OUR RETIREMENT JOURNEY

Working on updating our Blog

2011-10-17T08:45:00.000-07:00

Hi Everyone,

So, it's been a long time. We have been so busy here in Lakeside this summer. I hope to update everyone as we are getting ready to leave for Yuma soon and hope to have more time to work on my blog. So much has happen the past 6 months. So much work has been completed here on our "Rentz Mountain". The weather is quickly changing, still we will miss the beautiful views with our morning cup of coffee. We will stop in to see the kids for Thanksgiving, then off to Yuma. Once there, I will have plenty of time to update and download pics.

New Construction in Yuma

2011-01-12T12:48:00.001-08:00

This is the wall that use to have all the garage cabinets. I like the new wall covering instead. All the cabinets are now in the hobby shop. In this picture is the wall that separates the living room and bedroom. To the right is the kitchen area. Those of you who have been to our place will remember the kitchen location is right off the outdoor kitchen area. This is also going to be opened up wider next year. This is the new bedroom area. Once again, I am sure some of you will remember that the garage was just one big open room. Even the watersoftner has it own closet now. Now this is an improved area....it's equipped with a table and chair set. No more eating on our laps.
Next year, it we don't sale, the door on the wall which leads to the bathroom, will be relocated in the bedroom area, and this will be closed off.

Knit Knit Knit....

2010-12-10T19:14:00.000-08:00

So, everyone wants to know, what I have been up to....here is my day.....Get up at 6am, ok, sometimes 6:30am....walking 3-4 miles each morning. (unloaded almost 15 lbs) Then, I am working with Dennis, with construction to the garage, Shopping consist of LOWE"S (oh how exciting) after I have finally got to shower, I can now make Dinner....Sweet! Ok, I am too damn tired to cook, so it's Top Ramon! Maybe a grilled Sandwich if he's lucky. My evening consist of knitting....sometimes until 1pm!.....but here are my current projects. Xmas stocking for the small grand kids and a sweater that I have been working on for Brooke since summer.....

Happy Birthday Dennis!!!!

2010-12-10T19:03:00.000-08:00

Oh my god, it's another birthday for the big guy!...Thank you everyone who called to wish him another year of warm wishes....since he is now retired (almost 1 year) the calls really are sooo welcomed....he love's to hear from you all!....And not that every one knows, Dennis has given up the BIG BAD HABIT!.....He smells so much better!.....Doing great and eating everything in site! Here he is with his Chocolate Banana, Coconut pie topped with whip cream. Yes, he has eaten the complete pie!

It's that time again....

2010-12-10T18:47:00.000-08:00

So, it's been a while....so, I have been working like a dog, knitting, shopping and working on the new construction on the property in Yuma. We have decided to take 1/2 of the garage and covert it in to living quarters. Leaving the rest of the garage only enough room for a small car and storage. But that's OK, since we have the property up for Sale, we needed to make the property more open for sale value. Currently the room has wall and texture, now the paint and carpet....The property may not sale this year, but we are hopeful for next year. Here are some of the pics that show our progress. Hope to have it completed by end of the month.

End of the season

2010-10-04T15:02:00.000-07:00

Well, it's the end of the season and we are heading home to Yuma for the winter. After spending the first month in Lakeside Oregon, we traveled up to Washington and visited for a month. Then back to Lakeside for another 2 months. Spent one day visiting Seattle space needle, and the first Starbucks store that opened in 1971! Lakeside we did a lot of fishing, crabbing and running a muck on the beaches and sand dunes. Then we wondered up the mountain sides and founds us the perfect little spot to rest our tired old bones when we are done with all our travels. Can't wait to get started! Right now, we are currently sitting in Walnut Grove CA with friends and visiting kids before we leave for Fontana CA this Thursday for Nascar race this weekend. From there, it's off to Yuma. Sure we have lots of work ahead of us there. Enjoy the pics everyone, I will try to keep you updated as the winter time keeps us more inside.

Ten Mile Lake View from Our Property

Catch of the Day!

First Starbucks in Seattle WA

Seattle Space Needle

WHERE HAS THE SUMMER GONE!

2010-08-17T12:10:00.000-07:00

Well, I have finally made it back on my blog page. Just how much of it I will get updated....I hope all! It's has been a fast and furious summer for us. Currently we are parked back in Lakeside Or and enjoying the warm sunshine for once! It really has been a cold experience for us this season, one because we are so acclimated to very warm weather, as you all know....AZ weather, but, also the weather in WA and OR have been extra cool this year, as most area on the West Coast. So we have been informed. Can't prove it by me.

