We're in Killeen, Texas

Got here yesterday afternoon and called Sean....met up with them for pizza, which was very nice! The grandkids have gotten soooo big!
We started off the day hoping and praying that someone would want the Magic Bus and ended it with a small bidding war!! Kinda nice....nothing compared to what we originally paid for it, of course, but something....
So the way it stands now is, a company in Southern California wants it, as is....we may not have to spend the money on the carpeting! So, I will fly out on Monday to secure housing and some furniture, fridge and washer/dryer (probably), then fly back and help Alan pack up our stuff and drive home. We will call the "new" owners of the rig and they will come and pick it up and we will leave in the truck. I don't know why, but I have had the worst gut feeling that we shouldn't drive the RV anywhere....and I have learned to listen to those "hunches"!!
We left this AM and went to San Antonio to see The Alamo and the famed "riverwalk".....it's very cool ....a river winding around with waterfalls and bridges...lots of trees and shops all around. They had little lights in the trees and it looked like it would be so romantic at night with your honey.......as it was, we had Lisa and the dog, so, no, not so romantic at all, but fun.Pics to follow....
Tomorrow, Alan and Sean are gonna go to a military museum on base (Ft. Hood) and then Alan hopes to talk him into going to the Tilted Kilt which is very closeby. I think it would be nice for them to have some father/son time.  He made the reservations here and it's a super nice room (thanks honey!)....kind of suspicious tho, being so close to his fav restaurant! LOL!!
Friday, we start back to Las Cruces....a two day ride.

The part is IN!

So here's the new plan! The RV place isn't open tomorrow (Turkey Day) or Saturday or Sunday and the manager can't guarantee the repair will happen in one day, so..... we will take it in on Monday on our way out of town to see Sean and his family. 2 days to get to Ft. Hood Texas, 2 days there, and 2 to get back here. Voila`!!! Then, I will fly out to find us a house and Alan will (hopefully!) sell this thing....that's the plan right now. Things change fast in our lives, so stay tuned!!

Part will be shipped

But not til the 28th!! Arrrggghhh....3-5 days to get here, the 3 days (we're guessing and padding!) to install it. They seem confident that this part will do the trick...I sure hope so! We plan to go and see Sean and his family in Texas while they work on the rig. 2 days of driving, but I feel much better doing it in the car. I just don't trust the RV to make it there and back without a problem! So, 2 days there, stay 2 days and then drive back in 2 days. LaMesa RV in Arizona buys RV's and will even come and pick your's up, we hear. Haven't contacted them yet because we want to have the slide all fixed first, but that's the plan. If they won't buy it for some reason (uh, like it's a piece of doggie doodie??????), then we will have to go to plan B. Don't know what Plan B is exactly, but we'll figure out something!
While this is being handled, I plan on being in Nevada County looking for a house to rent. Anyone know of anything? We prefer 3 bedrooms, if possible....
Today (Saturday) we went to the local Farmer's Market.....not much produce at all...well, except chilis! People were selling them by the huge bagful! Lots of South West decor items, too. We walked up and down the blocked off street and came back in time for Alan to go to the local Las Cruces High School football playoffs. He really enjoyed it and said it was great high school football, even though Las Cruces lost.

Lisa and "school"

Lisa has an old cell phone of mine (not connected) and she makes frequent phone calls......sometimes to her Mom, sometimes to David and ALWAYS to Gary, her imaginary friend/boyfriend. I just listened to the sweetest conversation between her and Amee, one of her "teachers" at her "school"....it went something like this:
She opens her phone, clears her throat, and states in a very business-like voice 3384789923   "Amee"
Then she waits about 15 seconds   " Amee, hi!" waits a few secs, "Lisa" "I a good girl" "Yeah" pause...."Yeah, I coming!!" "YEAH!!" and she laughs...."I coming, my school" "Uh huh" "Yep, I coming, my house...nice house" pause..... "I good girl.....yep (and she laughs) MY school, my friends, my house!!" pause...."Yeah, my friends" and laughs...."OK, I love you too" "OK, bye"
I just re read that and I feel like crying....obviously, she would rather be home and seeing her friends at school. We thought this life would be so fun for her (and us), but it sure hasn't worked out that way. The stress has been palpable....so thick in the air it felt like you could see it! And our sweet Lisa uses what she feels to help her navigate a difficult life (to say the least!)....what have we done??? This makes me even more determined to get us back to Nevada County, get her a home where she feels stable and back into her school with her friends.

