"Another Trip to Michigan....."

Those of you who are frequent readers know that Don and I just visited Michigan a few weekends ago. I decided to drive over and visit once again this past weekend. I had been watching Craigslist daily, looking for a nice, older camper, which could be used as a "guest house" to set up somewhat permanently on Patrick and Julie's land. I found one that seemed to fit the bill and made the trip last Thursday. It is a remodeled 1973 Fleetwing.

I bought it on Thursday and Patrick, with me as co-pilot, drove back to Muskegon, MI on Friday to pick it up. Thankfully, he has a full size pickup so I didn't need to find someone else to haul it up to Brethren for me.

It is very clean and quite spacious inside. The person who did the remodeling took out the furnace, refrigerator, and toilet, which is why the inside has more room than normally found in a camper. In a camper of this age, I would be somewhat concerned of using the furnace, so its removal didn't bother me. Not having a refrigerator didn't make any difference to me either, as I would basically only have used it to keep creamer cold so I could have it for my morning coffee. ;) The toilet would have been nice, but in reality, it could only have been used when the weather is warm and would have had to been winterized for a good portion of the year. I can always buy a Porta-Potty if I feel the need........

After setting the camper up and leaving me to begin doing inside set up, Patrick drove to daycare to pick up Abigail. She approves of my purchase. ;)

Now a few photos of the interior of the camper. The kitchen/dining area. The gas stove worked nicely to boil water for my morning "French press" coffee. I brought along a small cooler to store my creamer in. :)

Another view of that end of the camper. Also included in the camper was a microwave, a small DVD/TV, and an electric heater. The heater seen here is not the one that came with the camper, but one that Patrick had. This one has a thermostat and worked beautifully for me. The cabinet which all of these appliances are sitting on is where the refrigerator, furnace, and toilet were prior to their removal. Patrick will be working on small things that need to still be completed, like taking out the furnace pipe, and adding trim to a few places.

The rest of the camper. Both seating areas can be used for sleeping.....I used the couch and was quite comfortable. Having something long enough for me to stretch out was another "must have" when looking at campers, too. ;) The plastic tubs now hold the bedding which will stay in the camper. Patrick also donated and mounted the corner extension lamp for me, too. Now I have my comfy corner for reading or knitting. :)

I had a very nice visit. Unfortunately, Friday was the last of the non-rainy days, so some of our plans for the weekend didn't take place, but we still had quality time together. :) Having the "guest house" will allow me to visit more often now. Those poor kids, eh? ;)