First Fall Foray

So the family decided to go fall camping.  Our first trip to Kettle Morraine Northern Unit proved to be beautiful. The fall colors did not disappoint.  It was a gray day our first day there.  We still enjoyed being together and tried to absorb nature's colorful display.

The kids decided that rather than pitch a tent that they would try car camping (a blow up mattress in the back of the CRV) more on that later.  

So, after a chilly and drizzle-filled hike, we ate lunch and decided to put everyone in the teardrop for some family game time.  We started with Uno and then moved on to BS. I have a great memory of us noticing the inside/outside thermometer in the cab.  It was a chilly 48 degrees outside, but our collective body heat soon had the temperature inside at a balmy 68 degrees. As a group we tried to warm it up to 70. What fun when we finally did it!

Soon it was time for the camp fire, which because I forgot fuel for the stove, was going to be our heat source for dinner too!  We cooked chicken and rice over the fire and had a delicious meal together. 

Once the fire burned down (we were all huddled around it as it burned into the evening) the men extinguished the flames with our 'natural flame retardant!'

E and I got the kids in their space and then snuggled into the teardrop. 

It wasn't too far into the night that we realized we had forgotten to put our garbage in the car.  Not only that, we also left a can of icing on the ground.  Um, to say we were glad we remembered before every raccoon in the county came to our site would be an understatement!  After a quick check of the camp area, and the kids, we drifted off to sleep. 

A couple of hours later, I heard Grace letting Erica know they were cold and uncomfortable.  So, she climbed in with Grace an sent Jack into the teardrop with me.  I was snuggled under the many layers and enjoying the wonderful mattress when my son quickly drifted off to sleep inside the teardrop. A couple of hours later, she kicked Jack out and sent him back to the car.

As soon as the sun began to show, the kids were up and packing up camp.  At first we weren't sure what all the ruckus was about; after peeking out the window at them, we decided to stay in our snug space and let them do it.  It wasn't too long when we had to get out of our warm and cozy bed to help them break down the pop up shelter.

Thankfully, the sun was out and it was a gorgeous, but chilly morning.  The thermometer said the low was 37 degrees.  You really feel that when you are outside like we were when camping. 

Instead of a nice hearty breakfast around the campsite, it ended up being a quick pack up and head to a breakfast place kind of morning.  Secretly, we were all very excited to head home because that meant that we were closer to the main agenda item of the day:  meeting Brady.  A Yellow Labrador from the Great Lakes Labrador Rescue Group.  His foster home was in the western suburbs of Chicago.

We all got warm showers, a short nap and hit the road ready to meet Brady.

After having an incredible Yellow Labrador named Baxter for 14 years, we knew it would be hard to open our hearts to a dog again.  Baxter passed away about six years ago and its taken all of us this long to feel like we can do it 

It was love at first sight for me!

And now, our family is +1 more. 

Change of Plans...

Well, the best laid plans of mice and men...we ended up with some problems this morning.  We went out to check on the teardrop's cabin.  It had rained seriously hard overnight and was down pouring  as we ate breakfast.  Unfortunately, the caulk had reacted with the intense humidity and heat.  The caulk, which is pretty thick, began to liquify and was not solidifying like we had hoped it would.  We knew we would not be able to put the mattress in as it was.  We tried backing up the CRV and putting the teardrop in the garage, but it was just way too tough to maneuver with the basket on the front of the teardrop; it impacted the turning radius in a big way.  We gave up after a few minutes of trying and being completely soaked by the rain while we tried.

We decided to go ahead and take the kids to my parents to visit and we would stop at Harbor Freight on the way back and get some of the things we would need.  The first thing we bought was a 12" extension to the trailer tongue.  After buying a coupler lock, a new pin and a few other supplies we headed back to Powell.

Putting the extension on the tongue made a HUGE difference!  I was able, with some support from Erica, to back the teardrop into the garage quite easily.  I can't believe I didn't buy that thing before!  After getting the teardrop in the garage, we plugged in two fans and started airing the interior out and charging the batteries.

Installing the extension was simple; just insert a new coupler pin.  

Drying out in Powell.

Two fans drying the caulk.

We've decided that we would stay the night here while the cabin dries out and the caulk cures.  We hopefully will be able to load up in the morning and head to Athens.

Just an aside, I noticed some water in the galley area too.  I'm not sure what the cause of that is, but it has to be partly due to the poor seal and fit of the hatch.  That's not nearly as important to me as the cabin is, but it will have to be addressed when we get home.  For now, we wait and pray for no rain.

Really, She's Done!

So, I might have been a tad bit ahead of myself in declaring that she was done yesterday.  I had one last job to do; test the trailer wiring on the tow vehicle.  I had tested it before completely finishing the cabin shelf area, but not on the actual tow vehicle.  Of course, there was a problem.  Isn't there always?  I could not get the left tail light to light up.  I tested every connection that was 'visible.'  It turned out to be one that was under the shelf.  Again, good thing I made the shelf (which was covered in insulation and cedar) removable.

Removing the two panels was refreshingly easy; you never know how well things like that will work out.  In this one case, it worked as designed!

I just set the two pieces aside while I worked on the wiring.

Finally, after buying a new wire harness to 'tap' into my existing wires, I finally got it all to work.  One of my connections under the shelf had come loose.  Everything is tight and well taped.  Hopefully I'll not have a problem in a long time.  I did put electrical repair supplies in one of the 'tool boxes' in the floor storage.

The Carpe Diem with her tow vehicle.

Having the basket bolted to the tongue provided me with a rigid hand hold as I moved the teardrop to the tow dolly.  I took her on a victory lap around the block.  Ended up meeting a fella around the corner who also has a 1947 travel trailer; his is a 'Standy.'  He thought when he bought it that it would fit in his garage to let him work on it, but it didn't, so he's slowly working on it in his back yard.  Funny how folks looked at me; not sure what it is.  Can't wait to see the looks we get when we taker her on the road!