Memorial Day Parade

Under my windshield wiper I found a flyer from the RV Park we're staying in.  The flyer informed me of a Memorial Day celebration.  Festivities included a parade, cookout and karaoke.  People were invited to dress up and walk, ride their bikes, or whatever else in the parade.  


Shortly before the parade was to start Ava and I walked up to the main hall where the parade was to begin.  We were directed inside the hall where Ava and I were adorned with red tissue paper flowers to tie onto our wrists or in our hair.  They then asked us to ride in the parade with them. 


After agreeing we stepped outside where there were six golf carts and two bicyclists decorated in red, white and blue.  As the route wove its way up and down the rows of the RV park, I realized Ava and I were by far the youngest people in the parade by at least a factor of 3.  The gentleman driving the golf cart Ava and I were on kept yelling, "SLOW DOWN!" to the front-running golf cart.  The lead kept having to stop, get out of their golf cart and ask, "WHAT DID YOU SAY?"  They'd resume the route and repeat again and again.


Apparently, the geriatric parade had an effect on Ava because she just dozed off in the middle of it all.

The Fork:

I'd like to start out by saying, "Don't blame the messenger."  The Easter Bunny no longer exists.  Again, don't blame me.  Blame Ava.  "Ava, my innocent 3 year old daughter?" you ask.  Yes, Ava.


Yesterday, on our way to Dallas, TX, Ava broke the silence in the truck by beginning the following conversation:

AVA: I'm eating.MARIJO: (I look back & see she's not eating anything)  Oh yeah?  What are you eating?AVA: The Easter Bunny.BEN: The Easter Bunny?  How?AVA: With a fork.

Umm...Happy Easter, everyone?!

The Middle Way:

We've moved from Georgetown (North Austin) to San Antonio.  So far we have:
1.  Visited Our Lady of the Lake where my mom first *ahem* taught.
2.  Went to Sea World (twice).
3.  Went to the Parade of Flowers on the Riverwalk as part of Fiesta San Antonio festivities.
4.  Visited the Moye Retreat Center where mom went to high school.
5.  Went to the San Antonio Zoo.
6.  Spent a LOT of time around the pool at our RV resort.


We were initially going to stay in San Antonio for a week.  However, we've decided there's more we want to see here and have extended our stay for a month.  That's part of the beauty of not having a plan.  If we find somewhere we like, we can stay longer, if we're ready to move on, we can.  


Recently, I've had a discussion with a relative of mine who asked what my plans were for the weekend.  I answered, "I don't have a plan yet.  I figured we'd wander around, see who was available, and go from there."  I was greeted with the following response, "I have to have everything planned out.  I don't know how you don't know."  After further thought I've realized my relative's thought works well for him.  He has to balance work, family, extended family, church and community.  Having a set plan doesn't work for our lifestyle.  If the weather is particularly windy or rainy, why drive?  The only commitments we have are to each other.  We don't have family, work, church or communities around who are counting on us.




As Buddha said, "The middle way is the right way."  We don't just wander aimlessly, nor do we bound ourself by details.  We have a general idea of where we'd like to travel and approximate time frames, but why rush?  Instead, we're just going to bask in the sun by the pool a little longer...it's not like we have a yard that needs mowing.

On the move in 45 minutes:

We arrived at the camper repair shop within 1 hour of waking up.  

Okay, this doesn't sound  like a very impressive feat until you consider the following:

-We woke up, got dressed, brushed teeth, etc-Repeat the above with  a 3 year old-Packed up everything in our house so it would avoid shifting while driving.  Everything has to be in a closed compartment, wall mounted TVs have to be removed for extra caution, belongings have to be off the floor because slide outs come in.  (I encourage you to look around your house and think about what all could fall with movement...shampoo bottles, toothbrush holders, appliances on counters, soap dispenses on counters, trash cans, books, remote controls, movies, toys, tables, chairs, makeup on counters, dishes, the list goes on.  Now, you have a better idea about what I'm talking about.)

Sound impressive yet?  How about also:

-Drain and clean our tanks of waste and gray water-Remove/put away hoses-Moved vehicles so we could hitch up-Crank up anchors-Lower our antenna-Move slide outs in-Close awning-Fold up stairs-Lock doors-Close windows and vents-Hook up batteries-Pick up any belongings outside (lawnchairs, bicycles, toys, grills, etc).

