Happy New Year!

On this last day of 2017, I want to wish all my camping peeps and friends a big ole Happy New Year!

  

This past year was full of fun camping trips with all the people we love.  Murphy, Mom, and I made another trip around the sun together as we camped and cooked, hung out with our peeps on 8 different trips, and I wrote 58 Stories!  We covered almost 3,000 miles and had 56 sleep-outs together! Mom is a stickler for keeping details about our adventures together and here's how that all played out this past year.

My Camper Mom cooked dozens and dozens of Dutch oven dishes, we watched many gorgeous sunsets, and we hosted 4 gatherings for our friends.  It was a good year!

Miss Murphy surprised us all by making it to her 14th birthday in September and joining me on all but one adventure!

We experienced the highest of highs in November when Jessie married Charlie.

But we hit the lowest of lows in September when Roger Dodger left us.

Believe it or not, there are already 8 camping trips on our 2018 calendar, so there's lots to look forward to with Momma Sharon.

Happy New Year everyone.  Cheers!!  I hope all your camping dreams come true in 2018!!

"Peace, Love, & Camping"

Love & Light In 2018

Happy New Year to all my camping buddies!  I appreciate you dropping by today for the first of two Stories to close out 2017.

There's a T@Bber out there that is pretty famous and that goes for her trailer too.  She's a photographer, blogger, videographer, instructor, adventurist, and all-round cool lady.  Her name is Mandy Lea and even though we haven't met her and her famous Outback T@B named Rocky, we feel like we already know her.  She lives in and travels with Rocky year-round!

Back in November, Momma Sharon saw a post by Miss Mandy, offering three calendars for sale that featured Rocky and their adventures together.   So she ordered one for us and since 2018 is just around the corner, I thought I would give you a little preview.  I'll also post the website at the tail end of my Story where you can get your own calendar too .

If you'd like to follow Mandy's adventures, read her blog, watch her videos, AND score one of these uber-cool 2018 calendars, then just visit her here . . . 

https://mandyleaphoto.com

See ya tomorrow my friends!

"Peace, Love, & Cool Calendars"

Little Tiny Trailers

Last week while Mom and Aunt Wendy were spending a few days in West Jefferson, they went into a Christmas Shop on Main Street. There were trailer tree ornaments, trailer bird houses, camping signs, and other really neat stuff in that same vein.

Daisy's Mom, Miss Crystal, has a huge holiday display of trailers that she showcases each year and it is pretty awesome.  Mom has a much, much smaller collection and she keeps it out all year in her Studio.  She also has some inside of one of my storage bins and sometimes she will display them on my shelves.

Last weekend at the Christmas open house at 2 Pink Magnolias here in town, she found a little blue and green camper (like me) that lights up and it immediately when into her shopping pile.  Then at the Christmas shop in West Jefferson, she found the perfect tow vehicle for it . . it lights up too!

Once she got back home, she hitched up the little green and blue camper to the green truck with a Christmas tree in the back and added it to our collection.

I told her to come down to the T@Bport, visit with me a little bit, and gather up all the other tiny trailers that we own and add them to the display!

Well, until I have another Story to write and share, always remember . . . 

"Peace, Love, & Tiny Trailers" 

My Incredible Incrateable

Hey Everyone . . . happy pre-Thanksgiving Friday!

I may be all buttoned up for my long-winter's nap, but Mom gave the the laptop so I could write a special Story for you today.  It's pretty incredible, this Incrateable that I want to tell you about!

A couple of Saturdays ago my Camper Mom and Aunt Becky headed out into the countryside between Newton and Maiden in search of the Devine Family Farm. It was a drizzly morning and not really the kind of morning to be adventuring out for a fall festival.  One look at the muddy road leading into the farm gave them second thoughts, but they were intrigued.

After finding a place to park on the grass, out of the mud, they strolled among the vendor tents spread out in the field.  There was one in particular that caught Mom's eye . . . Incrateables.

A local fellow, Todd Reed from Catawba, had dozens and dozens of milk crates with a variety of cool fabric-covered lids on them.  BINGO . . . the perfect footstool that Mom and I have been looking for for oh so long to go in between my bench seats!

She and Aunt Becky found the perfect fabric to compliment my Aztec Gold interior, but Mr Todd only had that lid to fit a wooden box, not a Sterilite crate.  So Mom put in a special order for a black crate with that special fabric.  Yesterday we got a call that it was ready.  Mr. Todd and Mom had a rendezvous at the Police Department for the delivery at 4:30!

And here is our incredible Incrateable . . . 

