Fixing Howard

Throughout our trip we have fixed several things on Howard ourselves, and we have had a few repair jobs done by the dealer or a service contractor as well. I am surprised by how many things we have been able to tackle by using some common sense and researching the internet!

We originally purchased Howard from Terry Town in Grand Rapids, Michigan. We took him back there last fall before our standard one year warranty was up and they fixed a few things for us. We did purchase the extended warranty on the major items when we purchased the motorhome, and a couple of those things had some issues so we stopped in again to the dealer on our way out of Cadillac.

I can say we are not sure if the extended warranty was such a great idea since mostly they either did not have time to fix something (our stove), an item was covered but not that particular part (one of the slide-outs) or the part needed to be mailed to the manufacturer (the control for the jacks). So the jury is still out. Supposedly we can take it to any dealer who will work with our warranty company. We did contact Big Foot about our control box for the jacks which is having issues and they gave us the address to mail it to them, so we are hopeful this will be fixed! And we got our slide out fixed, but it cost us about $60.

Being in Grand Rapids for the day without our home always puts us a little out of sorts. We did get to have lunch with a friend who I used to work with in Roanoke, Jon Allen. He and his family now reside in the Grand Rapids area, so we had a nice time catching up and sharing all of our adventures with him.

We stayed the Woodchip Campground in nearby Byron Center, Michigan after we picked Howard back up.

Staff - 8 - Staff was nice enough.

Natural surroundings - 7 - Nice and quiet neighborhood.

Roominess - 8 - Normal sized lots.

Facility Fun - 7 - Playground, outdoor pool (not open until Memorial Day), 

Facility usefulness - 9 - Laundry, dog run, propane, picnic table, fire ring and grill at each site, free wifi.

Bathrooms - 8 - Nothing to complain about here.

Cleanliness - 8 - Nice and tidy.

Nearby attractions - 7 - Close to Grand Rapids.

Value - 9 - Paid $18 a night for a pull-through site with full hook-ups. Used Passport America.

Overall - 8 - Clean park, and the right price with PA discount.

Out with a Bang

Last weekend was our final Kidology to Go and it was one of our best experiences while living life on the open road. We were invited by our hosts, Shelly and Greg Burkett, to stay at their place for the weekend while we were there. Normally we stay in the church parking lot, which is always more than adequate and it gives us easy access to the church and our home during the training seminar. The Burketts however, live in the “country” on several acres. Their property includes a swimming pond, chickens, and lots of room for our boys to run and play.

They played with the Burketts’ grandkids, caught copious amounts of frogs and tadpoles, and shot a bow and arrow several times. In fact my family hung back at the “farmette” while I went with hosts to their church and taught for the day. They loved it and I was at total ease knowing they were having a good time playing outside rather than sitting in a church parking lot!
Driving to the church the morning of the seminar I was treated to a special sight. A huge black bear ambled across the road in front of me. It took me awhile to get my phone out, so I did not get a great photo, but after this sighting I just felt that the day was going to be a super day, and I was right. We had a medium sized crowd at the Kidology to Go, but it was a great and interactive group of participants. I personally felt I was at my best and God was bringing it all together to make the day a super time for everyone.

Driving back to our motorhome on a beautiful summeresque evening the reality of our grand adventure coming to end began to creep into my heart. At first I was struck with a deep sadness as I thought of how it is all coming to an end very quickly now. In a few moments I began experiencing what I call a “happy-sad” feeling as I began mentally strolling down memory lane, recounting all the amazing experiences our family shared together and with others across the country. We have seen so much, learned so much and grown closer to each other and to God in ways we would have never guessed. We have shared the euphoric highs and stuck it out through the anguishing lows.

I am humbled by our God who made all this possible. I am grateful to my lovely and incredible wife who perhaps was a little less gung-ho about the whole thing than I was. I am thankful to Kidology’s Karl Bastian who shared my dream and came along side us to partner with us and help us encourage a number of churches along the way. I am tickled pink that my kids will have these memories of our family’s adventures even after I am long gone! I am honored to have met some really amazing people in our great country (and Canada too eh!). I am stirred by the memory of the natural wonders we beheld.  I am excited about the next chapter in our great adventure, a new chapter at a wonderful little church in upstate New York where I will take on a new role as lead pastor.

God’s Word and His Creation teaches us that in order for New Life to spring forth, something has to die. I imagine Jesus had a few mixed feelings as He looked forward to the cross. The reward of change can be seen clearly in His sacrifice for those He loves – us! I hope and pray that no matter how audacious the calling is in the future for our family, we will always be able to take that leap of faith and join in His Great Adventure!

Cops and Doughnuts

We visited a fun little place in Clare, Michigan called Cops and Doughnuts for breakfast. We saw a billboard advertising the restaurant and it looked like just the sort of of "off-beat" place we like to frequent. We sampled their doughnuts, as they spell it, and had some of their coffee as well. They offer a bacon long john which appeared to be quite popular. Unfortunately we did not notice this rare delight until after we ordered, so we can not report on it taste one way or the other.

