Farmer's Market and lunch at Booche's in Columbia, MO

We arrived in Columbia, Missouri on July 30th hoping to stay at Cottonwood RV Park for 4 nights. Well maintained and named Top Rated in Trailer Life for 2009.  A biker conference was coming into Columbia on Monday and all parks, and motels were full.  We could stay 2 nights but had to leave on Sunday.  Pralines and I really loved this park and wished we could stay longer.  There was a lovely pool. A very nice laundry and beautiful grounds, flowers all around every campsite.

On Saturday, we headed to a Farmer's Market. It was crowded and the vendors had wonderful fruits and vegetables of all types.  There was eggs and fresh trout as well.  Also baked goods.  Some of the vendors were Amish. I didn't know there was an Amish Community in Missouri.  As you can see there was entertainment also.  They had a stimulus jar for tips.  We enjoyed them.

For my birthday Heather had gotten me a book called Roadfood by Jane and Michael Stern.  They write the "Roadfood" column in Gourmet, the winner of three James Beard Awards for Best Magazine Series, and are regulars on public radio's The Splendid Table.  Knowing we were hitting the road Heather thought this book was a must as it promised affordable, enjoyable dining options along America's highways and back roads. In Columbia, MO. Jane and Michael recommended Booches, so we headed there for lunch.  Booches is a magic name to hamburger aficionados.  We located this restaurant is in the heart of downtown Columbia in the University of Missouri District.  As you can see the inside has a beautifully craved bar.  We were lucky to get a table.  We got there around noon

but before we left the placed was jammed.  The empty bar that you see in this picture, was soon full of people  waiting for a table.  We ordered two hamburgers and two diet cokes.  No french fries here but you could get a bag of potato chips.  The burgers were cooked behind the bar and arrived on waxed paper.  The burgers were about the size of sliders.  We took one bite and ordered two more.  Delicious!!! This is also a billiard parlor and there were a few guys playing.  Bob thought they should put in more tables and get rid of the billiard tables. We just got a taste of Columbia but we had no more reservations at our campground we had to move on to somewhere tomorrow.

We were fortunate to find online a state campground at Fingers Lake where we could get reservations.  We would have to move but would be just a little further outside of town, so that we could spend more time in a town we were falling in love with in a very short time.

Out of touch- Boonieville

On our way to Hannibal, Missouri, we spent two nights at Boiling Springs Resort outside of Dixon, Missouri.   This campground was 6 miles off interstate 70 and then another 8 miles down a country road, and finally 1/4 mile over rough gravel and down a hill to this campground.  It looked like a farmers pasture with some gravel driveways.  They rented canoes, kayaks, and inner tubes and transported canoe trips from one location to another besides having camping sites.  There were several tent campers, a few trailers and two motorhomes, ours and one other.  We had planned to kayak here, but the weather was threatening the first night. We instead went out to the interstate and got groceries at Wal-mart and had dinner at Cracker Barrel. An army base is located at Dixon, Fort Leonard Woods, so we saw many of our fine young military men and their families while visiting Dixon. When we returned and finished setting up, we realized for the first time we had no internet, or telephone service.  We were really out in the boonies.

While walking Pralines we meet the other couple who had a motorhome.  They had a kayak of their own, but hadn't used it because the water was chocolate brown.  The heavy rains had caused run off that make the river brown.  Last week their daughter and her family had camped at Boiling Springs and the water was crystal clear.

It was not our favorite spot, as we felt like we had fallen off the face of the earth with no internet or cell phone service.  We needed to make reservations for our campground in Columbia, Missoui, our next stop on the way to Hannibal but couldn't because we had no service. We had wanted to stay 4 days at Cottonwood RV Park in Columbia, Missouri but we just had to go ahead and show up and hope for the best.

In the top picture of our motorhome, can you see the hole?  Bob is still determined to get it repaired.

Branson, Something Old and Something New

We stayed in Branson about 9 days, the longest we stayed anywhere.  We stayed at Turkey Creek RV Park, which is an Escapee's Park.  Escapees' RV Club's is a club we joined that takes care of our mail and forwards it to us wherever we are.  It also gives us discounts at some RV campgrounds and has campgrounds of their own where we get a 50% discount. They have rallies, where many members come.  This year it is in September in Goshen, Indiana, and Bob and I are already signed up to attend.  They expect 1,000 campers. There is lots more they do, so if you are interested follow the link.  This park had Tuesday night dinners, Friday night Jam Sessions, and Sunday Ice Cream Socials.  It allowed us to get to know more people and learn more about Branson and other places people recommended to camp.