17"L x 14"W x 10"H, black, milk crate with a padded fabric-covered lid

Strong enough to sit on & prop your feet up on

Flip over the lid for a flat surface to eat, play, or work off of

Use the lid for a lap cushion for our MacBook

Take the lid off & use the crate to store stuff

Pretty cool huh?  I told Mom we could just leave it on my floor for travel and it would always be ready to use.  No more spilled coffee, no more losing pens between my cushions, no more trying to find something sturdy and flat to write on.  If we take the lid off and flip it over, we can play cards.  Mom could even carry it to a campfire and tote a little blanket inside of it!  Incredible . . . Incrateable!

Well, thanks so much for dropping by today for my Story.  I am working on another one too and until it's time to publish it, always remember . . . 

"Peace, Love, & Incredible Incrateables"

Making It A Home

It's a chilly Sunday here in the Foothills and it's obvious that winter is right around the corner.  Today I wanted to share a Picture Story about how my Camper Mom tries to make camping with me a real homey experience.  Now, she doesn't really get into all that glamping, frufru stuff, but she does like to spruce our campsite up a bit with special touches.  Here's what I'm talking about . . . 

Miss Ellen gave Aunt Becky a special plant for our picnic table 

Home is where Momma Sharon takes me

A little fall bunting hanging from my front cabinets is kinda sweet

There's a place for everything in the Clam

I love seeing my Southern Living banner hanging out front for all to see

This T@B Halloween decoration is too stinkin' cute

We have welcomed Beach Peeps every year since 2014

Aunt Becky painted this rock in MD,
but left it in our campsite to be found by another camper

Roger's flowers lasted all week at James Island &
were special to look at every day

Even though we have enough flags for every day,
we liked this fall one the best

Sitting pretty during the day

Looking stunning at night

Thanks so much for dropping by today.  Until have have another Story to tell and snapshots to share, always remember . . . 

"Peace, Love, & Homey Touches When Camping"

Murphy & Sophie's 1st Caravan

Hey everyone!  All my human and puppy peeps are back home from the Coastal Caravan.  Mom backed me into my T@Bport about 2:30 this afternoon and began preparations for my long winter nap.  Before I start my hibernation, she said that I could write a few Stories to share with you.

Our Coastal Caravan was #4 the year, but it's the first one that Murphy and Sophie have ever been on.  Normally they would both be home while we were down on the South Carolina coast with our camping buddies.  But this year, a couple of circumstances changed all that.  Little Murphy has started having seizures, so Momma Sharon doesn't let her out of her sight.  And Sophie usually stays home with Daddy Roger, but she lost him six weeks ago.

Ready to leave home for the Coastal Caravan IV

Murphy and Sophie get along really well and that means that they travel good together.  Some creative packing in Splish gives them each a third of the back seat.  Unless it's time for them to eat, they are so quiet, you wouldn't even know they are back there!

They wait in the truck while we are setting up the campsite and then they get to spend some quality time with Mom and Aunt Becky.  They hang out in their pen, lay on the mat, sleep on the cushions, snooze in a chair, and Murphy specially likes to lay in my doorway.  At night, they both burrow down on the blanket between the beds.

Sophie sunning while Momma Becky eats lunch

Murphy snoozing in the Charleston sun

Sophie waiting patiently for her next walk

Murphy the Camper Dog can sleep anywhere!

Murphy checking the campground action from her doorway

Sophie catching a catnap inside

Sophie always picked the back as her nighttime spot 

Catching another nap in Aunt Bec's chair

You might be thinking that all those two pups did last week was sleep, but they also went for walks on the beach, shopped at some great stores, strolled through the park, ate ice cream, visited with the other camping pups (Pepper 1, Pepper 2, Kobe, & Lilly), and ate out at a lot of neat beach restaurants!

Lunch at Duffy Street Seafood Shak in Ocean Drive

Lunch in a tall chair at Pier 14 Restaurant 

Taking a walk through Myrtle Beach State Park

Strolling the beach on Kiawah Island

Checking out the Festival of Lights with Momma Sharon

Free treats at the Southern Living Store

Lunch at Bubba's Love Shak

A lazy supper at Home Team BBQ in Charleston

Sophie eating ice cream in Charleston 

Beach bums at Beachwalker Park

Schnauzer greetings at the Camp Store

Miss Murphy did really good on our Caravan.  Despite having a seizure one night in our 2nd week, her energy level was high, and she was up for everything Momma Sharon had planned.  We don't know how many more camping trips are in her future, but she's a tough little pup and Mom will do anything to keep her happy and healthy.

All of us are glad to be home again and until I have another Story for you, always remember . . . 

"Peace, Love, & Camping Puppies"