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What our life looks like as we transition back to a house

Jul 202016



Fulltime-family-moves-into-house

Hey there. Can’t believe it’s already been two weeks since we announced our plans to stop traveling and move back into a regular house. Since then we’ve been in a holding pattern – sort of treading water – as we house hunt. We had heard from other traveling families that this transitional period is a difficult one – and it is. We find ourselves juggling many emotions – mourning the end of our epic year of travel, excited for the conveniences and stability of a house, frustrated with living in a small space when we aren’t moving and exploring often, and anxious to find the perfect house sooner than later.

We’ve toured about a dozen houses in the last couple months – but nothing feels just right, so we continue to look. We are all anxious to find something sooner than later – because we want to ideally be under contract and/or moved into a house before school starts September 6. We are running out of time for this to happen – but we also don’t want to buy a place that doesn’t fit what we’re looking for – just for the sake of being moved in before school, you know!?!

So how are we passing time as we wait for the perfect house to come along? We have been spending a lot of time finishing our homeschool curriculum – and TODAY is the last day of the official curriculum. Hooray! <insert happy dance here!> We are all VERY excited for this to be wrapped up and I’m so proud of the kids and Jeremy for following through with this curriculum to the very end. I’ll write more about that later – but this has been a major focus for us these past couple weeks.

KROC_community-center

We got a membership to the local KROC Center – which is a community center and gym – and we go at least 4-5 times a week. We swim in their epic pool area (water slide, lazy river, hot tub!) with the kids. Jeremy and I will workout while the kids go to the 7-10 club (ages 7-10) and Playcare (younger ages) – which the kids absolutely love. And we SHOWER there because we don’t have the best showers at the campground we’re currently at.

Library-fun-reading-summer

We go to the Couer d’Alene library every couple of days. We put books/movies on hold ahead of time and drop-off/pick-up items 3-4 times a week. The kids are reading a TON thanks to the summer reading program and we are really enjoying this season in life where the kids can both read on their own!

McEuen-Park-Jumping

Many afternoons we’ve spent in downtown Coeur d’Alene at McEuen park – they have a wonderful splash pad and playground that the kids love (and it’s right next to the library).  I’m taking advantage of all the extra free time and working as much as I’m able on my frugal blog and a few other business ventures I have in the works.

Liberty-Lake-campground

We are staying at a campground out near Liberty Lake, Washington (about 25 minute drive to downtown Coeur d’Alene) and there are lots of trails, a playground and a lake! Although the spots aren’t very big (no privacy) and the restrooms/bath house is NOT very clean or convenient – it’s been a wonderful place to stay multiple nights and there are lots of opportunities to play and explore outside. We have met some wonderful people here – especially an Airstream couple who follows our blog and JUST started their Airstream adventures this summer (hi, Larry and Pat!).

When we can, we are playing PokemonGo at local parks and spending lots of time with family. I visit my grandma as much as I can and my aunt/uncle who live locally have been a great support.

Toothless-wonderful

Hadley lost her first tooth and the tooth fairy found us at our campground and Liam had an orthodontist consult. Next week BOTH kids will celebrate birthdays and Jeremy will soon start coaching high school football.

Dishes-convenienceWithout full hook-ups and not the best facilities at our park –
dishes, showers, restrooms and laundry have been a bit of a frustration.

Mostly right now I think the hardest thing about this transition is not getting too discouraged. When you make the decision to move into a house and you’re no longer exploring in your tiny home – it’s a waiting game and things that were once very manageable before become annoying. Like having to do your laundry at a laundromat, showering/restroom use without full hook-ups, cooking in a small space – it all was part of the journey when we were traveling and exploring. But now that we’re essentially “stuck” in the same spot and we know a house is just a short reach away (a house with these conveniences) I find we’re frustrated more with them. Does that make sense?

Beauty-in-the-place-were-atEven though we are anxious for the next chapter in our adventure,
we would be foolish to miss the beauty in the present.

Jeremy and I have to stop often and remind ourselves that we’re still living the dream – still in a beautiful place, with flexibility, nature, family time and many of the things we loved about being on the road. This hasn’t changed – so let’s soak it up while we can because before we know it, we’ll be back in the hurried, scheduled and regimented world of school and work.

We’ll figure it all out and it will all happen the way it’s supposed to. For now we just need to be patient and appreciate the present instead of focusing on the next chapter that will surely come soon enough.

Do you live in the Coeur d’Alene area and know of great places to boondock? Do you know anyone who might be selling a house or have land that we can park on while we househunt?! We’d love suggestions or recommendations!

