Apple Creek Campground, De Pere, WI

The time has come for us to leave Hidden Valley RV Resort, on of the nicest campgrounds we have been in, and head for Apple Creek Campground, De Pere, WI. We got on the road about 8:20, a bit earlier than normal but I don’t sleep late on travel days and so we usually end up leaving early.

We had a great time at Hidden Valley. We got to know a few couples who live there in the summer and go south in the winter. One of them, Smitty, he worked for a grocery chain, Woodman’s, a local chain in WI from the time he was eighteen until he retired at fifty-five. He said when he retired 21 years ago he thought he had enough money. I don’t know if he needs the money or he just likes to keep busy but he works full time for the resort. He and his wife winter in Foley, AL, we spent a night there last March while visiting Dave and Shari Frantz, it is a nice area. Anyway, Smitty took on a tour of the workings of the campground. He showed me the shop where, I don’t remember his name, custom makes parts for the equipment so old you can’t buy parts anymore for them. It was a great place to stay, we were only 22 miles from Robert and Sarah’s house, we were there quite a bit. We stayed with the kids eight days and enjoyed every minute of it, but I do know for certain now why you should have your kids when you are young. We were exhausted at the end of each day. Sarah more than me because she was doing something with the kids all day, I couldn’t keep up with them so I did other things.

Today Mason started first grade, Alexa did also in Nevada, Madyson went back to pre school, Emily begins kindergarten, Isabel will try to keep up with her and Eli won’t care one way or other. Bryon is in his first year at Des Moines Area College. Where has the time gone? It doesn’t seem that long ago Bryon was just learning to walk. Well I pray all of you have a great year of learning.

We took Hwy 151 out of Madison, then 26 to Oshkosh and 41 to County Road U. Now the GPS had us going the same way until we got to the campground. I turned off of 41 onto County Rd U and missed the campground entrance, it was very well marked, the sign was hidden by trees and the turn into it was tight, we went down the road for another two miles to where the GPS said the campground was and it was a corn field. So we turned around, no small feat but I found a place with a BIG German shepherd on a log chain barking it’s fool head off. I had Sarah get out of the truck and watch for traffic so I could back onto the road. She informed me after she got back into the truck that she was bitten by a German Shepard once. Anyway we made it back to the campground entrance and being on the other side of the road made it easier to enter.

We checked in and it is not cheap but not the most expensive we have paid. I did find out after checking in we have no sewer, we do have electric and water, but they come around on Monday and Thursday to pump out you tanks. I’m ok with that. So we looked at the campground showers and they are clean but you have to pay to take a shower, 25 cents for 3 minutes. This is the first campground where they had pay showers. The brochure says it is to conserve water.

The site is ok, we have satellite service so I won’t complain. The site is not very big, but we are seeing that a lot and the no sewer option is big for WI campgrounds, most of them don’t have sewer. I suppose it is because the majority of their clientele are weekenders and they dump there tanks before leaving each time.

When coming off 41 on the off ramp I didn’t think the brakes were working properly. I had truck brakes but when I applied them I didn’t feel the trailer brakes take hold, I tried the manual handle on the brake controller and discovered I had no trailer brakes. I look at the reservoir and it was empty. I can’t crawl under the camper but I could see one wheel was wet and I could feel and see brake fluid on the brake line, so a connection broke, came loose or the line broke. We don’t know and can’t really tell from our vantage point. So I went to the office to see if they knew of a mobile service, they gave me a card and I called the number. Tim answered and I explained my problem to him and he said he didn’t know anything about disc brakes so he told me to call the RV dealer in De Pere. I did and they said they could look at it tomorrow and then they would most likely have to order parts and we would have to make a couple trips to get the unit fixed. So I thought maybe we could wait, since we aren’t pulling the camper anywhere, and get it fixed on the way to Iowa. So I called a dealer in Appleton, just 17 miles away, and set a time to stop and have them look at it. So we have a plan. If they can’t fix it I will have them plugged the line and we will travel with only three brakes until I can find someone to fix it.

We plan on driving back to Oshkosh and go through the EAA museum, experimental aircraft museum. Another day we want to go to Manitowoc, WI to see the submarine museum and then to see the Shrine of Our Lady of Good Help, it is in Champion, WI. So we will be busy. I don’t know if we will get to Door County or not, time will tell.

