RV Ranch of Keene, TX

Posted on June 8, 2015 by Rachel Gillen

I think we got lucky with this spot. We would normally stay at Trader’s Village in Grand Prairie. This time we wanted to try somewhere new because we have a different, bigger camper and Trader’s Village can be really tight depending on where they put you. I started calling around to different parks when we were in Oklahoma City on Friday. We started with parks between Cedar Hill (the shop) and downtown Dallas (the new job site). I called about 6 different campgrounds (with pools because it’s ridiculously hot and I just need a pool), and everywhere was full! That’s never happened to us here. So we had to keep going further out and finally found this place, the RV Ranch. It’s an hour from the job site and 40min from the shop. So that sucks. Luckily Allen will probably be able to ride the bike most days.

Anyhow, we headed down I-35 and got here Sunday afternoon to 90+degree sunny weather! We got an easy pull through spot with a nice little half moon shaped patio and a little arbor type things so Charlie has some shade. Our spot is long enough to open the hatch and leave it as a back porch but I can’t really see that happening with how hot it is. I don’t think our AC’s will shut off during the day!

We are right across from the showers and laundry in the adult (21+) section. And the pool is one row over behind the office. The office is also a tanning salon and a movie rental store and a pizza place… Charlie and I went exploring this morning and I think we are in the fancy section. The other half of the park is mostly filled with mobile homes and long term residents. Overall, I think we are going to like it here. I can’t wait til my sunburn from OKC fades so I can use the pool!

Doggy Paddlin’

Posted on June 7, 2015 by Rachel Gillen

Charlie can swim! She was so cute! I think she loved it. Allen thinks she was just surviving. But her little tail was wagging all day long and she seemed like a happy puppy.

We had a great time with Karen and Bob and their friend Kathy yesterday. It was a much needed relaxing Saturday. Allen doesn’t get many of those!

This morning we took the truck and camper to the truck wash next door to Abe’s RV Park. The guys at the 5 Star Travel Plaza did an awesome job. It’s a new truck wash, just opened in March, so it wasn’t crazy busy like most of them are. It was $45 for the camper and truck. I don’t think that was bad at all.

One thing Allen noticed was that since we had the DEF Sytem removed, we are going to have to watch the front of the camper and keep it clean because now the exhaust pipe blows a little black smoke.

Now we are on our way to Dallas for a couple of weeks…

OKC? OK!

Posted on June 6, 2015 by Rachel Gillen

We made it Thursday night and checked into Abe’s RV Park off I-35.

Spot Y-17

Friday We got the tires balanced and rotated and a nail removed from one of them then had the oil changed. Here’s the truck next to a nice corvette…

I also won another small victory!

Allen didn’t want to get a map. I did. Look what we have! Isn’t he such a sweetie! I decided to only mark the states where we’ve stayed the night with THIS camper, not the old one too. So we are starting fresh.

After all our errands we hung out for a while until Karen and Bob were done working. It was then Friday night drinking time! Finally! We met up at Old Chicago’s for pizza and drinks and made plans to swim at their house on Saturday. Finally I get to find out if little Charlie knows how to swim! Update to come! I think we are going to try and hit this neighborhood garage sale I saw a sign for yesterday first…

Stop in Sparta

Posted on June 4, 2015 by Rachel Gillen

We left Frontier Campground at around 10:30am on Wednesday and headed down the road to our friends Brandi’s and Tommy’s place in Sparta, KY. It’s only about an hour and a half drive. We got there and set up in their yard (they have about 7 acres total).

We let Charlie run around with Paisley (some kind of herd dog), and Storm (the wolf, yes, a real full blooded wolf who acts like a puppy), and Milo (the cat and Charlie’s arch nemesis).

Once she discovered the chickens and pigs, she terrorized them for a while.

