Lake Of The Ozarks State Park

Monday October 19- It was a beauty of a day to travel in. We were on the road about 9 a.m. The drive was fairly easy, the only thing was we have never been to this park so we had to watch close. We arrived and pulled over to fill up with water. Jeff got on his bike to take a look around. Its an older park and unless you are familiar with it, its kind of hard to figure out. There are no full hook ups. They have sites with 30 and50 amp and no electric at all. There are no water hook ups on site either. They  have reservable  and walk in.  On every site that wasn't occupied there was a sign on it that said available for 2 days. We didn't want one of those because we didn't want to have to move. We ended up taking one close to the check in area. They had water sites but again a lot of them had no electricity. We wanted to set up. Well we had picked site #3 but that wasn't to be. It had a really tight turn and with all the trees and posts it wasn't going to happen. Our neighbor came out to help us out. Jeff had to back up but then we were scraping the bottom. We took the site right next to it #4. Well it was on a pretty good curve but we got in. The problem was going to be getting out. We made sure we had an out. Just didn't use the road, we would make our way through the grass. We had 30 amp service and was close enough to the dump station that we could walk over with our portable waste tank. The laundry facilities was close too. The park is really big with over 180 sites. After setting up we walked around the loop to get a better look. The more we walked the more we understood the lay out. We went in to town for dinner. Went to Outback and got a steak, it was really good. Finished that meal with a yummy dessert. It was in the 70's today with lots of sunshine.























Tuesday October 20- I started the day out with the laundry facilities. Our phones aren't working very well at all. Our television isn't working very well either. We do have a few channels, but don't have any network channels. On a positive note our internet card works so I did get to catch up on the blog. In the afternoon I took a walk around the campground, its a big park with lots of hills. What has us puzzled is all the buildings are really nice but aren't being maintained all that well. The cobwebs are thick every where. The rest of the day we just hung around and did some cooking. Made some apple crisp and baked spaghetti for supper. Again today its really warm 10-15 degrees above normal.


Wednesday October 21- Another warm day, its been kind of windy so we didn't get the boats out. I took a short walk this morning. On my way back I heard noises coming out of the dumpster. I went back and got Jeff to help rescue whatever was in there. I grabbed a broom to open the lid. Well Jeff did that and the raccoon still couldn't get out. I spotted a big piece of wood that Jeff put in there so he could get out.                                                                                                                                   

After he got out he just scurried off, no thank you for us. For our reward we decided to go into town to the outlet mall. It's not as good as I remember which is good, nothing to buy.
Went to the grocery store and Jeff found his chips, the are cooked in avocado oil and the only stuff in them are potatoes and sea salt. That made him happy. We went for lunch at Bandana's, we love there turkey sandwiches and again they were really good. We got back and took the dogs for a walk and Belle had blood in her urine. We had this problem last winter in Florida and we used the special food to dissolve the bladder stones and continued with a urinary food. We went to get x-rays when we were in Iowa and he said she's having no problems...the stones are gone. So as soon as we get out of the state this..... We will watch her very close. Hoping for the best.


Thursday October 22- Another really nice day. We decided to take on off the hiking trails. We took the Lake view trail. It was only about 1 1/2 miles. It was around the lake and it was really rustic. We didn't want to take a very long one because we want to watch Belle. Its really warm today, we sat outside and enjoyed the sunshine.

 

Friday October 23- We got some rain last night but it stopped this morning. It was still a cloudy, gloomy day. Went for a short walk and so did Jeff, he got a little wet because it started sprinkling. We knew it was suppose to rain so we planned to go to a show today. First we went to Bob Evans for brunch. We had some time to kill before the show so we looked at a couple stores. The movie was The Bridge of Spies. It has Tom Hanks in it. It was pretty good but seemed a little long. We didn't stay away too long, still watching Belle. She seems better. We watched some TV and hung around home.


Saturday October 24- It was our last day here. It was really warm last night. It seems to be cooling off some today. Since we are leaving tomorrow we went in to fill up the truck and anything else we needed. The campground had lots more campers this weekend but mostly down by the water. We walked around the loop and marked sites that would work for us. We also loaded up everything we could. We want to get out of here before everyone else does. We would probably use this campground again but this isn't our favorite area. There are sites for big rigs but its a bit confusing your first time in. Tomorrow heading to Arkansas, Bull Shoals White River State Park.

 

Hiting the Road

Wednesday October 14-Well today is the day, we are out of here. Good bye hosting spot, good bye shower house, good bye Pleasant Creek State Park. We had wanted to leave by 9 a.m. but when Jeff checked to see if the water pump worked.....it didn't. It took him awhile to get it to work and we really needed that to work because the park we are going to didn't have water hook ups. We left around 10:30 and before we got to Palo we had lost the clear site on the sewer line. We stopped to look but couldn't find it. The weather was perfect for traveling and we knew the route because we had taken it many times before. We are heading to Mark Twain Lake, Ray Behrens campground. It located close to Hannibal Mo. Before we traveled full time we used this park a lot. When we arrived we were surprised by the number of campers. All the full hook ups were taken so its a good thing Jeff got the water pump working. We found a good spot #28 and backed in. We have 50 amp service which is good. No water on site or sewer. The thing that really bothered us was we had no T.V. Neither of us remembered that. The internet was super slow, even my phone didn't work that well.

