# 526 - The RV-Life Blues

This outdoor kitchen is nicely done. We might have the carport area built with the backwall used as the backside to the outdoor kitchen. The outdoor kitchen would be looking out to the main part of the backyard. Since the main structure is already there, this might be the best and least expensive option for us to fit in the outdoor kitchen into our budget.

Imagine this outdoor kitchen at the backside of the carport, accessible out the back door, close to the side that has the home's main kitchen.

Lately, it seems we are always exhausted. Life has been extremely taxing. However, I know that the coming months are not going to be any easier.

 

Tomorrow, I have a list of phone calls to make to get back on top of the construction plan. We are still trying to work out final details with the floorplan and have been traveling a bit out of town, then we caught a terrible cold that had indiscriminately made its way around the family like a germ atom bomb, and now I am simply drained.

 

RV living is not good for me. I have determined this because I always had space to walk around in our house, rooms to clean, and it was never-ending. However, the main part was that I had room to stretch my legs. In an RV, you have minimal room and walking the floor means you might send vibrations to the other person sharing the RV and the sounds in the main part of RV are atrocious because the main air-conditioning is attached to the ceiling in that room and it is LOUD and intrusive. The A/C is vented through to the rest of the RV, but the main living room is not so enjoyable right now.

 

In the photo below, the RV with the deck is ours. The fifth wheel belongs to my oldest daughter and her husband, Heather and Henry. They just took it off the acreage a couple of weeks ago, so that means our guest quarters has rolled away!

 

The RV with the deck is ours.

As Henry was pulling their fifth wheel down our private road, Sgt. Dave was guiding them because the growth in our forest over this past summer has been phenomenal.

 

 

 

Henry did a great job getting the fifth wheel off the land and onto the road for their home near Fort Worth, Texas, which is about four hours away from us. The following week, we would be traveling to see them for our grand-daughter's first birthday.

 

 

We have two entrances/exits to our acreage. The other side has the
massive commercial-grade culvert. This side does not have one. But,
Henry has a big truck that handled the hauling, perfectly.

 

 

As for our own RV, it's good for me to get so sick of the RV that the construction process will become more delightful. I feel as if I am running a marathon, but getting nowhere. Life can be like that, especially when the process is daunting.

 

Truthfully, part of the fear about digging in and starting the actual build process is that I will make a decision that really cannot be changed because it won't be affordable to make the change or it won't be structurally feasible. I am trying to build us a house that we have never seen, yet it is very close to what we have seen in person and is rather simple, even so, it is 100% custom. It is similar to the house we shared previously, but also a lot different, as far as siding, color, roof color and such is concerned.

 

 

My fear with getting started is that my time to back-track and change my mind will no longer be an option.

 

I remind myself that we are never stuck with anything in life, yet it is something that I can see is a struggle for my personality. It's been a learning lesson for me to discover more about myself during this process.

 

From House Beautiful on-line. I love some white in a kitchen. I love this
color, but my last house had green cabinetry and not everyone loved them.

 

One thing is for sure, once we are back in a house, I will be incredibly thankful to have SPACE.

 

This past year of being in a cubby hole, in a cocoon...it's been nice, in a way, especially to allow us time to live on our land, to simply "be" and to figure things out regarding the seasons with drainage on the acreage and such. However, I well surpassed my expiration date for RV living.

 

We better get back on track because my steam seems to let out a lot faster these days. As for my whining, here are some things on my mind about being tired of RV life...I need space to stretch out; I want my bookshelves to be full of my books; I want my piano to play during melancholy moments; I want a guest room ready at all times for my kids and grand-grandbaby to enjoy; I want a bathtub; I want a full kitchen with a real refrigerator/freezer that is FROST-FREE; and I want a real sofa to stretch out upon.

 

All of these things are luxuries, I know. And the world has such major issues that weigh upon me like a lead-weight, but in my tiny corner of this existence, these are my current feelings about RV life.

 

Perhaps this coming week will be a positive move toward finishing the floorplan changes, so we can keep moving forward until the day comes when we can call a permanent structure "home" instead of this box with a hitch. Ha Ha. Yes, I have the RV blues.

 

# 525 - Celebration in the Country! Nana for a Year!

On this week, a year ago, I became a Nana.



Heather & Henry watching their baby girl dive into her first-birthday cake,
face first. Such a wonderful moment!

Actually, on Labor Day, September 1st, my first daughter, Heather, gave birth to our first grand-child, Coraline.

This past week, we traveled to the Fort Worth/Dallas area to celebrate Coraline's first birthday. We had a glorious time with her.

Even better, we had made reservations at a nice local hotel, but our daughter's in-laws insisted we stay in their guest house, so we decided to stay with them. Since we are all truly one big family, it was better to be at a family member's house than at a commercialized location.

My son-in-law's parents' home - their "pool house." It is very comfortable.

I love my daughter's mother-in-law...we call her "Blondie" and she is a beautiful woman. I feel as if my daughter gained a great mother and father-in-law in her marriage, and I gained a new friend who I feel as if I have known a lifetime. Henry's father, Herman, is a great guy as well. He put up with us two women going for a night-time swim, then staying up past midnight on the back patio chatting it up and laughing as if we have been friends forever.

Sgt. Dave was thrilled to stay with the "in-laws" because he has back problems and had just had his back injections and nerve cauterization done on the day we left for our out of town visit, and their guest bed was super comfortable for his sore back, and their pool was refreshing.

In spite of all the physical work Sgt. Dave handled for the birthday party, he was able to handle it better because of the great accommodations.

As for Heather, she experienced mixed emotions over her first baby turning a year old. She has thoroughly enjoyed having her first baby and has been a wonderful mother in her first year of motherhood, but the sadness at the first year being "over" struck her rather hard.

But, I reminded her that each year will be so exciting and she might feel as I did, "Oh, THIS year is my favorite, really, this one!" And each approaching year will hopefully be the BEST year and BEST phase ever with her children.

I loved every year. It's hard to believe that each year surpassed the last, but it did, and it still does.

However, we do love our babies. It can be difficult to see the "baby" in your baby fading away because those days are full of sweetness, innocence and dependence, but all of that is counter-balanced with a lot of work needed during that first year, which makes it a tad easier to welcome the more independent days that are to come.

God is mighty wise in His creations!

Coraline's first bite of s'mores as
Nana holds her at the lake on her
REAL birthday! She is giving her
daddy those twinkling eyes of
delight. More s'mores please!

I do love being a Nana. It is probably the most joyous position I have held in life. Being a parent was the best, but being a Nana brings such happiness, especially since I am not having to change diapers at 2am on a regular basis.

I have now been a Nana for a year, well, for just barely over a year, and that baby gal has brought me a level of joy that only a baby can bring, minus the diapers, and that's a fantastic kind of happiness!