Time Does Fly When You Are Having Fun!

I can't believe it is the end of the week and half way through the weekend!  We have been going out for a few hours every day since we got here to do some Christmas shopping!  By yesterday afternoon we were totally exhausted - but finished!  The stores have been busy during the week and the traffic has been heavy but we wanted to make sure we didn't leave it for this weekend. We need to get stuff mailed early next week.  Rain was predicted for today and we didn't want to be out in it with all the other folks who have to do their shopping on the weekend.  It's done, though!  It took some work finding gifts for loved ones that were smallish, light weight, and within our budget since we still have to box everything up and ship it. We did it, though, and hopefully the gifts will please the recipients!

Today that "lovely" winter storm that is hanging around the west made it to us and we had a day of rain and cold blustery wind.  I got caught up on some computer/office work and got the Reno presents wrapped while Roger watched a movie and then he and Maggie snoozed in the chair!  It was a hot cup of tea kind of afternoon with some quick walks with Maggie between downpours.  Tonight when Roger took her out after dinner they got down to the end of our row when she heard the coyotes.  Roger said she just turned back toward home and double-timed it all the way with no stops for anything!  

Tomorrow our oldest granddaughter and her boyfriend are visiting!!  Yay!  They are living in Long Beach while she goes to school there at Cal State - Long Beach.  She's in her junior year majoring in history so she can teach high school students.   I am sending the Reno presents home with her as they will be driving up to Reno for the holidays and she can deliver them - thus the hurry to get them wrapped today! We are looking forward to the visit very much.  It's a long drive down here (about 2.5 hrs) but they don't seem phased by it.  You can tell they are young!

This year Roger and I will be spending the holidays on our own. I got to thinking about it today and I believe that it will be the first time since we've been married! (In January that will be 46 years!)   We just don't have the energy nor the budget to drive two days back to Reno to a cold house with an empty refrigerator, spend Christmas Eve with our kid and grandkids, and then turn around and drive two days back down here.  Nope - it's not a happening thing this year.  We will Skype, or FaceTime, or whatever they call those video chats!   We put up a little tree (18") and some outside lights this week.  That with a pretty poinsettia on the counter makes the place look holiday-like.  

I know I promised a photo of our neighbor across the road from us but I've not been able to get out there and take one on the sly.  It's pretty obvious when you look out your window and see someone with a camera aimed at your RV!!    I tried to get one at night, but all I got were these two with blurry Christmas lights so I will try to describe the scene.  

First of all, they have an older motor home that has seen better days and the area under their awning is cluttered.  They have built a shrine to the Virgin Mary on the right side front of the site - fenced in and lighted. On the left side of the site they have a flag pole - not lighted - along with a plywood cutout (painted black) of a soldier with his rifle kneeling at a cross with a helmet on it.   (He is a disabled Vietnam vet and gets around in a wheelchair.)  The entire site is outlined in a red rope light.  Now, if that's not enough, the motor home has Christmas lights strung from front to back on both sides along with Christmas decorations.  At the back of the site is a plywood snowman and a blow up Santa with a penguin sliding down a sled.  In addition they have two vehicles in addition to the RV . They are fortunate it is one of the larger sites and they are at the end of the row with open space.   Lots of this will go away in January - I hope.  They seem like nice enough people when we briefly spoke with them the first day and we introduced ourselves.  They have a Puggle named Maggie who is very cute and doesn't bark much.  It's an amazing sight! It takes all kinds, I know, to make life interesting.

Maybe if I hide in here no one
will see me.

Are you sure I look good?

As I mentioned earlier, the winter storm has come pretty far south and it is in the low 40s when we get up to take Maggs out for her early morning business.  As she is short-haired and gets the shivers when she goes out in the cold, we bought her a coat. She hates it.  We put it on her and she pouts.  Won't move. Yesterday she hopped in her pen and wouldn't come out. (She can be quite willful.)  We have been trying to tell her it's a nice coat and makes her look pretty but she's not buying it.  She is quite subdued when we start the walk.  After about 10 minutes, though, she forgets she has it on and her tail goes up and she acts like a dog on a mission - she does love the walking trails here and checking out the ducks along the way. Until then she trails behind hoping it will go away!