TEXAS BOUND!!!!!!

 October 19, 2013

Left Roy and Dayna's this morning, after a VERY nice visit and stay at the "Rockage Resort"!

We headed East on I-40 and saw more of what we have been seeing of this beautiful (and  DRY) Southwest weather!  I feel SO good down here in this area!!!! 

And finally came to the good ol Texas WELCOME YA'ALL!!!!

And Checked into our RV park - FORT AMARILLO RV Park at 4:00 in the afternoon...
We were immediately invited to join a Pot Luck Dinner at the Clubhouse!  I hit the HUGE Gift Shop first and found some GREAT Things! and then scrambled to find something to take over to the pot luck... Decided on Pretzel Crisps and Dip...

Here is our Campsite  - Quiet at night - even though near I-40!

A neat Duck pond with gold fish is right behind our site!  Very nice!

We even have a TREE!!!!

The pot luck was held in the club house of the rec center and the pool/hot tub area also in another area there - REALLY neat !! I did not think to take pictures of the HUGE spread of food there!!!!!!  We sat with some local folks, who were very friendly and  then the Entertainment began - the "Southwest Cowboy Poets Association" was the entertainment! It was FABULOUS!  I have always enjoyed the sense of humor that Cowboy poetry seems to show and this group was no exception.  There was cowboy music, much of it that I remember from MY childhood! and of course, the poetry...

And in the breaks between performers, there was a "ticket drawing" and I spied this CUTE TRUCK!  I used to have a cute little CHEVY short bed/step side pickup truck (emerald GREEN) and decided I wanted to try for THIS one..... and it was the FIRST ticket drawn so I could CHOOSE!  I had a GREAT time with our table mates, (who were FORD truck owners), telling them how I was going to PAINT over the "ford name" with "CHEVY"! LOL!!

 This is one of the prizes to be chosen and one of the Cowboys was Showing it off! LOL!

 These Cowboys were a BLAST!!!!   The one in the Center was SO cute!! (probably the AGE of my oldest Grand kids.!!!)  The 2 outside fellers were Really assuring me that the middle one was a TRUE cowboy... I asked him to turn around so I could tell for sure........  so he DID, then the older fellers asked if I was looking for the "Skoal ring" on his back pocket... I said " UHM... ah,... NO..."  just checking out his backside!!! LOL!  They ALL laughed at THAT!!!!!!

I got a chance to do the "Texas Two Step" with THIS guy!! Such Gentlemen!

And it turned out I had a total of THREE winning tickets!  I got to choose which things I want, so one of the things I chose was the 2 bundles of Barbed wire!  Barbed wire was FIRST patented in a town about 30 miles from us, (DeKalb, Illinois), in 1874!!  The guy holding his hat in the photo above is named Ivan Cates and he asked me to email him some information about this fact!!!!  These guys were SO nice!  Very much Gentlemen!

These barbed wire pieces are apparently COVETED by different collectors!  (a fact I did NOT know)... they are from Local Ranches... the 'donator' even identified them with the tags.. I am going to mount them on a piece of barn wood and hang them on our porch.. they are described as:

Ribbon Barb
Saw Tooth
Square Line 4 Barb
Twisted 4 Barb
Twisted 2 Barb

Some of these came from the XIT Ranch and Frying Pan Ranch here in Texas

When we finally get home, I am going to mount them and then email a picture of them to  my new friend, Ivan.....  We were SO WARMLY Welcomed here, I just LOVE IT!!!!!!

Will try to post more of interest in the next few days, but we are on our way SLOWLY back up north, and will be visiting Grand Daughter and her family and dear friends as well in Kansas and then Missouri before we get home.....  Tomorrow night, Somewhere in OKLAHOMA!!!!!!

ROCKAGE RESORT!

October 13, 2013

Sunsets in New Mexico are WONDERFUL and this one is no exception!  

This was our last night at the American RV Park.....Till NEXT time!!!

October 14, 2013 

Said the LAST goodbyes to the last of those leaving and we pulled out of the RV park and went over to the North Side of ABQ to Rio Rancho to our friends' home - they were part of our group at the Rally and we all needed some rest and winding down from the Rally... Dayna was one of the GREAT organizers of the Rally and along with THAT, has Moved in the last year and a half, TOTALLY decorated their home and Designed and landscaped their yard, as well as having a NEW Grand baby AND organized Retirement parties for her sweet Hubby, Roy!!!!  She can really juggle those balls in the air!!! 

This is the view as we headed their way:

We arrived in the late morning, just in time to go to lunch at the Santa Anna Star Casino with Roy and Dayna, and our good friends, Millie and Ron and Debbie and Bill and Jim and Sue and Sandy and Ron...  Took 2 big tables to hold all of us, but the Buffet is WONDERFUL!!!!!  Best part is:  Get your "Player's Card" for $5.00, have lunch, then go to the machine, get a voucher for a chip, take it to any one of the gaming tables and they exchange the voucher for a chip, then go to the cashier's window and get a $5.00 Bill!!  WHAT?????????  HUGE Selection of food at the Buffet and it turns out all you pay for is the TAX!!!!!!! LOL!

Sat around in the evening at Dayna and Roy's and did not even eat dinner - TOO FULL!
The sunset at their place is AMAZING as you look at the scenery of the Sandia Mountain right out in front of their home!!!!

View of the back of the home:

View of that WONDERFUL mountain out Front of the home!

More Back Yard shots, Dayna and Roy have done ALL of this landscaping by THEMSELVES!  Dayna designed and the 2 of them did the work on weekends and Dayna worked during the week on it, till Roy retired... AMAZINGLY beautiful - and virtually NO maintenance - nothing to mow....

Our RV Club friends Bill and Debbie and Jim and Sue came to visit for dinner on the 15th in the evening.

