1200 Miles and Counting

Scott and I joke all the time that we moved into our fifth wheel to travel the country and we have gone 44 miles. Our one year anniversary of becoming a full-time RV family is coming up in June. It has been a long year of learning and waiting for the best timing for our Big Bon Voyage. We believe it will be a bright, sunny day in July after a final project at the University for Scott.

This last weekend we took a little test run. Well, it was a little trip as far as the amount of time we were away, but we traveled over 1200 miles. And, I can assure you, if we were ever doubtful about our decision to travel, that no longer exists. We have the travel bug! I was almost disappointed to come to a "home" location. I wanted to go to the next adventure. When I explained to our 4 year old that we were headed back home from Lake Tahoe, she was very confused. She pointed to the truck with our house on wheels attached to it, and said our home is with us.

Top 12 Things We Learned as We Traveled Across Nevada.

1. There is a huge adrenaline rush the night before departure for the whole family.
2. Although sitting is the main activity when traveling a long distance, it is also quite exhausting.
3. Not only do we have the awesome experience of meeting a lot of new people along the way, we also get the opportunity to travel to see friends we have not seen in years.
4. Enjoying the sights and adventures is so much more fun with others, especially other kids.
5. Pregnancy is causing a bit more of a set back than I expected while traveling.
6. My husband actually trusts me to drive!
7. Spending a lot of quality time together, although exhaustion can lead to some short tempers, really does wonders for a relationship.
8. Carrying our whole home with everything we need is incredible! And the kids sleep better being in their familiar surroundings and in a familiar bed.
9. I feel so much safer in a lake environment with my kids than going to a swimming pool.
10. My husband rocks! He killed it on the road, during set up, and tear down. I will miss traveling beside him when I have to go behind in the minivan.
11. Although there is a lot of fuel involved, it is still so much better and cheaper to be on the road than flying.
12. When we travel a long distance, we should stay at least a week or so to recover from the drive and explore slowly and thoroughly.

Scott learned a lot about the truck and traveling through a variety of terrain as well as pulling into tight spaces. And I could tell he was right in his element, taking his family and home on a long journey. We are a lucky group of gals to have a husband and daddy willing to take us out of our comfort zone, away from the security of a stable location, and on a grand adventure. I feel like I need to pinch myself every now and then to believe after so much talking, dreaming, and researching, we are finally inches away from this being our reality.

Winter Wonderland

Month Seven of our RV adventure and the seasonal change has had a huge impact. Summer and Fall are a blur as we tackle the realities of RV life inside the RV more than ever. It is a drastic change in living. I would say more so than the actual change from house to house on wheels.

However, the beauty of the snow and the new outdoor activities offered to us is amazing. Our owner's manual does not tell us how to troubleshoot through issues caused from below freezing temps (although it boasts of its polar package!). It only tells us how to winterize the RV assuming it will be stored when we go below 50 degrees. Ha! The trial and error is invaluable, though, should we not be able to chase the seasons in our future travel. Winter in the mountains has been a love/hate relationship with the Lunsfords. We are learning lessons and creating lasting memories as a family. That was the main goal of this lifestyle choice, so I wouldn't change our decision.

One thing that has come to my attention is that our family of 5 is under-utilizing the clubhouse at our RV resort. We can come over and spread out whenever we need to. I am typing this post from the comfort of a large leather couch next to a roaring fire. We can use the oven when our dinner is too big for the RV stove, and the dishwasher when our pipes freeze in the kitchen sink. Sometimes the girls just need to get their wiggles out in a larger space. I also need to take advantage of the gym equipment, now that we are spending more time indoors.

The RV itself seemed to hold up pretty well when we are hovering between 20 and 30 degrees. We took all the necessary steps that we were told about to prevent any problems with our underbelly, pipes, hoses, and tanks. Then, we started dipping into single digits, and one problem after another began to occur. Condensation has become the enemy. We have to wipe down the windows each morning, and open the vents in the bathroom and bedroom after a steaming shower. Cooking, breathing, showering, etc result in the pouring out of water. Scott discovered the clothes in our closet were beginning to freeze. We had to pull out the clothes, then warm up the space, and dry out the wet spots.The kitchen pipes began to freeze, and as the temps went into the negative, it became harder and harder to unfreeze. We put a small space heater on the lowest setting underneath, and rarely have an issue now. Propane is going quicker and quicker. We are now filling it up once a week. We stayed away one night, and the propane ran out. We came home to any liquid in our home being frozen solid, including an icicle coming from our kitchen faucet.  Not too long after that, a strange smell, like hot plastic filled up our living area. Googling lead us to believe there was a problem with our hot water heater. Scott spent some time investigating, and came across wires that were basically charred. A fire would have been very likely had we waited to dig into the issue.

