Summer Updates and Fall Travels

I can’t believe that I haven’t written a blog post in months and I am sorry for not keeping everyone updated. Life got in the way this past summer with medical issues and work camping taking up all of my time. Thankfully, my arm is finally on the mend although it is going much more slowly than I would like.

In the last blog, Tim told you about my broken arm and surgery. Well, recovery was not as smooth as we would have liked. I ended up with a post operative infection at an abrasion that must have happened when I fell. The abrasion was slightly below the incision so when it got infected, the surgeon was worried about it spreading to the incision and eventually to the appliance he installed. He restricted my movement in a brace and stopped physical therapy until it was healed.

Unfortunately, that took a few weeks, with various antibiotic treatments; none of which seemed to work. I developed chills and a fever after starting my third and fourth antibiotic so ended up in the hospital for IV antibiotics. While there, I developed a rash and swollen ankles. They weren’t sure if it was all due to the infection or I was reacting to the antibiotics. At least there, the doctors listened to me and actually gave me an antibiotic that the culture indicated would work. After 2 days of the treatment, I was feeling better and the infected area looked much better. The various doctors thought all of my symptoms were a reaction to the antibiotics and not the infection so I was sent home with no more treatment.

Since then, I have been slowly getting better. The infection seems to be gone and the wound is healing nicely. I was given the go ahead to get back to physical therapy with no restrictions. The only issue was that my arm was now very stiff due to being locked in the brace for so long. That means that therapy is taking longer as we work to get my arm stretched out so I can straighten it and bend it as it should.

We stayed at the campground in Altoona a few extra weeks for therapy but I still needed more. Luckily, I was able to transfer with the same therapy company to our first planned stop in Batesville, IN. We stay here to visit our daughter Kim and planned a 3 week visit before we traveled south west. I extended our stay so that I can get 4 more weeks of therapy. My doctor was worried that still wouldn’t be enough so he also ordered me custom braces that I have to use twice a day to stretch and bend my arm as well as move my wrist fully.

This brace stretches my wrist. I have to use it with my wrist turned and held to each side for 30 minutes the I have another brace that bends and stretches the elbow and it is down each way for 30 minutes as well. So two hours of stretches twice a day.

Between the therapy exercises and using the braces, I don’t have time for much else. Luckily it seems to be working. My arm and wrist are still a little stiff, but I have a lot more movement and can do most daily tasks fairly easily even if it is a bit awkward. My therapist is very pleased with my progress and feels that in two more weeks, I will no longer need the hands on therapy. I also finished all of the tests for sarcoidosis and luckily at this time, it is only on the skin. My eyes and lungs were clear. I have to go back every year for scans and tests to verify that it doesn’t change.

Enough of all of the medical updates. Now for a travel update. Tim had really hoped that I would learn to drive the big truck and get my license to be able to haul the trailer so that I could help with the driving. With the broken arm, that didn’t happen this summer. He has been having some carpal tunnel issues again so we were both worried about driving the truck and trailer. After some discussion, we made a big decision very quickly.

We were on a waiting list for a seasonal site near Pymatuning Lake in Linesville, PA and were offered a site. Since we had never been at that campground, we decided to take a ride up and check it out before making a decision to set up there as our home base. How did you get on a list but were never there, you ask?

My brother John and his wife Carol have had there camper there for a few years and were very happy with the campground. After talking to them and the owners, we felt we would like it as well. After seeing it and meeting the owners in person, we felt it was a good fit for us. The price was right, the site was large and a bit shaded so it seemed like it would work out well. The only issue was that it would not be easy to move the camper in and out of the site with the narrow road and trees. We thought if we took the site, we had to leave the camper there and use something else for travel the rest of the year. You guessed it, we signed the lease.

With that decision made, we decided to look for a class c motorhome quickly and somehow make a deal to sell the truck so we didn’t lose too much money. The truck was great for pulling the fifth wheel but just not practical for us. It wasn’t the best decision we ever made but it could be rectified. I felt that if we got a class c motorhome I would be comfortable driving it and the car we have can be flat towed so we can eventually ride together.

Since we have had good luck working with Ansley RV in the past and they were just down the road, we just shopped there with a little comparison online. They had a 2024 Jayco Greyhawk 29 MV which had a layout that I really liked. Smaller space inside than the fifth wheel, but plenty of kitchen cupboards and countertops as well as nice bedroom storage. Tim would have preferred a diesel super c, but that would be bigger and again I was worried about driving it. With our time limitations as well as my arm limitations, we went with the Greyhawk.

It doesn’t have the theater seats that we wanted but we can always change that in the future. Selling the truck was a little challenging. We needed to do it quickly and wanted to work with Ansley’s and use it as a trade in, so that we could get the sales tax break. We called the dealer in Florida where we bought it. They gave us a reasonable offer and were willing to send someone to pick it up. Ansley’s agreed to moved the fifth wheel after the truck was sold to their dealership so we could move our stuff into the new motorhome. They also agreed to deliver it up to the new campground for us. So even though we had to move fast, it all worked out very well.

We had a week to use the motorhome at the campground in Altoona before we left so we got to try it out and make sure everything worked. We did have a few issues; some were us learning how to use all of the digital controls and some we needed Ansley’s to fix before we left - like a leak below the bathroom sink. With as much resolved as we could, we left on a Friday and headed over to Grove City KOA to stay for a weekend.

Our new stie. We inherited a small deck and an old shed

That gave us the weekend to winterize the fifth wheel at the campground before leaving it there for the cold weather. It has been a few years since we had to do that. It definitely took us longer that we anticipated so good thing we had a couple of days to get it done. Finally we were able to travel so we headed out to Ohio for a quick overnight stop in Zanesville and then on to southeast Indiana. So far, I have done the majority of the motorhome driving. It is very comfortable for me to drive. Eventually we will get the car set up to be towed. In the meantime, Tim is driving the car.

Since we have been here, we have gotten to see Kim and Greg a few times and hang out with them. We plan to spend some time in Cincinnati this coming weekend with them. In the next blog, I will tell about some of the things we got to see and do in this area.

Kim and greg along with their pup freddie came for a visit. He and trent could be twins!

With our delay leaving Pennsylvania and our extended stay in Indiana, I had to alter some of our fall travel plans. We are now taking a faster route out to Arizona but should have some nice stops in Missouri, Oklahoma, Texas and New Mexico before we get to our winter stop in Arizona. Stay tuned for updates and blog posts as we start traveling again.

Blog

Exploring Tomorrows

Welcome!