Saturday, March 18, through Wednesday, March 29: Day Trips, Friends, and More Home Fixes

The dogs and Becky went on a day trip to Sedona. It is only 62 miles away. They left early Saturday morning. Becky knew that Sedona was going to be in the high 70s later in the day. Ramsey, her 10 year old dog, is not equipped for heat and long walks. His back legs are showing movement deterioration. But, he is a champ!

Strolling with the dogs on the three-block main street of Sedona is always fun. Lots of tourists stopping and asking to pet the dogs. They were thirsty when Becky brought them back from the walk. The truck was parked so that Becky could easily pour water into a bowl for the dogs. It was also in a position to get the portable ramp ready for Ramsey. He is then able to walk up into the truck.

Instead of going back home through Oak Creek Canyon, Becky thought it would be fun to drive the long way --- through the mining ghost town of Jerome and up over Mingus Mountain. Becky had not been to Jerome in almost four years. She had forgotten how narrow the streets were. Not a place to walk three Dalmatians!

Arizona highway 89A from Jerome to Prescott Valley is mountain driving full of switchbacks. Becky realized that she didn't need to do that again for some years! She and the dogs arrived home at about 2:30pm. It had been a 176 mile road trip loop. Fun!

Becky's sister Carrie sent an email. She's in! She is coming on the Grand Circle trip in July. Becky called Isabelle with the good news. They made arrangements to call Grand Circle the next morning to switch out Isabelle and substitute in Carrie. Becky also called Carrie. She needed Carrie to be available to also talk to Grand Circle --- making the reservation adjustments.

Well, the small town of Williams made it to the BIG TOWN league. A Vietnamese Nail Salon and Spa just opened up on Route 66!

Spring weather is here in Northern Arizona. So, on the first day of spring, Becky decided it was time to activate the backyard water feature. She spent several hours on Sunday picking up pine needles and pine cones in and around the backyard. So, Becky unwrapped the two pump motors, placed them in the pond, and using a hose, filled the pond up with more water. Then, she went to the RV barn and turned on the timer. Voila! The water falls began to gurgle.

Becky loves looking out at the water feature! It was also time to un-drape the barbecue and turn on the drip system. Becky got out the digital timer that manages the drip system. She noticed a sign on the unit that says do not leave out in freezing weather. Of course, the unit has been outdoors all winter!!!! Becky connected the hoses to the unit and turned it on. It worked initially, but then all the digital lights went blank. She reset the unit and it worked again. But, on Wednesday, it died forever.

Good thing that Amazon had a replacement unit that will be here in two days. Gabe, of Gabe's Heating and Plumbing texted Becky that the part needed to fix one of her furnaces has arrived. Gabe will be coming next Wednesday to install the part.

Becky's sister, Wendy, her husband Kai, and her brother, John have been in New Zealand visiting friends of the family. They are having a blast. Brett and Colleen have a large boat that has been used to visit some remote New Zealand National Parks.

Joey, from Summit Spa, returned with the right part to fix Becky's outdoor spa. He spent over an hour installing the new circuit board. Yeah!

Becky decided that it was time to wash the outside windows. The work chore was not perfect. She did not want to take off the window screens. Maybe when some visitors come to the house, Becky will have them help with that part of the effort.

Thursday morning, Becky woke up to a little over an inch of snow! Hello spring at 7,000 feet!

The snow melted fairly quickly. Ramsey was scheduled to have his annual check-up at the Williams Veterinary Clinic. Because he bites if he is restrained (muzzled), he always has to be sedated. While sedated, the doctor checked everything out. Mr. Man, as Becky often calls Ramsey, is getting up there in Dalmatian years.

Libby and Kelsey had their annual veterinary check-ups on Friday. Libby even had her teeth cleaned. This procedure required sedation.

That night, Becky had dinner with one of her former Union Bank bosses, Roy Henderson. Roy and his wife, Mel, live in Anthem, a community north of Phoenix. For Becky, it was nice to go out to a restaurant for dinner. She prefers not to dine alone 😎.

Saturday, Becky noticed that the Elephant Rocks Municipal Golf Club opened for the season. Her housing community is adjacent to the golf course. Many of the homes are actually built on lots along the fairways.

On Sunday, after church, Becky took on the task of vacuuming her home and mopping the Italian marble floors. It is amazing how much Dalmatian hair her vacuum picks up!

Another task that day was draining the spa. Becky is converting the spa from a bromine sanitizer to a chlorine sanitizer. The bromine was causing a chemical reaction and it formed black residue on the inside cover black. Yuk!

