The update we’ve waited 4+ months for, is FINALLY HERE!!

We tried to do this the second to last week of January and it didn’t work out, so we went to Disney instead for a very special 7 yr old’s first time, and re-scheduled for February.

I went through the rabbit hole of Disney Pin Trading last year and got the kiddos involved at the park this trip. I’ll proudly be displaying my pins in the camper from now on (and yes, Austin got some Star Wars ones too).

We are OFFICIALLY in our camper, back in North Carolina! After a lot of back and forth with Camping World Hendersonville, and some last minute issues needing a second look, we confirmed pickup for Friday, February 6th and made our way to NC.

I spent Tuesday & Wednesday packing after work hours to ensure all our stuff fit in our beloved 27 gal black & yellow bins (they were on sale for $7.99 at Costco – YAY!) and I loaded as much as I could into the Tacoma. I had a bloodwork appointment for my annual at the ass-crack of dawn Friday Morning so I drove down Thursday and Austin was able to fly into Charlotte late-late Thursday evening. The original plan was to pick him up from CLT airport around 11:30pm, but sadly, his flights from the mid-west kept being delayed and he made it to the hotel via uber around 1:30am. I was already in bed.

Friday morning we were up before sunlight for my appointment and I was able to work from the car as we drove to Papaws house to pick up the ’99 Ford that we originally used when we purchased the camper. The 350 was requested to be returned so this is what we had… it didn’t come without it’s own challenges, of course… because apparently we have to learn EVERY LESSON all at once.

This ’99,while keeping sentimental value and still being in great working shape (usually) – had been left in the cold for juuuuust a bit too long in the mountains and the batteries were completely drained. (She’s about to be a Cali truck) Austin also learned that the Highway Tire & Auto we had left it with for service (you know, back in MARCH 2025, and didn’t get back until October 2025) “replaced” his deep cycle, cold weather batteries that he spent good money on with regular ole batteries… he was NOT happy about that.

First he tried the jumper box we always carry with us. Not enough juice.

Then he pulled Papaw’s tractor over to jump it (it’s a 24v system 7.3L engine vs. a 12v like regular cars) the tractor gives it a little more juice and it attempted to turn over but again, not enough juice. He used all the starter fluid he could find, and then finally brought the Taco down…

Taco jumper cables attached to 1 battery, tractor attached to the other, and after 2 hours and a few more tries with more starter fluid she FINALLY turned over. We were hoping to be at Camping world by 12pm… we finally got there just after 2pm. Once we got her started, we never turned her off – you stay idling big girl.

After a walkaround inspection, flipping a couple extra switches (to make sure lights work), and trying all the slides, we were hooked up and ready to head 15 minutes south to the campground.

The ’99 looks like a tonka truck pulling this mammoth. It wasn’t a super smooth pull (his bed airbags were also disconnected by the mechanics….), but we made it! We’re already planning to pay a company to pull this up to the river again for the summer season so we’ll just be driving our own personal vehicles instead of purchasing a new/used truck. More convenient/easier for our needs.

Saturday we had our appointments at Overkill Tattoo to celebrate our return to NC, finish Austin’s sleeve and spend a little of my bonus on us. The guys here are extremely talented – we love all of them.

Austin’s additions for this arm were the connecting piece with the elk, and Papaw’s mayfly to Mamaw’s flower, he’s keeping them on his left side.

I took the plunge on a rib piece I wanted to remind me of my Daddy Tom (P-51 Mustang, the Daddy Tom Dollar, and a Rum Swizzle – he was stationed in Bermuda for the Korean War). The other side has Poppy’s Celtic Triquetra, so I’ve got both grandfathers by my side.

We returned late Saturday, exhausted and healing. Sunday was another “run” day and we headed to the Tennessee Storage to pick up a few of the necessities to put back in the camper – hoses, kitchen supplies, bathroom items, etc. This load-in will be much more calculated for me, our first time packing the camper I was just trying to get stuff OUT of the house so we could sell it. Now I’m able to actually see what we need and what wasn’t used at the River to bring less back in. Little by little we’ll get all the pieces together but for now, we’re just happy to be HOME.

We spent more time Sunday with Papaw, eating Long John Silvers and playing with the pups. We’ve been SO grateful that he’s been loving on Charlie for us for so long – it’s the best place for Charlie to be, with Papaw and Sassy. But we do miss him. I was craving the family recipe of Beef Stroganoff (comfort food) Sunday night so we ate late – just in time for the Super Bowl Halftime Show.

I stole this skillet from mom I think when I moved to New Orleans over a decade ago. It’s my favorite kitchen gadget ever, although we did just by a brand new air fryer that does many additional things (our Oven doesn’t hold a constant temperature here so I’m still getting used to it). Now it’s just getting re-organized, learning the little oddities of the camper – like the heat pump not liking to work in below freezing temps (we have a propane furnace and additional heating elements too), and setting ourselves up for the upcoming weeks. I’ve got a lot of travel happening February – March and we won’t see each other till March 13th with our overlapping schedules. I need those airline miles to keep my Platinum Status for the year! At least we have our house back and can go little by little moving back in.

Austin flies back into VA this upcoming Friday to pick up the rest of the stuff we left in mom & dad’s garage, and the cat. For now, the Starlink is setup and working like a charm, the washing machine is washing, and the Olympics are on the TV. It’s a great start to a new month and a new week.