Checking out Campgrounds

It's getting very cold around here especially overnight. The geese are heading south so we think we should be going too! Unfortunately we have to wait for a few weeks yet. I saw in the forecast on AccuWeather that they're forecasting snow for this area one day next week. Looks like it will just be snow flurries and will melt but still. It's way too early for that! That also means temperatures below freezing at night. Have I mentioned that I really hate this time of year in a an RV?

Returning to Ottawa at the end of April is always a hassle. Most parks don't open until mid May although Dave here at Tranquil Acres has let us come in early. Tranquil Acres is on a flood plain so part of the area down by the water is often still very wet. Today we were looking for a solution to this problem

First we went north and a bit west to a park called Grainger's Tent & Trailer Park. On our way we saw this field of beautiful sunflowers.

It was a nice enough park and a definite consideration however they have no laundry facilities since they are on septic and the nearest town is about 15 minutes away which means quite a distance for groceries, laundry and the like. He could accommodate us coming in early but only if it was dry enough in the park.

This barn was right across from the RV park. Definitely some nice scenery around the area.



I had heard about a park in the east end of Ottawa but had never gone to see it so that was our next stop. The name of the park is Recreationland. This is a very nice park (FHU) and it's about 5 minutes away from the town of Rockland which has a brand new Walmart Superstore plus various other shopping conveniences. They also have a laundry in the park although it's quite expensive. They also have free wifi which they claim is very good. This park opens often as early as April 10th so we're covered there. We decided to sign up for a month beginning when we return in April. Here is a shot of one of the pull through sites where we would be located. They are quite a good size too. Since it's at the other end of town we'll also have some new places to explore. It takes about 25-30 minutes to come in to the west end of the city where our doctor and pharmacy are located.

This is one of the pull thru sites at Recreationland.

A scene within the park

One of the churches in Rockland

A building beside the church - love the looks of this old house.


After a couple of stops to pick up some supplies at Sassy Bead Company (prices are much better than the bead store in Smiths Falls) and at a grocery to get some grits for Gordon for breakfast, we returned to Tranquil Acres.

It's Getting Cold!

It was 4C (39F) this morning at 8:15 a.m. Brrrrr! But it was sunny with only a few clouds around. I walked, I ran, I did my exercises then after breakfast I vacuumed. Here are some photos from my morning walk.

My tree
I never tire of looking at this scene

In the RV Park


We had a mixed day of sun and cloud but at least no rain and a high of 12C (53F).

After that I got out my beading equipment and made four necklaces. These are for gifts so I'm not taking any photos of them. Maybe I'll take photos later of the people wearing them.

Other than that I'm reading a Lee Child's book called Running Blind.

My stepdaughter sent us some grandkid photos yesterday. Here's a couple from their swimming lessons this summer.

Faith and Grace

Luke and his Dad

Not much going on in Carleton Place, I'm afraid.

This 'n That

Since we got the RV recaulked it seems warmer inside and that's a good thing! This morning was pretty cold so I bundled up and away I went for my walk. I did my exercises down by the little dock here in the campground and then came back to the RV to do my lower back exercises. I took a couple of photos on my morning walk. It was cloudy then so they are kind of dark.




I finally reached Sanderson Travel Insurance in Lindsay to see about our travel medical insurance this afternoon and the cost for Gordon's insurance has doubled from what it was last year and if he has a relapse of his Valley Fever while away it isn't covered. Mine is still pretty cheap though.

I decided this is stew weather so went into town to get some supplies to make stew. I also got some other stuff, of course. You can't get away from a store without buying other things. I stocked up on some beading stuff at the dollar store. Dollar stores in the U.S. don't carry beading supplies so will have to go to Michaels or Walmart. There is a Walmart in Rockport but will have to drive to Corpus Christi for Michaels. Corpus Christi is 30 miles south of Rockport. Here are photos of some of the beads I bought. Each package is $1.00.

It's only $1.00 for this box of stones and each has the attached ring so it goes on a chain or becomes part of a necklace.


When I got back to the RV I got the stew on the stove.

No rain today and we actually saw some sun although our high was only 11C (52F).

