May 2011

It’s warming up in the desert.  May has brought us a few 100 degree days
but the evenings have cooled off wonderfully. 
We have had some wind but all in all it has been a wonderful month.

 

Mike’s sister and her husband lost their little dog this month.  Everyday I think about Stoli ... I sure miss the little guy.  Because of this, I know know much John and Sheri are missing Frasier.  I made a quilt with a picture of their pooch for them.

Mother’s day Mike took Pat and I out for a drive around the Salton Sea.  One of our stops was at “Salvation Mountain” …. A very interesting mountain made of sand and hay bales and all of it painted any color that people donate.  Salvation Mountain is located in the middle of nowhere but has become someone’s passion.

Spring has brought beautiful blooms to the desert.  Here in the resort is a cactus with gorgeous color…..the blooms lasted only a few days then they dried up and fell off.

Several of us went to dinner at the Augustine Casino on their “All you can eat Lobster Buffet”  We did our share!  We ate ….and ate ….. and ate some more.  More lobster than you can imagine!  It was wonderful!

We finally got the Burgundy Beauty back from the Jeep dealer.  The car was using a lot of oil and they ended up replacing the engine.  Mike was pleased that they replaced the engine and I was pleased that we had an extended warranty that paid completely! 

It’s time to leave the desert ….. Wednesday we will begin our trek north.

April 2011

April is over – I’m wondering where the winter has gone! 

It has been a fabulous winter for us.

 

Two weeks after our Disneyland trip to see Camryn and Colby – Brandon and Karen came to the happiest place on earth for Spring Break.  Papa and I couldn’t miss seeing them.  We spent another two days in Disneyland and California Adventure. 
We had so much fun!!  I love Disneyland!

I was invited to my very first tea!  Just the ladies and wow – I felt very special!

As you can see in the picture – the weather was perfect, it was a great day!

Easter Brunch in the clubhouse was wonderful. 
Plenty of outstanding food and great entertainment too!

Easter Brunch was our last organized event of the season.  Folks are packing up and leaving.  I counted 117 coaches left (out of 419)…
I don’t understand, the weather is absolutely ideal!

Pat and I ride our bikes about 10 miles five days a week.
We ride at 8 AM as the days are starting to get warmer.

Mike walks, rides his bike, swims and of course he golfs!
This picture is on the 14^th tee box just off our patio. 
The brown umbrella in the background is ours!

As more and more people leave, we are having some “going away” dinners. 

Not a problem – we’ll all be back next season. (in the fall)

We plan to stay here at Outdoor Resorts until the end of May –
that’s if the weather doesn’t get too hot!

March 2011

March has been a busy month.  The weather has been beautiful and life is good!

Every year Outdoor Resorts hosts an event to raise money for the American and Canadian Cancer Societies.  We have pickleball, tennis, golf, walking, hiking, putting, motorcycles, a classic car contest, a bake sale, luminaries, golf carts…….a little bit of everything…… all for charity!

This year, we raised $28,700.  We had so much fun!

March brought us a visitor.  Flat Stanley came to Southern California and we showed him the sights.  Flat Stanley came from Anna in Vancouver!

I made a quilt for one of our Security Guards 2 year old son.  I hope he likes the bright colors!

We made a quick trip over to Disneyland to meet up with Marc, Maria, Camryn and Colby.  We spent most of the day at California Adventure and we had so much fun.  We spent the night, took Marc to the airport (he had to go back to work) then brought Maria and the kids back to Indio.

Mike and Colby went off-roading in Joshua Tree National Park.  They came across a Desert Tortoise.  Really rare to see.  Colby said he was about the size of a basketball!

Tuesdays are one of my favorite days!  Thread Therapy!  We spend a good share of each Tuesday sewing in the clubhouse.  So much fun!

Motorhomes and friends are starting to leave for the summer.  We plan to stay for another 2 months (or until it gets too hot for us)  It’s difficult to say good-bye but we look forward to a great reunion in the fall.

February 2011

  Winter marches on ….February has been our busiest month yet.  We are lovin’ it!  The weather has been cooler than normal but the sun is shining and the sky is blue!

Super Bowl Sunday was so much fun.  We had a tailgate party (tailgate on our golf cart that is)  We had a great time cheering for the Green Bay Packers!

Mike spent a few days at the “King of the Hammers” race not far from here.  Lots of ruffin’ it – Mike and his buddies camped out and watched all the fun.

My last board meeting!  I have served on the Board of Directors for Outdoor Resorts for the past 2 years and 3 months.  I have learned so much and have enjoyed the duty….  But it’s over!!!!!

Off roading has taken up to some new areas.  On one trip we found this old cabin (of sorts.)  It had a well stocked kitchen, chairs, and table, pots and pans and a bed.  It had a porch (made out of old bed springs.)  But it was missing a roof!!  Must have been used on the weekends by some prospectors.

Mike volunteered to help at the Concourse de’ Elegance in La Quinta.  He had so much fun moving around these old Indy cars!

