Catching up the last three states (WV, OH, IN)

Ok...so I know I promised some of you I'd be better about timely blogging...but it's so easy to just let my eyes close and start snoring....  Anyway...I promise again...let's see how it goes this time😀

To recap, we've rolled through or into 3 new states since my last post.  I'm going to try to stay with the highlights as much as I can in the interest of actually getting this done, so bear with me, but be warned...it's going to be a long one!

Planning vs. wingin' it

We started this journey with a solid plan in place. While we didn't have reservations for each week, we had mapped out where we thought we would be. That all changed after we had moved out of our house but before we pulled out of Florida. 

Everything was going fine until a holiday showed up on the calendar and we had no reservations. Steve and I called half a dozen campgrounds and all were booked. Crazy thoughts went through my mind but mostly the realization that we were homeless. Seriously! We can't just stay in a Walmart parking lot for three days. Our camper is too big for most state parks. I just knew we were doomed. 

We finally found a KOA in Indy. We paid way too much for a campground but we have a place to stay! 

Enjoy the rest of your night...I'm off to book Halloween, Thanksgiving and Christmas. Hell, I might even book into the next year. 

Little Farm on the River Campground review

We found Little Farm on the River campground through Passport America. It's located in Rising Sun, IN. There are two places on the property to camp - down the hill next to the Ohio River or up the hill next to the pool and game room. We chose to be by the pool. The upper campsites are about a quarter mile from the river. It was a perfect bike ride by the corn field.

Ohio Caverns

IThe first thing I noticed when I walked in the cavern was that it was really dark and cold. The guide turned off the lights and I couldn't see anything. I have never been in dark like that before. 

The difference between caves and caverns is caves have an opening and caverns have to be discovered. These caverns were discovered in the 1800s. 

We're lost, but we're making good time. -Yogi Berra

This trip is providing me with many learning opportunities. We change our direction of travel every day. I have had to jump out of the truck on a country road and run to the other side of an overpass to be sure we had enough clearance for the trailer. I have climbed on top of the camper a few times to clean it and to check for damage when we "hit" a tree branch. I have even done maintenance on our black tanks. And still, every day I wake up I know we made the right decision to take this trip.

I love this picture...

My sweet Stephanie is growing up!

My First Junior Olympics

 I competed in my first Junior Olympics this year. It was held in Virginia Beach. It was 3 days long. I only did 4-6 routines every day. I did not eat much at all. I bought a baton and costume for my doll Ella. Back stage might sound fancy but it was not at all. It wasn't bad but it was just a black curtain with a hole in it.  The cool thing about back stage is that you are allowed to stick your head out to watch the twirlers that are on. It is fun to watch the other twirlers. I had lots of fun. 

There's no place like Grandma's

I moved to Florida about 13 years ago. I got married and had kids in Florida. Steve and I bought a house in Florida. I had a great life in Florida except that I was so far from my family. My mom and dad have made a lot of effort to visit and spend time with the grandkids but there is nothing like living so close you can go to Grandma's whenever you want!

We experienced that this past week. My dad worked really hard to create a full hookup site on his property next to the old country store he and my mom are remodeling. We had a great view of the mountains, deer crossed close by every night and the kids spent most of their time with Grandma and Grandfather. We met on the porch every morning for coffee and every evening for a glass of sangria. We spent the days together tubing, gardening, swimming in the community pool, playing games and just visiting. We spent good, quality time together and created many memories of family time. 

We are sad to leave but excited for the next leg of our journey! Look out West Virginia...here comes the Church Family!

The rules are different on the other side of the yard!

We stayed at Grandma's house for more than a week. It was great! We didn't have to do any work, we could eat junk food whenever. We were living the life. 

Papa clatterbuck died before we got there so we had a service for him and afterwards we had a cookout. I miss him a lot. 

My family surprised me with a twirling baner to cheer me on for J.R. Olympics. It was super pretty. My cousin Madison made it. 

We went tubing on a river caled the James river. 

We watched a lot ov tv while I was sick. I watched the old fashioned batman for the first time. It was pathetic compared to the newer one. We also watched Star Trek. All I can say is: I LOVE TRIBLES! I have two stuffiez ( stuffed animals ) that look just like tribles. Here is a pic of Glitz and Arnold. 

They are kinda like super fat hamsters. Arnold is the purple one and Glitz is the pink one. 

Grandma got a pas to a local pool so we could swim when we were there. It was really cold. We made friends with one of the lifeguards that was there. She was super friendly.  

Grandma also found a local yarn dying place. I would say company but it's just 2 people. They did some alpaca some angora goat but mostly just regular wool. For natural color the color comes out strong and bright. 

I loved Arcadia, if you have been comment below and tell me what you liked or where you would like to go. That's all this time! BYE!!! ♥️💜❣😋❣💜♥️

Junior Olympics

I am happy I went to Junior Olympics to support Stephanie. It was a little boring though. The days were really long. We had to wake up at 5:30 in the morning and didn't get home until after 9:00 at night. We sat there most of the time doing nothing.

Made it to the Mountains!

We made it through the craziest week yet.  Steph competed in the Junior Olympics this past week.  It was three days of craziness: get up at 5:30 and get ready, be at the convention center by 7:00, watch 12 hours of twirling with only 15 minutes of it being Stephanie, go back to RV, swim for 30 minutes so Aaron doesn't lose it, shower and get in bed, do it again the next day!  It was the slowest, fast-paced week I've ever had...but at the end of the day Steph did her thing and walked away with 6 medals (team: 1 gold, 2 silver, 1 copper (4th).  Individual: 2 copper (1 5th and 1 6th)).  Now she sounds like wind chimes when she walks...go figure...lol