We're Still Here..A Catch Up Blog

 What have we been up to the past 6 months?  What..6 months?  Yes, it has it been almost 6 months since I've written anything on "Eas-on down The Road".  Even though we are full-time RVers we don't always spend our time traveling the highways and exploring our country's scenic landscapes.  Sometimes we need to sit a spell to catch up on everyday chores, needed motorhome maintenance and enjoy family activities to stay connected.  Here's a quick recap of what we have been up to since we left Wilmington, NC in November 2017.

December 2017:  We enjoyed family time celebrating the holidays with my Mom in North Carolina.  We even made a trip to Anderson, SC to visit my sister Suzanne and her family.  There, we got to meet Laylon, the newest addition to her family.  Ron and I also completed yearly health appointments during the month of December.  I scheduled so many appointments plus helping my Mom with some of her appointments that we almost filled about everyday with something or other.  That month flew by incredibly fast and before we knew it, we were on our way to Florida for the winter.

January-March 2018:  We changed RV pads this season, renting from our friend 

Ed and his wife Vickie.  This RV lot has a nice screened hut and inside a swing and gas fire pit.  We found this addition to our winter camping perfect not only for us to enjoy but for Little Boy too.  He spent almost more time in it than us! Most of our winter season this year was spent on yearly motorhome maintenance and some needed up grades rather than touring and exploring this part of Florida.  Ron had his work cut out for him this time and thankfully he got many of the things on his list accomplished.  He worked really hard.

We love the swing plus we could sit out after dark with no insects to bother us.  Little Boy loved his sunny morning time with no dogs to interrupt his naps.

We plan to rent this RV pad next winter season.

We ate lots of fresh Florida strawberries this winter too.

Josams of Orlando Chassis Service Center

Ronnie stayed busy on several maintenance projects and up grades on our motorhome.

Some of the items on his list included: new LED taillights, new LED running lights (upper and lower) and new headlights with brighter LED bulbs. We added new house batteries, purchased and installed new tires, did a shower door repair and a refrigerator door repair.  Motorhome maintenance items (some Ron did, the more difficult ones Josams of Orlando completed) included: tag oil replace, new air filter and air dryer filter replace, front wheel bearing maintenance, a generator repair and yearly maintenance, AquaHot maintenance (that's our on board diesel-heated hot water system), plus Ron also completed a wash and wax job of the motorhome including all the wheel rims polished. Yes, Ronnie worked awfully hard this winter season.  

We finally installed a tire monitoring system and wondered how we didn't get this important piece of equipment before now??  Fortunately for us, our visit to Josams of Orlando for the new tires and the more difficult maintenance items yielded a problem with the motorhome's drag link bar.  That metal bar, found under the front portion of the motorhome, is a major component related to the steering. It is crucial that it is replaced and Josams handled the job with experience.  The part, ordered from a company in Oregon, took 2 weeks to arrive.  Whew..glad all those details worked out.

Our Iowa friends, Dave & Donna, built a beautiful gazebo for their RV lot at Deer Creek.  They had a open house party to show it off to the neighborhood.

We visited the Kennedy Space Center to watch the Falcon Heavy rocket lift off.  That was a memorable experience to watch and feel the rumble of those 27 Falcon engines lifting off from earth.  These photos are from my camera's telephoto lens.

These were the highlights of our winter season this year.  We did get in a way too quick visit with our friends Esta and Joel in Leesburg and a way too quick visit with our friends John and Sue, newly relocated now in The Villages.  We are hopeful next winter is not as hectic so we can enjoy a bit more socializing.

April and May 2018:  We arrive back to my Mom's home in Coats, NC.  We had some scheduled dental work for Little Boy where he needed 2 teeth pulled!  He got along fine with the surgery and he is eating better now. 

Discovering Motor Rite, a specialized diesel truck repair shop in Raleigh, Ron scheduled for the motorhome a radiator flush and new coolant fill. Thankfully they also find the engine's water pump needs to be replaced.  However, once we returned back to Mom's, Ron discovered what he thinks maybe a leaky fuel line so it's back to Motor Rite for another repair.  The experts there searched and searched the engine, even under all motor running circumstances, but can't seem to find this small leak.  They checked all lines and pipes, tightening everything up, even wiping down that area of the engine to expose any leak should it reoccur.  We're hopeful but that's all we can do for now to find the issue.  I guess you can't fix something that you can't find broken.

Since it's gardening season, my Mom gets assistance from my brother John and this time a little from me.  We are able to help her get those tender plants and seeds in the ground in spite of this unusually chilly late April and early May weather.  Now that the temperatures have warmed up, the plants are thriving and the seeds have all sprouted.  Fresh veggies are in the family's future.

Mid May 2018:  Finally, after our unexpected delay with the suspected motorhome engine fluid leak, we have eased on down the road to Big Stone Gap, Virginia.  We have visited this charming town before and can't wait to see what new places we can discover in southwestern Virginia.  

More Later..