And, we have missed OUR friends, too! I know we won't make it for Thanksgiving, but I REALLY want to be home for Christmas!!!

Roswell, New Mexico

Well, we just had to get out of this RV, so off we went! 185 miles each way and I can't really say it was worth it! LOL! It was fairly cheesy...stuffed "aliens", aluminum foil "space ships".....lots of old newspaper clippings and "it could be's"..... we thought we might find a fun restaurant, but no....there was nothing there but a few touristy tee shirt type shops and a regular old town. They probably would rather people forgot about the whole thing! Don't get me wrong...I'm not convinced either way....just saying their "presentation" in the "museum" was weak. Still......as I said, it was something to do!!
Here, in Las Cruces, I am getting very familiar with locations of stores, freeways,etc! I got some new sheets for us @ Penneys and now I'm kicking myself because it was a great sale (60% off) and I should have gotten some for Lisa even though we don't have her bed yet! Sucks that we have to buy all new furniture, but there it is. I have actually had some fun checking out stuff for whatever house we end up in.....hey! it's something to do!! ;0) There are some things that both Alan and I wish we hadn't gotten rid of, too. Life can be so interesting sometimes....

Our custom made part for the RV should have been ordered last week. Alan is gonna go by today to be sure that actually happened. This waiting stuff is a bitch!! I have been looking online at houses for rent on various websites and in the paper, but there really isn't a ton I can do from here except look. Once we get closer, I am thinking of flying home and staying a week or so to find something and at least get a couple of beds in so we can sleep, then flying back here. I am imagining selling the not so Magic Bus, renting a small trailer, loading up and driving to our new house in Nevada County. That's my plan....now let's see what the Universe thinks..........

Truth or Consequences

Believe it or not, there is a town with this name!! Can you imagine filling out forms?? You'd have to ask if you could write on the back!! LOL!!
Yesterday, we went to this little town, for something to do. Had lunch in what seemed like the only restaurant in town...a place called Hot Chili. Now, you'd think with a name like that I would "get" that the food would be plenty hot! I ordered a chicken enchilada with green sauce.....normally not hot....I couldn't eat it!! I was downing beer like crazy and it didn't help at all!! Alan and Lisa had tacos and Alan said it wasn't hot at all...go figure!! We drove past Elephant Butte (but, being the sick people we are, called it Elephant Butt!!) Lake. Pretty ugly....I like my lakes to have trees around them and this was surrounded by desert. We opted not to pay the fee to go in and then drove on to the Veteran's Memorial and Museum. All kinds of memorabilia inside and a scaled down wall of the Vietnam Vets Wall. We found Alan's friend from high school there just like we did in Washington, DC.....very touching.

Today, the park is having a potluck  BBQ. We have already seen "Uncle Sam" walking around on stilts....Lisa should love that!! Taking my Baked Beans over...

Inspector came

Well, our appointment this AM with an independent inspector went well. He agrees with the RV repair place that a new rail is called for.....the next step is to order this custom made rail (2 weeks), get it shipped here (1 week) and installed......Our warranty insurance is not happy about the labor costs and, of course, are fighting tooth and nail to save a buck.....tough! They have screwed us so many times, I really don't care.
We came back to the same RV park and they put us in an even better space since we'll be here a month (probably). Got all set up and then found the satellite wasn't working well, so we pulled in the slides and disconnected our utilities and sewer. I backed it back another 6' or so and that made all the difference! Yeah!! So we are all set and just have to wait out the time....
I have looked at several property management places and they have several homes that look good in Nevada County....we'll see.

