This is a catch up post.

Our first boon-docking experience was in Michigan at Walmart in Saginaw on September 21st.  We went inside, purchased some necessities along with sandwiches from Subway. Since Brian was not feeling well with a sinus infection he could not manage the longer drives that we had done in the previous weeks. Brian slept in Zachary’s bed and I slept with Carson and Zachary in our bed. On the counter there was the largest steak knife that we had in the motor home, just in case Brian needed to “scare an intruder”. We discussed our escape plan on what to do if someone tried to break into the motor home. This was not a restful night due to three of us in the bed and it being stuffy with no AC. We were able to get a quick shower which made Brian and I feel more refreshed to start the day.

We left Walmart and drove into Frankenmuth, MI which is known as Michigan’s Little Bavaria. Our first stop was Bronner’s Christmas Wonderland, known as the “World’s Largest Christmas Store”, started in 1945 by Wally Bronner and is visited by millions of people each year.  If you could not find a Christmas ornament, multi holiday decoration, or Christmas cards that you liked they probably have not been made. There were ornaments for almost any category that could possibly be imagined. This store is listed as an attraction on things to do in Frankenmuth, MI,   The store included a snack bar, video room with daily presentations, and visitor’s center where they presented you with a map to navigate the store.  We only purchased one motor home ornament, although we do not have a Christmas tree for the motor home or extra room for decorations. I did for a few minutes miss the thoughts of pulling out all of my ornaments and decorating a live Christmas tree and decorating the fireplace for Christmas, but then I thought about having to take everything down and pack it away for another year and my sadness about decorating a large tree and house ended.

After visiting Bronner’s Christmas Wonderland we drove into the town of Frankenmuth and walked around. The area was settled by conservative Lutheran immigrants from Germany in 1845,the name Frankenmuth means “courage of the Franconians”. The town had many small unique shops and restaurants including a toy store which Zachary and Carson enjoyed. Many of stores instill the history of the area including Kerns Commercial House which still serves meals as they did when they opened in 1899, when Mrs. Kern served “all you can eat  fried chicken” to a wedding party.  Many of the restaurants serve “family style” dining which is similar to buffet style but the food is brought to your table  in large bowls and passed around to each family member.   Another popular attraction in Frankenmuth is the Bavarian Belle Riverboat, an authentic paddle wheel boat,  which floats along the Cass River as we walked along the walkway of the Frankenmuth Holz Brucke (covered bridge). The Bavarian Belle Riverboat is an one hour, narrated site-seeing tour along the Cass River giving passengers the history of Frankenmuth.   Frankenmuth was a nice little village town with lots of shopping opportunities.

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Every year during the Christmas Season we try to participate in a “giving” project to help everyone in the family understand the true meaning of Christmas is giving and not receiving.   On Sunday, December 21, 2008;  we put together bags for a homeless in our area. We found a source online that helped us decide what  items to put in the bags that may be useful to someone who is homeless.  The bags contained socks, granola bars and nuts (for protein), pain reliever, alcohol swabs, band aides, hard candy, a tooth brush and tooth paste, deodorant, a rain poncho, a reusable water bottle and a reusable bag to carry everything.

The bags contained things that we sometimes take for granted such as a pair of warm socks and a simple snack which we had to explain to 9 year old, Zachary and 5 year old Carson that even a pair of socks is something that everyone does not have and the granola bar may be the only food some people have to eat during the day. We tried to explain to Zachary and Carson that we are very blessed to have a home, warm clothes, and food to eat since there were many people in our area that did not have the things we take for granted.  Everyone enjoyed the project and I think both Zachary and Carson understood (in their own way) why we took time to purchase and put together these bags.

If the local shelters think that these bags will be useful we may continue to put them together through out the year, since Christmas should not be the only time of the year we should think about giving to the less fortunate.  The items that we used may we switched depending on the season but the reason for giving will be the same.

We started camping at Yogi in the Smokies  located in Cherokee, NC in 2001 when we only had a two person tent and have continued staying there at least once a year. Our first trip to Yogi in the Smokies and our family consisted of me, Brian and Zachary who was an energetic 2 year old.  The entire park is centered around the cartoon series staring Yogi the Bear.  Yogi, Boo-boo, Ranger Smith and other characters from the cartoon series.  There are hayrides, games, arts and crafts to keep the younger group busy.

This trip was one of our last trips of the season and we had three days out of school for Labor Day.  We arrived on a Thursday afternoon and left on Monday. We did not leave the park once we arrived even though we did have to purchase a few things from the camp store such as bread, ham, cheese, pasta and eggs. We decided that it was easier to shop at the camp store than to go into Cherokee for the few things that we needed. The boys played water games, took several hay rides and enjoyed playing in the pool and river.  There were several hay rides with Yogi the Bear but the favorite ride included water guns used to spray fellow campers who were urged to throw buckets of water at the riders on the wagon (no hay or Yogi were included on this ride).  The boys and myself arrived back at camp completely soaked and a little cold (some fellow campers threw water with ice) but ready to ride again the next day. During the day we enjoyed playing in the cold river until Carson got so cold his lips started turning blue (we call this Carson’s “blue meter”).  Bella even enjoyed the river taking her first real swim since joining our family.  Zachary enjoyed some freedom riding his bike to the theater (in the park) to watch the Yogi Bear movies.  Brian enjoyed his normal camping naps and cooking  on the grill such foods as pancakes, grilled cheese and hamburgers.  I enjoyed time to catching up on some reading and doing an occasional word search puzzle. Overall this was a nice relaxing family trip!