Packing up for Winter :(

Hello friends,

This weekend marked the end of our first season camping...so first of all thanks for following along on our journey!  We've had a great time (and some challenges!) and packing up was definitely bittersweet! I'm not a big fan of endings but I also enjoy hibernating in the winter and the holidays so to everything its season I suppose...

Aside from packing up it was a rainy, chilly weekend so much of it looked like this...

Luckily we really like the living area in the new camper and it really does make it more comfortable when you want to be inside for a bit.  I did some reading and these two did a lot of napping and pretending (through closed eyes!) to watch one of the few TV channels we get which runs lots of old shows.  I did stop reading long enough to enjoy some Doogie Howser, M.D., hey what can I say... Doogie was my first crush...lol!





The packing up was fairly simple for us.  The campground we are at (shout out to Cedar Lake Campground in Dover, PA) has sign up sheets in their office and you can get on the list to have one of the local RV shops come around and winterize your camper for you... considering it is fairly inexpensive we decided to leave this task to someone else.  With that taken care of, we really just needed to make sure we cleared out anything that shouldn't stay in the RV all winter (food, books, bedding, toiletries), and secure all of our outdoor furniture and decorations.  While packing up I realized we didn't drink nearly enough wine this season as we had several bottles to take home... lol.  I forgot to take one of my bags that can nicely carry several bottles (with separators to prevent clinking and breaking) so I devised this little trick.  The socks are clean, I promise!

While Henry stayed at the campsite with the company who winterized for us, I was on Hank duty so that he would not annoy everyone while they were trying to work!  It was damp and not the most pleasant walking weather but we found lots of beauty tucked into the dreary day...

While we're talking about nature's beauty... the fall leaves were very pretty, and we had lots of time with them as we raked this weekend... and now you can't tell that we did... except when we move the cars.  We had cleared all the leaves and then re-parked our cars, and then the rain overnight dropped a whole new covering of them.  So this is just proof for ourselves that we did do the job once, though there will be plenty more to do next time we visit the campground!

So this is so long to camping weekends until at least late March, but it won't be goodbye from the blog until then :-)  I have a few post ideas tucked away from this season, and I also plan to try lots of camping friendly recipes over the winter (I did bring the instant pot home with me!) and of course, there's always books to share!  I'd also like to bring just a little of the magic of camping to everyday life, take deep breaths and slow everything down.  I'll share that journey here over the winter as we dream of camping again in the spring.  Here is one last picture of the campsite, all closed up.  So long camper and campground... we will be stopping in the check on you here and there...until warmer weather comes back to us.

What we're reading:

   

I finished Turtles All The Way Down by John Green.  It was fantastic, please do yourself a favor and go read it!  I know he's my favorite, but it's because he's awesome.  Camping husband is still reading it so when he is done I will share his review as well.  

I also finished Wonder by R.J. Palacio over the weekend and not to be "punny" but it was really a wonderful read.  It has been made into a movie that comes out very soon and I wanted to read it before seeing it in theaters (the camping kiddos really want to see it and also enjoyed the book).  The main character is a 5th grader, and the book is written for that age group but it's a beautiful read no matter how old you are.

Happy Reading -- Hope everyone has a fantastic week!

Peace, Love, and Paw Prints, 

Camping Librarian

Slowly getting settled and Instant Pot Success!

Hello friends,

This blog post will be brought to you in three fun parts!

Part 1 - Catching up:

We've been in our new camper now for a total of about 5 nights and we are mostly settled into the camper but not entirely into the campsite yet (I have a list of projects for camping husband... :-))

Here are a few photos of our adventures...

 Our campground (Cedar Lake in Dover, PA) has great activities for the kids and whole family every weekend...We enjoyed some bingo and some games at their Oktoberfest celebration... and at our campsite Hank especially enjoys digging holes... lol.  He's going to be pretty disappointed when that squishy dirt/mud gets covered with stone here soon.

Here are a few of our campground friends... I especially love that white turkey, she likes to chat with me and I just love her expressions.. lol. Yes sometimes I do like talking to animals more than people!

