Soups

Back in October, we got a number of pumpkins and squash that we've been using along the way (https://journeyinamazinggrace.blogspot.com/2020/10/a-visit-to-pumpkin-patch.html). We still have a few Butternut Squash so, on Monday, decided to make soup... even though the 70 degree temperatures and sunny skies we're having aren't "soup weather".

This time, we decided to pre-cook the butternut squash in the Instant Pot to make it easier to remove the skins.

Most of the ingredients in the Instant Pot for the soup -- squash, carrots, onion, Granny Smith apples, sage, chicken broth, garlic, cinnamon, and nutmeg -- before cooking. Doesn't that look good?

After cooking, added coconut milk and used the stick blender to puree. We were supposed to take the sage out before blending but... we didn't... it still turned out to taste really good! Maybe the sage added some fiber?

Then today, we had gotten some kale to make Zuppa Toscana (Olive Garden Copycat).

This was in progress... after the sausage and potatoes and onions had cooked, we had stirred in the kale. After this we added cream cheese and milk. Some recipes called for half-and-half or cream, but we had cream cheese and milk and one recipe called for that, so we decided to use our our cream cheese. It also came out very tasty!

We used Italian sausage that we purchased at one of the markets in Quartzsite (one of the grocery stores there that has a really good fresh meat department). It was good, but last time we used Johnsonville Mild Italian Sausage and, although it was a lot fattier, it was also tastier (the two probably go together, fat and taste...).

Both soups made enough for leftovers for a few meals, so we'll be eating on soup for a few days!

Sunday

Peggy and Sherry were in Queen Creek from Dallas, visiting Keith and Holly, so we planned to have supper with them on Sunday evening. One of the items on our to-do list was to visit the Queen Creek Olive Mill, so we decided to go a little early and visit there and get a to-do accomplished too (not *all* of our to-do's are work!).

Queen Creek Olive Mill -- you can see that there are solar panels on top of the building...

For more information: https://www.queencreekolivemill.com/

... an information board about their use of solar in their operation.

I thought the last bullet point was interesting -- I wonder what kind of olive oil that would be?!?!?

They had a nice gift shop / store...

... as well as foods that could be picked up for eating outside or take home.

 

 

We got some Bacon Flavored Olive Oil, as well as their February Special: Dark Chocolate Olive Oil and Strawberry Balsamic Reduction. We also got some Spanish Olive Tapenade.

They also had a number of items made from olive wood...

... the pieces are very pretty!

There is a garden for fresh vegetables that they use in their restaurant / deli.

We had hoped to be able to take a tour, but they were scheduled earlier in the day than the time when we were there -- but we saw some of the displays outside.

This was also the area where outside dining was available.

The traditional grove planting would have trees 20' apart.

Tables under the olive trees.

We walked out behind the building to where newly planted trees were located...

We figured that the rows were about 6' apart and the trees in the rows were about 4' apart.

We don't know whether this is just where the young trees are started and they will later be transplanted or whether "newer groves" (as opposed to "traditional groves") are planted more densely. If we get to go on a tour one day, we can ask!

One of their delivery trucks

It was just pretty walking around.

In case you wondered!

After our visit at the Queen Creek Olive Mill, we drove over to the neighborhood in Queen Creek where Keith and Holly live. We had a good visit with Peggy and Sherry, Keith and Holly, and a delicious dinner shared with them.

After dinner, we enjoyed their fire pit and the sound of the waterfall at their pool in the back yard.

Peggy and Patti

Peggy, Patti, Sherry, Holly, and Keith

It was a fun day, *and* we got a to-do marked off our list!

Today's tasks

We weren't very productive on Friday (though we did go to the farmer's market to get fruits and vegetables)... so I didn't blog yesterday.

Today we had a little more incentive...

Carl had gotten all the parts he needed to install a new remote monitor for the solar controller -- we've been using a bluetooth connected app on our phones or tablet, but it is nice to have something that you can easily look at on the wall. This display is showing how many kwH were generated by the panels today to provide to the batteries (0.45) -- not very many because we are plugged in to shore power, so the batteries don't require much charging (or, that's what Carl tells me!).

He also put new tires on my bicycle -- whitewall tires! He has been concerned that my tires were old and had cracked sidewalls and that they may have a blowout at any time. So, we had gotten new tires and tubes a few weeks ago and he got that completed today.

For comparison, this was a picture from December with non-whitewalls. We'll have to get another picture with me riding it with the new tires... we did a loop around the resort this evening but didn't think to get a picture.

Meanwhile, I worked on tires too -- getting the tire minders installed on Gracie and the Jeep. We had a total of 3 systems -- Dwayne and I had one system that we got back in 2014 (TireMinder). We had an extended warranty on them and got a LOT of service done and replacement sensors under warranty. When the warranty ran out, we found that it was cheaper to get a 4-sensor system complete with new monitor than just get replacement sensors, so we had purchased another system (TireTracker). Carl had a system from TST (Truck System Technologies). The TireMinder and TireTracker sensors and monitors are interchangeable... I haven't yet found that the TST system interchanges, and Carl did not like the way that either the sensors or monitor worked...

