Big Day in Pigeon Forge

I spent most of Saturday around the pool visiting with everyone.  Ted and Brandon went shooting in Gatlinburg and before you knew it, it was time to get ready for dinner.  Happy hour was at 6, dinner at 7.

Lily, Jameson and Noah

Lucas

Some of the Moschel's

Dinner

This meal was catered and was a big hit.  Everything tasted so good.  Also, it was nice not to have to prepare, serve and clean up.  We took time afterwards to take group pictues.  Ted and I joined the Connecticut Ruhes so we weren't just a family of two!

The Don Ruhe family

The Joe Ruhe family

The Karen Ruhe Woulms family

The Joe Homer family

The Dan Ruhe family

The Ted Ruhe (Connecticut) and Coletta Ruhe (Texas) families

The Rhonda Ruhe Klawitter family

Pretty soon social groups popped up.

The jewelry beaders.

Euchre group

Texas Hold 'Em group.  Ted was the dealer at the end and Tim won the stakes.

At 11:30 we came home because we were going to church at 8 a.m.

And We Are Off and Running

Friday I joined the folks for breakfast who had arrived early at the motel.  Quite a few had come in early for a long weekend.  I laughed at the wafflemaker - a Smoky Mtn. Bear shape!  I delivered the two dresses to Sarah, a bag of things I had for Karen, two baby presents and a bag of old jewelry for Sue who uses the beads to make new jewelry and a wedding card and check to Nick and Johanna.  I think the rest is all for the Michigan kids who I will see in mid-July.

Ted had slept in so I went to the Dollar Store with Keith, Steve and Marge to get wrapping paper for the White Elephant exchange Saturday night.  They had already left Connecticut before the final email went out so they hadn't brought anything.  This was a good place for them to pick up a few things.

There are two Christmas shops between our area and the Dollar Tree so of course Keith had to stop.  He eats, sleeps and drinks Christmas.  The only time my current house was ever decorated for Christmas was the year he stayed for Thanksgiving after our cruise.  

I found Ted in the pool so I came to the RV to put on my suit and went back over.  We stayed about three hours before needing to get dressed to help with dinner.

Our dinner was served in the pavilion - 94 attendees.

Every family received a goody bag.

Karen and Debbie putting last minute pens into the bags.

Ted and Landon manned the grill assisted at times by Tim.

Keith, Joe, Nancy and Steve setting up the buffet.  Dinner was burgers, metts, brats and hot dogs.  Grilled peppers, onions, tomatoes and lettuce.  Homemade German potato salad, homemade hot bacon slaw, beans, applesauce and in deference to the kids ravioli and chicken nuggets.

We had celebration #2 for our anniversary. 

Because the cake was transported from Cincinnati, two half sheets were baked instead of one big one.

Three of the four babies born this year - twins Maddie and Morgan, and Lucas.  Big sister to the twins, Lilly, can be seen in the lower left hand corner of the first photo.  Baby Jemma joined them for the second photo.  Our oldest attendee was Ann at 85.

These rest are family photos included for posterity.

Let the Reunion Begin

We freshened up and walked across the street to the motel.  Our group was in the process of taking over the pool area.  I got to see Maddie, Morgan and Lucas but they all were in the pool so I didn't get to hold them.  I had given Karen the things I had for her and I took the two dresses for the girls to Sarah.  Little by little I am disposing of my bags of goodies.

Marge, Steve, Keith and we headed out to the Smoky Mtns. Opry.  It was a great variety show covering all kinds of music and dance with comedy, acrobats and magic thrown in.

Rhinestone Cowboy

Ring of Fire

Beautiful acrobats

 

The Lion King

Motown

The Blues

How Great Thou Art

Salute to the USA

It was a very enjoyable evening except for the family holding a track meet in our row.  In and out, in and out all night.  I felt like a jack in the box, up and down, up and down.  Some people must not get out much!

The rest of the folks should arrive today.  The official start of the reunion is 5 pm.  Ted is scheduled to help man the grill starting at 4:00.  Until then we have lots of greeting to do!

Headed Out

We attended church Saturday night, played cards with friends and finished up loading the RV on Sunday after Ted went shooting.  It so happened that we ran into our friend Letty at church and she said she would be happy to play bunco for me on Monday.  We were possibly going to have a problem with the check out time of the park.  It is 11:00 am and we wouldn't be getting out until about 1:00.  

