1959 Airstream Overlander, "Someday"

I keep a travel log of our days in the trailer.

According to my handy dandy logbook, here are the statistics for 2012:

82 nights

traveled in 23 states
slept in 14 states
2 flat tires
1 night at the side of the road

I thought we were going to end the year with a measly 78 days but we managed to squeeze in the extra 4 days at the last minute. Although we were looking forward to visiting the Florida panhandle for a long weekend (for the Canopener rally) all of us agree that getting to go for 10 days was even better!

We started our adventure on my birthday!

A cake baked in the trailer by my family. A trip to the beach.

What more could a girl want?

Our first stop was Florida Caverns. These caverns were dug out to make them accessible to the public by the Civilian Conservation Corps. The CCC boys used their dinner plates as a reflector around the light fixtures. You can still see them cemented to the ceiling:

From Florida Caverns, we traveled a little farther south to Falling Water State Park.

Florida's tallest waterfall is a whopping 73 feet tall. It falls into a sink hole.

Another sinkhole at Falling Water State Park.

How disorienting to see sinkholes and waterfalls in Florida. It felt more like Tennessee.

There weren't many spots left at state parks by the time I made our reservations. I was lucky to get one night at Florida Caverns and then two nights at Falling Water on two different sites.

I had to fudge a little to get a site at Falling Water the first night. The only available site was a 24 foot site. At home, from the comfort of my living room two days earlier, I thought "I bet there's two extra feet there somewhere. I'll book it."

Our conversation while parking at said 24 foot site:

Me: Can I back up just a little bit more so I can get the truck out of the road?
Brian: No.
Me: OK.

Needless to say, we unhitched the first night.

The next day we had to move to another site, a pull thru site.

It was perfect. No unhitching required.

It's hard to complain about Florida weather in December but it was chilly. (I think the problem was that we were EXPECTING to bask in the Florida sunshine- which apparently went south for the winter.) Brian and I were relaxing in the trailer with Samuel and Annabelle who came in to get warm. Sabrina stayed out to ride her new bike. Moments later she came knocking on the trailer door with tears in her eyes and blood running down her forehead. While I was stammering over the location of the hospital, Brian calmly remembered to unhitch the trailer. So much for staying hitched at the second site.

After three stitches and quite possibly the most pleasant ER experience ever, we found something to do in Chipley, Florida:

Our trek south to Grayton Beach State Park for New Years Eve included a side trip to a grocery store. Pulling the trailer though Seaside, Florida was just too tempting.

A row of vintage Airstreams are used as food vendors. It's a cute little place...

...but our anthropomorphic selves think these trailers would really like to see more than just the beach. I stopped for a picture but it was nearly impossible to get a good one. On New Years Eve, this place was jumping! I snatched a "deliveries only" spot for the briefest of moments. See Someday parked across the street?

Many heads turned and fingers pointed as we crept down the street. We had fun imagining what they might be saying, "Look! There goes the bakery!"

Finally, on our 4th day in Florida, we made it to the ocean!

New Years Eve dining at it's finest:

Grayton Beach State Park, Florida

ringing in the new year with clean dishes

Canopener 2013

Topsail Hill Preserve is just down the beach from Grayton, but a little too far for the kids to ride their bikes. (Darn. They sure wanted to!) When we arrived Tuesday our site wasn't ready yet so we set out on a mission to find greens and beans (black eyed peas and collard greens)- a southern new year's day tradition.

Jim and Nick's did not disappoint! The bar-b-q was spectacular, too!

By the time dinner rolled around we were still full from lunch.

At Topsail, we kept mostly to ourselves for a couple of days until the rally kicked into full gear. We crashed a campfire or two but did spend a good deal of time poking around antique shops in Destin.

We did one thing every day: go to the beach.

You'll probably just have to take my word for it, but there are two deer in the picture. This was our first time to see deer at the beach.

On two separate days we also saw jumping manta rays. Wow!

Who said the beach wasn't fun in the winter?

Thursday night's pre-rally "Chili night" drew quite a crowd- I think more than expected. We shared fires and outdoor heaters as it was a chilly night, too.

Annabelle and Samuel entered Friday's corn-hole tournament. Our gracious hosts even looked up the regulation line for youth contestants! Poor Samuel was too old to qualify for the youth line though. Samuel took note of the rounds of margaritas being handed out and came up with a strategy: Be sober.

But alas, Samuel played the champion in the first round, single elimination.

Thankfully, the consolation prize in our family was going out to lunch. When we got back, they were still going....

I'm especially bad at remembering to take pictures at rallies! The only picture I have of any of our group gatherings is this one of the food spread for Friday night's meet and greet:

A visit from one of our favorite pups, Bentley.
We've had the pleasure of camping with Bentley and his people five times this year, more than with anyone else.

The Canopener host had some pretty cool swag to give away on Saturday night. (Courtesy of Colonial Airstream and Airstream Inc.) We came home with a 1949 Liner ornament.