When we first got to Branson, we didn't think we would see any shows. We went to the Landing, which is a lovely shopping area several times and had dinner at Macaroni Grill one night.  We shopped in old downtown and had blackberry cobbler and ice cream at the Farmhouse Resturant, which was super.  We decided after our successful driving lesson that we would go to see a show.  Bob picked.  He wanted to see The Platter's. I think maybe one of the members was from the original group, but we enjoyed the show. I guess it was because we knew all the songs and all the words to the songs.

We enjoyed the show so much that the next day we decided to see another show. My pick this time.  We went to see The Twelve Tenors. Wonderful singers and dancers.  They really put on a performance.  It didn't hurt that they were young and nice to look at too.  (I remember Sally Tillman telling me, when she was in her late 80's or  90's.  That when we were looking for a new Pastor, that it wouldn't hurt if they were nice to lay your eyes on, when the sermons got to long.  I was surprised that someone her aged cared.  Now, I understand:) We both enjoy this show a lot.  FYI: Most of the shows are either at 3:00 p.m. in the afternoon, or 8:00 p.m. in the evening, a few are even at 10:00a.m.  Heather told me that because old people don't like to stay up.  We went to the 3:00 p.m. shows.

After my great haircut at The River Front Salon, by Lyn McCoin and The Twelve Tenors and dinner with our Escapee friends, we picked up our mail and headed towards Hannibal, MO.

Learning to Drive

We had come to Branson, Mo. to learn how to drive our motorhome.  Bob was way ahead of the game, he had driven trailers in the past, and once we rented a gas Bounder and went to Palm Springs, CA for spring break.  He also had driven our motorhome from Amarillo, Texas to Branson, Missouri, with only one small hole in the side.  I had never driven anything bigger than our Honda CRV.

We took lessons from Rick Andrews, a well recommended instructor.  He meet us at our site, in Branson and started out giving us an overview of things we should know about our motorhome. He answered questions for us also.  He had a stick that he called a tire bat.  It looked like a pole with a metal strip around one end.  He thumped on each tire to make sure the tires weren't flat.  He asked Bob if he had a tire pressure gauge.  Bob did!!! It was still in the package.  He said we should  thump the tires before we leave each trip and use the tire gauge about once a month.  He started thumping our tires.  The front two were great, the back left two were fine, but the inside tire on the right side thumped empty.  Bob put the gauge on it and it was completely empty.  How long had it been empty???? Who knows, and Rick and Bob thought that was bad.  No driving lessons till we got the tire fixed. Yes, we called Coach-Net.  They came out, Eric worked in 100 degrees heat to fix the inside tire, which turned out to have a leaking valve.  He worked over an hour and our charge $40.00.  Like I said, we LOVE Coach-Net!!!!  By the time, our coach was ready to go, it was after 2:00 p.m. and Rick thought we should wait and start fresh in the morning.  So much for driving lessons day one, but we sure appreciated the tire lesson.  Could have saved us our lives and/or severe damage to our motorhome.  Thank you so much Rick!!! Lesson learned.  We now have our own tire bat and use it before each trip.

Friday, dawn hot and sunny.  Rick was at our coach ready to go at 8:00 a.m.  We had our coach ready to pull out to drive; slides in, jacks up, and unhooked from cable, electricity, water, and sewer.  Rick had me in the driver's seat by 8:15.  I pulled forward, turned left and learned to watch Rick for hand signal to back up.  Bob and I both learned how to talk to each other with our hands.  An important skill for me since I don't know my left from my right.  Before I knew it, I had backed a 40' motorhome into its spot without hitting anything. Amazing!!.  Bob's turn.  He did great and much quicker than I had done. (I still felt successful:)  Next it was time to hit the road.  I went first! I pulled out on the road drove around a little, made a bunch of right (square) turns.  My good friends the Henards had a bet going.  God fearing Christians that they are.  Charlene, my true friend, bet I would not hit anything.  Carl bet I would hit something.  Well....... I don't think I hit anything, unless a curb counts.  Charlene and I are sure it does not, but Carl thinks it does.  I did hit a curb pretty hard, the good thing is I kept the coach under control.  The bad thing was I broke a coffee cup and a few things fell on the floor of the motorhome.  When Bob drives nothing breaks or falls.  Bob drove next.  Then we went out to an interstate for some higher speed driving and up and down hills.  Missouri has lots of hills.  I learned about exhaust brakes.  I like them very much!!  I also learned that Missouri has a minimum speed law of 45 mph and that I need to speed up a little an I need to center the coach more.  I tend to drive too close to the right.  Many of you know that, that was my big complaint with Bob's driving.  That he drove too close to the right side.  It is so easy to criticize when you are not driving.  We returned safe and sound, except for one coffee cup.  Rick gave us certificates.  I guess that means we passed.  It also is my proof that I lived through it.  I never drove with the car attached, so I need some additional training, but I do feel confident enough if there was an emergency, I could drive.

