Saturday Mumblings.

What a great weekend, aside from the occasional showers it has been warm and sunny most of the day. Donna and I are having a quiet weekend here at the ranch. The kid’s went camping this weekend so we are home alone. Donna has the night shift again tonight at the restaurant.
I am going to see if the ground is dry enough to do some cutting tomorrow. We have had showers everyday since last week when I cut and got stuck. The grass has just taken off. I will really need two cuts a couple days apart to get it looking good again.
Rigg’s wanted to show you how he can close one eye.

Sadie keeps a watch for her Mom & Dad while they are away.

I have to decide what to do for supper tonight, since it is just me, I don’t want to make a mess and have dirty dishes to wash. I know it’s a sign that God loves us, when he invented beer, and home delivery pizza. I’ll bet those two have kept a lot of men alive.
That’s about it for today, be safe out there, and all you guys on the way to Alaska, watch out for bears.
Sam & Donna……..

Thursday Happenings.

Thursday is starting out sunny and warm with a forecast for thunder showers in the afternoon. Have to make a run to the store to pick up a prescription. Other than that not much doing  here at the ranch. The ground is too wet to cut and the grass just keeps growing. We need three or four days of hot sunny weather to dry it enough to cut it again. It’s amazing how fast it grows with all the rain we have been having, Everyday and night we have showers and the ground can’t hold anymore.

How about a couple  of throwbacks from 2001.

               Donna and Duke with our first fiver.

                                  The Weibels 2001.

Made reservations for another Rally, This one is in Oct. in Branson, it is a FB Group Sam belongs to, Together We Served. A couple of the guys who were in his helicopter squadron are meeting him there. Last time we went to Branson for a service group we really enjoyed it, they really roll out the welcome wagon for Vets.

Donna is working the night shift at the restaurant tonight  and Rigg’s and I have the homeland security detail.

Now that warmer weather is heading our way I am anxiously awaiting the pools to open and get in and give my feet a good soak.

Hope all is well with all out friends out there. Be safe. Sam & Donna…………..

Wednesday Meanderings.

Wednesday at the ranch  is what the weather channel is calling Mostly cloudy. No rain yet today and the temperature is near 80 degrees.

Donna is resting up for her night shift at Walgreens tonight, Rigg’s and I are making sure everything is safe in the kitchen.

Nothing else is going on Adam called and said he might be coming over for the weekend, we haven’t seen him in months.

Hope all is well with all our friends, Be safe out there. Sam & Donna…..

Monday Musings.

Started my Memorial Day Monday in a lazy way, stayed in jammies until after noon hour. then I decided to make a small store run for essentials we were out of, beer, soda, bread etc. Donna had stopped at the store on the way home from work and her card was declined, she went to the banks website so we can only assume there was a computer problem since we had money in the bank and we also have overdrawal protection on the account. I brought a check with me which Donna didn’t have last night just in case, but the card sailed through and was approved on the first go  around.

As I was putting the dumper on the back of the truck to wheel it to the end of the driveway it started to pour rain in buckets. Just as I unhitched the dumper,a crack of thunder went off just above me , sounded like the crack the 5 inch gunmounts in the Navy used to make, just unhitching and then walking in the store I was soaked to the skin. Yes, there was an umbrella in the truck but it was one of those collapsible jobs and I don’t know how to work them so I just  plowed through it.

By the time I had finished, the rain had stopped so I didn’t get any wetter bringing the groceries in.

Did some minor trip things like charging all the AA rechargeable batteries for the camera’s, My Canon uses four and I have three sets for it  in the bag. Donna’s Canon uses two and again I have three sets in her bag so if we are out and they wear down we always have a spare set. I also keep a charger in the fiver.

Still unloading some clothes, I keep a full set of summer  clothes in my closet so if I want to make a quick weekend trip I am stocked with clothes, swimsuits and and stuff and only have to put food in before I leave.

Not much going on so I will leave you for now, Donna is working days at Walgreens and then she is off tomorrow, hope she is having an easy holiday Monday.

Be safe out there. Sam & Donna………

Sunday Notes.

Rained last night and early this morning , but the sun finally came out   about noon. It is supposed to get up to about 85 degrees so we have the makings for a nice day here at the Ranch.

