10/31/18 - I got this morning around 7:45 am and started to get things put away to leave today for Florida.  Still having the back issue so niece Deborah came over and put all of my stuff away.  Brother Daniel did all of the disconnecting of sewer, water and electric.  When I went to start the RV it would not start so Daniel got his truck and jumped me.  I then learned a switch had been left on and so I think it drained the battery because I am not sure when it was turned on.  I did not have any more trouble today.  Daniel and I went to fill up the gas tank and the propane tank and then back to the house to hook up the car.  I left at 11:00 am.  I had a good drive through DC and stopped for lunch around 2:00 pm.  I got to the Walmart in Roanoke Rapids,North Carolina at 5:15 pm.  It was 70 degrees and tonight I ran the generator for an hour and also the heater and got the inside of the RV up to 81 degrees in that hour.  It is suppose to go down to around 53 degrees so will be cold in the morning.  I am resting my back and to bed earlier since it is already dark out.

10/30/18 - On 10/25, Daniel, Mary Ann and I left for Morris, PA to spend the evening and night with her brother Nelson and his wife Rose.  We had dinner with Rose since Nelson had to work. 

10/26, We got up, packed and had a wonderful  wonderful breakfast brunch with Rose and Nelson.  Left for Geneva, New York where we were scheduled for a sibling reunion.  Since we drove right by a niece's house (Miriam) we stopped by for just a few minutes and then stopped at a nephew's house (Aaron) and dropped off some wood for him.  We got to the rented house around 2:45pm.  We got the code to get into the garage and first thing was to get some heat started.  Soon sister Rachel and her husband Ivan arrived and we started unpacking things and figuring how where everyone was going to sleep.  It was quite cold and rainy.  Everyone arrived around 5:00 to 5:30 pm.  We then got some dinner together and had our first dinner with all of my siblings and their spouses.  There were 8 of us.  Since all of  us were traveling, we called it an early evening.

10/27, Still cold and rainy.  We decided to have a breakfast brunch and then some snacking in the afternoon and an early dinner.  After breakfast and clean up, we divided up and 4 played Rummy Q and 4 of us played Parcheesi.  We had some snacked and then the guys were trying to figure out if they would be able to barbecue chicken out in the fire fit or not.  Soon it was decided that it was not rainy very much and soon the fire fit got started.  For dinner, we had a wonderful barbecue chicken dinner.

10/28, We got up and breakfast was either left overs or cereal.  For lunch we had all left overs and then had to do some packing, cleaning up of the house and sister Ruthie and her husband Andrew left around 2:00pm.  We then got packed up and Daniel, Mary Ann and I left around 2:45pm.  Ruby was planning to stay until Monday morning and she was staying at my sister Rachel's house.  We  stopped by the Taughannock Falls.  It was beautiful with the changing of the leaves.  Will attach a picture. We had excellent traveling and were home in Delaware by 9:20pm.  Of course, still having problems with back pain.

10/29, Mary Ann and I met Donna Jones and her mother for lunch at the West Side Diner.  Was very good and had great conversation.  We then stopped at the post office and went to Walmart to get some items.  Niece Christina came over and helped me put a lot of things away.  She informed me that she had made dinner and her family was coming over and I was invited.  Dinner was delicious.  Her husband Jesse wanted me to go with him to Walmart to look at some laptops just to get an idea what I need since my keyboard has quit working and I am using a portable keyboard for now.  We have decided to wait until Black Friday or special sales to see if we can find something.  Off to bed.

This morning, Deborah and I went to a Chiropractic office since I had a 9:15am appointment to see if I could get some relief from the back pain.  He gave me some excerises to do and use a heating pad.  Will see if I get any relief.  Now, I am slowly doing things to get ready to leave tomorrow for Florida.

10/30/18 - I want to add a picture from my visit in Lancaster, PA on the 20th:

                                            Laura, Anne, myself and Laura's Mom

10/24/18 - On 10/20, Around 12:40 pm, I left for Lancaster, PA since I was going to visit some dear friends of mine from San Diego.  Since Laura's mother lives there, Anne and Laura went to visit her for a long week end.  It took me 2 and 1/2 hours since I got into a traffic jam in a little town called Intercourse, PA.  I had a wonderful visit with all of them.  We had a delicious dinner and lots of conversation.  I then left around 10:00 pm for Delaware.  It started to rain a little but was never heavy and I drove out of it in about a 1/2 hour.  I could not figure out why the stupid GPS gave me a different route home but I soon learned that I needed to follow Gertrude's (GPS) instructions or I will be really lost on those country roads.  I also did not realize that every time I did a re-set, then she found a new direction and before long I ended up in Maryland instead of Delaware.  I finally found my way home and it got home at 12:35am.  So needless to say, I did not drive much out of the way!!

