I got back from a couple weeks in Atlanta last Friday, we left the Wilderness Lakes campground about mid-day on Sunday, and headed up the hill to Idyllwild.  The car and RV were separated for this trip that saw quite a bit of tight curves and hills.  I love it when there is an S curve sign, and it says “Next 22 Miles”.  The RV did pretty well, and the new official Blog Photographer enjoyed the ride.  Molly has taken up to using our Nikon D40, and just snapping pictures of everything.   You’ll see some examples below.

This makes the 5th time that Diane, Molly, and I have been to Idyllwild.  For Molly, the first time she was still in Mommy’s tummy, and she was just one year old for the second trip.  We then had two Christmas time trips, and had Megan, Ed, and Victoria with us for the most recent.  This time, no cabin or rental lodge, but our RV and a nice spot at the Thousand Trails campground.

There’s hardly anyone here, and most of them are the park rangers that have either spent the winter, or moved in to prep for the summer.  The office, pool, restrooms, laundry, and fishing pond are the only things open right now.  For me, the quiet is VERY nice.  The roads around most of the campsites are a bit tight for navigating the RV.  There are some that are even dirt, and with no activity yet this season, it’s sometimes hard to tell where they run.  Finding a spot with sewer seems tricky too, but I’m hoping to investigate more to make that easier in the future.

We’ve got some plans to be back here in late June, but we’ll write about that in a later post.

Since Sunday, we’ve purchased some fishing poles and tackle, and Molly and I have fished in the pond a couple times.  The ranger said there’s only small bluegill left in the pond, but we were able to pull out a tiny trout.  Hopefully it survived being tossed back in.  Based on the bites we were getting, I’m pretty sure there are quite a few small ones in there, and they’re mouths are only big enough to nibble the bait, and not take in the hook.  Molly picked up the casting really well, even with a bobber and bit of a leader on the line.  We found the fish really like sharp cheddar cheese too.

Last night, the forecast called for a significant amount of rain to come through.  The laundry got done about 30 minutes before the sprinkles started, and by about 11, it was raining pretty good on and off.  I got up this morning right after sunrise, and found that it had actually snowed.  We had a pretty good dusting, with about a half inch or so on most above ground surfaces, like the RV roof, the car, picnic tables, and on the ground where there was some fallen foliage.  I woke Diane so she could see, and then took a bunch of pictures for Molly.  You’ll see a couple of these shots below as well.  Unfortunately, the snow was gone by 10am.  It was a bit unexpected, since we’re at about 6200 feet, and the snow level was supposed to be at 8000.  I expect there’s a good amount up at the observation area above the Palm Springs Aerial Tram.  We’d talked about going up there, and may later.  The girls have been congested, and the trip down the hill and back up on Monday kinda did a number on their ears.

We’ll be here till Sunday, and then we’re back down to Wilderness Lakes for a few days, then an event with the Komfort Kruisers in Valencia.  Should be a fun Cinco de Mayo themed event with them, and we’re looking forward to catching up.

And now, some of Molly’s fine photography, and a couple shots of the snow from this morning.

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We had applied the Postcard theme from WooThemes (see link lower right part of page) a long time ago.  And, it’s had all kinds of crazy links and logo’s added to it along the way.  I finally got around to taking one of the photo’s of the RV, and getting it in suitable shape for a banner of sorts, and I took the time to organize all the other “stuff” that’s accumulated over time.  Much cleaner now.

We’re also getting ready to move from Menifee into Anaheim.  I’ll be traveling and in Atlanta 3 of the next 5 weeks, so the girls will be staying someplace a bit nicer, and close to friends and family.

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This looks awesome.  We’ll have to stop by next time through.  I’ve seen the signs, but just kept going.  Very intrigued now!  Thanks Jason and Nikki!

What is “The Thing”? | Gone With the Wynns.

