Home again, home again jiggity jig!!

Happy holidays faithful readers!

Just wanted to take a time out from the hustle and bustle of the holiday season to give everyone a quick update on my lineman and I!

We came home from Kansas City for Thanksgiving.  We traveled to my Aunt Lisa and Uncle Bill's place in Briscoe, TX for Thanksgiving dinner.  It was nice to be surrounded by family as we had dealt with a difficult family situation that week.  I won't go so far as to say we 'celebrated' Thanksgiving. It was more like we 'got through it' and made the best of it.  The highlight of it all was watching Olivia, Tripp and Drey play and laugh together.  Seeing those three cousins interact really soothes an aching heart.

Danny and I had stopped in Kellyville, OK on the way home and picked up D3.  It was nice to spend time with our oldest and have him for Thanksgiving.

After Thanksgiving, Danny and D3 went back to KC and drug our 5th wheel home.  We decided our time there was finished and it was time to move on down the line.  We had a little mini-break at home and on December 5th Danny left out for Little Rock for storm work caused by Winter Storm Cleon.   He returned home on December 8th and left out again on December 11th to start a job in Big Spring, Texas.  We've had our camper parked through all this but plan on hooking up again and dragging it down to Big Spring after the holidays.

Aaron and Alyssa arrived in Oklahoma today!  Aaron drove them down and they are at Danny's parents house in Broken Arrow.  Uncle Corey went to Kellyville and picked up D3 so he is with his brother and sister.  Danny is working tomorrow and then will make the 5 1/2 hour drive home and we'll head to Tulsa on Christmas Eve!

I've got all our Christmas shopping finished, wrapped and ready to deliver!  It was quite the whirlwind of shopping since we've been so busy lately!  We are both really looking forward to having our three kids under one roof for Christmas.  I remember how Malcolm used to just walk around with a huge smile when Heath, Holly and I were all home for the holidays.  I know now just how good that feeling is and why the smile couldn't be wiped from his face.

Next week will bring the annual Simmons Family Christmas Eve party, Christmas, wedding band/ring shopping, getting the boys fitted for tuxedos and Christmas with my family at my brother Heath's house.  Then it's back to Chickasha for a few days at our home with our kids.  They will go back home a few days after the new year and then it's back to Texas in the camper for me and Danny!

Wow!  This makes me tired just reading through all this!  Haha!!

From our family to yours, we wish you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!!!

Cheers!

Lake Paradise

Greetings from Missouri!

On September 12, we moved from Cottonwood Camping in Bonner Springs, KS to the absolutely beautiful Lake Paradise Resort in Lone Jack, MO.  This is the best RV park we've staying in so far!  Yeah, I know, this is only the third park we've been at but it is seriously beautiful!!

Lake Paradise is between Lone Jack and Oak Grove.  We are about 30 minutes from downtown Kansas City.

Obviously, you can see why I hand picked this spot for our camper!  The views are absolutely spectacular and so is the fishing!

We have discovered that Jaye is obsessed with fishing!  Anytime Danny gets the fishing poles out she goes crazy!  She will follow him all over the lake and wait patiently for him to land a fish so she can try and help him pull it out of the water.

When not fishing, Jaye is perfectly content to sit in her window seat behind the couch and enjoy the view!

We've been lucky enough to have some family come up to see us recently.  Danny's brother Corey came up several weekends ago and this last weekend, some of my family came up in the motor coach.  We left Oklahoma back in August and it was nice to see our families again.  We are, however, planning on going back to Oklahoma for Thanksgiving!  We sure miss everyone, but we know we are out here for a reason!  We have plans and goals for our future and we will do what it takes to make our dreams come true!

I'm still loving life on the road in our camper with Danny.  Many people ask me if I get bored but honestly, I stay pretty busy!  Danny and I love being together every day.  In our first three years together, we spent a lot of time apart so we cherish our time together.  The sacrifices we make are worth it.  We have an incredibly strong bond and it gets stronger every day!  

Next month is the one year anniversary of our engagement, can you believe it??  My little wedding planners back home in Oklahoma are handling the details for me and for that I'm thankful!  I'm not too picky about stuff and I don't like dealing with all the little details so I'm happy to let them take over!  I know it is going to be beautiful!

Well, that's all I have for now.  I hope you're all safe and happy wherever you are and I hope you're enjoying this lovely fall weather!  Take care and we'll see you soon!

