Catching Up With May Travel

Lot's of travel, just not in the motorhome.

Usually, I'm writing about some destination in a state we've never visited before, or an interesting spot we think you should try out for yourselves, but this May brings a mixture of joy and sadness in the Richard family. In the span of three weeks time, Barbara and I will drive from our home base of Gainesville, Georgia down to Ocala, Florida for a weekend wedding of our last nephew, head back to Gainesville for a couple of days of rest, then drive 1,100 miles to Massachusetts to say a final goodbye to my father who passed away in late April, then rush back to Georgia for the birth of our second grandson!

Every mile done in our Jeep Cherokee.

Yeah, no RV. Strange beds. No comfortable captain's chairs to ride in.

Now, could we have done this travel in our Class A? Sure. And we had earlier intended to do the Florida portion of this travel doing just that. But our nice cozy and comfortable camp hosting spot at Bolding Mill COE, where we are nestled between and under tall pine trees with a lake view and including full hookups, was just too good a spot to be leaving and backing into for just a couple of days stay in Ocala, Florida.

The wedding was very nice, the room accommodations at the Howard Johnson – not so much. We ended up leaving a day early.

 

Me, Barbara and Kristen at the wedding

Our next travel was slated for a couple of days later; a scheduled two-day drive to Massachusetts for the memorial service for my father, and again, it was determined to be better handled in the Jeep than in the motorhome for a number of reasons. One, we could do the 1,100 miles in two days in the car, where it would have taken three days in the RV due to the slower speed I drive in the RV. Two, there are no campgrounds near the location of the church service and the friends and family we would need and want to see. And three, the cost of gas in the northeast made it cheaper to drive the Jeep and get a deal on a hotel than to pay for the campgrounds we'd need to use and the much lower miles per gallon cost of fuel for the RV. So time, money and convenience worked against us in taking the motorhome up north this trip.

We'd also have an additional passenger in the Jeep; our oldest daughter Kristen, who would be able to help out with driving duties (yay!) but would also be staying in our hotel room (boo!).

Oh, and for those Grover fans out there, he would be staying with our younger daughter, Alicia, and our grandson, Jace, back in Georgia, getting spoiled rotten as usual while she waited to deliver our next grandson. So Grover was just fine, thank you, while we were gone.

The memorial service for my Dad was quiet and reserved, as befitted his nature and his wishes, and his ashes were interred next to my Mom's in the church's memorial garden. He had almost 95 years on this earth, 94 of them pretty good years, so he owed no one anything. It was great seeing friends and family who took the time to come out in support and love.

The Hampton Inn Billerica /Bedford where we stayed was top-notch, with a very spacious room and a great breakfast every morning. While staying up there we were able to check off our Massachusetts meal destinations for Chinese food, seafood and roast beef sandwiches before having to head back South.

 

At the Wu Loon Ming. Cousin Gary and wife Lisa up front, Kristen and sister-in-law Tracey next, Barbara and I after that, and brother Doug all the way in back.

Due to an emergency in Kristen's boyfriend's family in the middle of our drive day back, we decided to forego the overnight stop in a hotel and push through for a single-day drive, doing the 1,100 miles in 18 hours and 45 minutes. Fortunately, I tend to wake up around midnight after 3-5 hours of sleep, so we had gotten on the road early enough to finish the day's drive to Georgia while it was still light outside.

Two days later, William Oliver Ashley made his grand entrance into the world. Now, the delicate balance of helping Jace bond with his new baby brother while giving him the one-on-one attention he needs begins. As always, he'll be spending a lot of time with us in the RV for his summer break, but no big trip to far away destinations this year so that he can be at home with his brother. We'll see how THAT goes . . .

 

Barbara's grandmaternal instincts have already kicked into high gear concerning William Oliver!

Coming up next month – The Joys of Camp Hosting!