The new-to-us 2003 KZ Coyote 23 hybrid

I have taken the plunge into the hybrid world--face first. For a brief period of time we owned a 17' 2001 Keystone Cabana, but after spending 4 days at the campground in the rain with 3 kids and a dog, I realized I had grossly underestimated our camping needs. After all, we did have a 32' before...17 feet? What was I thinking? I was TRYING to be earth-friendly, gas-friendly, and driveway-friendly. I achieved that, but I lost my sanity in the process. I did decide that I am fully sold on the HYBRID travel trailer though.

So..on the way home from the campground, we stopped at the dealership and looked at this adorable 2003 KZ Coyote hybrid. It was 23' long, about 27 with the front hybrid end out. Two bunks in the back, a full 3-piece bathroom again, an outside cookstove, a nice new awning, and get this--a SLIDE. We may have achieved camping bliss, folks!

So..I am up to my ears in carpet cleaning today (trying to take advantage of the cooler weather) but I wanted to share pics...Enjoy!

Long-time update! Apologies, and randomness...

Long time, no post, right? When I started working at the massage therapy spa in December I really had no idea how difficult it was going to be to manage working, 3 kids, a dog dogs, 2 cats, a house, a car, a yard, etc...and my poor neglected HOBBIES, AND maintain a blog. I did manage to make it to most of my monthly crops but I wouldn't say I was overly productive since Steph was always there, and Tina...But that's the fun of it, right?

And before I say anything else, I want to be sure and apologize in advance for the sporadic randomness of this post. I feel like in order to keep this post under a billion words long, I just need to toss out the key elements of the update and skip the thorough explanations. Most of you know me well enough to know what's been going on in my demented little corner of the planet anyway.

I did sell the mini-Winnie to a couple who planned to completely restore her. I'm sure this will be a frame-up rebuild, and wow--are they courageous! I do get a longing for Winnie now and then, but then I remember how I don't have the time/money or skill to rebuild a vintage trailer right now. I think I saw my '71 Shasta on CL though--but that's a whole 'nother story for another day.

I ended up selling the '28 Prowler and buying a '32 Prowler. I didn't really mean to, but I fell in love with the bathroom. I know that sounds like a silly thing to fall in love with, but I did. Then I had to find a tow vehicle cause I was fairly certain the Kia minivan wasn't going to tow anything, much less a 32' travel trailer. I sold Dad's truck that was so graciously given to me and bought a Suburban, and the 32' was still a load. Then when I got it home I realized that it was entirely ridiculous to think that I, a girl, was going to learn to hitch that monster up and tow it anyway. Seriously? That was very stupid & I'm not afraid to say it. I could barely lift the monster load-leveling hitch that it required for towing purposes, so you guessed it--I sold it for $1500 profit. (big cheesy grin)

You'll never believe this, but I was without a camper for a while. It was so serious that I started to worry we'd be tent campers again this season. *gasp* I decided that I needed to go as small/light as possible, but nothing vintage--I needed something that I could manage on my own. I started to look at a nice pop up, but then decided it was a lot of work for someone that camps with 3 kids and 2 dogs. Then there's the entire potty/toilet thing--even a mounted toilet in a pup requires dumping via handheld method. I can do that--nothing I haven't done before during our camping escapades, but why? LOL Selling the last 2 travel trailers put me at enough $$ to buy something small, but self contained.

And that leads me to our new baby...a 2003 KZ Coyote 23. It's THE PERFECT size, VERY lightweight, and I can lift the load leveling hitch. I don't even think I need the hitch but all the guys in camper world tell me otherwise. Plus the guy threw it in so you know--it was worth the taking! I went to the campground and "interviewed" (or stalked) a few hybrid owners and spent hours researching, and felt like this was the right decision for us. It's nice to have the slide out, and the 2 bunks in the rear, as well as the hybrid bed in front. I'm looking forward to using the outside cooktop, too. It also makes a nice "privacy fence" from the creepy neighbor.

In other news, I got a new mower/mulcher that I've already managed to tear up the spark plug thingie on, my neighbor/friend Reta moved to a new house with her finance, my dad broke his hip twice in the nursing home, and my basement is flooding on a regular basis. We still have a window peeker, and the neighbor-from-you-know-where is still tormenting us by touching our cars, camper, etc. They're not "right." It's annoying..and not sure how much longer we'll want to stay here. We would miss our wonderful neighbors, but there comes a point when enough is enough. I bought new loft beds for the girls, a Captain's bed for Connor, and redid our bathroom. We switched internet companies and switched from Dish Network to Cable One so we could get local channels. That pretty much sums up the past few months.