Cheers!

Greetings from Kansas!

Well hello there faithful readers!  Sorry it's been so long since I posted.....life has been a little busy around here!

On August 6th, we arrived at the Cottonwood RV Park in Bonner Springs, KS.  We've had Aaron and Alyssa this summer.  They travelled along with us in Aaron's car and then headed on to South Dakota the next day.  They made it safely home that evening!  Alyssa started back to school at St. Joe's on August 12 and Aaron will start college at South Dakota State University on August 26th.  We had such a wonderful summer with the kids!  Alyssa will be coming back to spend Christmas with us.  Aaron mentioned that he might bring her down here for Christmas so we're keeping our fingers crossed that we get to see them both over the holidays!

Life is slowly settling back into place here in the 'trailerhood.'  ;-)    Our neighbor in the camper next door told us, 'if you're gonna have an RV, you're gonna be an RV mechanic.'  We are learning that lesson rather quickly!  We bought a brand new surge protector in OKC and when we plugged it in here we discovered that it was wired wrong at the factory!  Right after that our converter went out.  The converter converts AC power to DC power so none of our DC powered stuff in the camper would work.  It also affected our battery in the camper.........it wouldn't stay charged so every evening we'd have to hook up jumper cables to the pick-up and charge the battery otherwise all our lights would start to fade and the carbon monoxide detector would start going off!

It seems lately with the camper and our vehicles we've had nothing but bad luck!  The streak can end now as far as I'm concerned!

I love the area we're in now!  We are a 20 minute drive from downtown Kansas City, MO.  We are less than 4 miles from the Kansas Speedway and a super-cool shopping area called The Legends.  Last weekend they were having a GRANDAM racing event at the speedway and we could hear them going round and round!  Bruce Jenner was even there racing a Lamborghini!

Here's our home on wheels in her new spot!  We can actually leave the awning out without fear of it getting ripped off by hurricane force Texas winds!

This is the view from the nose of our camper!  Just over that hill is Bonner Springs but you'd never know it from where we are!  It is so quiet and peaceful but all the advantages of the big city are just minutes away!

Danny started back to work last week.  He is working for PAR.

Another cool thing about working here is that Danny is actually considered a 'local' since he is out of IBEW Local 53 in Kansas City.

Here is a picture of the Local 53 building.  I was excited to finally get to see it in person!  This area is a VERY pro union area unlike Oklahoma and Texas.  Oklahoma and Texas, of course, have unions but they are not very strong unions.  Since being with Danny I have learned so much about the union and what they stand for.  I have a very strong sense of union pride and I appreciate, not just what they do for us, but what they do for all American workers!  The IBEW has provided us with a very good life and I will never take them for granted!

Of course, Jaye is with us and loving it!  This is her overlooking downtown Kansas City from Local 53.  She is such an amazing traveling dog!  Nothing phases her, she is always up for an adventure!  If she thinks you are going somewhere she will do whatever it takes to get to come along for the ride!  She's my little saving grace while Danny is at work.  Life would be much more boring without her and her silly ways!

I hope you are all doing well!  We miss our family and friends but we sure do love life on the road!  We will probably be here until the end end of the year so if you want to take a road trip we'd love to see you!  There is so much to do around this area!  Until next time, take care!!

Cheers!

Shayla

Last few days in Texas

Hello all!!

Just a quick update on us:  this is our last week in Vernon, TX!  Not sure exactly what day we'll be headed back to Oklahoma but it will be this week.  A few days ago, it got up to 112 degrees here so I think we're getting out just in time!

We'll be taking our camper back home and dropping it off.  Then it's off to pick up Aaron for the summer (Alyssa is already here, she's currently staying with family in Tulsa).  We'll either be meeting Aaron in Kansas or Nebraska, then we're headed for Manitou Springs, Colorado for the Box family vacation!  Sure will be nice to enjoy the cooler temperatures of Colorado!  After working in the wind and heat of Texas, I know Danny is ready for cooler weather!

We will probably have the kids until mid July.  Got some work to do on the car we bought for Aaron and we also hope to share some fun times with friends and family!  After that, we will decide where we'll be off to next!  For the rest of the summer it will probably be someplace with cooler weather!  Danny has mentioned work in Montana but we shall see.  Of course, I'm still pulling for New Jersey!

We hope all is well where you are and we hope to see you soon!

