2015 Begins

Thursday - New Year's Day   We woke up to over 6" of snow covering everything.  What a change!  We had seen snow in the desert in some of our other visits through the years, but now it affected us with the motorhome and our scheduled travel for the day.  Gary went out and climbed on the roof, sweeping all the snow off the slide awnings and roof, before we went to Mass.  Luckily, the sun came out mid morning and melted most of the remaining snow and ice off the slides before we had to pull them in to drive out.  We said goodbye to Wally and Jan and left the park about noon.  The roads were all melted and dry by then.  We stopped for gas and propane fill ups, hooked up the car and headed north to Mesa to the Good Life RV Resort for our new job.
Arriving at Good Life, we were escorted to our space and got set up.  It was dry and sunny, but a little chilly air there in Mesa.  We checked in and were told to report the next morning to talk to our supervisor.  A long, busy day with new challenges - we were tired and went to bed.

Snow in the park, even on the palm trees

Snow covered everything

Sun and blue sky - melting has begun

Snow covered mountains - we have never seen this much on them

 Friday - We went in at 9:00 AM to meet our supervisor, Leanne.  We met with her for a short time and then were told we would have orientation at 9:00 on Monday.  She gave us our uniform shirts and name badges.  "Enjoy the park and learn about all the amenities" was our assignment for the weekend.  We spent more time at home, setting up everything for our stay and then rode our bikes around the park to see everything. Our neighbors, Ken & Vi, from across the street welcomed us and invited us to join their group at the park happy hour gathering that afternoon.  They told us who some of the other neighbors on the our street are and where they are from.  Most of them are from Canada - provinces of Alberta and British Columbia and have been coming here for several years. We also have Wisconsin, Minnesota and Iowans on our block, so lots in common.
We went to the Happy Hour gathering.  The park hosts one every week day, providing entertainment with live music or karaoke.  The park does not have any concessions, so everyone brings their own beverage and snacks.  We found out line dancing is huge here, they have lessons in the park and many of the ladies were up dancing to every song.  Some songs were good for couple dancing, so we were able to get out on the floor a few times.

Saturday - We spent the day enjoying our new site in the park and watched football.  I went to a walking exercise class in the late morning.  They use videos by Leslie Sansone's, on Saturdays they walk 3-5 miles in the video. We ran errands and picked up groceries and then went to enjoy the heated pool and hot tub that night.

Sunday - We went to Mass at one of the many area churches.  Home again, we watched football and took naps.  That night, we grilled chicken in the NuWave oven and enjoyed sitting outside.

Sunset view from our new site in Mesa

2014 Ends

Monday - The UPS drivers had told Gary they thought he was done working for the season, but he received a call that morning.  It was a "normal" schedule, 12:30 to 5:00.  I cleaned house, preparing for our move to Mesa on Thursday.

Tuesday - The last workday for Gary with UPS.  I ran errands and visited the Goodwill store for their after Christmas clearance.  Did not find much I had to have.

Wednesday - Up early, we headed in to Tucson to drop off Gary's UPS uniform and collect his last paycheck.  They accepted the uniform, but would have to mail the paychecks...to our SD address.  Then we headed to the airport to pick up Jan and Wally who were flying back from cold South Dakota.  We stopped for a coffee and then waited in the cell phone lot until they arrived.  On the way back home, the travelers were hungry so we stopped for an early lunch.  Back home at the Junction, Wally and Jan unpacked and we packed up, ready for our move to Mesa the next morning.  Gary picked up all the outside lights and hoses, we knew it was supposed to start raining and possibly SNOW! (So sorry I used that 4-letter word!).  For New Year's Eve, we were invited to Dan's.  Dan and Connie, Joe and Deb (Deb had flew back from South Dakota that day too) and Gary and I spent the evening together.  We left there about 9:00 and stopped to say goodbye to Leo and Doris.  On our way there, it started raining, and when we left there house about an hour later, it was blowing and snowing.  Reminded us of South Dakota, our wipers were on high and it was hard to see through the snow as we drove back home to the Junction.  The ground was starting to get white when we shut the door for the night.

Christmas in the Desert

Monday - We cleaned in the morning and Gary worked for UPS in the afternoon.  He worked with Louie early afternoon and then with the Saddlebrooke driver in late afternoon.  I had a chiropractor appointment that afternoon, my first chiro appointment since we left Sioux Falls, July 2013!  Would not have gone this day, but I had a muscle pulling when I reached certain ways in my front collar bone area.  She made some adjustments and gave me new stretching exercises for my front shoulder muscles.  Very helpful!

Tuesday - Today, I gathered my recipes and ingredients and went to Deb & Joe's to do my Christmas baking.  I tried a new recipe for Bacon Candy, made Crispix mix and the annual batch of Peanut Butter Blossoms with miniature Reese's.  Gary worked both both drivers again, this was the long day of Christmas deliveries.

Wednesday - Christmas Eve   We visited with Ben & Kelsey by Facetime in the morning, they were leaving for Europe on Christmas Day.  Gary went to work at 12:30 and was done at 5:30.  I met Gary at Joe's - we spent Christmas Eve with him.  Joe made oyster stew for he and Gary for supper and made me some delicious chili.  I baked my Pumpkin Pie Dessert and we had that after supper.

