Go see the new Charlotte's Web movie!!

Josh, Jim and I went to see it tonight and it was a really sweet family film to watch, especially during the holidays. How nice to enjoy the clever dialogue, the Maine scenery, and the homespun theme about friendship. The farm scenes made us want to "be" there. We laughed, and Jim and I cried. (ok, we are criers at movies, but others were sniffling as well.) The animal voices done by Julia Roberts, Oprah and other stars added so much to the film.

When was the last time you went to a movie where the audience applauded at the end?

Christmas times a coming!

Josh and I had a great visit with Mom this afternoon, and were welcomed by the scent of freshly baked buttery Christmas cookies, and a festively decorated apartment. It was so nice to sit there, listening to carols in the background, having tea and chatting. Josh and I ohhed and ahhed all the way back to Manchester looking at lights and listening to Ft. Wayne's all Christmas music station. To top it off, Jim had decorated our pine out front with old fashioned colored lights, making the welcome home even better.

Road Warrior Weariness

We've had a long day battling the wind as we drove today. Jim's arms should be sore tonight. We literally watched the temperature drop throughout the day. We're in Jeffersonville, IN., right across the Ohio River from Louisville. We're staying in a Sam's Club parking lot tonight and will be home tomorrow afternoon...yahoo. We left Georgia this morning after a fun breakfast at Waffle House. The teamwork the crew of three had is incredible, and they deliver the meal order to the cook in code, nothing is on paper, how he remembers everything is a mystery.

In Georgia we talked to a gal at who has a red golf cart, painted up in Earnhart Jr's colors, with a souped-up motor. She said, "if y'all can't go big....stay on the porch!"

We saw fields of cotton around Tifton, with the tufts still on.

In Tennesee, the wind gusts and snow were both blowing around Monteagle and the skies were gray going into Nashville. It was a great day to play Christmas CD's. We saw a field of maybe 30+ wild turkies, or should I say pheasants. That's what they were I guess. Something, Uncle Rich would love to have on a platter!

In Kentucky, south of Louisville, Jim saw a sign that said, "Used Cows for Sale." Now what do you suppose that means?

It's cold, and the sight of the little house on East Street will be a welcoming and happy sight indeed tomorrow. The big bed, a washer and dryer, and a full blast shower all sound like heaven right about now after a long, windy, cold day on I-75, 24, and 65!

Armadillo Facts~I find these guys so fascinating that I wanted to share info!

Adult armadillos can grow up to be 8-15 lbs. in size. They are a cousin to the sloth and the anteater. They have a sticky, barbed tongue so they love to eat ants, bugs, and gardens! We saw cone-shaped holes in the ground around our campsite at Sumter Oaks and come to find out, "they" had been there digging for worms, grubs and other goodies. Armadillos have between 30-32 peg shaped teeth. Like a pig, they enjoy a mud bath to stay cool in summer. They live alone, and may have up to 15 burrows dug out for itself within a 10 mile range.

Aside from humans, armadillos are the only animal to be carriers of leprosy. They have poor eyesight but a terrific sense of smell which aids in their bug hunts. Jake might like to have a plush armadillo in his stocking rather than a hedgie this year.

The heat will be on tonight.

