Pot pie anyone?

Since we haven't been traveling lately, I thought I would keep in touch by sharing some recipes.  Everyone knows I love to cook and I  sure have been doing a lot of it since returning home from our trip.  But, sadly all of my cookbook collection is already in storage, so I have been using the few books I left out and websites.

Tonight's dish is courtesy of
 http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/

Chicken Pot pie; I used her recipe but played with it a bit by adding mushrooms to the veggies, leaving out the cream and not using an egg wash.  
I also added some garlic and

some smoked paprika.  Also, I used my secret crust recipe
( you know in the red box).  :)

 

 Here it is ready for the oven.

 

So check out the recipe and her website, if you never have, as it is

quite entertaining.  I usually get a good laugh, which is pleasant as

you can never have too much laughter.  

 

The pot pie passed Dave's taste test, so it's Dave approved.   :)

 

Have a good weekend!!



Nothing happening

Yes, that's about it around here.  Well truthfully Dave is keeping busy, sending bid requests out to different sub-contractors for bids on the new house.  If we ever get around to building it, which now looks like April 2014 before we can start as our builder Jeff needs an answer by 30 August if we want to start building in September.  Since we don't have an offer let alone a closing date, I seriously doubt we will make that time line. Sure hope it sells by February or March!!!!!

Let me see if I can remember what has been happening around here for the last couple weeks.  Our daughter came home a couple weekends ago and we went for a long (for me) bike ride.  We had fun together and a good workout.  If you ever get to the Waterloo/Cedar Falls area, bring your bikes because there are over 80 miles of bike paths in the area.   She and I did a bit over 9 miles, so I was pleased.  Here's our route:

 

It was cool with the shade on the route we took, which is nice for a hot day.

Next, this last weekend, dear and long-time friends came up for the weekend.  Since it is a recognized fact that this area doesn't have a lot of choices for entertainment, we were limited to taking them to a Antique Tractor/Thresher show at Antique Acres in rural Cedar Falls.  Whoa, exciting I know!!!!  It is a very small version of the Thresher Reunion held every year in Mount Pleasant, IA.  Maybe, someone has heard of that, (I won't be surprised if you haven't).  :)    My girlfriend was laughing that she grew up on a farm, but had never seen a tractor pull and didn't know what a thresher was; well now she does and has seen one.  

Part of the afternoon's entertainment was a parade, so here's a few pictures:

 

 

Silly me, I didn't even take a picture of a thresher!!  I sure thought this old truck and old teardrop trailer was pretty neat though!!!!

We had a good visit and time to catch up on each other's lives.  It's so nice getting together with long time friends!!! 

That's about it from here.  This week we are replacing the carpeting in the house, with hopes that having new carpeting will bring on an offer.  The house is pretty move in ready, with the entire home being freshly painted including the garage, now new carpeting and due to hail damage a new roof and gutters. 

Thanks for checking in and will update again soon.  I should have lots more to post as Nacho and I will be heading for Vermont to "Camp Gone to the Dogs" with our friend Pamela and three of her dogs.  It should be a fun time, so check back for updates from camp.  

Hugs to all!

Biking along the Great River Road

Friday, August 2, we headed out to Thomson Causeway, a Corp of Engineer campground along the Mighty Mississippi in Illinois. 

We arrived in the late afternoon and got set-up at the campground.  Just as we finished up my brother and sister-in-law arrived.  After they got set up, we decided to have a simple supper of roasted hotdogs and mac & cheese.  Seriously, what's camping without hotdogs!!???  Right?

We had an enjoyable evening sitting around the campfire and catching up until the mean, nasty mosquitoes had to start attacking me!!!  Off to bed we went with plans to go for a bike ride after breakfast.

My son should be so proud of me, we did approximately 15 miles or a bit more on our ride from Thomson to Fulton. I wasn't sure how I would do but obviously with the walking I have been doing and the stationary bike has helped a bit as I handled the ride just fine!!!  Yeah me!!!!  :)

A much needed stop at Dollar General was needed because I always forget something when I load the trailer, even when I make a list.  So everything on my list was packed, I was thinking good job Candy!  Only to realize on Saturday morning I forgot to pack underwear!!!!  Gee!!!!  But my dear sister-in-law informed me that she was sure the Dollar store would carry Ladies Hanes and whoo, she was right!!!  Thanks Chris!!!  :)  LOL!!!!

Then my sister and her family, my parents and brother and my niece and her hubby and new little boy arrived for our evening cookout.  It was so nice to have all of them drive up for the afternoon and having the opportunity to see them.  Thanks for coming!!!

The next morning after a leisurely breakfast we headed out going north out of Thomson.  The ride was along a back county road and not nearly as scenic as the bike path, so after just a couple miles we made the decision to head back into Thomson and check out the bike shop.  Good thing, as about 3 blocks from the shop my bike broke!!!  Actually, the chain came off the track and neither Dave or Kevin could get it fixed.  Chris rode up to the shop and called the number on their door; they said they would open in just a few minutes.  So up to the shop we went with Kevin carrying my bike for me.  Thanks brother!!!  It only took a few minutes and the owner had it fixed and adjusted so hopefully it won't jump off track again.   Well, this particular bike shop is known for recumbent bikes, so we just couldn't leave until we learned a bit about them and of course tried a few out.   I thought I would like them, but have riding one, I'm happy to say I am quite satisfied with mine.

