Visiting White Tank Mountain Regional Park on 10/29/2011

Decided we need to take a hike so we headed to White Tank Mountain Regional Park. It is about a 20 minute drive from our campground and very little traffic. The mountians have an elevation of 4,000 feet and the floodwaters have scoured out a series of depressions, or "tanks," in the white granite rock, thus the name of the mountains. We stopped at the nature center and got to see the live display of rattle snakes and a stuffed owl. I don't like snakes or owls so we got out of there rather quickly. We decided to take the Waterfall Trail hike because seeing waterfalls is one of my favorite things to do. Well the hike is about one mile out to the "waterfall." There is no waterfall:(( why would there be in the middle of the desert? Well the hike and the scenery were very nice and there were other tourists looking for this waterfall.
On the way back we saw a rose farm with thousands of roses. It was very cool to see all the different colored roses.
We are enjoying our stay in Buckeye, but it is time to move on to Sedona on wednesday. It is going to be cooler as the elevation is different, let's just hope we don't get any snow:))

the waterfall

In Buckeye, Arizona

We have been in Buckeye, Arizona since 10/2/2011. The temperature has been almost 100 everyday and hopefully will cool off next week. It has been an active month with the wedding, but other than that we haven't been doing much. We have been on the road 233 days as of 10/22/2011. The down time was needed and we have enjoyed doing nothing. My birthday was Friday, 10/21 and I turned 61. I am looking forward to next year when I can start collecting Social Security:)

Suzanne and I are doing great and looking forward to the remainder of our trip. We have been planning it and are going to Sedona on 11/2 and then on to Carlsbad, San Antonio, Corpus Christi and Galveston. We are planning to stay in a lot of state parks as Texas has some great ones. Then on to  Birmingham, Alabama for Christmas, after that it looks like Florida unless we make a decision to travel on. I guess you never know what life will give you, so we may just keep going.

The only pictures I have taken other than the wedding is of our campground, Leaf Verde RV Resort. It is a nice place, no shade as Arizona doesn't have trees in this area:)) and you can't beat the price. The dogs have enjoyed the dog run and Oreo has taken to chasing the ball and returning it. She is so cute:))
Both Sandy and Oreo had to be boarded when we went to the wedding and were perfect guests of the pet resort. They both got A's on their report cards!!

Suzanne's favorite

More pictures of the wedding!!

The Wedding of the YEAR!!

It has been a while since I have posted but all is well. Suzanne and I left Las Vegas and went to Buckeye, Arizona. It is near Phoenix, where we planned to fly home to our daugther's wedding. This was becoming the Wedding of the Year! Suzanne and I were happy to get home, see our friends and marry our daughter Nicole to Joe.
Our son Dave and his lovely girlfriend Tiffany, flew home from Germany to attend the wedding. We were so happy to see them. It gets emotional when your son has been in Kuwait and Iraq. You are so thankful that he is safe and back on friendly soil.  We love you both!

We had a great family dinner on Saturday night.  It was terrific to have family and our dearest and oldest friends all in one room. We are so blessed.

The Wedding: the weather was absolutely terrible. There was a storm hanging around the whole weekend, that caused heavy rain and gusts of winds of at least 40mph. But this was not going to stop this wedding!  The only thing we couldn't do was take pictures on the beach. But if that was the worst thing to happen so be it. Nicole had planned the whole wedding with the help of Sharon ( our very dear friend) since Suzanne and I were traveling. Sharon and her family, Jennifer and Jamie set up the whole room, with the most beautiful decorations. They could easily do this for a living as the place looked fantastic. Oh and I can't forget Wyc who had to put up with all the decorations at their house. We love you guys!!

The wedding went off without a hitch, well not really. Nicole forgot the marriage license and we had to send my nephew James back to her grandfathers house to get it, so things could be legal :)
The wedding was beautiful, the food and drink great and the room was filled with 80 people who made this wedding a special day for Joe and Nicole!

Our family is blessed to have Joe join our family. He is a great guy and we couldn't have picked one any better.

May Nicole and Joe's marriage be blessed with health, happiness and love. We love you!!

2 weddings down and 1 to go!! Dave and Tiffany???  :)))

Last day in Las Vegas 10/1/2011

It was our last day in Las Vegas and we decided to visit the strip one more time. There were several casinos that we still needed to see and lose some more money. It has not been a good gambling week for the Walters. I think they saw me coming and what ever machine I played was going to take my money. Oh Well, it was fun anyway.
There were lots of young people out having a good time. We stayed until dark and enjoyed the night lights one more time. Just make sure you visit Las Vegas one day!!  It will be an experience you won't forget!!

out of jelly beans

Going to Red Rock Canyon!!!

We decided to take a short drive over to Red Rock Canyon on Friday. September 30th. This is a National Conservation Area and has some very unusual formations. You take a 13 mile drive on a one way road to see all the beauty of this area. The mountains in the Red Rock area were formed by a number of geological forces including fractured faults where the earth's crust collided over millions of years and fossilized sand dunes. Some cliffs reach up an astounding 3,000 feet.  Suzanne and I climbed around on some of the beautiful rocks. The color in the rocks are really beautiful and every time you look at the different layers and colors you have to think of how long ago this transpired. This place is really a nice diversion from the hustle of the Vegas strip.

Enjoying the Fremont Experience!!

Everyone told us to make sure we went to Fremont Street and see the light show. The Fremont Experience is in the old section of Las Vegas. This strip is a few miles from the main strip that most people think of when coming to Las Vegas. Fremont Street is different, the people are different, the casinos are different and the atmosphere is different. It is more like the party atmosphere of Main Street during bikeweek. Suzanne and I joined one of the players club in a casino and ending up getting 2 prime rib dinners for $10 and it was pretty good.
You really go to Fremont Street to experience the light show that is done on the hour starting at dusk. The light show is done to music and everyone goes outside the casinos to watch it. It is really cool and a must see if you go to Las Vegas.
We are really enjoying our stay in Las Vegas, even though we are not winning a DIME!!