That night, Becky picked up a mini Hawaiian pizza from Pizza Factory. It was delicious!

Monday provided Becky with a nice four hour visit from Thousand Trails friends, Becky and Tom Poremba. They drove from Cottonwood to Williams for the day --- along with their darling dog, Moxie. Becky and Tom like to hike. So, Becky took her Dalmatians, and Becky and Tom took Moxie --- and they walked the Highland Ranch development for about five miles.

Moxie is so cute. She also loves to jump up on tree stumps!

After the long walk, all the dogs were ready for naps. The two Beckys, and Tom, headed out to have lunch in town. Becky and Tom had never been to the town of Williams. The Red Raven Restaurant was excellent as usual. After lunch, the three of them walked the three-block main street of Route 66.

Donna and David are in Ireland for a week visiting Emily. Emily goes to Chapman University in Orange and is overseas studying a semester in Limerick. Donna was kind enough to text Becky a picture from the Cliffs of Moher.

Joe and Stephanie Hap, who retired to Prescott two years ago, invited Becky to have lunch at their home off Williamson Valley Road. Becky decided to take advantage of the invitation and take the dogs to Prescott's historic Courthouse Square.  It is such a beautiful setting --- lots of green grass and smells of many other dogs.

Becky and the dogs arrived at the Hap home around 1:30pm. The dogs were ready for a nap in the truck. Stephanie made a special Indonesian dish as the lunch entree. It was like a layered soup. It took her two days of effort. I was very impressed and honored.

After the big lunch, Becky took her dogs, and Joe and Steph took their Bedlington Terrier --- Mr. Tux --- on a walk up their neighborhood street.

Poor Ramsey, his two back legs began to cave on him. He was not going to make it back. Stephanie stayed with Ramsey and Becky walked ahead to get her truck. Poor old boy! He may need one of those K9 wheel chairs that prop up his back legs.

Gabe, from Gabe's Plumbing and Heating, came on Wednesday to fix the one furnace. It took him about three hours. Becky was so thankful that she had renewed the American Home Shield policy in September! After Gabe left, Becky headed to Camping World to pick up her travel trailer. It finally was ready to be released from all of the warranty work and the three-stair replacement.

Becky hooked the trailer up and headed home. She decided that it needed to be put in the RV barn. It took Becky 40 minutes to back the trailer into the barn. It was challenging, but she did it!

Sunday, March 5, through Friday, March 17: Beautiful Weather and Home Improvements

Becky left Voyager RV Resort & Hotel on Sunday, to head closer to home --- Camp Verde. She is spending the night in a motel there.  Fun friends, Becky and Tom Poremba, are staying at the local Verde Valley Thousand Trails RV Resort for six weeks.  Becky met up with them in historic Old Town Cottonwood for an adult beverage!

Tom and Becky are full-time RVers, but they have a permanent site for the summer in their home state of Pennsylvania.

Monday morning was time to go pick up the dogs.  It was an easy 80 minute drive to Cinder Hills Kennel, east of Flagstaff.  Ramsey, Kelsey, and Libby love staying there.  Cinder Hills always posts fun photos of them.  Here they are with one of the employees!

On the way home to Williams, Becky stopped at Camping World to check the status of her travel trailer.  When she pulled into the parking lot, she saw her old 5th Wheel.  It had just been sold and was being prepared for the new owners.

Becky was told by one of the Camping World employees that the 5th wheel was used as employee housing in Quartzsite for several months this winter.  He said it was beautiful.  Yes, indeed!  But, Becky is so glad she was able to trade it in for her travel trailer.  Penny, in service, said that the work on her travel trailer should be completed this week or early next week.

One of Becky's furnaces was not igniting. She has an American Home Shield policy that has been in force since the home was purchased September 30, 2014. This same furnace was repaired in January. So, American Home Shield was contacted and Gabe, from Gabe's Heating and Plumbing, was called back to look at the furnace.  This time, he arrived with an associate. After an hour, it was determined that the furnace fan had burned out and a replacement was needed.  The procedure is to locate the part, get cost estimates, and receive approval from American Home Shield. Sounds like it may take a week to resolve. Good thing the weather is warmer!

Later on Tuesday, Becky headed back to Flagstaff and stopped by Jeff Karl Jewelers.  Several months ago, she commissioned Jeff to make a custom bracelet --- using the wedding rings.  Richard's rings were yellow gold. So, a credit was given to Becky and the bracelet was made from white gold. It was time to pick up the bracelet. Becky was very pleased with the diamond settings and the infinity design.  She wanted the bracelet to be something she could wear all the time.  It was be placed on her left wrist --- next to her Fitbit.

