Sunday - Day 301 - it sucks you in

There is something about arriving and spending time at our North Georgia cabin that simply sucks you in.

I'm not quite sure if it is the exceptionally nice people who live there, the rural, rustic surroundings or the beautiful scenery that brings peace within. 

It is the perfect storm of natural harmony, a true love of all that is one.  

I have this crazy impulse to offer our cabin out and share all the things that make it so special.  

It has everything anyone could want, whether you vacation with or without your kids.

A cozy getaway, that sleeps seven, in a  mountain setting of Clevelad, GA home of Cabbage Patch Baby-land and only a few miles from Helen, a German Alpine village nestled in the mountains.  

Horses and cows live on the windy road to our hideaway in the woods, which boasts a wrap around porch and rocking chairs with a bench swing.  

It's warm, safe and full of happiness.  A joyous escape to never-never land. 

I offer to share our home by planting a seed and hope to one day see that seed grow with those I offer it to.  Than they too will experience a little piece of heaven away from home.  It simply sucks you in and leaves you wanting more. 

Saturday - Day 300 - Living for Today

On milestone 300, John and the boys and I were hitting the road to our cabin in Georgia for a day and than to Long Island, New York for the holidays.

Three Hundred Days is only sixty five days less than an entire year and a lot had changed since we initially moved into our RV with no concrete plan.  This happens often, life unfolds easier when the details are left to work themselves out.  I love how this works for us.

We started RVing life as an idea and it evolved to where we are today on Day 300.  Traveling to New York for Christmas was also a passing idea and it evolved into a reality in a matter of days.  

Life takes you exactly where you need to be, at the right time and the right place, without a lot of effort.  I often find myself bringing ideas to life, as if guided by an unseen force.

John and I drove to Georgia effortlessly and we talked and shared our feelings about our year together living in the RV.  How much we've achieved, and where we were headed.  Although, we had a lot on our plate, we were taking it one day at a time. 

As one day, turns into weeks, turns into months and into years, we have and will live with no regrets.  We have lived through goals and made our plans, yet we are still able to live for today, Day 300 of RVing life.  

When ideas manifest into opportunity, recognizing when to act, is living life to its fullest.   -LN

 

Friday - Day 299 - mad mall dash

It was the Friday before Christmas and I still had a ton of Christmas shopping to do. 
My original intent was to skip the entire gift buying ritual this year and go minimalistic for the boys.  The whole moving ordeal was a good excuse to forgo a lot of the excessive Christmas shopping.  

However, with plans to be in New York for Christmas, I quickly had to reevaluate my original gift giving plan.  I have lots of family in NY and no good way to see them empty handed.  

I was on a mad dash to get as much as I could with a only few days notice.  This meant waking up early to drag my boys to the mall as early as possible and be gone before the afternoon mad mall rush.  

 

Incredibly, I did well avoiding crowds at 8am and feeding the boys before the lunchtime mad rush.  I surprised myself at the ease in which I made it into as many stores as I did, in order to fulfill my gift giving  needs.  The boys were unusually well behaved and I was home in time to do more RV packing for the move.  

My only perplexing issue this Christmas holiday in the RV was where do I put all the gifts?  Especially, the ones for the boys?  

Gifts for James were hidden in car trunk, and beneath gifts for other people.  I had a huge pile of unwrapped presents on our RV couch.  How do full-timers do it?  

Maybe gifts cards would have been the way to go this year, I will have to keep that in mind for next year to avoid the mad mall dash.  

Thursday - Day 298 - Fa la laaa

Fa-La-la-la-la-la-la-la-laaaa

Shopping, wrapping, packing, stacking. 

Fa-La-la-la-la-la-la-la-laaaa

Spending, taping, folding, cleaning.  

Fa-La-la-la-la-la-la-la-laaaa

There is nothing like pulling things together for week away, the week before Christmas and two weeks before a big move.

It's still amazes me the things that can be accomplished, once a few goals are set, combined with a positive can do attitude and a little flexibility.

What saved me this week were three things.  

 

1). Staying Calm.  I made a deliberate effort to have no stress over anything.  

2). Prioritize. The most important things were completed first.  If a few things down the end of the list got missed, it was no big deal.  

3).  Flexibility.  My daily plan was derailed today, due to forces beyond my control.  I re-evaluated and changed my plans for the next day to make up for loss time.  

I ultimately completed everything I needed to complete, but had to take my boys to the mall to finish Christmas shopping on Friday. (On their day off)   Oh boy! 

Christmas shopping, present wrapping. 

Fa-La-la-la-la-la-la-la-laaaa

Boxes packing, children whining.....

Fa-La-la-la-la-la-la-la-laaaa

Wednesday - Day 297 - Contentment

Only one week until Christmas and the reality of 2013 coming to a close has fallen upon me.