So until later, remember Dreams Do Come True.

Cubs vs. Cardinals

We went to the Cubs vs. Cardinals game last Friday, we had a great time. Robert put it all together and I have to admit he did a very good job. I don’t really like driving in Chicago, but I love Chicago, so Robert had us drive to Harvard, IL and ride the Metra train into town. Harvard is the end of the line for this particular route so we were the first ones on the train which turns out was a blessing. As we proceeded into Chicago we picked up a lot of people to the point where some folks had to stand until we got to the Irving Park station where all those, a couple hundred, got off the train to catch a bus to Wrigley Field.
There were two buses waiting for the train at street level and they were crowded to the point of us standing the twenty minute ride, four miles, but with stop and go traffic it took a while to get to our stop. When we got off the bus we were three blocks from the ballpark. The day was beautiful so the walk was very nice. We were smart enough to eat at a Subway outside the park, inside the food is very expensive as most of you know. We got to our seats about fifteen minutes before the game began, the seats were better than I thought they would be. Wrigley Field has pillars, it is an old park for those of you who have never been there, these pillars can be a nuisance by blocking your view at times. We were far enough behind and to one side of the pillar in front of us that it didn’t bother us at all. Our seats were high enough so we had a good view of the action on the field. The Cardinals scored first and were ahead by four runs before we knew it and I figured the Cubs were going to add another lose to their record, but in the ninth inning they tied the game and were able to win it in the tenth inning. A perfect way to end a great afternoon.
Except the afternoon wasn’t over yet, our train didn’t leave until 8:30 pm so we walked about four blocks or so south of Wrigley to a restaurant called Leona’s, a great choice. We had our fill there and then began our walk back toward Wrigley. All of the bars along the way were packed with folks enjoying the Cub victory. Actually, I believe they would have been enjoying themselves regardless if the Cubs won or not. We bought a couple of t-shirts at a shop close to the ballpark, I found a shirt I really liked but I refuse to pay $45 for a t-shirt.
We made our way back up to Irving Park and Clark to wait for our bus back to the train station. We arrived at the station about a half hour before the train was to leave so we had a bit of a wait. Once the train arrived we boarded and was back in Harvard by 10:30 pm. The little ones were hungry, well so were the big ones, so we found a McDonalds and had an ice cream. Sarah and I got home about 12;30 am, a long day but a great one. Thank you Robert for getting everything together.
Saturday Sarah and I didn’t do much, some laundry, reading and went to church in the evening. Then yesterday we did about the same, nothing. Today we are with Mason and Madyson while Sarah and Robert are at work. It is fun being with them, they have so much energy and imagination, I hope they never lose either.
Here are a couple of pictures I lifted from Sarah Ann’s Facebook page.
Sarah Ann took this picture of her folks, Terri & Dick, Robert, Madyson, Mason and Sarah and I.
Mason and MadysonAll of us in our seats.If you can enlarge this picture you will see a formation of jets doing a practice run for the Air & Water show which was in Chicago Saturday and Sunday.
This is something the Cubs haven’t done much this year a celebration meet on the field.
Sarah and I have been planning on wintering in AZ this coming winter and were pretty much set on Casa Grande but an opportunity presented itself and we will be workamping at Cal-AM Mesa Regal RV Park, http://www.cal-am.com/resorts/resorts_details.php?resorts_id=15&search=quick, this is one of nine parks. We will work 4 hours a day, three days a week. We are looking forward to saving some money and meeting new people. We are also looking into a couple of opportunities for next summer, more about that as we can finalize something.
That’s if for now, remember Dreams Do Come True.

More from Wisconsin

Where does the time go? We have been in Wisconsin for two and half weeks and it seems like we just arrived except it isn’t 110 in the shade.

We are staying at Hidden Valley RV Resort, you probably already know that, in Milton, WI. http://hiddenvalleyrvresort.com/

The entrance to the park has this guard shack which is only manned on Friday and Saturday because on those two days they charge five dollars per person to get into the park. I suppose it is to compensate the campground for visitors coming in and using the facilities. In the other picture our camper is the second to last camper in the picture, you probably can’t see it but it is there.