Donna is working the day shift at Walgreens, and my Son is  working on some electrical problems with his car. The cable that goes from the drivers door to the body has some broken wires in it and he is trying to jumper them to get his window up and his back tailgate unlocked.

Several people have asked about if we are planning our next getaway, Haven’t given it much thought but it will be someplace with a pool and hot tub.

We  will be having visitors around the 20th of June, Dan &  Shully Oren from Israel will be coming for a visit, They have a 5th wheel in storage over in Illinois that they use in the summer for their US Holidays. We look forward to meeting them  and showing them around the area.

That’s about it for today, Rigg’s and Sadie are taking their afternoon naps, I just  shut the windows and turned on the A/C, since it will be above 85 today. Hope all our friends are enjoying their weekend, Be safe out there. Sam & Donna………

Saturday, Memorial Day

This weekend we celebrate, Memorial Day Weekend here in the States.  It  is a reminder of the sacrifice so  many of our fallen servicemen have made in laying down their  lives for their country.Take a minute this weekend and think about them.
The Weeb clan is safely home in Dardenne Prairie after a better than two week trip that included  an Escapade, and a visit to our niece and nephew  and extended family in Auburn Indiana. We had a great time and really enjoyed our time away, especially Donna who didn’t  have to work, and Rigg’s  who got to be the center of attention wherever we went. He was on his best behaviour  and we were really proud of him.

                Oh Boy all the new smells I found.

              I got to lay on the couch in the RV by my Dad.
But now the harsh reality of homeownership rears it’s head, and I have to get fuel for John Deere  and start to catch up on the grass that has grown up around the Ranch.
Donna is heading back to the restaurant tonight.
The rest of unloading the fiver will be finished and she will be ready for the next trip. We brought all the food inside yesterday.
Not much going on for right now. Be safe out there. Sam & Donna…….

HOMEWARD BOUND, OH WE ARE HOMEWARD BOUND

Thursday morning we said our goodbyes to my niece Dianna and her family. She has three exchange students, Halli and Danni from Viet Nam and Mint from Thailand. They are wonderful girls they laugh and giggle a lot, but are very serious students. I told them I took four years of French, I used to be able to write fairly well and good read it but speaking it, yuck. They told me that they start learning English in grade school. When they first came here they had a problem understanding but quickly picked it up. Because Dianna always has a houseful of people everyone has a task after dinner, trash day etc. One day I asked Halli do you do chores at home, she looked at me and grinned, “No we have house servants”. Being an exchange student is expensive therefore basically only the upper eschelon can send their children.

Dianna didn't want us to leave before she got a picture, her words with that big beautiful boy of ours.

I am so proud of the woman she has become, she has been battling some terrible health problems but still manages to smile, be active in her church, home school, take on exchange students, work in her husbands practice and take care of a myriad of animals.

We decided to break up return trip into 2 days. Terre Haute is just about half way, we stayed at the KOA which was recommended by fellow rver Jay. It really is a nice park, little pricier than we normal pay, but we decided to splurge. They even have a full service restaurant on the grounds.

An enclosed dog play area and across from that some donkeys you can feed.

Several outdoor seating areas complete with fire pit

I just wasn't in the mood for dinner last night so I just had some ice cream. So I was hungry today, when we stopped for fuel I got a hot dog, actually 2, one for me and one for Riggs as he didn't eat this morning as too excited.

As I was eating mine. I got the look “Mom you got a hot dog, I don't have a hot dog, I sure would like a hot dog”

When I finished mine I took his out and put in on the console.

He looked wistful but didn't touch it.

Then I broke off a piece and got the “Oh boy oh boy Mom got me a hot dog!”

Here’s some more pic Sam took at the Cord Museum, I think these cars are cool

About 1130 we saw the sign

Now comes the hard part, unpacking, laundry etc etc

Everyone be safe and happy

Wednesday in Auburn In.

Wednesday dawned a nice  day. Sam decided to go to the Cord-Auburn-Duesenberg   Museum in downtown Auburn what a  place, three floors of awesome  and priceless old cars.

                                           Cord

                                         Duisenberg.

                                         Ruxton

There must have been over a hundred cars I took about 60 pictures while I was there.

