Thanksgiving 2012

I had always heard that Thanksgiving and Christmas are busy holidays in RV parks because families tend to camp over the holidays.  This concept was a hard one to wrap my head around, I mean really who spends their Thanksgiving camping...it's too cold in MN !

This is the first year that we have been here for Thanksgiving and the campers started rolling in Wednesday and didn't stop until late that night.  The entire park is festive, families barbequing turkey, sitting by campfires, walking around the park laughing and visiting with everyone they pass.

But this is how they do it here in sunny AZ on the Colorado River

This group of family, friends and their pups were sitting outdoors in their shorts and tank tops getting ready to have a picnic turkey feast.  We stopped to ask if I could take their picture and spent a bit of time talking-this is an annual event for their group.  Fun people.

We may not have spent the day with family but we are having a nice weekend with our RV park friends.  The clubhouse had a turkey dinner, they supplied the turkey, dressing and gravey and each table of 8 brought a dish to pass for their table.  The food at our table was wonderful and the company pretty good as well.

No matter who you spent Thanksgiving with or where you were, we hope it was all that you wanted it to be.

The Long And Winding Road

It was a gorgeous day here in Arizona and David was itching to get the jeep out on the desert.  We packed up the pups, grabbed water and my camera and were off.

We decided to drive into the desert as far as we could, stopping before we sank into the sand

We got out and started our trek.

Thank goodness David's hip held out (his new and latest ache)

 

This is how it goes when I have camera in hand.  I stop to take pictures and the boys continue to walk

 I kept my eyes open for snakes and thank goodness saw not a one.

The mountains are nice-not a lot of brilliant color but nice

 The sky was just right

 The desert floor is amazing

 And seemed to change with every step that we took

Yep it was a great day hiking the Arizona desert

A Month...Seriously! Catching Up.

On October 27th I became a 7 year breast cancer survivor and it does feel good!  Every year on the day I send my surgeon an email just to remind him.  He always replies with a 'I remember and you made my day again this year'

Even though it was hot as blazes this summer it was wonderful to be in the StPeter area because...

There was lotsa time spent wrestling with the MN girls

And watching their hair blowing in the wind

Grandpa took time to teach Shelby how to shake dice with Great Grandma Bern's dice and dice box

As Peeko looks on does it not look like she is looking up to see what GGB thought about her roll of the dice?

And we were able to be there for the first jump in the new pool!  Lenny, Kel and girls now have a great place to go, in their own back yard, when it gets hot.  The pool took about two weeks only to put in and on the 21st of October it was nice enough to take the plunge- (Lenny was the first)

Julia is a little fish and in no time was jumping off of the diving board as Shelby looked on with skepticism

But with a lot of urging she too joined in the fun.  Once the girls started they didnt quit...

Until they got cold that is

We tried to head to Nicollet for a rouzing game (or two) of shoot with Aunts Sandy and Etta and Uncle Ed

Poor Uncle Ed didnt win a one this summer.  He is not a good looser this man isnt...is it obvious?  Mighta been a naughty word coming out of that mouth!

We did get to spend one night with Jess and Kim.  Those two are so darned busy it was hard to etch out a time to get together...and the waitress that took this pic for me needs lessons on how to take no shake pictures.  Believe it or not we saw these two more often when we lived up north. They were two of the few who made it up to see us frequently and we appreciated the visits!

No picture of her but Chrissy and I got together to can jalepeno jelly and habenaro salsa.  The salsa was to come with David and I...guess where it still sits...yep I forgot it.

My friend Mary and I spent lotsa time together walking the dogs, thrift store shopping, yakking about gardens etc etc.  Poor Mary doesn't like this picture but hey, it's good of the pups :)

We arrived in Prescott Valley AZ October 29th and were promptly invited to our friend's (Barb and John and Abby) for supper.  We met Barb and John a few years back in Quartzsite and have become friends.

John outside their new home (moved from CA to AZ) grilling tri tip and it was awesome.

Off the grill and onto the platter

As Abby and Peeko look on

The rest of us sat down to a delicious meal.  One of two I might add.  On our last night in the area we were invited over for burritos.  We have also been invited to enjoy Thanksgiving with Barb's family at her sister Sue's.  Great friends they are :)

Did I mention that Abby is a Great Dane who loves to pester the heck out of little Rosco?

And right in the middle of trying to do this blog post I find that Mr Obama is once again our United States President....go Barack Obama and congrats to the good ole US!  Excuse me for a minute while I shout for joy!

Ok now where was I?  Oh yes, John and Barb have been our tour guides and on this day we took a trip to Williams.  A little historic town in AZ that didnt really impress anyof us much although lunch was great.

