Phew!

I've gotten a few e-mails in response to our S.O.S. on the Jersey turnpike! I just knew the turnpike would figure into our story at some point...we just didn't want to be sitting ducks out there!! I am glad to report, however, that we are safe in our little campground by the bay, with a "view" of the backside of Lady Liberty.

To catch everyone up, we had a comical trip through Connecticut and Rhode Island. We met the campground nazis at Paradise Campground, where we stayed all of 10 minutes before asking for our money back. Outside of being just plain rude and unreasonable, they don't like dogs OR children, so if you'd like for us to give you their number, we can all take turns calling and asking for a space while the kids yell and scream in the background while your husband barks like a dog. We thought about driving back by there and giving them the live version, but who knows what they would have hurled at us.

Anyway, we moved on to a Wal-Mart, where Rocky Balboa with a cigar hanging out of his mouth told us to yo, move on. We were all very nasty to one another before it was over, but it sure was fun. On to our final option (btw it's getting to be in the 8 p.m. range and the kids are now knawing the leather upholstery) -- another campground, which we decided would have been an awesome first bet. As the sun set on this little piece of heaven, the children were out playing, people were grilling, etc., we were winding our way into some tight spots. Cheryl got situated, then it was dad's turn to back the Chuckwagon into his space. The name of the game was to dodge two cars, a tree, and a picnic table and bingo!

Turns out Dad and I were BOTH watching the back, and due to a faulty walkie-talkie, I turned around just in time to yell to absolutely no one: stop! stop!! tree!!!!! You can guess what happened.... crack, crack, screech!!!

Holy smoke. Any of you who know my dad know that you should take shelter when the veins in his temples are visibly pulsing. Truth is, an accident like this is an RV owner's nightmare, because any amount of torn roof makes fighting a roof leak futile. So he's up there trying to patch it while we all tip toe carefully.

Anyway, he took it in stride and we headed over to Newport, R.I. yesterday to see the Vanderbilt "Summer Cottages," which were really transplanted European castles. Unbelievable. I'll talk more about these in a post with pictures. After packing up, we headed to the home of Sam Clemens in Hartford, Conn., which was really neat. He and his family lived there 17 years and he wrote most of his best works there. I hope you all know who Sam Clemens is...

After a night in a Wal-Mart parking lot (complete with 5 a.m. street sweeping), we were off to Hyde Park, NY to see the FDR home and presidential museum/library. I'll talk more about it when I post the pictures.

Let's get back to the mayhem, because that's more fun, right? So we're barrelling down the turnpike, only about 10 miles from our campground when dad radios Cheryl and me to tell us that he is losing air pressure in the air brakes. This is not a good thing when you have an RV full of kids on the turnpike going 60 mph in rush-hour traffic. Here's the thing: if the air pressure drops too low the emergency brakes will engage, and everyone/everything will be suddenly thrusted to the front of the bus. So he's going slow and decides to pull of to see if he can regain air pressure. The good Lord was looking out for us, because during that time the emergency brakes did engage and we were done. Cheryl and I went on with the kids in the Suburban and trailer, and even though we were not going into the "city," we might as well have with the traffic we encountered. I cannot imagine if Dad's brakes he gone out anywhere other than in the safety of the side of the road. It was hard enough for Cheryl, me, and five rowdy kids--eager to catch a glimpse of the New York City skyline--to navigate to the harbor.

So here we are -- mom and dad were towed to the Freightline shop for repairs, and Cheryl and I are in Jersey City with five kids. We plan to get up early and head into the city to meet mom and dad as soon as they can get there. The kids are so stoked about the city, they can't even stand it. Can't wait to share the pictures with you!

Love, Jennifer

Stuck on the New Jersey Turnpike

Boy have we had a rough couple of days. I will post photos later tonight, but right now we have hijacked Internet from one of the myriad homes lining the New Jersey turnpike. The air compressor on the bus has failed, so we are locked up on the side of the turnpike in 5 p.m. traffic, just outside of New York City, waiting for a tow truck.

More later. Prayers are greatly appreciated!

Traveling in New England; Maine

After many hours of driving through Vermont and New Hampshire, we finally arrived in Maine. The drive was nothing short of spectacular -- every town was as picturesque as the next. We stopped at the Trapp Family Lodge in Vermont--here is the grave of Maria and Captain Von Trapp. Several children are buried nearby, and a couple still live in the area. The family chose Vermont because it reminded them of their home in Switzerland. Having been there, I can see what they saw in it. Really beautiful vistas. Below is mom and dad in front of the lodge.

Our first stop in Maine (after sleeping in the Burlington Coat Factory parking lot) was Acadia National Park near Bar Harbor. We have seen a lot in our travels, but gazing down from the top of the park onto the Maine coast was breath-taking, with the rocky shores and tree-covered islands. The "beach" was cold, but the locals and the Europeans were right at home in the 60-degree weather. We stopped at a restaurant with a lobster out front to have some Chowdah and a Lobstah Roll. Yum!!

