Saturday, July 5, 2008

Camping fun in Branson or Off to our Typical rocky start



We are visiting Branson, MO, for the holiday weekend. We found a great campground that's on the lake, very friendly people, and "off the beaten path."

The first day we got here was Wednesday and it was as hot as the dickens. If you aren't a camper, just let tell you some of the things that have to be completed once we pull up to our site in the camper to get ready to "camp." Imagine trying to unhitch the TT (travel trailer), get the wheel chocks under the wheels (so we don't roll off), let the jacks down (with just the special wrench that you have to turn over and over) on each corner of the TT so that it won't jump and jive everytime someone inside walks around, and get all the hoses, cords, and plugs etc., hooked up to the proper connection so the sewer, electricity, water and Cable TV all work. And now imagine doing that in the bright sunshine, 90+ degrees with 4 boys helping you, dust flying everywhere and kids saying, "dad, can I hook up the XXX now?" Well, it's enough to try any man's soul!

So after about 20 minutes of this, I had scooted off to the bath house to you-know, and when I came back was when I noticed: The back of the TT was completely crooked!! And by that I mean, looking at the back of the TT, the left side was about, oh, six inches lower than the right side. I knew when I went into the TT and opened the slide and turned on the A/C and all that stuff that I do inside (I get the inside set up and DH gets the outside stuff done), that it was unlevel, but boy, I didn't have any IDEA how unlevel!

So I said to DH, "um, not to be the bearer of bad news but did you know that the trailer is unlevel?" And he said, "yes, I do know, but it's not bad and besides, if I try to make it level, I'll have to hitch it all up again, move the trailer, and put blocks under the wheels on the left side."

Well, I must have looked at him funny or something because he said, "What?" And I said, "Um, the boys will roll out of their bunks if it's not leveled, because all the stuff fell out of the refrigerator when I opened it." He didn't laugh, he didn't cry, he just looked at me. Then finally he said, "is it really that bad?" And I said, "no, it's worse!"

So the two younger boys and I went into the trailer, pulled the slide in and sat on the couch to wait out the moving business without being in the way. The TT got moved 6 inches forward, blocks were placed under the wheels and we were in business!!

After I had gotten sick from the heat, one of the other boys was sick from the heat, then we finally decided the only way to cool off was to drive off in our tow vehicle and stay in the A/C there until the sun went down and the camper would cool off. It turned out to be a wise choice because we went to eat at a buffet, our favorite since none of the boys can ever agree on a place to eat, and they have really good food! Something for everyone and lots of coolness to savor and enjoy before getting ready for bed.

One thing I didn't realize or wasn't told about this campground was that it is a public city-owned park which is great because it's cheap, but the bathhouses aren't air/conditioned, much like most of the state parks. That's not too bad most of the time, but boy, in July when our campsite is in the middle of a place with no trees and it's more than 90 degrees with at least 100% humidity, it's really too much!

For those unfamiliar with camping, we do have a bathroom in our TT but given the fact that my DH is over 6 feet tall and the shower is very small and not very tall and when you're standing in front of the sink with the shower on the right and the toilet on the left, you could stand with both arms outstretched and touch both the shower wall and the wall above the toilet and it's impossible to raise your leg without hitting your knee on the sink, campground facilities become very important! The boys except the youngest all shower, etc. in the campground facilities because really, if we all tried to shower in the TT, it would take 2 hours and given that the hot water heater only holds 6 gallons of water, it would probably be time for bed before we were all done showering!

More tomorrow on the joys of our trip to Branson.....

1 comment:

Diane@Diane's Place said...

Hi, Kelli! I'm proud to be the first to comment on your new blog. :o)

I enjoyed getting to know you and your family a little better.

I've been to Branson lots of times. I love Silver Dollar City but it's been years since I've been there. I can't do the walking anymore because of my bad knees, arthritis, but I love the rides.

The Ozark Mountains are my favorite place in the world to be. My sister Donna and I have camped at Gunner Pool near Mountain View many times and we love it there. We do it the hard way though, with a tent and air mattresses, no fancy TT.

I really enjoyed chatting with you tonight, and I hope to talk with you again soon. :o)

Love and hugs,

Diane