I Prefer Aluminum

Tuesday, July 21, 2015 We trekked to the KOA in West St. Louis and it was perfect!  Jump Castle at 6 pm, a quick swim and Shrek outside with popcorn kept the kids very happy.  We discovered some bad spots in out tires but thankfully there was a tire shop right next door to the campground!  We hung around at the campsite, used the playground, and rented a race car bike for entertainment.  After lunch, we were back on the road.  We drove to Smithland, KY and stayed on the river at Birdsville Campground.  We ate porkchops and watched the tugs pushing barges up and down the river.  Stu caught some sort of bug and had a fever and overnight our debit card numbers were stolen!  Someone in South Africa emptied our account -- it was quite an adventure!  Now we're back on the road headed to Altoona Lake in TN.  Off to Charleston the next day! Friday, July 24, 2015 We spent the night with full hook ups - whi...

Monday, March 30, 2015 What a big day!  Stu picked the Airstream up on Sunday night after work and she had had a major facelift!  We had the floors redone, did a dinette to queen bed conversion, and added a board style bunk bed above the settee.  We now have water going to the sink a new butcher block counter top, a new sink and propane 2 burner stovetop!  Also a new fridge.  It is so incredible!  We met Stu at the storage unit and unloaded the BLT back up with cushions and gear and came back to the house.  There we loaded our clothes and food for the next 9 days!  The next morning, we loaded up, spiffed up the house and hit the road!  We made it as far as Smyrna, Tennessee to a non impressive place called I-24 campground.  We settled in and ate walking tacos while the kids rode their bikes, hit the playground and then tested out our new bunk system.  Jude stayed in his own bed until 1:30 am and then came in with us....

Saturday, February 28, 2015 It was a wild morning of prepping and sealing the BLT!  We finally left around 1:30 and provisioned at Walmart.  We set out for Beaufort, SC and landed at our oceanfront campsite .  Stu's parents pulled up shortly after and brought dinner - yum!  Hot dogs, brats, salad, and beans.  We contributed banana s'mores.  The kids rode their bikes while we got dinner ready and Stu and Rob had a little jam session (Beatles music, of course!) It was a great evening.  The night ended with Frozen and off to bed.  Tomorrow we'll hopefully climb the lighthouse - Jude is very excited!  We love family camping!  Sunday, February 29th, 2015 Sunday morning, my mom and dad joined us to walk on the beach.  We ate lunch in the BLT and it drizzled and then we went to see the lighthouse .  It started pouring rain - what an adventure! 

February 27, 2015 Our Brave Little Toaster will be in print!  Today Stu towed her over to the county park near Charlestowne Landing and she was lined up for a day of photo shooting for Bed, Bath, and Beyond.  It looks like it will be for the May advertisement.  The photographer's only complaint was that she was too shiny.  Through the wonders of photoshop, they will make sure she doesn't blind the readers.  Stu worked like crazy to get her polished to a shine.  Lookin' good!

I first started writing a travel journal when we ventured out in our vintage Airstream as a family of 5 for it's maiden voyage.  On January 17, 2015, we drove to Myrtle Beach in the "Brave Little Toaster" and stayed at Lakewood Campground .  After getting settled, we rode bikes to the playground - just one block away.  The beach was just beyond that!  We had a classic camping dinner of chili and Fritos and the kids ate the typical mac and cheese.  Standard fare at that point in their lives.  In the spirit of camping, we also tried out a few more recipes -- we made campfire cones (ice cream cones filled with marshmallows, mini chocolate chips and bananas).  Wrap in foil and put in the embers of your campfire.  Delicious!  We also tried another camping hack -- roasted Starbursts -- yum!  Our littlest sacked out at 7:30 because he hadn't napped and the bigs happily watched Cars.  We had a blast and thoroughly enjoyed our first ni...