The shop is owned by nine police officers from the area, hence the name and reference to the popular cultural urban myth that all cops hang out all day in donut shops. Their lunch sandwiches all had law enforcement related names such as "The Stooge Pigeon" and "The Informant."  We loved their mugs and had to buy one for a family member who collects them! If you find yourself anywhere near the area we recommend a stop by this neat little place.

Campground Review - Valley Plaza Resort

We stayed for three nights at the Valley Plaza Resort RV Park in Midland, Michigan and enjoyed the indoor pool all three days!

Staff - 7 - Staff was courteous but not super so.

Natural surroundings - 7 - Mature trees and not in the city. Still close to highway.

Roominess - 8 - Normal sized lots.

Facility Fun - 10 - Playground, indoor pool, horseshoes, small lake with beach, basketball court, restaurants, movie theater and bowling alley on site, hot tub, sauna and tanning beds.

Facility usefulness - 7 - Picnic table, fire ring and grill at each site, free wifi.

Bathrooms - 9 - Showers were great, part of locker room area for pool.

Cleanliness - 9 - Very clean.

Nearby attractions - 9 - Right in Midland, close to Saginaw, and Bay City.

Value - 7 - Paid $38 a night for a pull-through site with full hook-ups.

Overall - 8 - Fun park and very clean and well-kept.

Chippewa Nature Center

Our family was really in the mood for hiking since it had been several weeks since we had taken a good one! So we loaded up our "gear" and headed to the Chippewa Nature Center in Midland, Michigan which boasts several good trails.

We were not disappointed by the trails here and we really enjoyed what was perhaps the last trail of this big trip. Of course we will always love hiking and plan to do plenty of hiking in upstate New York and New England!

Our hike at the Chippewa Nature Center took us along a river where we saw plenty of birds, turtles and some hug carp in the shallows. We also walked along the "Homestead" area and enjoyed the quietness of the area and fed some young chickens and pigs some grass from outside of their pen. You know they say the grass is always greener on the other side of the pen!

There was an old historical sugar house to learn about and some poison ivy to avoid (its funny how you tell certain boys not touch something because it could make them itch and it the first thing they do is reach down and touch it!). We took lots of fun photos and shared a wonderful afternoon with each other.

The Power of the House Plant

We spent half of Mother's Day at in Birch Run, Michigan. Here we gave Patsy her presents. Now taking five boys shopping for their mom is actually a little fun. Their ideas for what to get her are interesting to say the least! We had votes for candy bars, Nerf guns and light sabres. It took most of my energy just directing them to the candle aisle!

I did have one special gift in mind though. Patsy loves house plants and she used to have a bunch of them. She gave them all away when we started our trip 21 months ago. I know this was sad for her, but in our rig with seven people and two pets, live plants were just not practical to haul along. 

So I knew that she would love to have one for Mother's Day. Sort of a thank-you for putting up with a husband who is part gypsy and fancies himself as a real life Indiana Jones! The plant represents the sacrifice she made, the love she showed her family and the next chapter of stability in our life. As I thought would happen big tears welled up in her eyes as she took the plant. It was as if she knew what the gift meant and that more would be coming once we truly "settle in" to a stick house.

Once in awhile a guy can get it right, and after seventeen years of being together, I guess a simple gift can say a whole lot and bring tears of joy better than diamonds or gold! To a great mother - my wife Patsy Martin.

We stayed at Pine Ridge RV Park during this time. Here is the campground review.

Staff - 6 - For the most part the folks were nice here, but one guy was a bit gruff. He told our kids not to go in the bathroom . Huh?

Natural surroundings - 8 - Mature trees and not in any city.

Roominess - 10 - Very big lot that we stayed in.

Facility Fun - 7 - Playground, club house, horse shoes, basketball court.

Facility usefulness - 7 - Laundromat, propane, dump, pass card security, picnic table at our site, dog run, wifi.

Bathrooms - 5 - Decent, but the showers were coin operated.

Cleanliness - 9 - Very clean.

Nearby attractions - 9 - Close to Frankenmuth, Birch Run outlets, Saginaw, Bay City and Flint.

Value - 8 - Paid $34 a night for a pull-through site with full hook-ups.

Overall - 7 - Gruff employee, coin operated showers and lots of room to walk and ride bikes!

Campground Review - Frankenmuth Jellystone

We splurged and stayed at the Frankenmuth Jellystone to take advantage of their Mother's Day activities and the indoor pool!

Staff - 8 - Nice peeps working at the Jellystone!

Natural surroundings - 8 - Mature trees and not in any city.

Roominess - 8 - Normal sized lots.

Facility Fun - 10 - Large playgrounds, indoor pool, mini-putt, game room, basketball court, planned activities, hot tub.

Facility usefulness - 8 - Laundromat, propane, dump, pass card security, picnic table at our site, dog run, camp store, exchange library, wifi.

Bathrooms - 7 - Nice, but the showers were push button and you could not adjust the temp. The water faded in between hot and cold.

Cleanliness - 9 - Very clean.

Nearby attractions - 9 - Right in Frankenmuth. Close to Saginaw, Bay City and Flint.

Value - 6 - Paid $52 a night for a pull-through site with full hook-ups. Used our Good Sams card.

Overall - 8 - Fun park, plenty of bucks!