Subscribe by email

Did you know  you can do that?? Go to the bottom of the post, below the comment box and slightly to the right....."Subscribe by email" I haven't done it, but it looks pretty easy, if you want.
Nothing to report.....waiting on our appointment Tuesday. We have definitely decided to call it quits on this adventure. We were really bummed at first and Alan still is...even told some friends he would probably "whine about it the rest of his life". Oh joy.
I asked Lisa which she would prefer "Big car? or house ?" Her reply was immediate "house". I asked why and she said "my bed" which could mean her own room again, her bed or both. People with Downs really want routine and she hasn't had that at all. I'm hoping to get that back for her.
I am glad we tried this or we never would have known for sure. Isn't that what life is about? You never know what lies behind the next corner, you just do it as best you can. So, the plan is to try to find something at the coast (in northern California) or maybe going home. I doubt Alan will want to go to Camptonville again because of the snow, but maybe Grass Valley? We'll see ....maybe I can join Anna (the gal that bought my practice)? Lots of unknowns, but I am excited to get going......;o)

Slide repair

We hit another huge snag today. The part that is needed for the RV slideout has to be custom made which will take a minimum of 2 weeks, then another week to ship it to Las Cruces. In the meantime, our insurance company is starting to make waves about the labor costs and we really don't know what will be covered. We have an appointment for Tuesday to take it in and the insurance company will be sending a representative to investigate our claim for what is wrong. Winnebago states that it must be the rail and the only solution is a new one.
We don't know if they will have to take the slide apart and, if they do, if they can put it back together again so we can live in it or if we'll have to "hotel" it til the part comes in. The latter would be a HUGE expense considering a room and meals out.....which the ins. won't cover, except for 5 days.
We feel so tired, so defeated....this is NOT what we thought we were getting into at all! We expected a gypsy life of travel and seeing new places, but 3/4 of our time has been spent dealing with repairs. Yesterday, the latches on an compartment just broke loose for no reason at all....now we can't close that. Alan tried twice to repair it, but it won't hold and no one carries the part...it must be ordered!
This feels like the last straw.....I'm done and Alan is, too. We are talking of finding a home on the coast and I hope we do. I have been missing my home a TON and wishing we didn't have to sell it. But we did and nothing can change that fact.....so we move on to somewhere that has no snow and, hopefully, has a great ocean view!!
On the plus side, Lisa is feeling great...hasn't thrown up all day! So I guess we are back to an even keel with her and her health, at least for now. She has been such a trooper thruout all of this......she is an inspiration to be sure!

Down Day

We took the Magic Bus over to the repair guys early this AM, dropped it off and went to Starbucks for coffee for me and drinks for Alan and Lisa. We had just arrived when Lisa started complaining about her stomach hurting. The look on her face had my Mommy antennae really screaming at me...I just knew she was gonna throw up! Sure enough, I barely got her out of the truck in time!
She said she felt good afterwards, so I thought maybe it was taking her vitamins and meds on an empty tummy. WRONG!! She took 2 bites of her artisan sandwich and covered her mouth! We dashed across the entire length of Starbucks and just barely made it! People were actually jumping out of our way!! LOL!! That's it....we were outa there.....we figured Alan could drop us off at the RV park we are staying in and we could stay in the clubhouse. He was gonna go check on tires for the truck and a few other errands, but, first, he had to stop at the RV and get the checkbook. While there, they told him they couldn't do a thing because they need to order MORE parts!!! So, Alan came back to talk with me. (Luckily, the place is only 2 miles away).
Since Alan left the first time, I had hauled Lisa's stuff plus the computer, my book, Irie and her leash and poor Miss Lisa up the steps (and past the sign that read "NO pets past this point"!!!) and onto the deck. I knew I couldn't take them into the actual clubhouse, but I needed to have a place to park Irie and close to the bathrooms for Lisa. We no sooner sat down when the manager comes along....."Uh ma'am?" CRAP! So, as nicely as I could, I explained our situation and that we had no RV to have Lisa in, etc. Luckily, Irie wasn't growling at him, either. "Well, ok, he says, "let's get your daughter somewhere better" and took us to a second clubhouse, got the heat turned on (it was 39 this AM), got a TV going with cartoons on for Lisa, even offered to make me some coffee! He told me if anyone gave me a bad time to just tell them to "go talk with Frank"!!
Ok, Lisa is happy, so I dash Irie out to the lawn...she was kinda crossing her legs and looking at me like "I REALLY gotta go!" Off to the lawn we go, after showing Lisa where the bathroom was.....Irie has to have that PERFECT blade of grass to pee on, so we walked around a bit, but she did her thing. Back to the clubhouse....Lisa is fine, so I start setting up the computer. While I'm doing this, I'm getting a definite whiff of shit. I know I'm looking at Lisa like "oh no! diarrhea?? what??". I stood up to kinda smell around her and noticed my bare toes felt cold and damp...I look down.....OMG!!!! my right foot has dog shit all over it!!!!!!!!!! I just couldn't believe it!!! What next???? All of a sudden, I started to laugh and I laughed and laughed so hard I was crying! It felt so good! Got my shitty foot and sandal cleaned up, Lisa to the bathroom (false alarm) and back to setting up the computer.....that's when Alan came in saying they needed more parts and we might as well go get the RV.....put everything away and Lisa and Irie back to the car while he went to pay for several more days here.
We now have retrieved the RV, got set up, Lisa is still throwing up (after 2 soda crackers and 7 Up) so I guess they'll be no dinner for her. I made a Beef Daube Provencal that smells yummy!! Time to open the wine!!