I want to encourage caution before dreaming of being able to pack up and move wherever the road will take them...it doesn't just happen on a whim.

"I had to use my dog as bait"

I'm learning all about required annual car inspections for Texas residents.  Yesterday Ava and I went to get my car inspected so we could register it in state of Texas.  When we arrived home I noticed the dogs were tied up outside.  I thought to myself, "Why did Ben tie the dogs up if he wasn't at the camper?  He knows if one's dogs are outside, the owners have to be present."  


Then I saw a note on the door that read:

"Your dogs came through your screen.  I got your neighbor across the street from you.  I came from behind and used Patches (my dog) as bait.  Your dogs are tied up and watered."  -C.L.

As I opened the storm door, I could reach my entire torso through the screen door.  Part of me thought, "Great.  Now, we have to pack/tie down our belongings in our home, hook it up to a truck and take our home into town to get the door repaired."  Part of me thought, "How scary would it be to be walking by with your dog and have two dogs (60lbs and 75lbs) lunge through a screen toward you?"  And part of me was just embarrassed by thought of our dogs running around the RV park while our neighbors chased them down and used their dog as bait to catch our dogs.  THEN they were kind enough to make sure the dogs had water.  How do you thank someone for doing that?!


We've had our camper for just under 3 weeks and so far all of the "oopses" that have occurred are: 

1. A partially drank bottle of wine came uncorked in the fridge, spilled all over, leaked through the fridge seal and dripped onto the floor.  By day two, our home smelled like we were alcoholics.
2. I'm surprised it was day three before Ava spilled milk on the dining room bench.
3. I'm struggling to learn how to cook with a gas stove/oven so at least once a day the smoke alarm notifies the neighbors dinner is almost ready...or maybe TOO ready!
4. The dogs make their own doggie door through the screen on day 17.

Oye!

Shaken Baby Syndrome

I've heard a couple of radio commercials recently about Texas that led me to do a little research. The first commercial included the fact that Texas ranks fourth highest in the nation for teen pregnancy.  I found the following statics at the Texas Department of State Health Services (http://www.dshs.state.tx.us/famplan/tpp.shtm) site rather interesting:

How Often Does a Teenager in Texas Get Pregnant?Every 10 minutes, a teen in Texas gets pregnant. 

Every 10 hours, a 14-year-old teen gets pregnant. 

Every 3 hours, a 15-year-old teen gets pregnant. 

Every 1.5 hours, a 16-year-old teen gets pregnant.  

Every 52 minutes, a 17-year-old-teen gets pregnant.  

Every 35 minutes, an 18-year-old teen gets pregnant. 

Every 28 minutes, a 19-year-old teen gets pregnant. 
What are the Outcomes? 

Every 48 minutes a teen has an abortion.

The other radio fact I heard regarded Shaken Baby Syndrome.  Texas has the highest mortality rate of infants as a result of shaking.  According to the National Shaken Baby Coalition a baby can fall 3 stories and not get as seriously injured as a shaken baby!!

Ben and I were hypothesizing correlations between the two facts (Teen Pregnancy and Shaken Baby Syndrome) then started talking about our own daughter.  We started discussing how many times Ava has tripped or ran into something or fell off of something.  

Just as Ben started to say, "...and Ava's still okay'" we looked down the hall of our camper towards Ava.  Ava was playing independently, sitting on the floor in her bedroom, putting a puzzle together...wearing her bicycle helmet.  

...Maybe I SHOULD get her checked out.

Ava's Transformation--Imaginative Play

Several people have asked "Where is all of your stuff?" To that I reply, "We have a REALLY big storage garage. We had a LOT of stuff." My last several post have been about events I found rather humorous. But I would like to start addressing the transformation we've had to make.

Ava never had a lot of toys...somewhere in the realm of the volume of two storage ottomans, plus a big wheels, a scooter, a grocery cart full of fruits and vegetables, a bicycle, a drawing table and a shelf of books.   With living quarters being so limited in our camper, real estate is priceless and modern toddler toys are fairly non-existent.  Ava is limited to one backpack of toys and a bicycle.  It’s really made Ben and I think about how families with children live.   

