I am up late tonight. Don't know why. I am really mad at City Data Forum and I guess that is what has my brain spinning. I had posted a question on each and everyone of the individual 48 contiguous state forums asking what time of year and where I should visit. I had gotten some feedback and was looking forward to reviewing it and using it to help guide us on our travels. Well, it seems that I did not follow the rules. There's this little thing about 'cross posting', very specifically, "Do not post the same message to multiple forums, this is cross posting and multiple posts will be removed". Oh, yeah, it's in there. They sent me the link. I'll be honest, I'm one of those people that rarely reads 'the rules'. I mean, who does? At least not when it's for something that seems so irrelevant. If I was enrolling my children for something or applying for something, say, financial...I'm all over every last word. But social networking? Nope, can't say that I have. Well, they deleted it all! Every last stitch of well intended advice and kindness. I got back out of bed and voiced my thoughts on the whole thing. Not that it matters, it's just a social internet forum, right? Hence, my not reading the rules.
Anyway, here's what we've been up to since my last post...
After the trailer was ransacked, we spent a couple sleepless nights worrying about the 'what ifs', then we gave it over to God and started getting some rest. Seems the guy was 'identified'. I'm still not sure if he was arrested. Things don't work quite the same way in TN as they do in Orlando, FL. The father of the homeowner actually spotted the guy that stole everything out riding on the 4 wheeler. He confronted him and called the police. He got the 4 wheeler back that day, but we haven't heard anything since we left town. Suffice it to say, they just don't move that quickly up there in them mountains.
We left North Carolina and headed to our good friend, Debbie's house in Virginia. We could not have asked for a better hostess. Martha Stewart ain't got nothing on her!! The day we arrived, Debbie had prepared pork tenderloin with half a dozen sides and fresh, homemade rolls. For dessert there was chocolate cake and oatmeal cookies. A day didn't go by that Debbie didn't cook for us. Oh, what a treat!
It rained the entire time we were visiting, but we still managed to make it out to Bristol, TN. Or was it Bristol, VA? Wait!! It was both. Who would have imagined a town with a street that ran right down the state line? How much fun is that?
Danny didn't make it out with us that day. He had not gotten much sleep the night before and was tired. It is a good thing that he stayed back. Poor thing was in bed with a fever the entire time we were gone and ended up with a stomach virus. Worse part of that was that we were due to head out the next morning and really needed to get gone. There was a 'winter weather advisory' that snow was heading our way.
Well, we did manage to get out and made it all the way into Columbia, SC. We spent one night in a hotel and then another couple at Sesquicentennial State Park in SC. We did not make it to the Capitol Building, but we did eat at Lizard's Thicket and I got to the laundry mat.
On our way back to Florida, we had a tire blow out. Danny was driving at the time (thank goodness). We all heard it blow. We couldn't have asked for better circumstances, we were right on I-95 at an exit. For a brief moment, I was concerned about Danny having to change the tired on the shoulder of the Interstate, then I remembered that we were member's of Good Sam Club. One phone call and an hour later we were back on the road.
We stopped in Jacksonville for the night, stayed in a Redroof Inn and had breakfast at Cracker Barrel before heading back to Orlando. Since we were coming in on a holiday weekend, we had trouble finding a campsite. We ended up at Magnolia Park in Apopka, FL - my hometown. This gave me some time to catch up with my mom and abuse her washer and dryer.
We are taking some down time to do some necessary 'business' and plan the next trek of our trip.
It is good to be back on the road and in the trailer. I will tell you, after about two weeks in that house in NC, Danny and I started to feel like we were being held hostage. Having paid for a month's rental, we were stuck in one spot and it wasn't really sitting right with us. After the break-in, it only got worse. There is a wonderful sense of freedom to the life that we have chosen. I plan to sit back and enjoy it for however long God sees fit to allow us to live this dream. Your prayers are appreciated and I truly enjoy that you are following along on this journey with us.
Praying God's blessing on each of you.
Wednesday, January 30, 2013
Sunday, January 6, 2013
Day 106 - January 6, 2013
A fun fact - We spent 100 days in 2012 'on the road'. That makes keeping up with 'what day it is' in 2013 much easier.
On December 15th, we moved into a home for a month. I have felt like a 'cheater' since then. Posting that I am on day 106 doesn't seem like much to brag about when I have spent the last several weeks living it up in a real home. I have had the luxury of a king sized bed, children's rooms further than arms length away, a washer and dryer that don't require quarters, a dishwasher, a large shower with Jacuzzi tub, a separate bathroom for the kids, a full sized oven that I have utilized for baking goodies for the kids and some fairly decent meals (if I don't say so myself), television with cable, and unlimited wifi. Outside there is a firepit that we have enjoyed a few times and a hot tub that has also been utilized. It has all been rather nice...until today....
Today was a lazy day. It was well after noon before Hannah and Samuel decided to go outside for awhile. It wasn't long before Hannah was back at the house announcing that the doors to the 'barn' were all open. Danny went down to check it out only to find out that the barn and our trailer had been robbed. The home that we are renting has a few outbuildings. One of them that we refer to as the 'barn' has a full kitchen a some other things stored in it. We have been in it and were familiar with some of the things that should have been there. The obvious, the homeowner's 4 wheeler was missing and also a chainsaw that Danny had used to take down our Christmas tree and a battery charger that we had used. The cabinets had been left open, but I don't know if anything else was missing. Our trailer, which was parked right in front of the barn, had also been ransacked. Thankfully, what little we do own was, for the most part, at the house with us. It is shocking to realize how brazen the people who did this were. It looks like they actually pulled a cooler over and sat around and drank for awhile. There was some beer and a vodka bottle. I don't know, maybe that stuff was already down there and they just pulled it out. They would have had to take a flashlight into our trailer to search around because there is not power to it right now. They pulled out a couple of drawers and tossed them out. They got my 'laundry' quarters!! They took some pretty insignificant stuff. We will have to go through it and clean it well and figure out what all they got. They took some of my clothes that I had left out on the bed. I guess they had a 'big woman' to clothe. I keep imagining them saying, "Mama's gonna be happy." It looks like they got some of our personal checks (we will have to call the bank first thing in the morning) and the biggest worry that I have...it looks like they got an external hard drive that I had stored under the dining seat. It had A LOT of stuff on it from my old PC...pictures, personal info, who knows what. There was nothing of real 'monetary' value.