Our family is having to get creative with the use of our space. Our wall space is covered in hooks for snow suits, jackets, coats, hats, etc. Our winter gear is spread from one end to the other. Getting ready for an outdoor activity is already exhausting when layering three children with their winter gear. However, coming in afterwards and having wet boots, and clothing thrown everywhere has been a much bigger challenge. My wheels have been turning to figure out a makeshift mudroom.

Just spending many more hours tucked into 400 square feet has us truly in each others' faces. It makes for a lot of conversations and problem solving as we try to navigate through this new way of living, and issues truly have to get resolved right away. There is no room for festering and pouting. No time like the present for real life learning for our kiddos. Resolution to those marital squabbles that could go on for hours, when hiding in the corners of a home, come much quicker. Our children literally wore themselves out making a game of chasing each other around the island in our kitchen/living area last night. I have discovered that their imaginations are not limited by space. They will take up the whole space in a large environment, and they will use the parameters of their small environment as well. There are no complaints from them.

We were not prepared for what Winter in Heber Valley would hold for us. But the beauty of the mountains, the community activities, the snow sports, and conflicts that force resoultion have created experiences that we would not have encountered any other way. We may begin the day cursing the issue at hand and wondering what on Earth have we done, but the end of the day leaves us breathing in the mountain air and sighing with satisfaction at what the day offered us. We are not sure what the Spring will hold for us. It is going to be tough to move on from this captivating area, but we are also chomping at the bit to begin our exploration of this great country.

Community and the Island of Misfits

The overwhelming emotion of our transition into a new lifestyle continues to sneak up on me. This last week, I have been battling with the baby steps we are taking to travel full time. Baby steps that I decided were necessary in order to properly acclimate to the new way of  life. We are 48 minutes, 44.3 miles, and 1268 more above sea level from Salt Lake City. The original plan was to move to Heber, make any commutes necessary, enjoy the scenery, enjoy our top rated RV resort, and maintain our Salt Lake world. That is proving to be unmanageable. The drive does not bother me and our girls. We really enjoy it. However, when I added up the many hours we were on the road each week, I realized this was not the most effective use of my time. Now, as we meet more people in Heber, and fall in love with the area, I feel the pain of baby steps to good-bye. I am slowly minimizing our time in the Salt Lake Valley. The place that we have known as home for 9 years.  The individuals that surrounded us with love and grace during some of the worst trials of our lives. And honestly, the people that made this all possible. I am faced with the gut wrenching reality of a long good bye to lifelong friends, and the future of the many good-byes to come. And that is perfect soil for doubt...lots and lots of doubt.

Within the RV community, it is an understood adjustment to get close fast and say simple good-byes. However, when venturing out from that community and enter the world of sticks and bricks, churches, clubs, other areas of socializing, I am realizing that for the next few years we will be building community, leaving it, and rebuilding it over and over and over. We will be finding churches in the areas we go to, we will be putting our children into extracurricular activities, we will join up with groups that enjoy the same hobbies and activities that we do. I am sure there are many soul mates and kindred spirits along our future paths.

In the middle of all these feelly feels that I am feeling (not an overly emotional person, so still not sure how to deal), Scott and I had an interesting encounter at a sticks and bricks gathering. During a potlock in a neighborhood that is walking distance from our RV,  while engaging in conversation there was definitely some obvious disappointment and a kind of brush off because we were not going to be permanent citizens of Heber. 

Then, we had our first "are you crazy, what on earth are you doing" reactions to our lifestyle choice. We were not prepared. In the future, I will be ready with notecards with a quick and easy explanation of our sanity. I could tell Scott was caught off guard and immediately started to defend our upcoming adventure. This person was not seeing the vision at all, so I changed the subject. I am pretty sure if you feel the need to start defending yourself on something that should be a personal choice and not at all controversial, then its probably time to shut down the conversation.

