Our Own Little Fixer Upper

​I can relate to Joanna Gaines here --->>>

Chip and Mark share a few traits:
-hard working
-love demo day
-a little bit of an ego
-awkward dad jokes

So for this blog entry, we'll pretend it's the last ten minutes of an episode of Fixer Upper. Chip (okay in this case Mark) has finished and it's time to get in there and make it cozy. 

---

Mark has worked countless hours creating our little home away from home to help us better adventure as a family of four. My skills with power tools are lacking at best, so I have been on the sidelines for the most part until this week. My role has been design and decor. So, I bring you the final pieces. Much like Joanna plans, designs, consults, and then pops in at the end to add the finishing touches, I have worked the last few days to take Mark's hard work and make the Airstream a place we can feel comfortable in as we wander together exploring new cities and taking in new views. 

About a month ago I placed an Amazon order for plastic drawers, curtains, etc. I took measurements carefully and was thrilled as things trickled in that most of the items worked well. I have two small curtains to return when we get back from our trip. Otherwise, all of my measurements did the trick. We have plastic drawers under the kid's bunks for their clothes, two sections of drawers in the bathroom cabinet, bins for the cupboards to hold food and supplies, etc. Mark built a closet for us. It's a tight fit, but we were able to get enough in for about a week's worth of clothing. We'll do laundry here and there along the way. I really love sandal season, so I may have brought more than what some people (ahem, Mark) believe to be an appropriate amount of shoes for camping (How can you pick?!!). Nonetheless, it all fit!

Last summer we had made the large rectangular cushions for the dinette, which folds out into a bed for Mark and I. This week I had to sew the curved corner cushions. They were a pain. The last time I was decent at sewing was high school Home Ec. Still, I made the corner cushions work. Absolutely any 4-H kid anywhere in America could've done a better job, but we've got cushions and they basically match the others. I ordered a stall size shower curtain that fit perfectly and some simple bedding for the kids. Mark and I will use extra bedding from home since it'll be stashed away during the day anyway. Mark didn't have time to build a pantry, so I found a small piece on Amazon to do the job (let's pretend it was custom made by Clint...) My friend Jill helped put it together because she is a much better direction-reader than I am and because we had wine. Now that everything is loaded up, I feel like we have exactly the right amount of space. No inch is spared, yet it doesn't feel crowded or chaotic. I suppose when four humans are inside that might change. Still, it feels really good. 
​
Take a peek:

---

We'll have to add pictures of the dinette set up and in use when we have dinner one of these nights soon. Right now, it's down and ready for travel. 

We start our journey tomorrow. 

​