Sarah gets me out to walk two to three times a day, weather permitting. If we walk the circumference of the park it is one mile and if we walk to the entrance of the park we add another half mile so we can get in some nice walks. I do try to go at least twice a day but I have made it three times.

One of our goals in staying here for the month, in addition to being with the kids, is to see folks we knew when we lived in Marshall, WI.

Our first visitors were Jim and Jo Aubuchon. Jim and I were in the Air Force together, roommates when we were stationed at Dyess AFB, Abilene, TX. We had some good time there from 1965 to 1967. I went to Vietnam in ‘67 and Jim went to Thailand a few months later. Jo is still working, Jim retired from JC Penny Distribution in Milwaukee a few years back and now works part time at the Harley Davidson Museum in Milwaukee as a guide, http://www.harley-davidson.com/wcm/Content/Pages/HD_Museum/Museum.jsp.

Robert and Sarah asked us if we could watch Mason & Madyson a couple of days, we said yes and signed on to be with the kids for seven days. I know why you have kids when you are young because they wear you out. It is fun to be with them, I love their imagination. One day they were riding around the garage on their bikes and whatever when Mason pulls up next to me and says I want a hamburger and coke, he decided I was a McDonald’s, so I said “you want fries with that?”. After a couple of times doing that after he placed his order and paid me I told him to go to the next window, the business had grown so we used two windows for the transactions.

Max & Diana Varner were coming to visit but Diana’s mother fell and she had to go be with her, we wish her well and a speedy recovery, but Max came out to visit. Max was my boss at Ruan when we lived in WI. It was a pleasure working for and with him. Currently Max is Northern Zone Distribution Manager for Air LIquide. It was good to see him. We had a good visit and he said he was going to try to bring Diana out to see the camper. We look forward to seeing her. We went out for a bite to eat and Max bought, thank you Max.

Next was another Ruan friend Roger Mason and his wife Debbie. Roger was sales manager for Max and our region. Roger has always looked ten years younger than he is and that still holds true today. Debbie doesn’t look any older than the last time I saw her, they make a great looking couple. Roger is currently working for Ruan again after a few year hiatus with another company, he is Sr. Vice-President  of Sales for Ruan Transport. Roger picked up the dinner tab and for that we thank you. It was great to see both Roger and Debbie and hopefully it won’t be so long the next time.

Joyce Knapton is one of the nicest person you would ever want to meet, although she won’t let Wayne join us for lunch. Joyce lived down the street from us in Marshall, she works for the state of WI in the vital records office, not quite sure what she does but she has been doing that job for 17 years and has been with the state for 30+ years. We met here for lunch at Francesca’s al Lago Restaurant, http://www.miafrancesca.com/static.asp?path=3092. If you are ever in Madison this is a great place to eat, the food is very good and it is right across the street from the capital building. We had a great lunch and caught up on family and friends.

We have a couple more folks to get together with, if we can find mutually free time. Friday we are going to Chicago to a Cub – Cardinal game, that should be fun. We are riding the train from Harvard, IL to Irving Park and then a Metro bus to within a couple of blocks of Wrigley field. That will be a fun time.

A couple pictures of the kids to close out this blog:

Madyson in a poseMason, just normal and I think a bit cold.

