Liam Benjamin Arrives!

      Several months ago, Ben and Joanne announced to the world that their family would be expanding by a factor of 1,  Debbie and I put together a plan formulated over several weeks and months, to correctly guess our grandson's name, (BIG SECRET) and to arrive in San Diego PRIOR to his arrival.  Looks like we pulled it off perfectly!

     As we worked our way home last Spring, the twitter feeds were going crazy as each cousin tried to guess the sex of the pending baby.  I myself, did not want to know, and even though I made that point very clear to everyone involved, the beans were spilled about 30 seconds into the conversation ongoing on the web with all the family.  But Ben and Joanne had a tougher secret to hold.  They had let it known that they were expecting a boy, but the name was going to remain a secret until his arrival. Could they pull it off though?
     As the months passed over in NY, Debbie soon tired of talking about "the baby" or "Baby Doo."  Our grandson needed a name, and since Ben and Joanne weren't ready to give him a name, then it was up to us.  After all, Ben and MaryAnne were named long before their arrival, and look how nice they turned out.  So after tossing several names around, Debbie announced one morning that the baby's name was now Liam Jeter Doody, aka: "LJ".  Jeter being Ben's most favorite Yankee of all time, Derek Jeter.  And so for several months, whenever he came up in conversation, we referred to him as either Liam Jeter or LJ.  So now Ben and Joanne's family had expanded from Jamo Franklin Patrick to JFP and Liam Jeter Doody.  They seemed to fit together just fine.

 

      Then at Katy's wedding, Debbie let it slip that we had named our grandson Liam Jeter Doody, and the cousin's went wild!  They loved the name!  Especially Anna!  "Whoa...whoa...whoa...that's not his name!" Debbie tried to explain.  We just made it up cause he needed a name.  By this time, Anna loved the name, and was going to use it if Ben doesn't.  What have we started?
     Anyway....per our plan we were to depart NY right after Katy's wedding, meander west making planned stops in Cleveland, Moab, Utah, Monument Valley, Utah, and arriving in San Diego on 9/25/2016, the day before Ben's birthday.  That should put us in town 2 weeks before the pending arrival of Liam Jeter. We set up camp at Santee Lakes Recreation Preserve, a few miles from Ben and Joanne.  This location seemed to be perfect since it was a few minutes drive over to Ben and Joanne's if we were needed (baby alert), but far enough away that we're not in their faces all the time.

We arrived right on schedule, and settled in at Santee, enjoying the fine weather San Diego was giving us.  Well into the 90's during the day, but cooling off nicely in the evening.

 On Ben's birthday, we gathered up the clan and headed over to Coronado Island and had a great dinner at the Coronado Brew Pub.  On Sunday, Debbie and I drove a little east on I-8 to a viewpoint to view the Blood Moon that was scheduled to arrive.  When we arrived there, we were amazed to see lots of stargazers with cameras, tripods and telescopes, joining us.  And right on schedule, just after dusk, the Blood Moon rose over the hills of Japatul Valley, and put on an amazing show for everyone.


















      On the morning of September 28, 2016, we received a call from Ben advising that Liam was getting ready to make his appearance, and that the show had begun.  Debbie and I hustled over to the house to get our marching orders on handling Jamo, as Ben and Joanne headed for Sharp Mary Birch Hospital for Women and Newborns.

 Debbie and I had actually expected this to occur the previous evening, since the Blood Moon or any full moon tends to make these things happen.  MaryAnne was born on a full moon night, and the maternity ward was full!  At about 11:50 AM, they headed out, and Debbie, Jamo and I sat back to enjoy the quiet afternoon.



At 8:44 PM, he arrived, and Ben announced that he was named Liam Benjamin Doody. He weighed in at a health 8 lbs 6 oz's and 21 inches long.
We truly had no idea how close we had come in guessing the name, and Ben and Joanne couldn't believe it either!  Not bad for a couple of old guys.  You kids have to remember that we know you like a book.

     We got our first look at our grandson around 10 PM and everyone seemed to be doing just fine. He was guided into this world by a fine Irish Doctor and graduate of Notre Dame, named Dr. Kellie Shannon.  He should be coming home tomorrow to meet Jamo.  That is going to be a show, and I wouldn't miss it for the world.

We are all thrilled to make his acquaintance, and welcome him into the world.  And look forward to watching him grow into a fine young man.  

May you always walk in sunshine.
May you never want for more.
May Irish angels rest their wings 
beside your nursery door.
And for the proud parents: 
May God grant you
a wee bit of heaven
to cradle in your arms -
a sweet bonny baby 
to hold close to your heart
A newborn babe
brings light to the house
warmth to the hearth
and joy to the soul
for wealth is family
family is wealth.

