And so it ends

Monday, 8:10pm

Feeling nostalgic and trip isn't totally over though all we have ahead of us is 8 plus hours of driving.

We spent most of the day at Carowinds Amusemnt Park; kids had a blast going on all the roller coasters - Sophie even went on some scary-looking drops. She and I fought the crowds at the water park portion of the park and a good time was had by most ( Evan might have something else to say...). Izzy hung in the RV at the park because as big as she is, she didn't make the height requirements.

I'm nostalgic because even though I said this last RV trip, I'm fairly certain there really won't be another one. For one thing, the sleeping arrangements were definitely tougher this time. The bunk beds were narrow and the bottom one was coffin-like. Secondly, other than RVing out West, no ideal destinations come to mind. And lastly and sadly, we only have three years until Mike is off to college so family vacations as we know them are numbered and as fun as the adventures are, we want to do other things as well. (Club Med by way of an airplane would be nice!)

So to close, here are some things we either forgot to mention, or weren't worthy of a full post or just want to include so we can look back, have a laugh and thank Aunt Fanny for a good time:

The man who collected our tickets at the Natural Bridge was named Wilber Lee and we understood every fifth word he said;

Danica Patrick was shorter than what we expected;

Jumbo turkey legs aren't that bad;

At the cavern gift shop Evan joked that Cameron needed a Major helmet for his big noggin, not a Miner one;

The longer we were in the south the more Evan started talking with a drawl;

When we rolled into the last RV park, Izzy spotted a cat and in her utter excitement, honked the horn;

Evan's appreciation for nature exceeds Gail's;

Gail's appreciation for clean clothes exceeds Evan's;

The woman who spoke to us at the beach party at Jellystone had way too many teeth in her mouth and we understood every ninth word;

Gail had two gyros on this trip - not the expected cuisine;

You know you have very accommodating children when they are actually disapointed we didn't stay at a wal-mart;

NASCAR never was and still will never be on Gail's bucket list;



Our family is great and our kids' good health, safety and happiness is really all that matters. If I have to keep them in an RV forever to ensure they remain so, I'll do it. As long as we can locate the nearest Cracker Barrel (who knew?) and jumpy pillow. What more do we need?


Thanks for cruising with us.

NASCAR

Sunday, 8:15 pm


What a day! It started at 5:30 for some of us when our iPhone alarm went off. After moving Sophie to a bunk from the couch (all are finding the bunk beds a bit claustrophobic) we de-hooked and closed the slide-outs and said bye y'all to Yogi and the gang and headed on south on 81 to Charlotte, NC. Mike was lucky enough to sleep the entire 4 hours, Sophie about 2, Cam kept Evan company as co-pilot while I dozed on the couch for a while.

We found our way to the credential building (one of those massive 18-wheelers converted into offices), parked aunt fanny, assured izzy that we'd be back and hit the infield and pit of the Charlotte motor speedway.

I'm not sure what I expected but if you told me I'd be using words like lug nuts and pit row in my sentences I would have thought you were crazy. We also experienced the red neck riviera and had to explain to Sophie what boobs for beer meant.

We got to see Danica Patrick's Go Daddy car. We stood on the track while the drivers were introduced by Tim McGraw.

We watched the National Guard parachute in (mike was almost recruited but told the guy no way). We literally stood in the lanes as the anthem was sung. We all got chills as the stealth bomber flew overhead. Then we made our way to our seats in the family section which gave us a good vantage point to watch the race.

So here's the thing about a speed race, ceretainly a long one. The first lap is definitely exciting, the second is too! You pick a car to follow, get excited as it roars by...

But by the 43rd lap.... Not so exciting. I actually brought the kindle so I could read my book club book but thought I would be heckled from the crowd. Fortunately we were in agreement to leave at the 100th lap.

I'm not even going to get into the people. The fans. It's almost too painful. Maybe tomorrow when there's some distance.

So we've just arrived at Camp Wilderness Resort (doesn't that sound like a Chevy Chase movie?) on the border of North and South Carolina. We actually made it to an RV park before dark! We are right across the street from Carowinds Amusement Park which is tomororw's excursion. The kids are already scootering around to get the lay of the land. Evan and I are exhausted... Looking forward to a shower, beer (boobs optional) and a good sleep but first Evan has to fix the leak under the sink (honestly... What part of vacation does that fall under???)

Aunt Fanny It Is

Saturday, 2:20 pm

Spending the day at Jellystone. Very hot here, so thankfully enjoying the pool, water activities and rec center (where Sophie can enjoy all the crafts she wants). Had a walking taco for lunch - it involves a bag of Fritos, taco meat and fixin's... kind of yummy, kind of gross.

Leaving very early tomorrow and heading to NC. Not sure where we are staying but I really hope it's not the Walmart parking lot...

Hope everyone is having a great weekend!

Friday, 7:50 pm

Hey ya’ll.

We are back at the park after an excursion-filled day in the Shenandoah Valley. By the way, it is worth noting, the Blue Ridge Mountains are really beautiful. You can see them from Route 81 and they really are a cool vista as you log the hours driving.

