Time Slips Away

 We were given a bit of good news yesterday. Our new South Texas Home will be available to us around the 7th of March. We did not expect that and it will give us more time to get acquainted with our new digs before heading north in mid-April. We were surprised and pleased.

One of the things we do look forward to is having friends over to visit and being able to invite more than two at a time.

Uses for nail polish

 

Here’s my list of some uses for nail polish

• Keep an eyeglass screw in place. We were traveling once when Hubby noticed that the tiny screw holding the left temple of his eyeglasses was loose. We dabbed a bit of clear nail polish over the screw to hold it (and Hubby’s glasses) in place until we could get a permanent fix.
• Protect yourself from allergic reactions. The souvenir ring I purchased was making my finger itch, so I brushed a coat of clear nail polish over the interior of the ring. The polish keeps my finger from making direct contact with the ring and I can wear it without itching. (Bonus: A clear coat of polish can also keep metal costume jewelry from tarnishing.)
• Repair a vehicle scratch. We hadn’t owned our car for very long when we noticed a small scratch on the paint. I looked through my stash of nail polish and applied a color so similar to the vehicle’s paint that the scratch is virtually invisible.
• Identify keys. When we purchased our RV, we kept confusing the door’s entry key with the storage bay keys. So, I applied red nail polish to the top of each storage bay key, and blue to the RV’s door key. Now they are easily identified.
• Repair minor leather scratches. A friend of mine used nail polish to repair a few small scratches her cat made in her RV’s leather sofa. Using a nail polish in a color similar to the sofa’s leather, she was able to camouflage the damage.
• Temporarily fix a windshield nick. A rock from a gravel truck put a nick in our pickup’s windshield. A bit of clear nail polish brushed over the nick prevented a crack and we kept on traveling until we could get it fixed.
• Prevent rust. Hubby’s can of shaving cream tends to leave a rust mark on our RV’s bathroom sink. The humidity from the room along with water that splashes when he shaves causes brown rust rings on the sink top. So, I applied a bit of clear polish to the bottom of the can that contacts the sink surface. Now no more unsightly rings.
• Repair a tear in the RV screen door. No one wants bugs inside their RV! If you have a tear in a door or window screen you can fix it with clear nail polish. Press the torn edges together as much as possible and then coat the edges with polish. Let it dry and recoat a second or even a third time.
• Identify reading glasses. Many “readers” look very similar. To distinguish mine from Hubby’s I put a bit of red nail polish on my glasses’ earpiece. Now we can tell at a glance whose is whose. (Bonus: I purchased several identical sunglasses for the grandkids. I used the same nail polish technique to label each pair. Now kids easily tell which pair belongs to them.)
• Secure a button. Ever notice how the thread holding a button can begin to fray? If left untended, the thread will continue to loosen, and the button will eventually fall off. Before that happens, I apply a bit of clear nail polish to the top of the button, covering the fraying thread. The polish will help keep the button in place until I can sew the button on. (Bonus: This tip also works for fabric. One of our RV sofa pillows had begun to fray, but a quick application of nail polish fixed it. Same goes for fraying curtains or other fabric.)
• Mark shower temperature settings. Use a bright tone of nail polish to mark your preferred temperature settings on your RV’s shower. Make a small mark on both the stationary lip and each faucet handle and take the guesswork out of shower settings.
• Ensure a tight hold. When repairing the wooden cornice around one of our RV’s windows, Hubby discovered that the screw just wasn’t holding. We applied a bit of nail polish to the screw threads and then when Hubby fastened the screw, the polish acted like an adhesive, and the problem was solved.
• Prevent rope from fraying. Dip the end of the rope into clear nail polish and the rope will not fray and fall apart. (Bonus: This applies to shoelaces, too!)
• Make a liquid bandage. For small cuts, I usually use a plastic band-aid. But clear nail polish can also seal the cut in a pinch.
• Mark remote buttons. Use glow-in-the-dark nail polish to mark channel and volume buttons on your RV’s television remote. You’ll be able to easily distinguish the buttons, even in a dimly lit room.
• Mark your gear. Dab a small dot of brightly-hued polish to your pickleball equipment, tools, s’mores grilling forks, etc. This works especially well on items that are too small for your initials or entire name.

