Hacienda RV Resort

740 Stern Drive

Las Cruces, NM 88005

575-528-5800

11/15, 11/16, 11/17, 12/19, 12/21

We paid $44.82 in 2016 and $46.86 in 2017 and $48.90 in 2019, $48.90 in 2021, a little more than we usually like to spend for a spacious pull through site on a concrete slab with water, electric and sewer that included free WiFi and cable.

We were finally without any injuries and the weather was warm and sunny so we checked out the amenities this time and just as we expected that all the amenities which are plenty are all very well maintained as was the manicured landscaping.

The laundry area that we took full advantage of was huge, one side was for washers and the other separate side was for dryers and folding, and it only cost $2.75 to wash and dry.

The Spa was fantastic...

If we are ever in the area again, we will definitely stay here again and highly recommend it.

Our Last Event for 2021

We left Columbus in the rain for about 20 miles and then it was just windy, so windy we were grateful we weren’t in Maggie since it was rough enough in the Ram. It was a 5 hour drive day and we split the drive because my arms were hurting so bad from jerking on the steering wheel constantly.

We got an early checkin at Drury Inn in Champaign, Illinois so we could soak in the hot tub and we did for a few hours. The jets were strong and it was hot, the pool was heated so it was a perfect cool down but not frigid. The room was cramped, the bed was comfortable, the shower head was a rain one and it was fabulous. We enjoyed free food and drinks for happy hour and a good breakfast too.

Our second day drive began in 16 degree temperatures and never got out of the teens the entire drive, cloudy, no sun and no strong winds, but the last hour there was snow coming down to an almost whiteout situation. We made it to Cambria Hotel in Madison, Wisconsin without too much stress. Our room was spacious with a comfortable bed, a nice sitting area and a nice shower, and we again spent hours in the hot tub that had great soothing jets and the pool was not heated so it was a wakening experience.

We had Chinese delivered and without a doubt it was the best Chinese food ever. We usually order the same thing but this time each item was perfect. We highly recommend Happy WOK and they themselves deliver, not using those terrible 3^rd party delivery services. We were HAPPY and very full afterward.

Our final drive day got us to our destination for the weekend. It was still frigidly cold and the snow was coming down and was everywhere, more and more the further north we went.

We stayed at Ramada in Golden Valley, Minnesota. Great welcoming and accommodating customer service. The room was not on the first floor but we took no elevator or stairs, it was a strange setup. The room was spacious with a tiny bathroom, it had a microwave and a big fridge and a fairly comfortable bed. The air conditioning was on the fritz and consistently needed to be reset in order to work. And yes, during the frigid temperatures we need the air in our room, especially to sleep. With all the rooms around us with their heaters on, as well as the main hotels heater, it gets hot even with no artificial heat on at all in our room.

The event was a mess from the beginning, total chaos for us to setup, they changed our booth number so our timing for setup was off. We finally setup on Thursday afternoon after we got our late shipment. Our first day was sooooo slow due to snow all day, predicting over a foot and some areas got that plus, other areas only about 8” which was still more than enough! They should have called the show for Friday at least because what they did was put all our lives in danger because of the drive home during the blizzard and no roads were plowed or salted. Thank goodness I hadn’t forgotten how to drive in the snow, by the time we left the event on Friday there was more than 6” of fresh snow. Took over an hour for a 5 mile drive but we got to our hotel without any incidents besides getting stuck in the hotels parking lot, but that was an easy fix.

 

IT’S FRIGID

We only had a few hours to travel to Columbus, Ohio for our second to last event, Greater Columbus Winterfair at the Ohio Expo Center. It was another slow event but great people and the best Turtles we have ever had from our neighbors, Copper Coast Confections. We also tried some of the CBD balm from our other neighbors at Goat Milk Soap which has been improving our body pains, we may have to look deeper into this treatment.

We stayed about 12 miles away in Worthington at the Courtyard by Marriott. Not our best experience, but certainly not our worst either. The room was cramped with no microwave but the bed was comfortable and we made it work. The toilet was strange, there was so much room in the toilet/shower area but they chose to put the toilet right on the wall so it made it difficult. I have a bruise on my hip and thigh from the toilet paper holder. The hotels washer was out of order, so we found a local laundromat and got it done in record time.