So... right now, we have a mixture of TireMinder and TireTracker sensors on the tires, the TireTracker monitor in Gracie, able to monitor all of Gracie's tires plus the Jeep's tires, and the TireMinder monitor in the Jeep, able to monitor the Jeep's tires (since the sensors that were built into the Jeep failed long before Dwayne and I purchased it) when we're just driving it. We are thinking we'll check to make sure that the TST system works, and then try to sell it.

We have a long to-do list -- we thought, when we got to Venture Out in December, that we had 3+ months here and would be able to get a lot done, but... time passes quickly and the days can trip away without us getting much of anything done if we aren't careful! So... we now have a goal to get at least one thing on our to-do list accomplished each day... we'll see how effective we are at doing that!

Another Awning

I had posted back in January that we had arranged to get a window awning put onto Gracie on the window that would normally be covered by the big awning (https://journeyinamazinggrace.blogspot.com/2021/01/new-window-awning.html) and that it worked, but was not straight.

The RV Awnings guy promised to get a corrected awning from the company and to come and re-install it. Carl called him yesterday to let him know we had returned to Mesa and he arranged to come today (Thursday). He was a little late coming as his previous scheduled installation went long, and, when he got here, he found that the awning sent from the company was too long. But - he said that he had sewing machine at his shop and could cut it off and put a new hem on it, and that he would come back later to install it.

We were sitting out on the patio musing over our missing awnings and wondering if there is just a bad awning curse on us or something... in leaving the awning hardware to re-sew the fabric, it looked rather worse than it had before!

But, thankfully, the window awning guy returned before the end of the day and installed the corrected window awning, so, at least now we have a window awning on that window.

I should mention that Miss Kitty is not at all pleased with this addition as she prefers having sun coming in that window in the morning, and we do too here in Mesa based on the cool morning temperatures -- but we're sure that there will be times in the future that we will enjoy having the window awning when it is quite warm but possibly breezy and we won't want to deploy the big awning -- assuming we will one day have one!

An awning update

If you are a frequent reader of our blog, you probably have some idea what is coming next...

I wrote back in November that we had given up on getting the awning parts and installation done at NIRVC in Lewisville, TX, and had asked them to transfer the parts (if they ever came) and responsibility to their location in Phoenix (Surprise), Arizona (https://journeyinamazinggrace.blogspot.com/2020/11/bay-landing.html). We arrived at the NIRVC in Surprise on Monday and the work was supposed to be completed on Tuesday (https://journeyinamazinggrace.blogspot.com/2021/02/and-we-resume-our-service-center-tour.html).

I also mentioned in that Monday post that the parking area was pretty tight, and, since it is new, it isn't well packed yet so much of it is not recommended for parking a big rig on...

Here is a view showing one place where a smaller class A is on the left, and the larger class As are on the right... the only way in/out of the area is up at the end there, and if you drive a large class A down into this area, turning it around to get parked (because they are angled facing the street out front) can be a challenge.

There is Gracie right in the midst of a couple of other big rigs -- we backed her all the way in from the street area.

This is looking down the lot from the street end -- if the rigs on the right side (in this picture -- the side opposite where the big rigs are parked) are all small, I guess they could fit a number of big rigs on the left and a number of small rigs on the right. But... folks weren't doing a great jobs of making selections to park that way!

They came and picked up Gracie by about 8:45am and thought that, if all went well, it should be a 4 hour job.

We saw where Gracie was parked and Carl walked around the side and had the opportunity to talk with the technician about the history of this missing awning.

He was very pleased with the technician that was working on the rig and we were hopeful all would go well.

Meanwhile, we set up shop in the front area of the building... that's what the front of the building looks like. It has those plexiglass shrouds around the support beams. You may also be able to see in this picture that there are holes in the roof -- triangular shaped holes -- because I guess you might want the hot Arizona sun able to shine down on you even if you are sitting under a covering?

We had set up at a table outside and were able to get some laptop work done while sitting out there.

Carl visited Gracie every half hour or so... and was a bit disappointed that he did not see a lot of progress being accomplished.

We decided to head out to Longhorn Steakhouse for lunch -- we had decided that we wanted to eat there to celebrate our anniversary, and since we weren't sure whether it was going to work out to eat there for our evening meal (maybe we'd be driving back to Mesa with our new awning installed! Hope springs eternal!), we had lunch there instead, with delicious steaks and a Molten Lava Cake for dessert (yum!). The waitress brought a decorated plate for us to recognize our celebration!