When  I got back we took Rigg’s up to the farm pond  for a  swim , he was thrilled. The girls gave him a chase in their kayaks.

We will be leaving in the  morning on Thursday  and head  for Terre Haute, where will will stay the night before heading for home Friday. Our friends Jay & Stella recommended  the  KOA there, they said it is a beautiful park.

Hope all our friends are well. Be safe out there. Sam & Donna………………….

STILL AT DIANNA & LARRY’S IN AUBURN

Day started off with rain AGAIN. Riggs will not go out in the rain, he can be such a prima donna. Finally stopped and it had been 14 hours since he went out so I knew he had to be in a bad way. Put on his rope opened door, and he stood there, he wanted me to go out with him. It was wet I didn't have shoes on, so I didn't go outside, well this is what he did

Finally got some shoes on so he would go outside. That dog must have a bladder the size of an elephant!

We had planned on going to some of the museums in the area. Dianna’s one exchange student Mint wanted to go also. The exchange students really have a thirst for learning, so Dianna let her skip the first half of school. 1st stop was the aviation museum but not open on Tuesdays. Sam is going today.

We then went to the Kruse History and Auto Museum. Mr Kruse was a local resident who was quite wealthy and loved collecting things, oh my did he ever. Everything in the history part comes from his collection, the auto part is mainly from him but also other contributors.  If you are a history buff, the history part of this is a must see.

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Mint really wanted to have her picture taken with FDR. Btw Mint is from Thailand.

Because of the mustiness of the old stuff I had to cut out and go outside for a while. The young man that takes  your admission came out for a smoke break. He had 2 tours of Irag. Really interesting hearing about that horrible war first hand. He had very strong opinions about the way the upper echelon is handling things. He told me they could be under fire and even have wounded men, but had to wait for permission from higher ups before they could return fire. He said the most heartbreaking is the children, you never know if they are friendly or are going to try to blow you up. He told me a fellow soldier had to kill a boy that was the same age as his son at home. He told me that the guy never got over that.  I makes you heart sick to think of what our young men are going through.

On to the car museum. Again if you are a car buff its the place to see. All the way from the first cars to the Batmobile.  I have more photos on my phone that we haven't down loaded as yet, the General Lee, Kitt from Knight Rider (my favorite, I loved Kitt)

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Then we were off to see my nephew Larry’s dental practice and meet him for lunch. We had a great lunch at the Mad House, huge menu and micro brewery. Sam got an almost  half gallon bottle of their Blondie Lager to go. It comes in a large brown bottle.  Dianna and I were off to buy groceries for dinner.  When we got back noticed all the doors were wide open on the truck.  Turns out it was a defective bottle and whole bottom had come out. Sam had put it in the back seat on top of pillows and blankets we keep in back for Riggs, it soaked everything.  Sam almost cried not over spilled milk, but spilled beer.

Then it was time to start dinner, Sam was making his famous meatballs and I made homemade sauce. Hallie loves to cook so she helped Sam with the meatballs.

She took her job very seriously. She told Sam when she gets home to Viet Nam she is so making them for her family.

Sam supervising the frying.

Everyone helped out making sure table was set, dishes cleaned up as we used them.  A friend of Dianna’s passed away at a very young age and her 3 boys have adopted Dianna as their mom. They are great young men, they come over every Tuesday for dinner and while there do a lot of projections for them. The one is an electrician and fixed a blown electric skillet, others trimmed and cut yard.

Dinner was great and then to top it off Hallie made a from scratch German Chocolate cake, she was so proud of it, and it was absolutely delicious.

She was a little intrepid about carrying to table

Larry and Sam solved a lot of the world’s problems after dinner

Again I have prattled on, but it is so great being here among this lovely and diverse group, so wish we all lived closer. My niece and nephew have hearts as big as the whole outdoors. They have done missionary trips all over the world so Larry can give free dental service to places where they have never seen a dentist. Earlier this year they were in Romania.

Everyone be safe and well.

AUBURN, IN

We are still at my niece Dianna's place.  I must say she has some of the noisiest chickens I have ever heard.  Just a lot of chatter.

