From Whither Came This Inspiration?

August 14, 2014

It's early. 6:00 AM to be precise. Way too early to be out of bed today, and way too late into bed last night. But that is life in a large family - burning the candle at both ends some days. There is more to be done in a day than can reasonably fit, and with big ones coming in late at night after working double shifts at different jobs, and little ones up early with their ambitious plans, it doesn't leave a whole lot of still hours in between. But I wouldn't have it any other way. Life is full, and life is good!

The children only have limited time with their friends before we hit the road, so yesterday was made up of trampoline jumping, butter making, cow riding, garden watering, egg collecting, and hair-styling - big sister and her friend thought styling little brother's hair would be entertaining.

And finally the day finished off with a exciting episode of Little House on the Prairie, and then finally the troops rolled off to bed. And thus began my evening.

My days have been full. So very full! Who in their right mind begins planning a trip only seven weeks before taking it! A person who is hit by the sudden inspiration to see the world. But thankfully, my children are amazing, so as a team we have pulled it off. I have spent weeks creating a route that is safe, fun, and full of learning opportunities. This will be no ordinary trip. But first, how this all began.

We had a wonderful 28' travel trailer and we enjoyed a couple summers camping in it, but truly, I found it too big. The children had a bedroom at one end, and I pull-out area at the other. There was a kitchen and living room in the middle. It felt like a house on wheels, and it hauled like a house on wheels!!

My bucket list gets shorter each time I tackle something not so typical, and pulling that trailer was one of those things. Now that I think of it, I actually have to create a 'Completed Bucket List,' because things come my way I am least expecting! Just last week, for instance, I learned to drive a 2 ton truck! Who'd of thunk I'd do that!

Well, you do what you gotta do, and I was having a garage sale, and there was a lot to sell, so a kind friend offered me his moving truck, and the kids and I packed it and trekked on downtown to park our boxes and furniture on a front lawn of a kind stranger!

Ayana realized this baby doll was in the garage sale, and it was a Cabbage Patch doll. She had already 'adopted' the other one, and when she saw her sister didn't want hers, she informed her that she would be happy to be a 'good foster mother', until Song was ready to adopt her own baby. Ayana did not let go of this little abandoned baby doll all day, and this is not a girl that plays with dolls. 

This boy is a little worn out from three days of selling! The purpose of the garage sale was to raise as much money for our trip as we could. As anyone knows, I am famous for making things happen where it seems no way is possible. That is how I managed to get my family to Jamaica on the Airmiles program. Method? Buy a years supply of toilet paper and tooth-paste, among other things! And nine people made that flight!  

Or our three week trek to California - again, there are ways to raise money. A little sacrifice here, and some scraping and saving there. When you ask my children if they would rather have an automatic car heater - one that turns on from the house to warm the car, or have a bit more money towards an adventure, I can tell you what they will say:  Travel!

This expedition is no different. I am always excited to share with other mums the ways to make travel happen. When we returned from our California journey, two of my friends contacted me and told me they wanted to take the trip I did. I had blogged the entire journey complete with links, photos, and tips, so all a person had to do was alter it to match their wants. My friends packed up their families and did follow the path I created, and enjoyed many of the same places we did. Jamaica was no different - a friend saved her Airmiles and was able to take her family to Mexico. Go Mums Go!!

This time, because our children are older now, they were given the option to earn their own spending money, and so they wrote a letter and put it out to the church family advertising their skills. They have been a remarkable team! They have cleaned out a camper, painted a shed, pressure washed some boats, weeded a yard, cleaned bathrooms, made beds, cut back brush from in front of a lake, and the list goes on. The four of them are quickly becoming known as a dynamic team of workers! And Isaiah, aged fifteen, is our hero in the fact that he has worked very hard at a golf course doing maintenance and pool work, and he is also putting in a lion's share. 

Money has come from many other angles, including egg sales, odd jobs, school funding, future Christmas presents, and even the encouragement of customers of Ray's who have been inspired by our trip, and wanted to help us along the way! Where there is a will there is a way! 

So back to my story...  The travel trailer was large and hard to pull, and when a friend of mine, Denise, of Little Cabin on the Trail fame (hit link to visit) bought a relic of a trailer and with her hubby's help ripped that baby apart and turned it into a glorious little home on wheels, I was inspired! 

My children are always on board with my ventures, because they know their mother never fails to keep their life exciting! All were informed that they were to keep their eyes peeled for a similar trailer, and they did. For weeks, as we traveled far and wide, we looked intently out the van windows, and stopped the vehicle at a moment's notice upon the cry, "I see one!" There was no shortage of volunteers to climb fences, run through meadows, and peer through dirty windows to inspect derelict trailers. But alas, none was to be found that was within my scope of repair abilities. 

Shortly after this our family made the decision to move back to the country, and our energies were needed elsewhere. Therefore, the search was put on hold, and honestly, I don't know if I really thought I would ever do anything about it again, or if it was just a whim at the time.

The next few years passed in a haze as we built our home, set up a farm, and began life in full on a beautiful spot of land in the heart of the country. Camping was something we would like to have done, but we were much too busy learning to milk cows, raise pigs, bottle-feed calves, harvest vegetables, and other such exciting ventures as mothering sick a donkey and two baby turkeys back to health.

Then one day it all just came together. I don't even quite remember what happened! Honestly, crazy, but I don't. I began researching on the internet again, and this time I found what I wanted: A Bigfoot. A nice fibreglass body, with an interior in not too bad shape, and a solid frame. There weren't many out there, and before long I found a relatively inexpensive one a few hours from home. So the kids and I loaded up and headed out eager to begin this new venture! I had recently sold my long trailer, and I was looking forward to spending the winter remodeling a tiny RV. 

We spent our first night in it in a Walmart parking lot - who would know that that would be the first of many Walmart campgrounds in our future! Nothing like waking up, setting up your table and chairs and eating your bacon and eggs while watching the busy little shoppers zipping in and out of the shop, as you relax in your lawn chair! Gotta love it!