Hello Sophia Dahling!

We finally planted some "roots" in Morgan Hill, California! I have to say that both of us were a little road weary and happy to be in one spot for a while, or in our case, about six weeks. It was wonderful to open all the slides of the coach giving us the space we have come to enjoy! It made the coach feel so very big after living in it with only three slides open! We settled in nicely and were looking forward to seeing David, Amanda, and Sophia! It took about an hour to get to their home because we timed the traffic...the traffic in California is ridiculous...depending on which direction you are going and the time of day....it is so crazy!!!! To say that everyone was excited was an understatement...seeing and hugging David was a gift to this mother's eyes and arms...sometimes it isn't easy living so far apart! Amanda was beautiful as ever glowing with motherly pride and contentment! And then there was Sophia Luna....oh my....she had just woken from her nap and sat in Amanda's arms staring at the two new faces in her world! Sophia doesn't just stare. Her penetrating look is so focused that you feel like she is looking into your soul. It was amazing to behold. We were in love!

We gave her some time to get acquainted with us before we held her...she loved opening her presents from Bubbie and Papa, however she might have enjoyed the tissue paper more!

We celebrated this family reunion with a wine toast to our blessings. After good conversation and a nice walk around the neighborhood, we were treated to a fabulous dinner cooked by Amanda. The ambience in their apartment was one of comfort and love....candles burning, music playing, baby laughing....it was perfection!

Paso Robles - Day Two

We were so excited about visiting some of the local wineries and having a late lunch....we got recommendations, a map, some complimentary tasting cards, and we were off. We figured that our experience has shown us that you can only do two or three wineries in a day....so our first stop and, as it turned out, our only stop was the Broken Earth Winery

..we did their traditional six wine tasting selection and took a little tour of the area.

As luck would have it, they had two guitarists playing outdoors for the afternoon

....so we grabbed a table and before you knew it, Lee and I were ordering a couple of bottles of wine and some lunch

....we must have been there for a good couple of hours...our senses being enhanced by sunshine, music, food and wine...it was perfection. Afterwards we talked with the musicians and found out that the husband of the lead guitarist was born in Lewiston Maine...His family was there at the vineyard and we were all talking about Maine and what a beautiful state it is....Imagine being on the West coast and meeting these people...how awesome is that! This second day in Paso Robles more than made up for the first! Tomorrow, we head to Morgan Hill to plant some roots.,,six weeks exact! We will be seeing David, Amanda, and Sophia on Tuesday...I am getting vermlempt! Oy Vey!

Paso Robles - Day One

As most RV'ers know, it is always something! For us it was the lights on our tow car that were not in sync with the coach...we had a left signal but no right signal ability....fortunately for us there was an RV service truck in the park and they were able to troubleshoot the problem...we had some broken wires! So now, after a minor setback, we were on our way to Paso Robles...it was a long drive especially since we left later than planned....we arrived at the "resort" and Lee was ready to park the coach...let me just say that the sites at this particular park were not necessarily big rig friendly more so because of the planting of decorative shrubs and trees..nice to look out but not user friendly....here are some photos to show you what happened.

Yes indeedy, the tree ripped one of our decorative panels on the coach and scratched the exterior. Glad we were in Paso Robles wine country...can you say, give me a drink! Once we were settled, Lee assisted our neighbor who had a fifth wheel which he was using for the first time...he didn't know how to hook up the sewer plus his refrigerator wasn't working properly! He and his wife had their two grandchildren with them and all they wanted to do was go to the pool! I am glad to say that in the RV world we always pay it forward! Oh by the way, I did not mention in my former posts that we have not been able to use one of our salon slides since New Orleans...too complicated to go into but will definitely use when we are in Morgan Hill for six weeks...can you say tight quarters! Also, with the issues we had with our tires at the beginning of our trip, we lost one of our hubcaps.

Life on the road!,

Indio and Palm Springs

We arrived at the Outdoor Resorts in Indio which, for my Port St Lucie friends, was a sister property of ours. The resort was set up just like ours with the exception of the Spanish style buildings. it certainly felt familiar in a surreal way!

It was recommended that Lee and I should experience the Palm Springs Aerial Tram since our time in Indio was limited and I am glad we did!

This attraction is the largest rotating aerial tramway in the world ascending 2 1/2 miles up rising to an elevation of 8500 feet above the desert floor to the top of Mount San Jacinto. This California State Park offers hiking, observation decks, a museum, and restaurants. The views were just amazing....the temperature at this height dropped to 40+ degrees compared to the 79 degrees below!

Lee had made dinner reservations at their Peaks Restaurant where we dined on fabulous food overlooking this incredible vista!

The San Diego Zoo

One of the highlights is the San Diego Zoo celebrating its 100th anniversary!

It houses over 3700 animals of more than 650 species and subspecies. This zoo was a pioneer in the concept of open-air, cageless exhibits that recreate natural animal habitats. It is one of the few zoos in the world that houses and successfully breeds the giant panda which was of extreme interest to me. Pandas sleep about 22 hours a day so it was not easy to get a good picture of them!

Animals, just like children, never make it easy to photograph them.....in addition, most of the animals were sleeping except the monkeys who were very animated. We saw as many animals, fish, and some insects (yuck) as possible. These are the pictures I was able to take...enjoy!

San Diego

Well we finally made it to California....our first stop..San Diego. We are staying at a really nice resort called the Chula Vista RV Resort and Marina...great views of the marina! Our first adventure was spent in the Gaslamp Quarter which is a historical neighborhood in downtown San Diego boasting of numerous restaurants and shops...the blend of the Victorian and Art Deco architecture along side newer buildings was visually beautiful.

San Diego is also home to the Padres baseball team and their stadium was located in the heart of the downtown.

It was such a beautiful day for walking that we strolled along the Martin Luther King Promenade by the harbor to visit Seaport Village which is a waterfront complex of reataurants and shops....it, indeed, felt like a little village with a town square...we were lucky to have been there to experience "Salsa Sunday"....there was music and dancing....people sitting on outdoor furniture or by the fountains...what fun!

From Seaport Village, you could see the North Island Naval Base across the bay...we even saw the Midway in the distance.

What a fabulous day!