Mark Weinstein this one is for you

We didnt go in to ask if the room rates were still $3.00 and up but given the vacancy sign I bet not :)

And another trip on another day to Whiskey Row in Prescott joined by Barb's sister and brother in law.  Prescott is a very dog friendly town and has a park right by Whiskey Row.  During the summer there is always something going on in the park and folks come with their families and their dogs.  

Many of the buildings on Whiskey Row were burned down in a fire in 1900 I believe.  The bar tenders and patrons took the bar apart and carried it out so that it could be saved.  John told us that they kept the drinks coming even as the buildings burned, they just served outdoors beside the dissembled bar.

The inside of this place is pretty impressice-the AZ flag on the ceiling is pretty stunning

And legend has it that a famous actor shot a famous movie here

Yep a pretty cool place from the bar to the walls and the stamped tin ceiling

I spotted this car and decided John needed to get one just like it for he and Abby

David and I took our first trip in the mountains with our jeep up to Mingus Mountain

Along the way I spotted this great fencce and grasses.  The sun was just right.

Here we are at 7734 feet.  I wish I could fib and say that we hiked all that way...but I cant and I wont.  We drove most of the way and hiked less than a mile to get to this spot

It was pretty exciting to see two mule deer run across the road. 

And the views, oh the views

The sun setting on a cloudy sky makes for a great shot

And our second trip with out jeep was a little more..well shall we say...a nail biter.  We started out on a minimum maintaince road at the bottom of a mountain and ended up at 7000 feet on a trail meant for four wheelers.  Did you catch that I said trail and not road?  I wanted to get out and take a picture of the jeep going down the trail but David's side went straight up and mine went straight down with no place to step if I had gotten out!  Most of the 'trail' was like this. 

When I could take my eyes off of the road I did find that the veiws were great

Had we come a bit earlier the color would have been fabulous, it wasn't too bad even on that day.

Prior to the road becoming a trail, David got out to cut a piece of a Manzanita tree.  I just bet this was a no no to do but he wanted a branch to make into a cane...for me for goodness sake!  The Manzanita trees are pretty interesting and this picture doesn't show it, but you are driving along and see what looks to be a row of branches that someone has come along and put wood stain on.  Anyway, he didn't get caught and we have the soon to be made cane in the vehicle.

Another nice thing about this area is that Rachel and family live very near.  She invited us over one night for Elk straganoff and we had them out on another night for deer ring sausage.  

Dezbah is attempting to show Grandpa how to work Momma's Ipad.  It is always great to spend time with this part of the family and this past week was no exception.  

We are now sitting in the McMahon RV parking lot waiting to have some warranty work done on the motorhome.  Next stop Parker AZ and we can't wait.

Yay President Obama.

Mankato Has A Goodwill

And all I wanted to do was see what it was like.  Walked in, grabbed a cart, started to explore and bang someone was inside my chest squeezing the heck out of it.  Hummm I think....nah it's nothing just ignore and shop.  The squeezing radiated out and then down to my stomach and it was then that I got hot...oh so hot.  Deciding that if I was going to pass out I would rather do it in the car than in the Goodwill.  Once in the car I just sat a minute as the pain went into my back.  Damn I think, I really need to pick up that last minute gift for Julia (birthday party was later that day).  Shopko, yes Shopko would be a good place, less people, in and out quickly.  Driving to said store the pain does what?  Why yes it does go to my jaw-left side-where else.  Since I was by the Kwik trip I think perhaps I should just turn in and purchase aspirin...nope reject that thought.  Mebbe I need to go the the ER but should I drive over to StPeter which is less busy and I can get in and out quicker or to ISJ?  Nah better do ISJ because if it is something StPeter will just have to transport me to ISJ anyway.  I know sister in law Kelly is in town discharging Momma Loi from ISJ-call her.  Kel, I say, where are you?  Walmart she says.  Well, says I, you wont friggin believe this but I am driving myself to the ER perhaps I am having a heart attack.  I will get there as soon as I got mom home and settled says she.

Walk into the ER and because of my symptoms the wait time was minimal.  I call David, who doesn't answer.  Call Mary to see if she will go out and get him but she is in Nicollet-Call Chris to see if she will go out and get him-she is working-Call Kelly again and ask her to run out and tell him where I am after she gets momma Loi home (could be an hour).  Keep trying David to no avail.

Ushered into a room and hooked up to machines of all kind.  Given 4 aspirin to chew and later three nitro 15 minutes apart.  By the second nitro the pain is almost gone and what is left is a bit of a burning sensation. 

I continue to call David-no answer.  An hour and a half later (after I find out I am going to be admitted) guess who shows up, why yes my David.  Kelly was finally able to get Loi settled and get out to our place.  She read him the riot act about not having his phone on...I can just hear it...goodness knows he deserved it.  Did he rush right over...nah...gotta put his tools and such away first dontchya know.  Kelly and Mary do rush to the hospital though, but wait, no no ladies not the StPeter hospital!  Why did you think I was in StPeter?  What, I neglected to say which ER I went to?  Perhaps.