Grandson Watch in San Diego

     Debbie and I arrived in Santee,CA a few days ago, safe and sound after completing 3196 miles of our journey.  At the present time we are sitting in a very noise waiting room, awaiting the arrival of our first grandson.  I'd fill in his name, but the parents to be, Ben and Joanne, have done a good job at keeping that little factoid a secret!  But it looks like the secret will soon be out, as the birthing process is moving ahead quite rapidly.

 Last night was the Blood Moon, and Debbie and I were pretty confident that Baby Doo would soon be arriving.  About 11:30 this morning, Ben called saying they were heading for the hospital!  So now we have a little time on our hands, so I'll catch up on our journey thus far.  Don't worry, if something happens, I'll cut back with the breaking news.
     After Moab, we traveled a few hours south for a scheduled visit to Monument Valley, the location for several John Wayne movies including Stagecoach, She Wore a Yellow Ribbon, and countless others.
 Again the scenery was spectacular and was soon obvious why John Ford chose this location for so many of his classic westerns.  Numerous other pictures have used Monument Valley including Back to the Future and several James Bond movies.
     We camped for 2 nights at Gouldings Campground, which provided us with a spectacular view of the numerous buttes and mesas in the valley.   The sites are a little tight, but the pull-thru we requested was adequate.  It's preferable for us to reserve pull-thru sites when we anticipate not utilizing Yozo after we're parked.  The site was level, but the dirt was a little problem.  Some crushed stone on the site would have eliminated a lot of red dirt being tracked into Big Red.

Debbie and I were amazed at the number of foreign visitors who were visiting the area, traveling in every type of camping vehicle you could imagine.  Rental RV's were quite common, along with vans where the occupants actually slept on the roof in a tent that extended out of a Thule type rooftop carrier.  Many were camping in tents.  We met one family from Australia who were on a 5 month journey across America.  Debbie gave them several tips on visiting NYC, and they were very appreciative.  Lake Placid was on their list, so we were confident they would be enjoying their time in NY.
     Goulding Lodge is located about half a mile down the road, and the entire facility is located on the Navajo Reservation.  The Trading Post, first opened and operated by Harry Goulding and his wife Leone, nicknamed Mike,in 1921 is now a museum, and many  interesting artifacts can be seen.  The depression era had a significant impact on the Trading Post and the Navajo Reservation, and Harry heard of a Hollywood Director named John Ford, was looking for a location to film Western movies.

 Harry took pictures of Monument Valley, and within a few weeks John Ford and a young actor named John Wayne arrived for the shooting of the movie Stagecoach.  Admission is free, but remember, we're really visiting a Navajo Reservation, and "donations" are expected.  I don't think you'd get through the front door if the wallet didn't come out.  They do survive on tourists though, so it really should be expected.  Behind the Trading Post is a movie theater that has nightly John Wayne movies, but bring a cushion for your butt, cause they went cheap on chairs!  I like a good John Wayne movie, but I wasn't willing to sit through a movie.
   

We climbed aboard the Goulding Tour vehicle, and headed out to view Monument Valley with our Native guide.  Before long he had the tourists speaking Navajo, and shouting at the numerous tours passing by us.  We passed through the entry booths, (remember....Navajo Reservation) but the tour cost obviously included the cost of admission, and we breezed past the lines of cars awaiting entry.  We soon made a right turn and headed down a red dirt road leading into the Valley.

     I certainly would recommend utilizing a tour guide to tour Monument Valley.  We traveled down several roads into the back country which were clearly marked as private roads.  The tour guide was able to provide many unique factoids which made the trip very worthwhile, and we even met up with a small number of wild Mustangs.  We did not stop at the Visitors Center, so I can't comment on that.  Our tour lasted  almost 4 hours, which seemed just about right.  Gouldings also provides a shuttle between the campground and the Lodge/Restaurant/Trading Post, and that was very convenient.  After returning from our tour, we cleaned off a lot of dust, had a great dinner at camp, and took the shuttle to the Lodge to enjoy a wonderful view of the Valley at sunset.