It seems in every area of life the quality of service and products have gone way down since this Scamdemic began and it’s not improving, in some cases it’s getting worse. We find ourselves constantly having to do without something because the excuses continue why they don’t get it all done. It’s happening in hotels, restaurants, grocery stores, hair salons, and so many other arenas. But, they are charging more for less and that is just not right.

 

We purchased 2 Firm Queen My Pillows at the Kansas City Holiday Boutique at the Overland Park Convention Center a few weeks ago and they go flat immediately as we sleep. The worst part is trying to get a refund. We lost our receipt but have our warranty information and our credit card receipt but THE REPRESENTATIVE refuses to begin the process. So we are out $65 for just a few nights use…terrible customer service and a terrible product! If they would continue the process we will have to pay for return minus admin charges and then they will only send a check…not reimburse our credit card…LOUSIEST CUSTOMER SERVICE EVER!

 

Then we finally received some news about our Jeep in Silverthorne, Colorado and it wasn’t good. They found particles in the fluid and states it needs a new transmission and will cost $6,000+ and it’s not worth it to us so now we need to figure out what to do with it. She said one of the mechanics may want it or she would check with management about salvaging it. So not only are we in search of a new motorhome but a tow vehicle as well.

 

We are headed to our last event and then we begin our journey picking up vehicles and finally getting to some warmer weather. So far, no snow accumulation but we are starting to see flakes coming down and it’s getting colder, down right frigid as we head north to Minneapolis for our last show…brrrrrrrr!

 

Life is Fantabulous

We are in such a great place. Our bodies are healing every week, even while working all these events. We are having the time of our lives, enjoying every blessed moment.

We are headed back to the Cincinnati area, actually Covington, Kentucky for the Winterfest Event through the Thanksgiving holiday. We drove about 350 miles to Effingham, Illinois for our first night stay at Country Inn and they had a hot tub, no jets working again but it was hot so we soaked for hours. The room was spacious, the bed was comfortable and a television that worked, life is good.

Time zone change again so we lost an hour. The Comfort Inn & Suites in Wilder, Kentucky was our hotel for the weekend. Our room was huge with all the amenities including fantastic customer service. The breakfast’s were magnificent, everyday something new and delicious. EVERY hotel chain needs to follow suit and stop using the COVID-19 excuses and just get it done!

We once again attempted to have food delivered to us from a 3^rd party, DoorDash and again it was unsuccessful. Even though the restaurant was across, we already had wine so we opted to have it delivered. Mellow Mushroom had some great menu items so we ordered and the expected delivery was almost an hour later but we had the time so we placed our order. The hour past so we called the restaurant and according to their tracker it said it was picked up but they still had the order right there waiting. I called the driver and he said he was at least 15+ minutes out of picking it up and even though we were across the street, he had other deliveries. I told him to cancel our delivery and we would pick it up ourselves. It then took all sorts of calls and finagling to have them allow us to pick it up and had to pay for it again and then we would have to dispute the first payment. Needless to say almost two hours after placing the order Jerry picked it up and it was cold and not appealing. We will not be ordering from any restaurant that uses a third party ever again, if they don’t deliver themselves, we will order elsewhere or pick it up ourselves.

The Greater Cincinnati Winterfair was by far the slowest event we have done, the hours were short but so was the pay but it was still fun, that is until we were packed and heading to our van. Teardown is a mass exit for the ones who plan it correctly. We bungee our cart with all the stuff on it, something like Jed Clampit’s truck, if you know what I mean and we make a mad dash to the doors that we know will allow us to exit with a wide load. Well, some guy did not bungee his massive load and right in the exit door it all came crashing down. We all scurried to help and then as he attempted to get through the doors the second time, it fell again, only this time I was right behind him and huge pieces of wood art fell on my foot. It’s not pretty and it hurts like hell.

Good news is we have time to rest because we now head further north for our second from last event in Columbus, Ohio with a few play days included since it’s just a short drive. Life is fantabulous!

Life is Right Again

Each week our bodies are getting better but they are still trying to get repaired from the damage from BOA, baby steps and enjoying the progress is our goal.

