Trailer Secured!

This past weekend we visited the RV show (yes, again) to make sure we felt good about our trailer model choice. After all, we’ll be toting it all over North America for more than a year. We’ve decided on the 2016 Viking 17BH. It’s small, lightweight, and features bunk beds so our family of five will be able to sleep comfortably when the need arises. Of course, we all had fun looking at the mammoth RV’s that boasted separate rooms full of storage, entertainment centers, kitchens with islands, and expanding walls- but that isn’t what we need for this trip.  It was still fun to look, though! We are happy to announce that the deposit has officially been paid and we pick it up in April! This will give us enough time to prep it for the trip but we won’t have to store it longer than necessary.

Scouting activities sprinkle our schedule over the next few weeks. We’re planning on meeting up with local troops wherever we stay so the kids can participate in outdoor activities and service projects with kids their own age. This will allow them to make new friends but will also help us to contribute to the local community and meet all kinds of people while we’re there. We want to learn about different cultures and places, so this affords us a more personal opportunity to do that. So far, I’ve reached out to a troop in Alaska. They’ve been kind enough to respond that they’ll be happy to receive us when we arrive. Meanwhile, less than five months till launch!

- Jen

Construction, Landscaping, and The Ladies

My husband can do just about anything he puts his mind to. I'm immensely proud of him and how capable he is. This past week he began renovations on several aspects of our home. Our home was built in the 1980's and, in line with the trends of that time, we have hollow doors. Functional, but nothing to write home about. We want our house to appeal to renters who will most likely take care of it in our absence, and so, we are doing small upgrades like replacing the doors with better quality ones to make it stand out. We would have gotten around to this sooner or later but our trip has given us the push we needed to check this off the list. I can't even begin to tell you what a difference it's made in the feel of our home. Like I've said before, it's the little things that make a big difference!

In addition to the doors, our master bedroom closet needed to be refreshed. If you have a closet or other space where you feel like a purge is necessary but don't know how to go about starting, then let me help you. Trust me, it works! The rule is that you need to make a mess to restore order. Pull every single thing out of that closet/drawer/room/whatever (which we did) and then clean the space. In our case, my husband removed all the closet organizers, carpet, and light fixture. Then he and our youngest son painted it a light neutral and installed can lights. This brought a lot more light into the space. He was able to replace the carpet himself and the result made it feel brand new! Then he put the closet organizers back in, which gave us the usable space we needed for organization. This part is the most important. DO NOT PUT ANYTHING BACK THAT YOU DON'T ABSOLUTELY WANT OR NEED! Everything left over is either sold, donated, recycled or thrown away (or in our case, boxed up for storage). When you have a clean space to fill, it's a lot easier to decide what stays and what doesn't.

Also this week, we finally brought in the cavalry (landscaping company) to help us make our yard look as manicured and clean as it did when we moved in. Talk about a breath of fresh air!! Okay, I'm making it sound like we are messy and our home/yard are a wreck. That isn't the case. The reality is that when you have kids and live in your space, sometimes things get overgrown. Sometimes you hang on to things "until the kids are older". It's just a fact of life. Well, now our kids are older and it's time to reset. I love it! There's just something joyful about stopping to look at a well maintained yard and home. If I was a millionaire (or multi-millionaire in this economy), the first thing I would do is hire someone to keep our yard beautiful all the time. I have two black thumbs, so to me, this would be heaven.

Allow me to introduce you to our ladies. We have chickens. Have I ever mentioned that? Yep! Five, in fact. Alice is the sweetest. She follows me around like an adoring dog. They are so easy to care for and there is a marked difference in the quality of eggs they produce as opposed to the average grocery store egg. Sadly, I'm going to have to start buying grocery store eggs again or find a local flock because the time has come to say goodbye to our girls. Three are under a year old and are in their prime laying years. So instead of being processed, the whole flock will be going to live with a family who are in need of some hens. We'll miss them but are pretty excited to be sending them to their new home- which happens to be a castle. Really! With stone, a drawbridge, yaks, pigs, peacocks, and everything! It will be a grand adventure for them and will give us the freedom to plant some flowers and mulch without our curious girls coming along to dig everything up. One less thing to have to deal with as summer approaches. Farewell girls! I'll miss you following me around the yard and the way you congregate at our back door. You've been good to us and one day maybe I'll write a book about you.

- Jen

 

L-R: Count Cluckalah (Welsummer), Fanny Fluffbottom (Plymouth Barred Rock),  Pixie (Bantam Lavender Ameraucana), Carlos Jr. (Black Star and named by neighbor boys), and Alice (Speckled Sussex)

Projects

This is a travel blog. The main purpose of it is for you to see how we prepare for our upcoming trip and then follow along when we go. That being said, you're inevitably going to see some of the things we're passionate about that have absolutely nothing to do with travel. For me, one of those things is quilting. I love the creative process. There's so much satisfaction in sewing that last stitch and stepping back to admire your finished project. I imagine the life it will live, how it will be used, and hope that it will be cherished. Each quilt takes planning, resources, and a lot of time- sometimes decades! It's like an everlasting hug from its' maker and if you are lucky enough to receive one, don't take it lightly. It was a labor of love.

I'm thankful to say we've had tons of good news this year. We have loved ones who are getting married, expecting babies, graduating from high school, graduating from nursing school, retiring, and a few who have received the welcome news that they are in remission from cancer!! Because of these blessed events I have projects galore to work on before we go. There won't be any room for me to bring my sewing machine or fabric stash, so I have to be realistic about how many projects I bring with me and how many I can complete before June. Oh, if only I had the time, money, and brain power to make a quilt for everyone...*sigh*

Here are a few pictures of some of the quilt tops (top layer) I've worked on this week. Please excuse the poor quality. They were taken with my phone. The first is for a very special teacher who gave birth to a beautiful baby girl on New Year's Day. This teacher is one of those gems within the public school system who work tirelessly make a difference in the lives of their students. If you are one of these teachers, thank you! Keep fighting the good fight one student at a time. <3 It's worth it.