Until later, Dreams Do Come True

Hidden Valley RV Resort, Milton, WI

We are in Wisconsin, I don’t remember the weather being this hot and humid when we lived here. The day we arrived it was in the nineties and the heat index in the hundreds, but more about that in a minute. I need to get caught up on our last couple weeks.
When we arrived in Elkhart I couldn’t get the toll booth to take my credit card, whoops it wouldn’t take the Visa so I tried MasterCard and it wouldn’t take it either, there was no attendant on duty. I had to resort to good old cash I had to find it first. We finally put together enough cash and the gate raised for us. I’m always afraid the gate is going to come down before we get the camper through and then we would have a mess. So I had the brilliant idea of getting the I-Pass, http://www.illinoistollway.com/portal/page?_pageid=133,1392734&_dad=portal&_schema=PORTAL,  or EZ-Pass, http://www.illinoistollway.com/portal/page?_pageid=133,1392734&_dad=portal&_schema=PORTAL,  as some states call them. Indiana’s is called I Zoom  and accepted in multiple states. It is a device you attach to your windshield and this allows you to go through the toll booths without stopping, the device is read by cameras and the toll is charged to your account. I bought the device in Indiana and it is good in fourteen states, including Illinois, I predict more states will begin putting toll booths on some highways, especially new construction, to pay for the maintenance of the roads. So on our trip back to Illinois it worked great.
More about our last week in Indiana. So on July 27th we went to the DRV Suites plant http://www.drvsuites.com/. This company used to be called Doubletree RV but the Doubletree Hotel chain made them quit using the name so they became DRV Suites. This plant reminded me a lot of the Excel facility. It is not as big as all the others, except for Forks RV, and you are able to get up close to the units as they are being built. We were the only ones on the tour who did not already own a Mobile Suite RV. They are a quality built unit and have many things in common with our Excel unit. Mobile Suite was my second choice going into this lifestyle and what I saw would make me consider them again if we ever replace the unit we have.
Out next factory tour was at Heartland Industries, http://www.heartlandrvs.com/. This was another company I looked at, they were in the top four on my list. They make a good product, again there production line is not as big as some of the other manufacturers but they still produce 14 or 15 units a day. I wasn’t as impressed with their production processes as Forks RV and DRV but the finished product looks very nice.
As usual Sarah had me out walking a least three times a day, first thing when we got up, noon, and evening. Of course I always had some type of excuse not to walk but she always gave this look, you guys know the look, and I always gave because I knew it was best for me anyway. Of course I haven’t lost any weight because most of the campgrounds have these freezers and in the freezers are the ice cream bars etc. I don’t indulge every day but whenever I can or Sarah lets me I get one and enjoy.
We left Elkhart on Sunday the 31st and drove to Hollywood Casino RV Park, Joliet. We stayed there on our way to IN and it is good for an overnight stay. I don’t understand, except for cost, why they didn’t put in sewer. The cost is a bit high but from my research not for this area. The EZ- Pass worked great I didn’t have to stop except for the toll booth in IN, they make you stop and it reads the device in the truck and puts up the gate, they sort of defeat the purpose of traffic flow.
We arrived at Joliet about ten thirty and Sarah called her niece Cheryl and her and Rod, her husband, came out and we met them at the casino and had lunch. We ate at the buffet, wrong thing to do because the choices were numerous and tempting. I did eat too much. We had a great visit with Rod and Cheryl, they go to see the camper and we caught up on the goings on in their lives.
That night Tom and Cathy, long time friends from the Ruan days, came out to the campground. We hadn’t seen them for a couple of years. Tom had a stroke about five years ago and even though he is impaired by the stroke a bit he hasn’t changed at all. He is still up beat, gregarious and as ornery as ever. Now Cathy is a saint mostly for having to put up with Tom. She is as young looking as ever, of course I always tell Tom we come to see him when in fact it is Cathy I come to see. We had a great time with them, went out to dinner and thoroughly enjoyed the evening. Tom even bought dinner, thank you for your graciousness.
Monday morning we headed north and got to our campground around one, more on that in the next post.
Remember- Dreams Do Come True

Manufacturer Visits

Tuesday we went to see the Carriage RV plant and see how they build the Carriage brand RVs, http://www.carriageinc.com/. They give tours Monday – Thursday at 9:30 am, you gather at the tour center located by their RV park. The RV park has about twenty sites, FHU, and you stay free the night before the tour. The tour was good in that you got a glimpse of how they build the campers but you don’t get to get up close and talk with the employees. In fact only one plant we went to allow this, two if we count Excel when we toured their plant. The Carriage plant is currently building 4-5 units per week, I don’t know if this is the number they maintain all the time or it is due to the economic times, I forgot to ask. All in all it is a good tour even though you don’t get up close, until the end of the tour, you do get a feel for the quality that goes into the units. Carriage does build their own frames, something I like. As with all the plants we toured they employ a number of Amish folks. We also toured the building where they make all their own seats, pillows etc. This building was air conditioned and big. They do all the upholstery work for all their divisions. It was interesting to see how fast the sewing machines could go and watching the ladies run the machines. I am sure I would be sewing my fingers to the fabric and I would not be able to keep up with the quota requirements.