Best of all, Rick's wife, Darlene recommended a great hair dresser for me in Branson.  I got the best hair cut I have had it several  years at and a good color.

Big Cedar Lodge

When Heather was pregnant with Addie, the Wilson girls, took their Girl's Weekend in October of 2007 at Big Cedar Lodge, outside of Branson, Missouri. Heather talked about how beautiful it was, so Bob and I decided to visit while we were in Branson.  It indeed was beautiful.  Here are a few pictures and a little of the history.

In the 1920's two prominent Missourians began making plans to build lavish back country resort homes on land adjoining the Long Creek Arm of the White River known as Big Cedar Hollow.  Together, business entrepreneur Jude Simmons and Frisco Railroad executive Harry Worman acquired a total of 300 lushly forested acres, and construction began.

Simmons chose a log mansion reminiscent of the grand wilderness hunting lodges found in the Adirondacks regions, while Worman constructed his retreat in the traditional Tudor style of stone and stucco.

The Worman House is now a restaurant with beautiful
gardens and butteflies all around.

In 1958 the White River was dammed to form Table Rock Lake, and the stage was set for the Ozarks' premier wilderness resort.  Following Bass Pro Shops' acquisition of the property in 1987, founder John Morris chose to restore the Simmons and Worman buildings to their original prominence, initiating a rigorous commitment to renew the natural beauty of Big Cedar Hollow.


Several more lodge type cabins have been added along with this conference center.  The views are incredible and there is a large marina is you are a boater.

We had a wonderful day, at an absolutely beautiful place.  I would recommend Big Cedar Resort, a bit pricey but with all types of amenities it looks worth it to me!

Carthage, Missouri and The Big Red Barn RV Site

We usually only drive about 200 miles a day.  Which means we went part way to Branson, MO. and then had a stop for a few nights.  We also like to stay at least two nights.  By the time we settle in we feel like we need to rest for a day.  This retirement is tough.  Carthage is an old city, with many beautiful interesting homes and buildings.  Some were beautifully restored, others could use a lot of work and money but still had the structure that allowed you to image what they used to look like.  This is Carthage's City Hall which gives you an example of the unusual and beautiful architecture.

                                                                                                                                                                                                    We stayed at the Big Red Barn RV Park. 

 It was well maintained, had flowers and a park like setting.  We would stay there again. 

Belle Starr at Eufaula Lake, Oklahoma

My favorite campground so far is Belle Starr at Lake Eufaula in Oklahoma. It again is a Corp of Engineers campground, costing a whole $8.00 a day. We wanted a pull through site and since we only made reservations 2 days before we went, we were not on the lake.  However, if we come back, or when we come back, I will make sure we are on the lake.  It is a super campground with new cement slabs, large picnic tables and fire pits.  If you are on the lake you can pull your boat right up to the shore.  The grounds were lush and there was a lot of space in between each site.  We stayed two days on our way to Branson, Missouri.

We saw lots of birds here.  In fact, I saw a life bird for Bob right out our window while we were eating.  It was a Summer Tanger.  It was bright reddish-orange.  (Life birds are your first siting of a bird.) The Summer Tanager is on the left.  The Scissor Tail Fly Catcher is on the right. I think my favorite is the Scissor Tail Fly Catcher, which is the Oklahoma State Bird. I has a long tail and an orange stomach. We saw several down by the lake as well as a group of Northern Rough-winged Swallows.  The knowledge of these bird's names come from Bob.  I just know which one I like.  Sometimes when I check with him about a certain bird, I get more information then I want.  For instance, I asked, "How would you describe, the way the Scissor Tail Fly Catcher dances?"  Bob said, "His flight pattern is light buoyant direct flight with shallow wing beats.  It hovers briefly over prey before dipping to pick it up."  Too much!

