The Adventures of Grammi and Grampa 2.0

Grammi and I started working on getting the camper ready weeks ago.. We’ve made some upgrades and went through the process of inventorying everything we have on board. We purged some things we didn’t really use last time reducing the clutter and lightening the load. I believe we’ve learned what we need and what we don’t need. We can manage with less stuff having more confidence embracing a minimalist attitude. I upgraded the drawer slides to a heavier duty, higher quality product. I installed new locks on the storage compartment and a keyless lock on the entry door for better security. I also installed an onboard electric surge protector to safeguard against power fluctuations when connected to campground power sources.

Our plan is to go west. Yep, that’s about it. No set destination beyond the first couple weeks, just a general idea to go west and explore parts of Texas, New Mexico, Arizona and beyond. We’re not sure how it will all work out but we’re going to embrace the uncertainty and push our comfort zone. We’re not even sure how long we’ll stay gone. If all goes well…maybe until late September or early October.

We look forward to lots of adventure and exploring parts of the country we’ve never seen before. It’s exciting to think about. But the hard part will be staying away from family for so long. We will miss our family but we have some plans to meet up in spots over the summer.

On the day before we left home, we all met up at the Strawberry Festival in Plant City. The fourteen of us among the first through the gates in the morning eating our way around the fair, inspecting the livestock, looking over the exhibits and watching the little one have a thrill on the kiddy rides. Grammi and I were thankful to have the family together having fun and creating wonderful memories.

Sunday, the day we left, was a scramble with all the last minute packing and going through all the checklists. We did a walk-thru with our daughter and her husband. They will be house-sitting while we are gone. No matter how much you prepare there always seems to be more that needs done and inevitably something is forgotten.

It was a two hour drive to our first destination. We arrived just as the sun was setting. We parked in our daughter’s driveway where we would stay for the next two nights. A delicious dinner was waiting for us and afterward we gathered around a backyard fire for wine and s’mores. Those roasted marshmallows with chocolate and gram crackers are a favorite. We loved our time with Shanna.

Another two hour drive to our next stop at our daughter Amber’s house for more driveway surfing. We have four daughters so it’s fun to make the rounds before heading west. We spent the rest of the day playing with the grandkids before having an enjoyable dinner. The following day was more of the same with the grandkids.

We will be leaving in the morning heading to our first campground on this journey. It was at that point last year when we picked up a last minute camping buddy. Our granddaughter joined us for a few days. You can read about that adventure in our past blog posted dated May 27, 2019 “A Last Minute Surprise”. That won’t be happening this time as our granddaughter is growing up and is now in school. I’m sure there will be more than a few moist eyes as we head off. But excitement should quickly return as more adventure awaits.