Stability on the Road

     When we reached the RV park we were down to enough funds to pay for a week, knowing we could come up with some form of work in that amount of time.  They let us do just that, but at the monthly rate, which is always cheaper than paying for four of the weekly rates.

 I must stop here and take the time to mention that owners of the ‘Mom & Pop’ campgrounds almost always work with you, as the bigger named ones with a corporation in somewhere, USA usually wouldn’t think of it, ‘if you don’t have it all too bad’ is their motto.  For this reason the latter ones are our vacations for a weekend and the ‘Mom & Pops’ are our choice for year round living, always trying to support the local economy.

Pecan Park RV Resort; Jacksonville, FL

Pecan Park RV Resort only had 183 sites; it was a HUGE RV park, compared to the ones we’d been in so far, exactly one mile around the perimeter.  They had the typical pool, laundry, and bath house, but also had a rec room for karaoke, exercising, and holiday/potluck dinners for all the residents.  There was also a lake to fish in, except it was ‘catch and release only’, we didn’t spend much time fattening up some fish that we couldn’t eat.  Although right of the bat, the lil one spotted a fish as big as my forearm and said “Look mommy, that one fish is big enough to feed us one meal”, I have to smile at her thought process sometimes. 

Pecan Park RV Resort, Jacksonville,FL 

The neighbors here surely had the southern hospitality down, it didn’t take long before we would all meet in the road in the evening for our nightly gossip session, and the lil one was right in the middle of it, getting the feel for traveling and meeting new people.  Before long, the lil one was off on golf cart rides with them, stopping to talk to everyone along the way, she could tell us who lived in which camper/RV and what their dog/cat’s name was. 

For the first few weeks we acted as if we were on vacation while we waited for the address change to come through.  After patiently waiting three weeks, we gave up and had to make a not so hard decision; to send her to an inner city school (we were on the wrong side of the Interstate) or take another leap of faith and put her education in my hands and begin homeschooling.  Yes, I was going to be the lil one’s primary teacher with daddy and our travels filling in when possible.   

When we started this journey we had discussed this very possibility, just thinking about it is very different than actually doing it.  Could we really make it traveling around the country seeing all the sights and natural wonders while following the cooler seasons we had started to enjoy?  Would the lil one suffer any from moving to new cities a few times a year and experiencing the culture and sights from that region?  We debated all the pros and cons of this previously, but actually making it happen, well that’s been a dream come true. 

Of course she wouldn’t be affected in a negative way, she had the same bed to sleep in every single night, the same cabinet/closet and desk filled with her belongings everywhere we went; she even had the same family sitting down at the same table for dinner at the same time, be it a little later than the normal dinner bell, but it was a family dinner every single night.  No matter what town, or what region of the country we are in, we have the same stability and structure that we would have if we had sticks & bricks around us.  The catch, everything we own is ours, as in paid for; and rent is super cheap in comparison.  Ultimately, our stresses over bills are a lot less, considering what they used to be.

Until next time……

 And that's the wonderful thing about family travel: it provides you with experiences that will remain locked forever in the scar tissue of your mind. ~Dave Barry