Since I have been doing a lot of quick updates with no pictures, I decided it was high time to get some pictures on this blog!!!!

Arizona Territorial Prison Yuma, AZ

We stopped here after our day in Quartzsite.

Our Apartment

Brenda looking sun drunk.

 Looking out from our balcony.

 Looking directly out front of our balcony.

 Enjoying the fireplace.

The pets love the fireplace.










Here are a few fabulous Tucson sunset pictures

Our wonderful Valentines dinner last night. We had such a good time enjoying each other's company we completely forgot to put a fire in the fireplace.

Happy Valentines Day

To all the lovers out there....Happy Heart Day! And by lovers I mean anyone who has anyone in their life they love. It doesn't have to be a lover kind of love, it could be a parent, child, dog, cat or any other living creature. If you love someone-celebrate!!!!

I haven't been posting lately because life is just sailing along swimmingly. I have a wonderful, abundant life and things are going well. We are continuing to  keep focused on the future while enjoying the now.

We are taking a two week road trip next month back to Indy. It has been way to long since we have seen Brenda's grandson and have yet to meet the new granddaughter. The trip is planned so that we will be there for her grandson's birthday. We are really looking forward to the trip (to say the least-we can't wait!)

Life is so good.

An Awesome Week

This week has turned out to be a wonderful, fun-filled week. It started out really crappy, but it all worked out.

On Monday, I got a call from my work wanting me to work for about an hour on Thursdays for the month of February until the new director comes in. I decided I would help out. Not an hour later, I get a call from another person at work wanting me to cover her 12 hour shift on Monday so she can babysit her granddaughter. She said there was no one else to watch her so she had to. I kept telling her to find someone else, and I would work for her if she exhausted every other avenue. Of course, she couldn't find anyone else! I told her I would do it but it would be the last time. Its a long story but the bottom line is she is enabling her daughter and not allowing the daughter to grow up and take responsibility. This happens every week and I have been very accommodating until now. Just because I don't work all week doesn't mean I want to. I am retired for a reason.

OK I am done with the rant.

Wednesday morning we took off for Quartzsite for the RV show. We couldn't wait to see all the stuff and RVs. As we were driving I was like a kid oohing and aahhing over all the RVs we were seeing on the road.

We had a wonderful time! We had never been and weren't sure what to expect. We could never have envisioned what we saw. As a person who hates crowds, I was sure I was going to get irritable really fast. This was not the case. I enjoyed the people watching and seeing all the stuff for sale. Everything from gems to junk. It was amazing.

We spent the night in Blythe, California and just relaxed. We got to the hotel about 3:30 and took little naps. We then had a wonderful Mexican dinner at a small place recommended by the hotel staff. We came back to the room and took another nap, watched TV then decided to get some sleep.

Thursday we took our time then headed over to Yuma, Arizona to see the Yuma Territorial Prison. It was a beautiful day and we really enjoyed the museum and the grounds.

I am innocent I tell ya!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The cells.

The view from the prison.










Today we got to meet some fellow bloggers we have been following, Yair and Ayo of http://ourtakeonfreedom.wordpress.com/.  We were so excited to finally meet them. As soon as we met them, I felt an immediate bonding with them. I felt as if we had known each other for a long time. We had a great lunch and had so much to talk about. We asked a lot of questions and learned a lot about full timing. We had a wonderful time getting to know them better and showing them around the town.

Ayo, Yair and Brenda






This week was a much needed break. It had been far too long since we had fun and spent so much time outdoors. I got a chance to reconnect with our dream. I feel refreshed and ready to tackle the next few weeks.

I Did Not Get Thrown Out With The Christmas Trash

I just realized I have not posted since before Christmas. Shame on me.

We had a wonderful time in Florida with my family. I came back and ended up working a lot the week we got back so I haven't had much time to get all caught up. They wanted me to work extra this week too, but I said I couldn't. We spent the week getting lots done.

I just booked out hotel room in Blythe, California so we could go to the RV show in Quartsite, AZ. We will be going on the 25th and 26th. It should be lots of fun.

Not much else new. When I get a chance, I will post some pictures of the new apartment and our trip.

Happy Holidays!

Things continue to hum along just fine in our lives. We are loving the new place more and more each day. We really feel a peace about living here. It is cozy and truly feels like home. Even the pets are loving living here. We get morning sun streaming through the front windows so you can find our furry friends lounging all over the living room floor basking in the sun. Brenda commented today that sunshine can bring enemies together. It is funny to see the dog lying beside the cats all in the name of a good sun spot.

