TAPAMAG

Painter

Mowin'

Mr. Cool Guy

Crafters

Workin' man

Loves bubbles

Three generations

Good big sis

One of the twins

Stacy and (hopefully) the other one

Emma (I think)

Who knows?

So, ok it was more than a peek. The title came from a little box my mom carried in her purse. Inside were mini pix of grandchildren so: Take A Peek At My Adorable Grandchildren. These were taken since we arrived here in Troy, OH a week ago Sunday. We have been parked in the back yard of our daughter Rachel, son-in-law Benji, and grandchildren Madeleine, Simon, and Judah. We have managed to meet with quite a few of our friends, but spent most of the time visiting and playing with the kids. (They were the ones that visited us at Raccoon Valley). On Monday we celebrated Labor Day with our other daughter Stacy and son Duane Jr, daughter-in-law Brandey and of course Emma and Ava. (Jr and family were visiting from Texas.) From the top the pix show Jude likes painting (kids' paints, wash right off but he didn't want to quit), pushing his mower, bubbles, riding with Sissy, and anything else his sibs are doing. Simon likes his new sunglasses and riding his Deere. Maddy loves crafts, and one-on-one time with grandparents. The little girls are cheerful and pleasant most of the time and look more like each other every day. Mom and dad can tell them apart, and take pity on everyone else by putting in different color earrings. The ones we visited here are 5 of our 9 adorable grandchildren who live in three different states. We were fortunate to have so many close together at one time.

We have had ten great days of visiting, but now it's time to get those tires rolling back to the Goshen, IN fairgrounds for the big Escapees rally starting Friday. We will be back in the kids' back yard in about a week, though, for more visiting and playing. We hope to meet with more friends and relatives then too.

Enough for now,

Louise and Duane

Who knew?

Louise in the middle

Grand Haven lighthouse

G H beach

Enjoying the water

Can you hear the waves?

Wooden shoe production

De Klomp factory

Holland strip mall

Delftware factory

All hand painted

Holland State Park lighthouse

In the bay

Old lighthouse

Jonathon Livingston Seagull

My good side

Rays and yacht--what more do I need?

Holland S P

We are free once again. We spent three days in a resort rv campground in Howell MI before heading to Gillette's for our repairs. Mostly we walked around the campground and tried to keep cool. There were too many people there to enjoy the beach or the pool. A week ago we moved to Gillette's little campground. They mainly keep it for people who buy a new trailer and use their old one as a trade-in so they can move door-to-door. Our appointment wasn't until Wed. at the earliest, but by this time we were having slide problems so we were allowed to move in early. Good thing. Once the slide was opened it stayed open until it was fixed. We spent the better part of Fri and Sat in the waiting room before everything they could fix was fixed. There are still some minor things to be addressed when we move to Elkhart IN tomorrow. That's where this place was born. Between times we decided to explore a little of the eastern coastline of Lake Michigan. As you can see from the two state parks we visited it is mile after mile of beautiful tan sand beach. The day was perfect (as they have been for the last week--bright sunshine with high puffy clouds, a cool breeze. On the two beaches we visited the sand shelf extended out about 100 yds. Here the water was no deeper than 18" or so and warm--80-85d. Further out with the cool breeze I think people were getting cold. People were everywhere but there was plenty of room for everyone to do their things. Along the causeways to the lighthouses people were diving and jumping into the deeper water and climbing out via the ladders placed there. The lake was a pleasure to be in and around. The water was a very clear brownish green to a depth of at least 15'. It smelled clean and refreshing. We had a great time. We got our walk in too. We counted double time for walking in loose sand. In pic one Duane had a hard time telling me apart from some of the young babes walking around. He thought he was taking a pic of me! In the fourth one I was talking to my daughter-in-law Brandey who is in TX with her one-year old twin girls. She loves the beach. Whenever I'm near waves crashing I call her to give her a "fix". The crashing waves temporarily transported her away from the activity and the heat. Glad to do it for you, kid!

Before we hit the beach we checked out one of the local tourist traps. There are several here with the Dutch theme since this is a Dutch settlement. (The rv park where we are staying is called Dutch Treat). Just north of Holland, home of the famous seed catalog, is Veldheer Tulip Gardens and Bison Ranch, home of 5+ million tulips, the wooden shoe factory and the Delftware factory. One stop shopping at it's best! One building houses the garden store where you can pick up your favorite tulip bulbs and buy your bison steaks. We wanted some bison meat, but had to pass--way too expensive for us ($24 for an 8oz tbone). We passed on paying to view the garden also--no tulips this time of year. At the other end of the strip is the bison ranch. Sorry, no pix. The bison were too shy. Actually they were all out of sight at the other end of their pasture behind their barns. No tours available, so we were out of luck in the bison department. We struck gold in the middle. In one long building we saw hundreds of pieces of Delftware. No one was demonstrating except the painter, but that was interesting enough. I am now the proud owner of my own Delftware--a tiny cup and saucer for drinking my hot brewed loose tea. We did get to see a part of the construction process for wooden shoes. The demonstrator was very glad to answer all of our questions. There was a whole wooden shoe store there too. Wooden shoes were available for trying on. Then you could find your size pair in plain or painted--red, blue, or yellow. From there we went to lunch at Red Robin, a chain restaurant known for its burgers and "endless basket of fries", then on to the beaches to walk them off.

