Life as a Yowler

Life is always a mix of crazy and relaxing when we’re on the road. Some days it can feel overwhelming. But those days are WAY less than the last trip we took. The last big trip was 2 years ago. My kids are so much more independent this time. Overall, this has been so fun and refreshing for even me. I remember the days(2 years ago) when there wasn’t a lot of fun in this for me. It was more just taking care of everyone’s needs. Brandon has had a store training almost each morning. The older two kids are old enough now that they’ve been taking turns going with him to this trainings.

I have complied a list of highlights so far on our trip to Texas and Florida. Here goes:

1. On our drive from Texas to Florida(right after we entered Florida) we were driving down the highway. We witnessed another car cream a gator. I learned something. Florida drivers most likely hate gators in the same way Michigan drivers hate deer.

2. Brandon and I have been on the search for a new vehicle to tow behind the motor home(one for Brandon to drive to his store trainings). We’ve checked into probably 20 vehicles and all of them were either too expensive or had already sold. We found one here in Tampa. It’s a 2012 Buick Enclave with very low miles. It’s still in great shape. Nothing like picking up a vehicle on the road though. Now we’re dealing with 3 vehicles until we get home. Brandon drives the motor home. We tow the van behind the motor home. I drive the Buick. This has been a mixture of nuts/fun.

3. Three days ago Brandon was on his way to a store training. He was cruising, going 70mph. Another car came directly at him into his lane. Brandon swerved, but lost control of his vehicle. He thought for sure he was going to flip the vehicle and die. Brandon told me he’s never come closer to death…..and this is Brandon. I’ve never been more thankful for his angels. He somehow managed to regain control of the car.

4. The other day after visiting a friend(I had the girls with me), I drove to our next campground(Brandon was already there with the boys). What should have taken me 1.5 hours, took me 3.5. We had 2 pee stops(thank you Isla). Each time I stopped, added SO much time to our trip. I have NEVER had a worse drive anywhere before. Traffic was awful. It was barely moving. Changing lanes was impossible. I realized I am not a patient person. I finally made it and willed in my mind to try to never travel a long distance in Florida again between the hours of 4-6 pm.

5. My kids made a friend the other day at the pool. She was a super nice girl. She had just as much energy as my kids. They were all playing wildly. The girls were being mermaids. Caed all the sudden goes “Time for a new game. Let’s play Bethany Hamilton. I’ll be the shark.” For those unfamiliar with who she is, she is a surfer who got her arm bitten off by a shark. After Caed’s suggestion I had no choice but to step in and shoot down that idea. The girls told Caed they wanted him to be a magic shark. Caed goes “nope. There’s NO magic in Bethany Hamilton. She is totally real.” It’s best to think of this story in a classic Caed voice.

6. Joah might murder me for this one day, but here goes. The other day he and Caed were playing up at the camp playground. He needed to go to the bathroom. He got there and realized there’s a code for the bathroom door. He decided to run into the camp office and ask for the code(it was closer than walking back to the motor home). The lady told him the code. He made mistake number one(he didn’t go over the 4 digit code over and over again in his head on his walk to the bathroom). He got back to the bathroom. He forgot the code. He frantically tried every number combo he could think of. Nothing worked. He lost his battle at that point. He came back to the motor home, didn’t say much to me, then jumped into the shower. He later told me his series of unfortunate events. 🤣

7. Today is Brandon’s last store training for this week. After he is finished with his training today, we head to Disney Springs. Then Monday-Thursday we will be at a Disney Theme Park. This is what the kids have been looking forward to most on this trip. Ok, me too!

8. When we were in Texas, Brandon and joah had a once in a lifetime experience. They were hunting. They had 2 axis bucks come in at the exact same time. They both shot at the same time. Both deer dropped at the same time. This was a very cool experience for both of them. We always have the deer sent to a local taxidermist then shipped back to us.

9. Our washing machine in the motor home quit working. This is somewhat of a huge deal with all the towels and extra things I need to wash each day. Thanks to amazon and a portable washing machine, we solved the issue. The portable washer works amazingly well. We’ve learned that any motor home work that needs done on the road is an enormous pain. You can either call a repair person to come to you at an outrageous expense, or you can try to take the RV in to a dealership. The trouble with that is we are homeless until it’s fixed. So the best solution in this case was to use the portable washer until we can get home and take the motor home in.

10. After Disney, Brandon has a few more trainings but they are all in the direction of home(Michigan). We will start our drive home and he will work some as we go.

11. Once we’re home the weather will be a lot warmer than when we left. Once we get home our house will be within a couple months of being completed(hopefully). Where I usually dread when it’s time to head back home and get back to real life, this time I am looking forward to it!