So Monday morning around 8:30 we hit the road and drove without incident to Benton, AR.  Our only stops were at the rest area in Lufkin and the Arkansas Welcome Center where we had lunch outside at one of their picnic tables.  After setting up we went into town and had dinner at the Rib Crib, fueled up the truck and returned to the park.

We had a little earlier start on Tuesday and stopped about 1:30 in Hurricane Mills, TN.  The parks around Nashville were either too small, too expensive ($75!) or booked so we stayed at the Buffalo River KOA about 75 miles west of Nashville.  Ted had put in two days of driving and we knew we were under 300 miles to Pigeon Forge.  We called ahead and were able to add a day to our reservation in Pigeon Forge so we will be there 6 nights instead of 5.

Since we were next to a Pilot truck stop, Ted didn't unhitch but decided to stay hooked up and to fuel up there in the morning.  We were a little unlevel but not too bad.

It didn't take long to hook up the water and electric before we were off to the pool.  It wasn't terribly hot but the pool was so refreshing.  After a couple hours we went back and Ted grilled steaks for dinner.  We were in bed at 10:30, early for us.

Wednesday we drove through Nashville and Knoxville.  Right before heading south off I-40 to Pigeon Forge we stopped at a truck wash to have both the truck and trailer washed in a really, really big car wash.  That was a first for us.  My windows at home could be so dirty you couldn't see out them and it  wouldn't bother Ted.  But a few bugs on his trailer and we have to stop to have it washed!  He knew we were not going to any parks that allow rig washing.  Also, God forbid my family see a dirty trailer!

The traffic through the area from I-40 south to Cherokee, NC is stilll horrendous.  It was stop and go to our turn off but we made it okay.  Once we got our clean, shiny trailer set up we went to the motel across the street to see Karen and Ron who had just arrived too.  We checked out the pavilion to see if there were overhead fans since it is very hot here and then left to go have dinner.  I started getting a headache from the heat and having had little to eat all day.  By the time we were finished I had a rip roaring headache going on.

We came back and I took ibuprofen and laid down while Ted wiped some things down on the trailer.  Geesh!  I eventually fell asleep and was awakened when Ted said we had company.  Joe, Debbie, Karen and Ron all came for a visit.  I felt much better so we sat outside until 11:00 and had a good time. 

Karen called Thursday morning to say she and Ronnie were both sick through the night.  I think they may have had a touch of food poisoning.  They chose to stay in their room for the day.  Keith, Marge and Steve came over and we eventuually decided to go to the Bush's Beans Factory tour.  We watched the movie, toured the museum that was very interesting, visited the gift shop and then had lunch.  We ran into Joe and Debbie so they stayed at the table while we had lunch.

Our free sample!

We retuned to the campground and rested up for the evening.

Getting Ready for Chris

Except for Memorial Day weekend, Chris has been at his parent's home.  He is anxious to get to his "bachelor pad" (i.e., our house) once again.  We have settled into a comfortable routine with his moving in and out.  He uses his bedroom, bath, kitchen and family room.   The rest he doesn't go into at all.  He takes his laundry to his Mom (!) and will bring in our mail but not deal with it.  So Nancy does that for me.  I pay bills electronically and the yard people come each week.  It is a win-win situation for all.

I am in the getting-ready-to-leave mode.  We have lots of things to take to various people.  By the time we hit Frankenmuth MI I will have delivered everything if all goes as anticipated.  We have plans to go nearby on Saturday to set up the RV so I can get it loaded and ready to travel.  I usually empty the refrigerator and freezer here at home as much as I can.  Then I take pantry items that would get stale or draw bugs.  I keep non-perishable items, cleaning items, paper products, etc. in the trailer.  We will go to the grocery as we move along, probably not until Bowling Green, KY since our first stop is Pigeon Forge TN for the family reunion where several meals are provided.

We went to Terry and Carol's for dinner Sunday and to visit with their daughter and son-in-law in from Alabama.  Carol makes the best ribs!  I made apple roses for dessert after seeing them made on Facebook.  Warning:  It is not as easy as they make it look!  They turned out OK but there is a real learning curve.  We served them with ice cream.

Ted headed to Dallas on Monday and I had the day to get organized and do laundry.  My clothes are out on the twin bed and all my "for others" things are on the other bed.  Ted will do his clothes last.  T-shirts and shorts for him with one pair of long pants and dress shirt, just in case.  I plan a bit more than that.