I will post pics of the new camper--and my email has changed so please make note if you have the sbcglobal email saved in your address book.

The trailer is a WHAT?!

Sorry for the long lapse of time between posts. Things have been busy/hectic here, and I do have an update on the new "Croppin' Cabin."

I contacted Juergen Eichermueller to help me identify the cute little canned ham trailer. After about a week of digging through his archives, I sent him an email of the hubcaps in case they were "important." I actually thought they looked like they had a "W" in the center, so I wondered if the trailer was an old Winnebago. I'd tried doing internet searches, but all the 60's model Winnebagos looked entirely different from this one. What's funny is that we nearly cross-posted on our emails..he had just opened his Winnebago archives as I was sending pictures of the hubcaps.

As it turns out, the trailer is a 1960 Winnebago 15 foot trailer. Only 28 of these were made & manufactured in Forest City, IA in the later part of 1959, and sold in 1960.

So...who would have thought? Due to the rarity of the trailer, I felt it best that I give it a chance at a restoration if anyone was interested. As of yet, the right person hasn't come along so it's looking favorable for it staying in my possession and becoming the new Croppin' Cabin.

Oh, and thanks for the name suggestions!! We have named her "Winnie," and it seems fitting for the time being.

I tried selling Winnie on Craigslist, but I had a lot of real interest that became lost among the weirdos. I had some guy INSIST that it wasn't rare at allllll, even though there were only 28 made. Gee, I dunno...28 is pretty freaking rare if you ask me. Genius.

I spent a day cleaning, disinfecting, bleaching, and preparing Winnie for whatever her future may have in store. The quilt is the quilt that my grandma made for me...I just thought it looked nice. The curtains are the Scrapbooking Bee curtians, Debbie Mumm Creative Woman line, and my mom made those for me when I was redoing the Shasta. I wanted to try them out and see if they "fit" in case Winnie stays in the family--I think they worked great!



So, as it stands now, Winnie is in limbo at the moment. I'd like to see someone buy her and restore her, and there had been some talk of putting her in a museum in OH. I have decided that if no one stumbles along and buys Winnie before it warms up, I am definitely continuing on with my plans to convert her into a scrapbooking studio. At first I was really disappointed and felt guilty for even considering doing anything like that to such a rare old trailer, but now I'm getting excited again. She really IS the perfect "canned ham" trailer!

Aluminitis, Part 3

Betcha' can't guess where this post is headed...:smirk: So we traveled to the big town of Corydon, IA last Sunday to check out this little piece of trailer history. I was really anxious on the way there because I was worrying about it not being what we thought, and hoped, that it was going to be.

We pulled into their driveway and the minute I laid my eyes on it, I knew it was just as I had pictured. I can't really say that I was even disappointed in anything other than the screen door was aluminum vs wooden as I had hoped. I have to say it was a little disheartening to open the door and be greeted with black paint glaring back at us. Black walls, black ceiling, you name it--it was black. "Love Shack" was written in neon glow-in-the-dark paint above the door, and everything original but the sink had been removed and replaced with a large dorm-sized refrigerator and a full-sized bed and mattress. First stop will be to find somewhere to dispose of the unwanted bed...the Love Shack will be no more.

We have no idea what brand, make, model or even year of the trailer might be. I checked all over for the faintest sign of a sticker or other identifying mark and found nothing. There were some numbers on the tongue, but I believe they were the serial numbers for the tongue, not the trailer. I'm hoping someone with more knowledge than I stumbles upon my blog and can shed some insight on year, make, etc based on the few original parts that are left.

We haven't towed the trailer home yet, but I did snap some pictures for you to see in the meantime.

Aluminitis, Part 2

Yesterday I posted that picture because it is ideally the dream trailer that I'm looking for. It is a picture that I took from a Craigslist ad, and I'd emailed the person who had the trailer and finally called them. Right now it appears that if all goes well, this little beauty will be showning up at my driveway in a few weeks. OMG..it's true. OMG. No, I don't know the manufacturer..the PO says he can't locate a name or number anywhere, but I'll ask for some assistance from "my people." (You know who you are, fellow Aluminitis sufferers!)

Be watching for updates about the new Croppin' Cabin!

Aluminitis

I have an illness..No, not the fibromyalgia, but another illness just as prevailing and just as widespread--I have Aluminitis. Aluminitis is an affliction of needing to have vintage/classic aluminum on wheels sitting around in your driveway, garage, or yard. From the very moment I brought the Shasta home, I was immediately plagued with this strange illness. I began looking for a sister to the Shasta...and while I found a few prospects, I never really found "the one."

