USA 🇺🇸 ~North Carolina “From Winter to Spring 2025”

• May 11, 2025
• By Pen
• 0 Comment

Though I’m not doing monthly blogs this year, while staying in one place, I still like to record some highlights in our life, so here is winter thru spring, in North Carolina.

Winter Happened!

Well the Arctic Blast made it down to coastal North Carolina in January. There hasn’t been snow like this for many, many years. It was quite pretty and especially since we didn’t need to drive anywhere.

Naturally, I made “Snow Ice Cream”

I decided to make a coffee cake. I always get out the eggs and butter, to allow them to get to room temperature, before mixing….Only thing is, when we get up on these cold, cold mornings; anywhere between 16 to 26 degrees, The Whale is only 38 degrees, on average, inside.

We could run all our heater, all night, but RVs aren’t known for their insulation against frigid temperatures, so that’s like throwing money out the window, which we won’t do.  We have electric blankets and sleep very comfortably during the freezing temps. Getting up is a little chilly, but after we get heaters on, it doesnt take too long to warm up…. Sort of like Camping 😂

Last month, our electric bill was $247… and this was before the Arctic Blast we are receiving, where temps were hovering just above freezing, and didn’t run any heat at night. We are bracing ourselves for a steeper bill, this month, because we do leave one heater on low, all night, because of major freezing temps, outside … so this is why we manage the heat this way…

My eggs and butter will get there in an hour or so! 😂😂😂

There was snow at Onslow Beach, too!

Meanwhile, in Maysville, the Richardsons were enjoying their snow-day, with no school

To mark the end of the Arctic blast, we had a beautiful sunset!

I Had Another Birthday

The gang was all here! I love my family!
❤️❤️❤️

Winter Freeze

When I was a little girl, my family lived in Massachusetts. I remember lots of snow; sledding, frozen ponds and ice skating…. When the sleet wrapped around all things like limbs and power lines, we called it a silver thaw….

Love the icicles….

Our Aqua Hot furnace quit working, efficiently… might be a pilot light issue, as it’s clicks off and on…..so perfect timing for this cold snap.. NOT! It draws from our diesel tank. Daryl did the yearly maintenance and replaced filters and such, so it should be blasting out the heat. We are a cool 54 degrees, inside The Whale, God Bless‘er.

It won’t get over freezing all day, and our repair guy didn’t make it, yesterday… now icy roads, today, and we hope to see him, tomorrow to fix our problem. Well our mobile guy decided to retire. Obviously he had enough. The good news is, by Tuesday we will be using our A/C… it’s one crazy winter this year!

Our Agua Hot basement heater runs on electric, so it is doing fine, thankfully since this keeps our pipes from freezing. We also have a heated water hose for outside water source into The Whale.

#happycamping

Onslow Beach

This winter has been mostly just very cold and not very stormy; more of a dry winter. Last year we had a very stormy and wet winter, which actually churns of the ocean floor and can bring in more shark teeth.

This year, Chelsie and I have only gone a few times and have found very few teeth, and tiny teeth at that. So, we chalk this up to an off winter, in the shark tooth hunting department. We feel like storms create swells in the ocean that dredge up goodies from the sea floor. We just didn’t have any storms that did this… mostly way cold and dry.

California Fires 

Fires are still burning in California….the loss is staggering for coastal areas, including Malibu. It’s heartbreaking!  New fires keep popping up. Rain is suppose to be coming, so please help us pray fire crews get the assistance they need…

Our home is around the blue dot area of Laguna Beach. There have been some fires started near there, including one in Lake Forest, where our storage unit is….but crews have, so far gotten them out, quickly. All we can do is continue to pray.

Zoe The Zodiac

Zoe the Zodiac got moved, today.

First, the campground said no parking boats in our driveways of our lots. Then $35/mo storage fee cost at campground. Then storage fees jumped to $75/mo for the boat storage, (along with big increase in lot fees too) all in a very short time, and we could not justify the boat storage. It was either sell the Zodiac or park it at Chelsie’s house.

Thanks Chelsie!

North Carolina, Today

My Thanksgiving Cactus I have with me in The Whale, has gotten a little confused with the super cold and then warm weather…. But I love the sweet bloom! My Christmas Cactus, Chelsie is keeping for me, has also started blooming…
Kinda cool, for sure.