After setting up we took a drive around the park and noticed the beautiful fall trees and even spotted a  deer along the road.

 We drove to a gas station to see if we could get a fishing license. Jackpot...we each picked up a 1 day pass so tomorrow looks like we will be fishing.


Thursday October 15- Well I got up way earlier than I had wanted. Soffee woke up at 2:30 and wanted out of bed. I took her out and she went back to sleep for about an hour. Then she did the same thing. I took her out again and she laid down in the leaves..unusal I thought. I brought her in and stayed out in the living room with her. She was really acting weird. She wouldn't lay down, and wouldn't even close her eyes. She usually sleeps 95% of the day. There were lots of things that concerned me. She was looking different, and acting really different. At one point I woke Jeff up because she scared me so much. She eventually came around. I was really relieved. It was really cool in the morning so we went fishing from the shore. That way we could fish for awhile come back and check on Soffee, refill our coffee and go out on the water. The temperatures warmed up so we took the kayaks to the boat ramp and went out fishing. It was a beautiful day and the trees very colorful.

The fishing wasn't that good but it was a great day to be out on the water. The wind started picking up so we made our way back to the dock.


Friday October 16- Another cool morning so I had to wait a bit before going on my walk. The walk was very scenic. I couldn't resist taking a few pictures.

This is a nice park, its quiet and very scenic. The rest of the day we hung around the park. We left the campground around 2. We are making a trip to Palmyra to meet a very special set of twins. A friend of mine, Amanda Crumrine had these babies and I haven't been able to meet them yet. This girl I met thru church. We had a bible study when they were in high school and the friendship has lasted with them. It was a big blessing in my life to know them. It was a mentoring study. I was the mentor which is really funny because I know I learned way more from them then they ever could get from me. It was a great visit and so nice to visit with her and her husband Dave. The babies, well who can resist babies. They were a bit timid at first but warmed up to us.

After our visit here we left and went to Quincy Il., we are meeting my best friend and her husband for supper. I had made reservations at Fuji, a Japanese steak house. We got a seat by the grill to watch all the action.

The food was great and so was the company. We visited a while then we both left to go to our homes. It was good to see my friend before leaving....going to miss her a lot.



Saturday October 17- Its cool again this morning. Jeff made us a campfire. The campfire was really warm. Jeff I guess didn't realize that until it was too late. He melted his crocks.

We enjoyed the fire, even the dogs liked being outside. After lunch we took off on another road trip. This time we are going to Mexico Mo., These folks are also from our old church. It took about 45 minutes to get there. It was nice to see them and visit. Bonus she made the best brownies ever.
We stayed and visited for quite a while then headed back. Thanks Guy and Jean for a wonderful afternoon.


Sunday October 18- I took a short walk this morning before heading into Hannibal. I was really excited to go because I was going to one of my favorite quilt stores, The Hickory Stick. Well when we arrived there was some kind of festival going on downtown. Down the main street there was vendors set up. Lots of crafts, food and activities. Walked through and spotted what we wanted to purchase. We got fudge, kettlecorn, and beer bread.

The quilt store didn't disappoint either. I found lots of fabric I couldn't live without. We came back to the campground and packed up our stuff. We are taking off tomorrow for the Ozarks. Good bye Mark Twain Lake.....its been fun.

Tying Up Loose Ends

Monday October 5- Its definitely starting to look like fall around here. The berries are on the trees, the leaves are starting to turn and the temperatures are cooling off. We both had a big list to start on today. We both have things to do before taking off south. I went through the closets, cabinets, under the bed and pantry. Time to get rid of the things we don't use. We also have stuff that we don't take with us but store here at the park. We took that up and put it away. We cleaned out the basement. Jeff went through his fishing stuff and straightened that up. I did laundry, I love Monday laundry day. I had some time so I made a baby gift for my niece. I saw these onesies at the farmers market so I thought....I can do that, and I did. They are really cute.

Tuesday October 6- Today was actually Hailey's birthday so we had to call her and sing. It was super foggy this morning, I went for my walk to the other side of the lake. I did see the most amazing spider webs on my walk. The moisture in the air just clung to them.






















It was a perfect day for a walk. On my way back it had cleared up and the sky was so blue.

This is where I get to take my walk everyday....aren't I lucky? After walking we decided to get a few more things. We like to be stocked up so we don't have to run to town when we travel. Stopped at the camping store to get an extra part for the hot water heater. We spent the rest of the day here. It was really a beauty of a day. We are starting to be invaded with beetles....we cant stand them stinky bugs.