So..this year is a new year, and a new beginning for me..a fresh start in a way. I think it's time to give into the cravings of Aluminitis and add to our family. This time I'm looking for even more vintage...early-to-mid 60's, canned-ham shape with a window in the door. I don't care if it has a title, I don't care if the furnace works, and I don't care if the tires are rotted. All I ask is that it has working electric inside. I'm not camping in this one--it's going to be solely a scrapbooking cabin. I have this mental image of this cute canned ham vintage trailer sitting out back with stepping stone walk leading up to the door, a white picket fence around it with flower beds galore..and a porch light and lamp post welcoming all who care to scrap for a while or come in for a sip of hot tea. I might even let the kids use it as a changing room for the pool. I have curtains made already from the ditsy red Debbie Mumm Scrapbooking Bee fabric, and black metallic denim for the seats.

Aluminitis..is there a cure? Probably not, but I don't think I'm too worried about it.

Christmas is over..YAY!

If I sound elated to you about Christmas being over, you're right. Normally I'm a huge Christmas pusher...I love the smells, cards, gifts, trees and lights and decorations, pictures, music, cookies and turkeys and hams...I make homemade dog treats and give out, and the dogs and cats wear Christmas bandanas. I buy cute Christmas pajamas and outfits for the kiddies, and the house is full of the wonderful smells of Christmas baking and candles.

Not this year. This year it's been a giant pain in the hiney...the dogs knocked the tree over, the cats knocked the tree over, the legs broke on the artificial tree, the tree started shedding more than a real tree, the dogs broke ornaments, the cats chased ornaments all over the house and wadded up & snagged the tree skirt...and the lights refused to work 50% of the time. By the time Christmas rolled around, we had a lightless, decoration-less tree that leaned to one side.

So I think this is my first ever real venting post for this blog? I won't make a habit of it.

PS..maybe I'll post pictures of the Christmas cards that I made and didn't send out? LOL

Twilight by Stephenie Meyer & Go Team Edward!!

I cannot tell you how LONG I have been patiently waiting to get to my blog and write, obsess, and otherwise share with you my love for the Twilight movie. I picked the first book in the series up this past summer..on the advice of several other women my age who said although it was a young adult book, they found it to be captivating, beautiful, and romantic. I thought it sounded like the perfect pool-side read.

I hate to admit it, but I kind of have a vampire fetish. It started with the Lost Boys movie in the 80's..Keifer Sutherland was a gorgeous vampire. I was always very self conscious about my dark hair and pale skin, because "tan" was definitely in back in the 80's. I spent a lot of time trying fake tans, sun tanning (or burning, such as it was)and hair lightening. It was easy for me to obsess over some hunky guy that not only accepted the dark-haired, pale-skinned girls, but thought they were beautiful. Oh, vampire!! How dangerously romantic are they?! Well move over, Keifer...cause Edward has definitely become my new favorite vampire. (Followed closely by the oh-so-spooky Jasper, and the adorable Alice.) Unfortunately I am never ready to commit to buying a book unless 1.)I've read it previously and want to own it, or 2.)It's a series and I know I'm going to like it and want all the books from the series. This meant I had to borrow it from the local library...normally books have a 2-week checkout, but Twilight was on a "popular book" list and had a short 1-week checkout time. Unfortunately I had to read it fast. It's basically 500 pages long, which for a speed reader such as myself not a HUGE task, but it was baseball season, and this was during the "do I keep the Shasta and buy a new camper, or not?" phase. I didn't get the book finished..and I had to return it because there was a waiting list. Meanwhile everyone kept telling me how I HAD to read it, etc...I managed to borrow it again and do a quick read and fell in love immediately.

Jordan and I anxiously awaited the arrival of the movie..it seemed everyone I talked to either knew someone addicted to the books or was a fan themselves. I noticed it was showing up on every GoodReads list belonging to my peers from World Crossing. It sold out at our small theater before the first showing, so we put it out of our minds and decided we would wait until the new wore off.

I'm not usually a big fan of book-inspired movies--they're usually a let down, so it's normally a "given" that I'll be disappointed. Curiosity wins out though and I almost always go see the movie, especially if I loved the book. For those of you who have read Twilight BEFORE you saw the movie (as opposed to reading it after falling in love with the movie) you'll understand what I mean when I say that in MY mind, Bella, Edward, Jasper, Carlisle, Charlie, and Alice (Okay..just about everyone)had a distinct look in my MIND. The descriptive words used to tell us how they move, look, act, etc are so clear..so very abundantly clear that I couldn't FATHOM how on EARTH they chose Robert Pattinson (from Harry Potter fame)to cast as our beloved Edward. Seriously. In my MIND, Edward and his siblings are by far the most beautiful people in the world--as he says, everything about them invites you in..their face, their musical voice, their scent. How could a Harry Potter cast member do justice to our gorgeous vampire hero?