Pralines gets walked several times a day.  I usually only go on the evening walk, when it has cooled off.  On our walk the night before we had to leave Eufaula Lake we saw a Great Blue Heron.  He was beautiful, this picture is dark so it doesn't do justice.  Tomorrow on to Branson, Missouri.

Moving to East Fork at Lake Lavon in Wylie, Texas

With a little fear and trepidation, we drove through Dallas, TX to Mesquite, TX to see our mechanic at Holiday World.  Bob had ordered from Blue Ox a Patriot Brake System.  The purpose of this additional braking system, is that it applies the brakes in our car propotionately as the brakes are applied in the motorhome.  Our "Toad" is not too heavy, but being new to full-timing we wanted to take all the precautions we could.  The mechanic needed the car and the motorhome, but we were able to stay in the motorhome while he worked on it.  Our appointment was for 10:00 a.m. and we were out of there about 1:00 p.m.

We had decided that if we had to move the motorhome, we would try out a U.S. Army Corp of Engineers campground.  For those of you who are not famillar with the Corp of Engineering and their history I have included a link about their history.  In a nutshell, huge portions of public lands, managed by a variety of government agencies, are available to the general pubic for recreational use.  These are locate on federal, state, and county properties.  If you are a senior, you can use your America the Beautiful-National Parks and Federal Recreational Lands Pass - Senior Pass, which cost $10 for a lifetime pass.  We paid $9.00 a night for our stay.

We stayed for 2 nights in a lovely campground on Lavon Lake.  My only complaint was it was really too hot to enjoy.  Lots of boats, jet skiers and fishing.  Early evening was nice to just sit out and read.

Heather and the children came out to play with us, while we were there.  Heather helped us set up our Direct TV.  There is a lot to this learning curve.  We now use a Winegard satellite and have Direct TV and we have our own "Hot Spot" from Verizon so we can have wifi internet.  I once thought I knew a lot about technology but I still have a lot to learn!!!

Addie came dressed appropriately in her pink Tutu.  She went to the playground with PaPa, while mom and grandmother worked on setting up the Direct TV.  Asher took a nap on his favorite quilt.  Thank you Aunt Shellie!!!!

Grandchildren is one of the blessings of growing older.  Retirement allows you to enjoy them.  Great visit to Dallas.  We'll be moving on tomorrow.  Bob will cry!

Sunset at Lavon Lake

Camping in Texas

For the next three night we stayed safe at Treetop RV Resort.  This is a very urban camp ground.  It is right in the heart of Arlington, Texas.  It was well maintained, had little gardens around and a nice pool and clean laundry room.  Heather and the children were about 45 minutes away.  So in that respects it was perfect.

We picked up the rest of our stuff from Heather's and we still have room in the motorhome, so of course I had to go shopping.  We went to a very large outlet mall in Grapevine, Texas, just north of Dallas.  They had a Corning Ware Outlet there and I wanted to get Corelle dishes.  Heather and I have the same pattern and I thought if I got just what I needed for now, I could pick up the rest of my dishes when we went to our storage unit in October back in CA.  I was going to buy a small 16 piece set, until Bob showed me that 4 of the 16 pieces were cups and 4 were saucers and we already had coffee mugs and never used saucers.  So we bought 4 cereal bowls and 4 plates and left happy.
Before I left Ventura, CA, my friend Shellie make me a tray to hold my wine glasses and mugs, so that they would not rattle around in the cupboard in the motorhome.  She is so clever.  It is very good to surround yourself with crafty friends, especially if you are not.  I have reaped great benefits from my friendship with Shellie.  Thank you Shellie!  I always think of her when I am shopping.  We have shopped all over the world together.

 There was also a Penney's Outet and I got a wine colored throw for the leather coach in the motorhome.  Pralines loves to look out the window and we are afraid of her scratching the leather.  So it was quite a successful shopping day.  I have included a picture of Pralines on her couch, so she can see that wine is a perfect color for her.

We Love You Coach-Net!!!!

