I’m having some Saturday Night Genealogy Fun (#SNGF), with help from Randy Seaver and his prompts! Feel free to join in.

Saturday Night Genealogy Fun: August 1, 2026

Prompt: “Did your family go on vacation? Describe one or more of your vacations with your birth family or with your spouse and children.”

Vacations Transformed by a Camper

One of my most memorable family vacations – for both good and bad reasons – was the Southern road trip my father took us on.

Dad had gotten a girlfriend who enjoyed camping, so naturally we went on camping weekends. One rain too many, though, and Dad pivoted to buying a pop-up camper (along the lines of this but much, much older). This camper gave us the freedom to travel, which we’d never been able to afford before, and Dad took advantage.

Our Great Adventure

He had custodial time for a week or two in the summer, and he took us on our Southern Road Trip for one of them. We saw many places, most of which I’ve sadly forgotten and need to dig out a photo album. One of them was Cape Hatteras, North Carolina, where we encountered a hurricane and got, yes, drenched. I got a lighthouse knickknack and painted it to match the Cape Hatteras Lighthouse pattern as a gift for my dad. When he passed, I brought it home, where it sits in my home office.

Another stop we made was visiting his aunt – Aunt Tess, my grandfather’s only surviving sister. I believe that was the only time we girls ever met her.

Dad made sure to incorporate a lot into the short trip – camping, sightseeing, family. And all in all, we got a lot of together time in.

Last month, when my husband and I took our children on an adventure vacation of our own, I found myself thinking about Dad and that old pop-up camper. I hope my children remember our travels just as fondly—and continue the tradition someday.

Dad and my sisters in the pop-up camper.

AI Disclosure

This post was created by me with the help of AI tools. While AI helps organize research, the storytelling and discoveries are my own.