Filling our time in the Arizona spring

It is spring in the Arizona desert and the Gold Canyon temps are in the high 80s to low 90s.  That means it is time for snowbirds to begin flying north.  We'll be doing that soon, but not yet.  

The warm weather has brought out these bright red flowers on the ocotillo plants in our resort.  These plants bloom when the temperatures heat up in March and, if there is rain, they bloom again in response to the moisture.

 The prickly pear cactus also blooms in the spring.  This plant has bright red and yellow flowers.  Others have pink flowers.

  

We met our friend Darlene Sibigtroth for lunch one day in late March.  When we lived in Granby-Grand Lake, Colorado, she was my supervisor at Mountain Parks Bank.  She and her late husband Gary were members of our church.  Now she lives in Casa Grande, south of Gold Canyon.  It was so good to catch up with her.

Darlene's daughters were people our son Eric knew in high school.  John officiated at one daughter's wedding and today that couple is related to people we know at St. Gabriel's Episcopal Church in Colorado.  That is the church John served as rector before retirement and where we worship when living in our Lone Tree apartment.  What a small world.

John is beginning to look better, too, as we wait to head north.  The dermatologist and plastic surgeon removed a basal cell cancer from near his left eye.  We're so glad that cancer is gone!

In a week or two, we'll never know the surgery took place

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Settling In

We arrived back at our winter home in Gold Canyon last Wednesday and we are about settled. We had been on the road for 5 1/2 months and it takes a long time to bring everything we need from the trailer to the house. We also have to clean up a lot. Leaving a place for that long lets a lot of debris build up. We are fortunate that we don't have to do weed removal like most people do. Even when the temperature gets over 100 degrees numerous times during the summer, there are some weeds that still grow and grow and grow. We have a neighbor who is here year-round and he sprays all the yards on our street so the weeds won't grow and spread to his place. Thanks, Don!

It had been good to shop in familiar stores and begin worshipping at our regular church, Epiphany Episcopal in Tempe. So many in the congregation greeted us with "Welcome back! It's good to see you again."

Our resort is very quiet right now. Most snowbirds don't arrive until at least October. Soon we will be the ones saying "Welcome back!. It's good to see you," to our neighbors as they show up.

We Come and We Go

We certainly do. At this time of the year snowbirds, winter Texans, whatever you call the residents of the snowy northern states who come south for the winter, are turning their wheels north where the temperatures over the coming 6 months or so will be more comfortable than they are in southern Arizona, southern Texas, Alabama, Mississippi and Florida. They will enjoy the temperate zone for half a year or so before heading back south sometime between October and January.

We are doing the same. Next Tuesday, after enjoying Easter at Epiphany Episcopal Church in Tempe and a visit with friends on Monday, we will be headed out as well. We are in the midst of cleaning the house, moving everything we will need for the summer into our Airstream. We have arranged to have someone check on our house here over the summer, turned in the paperwork to have our mail forwarded for the duration, had final get-togethers with friends we won't see till next fall and washed the truck and cleaned it inside. I am finishing some turning projects; the federal and state tax returns have been filed.

When we go for our daily walks in our resort we can see many of the other winter residents here have already left. This is a very predictable migration, as marked as the time when students return to school in the fall and are released for summer vacation.

Before returning to Colorado for July, August and part of September, we will be driving north to I-40 then east to address part of our bucket list by staying in the final 5 continental US states we haven't yet spent the night in--New Jersey, Maryland, Delaware, Connecticut and Rhode Island--before visiting our son Doug and our granddaughters Rachal and Samantha in New Hampshire. We are looking forward to traveling.

We began RVing in 1988 and in 2005 we did our first volunteer assignments at Nails Creek State Park in Texas and Bryce Canyon National Park in Utah. The following year we volunteered for a couple of months at Fort Parker State Park in Texas. That is where we met full-time RVers Frank and Chris. She introduced me to blogging. On May 21, 2006, I created 5thwheelwanderings.blogspot.com and published my first blog post. Since then I have published 1274 blogs and this will be 1275. We felt we got to know some of those bloggers as they shared their life on the road. And on January 29, 2009, we moved out of our Colorado house and became full-time RVers.