That all changed about 10 minutes into the movie after Edward makes his grand entrance into the school. If Bella wasn't already saying it outloud, everyone in the theater (who hadn't read the book and didn't already know that Edward was beautiful) was thinking it: "Who is THAT?!" When the other girl says "THAT is Edward Cullen..totally gorgeous, obviously." Sigh. Edward. EDWARD. Robert Pattinson NAILED the part of Edward. I totally forgot whatever mental image I had conceived of beautiful Edward from that moment on. His mannerisms, his voice, his facial expressions..they were all 100% Edward from the book. Perfect! My reading image of Edward was replaced by this tall, thin, muscular wild-haired beauty with the sing-song voice. What was I saying? Oh, yeah..the movie. *cough*

For those of you unfamiliar with the story or the movie, here is the basic plot. (This summary contains MINOR spoilers but shouldn't take away from your reading pleasure..I've kept all the action and secrets to myself.)Bella's mom remarries a much younger man who plays minor league baseball, so Bella moves from hot, dry Phoenix to the cold, wet town of Forks,Washington where she'll be living with her dad. Her dad, Charlie, is the local chief of police. They eat at the diner regularly..for his favorite steak & cobbler dinner. He works a lot, but buys Bella a neat old truck for her own transportation. During her first day at the new school, she immediately notices a group of kids who keep to themselves and look unlike any other people she's ever seen. They are pale, beautiful kids who dress and walk like supermodels. They seem to have uncanny coordination, and are absolutely stunningly beautiful. She finds out they are the foster kids/adopted kids of Mr & Mrs Cullen, who moved there a few years ago from Alaska. Four of the 5 kids are couples, oddly enough, except for young Edward.

Bella & Edward are forced to sit together in Biology, and she immediately notices his extreme discomfort while being around her. At this point she has no way of knowing that he is a vampire and her scent is driving him mad. He wants her...not in a romantic way, but in a "I'm kinda thirsty for your blood" way. The Cullens are all vampires, but have learned to control their thirst and consider themselves "vegetarians." They only kill animals, not humans. This allows them to set up a permanent residence in rainy, overcast towns such as Forks. Dr Cullens works at the hospital, and the 5 foster/adopted kids attend the local school. Edward's interest in Bella causes him to rescue her from a skidding out-of-control van in the parking lot, thus exposing his extreme strength & speed. This threatens his family's secret, and makes Bella determined to figure out "what" he is.

Eventually Edward & Bella develop a dangerous romance..but he is worried that he won't be able to control his thirst, and she is equally worried about losing him and is convinced that she cannot live without him. She is keenly aware that with every passing minute she becomes older, while he remains 17 forever. Hanging out with a family of vampires is a little scary, even if they are "vegetarians." There are 3 books after Twilight, so I'll comment on them as I finish them.

I've read a lot of reviews about the movie, and after seeing it 4 times the ONLY thing that REALLY disturbs me is 1.)There is a lot of info missing from the movie. I realize 2 hours is a relatively short time to cram in 500 pages of information, but really...viewers who haven't read the book want to know why Carlisle would make ANYONE a vampire in the first place, 2.)why no one questions why Dr & Mrs Cullen's adopted and foster kids all share the same beautiful outward appearances..pale skin, bruised eyes, black, piercing eyes that turn golden some days, etc.

Some things were conveyed as quickly as possible and quite thoroughly..you understand quickly that Edward can read minds..although at first you won't understand why he's smiling when he's "listening" to minds (cause you don't know he IS reading minds to begin with), why he's almost gagging when Bella walks into Biology class, or that Rosalie & Jasper are supposedly actually real brother & sister. (Rosalie & Jasper are "foster children," whereas Alice, Emmett and Edward are already adopted by the Cullens. Of course this is just the "understanding" of the townsfolk..Rosalie and Jasper are certainly NOT brother & sister..)Certain things become more clear as the movie goes on.

Fans of the book will be relieved to know that some of the BEST lines of the movie are not left out....My personal favorite, of course, is "And so the lion fell in love with the lamb." "What a stupid lamb.." "What a sick, masochistic lion."

Oh, Edward..you sick, masochistic lion. Of course Bella is going to tell you that one of the best things about Charlie is that he doesn't hover, that she is irrevocably in love with Edward, and you'll get to hear her tell Edward, "I know what you are." You'll also get to hear her ask Edward "How old are you?" Edward then replies "17." Bella shoots back "How long have you BEEN 17?" Edward doesn't disappoint us with a slight pause and then he comes back with "A while."