This morning we were determined to head out early to Dallas.  Since the slide that had given us problems was already in, we didn't have that to worry about today.  We packed up and head to 287 toward Dallas.  About two hours into our 3 hour drive, Bob started mumbling about needing diesel.  There are always many stations when you are full but when you need it, of course it is harder to find.  We finally found a smaller diesel station.  All Bob has read was that it is better to go to a big truck stop, like Pilot, Love, or Flying J, but Bob couldn't wait any longer.  As we pulled into the station, we noticed that only the end closest to the entrance pumps were diesel the rest were gas.  Bob had to recalculate his plans, as the navigator system would say.  As we pulled pretty close to the pump, a lady filling her car up, eyes got bigger and bigger, as we got closer and closer.  Bob stopped and I got out to see how much room we really had.  Oh, for those who don't rv.  When you have a motorhome with a toad attached. (Toad is a car.) You can not back up.  If you get into a place where you have to back up you must unattached the car from the motorhome.  With inching along and some maneuvering we made it by the pump.  However by swinging by the pump, the side of the motorhome, hit a short yellow pole that was put in place so that cars, trucks, and motorhomes do not go into the grass.  When I got out, I had to tell Bob that he had put a hole in the side of the motorhome.  To say he was upset might be an under estimation.  Not only was there a hole and scratches in the motorhome.  If he tried to pull up, since we couldn't back up, we would have torn the back of the motorhome off.

Bob went into the diesel station to let the owner know that one of his lanes were going to be plugged up for an undetermined among of time.  He was very nice about it.  In the meantime, I went to the car and tired to start it.  When we left Wichita Falls, instead of putting the car on accessories, it was left on and now the battery was dead.  The nice owner of the diesel station, jumped my car.  Bob called Coach-net to have someone come and lift the rear end of the motorhome up and move it about 2 feet to the right.  I drove our car around in the parking lot to recharge the batttery.  Within an hour the biggest tow truck I had ever seen pulled it.  I would say in less than 15 minutes we were unstuck.  I of course talked to the driver and commented on his fine tow truck.  I could see it was new, and he was proud of it.  He told me it cost $250,000.00 and that he doesn't go out on calls less than $500.  The only reason he helped up was because he had a contract with Coach-Net.  The bill to Coach-net was $250.  Thank you Coach-net.

We were on our way again, making it into Dallas about 3:00 p.m.  Bob was still sick about the accident and it is now a week later and he has finally agreed to let me post about the hole on our blog. Actually, the hole is only about 3" x 6" and it is situated right beside the wheel well rather than involving a slide or bay.  We feel we indeed were fortunate andwe  learned a good lesson.  We also can't get to Branson fast enough to get driving lessons.

Heather, Craig, Addie, and Asher came out to visit us at our campsite at Treetop RV Resort.  Craig got our cable TV working on all TV's.  He set all the controls and attached all the cables.  We promised not to touch anything.  We next went to Camping World in Ft. Worth to get receivers for Direct TV.  We ended up putting the receivers on hold and would return Monday, when our satellite company Winegard.  

We were all hungry by then and Craig suggested that we go to a barbeque place called Sugar Creek.  It was great!! Best of all for Addie, they had macaroni and cheese and chocolate milk !!! Bob and I headed back to the motorhome, after a long eventful day.

Slide In, Slide Out....Well that's the way it should work!

We arrived at the Wichita Falls RV Park about 4:00 p.m.  Our plans were to stay a night and head towards Dallas.  This was a nice park by a small lake and a creek.  The creek was chocolate brown, even though the sign said it was the Red Creek.  The lake was a little cleaner.  The people at the office were very nice and we felt like we had a successful first days drive.

This park had cable TV.  In Amarillo, we could get cable in the front of the motorhome but not in the bedroom.  In Wichita Falls, we could get TV in the bedroom but not in the front of the motorhome.  There is a learning curve to full-timing.  We were only beginning to find out how much we had to learn.  

This park was especially good for Pralines.  They had a large section set aside for a dog park, with fire hydrants available for all. Here is a shot of Bob and Pralines in fire hydrant heaven.