Yesterday we talked to the campground owner, Dave about staying here next year. The campground is going to be pretty much seasonal starting next year so we're thinking of reserving a site as seasonal to be sure that we'll have a spot here. They open around May 15th and close around October 14th but they could accommodate us coming in as early as May 1st. We would either have to stay at Rideau Heights where we were in the spring for the first few days when we return to Ontario or stay as far away as Mallorytown or Kingston about 1 1/2 to 2 hours away respectively as there are campgrounds there that will be open. More thinking to do......

Thanks to everyone for your kind comments on yesterday's blog.

And the decision is.....

I woke up to rain on the roof. I did my indoor exercises but no walk this morning.

Today was the day Gordon saw the specialist. Good news! The fungus has shrunk, he's off the medication and we're good to go south! Such a relief!

Now I have work to do:

• Getting travel medical insurance
• Buying 6 months of our prescription drugs
• Stocking up on stuff we can't get in the U.S.

But we're going south!


On our way home we went by my first condo, here's a photo of it.

And a couple of photos in the country on our way back to the RV park.

End of Month Expenses - A Bit Scary!

September Expenses

We had a lot going on this month in preparation for hopefully being able to leave for the winter. The big expense this month was getting our fifth wheel in shape. It's now four years old and has never been inspected. We've had to do some things on the road, like get our microwave replaced, we had a slide that wouldn't come in when we were out west in 2006, things like that but it's never been checked over.

When our dealer checked it, we did have at least one leak but now it has all been recaulked so it's good for at least another four years (let's hope). The caulking done at the factory was less than wonderful.

We also had to purchase the new sticker for the truck plates, took the truck in for service, a new 500 GB hard drive etc. so a hefty month. We also had some medical/dental expenses that aren't covered under our extended health care. We did pretty well in the grocery category though!

Enough of that. October will be another expensive month if we are going south due to fuel prices and as we'll have to buy our travel medical insurance if we're going as well. Hopefully it won't be as bad as September and once we hit Texas at least campgrounds will be cheaper.

Gordon goes to see the Infectious Disease Specialist tomorrow to get the results of the CT scan of his lung so we should know tomorrow if we're going south or not.

I spent some time today making two necklaces and restringing some bracelets that I made over the winter that I didn't like or didn't have enough beads on them. Here are a couple of photos.



It started to rain shortly after lunch, pretty heavy at times. It looks like this is the weather we are having here for the rest of the week. High 14C (58F). We had a short stint of sun this morning but it was very short. Gordon scurried out to get some photos while the sun was shining.

More Errands in Ottawa

Not much happened this morning, went for my walk, did my exercises, yadayadayada. This photo is from my walk.



After an early lunch we went in to Ottawa. I had to drop something off at the lab for the doctor, then we went to the Arboretum to see if the trees were changing but not much happening there so stopped at the Ornamental Gardens. There are still a lot of flowers in bloom which is amazing considering we've had frost already but some of them are looking a little worse for wear. Here are some photos.













We stopped to get a few groceries then went to Best Buy to put in some time as we were going to my sister's when she got home from work at 3:30 .m. We sat for a while and watched one of their big flat screen TV's. It made Gordon start thinking of where we could hang one in the RV. NOT!

By the time we arrived at my sister's she was home so we chatted a bit, picked up the mail (including my voter registration card), filled our water jugs and Gordon gave John (brother-in-law) a ride to the garage to pick up his car then we were on our way. We ran into a bit of rush hour traffic but as soon as we got out of the city we moved right along. We did take some back roads to get home though rather than taking the highway.

Today was cloudy and chilly reaching a high of 13C (57F). This week is supposed to be cloudy and rainy. Oh joy!

A Very Lazy Sunday

We got to a pleasant 20C (68F) today although most of the day was under cloudy skies, there were a few peaks of sun around mostly in the late afternoon.

1. Things I accomplished today:
2. Went for my walk/run
3. Did my exercises
4. Had a long nap
   
5. Made 2 necklaces

Here's an interesting site for you to check out, click here. It's one stop shopping, so to speak.

And that about makes up my day!