elena were a little over an hour away in Saddlebrooke which is a retirement community just north of Tucson.  We managed to spend almost every Sunday going to church with them and then out for Sunday brunch.

Marty and I got to play a lot of golf during our time in both Tucson and while Pam and I were in Casa Grande.  Golf is always a fun time with Marty.  He's an excellent golfer and always improving, though he sports a pretty strong 6 handicap.

Back at the Palm Creek Gold and RV Resort in Casa Grande, we had some projects around the Roadurnner to tend to and some serious hang out time at the pool.  One thing I really like is to be able to get UPS packages delivered directly to the campsite.  That was the case for our new porch light that we installed.

I got the idea of the light from Steve @GoneByRV and found that Art and Gerri had ugraded from the original to this brand.  So I figured I was in good company.  I reread the tutorial Steve posted on how he did his install, but had trouble finding it now.  But I know its there somewhere!

During our time in Casa Grande, we took a couple of day trips to the Tempe/Chandler/Mesa/Apache Junction area to have lunch with friends and to stop and see other friends one day which was fun.  Ron and Marta are from Albuquerque and are also full-time Rvers.  We are glad to connect with them whenever we are anywhere close to where they are.  Ron and Marta headed from Phoenix to Albuquerque where he was going to get both knees replaced.  Yikes!  Tough patch ahead but he'll be glad when they are done.
Other friends John and Greta were in Apache Junction and we had the chance to meet them for dinner.  They are friends from one of our early Habitat for Humanity builds in Brookings, South Dakota.  It was great to see them again after many years.  They recently bought a beautiful VanLeigh 5th wheel which we were able to see.  Fun to catch up with these folks.

Before we left Casa Grande friends Kirk and Susan drove from OKC to stay with us a few days and to play golf

Here we are with Marty at the Preserve Golf Club in Saddleback where Kirk, Marty and I played 18 holes.  It was a fun day.  While we played golf, Pam and Susan and Elena went to lunch, shopping and spent time at Marty and Elena's place.
One Sunday afternoon, we got to join Marty and his two sons (Matt and Rob) and Rob's wife Christine (with kids Jackson and Andy) at an Oakland A's Spring Training baseball game.  Matt is from the San Jose/Bay area.  Wife Sierra and 3 year old son William did not make the quick weekend trip.  Rob and Chris are from the San Diego/Del Mar area.  We haven't seen them in years so that was fun!

Next are photos of friends Bobbi and Paul.  They were nice enough to stop by (and pay the $$$) and visit overnight.  We met them in Santa Fe at one of our early Habitat builds in Santa Fe.  They are from Tehachapi, CA and were en route to their place at the Escapees Campground in Benson Arizona.

Palm Creek is one nice resort.  It is an actual resort, not one in name only.  We were lucky to have spent time there during March.  It is a very nice place with lots of nice things to do.  I especially loved the swimming pool and enjoyed it every chance I had.

That's all for this edition of the Roadrunner Chronicles!  On to Yuma and getting some dental work done...
Thanks for joining us today!

Staying at a Real Resort - Casa Grande AZ

We don't often stay at a real resort.  We have camped at many places through the years that have 'resort' in their name, but we have learned often times that means they charge more $$.

Our time at the Palm Creek Golf and RV Resort here in Casa Grande AZ has been really great.  It is a little pricey, but there are ways to make it less so.  We booked for a whole month for the monthly rate, and since this is our first time here, we got the 20% 'First Time Visitor' discount.  Those two items means it averages out to be less than $40/night.  Still pricey, but a lot more doable.

We are here because but we wanted to visit friends Steve and Karen.  The added bonus is that we have gotten to see some other friends as well:  Paul and Laura, Mary and Tom, John and Cathy, Ron and Marta, John and Greta, and Paul and Bobbi.  And friends Kirk and Susan are going to stay with us here for a few days.

