Haven at Home on Wheels... Day 4

Journaling our cross-country journey...

Haven at Home on Wheels... Day 4, originally uploaded by hskubes.

It was a blessing to sleep in this morning.
I rolled out of bed around 8:30, enjoyed a quiet walk
uphill to mama-in-law's house to get a cup of coffee.
Hubby was already there enjoying his cup
and I was glad to join the morning table talk.

I got myself a second cup and one for Ally
then walked back to the camper to wake the children.
They all got dressed then we went to the house
to enjoy a delicious breakfast. ;-)

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As the menfolk enjoyed a golf outing later,
the lil' girls (and Ally) enjoyed cooling off
in the slip and slide that Aunt got them.
It was quite a sight to see.
It warms my heart to see glimpses
of the little girl our Ally once was...
to see her heartily laugh and have fun.
It was a delight to see the lil girls have such fun, too. ;-)
I sat on the porch, enjoying the hot Alabama day,
visiting with my mama-in-law & sis-in-law.

Later, the ladies enjoyed lunch out
and then shopped at a local flea/antique market.
I found a few special finds,
Including some homeschool books!

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Later, hubby, the children, and I went to Bass Pro Shop.
We enjoyed looking at the fish tank, shooting rifles (toy),
and finding a few nature books to add to our collection.
Then we enjoyed an ice cream together outside.

Afterwards we stopped at a store to look around
and Ally and I got matching flip flops
(they were buy one get one free!). ;-)

Our final stop, before heading back to the house,
was at a local artesian well (pictured above).
It was fun to read about the well
and to fill our water bottles!

I was reminded of how Jesus is our Living Water
and how, when we drink from HIM,
we will be satisfied and will not thirst again.

"But whosoever drinketh of the water
that I shall give him
shall never thirst;
but the water that I shall give him
shall be in him a well of water
springing up into everlasting life"
~ Luke 4:14

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After supper, we enjoyed fellowshipping
and retired to the camper some time after 10pm.

Tomorrow, LORD willing, we head to Arkansas.

Haven at Home on Wheels... Day 3

Journaling our cross-country journey...

Today we were up around 6:30am to prepare
for our departure from Uncle's house.
We managed to get on the road around 9am
and began our journey to Atlanta.

We enjoyed singing along to
some FBN share-a-thon music
that we had on cd (given to us by our pastor).
It was a joy to sing praises together
as we bounced traveled down the long road...




On the way, we stopped at a rest area
to stretch our legs and such and prepare lunch.
I enjoyed preparing our first lunch in the camper. ;o)

Just as I was finishing up preparing lunch,

my beloved blessed me with a

freshly picked-by-him wildflower/wildweed bouquet...

What a thoughtful blessing! *Ü*

We ate lunch as we traveled

down the road toward our destination.

Suzie resting her head on her bowl. ;o)

{picture from my phone and blurry... so sorry}

The children as we traveled.

{notice the lil' girls in the back seat? lol}

Between the heat (almost 90), leather seats,

and no air conditioning to conserve power

to haul the camper, and Atlanta lunch traffic,

temperments weren't, um, quite at their best.

But, by God's grace, we forgave one another,

moved on and arrived at our friend's house.

What a joy it was to visit with friends

that we hadn't seen in years!

The children (and Suzie) enjoyed playing outside

with one another and their children

and the adults enjoyed catching up. ;o)

They blessed us with a wonderful meal

(and chocolate chip cookies!).
It was a sweet time of fellowship and blessing!

We departed their home around 3:30

and began our journey to Alabama

where hubby's mama, dad, and sister live.

We caught thick traffic in Atlanta,

a pin snapped off of the sway bar on the camper

(but after inspection, it was still driveable),

traffic was at a snail's pace, it was over 90 in Yuki,

the air was off to conserve power
and the windows were down...

It was hot!

But we worked at counting our blessings

and enjoyed singing more praises.

South of Atlanta, Daddy decided
to turn the air on for a bit.

What a delight that was! ;o)

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We arrived in Alabama around 6pm

and became time travellers, travelling back in time,

as we crossed the Central Time Zone. ;o)

We learned that Alabama does not have

an official nickname and is commonly called

"The Heart of Dixie" and sometimes called

the Cotton State or Yellowhammer State...

ah, Yuki-schooling! ;o)

We stopped to fill up at the gas station

and Ally and I walked to the Waffle House for coffee,

then we headed down the road to finish our trip.

