What your heart desires is not too good to be true. It is good enough to be true. —Alan Cohen, author

May 29th, 2022. Oak Grove, Arkansas.

Now that we’ve been here a few weeks, we’re finding life at an RV resort to be interesting, especially when it comes to the parade of recreational vehicles rolling past our corner-lot site. Many of the ones that come in for a few nights are newish, high-end, late models with names like Tiffin, Newmar, Coachman and Berkshire. They are shiny and impressive in their own right, but their basic designs are similar and, if you’ve seen one, you’ve pretty much seen them all. So when something very different came along the other day, my curiosity was piqued…especially since it was parked right across the street.

Robert came over to introduce himself shortly after setting up and invited us to come over for a tour. Even though this is nowhere close to my idea of traveling, I couldn’t help being curious to see the inside because I already knew I wanted to share the experience with You in a blog. After all, this is not your typical RV nor something that one sees everyday. Besides, I’m always eager to learn how the other half lives.

A few years ago, when Julia and Robert Barclay decided to downsize from their 5,000 square foot home in Princeton, New Jersey to an RV, it was with the understanding that there would be no compromise in their lifestyle, one that included a lot of travel and entertaining. Even though neither had any camping experience, they knew exactly what they wanted. Thoughtfully, carefully, and methodically they designed and built their custom travel home, and for more than two years have been taking it on the road, proving that one can indeed have their cake and eat it, too.

Truly, this is one impressive, jaw-dropping creation. Calling it an RV just doesn’t seem to do it justice. It seems much more than that. And for heaven’s sake, don’t call it a tiny home. A tiny home could not stand up to the rigors of the road like this custom travel home does. Only the highest quality of materials, many European, were integrated in the fabrication. The appliances and electronics are second to none. The glass doors are guaranteed not to crack or break. Every conceivable space is utilized to the max, and there is a TON of storage. There was a space for everything and everything was in its place.

I asked Robert point-blank why they went this route and not one of those aforementioned pricey rigs. His reply was that none of them had everything he and Julia wanted, and as Julia guided me on a tour of their home, I understood exactly what he meant: a pot-filler faucet, two stainless steel countertops, and a composting toilet are not typical standard RV features, even in those wildly pricey Class A’s.

The theatre/study was especially impressive. With a simple voice command to ‘prepare room for movie,’ the electronics (that now include Starlink) took center stage, elevating the television to the proper height and automatically drawing the curtains to darken the room. If Robert and Julia wanted to watch television in bed, another command would swivel the screen 180 degrees for that.

I was very grateful for being able to tour Julia and Robert’s truly beautiful home and also for their frankness and openness. When I asked the approximate cost to build their custom travel home, I was shocked, in a good way. (No wonder they didn’t buy a cookie-cutter RV!) They are continually on the move, traveling every 3-4 days, and if that isn’t a road test, I don’t know what is! Interested persons are invited to contact them for more information on this particular model (that has all the whistles and bells), or an alternative design that’s towable with a dually truck. Email Robert@customtravelhomes.com, 203-690-0638, or see their Facebook page, Custom Travel Homes.

Finally, after days and days of rain, the sun came out just in time for holiday weekend. This area’s had SO much rain that 8 of the 10 spillway gates at the dam at Table Rock Lake have been open for at least a couple of weeks.

And in other news, our grandson’s high school varsity baseball team (our reason for spending a month in Kentucky this earlier this spring) WON DISTRICT CHAMPIONSHIP in a thrilling come-from-behind victory earlier this week. The State Tournament in Lexington begins June 5th. Best of luck, Christian County High School Colonels!

Such is life in the country. Please take care and stay in touch. Have a wonderful and safe rest of the holiday weekend. Much love and long hugs…Maria