Next stop....somewhere in Nebraska at McGreer's RV Campground

After leaving Santa Fe, NM, Kirk and I (mostly Kirk) wanted to get to Nebraska so that our drive into Iowa would not be so long.  Although, it is going to be a good 8 hour drive.  Our plans are to stay in Des Moines and visit with Nate and Lindsey (Kirk's son and his wife) once we get there.  We drove through Northern NM and eastern Colorado today.  The drive was beautiful until we got east of Denver, then it just gets "different" (flat land and farms).  I love the mountains and took many pictures on our drive.  Not sure of all the names of the mountains we saw, but did recognize Pikes Peak with Kirk's help....and the roadside sign :).   Along I-25 we also passed a historical marker area called Huerfano "the Orphan" Butte, named by the early Spaniards.  We decided to end the day at McGreers Campground in Big Springs, NE.  This is a campground (we were the only ones there) on a "working" farm.  We took Chuy and Lily on a walk to see the animals.  Chuy had never seen a cow, and wasn't quite sure what to think of that "big dog".  Lily met up with one of the farm cats and wanted to play until he hissed at her....forget about playing.  I also got to watch one of the baby calves being fed.  The mother had died, so the calf relied on the farmer and his little boy for all his nutritional needs.  A very unique RV campground.  Highly recommend it if you don't mind downhome friendliness!!!

 This little boy loved "helping" to feed the calf.....soooo cute!  At McGreer's RV Campground/Farm.

Hissssssss.....all Lily wanted to do was play!

 Love the mountains....eastern Colorado.

 Huerfano, the "Orphan" Butte along I-25

 Pikes Peak...this is the closest we came.

Our RV at McGreers RV Campground...kinda cool how it's on the "working" farm.

Green Chili Cheesburger Trail

Our first stop heading to the Midwest was Sante Fe, NM.  We only planned on staying one night and then leaving the next morning to continue our trip, which is what we did.  However, we did manage to take a drive to Old downtown Sante Fe which is quite "artsy".  We saw the Cathedral Basilica of Frances of Assisi, and lots of unique shops, parks, and people.  One of the things we were most excited about though was eating at the Bobcat Bite.  This is a very small, historical restaurant on old hwy Route 66, which just happens to be on the Green Chili Cheeseburger Trail, AND, the reason we ate there.  The burger was awesome!  The restaurant is called Bobcat Bite because back in the day, bobcats would come down from the mountains and rummage through the garbage from the restaurant, which was allowed by the owners.  They no longer come down to the restaurant because of the nearby highway and those dang poachers.  If you want to eat there, you better get there early as they only seat between 25-30 packed, or you can have a drink and wait.  It is well worth it!  We stayed at the Ranchero RV park which was just down the road from Bobcat's. 

 The Cathedral Basilica in Old Downtown Sante Fe, NM

 Green Chili Cheesburger at Bobcat Bite.....I seriously almost ate the whole thing!

 On old Historical Route 66 in Sante Fe, NM....Gotta try it!

Saw this on our way to Sante Fe...is it called Window Rock because people take pictures through the windows of their vehicles?  Cool, though....huh!!

As you can see we will be very busy next time we pass through New Mexico.  Just can't get enough of those Hatch green chili's!

Last week in Payson, AZ

Well, another assignment has ended, and now a week off til the next one.  I met some wonderful people at Payson Care Center.  My co-workers in the therapy department were great.  It was a pleasure to have worked alongside such talent.  Last weekend was our last weekend here, and we needed to drive down to Mesa to pick up some things we had stored in my sister's garage.  We woke up Saturday morning to snow!  This was our first snow with any accumulation since we have been on the road 2 years now.   The drive between Payson and Mesa on Hwy 87 (also called Beeline) is absolutely beautiful.  The Saguaro's are gorgeous, and the mountains are spectacular.  From Payson to Mesa you will encounter the Mazatzal, Four Peaks, and McDowell Mountains.  You will also come across many Canyon's.  You will never get tired of the view no matter how many times you drive it. 

I had a co-worker at the Care Center who became engaged while I was there and will be getting married in June.  Now her wedding is one I would have liked to seen, but oh well, such is the life of a nomad.  Anyway, she is having a cowbow wedding.  She will be wearing a camo dress with cowgirl boots, and her flowers are sunflowers.  With not much time to do so, I made her a quick wedding gift, a camo mosaic cross with a sunflower.  It's not the best, but I though it turned out pretty good.

