Well I have some sad news to report. The reason you haven't seen me post anything lately is because my grandpa got really sick and he passed away in January. I am still so sad. But his ashes are in grandma's living room and sometimes I sing to him when I am there. Grandpa loved to hear me sing. Here's a picture of me singing happy birthday to my grandpa on his 86th birthday, September 16, 2012.

Been BUSY!

Wow, it's been a while. I have been SO busy though buying new trailers and rebuilding old ones. Ted, my teardrop, is almost done. We started him in November of 2011 and worked on him all winter and all year so far. We actually got to sleep in him last weekend. In the garage, without a door (on Ted, not the garage). Glad we were in the garage with its doors closed because the coyotes came around and sang for us three times. I was very glad mom got the jumbo LL Bean sleeping bags so I could snuggle all the way to the bottom when the coyotes came!

Mom has redeemed herself

Thank you whoever you are who let Mom know I expected more double cheeseburgers in lieu of me missing the trip Up North last weekend. Mom went to the International Auto Show in Grand Rapids yesterday and she came home with one. And I didn't even have to whine about it before she left me in Delton with Grandpa and Grandma.  BIG SMILE!

And to top it all off...

They went to the Blue Tractor for dinner. And Mom got their pulled pork quesadilla. I LOVE pulled pork quesadillas! And well okay, when Mom got home on Sunday, she had stopped at McDonalds and brought me home a double cheeseburger.  Note I said double cheeseburger - that's TWO pieces of cheese. She didn't cheap out and get the McDouble with only ONE piece of cheese (I LOVE CHEESE).

But that is not nearly enough. I still have my McDonald's charge cards that my good camping buddy Marlee (and Uncle Dom) sent me. And I am thinking Mom better be planning on stopping TONIGHT, Friday, Jan. 27, and bring me home something good. Maybe even two something goods!

I missed the cool cabin decor store too???

Not cool. Not cool at all. I am the decorator in this family. Nothing gets done here without my say so and approval.  NOTHING. But they stopped at the cool cabin decor store in Traverse City without me anyway. And, saw Lake Michigan which is really pretty with all the snow and blue water.

More fun, and more importantly, FOOD, that I missed

So Mom, Emily and Jeremie headed first to East Jordan where they got to tour Timeless Travel Vintage Camper Restorations. Hey Mom, did you forget that I LOVE VINTAGE TRAILERS??? Mom said it was really really cool and they got to see 25 vintage trailers, restored, being restored, or waiting to be restored. Me? I got to see nothing!

After the tour, they headed to Elk Rapids and ate at Pearl's a New Orleans cuisine restaurant. They'd never been but it will be a new must do place when heading up north from now on. Sigh... I guess I will never know how good it is, but it sure looks like fun and I am sure that I love New Orleans cuisine!

Really Mom? Really?

So my Mom went up north again with my cousins Emily and Jeremie. She said I could not go because they were staying in a motel that didn't allow "pets". PETS?  Is that what I am now? A "PET"? I think not. Then she tried to make me feel better by saying I wouldn't like to go anyway. SNORT. I guess I was supposed to feel better that she took a picture of the giant trout fountain in Kalkaska and the army tank in Mancelona. Not buying it Mom and it's gonna take way more than a McDonald's double-cheese burger to make it up to me!

Sigh...

I thought when my sisters passed away that I would have more Mom time because it would just be me and my two brothers, Oliver and Henry. But oh no. Mom made arrangements to adopt a very lively boy who she named Caleb, not even a week after Abby passed. I have to admit, he is cute. And at least he is most active with Henry. Whew. Makes one's head spin sometimes. He seems to think that he's supposed to sleep right on top of me! Right now I don't mind because it's cold and it is like having my own personal heated blanket, but he better get over it before summer arrives!

Sad news

Both of my sisters passed away in 2011. My sister Sophie, who was 19, died on September 26. My sister Abigail, who was 17, died on December 12. These are two of my favorite pictures of them. That's Sophie, the calico, sitting in Mom's favorite chair with my brother Oliver. And, that's Abby in my pink trailer. The one I said earlier that I thought she would like. She did. She loved it and you could almost always find her all snugged up there. Missing my sisters.