New and Different

 This is a new and different Christmas for us. We have no plans. I am preparing our Christmas dinner right here at home in our MoHo. We are having Ham, Cheesy Potatoes, Tossed Salad, Roasted Sweet Potatoes, Jicama, and HEB Creamy Creations Butter Pecan Ice cream for dessert.

Most likely we will scan NetFlix for a movie or two,  go for a walk, meander to the pool hall for a couple of games and be ever so grateful that we are healthy and happy enough to be able to do all we want to do on this most different Christmas. 

The year ahead holds many changes for us; buying a park model, selling our motorhome, buying a new car, and getting used to all the changes. Butch was visiting with our backdoor neighbor who is a full-timer and he too is thinking of selling and settling. They agreed that it is not the driving of it, as they are both very capable, but it is the maintenance. Climbing on the roof, washing, and waxing, and keeping track of it all becomes more of a chore as the years stack up. So we nostalgically look back while optimistically looking forward.

Now back to the merry part...

Merry Christmas to all

                                                                           ( Click here)

Butch and I want to wish all of our friends near and far the merriest of Christmas's and the happiest of New Years.

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IKisoPSiHC0&t=39s

Iowa Weather

 Our hometown of Jefferson had a close encounter with tornadoes in the latest weather phenomenon in the upper Midwest. Our house and pool hall were untouched. Butch's brother Leo and his wife Keri had a couple of trees uprooted. All in all our family came through this one much better than the Derecho of August 2020.

Our son Jason and his wife who live in Boone IA went to Jefferson to check out our place. He said it was eerie driving through the streets with no lights. The power is back on now. Many of our friends had damage of one kind or another.

Greene County is included in the disaster taking place in Iowa. 43 counties are in the disaster area. Iowa has 99 counties in all.

After our walk

 We noticed that the cabbage was being harvested on the east side of the golf course. I heard by the grapevine if you happen to be by there when they are close to the fence they might offer you a free cabbage. We walked around the course but they were too far away and it takes them quite a while to do one run of the field.

So I went back after we finished our walk and took a few photos.

Guy on bike

Harvest supervisor

Winter Gardens Golf Course

Cabbage headed to the market

Winter Gardens Golf Course

The rowdy crew in the pool

Sunny South Texas

 The weather is staying pretty consistent so far. We have had a couple days of cool (60's) weather but it is mostly daytime 80's and nighttime 60's. Last year it turned cool about this time and remained cool till mid-March. It was basically a cool winter. I am hoping for better this season.

We have friends coming down for the first time from Iowa and I hope they have a full month of good weather. Darrel and Linda M. have rented a park model for January. We are very much looking forward to sharing with them all the things we like about South Texas. The list is long and we already know we cannot hit all of them. I am hoping we can tick off the ones they would most like.

Renie and I walk every morning for an hour. We have both purchased park models lately and we cannot get possession until April. So I jokingly told her our walk has now become our daily inspection tour because we walk right by both of them on our usual route. 

Butch is headed to the Massage College for his weekly massage. I plan to stay home this time. I am giving him a list of things to pick up at H.E.B. Butch is the opposite of most guys who are sent to the grocery store. He will come home with EXACTLY what is on the list. 

We walked around the golf course this morning and there is a cabbage field on the east side of the course. They happen to be harvesting them. If you are near enough while they harvest they will throw you a cabbage. I plan to walk down and see about getting some photo's. 

Later...

Weird Winter Storm

 I am putting this link on here for the many people I know who would like to see it.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GfVshxzq5LE

Outdoor photo's

 I stopped by our new place to take some outdoor pictures that I had not done yet. Oddly enough I had not even looked at the outside. If we tick off all the things one would want in a park model in South Texas this place has them all. Metal roof, hardly any grass, shade shutters, large protected deck, storage room, washer and dryer, propane furnace, central AC, covered carport, and golf cart parking. We did not have to cave on even one of our wants for this one.