It's been also a challenge for me the past few month because my computer really got a bad virus and the keyboard took a dump...everything was lost. Thanks to my great brother-in-law Bill, we all back together,(well for the most part) still have to reload some more of my programs, but really afraid to even attempt it. Dennis is much nicer now that I don't have to share his computer....haha. So, my intent is to try and update everyone with what we have been doing the past 2 month and where we are going from here. Sorry to everyone if I have not responded to any of your emails. I hope to catch to you all soon. Enjoy my pics and comments are welcome.

Pearl Harbor HI

2010-06-12T19:38:00.000-07:00

The Graduation's were successfull!

2010-06-07T19:46:00.000-07:00

Here are a few pics from the graudations we attended. First grauation was that of our son Michael at Sac State. Congrats Michael! The second granduation was our oldest grandson Trevor and he graduated from High School. Also graduating was our son in law Rustie...he obtained his MBA this year...grats to you Rustie...

Viva Las Vegas Baby!

2010-04-26T16:12:00.000-07:00

Well here we are in Las Vegas, sun is out and we are enjoying running a muck for once. Every time we have stopped in Vegas, it was just for an over night rest, then hit the road again the next morning. Always having to be somewhere by a curtain time of course. Well this time we are spending a few days so we can really see what's really "HAPPENS" stay in "VEGAS". Today we spent some serious time on the strip and I have to say, there are some really strange characters in this town. Tomorrow we will be heading over to Lake Mead and Hoover Dam. Wednesday Evening we plan on returning to the strip for some evening fun! Yes, he is going to take a nap before we go. We are here and we must see the lighst before we leave! While we were out today, we found the RV park at Circus Circus and it's really big! We know where we are going to stay from now on and we don't have to worry about driving anywhere! Here are some of the pics I took today, enjoy and I will post more are our week progress!

Last run on the desert for this season.

2010-03-27T20:05:00.001-07:00

Dennis and I are so glad we were able to spend the time with our friend in Yuma, we will miss everyone and wish everyone a safe trip home, we will catch you all in the fall.....Happy Trails everyone....have a safe journey.

Recent Desert Run in the Razor

2010-03-24T20:56:00.001-07:00

JUST COMPLETED MY FIRST SWEATER

2010-03-21T18:54:00.000-07:00

This is my first cap and I am not crazy about the way it fits. I have new patterns for more caps that I will tackle and one looks like a bomber cap. Can't wait to start that one, should be fun. This is my first sweater. It also turned out a little big for me. I also have another pattern for a sweater that I will start this fall. This one is very light weight and a light weight tee would be needed or this would be great to use over a tank tee for cool evening in the summer. Found the pattern in one of the Patron knitting books. Great for a starter sweater.

Another new addition

2010-03-01T08:09:00.000-08:00

It's called a ponytail....so, he's saving money he says....right, I cut hair, I can save him money. Still, if his uncle Fritz, cousin Patrick, and best buddy Duke can grow one.....so can he!

Facebook/Farmville hound what next?

2010-03-01T07:58:00.000-08:00

So, it's been 3 weeks now of his retirement....and all he does is play farmville on FACEBOOK. The man is gone off the deep end.

Retirement can be so stressfull!

2010-02-24T07:20:00.001-08:00

Dennis working on the tailgate of the trailer we purchased from Ernie.
Watching the stain dry....just one small thing you do when retired it guess.

Ya he could stand to purchase a new hat, but why? It's a Yuman thing....rustic look I guess. Dennis has been keeping busy working on the motorhome and the trailer. Spending time on the phone ordering parts for this and that. Of course, it has his morning routine, coffee, paper, computer, WORKOUT....spends 10 on treadmill and 30 mins. on weights....(it's a start). I will try to sneak pics of him in his workout program.....Also, Dennis has taken up Golfing! Still in the learning stage but, every Thursday he and Ernie go to the course and knock some balls around. Tomorrow will be his first day on the green for 9 holes!!! Wish him luck....I think he's hooked. I think he will have to take up a part time job collecting balls at the courses!

Roasting Dennis....

2010-02-17T08:05:00.000-08:00

So Dennis was roasted at his retirement party. Mike had to give instructions to everyone on how to sit on a bar stool and drink beer without breaking your leg!
Mike and Tony with Dennis and the City of Phoenix in the background.

Dennis' boss roasting him.....

Most of the guys that Dennis supervised.

Dennis explaining how to retire....took him long enough!

Nellc' Visit and Dennis' Retirement

2010-02-13T19:01:00.000-08:00

Dennis and Mikey. Mikey is taking Dennis' place at Otis.

And she survived the night of wine and fire! This is taken in the parking lot where they had Dennis' retirement party. T background is Phoenix.

This is a good clue....who's had more wine.....

Can you tell who's drinking more.....

So, it Wine and Fire...and sister hood....it's all good.

My New Model and Scarf

2010-02-04T15:23:00.000-08:00

Here is the scarf that I just completed for Nellc for her Birthday. It out of Nature's Choice Organic Cotton.....so soft....
Here is my new model for my scarfs....Holly is such a glutten for attention...and she loves to pose for the camera.....