In the 8 plus years we have seen many people also begin full-timing and have made real friends--not just virtual friends--with some of them. In October 2014 we purchased our house in Superstition Views, ending our full-time lifestyle but not our travels. Some people who are full-timers live that lifestyle
for only 1 to 3 years. Sometimes they are traveling to find a good location to spend their retirement. Others are on the road for 10, 15 or 20 years. In the years I have been blogging and we have been reading RV blogs, we have watched at least six of those full-timers (including Frank and Chris) do just as we have done, buying a house for part of the year or setting up the RV permanently in an Escapees RV park. Obviously, traveling full-time in an RV is something people come and go from. We understand.

I also understand how hard it is to keep up a blog that is primarily about travel when travel is reduced to only part of the year. This is my first blog post since April 5. They will be coming more often beginning next week when we hit the road again. I am not looking for more RV blogs to read. I am spending more energy getting to know people here in our resort but not making new friends on the internet.

The most constant thing in our lives is not the people around us, the work we, the place we live or our lifestyle. It is change. And it keeps us on our tow and learning new things all the time.

End of Season Get-Togethers

Snowbirds flock together in southern climes where they form relationships during the winter months. Then comes Spring and everyone prepares to go their separate ways to locations north. That means we have to say goodbye to the winter friends. So there have been lots of social events in the past few weeks. First we met our friends Ron and Barbara at Sweet Tomatoes for lunch.  We might run into each other in Colorado this summer, but for sure we will get together for some hiking next winter.

"In our resort the "dead enders" had a party for their own groups and the "loopers." Those terms refer to the streets we live on.  One cul de sac is the dead end and the adjoining road loops around, returning to the entrance to the dead end.  Here is the line waiting to get something to eat.  We all bring dishes to share and the husband of one of the host couples grills some of the meat from his many hunting trips of the past year.  Yummy!




We even had Tommy G providing music for that party.
















As you can see, there were a big bunch of us there.  Notice the small RV that closes off the open end of the dead end--and provides some shade.




Last week the women of the neighborhood gathered for a presentation on Norwex products.

Linda was the sales consultant who told us all about the chemical free cleaning products.  It was good most of the women were more into cleaning than I am.  She wouldn't make any money if everyone was like me.

The last gathering (at least as far as I know now) was the third annual April Fools Day brunch.  We all brought our favorite breakfast/brunch food and there were so many good things to eat.

That gathering ended with a cake for Jack's 65th (he said) birthday.

We understand that 88 sites in our resort were scheduled to check out Saturday. The flood is beginning. Already the local traffic is lighter. Our plans are to head out in two weeks, right after Easter. From what we understand, by July it will be pretty much a ghost town here. The quiet before all the snowbirds start returning in October. It's a great lifestyle. We get to enjoy the good weather year round and make friends in lots of places.

Family and Friends

Southern Arizona is a wonderful place to come during the colder part of the year. We know all about that. Our first winter visit was 9 years ago. It seems we see more of our Colorado friends in Arizona during the winter than we do during our summer travels to Colorado.

Yesterday our niece Tina and her husband Vance came for dinner. They have been to the Grand Canyon and are now visiting friends and family in the Phoenix area before returning to work this weekend. We had a good time talking to them and showing them around our resort.  Who knows, will they become snowbirds in the next few years?

Our long-time Colorado friends David and Alice have a winter home about 3 miles from our and they came for lunch yesterday. Unfortunately, I forgot to take a picture of them. I know we will see them again this winter so I will have another chance.

We look forward to catching up with other family and friends in the next few months, as well.

Time to Go?

The RV section of our resort is getting pretty empty. Look at all these available sites.

A lot of the park models have been closed up for the summer, as well. You can always tell when you see empty decks and covered automobiles.

If you are living somewhere north of Arizona and the temperatures are in the 40s or 50s and there is still a threat of snow, you might be wondering why all these spaces are empty. Here is the reason. This was our high temperature on Wednesday.

Even before it got that hot, we were told over 100 sites were to be vacated on April 1. Many snowbirds stay through Easter, then head home. April 1 was in the week after Easter. We aren't ready to move north, yet. We will be here till early May. Still more fun, turning on the lathe and other wood shop work in store for us here this spring.

The Sights (not Ides) of March

March is the last month of the snowbird winter for many folks here in Arizona.  The weather is getting warmer and many people decide to begin their travels back to the north.  Never mind that there is a chance of snow today in both Denver, Colorado, and Minneapolis, Minnesota.