It rained again at night, and continued the next morning.  Bob worked on disconnecting the cable, sewer, electricity, and water, wearing a poncho to keep some of the rain off.  I secured everything inside.  My last assignment was to push the switch to move the slides in to the motorhome.  I did the bedroom slide.  Great!  I did the slide on the passenger side.  Super!  Then I tried to do the one on the driver's side and it would not move.  I called Bob in to help.  We tried and pushed from the outside and pulled from the inside.  Then Bob remembered that John, the man we bought the motorhome from had said that a bolt had shred before and he had given Bob a few extras.  Bob got those out and climb under the slide to see if that was the problem.  It was!  However, the top of the bolt was on the ground and the rest of the bolt was inside.  Bob worked for about an hour on it in the rain.  Then gave up and called .Coach-net.  It was now pouring down rain.  Coach-net hunted for a long time for someone who was willing to come out.  Finally, Patterson Auto Center said they could come out after they closed at 5:00 p.m., so we let the office know that we would be staying another night.  We called Heather and told her we wouldn't be in until Saturday and I had her cancel my hair appointment for Saturday morning, since we would be on the road.  About 1:30 p.m. a mechanic from Patterson's showed up.  He worked for maybe 30 to 45 minutes, replacing the bolt with a stronger one.  The slide moved in just like it should and Bob and I left it in, just in case.  Bob didn't want to hit Dallas at rush hour which is what we would do if we left as late as it was then, so we just relaxed and were thankful that we had Coach-net, deciding to leave early the next morning.

First night and next day in our new motorhome

Our first night in the motorhome was good and bad.  The bed was wonderful!  After sleeping on an air mattress at Heather's for also a month, this new pillow top mattress was heaven.  As we dozed off to sleep it started raining.  At first we thought the gentle drops on the roof were delightful.  Then it started to pour!  It was so loud we couldn't sleep and it even drowned out the TV.  We did find out that we were water tight though and that was good to know.  In the middle of the night we were sure we would be staying in Amarillo another day, as we didn't want our first day of driving to be in a downpour but when we awoke in the morning the rain had stopped.

Bob had a concern about our motorhome registration.  It had Robert Miller instead of Robert Gilmore and he felt we needed to go back to the register's office before we left town.  We decided to have breakfast then make a trip into town before taking off.  I had a Jimmy Dean Biscuit sandwich and Bob had cereal.  Or tried to have cereal:)  No spoon!  This was the first of many things that we found we needed only when the event came up.  Anyway, Bob had a biscuit sandwich with me and we headed out.

The city's register's office is the old Santa  Fe Building, which was build in the1930's.  It is one of the tallest buildings in town and very beautiful.  I took a few pictures.   This is the door way.  It has a revolving door.  You then enter into a beautiful lobby with cooper ceilings and brass elevator doors.


This is a shot of the ceiling tile! More beautiful than it appears here and the elevator doors.  Turned out that Robert Miller was the tax collector. His name was supposed to be on the registration.

The old Santa Fe building made the trip worthwhile for me.  We also made another trip to Wal-mart for a set of silverware and a sharp knife.








On our way home we saw horses all over town.  Chicago has there cows and Amarillo has it's horses.

We headed back to the campsite and started our first drive to Wichita Falls, where we camped for the night.
Got a little lost finding the Wichita Falls RV Park , but we made it by 4:00 p.m.

Picking up the Motorhome

On Wednesday, July 7th, we headed to Amarillo, Texas again.  This time to pick up the motorhome.  We had an appointment with the former owners to finalize paperwork at 10:00 a.m. Thursday morning.  Neither Bob or I slept too well that night in anticipation of finally taken position of our motorhome.  John, the former owner, again talked Bob through many details concerning care and maintenance.  Then we all took a ride to the diesel station to fill up.

Next John and Bob attached the car to the motorhome and we drove around with it attached.  Now we were about 60' long instead of 40'.  On Tuesday, July 6th, we had the car equipped with a Blue Ox Towing System.  We looked for a recommended dealer in the Dallas area for Blue Ox and made our appointment with Holiday World in Mesquite, Texas.  It took most of the day, so we were glad to have Heather's car so we could leave and come back when it was finished.  The people at Holiday World were so accommodating we would highly recommend them to others.

Bob and John then headed into Amarillo, by car, to register the motorhome and get license plates.  I stayed with the motorhome and our car and started unpacking.  We had loaded some of our things in the car but we also had a tow package that had to be attached to the motorhome so we could pull the car back to Dallas with us, so we couldn't bring everything.  It was fun unpacking everything!

John left us on our own and we went out shopping at Wal-mart for necessities, like toilet paper, coffee, coffee maker, cereal for breakfast etc, etc.  We spent our first night in the motorhome, in the park in Amarillo, where we purchased it.  We were leaving early the next morning to Dallas, with a night's stay in Witchita Falls, Texas.  You move much slower in a motorhome, than in a car.