I already had the perfect flamingo birthday card to go with it!

More beach pictures:

I've nearly given up on getting pictures of all three of my children together on the beach.

That's just not how we do it here. Everybody has their own favorite beach activity.

finding

building

bird chasing and..

swimming even when it's not warm enough:

This girl keeps trying to call my bluff.

No matter the season, if we're going to be near any water, she is indignant when she learns I've left her swimsuit at home. I tell her the same thing every time: "If you think it's warm enough to go swimming then you can go in your shorts." Well, I guess 50 degrees is warm enough for her. In reality, it wasn't the water that was too cold, it was the air temperature after she got out. The 1/2 mile bike ride back from the beach was the worst part.

Her brother was a gentlemen and lent her his fleece.

Ahhh, the beach! It's so hard to say goodbye. Until next time...

Our family went to the beach and all you got was this lousy picture:

We had reservations for the Disney World TAC rally for about a year and a half. That means we made the reservations back when we didn't have much of a trailer to sleep in! We arrived at Fort Wilderness in early November then stayed for two weeks. I could work up a sweat writing about all the stuff we did at Disney! Our family does Disney in a particular, deliberate way with a couple of goals in mind.

First goal: Don't wait in line.

Second goal: Have fun.

Think our priorities are mixed up? Waiting in line less means we have more fun!

Fort Wilderness: What's the big deal?
Fort Wilderness has a reputation. With such rave reviews, we were anxious to make our own assessment. I must admit that I have been more than a little skeptical about how "magical" a campground could be. We've heard that this place is "The Best" on more than one occasion.

Our first night at Fort Wilderness was a shocker. If you stay at a Disney resort on the Seven Seas Lagoon (ie: The lake in front of the Magic Kingdom) then you have the opportunity every evening to see the ~~lovely~~, ~~charming~~, ~~quaint~~, nostalgic boat parade as it floats by with its lights and blaring calliope-ish music. Fort Wilderness is tucked away in its own quiet little cove on the Seven Seas Lagoon, therefore it is the last stop for the boat parade- at about 9:45 pm!! This is important information to know. If we had known it ahead of time then I might have been less apt to mumble something non G-rated about the campground being the nosiest we've ever been to.

With Fort Wilderness, Disney does so many things right. Need ice? You can buy it at the bathhouse that is just steps from your campsite. Need to do laundry? Also at the bathhouse. Forget detergent? They have that, too. That annoying thing you can't stand about the bathhouse at your favorite campground? Well, that have that right, too. There's definitely a dry place to put your towels and clothes when you take a shower. There are enough hooks. There's a shelf big enough for your shower soaps. There aren't any light bulbs that need changing. There is enough hot water. All of those things. They have it right.

It wasn't the details that were the clincher for me though. It was when our youngest asked "Can we ride our bikes to the Magic Kingdom?" Completely melted my heart!

Have you heard about the poor old Airstream at Animal Kingdom?

We had to visit.

I guess if you're an Airstream stuck in one place then Disney World is a pretty good place to be stuck!

You can actually eat IN this trailer:

Though, I can't recommend it:

(see list: Things we should have skipped)

Dining: Oh! The Places We Ate!
We've been to Disney before. I made dining reservations ahead of time for those trips. This time, since our kids are a little older and we weren't traveling with any extra people, we decided to try something different with dining: winging it. I did not make a single dinner reservation before our trip. Our plan? Be flexible- see where we could get in for table service. With only a couple of exceptions, we were able to get in for table service almost every time we tried...

some highlights:

50s Prime Time Cafe (Hollywood Studios)-
Our waitress brought plates, silverware, and napkins. She stacked them in a pile in the middle of the table and told us to "do chores." We appreciated so many things about this place, including home-style cooking.

pot roast on a bed of mashed potatoes. delicious.

This places felt like a haven in the middle of a busy park. We sat watching black and white TV and admiring all of the 50s knick knacks. After looking around, I was a little disappointed that our booth wasn't adorned with wallpaper. Then, I took a closer look.

Would you believe the wall behind our booth was Zolatone?!

We had no trouble getting "Member of the Clean Plate Club" stickers.

Yak and Yeti (Animal Kingdom) -

Our waiter found us a table by an upstairs window. He recommended the ginger salmon for an entree. I would be hard pressed to pick a "favorite meal" for our entire trip but I just might pick the food here.

Be Our Guest (Magic Kingdom)-

Our napkins were folded into roses.

Immediately, Samuel took his apart to figure out how to make it. At every cloth-napkin restaurant we've been to since, we've had an unspoken contest to see who can make a rose the fastest- if it looks like tulip then it doesn't count.

Our table in the ballroom faced a large window. Outside the window it was snowing. The snow was so realistic to that we had to go to the window to get a better look!

