Well, we are 18 hours from departure. My usual plan for one week before our trip is to clean the car and start packing it with essentials. I have everyone start packing their clothes for the drawers in the car and pack their backpacks with sleepwear ("Jammie's" is not an acceptable terms these days particularly because underwear is the sleepwear of choice.), socks, underwear and bathing suits which we need every night in the hotel. I figure out what food we need to pack for the road and for our first major stop. I also clean the house so we come home to a nice house. This year is a little different. Last week, we took our van into the shop for an oil change and to check a noise we heard. They have had our ... read more

Geo: 42.5459, -83.2155... read more

Geo: 44.6639, -86.0181Today, we packed up to go back to the LP. We really enjoyed the UP. We met our neighbor campers the night before. Turns out they live a 1/2 mile from us and go to Harlan. How crazy. It was two dads (one divorced and the other not sure) and their kids, a boy and a girl. The girl loved Elizabeth. The boy stayed with his dad. He had a traumatic experience the night before. They were on the sunset cruise that returned around ten PM in the dark. The boy was on the dock with his uncle looking up at his dad on the second level and fell off the dock between the boat and the dock (IN LAKE SUPERIOR). The uncle dove in after him and found him six feet below. Others ... read more

Geo: 45.1134, -83.5568Last night we arrived at Campers Cove in Alpena on Thunder Bay river which looks more like a lake. I chose an end site (last October) next to the fishing pond. It's a great site because it is huge and we only have someone on one side of us and it is opposite the side we hang out on.. Though, I must say that the people around us are so nice. We were clueless when we arrived. All the hookups are on the side of the other camper next to us where a kind elderly gentleman saw us in our time of need. He hobbled over (though he had a scooter for easier mobility) and asked if we needed help. Yes Please! His name is John. John knows everyone around us. Paul calls him ... read more

Geo: 38.0486, -84.5003It's All Numbers8 States5 New States3200 miles59 hours in the car215 gallons of gas5 Marriotts1 House3 Univeristies 4 including Monsters Inc University4 theme parks and attractions38 alligators22 restaurants 8 Nationalities of foods90 bottles of water7 frozen desserts3 parking fees11 big cities (with high rises) 9 movies6 bodies of water (including rivers, lakes, oceans)2 pizzas1 boat1 sandy beach2 pools (they swam in)1 crappy hotel1 Cajunman6 toll roads5 capitals 6 different beds11 pairs of Nike Elite socks We didn't keep track of our spending like past years but I'm sure it is somewhere between 6-8,000 dollars. Including everything like tolls, parking, hotels etc.Memories...PRICELESS!Drive update. We made it to the Courtyard Lexington at 3 AM. It may have been the nicest Marriott on this trip which was nice at 3... read more