Remember in my last post I talked about being flexible? Well, that's us! As we settled into our spot here in Green Valley, AZ and began planning our trip to California, Fritz confessed that his blood pressure has been too high and he really needed to just stay put for a while. So we canceled our plans to California and extended our stay here in Green Valley til the middle of January. 

Sunset at the RV Park

The Santa Rita Mountains

Virginia in the Santa Rita Mountains

We are really enjoying our stay here; our friends have been great hosts, showing us some of the beauty of the area in Madera Canyon in the Santa Rita mountains, teaching us how to play shuffleboard and pickleball. Their energy puts me to shame! Of course, I just finally went to the doctor last Friday to get antibiotics to finally kick whatever I have in the teeth, and have been slowly feeling better and getting my strength back. However, my months of relative sedateness caused me to wrench my hip on my first efforts at pickleball. So we're scaling back; Fritz is playing ping pong in the mornings while I do water aerobics.

The area is beautiful desert, just about 20 miles south of Tucson, alive with a number of cacti and scrub trees. Recent unusual winter rains have greened everything and some cacti are blooming. I've done a poor job of remembering to take pictures, so you'll just have to take my word for it! This community is largely 55+ which has its pros and cons. I miss the age diversity, but it's also nice to have so many activities geared for the senior age group! The slower pace, compared to Tucson, is very welcomed but it's nice to have the big-city conveniences so near.

It is quite a bit cooler here than I expected. We're at an elevation of 3,000 ft. and have been seeing lows in the 30s at night, with highs ranging from the low 50s to the low 70s. We're also benefiting from the remnants of all the rain California has been getting. But generally, the sun is shining, and when the sun's out, Fritz is happy!

So Green Valley is where we'll be for Christmas. We'll be thinking of all our family and friends scattered throughout the world, wishing each of you the joy of the miracle of Christ's birth. May the New Year find each of you healthy and happy. Til next time....

Unfortunately, being on vacation does not necessarily equivocate to being more healthy, as the curse of my Thanksgiving-time bronchitis visited with a vengeance and brought Fritz down as well. Hence there has been little activity to report and the big news was when I could finally sleep in my own bed again instead of sitting up all night. The beast persists for both of us nearly 3 weeks later, assisted by intense (and self-imposed) schedules. Here’s a recap of the events of the past several weeks:

I don’t know why I’m always surprised to get winter weather this far south, but it seems as if winter is taunting me that ‘you can run but you can’t hide’!! Our polar vortex brought a bit of snow and extremely cold temperatures (in the teens at night). I had to sit on Fritz so he didn’t just up and start heading west! Ha!

Well, we decided that, although Grove was a beautiful spot, it was just too far away from Tracy and family. So we pulled up stakes the Monday of Thanksgiving week and headed back to Bella Vista, AR. You do have to be careful making such treks, as natural impediments abound!

It was good to be closer for the Thanksgiving holiday so Tracy and I could shop and cook more or less together. We enjoyed a scrumptious Thanksgiving dinner x2! Our menu was so extensive, we decided to break it up into two meals (also, none of the adults were feeling too great so it worked well to space out the work). We had a delicious prime rib on Thanksgiving Day and the traditional turkey the following Saturday. That Tracy is one good cook and did an excellent job at her first time cooking those meats. She even put her newfound canning skills to good use and canned me some turkey broth! It was also heartening to hear the kids mention ‘family’ as that for which they were most thankful.

We left Arkansas (sad face!) on Dec. 4^th, choosing the scenic route through the Boston Mountains and Ouachita National Forest. It was a dreary, drizzly day, and the scenery was well hidden behind the low clouds. All we came away with was a very dirty motorhome and a very long day. 

It was bittersweet saying good-by to Tracy and her family; kids change so much in a short time and it’s such a blessing to see Tracy and Mike so happy! But we were bolstered by their plans to visit us next summer. 

We spent the night in a picnic area off a secondary highway and found it to be quite a pleasant site. The next morning, we located a Wal-Mart parking lot, disconnected and went to visit Virginia, an old family friend who used to babysit the rowdy Johnson bunch. Later that day, we moved to the north of Dallas/Ft. Worth to another Wal-Mart. It was here the pump relay decided to quit ~ once again ~ so we had no water until morning when Fritz could acquire a replacement.

Saturday morning was quite hectic, with Fritz off to the auto parts store, returning to replace the relay, (so blessed with a resourceful man!) then we moved to an RV park that had an RV wash on site. We scrubbed off the red clay of Oklahoma (no easy task on 36 feet of behemoth!) before squeezing into our tiny site just off a major highway. As soon as we were parked, against all good wisdom, we jumped on that major freeway and drove right through Dallas to reach Fritz’s cousin, Lucille. Construction and accidents abounded and we arrived, frazzled, about an hour later (yes, just to get from one side of Dallas to the other!). Our efforts were rewarded with a delightful lunch and visit with Lucille, who is a recent widow.

We took another route back, on which was located a Costco AND a WinCo, two of our favorite stores that don’t exist in NW Arkansas, so made quick stops at both. We returned home exhausted.

Sunday, we located a small church near where my nephew, George, lives north of Dallas. It was so good to fellowship again, as we had been too ill to go to church for several weeks! Following services, we met up with George, saw his apartment and beloved Nugget (dog) and went to lunch. While Fritz and Nugget napped in the apartment, George took me to a few stores to grab some necessities for our trip. Upon our return, we had a friendly and close game of cribbage. It was good to connect with George again!

It’s been delightful to get to see so many loved ones along our way, but it is draining, especially when we are already running low on energy. So we headed west this morning, anxious to leave the big city behind us, and will go only as far as we feel like. Fritz is napping now and the slower pace is welcomed.

Next stop Tucson, where we’ll catch up with some friends and our niece, Delann, spending about a week there. We had originally planned to spend a month, but our friends are leaving to return home for the holidays. At the same time, we found that some special people will be in California during the holidays, along with others who live there we long to see. So we’ll leave the Tucson area around the 18^th and head for the L.A. area, then down to the San Diego area before returning to Arizona around the middle of January. It’s good to be flexible! 

So, guess I’ll have more to write about in the coming weeks. Til then, may you remember the real reason for the season and avoid being caught up in the commercialism that Christmas has become. Slow down. Meditate on the meaning. Spend time with loved ones and make your days count. God bless!