   

The next day we broke camp and headed for our next stop near Phoenix.  Temperatures were pushing 104 as we pulled into our campsite, and we settled into cool  Big Red down.  Twin a/c roof units got the job done for a little while, till our transfer unit decided to act up, forcing us to utilize the 30 amp plug instead of 50 amps.  Now that we are settled in at Santee, I had hoped to work that problem with the repair shop.  As a matter of fact, I was on hold with Tiffin in Alabama, when Ben called this morning.  The following day we cruised across lots of desert before making the climb up "the grade" to Jacumba.  From there, it was downhill to Santee.  Road temperatures pushed 100, but Big Red had no difficulty pushing uphill for 14 miles.
     So our cross-country adventure has transformed into the magic parents and grandparents dream about.  The arrival of a child/grandchild.  I can honestly say that Debbie and I seems to be enjoying this transition more than Ben and Joanne.  But they'll catch up soon enough....😂😂😂!!!  Debbie has had a couple of days to try and explain to Jamo that a new best buddy was coming soon.  But he's still trying to figure out what that baby swing is doing in his living room???  He'll figure it out soon enough.  I would bet that before long his favorite seat will be underneath the highchair!
     It's been about 8 hours since this adventure began, and everything is going just fine.  Ben is exhausted since he's been going about 24 hours now.  We know that Joanne is being a trooper, and working hard to bring this child into the world.  The Grandparents are doing fine, and it sounds like all the cousins are up to date back in NY.  I'll go through my photos and finish this blog up tomorrow.  Looks like you'll have to read the next entry to see how this turns out.  Take care everyone, and we hope everyone is well tonight.

Canyonlands National Park @ Moab

     Debbie and I spent 5 days meandering around the National Parks and various other attractions Moab, Utah has to offer.  Everywhere we turned, a spectacular rock formation appeared and amazed us. While in Moab, Debbie and I attended a talk sponsored by the Moab Information Center entitled Stars: The Night Sky.  The  speaker was the Director of the Planetarium in Salt Lake City, Seth Jarvis, who got a little off topic, but gave a wonderful symposium on Pluto instead. He had a very unique ability to explain abstract concepts, and put them in terms even people such as myself could understand.   International Dark Sky Association, has just recently teamed with the National Park Service and certified Canyonlands National Park and a Dark Sky Place.  The certification took many years to complete, and as expected, the NPS was pretty excited.

  ANYWAY.....the following night, Mr Jarvis, the National Park Service, (NPS), and several other astronomers came to Canyonlands NP and allowed everyone in attendance to view the night sky, as many of us had never seen it.

Mr Jarvis was able to wow all participants with his ability to identify stars and constellations, and it was truly an amazing night. Neither Debbie nor I had ever viewed Saturn through a telescope, and it was amazing having Mr Jarvis explain to us how to find it in the night sky.  But then we could actually see Saturn's rings through several telescopes, which made it truly incredible.
     Every National Park is unique, and Canyonlands lives up to everyone's expectations.  I'll include several photos of the park, and hopefully inspire some of my followers to come out west for a visit on their own.  Utah is an amazing state and needs to be explored at a leisurely pace.

We also took a road trip up Utah Rt. 128 which followed along the Colorado River,  allowing us to see some dramatic cliffs protruding along the river, But we were also able to view the way visitors are able to enjoy the Colorado River as it meanders southward.

 It seemed to be quite peaceful on its journey, and we were told the wild water begins at the meeting of the Green and Colorado Rivers a little further south in what's known as The Needles.  

We're heading south for Monument Valley and the home of numerous westerns starring my personal favorite, John Wayne.  I apologize for the numerous photos and little blah,,,blah...blah.., but the scenery we're experiencing and enjoying is capturing the show.  Just a few days out from San Diego and we'll soon be spoiling Jamo as we wait for Baby Doo to arrive! 

Moab, Utah

     On Thursday, 9/17/15, we arrived at our first targeted destination at Moab, Utah.  As we crossed from Colorado into Utah, we were amazed to see the speed limited raised to 80 mph!  But the road took us out into the high desert where there was absolutely nothing for miles and miles and miles.  Turning south from I-70, we soon reached our destination at the Spanish Trails RV Park.

Beautiful scenery surrounds us as we relax beside Big Red enjoying a nice Rondacker.  On Friday we had a short drive over to Arches National Park, where we purchased our America the Beautiful Pass for $80, which gives us unlimited access to our National Parks for 1 year.  We will quite easily get our money's worth from it.  Next year, our fee will drop to $10 for a Senior Pass which is actually a lifetime pass.  Can't beat that deal!
     As we entered into Arches, we were absolutely awed by the magnificent rock formations that greeted us.  Water, ice, extreme temperatures, and underground salt movement created the rock scenery at Arches.  That, and 100 million years of erosion has left us with over 2000 rock arches that must be seen to be believed.  There is a primitive campground in the park which necessitates reservations be made a year in advance.  I've selected a few of the hundreds of photos I've taken the last few days, but I would definitely recommend a visit to the area to see this in person.