I  know I’ve walked into houses where narrow walking paths are made through drifts of toys. Some families dedicate entire basements to playrooms. Some children have enough toys on their bedroom floor to cover every surface of our camper...multiple layers deep! According to a book by Adproofing Your Kids “The average number of new toys a child in the USA receives in a year is 70.”  In a U.K. News article, the average 10-year-old has 238 toys worth £7,000 ($11,000 USD)!

Today, Ava spent nearly an hour alone filling her shoes with rocks from our camper spot, moving buckets of leaves from one area to another and climbing in and out of the back of our pickup like it was the best jungle gym ever!  She’s toted around 4 sticks for the last 3 days everywhere we went.  I’ll give you that they’re not the most sanitary, but I don’t have to worry about it having lead paint (if you remember the 2007 China toy recall).  Nor do I have to worry about its cost to replace if its forgotten, lost, broken or taken by some other kid at the playground.  

I've research the importance of imaginative play. However, several examples I found were not what I call "imaginative".  Here are some of the examples I found:

1. Get your child a kitchen set and have them pretend to cook.2. Find clothing kits and accessories for dress up play.3. Children can play with toy cash registers or pretend ATMs to learn and understanding of how to use money.

These options do not sound very imaginative or cheap. Ava is 3 and today she arranged coins to make a flower (complete with pistil, petals, stems and leaves), used shape and color flashcards as a memory game, and played the part of a dancing princess with a bath towel.  Piles of rocks become snow piles. Big rocks are bunny eggs. Leaves are money. Depending on the game, sticks are magic wands or guns or fishing poles. Part of me worried about Ava getting bored without many toys, but without branded toys we’ve seen her imagination take off.

"Diamond Earrings" or "Dime and Earrings" ?

This afternoon while Ben was attending a scuba training session Ava proudly announced she went potty.  As I walked into the bathroom, Ava was peering into the toilet.  Then, the following conversation took place:

Ava:  "Did the dime come out of my tummy?" Me:  "I don't know.  Let's find out." (after a minute)Me:  "Here.  I think we found it."Ava:  "Let's keep it and show it to Daddy!  Let me grab a Ziplock baggie!"

When Ben returned and found the "present" he thought he should make it into a necklace for me...or try to get Ava to eat another one so I could have a set of earrings.

When You Have No Pockets

The great thing about Texas is that southern hospitality.  My mother’s side of the family all live about an hour from Austin.  When we went up to visit them this last weekend, 4 out of 4 families we visited offered up their homes to us or hook ups on their property for our camper.  

Tonight, Ava and I went to visit my cousin.  We had a good laugh about the dime incident from the other day.  Before leaving around 10:00pm my cousin provided Ava with a pull-up and pajamas for the ride home.  

As we were preparing to leave my cousin’s house, my cousin picked Ava up to give her a hug good-bye, and lightly patted her bottom.   My cousin then got a strange expression on her face and asked Ava, “Do you need to go potty?”  Ava said, “No.”  My cousin then opted to check Ava’s pull up while I observed from the doorway.  

As my cousin pulled Ava’s pull-up down we discover Ava’s play cell-phone.  I said, “I didn’t realize Ava ate a cell phone.  If only the dime was as easy to pass.”  My cousin said, “Ava’s only been in Texas a week but she sure must be missing her Grandma Rita.  We need to get this girl a training bra!”  (This may only be funny if you know Grandma Rita.)

Hoping for Diarrhea

Today, while eating lunch our neighbor next door came over and.said, “Ya’ll are connected to the wrong well.”  Ben went outside with our neighbor.  Apparently there are two water hook-ups.  As one well periodically gets contaminated, we’re supposed to switch to the other.  Fine time to finally find out about this.  My only hope is we all get diarrhea (yes, I just said that) so hopefully it will speed up this “dime passing” process.

