West Side Weekend

This weekend, we camped at Loyd Park, along the western side of Joe Pool Lake. With record-breaking heat, we were concerned that it would be difficult to keep Cloud 9 at a comfortable 73 degrees, but Loyd Park’s dense tree canopy made climate control more manageable. We arrived on Friday in time to set up,…

Life at the Lake

We spend most weekends “at the lake,” but the fact of the matter is that we spend very little time in or even near the water. Oh, we catch an occasional glimpse of the shore as we drive in or out of the park. We see a couple of ducks swimming in a tiny inlet…

Road Rage

Upon arriving for our weekender at Cedar Hill State Park, we had no idea what awaited us just beyond the park entrance. The ranger dutifully warned us about Argentine ants but said nothing about the missing section of road between us and our campsite. And by “missing” we mean non-existent. Completely gone. We knew from…

Gray Days

We arrived at Cedar Hill State Park on a mild Friday afternoon under overcast skies. The cloud cover, which lasted throughout the weekend, kept temperatures in the 40s and 50s, making for chilly meal preparations on the Big Green Egg and Blackstone grill. While preventing us from dining al fresco, the weather was perfect for…

Warmth, Wind, and Waves

When we heard the weather forecast for Christmas weekend, with high temperatures in the 80s, we decided to cancel our winter getaway to Galveston and stay closer to home. Instead of dedicating more than 11 hours of our holiday time to driving, we went to Cedar Hill State Park, where we managed to get a…

Road-Trip Recovery

We spent the weekend recovering from our recent 1,200-mile road trip to visit Jon’s family in Illinois, which included replenishing our supplies and checking for wear and tear on Cloud 9. The exceptionally warm weather was ideal for enjoying gentle breezes through open windows and spending an entire evening at a crackling campfire under starlit…

Unexpected Extension

Our weekend began a day early, when CJ from Dalworth Cleaning Services told us we wouldn’t be able to walk on our newly cleaned and waxed hardwood floors for 24 hours, so as to allow the wax the time it needed to “cure.” The campsite we had reserved for the weekend wasn’t available on Thursday,…

A Warm, Windy Weekend

On this same weekend seven years ago we placed our order for Cloud 9. We traveled to Dublin, Texas, about two hours from Dallas, to Bayer RV, where we had purchased our first Airstream. Because we were repeat customers, we hoped to get a good deal. And we did. We were told that our new…

Finally, Fall

With a weather forecast of cool nights and low humidity, we eagerly headed to Cedar Hill State Park, a gleaming Cloud 9 in tow. Since returning from our Desert Southwest Adventure, we spent several days cleaning the rig inside and out, top-to-bottom, bumper-to-bumper. We’ve pulled the Airstream about 50,000 miles over nearly seven years, and,…

Summer Swelter

We headed out for our weekender on the hottest day of the year, fully aware that the summer swelter would likely keep us inside most of the time. But there’s something to be said for getting away from the place where we live and work, even if the heat prevents us from outdoor pursuits. Now…