I keep thinking of 'what could have been' or 'what could still be'. From the house, we cannot see the barn without going out on the front deck. However, you can see the house from the barn. I would imagine that they were keeping an eye on us. It had to have been after we were in bed. They must not have come up near the house. The car was unlocked and it doesn't appear that they went into it. But our minds are reeling with thoughts of days past. Danny had told me one day after we had had some snow that he felt that there were some large footprints out back around the house. He had also seen some deer tracks and some dog prints, so we wrote it off to a hunter tracking a deer. The 4 wheeler wasn't an easy steal. They would have had to have a trailer or a truck to load it into. And I keep thinking, "what if they come back". I can understand how people feel violated after something like this happens.
The homeowners are out of town on a sky trip. I felt really bad when I phoned her with the news. Her parents came up to check on things. They were here when the sheriff arrived. As it turns out, a sheriff lives up the road 'just a bit'. We are truly in the middle of nowhere. This was no easy feat. No, "hey, lets run around the corner and rob the neighbors". I'm a little befuddled. We'll keep the lights on outside tonight. I keep wanting to go out and look down on the barn and the trailer, but I don't want to alarm the children. I don't want them to feel my anxiety. The sheriff said that he would have the other sheriff drive by a few times tonight. I don't like it. I don't like the way it has left me feeling. We have camped in the middle of nowhere in the last few months and I have felt safe. Tonight I am uneasy.
On December 15th, we moved into a home for a month. I have felt like a 'cheater' since then. Posting that I am on day 106 doesn't seem like much to brag about when I have spent the last several weeks living it up in a real home. I have had the luxury of a king sized bed, children's rooms further than arms length away, a washer and dryer that don't require quarters, a dishwasher, a large shower with Jacuzzi tub, a separate bathroom for the kids, a full sized oven that I have utilized for baking goodies for the kids and some fairly decent meals (if I don't say so myself), television with cable, and unlimited wifi. Outside there is a firepit that we have enjoyed a few times and a hot tub that has also been utilized. It has all been rather nice...until today....
Today was a lazy day. It was well after noon before Hannah and Samuel decided to go outside for awhile. It wasn't long before Hannah was back at the house announcing that the doors to the 'barn' were all open. Danny went down to check it out only to find out that the barn and our trailer had been robbed. The home that we are renting has a few outbuildings. One of them that we refer to as the 'barn' has a full kitchen a some other things stored in it. We have been in it and were familiar with some of the things that should have been there. The obvious, the homeowner's 4 wheeler was missing and also a chainsaw that Danny had used to take down our Christmas tree and a battery charger that we had used. The cabinets had been left open, but I don't know if anything else was missing. Our trailer, which was parked right in front of the barn, had also been ransacked. Thankfully, what little we do own was, for the most part, at the house with us. It is shocking to realize how brazen the people who did this were. It looks like they actually pulled a cooler over and sat around and drank for awhile. There was some beer and a vodka bottle. I don't know, maybe that stuff was already down there and they just pulled it out. They would have had to take a flashlight into our trailer to search around because there is not power to it right now. They pulled out a couple of drawers and tossed them out. They got my 'laundry' quarters!! They took some pretty insignificant stuff. We will have to go through it and clean it well and figure out what all they got. They took some of my clothes that I had left out on the bed. I guess they had a 'big woman' to clothe. I keep imagining them saying, "Mama's gonna be happy." It looks like they got some of our personal checks (we will have to call the bank first thing in the morning) and the biggest worry that I have...it looks like they got an external hard drive that I had stored under the dining seat. It had A LOT of stuff on it from my old PC...pictures, personal info, who knows what. There was nothing of real 'monetary' value.
I keep thinking of 'what could have been' or 'what could still be'. From the house, we cannot see the barn without going out on the front deck. However, you can see the house from the barn. I would imagine that they were keeping an eye on us. It had to have been after we were in bed. They must not have come up near the house. The car was unlocked and it doesn't appear that they went into it. But our minds are reeling with thoughts of days past. Danny had told me one day after we had had some snow that he felt that there were some large footprints out back around the house. He had also seen some deer tracks and some dog prints, so we wrote it off to a hunter tracking a deer. The 4 wheeler wasn't an easy steal. They would have had to have a trailer or a truck to load it into. And I keep thinking, "what if they come back". I can understand how people feel violated after something like this happens.
The homeowners are out of town on a sky trip. I felt really bad when I phoned her with the news. Her parents came up to check on things. They were here when the sheriff arrived. As it turns out, a sheriff lives up the road 'just a bit'. We are truly in the middle of nowhere. This was no easy feat. No, "hey, lets run around the corner and rob the neighbors". I'm a little befuddled. We'll keep the lights on outside tonight. I keep wanting to go out and look down on the barn and the trailer, but I don't want to alarm the children. I don't want them to feel my anxiety. The sheriff said that he would have the other sheriff drive by a few times tonight. I don't like it. I don't like the way it has left me feeling. We have camped in the middle of nowhere in the last few months and I have felt safe. Tonight I am uneasy.
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