10/22, I went shopping with Christina, Deborah, Charis and Mary Ann.  I got a scan of yarn to finish a baby afghan.  In the evening, we went over to Christina and Jesse's new house for a wonderful taco soup.  Since early afternoon, I have been suffering with low back pain on the left side.  I was thinking it is sciatica but not sure.  It  has been very hard to walk but I have no pain when sitting or laying down. 

10/23, Back pain in still there not sure what combinations to take to make it better but finally took an ibuprofen 800 mg and felt it might have helped a little.  I also had a dentist appointment in the afternoon.  Well, he repaired a small hole on the top denture and then put another rubber snap in the bottom denture so hopefully am good for a little while. 

10/24, Back pain is a little more under control but have a ben gay patch on given by Mary Ann.  I also took some Aleve and Tylenol and am hoping for the best.  Today, a guy came and cleaned the carpet so I am out of the RV for most of the day.  Of course, it is really cold and I am trying to dry the carpet so I have some heat on and windows cracked and a fan going.  He told me about 6 hours!!!  So I am at the house and decided to blog and then work on a puzzle that we have started. 

10/17/18 - On 10/15, we got up at 6:20 am to leave the house for a breakfast buffet in town.  A sister owns the restaurant and Vernon wanted to take us out for breakfast and we needed to be there around 7:00 am.  It was a really nice buffet.  We then went back to the house to get ready for the funeral.  Since it was a large funeral, we decided we needed to be there at 8:30.  Oh, yes, I must state that I woke up to SNOW!!  It was cold enough to stay on the grass most of the day.  Unbelievable!!

It was a large funeral and I saw alot of cousins from all various parts of the country.  Since it was so cold I did not go to the grave site.  We then had lunch and visited with family the rest of the afternoon.  They served an early dinner since alot of the family members were leaving to go home that same evening.  Daniel and I decided to go to David's house to see the wrecked truck but learned it was very muddy and would be impossible to see.  We then stopped to visit a 1st cousin and her husband (Verna and Menno).  Both of their daughters were there as well and one of the daughters did have some pictures of the accident site and truck.  Back to the Vernon Kramer house for a shower and off to bed.

10/16 - We got up at 2:15 am for departure to the airport at 2:45 am.  My United flight was out at 5:15 am.  Daniel's flight was at 6:05 am.  He dropped me off and then returned the car.  Daniel had a non stop flight so he arrived a little over an hour before I did.  I was flying to Chicago and now here is my trauma.  We were told at the gate that we would be about 15 minutes early arriving into Chicago so I was a little more relaxed since I had a 57 minute lay over and with United and Chicago I knew the gates could be very FAR away from each other.  When on the plane, they decided they needed to de-fog the plane which was basically de-icing the plane.  It took forever since they had a maintenance issue.  We finally took off and I was not sure if I would make the connection.  I just kept hoping that the arrival gate and departure gate would close together!  My flight out of Chicago was scheduled at 7:52 am.  We hit the tarmac at 7:09 am.  Of course getting to the gate took a long time.  I finally got off and stopped at the gate desk to ask the location of the departure gate to learned it was in another terminal!!  I arrived at gate C-18 and departure was at gate B-18.  I then asked the agent to please call the agent at B-18 and let her know I was on the way.  In Chicago United's B and C gates one has to go down an escalator, get on a people mover, up an escalator.  The escalator was located around C-8 so I thought I would probably have a long walk in B terminal but when I got up to the top it stated that B-18 was straight ahead.  I was so lucky.  As I started my walk, I was hoping for a cart to take me up there was none.  I also noticed that it was 7:17 am and they had started to board.  My only hope was that the agent had called.  When I got to the gate there actually was one person left who had some kind of problem and me.  I was just so glad to have made it.  Actually, a few minutes later there was actually one other person that boarded before we took off.  Daniel got in a little over an  hour before me so he was able to shuttle over and get the truck and wait for me in the cell phone lot.  We left Philadelphia soon after 11:00 am.  We stopped for a sandwich and headed for Milford, Delaware.  When we got here, I said "Hi" to Mary Ann, got my key for the RV and the computer.  She made this wonderful penuche fudge.  It was delicious. I got to the RV, took off clothes, turned on the heat and rested on the couch the rest of the afternoon and evening.  Finally, got a snack and off to bed.  I was so TIRED.

Today, I am getting unpacked, writing a few birthday cards, thank you note and then not much else!!

