let the games begin!

The retirement games, that is. I officially retired at the end of 2025. I’d like to say that it took me a while to get used to it, but that would be a lie. Although we sold our retail business in 2024, I was still doing some public relations work for a few hours a week. That dwindled down as the year went on since I was down to just one client.

Read “Mostly Retired Mandy“

Here’s how it’s going.

Day 1: We left our home in Colorado at 7:25 a.m. It was 20°, so our motorhome Vanessa had no running water or plumbing because it was too cold. Mile 1, the stereo/navigation display stopped working. No music. No water. No toilet. Things are looking grim. I feel like a settler heading west in a covered wagon. Where’s my bonnet?

Day 2: We made it to Mesquite, Nevada, for the night and were able to dewinterize Vanessa. Still no music or nav but it’s warming up, and we have indoor plumbing. I might just survive the journey. Still looking for my bonnet.

Day 3: Woke up happily unemployed in Yuma, Arizona, our home for the next couple of months. We are staying in a 55+ RV resort that I’ve dubbed a land cruise because there’s so much to do and so many amenities. Pools, hot tubs, a grill, pickle ball, bocce ball, putt-putt golf. Rooms for exercise equipment, cards, crafts and billiards. An AMF-certified four-lane bowling alley! So many things to do throughout the day as well. We started looking at the model homes the first week, but that’s a few years off.

The people here are so welcoming. It’s a happy place, and we’ve already made some friends. Our next-door neighbors have introduced us to some of their friends and let us know some things about the area. They also gave us some freshly baked bread!

They invited us to play water volleyball this week. Let me tell you, it is hard core. Just like dodge ball. Except we use beach balls. And there’s no limit to the number of people on each team or how many times it takes to get the ball over the net. The same player can hit it as many times in a row as needed. And the ball is only out-of-bounds if it bounces more than once. This is my kind of sport.

Another couple has taken us out Jeeping in the desert. They’ve come here for several years and know a lot of trails, which is very lucky for us. We have plans to go again next week. 

We’ve played bingo, been to a car show, tried a pizza place my father-in-law recommended—Da Boyz—that we love, taken Walden to Yuma’s Bark Park and on lots of walks to the dog park here in the resort, ridden our e-bikes. I’ve gone to water aerobics and have been swimming laps on my own. And we read by the pool every day. It’s pretty good gig.

The most exciting news, though, is that we are going to become grandparents! Our daughter and son-in-law are expecting a baby boy in late April. My chosen grandmother name is Mae Mae, but who knows what the little sweetie will end up calling me. I’ll answer to whatever he chooses, but there will be some coaching from me.

It’s 80° and sunny here today. I’ve stopped looking for my bonnet.

Stay tuned for more Tales From the Emply Nest!

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