Bella is beautiful, although I was thinking while she was simplistically pretty, she also was plain enough to convey the "beautiful Cullens" difference. I realize that there are millions of other women & girls lusting after Edward as well..they created the PERFECT character for women to fall in love with. He is the epitome of the perfect man--he IS what every girl dreams of, and as it turns out, every 35-year-old woman. He is beautiful, intelligent, charasmatic, and a hero. He is protective of Bella, always making sure she is safe and free from harm...he is witty, intelligent, and chivalry is not lost with our vampire hero. Edward always makes sure Bella has eaten, he opens the car door for her, helps her into the car, into the house, helps remove her coat. During the final fight scene when he is there to avenge his beloved Bella, you can plainly see how distraught he is..he is ready to kill the evil james for harming her. He is the man we all wish we grew up and married. He's every woman's dream man, except for that blood-sucking thing.

I can't really pinpoint a favorite part of the movie, or the book, but I do have to say the baseball scene is a lot of fun to watch. I love how the Cullens immediately welcome Bella into their "family," so to speak..knowing she knows their secret. (Except for Rosalie, who if you'll recall from the book was brought home by Carlisle to be "for" Edward...but Edward wasn't interested.)The Cullens are all so tremendously relieved that Edward has finally found his soul mate that they're willing to open their home, lives, and dangerous secret with a human.

Some friends of Jordan's haven't seen the movie due to the PG-13 rating, but I felt confident that she'd read the book and we'd talked about things, so she would be able to handle it. I was VERY pleased that there was absolutely NO language at ALL in this movie...it had less language than your typical PG Disney movie, so that was a nice surprise. There is no sex, either..although there is a scene on the bed with kissing. The ONLY thing that I can see that deems this movie worthy of the pg-13 rating is the tiny bit of violence at the end when Edward comes to save Bella from the big-bad James. The violence is minimal, and there are no close-ups of anything too dramatic. Most of it is implied.

Please stay tuned for my comments about New Moon, the 2nd in the series. I've already read the 12 chapters of Midnight Sun from Stephenie Meyer's website..which is essentially the Twilight story but told from Edward's point of view. It closes a lot of unanswered questions that you're left with after reading Twilight. I cannot wait to read the ending of it, and I hope it is as long or longer than the other 4 books.

If you didn't see the movie before it left your local theater, or you haven't read the book and I've piqued your interest, here is a clip of the official movie trailer:

Julie's Birthday

Today is my best girlfriend's birthday...I won't tell you how old she is, but she is older than I am. (hehe) Anyway, I decided to make her a little birthday card & treat box to let her know that I love her & that I'm glad she's older than me.

For this project I used Chatterbox double-sided papers from their wallpaper line. I picked these up quite a few months ago from Happy 'N Scrappin'. I LOVE that online store...these were on sale and I fell in love with Chatterbox after receiving my first papers. I used the Cricut cartridge George, Plantin' Schoolbook for the envelope & card, and Tags, Bags, Boxes & More for the flower box. I filled the box with chocolate Skittles. I've since heard that chocolate Skittles are rather gross...Whoops!

Croppin' at the Crop

Last weekend I was fortunate enough to be free to travel to a local Friday night/Saturday morning crop. I've been trying to get to this crop for a few months now, so I was pretty excited to finally have the opportunity, especially since an old friend from our old town was going as well. Her name is Steph, and she is a BLAST. I just love her to pieces! She's silly, and I'm silly, and after you've been sitting and staring at paper, photos, and adhesive for hours on end, you start to get even MORE silly.

The crop was very well organized and a lot of thought was put into it. Everyone brought snacks and drinks to share, and there were 3 Cricut machines on a table for everyone to use. I didn't get mine out since the table was full, but I did take 3 cartridges that I set out for everyone to use. (Stretch Your Imagination seemed to be the big hit this time!)Since it's one of my favorites, I let Steph take it home after the crop so she could play with it at home.

I ended up running out of ATG adhesive and couldn't remember how to load the refill...I'm going to draw myself a little diagram in case that happens again. I ended up buying adhesive from Joyce, the crop host. I'll be more prepared next time though with my loading diagram.

Here are the pages that I completed...some still need the finishing touches, but for the most part, they are completed:








Steph being goofy...




Joyce looking for my lost letters...LOL!! I cut the word "Oliver" in tiny polka dot paper, and it blended in with the carpet and "disappeared" before I got back to my croppin' spot. Joyce painstakingly located all the missing letters on Saturday. haha!!



If any of you local girls want to come along next month, please let me know!