Cheers!
Shayla

Introducing "Jaye"

I'd like you all to meet our new baby!

We adopted her from the Wichita Falls Humane Society on April 23, 2013.  That also happened to be the two year anniversary of the passing of my step-dad, J. Malcolm Hefley.  As a nod to him, we named her Jaye.

We were actually looking at a couple other dogs at the shelter that day.  Jaye was in an end kennel and when we started to walk away, she started 'screaming' at us to come back.  That's the only way I can describe the noises that dog was making!  We decided to give her a look.  We took her out into the play area and we knew immediately that this was the girl for us!  As soon as I looked at Danny and said 'this is the one' she leaped into my arms!  We were hooked!

This is a picture of her and Danny in the office of the humane society.  We were waiting on the paperwork to get filed.  She wanted to make sure we were not going to go home without her!

I'd like to address something that some folks have voiced out loud and I'm sure many of you are thinking.  "Why did you adopt a dog when you just gave two away?"

We don't owe ANYONE an explanation but I'm willing to give you one anyway.

We have been planning on me going on the road with Danny for quite some time now.
The biggest obstacle to making that happen was, first and foremost, me resigning my position at Chickasha Chiropractic Clinic.  The second was what to do with our three dogs.  My 13 year old rat terrier, Tai, was supposed to come along with us in the camper because she is small.  Very unexpectedly, she died in November.

At that point, we were left with Val and Shilo.  Val weighs almost 100 lbs. and Shilo weighs around 60 lbs.  That's a lot of dog folks!  In the three years these girls have lived with us in Chickasha, they have become very, very close.  I took Val to the vet one day and left Shilo at home.  She cried and cried at the fence when we left!  They prefer to be together and we knew that.  We happened to luck into a very fortunate situation where the girls could go to a very loving home on 300 plus acres with a lady who loves her dogs very much!

We had decided that if we could not find excellent homes for Val and Shilo we would take them with us.  I feel so blessed that we were able to find such a great place for them to go TOGETHER!  After living in this camper for six weeks now I know we made the right decision.  Every time you go outside, you have to put your dog on a leash.  Some people around here let theirs run loose but not us.  I don't want to run the risk of her getting hit by a car or attacked by another dog.  Val and Shilo are big dogs who need to run in big spaces!  I really don't think they would have cared for being stuck inside a 37' camper most of the time.  It's just not a good situation for dogs of that size.

Judith and her family keep us updated on the girls!  They are doing great and loving their new home and their playmates Smokey and Sammie!  They get to come inside the house a lot and I'm sure they love that!  They very rarely came into our house.  We would let them into the laundry room during severe weather but that was about it.

Now tell me these two aren't happy TOGETHER in their new home on the range!

People can think what they want, but I know we made the best decision for VAL and SHILO!  Their well-being was our top priority.

Now that the nay-sayers have been addressed, back to Jaye ;-)

She is just the sweetest dog ever!  She adores Danny and I and does not like to be separated from us.  We got her a wire kennel and she sleeps in it every night like a champ!  She makes me laugh every day and I'm so happy to have the company while Danny is working.  She most definitely picked us out and she is so happy to be ours!

We can't wait for you all to meet her!

Until then, I think we'll go take a nap.  :)

Cheers!

Two weeks.

It's a chilly, rainy day here in Vernon, TX.

Today marks our second week here.  In case you are unfamiliar with the area, here's where we are:

We are staying at the Old Glory RV Park.  There are a few linemen living out here but I think it's mostly pipeline workers.  It's nothing fancy, but then again, there's nothing really fancy about Vernon, TX!  The folks we've met here have all been nice.  The VFW is just across the road from us.  We've been over there a couple times for some beers and pool.  The spot we're in right now isn't the greatest but within the week we should be moving to a better spot where we'll have a bit more room out front.  We'll be able to set up a table and chairs as well as pulling our awning out.

One of my favorite things about being here is being able to buy Shur Fine foods!  For those who don't know, Shur Fine is kind of like Great Value.  A bargain brand that saves you a little money versus the name brand.  For me, I think it's all about nostalgia.  We grew up eating Shur Fine foods and just seeing this little label reminds me of growing up back home.

Danny always giggles at me when I come in from the store bragging about all my Shur Fine finds!  I know he's secretly happy though because I'm saving us money!!

It's all about the little things in life right?