On Wednesday, there was a power outage in Williams and the surrounding communities. It lasted about an hour and thirty minutes.  Becky checked on the spa. Last year, after a power outage, the spa motor died. Unfortunately, the spa was not working again. Becky called Jeff at Summit Spas. He talked her through some steps to get the spa to work. Nothing. So, an appointment was made for his guys to come out to her home on Friday.

Over the last week, the weather warmed up dramatically. The highs have been almost 70 degrees. The golf course lost almost all of its snow.

Thursday, Becky once again headed to Flagstaff. This time is was a facial with Sue Kelly. She also stopped by her new insurance agency, the Leavitt Group. Since Becky is now an Arizona resident, she had to update all of her auto, trailer, and home owner insurance policies. Becky met with an associate, Karen Trujillo. It turns out that the owner of this agency, Mickey, is a neighbor of Becky's in the Highland Ranch development. Becky walks by her home almost daily. Mickey has two dogs that bark and greet Becky and her three Dalmatians.

Joey and Hayden, from Summit Spas, arrived midday on Friday. They opened up the spa's underbelly and diagnosed the problem.

Unfortunately, it is a bigger problem this time. The circuit board needs to be replaced. Jeff from Summit Spa called. He gave Becky some options, but it was going to be somewhat expensive. Can you say "cha-ching, cha-ching?" Becky approved one of the plans and the circuit board was ordered.

On Saturday, Becky decided that she and the dogs needed to go to Kaibab Lake --- about five miles away. It was a beautiful day. The lake was at a record water level. The campground component will open in May. It is part of the Kaibab National Forest.

Becky also had an appointment with Stephanie Petrie in Flagstaff. Stephanie was referred by a member of the Tirzah Hair Salon. Stephanie had written a book about her journey for happiness, meaning, and a quest for a spiritual life. Becky was on a new journey to regain her own spiritual life. It was an interesting meeting.

On the way home, Becky stopped by Safeway and purchased a nice bouquet to put in her bedroom. Vibrant pink roses!

On Sunday, Becky again attended the 10:45am service at the First Baptist Church. She likes the energy and the message of the pastor, Joe. It was a full moon that night. The skies in William are so clear. Becky tried to take a photo of the full moon through the trees in the backyard at about 4am. Difficult to capture!

Terry Kohl, a local electrician was called last Friday. The Summit Spa guys noticed that the GIF was not working on the electrical unit for the spa. Terry came over to look at the situation.

Yes, it needed to be replaced. Fortunately, Terry located one in town and came back the next day to install. Thanks, Terry!

A fellow from Aspen Security dropped by in the afternoon to deliver some outdoor signs that indicated that Becky's home was now being monitored. It was nice feeling the comfort of having this additional security. While Williams is a safe community, Becky liked knowing that her home is protected and that she and the dogs are safe.

Wednesday was the day Buffalo Fence & Barn Company came and replaced seven of the fence posts. This is an annual update --- as with winter weather, the fence posts slowly rot in the ground. Neighbor Jim is always kind enough to pay for half of the cost of repair on the north side of the property --- as Becky and Jim share that fence.

Becky received a call from her friend Isabelle. They have known each other since 1982. In November, Isabelle and Becky booked a trip with Grand Circle Travel --- Old World Prague and the Blue Danube. Over the past three months, Isabelle had been having some health issues. She met with a specialist in Los Angeles that day. He advised her to cancel her July trip. She was very apologetic and saddened to have to cancel. Fortunately, the bookings were separate. They had paid for a single supplement --- to each have their own room. Now, Becky had the opportunity to find someone to take Isabelle's place.

It is really fun to see the high water levels of the nearby lakes. Cataract Lake is a short walk from Becky's home. The dogs love to walk through the county park there.

Poor Joey, from Summit Spas! He left Flagstaff on Thursday with the wrong circuit board to fix Becky's spa. He didn't realize it until he opened the belly of the spa. Back to Flagstaff he went.

St. Patrick's Day was filled with the usual things --- walking the dogs, an errand to Safeway, and watching a Redbox movie. But, Becky called her sister Carrie. After getting caught up on family, Becky asked Carrie if she would be interested in going on this two-week July vacation to Warsaw, Prague, and Vienna, and Budapest. Carrie was very excited, would talk to her husband Brent, and call back tomorrow.

Becky did have the fixings to make a GREEN apple martini! Happy St. Patrick's Day!!!!