Meandering the Country

November 13 - 27, 2020 For our time in Columbia, we stayed at the Barnyard RV Park in Lexington, South Carolina.  The RV park is conveniently located between Columbia (South Carolina’s capital) and Lexington.  There is a small, rarely used dog park on the grounds which has dog agility training equipment in it, so it was fun working with Frankie on the various equipment. Right next to the dog park is a large open field which we regularly used to play Frankie’s favorite – frisbee.  As we were playing frisbee, I began to notice a pecan (or as the locals say, pee-can) here and there.  Yes!  There were three pecan trees (towards the end of their season) that allowed me to gather enough nuts to make a pecan pie and at least a few other dishes!  I did need to go to the nearby flea market to purchase a nutcracker for $1.00.  Although the campsite does not include a fire ring, we were able to rent a ring from the camp of...

October 27 - November 10, 2020 On our way from Iowa to Nashville, we spent a couple of nights at Camp Lakewood Campground located in Effingham, IL.  This was a beautiful campground we really enjoyed!  The one downside was the temperatures!  We actually had to pull out our winter jackets and PJ's!  Haha!  It's time to be getting a bit farther south! We camped at Nashville North KOA while we were in that area.  It's a KOA, so not a whole lot to say about the RV park itself other than it's safe, quiet and in a good location for proximity to seeing Nashville area sites! We spent the better part of a day touring Ryman Auditorium – so cool!  It was originally built as a  church in 1892.  When they discovered the congregation could not financially support the building, they allowed the building to be used as an entertainment venue.  Before long, it became known as the "Mother Church of Country Music".  Well worth the time to see this hi...

October 13 - 27, 2020 Meeting Norah!   In late September, we had spent a couple of weeks with Maggie and Luke, helping with some final preparations for the arrival of their daughter.  We had planned on having a baby shower while we were there, but with COVID being on the incline, the shower was cancelled.  I did still "shower" Maggie with a few gifts I had prepared, one being Norah's baby quilt and the other being her Christmas stocking.  It wasn't quite the party we had planned, but we still had a wonderful time!   We spent our days (while Maggie and Luke went to work) stocking their freezer with meals for after Norah was born and doing odds and ends jobs about the house.  We were also able to meet up with good friends who live in Ankeny (Jane and Blake) for a picnic lunch.  Jane and I went for a delightful walk while Dick and Blake rode their bikes on the High Trestle trail.  It was so fun to see them and to catch up with each other! B...