Sunday

Clarinda, IA 74º

Saturday we worked in yard.  Phyllis is weeding and trimming flowers.

 I cut all the lower limbs and branches from all the trees in front and back yard.

Ate out on the deck -- had a lot of rain for weeks, but had a nice day for this.

Went out to lunch with group from church -- Jay's Pizza and Steak House here in Clarinda today.  Then after got home rode the trikes a little over 8 miles.  Lots of clouds - 70% humidity, but while we were riding had good breeze until the last mile or so.

Have spent quite a bit of time putting projected stops on the GPS for trip later this month north into Canada and then to the east, back in to Michigan and then back in to Canada a while and return to US in New York State -- visiting many friends and places in Vermont, New Hampshire, Connecticut, Maine and other states before swinging back west in the US.  Have made many improvements to the trailer -- storage shelves, hanging hooks, and altering the underneath storage area.  Added some shelving in the topper on the Pickup.  Put finishing touches on things week from today.

Later, Lynn

June is busting out all over!

Clarinda, IA57º overcast - to get to 77º today.
Well, we have had a busy month - looking back at our pictures, I see we:
May 1st - Went to square dance at Creston, IA.
May 3 visited 93 year old friend Luther Compton and his wife Marie at their farm near College Springs, IA.
May 4 Made riser blocks for bed in basement so Phyllis can use as work bench for quilts.
May 8 got topper on pickup and walked Papio Creek trail to Zorinsky Lake.
May 11th - 13th Steve and Beth Gregory (Phyllis' sister) visited from Colorado.
May 13th - I helped unload truck for food pantry at Methodist Church. -- Cleaned shop gutters.
May 14th -16th  Don & Vicki Miles (my brother) visited from Missouri
May 16th - went to Lincoln, NE - attended High School graduation party for niece Tiffany Miles
May 17th - Last singing of season with church choir; left with travel trailer for 10-day trip.  Parked in back yard of Leonard & Noni Lund in Whiting, IA.  Steve & Ann DeBoom came for supper & Pegs & Joker games.
May 18th - Had lunch with cousin Donna Weiting and her husband Maynard and their daughter Darcy and granddaughter Brooke in Watertown, SD.  Drove to De Smet, SD for night.
May 19th - Toured Laura Ingalls Wilder homestead and museum, walked the town reading plaques on all buildings citing what was in that location during Laura Ingall's childhood.  Drove to Pierre, SD.
May 20th - Toured South Dakota State Capital and visited/walked many of the Lewis & Clark sites and drove to Oahe Dam and Lake on the Missouri at Pierre.
May 21st - Drove west, spent several hours at Wall Drug and Wall, SD, set trailer at French Creek RV on south edge of Custer, SD.
May 22nd - Spent time at Crazy Horse Memorial and The Indian Museum of North America; drove area including Sturgis, Deadwood, and northern part of Black Hills area.
May 23rd - Drove Needles Highway (much of it in fog or low hanging clouds), drove full loop to south in Custer State Park; and in later afternoon visited Mount Rushmore.  (Much of day in fog)
May 24th - Drove to Fort Robinson near Crawford, NE, visited area near Agate Fossil Beds National Monument, drove 13 miles on wet gravel road (Washed rig that evening in Scottsbluff) and spent night near Gering and Scottsbluff, NE.
May 25th - Drove through Sandhills to Callaway, NE.  Parked trailer in yard of Sharleen and Lynn Stivers.  Visited my parents grave and went to Broken Bow for supper with the Stivers.  Afterwards visited with Monte Jo and Madeline McFate.
May 26th - Visited Lower Lodi neighbor Norman Downan at his farm; drove by the home place where I lived from 1947 to 1961; spent time in Custer County Museum in Broken Bow, and met Jake & Helen Ferguson, Don Ferguson and Lawrence Ferguson for lunch at the Tumbleweed Cafe.  Drove to Clarinda, mowed lawn (could have baled hay) before dark.
May 29th - Viewed Ed Nordland auto auction and many cars.
May 30th -  Watched some of auction of the many auto parts; in evening watched the Cruzin' Clarinda Parade with over 100 entries from tractors, pickups to cars.
May 31st - Watched part of the auction; was open to telephone and internet bidding.  One Mustang brought $174,000 + the 10% cash or 13% check or credit-card sales commission.

In Custer, South Dakota

All of the above I am taking from looking at photos.  I am still sorting through the 2,166 photos taken in May, straightening, deleting, cropping, etc.  I take/took many photos of signs at museums, etc. which viewed in Picasa I can enlarge and read again the stories I read at the time.

Will post as I get to it, Lynn

10-Day Vacation to South Dakota

Clarinda, IA 71º overcast.  Light rain during the day.

We left Clarinda, with our travel trailer, about noon Sunday, May 17 for South Dakota.  Our main purpose was to see the progress on the carving at Crazy Horse Monument.  Click Here for website Though we spent only one day at the monument (drove by it several other days) it is interesting that they are building the INDIAN UNIVERSITY OF NORTH AMERICA® on site and currently have students in a 2-year program and are working to build a 4-year University.

 Stopped first in Whiting, IA and parked our trailer in back yard of Leonard & Noni Lund.  They invited fellow RVers Steve and Ann DeBoom from just north of Sioux City to join us for supper and some Pegs & Jokers afterwards.

Next morning we headed north, in very strong winds - blowing hard on us and our travel trailer - and had lunch with Donna and Maynard Weiting.  With her were her daughter Darcy and granddaughter

Well, I started this 3 or 4 days ago and left and never got back to it.  Will post and try to fill in later.
Lynn

French Creek RV Custer, SD

Custer, SD  46º - to get to 38º tonight and scattered rain tomorrow with 47º high.