When we got home, it was obvious that Scott and I shared the moment of feeling a bit overexposed and slightly judged or rejected or maybe just confused. We have been feeling genuinely supported for the most part up until this point. There were a few friends that told us they could never adopt this way of living, but that has been the extent of opinions. And those are opinions we understand from people that we love.(Of course this lifestyle is not for everybody.) Why were we taking this stranger's opinion so hard? Why were we taken aback by people that were not really interested in getting to know us on a personal level if we would be leaving next year?  The logical side and the emotional side of my brain are baffled. Doubt is tricky business.

When we returned home to our little house on wheels, we met a woman whose family (husband and two small children) had just adopted the lifestyle and were living in an Airstream. We immediately immersed ourselves in deep conversation about life, finances, raising children, homeschooling, birth, etc. In a matter of 30 minutes. I told her it was so refreshing to speak to her after our evening, because we had our first shock and awe (not in a good way) encounter. She was like "oh yeah, plenty of people think we are crazy" with a nod of her head and flip of her hair. She knew it and she had experienced it, and her confidence in her choice was apparent. I left the conversation telling Scott "this is our community."  Perhaps we are misfits, but we are a happy bunch of misfits. We share so much in such a short amount of time. Friendships build that would normally take months or years to develop, and we get each other. We have a common link of having the bug to do something different and live a simplified life fueled by experiences and building relationships that transcend the bounds of physical location. I let out a sigh of relief as I connected all the dots of my heart tugging week, and settled back into my peace once again with our choice to live out of bounds. 

Parenting Bloopers

Bloopers. The stuff that ends up on the editing floor, the photos that do not make it on social media, the moments in life that will mess up the image we want to portray, the stuff we don't want to blog about, and hopefully the stuff that we will laugh about later.

That is where we are in parenting right now. It seems like consecutive moments of stuff that should end up on the editing floor of our parenting legacy. Coming up on ages six, four, and two, are trying times for us. It's not like we haven't had trying times before. Perhaps it's the small space for big explosions to occur or that we can walk out of our door and suddenly I feel like all the neighbors (especially the ones that just moved in that day....first impressions of The Lunsfords) can immediately witness and judge our parenting.

But really I think this would be the case in any scenario. We are in the best scenario for us after all. We are living out a dream that we truly thought would stay just a dream. The environment that I described in "Home in Heber" is as wonderful as the description, Our life could not be more simplified...well we could be Amish...but as simple as we are going to get. I feel calmer, we have more quality family time than ever, we are surrounded by beauty. This should all add up to peace and tranquility in our home.

The trip to the reservoir should not end up with everyone in tears. The excursion to the waterfall should not make me suddenly feel all too responsible for little life to the point of not enjoying the beauty around me. Do marshmallows at night plus allowing the kids to stay up to see the stars really have to lead us to near exhaustion putting the kids to bed?  The trips to the grocery store, eating out in restaurants, preparing for the day, naptimes, bedtimes, eating period, no meaning no, and stop meaning stop, whining, crying, volume period, sibling rivalry, training, discipline, disagreements about discipline, sleep, personal time, marriage time, spiritual time.....it is so hard right now. It seems to be so difficult at times that I have to wonder... is it us? are we making this harder than it has to be? maybe we are imagining it?

But I have to realize that these are the bloopers. The same stuff that you want to take out of the movie, but inevitably the stuff that cracks you up in the end and that you hang onto so you can show what it took to make the movie. Who doesn't love a show with bloopers at the end?

If you ask my children about their time at the lake, they don't even remember anyone getting upset or crying. They remember the sand castles and the cold water tickling their toes. They cannot tell you one thing about their bedtime after smores and star gazing. My children think going to the grocery store with mom is an event, and they look forward to it being on the "to do" list.

As I look back at this time last year, I am reminded of some major bloopers with our middle child that came unexpectedly when we took away her pacifier. Suddenly, an onslaught of sensory issues appeared. Bedtime became a process that we dreaded each night, getting ready to leave the house created anxiety, and getting dressed was an effort. I was not prepared, and I know I handled it very, very poorly. Until, I received the tools I needed to understand and help Jocelyn. Remembering that time, the bloopers of the past, and then seeing where we are today spur me on to keep going and keep learning and keep apologizing when I get it wrong. 