On the 16th in the morning, Dayna and I took off in her cute little sport's Car (you all would have DIED seeing me cram my body in that sweet car and then try to climb out of it.........  NOT a purdy SIGHT!!!!!) The guys went off in Roy's truck and the boys did THIER 'guy shopping' and then we met for a "Sam's Dog" and some shopping, and home in time to make up stuff for the afternoon visitors to Roy and Dayna's - Robert and Renate and Helmut and Maria came for dinner - Roy did a GREAT job making his "Poppers" and we had more guacamole and chips and Roy made burgers on the grill - Wonderful!

Before dinner they all got a chance to use the 'Bocci Ball court' and play horse shoes after the tour of Roy and Dayna's home.

Poor Tyson, Maria and Helmut's "adopted'' dog, he wanted to play with the balls, and both he and Kahlua (Robert and Renate's dog) could NOT understand why THEY were not allowed to play with those balls!!!! LOL!

Roy and Dayna's Rig and ours in front of theirs.

Roy's "Man Cave" Grill, where he prepares WONDERFUL steaks, poppers, burgers, etc...  They have created several "islands" of interesting places to sit, visit,  or just enjoy the VIEW!!

We had a chance to come into Roy and Dayna's lovely sun room and visit with Bob and Renate and Helmut and Maria after dinner and had LOTS of stories to share before they left and we said our final good byes to them.

On the morning of the 17th, I loaded the crock pot with a big chuck roast, carrots and onions and potatoes and the guys installed the new front heavy duty jacks onto Dayna and Roy's 5th wheel.  Dayna and I played computer stuff, and I cleaned our place.. Dinner was fun and then TV in their place for a while..

Oct 18, 2013

We ALL took off for some "Retail Therapy''!!  HOLY COW! I REALLY need to get out more.......... Shops like I have never seen! Bargains, Thrifts, Overstocks, etc. World Market is FAB!!!!!!!!!  Total wines for a case of the GREAT ALASKAN AMBER beer I discovered up in Anchorage!!!!! Also, a Few bottles of wine and Autumn Harvest pumpkin spice liquor and Apple Pie liquor.

Roy did steaks on the grill for dinner and we had SUCH a great meal!  then TV entertainment for our last night there at their wonderful "Resort!"

Balloon Fiesta!!!!!!!

October 7, 2013

We arrived in Albuquerque at the American RV park on the West side of Albuquerque on the 7th and visited with a few folks who were early arrivals like us, and then on the 8th, All the rest of our RV Club friends arrived for the OFFICIAL beginning!  We had Appetizers and other refreshments as we blocked off the street and had a "Meet and Greet"!  We had a GREAT time, seeing folks that we have not seen for a year or so, and also meeting several others for the first time!  So fun to catch up , and get tours of the NEW rigs for the first time!  

The "Groaning Board" of foods before we began!!!  It was dark out when we finally called it a night... tomorrow will be an EARLY rising for the "Dawn Patrol"... That means getting up at 4:00 in the MORNING, to get to the Fiesta Park by 5:30 or so, before the sun comes up!!!!!!!

 Oct 9, 2013

This was one of the sights we saw shortly after we arrived at the Fiesta Park!  I was SO surprised that we were allowed to wander among the balloon pilots and helpers while they were rolling out the BIG balloons and beginning to fill with cold air to start the inflation process, and then as they begin to stand upright, hot air (below) is used to get the balloon off the ground... The balloon is tethered to a rope till it is fully inflated and ready for liftoff..  Pilot and passengers (or helpers!) jump into the basket and OFF THEY GO!!!!!

 Here are MANY being slowly inflated with the assistance of headlights from the trucks.

Several lined up, as they are filling...

 The FIRST 2 to have LIFTOFF!

Here I am looking like the MICHELIN MAN!  I had SO many layers of clothes and coats on, trying to get warm in the 34º weather!!!!!!!

Our friend, Santa Don and one of the "Wagon Masters" of this Rally and our friend, Robert, getting tips from Santa!!!!

Beginning to see the "Specialty Shapes" which were originally planned for tomorrow's launch, but it is predicted to be too windy for safety tomorrow, so some launched today...

Fireplug

Court Jester

Buzz Lghtyear

An Alarm Clock.

an ELF???

Fireman

A HUGE Creamland Cow!!

Masses of COLOR!

A Deep Sea Diver

A Panda

My MOST Favorite!!!!!  I collect hearts - rocks, jewelry, Christmas ornaments.......

Milling among the balloons as they prepare for liftoff.

About to see my Second Favorite Balloon!!!!

 Spidey Kitty?????

Bee's Behinds!!!!

Better shot of my 2nd Favorite Balloon!!

 Wrestling the balloon down and ready to deflate

Here are several of us! Cathy, Me, Mike, Susanna, Den and over to the right is our friend, Santa Don... Rob, (Cathy's hubby) was taking our picture!

This guy needs NO introduction!

And last, but not least,  I have no IDEA who this guy is!!!  LOL!

More activities planned at our Rally, working around the Balloon Fiesta -

We had a few pot lucks, dinner out as a group to Santiagos, and another night at Garcia's, both Mexican food and WONDERFUL!  Then Pizza night and drawings for gifts - I won SEVERAL things!!! I am SURE I will forget some of them, as I packed them away in the (Shrinking) storage space in this 29 Foot Camper!!!!  I won a bottle of wine, travel bottles, and several items with Cardinals on them: Spoon rest, plate and cup, journal, coasters... Also a photo frame  shaped like a 5th wheel!  I am sure I have forgotten to list some things.....

As the days ticked by, we got together when we had free moments to visit with friends who were leaving on the 13th, and said our Goodbyes!

OUR trip is not over yet, so:  STAY TUNED!!!!!!