Soon my life will dramatically change, and everything I currently know to be true will transform into something new.

My last load of campground quarter laundry was completed this week.  My last commute to James and Ty's school will be completed this week.  My trips in and out of the campground security gate are numbered.

Our simple camping life is quickly closing in and I don't feel sad, nor do I feel excitement.  It is more a feeling of contentment, at ease, a fulfilled state of knowing that life is unfolding exactly as it should.  

Contentment is the art of living without anticipation.  -LN

Tuesday - Day 296 - Glitter and Glue

I volunteered at James school this morning.  I missed helping out the week   before being in New York, coming back to a bit of normalcy was welcomed.

The class had a few Christmas projects they were working on simultaneously.  Reindeer food, glitter ornaments, reindeer hats and each child who was working on a project needed help with something.  

Today is a perfect example of what I call controlled chaos.  We managed each project haphazardly.  The class was busy with energy.  Kids were gluing and cutting and glittering.  More than once I was needed at multiple stations.

I hustled from one child to the next resolving their needs, to get them to the next self sufficient step.

The time flew by and before I knew it, the kids were ready for lunch and lining up. Whew!!!  We survived and tomorrow would be easier, now that I knew what they needed we would get their tasks completed effortlessly.

Spending time with kindergarteners makes life feel a lot more manageable and a little more freeing.  

A little glitter and glue can put a smile on anyone's face.  If only all our adult tasks could be so simple.  

 

Monday - Day 295 - I am ready.

It is Monday morning and I realized today, I am ready to move out of the camper.    

My morning started with a cup of coffee and an ant filled sugar jar.  The ants were not the little sugar ants, they were large and frantic, frolicking in my sugar.   

This was not what I was expecting to begin my Monday morning. 

I am ready to move out of this camper. 

I walked over to one of our overflowing storage cabinets and opened it up.  Papers, James' kindergarten art work and I have no idea what else, came flooding out.  

I am so ready to pack up this camper. 

I took a shower and packed the kids up and realized when I was a few minutes late getting James to school how I wished we lived closer to his school. 

I am ready to move on and out of the camper. 

And my day was completed with another twist on life.  I met up with a childhood friend and his sweetheart of a wife, Anita, and their two adorable children. 

It made me forgot all about the start of my day and enjoy a little trip down memory lane.  My childhood friend lived right behind my childhood house.  Ironically, we don't keep in touch, but occasionally I'll get a FB post that he's passing through my neighborhood.  Meanwhile he lives in Nova Scotia.  

Knowing someone as a child and meeting them again as an adult with children is an odd and interesting experience. You know them very well without really making any effort at all.  

We all chatted and shared things in our life.  It was nice and easy. I had only met  Anita once before, but it was as if I'd just seen her, and it was over five years ago. She is a wonderful mother and wife.  My friend is a lucky man.  

Our kids played and enjoyed their time together.  They were well behaved and sweet.  

Maybe the next time our kids would see each other they would all be teenagers or close to it.  I parted ways with my friend and his family.  We had no idea when our paths would cross again.  It didn't really matter, once you know someone from childhood, it's seems as if you never stop knowing them.  

And although my day began with frustrations, it ended with value.  

Value for my place in the world, where I have been, where I am and where I am going.  I am ready for one stage of my life to end and a new one to begin.  

A conscious faithful release for life to move on as it was meant to be 

Sunday - Day 294 - Staying Strong

I arrived back in Florida with plenty of time to spend the day with my husband and two little men.  

John and I made our last trip to Seaworld with the boys for the season using our annual fun passes.  Seaworld was decorated for Christmas, the weather was perfect and we enjoyed the day immensely.  

My mind occasionally drifted to thoughts of my mom.  I was wondering what she was doing and emotionally going through.  I was struggling to find empathy never living her life experiences, I could only offer my love and support. 

I refocused my attention to my kids and planned to attack my upcoming busy week with vigor.  I knew I needed sleep and inner strength to be strong for my mother and my boys all at once. 

Life is a precious and delicate balance, intertwined with a spectrum of emotion.  How we manage those emotions, while still experiencing them, is an essential part of "living life".  

If we do not mange how we feel, we go crazy or worse insane.  If we fail to feel emotion, we grow numb.  Neither is healthy.   

These two little men help me keep a balanced perspective: 

@Seaworld

Saturday - Day 293 - finding the humor

I am not really sure how I got so far behind on my blog posts.  This blog post is the entry for Day 293, but in reality I am on Day 302 and it is Monday.  (Two days before Christmas) 

Regardless, I will continue on, as to be true to my intent: 

I attempted to say good bye to mom today without tears and tremendous sediment.  By this point, I had already coordinated a second trip to NY with my husband and kids. I felt we were all meant to be together to celebrate with and for my mom this Chrismtas. 

