Sunday, June 22, 2008

June 22, 2008

Hi Everyone,

We left our relatives in Cold Spring, MN and are spending five days in Detroit Lakes, Minnesota. Now, most people know that Minnesota is the land of 10,000 lakes. But, did you realize that there is more grass to cut in this state than nearly any other place? It's all quite beautiful -- yet we feel sorry for all the hard work the folks here have to put in to keep their lawns looking so spectacular. Even though most people have a riding lawn mower, it still takes a lot of time to cut so much grass. Then there are the mosquitos that come with the territory. We are very lucky right now because the mosquitos disappear when there is a breeze. And there is a nice breeze at present. On Wednesday, we head back to Fargo for a big family reunion.

Sunday, June 15, 2008

June 15, 2008

Happy Father's Day to all of the dads out there. We are sure enjoying this day and the trip thus far. Since our last posting, we spent time on Sean's (Mary's son) goat farm in Fargo, ND, traveled to Cold Spring, MN (about 200 miles from Fargo, the place where Mary grew up and where many of her brothers and sisters still live) to attend the wedding of her niece, Becki, then traveled with two of her sisters and their husbands to spend time at her sister and husband's lake home in Hackensack, MN (120 miles north of Cold Spring), and are now back in a beautiful RV park right outside of Cold Spring. Mary's nephew, Terry, and his wife, Lynn, live on the lake across from the park. Yesterday, they and their family came across the lake on a pontoon to pick us up to take us to their lake home. Absolutely lovely! Now -- that is. In winter, the lake is totally frozen over.
About the most unusual for us is the weather. One minute, the sky is blue with white puffy clouds, and the temperature in the 70s. Within 5 minutes, the sky can turn ominous, dark, with winds coming at us at 60 miles an hour with heavy rains. Last night we were entertaining Ann (Mary's sister) and her husband, Mike, when the camp host drove up to our coach in a golf cart and told us to get to the shelter immediately. We jumped up from the dinner table and ran 50 feet to the men's shower (a concrete building) where we met up with 25 or so other adults and children. One man had a radio tuned to the weather station, and we heard how a tornado touched down 15 miles from us. Poor Chanti (our dog) and some of the young children in the room couldn't stop shaking as the rain came down in buckets, lightening and thunder all around us. Boy, when they say, "get to a shelter" -- they mean right now!

Tuesday, June 3, 2008

June 3, 2008

Hi Everyone,
This is the part of the trip where we visit relatives. Our trip from Glacier to Minot (after we left the mountains) was flat and straight. (See picture below.) First stop was at Minot, ND to visit Mary's brother and sister-in-law, and their family. They and their business partners build retirement community homes that provide one, two or three bedroom suites, all amenities of a fine hotel, including a dining room with seating on an enclosed patio, library, beauty parlor, laundry rooms, a communal kitchen for those who still love to entertain large families or friends, a beautiful private dining room reserved by the guests for special occasions, an exercise room, extra storage room for the guests, and numerous themed-relation lounges. After we toured the Minot facility (which was first class), we then ate in the dining room where we each ordered different selections from the menu. Places like these are becoming very popular with seniors who still have all their faculties, but don't want the hassle of owning a home yet want all of their necessities close by them and the companionship of others near by. (We have seen our future when we are finished RVing -- some twenty years from now.)
We left Minot and are now in Fargo, ND on Sean's (Mary's son) farm where he raises goats. It is raining heavily, as usual for this trip. Will tell you more about it later.