10/17/18 - On 10/12, we got a phone call and were told that Uncle Neal Kauffman from Jamesport, Missouri has passed away.  We also learned that the funeral was already scheduled on Monday, October 15!  I started to look for airline tickets and soon learned that they were extremely expensive so Mary Ann and I started to coordinate airlines and times so we could use accumulated miles or points.  We soon got a scheduled together.  I would fly United and Daniel would fly American.  We both are leaving from Philadelphia.  I left at 6:00 am and he left at 6:05 am.  I was flying to Washington Dullas and he was flying to Chicago.  I forgot the exact time of getting in to Kansas City, Missouri but knew I had about an hour and an half wait since he had a longer lay over in Chicago.  Plans had been to both be at the airport and have the rental car by 1:00 pm.  Well, in Washington things changed.  We boarded the plane, got buckled in, announcements were made and soon I thought we would be in the air.  Then came the announcement that there was no captain to fly the plane.  He did not report to work!!  We were to get our belongings and get off the plane.  When we got to the gate entrance, we learned the flight was cancelled!!  Boy, did that get my all upset!!  We were told to go to the customer service area and get re-booked.  Of course, the customer service counter was a distance away so I was the last one to get into a long line!!  While in line, I got a text that I was re-booked already and would have to go to Newark, New Jersey and then Kansas City and arrive at 10:52 pm.  Well, that was not going to work for me since my Daniel was there and we would have an hour and half to Jamesport so Daniel would just have to wait in Kansas City.  So then I got on the phone to United to tell them that schedule will not work and we have to do something else.  Finally, the agent found something from Washington to Denver and then Kansas City getting in at 6:15 pm!!  Of course, I fussed and fussed but he insisted that is all he could do.  I decided to stay in line to see what the service desk would do.  When I got there, she stated she would look around because things change all the time.  Soon, she had be going to Chicago and then to Kansas City arriving at 5:25 pm.  I finally gave up and accepted that schedule.  I got a lunch voucher and was told to go to the United web site to get some compensation so will do that today as well.

Daniel did have a delay and got in an hour later but still had a lot of time before I got in so we decided he should go to the hospital in Kansas City to visit a first cousin (David) that was in a car accident and had many injuries and a serious head injury.  I was also in touch with a niece and her husband (Katie and Galen) who were traveling from Nebraska to Jamesport to attend the calling hours that afternoon. Katie informed me that they would plan to come a little later so at least we could see them before they headed back to Nebraska.  They informed me they had arrived to Jamesport about the same time that I arrived to Kansas City.  Daniel was waiting in the cell phone lot for me.  We drove to Jamesport and arrived at 7:20 pm.  We met Katie and Galen outside since they wanted to start home.  We had about a 15 minute visit.  It was so good to see them.  It was so cold so I said my good byes and went inside to warm up.  I then met the family, learned where my brother and I would be staying for the night and so said our good byes and left for a Vernon Kramer's house.
We visited a few minutes, got acquainted with the surroundings and off to bed.  What a day.

10/12/18 - On 10/11, We packed all of our things since we were leaving right after lunch for Delaware.  We went to visit Aunt Lovina Beachy before leaving for the funeral which was scheduled at 11 am.  We attended the funeral and then had some lunch and soon were on our way to Delaware.  The first half of the drive went well but then the latter half of the drive was horrible since we got into some traffic, lots and lots of rain and of course it was dark as well.  We did arrive home at about 10:45 pm.  We were between rains so I was able to get my stuff out of the car and into the RV before it started to pour.  We had a thunderstorm to begin with and then it rain really hard most of the night. 

Today, I did not do much at all.  I had to run into town to pick up my mammogram results to fax to the primary care and mail some birthday cards.  Otherwise, not much is going to happen today.  It is cold and windy.  We did learn we had an uncle that is not doing well and went into a coma today so now we are kinda on hold regarding that issue. 

10/12/18 -  On 10/6, Daniel, Mary Ann and I left for Sugarcreek, Ohio to visit their son Raphael and his family.  We had a nice trip and met Raphael and his family and Lemuel (Daniel's son) and his family at a restaurant for dinner.  We had a good evening.

10/7, Daniel, Raphael and Lemuel left for Cincinnati, Ohio to attend a Bengals game since that was one of Daniel's Christmas presents.  They had a great time since the Bengals won the game.  In the meantime, we took the rest of the families to the park so the children could play.  Regina (Raphael's wife) made a great dinner of chili, salad and bread.  The guys came home around 8:30pm and by a little after 9:00pm Lemuel and his family left for home which is in Washington, D. C.  They travel at night since they have a 10 month old little girl and she is able to sleep most of the way.  We got a text that they were home at a little after 2:00am.