The Benefits of Eating Together

It’s day 7 of RV living.  We’ve settled into a bit of a routine where Ben gets up early to work while Ava and I sleep in.  We get up, shower, get dressed, make breakfast and all sit around the table together for the first meal of the day.  Ava and I will usually make an outdoor play run while Ben works, return to our camper for lunch together with Ben.  While Ben works in the afternoon, Ava and I will play around the camper, run errands, then return to eat dinner with Ben.  Then, the three of us will spend the evening doing whatever together.  Yes, we spend a lot of time together.  We also gather together around a meal table 3 times per day.


There are all sorts of studies out there about the benefits of eating together:  time for bonding, decreased rates of smoking, drinking, or illegal drug use, better grades, etc.  Some of you may say those studies are biased in some way, but if you can’t believe a study at Columbia University by the National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse (CASA), you have to believe Chuck Norris.  That’s right, Chuck Norris’s C-Force Rule #3) 

“Slow down and eat with your loved ones. The art of cooking needs to return to American homes, and so does eating together. Sitting down for meals with your family not only improves eating habits and ensures proper nutrition but also reduces obesity patterns in children and provides for daily times of interaction and relational building”

However, to reap the benefits, the family sitting around the table must not be dysfunctional.  Humm...

A Baby and Change

A few months ago we went to visit a good friend of mine who was pregnant at the time.  Ben and I informed Ava that our friend had a baby in her tummy.  Ava asked other questions and we told Ava the baby would come out soon just like how Ava used to be in mommy’s tummy but is now growing up to be a big girl.  

This concept has really stuck with Ava where she thinks all girls have a baby in their tummy.  The only trouble with this is Ava thinks all girls have a baby in their tummy and has caught Grandma Rita off guard when she told Grandma Rita “Aunt Jenny has a baby in her tummy.”   Quickly, I let Grandma Rita know Ava thinks all girls have a baby in their tummy including Ava, myself as-well-as Grandma Rita.  

I see this could get us in trouble because we’ve told Ava “Daddy put a baby in mommy’s tummy.”  Now, Ava sometimes says, “I have a baby in my tummy.  It’s daddy’s.”  

This morning while sitting around the table Ava reminded me of an incident yesterday when she said, “Mommy, I have a baby in my tummy....AND a dime!”  Yes, Ava swallowed a dime yesterday (from which she had arranged to make a flower), which further reminds me that Ben and I get the *ahum* pleasure of “digging for gold” for the next few days.

How Big is Your House?

After only a few days in the travel trailer, I realize just how close we’re going to be in this 24’x8’ RV.  That’s 192 square feet for a kitchen, dining room, living room, bed room and bathroom for 2 adults, 1 toddler and 2 large dogs.  Walking room is probably only 40 square feet.  

How did we go from a house with an area over 4,000 feet to a 1,900 square foot house to a 1,700 square foot townhouse to a 192 square foot camper? One really has to love their family or just have a STRONG sense of adventure to make this sort of commitment.  

Oh yeah, did I mention we’re already looking for a larger camper?

Our Arrival in Austin

As my last day of work approached, we became more and more excited and full of anticipation.  Even Ava, our 3 year old daughter, was counting down the events until we were on our adventure.  Ben would drive to Austin, Ava would stay at my parent's house, I would pick her up and we would visit the Ben's parents in the Ozarks, visit my sister in Kansas City, visit our friends/ Ava's godparents in Lawrence, KS, then meet Ben in Austin.  

Ben and a friend drove a 26’ moving truck and camper towards Austin.  However, mother nature showed herself in full winter furry and covered 38 states with snow, ice and blizzard conditions.  The storm started in southwestern US covering Oklahoma City in ice and snow.  This is the same storm that covered Chicago in 20” of snow and left people to abandon their vehicles on the Magnificent Mile of Lakeshore Drive.  Ben and his friend made it to Lawrence, KS to stay with Ben’s best friend from childhood, a.k.a. Ava’s godparents.  They had to stay and extra night to wait out the storm.  

Ben, alas, arrived safely in Austin a couple of days later than planned.  After my last day of work as I drove with Des Moines in my rear view mirror, I looked forward and saw a bald eagle fly about 20’ above my car.  Yes, I took it as a sign as the freedom ahead.  After I picked up Ava from my parents we drove south to the Ozarks.  On an already narrow highway, we passed through walls of snow, as tall as my car, formed by snow plows cutting through 7’ drifts.  I saw a horse barely making his way through snow up to his chest. Ava fell asleep in the car telling me tales of watching monster movies and eating ice cream with my parents.  From what I understood, she had ice cream every day.  Thank you, Grandma Rita.

