Baking cookies & a lunker!

Today has been a bit of a lazy day, i stayed in my pj’s and baked cookies. I made choc chip and butterscotch & white choc cookies. Gabe is coming to spend a week with us and he loves home made cookies. I love baking inside of Ms. Southwind, it’s just like baking in a oven in a stick house.

As you can see in this photo the cookies turned out great and are all done and in a sealed container waiting to be eaten. I actually made a double batch but only cooked half and stored the others in the freezer to be baked in a few weeks when Tyson and his family come to visit.

After my baking was done, i took my shower and spent the rest of day visiting. We are having a wonderful time on the ranch and it’s been great to visit with old & new friends.

Later in the evening i was going to go up to the club house and play card bingo but i got a phone call to stay at the camper as a lunker was caught.

As you can see in the pictures a nice fish looks like a baby compared to this one, this is one big lunker of a fish.

Of course this fish was not cleaned and eaten, instead it was wrapped and put in the freezer to be taken at a later date to be mounted. A bathroom scale was used to weigh and from it the fish weighed 7 lbs 11 ozs and 25 inches long!

As you can see here is the lunker with the proud fisherman who caught him.

You can see in this picture that the fish went almost from end to end of our picnic table. Needless to say i didn’t make it to card bingo but it still ended up being a great evening

Until next time… have a good one ……

Memorial Day Weekend!

Wow 2 weeks ago today Ms.Southwind left Mississippi where it was humid and hot! Even though we’ve been having rain on a daily basis lately i haven’t let it spoil the time I'm having. In fact, I’ve haven’t really had much time for relaxation but tons of fun!

As you can see in these photos the fishing has been pretty good, catching the limit almost daily. Yes, I've been eating lots of fish, but i could eat it every day and hey, it helps big time on the grocery bill … and it’s actually low in calories … hehe

I’ve taken several bike rides (which i just love), played cards, card bingo, bunco and went to several activities going on. This past memorial day weekend was a very hectic and active one. I volunteered my time one day to help with an event. I’ve baked cookies & brownies for a bake sale. Baked a cake for birthdays & Anniversary’s that they celebrate each month. Of course lots of talking that i do best! It’s been great to catch up with old friends and as always making new friends.

There seems to be some type of activity going on daily here and there is always something to do. I haven’t had much time for computer or TV time, which i don’t really miss. By the time it’s time to shower and get ready for bed, I'm exhausted and my bed feels so good.

This is the most amazing place and i haven’t even been in town to enjoy all that Branson has to offer. I’m hoping to eventually get time to venture out to a few of the surrounding areas and explore them as well. I haven’t been to downtown Branson in years. I’m also hoping to get over into Arkansas and explore some things there as well. But hey i have 4 1/2 months yet to get there. I’m a full-timer and full-timers never hurry, correct?

Right now I'm just enjoy each day as it comes and what a great ride it is …. until next time ….

Having a Blast!

It’s hard to believe that it’s been almost 2 weeks since leaving Mississippi and Memorial Day is fast approaching. There seems to never be enough hours in the days. I haven’t been keeping up with my dieting either!! I haven’t gained any weight, but i haven’t lost either. I was hoping to get back on track this week, but so far that hasn’t happened.

I am usually up by 8 am, although today i slept in a bit longer, i try to keep my morning routine of straightening up Ms. Southwind. The dogs have been a bit neglected in getting their exercise. It has rained a lot before arriving and mud everywhere. So I've been keeping them close by in the grass only. So taking walks haven’t happened to much. It has rained almost everyday that since arriving … ughhhh Although it usually rains and then clears up and I'm back off to doing things.

The campground roads are not paved, they are rock but do seem to have mud also. As you can see by these photos I'm surrounded by beauty and lots of nature! There are also lots of rock paved trails around the stream that you can ride atv’s and get to the great fishing holes. What a life!!

I’m having a blast at having too much fun, the fishing has been great and taste great! I still say rainbow trout is the best fish ever. Here are some photos i took. Every other Friday is fish releasing day and all the guys get together and release the fish they hope to catch. The first picture is of the guys waiting on the fish truck.

In the second picture you can see the net full of fish their releasing, in each hole they release a net full and 2 lunkers which you can see in the 3rd picture.

