Going Home!!

WE MADE IT!!

306 days on the road, 64 different campgrounds and 25,388.5 miles later we are home.

Tuesday, 1/3 , day 306 of our great adventure was the day we decided to head home to Port Orange, Florida. We had a wonderful visit with our three grandchildren but all things must come to an end. I got up to hook up the camper for the last time of our trip. I probably should count how many times I have hooked and un-hooked the 5th wheel ( should be 128 times). I think I am probably what you call a PRO!! but I still am checking everything twice before pulling on to the road. We had about 250 miles to make it home and got on the road about 8am. It was a nice easy drive and we made it back home around 2pm.

I don't really know what to say about this adventure but WOW!  The wife, Suzanne and I have been so blessed to have made this trip. We survived and still LOVE each other after all that time together. She has been the best traveling companion anyone could ask for. Yes , I am very blessed to have someone like her.

The trip has given us so many memories that will remain with us forever. We have only really seen a very, very small area of this vast country. As this part of our lives comes to an end we are really looking forward to the future. Like any good book, one chapter ends and another starts.

Thanks to everyone who has followed along with our trip. All your encouragement has really kept me posting on this blog. Thanks again!

I have posted this before, but think this is so true and a way to say, THE END!!


Do not put off living the life you dream of. Next year may never come. If we are always waiting for something to change ... retirement, the kids to leave home, the weather or the economy, that's not living. That's waiting! Waiting will only leave us with unrealized dreams and empty wishes.

The last hook-up

Home from the trip of a life time!!!

New Years with the Grandchildren in Crawfordville, FL

It was time to move closer to our condo in Port Orange, Florida, but not without first visiting our grandchildren. Our daughters family lives in Crawfordville and we had to see our wonderful three little boys. There is a nice county park on HWY 98 in Newport, not to far from the boys house that is only $15 a night with water and electric. Not a bad place to stay while visiting the children. We got to spend time with our 3 litttle boys, a 3 year old, a 4 year old and a 5 year old, who are the best and cutest boys in the world!!  What a wonderful time we had and they are such a pleasure!!

Spending a few days at Florida Caverns, 12/29 and 12/30

We decided to visit Florida Caverns in Marianna, Florida on 12/29 and 12/30. Thursday 12/29 was also a landmark day for us, we made it back to Florida with our camper. We even acted like tourists and stopped at the Florida Welcome Station and got our free orange juice. It was nice to be back in our state even though the trip was coming to an end.
The campground is very nice, if not raining and was almost full the nights we stayed. If you ever go, make reservations and try to get site 30. A very big site and easy to back in. The only problem would be if it rained as the sites are hard packed dirt and you would be walking in mud. Our good friends, Lee and Dorothy came over from Tallahassee on Friday for lunch and a tour of the cave. The cave has dazzling formations of limestone stalactites, stalagmites, soda straws, flowstones and draperies.  It was a nice 45 minute tour and we had a good time. We are so glad ,we got to spend time with our long time friends. It was Dorothy's first time in a cavern and she also got to see a small bat, another first. I think she had a good time!

Christmas 2011 in Oak Mountain State Park

Went to Oak Mountain State Park in Pelham, Al on 12/23/2011. The park is just outside Birmingham and is very nice. The campground is way off the highway, so to go somewhere takes some time, then the traffic in Birmingham can be time consuming. But a nice campground overall and there aren't to many campgrounds closer to Birmingham. My sister and her family, plus my mother live in Birmingham, so we wanted to spend Christmas with them.
Went to a great Christmas Eve service at a church my nephew, James and his wife, Anne-Michelle belong. This was a great service with over 1200 people in attendance. The ending with over 1200 lit candles was really cool and we all left with a great feeling for Christmas. Then we had a great meal at my nephews house with all the family. What a great day!
Christmas day was spent at my sisters house and all the relatives.  The food was GREAT and it really is wonderful to be with family on Christmas.
We are leaving on Thursday to head back to Florida with a stop off at Florida Caverns and New Years day with our grandchildren.
December 28th is day 300 of our travels. We are a little disappointed to end our adventure but also excited to get back to Florida and our friends. We have been so blessed to travel and see all the wonderful animals and scenery. What a wonderful chapter in our life and we are looking forward to the next.

Staying at Paul B. Johnson State Park 12/15 -12/21

Having a nice time at Paul B. Johnson State Park in Hattiesburg, MS. We have been doing a lot of shopping and going to McD's for the internet. There is a place called Dirt Cheap, that has a lot of surplus merchandise from retailers, very very cheap! I found a heater for the camper for 60% off. But it beeps and Sandy has a fit. So we may have to find a new home for it. The heater not Sandy::))

Hatttiesburg is the Home of The University of Southern Mississippi. They have a very nice looking campus. On the Hwy to the campground is Camp Shelby an Army base. The have a surplus of vehicles in a big lot. I wonder if David would like one?

We are looking forward to going to Birmingham on Thursday to have Christmas at my sisters house. She always has a lot of decorations and prepares a fabulous dinner. She is the Martha Stewart of our family:))

For David

My county!! Lamar is my middle name:)

Heading to Mississippi! 12/15 – 12/21

It was time to move on to Mississippi and our goal of being in Birmingham, AL for Christmas. It was a nice easy drive of just a little over 200 miles. I10 takes you over a bayou that was interesting to us Florida people.

We are staying at the Paul B. Johnson State Park for a week. A nice campground and we have a great sight with grass and surprisingly a lot of campers. This by far is the busiest state campground we have been in since last summer. This is our 15^th state we have camped in since we left Florida.

Well, I am slowing down on my postings on the blog as we wind down our trip. Not really much to see and we are enjoying just relaxing and doing nothing. We will return the first week of January and are looking forward to getting back. I can not believe we are coming down to our last few weeks on the road. What a great trip and the memories are forever!!

Lafayette, LA 12/13 and 12/14

We got over to the Acadiana Park Campground a county/parrish type campground with time to get in some Christmas shopping. It was a nice campground and a place to celebrate Suzanne's birthday. We called my nephew's in-laws, Beth and Chris to meet up for lunch on Wednesday. They took us to a nice canjun restaurant on the river. They(the restaurant) even sang Happy Birthday to Suzanne! We really enjoyed our visit and will see Beth and Chris again in few weeks for Christmas at my sisters.

The Walters keep moving on!!