So right now, amidst all the change and activity and newness of our adventure, it feels like we are facing an uphill climb in parenting each day. But the final cut of years past prove that there has been fruit from the trials. I suspect that some of our bloopers have ended up on a stranger's social media page, and I will not be surprised if I find our family with a witty caption on a group page one day. I have seen what others consider the result of bad parenting from social media commentary. If that day ever happens, then I hope I will be able to laugh at it and remember it when we turn the corner of the trial that we are having with that child or with ourselves as parents. Or perhaps I will beat them to it and be brave enough to share the blooper reel myself. 

Please Mommies, take a moment and look back and see how far you and your children have come. Bloopers and all. Whether you are traveling full-time and wondering if you made the right decision for your family, or questioning the school you did or did not put you child into, or having to apologize for your outburst from yesterday. You can look back and see the footsteps moving forward. There will be some steps backwards as well, but our children are learning and so are we. 

Home in Heber

Heber is less than an hour away from Salt Lake City, but that trip up Provo Canyon or Parley's Canyon warps us into new and different territory. It's small travel time with big benefits and big temperature changes. 

The Move

     Seasoned Full-Timers are probably giggling at us making much of moving our fifth wheel from one location to another. We have never attempted this before, so it was a right of passage for us into full time RVing. Our fifth wheel was delivered to our campground two months earlier. The truck was purchased two weeks before moving and the hitch installed four days before. We were able to get everything ready that morning in just under two hours (with 3 littles, that's a record!). 
     All glass was wrapped and decor removed from the walls.  It took quite a bit of effort and some neighborly assistance to squeeze out of our spot without hitting anything. That's the great thing about all our friendly neighbors! A few things still ended up broken (glass is not really necessary for framed pictures, right?) and the floor was scratched pretty badly. Time for a rug to add a splash of color. All in all pretty uneventful. The great news is that we get to complete an even smaller move next week to an end spot that just opened up, giving us a lot of space and privacy!

The RV Resort

I cannot say enough about our new home. The neighbors are just as friendly. Shiloh already has a little friend that knocks on our door daily. We have a game room to escape to when our space gets cramped. Fire pits to make an event out of regular evening of dinner and guitar playing.  I have a "tab" at the office so now I get to say things like "just add it to my tab" when I get something at their store. The showers here make an RV shower less inviting, so we choose the Resort showers more often than our own. When Selah is fussy at night we walk around the dimly lit parameter that provides just enough light for safety but allows us to see the sea of stars above us. Last night, Selah and stopped by the outside gas fireplace by the pool and then watched some of the outdoor movie that was playing. We love the staff and are excited to survive the Winter with them. They approached us about moving to an end spot, offered to help us prepare our rig for the cold temps, and have us lined up for potlocks in the clubhouse after the seasonal crowds leave. 

Our Town

   We are adjusting to school travel into Salt Lake two days a week for Jocelyn and for Shiloh locally five days a week (who knew 3 days to 5 days would be such a change!?!). However, the trip down Parley's has greeted us with plenty of scenery and every time there has been at least one hot air balloon in the sky.  Sometimes we pop a DVD in for the drive. But the girls are just as entertained by the leaves changing color and hunting for animals. 
   The Fall weather presents an opportunity for a few wardrobe changes throughout the day. We eat dinner outside or with the windows open, then the furnace kicks on in the middle of the night, jackets are needed in the morning, and then AC for the afternoon. Spending time in the pool requires a warm up in the hottub afterwards. 
     We are surrounded by farmland, one farm has homemade minions waving to us from the fields. The clear,blue skies and the clouds seem like only a leap away. I haven't seen the sky filled with stars like it is here since leaving Tennessee. We are headed to a reservoir one day and then on to a new trail the next . The town, although small, offers a laid back atmosphere that we have been missing. The local eateries, coffee shops, the park, and the library, the biker bar that serves coffee and offers wifi, the timber mill for firewood,even the WalMart...slows down the pace a bit. The 7 days that we have been here, I have not hurried or rushed the kids, and the fear of being late is not the nag that it used to be. 

It seems we have the best mix for us of amenities, nature, and city life. The Winter will bring new challenges, but that is part of the attraction to the lifestyle. Unique situations, strangers that become friends, and plenty of life development opportunities! 

