It’s A Bucket List Trip

It’s been a long time since I have blogged.  I’m hoping I still know how to do this!  I guess mostly I haven’t blogged due to COVID a word we have come to know far to well.   As I begin this I’m in the dentist office for the second time this week getting my temporary crown on again for the fifth time!!!  Dan and I spent four months in Juniper Ridge Resort up outside of Show Low, Arizona over summer.  It was a good decision for us this year.  Dan had back surgery in April and I had eye surgery in March so it was better for us to stay closer to home this summer. Dan did PT in Show Low and it worked out well. Now we are back in Buckeye, getting shots and preparing for this “ bucket list” trip.  

October 8th we take off for Fort Lauderdale in preparation to board the Holland America Zaandam for 90 days!!!  We are taking a 71 day trip around Africa and then we will stay on the ship and do another 16 day cruise for the holidays.  Betsy and Chuck Story, snowbirds from Boise will join us for the Africa trip then we will be on for holidays by ourselves.  

The weather now in Buckeye is HOT and we are doing yard work cleaning up two large Palo Verde trees that went down in our back yard during the monsoon.  In between that we are running errands, going to appointments, beginning to pack and even thinking of Christmas and Halloween for our sweet granddaughter Zoey and our kids.  It will all have to be done early this year.  

While in Juniper we lost our sweet sweet kitty Frazier who was with us for 19 years.  It was a tearful sad situation and coming home without him even tougher but we loved him and have given him a great life while he blessed us with his quirky behaviors and sneaky ways❤️❤️ . 

So get ready to follow us on the journey.  I’ll provide some information about our trip by way of a map and itinerary.  Keep us in your thoughts that we won’t contract COVID before we board or our cruise is cancelled!!  We masked all summer and have been very careful.   We have our yellow fever waiver, our new flu shot, the last of our hepatitis shots and will get our COVID variant booster in two weeks.   I’m starting to get excited and believe this trip is going to happen!!  It has been cancelled twice and just last week we had our itinerary changed!  But the joys of travel mean you are flexible and no worries, right?

This is our route.  At several places we stay overnight.  We go on a three day safari out of Durban.  We also do an overnight trip to Petra.  

Some beautiful monsoons skies where we stayed this summer.  It’s a 55 gated community of park models and RV lots.  You own the property.   There were lots of activities, concerts, dinners, pickleball, water aerobics, poker, wood shop, jewelry marking, arts and crafts, golf course and more!

This was the RV lot we sub let for four months.  We had lots of fun neighbors too! 

Here is a drawing a friend made me of Tessie and my cats.  The brown was was Dundee ( DeeDee) who died over two years ago (mine) and the Flame Point , her brother , was Frazier.  We named them after our Streets in Post Falls.  I cried when my friend Vera gave me this gift.  It’s one of the most special and thoughtful gifts someone has given me. 

More beautiful monsoon skies this summer 

And here is our sweet granddaughter who dies everything from rock climbing, to rafting, to swimming, reading, living her cat, biking, hiking and making our lives richer. She turned 7 in July. 

Wearing her shirt I gave her last year for her birthday, her button and her crown!  


The mess of our downed Palo Verde trees in our back yard. 

They crushed our picnic table which we covered with a blue tarp to protect the tiles :(

And this funny guy one of our camp workers made at the entrance to our summer park for the 4th of July!!

An outdoor concert at Juniper. 

A rodeo we attended at Taylor which was jam packed with people this summer

New pickleball courts at Juniper.

Some of the many activities buildings at Juniper. 

The hot tub and huge pool. 

One of my summer pits I had that was beautiful. 

Zoey and her cute cat Max .  She is a very loving and responsible pet owner ❤️

We camped a week at a very nice state park in Show Low, AZ with Dans sister and her husband, Cheryl and Steve.  Fun times!

Dan found a dead bull snake at the park, non venomous, and he did a little autopsy with Steve.  It was a female and she was full of egg sacks.  

Our RV spot at Fool Hollow in Show Low in May.  

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