Canyonlands National Park, and a journey up UT. 128 along the Colorado River will be following.

The Journey Begins

     On Sept. 8, 2015, Debbie and I bid farewell to Mooers, and pointed Big Red in a Westerly direction, and began our Going to See America 2016 adventure.  Seems like we tend to work off of a fiscal calendar instead of a yearly calendar, but that tends to work for us.  Of course, knowing that nasty weather is on the horizon is a wonderful incentive to begin most journeys out of the Northeast in September.  For at least 2 weeks prior, Debbie has been packing and unpacking Big Red, as she decided what was going to make the travel team, and what was not.  Sometimes I was wondering if I was going to make the team, but then I remembered I was tasked with driving.  It took me about 3 hours to get my belongings into Big Red, but t-shirts and shorts tend to fill my wardrobe while on the road.
     Two days prior, we attended a wonderful wedding of our niece Katy, down in Saratoga, and that was quite an event.  Seems like life events such as this are the only times that families get together.

 People seemed to be amazed that Debbie and I are doing what we're doing, but we certainly do enjoy wandering the country and visiting friends and family, and making new friends at every stop.  As we began our odyssey, we crossed paths with our dear friends Randy and Retha from Texas, who were traveling eastward across NY on their adventure.  Amazingly, we met at a rest area on I-90 near Buffalo, NY, but only had a quick visit with them.  We'll meet up again with them in Texas probably in February.  They've been on tour for several months now, and Retha's allowance seems to be holding up quite well.
      Our next stop was visiting the Lagasse clan in Ohio, which involves several days of visiting, drinking and eating.  It used to include shopping, but since space is limited on this train, Debbie has cut back quite a bit.  Families are important to us, and we definitely realize how fortunate we are to be able to be able to do what we're doing.

Bob and Char's grand kids keep multiplying, and it seems like each year we meet someone new.  The new arrival this year was Michael, who already is destined to be a football player.  I picked him up, and I can tell you that he is rock solid!  On Saturday, 9/12/2015, we began our journey westward in earnest, hitting I-70 with the east coast in our rear view mirror.
     Our journey across America's heartland was uneventful, as Debbie worked the "paper charts" and world wide web, locating overnite camping locations.  We soon found that all campsite reviews are not completely honest and trustworthy.  Some that looked perfectly fine online, ended up looking like the front yard to the Bates Motel!  But there is lots of help out there, and our friends on RVillage came through with stopover recommendations along the way. As we started across Kansas, we were met with a 20+ mph headwind which made for a long day behind the wheel.  The wind continued into Colorado, and Utah, as we made our way toward Moab, Utah, our first goal for the trip.  Outside of Denver, we found a nice park operated by the city of Lakewood, called Bear Creek Lake Park.

It is located just a few minutes from I-70, and is a great place to overnite of spend a few days.  Red Rocks Park  is located just down the street in Morrison, Co, which seemed to be like small town America.
     Our next adventure put us back on I-70 heading for the Eisenhower Tunnel, located at an elevation of about 12,000 ft.  Seemed like we went straight up, and we climbed out of Denver.  Debbie commented that we went up 1000 feet in 5 minutes, but the Cummins diesel on Big Red just purred as we worked our way up slow and steady.  The road was quite deceiving and even when it looked like we were going downhill, we worked at keeping our rpm's and speed up.  Something very important to remember should you ever make this trip over the Rockies.  Pressure seems to build in all your liquid containers, so be extremely careful when you open them......even days later!  Debbie discovered this phenomena when she opened a ketchup bottle a few days later, and it literally exploded.  It was quite difficult containing my laughter, as she cleaned ketchup from the ceiling!   I believe Debbie's memories of our previous experiences in motorhomes was evident, as we worked our way up and over the Rockies.  (We did have a wonderful time in "Bummer!")  But on Big Red, the engine brake worked perfectly, and it was actually a wonderful journey.  The aspens were golden brown in some locations, and the views were amazing.  I've got some great video from my GoPro, mounted on the dashboard.  We hit our first rain on the downside which made a mess of the jeep.  But we cruised into the Spanish Trails RV Park Moab, Utah, right on schedule.  And that is where we intend to spend the next 5 days enjoying the fabulous vistas that surround us.
      So that's where I'll stop for now.  We've worked our way through Arches National Park, twice, and attended a star gazing party in Canyonlands National Park.  I'll share those experiences in my next post.  Hope everyone is well.