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Showing posts from December, 2010

Hooping

It's official, I love hooping! And yes, it's addictive! And yes, it's hula hooping, like you remember, only different. There are fun hooping sites and blogs and communties and amazing videos and teaching videos and world hoop day and a hooping university and oh my, so much hooping! We even made our own hoops . I'm hoping I'll be as good as my fellow RVing Sara in 6 months . Right now I pretty much stink, but you can't help but smile while you hoop, so I love it. It's surprisingly great exercise too. I'm so sore and bruised and happy. :) Video of my very few skills from 2010. :)

Jack's bobcat

Our dog treed a bobcat today! We've never seen one in the "wild" (and it isn't very wild around here!) Allen took Jack with him jogging and when they ran by a stretch of trees, Jack went nuts and chased this one up a tree. Allen called and Josh answered and yelled Dad said Jack treed a bobcat so bring your camera! So off we flew in the truck to get a glimpse, worried we'd miss it, but Jack had us covered and it wasn't going anywhere. It looked like a big, fluffy, but very annoyed kitty. :) (Turns out it's a Maine Coon Cat since it didn't have a bobbed tail!)

No school

We're taking the rest of the year "off" from any learning, which of course means nothing as kids learn when they learn. So while I'm working this morning, they're playing a game of Risk and hopefully not learning about strategy, organization, planning, or calculating... Later they'll probably watch Mythbusters (or play the Mythbusters Trivia Game!) and hopefully not learn any science, experimentation, logic, or gross facts. Then as we cook, I'll try to make sure they don't help with any measurements or recalculations. Hopefully they won't find any interesting documentaries or meet up with any of our neighbor campers to avoid learning anything historical or social. And I'll make sure any games they play are strictly mindless so they don't read or accidentally learn something. This week off sounds exhausting! In 2011, we'll resume their education, which of course means the very same thing. :) Update: I caught Josh calculating the cir

Christmas

We had a wonderful stress-free Christmas hanging out, baking, eating, and relaxing. Our whole family had already said presents for kids only (even before our simplified RV life) and I don't know why more people don't do that. I always see people stressing about what to buy the person who has everything (and used to myself). But if they have everything, they don't need anything! Why waste your time and money, and their storage space, to show your love when you can just say it? We certainly own very little and don't need a single thing. I'm so grateful that our family does this. It takes away the stress and materialism, and lets us focus the the reason for Christmas and just enjoy each other. And the kids were excited enough for all of us! :) We spent the whole weekend at the Grands, mainly eating. Uncle Ryan came and we were all happy to see him again. We went to a Christmas Eve service at my parent's church, then the kids opened their S

Merry Christmas!

From our home (on wheels) to yours. :) We wish you a wonderful Christmas and thank you from the bottom of our overflowing hearts for your support and encouragement this year! Both cards created by Elisabeth Weaver at DSP . I just added the cute kids! :) And our gift to you, a reminder in song...

Joy of homeschooling

Josh: Is this math problem correct? Dad: Nope, you did it right, but there's an small mistake in your work. Josh: Oh man, but I know how to do it. Dad: Yep, but you'd get an F on a test. Josh: At least I know how to do it. Dad: Yep. Isn't that awesome? He knows how to do it, learns the importance of little details, and doesn't have to get an F. Ah, but some will say he has to prove he knows how to do it. He just did. :) He also just finished his entire 5th grade math book, in December. :)

Lunar Eclipse

December was a great month if you love astronomy. First the Geminids meteor shower, where I lost count of how many I saw because there were so many! Then the total lunar eclipse on the winter solstice. I stayed up to see it and play with my camera (Nikon D40, it's way smarter than me). Between researching and emailing my photographer friends, I learned(ish) how to take pics of the moon! Something about aperture and shutter speed... The full moon was much easier than the reddish-eclipsed one. But here are some in case you missed the show. We were very fortunate to have clear skies here in Florida, although it was cold!

Tour news!

And now for a quick word from our sponsor... literally. We're SO blessed to have great sponsors as we Scrap the Map AND live our crazy life! And we love the new artwork on the back of the RV! (A big thanks to DSP Designer Suzanne Walker !) The digital scrapbooking tour continues in 2011 as we announce an additional sponsor and the next stops. Along with Adobe Systems, Fulltime Families , the magazine for families living and dreaming of fulltime RV adventures , is now sponsoring Scrap the Map. Fulltime Families is a valuable resource for RVers and families, and a great partner for the tour with our nomadic CEO Margie Lundy's RV travels. The next crops will open for registration soon, so make plans to come Scrap the Map in Florida, Georgia, Mississippi, Texas, California, Alaska, or Colorado! Watch for the schedule to be posted soon. If you’re new to digital scrapbooking, come learn what the buzz is all about, check out amazing scrapbooks, and meet the pros. I

