On Cloud Nine

We made it to Arkansas and it is beautiful. There are a ton of state parks and we plan on doing a lot of "outdoorsing" while we are here. We are staying in Hot Springs at an RV Resort called Cloud Nine, because of its views of the valley below. It is a great little RV park.

Yesterday, we decided to go hiking in Lake Catherine State Park. They have three trails. All are moderate level of experience needed, but they vary in length. You can only guess that Scott wanted to go on the longest one. Being that I am a trooper and am in such good shape (notice the touch of sarcasm here), I decided what the heck, lets do it. It was called the Dam Mountain Trail and damn was it long. It actually wasn't that long, but being that we went the wrong way and added a couple of extra miles on to it, it became a Dam long Mountain trail. One of the highlights of the trail is that it has a beautiful waterfall along the way. The only problem is that Arkansas hasn't had rain in probably three months so no rain equals no water equalling no waterfall. If we have ever told you the story of our trip to Aruba with the natural bridge, this was a similar experience. All kidding aside we had a blast and laughed the whole way down the trail. My favorite part was Scott leading the way with his spider stick. Who said chivalry is dead!


Click here to see all our photos from Hot Springs, Arkansas

Click here to see all our photos from Hiking at Lake Catherine State Park

Elvis is That You???

Elvis is alive and well in Denton Texas...and he owns a BBQ Restaurant

We decided that we couldn't leave Texas without having some good ol' Texas BBQ. So we went to a great little place called Doc's Hickory Creek Barbecue. We knew it would be great just by the large black and white smoker outside, shaped like a pig. We went in and ordered from the counter and took a seat. The decor was modest, but maybe a tad different for a BBQ place. The first item I noticed was the velvet painting of Elvis on the wall and then I realized the TV was playing satellite Elvis music. Not too strange, until the owner, who was sitting at the next table, starting chatting with us. I asked him if he liked Elvis and mentioned we may stop in Memphis and see Graceland. Boy did I hit a hot button. We found out that he was an Elvis impersonator (wink, wink). As he started reliving stories of the one night he kissed 30 girls I thought to myself, could it really be him? Texas isn't that far from Tennessee.

So there you have it folks, mystery solved.

Texas Talk

We sure were busy this week going to Adjuster class all day, almost ten hours every day. We learned a lot and if/when we have a storm, the Greene team will be ready. One thing I did learn in class, that I'm not sure was actually on the agenda, was that I have been pronouncing the English language all wrong. For example, a two by four piece of wood is actually pronounced tuba'four and a toolbar that you click on in a Windows application is pronounced tuba'. More great words I learned to pronounce were Hurricn' and my most favorite, Poo Scrn. Are you not sure what a Poo Scrn is? Well it took me a little time to figure that one out as well. Only us Floridians have them around our Poo to keep the leaves and bugs out (still confused, it is a Pool Screen). Well I'm sure glad we got all that straight before moving to the next state. I might have looked like a real dummy.

We are going to take this weekend off to relax and catch up on some chores and then start planning where we will head next. We have heard that Arkansas has some great hiking spots. So we are probably going to head there.

I wanted to take a moment to mention how much fun we are having writing this Blog. But most importantly, that your comments really mean so much to us. Being able to read them helps us to stay connected to everyone we care about. Also, a couple of you have asked how Maggie is doing. She is loving being with us 24-7. I included a picture to demonstrate.

Well, that's all for now. To all our friends and family back in Florida. Make sure that your Poo Scrn is safe and secure before the next Hurricn'!!!

Click here to see all our photos from Coppell Texas

Day 7: The Coach Gets a Bath

We finally are in Texas and are able to "take a break", or so I thought. Scott decided it would be a great idea to wash the Coach today. It actually ended up being really fun. The RV Park we are staying at has an RV wash and if you have ever been to one of those car washes where you end up playing Beat the Clock and feeding a wallet full of quarters, try washing an RV. It is a whole new experience.

While I was updating the Blog Scott ventured out in Coppell to run a few errands. Don't worry folks he found a brand new Walmart right around the corner. Did you know that Walmart has jumped on the Whole Foods/Green Market thing? They have a store, in the swankier parts of Texas called Walmart Neighborhood Market. Fresh Fields better watch out. By the way, this will be the last Walmart reference (I hope) or I am going to get them to pay us a sponsorship.

You probably won't hear too much from us this week as we are attending a conference with 8 to 10 hour class days. We are taking a class to become Insurance Adjusters for natural disasters. The Greene's are going to be storm chasers...Anything to support the dream.

Day 6: Watch Out Kelly's Behind The Wheel, Ahhhh!

We knew we were going to have an 8 to 10 hour driving day so we said goodbye to Jessica, Emma and Isabel and set off for Texas by 8:00am. We called the A/C repairman and confirmed that we would meet him today. He told us he would meet us in Longview, TX in the parking lot of the Walmart (you will notice the Walmart theme throughout the blogs, as it is a common lifesaver store for RVers).

With that appointment squared away, we figured now was as good a time as any to let me drive. That's right naysayers, I did pull my weight on the long driving day and drove over two hours, before I had to stop and go to the bathroom. Or was it because I was so scared that I had to go to the bathroom (just kidding). It is NOT like driving a car at all. I was prepared for the constant steering adjustments I would have to make, but pushing the pedal was really hard. Cruise control is a must and changing lanes is always an adventure. Not only are you trying to make room for a 40 foot long BUS, you have to take into account the 15 foot long car you are towing behind the 40 foot bus. Needless to say, no animals or small children were hurt in the driving of the vehicle.

