The Waiting is Over!

Today's Photo - Brian, Zoe & Karin















Zoe App managed to avoid a "C" section by a couple of hours.  It was scheduled for 8:30 this morning, but  she decided to start her arrival around 11:00PM last night.  She was born at 9:20 this morning.  More photos of all at Zoe.

Valerie is busy getting used to her new sister:

Needless to say, there isn't much happening with the trailer this week.  I'll be back in Oswego towards the end of the week, pack things up, and head west.

Till next time -

Still Waiting

Today's Photo - Karin is Still Waiting
























Well, today is Karin's due date so it looks like she will be delivering at 8:30 tomorrow morning.  We went to the Apple store & I resisted an iPad, but Karin & Brian picked one out.  They had to order it on-line since the store was out of them, at least the AT&T 64GB version.  Since they will be traveling outside the US, the Verizon version would be a problem.

Today we went to the Farmer's Market & besides the farmers, saw "The Banjo Man" & "The Jazzy Juggler."

"The Banjo Man"

Karin, Valerie & Brian Watching "The Jazzy Juggler".

Juggling a Bat, Tennis Racket & a Bowling Ball!

After the Farmer's Market it was back to the apartment & moving cars around so there would be a parking space for Bert & Pam, Brian's parents.  Right now we are working through where we should go for dinner.  Actually, I shouldn't say "we" since I'm ducking out & letting them decide! 

I'll try to have some photos of Zoe tomorrow!

Washington, DC

Today's Photo - Granddaughter Valerie
























I'm in Washington, DC visiting with my daughter Karin, her husband Brian and, of course, my granddaughter Valerie.  Karin is due to deliver my second granddaughter on Monday, at least if she doesn't have her before then.  Since Valerie was breach & a "C" section, the doctors won't let her go past her Monday due date.  She's hoping, but prepared to hit the hospital at 6:30AM on Monday.

I'm sure I will have some newborn photos to post sometime soon!  Meanwhile, Brian's father Bert & I will be putting together Valerie's new dollhouse.  She bought it herself with her Christmas & birthday money & is excited to be able to use it.  I also made her an "I'm 3.33333333" photo book of her & her life (at least up to 3.333333 years old) to give her something to keep her busy while Karin is in the hospital.  The book was done by Blurb & I'm pleased with the result.

Valerie getting so much stuff & attention I'm sure she will be sending Karin back to the hospital to have another one!

Till next time!

More Escape Photos

Today's Photo - My Escape is getting closer!
















Just a quick post for those following the building of my Escape 17B.  It is nice to see the insides taking shape:

The Front Dinette 

The Sink & Stove

Storage & Furnace

Looking Towards the Read Dinette

I mapped out my route to Chilliwack yesterday.  As I've mentioned before, I try to avoid the interstates when traveling.  I also try to take a new route across the country each time I go.  This time I will be taking parts of US6, 30, 212, and WA20 with lots of short lengths of others on the way.  Here is a map:

It looks to be about 3172 miles & 60 hours, 31 minutes, according to Garmin's Road Trip.  Of course I might take a bit longer since I plan to stop to sleep, eat & get gas every once in a while! I did plot out the trip on I90 - it ended up at 2903 miles & 44 hours & 27 minutes.  Sure, I'd save some time, probably some gas, but no where near as interesting.  If I break down & decide to get there sooner, I can hop up to I90 in many parts of my planned route, but as of now I plan to stick with the "Red Roads".

Till next time!

Last Meals on Wheels Delivery

Today's Photo - Poison Ivy in Early Spring














Today's a bit sad - I made my last delivery for Meals on Wheels, at least until late August.  I'm a big believer in volunteer work, both for the community & for myself.  I've worked on a Red Cross Disaster Team here in my local community, traveled to Louisiana to help out after Katrina, and try to help out doing & teaching photography for a number of groups.  Volunteering also gets me off my butt!   Although I only do Meals on Wheels one day a week, I'll miss seeing the smiling faces when making my deliveries. By the way, the group usually needs volunteers - if you are looking for something to do in your spare time, it is a great organization.

I got the word from Escape Trailer Industries that they got the check for the trailer.  It took well over a week to get there - I was starting to get a bit worried that either the US or Canadian mail ate it.  I also picked up a 1TB portable drive today to use as a back up for my photos while on the trip. It was on sale at Best Buy for $119.00, and while talking to the guy at the cash register I mentioned that the first hard drive I purchased was a 20MB drive & sold for $1500.00.  Hard to believe much prices have come down & capacity has gone up.  Of course, the computer I connected that early hard drive to was jam packed with 1 MB of memory!

Till next time...