Down in Kennebunkport, we experienced more cold, rainy weather. It broke just enough for us to drive into town and shop for a while. Finally, some shopping!!

A spin along the coast yielded a view of the Bush compound, which is situated on a PRIME piece of property out on the point. We have seen some unbelievable properties on this trip--private homes, b&bs, restaurants, etc. Too bad we haven't seen the INSIDE OF ANY OF THEM!!! Again, I see a girl's or couple's weekend in my future. We stopped at one of the Maine lighthouses and took some great photographs. I'll add several here:

Finally, we stopped at a place called Warren's on the way down to Massachusetts to have what we understood to be the best chow-dah in Maine. And it was. Last year I lost five pounds on the trip. This year, it's not gonna happen. Too much good food in New England. (I don't know if I mentioned earlier that we knoshed on free cheese at the Cabot cheese factory... on top of all the crab in Baltimore, chocolate in Hershey, maple syrup in Vermont... you get the picture.) Cameron sat down in the restaurant and announced that he was "having lobster."

To humor him, I ordered the lobster. But as soon as I cracked the claw and pulled out some meat, he said, "No way." Good thing he doesn't have to kill his own food every day. By the way, I thoroughly enjoyed the lobstah by myself.

We drove through Salem, Mass. on our way to Revere, Mass. to visit my dad's Aunt Gladys and her daughter, Jude. We are now hijacking Internet in a parking lot near her house were we are camping for the night. Aunt Gladys was so glad to see us -- she is 82 and doesn't get around very well. She had a ton of old pictures of our family, including some really good pics of our dad's grandfather, Quince Holland at around 73 years old. Cheryl and I have his same high cheekbones, and dad does, too.

Tomorrow, we are on to Boston. Guess we'll have some baked beans!!! Please leave us a comment - we know our friends are reading. :) We miss you!

Saratoga Springs, NY

We spent a day in Saratoga Springs, getting our fill of real horse racing. The pavilion was built more than 120 years ago, and not much has changed since. Only a fraction of the race goers actually watch the race live; most are on the race ground, watching them on large monitors while enjoying the shade, and the myriad picnic tables, all within a short walk of the betting windows. We tried the Saratoga Spring water, which was bubbling from the same fountain it's been flowing out of for the past 120 years, and as you can see by the look on Zach's face, it was not Perrier. It was a combination of iron, salt, sulphur, and natural carbonation. Yucky!

If we thought that Pennsylvania was scenic, it only got better as we headed north toward Vermont, Delaware, and finally Maine. Every town was eye candy: beautiful, old Victorian and Second Empire-style homes nestled up and down the hills leading to little towns that are brimming with specialty shops. Last summer, all we passed were hundreds of miles of corn fields and near abandoned towns. I don't know what's worse. Passing nothing, or passing everything and not being able to stop!!! I can't imagine how much money I have saved because Dad pressed on.

Which brings me to WHY we have not been able to stop: we have had a heckuva time getting to Maine. First, an RV tire blow out lost us a half a day trying to get the tires replaced, then our navigation system sent us down a freakin' logging road! So here we are, bumpity bump in the middle of no where--a Suburban towing a 25-foot trailer and a 38-foot RV full of kids. We passed very few vehicles on our decent into hell, but Cheryl read the lips of one woman who said, "Oh my Gawd!" when she saw us. It was only seven miles, but it took us forever to come out the other side, not far from where we entered. Read and heed: Forget "Lola, the GPS navigator" and get a good map.

While in Vermont, we did enjoy a great pizza place called "Pie in the Sky," plus a tour and free cheese at the Cabot Cheese Factory.

After a restful night in the Burlington Coat Factory parking lot, it was on to Bar Harbor, Maine!

By the way, if you're reading this, do leave us a comment so we will know whether we are typing to anyone in particular. Also, if you have any questions for us, we'll answer them with a short video.

Hershey PA Upper Black Eddy, PA

It's been a few days since we posted, so I'll catch you up on Hershey. Delicious! Is that enough? Pennsylvania was absolutely gorgeous, with the rock walls, Victorian homes, and lush countryside. Every home appears to have a personal gardener with beautiful, cascading flower pots and gardens bursting with color.

After eating our fill of chocolate at Hershey's Chocolate World, we headed over to Lancaster in search of a restaurant run by Mennonite women. It was awesome! This past spring we went to Paula Deen's restaurant in Savannah...and it wasn't nearly as good for the price. Of course the Mennonite ladies have know idea who she is, so the compliment was lost on them.