Hope your all having a great time and until later …..

Another new toy

I thought i would up date you all on my new toy. I last left off with the new 400 bike purchased. Well it was constantly gone fishing and so i still had no wheels. So it was decided to purchase another bike! Yes, can you believe it? I called the same dealer and he didn’t have another 400 in the 08, so i asked him if he had another Arctic Cat dealer number and he said i have 2 other 08’s left but different sizes, come in and look at them.

So i Jeanette and i needed to run town to pick up some things anyway, so off we went. I looked at both bikes, one was 366 and the other was a 650. After talking to my boys, it was decided to go with the 650 and i only paid $300 more for it then i did the 400. The dealer even delivered it for me as they are going to be at the ranch for Memorial day weekend.

So that night my 2nd new bike was delivered! I’m still driving the 400 as the 650 has too much power for me. Of course my boys are ecstatic as now they don’t have to borrow a bike when their at the ranch, they have their own to ride now.

new ride (toy)

I tried to straighten up Ms. Southwind a bit as i hadn’t really unpacked and did that yet. The weather has been very nice here although the evenings are a bit cool yet. Everyone is laughing at me as their all sitting outside in the evening in shorts and I'm freezing with pants and jacket on.

Since arriving I’ve been looking online, newspapers and the bulletin boards around the campground for a good used ATV (4 wheeler). The ranch is 10,000 areas and most of it has to be seen on an atv. I'm shocked how much used ones are selling for. I guess with the economy the way it is … used things are valued high. I searched online for some local dealers and my friends Kevin & Jeanette (we were neighbors for over 13 yrs) took me into town to the local dealers. It's amazing that i could buy a brand new one for only $1000 bucks more with a 2 yr warranty then the used ones. We went to all the dealers and seen where we could get the best deal and we ended up going back to the very first dealer.


I purchased a new 08 400 Arctic Cat 4 x4 auto with independent suspension and a rear padded seat for my back. I liked the looks of the Arctic cat over all the other brands and it was the best deal of them all.
We got home with my new toy and of course we had to take it for a ride. I love riding on it and the seat is wonderful for my back! It takes the jar out & i really love that you can’t even tell your going over a bump!
So now I can get some great pictures of the ranch and you all can see what were enjoying as well.

Hope your all having a great week and until next time……………

Our first night

Our first night here during the night was woke up by the sound of marble size hail hitting the roof of Ms.Southwind. My friend said that the ranger had come around and announced on the intercom to head to the shelter as a we were under a tornado warning. I slept right through it and didn’t even hear the ranger….hmmm not a good thing. I was either exhausted or have gotten use to sleeping through sirens and noise from living in a very large city and hearing planes, trains, & sirens all day and night long. I told her next time to come beat on my door and wake me up although we didn’t end up with any wind, just rain & a bit of hail but no damage.

I was up by 7 am and doing my morning walk. I hadn’t walked in a week! Although it’s much more difficult to walk in the rocks then on the paved blacktop that I'm used to. But hey, it should help build my legs up even more.

It’s so nice to be back in peace & quiet! I love just hearing the sounds of nature. Hubby was up early as well and out the door as the fish were calling him.

He came home very happy as he caught a very nice fish. Hubby has caught his limit Thursday and Friday both. Were both thrilled to be here and have some relaxation time.

Our days have been filled, we get up early and it seems like before we know it’s 10 pm and time for bed. We haven’t really been doing much relaxation. Although we are having a blast and enjoying our time here. I think we are still in vacation mode and eventually things will slow down and more relaxation will be done.

We’ve made it

I haven’t had any time to blog but i wanted to let everyone know that we’ve arrived safe and sound. There was a bit of a snag in the journey. We didn’t head out on Tuesday, we were delayed a day. While hooking up the car dolly, for some reason the brake system on it wasn’t working. So it was decided to take it nice and slow and see how it goes. We decided not to wait another day, but to go ahead and head out today.

Ms. Southwind rolled out of the campground around 7 am and did a wonderful job. There was no problems with the brakes even though the dolly brakes weren’t working. Ms. Southwind handled the situation with ease. Just had to remember not to drive to closely which wasn’t a problem as Ms. Southwind prefers to stay back out of the traffic anyways.

