Forsyth, Missouri

We had a fairly light travel day today, but we were up and on the road early. At first it was overcast and on the cool side, but the sun eventually broke through and we found ourselves heading right into the sun. The countryside here in Missouri is so pretty, with green rolling hills everywhere. The trees are just beginning to change.

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We arrived in Forsyth around 10:30 this morning. We checked into the Shoals Bend RV Park. It is a Good Sam park that sits off the road under nice shade trees. It is beautiful. All of the spots are level cement pads and there is cable tv and Internet access at your spot. We rate this park a 10. It has to be one of the nicest parks we have stayed at. It is absolutely quiet - no freeway, airport or train noises whatsoever.

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We were surprised to see flooding in the Bull Shoals Lake area. One of the campgrounds on the creek is completely under water. Evidently, heavy spring rains caused the flooding which has not dissipated through the summer. This is the first time I have seen flooding here this time of the year. Luckily, our camp is on the top of the mountain above the flooding.

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After we checked in, we went to see my step mom, Syble, who lives just a few miles away. She will turn 88 in just a couple of weeks and is amazing. She still lives independently in the condo she shared with my dad. We needed to go to Walmart for more drugs, and like me, Syble never passes up an opportunity to shop at Walmart. There is a brand new Walmart in nearby Branson. We were able to restock some supplies, including some nice fruit and veggies, which was surprising since in the past, fresh produce in Missouri was not the best.

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We decided to try to see some shows while we are in the Branson area. One show that has been recommended by several people is the Dolly Pardon Dixie Stampede. We were able to get tickets to this evening's show, which included dinner at 5:30 pm. We decided to get the VIP seats in the front row and convinced Syble to come too. The seats were perfect, on the side of an oval area, in the middle, so that we were able to see the whole show clearly. While Dolly wasn't there personally, the performers were very talented and professional. The show centered around the dispute between the North and the South and all of the performers would participate in various contests, with either the North (the other side of the arena) or the South (our side of the arena) winning. There were barrel races on horseback, wagon races, pig races, ostrich races, singing and dancing, and of course, hokey slapstick comedy. It was cowboys and horses and Indians and civil war soldiers and it was a lot of fun.

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Then there was the dinner. We had heard that you do not go away hungry and they were right. First, we were served whatever drinks we wanted (non alcoholic). Then we were served hot cream of vegetable soup and warm homemade biscuits. There were no utencils given to us and we were told to use our hands for our meal and stomp our feet instead of applauding. The next course was a whole - yes - a whole roasted game hen, a slab of pork tenderloin, corn on the cob and half a baked potatoe. I was already stuffed after the soup and biscuit. The food was delicious. Luckily, we were provided doggy bags for the leftovers. We thought the meal was over, but our waiter said for dessert, we would be eating chicken pot pie!!!! Nah. It was a huge apple turnover - which we will have for breakfast tomorrow.

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All in all, it was a nice day. Returning to the condo was hard for me at first and I definitely could feel my father's spirit, which is not a bad thing. Syble was very happy to see us and I am glad that we made a special trip to come and see her. We look forward to seeing more of Branson over the next couple of days.

Sep 30, 2008

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