Mission Accomplished!!!

The Whale was in desperate need of new toppers, which cover the slide-outs. There are three, total, and we did the two largest ones. (living room and kitchen slide-outs). Our mobile RV people went out of business, due to health issues, so we were on our own. We ordered the new material, from Winnebago, and Daryl watched some UTube videos.

Chelsie is ALWAYS ready to lend a hand, for which we are grateful, and by the second 1/2 day, on day 2, the new toppers were installed and operational, sans a a few pinched fingers on Daryl.

The test will be when it rains, next week, but we are optimistic!

Wild and Pretty!

Daryl brought home a beautiful wild bouquet from the woods….

He’s simply the best!
❤️❤️❤️

Also, living where we live, there are many, really old, large Wisteria plants (that have turned into trees). While their bloom is a short period of time, they are just so pretty and enjoyable!

Daryl brought me the last of a bloom, close by….

This Happened

We had a broken water pipe that went undetected for a while, in our house in California. It created quite a mess. The good news is, the repairs have been done, well, to the tune of $24,000.

Our tenants are crabby, but all we could do, was apologize, about our house breaking…. They also did not have to pay rent, during the repair phase.

I would like to point out that we ALWAYS recommend our tenants secure renters insurance, for cases like this and other events that would require repair. That way, they can live in a hotel away from the repair noise and drama, but they never listen. 

Oh Jonah

Sooooo, following the devastating fires in Southern California, my VW Bug insurance went from $90 a month, to $153 a month!

I made a call to our insurance company. I was told there are over 9,000 vehicle claims for total loss, in California at this time. Isn’t that why we pay for insurance to begin with? We pay our premiums in case there is a need for claim. Where has the money gone for those of us who pay for vehicle insurances for decades and don’t make a single claim in that time?

Insurance is such a racket!

In addition, I was told (about home insurance) if things don’t change, soon, the price there on premiums will increase 1,000 percent!

The Critters

Daryl has way more patience, than I……

He hangs shelled peanuts on this stick tree he planted in the ground. He also places a few walnuts around for the squirrels to find, too.

We actually watch the squirrels sniff around for the walnuts, (first choice), then they remove the peanuts…. One by one, till they are gone…. They climb, hang upside down and have to tug at some of the peanuts to get them… it’s so funny, because there is a bowl full of peanuts under the picnic table at all times, so this wildly entertains us, watching them.

We saw our first hummingbird this week and now, looking for more! (they migrate) We also have bunnies visit us and enjoy carrots and apples I put out for them. We are watching many Cardinal birds, too… a favorite. They like the sunflower seeds.

We also learned the two varieties of woodpeckers we do see… LOVE peanuts, too. I hung a feeder with some cracked raw peanuts pieces for them. It was hit, the first day!  I added the doggie kennel with birdseed inside, to deter the larger birds from being such big pigs. Now, the little birds get to eat without bullies who don’t fit as well through the squares….

Yes, we are so retired! 😂😂

Daryl Also Has a “Squirrelfriend!”

…..Our retirement morning begins with this cutie, who is the only wild squirrel to get this close for the coveted walnut…… so brave, and she gets her reward and runs!

We Are Celebrating This Young Lady!!!

We Have Exciting News!!!

Our granddaughter, McKenzie, got accepted into Onslows’ Early College High School!

There were over 100 applicants who tested and interviewed, but just a few spots were available for incoming Freshman. She begins classes on August 5th, and when she finished High School, after four years, she will have that diploma, as well as an associates degree!!

We could not be more proud! Gonna do a family celebration next week, too!

Such a big deal!❤️❤️❤️

We have summer weather, so we put some steaks on the grill!

It’s very busy with three kids in sports, thru the rec center, so Friday-Sunday… lots of games. It keeps us all very busy for sure… especially Chelsie, since weekdays they have practices, too…

Whew!

It was great to carve out time to break bread, together, today!!

Love. Love. Love them!

A few nights later, friends and family gathered at Kenzie’s restaurant of choice; Mexican, where she ordered a hamburger 🍔 😂….to celebrate her greatest achievement to date: getting accepted into Early College High School.