Today, we finally got Brenda and her computer reunited. Even if it isn't her original computer. Let me back up and give you the back story. Once we were all moved in, we proceeded to get her computer hooked up. Unfortunately, it would start. There was no power to it at all. So we took it in to replace the power pack. To make a long story short, they no longer make the special part needed for her computer. We had to buy her a new computer. We got a really good deal on a Lenovo laptop at Best Buy. We took the new computer in to the repair place to transfer all her files.

We took in in last Friday and thought we would get it back yesterday. That was not to be. It turns out her hard drive was slowly dying and they were having trouble retrieving the files. They were finally able to get it all done and we picked it up this afternoon.  Now we both have our own computers again so I will be able to get on mine more often.

It has been a very frustrating 5 weeks waiting on her computer but the good news is she has a new computer and still has all her old files. Now she just gets to spend hours getting everything else set up just like it was on the old one.

We are looking forward to spending Christmas with my family in Brooksville, Florida. That is where my parents have chosen to do their snow birding. We will be flying out Christmas morning from Phoenix. We are spending the night in Phoenix so we don't have to do all that really early morning driving. I love the Sleep, Park, Fly deal. You stay one night in a participating hotel and you can park the car in their lot while you are gone. The price of the hotel is comparable to parking at the airport. Plus, we can have a more leisurely drive up there and and easier morning. They have a shuttle that takes you to the airport and picks you up. We will head up there after I get off work Saturday and we plan on having a nice dinner up their and a relaxing evening. We fly back to Phoenix on the 31st and I get to go to work the next morning. No big deal since I only work the weekends and I will be off the rest of the week.

I am continuing to stay focused on the abundance in my live and to keep being thankful for all that I have. I am seeing a difference in my live. We always seem to have exactly what we need when we need it. It is amazing to me just how blessed I am. I may not be rich with money but oh my gosh am I rich with what matters.

May you all have an abundant holiday season that gives you much to be thankful for!!!!!!!!

Time to Update

I guess it has been a while since I lasted posted. I have been so busy it just slipped my mind. Sorry about that.

We are all moved into the new place. We absolutely love it!!!!!!!!!!!!!! In fact, I think the longer we are here the more we find to enjoy about it. I will have to get some pictures posted. Brenda's computer has the photo program and it has been in the shop since we moved. It was working just fine but when we plugged it in here, nothing! I took it to the shop and they had to order parts. I will do some follow up on Monday to see get a status update.

The weather here has turned cold and rainy. In fact, there is snow up in the mountains. We made our first fire in the fireplace last night. I have missed having a fireplace. It just makes it so cozy and warm.

Prior to the cold weather, we spent a day at one of our favorite places, the Arizona Sonoran Desert Museum. If you ever come to Tucson, it is a must see. It is so awesome-its part museum, part zoo and part botanical gardens. You really learn a lot about the desert. Again, once we get the computer back, there will be lots of pictures.

Only three more weeks until Christmas. Hard to believe. I am looking forward to our trip to Florida to see my family. I wish the trip was a road trip, but we do not have enough time so we are flying. We will be taking an early spring road trip back to Indiana to see Brenda's family and the new granddaughter due in February.

Making Progress

We are doing really good downsizing. I can't believe how much junk stuff we are getting rid of. The house is a total mess as we are going through stuff and only taking what we actually use. In fact, I would say we are only taking a fraction of what we own. There is more stuff going to charity than actually getting moved. I look around and see so much stuff but Brenda keeps reminding me most of it is trash or charitable.

We called a moving company today and scheduled all the furniture to be picked up on the 15th. By all the furniture, I mean about 9 pieces. We have sold so much stuff and only have a few big pieces left. We are moving the smaller stuff over with the cars. We have made about three trips and are almost done. Amazing. By Friday we should have just the bare essentials left at the old place.

I found a listing on Craigslist for an organization that needs and wants everything and anything and they will come pick it up. I will call them tomorrow and see if we can get them to come and take away all the stuff we don't want. We will be donating lots of towels and blankets to a local no-kill animal shelter. We have been on the fence as to whether we should have a yard sale. We decided it wouldn't be worth the hassle so we will just donate all our stuff.

It has been a week since we said our goodbyes to Mattie. I still have lots of ups and downs. Some of the habits and routines are hard to break and a few times I forgot she was gone. The move is helping me. And as time goes by and I look at the older pictures of her, I can really see how much she had deteriorated at the end. I am so glad I didn't make her suffer any longer.

Tonight, we got to check out our new hot tub! It is great to have it just outside the front door. We will definitely be giving it a lot of attention. And now with the weather being much cooler, I can't wait to try out the fireplace. I am imagining cool nights with the fireplace roaring drinking hot adult beverages. YUMMMMMM!

As soon as we get them downloaded, I will post pictures of our new abode.