Part 2 - Instant Pot adventures:

I've owned an Instant Pot for probably close to a year now.  I got it during an amazon sale last holiday season and it seemed fantastic but when I got it I think I found it a bit overwhelming to figure out so it mostly just sat on my pantry floor month after month.  I did pack it in the camper in the spring when we started camping but then it stayed tucked in a storage compartment month after more months. Recently though, I have become a bit addicted to watching RVing YouTube videos and realized that lots of people were saying this handy appliance was thier go to for RV cooking - so I watched some videos on using it and decided to give it another go and so far I'm very glad I did!  The first recipe I tried was Beef Stoganoff and it turned out REALLY tasty and was so easy!  Here are a few pics... and bonus you can see a glimpse of our little outdoor kitchen space...

Stay tuned for more Instant Pot updates in future posts!!

PART 3 - What we're reading:

Camping husband and I are both reading Turtles All the Way Down by my absolute all-time favorite author John Green

We're both about halfway through...I lent my hard copy (for reading - I also own a autographed hard copy just for looking pretty) to camping husband and I'm reading on my kindle.  I love it when I hear him laugh out loud while he's reading...sharing my love for John Green is one of my favorite things to do as a librarian - but it's even more fun at home!  Stay tuned for a review.

Hope everyone has a fantastic week!  

Peace, Love, and Paw Prints, 

Camping Librarian

Camper Tour! (and my first video so please be nice!)

Hello friends,

So our life has been pretty hectic and stressful the past week or so but I did find a bit of time to take a load of stuff up to the new camper and campground.  I wish I could just stay there forever and listen to the ducks and watch the water ripple in the breeze.  I think I would adjust quite well to retirement but for the next 25 years or so, pretending to be retired on the weekends will have to suffice!

Anyway - while I was taking a load up I decided to grab a quick video, and give you all a tour of the new camper while it is still clean and uncluttered with all of our stuff.  I'll try to do some more videos in the near future showing how we organize all of our "essentials" (like books and wine!) in the camper.

So here it is - enjoy...

I don't have any new books to share on this post so please share what you are reading with me in the comments, I love book recommendations!

Happy camping and reading!

Peace, Love, and Paw Prints, 

Camping Librarian

Moving Our Home Away From Home...

Hello friends,
I hope you are having a fantastic finish to summer (though not officially, it already feels like fall).  I have been very lucky to have had a pretty awesome past week or so, and thought I would catch everyone up on our latest adventures in camping and of course reading!

RELAXATION!

First things first - camping husband and I had a fantastic stay-cation this past week (and I know re-entry to work this afternoon is going to be HARD!).   Stay-cation is however relative because we spend part of it at the camper which is kind of like home but more fun and relaxing :-)

We hiked, I crafted, we drank wine...ahhh...

Maybe lots of parks have this now ... but I love the interactive screen they had at the visitors center here, it was great for helping us pick a hike!  I forgot how much uphill there is when hiking in the mountains... haha...but it was a beautiful day and we had a wonderful time spending a few hours alone in nature (there were very few other hikers there on a weekday).

Checked out a few of our favorite stops on the battlefield... 

Downtime for the sake of downtime!  You can't tell but the picture of us is at the Gettysburg Wine and Music Festival, we couldn't have asked for better weather that day!

FAMILY TIME: 
Then at the end of our stay-cation we had some fun time with our camping girls...

Ice cream, card games, and campfires!  Doesn't get much better!

PACKING UP: 

Starting next week we will be starting a new adventure at a NEW campground with a NEW camper! Stay tuned for updates from Cedar Lake Campground in Dover, PA (a short 30 minute drive from Gettysburg) and for a tour of our new "lake camper" - kind of like a lake house on wheels :-)

Cleaning up the camper and the campsite... and that pile in our living room is just a small portion of what we had in our camper that we had to bring home in order to reload the new camper next week...How did it all fit!? I'm tired just thinking about it!

WHAT WE'RE READING:

I just finished Purple Hibiscus by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie.  It's the One Maryland, One Book selection for this year, and my library system is hosting several book discussions including one on facebook that you can participate in from anywhere.  This is a really beautifully written, and sometimes painful to read book.  Click on the cover of the book for more information about it. 

Happy camping and reading!

Peace, Love, and Paw Prints, 

Camping Librarian

Camping Librarian turns 40! What?!