Enough for now,

Louise and Duane

We are FREE!!!

We finished our workcamp job on Wednesday and headed north on Thursday. We drove all the way to Crittenden, KY...lol...a little over 200 miles. We drove into Cincinnati to visit with daughter Stacy. The last time we were in Ohio she was on the road for her work. She is hard catch, so we took advantage of the chance to catch her home. We went out for bite to eat, took a walk, ate ice cream and had a real nice chat. She leaves on a trip this morning, did I say was hard to catch, we leave for points north.

We're heading for East Lansing, MI to have a few things tweaked on the trailer. We purchashed the trailer from a dealer in Lansing, they delivered it to TX for us. After repairs are made we are going to hang out in MI till time to go to the Escapade RV Rally in Elkhart, IN on the 10th of September. Plans are to meet up with some of our RV friends that will be in the area at the same time. We are making a quick trip to Ohio on the 11th for granddaughter Maddy's birthday, then back to Elkhart for a week at the rally. After the rally we head to Troy, Oh for a visit with daughter Rachel and her family. At this we have no idea which way we will head next. We are leaning toward going to the east coast and down. We may head across the mid west and down, who knows? Our next work date is January 2 in Deming, NM so we have plenty of time to get there. We need to stop for doctors in TX before going to NM, so we will visit the TX kids on the way by.

That's it for now

Duane and Louise

This work shop is great!!!!

Here are some lapel pins I have been making. I can sit in my work shop, in the rv, in the air conditioning and carve. Much nicer then sitting outside in the heat. I have been able to get a lot done since getting the trailer. I have been working on these pins to have something to sell at the rv rally we are going to in September. I hope they sell.....lol I could use a little money coming in off the carving....lol

Duane

We Survived!

Atop Norris Dam

Bombarding Cumberland Gap

Circus performer

Tough artiliaryman

Water babies

As the title says, we survived our summer of heat and humidity at Raccoon Valley RV Park. This week they both abated to the June levels and are again fairly tolerable as long as you avoid the midday heat. This our last week here. Duane works tomorrow and Wed. and I work Wed. afternoon. We plan to be packed up and ready to hit the road Thursday morning for East Lansing Mi. Last week our daughter Rachel, son-in-law Benji and grandchildren Maddy (almost 6), Simon (3) and Judah (1) came for a visit from the Dayton OH area. Having 7 people in our little rig wasn't as bad as you would think. Everyone got along well and had a good time. They arrived late Thurs night so most of the activity was aimed at getting everyone to bed. Next day we went swimming, cooked out then went for a drive to the Cumberland Gap National Historic Park so some overly-excited, under slept children could have a nap on the way. We drove through the gap tunnel between TN and KY and to the pinnacle for some views. We had fun re-enacting the valley bombardment , then went down to the visitors ' center. On the way home we stopped for pizza, then topped off the day with some more pool time. Next day after pool time and lunch, we drove to Norris Dam for some sightseeing, then home. We had one last time in the pool and Maddy and Simon and I had time for a little creek walking before time for the kids to leave. We are glad they came and are looking forward to seeing them all again in Sept.

Enough for now,

Louise and Duane

Latest carvings

These are some simple pins I carved between other carvings. They go pretty quick. They have lock pins on the back so they can be used for lapel pins. The manager here at the park claimed the first one.....lol.. I am working on Christmas presents for the Grandkids and needed a little easy time...lol Carving 9 of the same thing takes a while, so I needed a break from them.

Till next time

Duane and Louise

Muddy Pond

Our new truck! Not!

