The Granddaddy of Them All!!

February 14, 2024 / Ed Armstrong

I got up before sunrise to take a photo of the famous Rose Bowl sign above the main entrance to the Rose Bowl stadium!

I visited the Rose Bowl today!! I cannot guess how many times I have watched football games on TV that were played in this stadium. It is amazing to see such a famous sports stadium!

I loved seeing the actual Rose Bowl for the first time!!

I found a place to park the motorhome right across the street from the Rose Bowl! I loved seeing the lighted Rose Bowl sign during the night!

Sports announcer Keith Jackson was famous for describing the Rose Bowl football game as “The Granddaddy of Them All.”

This is another famous phrase Keith Jackson would say at the beginning of each Rose Bowl game.

There is this amazing sculpture of famous athlete Jackie Robinson in front of the Rose Bowl!

Quartzsite is Fun in January!!

January 18, 2024 / Ed Armstrong

We climbed Q Mountain and had a great view of Quartzsite, Arizona and the surrounding area.

There was a rugged trail we climbed up to reach the top of the “mountain.”

From the top of Q Mountain, we could see the group of motorhomes attending the Winnebago View/Navion rally. It was very fun!!

Circled is red in the lower left corner is our motorhome. People park all over the flat ground. The fire ring is in the center of the photo and we gather there for a campfire each evening. Different rally sessions are also held in that general area. We are simply living in the desert of the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) land for $40 for two weeks. There are no RV connections such as water and electricity (called boondocking or dry camping). We are simply enjoying living in self-contained motorhomes in the “middle of nowhere,” just south of Intersate-10 near the Arizona – California border.

The large white tent on the left hand side of the photo is where the RV show will be held. It opens tomorrow and runs for just over a week. We are walking distance from the large tent.

The roads in the desert a great for walking or riding mountain bikes. The terrain can be rough and steep at times!!

All kinds of all-terrain vehicles and jeeps drive in the desert all around Quartzsite!!

There is not much vegetation around Quartzsite, but the desert is beautiful in January!!

Here is an old mine overlooking Quartzsite. Someone in our group thought it was an old silver mine.

Disneyland at Christmas Time!!

December 25, 2023 / Ed Armstrong

We had a wonderful time at Disneyland with the entire family. It was very fun to be with 3 grandsons is a magical place decorated for Christmas! We had a total of 9 people (6 adults and 3 grandsons). We started the morning when the “rope was dropped” at the opening of the park and went full-steam until 9:00 pm. It was a wonderful fun-filled day!!

This lady looked exactly like Mary Poppins!!

Disneyland is especially amazing when decorated for Christmas!!

The characters come to life in the parade!!

These cute guys were fun to watch dancing to the music!!

These guys looked absolutely delicious!!

These dogs were “grooving to the music”!!

Images from childhood come to life in the Disneyland parade!!

This guy was the popular end of the parade!!

Maui is Awesome!!

August 16, 2023 / Ed Armstrong

It is illegal to touch the turtles in Hawaii, so Charlene posed with this turtle and stayed at a safe distance to keep the turtle comfortable.

It is fun to watch the powerful force of the water on the beach!!

This is a popular area for people to enjoy the waves!!

It is beautiful to see the contrasting colors of the lava rock, the waves, and the water!!

For me, this is the largest number of sea turtles I have seen in one place!!

This relaxed guy seemed to enjoy having his photo taken!!

I loved the ruggedness of these sections of the beach!!

Charlene is celebrating life on the beach!!

Just after this photo was taken, Charlene received a cooling shower!!

I really liked the colors of this fence that was made up of old surfboards!!

This describes many of the feelings in Hawaii!!

Turtles Enjoying the Morning!!

August 15, 2023 / Ed Armstrong

John and I went on a walk to enjoy the cool temperatures along the beach. We say some people looking down and discovered that they were watching these two large turtles!!

The turtles were enjoying the day and soon after this photo they moved back into the water.

We found this Aloha in the shape of a heart. I think a romantic person wanted to say hello.

Helicopter Tour of Hawaii!!

August 14, 2023August 14, 2023 / Ed Armstrong

Janie, Charlene, Neal, John, Sis, and myself had a wonderful helicopter tour over several islands!!

Hawaii is simply beautiful! There is no other way to say it. One view is more gorgeous than the next. It is an amazing treasure. It was wonderful to share the helicopter ride with such wonderful people. The sites were spectacular!!

The rock is supposed to be an elephant laying down. Maybe use your imagination??

The green foliage and blue water are spectacular!!

The ruggedness and beauty are amazing to see!!

I loved how the sun broke through the clouds to shine brightly on this one spot!!

Turn in a slightly different direction and there is another amazing view!!

It is difficult to capture the beauty with a camera!!

It was fun to fly over these mountains in a helicopter!! They seemed quite high to me, but our pilot Christina guided over them with no problem!!

Coming down on the other side you could see the reefs in different colors near the land.

The water colors with the different depths of the reefs were spectacular!!

It was fun to see where a past lava flow ended as it reached the water!!

The island of Maui is so amazing and beautiful!!

I love to see the contrasting colors along the water’s edge!!

I simply stare at the amazing places in Maui!!

It is fun to end the series of photos from our helicopter ride with this silly rooster. I have forgotten how there are chickens and roosters walking all over Maui. This fellow was walking along the parking lot of the helipad and he stopped to say hello.

Snorkeling in Maui!!

August 13, 2023August 14, 2023 / Ed Armstrong

John, Charlene, and I had a fantastic day snorkeling all around Maui!!

John and Charlene are finding all kinds of fish!

This is my attempt at an underwater selfie!!

A very special highlight was saying hello to this friendly sea turtle!!

While traveling between snorkeling locations, we needed to wear our masks because there was so much spray of water!! Fun times!!

The satisfied look of a great day of snorkeling in Maui!!

Polynesian Luau!!

August 13, 2023August 14, 2023 / Ed Armstrong

It was great to enjoy the luau with Sis, Neal, Janie, and John!!

Charlene, John, and I wanted this photo because Molokini is in the background where we will go snorkeling tomorrow!!

These were the musicians for the luau. They were great!!

The next dance was more amazing than the previous one!!

This was one of my favorite dances. Very colorful!

There is no way I could swing my hips as done in this dance!!

These ladies really, really moved their hips in this dance!!

Do not mess around with these warriors!!

These guys were very serious playing with fire!! This amazing dance was the close of the luau.

Maui is Beautiful!!

August 12, 2023August 14, 2023 / Ed Armstrong

An extra special blessing on this trip is to be with John’s sisters Janie and Sis!! It has been more than 40 years since we have all been together.

I absolutely love the flowers that grow on Maui. I got up early to catch the morning light on these beautiful flowers.

This woman was very skilled as she moved along the waves!

Celebrating Charlene’s Birthday in Maui, Hawaii!!

August 10, 2023August 14, 2023 / Ed Armstrong

John and Jan joined us to celebrate Charlene’s birthday at Mama’s Fish House on the North Shore in Maui, Hawaii.

We had a wonderful time celebrating Charlene’s birthday!! We enjoyed one of the most wonderful meals we have had for a very long time. Fun drinks, wonderful food, and absolutely delicious desserts!