Super, Super proud and excited for our granddaughter.

Funny story:
So this summer, instead of the doing a beach house rental, again, for spring break for the kiddos, we decided to take them to Great Wolf Lodge. Spring break was in April this year and we got the reservation. As it would turn out, McKenzie is traveling to Washington DC through school, and they are going during spring break…. Soooooo I called Great Wolf and changed the date to August 5th. When Kenzie got accepted into her college high school, I eventually asked; “So, when do you start classes?” She said August 5th. 😂😂😂

Soooooooo I changed the date for a third time, to July 8th.

We REALLY look forward to this adventure and hope the date works this time!

THIS Was Unexpected

It’s always a labor of love, where The Whale is concerned…between our house in California and her… we are always figuring out something, it seems.

$421 for new pump, plus labor.

So we, as in Ray. had to pull the master toilet out, (macerator) since it decided to stop flushing.

We thought it was the censor that would need replacing, but we were so shocked to see this “thing” on the discharge pump. No wonder it stopped flushing. Yes, very gross, but still curious, if this is a normal finding. Through a FB site of Winnebago owners, I got sort of an answer. A retired plumber said they call these “Biscuits,” but he failed to say what the biscuit are from…..Our friend who’s doing the work has replaced parts on these same toilets, before, but has never see anything like this….It looked mummified, so if it was 💩 it did not smell… it was actually, rubbery.

We already bought the sensor awhile back, when the flush button didn’t want to work for a time, then, so it’s going in, too, anyway, since this job is labor intensive, as you can see….it was like a $200 part. Great news is, Ray put in a water turn-off valve on just the toilet, while it is disassembled, so we can turn water back on in The Whale, while we wait for the part.

Just waiting on the new pump, to get it out back together…

Thanks to our neighbor friend, Ray who is doing the job!

Noodle Time 

While we wait for our pump to arrive, to finish our toilet repair, we had another project underway, which is now complete!

As I mentioned, prior, Daryl and Chelsie rocked replacing the new topper material on both sides of The Whale. These toppers roll into a tube, when slides are brought in. They roll out, when slides are put out. They are essential for keeping rain from coming inside!!  Historically we have had some issues with our super slide side, and imho I think the design is faulty, having such a long slide, and not broken up into two slides….. because that is one, VERY LONG topper that is highly impacted by wind.

We live at the coast, so we have our share of wind and when these toppers flap they are noisy and they can tear away from the spring-loaded attachment. Once that happens there is no fix, and we must buy another topper ($400 for the super slide side).  It’s easy to say, well just bring your slide in, if it gets windy. It’s not that simple. We deal with gusts of wind, that come with no warning. Those are the damaging winds I speak of. When we know a hurricane is coming, we will drive away from our area in The Whale, but for tornado warnings, there is no time to drive away, but we can put slides in. Other bad storms with 60 or more mph winds we also put slides in and hunker down.

So we got creative and put partially blown-up small beach balls under the toppers to control the flapping, but that was a big fail… the balls came out and were flying all over the campground. 😂😂😂

Next up, we got about a dozen pool noodles, which we now call topper noodles, since a pool is not involved….enough pvc pipe to fit trough their center and enough nylon rope to go through the pvc pipe and all the noodles, for tying together.  Daryl did a great job, putting all the pieces together and got the topper noodles strung across the material up top and tied-off. We have had plenty of wind the last few days and they are working!!!!! Yay. It’s quieter and the material isn’t at so much risk for tearing…. So far. We can tighten the rope quite easily as things get stretched out…..

We will have to untie and bring down the noodle configuration to put in the slides, but that won’t likely be till Hurricane season, when we get the warning…

To say we have had our share of stresses over the winter and spring, is putting it mildly. Like always, though, we focus on the bright spots and that helps. For me, I also continue to paint, when the mood strikes and I feel creative. I am definitely having fun.

Here are some pictures of my paintings that have kept me busy and distracted, when needed.

Soon it will be May!!

Time is not standing still, by any means. The camp grounds opened the pool, but it’s not heated, so we will see what the next month brings for warmer water temps. We are having beautiful weather, so this is good.

