I guess the first momentous occasion to pinpoint is the moment the water and electric were hooked up and working, as witnessed by our first toilet flush and sink turn on! How TOTALLY exciting. Truly, only people who know little to nothing about putting this stuff together and then actually accomplishing it can understand the level of excitement a flushing toilet can cause (and probably many people in third world countries)!!! If I can add the video, I shall do so HERE
:)
Mos def. This one is not fun. Especially when my kids express exhaustion in night terrors. Nothing like a screaming kid you have no way to calm down in the middle of the night in a packed campground! And then the sibling following suit the next night. Not to mention the after school exhaustion freak outs. But I can see them starting to level off a bit and we are working this week to give them more routine and time in the campground instead of running place to place. And they met some other kids who live at this campground through DECEMBER!!!!!! They are homeschooled and around to play with all the time. They are psyched!
Next milestone would be getting insurance (thank you Tony at ALLSTATE!!!) and LICENSE PLATES!!!! That felt pretty great...especially since we have been going back and forth with the DMV forever with what the qualifications are for an RV designation. It seems they themselves are confused and going on a reallllly busy day when they are getting screamed at by people and then are taking it out on each other is NOT a good idea. Though smiling at them ALOT and being verrrrrry patient with them WAS a good idea. Hence, plates :)
There was the first secretive inaugural drive...obviously no longer a secret, but had to be done to get our inspection (they don't usually come to you ;). It was going to be just us two and the baby while the kids were in school, but my dad showed up. I think he was pretty thrilled about it because the whole time he looked like the cat who swallowed the canary. And every time we made a tight turn he'd say,"Jeez! Pretty good JR!!! I would have hit that jerk!"
Then the second more public inaugural drive to FIVE GUYS with the Winne boys and Nat. Yum!!!! And then surprised Harve, Kori and the boys for a drive around the block :)
The finishing touches look awesome - though they are not all quite finished. Morgan churned out some amazing bedroom and kitchen curtains with a roll of green twall I had found a while back. She installed some hooks for coats and donated cute windowbox shelves. Noel and Rachel continued the sweatshop at their abode in the city and mailed us a package of brilliant kids bunk curtains. Now I just need to get everything hung so the peeps at the campground no longer have to witness my husband's reggae dances as he does dishes :). The bench area was built by jr out of leftover bamboo flooring and is beautiful. I added some chalkboard paint to the bunks and the cupboards and the bunk trees went up.
And now we are at the campground! I am writing from the phone and will add pics once back at my computer. This was the sign as we arrived:
The downs:
-Things are tight inside
-You can feel/hear the weather more acutely
-Stress
-Things are not yet done or in their places
-The kids are EXHAUSTED from moving, the craziness of summer AND starting school
The ups:
-Things are tight inside
Out of necessity they are having to figure out mindfulness in space and privacy. They each have their own playroom and there is, so far, MUCH less screaming of "get OUT of my room!!!" (Ironically they shared a BIG room before and we heard this phrase CONSTANTLY)
-You can feel/hear the weather more acutely
Yes, it is chilly in the am. But we do have an electric heater we have but to turn on. At night they cuddle into their bunks and listen to some Harry Potter and in the morning (we are on our 4th morning here, I think) they crawl under the covers with us and we hold the chill and the world at bay. And I LOVE hearing the wind, the rain and seeing the trees and landscape right outside the bedroom. Cannot WAIT to park in some of the national parks. When I asked where the kids wanted their house to wake up W said "the beach" and R said "under water" :)
-Stress
I have had to recognize how stressed out I allowed myself to become. Good news is that I have regained feeling in my arm after letting go of that stress :). And my family is much happier about it also :)
-Things are not yet done or in their places
The place is a bit of a mess and chaotic. However, there is still that excitementof organizing and creating the right space for things. And, truthfully, this mess is soooooo much smaller than a whole houseful of mess!!!!!!
-The kids are EXHAUSTED from moving, the craziness of summer AND starting school
And this moment is actually one of my most favorites so far: as I sit and type this blog under a cozy, fleecy blanket, the kids snooze in their bunks and my husband reads me some Rilke. WHAT COULD BE BETTER THAN THIS?!?!?
So as phase I (building the bus) winds down we will give you a tour of the inside soon and our insights into phase II of this journey (living it!). Thanks for your support and well wishing. We couldn't do this without the amazing understanding and assistance we get from our friends an family. Thank you all!!!!! Live, love, laugh S.
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