See, she's a natural....and she has the distant look about her don't you think?

Pic from Josh and Angie's Wedding

2010-02-01T08:42:00.001-08:00

These are just some of the great pics taken at Josh and Angie's Wedding Day. The two cuties are Angie's daughters Tiffany and Courtney.

New Cargo Trailer for the RAZOR and JEEP

2010-01-30T18:41:00.000-08:00

Well here is the new Cargo Trailer that Dennis bought to carry the Razor and the Jeep....Can't leave home without either...I need my Treadmill....do you think he will make room? Well, don't count on it! This is the new MAN CAVE for the road.....so, where is the HER CAVE? I will give you one guess.

2009 Christmas in Sacramento

2010-01-29T08:13:00.000-08:00

This is at Rusty and LaDawn's house Christmas day. She has a beautiful table setting for Christmas Dinner.
So we have LaDawn and Brooke feeding the horse that Santa left Brooke for Christmas.

This is Tiffany and Courtney, Nellc's granddaughters. While I was there visiting, Angie was planning here wedding for New Years Day. The girls, Nellc and myself went shopping and found these dresses for the girls to wear for the ceremony. Angie has not yet uploaded any pic but as soon as she does I will share with everyone.

2010-01-29T07:43:00.000-08:00

Here is Gabby with Mittzee and Holly Berry. She spent the night with me at Nellc Christmas night. She loves the girls and feel the same about her.

Here we have Mike, Kim and the boys, Riley and Dexter. I think the boys are into the vest sweater...guess I will need to learn how to knit them also.

Here is Brooke, she really liked here lap blanket, I was surprized!

Now, how cute can these two boys get! Riley and Dexter.

Wow, Where has the past month gone?

2010-01-28T10:33:00.000-08:00

Can't believe it's the end of January already. Time is just flying by. I have been busy getting ready for Dennis' retirement. His last day is February 12th. Forgot how much work it takes to get ready for something like this. From retirement plans to health insurance. It can be very stressful at times. I think the biggest decision to make is to decide where we want to call home. Well, we have been out there in the motorhome and I have to say there are some beautiful places to live, but not full time....not yet anyway. Then again, there is the desert....but, not in the summer time anymore for us. We are burnt out on the hot summers. So, now we are going to go looking for property in Oregon! Again! Hope to turn the key to the motorhome sometime in April and head for Oregon until the 15th of May. From there we will wander down to Sacramento and stay in the delta while we visit kids, go to Michael's graduation from Sac State on the 21st. Then, we will be flying out to HAWAII on the 23rd to visit David, Karen and the Boys.....which, we will attend our oldest grandsons (Trevor) graduation from High School!!! Already! Where has the time gone?

When we get back, we are not sure but will most likely hang in the delta a week or so, then back up north, Oregon, then Washington and Idaho. We plan on a busy summer as it will be our first to run a muck after retirement. Once we find our place to hang for the summers, we will settle down to a yearly routine I'm sure. At this time, Yuma will be our winter home for sure. Or, at least until we give up the motorhome.....that will not be anytime soon!

Also, getting ready for a visit from my oldest, best'est, girlfriend in the world, Nellc.....I spent a week with her at Christmas and she is coming to visit with me next week...We are really looking forward to running to Mexico and having fun.....and a few Margarita! Dennis will be out of town (NM) so we can just hang out and have lots of fun! Girls are cut loose! Sure we will have our share of Margaritas on the patio also......

I am still knitting, have not given up yet. Completed a couple of scarfs now and may try my hand at a couple of beanie hats. Still want to knit xmas stockings and have tried a couple of times but decided I was not good enough to tackle such a big task yet, not by myself at least.... I NEED KAREN! I will post some pics of my trip to Sacramento over the holidays I hope this evening...right now, it time to get myself a mov'in....Sun is out and a nice day to run ......

2009-12-16T15:21:00.000-08:00

Finished Brooke's lap blanket, with her favorite colors....Thinking I should of went with RED &WHITE stripes with PURPLE trim....but then again, she's 5 and all colors right now are her favorite.....

Have not knitted since I was a teen...think I will stick with scarf, big slipper socks, and hats right now. Stocked up on a lot of yarn and patterns to keep me busy for a while. Gives me something to do when Dennis retires. Wish me luck, I am going to need it....Happy Knitting....

2009-12-08T17:32:00.000-08:00

And of course there is our son.....Michael....good looking dude don't you think? Here is Dennis with his buddies from work, Mickey, Dennis Mike and Mike.....go figure....

Ernie and Friends to Celebrate.

Dennis and Glenn. Dennis turns the Big 60 and Glenn turned the Big 62.

Birthday Boy!