Pepperoni Pizza Pasta

Pepperoni Pizza Pasta (shared by the lovely Kim Liddiard !) Ingredients: 1 pkg Spaghetti 1 1/2 cups sliced pepperoni 1/4 cup finely chopped onion 1 green pepper, chopped 2 cups sliced mushrooms, optional 1 tsp each dried oregano and basil leaves 2 cups pizza sauce (approx) 2 cups shredded reduced-fat mozzarella cheese 2 eggs, beaten 1/4 cup parmesan cheese Directions: Cook spaghetti according to package directions. Drain well. Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C). Slice all but 1/4 cup of the pepperoni into thin strips. Stir the pepperoni strips, onion, green pepper, mushrooms, oregano, basil, pizza sauce, half of the cheese, eggs, and parmesan in a large bowl until well combined. Toss the sauce mixture with the cooked pasta. Transfer the mixture to a greased 9 x 13-inch baking dish. Sprinkle with the remaining cheese and dot with the reserved pepperoni slices. Bake for 30 minutes. Let the dish stand for 5 minutes; slice and serve with additional warmed pizza sauce if desired.

Park Day and meeting the Hoskins

Today was homeschooler park day, AND they had a potluck lunch, AND we got to meet the Hoskins family ! They're a future RVing family I'd connected with on Facebook, and hopefully we'll meet up with them again somewhere on the road. It was fun to talk with Jen and the other homeschooling moms and see the variety of approaches to homeschooling. It's so great to be able to customize it to your children, lifestyle, location, etc. It was also fun to remember the excitement/scariness of getting ready to take the leap and hit the road! Nowadays it feels so normal to us that we sometimes forget it's kind of a big deal. :)

Video: Home Is Where We Park It

Allen made a compilation video of our first 6 months on the road. We're still LOVING our nomadic life and this video makes me love it even more. :) This is Home (song by Switchfoot, pics by Margie, videos by Allen, cute kids by adoption, amazing life by courage and the grace of God). Fulltime RVing family of five, living life on the road and on top of the world.

Lundy vs Wild

My survivor man, giving very helpful tips to other adventurers out there. :) We actually do learn lots of survival skills on our many adventures through all the states and places we visit. We've learned much about the plants and animals across the country, and we're always well-prepared for our hikes. Allen teaches the kids what to do in case of this or that, where to go, what to eat, etc. And they love it! Right now we're enjoying oranges and tangerines from the trees in our campground. It's not roughing it, but we appreciate it! Allen made some great video clips, Survivor Man style. Wait til you see him locate a granola bush! :) How to find water and food in the Mojave Desert.

RV Video Tour of our Sierra Treehouse Fifth Wheel

Allen made a video tour of our home, the Sierra Treehouse fifth wheel, while we were in the Mojave. That's still our favorite campsite ever. :) We still have people ask how we survive living in such a small space with five people. But we have plenty of room, three bedrooms, two bathrooms, all the usual conveniences, and love our home! Maybe this will give you a better picture of our life on the road. Walk with us if you will...

Dog vs. RV

What do dogs do when left alone in an RV when they can't see outside? Whatever it takes apparently. Dang dog.

RV Christmas decorations

For Christmas decorations for the RV, we only kept one wreath, one ornament, and three stockings . And I can't find the wreath! There just aren't that many places to hide things in an RV either! So, we're down to one ornament (that we love, thanks so much to Debi Miller!) and our stockings. But we mooched a tree and garland from my parents and Lizzy made a great countdown chain with her cousin Logan. So we're a little more festive, inside at least. I'm not sure if we'll hang lights outside. Lots of the RVers here in our campground are and it's really fun. We'll see!

RV mixer

Sometimes I miss having a toaster, but not enough to buy one. I don't miss having a mixer though, thanks to Allen, and Makita. French toast is just no biggie around here. :)

RV sunset

We're on Lake Harris, but not exactly "on" the lake. But we do see pretty sunsets over the lake if we look the right way! This day I saw a pretty cool reflection on the RV so I took a few pics. I'll have to get more of these!

Homeschoolers park day

I was so happy to find out there's a great group of homeschoolers and unschoolers in this area! Like over 200 families!!! And being in the retirement capital of the world, we didn't think our kids would see any other kids until January. :) They have a park day every Friday at a park across the street from us too! The kids had a ball and I've met some great moms.

RV desk

Allen built a little desk at the foot of our bed! I gave up my mobile desk because it was just too much of a pain to move, and I used it very little anyway. But I did need something, so Allen came up with this work area and I love it! I can look out and daydream if I want to avoid work, or work with a great view if I'm not daydreaming, or shut the window and avoid the view so I can concentrate. :) Before (this often became a huge pile of whatever): After (hoping to avoid the pile!):