Pitcher Plants!

Spring is here. We walked the bogwalk to the lake and found pitcher plants along the way. We didn't think we had any. All the ice is off the lake now too. WOO HOO.

Mom went to Traverse City and all I got was this possum!

For the cabin. Mom named it Rosie because it reminds us of the one who eats the cat food we put out for Buddy and the other stray cats that hang around.

SPRING is here!

Finally! We didn't get very much snow this winter. Mom only used the snowblower twice! Last year there were some days when she used it three times in one day. But it still felt like winter lasted forever this year and that spring was never going to come. On Thursday when we came home the yard was full of crocuses. Of course Mom made me sit in them for a picture!

Another New Trailer???

Mom bought me a new trailer. Rather, someone told her about it and she called Aunt DeeAnn in Raleigh, NC and Aunt DeeAnn bought it because it was for sale at the Home Goods Store and we don't have one of those. Uncle Don just mailed it up to me. I'm not sure I like it but my fuzzy brother Henry loved it. I think I should give it to my sister Abigail because she likes small cuddly spaces.

The biggest, and the WORST news is that my sister Maddy died. We knew when we adopted her that she'd not be with us for very long. She was very sick. Mom says we gave her the best year of her life though. We don't think she'd done much car riding and after living a year with me, she LOVED going anywhere and everywhere. And we're pretty sure she never camped before. She got to go camping in Savannah, GA, St. Augustine, FL and Sweetwater, TN. She had a blast. She may be gone but she is forever in our hearts. This is a picture of her camping in St. Augustine, Florida.

So much has happened since I last posted. Our cabin was delivered on July 23. Mom has it mostly done now. I had a cook-out there with my big boy cousins Paris and Caesar last night. We cooked hotdogs. I had two. Paris and Caesar each had four but Caesar didn't eat his so Paris had EIGHT!

Mom Went to Shipshewana and all I Got was a WOLF!

Mom and Grandma went to Shipshewana today. Mom needed some stuff for the National Scotty Rally that is in Pennsylvania in July. And she come home with a WOLF for ME! It is a life-sized wolf. I was a little big scared at first. Maddy wanted to bite it (she's good at that you know). After I checked it out I wasn't scared anymore. This wolf, which we are going to call a coyote, is going in Camp Mabel's Glade. Wow, Mabel's Glade is going to be so cool!

Back to Work

The rally is over and we came home a day early because Mom got food poisoning. This weekend we have to work on getting the cabin site ready. Mom had the Bobcat guy who was digging out Aunt JimmieLou's new driveway pad come over and dig out our new cabin hole. Then she had 7 yards of crushed rock delivered up by the road. Cousin Justin is supposed to come out and move it. Maddy and I did the inspection first. All ready Justin. You can come out anytime.... Justin?

Heading to Tin Can Tourists

YAY! Last year mom went by herself to the big Tin Can Tourists Rally at Camp Dearborn in Milford, MI. This year I get to go and I get to take my Scotty too! I just put a new memory foam mattress in it and I added a third seatbelt so my good friends and Scotty dogs, Amy and Emma can ride with me. We will have so MUCH fun! Thanks mom for letting me go!

Porkys in the Outhouse!

Mom said when she was a girl up at the cabin, the first person in the outhouse in the morning usually had to chase out a porcupine. So, we ordered a plush porky to go in our new outhouse and we ordered a custom made toilet seat with a porky on it too. Now we just need to wait until after July 19 to get the outhouse to put them in!

Happy Mother's Day!

I cooked Mother's Day Dinner for my mom! I made Indian Fry Bread Tacos and Pear Cobbler. YUM YUM YUM. It was great. I found the Indian Fry Bread mix online at an Indian store out west. It was really easy to make and it was really really good. The pear cobbler I made using my award-winning Ovenette recipe. That is ALWAYS good!

Mom said the leftovers the next day were even better than the first day. I have to take her word on that. She didn't share! It's nice to share Mom!