Last days of the rally - Yr 1, Day 237

Arcadia, FL

First, I have to give a big shout out to Mitch - he replaced the water pump all by himself!!!  That's the 3rd huge project he's undertaken so far (replacing the toilet seal, and restringing the blinds being the others).  He finished just as it was time to light Shabbat candles, which was followed by hors-d'oeuvres and happy hour (Mitch brought another batch of Bloody Marys; I brought some sangria).

It was also decided that we are going to stay here for another 10 days - leaving Tues. 2/24 while we plan out where we're going next.  We want to be in Raleigh the week of March 23rd, so we may head back up the way we came (maybe visiting Cape Canaveral, Savannah and Myrtle Beach again.  I will work on the planning more this week.

Saturday morning was nice and relaxing.  After prayers outside, we took our magazines and read for a while.  Then, from 1:00 until about 4 there was an open house where everyone could have a tour of each other's rigs.  It's really nice to see what other folks have done with their rigs.  I even got a few ideas.  For example, I really don't like the fabric on our couch but replacing it or getting slipcovers isn't really an option right now.  Someone pointed out that if I just changed out the pillows to bring out more color, it would change the focus to the color and not the print.  What a great and SIMPLE solution!  Also, a nice runner or area rug could also liven up the place.  We also found some good material to use to add a backsplash behind the stove, and I learned about a great organization system for my tea collection.

Saturday night was a chili cookout - I brought the vegetarian version of course.

Mitch also bought a journey map the other day when he was at Camping World buying the transfer switch.  I can't wait to fill it up more (we are only counting those states where we've camped in.  So far, NC, SC, FL):

Which leads us to today--Sunday and the last day of the rally.  It was kind of bittersweet saying goodbye to almost everyone, but hopefully many of us will meet up again down the road.  Fortunately, a few folks are also staying for another day or 2 (more below). 

After goodbyes, we went out shopping to Winn Dixie and Walmart.  I was hoping to find the runner and pillows but, alas, they did not have what I was looking for.  Unfortunately, there is no Target or Bed, Bath & Beyond closer than 30 miles, so we'll need to either take the trip or put this off for a little while.  There was a Winn Dixie closing down and whatever was left in the store was 40% off.  We hit a goldmine - found about 10 bags of kosher marshmallows!!! (normal ones are made with gelatin which is not kosher) as well as gefilte fish which was under $10.

When we returned from shopping, I put away the groceries while  Mitch cleaned up the mess outside the rig (with all the work he's been doing in the basement, everything had to be taken out of it).  We grilled some veggie dogs and enjoyed them with a salad outside while the sun was setting.  Mitch captured a lovely photo of a sand crane in the pond with its reflection in the pond during this beautiful sunset:

We decided to continue the tradition of the campfire and lit one around 6:30.  We had some awesome company with our friends who stayed:  Bev & Bill, Judy & Bill, Teri & David, and DawnRaye.