Hello friends,

Camping husband and I celebrated my birthday in style - at the camper of course! It was a tiny bit amusing to me when we were having drinks before my fancy birthday dinner at Antrim 1844, and a gentleman asked if we were staying at the inn and I responded that no we were camping nearby.  Somehow I think the idea of us getting all dressed up and fancy at our campsite might have not been the answer he was expecting :-)

Here is a glimpse of our weekend.  Do I have to go back to work later today?  Good thing there is another long weekend coming up!

Coffee and wine in the same picture :-)

Delicious Peach Cake

So much silverware...we aren't in camping mode here, for sure!

Just some happy moments... warm campfire toes, camping puppy guarding his sticks, wine and a non-poisonous caterpillar!  We had droves of the poisonous ones earlier this summer so this little guy was a welcome sight!

These are from a weekend I somehow forgot to blog!  Adventures on the battlefield, I'm sure seasoned Gettysburg visitors know just what section we are on!  I had a blast climbing those rocks as a kid, so it was fun to be there with the girls :-)

What we're reading:

I actually have no idea what camping husband or camping children are reading at the moment... I need to pay more attention!  I however, am currently reading:

I just started it so I'll let you know how it goes :-)

If you're looking for more great nonfiction reads check out this post by my favorite public library (I might be biased!) on facebook - a great conversation in their Sunday Night Book Chat:  Awesome NonFictions Books

Happy reading and relaxing this last week before school starts (here in Maryland at least).
Peace, Love, and Paw Prints,
Camping Librarian 

Easily Confused: RV Newbies

I'm playing catch up on most facets of life, and blogging is no different so this story comes to you from a few weeks ago... 

The weekend when we returned to camping after our adventure to the beach we had a bit of an RV puzzle on our hands... 

Setting the stage: Camping children entered the camper and noticed that it didn't smell like roses ... I thought it was just a bit musty after being closed up for two weeks in 100+ degree temperatures... until someone opened the refrigerator and a horrendous tidal wave of stink filled the whole camper. I'm gasping for fresh air just thinking about it. 

The issue: Somehow we lost power while we were at the beach.  We left things in the refrigerator and freezer thinking it would have power the whole time we were gone.  Bad things happened. 

The Confusion: There are a lot of little buttons on the refrigerator (OK.. like 3 but perhaps we are easily overwhelmed - this is why we need camping!) and it's hard for the untrained eye to see if it is currently running on gas or electric.  After much discussion, trials, errors, and readings of manuals we were quite sure that our refrigerator was BROKE and that it now only ran on gas and not on electric.  I even did some crowd-sourcing and put the issue out to experts on my facebook friends list-  desperate times and all that.  Finally we were sure we needed a repairman and made a few calls. 

The light bulb finally comes on: We happened to run into a fellow camper who said they also had some issues with their fridge that week (the same model even - wahoo) and she recommended to really look closely at those thousands of little buttons (again - just 3) and make sure it is set to auto - which means it runs on electric and then switches to gas if the power goes out).  It is surprisingly hard to distinguish which buttons are engaged.  Turns out after further inspection on day 3 of this conundrum - our refrigerator works absolutely fine on the electric setting and did not work on the gas setting because... wait for it.....we were out of propane. 

Lesson Learned:  So there you go - we learned a lesson the hard way and now you don't have to :-)

What We're Reading: 

This is a fantastic graphic novel about how complicated friendships and fitting in can be at any age.  I read it and I'm going to pass it onto the girls as well - I think they will really like it! 

Camping Librarian Goes to the Beach!

What do you get when you take 7 people, two dogs, and a boatload of stuff to the beach? Mostly fun, but also a very crowded vehicle, and a few puppy quarrels over toys! :-)

One (sometimes bad) habit I took from camping and applied to a beach vacation was over-preparing and mostly all that it got me was a really uncomfortable ride to the outer banks.  Amazon came to the rescue and I had a car top carrier delivered to the beach before packing to come home :-)  This carrier was inexpensive and worked out really well for us:

                                                              

Here are a few photos from our adventures:

There is NO more room!

Hank and Frank meet :-)

Hank is not quite so sure about the water...

Hank and Frank ruled the house and deck.

 Morning coffee is always my favorite beach activity!

Gabe made a friend!  Sand toys bring little ones together :-)

Such a peaceful section of beach...

sea shell hunting

play time!