David finally arrives just in time for me to go to my room for the night.  Tests are negative for a heart attack but EKG does show abnormalities and perhaps I had an attack at some point in the past.  They decide to release me on Sunday with an appt to see my regular doc, a cardiologist and to have a stress test. 

To make a long story short (HA) stress test shows a healthy heart (nice to know with the heart disease in my pop's family) but let's check the gall bladder (pain of it can mimic a cardiac episode) and if all tests are negative it will be noted as gerd which too mimics cardiac and nitro will take the pain away of it as well.  I haven't gotten the results of the gall bladder ultrasound but I do expect it to be normal.  I am on a acid reflux med and it has already helped the heartburn AND we are slowly changing our diet.

That being said-it was a parody of errors my trip to the ER and makes for a funny story says I.  I mean really, David not answering his phone-I always tell him that I would be dead in a ditch for three days before he would know it.  Well I wasn't dead and I wasn't in a ditch but did I prove my point?  And then there is Kel and Mary looking for me at the incorrect hospital.  And not to be forgotten is my whole thought process during the chest squeezing episode.  Never mind that I was totally pissed that it was nothing and for nothing I missed Julia's birthday party.

It is with a clean bill of health that I say I hope you have enjoyed my damned strange but true story :)

The First Of An Annual Tradition

Sometimes spur of the moment ideas come together better than long drawn out planned events.  This was the case with our 'Just us Grunst Gals' get together.  While following a Facebook post started by one of the Grunst cousins, Kathy commented, "Maybe it's time for a get together".  I followed up with a private mess asking if she was serious....it went from there.  We had it put together for three weeks later.  

Thank goodness Curt and Kathy were willing to host this loud, hungry yet friendly bunch. 

Uncle Dood, Aunt Etta and Cousin Sandy.  I doubt if Sandy learned anything at this table

Curt showing Cousins Sharon and Sninthia (Cindy) the park-like back yard.

Speaking of Curt-this was supposed to be a Grunst Gals get together but he seemed to find a way to join the group.

He did make himself useful by holding a captive audience with his many stories (usually about a Grunst blunder )

And washing dishes

Fetching this and that (or giving Sninthia shit about her buns-an explanation on that in a bit)

Relieving me of my picturing taking duties here and there

And serving Etta the appropriate serving amount of ice cream in an itty bitty little shit of a cup.  Needless to say Curt didn't win this one, Etta ate both servings.

Eventually he shushed his mouth long enough to eat....HA..gotta love that Curt.

The food, oh the food.

There was German potato salad, a crock full of ring bologna with sauerkraut and mashed taters on top of it all

Broccoli salad, home made salsa and very good for you California wraps which Dood and Etta were not impressed with

There was crab tarts and sloppy joes (made like Aunt Opal used to make)

Oh and the deserts-no pictures - but we had Uncle Ed's homemade ice cream to be topped with Grandma Grace's hot fudge topping (thanks Kathy).  Apple bars and apple crisp, Deb's cookies (famous with all of her kid's friends), the best chocolate brownies ever and...I am sure that I missed something.

We had three of our Biehn cousins there-the three each brought something for the potluck.  Deb the sloppy joes, Sandy the desert and Sninthia.....oh Sninthia.  She was in charge of bringing the buns for the sloppy joes.  Now no one ever expects our Cindy to actually MAKE something (ya gotta know her...and to know her is to love her).  There are so many places that bake wonderful burger buns it's easy to buy them every bit as good as home made.  Not Cindy, oh not not her.

Our Cindy finds the cheapest friggin buns in the store I am sure.  They were dry and hard and able to be tossed like a Frisbee.  True story we tested it.

Yep-to know her is to love her:)

The night was a huge success despite those horrific buns (and partly due to them)

Lotsa smiles

And jokes

And tales being told

And serious business going on????  Nah I doubt it

And laughs

And Uncle Ed sneaking a second helping when Auntie Sandy isn't looking......

Here they are-the Grunst elders (Joy notice you are not in this photo-yes you are the eldest girl cousin but you are not officially an elder...I could not resist)

I took two pictures and had to post both because you will notice in the one above  Uncle Dood is wearing his usual facial expression.

But in this one he has that 'light up his face' smile

The group as we were

With the glue that holds us together

This was so much fun, thanks to everyone that could make it.  We have decided to make this an annual event to be held the third Saturday in September hosted by Curt and Kathy Krohn-until they get damned sick of us and then we will have to find someone else to put up with all of us :)

Since this one was such a success, Curt has requested that we invite the male Grunst cousins and those married to the Grunst gals.  Get it on your 2013 calendars Grunst clan.