Camping-Liberty-Lake

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by Heather Filed Under: Day-to-Day Living, Idaho

Coeur d’Alene, Idaho – McEuen Park, Tubbs Hill, Luby Bay (up north) and more. . .

Jul 182015



Coeurdalene-idaho

As I’ve mentioned before – we spent 10 wonderful days in the Coeur d’Alene, Idaho area (see our post about the 4th of July here). During that time we did a LOT of free activities and I thought I’d share some of our favorites.

McEuen-Park-CDA_Idaho

We spent at least two different afternoons down at McEuen Park – this is a must-see park, it has so much to offer.

McCuen-CDA-state-park

On one particularly hot day (temps were reaching into the 90s!) we took the kids down to the McEuen Park spray pad. This free public spray pad was a lot of fun.

[Read more…]

{ 1 Comment }

by Heather Filed Under: Destinations, Idaho

Celebrating the 4th of July – Coeur d’Alene, Idaho

Jul 122015



Happy-4th-July-CDA_Airstream

The 4th of July – it symbolizes FREEDOM. And this year, the holiday had extra special meaning for me.

This crazy journey that we’re on – it is all about FREEDOM for us. Freedom from the 9-5. Freedom from a house full of stuff we didn’t need. Freedom from debt. Freedom to live a lifestyle that isn’t the status quo. Freedom to explore. I am so grateful for this country and the many forms of freedom that we enjoy! 

We spent the 4th of July with my family in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho. My grandma, my aunt and uncle, and my cousin and her family. We have so much fun together – I’m so grateful to spend this time with them.  On the afternoon of the 4th we had a big picnic down by the Coeur d’Alene river. Thanks to a lot of hot weather in the area, the river was nice and warm and the kids spent hours swimming, splashing and even kayaking!

That night of the 4th, we headed to downtown Coeur d’Alene, for the huge 4th of July festival and fireworks show!  We had purchased glow necklaces at Target ahead of time and packed some snacks. We got there early and found the perfect spot on the grass by the lake.

Around 10 p.m. the firework show started. These photos need no captions, but of course looked a million times more spectacular in person.  . .

CDA_fireworks-show-july-4-2015

4th-of-July-CDA_Fireworks-whit

[Read more…]

{ 3 Comments }

by Heather Filed Under: Destinations, Idaho

Ravenwood RV Resort – near Silverwood Theme Park {Idaho}

Jul 82015



Ravenwood-RV-Resort

I recently shared about our awesome trip to Silverwood Theme Park – what fun we had!  If you’re planning a similar trip, and you’re looking for an RV park near Silverwood, I highly recommend Ravenwood RV Resort!

RV-Park-Near-Silverwood

Located just off Bunco road, a mile south of Silverwood Theme Park, this place was so conveniently located – saving us a long drive to/from an RV park in the Spokane or Coeur d’Alene area. (Silverwood also has an RV park, but it books out way in advance).

[Read more…]

{ 6 Comments }

by Heather Filed Under: Destinations, Idaho, RV Park Reviews

Silverwood Theme Park {Idaho} – Enter for a chance to win 4 tickets ($188 value)

Jul 72015



Silverwood-Theme-Park-Review

One of our favorite things to do when we come to Northern Idaho is a day at Silverwood Theme Park!  Just 17 miles north of Coeur d’Alene, Silverwood Theme Park is both an amusement park and a water park (Boulder Beach) – and admission gets you all day access to BOTH parks!

Silverwood-MapReviewing the map before the park opens, picking our first stop!

We usually get to the park about 30 minutes before it opens. Parking is $5 for the day and is an easy walk into the park. Getting to the park a few minutes early allows us to get our tickets (if you do Will Call) and allows us time to get into the park and get into line. We apply sunblock while we wait to get into the park and we fill up our empty water bottles at nearby water fountains.

As soon as the park opens – the toughest thing will be to choose what to do first! Because temperatures would reach in the mid-90s the day of our visit, we opted to do the theme park rides first and then head over to the water park during the heat of the day.

Cork-Screw-Silverwood

We went straight for the roller coasters!  If you’re a thrill seeker, Silverwood has some amazing roller coasters and thrill rides to choose from. My 7-year-old loves these types of rides as much as I do – so we spent lots of time in this area. We loved the Cork Screw!

Tilt-A-Swirl-Ride-SmilesOn the Tilt-A-Whirl ride. It was one of my favorites (the kids loved it too!)

In addition to roller coasters, they have other Fun-For-All Rides such as the Ferris Wheel, Paratrooper, Scrambler, Tilt-A-Whirl, Carousel and more.

[Read more…]



by Heather Filed Under: Destinations, Giveaways, Idaho, Theme Parks

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