After 11 months of wildly UNSUCCESSFUL dieting, where I prevented more weight gain, but did not lose but a few pounds, I really switched it up, now. It’s hard to believe I can stick to such a strict regiment for sop long, and fail, but those are the facts.

The good news is, at only two weeks in, on a strict Carnivore diet, I am noticing results very quickly! It’s not even about weight loss, but it’s more about losing inches. Because as I ingest so much protein, I’m replacing fat with muscle. Muscle weighs more than fat The strict part is Zero Sugars. Zero Carbs, AND I only eat animal meats and animal fats. No fruits. No vegetables…. Basically no plant based foods.

It feels like the very thing that started causing me weight problems to begin with were the fruits and veggies, flour sugars and especially seed oils.…. No matter that portions were tiny, until I rid my body if ingesting any of these modified foods, I wasn’t going to win. I’ve been doing some research and many people are experiencing weight issues because our metabolic make-up has been impacted and compromised through modified foods… basically ingredients that are not natural; the seeds, soil, water, air.  It doesn’t matter how well I’ve eaten, the “healthy stuff” has been poisoned and that’s why I haven’t reached goals.

The good news is, our meats have not been affected the same way, and it’s a bonus Daryl works at the butcher shop and knows meats.

I eat when I’m hungry. I stop when I’m full. I do not count calories. I enjoy my coffee again because I can add heavy cream, guilt free!  I’ve learned how to make a yummy bread, some delicious recipes and all using allowed ingredients. I do add dairy, because my body is tolerating this, and still I’m having success. Some people can’t lose weight if they add dairy….. just saying. I love eggs, meat and real dairy products from animals.

Anywayzzzzz. It’s early on, but I’m feeling optimistic. I love that my appetite has diminished and I don’t even think about food….. ALL DAY LONG, from being so deprived.

Softball 

McKenzie is enjoying playing softball this spring, and I just love watching her. They are doing very well, and I love that they pray before their games.

Unlike the boys soccer games, which are all on the weekends, Kenz plays some games in the evening, under lights. This way Daryl gets to go, otherwise he’s working through the weekend.

Chelsie is also doing her co-ed softball games and is part of a great group of men and women. I watched her play the other night and it’s such a joy for me!

SOCCER

Both Rylan’s Luke are still doing soccer and loving it. Weekends are full of games. Rylans team are in the playoffs and they keep winning, so each weekend, there are still more games!

Lukes team haven’t gotten to playoffs, yet, but soon!

I’m Going to Panamá!!!

It’s been 10 years since I’ve been on a girls’-only trip and that trip was Peru, with my friend from Texas; Tonya! WELL, I’m so excited to get to be meeting Tonya again in Panamá in just a few days! I’m actually beyond excited!!!!!

Today I got my nails done and I’m almost all packed, too. I actually bought a new carry-on suitcase, because I wore my other one out, doing full time travel, prior.

We will be exploring old town Panamá City, plus boating on the American Canal, plus spending three days and two nights enjoying the chain of islands called San Blas, (their Archipelagos) in rather rustic conditions.

Yes, I will do a separate blog on the Panamá trip!!!!

Future Travel Plans

Daryl is going to try to get a trip in to see his oldest daughter and her husband, in Sweden, this summer. It’s been years since he has seen her/them. (She married a Swede, and moved there)  He may also get to California to visit his younger daughter.

In the fall, we both might try to get a trip in, on the Amazon in South America for a few weeks.

When our world gets better, we do plan on getting back out in the world to finish traveling, full time, where we left off, when we had to come back earlier than planned. This time, though, we are tossing around an idea for Central and South America….. we want to drive! And, if that is successful and we want to continue, driving, we will ship our outfit to Africa and travel by truck there, too. We don’t feel like we want to do Europe this way, but we can go back to living out of suitcases, to finish up what is left of Europe for us. We are anticipating about two years of go go go, on this adventure.

I’m the meantime, we just re-upped our annual contract for our annual camp spot. We won’t see a full year, here, but it’s not a bad place to be until we can take off again. We are so ready to get going, but must be patient a while longer…..

So I feel like this is a good time to end this blog and start working on another like it, for the summer time.

See ya later….