Be Still

2018 has started out differently than our two previous years of travel and adventure.

The really great thing about this nomadic lifestyle is not only being able to travel and see the country, but also having the freedom to take a break for a while if we want to. We LOVE adventure and traveling, but I would be lying if I said we hadn’t enjoyed this down time and being back close to family and friends for a while.

Through this season, God has repeatedly placed Psalm 46:10 on my heart:  “Be still, and know that I am God”. I have felt very strongly that He wanted us to stay put for a while, and be really intentional about pouring into, and really loving on our extended family. He wanted us to “Be still”.

This year, instead of touring all over Texas like we usually do during the winter months, we have spent time camping or “moochdocking” on two of my siblings and my parents’ properties.  If my other sister didn’t live in super tight (for a 42′ 5th wheel) cul-de-sac, we would have camped at their place, too!  Ha!  It’s been great spending time with each of them.  I love that we have a very close family.  They all support us and our crazy ventures 100%.  We have a constant group message that continues year round, whether we are at home or away.  We love to share our adventures with them. Family always get to see our photos before anyone else.  We have so much fun when we’re all together!  The photo below was a get-together at my brother and sister-in-love’s house.  Isn’t their kitchen FABULOUS?? It’s almost as big as our house parked in their front drive (you can see it though the window)!  LOL!

In December, we were camping at my parents’ house when my Grandpa got sick.  My mom was spending long hours at the hospital, etc., so it was just a blessing that we were able to be there.  Sadly, he passed away just before Christmas.  I was able to give him a haircut and trim his nails before he went to meet Jesus.  I love you, Grandpa!  He was so fascinated with being able to see himself on my phone when we were taking selfies.  🙂 I’m so glad we were home to see you before you joined our Savior.  We’ll see you again someday!

We also checked out the San Angelo KOA…for the record, it’s one of the nicer RV parks we’ve been to in the whole country.  Their large, pull-thru sites are beautiful and spacious.  I love the Texas on the little patio area!  Nice touch!

We also took a little trip to San Antonio after the first of the year for a business trip.  One of our clients, the Midland County Fair, racked up the marketing awards for the second year in a row.  We have done the majority of their marketing for the past two years.  Our clients’ success is our success and is always an exciting thing to be a part of!

So, now….what everyone wants to know…where are we now, what are we doing, and where are we going next?

I guess it’s been a couple of years ago now, God placed a piece of family owned land on our hearts.  My grandparents (my dad’s parents) owned it and now my uncle owns it.  At the time, when it first came up in conversation, it didn’t feel right to ask about it, as my family was dealing with transitioning my Grandmother into a nursing home. It had been years since I had been out there to the land, but I remember thinking it could be a cool place to hang out.  We just logged it for future reference.

Long story short, we came out one day and checked it out.  It is our kind of place…out in the middle of nowhere, quiet, and lots of nature around.  It needed a lot of TLC and clean-up since no one had really been out here in several years.  It had tons of potential though….and I had no idea there were full hookups out here!  That was an awesome surprise!  We had to get the electric and water turned back on, but my Granddaddy (who passed away in 1997) had installed a septic system years ago.  He had no way of knowing what a blessing he would be giving us all these years later.  I never thought I would shed tears over a septic tank!  Ha!  Guess there is a first time for everything!  Thank you, Granddaddy!

We called up my Uncle Sam and asked to meet with him.  He couldn’t figure out what we might want, and assumed we were going to try to sell him something.  Ha!  I guess the joke was on him.  We had nothing to sell him, but lots to give him.  We wanted to clean up “the place” and use it as our winter hangout.  We had a great time visiting that evening with him and my Aunt Judy.  Love them so big.  Tyler and Uncle Sam had a huge bonding session over metal collecting.  🙂  They are now best buddies…two peas in a pod! All these weeks later, sometimes you see Uncle Sam driving Tyler around on the 4 wheeler, and sometimes you see Tyler driving with Uncle Sam’s legs hanging off the back!  They are a little bit cute!