Wednesday we went to the Jayco plant, http://www.jayco.com/php/products/fifth.wheels/trailer.php?id=248, this company was the biggest manufacturer we visited, They have a number of plants producing different makes in this one area, we toured the Pinnacle line. The  Pinnacle is Jayco’s high end fifth wheel, they have discontinued the Designer line of campers. This company has the nicest tour center, they even sell Jayco shirts, jackets and hats. They have a few of the camper models sitting at the center so you get an idea of what they make and the differences in them. You get on a tour bus and ride out to the plant, we were going to see the Pinnacle being made, they make one model at a time. Jayco’s frames are made at another company which is owned by the family who owns Jayco, they are brought in on a just in time basis. The company has enough components at the plant to build the units on the line for that day. The plant quota is to build seven campers per day and my understanding is the employee bonus is predicated on meeting this goal. I don’t much care for the incentive or piece work compensation when building a “high” end fifth wheel. We were able to go through the final product and it was nice but so far the Carriage was better.

I called a company called Forks RV in Shipshewana, http://forksrv.com/continental/, to see if they gave tours and the message said they were closed due to a death in the family. So I sent them an email asking if they gave tours and I received an answer this morning saying they do anytime between 10 and 2, so we headed over to see them. From their website I knew they build high end units and they build for overseas delivery also. We met with Jay Troyer, he is in sales and marketing, he gave us a nice overview of the company and then we went out to see the production. It takes them approximately 50 days to build a unit depending on the specifications. The model we looked at was the Continental Express, this is the entry level fifth wheel but beat all the others we had seen since being here. In all my research to find our fifth wheel I did not come across this company but they are worth a look at if you are looking for a well built unit. They will take your ideas and/or floorplans and put engineer them into a livable unit, within all safety standards. They had three units, two fifth wheels and a travel trailer, being built with the entry door on the left side of the camper, these units were going to England. The workmanship and quality in these units was very noticeable. They are updating their website soon to show more of the fifth wheel line for 2012. It was a good visit and I thank Jay for the tour and time he took to visit with us. If you are looking for a high end unit built with quality and class, this is the company. They are not cheap and the units reflect that throughout, here are pictures of what they build, go to the web site for more pictures and information:

Thursday, after our tour of Forks RV we got something to eat and then went to see how Heartland builds their units. Of course the GPS put us at the wrong building but after looking around we found the correct building. A nice young lady greeted us and we gave them our name etc. and had a seat. At three we, five of us, began the tour with a guy from marketing, I don’t remember his name. With the temperatures today in the 90s and heat index above a hundred they let the employees go home so the tour was sans noise but in some cases not much lighting either. It wasn’t the best tour I have ever been on. The Big Horn was the unit that was being built so we did get to see the different steps in the building process. It was interesting to see what goes into this process, it seemed to be better than the Jayco and about the same as the Carriage but far below the Continental’s process.

So after seeing these plants I would have to say if I were looking to buy now I would definitely look at the Continental, they have the quality and the care in the building process I looked for in a well built camper.

We are here for another week, leaving on the 31st.

Remember – Dreams Do Come True

Still in Elkhart, IN

We have been here a whole week and have accomplished quite a bit. If you are ever in Elkhart we recommend the Elkhart Campground, it is fairly reasonable about $28 per night FHU. I looked for lower rates and did find a couple but if you take into account the distance we would have to travel to our appointments etc. then this was the best fit for us.

Last Tuesday we took the camper into MOR/ryde and they did their thing and we were out Wednesday afternoon with a MOR/ryde IS suspension. The drive to the campground didn’t show me if the suspension is that great but we’ll see once we get on the road. We did have some pictures we left standing behind the couch and they did not fall over so that is a good sign.

The front of the offices at MOR/ryde

This is the area you stay in the night before your unit is worked on, 30 amp only.

This is where we parked the truck while the unit was in the shop. The building has back in bays backed up to each other, our camper was on the other side of the building.I tried to get a picture of our camper but the fence blocks it a little bit.Our camper is in the second bay.

The folks here were very nice, they have muffins and pastries in the morning, the individual coffee do higgies, water, soda and tea, plus chips etc. They give you a choice of three restaurants to choose lunch from and they go get it and pay for it. We stayed in the camper Tuesday night with 30 amp and cable TV. We were very impressed by the desire to take care of the customer.

