A Busy Winter in the US

Sunrise in Preveza

When we last chatted, it was September 2025, the boat had been lifted out of the water, and we were still in Greece, waiting for our boat registration paperwork to be completed. We stayed in the lovely town of Preveza for several days, and since we can't sit still for long, we explored some of the surrounding areas while we were waiting.

On Sept 19 we took a bus south to Lefkada, and wandered around the busy seafront. The bus drove right through the middle of a boat, which acts as a drawbridge. It was a little crazy! (sorry, these pics were taken from inside the bus).

Here are a few of the beautiful old buildings on one of the side roads. We enjoyed a nice, relaxing sunny day here.

On Sept 24 we rented a motorbike and headed north to Monolithi Beach. The large crowds of beachgoers were nowhere to be found, and it was very peaceful.

The next day we took the bike north of Preveza to explore the ancient ruins of Nikopolis. This city was founded in 31 BC, when Octavian Augustus, the first emperor of Rome, defeated Mark Antony and Cleopatra, the queen of Egypt.

The small archaeological museum there is jam-packed with beautiful exhibits and over 1,000 artifacts found on the site. Items as small as coins and rings, and as large as statues and sarcophagi can be viewed there. Unfortunately, we didn't take photos in the museum, but please click on the link if you are interested. We learned a lot about this area, and I highly recommend you check it out: https://nicopolismuseum.gr/en/homepage/.

We then proceeded to some of the outdoor sites, and walked around the ruins. It was amazing to see so many intact after more than two thousand years. It is thrilling to walk on roads where ancient Romans and Christians once carried on their daily lives.

The city was invaded by barbarians over several centuries, and the walls were rebuilt many times. The city became a Christian epicenter, then was abandoned in the 10th century. Official excavation of the ruins began in the early 1900's.

We flew back to the US the next day, taking a little break with a layover in London. We had a chance to visit our favorite pub, the Three Magpies, which is located very near Heathrow Airport. When we first visited this pub several years ago, it had not yet been refurbished, and the new ownership was a little disappointing. We may have to go pub-hunting the next time we visit London!

We landed in Wichita, Kansas, and our friends Bob and Laura were there to welcome us back to the good ol' US of A. We traveled due west to the town of Haviland, where we had left the camper parked inside of our building.

Kansas Sunset

Barclay College in Haviland holds an auction every Fall, and we were lucky to attend this fun event. We saw many of Randy's friends from high school and college, and made some great purchases too!

In mid-October we attended a beautiful wedding for one of Randy's referee pals in Iowa, then drove further north and west to Billings, Montana to visit with our oldest son Brad.

The weather was warm, the antelope were roaming, and the scenery just breathtaking. It was great to see Brad, and to be in the mountains again!

For Thanksgiving, Randy and Taylor went on their annual hunting trip to Pennsylvania, and Randy shot a deer. They had a good week stomping around in the snowy woods of western PA with old buddies.

I went to see Rachael and Austin in Colorado, and we enjoyed a great Thanksgiving dinner with their friend Patrick, who prepared a couple of his grandmother's recipes - baked ham and chocolate pie. We got to see an Avalanche game, and I finished a quilt top too.

Back in Haviland, we started working on construction of the apartment right where we had left off. Over the course of the next 2 months, we finished framing the walls, and Randy then installed the plumbing and electrical wiring. We had a 'spray foam' guy come and insulate the ceilings and outer walls, then we began hanging drywall. First the ceilings, then the walls.

We took a break for the Christmas holiday, and spent Christmas Eve in Mulvane, KS with Randy's Aunt Ethel, his cousin Joanie and her family, and his cousin Frank and his wife Amy from Alabama. We also took a drive by the Griswold House in Rose Hill.

On Christmas Day we went to visit with Randy's Aunt Sue and Uncle Carl in Bucklin, KS, and many cousins and their families. We had a very nice time visiting and catching up with everyone. The white elephant gift exchange was very entertaining, and the food was excellent!

There is a large milo field adjacent to our property, and one evening I caught the sunshine - beautiful amber waves of grain!

In mid-January, we had a momentous occasion - Randy installed our new washer/dryer! Now I can do laundry without using our friend's machines, or driving all the way to the laundromat in Pratt. Yippee!!

Also in mid-January, we had to take a drive up to Iowa to burn the cedar trees off of our land. We stayed in West Des Moines with our friends Ted and Linda, and got the cedar trees burned in one day. It was a good day to burn, the wind was blowing out of the North. Much of the grass also burned, but we managed to keep the flames on our own property!

On our way back to Kansas, we stopped to visit our good friends in New Virginia, Mona and Charlie. They were the first people we got to know when we moved from West Des Moines to St. Charles in 2007.

Mona and Charlie

We have been enjoying small-town life here in southwestern Kansas - from cheering on the Barclay Bears at local soccer and basketball games, and attending services at the Haviland Friends Church, to enjoying a raucous celebration as the KU Jayhawks defeated their opponent at Allen Fieldhouse in Lawrence, KS. It was very exciting, and VERY LOUD!!!

I have joined a group of quilters here. We attended a quilt retreat in Concordia, KS, and I enjoyed the sewing and fellowship very much. I look forward to spending many hours with these wonderful ladies in the future!

Here are some water towers in nearby Pratt, Kansas, they make me smile every time I see them!

Randy and I traveled to Spokane the end of February to visit with my siblings. We had a wonderful relaxing weekend at a beautiful log home retreat near Coeur d'Alene, Idaho.

We had the chance to visit the Shabby Fabrics headquarters in nearby Post Falls. My big Sis Tammy works there, and is very busy making sure quilt kits are accurate, helping to organize quilting retreats, making demo videos, and many other interesting duties. Their operation is amazing, and the new showroom is like a small piece of heaven on earth (if you enjoy quilting, that is!!) The staff is friendly and helpful, and it is well worth a visit.

Back in Kansas, we continue working on the apartment. Taping, mudding, sanding, more mud, more sanding, then texturing the ceilings, and at last, PAINT!

Once the kitchen was painted, we hung the new cabinets, and finished installing lights in the rest of the apartment. We added a small workout room as well.

We had a concrete pad poured outside the garage door, which is really nice for parking.

Here is one more lovely Kansas sunset from our porch for you, as we prepare to leave soon for Athens, Greece. Our beloved Sunspot Baby is in Preveza, which is several hours from Athens by bus. We hope to be back on board soon, with a 'splash' date of April 1.

Ciao for now, friends!