Ava and I snaked our way from Iowa--with pit stops at my in-laws in the Ozarks, my sister's in Kansas City, and Ben & my friends in Lawrence, KS--at last arriving in Georgetown, TX (a northern suburb of Austin).

Speed Bumps

As more thought is put into this expedition, I realize we’re going to face a few speed bumps:
1.     What we don’t spend in a mortgage/rent, we’re going to spend in gas.
2.     Where will we have mail sent?  Sure, we won’t have water, electrical, mortgage bills.  And most of our expenses are already on auto-pay.  However, any fan mail will have to be e-mail.  Any holiday cards will have to be e-cards.  Maybe I’m sharing hints.  :)
3.     Where will we do laundry?  I guess we’ve been privileged enough to have laundry facilities on site for so many years that I’m a bit spoiled.  Plenty of people utilize laundromats.  However, I do know enough of Laundromats to know they come in a WIDE spectrum of quality.

Carnies...Without the Carnival

As our future unfolded before us, we opted to leap even further.  Without a place to live in Austin, a job for me, a job where Ben wasn’t confined to brick and mortar and Ava (our 3 year old daughter) not yet in school we felt the stars were aligned to do what some people only dream of while sitting at their desks on Wednesday afternoons…live in our camper and go wherever we feel like at that time.

What do I mean?  I mean:  We like to ski-maybe we’ll spend a month in Colorado; we have family and friends near Kansas City-maybe we’ll visit them; I’ve heard wonderful things about upstate New York; or visit the Lake of the Ozarks in the fun summer months.  Ben equates our adventure to being carnies…without the carnival.  Ben and I should make a list of places to visit.  Do you know of a festival to attend?  Or maybe you know of the best place to see spring in its youth?  We’re open to any recommendations you may have.

This Is Why We Park It

I always wanted to live outside of Iowa.  I met my husband, an Iowa native, who wanted to forever call his hometown of Iowa City his home.  I loved my husband more than the idea of living outside of Iowa and quickly grew into a settled life.

Settled can have so many meanings.  Dictionary.com defines settled as:

1. To put into order; arrange or fix definitely as desired.

2. To put firmly into a desired position or place; establish.

Settled to others can have connotations of staying in the same house, same job, same routines.

We changed houses more frequently than we changed cars.  Being a consultant, my husband changed jobs like some go on vacations—annually, semiannually, etc.  I remember getting off unusually early one day from work, walking into the house and seeing my husband sitting at his computer.  I don’t know how I knew, but I did.   I just said, “You quit your job, didn’t you?”  He said “Yep.”  I gave him a kiss hello and realized, that was that, things would work out and went on my business.

No, we never lived a settled life, by any definition.  I’m still trying to figure it out, but I think upon agreeing to stay in Iowa part of me began to expect the settled life.  Instead, I was hit head-on by the express train en route to the land of Adventure.

“I’m unhappy.”  It takes a strong person to state those two words.  It takes a strong person to listen to those two words.  But from that statement, we discussed how a longing for a change in location had begun to take root.

My husband, Ben, had applied to two jobs—one in Nashville, one in Austin—and received offers to both.  We researched and talked and talked and researched about the pros and cons of each location.  We came to the conclusion, as had many others, it was a tough choice and we couldn’t be unhappy with either.  Ultimately, we chose Austin because it was closer to family, the ocean, Big Bend National Park and had many more opportunities for future employment.

We notified our landlord in advance of the 30-day requirement, utility companies and employers.  Long story short, the job fell through, our townhouse already had a tenant lined up behind us.  We were faced with deciding on “Should we ask for our jobs back, find another place to live and continue on with our life here?” or “Should we just move to Austin, hope we find a job and live in our camper until we found a place to live?”  We decided we should take a leap, move and hope things would work out.

Ben began working remotely for his previous employer.  He hoped they would keep him long enough until he found a job in Austin.  Instead, they signed a contract for him to work remotely.

And so I begin my story…