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The main reason we had scheduled a week in Las Vegas was for me to attend a class there on VMware products.  It was a fantastic class, and I learned tons.  This will greatly help me at work, as I’m supposed to be the “VMware guru”.  I feel more guru-ish now.

While there, our fulltime family friends showed up, and we got to spend a few days with them before we split up again.  Lot’s of hanging out and chatting, a trip to the Hoover Dam, and a lovely dinner with super excellent fish taco’s, nacho’s, and such.  I enjoyed the Hoover Dam tour, and getting to say “Dam” without Molly charging me a dollar every time. 🙂

The whole “gang” has kinda been together on and off since early February I believe.  We had met the McCloskey’s earlier, but met up with the Travaglino’s and Garrison’s in Quarzsite for a visit, then “living” with them starting at Pio Pico.  Now, some are headed up the western coastal states, others to the north, then across to the Northeast.  All the talk of moving on, and the planned changes for Megan’s living arrangements have inspired Diane and I to look at making some excursion plans as well.  It looks like our summer will have us touring CA, but the fall will see another trip east.  This time, as far north and east as PA, then down to FL, and then a slow trek back.  We’ll be out there for Halloween in NY or NC, Thanksgiving in GA, Christmas in FL, and just to see if certain family members are paying attention, we should be in IN staying at the Horseshoe Lakes Thousand Trails during the Covered Bridge Festival.

Ok, back to Vegas…

We enjoyed the campground there.  It is a bit cramped, but the facilities were nice, and clean, and the staff was super friendly.  You can see certain undesirables in the area outside the park, but they are kept outside.  We’ll have to check it out again in the future, when the pool is open.  Also, there are a few other RV parks/resorts that are located nearby as well.  They didn’t seem to be gated like the Thousand Trails, but the rates looked low, and the grounds looked well kept.

Our next stop… Menifee, CA, for a week or two.

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Finally adding Nevada to our “Been to” State Map.  Had a nice tail wind for the drive, which is super awesome considering the rise in gas prices.  Hopefully they shift to our next destination on the day we’re heading out. 🙂

The Thousand Trails park here is TIGHT.  Not sure how the 40 foot or 5th wheel people do it.  We got a spot that faces off to the mountains, and we’ll be out exploring soon.

We went out for a bit of an adventure today.  First, some chores around the house such as laundry, and finishing some camp setup.  Then, off to Vegas!  Molly had wanted something from the David and Golliath store at the shops in the Venetian, so we went there first.  This took a bit to park, then walk what seemed like 15 miles to the shop.  From there we went off to dinner at the Hard Rock Cafe.  Such a great and entertaining dinner, with great music and videos going, plus a touchscreen unit at the booth that lets you browse all the memorabilia they have.  Awesome.  We then stopped by the M&M store and Coke-a-Cola store next door.  Finally, ended the day with a stop by the airport to pickup a rental car.  This way, I can get back and forth to the class everyday this week, and the girls can still get around as needed.

It was a good first day.  Hopefully a bit slower tomorrow. 🙂

We had a great time during the month of February, but didn’t do much posting here. 🙂  At the beginning of the month, we were able to meet up with several other Fulltime Families that we’ve met via Facebook, here… http://www.facebook.com/groups/FulltimeFamilies/  You would need a Facebook account, and then request to join the group in order to see all the postings.  IF you are in anyway interested in living in an RV and traveling fulltime, it’s a good resource for information.

So, we met the Travaglino’s, who run http://www.fulltimefamilies.com/  I just saw that we are in a picture taken at Quartzsite, which is where we met them.  We also met the Seeley’s who own http://rvsunshadecompany.com/.  I expect we’ll be getting some of these sun shades in the next month or two, when they are back in AZ.  The McCloskey’s were there as well, and about 6 or more other family’s.  Our RV was in the shop then, so we only visited for a few hours that evening, and then parted ways.  But, as happens in this fulltime RV lifestyle, plans changed for some.  They decided to head to Pio Pico, then back up to Wilderness Lakes in Meniffee.  So, we adjusted as well, and caught up with 3 other families in Pio Pico.