Thursday - Merry Christmas!  We slept in, then went to Christmas Day Mass and talked to Katie and family on Facetime in the morning.  We were invited to Doris and Leo Smith's for a late afternoon Christmas Dinner.  I was to bring mashed potatoes in the crockpot.  We went to Joe's to cook and mash the potatoes, so had a nice visit with him before going to the Smith's.  Leo smoked a ham, Doris made roasted turkey and all the guests brought the other dishes for a delicious Christmas meal.  Connie G. made apple pie and chocolate cake for the dessert.  We had a great time visiting.
It was very different to not be with our kids for Christmas.  But Katie and family were hosting other family and Ben and Kelsey were off on their European holiday trip, so we will celebrate in other ways in the new year.  Hope you and your families or friends had a wonderful celebration.

Merry Christmas from our house

Friday - Gary checked in, but did not have to work this day.  We rested and worked on odds and ends, watched football and sent out our Christmas letter to friends.

Saturday and Sunday - more college football, enjoyed sitting outside and worked on finances and holiday thank yous.  Sunday night, Joe made steaks in his new smoker and I made pasta and vegetables for supper at his house with Lisa and Jeff.  After we arrived there late afternoon, we saw a roadrunner out on his patio.  We tried to take pictures, but it kept moving.  Suddenly, it flew up into a cactus.  Joe said they only do that when there is a predator around, so we went out and looked.  Two young bobcats were in the gully behind their wall.  We were able to get close up pictures of the roadrunner as he waited for the kitties to leave.  Later, we enjoyed a magnificent sunset.

Mr. Roadrunner

The two kitty cats

Early sunset colors

Same direction, ten minutes later

December - Week Three

Monday - the middle of December already.  I took Gary to work at noon and then went for a long walk on one of the paths in Saddlebrooke.  Back home to shower and then Gary called and needed to be picked up and taken to his next route. After dropping him off, I went to my massage appointment, then picked him up afterward.  That night, he went to Dan's to watch football.  I stayed home and watched my show.

Tuesday - I took Gary to work and then went to another cleaning job.  One of Dan's realtor associates had a quick turn around time situation with a seller/buyer closing and needed someone to come in after the movers left and before the buyers moved in.  It was easier, but also harder in ways, to clean an empty house.  You know how dirty it can be after furniture is totally moved out of rooms.  It all went well, I was done in three hours.  Picked up Gary and home for the night.

Wednesday - Wally and Jan were flying back to Mitchell, SD to be with family for the Christmas holiday, so I took them to the airport.  On the way back home, I stopped for errands in town and then back home.  I finished packing the Christmas packages I needed to mail and took them to be mailed.  That night I tried a new quick bread recipe and it flopped.  I was glad I had tried it since I was going to make it for company the next night.  It started raining pretty steady late afternoon and continued through the evening.  Gary was glad to be home that night.

Thursday - I had permission to drive Wally & Jan's car while they were gone, which made it much easier for our schedule while Gary worked.  I had sold some items on EBay, so I packaged them up and took them in for mailing.  It was a rainy, cool day - where is the warm desert sun?  That night, Joe, Deb and Viola came over for supper.  Gary came home a little wet that day.

Friday - Sun! Hooray!  Gary left for work and I went for a long walk again.  Shipped another EBay package and did some work on the blog and our Christmas letter.

Saturday - we were home.  Got some projects done and rested.  It is different not having our neighbors here to spend time with.  Deb & Viola flew back to South Dakota today as well.

Sunday -Mass at Santa Catalina this morning.  That night we were invited to Krista and Brian's house for supper and games.  We have so much fun with them.  We sat by their fireplace outside, had supper and then a great game of dominos.

December - Week Two

Monday - Gary found out he would be working with Louie, a UPS driver with a route about 10 miles away in the El Conquistador neighborhoods.  I drove him at noon to their meeting spot, his work day would begin at 12:30.  I dropped him off, then drove in to Tucson to meet a lady that was buying our Coleman grill.  After meeting her, I went and found a Hobby Lobby store and bought Advent candles for our Advent wreath.  Gary was done at 3:30 that day, so I picked him up on the way home.

Tuesday - Jan and I went thrift store shopping.  We were both looking for certain items and had fun shopping in several stores.  Our last shop was Savers, then we stopped for lunch at Nico's Tacos.  It was delicious.  After a final stop at Sam's, we went home.  My UPS man worked the afternoon again and we shared supper with Wally and Jan that night.

Wednesday  - we were getting a schedule now, home duties in the morning,  then I would take Gary to meet his driver at noon and run errands.  A couple days this week, he worked with one driver early afternoon and then switched to another in the Saddlebrooke area for late afternoon.

The Captain in a new uniform

Thursday - after dropping Gary off, I explored the La Canada neighborhood and found a very nice Goodwill store. (I love spending time exploring thrift stores)  The timing worked great again, I picked Gary up mid-afternoon for his driver move.  I stopped at Deb & Joe's to pick up mail they had received for us and then picked Gary up in Saddlebrooke when he was done.  That night, Wally & Jan treated us to a delicious pork loin dinner.

