2/3

Last Sunday we moved out of our beloved little RV. What was originally an interim solution to span the gap between when we had to move out of our previous home and when our more permanent rental arrangement would come available, turned out to me a truly wonderful mini-chapter in this crazy moving adventure. We couldn't be more grateful for those 20 days!

Eventually though, we knew we had to relinquish our sweet little mobile home and get settled in our actual rental while we wait for our home to be completed. And so we did that, last Sunday. We started the day with a quick check on the new house. At that time the basement had just been poured and the foundation walls were curing. As I write this though, framing has started and the first and second stories are already constructed! Of course, before they were able to start on the roof we were hit with our first snow storm of the season. A big one, too! Here's hoping this week brings warm weather so the snow can melt and framing construction can pick up shortly :)

But back to move 2 of 3. A full week later and its feeling like we're finally settling into our new home before our home home. Because we're staying in someone's place while they take an extended vacation, its a lot of our stuff meets theirs. Well at least the first few days really felt like that. Over the last couple days however, we've been able to simplify and reduce our belongings down the bare necessities. Today, after a week of sorting and organizing, we brought several bins back to our storage unit.  Thankfully, things at the cabin are feeling a lot less cluttered and a whole lot more settled. And let me tell you....that is a good, good feeling. Here's to a fresh new week; one I hope is peaceful, productive and a slightly more normal feeling than the last :)

Sister Sleepover

All photos taken by my incredibly talented sister, Brooke: @alittleriver on Instagram

Something about life feeling shuffled up sometimes prompts me to recluse and, albeit unintentionally, avoid things I typically enjoy. I'm not sure why, but when coping with change I occasionally forget that the most important things...those things that remain constant no matter where I'm at in life...are where I should place my focus. 

Knowing this about myself, I made an extra effort while we were living in the RV to welcome everyday life as best I could. I enjoyed visits with friends, family get togethers, daily walks with Lincoln, date nights, work days in coffee shops and movie nights in :) I feel like incorporating more of my normal into our new and foreign living situation helped me savour the time we spent there. That has been, and continues to be, one of my personal goals as we live rather unconventionally over the next few months. While I'm very excitedly looking forward to our new home, I also don't want to wish any of this interim time away quicker than necessary. Choosing to focus on the good and constant things in life, as much as possible, has helped me better cultivate joy and contentment as I pursue my goal of remaining present and peaceful no matter my circumstances. This has been a happy realization for me and the encouragement needed to keep growing in this direction. 

One such good and constant thing was that my sister and I were able to sneak a sleepover in, before we left the RV. We had the BEST time. It was so nice reconnecting with her and enjoying an entirely girly night in. The next morning before breakfast we took a walk along the river and over the bridge into our future community. I loved showing her where our home will be; where I hope to host many family get togethers and future sister sleepovers. She captured the morning beautifully and shared her lovely photos with me. I love them! Thinking of framing one or two of them for the new home :)

RV Tour!

Ok, so, we're moved out of the RV. As of yesterday at 4 pm or so. 

Super, duper sad face. And who would have thought! I kept thinking this was going to be the most challenging part of the multi-stage move we had planned. But instead, it turned out to be a unique and sweet experience we're grateful to have enjoyed! And while we're feeling a little sad that it's passed we also have to be thankful we squeezed every sweet moment out of our time there. Up next? Begin settling into our current living situation; a sweet cabin style home, just outside of Cochrane recently left in our care by a couple of happy vacation goers and sweet friends of friends. The last and final place we'll be living before we move into our new home, o happy day.

I'm going to save the details of our new living arrangement for another day and instead, share a little picture tour of the RV we were just in. For your viewing comfort, I've made all the pictures black and white. It turns out there is no way to aesthetically photograph 'RV brown', which by the way is definitely a colour. I know. I've been living with it, intimately, for the last 20 days ;) 

And so, without further ado ... THE rv ... 

Master Bedroom

Office Nook

Living Room

Living Room

Kitchen

Dining Room

It was a sweet little space and it housed this little band of gypsies well. So grateful for the generosity of friends and friends of friends. And on that note...onto living arrangement 2: the cabin on the lake! :)

Thanksgiving Weekend

This past weekend was a lovely one, filled with family, friends, nature and good food. On Saturday, we had a family breakfast celebrating my sweet Beppe's (Dutch-Fresian for Grandma on my Mom's side) birthday. She's 83 now, and as usual she had us cracking up with her funny phrases from the old country (as she affectionately calls it). As breakfast drew to a close, Beppe was retelling some of the stories of her experiences during the second World War while the German Nazi's patrolled and enforced her home town during their occupation of Holland. We were mesmerized. Her stories are what history books and movies are made of. I can't believe my sweet Beppe not only lived through such adversity, but thrived to tell the tales many times over. She is a resilient and beautiful person and I am so blessed to have her in my life. 

On Sunday we spent the day with Ryan's family where we had turkey dinner, enjoyed card games and good conversation into the evening. It was a beautiful day with the big group of us gathered. The sun was shining and the acres of land surrounding Ryan's parent's home were on fire, harvest gold. It was a truly beautiful Fall day spent with loved ones. Before the evening was out, we headed back to the RV in time for Ryan's brother Kelly, his wife Tara and baby Hunter to come over for a couple games of crib. It was such a sweet end to an already lovely day. 

In addition to the time we spent with extended family, Ryan and I made sure to get out on Sunday and Monday for long, leisurely walks with Lincoln. While strolling with my most favourite person and our sweet pup, with our future home, the mighty bow river and this breathtaking valley as our backdrop, I felt overwhelmingly blessed. So thankful ♡

state of the campground address

Here at our riverside campground, Fall is in full swing. The leaves are putting on an unusually festive show considering we live in Alberta and Autumn around here is always a teensy bit lacklustre compared to our coastal counterparts. What a welcome and pleasant surprise, trees of the campground! Thanks for working extra hard this year on your juicy colours and staying power. The wind has been gusting, this I know because my current home is on wheels. Yet somehow your leaves still cling. Its a campground miracle! 

As for day to day life, I feel we've assimilated into the neighbourhood fairly well. You see RV'ing, it turns out, is a lifestyle; a lifestyle where each campground has an existing culture which must be respected. For instance, the gates to the grounds close at 11 pm. Meaning get back before 11 pm or park far away and find your RV in the pitch black of night. BUT. Sometimes, there's another option. And this next part is insider intel I wouldn't have known if I hadn't spoken with the young girl who works the reception desk. If, for any reason, the gates remain open past 11 p.m. simply turn your headlights off and creep through the campground at a crawl so as not to wake the senior tenants who prefer no noise or light disruptions that late at night. Also (and this is a direct side note to any Carli's out there) don't complete the aforementioned feat with impressive first-timer precision and then bonk your horn as you swing your purse from your passenger seat over your shoulder while exiting your vehicle. DEFINITELY don't do that. 

Another cultural norm at the campground...wave to the groundskeepers. Every time you see the groundskeepers. Even if you feel like you see them an unreasonable amount of times each day because the campground is rather small. Always wave. They like to wave. RV groundskeeping is a lifestyle for them. Get in on it. Be a part of the magic. You'll be so glad you did. 

And in closing, there are some people who live in this park year round. They are like the elders of the community. They've been here the longest. They've seen the most. Wizened old sages, they are. If you have a moment, bend their ears. Engage them in conversation and relish their storytelling. Except Frank. He's the one with the permanent steps attached to his RV and the impeccably kept flower pots lining his 'property'. We've found, through failed attempts at passing waves and smiles, that he likes to keep to himself. But all the rest? Have at 'em. They're real social :)