Then we grilled some hot dogs and metts followed by a nice, refreshing nap. Brandi got home from work around 4 and we went to the neighborhood bar/liquor store for a game of pool. Once Tommy got home from work we went to the Sunset Grill on the Ohio River and had dinner with them and Brandi’s two little girls. We always have a good time with them, and so does little Charlie!

Brandi got these two framed Budweiser pictures for Allen also. We will probably have to wait until we get our Texas Ranch or Florida Beach Shack to actually hang them though… I’ll post pictures when we stop..

We were back on the road this morning a little before 7am.

We just stopped at the last Missouri rest stop on I-44, which is about 100 miles from the Oklahoma state line. But it was a cute little stop. They had a “Route 66” walkway.

Don’t let it fool you when you pull in, it looks tiny with limited parking, but there’s a huge lot in the back.

We should be at Abe’s RV Park in Oklahoma City by around 9 tonight. Yay!

Tower Drop

Posted on June 2, 2015 by Rachel Gillen

Now it’s here.

Now it’s gone.

Yesterday, Allen dropped the last 550 feet of the tower! They destacked the top 450 feet to get it short enough for the fall zone. My mom came up and we drove over to the site to watch. It’s a pretty neat thing to see. I’ve seen them drop two now. The first was in Robertsdale, AL and the site was directly across from the RV Park we stayed in. It takes a lot of planning and setting up and then it takes less than a minute and it’s over. Here are some pictures we took from across the street in the safe zone. If you hadn’t known there was a tower standing there, you’d never know now.

My mom got a short video and this is a screen shot from it

Another screen shot right before it fell into the woods

Here are some more pictures we got yesterday…

So now that’s finished, and for this job we (and by we, I really mean Allen and the guys) don’t have to stay and clean up the mess. This job is kind of an exception because the guy who owns the tower also owns a demolition company so he’s doing all that. Allen is at work today waiting on trucks to show up so they can load out. We are leaving here tomorrow and our tentative plans (what other kind of plans are there?) are to stop in Sparta, Kentucky at our friend’s house (she has about 5 acres we can park on), and stay a rent free day there. Then take our time getting to Abe’s RV Park in Oklahoma City so I can see my buddy Karen, then we need to be in Dallas by Sunday evening. So we have some time, which is a rarity and a luxury. We are thinking of staying at the North Texas Jellystone Park, but it’s about 35 minutes from the shop. It looks nice and it would be a change from where we usually stay, at Trader’s Village RV Park, and I’m thinking I will like it better, but we still haven’t nailed that down yet. Who knows, our tentative plans could change later today…. But for now, I’m going to start getting the little things put away and ready to hook up and go.

Oh! I almost forgot, we had a little tiny sparrow trying to make a nest in our fifth wheel… We’ve seen them in our neighbor’s since we got here and then the other day Allen saw the little fella with some moss in his beak, climbing in there. So we took the nest out and put it across the street in the grass. At least all his findings are in one spot still…

Flea Market Finds!

Posted on May 31, 2015 by Rachel Gillen

Bengals onesie, muffin tin, ammo, scraper, Skin So Soft, puppy cookies, duct tape, perfume, and an awesome looking toilet bowl brush!

I LOVE flea markets!!! Allen had the day off yesterday so we went to Ceasar’s Creek Flea Market right up the street from the campground. I found lots of cool stuff. I thought Allen had found lots of stuff too, but it turns out he only got two boxes of ammo for his gun… But he got 2 sandwiches, a root beer and some fudge, so he wasn’t too upset. It’s crazy how different we are when it comes to what catches his eye vs. what catches mine. He goes straight for tools and little toy cars and I’m all about the jewelry and little crafty things and books…

I really love the toilet bowl brush, as odd as that sounds, but it’s pretty!

I think my favorite thing I found was a Bengals onesie. Not that I have a baby or plan to anytime soon, but I can make Charlie clothes out of them. I made her a Bengals outfit last year from a onesie, and I thought it was adorable!