Slide still doesn't work!

Well, they had the Magic Bus all day and the slide still doesn't work. The part the first mobile guy broke seems to be the trouble and so, tomorrow, the repair guys will take another stab at it. The insurance has already said they won't pay for that part as it was broken by a repair guy! Somebody broke it! SO stupid!! So now, we will be contacting the insurance ourselves, since THEY sent out this guy!!! Also, we are gonna call that guy (who was so very, very sorry and now we know why!) and tell him it's on him! And he can collect from Easy Care, if he can. Meanwhile, another $200 out the door! AND, they are not optimistic about replacing the carpet.....MAYBE they can repair the rips (but I doubt it)

To occupy our time, we went to White Sands National Monument and the Space History Museum in Alamogordo, NM. But first, we drove thru our first sand storm!(first two pics) It was windy, windy and blowing sand.....we were brave, tho (and a little scared) White Sands was pretty amazing. The sand dunes lie in the northern end of the Chihuahuan Desert. Great wave-like dunes of gypsum sand that has engulfed 275 miles of desert. They are brilliant white and ever changing. We tried to look at them without sunglasses, but couldn't.....it actually hurt our eyes! They had horseback riding trails and backcountry camping....NOT for us!! There was already a sand storm happening and I could just see a total white out and being out there....NOPE!! The dunes also sit in the White Sands Missile Range and they close the park now and again to blast away at stuff.
After that, we took off for the Space Museum a few miles out of Alomogordo. Pretty interesting with lots of models showing capsules and such, plus video of astronauts experiencing weightlessness. Man! I'd love to do that!! It just looked like a blast!! There was an IMAX theater, but it was too pricy and we had to scoot back because they were gonna close and we wanted our Magic Bus for the night. Pleeeaaase don't make us stay in a hotel with Miss Lisa!!! :o)

Parts and Pistachios

On our way out of town yesterday to a pistachio farm..."free nuts and wine tasting"....we stopped by the RV repair place. The parts should be in Wed. or Thurs. and, hopefully, will be done in a day. Of course, that doesn't mean the flooring....
So we took off to see the "largest pistachio in the world!". 70 miles of ugly boring desert later, there we stood in front of a CEMENT pistachio! Sure enough, I'll bet it was, indeed, the largest!! LOL!!We just had to laugh! OK, we think to ourselves, at least there is wine! God, we're gullible..... 3 tastings, yes, but they were about a tablespoon a piece! You really couldn't get a great feel for the wine....oh well, something to do and we did buy a bottle of wine and got our free pistachios!
Alan is off today seeing an airplane museum and a car museum. I felt kinda museum-ed out, so opted to stay here and do some domestic type stuff. Lisa is happily coloring and organizing her dolls and their clothes and shoes.
Ok , Alan came back with a ton of pics of the airplanes...not so much the cars. He said the car museum wasn't that great, but he talked with some vets for quite a while.....right in his element!
We do have an appointment for tomorrow morning for the RV, so that means we are off to White Sands National Park in the middle of the White Sands Missile Range....might be interesting....we'll see....