Willkommen Welcome, Come on in! Our website is kind of like our home. So come in, put your feet up, drink some coffee and stay awhile! As I was recently writing about the little town of Frankenmuth, Michigan, I realized that in many ways this website (and our YouTube channel) are sort of an extension of our home. Noelle here, by the way.

We write about places we’ve been, experiences we’ve shared, many miles of hiking and how we’ve felt about all of that too. It’s an expression of who we are, not only a re-telling of events or places. Well, that’s the goal anyway. I love to write. And I think Steve loves to write as well. But sometimes I do get stuck in the “here’s this cool place, here’s what you should see” style of writing.

And honestly, I don’t always enjoy it. I like writing about how the places we go make me feel. Sharing what I’ve learned or how an adventure has changed me is more of my jam. In what seems like a lifetime ago, I used to meet weekly with a group of ladies. We’d get together at my house to discuss a book we read together. We also shared our lives and our worries. Sometimes our fears and often we shared our joys too. So that’s kind of what I had in mind for this blog when we started it. The sharing of ourselves, so that hopefully we’ll hear from you and you’ll share about yourself with us.

People from all over the world popped in to check out our Pacific Crest Trail hike and that was great. It seemed like we connected with folks and we enjoyed seeing where you all come from. Admittedly, we don’t get as much traffic now as we did then and at first that really bothered me. Of course, my ego would love to continue having tens of thousands of readers on the regular. But honestly, I’ve not sat down to write for about five weeks and it turns out that was a necessary break for me.

Maybe because it’s the beginning of a new year. Or maybe because we’re trying to figure out what’s next for us since we really have to stop dipping into our “house” money and start generating an actual income. But certainly, I’m trying to figure out where I’m heading with this blog. How do we extend a Willkommen in a way that our readers…you…really care about? Feel free to leave me a comment. Or shoot me an email. Tell me what you’d like to read about. What interests you about what we’re doing?

Willkommen to us, all over again. As we sort out what 2022 looks like for Steve and I, we’re glad you’re along for the ride.

Right now, we’re back in Colorado Springs visiting Steve’s parents. We’ve had a couple sunny and warm days, enabling us to take his mom out for walks. She’s such a joy and a bit of a firecracker too!

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In an effort to make life easier for Bill, we hooked him up with an old school land line, switched his iPhone to a flip phone and recliner to lift chair. Damn dementia, the “easier” flip phone is creating confusion. And the lift chair, even with my handy-dandy diagram, isn’t so easy to operate. I think I’m going to write to the manufacturer. Remotes need to be simple for the elderly. Chair remotes, tv remotes, any type of remote. Just like Bill, my Dad had some of the same struggles.

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Speaking of my Dad, we’re coming up on the second anniversary of his death in a week or so. This morning, some birds were pecking on the top of our camper by the skylights. I was a little annoyed, thinking they would damage something, when Steve said, “I think that’s your parents stopping by to say hello.” Awwww!!! That’s the sweetest!

Here’s a little remembrance of him from a train in Bangkok…

Anyway, I’m sweating as I type, even though I’m in short sleeves and I’ve removed my shoes and socks! Steve’s Dad keeps his apartment at a balmy 80 degrees F. Oh my word. I keep having hot flashes. Ha! Later this month, we’re planning to be in Quartzite, Arizona, where it’s supposed to be warm this time of year.

We’re attending the RV Show that starts on January 22nd, then we’ll be staying for a truck-camper-only rally the second weekend in February. We’ve not been down there before, so I’m looking forward to it. Tons of people go down every winter and it sounds like a great place. Close to Mexico. Also close to California. So maybe we’ll even hit the California coast for a bit.

In other news, I recently celebrated 56 years! That’s weird. Our oldest grandson turns 18 this month. That’s even weirder. I celebrated with free donuts and a Blizzard.

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Then crab and Christmas lights with one sister and brother-in-law. Trish and Ben share a Willkommen spirit with us! Dinner with friends too, while we were home over the holidays. On the rough side, both our boys and their families caught the Rona, so that dampened our time together, which was a total bummer. But we’re glad they’re all okay.

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I’m over the whole Covid experience…as I know we all are. It’s just stupid. Hopefully, 2022 will see some improvements.

I’m not entirely sure of where I headed with this post. But maybe it’s just a necessary ramble to clear my head, if that makes any sense. Willkommen. And thanks for sticking with me and with us. I feel honored that you keep following along to share our journey. And seriously, leave me a comment to tell me what you want to read about…or what you don’t…