Dec 17 - 23 The week before Christmas and all through the park....

Dec 17
One of the main reasons for setting up with power etc is to get a few little repairs done on the trailer and to just stop moving over Christmas. Finding campsites was getting a little more difficult and this is just easier for now. With Sam safely back in Edmonton yesterday we can get moving on the little projects we have. Also, I haven't been saying every time we run or walk but the race is Jan 20th and I need to get some longer distances in before then so that's a priority as well. 
Les is tackling laundry and I'm doing some blog stuff and I'll vacuum this morning. We have pickleball at 2pm and Graham texted that it is Katelyn's Christmas concert this afternoon and they are putting it on Facebook live! Technology is awesome when you get to watch her concert from this far away. Almost like being there. We had another great time at pickleball and then walked over for a hot tub for a little bit. On the way back, surprise surprise lol, Wayne & Karen are having a drink with John & Sandy so we cleaned up and joined them for a one. Have to be in our rig to watch the Christmas concert. It was great!! Thanks Graham & Britt for letting us know and putting it online We are so proud of her.

So cute in her concert dress!! Good work on her hair.

We also got some Santa pictures from Graham and Britt of both the kids. Almost makes you want to be in Edmonton for Christmas, almost. It's waaayyy nicer here lol.

How awesome is this! Not sure what kinda face Rylan was going for...lol

Love these little monkeys.

Dec 18

Leslie is trying the chair exercises at the community hall this morning. It's like a stretching class with the chair for stability. She added a 5k walk afterwards to compliment the stretching. Good work! I drove over to Arizona City golf course and managed a 10k/ 6mi run around the golf course neighbourhood. It's a really nice area with no dogs and really nice Christmas decorations on the houses and yards. After all that Leslie took the truck, she doesn't drive much down here, and got groceries in CG. I stayed home and did a couple more little fixes. We went for a walk with the dog and I saw an inspirational rig that I snapped a few pics of. There are times I would like to have my Harley down here but I would like a side X side too sometimes. First world problems.

Hmm how nice is this? Honda Goldwing on board.

Dec 19

We got a nice surprise the other day when my old work buddy Steve Potts texted me. He asked if we were in the Phoenix area because they are staying in SanTan Valley. That's only about 45 minutes from us!! We arranged that they would come to Chapparal and give us a pickleball lesson later today. They have played for a couple years now. Of course we have to clean the whole rig now. It wasn't dirty but Leslie likes to have everything in it's place when company is coming. We haven't seen Steve and his wife Donna for a while now. We live across the lake from each other back in Bonnyville but with our commute to Seba Beach all summer we weren't very social. It will be great to see them and catch up a little. They are coming over early so we can chat before pickleball. 

We had a really nice visit and then walked over to the courts. Our park friends were there also for some games. Randy, Shelley, Luckie & Hilda joined us and we rotated teams through the courts so everyone got to play each other and together. Steve & Donna (it's pronounced Daw-na, even if you are from Oklahoma ;) are really good players. Donna's serve is a really cool spin serve that always lands in bounds and Steve is so tall he doesn't run around a lot. He moves just enough to make some great plays. Of course we had a ton of fun and then walked back to our rig for some refreshments. That's when they told us the exciting news that they are buying a new house here in Arizona!! That's awesome you guys! We looked at some pics of it being built and learned where it is just south of SanTan in Anthem Az. That's very exciting for them and we will go check it out soon. 

We barbecued an awesome salmon fillet for supper and settled in front of the TV for the Survivor finale! Who's going to win the million dollars??

Dec 20

Leslie brought Margaret outside on the truck tailgate and gave her a nice trim with the clippers. She looks great now and smells so nice!

A bath and a haircut, nice. Margaret disagrees ;)

I went up on the roof and fixed up a couple spots with roof sealant that I had noticed while washing the roof. I added a 12k bike ride after that for a bit of a change for my legs. Leslie took Margaret for a good walk around the park and out in the desert behind the park. Graham texted that Rylan's concert is today but they don't have the wifi coverage at the venue to broadcast live. Rats. We were able to see some video on FB after the performance. Jingle Bells rocks! Good stuff Rylan :)

Dec 21

We were up fairly early because Leslie is going to advanced chair exercise class. Good for her for taking advantage of the classes. I should be doing more stretching too but I'm not going.

