We arrived home today from our trip, which ended up lasting four weeks, a week more than had been planned. I did get some knitting done.
As I mentioned last week, I finished the sleeve and then noticed in the directions that it was supposed to have the border motifs at the bottom, so I frogged back to where the border was supposed to start. Now I've finished the sleeve and have a good start on the second one.
You may also remember that we went to look at kitties in Wisconsin and that they would be picking up their new kitten on Wednesday, one day after she was spayed by the Humane Society.
One day post surgery, she seemed ready to go back to normal activities for kittens with a new home.
This is a screen saver, not a real acquarium, but it's so realistic, Katie found it fascinating.
The cat tree is getting some use. In this shot, you can see her shaved tummy.
While Katie was getting used to her new home, Dusty and Sandy were enjoying another set of youngsters, our older son's step-grandson and step great-granddaughters.
They had a great time with the kids.
Sandy really appreciated the attention.
Our trip took us from our home in Bend through Nevada, Utah, Wyoming, South Dakota, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Nebraska, back through Wyoming and Utah, then on to Idaho and finally back to Oregon. During the stops in most of these states we found some great campgrounds, parked in front of relatives' homes and discovered the free camping opportunity offered by roadside rests and Walmart parking lots. Some of the free sites had notices that overnight camping was prohibited, but clearly that doesn't apply to truckers and RVers who are self-contained. We found ourselves surrounded by semis and other RVs overnight. The parking spaces were clearly designed to accommodate a large number of trucks and RVs with their long parking spaces and huge dumpsters.
Some sites even had a reasonable view out the windows.
After two nights without hookups, though, we were happy to pay to stay in a place with water, power and sewer, which made it easier to cook supper, because we could use our convection/microwave oven and weren't restricted to the propane stovetop. It was nice to get a shower. We loved not having to go to a dump station after camping without hookups. We didn't need our AC during this trip, as the weather was cooler than normal, but having "shore power" would have enabled us to use it if it had been uncomfortably hot.
Our last night, we stayed at Village of the Trees in Declo, Idaho. We took the pups for a walk to the river, passing a pasture with a few horses, including two young ones with their mothers. Our four-leggeds were interested in those four-leggeds.
We almost never had internet or TV reception, so we played DVDs on my laptop.
During our trip we stopped often for gas/potty breaks. We were surprised that the price of unleaded was lower along our route than it had been, unexpected because it usually goes up during the summer, not down. A few places even had gas for less than $3/gallon. We stopped at Love's when we could. Most of their locations have a dump station and/or pet exercise yard. The pups appreciated getting some off-leash time so they could run and play, not just sniff around and relive themselves.
Back in our tow vehicle, a 1999 Chevy Silverado, Dusty and Sandy get strapped in so they don't go flying if we stop suddenly. This is even more important for dogs under 30 lbs. because their size could make it harder for them to stay in their seats if there is an accident. We chose a Kurgo body harness with a tether that attaches to the car's shoulder belt. They're used to being fastened in. When we stop, I unfasten the carabiner hook and attach the leashes to the harness of each dog.
It was a great trip. We enjoyed spending time with our kids, grandkids and step-grandchildren and -great-grandchildren. It will take several days to remove all our stuff from the r·pod, but the fridge is empty, and we have the things we need for tonight. Tomorrow––laundry day!
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What's in The Doll's Storybook: In What a Surprise, Emil keeps Billy away from the house so the girls can get a surprise birthday party ready for him.
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