Wednesday October 7- Today the beetles are worse than ever. We aren't sure how they are getting in but boy are they.  Jeff cleaned out the inside of the truck, I did the windows. Then Jeff got busy checking and cleaning the hitch. We had supper early because we are going in for one last time to watch Sissy tumble. She really loves it.

After tumbling class we went to Seth and Katies's to watch the home opener of the Blackhawks. They will raise the Stanley Cup Banner first. The ceremony was good, the game not so much. They didn't win. We took Hailey home with us because her daycare was going to be closed tomorrow. One last overnight stay. That's a pleasant surprise.


Thursday October 8- She likes to come up and help me clean the shower house. We had appointments for the dogs to get there shots today. When we got back we plugged in Hailey's new easy bake oven and got busy. Hailey was so excited to mix and bake all by herself.

 

This day was Hailey day, what she wanted to do with us we did. After baking she wanted to go for a walk to the park and swing. It was a pretty day to be outside.























When we got back from the park she helped me make sugar cookies...big people ones. After we headed in to Ashton's hockey and drop Sissy off. We left a little early to go downtown to the Fab Four a Beatles tribute Band concert at the Paramount Theater.

What made this extra special is this is the place Justin and Molly have picked to get married in. It was a beautiful theatre. They redid the whole thing after the flood. It's going to be a great venue to get married in. Now on to the show. It was really good. They had a man introduce them that did a great impression of Ed Sullivan. The whole show was really impressive. Everyone sang along and
participated. The funny thing was Molly is so young that she didn't hardly know any of there songs. We thought everyone knew all the Beatles songs.

After the show we headed on home. It was a great night. The show was amazing and it was nice to spend the night with Justin and Molly.


Friday October 9- Today I went shopping for fabric with Molly. I told her I would make her a quilt for her wedding gift but she had to pick out the fabric. Went to Pine Needles to look. We just happened to walk into a big sale. It took awhile but Molly found some she liked. Then we went to JoAnn's to see if they had more fabric that matched. I even got the stuff I needed for my Christmas ornaments. After our shopping I came home and made a big batch of homemade noodles. Having the family over Saturday for a meal. I making there favorites. We had a visitor stop by....Lennie from Palo. He is a retired fire fighter from Cedar Rapids we met out here. We did a bit of visiting and spent the rest of the night watching campers pull in.



Saturday October 10- Started the day as usual, cleaning the shower house, the last weekend for that. I got busy making my chicken noodles for tonight. I wanted to have them ready to eat so I cooked them and put them in the crock pot. I had the potatoes peeled and ready to cook. Then we sat out our chairs. Its really windy today so we waited to get the campfire going. Justin and Molly came out first and she brought stuff to make caramel apple sangria. We were excited for Seth, Katie and the kids cause Hailey got her hair cut. We couldn't believe she did it....9 inches.

We had a real nice campfire and sat around and visited. We had our supper and I think everyone loved the noodles. I couldn't believe how many they ate. It always makes you feel good to feed people when they enjoy it. The wind was crazy most of the day. We had a great dinner, love when our family comes together.

We ended the evening with smores over the campfire. They were yummy too. It was a great night.




Sunday October 11- I decided to try and add some new pictures to our digital frame. It went pretty good except some of the pictures were upside down. I tried to fix them but I couldn't get it done, so I just took those off. We got our buoys that we brought back from Florida so the kids could paint them. We are going to take them with us when they go. The kids had a good time and did a great job.

Now we will have a artwork souvenir that the kids have done. We cleaned up the mess and Jeff and I went out for pizza at Godfathers. It was very good. We timed it just right because we made it right on time to watch our sons, Seth and Justin play hockey. They did a real good job and won the game 10-1.

Monday October 12- It was a busy day today. Last day to clean the shower house. Then I came back and got busy at home. Did the laundry, cleaned the camper, washed windows in the truck, Jeff waxed the front and back caps of the rig. Getting everything ready to go. We took some more stuff up to store for the winter. I had some cookies to give to the park manager and ranger too. While we were out we noticed how much the lake has dropped. They say its down 5 1/2 feet. They are going to take it down 15 feet. We wont be able to see that until next year.

Tuesday October 13- Finishing  up all loose ends today. Jeff checked all the tire pressures and the tire monitors. We loaded up the kayaks, bikes, chairs, and the grill. We are so close. I put some things away inside too, We have been sitting so long I want to make sure I don't forget anything. We went to town to pick up anything we needed. We also filled up the truck with fuel so we are all ready. We went to Ashton's  hockey practice one last time. Seth told us the girl that sells Jr. Roughrider stuff is there tonight. We wanted to get something to support him even if we are going to be down south. Jeff found a nice cap and I got a shirt. We ordered a sticker to put on the truck with his name and number on it. Ashton was really excited because he got the number he wanted #7. He did great at his practice and I know when we get back he'll be even better. We are very proud of him. Now the hard part. We gave out our hugs and left.






















We stopped at Justin and Molly's to pick up our mail and tell them good bye. It was a quiet ride home. Kinda sad when we say our good byes. See ya in the spring.