I knew my mother would most likely be in a rehab facility, getting well, on Christmas Day and the only place I wanted to be, was by her side. 

My husband is an incredibly understanding man.  We rearranged our Christmas with his parents and planned to drive to New York instead.  It would make our lives a bit difficult, but none of that seemed to matter very much.  

I savored my last minutes with my mom and left to catch my flight.  I was delayed and ultimately missed my connecting flight into Chicago.  

I planned to stay the night in Chicago .... It was effortless and not too much of an inconvenience.  My flight home was scheduled for the next morning at 7:20ish in the morning. 

Overall, my day was full of sediment and thought, until an animated Chicago shuttle van driver shifted my gears.  I found myself laughing and smiling at his antics.  He may have had life hardships, but no one would know it.  He was happy - go - lucky.  Whatever that means.  He made weary travelers a little less weary, and I appreciated that.  

A simple reminder, we must find humor and a light heart, even during the most difficult times in our lives.   

Friday - Day 292 - "These are the times to Remember"

"These are the times to remember" by Billy Joel

This song takes me back to my college years in an instant.  It has stayed with me even after all these years.  

The song is poignant, true to the heart and timeless. 

"This is the time to remember 

Cause it will not last forever."

 Always be present in the moment. 

"These are the days to hold onto

Cause we won't although we'll want to."

Don't get lost focusing on the future, instead cherish all the positive in current life.   

"This is the time, but time is going to change."

The only guarantee in life is that it will change.  We grow older, people move in and out of our life constantly. 

"You've given me the best of you,

And now I need the rest of you." 

How often do we give one hundred percent of ourselves to everyone in our life? 

"Sometimes it's so easy to let a day slip on by,  Without even seeing each other at all"

The song is technically based on a romantic relationship, but the words are synonymous with life, and living

life to the fullest, without regret in any of our relationships.  

"But this is the time you'll turn back to and so will I

And those will be the days you can never recall"

And all we will have left are our memories, grasping for those times that slipped away. 

http://www.lyrics007.com/Billy%20Joel%20Lyrics/These%20Are%20The%20Times%20To%20Remember%20Lyrics.html

Lyrics from song.  

Thursday - Day 291 - hospital hideaway

I live in a camper. Some people live in smaller accommodations.  Small apartments - their vans.   I visited with my mom in a Hosptial room today and throughout the entire week. 

It is of course not the ideal situation to visit anyone, specifically in the critical care units, however, hospitals have change tremendously since I use to visit my father after his operations twenty years ago.  

Depending on what part of the country you live in, you can get some very nice accommodations staying at a hospital.  

The lap of luxury ;)

I know from experience.  

Since I visited my dad at St. Francis hospital in Port Washington, I noticed the following changes.  

Maybe it's me, but the staff seem nicer, they are also younger.  This was a totally different experience, more like hanging with the cast from Greys Anatomy.  

Young Cast of characters

The hospital was cleaner.  Maybe there are more regulations or an influx of money to keep the hospital cleaner these days.  

Each nurse or physician uses disposable gloves and hand sanitizer, even if they aren't doing much to the patient.  Twenty years ago sanitizer did not exist and plastic gloves were not disposable.  

The cliché about hospital food is not so cliché anymore.  Now there is a full blown menu you can pick and choose three meals a day, including dessert and have it delivered anytime.  All the food looks good and is well received.  Not so bad for a long or short hospital stay. 

No one is bugging you about visiting hours or if you are visiting all day long.  You can sit and visit and drink free coffee into the wee hours of the night if you so choose.  

I enjoyed sitting with my mom.  Sometimes we chatted about nothing important, sometime we sat quietly and she napped. Other times she had visitors or phone calls.  The time was easy and unassuming.  I had no place I needed to be and my time was committed to her. 

 

Even when times are not easy, the serenity of being comforted by those you love is a powerful tool to find peace in our hearts.   -LN

Wednesday - Day 290 - Memory Lane

What happens when you get together with your older sister and niece and start reminiscing about years gone by?

A trip down memory lane and a whole lot of laughter and forgotten memories that should probably stay forgotten. 

 

My niece effortlessly pulls up a FB profile for an old boyfriend of mine. "Oh gawd, what was I thinking dating that dude?"

But it's okay, because I married much better.  

And my nephews and niece remember names of friends and boyfriends I brought around, as if they had seen them yesterday.  It's refreshing, but odd because they were little back than and they are no longer little anymore.

Childhood memories are more fun to listen to when they come from children you've watch grow up.  Their perspectives and views on life are so different compared to our own during the same time.  It is endearing to listen and hear them speak.

Regardless of their opinions, both good and bad, I revere the stories while rejuvenating my own memory. 