Monday’s drive took us halfway to our destination, with a stop at Hampton Inn in Glen Carbon, Illinois. Apparently the County is having some sort of water crisis so it was inconvenient for certain things, especially ice for our wine. The hot tub was just that, no jets were working but it was hot. The room was spacious but no chair to sit on, only a bed to sleep. Great walk-in shower with a nice shower head. Customer service was lacking too, they seem preoccupied during our check in. Breakfast was excellent, real potatoes, seasoned sausage and buttery scrambled eggs.

We arrived Tuesday just in time for our move in time, we unloaded and setup a little before we had to get checked into our hotel, Hyatt Place. Spacious room with an extremely comfortable bed, a walk-in shower that was a tad small, a comfortable couch, and great customer service. The new manager was a bit rigid, but the others at the front desk were very accommodating. Unfortunately, the television was a disaster, no channels and was in and out all the time, luckily we were working 13 hour shifts so we didn’t have much time for TV watching.

We will NOT be hanging out in Missouri any time soon. We are doing an event in Kansas and needed to do some laundry so 6 miles from us in Missouri was Quinn’s Laundry. We pulled up front in an empty parking lot and as we were getting out we were met by the owner who asked us if we had an appointment, we surprisingly said no and she continued that we would also need to have proof of vaccinations AND wear a mask. We got back in our vehicle and drove away.

Never thought I would see the day that Jerry would be in Crocs and modeling them. He loves them…

We will NOT be hanging out in Missouri any time soon. We are doing an event in Kansas and needed to do some laundry so 6 miles from us in Missouri was Quinn’s Laundry. We pulled up front in an empty parking lot and as we were getting out we were met by the owner who asked us if we had an appointment, we surprisingly said no and she continued that we would also need to have proof of vaccinations AND wear a mask. We got back in our vehicle and drove away.

This event was 4 days, normally they have been 3 days and the closing hour was 9pm, much longer than the others, so it’s been long, grueling days. The event was busy and we made a boat load of money which is really making us wonder why on earth did we ever stay somewhere that we were so mistreated and so very unappreciated. We continue to search for the reason so that we never allow it to happen again. 

Our next few shows are much shorter with time in between without much travel time so we will be taking advantage and do some fun things. We are so enjoying this new adventure, making great money, doing fun work without hurting ourselves and being totally appreciated…LIFE IS GRAND!

Our First Solo Event…

Our first day drive out of Oaks, Pennsylvania took us through several tunnels until we got to the Best Western in Bentleyville, Pennsylvania. The room was spacious with all the amenities and a very comfortable bed. The bathroom was not as desirable, the shower was like being in a spaceship and it was very cramped in there. Customer service was excellent and even though it was right off the interstate, it was not intrusively loud.

Drove about the same amount of miles to get to our destination stay at Country Inn in Erlanger, Kentucky. It used to be an Econo Lodge and it showed in several areas of the buildings. Very small and cramped room with a huge fridge, microwave and a comfortable bed and truly smiling faces at the front desk.

We did some honeydo’s and spent a few hours checking out Cincinnati and it was crowded and I began feeling claustrophobic. Found our way to the Hard Rock Casino right in the middle of the downtown area where we made a small deposit, very tight machines, but no masks. 

We ordered pizza from a local pizzeria and we were not impressed with Snappy Tomato Pizza. Tasty but mushy, breadsticks were amazing.

Our event was at the Holiday Market at the Duke Energy Convention Center in Cincinnati, Ohio. Setup was on Thursday afternoon and then worked the weekend with teardown on Sunday. The event was very successful and our bodies and pocketbooks are grateful. We had fun and met some really nice folks. It’s exactly what we have been looking for since we chose to begin living this full time traveling lifestyle. Once we are done with these few more events back East and then head to Arizona, a new chapter of this will begin. We will continue doing these events but travel in our motorhome. We are so very grateful and blessed for our lives to finally have all we ever wanted and more. Thank you…Thank you…Thank you!

 The thing we regret the most is that we allowed PepWear to destroy our bodies so much before pulling the plug. It is taking time for us to heal, and though we have some really rough days, we are also experiencing some really good days where the pain is tolerable, and those days are getting more frequent. After all it’s only been a few weeks and we did go right from one to the other, but we knew that we want to buy our new motorhome and without working consistently it just would not happen. So, we press on!