 

After getting permission to park up on the land, we now have ourselves a sweet little place to land when we are “home”.  Of course, we’ve added our little touches to it.  🙂

We have enjoyed clearing the land and doing little projects around the place.  It’s been a lot of fun to have family come out here.  I don’t know how long we’ll stay.  It’s beginning to warm up a little, and the bugs are coming out.  I’m sure it won’t be long before the snakes will be coming out to bask in the sunshine.  In the meantime, it has definitely become our “happy place”.  We are close to home, but not too close!  My hope is that even once we’re gone, the family will come out and enjoy this space.  We’ve poured a lot of love into it.  It’s been so much fun pouring new life into everything.

A few weekends ago, we had a bunch of family come out for the day.  It was so much fun! The boys are bound and determined to get Granddaddy’s old backhoe running again.

We did hook up a couple of weeks ago and head into town to camp at my parents’ house again because I needed to borrow her ovens for a couple of days!  Ha!  That’s probably the one thing I miss about having an actual house…my ovens!  LOL!  But, as long as someone has one I can borrow, it gives me an excuse to come hang out.  🙂  We had a lot of fun baking cakes, cupcakes and cookies for my nephew, Lucas’, 1st Birthday.  He is the cutest kid!  So glad we were here for this!

And….I made cupcakes and a birthday cake for my niece, Haley’s, 8th birthday…and have “special instructions” for her sister’s birthday cake in April.  LOL!  I haven’t forgotten, Ash!

While I had access to the ovens, I also tried my hand at my Great Grandmother’s coffee cake recipe my brother, Cody, was able to track down!  Oh. My. Word…just as I remember!

We went up to the nursing home to see my Grandmother, and the kids had made Valentine’s for her.  I didn’t make her a card.  I made her a fried pie instead.  She ate Every. Bite. Of. It. then looked me square in the eye, and said, “THAT was a good fried pie!”  She used to make the BEST fried pies!  I’m glad my sister was there to take the attention off of me because my eyes were leaking a little.  We’ll be here to celebrate her 92nd birthday in a couple of weeks.  I know she doesn’t always know who I am, but she knows I’m hers’.  I love her!

We also went to the San Angelo Stock Show and Rodeo.  It’s been a long, long time since we’ve been, but totally worth it!  The kids loved the petting zoo!  It is a lot of fun to be that close to the animals.  The rodeo was great, too.  It was fun to get dressed up.  We ended up going on the “Pink Out” night, so Em and I sported new pink tops.

On February 23rd, Paul and I celebrated our 16th anniversary.  God has been so good to us.  I am so thankful for this man.  It’s ashame we never have any fun together!  😉We found a great little place in town to celebrate.  Downtown San Angelo has some cool little hang out places now.  Raw 1899 did not disappoint!  I mean…look at this plate!

We got to go watch my brother-in-love’s first race.  Go Ron!  So fun!

 

Miss Emily turned 14!  We had a great time making her rainbow unicorn birthday cake and celebrating her birthday at Twisted Root!

It’s safe to say, 2018 has started out pretty great!  My heart is so full and I cherish every moment!

As you can see…though Our Moving House hasn’t moved very far this season, we have had tons of adventures and LOADS of family time!  We are so blessed!

So….to answer the big question….

Honestly, I have no idea when or where we are going next, and I’m ok with that.  Every time I start to think about planning a trip, God whispers to me to “Be Still”.  He knows what lies ahead even if I don’t.  I’d much rather go on His command than on my own will.

I am a firm believer in showering blessings wherever we are.  If God needs us “home” for now, I’m ok with that, too.  Ultimately, we want to be where He wants us to be.  Where He leads, we will follow, and continue to sprinkle the ones we love with showers of blessings.

Don’t worry.  We’re not turning our wheels in.  We will be traveling again.  The desire is there…just waiting on the timing.  We do know that Texas is too hot to live in an RV during the summer.  We did that the first summer while trying to figure out what in the world we were doing and vowed to never do it again!  LOL!  We look forward to discovering new places and sharing them with all of you.

But, at the moment, I am sitting outside watching an amazing sunset, the deer are coming in, and I’m listening to the birds sing.  Maybe we’ll “be still” for a little longer….