 

If I had only one day to go back and spend time in the past with my niece and nephews....What would I tell them? What would I tell myself?  What would my future self tell us today?

And in an instant we're back to the now with fascination and wonder for the future, the now and the then.  

Tuesday - Day 289 - Lucky Living

Life unfolds as it should, resistance is optional.  

I changed my flight to New York, the day before I was leaving.  My ticket was purchased using miles, using additional miles my flight was moved to an earlier flight.  This simple, last minute decision, helped my life tremendously.

I was upgraded to first class.  Warm nuts and free delicious food feed my spirit. 

My original flight was cancelled, I made it to New York just as I was meant to. 

I was certain I would be getting off the plane, on a transfer train and then on a shuttle van to get my rental car. 

I used Priceline to get a good deal on my car rental and therefore had no control over what rental company I would get.  National was the winner and my confirmation indicated I'd be taking a 'shuttle' to get my car. 

As I road down the escalator at Federal Square Station in JFK, there it was, my rental car company, directly to my right.  

Life felt a little lucky today.  No lines and no problem getting the car.  It was lightly snowing, but here I was in New York once again. 

My trip was smooth - I followed my intuition and found it to be fruitful.  Is it luck or learned living?

Maybe it's a little of both, "Lucky Living"!

 

Monday - Day 288 - Strangers

I take for granted the innate kindness in people.   We see it during tragedy and emergency situations.  People often jump in to help when they are absolutely needed.  

However, in our day to day, when there is no emergency and someone needs a helping hand, simply to continue on in their day, it seems to be more meaningful. 

Random Acts

I ran a quick errand in Kohl's with the boys.  I normally try not to shop with my kids, but today I was being adventurous. James needed PJs for his last day of school next week.  He was having a pajama day at school the day before their christmas vacation.  

 

We picked out new lego PJs (on sale) and a book for his school book exchange.  It was a quick pit stop, before we headed home, other than the fact that I inadvertently left my cell phone in the pocket of the cart. 

I allowed Ty to walk to the car as I held his sweet little hand, so it took a few minutes to load the kids in the car.  When I checked for my cell phone, I had instantly realized I left it in the cart.  

I quickly ran back into Kohl's to discover someone already grabbed my cart. "CRAP!" I thought. 

I ran back to the car, dragged the boys back inside Kohl's, loaded them in a double kid cart and off we went in search for my cell phone.  

James thought it was funny as I peaked into people carts, inconspicuous, yet determined, not to leave Kohl's without my phone. 

A lovely lady suggested I go to customer service and see if they would make an announcement.  I beelined over, only to discover the customer service desk was zero help.  They wanted my phone number incase someone turned my cell phone in. 

"Aaaaaa, didn't I just tell you I lost my phone?"

I continued to check people's carts, but soon was feeling defeated after getting a few oddball looks.  The same lady who talked to me earlier checked in on me. 

"Did you find your phone?"  

I told her, "No" and her husband suggested I asked the customer service desk to let me use their phone to call my own.  (You know, those helpful folk I was already aquatinted with....)

'Call my phone? Why didn't I think of that?'  I thought, it made so much sense. 

In an instant the woman produced her own phone.  I was already overwhelmed with gratitude.  I called and my phone rang a few times. 

A friendly voiced answered. "Hello, I'm at Kohl's and this phone was in the cart."

Oh what joy!  I would soon have my phone again.  I asked the woman with my phone what department she was in and what color she was wearing.  

I shared a few minutes, with the lady who lent me her phone.  She told me a story about when she left her phone in a restroom stall.  She also told me about her grandchildren, one who just turned two like Ty.  She was warm and caring and understood my role as a mom.  I extended my thanks and quickly hustled my kids to the men's department to retrieve my cell phone. 

The lovely lady with my phone, remembered me and my two young boys when she grabbed my cart.  She recalled thinking, she was happy not to have her own kids shopping with her and emphasized with my dilemma.  She was sweet and sincere and I was thoughtful as we spoke.  We exchanged a Merry Christmas and our paths parted. 

I had two total strangers help me locate my cell phone on this otherwise normal day.  It wasn't so much about their acts to help, but their sincere kindness that struck and stayed with me.  Both woman had giving natures and were sweet to me and my boys. 

I promised myself I would be mindful to those around me.  To care and give my time, but not only when asked.  

To maintain a kind heart, in our busy lives and not forget or over look the needs of others, can be a daily challenge.  

Sometimes we are reminded of the individual goodness that lies within all of us, and it is a very comforting place to be. 

I was comforted today, I can only hope I extend that same comfort to others throughout my entire life. 

As James and I left Kohl's he said to me, 

"Mom, that was fun! Can we do it again?"  

And, NOW, I have come to understand, my children are also molded by my own life lessons.