Kirk and I leave tomorrow, 4/21 and head to the midwest.  I haven't signed a contract as of this writing, but I believe I will be starting my new assignment 4/30/12 somewhere in Wisconsin.  We have a very busy Summer planned and can't wait to get started.

 Woke up to snow 4/14/12 in Payson, AZ....what the heck!

 Going down the mountain on Hwy 87 from Payson to Mesa...simple awesome!

 Also along Hwy 87 ..... love the saguaro's.

 Can you see the Heart.....I love hearts!

Camo mosaic cross with sunflower...could be better, but not too bad for an amatuer.

On to Payson, AZ

Kirk and I arrived in Payson on 3/21.  We had driven up here a couple of weeks earlier to find a place to park our RV.  We decided on the Lamplighter RV park in Star Valley.  This is only about 10 minutes from my job in Payson.  We are at an elevation of 5000 feet and near the Mogollon Rim.  The scenery is beautiful here.  We have taken a few road trips, and visited the National Bridge State Park.  The bridge is said to be the largest travertine bridge in the world.  This was one of our first hiking experiences in quite some time.  We were exhausted, but it was well worth it.  Absolutely gorgeous!  We have also driven to Pine; Strawberry, which boasts the oldest standing school house in AZ:  Young, where we ate at Alice's restaurant and Cantina, and although a beautiful drive, the roads going in and out are less than comfortable;  Woods Lake Canyon, which was closed because of still having snow on the Rim (so we'll have to try that again some other time);  and Prescott, where we visited a good friend that I had met in Kingman.

After we were here a week, Kirk drove down to Scottsdale to play his "free" round of gold at the LPGA golf course, The Wild Fire with Angela.

In the mornings, you can look out our RV and see the Elk on the hill right next to us.  What a sight!!

 Our site at The Lamplighter in Payson, AZ...Kirk on the hill with the Elk taking the picture.

 So if this is the oldest "standing" schoolhouse in AZ...where is the oldest "non-standing" one?

 Kirk climbing up to the Tonto Natural Bridge....someone had to take the picture!

 The water-fall at the top of the Tonto Natural Bridge.

 The Mogollon Rim...absolutley beautiful!

 The Wild Fire golf coure where Kirk played...oh yeah, and the LPGA was held there also this year.

 Elk on the hill next to our RV site at the Lamplighter in Payson, AZ...beautiful site to wake up to.

 At Alice's Restaurant in Young, AZ....fun place.  Alice does all the cooking.

 Beautiful site on our drive to Young, AZ...I believe it was in the Coconino National Park.

 Does anyone else see Texas here.....I'm just saying!!

 Sailboat in the Roosevelt Lake in AZ

 I am so happy to be a full time RV canine!

I just want to go in and eat.....or have a treat...or anything to do with food.

The rest of Mesa!

Our 3 weeks in Mesa were jam-packed with something going on constantly when I was not working.  Although, things were going on then also.  One of the main reasons for coming to Mesa was so Kirk could volunteer in one of the pro golf tournaments.  We happened to be here for the LPGA the week fo 3/12 to 3/18.  Kirk got to work with Angela in the Carts and Shuttles.  He had a blast!  He met a lot of interesting people and had lunch with one of the players parents.  Rudy and Bev came into town on that Wednesday and stayed at our RV park right across from us.  We all went to the LPGA on Saturday, St. Patrick's Day,  and had a great time watching the players, frequenting the vendors, and having green beers in downtown Chandler after the tournament.  One of the perks of being a volunteer among others, is the opportunity to play the Wild Fire, where the LPGA was held.  Kirk is a happy man right now!

While Rudy and Bev were in Mesa, we kept busy, to say the least.  We went bowling for the first time in years and had a great time.  I now have the bowling bug....I think Kirk does too!    On March 20th, we celebrated Angela's birthday by going to the Cubs-Rangers training camp game (Texas won..YAY!).  We tailgated prior to the game.  I have now tailgated twice in the past 3 months and love it.  Why have I never done this before?!   The next day, I drove to Payson to start my new assignment. 

 One of the players in the LPGA being interviewed.  Volunteer Kirk is having fun!

 Green beers after the game on St Patty's Day!

 Bev, Rudy, and Kirk watching me kick their butts in bowling :)

 Tailgating with the family(Rudy, Bev, Kirk, Reina, Stacy, Aaron, and Angela)

 I missed this joke, but must have been a good one.  At the game!