Today I worked four more hours at the thrift shop.  Standing for four hours straight can get you down in the back quickly.  I am sure glad I don't have to do it everyday, or at all if I choose not to!  Morgan hit the mother lode that day.  Three dresses (Bonnie Jean and Hanna Anderson, both top quality), two sweaters and a bathing suit.  I also bought a new child's life jacket for $3.50 that I will leave at the lake because of all the little ones visiting there.  Our waffle iron went kaput last year and I picked up a brand new Texas shaped waffle iron for us.  Ted got a kick out of that.  Total spent $35.

I had an appointment for a cut and color on Wednesday morning.  Cindy called early and was crying saying she couldn't do my hair, she had to go to the doctor.  She is battling thyroid cancer and my heart goes out to her.  She is single, sick and has very few resources and is in despair.  I wish there was something I could do for her besides give her my business, tip generously and pray.  She certainly is having a hard time.

We had our group dinner and card game Wednesday evening.  Finally I was at a table with cool players.  We played so fast we were finished more than a half hour before everyone else.  This was mostly due to Bob getting his great cards immediately, going out and catching us all with full hands.  Holly and I battled for last place all night!  But everyone joked and no one got upset.  Yay!

Cindy called while we were playing.  Besides her white count being way down and needing platelets, she is trying to get her passport so she can go to the dentist we go to in Progreso, Mexico.  She has been so upset about her appearance since she broke her tooth.  I had texted her the info but I wasn't sure what she would do with it.  She is going to Corpus Christi to a friend's then on to Mexico.  She has an appointment.  She was still trying to fit me in!  If the passport thing gets settled she will be back in her shop and will do my hair on Friday.  I felt sort of bad in that she is scrambling to sort out problems and getting my hair done before I leave was one of them!  Certainly puts everything in perspective doesn't it? 

Thursday was our neighborhood luncheon.  We had a good turnout but the restaurant selected was so noisy!  Talking was limited to the person next to you and across from you.  I don't like not getting to speak to everyone but sometimes that happens.

I eventually got my hair and nails done on Friday.  It will be a stretch but I am hoping I can get by until we get home again.  My hair will probably make it, not sure about the nails.

We moved the RV to the park close to our house on Saturday.  We loaded up most everything but have refrigerator food and last minute things to put in yet.  I am going to the store today while Ted shoots and will take it right over to the park.  As soon as my Bunco group is over tomorrow we will take off.

Next stop Pigeon Forge, TN, where 94 of us are gathering.

Quiet After the Storm

It has finally stopped raining.  The temperature is hitting 90 and June is starting off normally.  I have had   a relatively quiet week.  We went to dinner Saturday night after church with Terry and Carol.  That was our last hard downpour while we were in church.

On Sunday we were invited to a friend's for dinner.  There were 5 couples and we had a delicious meal and a pleasant afternoon and evening.

I had nothing scheduled for Monday and Tuesday and took advantage of the time to read Nelson DeMille's book, The Panther.  He is one of my favorite authors and I discovered he was two books ahead of me.  I have also downloaded Radiant Angel and will probably plow throught that pretty quickly too.

Wednesday I had an afternoon Service Meeting where I received my instructions for the year as Gift Distribution Chair.  There is not a lot to do right now but some things are time sensitive and I need to get with Susan before we leave to do what needs to be done.

That afternoon I went to Happy Hour at the country club and had another issue with trying to eat there.  After a glass of wine we ordered dinner.  I asked for a BLT flatbread and fruit and she said I couldn't have fruit as a side so I said bring the fries.  After 45 minutes one of the ladies who is a member went to complain.  We all had another glass of wine and after about 15 minutes more we received our food.  I was served a chicken sandwich with bacon and fruit!  The funny thing is that I didn't realize I received something I didn't even order until I was relating it to Ted that night.  I guess I was just really hungry by then.  The good part is we got comped our meal!  I gave the server $10 as a tip because it wasn't his fault.  

It was back to the thrift shop for four hours on Thursday.  I bought a few new things that came in, all for other people.  I found a beach bag with Morgan's name monogrammed on it that will come in handy on vacation and a Cowgirl shirt.  She really liked the sparkles.  There were four American Princess dresses in size 5, new with tags, so I bought one for Lily with the second one for when the twins can wear them.  I also bought a size 3/4 dress for Ally but she doesn't like it.  I will take it to the family reunion and it will fit someone.  Final cost for all $13!

We learned Ted's sister's father-in-law passed away on Sunday.  I looked up his obituary and was taken aback at his having 90 grandchildren and great grandchildren.  Then I added up Ted's parents and it was 100 with the newest one due checking in at #101!  You need to have a lot of children yourself to hit these numbers.  RIP Mr. G.