Tuesday, March 31, 2020

We are Finally All Set Up Here

As soon as we got the RV parked and set up, we went to see Janice to place the order for the shed we wanted.  Unfortunately, because we took the mini-vacation trip to Roswell and Alamogordo, we missed the first window of time that it could have been delivered.  That was OK though because it gave us time to decide EXACTLY where we wanted to place it, and get the paving blocks we wanted it set onto.  The picture above on the left was immediately after it was placed, and we had put an outdoor rug inside it.  Soon after, we began getting things delivered to put inside.  As you can see, Millie had to check out the work bench on the left and the shelves on the right. 

We considered a larger refrigerator, but since we had the small freezer, seen on top of the refrigerator, plus the one in the RV, we decided on one that is 7.4 cubic feet, and it fit in the shed perfectly.  Then we began filling the shelves.
As you can see, we had a lot of things we wanted to get out of the RV and the car.
We also have a clothing rack where we have put garment bags of out of season clothes, and our good hats are safely stored in sealed plastic storage boxes.
 Here it is.  Along with setting up the shed, I decided I wanted to start the next stage of our lives with some new items to "spruce up" the RV.  You can see the new area rugs we got for in the living room, in the dining room, including under the table and also a matching hall runner.
 After removing the plastic boxes we used under the table for storage, I got this idea.  We bought this 24 inch tall book shelf.  After Jim assembled it, we turned it on its side and put casters on it, then added these striped bins for magazines (on his side) and mostly cook books on my side.  When we need to seat four people at the table, it can simply roll out on the casters!
This may not look very impressive, but I bought these hanging storage "cubbies" over a year ago, and was just waiting until we moved other stuff into the shed, so I could use these in my linen closet.  Yippee.  And last, but surely not least, we got a new toilet seat, with sea shells and a sea horse, and a matching bath rug to upgrade the privy!  We had the old oak seat for almost ten years, and although there were no splinters yet, it was time to replace it.  

Because of the high winds here, Jim had to get 10 inch spikes to hold down the rugs outside the RV and the shed.  We had to move the portable step over to the entry into the shed, so we ordered a new outdoor step for in front of the RV doorway.    Our 'over the door' towel rack we had on the bathroom door broke last week, so we are awaiting the arrival of a new one to hang our new towels on.  Then our bathroom will be as new as possible.  I had Robert (the guy who fixed our furnace when it died on us last month) looking for a blue sink for the bathroom, but no such luck.  He's also looking for a new kitchen sink for us, but as yet, no luck with finding the size we need.  Alas, we will live with this one for now.

I left my coronavirus comments to the end because I hardly know what to say.  The news is changing almost hourly, and seldom is the news good.  Businesses have closed, and some may not be able to re-open later on.  Some stores are price gouging on essential items, and some shoppers are hoarding these same essentials.  There are stories of people helping others.  I loved the report of a newspaper delivery man who was going shopping for many of his elderly clients who were afraid to risk going out to shop for themselves.  Sadly, some people are NOT following the orders to stay at home unless absolutely necessary.  Some people are being put off on necessary medical care such as chemotherapy and radiation treatments because hospitals don't want them to risk exposure to covid 19.  This is understandable, but also can increase their risks if they don't get treatments as needed.  Patients with covid 19 may need respirators for longer than average patients do, so there is a severe shortage of ventilators for those who need them.  This may result in hospitals having to choose between patients for who will get a ventilator and who will be left to possibly die because he or she could not get one.  Obviously I don't have the answers to these very trying times, but I do ask one and all to pray for our nation, and our world.  Please stay at home and avoid groups to reduce the spread of this virus.  You might be healthy enough to avoid getting sick with the virus, but you can catch it and possibly spread it to others.  They might be older, or immuno-compromised and might not survive it.  Please do all you can to stay well.  drink lots of water, get adequate rest, and wash your hands frequently.  Please do NOT hoard food or other essential supplies as we are all in this together.  It doesn't look like we will be able to celebrate Easter in our churches with our families and friends, but we must NOT forget the very, VERY important Easter message.  Jesus Christ came to earth to live among us, to teach us about our Heavenly Father, and most of all to die for our sins and show us that He rose again, so we would know that He has a place for us in Heaven with Him.  In spite of these difficult times, He is here for us.  He loves us and His message has not changed.  God has not changed, and His promise to us has not changed.  We wish all of you good health, and a renewed faith in the future, because HE LIVES.