We arrived at mama-in-law's shortly after

and enjoyed eating supper and fellowshipping with them

before retiring for the night.

Since mom's house is on a hill... so is the camper

and as we laid in it, getting comfortable in bed,

we realized it was leaning way too much, so,

in the middle of the night, we packed the children

into the Yukon, hooked the camper to it,

and adjusted its position to be more level.

An hour or two later, we were finally able

to lay down and rest our sleepy eyes.

I was thankful for my husband, who works so hard,

is very thorough, and cares so much for his family.

The LORD is good... always.

Haven at Home on Wheels... Day 2

Journaling our cross-country journey...

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After a good night's rest in the camper

and a morning of sleeping in,

the children and I ventured out into town

while Daddy went golfing with his brother.

We enjoyed exploring the outskirts of Augusta, Georgia.

We enjoyed a brunch at Waffle House...

which they thought they wouldn't like but did ;o) ...

crispy hashbrowns, bacon on their burger,

chocolate chips on their waffles,

tomatoes on their eggs (that was me!),

chocolate milk, yummy coffee (that was me, again).

We had a delightful time together.

Afterwards, we traveled down the road,

found a post office {praise the Lord}

to mail my mama's Mother's Day gift,

and onto the store to pick up a few snacks,

miscellaneous items, and food for supper.

It was NOT a dull trip.

The children were tickled at trying the hula hoop...







And there was a sibling duel...

Later, we enjoyed an afternoon lounging around

Uncle's house, playing with his cats,

while mama did some laundry.

After the menfolk arrived, we enjoyed supper

and spending the evening together.

It was a treat today to be able to us Uncle's laptop

while we were visiting, as using my cell phone

can be quite the tedious task. ;o)

I had hopes of sewing a new regency dress today,

but it was nice to relax in a slow-paced day,

enjoying fellowship with my children,

husband, and brother-in-law.

Tomorrow we make our way to Alabama

to visit with Daddy's mama, dad, and sister...

with a brief stop in Atlanta to visit with an old friend. ;o)

"Blessed be the Lord,

who daily loadeth us with benefits,

even the God of our salvation. Selah."

~ Psalm 68:19

Haven at Home on Wheels: Day 1

Journaling our cross-country journey...

Today, around noon, we set forth in 'Yuki',
towing the camper behind,

after a long and sad good-bye
to our friends of nine years.
Sunday evening, we had a farewell fellowship after church
and said our good-byes to our church family.
I will miss each of them.
I will always thank the LORD

for the blessing of our church family there.

He knew just what we needed
when HE led us to that church and fellow believers.
We will miss our church family dearly.

Our last church service there was a blessing.
In the morning service, our Beth
followed the LORD Jesus in baptism.
In the evening service, the children sang,
our eldest sang a duet with her friend,
and our son had the opportunity to preach, again.
All events were such a blessing to this mama's heart!

We leave a part of our hearts as we leave this place.

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Today was a hot 82 degrees as we began our journey.
We packed up and traveled to hubby's work
so he could detatch from his unit.
As we waited, the younger children enjoyed their
scavenger hunt in a bottle that our
pastor's wife put together for them.
Ally continued reading "Do Hard Things".

After his detachment,

we headed to the base scales
to weigh Yuki and the camper.
Then we filled up the gas tank, grabbed a bite to eat,
and began traveling to our first destination.

Long, winding country highways...
farm tractors inching down the road...
North Carolina farmlands... covered bridges...
speaking GPS that startles... bathroom breaks...
Patch the Pirate cd and songs about family...
singing together... enjoying God's creation together...
snack breaks... South Carolina marsh gas...
heavy rains and tornado watches...
backing the camper into a 90 degree angle driveway...
visiting brother-in-law...
sleeping in the camper for the first time...

The LORD is good!
We thank and praise HIM for
HIS mercy, grace, and protection.

Setting Forth...

Setting Forth..., originally uploaded by hskubes.

Today we begin our journey...

We've shared tender good-byes...
many tear-filled eyes...

We leave pieces of our hearts behind...
carrying pieces of other's with us.

So glad we'll never say goodbye in Glory.
Praising God for precious friends in Christ.

Fruit of Our Labours...

Fruit of Our Labours..., originally uploaded by hskubes.

After strawberry picking with friends Friday,
we enjoyed a special time of fellowship while jamming.
We look forward to sharing the fruit of our labours
with family and friends as we travel. ;-)

Spring Jumpers...

Spring Jumpers..., originally uploaded by hskubes.

Comfy travel companions ;-)