And so the Party continues.....Dennis turned the Big 60 the weekend. All had a good time and the party went on for 2 days....lots of fun with lots of good friends. Our son Michael even show for the occatation. I enjoyed that so much myself....enjoyed every minute!!!! No, I did not know he was flying in!!!! Really! So enjoy the pics!

RedHeart.com : Our Yarns

2009-11-11T11:10:00.001-08:00

RedHeart.com : Our Yarns

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Sitting in Yuma waiting for Big D

2009-11-04T17:44:00.000-08:00

Well thought I better update my blog for everyone. Sitting here in Yuma waiting for Big D to retire for good. We have decided this time that he will be leaving Otis on March 31 of 2010. Time for a new chapter in our life. I am staying in Yuma handling all the odd and ends while he continues on for the next 5 months. The weeks seem to fly by and don't seem too bad. Guess because I do keep busy trying to handle things that need to be completed before the gross income is cut....if any of you who are retired know how that goes.....anyway, in my spare time I have also picked up an old hobby in the evening and (while watching nascar). Started my crocheting and hope now to start the knitting. It's been a long long time for knitting and hope it's like riding a bike....right!.....Boop (Karen) is a very good knitter and has inspired me to pick it up again in my retired life style.....so, here we go....posted is a pic of my first item of the year. This I started this past summer when Gabby was here to visit us. Just now finished it. She picked out her colors. I will be sending this to her for her Birthday next month.....Getting ready to start another one, this time I will try my hand at knitting. This blanket will be for Brooke. After that, I will start the blankets for both Riley and Dex.....Guess I best get busy and a whole lot faster.....enjoy everyone.

Busy Summer

2009-10-01T17:08:00.000-07:00

Hey everyone, well it's been a very busy summer this year.. and that's ok, went by fast, and fast is what you want when you live in the hot desert of Arizona. First of all, we sold our little yellow house in Mesa this past Feb. relocated in Casa Grande AZ which is just south of Phoenix. It's a bit of a commute for Dennis but, much better then dealing with the traffic in Mesa. Believe it or not, the commute time is almost the same. That's the difference between 15 miles and hour for 22 miles and 75 miles and hour for 40 miles....tell you anything? Mesa is nice, but once the snowbirds show up, it takes twice as long to go anywhere and....to get into a restaurant for a meal. (we don't do that in the winter months) The month of June, we had our grandaughter Gabby for a couple weeks, then the end of June we took her for the first time to Disneyland and to the Ocean in San Diego. LaDawn and Brooke, (daughter and grandaughter) flew down to LA to join us, with Gabby to spend the day at Disneyland, what fun, can not wait to do it again!!!!. Then we drove back to Sacramento to deliver LaDawn, Brooke and Gabby to their respectible owners...husband, moms etc. .....We then hung out at the Boathouse for a day visiting with friends from the old boating days...(how we miss them days) Don and Sharon, met their new grandaughter. Great visit. We then proceeded to go to West Sac Cummins dealer, and waited to have the generator fixed. That in it's self was a full day waisted. Spent the 4th with the kids at LaDawns. Spoiled all the grandkids and new grandson Dexter....then we split...headed for Oregon Coast and boy did we every enjoy that....COOOOOL weather at last! From there, up the Coast to Seaside OR, visited with Uncle Fritz and Aunt Laura...sweet, sweet people....love them to death....well, you know what I mean. From there, we shot up to WA, visited Bill and Sandy in Lacey WA, camped out in our motorhome in their RV park for a couple of days, killed off a few bottles of wine....and a few bottles of wine....and a few bottles of wine....ok, a case of wine....then hit the road for eastern WA to meet up with friends Glenn and Linda just outside of Spokane. (everyone has these wonderful summer homes in wonderfull weather states.) Nice lake side property. Freezes in the winter. That's cold!......From there we drove across the most beautiful county I have really ever seen, so green, and green (shall I go on).....GREEN COUNTRY!!!! Northern Idaho, wow, what a nice place to......retire in the summer time! Visited with Ernie and MaryEllen in Bayview. Wished I could win the Lottery....BEAUTIFUL COUNTRY. (maybe I have been in the desert to long). From there we heading back to Casa Grande AZ. Now pondering whether or not to retire Dennis......not that fast...there's more to come. Stay tune and I will keep you all up dated with our current status and our 2nd vacation trip..........do I now have your interest?

Vacation #2 Trip to Idaho

2009-09-27T14:36:00.000-07:00

Heading home (Yuma). This is the only time Dennis will allow me to drive the motorhome.

Duke and Eleyne on their farm in Idaho.

Duke and Dennis

Just got back from Idaho, visited good friends, Duke and Eleyne. Great visit, long overdue, enjoyed their hospitality greatly! We hope to be able to visit again soon. Don't want to wait so

long this time.