Saturday, March 7, 2020

So Happy to be Here

It doesn't seem possible that we have been here over three weeks, but we have.  Our shed has not been delivered yet, but we hope it will be here soon.  I have already ordered a rug for inside and a matching mat for outside of the shed.  We want them here to put into the shed, when it arrives, before we start putting things into the shed.  I think I will order at least a few shelves before it gets here too.
We wanted to show Diane & Jim a good time while they were here, so we took a road trip last week.  We spent two days in Roswell, NM, where the aliens landed......and one day in Alamogordo.  The trip was a lot of fun, but our accommodations  left much to be desired, and I made the reservations, so I can't blame anybody else.  Now for some pictures:
This green guy, and the sign on the right were in the office of our motel in Roswell.
 This picture was taken in the visitors center, Jim was out in the car with all four of our dogs.  Please remember that for clarification, I will refer to Diane's husband as Red, and my hubby as Jim.  The picture on the right was displayed in the International UFO Museum in Roswell.
 Red wanted to visit 
with some of the "locals".
 But the guys on the right didn't have much to say.
 This handsome dude was also in the visitors center when we were there.
Here are Jim & Willie on the bed in our room.


We saw this on our way from Roswell to Alamogordo.  Yes, it is wrong to deface natural things, but this was an interesting sight.

 We had to stop here.  So much to see.  Jim had to say hello to the lady, but she was too shy to speak.


There were many funny signs, but Jim especially liked this one.  Diane and I liked the one on the right.
I couldn't leave out this sign below that we also saw here in Hondo.
On our way to Alamogordo, we TRIED to stop and visit the Billy the Kid Museum, but wouldn't you know we came on the one day a week they were closed.  We did take some pictures outside though.  You can't miss the UFO and aliens on the right side of this sign.  I think it said this guy was Black Jack Pershing.


In Tularosa we saw this and just had to get a picture of this cute lawn decoration.





Finally we got to Alamogordo, and stopped at
PistachioLand to see the world's tallest Pistachio nut.  We bought some nuts, some pumpkin/pistachio butter, and souvenir stuff here.  About a half mile down the road we stopped at Eagle Ranch/Heart of the Desert where we bought pistachio wine, pistachio candy and pistachio caramel popcorn.  I signed up for the wine club so I will receive two bottles of wine of my choice every other month.  Now that was worth the stop, and as a member, I get a 20% discount on my wines.

 This was on the main street in Alamagordo.  It was in a large park that had a smaller train running around that people could ride on.
If it is possible, the motel in Alamogordo was even worse than the one in Roswell!!!  So we were ALL very happy to get back home to Arrey on Thursday.  Diane took some other pictures, but she hasn't sent them to me yet, so I will have to include them in our next blog.  
After we got back home and put things away, Jim hung up my newest owl. I love it, and now we don't have to hang the dog's leashes on those ugly plastic Command hooks!  Willie and Millie were so happy to be home that they spent the rest of the day in their own beds!  Traveling is a lot of fun, but it's always wonderful to come back home.  Yesterday I baked a cake, and we all enjoyed it very much.  I gave my big Kitchenaide mixer to a friend here in the park so now I have more room in my kitchen cabinets for my wine glasses and bottles of wine!  All is good.  

The trip was great, and we thanked God for our safe travels each day and getting home safe and sound.  Our God is an awesome God and never let's us down.  

Hopefully I will have the pictures Diane took and new pictures of our shed to include the next time we post our blog.
Bye for now, and if you are in a state that does this, don't forget to move your clocks ahead one hour tonight.