A season in Alabama

I guess time flys when you are having fun. It has almost been four months since our last blog entry but we doubt too many folks have been anxiously awaiting a new posting. We are about to depart Alabama for our next adventure and it seems appropriate to at least bring this blog up to date before we go any further. When we arrived here we had planned to spend time with the grandkids (as well as with our daughter Jayme and her husband Chris), catch-up on some RV maintenance, and play some golf. We will leave here knowing we have done all the above and more.
GRANDKIDS ARE GREAT
It has been awesome watching the grandkids grow. CJ, too small to come home with his Mom after birth 4 months ago, has eaten himself into a healthy little chunk. At the rate he is going, he’ll be the little brother only because of the two year difference in age and not because of size. He is a treat to be with. He has a sparkling grin that warms your heart every time you give him the least bit of attention – look at him, touch him, hold him and he smiles just shy of a giggle.
His big sister, Braelyn, loves JC dearly. When she can hold him she beams. When she returns from day care, her first action is to check on JC. She is the little Mommy and we believe she would even be capable of changing his diaper. Her vocabulary is increasing daily. All grandparents think they precious little ones are the smartest, but this little girl can count (not just say her numbers) in both English and Spanish (Let’s hear it for Dora the Explorer), she knows all the letters of the alphabet and when she tries, she even colors inside the lines. Her little brother’s smile is only surpassed by the perpetual pleasantness of his bigger sister. She always seems happy although she is starting to think that a little whining might be a means to and end. While running down the gravel lane in the RV park she took a nasty spill. She got up, brushed away the bits of gravel imbedded in her hands, said “ouch” and smiled before running off again. No child should be this good but it sure makes for fun grandparenting.
ROUTINE MAINTENANCE
After the 6-month routine maintenance is completed next week, the RV will be ready for travel. We installed a braking system in our TOAD, (the car we tow behind the RV) as well as a screen that stretches between the RV and toad to reduce stone damage. When we sold our old jeep, the windshield was severly pitted, as a result of following the RV.
Jay never did get a position at the Robert Trent Jones golf course but he ended up as a greenskeeper at a local countryclub. Pay was poor but all his golf was free and by playing 3-5 times per week, he has been able to get his handicap down to a 13 and it is still going down. He’s been shooting in the low 80s consistently and has even turned in a round or two in the 70s. That’s great golf for him.
EVERYONE SHOULD GO ON A CRUISE


Although this life style has us on a perpetual vacation, we took a vacation from the RV and flew to Los Angeles where we boarded the Monarch of the Seas for a 16 day cruise with stops in Puerto Vallerta and Alcapulco, Mexico; Puerto Quetzal, Guatemala; Puntarenas, Costa Rica; Cristobal Pier in the Panama Canal; and Cartagena, Columbia in South America before landing in Miami. There were too many highlights to talk about but Costa Rica was our best portcall. Toucans, king vultures, and a few sea birds added another dozen birds to Jay’s life list. The food on board – both the quality and quantity will long be remembered. Although Sandi has managed to get back to her pre-cruise weight, Jay has only dropped 3 of the 12 pounds he put on. We did like the food!
In a few weeks we will park the RV here in Alabama while we drive the toad to MD and PA for some family time, celebrate some holidays, and then return only to hook-up and head west. Right now we do not have a destination in mind and have no idea when we expect to get there. We want to pass through San Antonio but the weather will determine if we leave here and head northwest through Branson Missouri before heading southwest or take a more southerly route.
As much as we would like to find a volunteer position at one of the parks in the southwest, most of the positions are already filled and the likelyhood of getting a seasonal ranger position (one of the prioroty items on Jay’s to-do list) is slim because of the timing. We may just bounce around the southwest during the late winter/early spring season. Jay will be trying for a seasonal ranger position in Yellowstone National Park this coming summer.