After a lunch of leftovers and more river viewing, we packed up to head home.  Another great weekend!!!  

Better late than never

Last week, we took a drive to Decorah, Iowa with friends and had a great time as usual with them.   We had lunch upon arriving at the Angry Pickle; they had decent sandwiches so we all walked away full, no need for dessert.   :)

After walking around and viewing a few shops, we headed to our ultimate destination, "Seed Savers".   This was a first time visit for them and a second visit for us.  Walking through their gardens and inspecting all the variety of plants, both vegetable and flowers was an enjoyable way to spend the afternoon. 

I'm including a few pictures:

Vegetable garden plot at front entrance

Spider Flower

Another garden

Chicken house

Love these, want some planted at the new house when it is finally built!

 

 

After a short drive to view the orchard section and the greenhouses, we headed to Whippy Dip for ice cream, yum!  Great end to the day. Then off to home we headed with plenty of conversation to make the trip back go fast.

 

If you ever get to the Decorah area, check out Seed Savers, even for a non-green thumber, like myself it is very pleasant, educational and you will walk away wanting to plant many things in your yard.   :)

 

Thanks Friends for a wonderful time!!!

Home from South Sioux City, NE Hawaiian Rally

A great big thanks to Mandi, Cynthia and Sue for hosting another great rally.   Even though it was a bit smaller group than last year we had a good time!!

I didn't take any pictures of the trailers this year, but have a few from the relay race and the Hawaiian shirt contest. 

And off they go!

 Kathy videoing the race.  Quite funny!

 

 Getting cumbersome!! 

 

Really loaded down!!! 

 

 

 

Then we have the fancy Hawaiian shirts. 

 

 

We didn't have a lot of attendees dressed up, but those that did sure looked nice!!! 

 

And of course, I loved the Lawn chair movie that was chosen "Blue Hawaii" with Elvis!   I would go back to Hawaii again. 

 

Of course, KT and Nacho were happy to stay and watch the movie because Mandie served popcorn!!!  They LOVE popcorn!!!  She also served all the favorite candies that you would purchase at the movies. 

 

 

After a short good-bye and see you next year, we headed out on Sunday morning towards Saylorville Lake and the Prairie Flower campground.  It was a beautiful drive and Dave had programmed the Garmin to take us the shortest route which was through the Loess Hills in western Iowa.  We had never driven through this area before and it was indeed very pretty rolling hills. We enjoyed the drive!

 

Here's our campsite at Prairie Flower in the Coneflower section.

 

 

 

On Monday we had three meetings scheduled related to the potential house we may build if this one ever sells.  Monday night we met with our builder, Jeff, and walked over the lot.  He had good points to make about where to position the house.  Then we drove over to his house as he had driven straight from a job sight to the lot.  I had an opportunity to meet his wife and see their home, which of course he built. I am glad we have chosen him; I think he does a very nice job and has great ideas.  He is very artistic with laying tile, so am now rethinking where we should have tile in the house.

 

He looked at our plans again with us, as Dave has made additional changes; I think we are on version AA or AB.  LOL  :)  He did say that if we don't give him an answer by the end of August, we will have to wait until next spring to build.  I know it is the Lord's timing, but I was hoping for a buyer so we could start building in September.  If we don't have an offer and closing scheduled by the end of August, it will probably be March or April before he can start.  (And that depends on the house being sold by then!!) 

 

Tuesday morning we met Mary, who had just arrived back in town from her trip to New Jersey.  We had a nice breakfast together and then she headed home to get ready for work. We returned to Prairie Flower to finish packing up and headed for home. 

 

Now we are home for a while or at least until we head out to camp with the my brother and sister-in-law in a couple weeks, but that will just be a weekend trip.   :) 

 

We enjoy our Airstream and the ability it gives us to head out and explore this beautiful Country, visit friends and family and attend Rallies.  We are very thankful for our blessings!!!  We know that the Lord has perfect timing so we will wait for Him.    

 

Hugs to all!

 

The Jones with KT and Nacho 

 

 









Another Adventure

We are currently in South Sioux City, NE for a Hawaiian Rally for older trailers.  Not everyone has an older trailer, but a majority are older. 

We arrived on Wednesday, and decided due to the heat that we would prefer full hook-ups, so we are a bit further away from the group site.  The site we chose is well shaded with Cottonwood trees, so we are happy.  At dusk we walked down to the group site, where the early arrivals had set up chairs to watch the fireworks from across the river.  We enjoyed them; or I should say I did as Dave had to take Nacho back to the trailer.  He is extremely afraid of the noises and bangs and even wearing his Thunder Shirt didn't help.  Having missed fireworks on the 4th, I was happy to be able to enjoy them!!

Last night, Thursday, was the first gathering of the group and it was a smaller group than last year.  I believe we have only 11 trailers this year.  Mandie, our dedicated Leader and organizer,  made a simple supper of loose meat sandwiches and chips.  With the humidity and hot weather, nothing too heavy was needed.  Thanks Mandie!!! Later the group sat around visiting and catching up from last year. 