This pattern is a half square triangle variation and it will soon be quilted (sewing the top, batting, and back together) by Vicki Stratton ( http://www.quilting-time.com/ ).

Top with the backing fabric- Why, yes, that IS Dick and Jane!
 

 

The project below is from a block swap I hosted a few years ago with some friends. The pattern is "Friendship Spools" by Edyta Sitar ( https://www.laundrybasketquilts.com/tablet/index.html ). I just love the spools with all the thread colors! It's being prepped for our trip so I can do the final appliqued border by hand whenever we have free time. 

 

 

This last one has been a work in progress for many years. My sister in law, who is wonderful at embroidery, embroidered the teacups and teapots with the intention of making them into a lap quilt for her mother. Long story short, I ended up with it and we are now collaborating on the final queen-sized version as a gift for my mother-in-law's retirement. The top and bottom borders still need to be made but this should give you an idea of the effect we're going for.

 

As you can see, there are many iron's in the fire right now. The kids have school (I'm homeschooling our youngest currently), my husband is getting his ducks in a row at work and with house projects, and I'm working behinds the scenes on all those little things that make leaving for a trip like this easier. Through it all, life sprints ever forward. I wouldn't have it any other way.

- Jen

 

P.S. In case you were wondering, we looked at trailers last weekend and narrowed our choices down to one floor plan. It's small, but as my husband puts it "We just need to be able to stop, sleep, and then hit the road again." The model we chose will do that job just fine. Now to find one at a good price and get the trailer hitch installed!

Lists, List and More Lists

Let's face it, I'm a list person. You know those people who have lists of lists? That's me. This trip has its own set of lists already- a list of things to do to our house, a list of national and international legalities to learn about, a list of accounts to set up and close, and the list goes on. I just don't like the feeling of forgetting something and so my way of maintaining some semblance of control is to create lists and check them off.

This week we are working on the 'House Needs" list. There are small fixes that stay on the to-do list for years on end because they really aren't important enough to make a priority. Things like changing out doors and pruning trees. That's the beauty of moving out. It forces you to address those little issues so your home will be more attractive to others. The bonus is that when we return, those things will be taken care of. Plus, moving out also forces us to finally purge the items we've been living with but don't necessarily need/want. We've started this process over the past week. Boxes carrying holiday decorations and other items we won't need for the next few years have been building up for the move to storage. It's a lot of work, but let me just say that it is SO freeing! We're not hoarders by any means, but it's still amazing how many things we unconsciously allow to remain in our living space.

This week we've also actively started looking at trailers. We'll be living in a home in each state, but the trailer will be perfect for the in-between times and also when we travel up the Dalton Highway to Prudhoe Bay in Alaska (or as close as we can get. Not many towns with lodging along that route!). Our family visited an RV show a few months ago to gauge the best sizes and layouts for our needs. My favorite model was the 2016 Spree Escape Bunkhouse but we'll see what we ultimately end up with. The goal is something that is 20ish feet with room for 5 people to sleep and move. Oh yeah...and at a reasonable price. We'll see what this weekends' search yields!

Here is a little art project that was made in our excitement for the trip. A little wishful thinking on my part (I love vintage). I wonder if we'll actually see buffalo? I guess we'll have to add it to the list!

- Jen

Preparation Begins

Today is January 1, 2016- New Year's Day. Our family thought it an excellent time to make the official announcement that we've decided to embark on an epic family adventure!

Starting at the end of June we will be leaving for 14 months of travel around North America!

“How is this possible?!” you may ask. Surprisingly, the logistics couldn’t have come together more beautifully. We plan to homeschool (roadschool, actually) our three children (14, 12 and 9) and my husband will work remotely. The timing is perfect because our kids are old enough to remember and participate, yet young enough to be free of the ties of life they’ll experience in just a few years. We will live in different states for approximately two month periods in order to rest and fully experience each location. As you can imagine, that kind of a life shift will take quite a bit of planning and preparation but we are excited to get started!

Goals:

1. To experience the many regions, climates, terrains, languages, foods, people, histories, arts, etc. that our beautiful continent offers.

2. To reconnect with long-unseen family and friends and give our children an experience that will stay with them for a lifetime. (I mean, really, what better way to connect with what you're learning about than to experience it for yourself?!) We welcome any suggestions along the way to help us plan.

Route (as it stands today):

1. Alaska
2. Idaho/Wyoming
3. Arizona
4. Florida
5. Maine
6. Somewhere in the middle ending with the August 21, 2017 total solar eclipse
7. Return home before the 2017-2018 school year

While in each location, we will be exploring surrounding states and areas as time permits.

Our kids are at the ages where their lives revolve around friends and trends, so we decided to create this blog so you can all follow along. The kids will be checking in with their own perspectives from time to time and we expect that they will have many experiences and opinions to share. Our plan is to check in at least once a week (Hey! A New Year's resolution!) so be sure to sign up for updates or bookmark this blog to stay current.

In the meantime, we are in the throws of preparation. We are thinking about things like storing everything we plan to keep after we return, getting our house ready to rent, deciding what we will need for a year and what we can live without. I suspect we'll surprise ourselves with how little we actually *need*.

We look forward to planning this trip and traveling with you.

Welcome to our adventure!

- Jen