Shoes Coming out of My Ears!

I remember going off to college years ago and taking about six pair of shoes with me—blue, black, brown, white, navy, and tennis shoes.  I thought I was set for life back then.  I recall listening with amazement and awe as one of my roommates declared that she only brought sixty pair of her 100+ pair collection to college with her.  How in the world did she ever decide which ones to wear, I thought?  Another college acquaintance brought eighty pair with her.  I was glad I didn’t have to share her closet space!  It was unbelievable to me that anyone would have that many shoes.  I thought perhaps that having too many shoes might be a bad thing—I mean, look at Imelda Marcos!

 

However, over the years, I have acquired a reasonable sized collection of footwear myself.  Boots, heels, sandals, flip-flops, dressy, strappy, casual, black, brown, white, cream, oatmeal, navy, summer, winter, high heels, low heels, open toe, round toe, pointy toe, and square toe.  I think you get the picture.  I have a lot more shoes than any woman living in an RV should.  My husband tolerates my obsession rather well, which means as long as he is not tripping over them, he doesn’t complain.  I told you he was wonderful! :)

 

Two weeks ago, when I took the girls to have their ears pierced, I found these adorable earrings.  To make them even cuter, they were pink!  I love pink!   I had to get them, and since they were on sale, I added them to another of my collections—dangly earrings (more about those another time).

 

 

So, now I can truthfully say that I have shoes coming out my ears!  Gotta love that!

 

 

To be honest, I really don’t know how many pair of shoes I own, but I almost bought the cutest green shoes the other day—to match my new outfit, of course! :)  I showed great restraint and left them in the store, although I have thought about them several times.  Maybe they will go on sale soon…

Trailer Life

Sometimes, I find myself questioned by curious people, “What is it like to live in a big trailer?”  This is a loaded question.  In most people’s minds, our 36’ fifth wheel is huge, and normally speaking, they would be right.  However, if you put six people and all their belongings in a 325 square foot space for an extended period of time, it can get mighty small, mighty quick, as they say.  On a normal day, I spend a great deal of time just picking up after everyone – over and over again.  My kids should be the world’s greatest toy-picker-uppers, since I tell them to do it at least five times a day, and usually closer to ten. :)  It just seems like the job never ends.

Embarrassingly enough, this is what my trailer looks like most of the time.



What’s happening in this picture?

Abigail is finishing her homework.  The large pink crates (and the blue one beneath them that you cannot see) are filled with school books.  These are used every day, and keep a semblance of order to our school supplies.  Under the pink crate on the far left are two sterilite three-drawer organizers that hold shoes and our stash of 3,ooo+ crayons and their accompanying coloring books.

The sink is full of clean dishes that still need to be put away, but hey – at least they are clean!  On top of the stove is a bag of special allergy-free cookies for Josiah sitting next to my new Keurig.  How I love that thing!  A cup of dark hot chocolate or peppermint tea in the mornings just really gets my day going.  By the way, I got that free, along with a year’s supply of K-cups.  How awesome is that!?

On top of the counter is my old laptop (not quite done getting all those pictures transferred), two boxes of crackers that I need to put back on the tippy-top shelf (I have to stand on a chair to reach it, so t usually gets delayed until I have several things to put away up there), a rather nasty-looking oven mitt that will not fit in any of my drawers, and a few school papers that were attacked by a three-year-old with a pair of scissors.

Esther and Daniel are playing on the floor with matchbox cars, and the car mats have apparently been discarded since they are lying on the floor in the corner next to the vacuum.  The vacuum is supporting a denim skirt that has to hang dry.  My new computer is sitting open on the table, waiting for me to finish my school plans, blog posts, and other important documents.  Josiah, having finished his homework is sprinkling Legos all over the dinette, but at least he tends to pick up after himself.

And the kid’s room… Well, let’s just not go there today.  So now you know my deep, dark secret: my trailer is not always spotless.  In fact, it rarely is.  Do I like that? Not really, but that is life in my corner of the world.  Now you know. :)

Drip Drop

The last several days have been rather wet here in Indiana –the chilly, damp weather that seeps into your bones and makes you crave warm soups, fresh baked goods, and hot chocolate. 

Last weekend, we picked up our RV from the repair shop and paid the hefty bill (somehow it seems wrong that they can charge $100 an hour for labor), glad to finally have our trailer back.  For me, this meant that I can begin packing in earnest, stashing things in the trailer for immediate use, and packing up the non-essential belongings.  At least, that was the plan…

Paul went over to the trailer and came back with a very perturbed expression.  It would seem that we have a leak in the roof – due to scraping against a tree branch.  Since the past several days have been so wet, he was greeted by a huge puddle on the kitchen table that had spilled off onto the dinette seats, the couch, and the carpet.  Everything was soaking wet!  Not a pleasant discovery on a Monday morning, just after having the trailer serviced!  Thankfully we were able to get it into the body shop immediately (they have a four-week waiting list right now) and hopefully, all the leaks will be repaired.  Whew!  Now, back to all that packing! 

The moving truck arrives in 10 days… we leave Dec. 19th.  Crunch time is upon me.  It is rather exciting, but also nerve-wracking.  Moving at this time of year is even more difficult because of the holidays and the precipitate weather. 

A Blaze of Excitement

The past three days have been spent traveling 1,367 miles to our next destination in Cathage, MO.  Last night, after two very long days, we decided to spend the night in Alanreed, TX.  Alanreed is basically a wide spot in the road.  Downtown consisted of a one-stop gas station/post office/store/motel/ RV park.  Literally - that was it.  The population is somewhere between 20-30 people, so there is no need for a lot of amenities.  Paul originally parked next to the only other RV in the small lot, but decided to give the other person a little more room to maneuver if he were to leave before us in the morning.  We then parked on the other side of the RV, two spaces away. 

View from our trailer door of the burning motor coach.

At 4:15 this morning, there was a furious pounding on our door, rousing us from deep sleep.  The other RV owner was shouting, "My coach is on fire!"  We looked out the window, and could see the smoke rolling out of the vent of his motor coach.  We began dressing hurriedly, and Paul went out to see if he could help. The man was obviously distraught, and said to Paul, "Everything I own is in there."  I called 911, and they began to alert the volunteer firemen.  The Lord had His hand of protection on us during all of this.  Had we stayed where we originally parked, we would have been downwind of the fire, and only a few feet away.  Paul began unhooking our trailer and preparing to leave.  We were afraid that the propane tanks which are used for heating and cooking in most RV's, would explode, putting our family in danger.  There was nothing we could do except watch as the flames engulfed the motor coach.  The thick, choking smoke rolled over us as we hurried to leave the area.  The firemen were just arriving as we pulled out on the highway.  It was a very scary experience for me.  I thank the Lord for His protection and the safety He gave us, not just on the road, but in the RV park as well.  Within just 15 minutes, the coach was a total loss.  It reminded us of the fact that one day, our works will pass through the fire of God's judgment.  How many of them will survive the testing fire?

Thank you for your prayers on behalf of our family.  Events like this one remind us how fragile life is, and how only the Lord keeps us safe.  I praise God for His protecting hand in our lives!