La Quinta Resort is beautiful.  The flowers, the umbrellas, the sun… all of it!

We have had some great parties this month….. always lots of food, friends and some fabulous music.  We’ve had potlucks, Valentines dinner dance, Western music, a great music / comedy duo and an Italian feast!

We have wonderful friends here and we so enjoy spending time with all of them.

Life at ORI is the best.  We’re lovin every minute!

January 2011

January has been a month of sun, fun and parties!  Life is good!

We had a wonderful “Welcome Home Party.” 300 people showed up on a beautiful January afternoon.  This is a party where the staff fixes the food, we have a live band and a fun time.  

Sunshine, mexican food, margaritas,and great friends.

For Christmas, Brandon gave me a hummingbird feeder.  The little guys love it!  They are feeding quite a bit!  I even got a picture of one fella sitting calmly drinking.

Mike Guth (a Jeepin friend of Mikes) had a fantastic party with all of the Jeepers.  His home (about a mile from here) was awesome and he and his wife were wonderful hosts.

After a rousing game of bocce ball, (there were about 36 folks playing) we came up with a winner….. you guessed it.  Mike and his partner, Yari Addis walked away with top honors!

We also had some great talent in our resort this month.  A group called “Laughing Bird” gave a fantastic concert and the next week, “Kenny Hess” played his country western music and blew our socks off!  

Mike spent a long weekend in Bandon, Oregon with Marc and Brandon playing golf.  While he was gone, I spent a day at the Southern California Quilt show in Ontario!  Both of us had so much fun!

What a wonderful month – Great weather and lots of fun! 

December 2010

It's not our jeep.......

We started December with an off-roading trip that ended in near disaster.  Our friends Tom & Joyce slipped off the side of a road, rolled over and ended upside down on a large rock.  No one was hurt but we were all we scared for a short while.  

 We took a bus trip into Palm Springs to see the Inns – it was 15 small older inns that were built in the time the Hollywood folks used to spend their time in Palm Springs.  The inns were all decorated for Christmas and were so great to tour through.  Later we drove through Candyland Lane to see the Christmas lights!

We’ve had some beautiful sunsets this month. 
This is the view from the front of our motorhome.

We drove the car to Portland to celebrate Christmas.  We had so much fun.  We started out our trip with a visit to Mike’s sister’s (Sheri and John) house.  Next a celebration of Karen’s stepmothers 60^th birthday.  The next day we had our family Christmas…..Marc, Maria, Brandon, Karen, Camryn, Colby, Ben, Anna, Mike and I.  We exchanged gifts and the kids had such a wonderful time playing together.  The next day, Brandon, Karen, Ben, Anna, Mike and I went out to dinner and then to a Portland Trailblazer game  (Portland won!)  Next day, Karen, Anna and I went out to dinner then to a fabulous play  (Annie!!)  Mike, Brandon and Ben went to dinner at a local brew pub.  The following day, Mike and I went over to Marc and Maria’s where we out to dinner then we drove into Portland and walked up and down Peacock Lane to see the Christmas lights.  The next day we went to the mall to get in the Christmas Spirit (it worked!)  The following day (Christmas Eve) we went to church and Maria’s brother and his family along with Maria’s mom came over for dinner.  Christmas Day was spent with Marc and Maria as we watched the kids open their presents.  Our visit ended with a great dinner and we headed out the next day!  On our way home, we stopped in Sacramento and had a visit and dinner at Mike's brother's.  (Chuck, Eva, Pat, Rob and Serena)                           Whew!!

As this year draws to a close, we wish everyone of our family and friends a wonderful 2011.  May you have health and happiness in the coming year.

 I still miss my Stoli so much.

November 2010

 

We’ve lost our little buddy.  Stoli died November 7^th and he is missed so much.  He was the best little friend and he brought us 15 years of happiness.  Pat and Sheri (Mike’s sisters) gave me a blanket with a picture of Stoli on it.  I keep it on our bed.  Our home is empty without Stoli.

We had a wonderful weeklong visit from Karen, Ben and Anna.  Brandon was able to join us for 3 days and we had so much fun.

This picture was taken at the Living Desert……….Palm Desert’s own zoo.  What a great day we had at the zoo.  The weather was cool and so all the animals were out.

We went off-roading one day. Ben loved helping Papa put air in the tires at the end of the day. We went up into Joshua Tree National Park.

(Anna sang to us all afternoon!)

We had a very nice Thanksgiving Day dinner at the clubhouse.  We even got to take leftovers home……..Yumm, great turkey sandwiches!

 Yes the weather looks great but it was pretty cold.  We all went swimming a couple times……but they all ended with a quick dip in the hot tub just to keep warm.

We had so much fun and the week just flew by so fast.

I finished the quilt I made for Sheri (Mike’s sister in Oregon)  I was really happy how it turned out.

My next quilt will be in memory of my Stoli.

I end this month with Stoli on my mind. 

I really loved the little guy.