Oh September, you were hard. So many tears fell from our eyes and from our hearts as we packed up our lives that we knew and loved - the one that felt comfortable and safe. You know the one I’m talking about?! The unknowns loomed daunting, the good-byes were heart wrenching, and the to-do list, well, it never did get completed as we hoped. Dreams were coming true and being given up all in the same moment. Hope and grief, joy and sorrow, the excitement of adventure and the longing for things to stay the same - all of these emotions stretched our hearts those last weeks at home.
We worked. Our original plan was to leave Labor Day weekend and begin our travels that will probably take us all throughout the USA and into Eastern Canada, Lord willing. But as we do, we also procrastinated. And so, when we planned this journey, we were also in the middle of a home renovation project.
Our home had originally been 860 square feet, but in the fall of 2022 we had it taken off its foundation and dug a basement underneath while also closing in the 8 foot covered deck that was at the front of the house.
You might be thinking, what does this have to do with travel plans, it is 2024 after all . And of course you would be correct! But we were trying to do most of the work on the house by ourselves all while Eric worked a full time job of 10-12 hours per day. So it took a lot of time to finish such a project…
I say we worked, but the honest truth would be - Eric worked. There was many a night that lead up to our departure that he would work until the wee hours of the morning, climb into bed, and would be back up and at it by 6 AM.
And I want to say right here, we are so grateful for each and every one of you who helped us in many different ways, significant and small. But it seemed no matter how we rushed about, time got away faster than the project got completed. And so… We bumped off our leaving date to the middle of September.
Saturday, September 14, we were sure we’d get off, but somehow the date came and went and the solar panels only got completely mounted shortly before midnight. We headed out Sunday then, tired, excited, hopeful, sad, and honestly scared.
We headed straight for Salt Lake City, UT as we had a doTERRA event there during the next week. Our drive there was beautiful, albeit filled with the occasional onset of sobs and questions. Leaving the only home you’ve ever known and all of your dearest friends is hard on two little boys, and hard on their parents too, even if its not the first major goodbyes we’ve had to say.
It was a gift to arrive in Salt Lake City on Monday evening and have a day to gather ourselves before spending time with our doTERRA friends. The event we attended was Wednesday afternoon through Saturday morning, and so we started off with a busy schedule. Because the 5th wheel needed a bit more work done to it inside and we needed a few more important parts and pieces we decided to just stay put right where we had landed for most of our second week on the road. This gave Eric some time to get caught up on a bit of sleep and the boys and I to start to work out a school schedule.
The week in Utah was a fun start. Like I said, we got serious about a school schedule. But we had the evenings, and so we got a tour of the doTERRA facility where oils are packaged from large vats into the bottles, and where all of corporate show up and do the outstanding work they do to run a large company. We had the privilege of sharing a dinner with Dr. Brannick Riggs and Julie and their beautiful family. We shopped and stocked our fridge. We made runs to Home Depot and to Lowes, and just gave ourselves space to begin adjusting to life in small quarters. And the boys swam to their hearts content in the KOA pool in the hot fall sun. Life in the RV so far still felt rather like vacation.
The last Friday of September we pulled up stakes and turned our rig towards southern Idaho, the little town of Council. What a scenic drive through such diverse landscapes we had on our way there… We arrived in Council on Saturday and settled in to a quaint little RV park called Quail Hollow. We knew our visit here was going to be an extended stay, and we looked forward to it!