This is Coy's Discount Foods.  They carry the Shur Fine brand so I LOVE going in here to shop!
There is also a really nice United Foods here in Vernon.  It's cool to walk in and see all the wines you can buy in the grocery stores here in Texas.  United has a really big wine selection!

Danny is liking his job.  They really need hands here.  Danny's foreman is really happy with him because he has lots of experience and is a real go-getter.   Once a week or so I make a big batch of breakfast burritos so he can take his breakfast with him.  I also make sandwiches for him for lunch the night before.  The main goal for us while we're here is to save money for this summer when we have the kids.  This will allow us to take time off and spend with them!  We actually got an offer to go to New York City to work!  Danny would have started this past Monday if we had accepted.  I, of course, was all about living in New York for awhile but for us for right now this is the best place for us to be.  We wouldn't have been able to take our 5th wheel with us and staying in a motel room in Chinatown would have run us about $500 per week.  Plus there are MANY for temptations to spend money in NYC as opposed to Vernon!  Someday however, we will get out to New York or New Jersey to work!

I really love our 5th wheel!  It is so cozy and comfortable!  There's something about crawling up into our bed at night to sleep.  It's like a little cave and we both sleep like babies up there!  It's really cool when it's raining.  Our bed is a slide-out so you can hear it raining right above you.  Very peaceful if you love the sound of rain like I do!

Well, just thought I'd post a little blog here while Danny naps.  He got rained out today.  Hope all is well where you are!

Cheers!
Shayla

Unemployment

I guess you could say my 'working' career started in Walsh, Colorado on a 4500 acre farm.  My Mom had re-married and we moved up there the middle of my 7th grade year.  I had enjoyed a pretty carefree childhood up until that point!  Working the land and cattle was no joke but it taught me a lot about work ethic and responsibility.

I eventually moved on to radio when I was in junior college.  I honestly thought that's where I would stay but by the end of 2000 I had had enough.  An ownership change at KRPT in Anadarko, Oklahoma had led to me hating my job and needing to move on to something different.

So, since I was in junior high I've worked.

The only exception was the month and a half between leaving my job at KRPT and finding my job at Chickasha Chiropractic Clinic in February 2001.

Until now.

Today was my first day of unemployment.  Thursday, February 28th, 2013 was my last day of employment at Chickasha Chiropractic Clinic.  A bittersweet day for sure but one that I'm glad is finally over with.  It took us a long time to get to that day and I'm glad to finally have it behind us.

I clearly remember pulling into the parking lot at the clinic to fill out an application.  It was my sister's birthday, January 18th, 2001.  I was running late as usual (I know you all find that very hard to believe).  I was going to meet Holly and my Aunt Cathy for a birthday lunch.  I remember seeing 'chiropractic' on the front door and I got a little nervous. I'd never been to a chiropractor and never really had a desire to go to a chiropractor but I really needed to get back to work and figured this would at least be a start.

On that day back in 2001, I never would have imagined it would lead to a 12 year career.  Now I can't imagine my life without chiropractic!  I have seen some things in that office that some would never believe!  My faith in chiropractic is strong and that will never change.  I've seen too many miracles to be convinced otherwise!

I also would have never imagined the true gifts I would receive in knowing and becoming friends with Bonny and Dr. Logsdon.  I liked them both instantly!

Bonny has turned out to be my best friend.  She is the type of friend that defines the word friend.  No matter how big or small the crisis is, she is there.

When my Nana passed away, the first person I saw step out of my house upon returning home from the hospital was Bonny.

She is also there to celebrate the good times!  Birthdays, weddings, showers, etc!  She makes a mean punch and is happy to bring it to any celebration!

Dr. Logsdon has also been a blessing to me over the past 12 years.  She is one of the most kind, caring, compassionate people I have ever known.  If she could treat patients for free and somehow still make a living she would do it in a heartbeat.  She never asks about how much a patient owes or has paid on their account.  She honestly only cares about getting sick people well!  When my step-father passed away, we were in Colorado for a week.  Dr. Logsdon actually came to my house and CLEANED IT!!  Now how many bosses do you know that would do that for an employee?

These two ladies have been a blessing to me and my family and I will forever be grateful to them both.  I know we will always remain friends even if we don't work together anymore!