After all the shopping, we went and jumped in the pool to cool off, which took all of 2 minutes because the water is still freezing! Then Charlie decided to sunbathe.

Oh, and after the flea market adventure, we stopped at Dot’s Market, we keep hearing they have the best meat in town. We found a trip-tip (hard to find outside of California). So we grilled that baby…. YUM!!! The first time we ever had trip-tip was in Sonoma when we camped all weekend for the NHRA race last year. Our neighbors made one and it was absolutely delicious…

Super thrifty and tiny DIY

Posted on May 29, 2015 by Rachel Gillen

I needed a trash can for our half bath in the garage/living room area. Everything I could find in the store was way too big. Then, we ran out of tissues… I realized the tissue box was the perfect size! So I duct taped it so it’s “waterproof” (maybe) and called it good.

I mean, it kinda matches the stainless steel of the sink, right??

Finally a Flamingo!

Posted on May 28, 2015 by Rachel Gillen

I’ve been wanting a pink flamingo for the yard for a LONG time now. Allen has objected for a LONG time now. I finally won!

This particular flamingo has been in my mom’s backyard for a few years now. Before that it was in my cousin’s garage. Since we are living near Dayton right now, and my mom’s is only about an hour’s drive, we picked it up yesterday. (Side note: it’s been really nice being able to see our family and friends – and still make money at the same time!)

Allen did a little rust abatement (trying not to tear the whole thing apart), then I gave it a fresh coat of paint. YAY!

Fun Fact: Don Featherstone of Massachusetts is the inventor of the pink plastic lawn flamingo, which has been gracing lawns since 1957.

While we were waiting for the paint to dry, I read this very good book by Lee Child. Allen and I both love the Jack Reacher series and have read almost all of them. And, Charlie napped on the table. (Typical puppy-dog laziness)

Goodbye DEF System!

Posted on May 27, 2015 by Rachel Gillen

So Josh at Fisher’s Shop (the same guy who fixed our glow plug) just took out the Diesel Exhaust Fluid system in the truck last night. No more buying DEF fluid, no more limiting us to 55mph, no more warning lights, plus we will get a whole lot better fuel mileage towing, and it has a lot more power. You can actually hear the turbo now. It’s a little smellier and a tiny bit louder (it was super quiet before). We just drove about an hour down to Cincinnati and back and the mileage is up to 17.5mpg!

The only real down side is that Josh keeps 3 blue heelers at the shop. I loved on them last time I was there with the glow plug thing and they were super friendly… So, Allen and I pull in on the bike today to pick up the truck and I say “aw here come the puppies!” as they are running across the lot to greet us. Then one grabs on to my ankle and tries to rip it off my leg!!! While the bike was still moving!!! First time I’ve ever been bitten by a dog in my life! OUCH! Allen says it was worth it because he’s happy with the truck. What a sweet boyfriend I have…

The dreaded “check engine” light…

Posted on May 20, 2015 by Rachel Gillen

Since we’ve gotten the truck, a little over a year ago, the “check engine” light has been on and off constantly. The DEF (diesel exhaust fluid) light has been an issue also, but we finally got that fixed when there was a recall about a month ago in Louisiana. We drove up to Ohio with no obnoxious warning lights and then the other day… BAM! Here’s the “check engine”. I stopped at Advance Auto Parts yesterday to have them test it and it came across as code: P0677. Which is the cylinder 7 circuit, that has to do something with a glow plug. From my understanding, diesels have glow plugs instead of spark plugs. And since we have 8 cylinders, we have 8 glow plugs. I watched a video on YouTube about how to change these little guys, but it looks a bit too out of our non-mechanical league to attempt ourselves. So I’m waiting on a call from the Duramax diesel expert in Xenia, Ohio so he can fix it. Fingers crossed that’s all it is!

UPDATE: After a half hour drive through scenic Xenia, I arrived at the shop. Josh at Fisher’s Shop replaced glow plug number 7 and I was on my way… Lucky us!