There was a bit of wind and so Ms.Southwind had to deal with wind catching her but she did a wonderful job.

Although there was one mishap …. we or should i say hubby decided as we got into our journey to make the trip a one day instead of the 2 day planned. What was forgotten was that we don’t like to drive with propane on and so the frig was left off. Normally it’s not a big deal except for the fact that hubby had put the ice cream in the freezer on the lid top and yesssssssssssssss it melted and ran all over the frig. I had one heck of a mess!

We arrived at our new home for the summer around 7 pm and finally got hooked up and settled in for the night. Of course the basic set up was only done as all that i needed was electric/water. I cleaned up my mess and then the rest of the evening was spent sitting outside with our friends visiting and catching up as we hadn’t seen each other for a couple years.

I haven’t had a lot of posting time, although to my surprise i do have wifi. Lonesome campground that were is the only campground with wifi as it’s a new addition they added over the winter. I’m thrilled we chose Lonesome.

I will post more when i get time, right now my days and nights have been filled with having too much time. I’m in vacation mode right now.

Hope your all having a great week

Finish getting things ready to roll

Saturday afternoon we got home from our wonderful time at the Casino. Rest time is over and now it’s time to get things ready for our next journey. Originally it was planned to head out on Friday the 15th but those plans have changed. The new plan is roll out on Tuesday.

It’s been a very hectic few days for us and no cooking has been done. In fact we have at out everyday since Thursday. I haven’t lost any weight, but I'm thrilled i haven’t gained either.

Between getting everything packed up and meeting friends for a last meal & visit it’s been extremely busy. It’s been an exhausting time, and I'm so looking forward to rest & relaxation.

On the road again!

It’s been a busy weekend and i haven’t had time to post, i will post later when i get time about my weekend.  I just wanted to let everyone know that if the weather holds out and all is well the plan is to head out in the morning to new territory!!

Everything but the tow car is packed and ready to roll!  It’s been a wonderful time here but I'm ready for a new adventure. 

Until later …. hope your week is a great one …..

A Wonderful Time

Hubby took me out to Hard Rock Casino and surprised me with reservation at the Vibe! We had a wonderful meal. Our room is great and we have a great view of the Gulf.

Here are some pictures that i took out on the balcony. We were 11 stories up and we still had a balcony and it was so wonderful.

The bed was huge and very comfy but of course we didn’t get much the machines seem to call us. Friday night i woke up around 3 am so i decided to go to the casino part and look around and around 6.30 am hubby joined me. We decided to play one of his favorite machines. The strike game and hubby did great he won another jack pot! Can you believe he has won 2 jack pots in a week time? What a great way to end our wonderful time.

Here is the view we had after dark, although the pictures i took didn’t reallly capture the wonderful view we had. We enjoyed sitting out on the balcony enjoying the view we had.

We had to check out by 11 am and then it was back to Ms. Southwind to let the dogs out and do some things to get ready to roll out next week.

Happy Anniversary!

I wanted to say happy anniversary to my wonderful husband! We’ve been married 26 yrs today!

Today is hubby last day of work. Although it’s looking like we might be back in Mississippi. The place hubby is working at, has asked him to return in the fall.

I got up early this morning and started walking. I wanted to get most of my walk in early as it’s going to be another hot one today. A couple of the ladies in the park decided to walk with me this morning.

I ate a bowl of Raison bran for breakfast and nice salad for lunch. We are spending 2 nights at Isle Casino for our anniversary.

Got to run will post more later when i can … have a good one

I lost another 2 lbs!

I got up this morning and weighed and i was so happy! I lost 2 lbs this week! My total is up to 41 lbs!!!! I am thrilled with the progress i have been making on losing weight. It will be 4 months the 12th of this month since i started. I don’t think that is bad at all. I’m losing at a safe pace and hopefully by doing so and not doing the crash diets I've done in the past it will be much easier to keep it off. My goal is another 29 lbs and then i will re-evaluate and go from there.

I got up this morning and got my morning walking in and then i did some sorting through things. By the time i got that finished the sun was out and it was too hot to walk so i drug out the hose and washed my table, the dog cage, & gas cans. Now everything outside is nice and clean and ready to be packed up this weekend. Hopefully it won’t rain and get dirty again.