Who Says You Can't Go Home?

Ironically, we have moved into a house that we can take anywhere, and we chose to fly to Memphis, Tennessee. The main reason for the visit was to pick up the one missing link for mobility...a truck. We flew the family into Memphis, and then Scott left the next day to drive the truck through the middle of the country back to Utah. The kids and I decided to hang out with friends and family for a week.

There are a few lessons that I learned on this trip. 

As far as travel goes, I hope to never fly again. I am thrilled with the aspect of traveling like a turtle from now on. Everything goes with us, the family is comfortable with their surroundings, and there are no layovers and flight attendants constantly reminding us of the rules and regulations for our children (especially the youngest). I left each visit in Memphis with a big smile on my face reminding everyone that next time we would be bringing our home back with us. I was also reminded of how much driving I had to do when I lived in Memphis. On average we were 40 minutes away from everywhere we needed to go. My kids were troopers in the vehicle, completely in awe of their surroundings and the newness of the landscape. The move coming up will put us approximately 45 minutes from all our "city" activities, and the drive back to our incredible surroundings will be worth it (and doable for the kids.) We will also be preparing little brains for their imaginations to kick into gear for the much longer road trips ahead. 

It is extremely difficult to catch up after being out of state for 9 years with visits only every 1-2 years. Two or more hours just isn't enough time to understand all that has changed for my friends and family, and for me to explain all the goings on for me. My children understand that we are visiting important people in our lives, but they don't quite grasp why they are so important. I am thankful for Facebook so that I can keep up  with some of those key moments in lives that matter to me, and to have pics to remind my children of the people that we met in Memphis. I was able to meet up with one instrumental person to our complete lifestyle change, and all communication was done via Facebook. Her and her family's bold choice to move into an RV was viewed through my curious eyes, and the rest is history. 

Going home, going back to my roots, and remembering the past (while blasting 90's music the whole time on the road), allows for a deep inward look into where Scott and I have come from and where we are now. I had a lot of encounters with our past this trip. Although some memories felt like a kick in the gut by having to admit some of my most idiotic choices, they were all experiences that molded me into who I am today. I am amazed at the transformation that Scott and I have gone through. I am amazed that it has us on this journey today. I am amazed at what has occurred in other's lives. Scott and I came to Utah a mess, and left a few others in a mess themselves.  It even got messier after our arrival. I am in awe of the redemption that has taken place. I had no idea how far we had come until remembering where we were. 

This was one single trip back home. I can only imagine what our family will learn as we travel from place to place, depending on each other, depending on the kindness of strangers, and encountering experiences and people that will continue to shape our story. 

Indoors and Outdoors

After reading, 10 Confessions of an Full Time RVer, http://www.doityourselfrv.com/full-time-rving-secrets/, I considered how many of these confessions were true of my family. One that surprised me was how much time we've been spending indoors. However, to contradict that, we are also spending so much more time outdoors.

Before we began, I thought for sure that we would spend all waking hours outside. That has just not been the case. For one thing, it is SO hot in the afternoon. We have a kiddie pool that we fill and wade in from time to time, but 99 and above temps start to drain you after awhile. Scott and I enjoy some cool evening air after the kids go to bed, but relaxing usually involves a DVD before bed. I can no longer send the kids outside in the morning when I clean up after breakfast. Not having a gate has created more problems than I anticipated. I am looking forward to the Fall for cooler temps and the Summer crowds to cut down on the traffic. I believe that will allow for more comfortable outdoor time.

While I am surprised that we are not outside as much as I had originally planned, we also do many more outdoor activities than when we were living in a house. We are still "camping" in the middle of the city, so outdoor activities involve a drive. Efforts to create quality family time is getting us out much more. We have been enjoying hikes and parks more in the last few months than we have living in Utah for several years. We also have the next move looming in the near future. I think we are feeling the "pressure" to experience the Salt Lake Valley and all that it offers before we leave.

It has been a interesting and surreal experience so far. There are many unexpected pros and cons to the lifestyle. Heber will offer new possibilities to explore the outdoors and to get to know the area.  I am excited about the first real move. I am sure the trial and error from that event will involve many learning opportunities as well as plenty to document.