Wednesday we headed for the Elkhart Campground and our home for the next two weeks. We have a grass site they are all grass sites except for a couple of permanent sites and those folks probably had the pad poured themselves, that is probably 35’ wide and 70+’ long. The sites are grass and we have full hookups with 50 amp electric. The electric is being stretched quite a bit with this hot weather, my monitor is right on the green if not a bit of red, but in the morning I am in the middle of the green. All in all we are fine with it. We are within 15 minutes of our appointments and that is what I was looking for.

Yesterday we went to Pinnacle RV Service at 1011 Herman St, 574-522-2636, Jason Miller is the service manager. I include all of this information because if you are ever in Elkhart and need work done on your unit call Jason. He went out of his way to help us with our inverter/charger problem. I had called Xantrex, the maker of our inverter, and I was told to call Pinnacle, they handle all of Monaco’s inverter installations of the Xantrex inverter. Jason worked us in yesterday even with two employees out west at the Monaco Rally, in fact he handle our problem himself. He took the inverter out, took it to Xantrex and picked it up and reinstalled it in the camper. We were there a total of three hours. Excellent service from these folks call them if you need service in the Elkhart area.

One of the items Pinnacle installs are new seats and Jason was telling me about a new sofa they are going to be manufacturing. It is a hidabed couch that has a bunk bed attached to it. My understanding is the bunk is stored under the couch and is pulled out and goes above the couch and locked into place so the couch sleeps two and the bunk one. Interesting concept, Forest River is testing the idea in some of their campers.

Today we went to the Carriage RV plant. Carriage was one of the units I was looking at during my research. I dismissed them because the units we looked at had the entry door blocking the basement door, I didn’t like that. It was a very enlightening visit/tour. There were some interesting things they do to their units, a storage compartment in the rear of the camper, the roof is not rubber or fiberglass but another material which looked to me to be a big improvement over the rubber roof. However, I didn’t find anything to tell me I bought from the wrong manufacturer. Sarah and I both came away believing we made the right decision for us.

They we went to the Shipshewana Flea Market, there are over a thousand vendors at this thing. It is open Tuesday and Wednesday only, a three dollar charge to get in but when we left about two no one was taking money so I guess go later and save. We had lunch at the Auction Barn restaurant and it was delicious. Sarah wanted to see if she could find some beads and I was looking for a good leather belt and wallet but nothing jumped out at me nor did Sarah find anything to entice her to buy. So we went to the grocery store and picked up a few things and back to the camper. It is ninety degrees outside with a heat index of 150 trillion degrees or so it seems, we are inside and not wanting to go out.

We did go see the movie Larry Crowne with Tom Hanks and Julia Roberts, it is not Oscar caliber but a good movie never the less. As always the popcorn and large soda cost more than the admission.

Thursday we are going to the Jayco plant and see what there process looks like. I am hoping to see their new fifth wheel and see if I like it or not. We’ll see what other plants we get to next week.

I have been working on detailing the truck, I have the wheels and bed to do yet. I also have the sides of the camper to work on and hope to get to them next week or after we get to Wisconsin. I am very impressed with the Dri Wash product.

Until later remember – Dreams Do Come True.

Elkhart, IN

We left Mt. Pleasant last Sunday the 10th and had an uneventful drive to Joliet, IL, we camped at the Hollywood Casino RV park, more on that in a minute.

We had a great time in Mt. Pleasant, we were with Dave and Shari Frantz, the camp hosts. We have known them for over 35 years. It was fun being with them. I am not much of a dog or cat lover but Sarah got this picture of me and Moe, Dave & Shari’s dog.

I thought I better put a couple of pictures of Dave in also.

Larry & Kathy came out to see us and Dave grilled some steaks we had. He did a great job as usual. Larry loaned us his truck to use while we were in Mt Pleasant, it did help on the cost of driving around, especially after my previous fuel disaster. (The truck ran great coming over to IN.)

Thursday night Dave, Shari, Sarah and I went to Bryn Mawr to celebrate Sarah’s birthday and a belated celebration for Dave’s birthday. This is an excellent restaurant, http://www.brynmawrsteakhouse.com/contact-bryn-mawr-steakhouse-iowa-city-ia.htm, if you are in the area stop and have a great meal. Be aware if you like onion rings order the small if you are the only one to eat them, the medium order fed four of us nicely and the large would most likely feed a battalion.