Our poor Riggins, at about 109 lbs you would think he could walk through the valley of death and fear no evil. Well not true. Yesterday morning he ran and hid under the trailer when this beast came walking by.

Not too much went on yesterday. We went into town to pick up a few things, mainly a new walking collar for Riggs. We have no idea where his other one is. After all we are in an rv, how many places could there be, I think Riggs smuggled it out and buried it.  I know a lot of people think those collars are cruel, the ones that have the tines that put pressure on their necks. But I cannot walk Riggs without one , he has the neck and muscles of a bull. With a regular collar he pulls me around like a rag doll since I only outweigh him by a few pounds and he is pure muscle and I am not.

The printer we have in the house is fairly good size, while we were at Wally world Sam saw a smaller printer on sale so we bought it to have for the trailer. Many times you want to print out so it will come in handy.

Dianna had planned chili and cornbread for dinner, but great niece Shelby had a riding lesson. So Dianna got out her book of secret recipes and showed the one exchange student Halli (sp) how to make her award (3 awards) winning chili. She was so nervous, but as Dianna told her its really hard to mess up chili

You can see how intense she is listening.

Now is was time to get trailer ready to load Will, Shelby’s horse and go.  Its a lot of work getting the trailer ready. First rubber mats have to go down over the aluminum floor, then sawdust has to be laid and then the dividers put in, they have a 3 horse trailer.

Thank goodness for strong young ladies!

Then we were off to pick up Shelby’s friend Melissa and her horse Babe (Ruth). She is gorgeous, great big blue eyes.

The trainer had a new pattern she wanted the girls to try. They weren't going for height today, just form and to get horses used to a different pattern. Some of their competitions only the jumps and horse are judged, in others the form and posture of rider is just as important. Since Shelby and Lauren compete in both types they need the critical eye of an instructor to tell them when their backs aren't straight enough, or if their hands aren't right etc.

See the bars on the ground. Trainer kept moving the distance between them so Will could learn to adjust his stride to fit the pattern. Will is absolutely gorgeous and a much larger horse than the others there. Because of their height my great nieces need the larger horses. Wish I was a better photographer because watching Will and Babe when they would canter around the ring was just so gorgeous, they knew they were being watched and held their heads high and really strutted their stuff. But then I am a sucker for a beautiful horse.

Speaking of which, here is another of Dianna’s horses. He is absolutely beautiful and even running around in paddock the tail goes out and the head comes up, talk about poetry in motion.

This is view from our rig looking on the back of Dianna’s beautiful house.

It was going on 8 by the time we got back. Sam and I had a big lunch at Steak and Shake so I opted out of the famous chili as I had no appetite and really want to enjoy it, so think chili is on my lunch menu. Hope they still have some of that corn bread left. Is there anything better than hot cornbread slathered in lots of butter?

Today we are museum hopping and then Sam is going to make his meatballs and spaghetti and I’ll make the sauce for dinner tonight.

Well everyone, be safe be happy

Auburn IN. USA.

We left the Escapade in Goshen yesterday morning about 10:30AM, Surprised at the number of rigs still there, Our friend from Canada, Rick came by to say good bye, his bride Kathy is still under the weather. we hope she feels better soon. Headed south east to our Niece and Nephews in Auburn a little over an hour away in a southeasterly direction.

Diana and Larry have a horse ranch with several horses and assorted dogs cats and chickens. It is a beautiful home and barn on some nice acreage. They have two daughters and three exchange students still home. When we arrived Diana and the girls had prepared a huge brunch which really hit the spot.

            Arriving at the Payne Ranch.

                         Pond with Kayaks.

                         One of the horse fields.

                        Larry & Diana’s home.

                           Rigg’s in horse pen.  

Rigg’s went in the horse pen, he wasn’t afraid of them, but they ran him out.

                Chappie parked next to the barn.

                                   The brunch crew.

                                  Brunch is ready.

                                     Diana & Donna.

Today May 19th is Donna and my 35th weddings anniversary. Thank God for the years he has given us together. Donna has always been the brains of the outfit and me the Braun. Beauty and the beast also.

Don’t know what I would do with out that girl.

                            Donna & Sam 05-2014.

That’s about it for today, Be safe out there. Sam & Donna……..