Second beginning

Well, it has finally begun.  Today is day number one of DALNKAL's Journey.  Last night we purchased our travel trailer and spent our first night in it.  All seems to be well with it.  The air conditioner works well as does all the plumbing.  It is used so a little work is expected but so far no real problems.  We are still trying to figure pout where everything will go in here (clothes, food, pots and pans ... etc).  In an RV space is a premium quantity so you can't waste any.  We have spent our first night at Montgomery Bell State Park in Burns TN.  This is out favorite camping location, so far.  We can only stay here for 14 days and then we have to leave for 3 so we may just take a short trip to Tunica, MS and stay at the Harrah's there.  We've been there before in the motor home and the campground is nice and they have a great pool.  May be a little early for that but we'll see.
   Karen retired on the 13th of April and I hope to be able to retire at the end of May.  We have taken the house off the market since we had little to no response to it and are now trying to rent it.  We had someone just about ready to move in and then they backed out so we have re-posted to Craig's List and have had some inquiries about it.
  We are going to Chattanooga, TN with Donnie and Leschelle and the kids for a week at the end of May and will let you know how that goes.  After that we are looking forward to our futur e travels and will keep everyone informed on here how it goes.  Travel plans have probably changed because of the price of gas these days but we are still intending to set out to somewhere.  We'll let you know where.

Wow! Has it been that long?

Just looking back and I see it has been a year+ since the last time I wrote on here, and what a year it has been.

We are both still working and still looking forward to the days we can get on the road. It has been a year full of health issues, financial issues and family issues. We have had to postpone our plans for a while. Hopefully by the summer of 2012 we will be on the road.

I have had some health issues that have, and are, being dealt with. This has led to some of the financial issues since I hadn't been able to work for most of the year. These issues have mostly involved gastrointestinal problems. First I wasn't able to get food down then later I couldn't eat anything without getting sick. Surgery took care of the first problem and diet changes were able to take care of the second problem. A food group called "Nightshades" is responsible. This includes tomatoes, potatoes, peppers(of any kind), and several other items. Once we figured this out, with my daughter's help and her mastery of the internet, things have gotten back to "normal".

My daughter, Jennye, and her family, husband Michael and sons Ezra and Boaz have come to live with us for a whileafter moving back from California and we have enjoyed having them with us since we hadn't seen them in two years prior to this. They are in the process of buying a home and preparing move, they hope this Labor Day or soon afterward.

Our plans for the future have us looking forward to the end of May 2012 as our projected day of actually getting on the road and moving on. We have taken the first step and purchased a vehicle that will pull the travel trailer we are interested in getting. Our home will go on the market this fall and we are hoping that the housing market has improved even a little bit since we tried last time to sell. This will be the next milestone for us after Jennye and family move to their new home.

I had been prompted by a dear friend to update this blog so, Janie, here it is. I will try to do better in the future and post more regularly.

Welcome to our world

Hello, our names are Don and Karen Laws. We are going to keep a blog of our life on the road. By June 2011 we will be living full time and traveling in our RV. We have an old Pace Arrow motor home which we intend to sell or trade in order to buy a travel trailer and vehicle to begin our journey with. We are both in our early sixties and very much looking forward to the next chapter in our life.

A Little History:

Don: I had been married for 31 years when my wife passed away. We had been making plans for our future ever since I retired in 2000. Our plans included an RV and traveling the country full time. How fortunate was I that 3 years later I would meed a woman who shared these freams. After retirement I went to nursing school and in 2002 I was able to get my LPN license from the State of Tennessee. I now have a rewarding job that I love and can look forward to doing at least part time in the future. I have a wonderful wife, two great children and quite a remarkable extended family. Between Karen and I we have 12 grandchildren. We can't wait to see all our grandchildren and family all over the country.

Karen: Like Don, I had been married for almost 30 years. My late husband, Bobby, passed onto another life on Feb. 21, 2001. After living all my life in Eastern Jackson County, Missouri, I moved in to Franklin, Tennessee in May of 2001. I lived with my oldest son, Tim and his family for 2 years. Then I met Don....on Match.com....can you believe it????? Well, it was love at first site for me. It took Don a little extra time. We were married in July of 2004. One of the things that drew us together was our plan to let "wanderlust" take place. Shortly after getting married, we began working on a plan to set out on the open road in our retirement. May 26, 2011 is our target date for starting our adventure. One of the major objectives of our travels will be to visit friends and family that we have scattered all over the country. There are grandchildren that we have not had the opportunity to spend quality time with. We have both been blessed to have a combined total of 7 grand here in Tennessee....but there are 5 others out there that we want to spend time with. Join us, by visiting our Blog, as we enter the final stages of our planning. For those who have known me for sometime, you know that my life is always an adventure, filled with hills, valleys, and the occasional curves. Put your seat belts on and lets get this ride started.

So, welcome to our world we will be adding posts as our preparation for this next chapter unfolds.