It's Getting Closer Every Dayyyy...

Proverbs 2:8 For he guards the course of the just
    and protects the way of his faithful ones.

 So, remember all those details we discussed on the last post? Well, an impressive number of them have been checked off my legal pad in the past couple of weeks. Things like rehanging vintage mirrors on the pantry door and adding a few more vintage accessories, like this metal Coca Cola sign we bought in Galena, KS while visiting a Sisters on the Fly camper show. We're also blessed with talented friends who gift us with personalized camper decor for Sweet Melissa. Thanks Heidi!


One more happy progress note is receiving the mattress we ordered and finding it a perfect, comfy fit. Now if I can talk the Hubs out of taking naps while he's working!

One of the best things we've discovered about working the past fourteen months bringing Sweet Melissa back to life is the interest and pleasure it generates in family and friends. We hope that someday soon our growing tribe of grandchildren can accompany us on camping adventures. Right now, the Hubs was simply happy to share a vintage camper moment with the grandson.

Almost forgot! We found the right fridge to fit in the cabinet that once housed the original propane one (with a little coaxing and some reconstruction). It's an Avanti AC/DC Superconductor, meaning we can run it on 110v shore power or from 12v deep cycle batteries. Looking forward to giving it a trial run soon!



And speaking of trial runs, stay tuned for our first journey, not to a campsite but to a vintage camper show! Stone Barn Farm & Cabins in Dexter, KS is hosting the show to be held October 15 and sponsored by SKT. It promises to be amazing, with a dozen other campers already registered. Here's the pic we provided for a sneak peek of Sweet Melissa. We'll bring you up-to-date day of show. The excitement is building!

The Heart of Vintage Camper Renewal--Details, Details, Details

Do you know that I possess a legal pad that once held twelve pages of details to be completed on our 1961 Mobile Scout? For the past fourteen months, we've been slogging through the list like a mule-drawn plow through wet clay. Remove water-damaged birch paneling...check! Replace all galvanized screws on camper's exterior with chrome-plated ones...check! And so forth.

But now that the end is in sight, we're actually getting to focus on details that have some emotional reward (I know, weirdness, but when you've put this much effort into a project, there has to be something fun once in awhile!)

Hideous Before

For instance, my favorite project in the past couple of weeks was peeling away horrendous, melted on self-adhesive, plastic-coated paper that lined the top, bottom and sides of every cabinet and drawer and replacing it with removable shelf liner. Just kidding, the peeling off part was horrendous, an inch at a time or less, with a razor blade and not without injury. But the reward! I was able to actually move some of the dishes and utensils I've had gathering dust upstairs since July 2015 into those shiny, sanitized, cabinets!

Beautiful After

Old Mobile Scout Clearance Light

New Mobile Scout LED Rear Light Set

 Hubs had his own reward epiphany in the form of replacing the vintage but badly clouded, scratched and not terribly illuminating lights on Sweet Melissa with LED versions that guarantee she'll be seen in the darkest rainstorm. Hooked the wiring harness to the truck tonight for a test run and he's over the moon happy with the visibility and overall shininess!


To be able to see progress in such visible ways has fired us up once again to keep going on this vision quest. We also have the added bonus of making a whole new set of friends at Harbor Freight as we race toward the final details! Safety chains...check! Sway control kit...check!

To close for the night, here's a quiz for all you trivia addicts--what size mattress do you buy for a fifty-five year old travel trailer? Anyone? We learned that it requires a 'three-quarter size' mattress, also known as an 'antique' or 'short full' mattress, 75" long x 48" wide. Now you know.

The mattress has been ordered, by the way, should be here soon, one more detail checked off the list. We really are going to park that vintage Mobile Scout trailer in a campground in 2016, honest. It's on my list.