So, when we got back to NIRVC, still it did not appear that progress was being made. Carl called the service writer at about 2:30pm to ask what the problem was. She was on the phone with Dometic trying to get the right parts ordered. She indicated that they still do not have the correct parts -- for either the awning or the slide topper. They have the physical awning and the slide topper, but not the right parts to connect it to the rig. They thought that they *might* be able to get the slide topper hardware within a day or two, but we elected to head out to our lot at Venture Out and try again at another time.

So... we still do not have an awning nor a slide topper installed. The service writer thinks she can get the correct parts from Dometic. I can't say that we are optimistic, but, we'll give her a chance to make the effort.

An interesting note: I had walked back to Gracie to print out some forms at the time that the technician was closing things up on Gracie for the day. He gave me the bad news about not being able to complete the job at about the same time that the service writer called Carl with the bad news. But, as we continued talking, something came up about me previously owning a Blue Bird and him having worked in Grants Pass, OR at Henderson's Line Up. I said that I had been there in the fall of 2017, and when I mentioned a Blue Bird that had lost its tag axle wheel, we realized that he was one of the folks who had worked on Miss Doozie!!! (https://trekincartwrights.blogspot.com/2017/10/our-day.html, https://trekincartwrights.blogspot.com/2017/10/working-toward-repair.html, https://trekincartwrights.blogspot.com/2017/11/the-wheels-on-bus-go-round-and-round.html)  Small world!

So, we are back at Venture Out and glad to be "home" even if we did not get everything completed that we had hoped. We *really* enjoyed our visits around Arizona for the last few weeks, getting our solar working and feeling that we are pretty well set up for boondocking in the future.

Happy Anniversary to us!!!

One year ago, we married at the International Linguistics Center near Dallas, Texas. We had no idea what the coming year was going to bring -- we are so thankful to have had each other during this unique year - shared burdens are so much lighter than bearing them alone! 

When we look back on the year, we sometimes feel like we were in one of those movies or nightmares where disasters happen just after you pass... like you drive over a bridge and right after you finish crossing, the bridge falls into the river behind you. We are aware that there were (are?) some who thought that we were marrying too soon after the death of our late spouses, but we had sought God and Godly counsel and felt that it was God's will for us to join our lives -- and, in hindsight, had we waited, we may not have been *able* to get married until much later in the year, if at all. County offices in Texas that granted marriage licenses closed just a few weeks after we got our license and remained closed for several months. The campus on which we were volunteering and on which we got married was closed to entry for all but essential individuals, and still remains limited in its access. Even a small group (the 20 folks who celebrated with us) would not have been able to gather to celebrate with us.

The grief and pain that we feel for the loss of Sue and Dwayne is still with us - even in the joy of being together. In the memories that Facebook shows of posts from previous years, it showed me that 2 years ago today (2019), Dwayne and I were rejoicing that one of the reports that the doctor brought in to us indicated that his cancer cells were dying -- tears came to my eyes as I recalled the joy that we felt that day, not realizing that the death of the cancer cells would release sepsis into Dwayne's system that would ultimately take him away, only a few days later. While we were in Yuma, Carl grieved Sue as day of her birth was January 20, and he recalled the love and joy that they shared and which he now misses. He had a zoom call with his children, and while he enjoyed hearing their memories, he struggled to share as he knew that he would "lose it" as the grief would overwhelm him. 

How can we have joy in having each other with sorrow for the loss of our spouses that enables us to be together? I can't answer that, but only say that it is what we feel -- so grateful for each other, to have been together, even in the midst of grieving.

If you want to see some pictures from our wedding, they can be found here: https://journeyinamazinggrace.blogspot.com/2020/02/did-you-miss-palindrome-day.html

Happy Anniversary to us!

And... we resume our service center tour!

We left Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument this morning, on our way to National Indoor RV Center in Surprise, AZ. We have been told that the awning with the correct arms as well as the slide topper are all here and that we'll be able to get them installed on Tuesday. That will be a pleasant SURPRISE if it happens!

Just a couple of pictures...

When we left the campground, there really wasn't anywhere very appropriate to hook up the Jeep without blocking traffic, so we went to an area by the Visitor Center. It was signed as "Designated First Amendment Area". I am embarrassed to admit that I had to look up what that meant -- it is a "Free Speech" zone, I guess if there are protesters. I figured that we were accomplishing a "first amendment" to our travel configuration as we hooked up the Jeep... and there were a few other trailers that stopped there to check things out as they were leaving the campground before getting on the highway... so maybe it is appropriately named for that purpose as well.

We have gotten parked in the "campground" of the National Indoor RV Center in Surprise, AZ. It is a new facility here (I think opened a little over a year ago, moving from another location in the Phoenix area). The "campground" is a gravel lot with lots of power pedestals. Unfortunately, it is not quite wide enough for rigs to back in on both sides, or... not if the rigs are parked by amateurs, like us. We elected to back in all the way from the entrance to the camping area and the couple in the motorhome across from us applauded us when we got parked.