Catching up is hard to do...

On May 1, we took a side trip up Hwy 101 (aka Redwood Highway) destination Brookings, OR via Crescent City. This was really for a side job for Hubby, but may as well enjoy the journey, right? So we stopped to enjoy the sounds and smell... ahhh.... and... well, let's see if the pictures load.
and then... (ooohhh... I'm getting the hang of this picture thing... Yay!)

Lucky me! Aww.... after all these years... still crazy about him! :-)

And then...

There's Ian! (He thinks we're funny!)

Before we headed out on the 19th we were had the fun of spending the weekend with Jana Smith (and boys Jake and Josh) and also managed a brief "meet-up" with Kim & Dennis Goza and friends Libby and Linda.


I have to say that leaving Humboldt this time was a bit harder this time... Our very good friends, The Welch Family, will soon be moving to Ohio. While we wish them all the love and blessings for a safe trip and getting settled in their new home, we will truly miss them and Humboldt just won't be the same without them.

(Me, Jana Smith, Space Welch, Rich, Smiles Welch)

We will look forward to, hopefully, catching up with them when they come through Sacramento on their way across to Ohio. And, OF COURSE, it will give us an incentive to go visit soon...

From here I will insert a couple of blogs that I wrote while we were traveling last week (yes, it's taken me a week to get these posted... sorry...) Along with a picture that gives an interesting perspective of traveling 101 in large vehicles. Unfortunately I was not having luck getting the camera adjusted on the really "tight spots"... but for you who have not traveled this highway before it gives you a hint... there are just areas that you take it slow and easy...



On to the blogs:

Tuesday - May 19, 2009

Headin’ out of Humboldt…

Heading south on Hwy 101, (aka the Redwood Coast Highway.) At the moment we are passing the exit to the Avenue of the Giants. It is very rare that I take the co-pilots seat in our motorhome. Typically our Ian rides “shotgun”!

We took our time leaving today. We have decided that we prefer to travel late in the day when leaving Humboldt enroute to warmer climates; as we are today. The semester ended for Humboldt State Universtiy (HSU) last week. Summer Break! I think somehow we are doing this backwards, though, most people head to where it is cooler, during summer months. We are going to where it is much warmer.

Our destination is hubby’s parents house in Oroville, CA. Some of you may know where Chico, CA, is; Oroville is about 30 miles or so south in Butte County. Tonight, our first destination is to Yuba City, CA. There we will visit our son, his wife and our three grandchildren. Yuba City is only about a 40 minute drive from Oroville, so we will be able to visit them often this summer.

So, back to my riding “shotgun” --- It’s a rather different view from here. Watching the road come at you and go away. In our RV even the largest of vehicles look rather small. I am blogging as we head down the road at 60mph to the tune of Lynard Skynard. Yee Haw! We love our life!

Despite Ian loving his typical “shotgun” position he seems to thoroughly be enjoying the opportunity to turn his “Longshot” Nerf gun (thank you Josh) into an “air guitar” to play with the band… he’s dancing around, rockin’ out as we head south.

And my hubby, well he is just cruisin’ – He drives our behemoth like it’s our minivan. I know we both look forward to the day when we do get to take our “Moby D” down the road more often. Currently 'Moby' sits for most of each semester; we travel primarily on breaks. Once Rich graduates we anticipate that he will work in a location for a few months at a time, or so, and then we will travel to some place new. (We do have plans to do a bus conversion... more on that another time.)

It is funny, we recently realized that since we have been married we live in a place for a couple of years and then we are ready for something new. The same seems to be true for our current stay in Humboldt. We recently admitted to each other that we have “itchy feet” to move on.

We know that hubby will continue at HSU for at least one more semester, but after that we are just not sure. He is starting to look at programs elsewhere to see if he wants to consider transferring. Our oldest son and family are looking at moving to Texas, perhaps as soon as the end of this summer. That is a bit of a catalyst for us to head out and maybe spend some time in Texas for a bit.

Truth be told, it is a difficult decision. We really like Humboldt and have some great friends whom we will miss when we leave. HSU has awesome Natural Resource programs available. We are not sure if we can find anything that comes close somewhere else. Perhaps we will be here for a few more years with his studies and just be content travelling during school breaks… time will tell…

I’ll sign off for now… and just enjoy the view for awhile…

Wednesday – May 20, 2009

On the Road Again…

We rolled into Robinson Rancheria, on Highway 20 near Clear Lake, at about 9:30pm and decided to finally stop for food and rest. Hubby decided he was tired, so after food we called it a night. We don’t gamble much, hubby being raised in Reno, NV, casino’s don’t have much appeal. But we are thankful for the big parking lots and for how welcoming they are to be able to stop for a rest.

The next leg of this journey will take us, we estimate about three hours, through the hills that lead to Colusa and then into Yuba City for a visit with our son and family. Our old rig can only do about 20-25mph on the hills, so it’s slow going… but hey, isn’t the journey what it’s all about?? Isn’t that what we learn by enjoying this lifestyle with our kids?? We can only hope…

Until Next time...