General Store

Tomatoes and melons

THE Muddy Pond

Nice view

Onion, peppers and corn

Strip mall

Buggies for sale

Lotsa goats

Time for cinnamon buns

Homemade ice cream

Here we are wasting another sunny day on idle pleasure. This time we went over two ridges to the Mennonite settlement of Muddy Pond. This is a strip road with small farms and cottage businesses. Our first stop was at a general store (house in right). I bought a serving spoon and some powdered buttermilk and drooled over the bread but did not give in. About 1/2 mile further I saw a sign for vegetables so down the drive we went. I got a box of "seconds" tomatoes for $5--about 20 cents a pound--and a couple of nice musk melons for $3. Next stop was the pond that gave the settlement its name--no idea to whom it is dedicated, then on to the strip mall. There were two leather shops and another general store. The buggies are in front of one of the leather shops where Duane bought a scrap piece of leather for a dollar to make a couple of sheathes for his carving knives. The general store boasted a row of oak gliders out front. I would have been very tempted if I still had a land house. Inside I bought a couple of coloring books, a mug, and some curry powder. Did I mention everything was cheap? Another mile or so further we finally found the home made ice cream in a little combination general store/diner. This was the real deal--smooth and creamy and soft--just like we made at home on summer holidays. It was really, really yummy! From there what else was left but a little bakery? I bought a cinnamon bun that was as big as the paper plate and two turnovers--one cherry and one apple. To get to this little place we drove Rt. 62 out of Oak Ridge (the city that wasn't). We tried to follow the gps, but it kept trying to send us down to I40 and Monterey. We got sidetracked into the town of Harriman where we ate sandwiches and french fries at Donna's Diner. Then we finally picked up 62 again and went on our little tour. On the way back we stayed on 62 except for a little side trip around the town of Oliver Springs . This had some interesting red brick buildings dating from around 1900. We had subs from Firehouse Subs for supper, then home. Another day wasted. Not! Also not is the truck. That belongs to our new managers who will be starting here in August. It is one of the big boys some rv'ers prefer to use with their 5th wheels. Big isn't it!

Enough for now

Louise and Duane

Our latest romp

I read about this

Guess what

Two natural beauties

OOOHHH Scary!

Intreped rafters

in a pink raft

Dam view of Norris Lake

Due to lingering showers and thunderstorms moving through our area, we split this week's tour into two days. On Monday we attended the Anderson Co. fair in Clinton. This was by far the smallest fair we have seen. We could have walked the perimeter of the grounds in about 10 min. tops. There was one stock barn with poultry and rabbits in one corner. Beef were scheduled for Wednesday, but no other animals. There were a fair (great pun, eh?) amount of rides, but both exhibitors' buildings could fit into the one big one in Darke Co. Oh. We managed to kill an hour by strolling slowly around and visiting the restrooms twice. Duane wanted to see the whittlers at 6. They turned out to be one older man and one older teen whittling folk art. No carvers. This fair is the only one we know of that isn't open during the day--5 pm to 10 pm only. Hmmm. Yesterday (Wed.) we had a sunny day so we took a drive to Cumberland Falls State Resort Park in KY. They call it that because there is a resort hotel there. We walked along the river walk taking pics of anything we thought interesting. It was, of course, very humid since the spray from the falls carried to the viewing stands. It is estimated that the original falls were 45 miles downstream from their present location. Interesting. The cliffs, river bed, and rock formations are all due to erosion. The snake crawled from the rocks across the walkway and into a tree bole. Don't know what kind, but probably was some kind of water snake. After we had had enough of the falls, we drove through the park checking out the resort, campground, and other amenities. From there we drove to Williamsburg for lunch at 2 pm. Since it was still early, we drove to Norris Dam in TN. This is an hydroelectric dam, so there was no spill. The lake was formed when the dam backed up the Clinch river. There is a nice little info center there, a picnic area, all kinds of hiking trails, good views of the lake, the dam and the river valley as it was before the dam was built, and on the other side from us a marina and boat launch. We took in the views for a bit, then it was time for home.

Basta por hoy,

Louise and Duane

Oak Ridge

Missile

Atom display

Our latest touring urge took us to Oak Ridge, the city that didn't exist. This was built in a small secluded valley from four settlements that consisted of people who were displaced from the Norris Lake project. Needless to say, they were displaced again. The secret city of Oak Ridge was built as part of the Manhattan Project with the other parts in Manhattan, New York, and Las Alamos, NM. This amazing place was not on any map and did not officially exist until after WWII. We spent most of the day at the American Museum of Science and Energy learning our history of WWII and all about atoms and the construction of the bomb. After lunch at Firehouse Subs (started by firemen where you can eat like a fireman) we visited the historic cemetery which has no headstones. This contains 70-100 burials of black people thought to be construction workers and servants of some of the local families. Then we drove around the building pictured above. This is where the plutonium was extracted (I think). No one who worked in this building knew what they were doing. They just watched their dials to make sure they maintained the correct readings. We actually toured this last Tuesday, but couldn't blog until now. We bought a new computer and have been busy getting it up and working.
Tomorrow or Tuesday, depending on the weather, we will head to Amish country or Cumberland Falls. Wait and see!

Later dudes and dudettes,

Louise and Duane