We really like the Palm Creek.  It has a lot of things to do and it is a first class place.  It is a REAL resort.  There is so much to do here if you like sunshine and swimming, golf, pickleball, ping pong, softball, shuffleboard, tennis, walking, hanging out with friendly people -- the list goes on.

Here are some things we like about Palm Creek:

• First impression:  Check in and name tags

The ground are beautiful.  The little creek winds through the property from one end to the other.  Palm trees line the creek, plus there are hundreds of more throughout the campground and on every street.

The RV check in area in large and accommodates rigs of all sizes.  Someone did some excellent planning here.  You pull up to the very long staging area, then get out and meet the greeters at the Check In table who tell you were registration is at Guest Services in the building.

Then it takes about 10 minutes to fill out paperwork, get a photo badge/ID, settle your bill, get all the information we could want and then a Ranger (guy in a golf cart) escorted us to our site.

• Friendly people on our street and all over the park

It took less that 10 minutes at our campsite for neighbors to introduce themselves and invite us to a nightly happy hour.  We met four or five neighbors within an hour.  It is a welcoming sort of environment.

• Wide lots/camp sites

The campsites are very large.  We could park two cars on our space if we wanted to, and still have room for our shady REI canopy, mat and chairs.

• Ample washers and dryers in laundry facility  

We are a block away from a second pool and washer/dryer facility, and our mailbox.  It makes for a quick day of laundry with a lot of machines to use.

• Beautiful Oasis

• Great par 3 golf course

We don't often play 'Executive' Par three courses, but this is a very nice one.  It makes perfect sense for the people here.  Lots of folks play this course that probably would not venture out onto a municipal regulation 6500 yard course.  

This course is very inviting because it has big greens, every hole is a par three, many can reach every green on the first shot, and it is a walking course.  Pam and I have played it three times already.  We love being the first off the tee box early in the morning.  She hasn't played in a while, but has done well and enjoys it thoroughly.

Without the long par 4 and par 5's, she and I are pretty even when you take out the long shots.  Which means she is a good putter and chipper.  Its fun!

• Big main swimming pool. Plus two other smaller ones

•  Nice library and hobby facilities (jewelry making, woodworking, pool tables)

• World class pickleball courts and facility

We arrived in Palm Creek the day the 'Duel in the Desert' Pickleball Tournament began.  This is the first time we have been exposed to a very well organized pickleball community.  The tournament was had hundreds of competitors and the 32 courts seemed to be always full of action.  We got to watch men and women's singles, men/women mixed at 3.0, 3.5, 4.0, 4.5 and 5.0 levels.

Friend Steve and his partner Bill gave it a valiant effort, winning 7 or 8 matches but falling one match  shy of making it to the medal round.

It is fun to watch and even more fun to play.  I took a beginners class that might be the best two free teaching session I have even participated in.  There were 17 in the class with 5 instructors.  Reed, the main instructor ran down through his clipboard hitting all the important items ranging from safety, mechanics of hitting different shots, strategy, and the rules and scoring.  And there was a lot of 'hands-on' participation.  We broke up into groups of four and took the court for instruction and practice in warming up, dinking, serving and volleying.  I can see why the sport can be 

• Grounds well manicured

• Large property good for walking and biking

• Lots of different activities:  lawn bowling, shuffleboard, tennis, water aerobics, 

• UPS deliveries to campsite (e.g. Amazon)

Sometimes it is difficult to get mail at a campground.  This place makes it easy.  More than once we have had the UPS truck pull up to our campsite and drop off a package.  It is very convenient.

•  Good eating places nearby

Dinner with a friends Karen and Steve, Paul and Laura at Barro's.  Might be the best pizza I've eaten. Certainly in the top two or three.

Those Arizona sunsets are pretty wonderful.  I love this particular one.

Palm Creek has been one of the nicest places we've been to.

There's a look at where we have been hanging out in March.  Thanks for joining us on the Roadrunner Chronicles!