With all the different plans and types of Thousand Trails memberships, people are in and out of these parks all the time.  The Garrisons were at Pio Pico, but then needed to leave because of their type of membership.  We had to get to better cell phone and internet, plus a planned get together with the Komfort Kruisers, so we took off to Pechanga.  After Pechanga, we headed back to Meniffee, and the Garrisons were already there, with an open spot right next to them.  Perfect!  A few days later, the McCloskey’s and Travaglino’s were there, and in adjacent spots as well.  After a few more days, in came Northam family came back after getting their truck all fixed up, and then the day before we left yet another (new) family arrived.  We had some good times swapping stories, laughing at ourselves and our kids.  Pre-teen behavior is kinda funny, even from adults. 🙂  A few field trips were held during the month, Sea World, a local Dairy, and some shopping outings. All the kids had a blast swimming, watching movies, playing mini-golf, and just hanging out.

But, life and work call, and it was time for us to head out.  I have a class next week for work, in Las Vegas.  We won’t be without company for long though.  Some of those families are heading out from Southern California for other adventures, as warmer weather north should be here soon.  We expect to see a couple of them here in Las Vegas in a couple days.

Just saw this article over at Gone With the Wynns, about a family making use of their RV to see the country…

Confessions of a Traveler…Meet the Garlands | Gone With the Wynns.

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We left our Komfort Kruiser friends earlier today, and headed up for a couple weeks at Menifee, CA, at the NACO Wilderness Lakes campground.  And… Our buddies the Garrison’s are here!  They had to leave Pio Pico before we did, and have arrived here at Menifee a couple days ago.  This place is PACKED, but luck was with us, and the spot right next to them was open!  Our timing was perfect it seems.  The girls were hanging out right away, and I got busy on catching up on the blog, which has been lacking since we left the RV for maintenance a couple weeks ago.  For all those reading the updates today, thanks!  Sorry for the big blast.  Hopefully I can be a little more regular, and possibly add some photos in the future. 🙂

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Last fall, we were contacted by the Komfort Kruisers, and invited to attend one of their events.  This was triggered by the fact we had joined the FMCA (Family Motor Coach Association) and our address (at that time) was in southern California.  It sounded like fun, so we ended up joining them in September at Canyon RV.  What a great group of people.  Granted, we are the youngest, but they are a fun and lively group.  Everyone is ready to help, and it’s been fun getting to know all of them.

We haven’t been able to join them again till now in Temecula, and since this is our second time, we are eligible to be voted in as permanent members of the club, should we choose to join.  It is a great group, and there was no question that we wanted to join.  Another couple, Rich and Jaimie, were also making their second outing with the group, and it was great to see that all of us were voted into the group.  We’re looking forward to more outings with the Komfort Kruiser gang.  Our next one will likely be in Valencia, in May.

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Had a great time over the weekend with all the Fulltime Families.  The evening group dinners and campfire were a nice change to our normal “just us” routine.  Got to chat with all of them at different points, and get to know everyone.  The kids all got along great too.  Seeing how they have things setup gave us  some ideas.  I definitely want to add a cell booster and upgrade my WiFi grabber ability.  Chris Travalingo has a nice setup that attaches to the TV antennae, and gets an awesome range, but I’ll do the cell signal booster first.  Just need to order the bits from Amazon or the 3G store.

And then…

There was a company call today, that would trigger a significant increase in my phone usage.  Couple that, with a degradation of the Pio Pico WiFi, and we had to move.  I made a call to the Pechanga RV Park in Temecula, CA, and they had a space available for us.  This was to be our destination for Thursday evening, but we needed to head there early in order to have good phone and Internet coverage for the work activities.

We’ll just be acclimated to our surroundings in advance of the big upcoming Komfort Kruisers event.

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