We woke up to a cooler Florida this morning. We began to pack up to head North, but soon lost interest. We did some preliminary stuff to get "ready" to come home, then went out joyriding on country roads. We looked for the burros and sand hill cranes to take photos, but no luck, they weren't around today. We went through Brooksville, Floral City, Inverness and Hernando. All small towns with historical courthouses, rivers or lakes in them. I will say that the towns are not "pretty" like northern towns. They look shabby somewhat, and the litter in Florida is terrible. I've noticed it this entire trip. We don't know if it's the tourist, people just don't care, or there aren't groups like other states have that volunteer to keep an area clean. In Hernando we found the stilt house where Jim's dad lived for a time on the Withlacoochee river. It was "WAY" back in the dense palm/live oak/ cypress/wild vegetation forest area and it was a little spooky. The song from Deliverance kept going through my head....!
Anyway~the full moon on the way back to the rv made the blue-pink sky an awesome sight, and Christmas lights added charm as we went through canopyed avenues (the spanish moss hangs from the live oaks, and closes up over the road looking like a tunnel) made us think that "this" is what Florida looked like in days gone by before every square inch was covered with a building. I will say that mid-Florida has lots of horses, cows and pasture land. The tourist dollars aren't in Citrus, Hernando and Sumter counties. People actually live here, not tourists, so the glitz and chain stores aren't in this area. Jim saw a bumpersticker that said..."Be a Gator, or be Gator bait." Dah-dah-dumdum...doodoodoodoo. D-e-l-i-v-e-r-a-n-c-e !!

Burros, Cranes, Corgis and Cops!

Hello everyone~ Today it's muggy in central Florida. Frankly, a little cooler weather sounds good to me right now. Jim went along with Phil down to Naples to pick up the ebay pop-up for Phil's son. The dogs and I have the "joint" to ourselves, and we're enjoying it. We went into Bushnell, about 6 miles north on 75, and I found a McD's diner, which is just darling inside, have you seen one? Anyway, got my senior coffee and drove through the town where I found a nice library, a beautiful spanish influenced design courthouse, and a good ol' Dollar General where I got some glass ornaments to put on the twig lighted star we have on the windshield.
A-n-y-w-a-y, this is where the cop part comes in.
I made a left turn where I wasn't supposed to. I hadn't noticed the cop RIGHT across the road from me. "She" pulled me over immediately, asking if I hadn't seen the 7 signs saying NOT to make a turn like that. I said, "no," (sublimaly sending a message to her saying, hey, I'm old, don't mess with me)...."I've never been to Bushnell before, and I only know ONE way to get back to the campground, which is where I'm going now." She basically told me to get outta dodge, and never come back. I think she looked in, saw the corgis and the Dollar General bag and knew I was harmless. Whew! I shook all 6 miles back to Sumter Oaks RV Park. I'm pretty sure the dogs were snickering in the back seat.
When we pulled into the park, we saw a fenced off farm like area at the edge of the property where some burros stood. Two were very pregnant, there was a young one with bristly hair, and several others that moseyed over to the open car window where Jake had his head out as far as he could. They were just as interested in him. I told them we'd bring apples over later. Addie snarled in the back seat and stayed low. She doesn't do well with other species. We drove over to the "other" far side of the park property and saw three majestic Sand Hill Cranes. They were very large bodied, the size of a corgi, with long flamingo like necks, big bills, red tufted heads with a white stripe at the eye. Their legs were jointed and probably close to 3 feet long. Jake stuck his head out again to view the wildlife here. Addie didn't look up this time. A nice neighbor lady told us what these birds were called. They look a lot like blue herons but heavier in body and not the long pointy bill.
Tonight there is an ice-cream social which is what Escapees are known for on Sunday evenings. Everyone takes a dollar and you get a sundae. Not sure if the boys will be back in time by 6pm.
So~for a gal who just wanted a nice quiet day, it was pretty eventful. The corgis are sleeping off all the excitement as I type.

Winter Scene .VS. Beach Scene

Goodness! What a quandry!

Do we head North where things are going wacko weather-wise? The TV news and headlines all

state ice and snow wreaking havoc up there!

Here, temps are still in the 80's. Shorts and flip-flops .vs. fleece lined jackets, mittens and boots.

Hmmmm........well, Monday we'll head back home. Our pal Phil is coming down from S.C., to Naples, Fl., to pick up a pop-up for his son that he found on e-bay. He'll spend 2 nights with us at the Escapee Park near Bushnell, as he goes each way. Then....we'll brave the weather, get antifreeze for the hoses and holding tanks, and come home! All of you in Indiana, stay safe as you deal with the snowy stuff.