My steak was delicious but I think the girls favorite part was dessert.

Words on the chocolate say "Be Our Guest."

Tokyo Dining (Epcot)-
All of us love Japanese food. We've eaten at Epcot's hibachi restaurant, Teppan Edo, in the past. It's one of our favorites. At the Japan pavilion, we learned that Teppan Edo was full for the evening. The hostess encouraged us to try Tokyo Dining; where she would be able to get us a table right away. A little disappointed, we took the table. She pointed upstairs where we were met by a hostess who escorted us to a table by the window. It wasn't until after we had ordered our food that I realized we would have a window seat for the evening firework show at Epcot, Illuminations. Whoah! I'm sure people make reservations months in advance to get a table like this (and just hope for a window seat.)

Oh, bento box! You are so pretty:

Green tea pudding!

I've had this at Teppan Edo before (it was half of the reason we came back) so I was delighted to find it on the menu at Tokyo Dining, too.

Illuminations fireworks, from our WINDOW!

Supercalifragilistic Breakfast
at 1900 Park Fare (Grand Floridian Resort)-
When we hear the word "buffet" we usually run. (Run in the opposite direction, mind you.) Not here, though. Delicious breakfast with some of our favorite characters, too. We've been here before but had to return.

Lobster Benedict, biscuits with sausage gravy, fresh fruit, and bacon. My mouth is watering as I type this. See why this place is so hard to resist?

The Mad Hatter is always so entertaining. He checked Samuel's watch and announced that it was two days slow but failed to noticed that Samuel actually set his watch two days slow just for his benefit.

Spit spot. It's Mary Poppins!

Assorted "Magical Moments"
Checking in at Fort Wilderness:
We booked a full hookup campsite (cheapest) for our stay and requested to be next to some friends. When we arrived at Fort Wilderness with our friends they went in ahead of us to check-in. A few moments later she skipped over to our trailer while we were still waiting to check in "It's Magic! Just like they said! They upgraded us [to be closer to the other Airstreams at the TAC rally!]"

All that and a bag of Ice:
After touring Animal Kingdom all day one Tuesday the kids and I came home for dinner and some errands. We left the world. At dinner, Brian and I discussed that the Magic Kingdom would be open until 1:00am! Before heading back to the trailer, we stopped to get some ice for the cooler. One interesting thing about the campground is that you have to go through the parking gate for "The Magic Kingdom" before you can get to the campground. Well, after we got through the "Magic Kingdom" parking plaza, our car suddenly went straight instead of turning right to go to the campground. Did I mention we had a bag of ice? We stashed it under the car, caughed the next monorail, and skipped into the Magic Kingdom. We arrived at 11pm when hordes of people were heading home. Were they anxious to get home to hear election results?

I spied the Hall Presidents and wondered aloud "Think it's still open this late?" Someone shouted "Last show for Hall of Presidents!" We scurried in. What a special place to be on election night- in a room full of presidents. A proud moment, too. Even our youngest recognized many of the presidents, I think visiting presidential libraries and houses makes us feel like we have connect with them in a personal way. It was hard not to get a little teary-eyed.

New Fantasyland:
I mentioned earlier that we ate at "Be Our Guest" but I failed to say how fortunate we were to be able to get in. The restaurant is in "New Fantasyland" which wasn't scheduled to be open until after our trip. There were rumors that there would be a "soft opening" the day after our departure. On election night, New Fantasyland was open for dress rehearsal! What a treat to see New Fantasyland! We ordered "LeFou's brew" from Gaston's tavern and sucked it down before getting on the new Little Mermaid ride. Then, we saw The Little Mermaid herself, in her new grotto. We took a peek at Belle's castle and the "Be Our Guest" restaurant which was just open for a preview. I asked the cast members in the castle if there was any possibility to get a reservation for dinner. She wasn't able to get me a reservation but she told me how to do it. We followed her advice. Just like that. Magic! We got in for dinner before it was even supposed to be open!

At the Polynesian:
There's no bones about it. We have a thing for Hawaii! It's been two years since our trip there and we still talk about all the time! While at Disney, we found ourselves visiting the Polynesian frequently. "Can we go there for breakfast one more time?" Strolling outside by the pool and the Seven Seas Lagoon, with the Hawaiian music, for the briefest of moments I really felt like I was in Hawaii. Thank you, Disney, for that moment!

Main Street Transportation:
There's a little old fire truck that putzes around Main Street USA at the Magic Kingdom. On our last day at the park we started out at the Magic Kingdom. We weren't really in a hurry to get to anything in particular. We had ridden everything we really wanted to ride. There was nothing left on anyone's "must do" list. More than anything, we were coming to the Magic Kingdom to pick up more Sorcerers of The Magic Kingdom cards. I mentioned that I might like to ride the fire truck. Then (you guessed it)... we were at the right place at the right time, asked the right person, and rode the firetruck just before it was in a parade!