Breakfast was a bowl of oat bran and lunch was a salad and Dinner ….

chicken gizzards with mac & cheese

snack was jell-o & Rice Krispie treat

Total Calories … 988

Calories burned … 690

After dinner, i needed to get the trunk empty out so that hubby could bring home his tool box tomorrow from work, everything was moved from the trunk and loaded into the back seat.

Hope you all have a great evening and until next time …..

Packing and Getting things ready

Monday, i spent the entire morning sorting through almost 2 years of mail! I kept what i needed to and started shredding what i didn’t. Well that is until the shredder broke! Ughhh i hate those things. So it was time for a plan B. With identity theft and all i don’t like to throw anything in the trash with my name, address or anything on it. So plan B came to action and i turned on the gas grill and put all of the mail in there and burned it. Once i got the fire going i shut the propane off and let it burn. After everything was burned and the grilled cooled off i cleaned the grill up. Actually plan B worked out great as all that burning burned all the grease and junk out of the grill and so all i had to do was scoop the remains and spray the grill with a hose and it was clean too! Now i won’t have to use the oven cleaner and clean the grill.

I did manage to get in several walks. It also worked out great that while i was doing the mail, it rained and then cleared off. Although the sun & humidity came out and it was really hot.

I got my dishes done by afternoon and by then it was time to start dinner.

I skipped breakfast … bad girl i know

lunch was a salad and … dinner

chicken breast with rice of roni

snack was rice krispie and jell-0

Total Calories eaten … 1082

Calories burned … 380

I was so tired by the end of the day and i was in bed by 9 pm!

Tuesday

I woke up around 5 am and it was pouring. My back was aching so i rolled and over and went back to sleep. I woke up again around 7 am and got up and got my dishes done.

took several walks and then the rain came again. Then i decided i needed to get the rest of Ms. Southwind washed and since the sun wasn’t out even though it was humid and warm i went to work. I washed the back end and back side of Ms. Southwind and now she looks nice for when we roll out.

It’s a good thing i got Ms. Southwind wash this morning as after lunch the rain returned. So i spent the afternoon dusting the walls and everything. It’s amazing how much dust builds up. I need to take the curtains down and wash them but i think i will leave that to another day. I won’t be able to dust the front of Ms. Southwind until we get ready to roll as the tv is in the front and it’s just too hard to try to dust around it. It won’t be long and it’ll be time to start dinner.

I ate Raison bran for breakfast and a salad for lunch

Dinner ….. 4 oz pork chop with a baked potatoes w/tsp butter & sour cream

snack was a granola bar & jello-o w/whipped topping

Total Calories …1001

Calories burned … 480

Hope your all having a great week …….. until next time

Hit a nice jack pot!

Saturday i needed to get some things at Wal-mart, the place i dread to go shopping at because i spend wayyy too much money!! Well i did it again … grrrr

Wal-mart ….

Dog food … 18.44 2 – flav water … 1.16 fiber pills … 6.83 rolaids … 1.57 personal supplies … 2.97 ibuprofen … 7.22 Naproxon … 5.48 sewer clamp … 2.88 fur fish game mag … 3.59 radish … 1.48 shredded cheese … 6.38 Rice Krispie treats … 1.62 dressing … 1.58 laundry soap … 2.50 scrub free … 2.00 2 – lettuce …2.76

Total …. $ 73.25

Dollar Tree ….

2 – fabric softener … 2.00 awesome cleaner … 1.00 air freshener .. 1.00 3 – toilet tissue … 3.00 trash bags … 1.00 rawhide bone … 1.00 sweetener … 1.00 2 – butter scotch candy … 2.00 torillas … 1.00 frame … 1.00

Total …. $14.98

Grand Total …. $88.23

I had a great weekend and as usual went out to eat Friday, Saturday and Sunday! I was glad to get on the scale Monday morning to find that i hadn’t gained any weight. I enjoy eating and i love to go out to eat. So with my dieting and counting calories it’s been a challenge to go out to eat and not gain any weight.

Sunday afternoon our friend took us to Hard Rock Casino and Lenny played a slot machine and guess what? He hit a $1620 jackpot! Was i ever happy. Normally we don’t gamble but it’s nice to do so once in awhile. So now we have both hit a jack pot and both were at Hard Rock.

Thanks Hard Rock!