Okay, we will be the first to admit we have neglected our blog.

So, let’s get you caught up.

Many special events have happened since we drove to Virginia on March 26^th.

Please remember this is not necessarily in order.

After arriving in Virginia early April, we had such a good time with our Grands and their families. We celebrated a birthday. We visited breweries, wineries and many dinners and lunches together.

We were invited to a grandparent’s tea at the school with our two littlest grands Paige and Declan. Walking our oldest grand Camden to school, was a special treat. Coloring Easter eggs and in general keeping the house loud was something we hadn’t experienced in a long, long time!  We cherished every moment……

Walking to school

Easter egg hunt Game time Grandparent Tea Soccer with the youngest Grands Soccer with the youngest Grands

Riding bikes, hiking, throwing balls and Frisbees rounded out many hours of fun.

Biking with the CunninghamsWhile on our ride we stopped on a cool bridge for a family picture. Camden on his bike Bike ride in Purcellville Bike ride in Purcellville

We took Dad to the Naval Academy one last time.

Dad returns to the Academy

We landed in Northern Virginia in early April in a 16' rental truck. We were ready to buy our new Ram we ordered in January, but guess what?? Not ready. We both felt uncomfortable always asking to borrow a car or a ride.

We went looking to buy something. Both of us agreed something comfortable and a little higher end would make the trade-in a little sweeter when we finally got our truck.

New carMugging with our new car from CarMax

We ended up with a 2016 Land Rover Discovery from CarMax. Several friends call it a Disco. It has lots of fun options and it’s very comfortable to drive.

While we were on the road to Virginia, we sold our California house of 18 years. With the help of our good friend Steve, who made all the negotiations and arrangements, we signed all the paperwork remotely.

We have too much stuff We have too much stuff We have too much stuff We have too much stuff

We left Virginia the middle of May with a plan to visit friends from all over the country, on our way back to California to tie up loose ends.

First stop was the Ram truck dealership in North Carolina where we ordered our new Ram from a friend of a friend (no more paying California taxes). As we pulled into the lot, we saw many faces plastered to the windows. Who were these Californians? Were they coming to visit with a British car bearing Virginia license plates? Meeting Danny the General Manager whom we placed our order with, was a very pleasant experience. Unfortunately, our new truck was still several months away. Lack of labor, fuel, materials and just plain “I don’t know” are just some of the answers on why we still don’t have a new truck. But we weren’t discouraged. We’re still waiting for our Airstream which is also VERY delayed! We can’t have one without the other.

We took almost two weeks to travel back to Oceanside. Stops included Raleigh North Carolina,

Mike and Sister-001A great visit with my sister Leanne, whom we haven't seen in way too many years Mike and Sister-001A great visit with my sister Leanne, whom we haven't seen in way too many years

Myrtle Beach, Jacksonville Florida, New Orleans Louisiana, 4 stops in Texas and New Mexico. So much fun seeing folks we haven’t seen in some cases over 20 years.

Jim and Lyn Shawn and Kate with us at Baylor University C. Mark and Debra Vaughn with us John and Gina DaCrema with us Sue Gage and Lisa Patrick/hubbySue Gage and Lisa Patrick/hubby Mr. ChrisMusician Chris Ellinghaus with us. Our previous next door neighbor when we lived in Leesburg, VA.

We visited a Botanical Garden in Florida.

Florida

Bourbon St. in New Orleans

  Bourbon St. Bourbon St.

While we were in Tucson Arizona, we were treated to a Total Lunar eclipse.

EclipseMoon rise

EclipseTotal Blood moon

The Oceanside house needed a final clean-up and trash removed. We sold our bedroom furniture, and with the help of our great neighbors they let us borrow a portable mattress so as to not have to sleep on the floor.

Empty BedroomSleeping on the floor, the last week.

Donna and I shared the driving duties and many hours together gave us a lot of time to discuss what it would be like to live on a few acres of land with a house in the middle of nowhere. Maybe we could have a view of the mountains, or a river or a pond? Looking into the future, we knew we wanted to be near our kids and grands, but not in Virginia because of the property taxes being so high.  Well……West Virginia has one of the lowest property taxes in the US and….it’s close to where the family lives!!  Ding Ding……

We visited historic Harpers Ferry West Virginia while in Virginia and decided it could be a place to call home after or during Airstream travel. When we lived in Virginia, we went to Harpers Ferry many times and the kids loved it. 

Wouldn’t you know, shortly after we cleared out the last of our stuff in Oceanside, an ad for 5 acres and a 4 bedroom house with a swimming pool became available?  We had hooked up with a super nice real estate agent already – spending many hours on the phone with her, explaining our wants and what we were about to embark upon with our Airstream. 

After several phone calls, along with visits from Robbie and Tiffany to the property with our agent, we decided to bite the bullet on the property. Settlement will be Thursday 6/16.  We certainly know how to live on the edge! The sellers want to stay until the end of August so win, win for everybody. After they move out, we’ll have some time to do a few upgrades/updates before renting it out while we’re on the road.  One of Donna’s favorite old songs is by John Denver and now it will come to fruition – “Take Me Home Country Roads”.  And now you have it in your head – LOL!!!!

New HouseOur new house in historic Harpers Ferry, West Virginia.

We said goodbye to our Mazda's.

Mazda CX5 Mazda MX5

We enjoyed a final dinner at Jake's.

Jakes-001 Jakes-002

Currently we are visiting my brother Steve in Alameda California. He and his daughter Sarah have a cozy, very cool English Tudor style home on the island. We have been exploring the San Francisco area. We’ve discovered some great places and not so great places……We got lost in a really scary part of Oakland the other night. We saw a part of Oakland the Chamber of Commerce does not want the rest of the state to know about. We saw homeless camps that went on for blocks, and blocks. Are they dangerous? Fortunately, the car didn’t break down for us to find out.

On the other hand we had a lot of fun exploring the area. We spent a day amongst the Redwood trees in Muir Wood National Park. We have ridden our bikes around the island. We drove to Roseville to visit a good friend we met in our MINI club. We enjoyed our 39^th wedding Anniversary weekend and had a dinner at a very nice seafood restaurant in Jack London Square, Oakland. We spent Sunday on Treasure Island hiking and a nice lunch.

Muir Redwood Donna amongst the giant redwoods.

San Fran Sunset from Alameda looking across the bay at San Francisco. San Fran Looking up under the Bay Bridge.

Treasure Island Looking at San Fransico and the Bay Bridge.