We have our final pickleball instruction session today and we are basically just playing games with different partners so that we learn how to play with other players instead of our normal pairs. We have learned lots and really enjoy playing the game. Thanks to Luckie, Hilda & Dana for putting together the group and showing us how it's done. 

Our group with Luckie, Dana & Hilda up front.

Unfortunately I may have overdone the exercise this week with the run, then pickleball Wednesday and the bike ride Thursday then pball again Friday. I was playing a game and went to reach for a ball on my backhand when I felt a pinch in my left calf. I stopped right away and left the court. I strained my calf, only this time it's my left leg not my right. It's not bad but I'm out for a while to let this heal. The half marathon is a month away so I should be okay. Maybe should have gone to stretching with Leslie!!

Well I can't walk as good as before but I can make it to happy hour. We packed a cooler and walked slowly down to Leo & Sandy's place for a little get together with the pickleball crew. Finally we remembered to take happy hour pics.

Lynn & Shelley

No doubt Luckie is calling me a wuss for limping lol.

At the start there was about 11or 12 of us and of course it got smaller as the evening progressed. Around 7 we saw a group of carollers walking down the road singing Christmas carols, what a nice touch for Christmas. Good for them. Hilda is part of the group and a few of them want shots. Now that's how to sing Christmas carols haha.

Of course Santa's helpers have a golf cart in Arizona.

We have 2 propane fires going to keep warm.

We stayed fairly late that night and had more than one drink I'm sure. This park is really fun, so many good people and we are enjoying it. 

Dec 22

As expected we didn't get up early today but not too bad. We are definitely feeling the effects of our fun time last night. We made coffee and had some breakfast and started feeling much better. We made arrangements to visit Bert & Vera Heinz today. Bert & Vera live across the street from our lot at Seba Beach and they have a winter residence at a park in Casa Grande called Fiesta Grande. It will be nice to see them as we haven't seen them since we left in September. They have a new family member since we last saw them. They adopted a stray dog from the desert by their park. They named her Itsy because when they were trying to catch her everyone involved would say"it's over here, it's over there haha. Good name.

Bert with Itsy and Margaret. Happy dogs.

Vera & me in their beautiful yard.

We plan on grabbing a few groceries after our visit and then home to just chill out. Water and tea tonight ;) Wonder why??

Dec 23

We slept in this morning because Margaret was up a few times last night to go outside. She tried some of Itsy's treats and maybe they were too rich for her. Vera buys her chicken hearts and gizzards from the pet store and Margaret loved them but they didn't agree with her stomach. Now we know not to give her those. We're beat from getting up. 

We had texted Steve & Donna and we will go to their house today and then go see their new house being built. It is a little confusing but we learned that there are 2 Anthem's around Phoenix. There is one here in SanTan Valley and another one on the far north side of Phoenix where we will be in January. Not sure why but it is.

First of all we stopped at the beauty place they are renting in SanTan. Nice house with a really nice back yard with real grass! Margaret is happy to see grass.

Me, Donna, Steve & Leslie

We all got into their SUV and drove over to their new place about 15 minutes away. It's a newer community that they are developing and there is lots of building going on. Our first stop was at the community center which is spectacular. Everything you can think of at this building. Pickleball, tennis and basketball outside and the massive full length lane pool. Then inside there is so many things like a basketball court, climbing wall and more gym equipment than I've seen in many gyms.

All the way around the basketball court!

Basketball and lines for much more.

Incredible lane swim pool.

Climbing wall.

Next stop is their new house still under construction, so exciting for them! The crew is putting up gyproc.

Donna & Steve in their new front yard.

Go around back to see what will be their yard.

They will take full possession in the end of  February and it's great for them. We're super happy for them and can't wait to have a celebration drink at their new house!

Well it's almost 5 ! 

Snacks and a frosty one before we head home.

We drove back to their rental and enjoyed a quick beverage on the patio. We have about a 1 hour drive home through pre rush hour traffic so we had a drink and with hugs and handshakes we drove back to Chapparal. We got back around 6pm and said a quick hello to Wayne & Karen and company then called it an evening in front of the TV. We need to get our Christmas gifts wrapped and get ready for the park gift exchange party tomorrow night but I'll save that for the next blog. We hear the gift exchange is a ton of fun and we are sitting with the park veterans so we're excited. See ya soon.