The A/C ended up being no big deal and didn't cost us a thing. Which was a good thing because the cost of fuel is crazy. We made it to Texas and set-up our site at the Dallas Destiny RV Resort, which is great. I can't wait to stay here a week. It can be tiring packing up and moving every day. By the time our heads hit the pillow, I think we had almost a 13 hour day today.

Day 5: 911, Stitches, and More Family Fun!

We started off the morning calling every authorized dealer for the A/C part we needed. We were scheduled to go to my cousin, Jessica Billings house in Lafayette, to stay the night and figured we had plenty of time to stop and get the part fixed on the way. Well, we called about 15 places and no one had the time to see us today. Everyone wanted to schedule us for weeks from now. I guess RV air conditioners are a big business. We finally located a guy that could change the part in Texas, so we decided to get on the road and head to Jessica's early.

She has a super long driveway so, besides a little tree scraping, it was perfect. We did have a few small hiccups. A rather large Police Officer came to the door because Isabel called 911 and Emma busted her chin open on the dresser and went to the clinic, needing 5 stitches. Seems like adventure is following us wherever we go. We had a great visit and really enjoyed hanging out with Jessica and her two super cute daughters, Emma and Isabel.

Tomorrow we leave for Texas.

Click here to see all our photos from New Orleans & Lafeyette Louisiana

Day 4: The Day the RV Got Hot

We finally headed out of Florida this morning, bound for New Orleans. We went through two states and crossed the Mississippi River to get there. The roads were really bad and all our stuff in the RV shook like crazy. (Thank goodness I got that tip to put bubble wrap between the dishes.) On our way into town we saw several shells of houses and people living in RV's and tents. This is two years after Hurricane Katrina. It is very sad.
The RV park we stayed in was interesting, to say the least. It was located in a harbour off Lake Pontchartrain in a working district. But the owners were very friendly and they offered a shuttle into the French Quarter. Once we got to the park and "hooked up" we noticed the front A/C wasn't working. Super handy Scott, called the RV tech and started looking into the problem. They figured out it was the Start Capacitor, which was still under warranty, and wasn't a big deal to replace. So we decided we could leave the problem till tomorrow and went into the French Quarter. Downtown didn't seem affected by the storm at all. There were a ton of people there. We ate some great shrimp Po Boy's and ended the evening with beignets at Cafe Du Monde.
Ooh La La.!

Day 3: Your Not From Here, Are You???

We are staying at an RV Park called Sunset King Lake in DeFuniak Springs, FL. It is a really cute and well kept park located on a big lake. I met some really sweet ladies that were making quilts. They get a pretty penny for those quilts, they were $70 bucks a pop. Yikes!

This was our getting things done day, so we decided to look for a tire place and go to Walmart for some odds and ends. I can't tell you how many people said to us "Your not from here are you?". Do we really scream, Palm Beach, that loud? We are still in Florida, aren't we? I mean really, I haven't put on make-up in three days, gee wiz.

It was nice being able to stay somewhere for a whole day. The set-up and tear-down each time we stop is rather extensive. Tomorrow we leave for New Orleans.

Day 2: The Rookie Mistake

After finally getting to sleep in (thanks to Scott's Mom), we had a pancake breakfast (thanks again Mom), and said our goodbyes. We were on our way for another five hour trek. This time we were heading to DeFuniak Springs (don't worry, I'd never heard of that town either). We weren't 30 minutes down the highway, when someone in the car next to us started pointing. We weren't sure if they were just joking with us or if there was something serious going on. We pulled over at the next rest-stop only to find that, in our inexperienced haste to get on the road, we did not double check that the tow vehicle had the steering column free to move. What this means, ladies and gentleman, is that we were dragging our tow vehicle down the road instead of it rolling smoothly behind us. Oh yes, let me tell you what that does to a tire. Pretty much rips it to shreds. Thank goodness it was only one of the tires and our little white Jeep (aptly named whitey) has a full sized spare on the back. Unfortunately I do not have a picture to mark this momentous occasion, because the batteries ran out in the camera (which Scott was very happy not having me clicking away as he was changing the tire). I did add a picture (shown on right) just to show you part of the hook up of the tow vehicle. It's pretty extensive.

Note to self: create a checklist for all future departures. Lesson learned.

Day 1: And They're Off...

Sometimes even really good planners get behind schedule...

We wanted to get on the road by 10:00am but due to some unforeseen circumstances (ie: rain, needing an extender for the bike rack, being that this was our first time hooking up a gigantic vehicle, etc, etc) we were a couple of hours delayed. But after a quick shower and some sandwiches we were on our way. Let me tell you it is quite a different view from up in the seat of a 40 foot vehicle The people and cars seem much smaller. Anyway, although it was very quick, we had a nice visit with Scott's mom and family. She arranged for us to park in the school across from her house, which worked out great.

Wow What a Week!

We sure have had a crazy week preparing for this trip. It is so hard to pack up your whole life, figure out what you need and more importantly what you don't. We had several visitors who came by to say goodbye. We will really miss our family and friends but can't wait to start our trip.

Oh, and if you've just noticed, yes I did chop off all my hair. I donated it to Locks of Love. It is such a great Organization.