Have taken some 700 photos - we were in Whiting, IA last Sunday night.  Visited cousin Donna Weiting and her husband Maynard and their daughter Dorsey and Granddaughter Monday noon in Watertown, SD.  Stayed that night at Campground in Desmet, SD where we toured Laura Engalls Wilder buildings on Tuesday.  High winds Sunday and Monday and very poor GPM on the truck pulling the travel trailer.  Winds down on Tuesday and Wednesday.  Stayed in campground right on Missouri River in Pierre, SD about half-mile from the Capital.  Toured the Capital and drove around both Pierre and Fort Pierre looking at sites of Lewis & Clark as well as the Oahoe Dam and lake.  Rode the recumbent trikes about 5 miles on bike trail right on the Missouri River.  Today we drove from Pierre to Custer, SD -- spent several hours in Wall, SD at Wall Drug and surrounding area.  Have 3 nights in French Creek RV Park only couple blocks from main street in town.  Walked a little over a mile tonight on the main street, both east and west after we ate supper at the trailer.  Intend to be at Crazy Horse Monument by 7:30 am tomorrow, hoping to get in as much thee and at Mount Rushmore before or between the rains.

Will post pictures as I have time.  Tonight is first campground with WIFI so have taken advantage of reading on it for about 3 hours now.  To bed and on with things tomorrow.
Later, Lynn

Clarinda Happenings, etc.

Had trouble with the blog so published and continuing in new one.

Tuesday evening the hospital across the street from us had a free hotdog supper as part of Hospital Week.  Attended it as part of a trike ride and visited with several people.

A few blogs ago I led off with the photo at left of the back yard bush.  Photo above was taken yesterday.  Color all gone.

 Yesterday I rode my trike down to the Methodist Church to be there when truck came in for the Food Bank that the Church helps with.  There were something like 4 pallets of items, some frozen, that we carted into the Education Unit and also into the Basement of the Church.  The gals had quite a time getting all the stuff put away, especially the frozen.

Quite a few guys showed up to move the items from the truck.

Guess should post a few pictures of Beth and Steve during there visit.

Yesterday put up ladder and cleaned the gutters on the north side of the house and on both sides of the steel shop building.

Last night went to Choir Practice.

And, since it was the last practice of this Choir Season, we all went to eat at Jay's Pizza & Steak House.

Brother Don and wife Vicki are on road today and will be here tonight and tomorrow and then we go to Lincoln on Saturday for High School Graduation Party of our brother Roger's granddaughter Tiffany.


Till next time, Lynn

Clarinda Happenings

Clarinda, IA  55 degrees - rain - predicted 69 degrees with rain next three days.

Yesterday was May 13th - 7 years since sister Louise passed away.  Went to her grave and put flowers on it Tuesday.

Phyllis' sister Beth and husband Steve were here from Sunday evening through Tuesday after lunch.  They were with us Monday at the cemetery and they put flowers on Steve's parents stone.

 Phyllis fixed this for breakfast Monday:

Bundt Cake Breakfast

By KathyP53 on April 05, 2015

• Prep Time: 15 mins
• Total Time: 1 hr
• Servings: 8

Ingredients: 1 cup diced ham; 2 cups frozen tater tot; 1 dozen egg, whisked;1 eight ounce can biscuit, diced up ( like Pilsbury Grands; 2 cups shredded cheddar cheese

 Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2. Butter bundt pan and set aside.
3. Toss all ingredients together in large mixing bowl.
4. Spoon mixture into prepared bundt pan. Bake for 45 minutes. When done baking, flip onto platter, cut, and serve.

5. These flowers have really grown! - Continued on new blog -Click "Newer Post" below.

   
   

   
   

Got topper for pickup truck

Clarinda, IA 67 degrees - overcast - to be 72º later today.

We drove to Omaha Saturday to have our new topper put on our Chevy PU.  Think this completes our unit nicely.  Great to have a place weather-protected to put things.

With windows on the side open it is easy to put things in or take things out of the back from the side.

     Also got the in-channel window shades installed.  We have always had these on our vehicles as you can leave the windows down a bit in hot weather and not worry about rain coming in.  It also helps a bit for wind noise while driving.

Bikes fit without removing seats and folding, though that can be done if we need extra room.  I am reconfiguring the SMV signs for the back to a slide-in holder to be easy to remove.  We were able to get them in the Ford Excursion by bending them slightly, but not here.

Side view with both side windows open.

While working on computer at my basement desk I have been watching many old VCR tapes.  This is Granddaughter Ashley when she was about a year old.  Took photo of the TV screen so it is grainy.

Have worked on several things in the trailer.  Took off the plastic covering of the mattress and plugged in the electric heating element built into the mattress.  May need it when we are in the Black Hills later this month.

With various rains and super high wind a couple days these "helicopters" flew off all the trees they were on and completely covered the lawn, driveway, etc.  If they all grew we would have a forrest.

One late afternoon we had really bad looking clouds to the south.  Other than some light wind we did not get anything like the clouds appeared to be bringing us.

 Friday, while we were in Omaha, it took much of the day to do all the work on the pickup so we walked about a half mile to the bike/walking trail along Papio Creek.  We went as far as Ed Zorinsky Recreation Area and across the dam.  Think about 5 or 6 miles total.

Went up town to Easters on Saturday and while there visited briefly with Mary Damman.


Phyllis' sister Beth and brother-in-law Steve are driving from Colorado to our place today, arrive later this evening.  They will be here until Tuesday.  My brother Don and wife Vicki will be here Friday night and we then go to Lincoln, NE for niece's High School Graduation Party.
   We pack the trailer and take off after Church on Sunday for 10 day trip in South Dakota and Nebraska.  Rain again overnight - think Phyllis dumped .4 from the gauge.

Later, Lynn