Friday - Jan & I went Goodwill shopping.  She found out she was getting a puppy for Christmas and wanted to look for puppy accessories.  She was successful.  It started raining in the afternoon, a little more challenging for the UPS helper.  He worked later that night, okay except that we planned to go to the Lessons & Carols evening at the Santa Catalina church.  He got home after 6:00, showered and we made it in time for the 7:00 program.  It was very nice to sing Christmas carols along with the choir and audience.  Afterward, we stopped at Mi Tierra's for supper.

Saturday - a rainy day.  Gary is home, the driver helpers do not work on the weekends.  A day of rest and football.  That night we were supposed to join the group at a park in Tucson to see Christmas light displays.  It was cold and rained most to the day, so Krista and Brian invited everyone to their house for supper instead. They grilled smokies and we all brought dishes to share. A nice holiday gathering.

Sunday - Mass, breakfast, the Sunday paper and football.

December - Week One

Monday - I spent the morning gathering cleaning supplies.  That afternoon, I cleaned a house for people that were returning to Saddlebrooke for the winter months.  Joe & Deb watch their house the months they are away and they asked Joe to find someone to clean it.  A good job for me!  A very nice home, I cleaned all afternoon.  It was a good workout.

Tuesday - a few more hours cleaning to finish the job.  Back home, I cleaned up for our day's adventure - going to Nogales, Mexico with Wally and Jan.  Wally had a dentist's appointment there, he has seen the same dentist for fourteen years.  The cost of dental work there is 1/2 to 2/3 the cost in the US.  That is great for those of us who are retired and do not have dental insurance. We shopped in the duty free shop before crossing the border.  There are some good buys there, to get the price you must buy it and take it across the border with you, then bring it back.  Jan, Gary and I walked through shops in Nogales and had lunch while we were waiting for Wally.  On the way home, we stopped and had supper at Guadalajara's, a great Mexican restaurant in Tucson.

Wednesday - a rainy day in the desert.  I spent the day putting up our Christmas decorations in the motorhome.  I had to make a new tree, I use hanger wires for the frame and then wrap green roping around it.  Now it felt like December.  Gary filled out some on line employment applications.  We were both looking for some part-time work for the month.  Thursday we worked on things at home, book work, laundry and correspondence.

Christmas tree 2014 - I had not kept the one from last year.

Friday -  we had breakfast and then Gary had an email from UPS about a job as a driver helper.  He responded and they asked him to come in right away that day for orientation.  After a few training videos and giving him a uniform shirt, pants and jacket, they put him to work that afternoon.  A driver helper rides along in the truck and runs the packages up to the houses or into the businesses, allowing the driver more time to pull the next orders in the truck.  The month of December is much busier, of course, so they wanted to hire 300+ helpers for the Tucson area.  That night, we went to Dan's with Wally and Jan to watch the Arizona football game.

Saturday - another long walk in the morning.  We went to Mass that evening in Oracle and then met the group, family and friends, for pizza at Nonna Maria's in Oracle.

Sunday - we did not try to go anywhere.  We had gone to church the night before, because the Tucson Marathon route was this day from Oracle in to Tucson, which blocked off lanes on the highway outside of our park.  All the  locals said it would be hard to get on the highway.  We sat outside in the sun, watched football and had fresh salsa, chips and margaritas with Wally and Jan.

Back Home at the "Junction"

Monday - up early to move to our site at the Oracle Junction Mobile Estates.  We got checked in and set up in the same site as last year.  This year, our friends Wally and Jan, are parked right next door.  After set-up, I went to town with the girls, Deb, her mom Viola and Lisa.  We had fun running errands to Joann's Fabrics, Sam's Club, Total Wine and then out to lunch for Chinese.  Back home, it was time to clean our house and get set up for a long stay.

Tuesday - Finished cleaning the rig, inside and out, did laundry and book work.  That night, we went with Wally and Jan to the Catalina Elks Club for taco night.

Wednesday - the day before Thanksgiving.  After a long walk in the morning, we went to Dan's house so I could bake pies for the Thanksgiving meal. Gary helped Dan put a new desk in his office and that night we made Peppers & Shells for supper and watched football.

Thanksgiving Day - over to Dan's to help prepare the turkey and fixings for dinner at 4:00.  We watched the parades and football.  All the friends came over for dinner, Leo and Doris, Lisa & Jeff, Deb, Joe and Viola.  A wonderful meal and evening together.

Friday - a beautiful day.  We watched the college football games at Dan's.  I sat outside in the sunshine - it felt great!  Taking on the Vitamin D.

Saturday - it is so nice to be in weather where we are able to get out and walk again.  We went through our closets and extra clothing in our suitcases and pulled out the clothing for warmer weather (and put away the cold weather gear).  In the afternoon we watched the college games and that night, Jan and Wally had us over for supper.  She had made soup from the Thanksgiving turkey carcass, yumm.

Sunday - back to our little church in Oracle.  It was nice to see the same parishioners there.  A day to relax.

Sunset over the mountains view from the "Junction"