 You can see the Fountain spouting over this building in Fountain Hills, AZ

Happy Birthday Angela! 

I forgot to mention that Fountain Hills (where I was working) is a fairly new town.  Incorporated around 1970.  An artsy, upscale community near the Ft McDowell Casino (on the Yavapai Indian Reservation), it is surrounded by Four Peaks, Superstition, and McDowell mountains.  Their fountain in the manmade lake spouts every hour.   I loved this assignment and the area.

Mesa at Last!

After 3 months of being in AZ and as close as we could get to Mesa (Kingman), I finally got an assignment in Fountain Hills.  This is about 1/2 hour north of Mesa, but that was good enough.  Kirk and I found an RV park, Mesa Spirit, about 20 minutes from my sister Angela.  My job was only going to be 3 weeks, but that allowed us to visit with family.  The day we arrived in Mesa, my 2 girls, Kristy and Robyn, granddaughter Adyson, and their little friend Caleb arrived also.  They stayed with us in our RV (we were very cozy) for 4 nights.  Then spent the rest of their vacation west of Phoenex with Kristy's bff and her family.  While the girls and Caleb were with us, we visited Goldfield, Tortilla Flats, and enjoyed the swimming at the RV park.  

Elena and Jim (sister and brother-in-law) also visited from Illinois.  They stayed with sister, Angela.  I didn't get to spend near as much time with them as I would have liked, but definitely enjoyed the time I did have with them.  Angela hosted a BBQ at her house the Saturday they were here.  It was so much fun having 4 sisters together (me, Angela, Stacy, and Elena).  I believe the last time we were all together was in 2007.  This definitely was a more joyous get together.   

 Papa Kirk and Ady riding on the scooter to the pool at the RV park!

 Ady, Robyn, Kristy, and Caleb at Goldfield Ghost Town.  Superstition mountain in background.

 Aaron's dad, Kirk, and Jim on Angela's patio for BBQ.

Ady, Robyn, Caleb and Kristy in pool at Mesa Spirit RV park.  Goofy girls!

The sisters!.....and 2 dogs.

This was only the beginning of our 3 week stay in Mesa.  More to come on the next blog!

Road trips from Kingman

This might be part of what was once the small mining town of Cerbat, AZ.

Roadkill Cafe in Seligman, AZ on Route 66.

This is "Red". The actual model of the firetruck in the movie "Cars". He is parked at the Grand Canyon Caverns off Route 66.

Click on this picture and you can see the area in this cavern where one can spend the night. They will even deliver pizza to you. It better be one good pizza for $700 a night.

Beautiful view of Davis Dam near Bullhead, AZ

Knowing we only had a couple more weekends here in Kingman, Kirk and I decided to take advantage of the nice weather and take a few last road trips. We drove toward Laughlin (where we have gone many times) and drove to Davis Dam. It's a beautiful section of the Colorado river at the Lake Mead Recreational Area. On another weekend we drove up Route 66 to Seligman. Before getting to Seligman, we stopped at the Grand Canyon Caverns. It was pretty interesting. We found out that this particular cavern is one of the few still considered as a fall-out shelter because of the extremely low humidity, and where many, many supplies are stored "just in case". One can even pay $700/night to stay in the cavern. Apparently, there have been weddings, and honeymoons in this cavern. They have a small space set up with everything you should need while staying the night in the cavern. We ate lunch at the Roadkill Cafe in Seligman, which was a little pricey ($16 for a small buffalo burger, which we shared). Is buffalo meat really that expensive? There is a zoo in Valentine, north off route 66 called Keepers of the Wild, however, we did not see this, and only learned of it after we returned to Kingman. Apparently it is a must see. The animals are mostly non-desert animals that have been rescued. If you take the guided tour, you will learn the stories behind the animals. Wish we had seen it. Our last weekend here, we drove to the ghost town of Cerbat. I think we made it there, but not sure, as it is no longer a "town", just the middle of the desert. The ride was fun though. You definitely have to have a 4-wheel drive vehicle to do most of the drive. We did see some old abandoned mines, a working mine (off Mineral Park road), and some great scenery. Kingman has been an interesting adventure. I have loved my job, meeting new people, seeing new places, but it's time to be closer to family. Our original plan in coming to AZ was to be near my 2 sisters in the Phoenix area. We are on our way to Mesa for the next month, enjoy our family, and wait to see where God places us next!