It's Official

 We have purchased a park model in Trophy Gardens. Lot #670. We will not have possession until April 1st but that is okay. We have our home called a MoHo. We are entertaining the idea of selling it. The logistics of all this are a bit mindboggling at times. I know it will all shake out as it should. It always does. I have a few pictures of our new place. We are excited and pleased with our choice. There will be more pictures in the days to come. We do not want to be a pest to the current resident.

Turning on that Brooker charm...😀This is the deck.

The kitchen

Living room

Bedroom 

Bedroom too

Utility room

Description: Park model with large deck, washer, dryer, 1 bedroom, step-in shower, carport, metal roof, room for golf cart parking.

And now for a laugh...

 

Looking? Yes, looking.

 We have been looking at places to buy. May have found one yesterday. Still mulling it over. There are a gazillion things to think about because for us this would be a big change of lifestyle.

We are taking a second look at the place today. Ironically it is in an area of the park that has been a big fat NO for us. If we do say yes we will be in the market for a golf cart, another big fat NO in the past. It is far enough away from all we aspire to that a golf cart makes sense. Closer to the golf course, further from the pool hall. And sometimes you need to get somewhere in a hurry.

So many things to think about!!

Stay tuned, Our next big adventure may be on the horizon.

full-time RVing???

 We full-timed for 10 years and we are sometimes asked questions about the prospect. And it is true some people are suited for it and others definitely not. That is why I decided to post this quiz. How do you stack up?

7 of the best personality traits for full-time RVing (and a quiz: Is full-timing right for you?)

https://www.rvtravel.com/personality-traits-full-time-rving-1030/

In 15 minutes...

 I will be meeting up with Renie for our morning walk. The produce cart will be here at 9:00 and I plan to load up with some fresh produce, saving a trip to the grocery store. Our schedules are getting busier by the minute. Butch has another massage appt this morning. I am going over to our sister park, Winter Ranch, and inviting them to our Trivia Night. I have permission from our management. They have new management over there and the feeling between the two parks is a breath of fresh air...

Back from our walk...

We looked at the place next door to us yesterday. It is a park model with an add-on room and a small deck. I never thought I would see a place with too much storage, but this place has too much storage! We are thinking on it but not too hard.

$3 worth of produce. These are the days, my friends!

Quote to live by...

 

South Padre Island

 We went to South Padre yesterday with friends Renie and Alex. It was a fun day all the way around! We stopped at a small restaurant in Los Fresnos that Alex had noticed in the Winter Texan. Texi Mexi was the name of the place. Very small and we missed seeing it the first time so had to swing back around. Butch and I ordered the Zapate Taco for $10 and you might think that is way too much to pay for a taco, but trust me it was enough for 3 people and very tasty. We would be in favor of stopping there again and we were sure glad we had decided to share one taco.

Then it was off to the island and finding a gate to stop at and we chose gate 9 because they have portapotties and a nice padded path to the beach. Alex and Renie had brought along beach chairs and an umbrella. We didn't because we usually just walk the beach and leave but after having the chairs and umbrella and sitting in the shade and watching people for an hour or so I am thinking of buying a beach umbrella. It was a most pleasant way to spend some time.

We then went to Laguna Bob's for supper. Another great place to eat but as I look back over the years we have never had a bad meal on South Padre Island.

I took lots of pictures and here are what I consider the best.

They were giving sand-sculpting lessons on the beach. Actually, he was making a YouTube video.

This is Alex and Renie setting up.

This ship was way out there- I had to really zoom in to get this.

Do you think they will stay long?

Zoomed in...

Butch and Alex

Butch and Alex

Fun at the Beach

Fun at the beach

Don't feed the birds! 

Sunset ended the day perfectly...