Our next stop was the Upper Black Eddy, and the campground was one of the nicest we've ever seen, and we weren't afraid to put our clothes in the washer. It had a water fountain, a really nice putt putt course, and a fancy splash pool for the kids. We purchased some chinese lantern string lights for the trailer in the camp shop. This place rocks!

The next days' activity was probably the most comical of our trip--so far. We went tubing on the Delaware river! Imagine four adults and five kids in tubes for three freakin' hours!!! Oh, yeah.

This could have been great fun with a beer and one of those floating lawn chairs, but working our way in and out of the tube to rescue a kid or drag everyone over for the free hot dog was not easy, especially after having recent knee surgery.

A stint trying to get off a stone-covered shoal with Carsyn almost put us both over the edge. While Cheryl lost the over/under on a pair of sunglasses I bought for Carsyn, it was actually me who lost them in the melee. When we finally got ourselves free, Carsyn spent the next 10 minutes crying for her daddy, and when I couldn't get her back in the tube to cross some rapids, her little fanny dragged across the rocks and that was it for her.

To reiterate: this is the kind of outing that needs to be enjoyed with beer and NO CHILDREN. Until my kids can fend for themselves, we'll stick to the lazy river at the water park.

The next day we went to the Crayola Factory in Easton, then on to Bethlehem to shop at the Moravian Book Store. Heavens, the shopping up here is really great. Now I know what Raleigh is trying to achieve with the shopping, etc. Every little town up here, it seems, has a robust shopping district. Even the small communities have specialty shopping, ie. antiques, coffee, etc.

On to Saratoga Springs!!!

Camp Ramblings

If you've never camped in a trailer campground before, I recommend it be added to your bucket list, along with more lofty goals such as climbing Mount Everest or sailing around the Greek Isles (wink wink Jay and Alicia).

It's a true study in humanities. You have your high-dollar rigs, like mom and dad's, and you have everybody else.

The big rigs usually have a nice screen porch with chairs, tables and a little sign out front announcing their name and where they're from. They are often out walking their teacup doggies.

Everyone else is the middle-class set, and it appears that they travel with no less than 10 to 15 to a trailer. It should be noted, however, that even the trailers aren't cheap. You can't even get a small pop-up for less than $4K, and most pull-behind campers are in the $15K an up range. I guess if everyone pitches in together...

Anyway, most have set up elaborate campsites complete with decorative lights, camp chairs, screened porches, makeshift kitchen set ups, and fake flower arrangements. The adults are usually slung back in one of the camp chairs zoning or people watching... I suspect that most are trying to take their mind off of a factory job they left behind for the week.

The kids, on the otherhand, are busy. If they aren't in the pool or running in and out of their camper, they are riding their bicycles, round and round the campground. They also love a campfire, especially if there are marshmallows and sticks around.

Clothing is optional. If you've ever been to Emerald Pointe Water Park, you know what I'm talking about. Lots of cleavage and tattoos that most of us would rather not see. Not even a hormonal teenage boy would enjoy some of the skin we have seen. Ladies, keep it under wraps, please!!

All this said... Cheryl and I really need to trick out the trailer. We have no pink flamingo lights, no fake bouquet and no matching lawn chairs. I can probably yank my tank top down a bit because we like to think we are the best-looking people out here.

Awww heck. We're rednecks, aren't we? Friends, I'm sure you've been afraid to tell us all this time, and we surely appreciate it, but from the looks of our dirty, beat-up kids with stringy hair, riding their bicycles around the campsite and playing with fire, we are just one string of tacky lights away from fitting right in.

Baltimore, Annapolis, and Gettysburg

We've only been away four days, and we've already hit three destinations -- quite a contrast to last year's trip out west. We spent a day in Annapolis, seeing the harbor, touring the Naval Academy, and eating crab cakes. The Naval Academy was beautiful...if you looked closely, the decoration on the buildings had naval themes, with boats, fish, and rolling waves. John McCain attended here, as did Ross Perot and Jimmy Carter.

The shopping alone was worth another visit someday, and, of course, when you're travelling with children, there's no time to shop.

Baltimore was wet, and the children learned a new term: panhandler. We focused most of our time on the Chesapeake Bay-area of the city, touring the USS Constellation (civil war-era sailing ship) and a submarine from WWII.

We packed up and headed to Gettysburg for a day touring the battlefields and a brand-new museum. As we passed through the town, Cheryl and I salivated at the sight of more cute stores... no... we are here to honor the dead... so get on to the battlefield, people!

It was an awesome sight. The shear number of monuments erected on the 10-square-mile site a testament to the importance of this place in our country's history. Tens of thousands of men died over a four-day period. It's still hard to believe that American men could just run at each other like that. Honestly, you really need a couple of days to fully digest the magnitude of the battle and what was left for the people of Gettysburg to clean up afterwards.

We are now in Hershey, Pa. for two days. Thanks for traveling along with us!

Jennifer