These two look up to no good!

problem solved!  Thanks amazon!

My Relaxation Station

OK - so I very much stole the title of this blog post from my library.  We have a table at the library where we often put out things like jigsaw puzzles or adult coloring called the relaxation station but truly that is what I would like camping to be all about!  That could be why you haven't seen a new blog post in a few weeks. More likely, however, it is because once we leave the campground life turns into a whirlwind again and I have trouble finding the time to sit down and write... that's not nearly as nice of a reason! I really do have to work on balance in my life and not only on the weekends!

Camping Husband and I decided to extend our relaxing a bit this time by commuting to work from the camper today (it's only about an extra 15 minutes for me) so that we could enjoy the 4th of July here tomorrow, so I am enjoying a delicious cup of coffee and taking advantage of the morning peace (aside from one barking puppy) to catch up on some of my favorite activities before I go into work this afternoon.  Hank and I took several nice walks, and have enjoyed the shade of the canopy on our campsite while I drink my coffee and he partakes in his favorite camping passtime... chewing on sticks and other random things he finds on the ground.  Here are some pictures of our recent adventures... be sure to scroll to the bottom for the librarian portion of the blog :-) Otherwise known as what I/we're reading...

mmmmm... Coffee

Hank and I hanging out on the porch during the pool dance party.. he's a fantastic dance partner!

peek-a-boo  

so sleepy!

Hershey is close by .. we ventured there for a rainy concert!

The concert is down there somewhere! 

ahhh.. refreshing!

Nature's toys!

The slide was a bit too fast!

Science!

Deliciousness from the Amish vendor who comes through each weekend.  I sure do love the sound of that bell and the taste of those sticky buns!

What I'm reading:  Last weekend I finished:

This is a sweet early chapter book with the message that even when bad things happen in our lives it doesn't mean we can't be happy.  It's for younger readers but I enjoyed it immensely as a quick, one sitting read on a quiet afternoon.








Bonus Camping Tip - you made it to the end of the blog post... so here's my bonus tip...if you have your camper parked in one spot and you keep things in your refrigerator...always Always ALWAYS make sure your camper is properly plugged into power before you leave and that a child has not tripped over the cord during end of weekend campsite clean up... this seems obvious... but the disgustingness that was our fridge/freezer this Friday after a week of 100 degree heat and no power is apparently and indication that to us it was not obvious :/ A big thank you to Camping Husband for cleaning it all up!!

Rainy Days and Sundays

Greetings from my happy place!

We had a few rainy weekends in early May but truth be told they have been some of the most relaxing camping weekends.  The sound of the rain is so much more pronounced in the camper and there is nothing more adorable than watching the birds use the puddles around the campground as a bird bath.  It also gave us a bit of time to explore Henry's hometown.  Olympia Candy Kitchen did not disappoint and then we had some yummy treats to munch on while drinking tea and reading tucked into our little camper in the big woods.

Some more sights from our adventures: 

 This little guy (or big guy) is a regular at the bird feeder next door...luckily we can watch him right out our window (and listen to him peck, peck, peck away!)

The water wheel has been on the side of the campground lodge since I was a little girl and they recently got it turning again for the season.  I remember thinking it was so neat when I was knee high to a grasshopper!

 Here's a little glimpse inside our camper...most of the important things in life are in this photo (other than the TV): Books, wine, moonshine, and my favorite puppy.  I doubt that every camper has quite this many books in it at one time (with storage being a hot commodity!), but I never know what I'm going to feel like reading... so books take priority!

Finally - here is one from the lovely Mother's Day tea that the campground had. They have lots of activities for the kids every weekend but for Mother's Day weekend it was all about the moms. Sadly, I was the only one who turned up for the Mother's Day book swap but a few others did join us for tea.






After tea it was time to snuggle in with a good book!  I'm currently reading:


If you are looking for other camping (or vacationing of any kind!) reads check out my awesome friend's blog post about vacation reads over at Savoring the Good.  While you're there check out her delicious recipes. Sarah is one of my best high school friends and also a blogger extraordinaire!

Now it's off to one last night of sleeping with the sounds of nature before Monday rolls around and it's time to go to work (good thing being a librarian is so fabulous!).

Peace, Love, and Paw Prints.

The Camping Librarian