Friday we made the tour of cemeteries in Burlington. We also visited with my aunts Mildred and Marcella, they have a great apartment. It was a very enjoyable visit and one we would repeat on the 5th because they had a bunch of pictures of grandma Ertz’s family and I wanted to scan them, which we did do.

Saturday we went to the cemetery Sarah’s parents are buried. We had planned on taking some beads we brought back from this year’s Mardi Gras but we forgot them. We did get a couple of small geodes to take to Daniel, he wants them for his garden.

Then is was off to Bette and Bob Coffman’s fiftieth anniversary party. Bette is Sarah’s cousin, it was fun Sarah got to see folks she hasn’t seen for a few years and I was able to renew some acquaintances also. We had a bit of trouble finding the restaurant. I input the address into the GPS and it took us to a place where there was no address so because I am a man I drove around trying to find it instead of stopping and asking someone for directions. Low and behold after a few minutes we did see the restaurant not far from where the GPS took us but we didn’t see it right away. It was a good time visiting with everyone.

As I mentioned in my last post I took on the position of an independent dealer for DWG International and their Dri Wash product. I spent three days using their products, Oxygone and the Dri Wash, getting the bugs off the front of the camper and tree sap off the back of it. Also, I did the same thing to the truck, I still have the chrome and the aluminum bed to clean up. The product worked as advertised and I am enthusiastic about it. Again if you are interested in it or want more information go to www.dwginternational.com and you can read all about it or call me and I will tell you about it.

After two weeks at Mt. Pleasant it was time to leave. We were on the road by 8:30 Sunday morning on our way to Joliet, IL. Our destination was the camp ground at the Hollywood Casino. I was surprised by the cost $24-34 for just water and electric. I had reserved a back in site but changed to a drive thru because after looking at things the back in sites were not that big, although I believe a couple of them would have been fine. So we kept the truck hooked up to the trailer and hooked up the electric and water. Then it was time to go to the casino and see how much we could loose. We both signed up for a casino card and later upon examining the cards we saw they were only good until the end of this month. I didn’t go back and ask about it because I don’t know when if ever we will be back.
I put a five dollar bill in a two cent slot machine and won a few cents, Sarah put two dollars in a machine and immediately won twelve dollars, so we stopped and went to eat. Neither of us are good at gambling so we never spend much money at a casino, but casino’s are usually good for camping. This casino campground is nice, over priced, and could be better if it had sewer hookups. We scheduled our stop here to see Tom & Cathy Gerdes, long time friends, but my timing wasn’t very good, they were in Las Vegas for their son’s wedding. We will see them another time.

Monday morning we were up by 7:30 with bright sunshine but by 8:30 we had cloudy dark skies and a huge storm heading our way. I watched the radar on TV and the computer, it seemed that the most damaging winds etc. would stay north of us and it did. We had a bit of wind, one brief moment we did get quite a gust of wind that rocked the camper for a minute or two. After that it rained hard for a brief time and then it was over.

Our trip to Elkhart was a rough one. I don’t remember I80 being that rough but I suppose that is why they are working on it. There is a lot of construction on 80 in the area from Joliet to the IN state line.

We arrived at the MOR/ryde facility about two in the afternoon, after visiting with Ben who gave us the low down on what was going to happen we parked in their camping area. They provide a free place to park and 30 amp electric service. I plugged in and noticed we were on the low side of good electric and after starting up the AC, TV, satellite and refrigerator the needle on my electric meter was just in the red so I put the fridge over to LP and this put the meter back in the green. It was a short night as they wanted the camper at seven in the morning.

Tuesday we were up early and had everything ready for Tony, he was going to do the work on our camper, he came out to the camper and explained what he was going to do. First he took a lot of measurements, then he backed the unit into the bay where he was going to do the work and they put the camper on scales and got the weight on each wheel. He said he would have to raise the back of the camper by about two inches. They want the unit as level as possible when hooked to the truck. Tony did a great job of backing the camper into his work bay, I would probably still be trying to get it in, you could tell he has done this numerous times.

He explained what he was going to do and answered my questions, we were told we could stay in the camper last night which saved on motel costs. The company provides a 30 amp electric and cable TV service so we plugged into both and enjoyed the evening in our camper.

More about our visit later.

Remember – Dreams Do Come True.