After much prodding and poking, we headed over to the Natural Bridge rock formation. I know, I know, how cool can 20 stories of solid rock actually be, right? Well, they are pretty awesome. They are not actually carved from years of running water as those of you still reading probably think. They are the result of an underground cavern collapsing. But wait – it gets cooler. Thomas Jefferson bought the land from King George for $2.50. Not impressed? Well, George Washington climbed one wall and carved his initials into the side of the rock in 1790. Cool, right?

Afterwards we headed to the caverns which are 34 stories/over 300 feet within the earth. They are formed from the slow drip of water through cracks in the rock. We were very happy to be in the 51 degree cool caverns after a long hot hike at the Bridge.

Gail was clearly impressed by her comment, “Seen one rock formation, you’ve seen them all!” And Cameron felt our tour guide could have had a better delivery of her shtick. We are talking about a sub-earth dweller after all. I still am not sure which are stalagmites and which are stalactites…

We also walked thru an Native American Village complex from the Monacan Indians of Virginia.

It was interesting to step back in time to see what life was like in a typical Native American Village, 300 years ago. Wigwams, animal skins, primitive tools. There was this woven protective fense around the villiage called a palasaides that looked like it was straight out of Survivor.

After the Cavern we headed to historic Lexington. Very quaint town but is it me or were people much shorter back in the day? We saw where Stonewall Jackson lived (and was buried at 36 years of age.) Also toured the Virginia Military Institute and Washington and Lee University. Beautiful campuses equipped with their own military obstacle courses.

Ok, so in the "What the heck?" category...

Wondering how we got to the English countryside to see a wonder of the world from 3000 BC? Stonehenge? Nope. FOAMhenge. A sculptor's April fools prank turned into a (semi) permanent Styrofoam tribute to the real thing. Only in Virgina.

After some gas and firewood, we are back at Jelly Stone. (can’t get used to saying that). Kids are finding new friends, taking in a movie, picking up chicks with Izzy as the ice breaker… and the fire is raging.

Much more crowded today since the long weekend is officially here. We really like our spot #54. Very shaded, and we’re not surrounded by other RVs. As usual, Izzy is stealing the show. We really should’ve had those t-shirts made up that would answer all the questions people ask us about her: “Yes, she’s our dog; No, a Goldendoodle; Yes, she is really big; Yes, she sheds a little; Sure, you can pet her; No, you can’t ride her.

Smore’s anyone?

Smarter than the average bear

Thursday, 3:50 pm

Who says you can't go (mobile) home again?

We're on the road somewhere in New Jersey with the kids, the dog and our temporary home with wheels - we're calling her Monte or Aunt Fanny* - a 2012 motor home complete with a flat-screen tv, two booth tables, bunk beds, automatic curbside steps and a 3-burner stove that's kind of nicer than the one at home ( but will get equally as little use).

While Evan and the others signed the paperwork with an employee who had obviously fulfilled his potential, and watched a video on RVing (place oxygen mask on yourself first...)Mike and I loaded up on Cap'n Crunch and cheese sticks and assorted other proteins at Target. We then bid adieu to the northeast for the next six days.

It's amazing how quickly we all settled in. Sophie is armed with with plenty of American Girl books, art stuff and Polly pockets; Cam began watching a movie when we hit Mamaroneck and hasn't come up for air since ( though he was the #1 helper when we were loading Monte/Aunt Fanny) and Mike is contemplating a nap, but is now acting as co- pilot to Evsn. Izzy has found her spot in the aisle (she has to back up to move) and at the table.

According to Maggie - our slightly direction-impaired GPS - we are due to arrive in Lexington, Virginia at about 9pm. We are booked for the next 3 nights at Yogi Besr's Jellystone Park Camp-Resort at Natural Bridge. On its website, Yogi is everywhere - in a canoe, at Bingo, going down the waterside... And somehow that's comforting. What can go wrong with Yogi on hand?

So we forgot our ez-pass (definitely not as bad as forgetting our passports when we were headed to Canada) and just hit our first toll. We spent three minutes chatting with the toll collector about Izzy, the weather, Evan's um, hair... Aren't we supposed to just hand over our money and not even get a nod in return? My friends, we are definitely not in New York....

But it feels like (mobile) home.

Friday, 8:30 am

I forgot what my favorite part of this RVing is ( no, it's not watching Evan back in to space #54 for what felt like hours in order to properly align our hookup stuff and no, it's not the questionable neighbors who have a fetish for wind chimes). Its when we are all finally in bed (Cam at the helm, Mike and Sophie on the bunk beds and Evan and I in the master suite and we are all gigging away, shushing each other, convincing Sophie that there isnt a Big Foot. Because we arrived after dark (and we're talking Virginia dark - holy cow it was like a scene out of Friday the 13th) we really have no idea where we were. But the stars were out, the kids and dog tucked in for the night and all was good.

* We can't agree on RV name. El Monte is the name of the rental company, hence Monte. But Evan finds the RV very backside heavy when he's driving so he named it Aunt Fanny... What do you guys think?