During these last days of March it has been sunny and warm and many plants are blooming.  The ocotilla seems to have especially large blooms this year, even if we haven't had any rain since January.  Maybe a drip irrigation system it watering these plants.

Some large yucca plants produce tall flower stems.  Here are some buds. The photo below shows those buds opened, ready for pollination by birds and bees.

With all the warm weather, all sorts of interesting 2- and 3-wheeled vehicles are showing up.  Look at this two-seater.

The palo verde trees are in full bloom--beautiful until you have to clean up all the fallen flowers.

This great egret has been flying around the neighborhood the last couple of days. It's winter range includes southwestern Arizona and much of Mexico. It migrates through this area to it's summer range, mainly in the mid-west. Since the only water nearby is in in two golf course ponds, I imagine it will be leaving soon. But what a beautiful bird.

Cindy Comes to Visit

John's sister Cindy arrived Monday afternoon for a week-long visit. We want her to see how we live in our winter home and experience life in a "55+ Active Adult" community. She flew into the Phoenix-Mesa Gateway airport, coming from the Colorado Springs airport. We were delighted her tickets were to this airport, which is much closer to our place than Sky Harbor in central Phoenix.

We checked the arrival board and saw her plane was on it's way. So we sat down to wait.

We saw her walking into the terminal area.

Tuesday, we showed her around our resort.

Then we were off to Best Buy so Cindy could buy her very first iPad! She and John opened all the packages on our dining room table.

Then John began to set up the tablet, with Cindy watching the process.

We were all exhausted after all that concentration, so we all went to bed early.

Today, we spent time at the Gilbert Riparian Preserve, checking out the birds.

Cindy brought warm,sunny  weather--finally. We are enjoying the weather snowbirds come to Arizona to enjoy. And it was fun to see all the ducks and other water birds. We have all walked over 3 and 1/2 miles, so we will probably be tired this evening, as well.

Settling In in Arizona

We've now been in our winter home in Arizona since Saturday. We were so glad to get here, but it certainly hasn't been a relaxing few days. When we left at the end of April, the construction of our addition wasn't quite complete. It is so good to see everything finished and the new paint job.

The workshop is on the back side of the carport you can see in this photo.

We love the new brown color (John really didn't like the original pink sandstone color).

It has been years since we ended our summer travels by moving out of the RV and into a house. Last winter when this house was ready, we slowly moved over all we needed from the RV. Today, we think we have almost totally moved into the house for the next six months or so. It is a lot of work! Saturday and Sunday, we were up and down the four steps to the RV, moving food and clothing from one place to the other.

Monday, we started equipping our empty work shop. That included ordering a stack-able washer-dryer, a water softener and a utility sink. The local Lowe's was glad when we came through their front door. We were also looking for some outdoor furniture. I think in years past, they have had lots on display. This year, the Christmas decorations are already on display in Lowe's, Home Depot, Costco and Wal-Mart, so we had very little to choose from--and bought nothing.

In addition to those purchases, I went on-line and ordered a scroll saw and small wood lathe. Next, we have to find a workbench and storage cabinet. Snowbirds like us certainly are good for the local Arizona economy. And we are having a lot of fun getting the workshop and laundry ready to use.

April Happenings

The month of April is two-thirds gone. What has been happening here? The first Sunday of the month was Easter. The altar area of Epiphany Episcopal Church in Tempe was beautifully decorated and the worship service was even better. John assisted at one of the services.

This is the month when the snowbirds begin their flight north. Just look at these nearly deserted areas of our resort.

Since so many people are learning, one of our neighbors had an end of the season party.

We had our RV washed an waxed early in the month.

Ever since we moved out of our house in 2009 to live in our RV full time, we have had stuff in storage. We went from five crates of stored items, plus on U-Haul storage unit, to a smaller U-Haul unit after getting rid of most of the stuff. Last spring we drove to Denver and brought the remaining storage items here to Arizona. We pared that down to one 5 ft by 10 ft unit last fall. Now we are going through lots and lots of paper filed in boxes. This is what is looked like in our living room one day this week.

Here is a picture as we loaded the truck in March last year. Notice the 3 black file cabinets. That is where all the paper was located that we are trying to get rid of.

We are pushing hard so we can empty the storage unit and have everything that is left stored here in our winter home. We hope that we will finish that work and the construction on our addition will be far enough along that we can leave here about May 1.