New Gear This Time Around

We're approaching Brian's second sabbatical* and this time we're going camping!  We bought a 2006 Trail Cruiser 23SB camping trailer a few weeks ago and have been eagerly anticipating taking it on its not-so-maiden voyage. Of course, we couldn't pull it with the RAV, so Brian finally got the pickup truck Amanda has been nudging him towards for years. ;)  He got a great deal on a 2010 Dodge Ram 1500 Big Horn HEMI. And, boy, does he love it! It is great for pulling the trailer although we're still getting used to what towing feels like and how to back the trailer into a parking spot. Brian is going to be an old pro in no time.

The trailer has a set of double bunks in the front and a slide-out queen in the back. The boys are excited and always want to play in it (Everett calls it the "twayluh"). Not sure what they'll think once we're in it for weeks on end, though.... In the meantime, Amanda is figuring out where everything is going to go in such a small space and what kinds of things we're going to be able to cook in the bitty kitchen.

Oh, and that door Everett is hanging out of?  The bottom bunk folds up and you can put your bikes in there! 

 

Not entirely sure what the BIG plan is, as things are a little up in the air at the moment, but we're trying to take it out this weekend for a short trip to test the waters and definitely taking it out next weekend to the Columbia Gorge Bluegrass Festival in Stevenson, WA.  Then hopefully on to Bend, OR, where my dad will be teaching the following week and continuing on down to Crater Lake/Giant Sequoias/Yosemite N.P.. We're aiming for a good 3-4 weeks, but will be flexible with what our sanity can allow. :)  The boys start school in September, so end-of-August is about the longest we can be gone.

Come with us!  It is sure to be an adventure! :)

*If you want to read the blog from our first sabbatical, it's over here.