Today, we are busy in the Airstream,  (keeping cool) doing some work on updating this blog and paperwork and research related to house building.  Dave has been sending out bids to different sub-contractors and he is now starting to get some questions and a few replies.   There is going to be LOTS of work, being our own General Contractor, but Dave is up to it and his past experience makes him well qualified to manage a big project like this. 

I'll get pictures of our group and activities over the next couple of days and check back in soon, since Nacho is nagging me to stay on top of it.  He just wants more pictures of himself!!!  :)

This is where they are confined to during set-up time!  

Thanks for reading our blog!  Check back soon!!!

 

The Jones and Pups

Update from South Sioux City, NE

Nacho here, just wanting to let you know that after much nagging from me, Mom has finally gotten around to loading some pictures from our last day in the Black Hills.  So without much input from me, (because I didn't get to go) here is her report.   I promise to do a better job on making sure Mom is making blog posts on a more timely basis.  She's gotten lazy now that she's retired.  :)

Also, since she hasn't posted a picture of me lately, here I am making sure the Bison do not get too close to our truck. 

Candy here taking over from the Bossy Boy!! :) 

On the 4th of July, Dave surprised me by reserving an ATV for 1/2 day exploring the National Forest in the Black Hills.  (He is so NOT into ATVs or motorcycles).  So bright and early on the 4th we drove over to a campground, about 13 miles away, to arrive by 8 a.m. to get outfitted and prepared with a side by side Polaris. I was extremely apprehensive, not about ATVing itself, but doing it for the first time in a very HILLY area instead of in a flat area.  So after getting fitted with helmets and direction on how to use the ATV, we set off on a county road.  The outfitter had told us this was a good route for a first timer and that their ATVs were licensed for road use.  They had directed us to a lake about 4 miles away that we could drive around a bit and get used to the ATV.  After about 45 minutes, I was feeling a bit more confident (I was driving), so we headed back to the camp where we could access the trails into the National Forest.  As we headed back it started to rain, so when we arrived back we went inside to dry off a bit and have some breakfast.  The lady at the campground, makes huge cinnamon rolls and sells, so we helped ourselves to one each.  Very good!!! After consuming those and coffee, drying out a bit and getting additional advice on where to go, we headed out again. 

The trails ranged from gravel road to barely discernible tracks through grassy pastures to steep, very rocky uneven dirt.  We traveled about 58 miles round trip.  The scary part wasn't the trails, but due to the rain we experienced on and off for about 2 1/2 hours was that our National Forest map with all the trails completely fell apart!  28 miles out and not sure how to get back!!!   Luckily and with good foresight, Dave had brought along his Garmin.  Now, I don't always trust the Garmin as it has led us astray a few times, but it recognized the trails!!!!  So with guidance from it and the compass on my phone we found our way back.   It was an awesome experience and we were able to view some areas we would never have had the opportunity to see otherwise.  I think I could enjoy ATVing and Dave agreed!!! 

Up a steep hill

Drenched and map too!

Nice gravel portion

Steep trail down, though not too rough

Hmmm, not sure about doing this in the rain.  :(



 

 

Dave is enjoying himself!  

 

Getting gas before returning it.

 

 

After returning to the trailer, resting for a while, having some lunch and walking around the Rafter J Bar campground to exercise the pups, we headed back into Rapid City.  Dave had promised me, since all my wedding rings were cut off of me this last year, that he would replace them with a wedding band of Black Hills gold.  So off we went to shop for a new ring.  I found one we both liked and I love it!!!  Thanks Honey!!!!!  Now I am legal again!! :)

 

 

 

Later, after a bite to eat, we drove to Mount Rushmore to observe their 4th of July ceremony.  Fireworks are not allowed due to the extreme drought.  The ranger gave a very emotional and thought provoking talk on the history of the four presidents, their contributions to our Country and how our Country is affected today.  I was quite moved by the talk.  A young group of high school students traveling across country from SC to CA for a music festival were seated in the rows in front of us.  All of them were dressed in various versions and extremes of Red, White and Blue.  It was heartening to listen to them and watch them; they were very PRO-American!!!  Hurray!!!!

 

 

As the skies darkened the Presidents were lighted, the Flag was waving and the Ranger invited all the present and former Military to the stage to participate in the Flag lowering ceremony and to be recognized.  All the comments made were so encouraging for Love of our Country; in today's political climate it was refreshing to hear.

 

 

 

The next morning after our usual chores, we started back to Iowa, arriving the next day at Saylorville Lake near Des Moines.  Staying there for a couple days allowed us to see Mary, Steph and Dan and celebrate Mary and Dave's birthdays together.   I am so looking forward to living closer to all of them and having the chance, we hope, to see them more than once every couple months or so.

 

Here's a view of our campsite at Prairie Flower on Saylorville Lake. 

 

 

 

And so ends our 5 week adventure!!!  It was enjoyable and reconfirmed that we love traveling, exploring this beautiful Country, meeting new people along the way and loving our Airstream!!!  We are blessed!!!