So now on to the business of getting our 5th wheel ready to hit the road.  I know I am so blessed to be able to leave my job and go on the road with Danny.  He works so hard to provide for me and our family!  If I've said it once, I've said it a 1000 times, he's truly the best thing that ever happened to me!

I hope to document our adventures here on the blog so stay tuned!

Cheers!
Shayla

BIG changes!

"Any change, even a change for the better, is accompanied by drawbacks and discomforts." 
~ Arnold Bennett

Change has always been difficult for me.  The above quote really sums it up.  Even if it is for the good it can still be uncomfortable to change.

So here's the big news folks:  I am leaving my job at Chickasha Chiropractic Clinic and going on the road with Danny!  Back in November we traded in our Jeep for a pick-up.  This past Friday we signed the papers on a 2005 Keystone Montana 5th wheel RV!

While you collect your breath, let me explain a bit about Danny's job for those who don't know.  He is basically employed by the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Union (IBEW).  He is able to look at jobs around the country and pick where he wants to work based on pay scale, per Diem, etc.  He can also be called out for storms such as hurricanes, ice storms, tornadoes, etc.  Look at it like being an independent contractor.  When Danny and I met, in fact, he was working in Chickasha after an ice storm.
This sort of work offers a lot in the way of freedom but the drawback is time away from home and family.

During Hurricane Sandy, Danny was gone for almost 50 days.  He was home almost a week during Thanksgiving then he went back to New Jersey.  That's a lot of time apart.

We had been discussing doing this for quite awhile but the time away during Hurricane Sandy sealed the deal for me.

Danny and I have been together for almost three years.  Over these years, I have learned a lot about the 'line life.'  There are many, many wives who go with their husbands on the road.  It's called 'tramping' (insert giggles here).  Some rent houses, some stay in hotels but the majority of them have RV's.  It's the best way to have a home away from home.  More than likely, where ever we are, there will be other linemen and their wives in the same RV park.  It's a pretty tight little network of people!

I'd like to address some of the concerns people have had when we tell them what we're doing:

1.  Our house.  No, we're not selling our house.  We are going to come home periodically.  If there happens to be work around Chickasha we'll come back home and work awhile.  I plan on coming back every four to six months to check on things and see my niece and nephews and the rest of the family.  We have re-activated our ADT alarm system so the house will be secure.  We will also have people checking on things for us while we're away.  We are getting a PO box for our mail which someone will check for us once a week.

2.  Our pets.  We will be finding new homes for our fur babies.  This has also been a tough decision.  My Mom has lost her kitties so she's going to take Mia.  As for our dogs, we have a few people in mind but no firm decisions yet.  If we are unable to find good homes for them we will take them both with us.  Shilo and Val mean too much to us to give to just anybody!  Trust me when I say we are going to be extremely selective when it comes to finding them new homes and it will most likely be with a family member or friend.

3.  My health insurance.  I will be getting my own policy.  Whenever Danny and I get married I'll be on his insurance.

We let our families know what we were considering doing quite awhile back.  They have all been very supportive about our decision.

Last Thursday evening after work I told my co-worker of 12 years, Bonny, that I was resigning my position.  This has been the hardest part so far.  Bonny is like family to me and we have grown very close.  When I took this job back in February of 2001 I never dreamed it would lead me to a friend like Bonny.
I know this is not an easy pill for her to swallow but, as she does in most all situations, she carries on with dignity and grace.  Things have been easier for me since I told her.  It was like a little black cloud hanging over my head knowing I was hiding something from my best friend.

We hope to be on the road in approximately two months.  I hope to slowly step away from my duties at the office rather than giving a two week notice.  I feel like this is the very least I can do for two ladies who have meant so much to me and my family over the last 12 years!

I know some of you out there are going to be excited for us and some of you are going to think we've completely lost our minds.  Just know this:  we came to this decision after much thought and consideration.  Danny has not talked me into anything or pressured me in any way.  This man would take a bullet for me and there is no way in hell he would let anything bad happen to me!  He is so excited that I'm going with him!  We both are!

The bottom line is we are tired of being apart and we don't have to be.  We are looking at this like an adventure.  I know it's not always going to be fun and games.  I am going to have to find things to keep myself busy.  I will still have my Scentsy business and I might look into some volunteer opportunities wherever we are.

I hope you can be excited for us as we set out on this new chapter in our lives.  Keep checking this blog and Facebook for updates on our travels!

Cheers!
Shayla