10/8, Daniel and Raphael had plans to trim some trees and bushes around their back yard.  They  had a good start on the trimming when Daniel got stung by a yellow jacket.  Since he is highly allergic to any type of sting, we were looking for an epi pen but did not have one.  Regina had some benadryl  so we gave that to Daniel and then all he wanted to do was sleep which was probably good but that ended the tree trimming except Raphael decided to see if he could have the nest and destroy it.  He had to actually saw down the part of the stump and bush to get to the nest.  We then did alot of spraying so kill all of them.  We also learned that a cousin of ours had passed away and Daniel had worked with this gentleman for almost 10 years so really wanted to attend the funeral but we did not have any information.

10/9, Daniel was feeling much better and since we did not have any information regarding the funeral in Plain City, Ohio, we decided to head back to Delaware.  We did some shopping of fudge, cheese and bologna before leaving the area.  I then discovered I had left my jacket at Raphael's house and since we were driving by there on our way out, Regina met us at the car.  We were soon on the way.  I am not sure how far we got toward Pittsburgh when I got information from my facebook about the funeral.  We stopped off the side of the road, made some phone calls to Delaware to see if we could just turn around and head for Plain City.  It was soon determined that we would do that.  I then called Uncle Allen and his wife Connie to see if we could stay at their place and that we would be in town late afternoon.  We had planned to take them out for dinner but instead they already had plans for a senior citizen dinner at the church and of course we got invited.  So they had a carry in dinner and a young couple share their honeymoon vacation trip to France, Italy and Switzerland.  They did a hiking tour and it should was interesting.  Back to Uncle Allen's and off to bed.

10/10, Connie had to work so Mary Ann made a cherry delight dessert for her since she was suppose to take something for the lunch after the funeral, Daniel and I took their recycling up to the township for pick up.  We then took Uncle Allen out for lunch.  The visiting hours were from 2-4 pm and 6-8 pm and Daniel and I decided to go to both since there would be different people at the different times.  We were able to visit with a lot of relatives and friends.  Connie had made some chili so we had that for dinner.

10/01/18 - On 9/19, Mary Ann made a huge dinner for the small group from her church since one of them had a birthday.  I think there was about 14 of us. 

9/20, Mary Ann made another huge dinner and invited Weston (nephew) and his family, Christina (niece) and her family over for dinner.  I think there was 12 of us.  I soon learned that it was another birthday dinner for me.  After dinner, Deborah (niece) handed me a stack of birthday cards.  I was so shocked and surprised.  I later learned that Deborah had written all of my nieces and nephews and requested a card shower and if possible to put in $10.  I had been sending birthday cards for many years to sisters, sister-in laws, brother,  nieces, nephews, great nieces, nephews.  I would include a $5 gift if under 10 years of age and a $10 gift 10 years of age and older.  The family has gotten so big that this year I finally decided to not include any unmarried nieces or nephews, great nieces or nephews over 21.  Almost everyone responded to Deborah's request.  I was quite amazed.  What an evening of surprises.

9/23, I left for Norton, Massachusetts to visit my friends Marilynn and Joe.  It was 387 miles and a long drive since it included New York City.  The first 3 hours of the drive included constant rain.  Upon my arrival, we had a great chili and cornbread dinner.  It had been two years since I had been there so we had a lot of catching up to do. 

9/24, The guest bedroom is in the basement so it is quite dark so I slept very, very late this morning.  Finally got up and showered and dressed.  It was a rainy day and Marilynn had physical therapy that morning but we just took the afternoon to catch up with all kinds of news and happenings the past two years.  Oh, yes she had knee placement earlier in the summer.

9/25, Slept late, very rainy, Marilynn back from dentist appointment and relaxed the rest of the day.

9/26, Marilynn had doctor's appointment so I decided to go with her.  We also went shopping at a consignment shop and she found a really nice blouse.  I learned that certain Dunkin Donuts also serve ice cream cones so we stopped and had one!!  Marilynn made wonderful stuffed red peppers for dinner.

9/27, We went out for mexican food and it was delicious.

9/28, It rained absolutely all day.

9/29, It was a beautiful day and they took me to visit a soda factory that still makes sodas and bottles them in glass.  We took a tour of the factory and it was really interesting.  The tour included seeing the actual spring water hole.  It is called Simpson Springs.  They also bottle pure spring water.  I gor a root beer soda and made a float then for an evening snack.

9/30, I left Norton, Massachusetts at 9:33am and had a nice day for traveling back to Delaware.  I did get into a lot of traffic just east on the Connecticut border and all the way thru New York.  It finally cleared up when I got on the New Jersey turnpike. I had a great week with my friends.  I got back to Delaware, chatted with Daniel and Mary Ann for a few minutes, sat out with Deborah by the fire pit and then got a few things unpacked.  I needed to get laundry together since Mary Ann was doing laundry.  Off to bed.