PBnJ5 Adventures

Well our time in Florida has come to an end. We have spent our last night in Jacksonville ready to head to South Carolina. We have enjoyed our time in Florida immensely, we have learned so much and have seen so many great things. It is starting to get hot and humid here. We have had several of the last few days hit the upper 80s with humidity which is too sticky for this Colorado girl. I think it is time for us to head north.

I am sure that many of your are wondering how we are dealing with the COVID-19 news and how it affects our life. So far we are doing just fine. It is easy to practice social distancing when you live in a 5th Wheel. The time we see the most people is when we go to the pool to cool down for a bit. Most people keep to themselves and any activities that the resort had scheduled are all cancelled. Otherwise the stores around us have stayed pretty stocked and I haven’t felt like people are panicking too much. Yes, the toilet paper is gone in the stores but lucky for us we use RV toilet paper and so far there does not seem to be shortage of that!

We spent all of last week exploring Eustis. Max and I visited a local farmers market and found some great fresh veggies and fruit. Nothing like sweet corn in season in March! Max was such a trooper and carried 8 pounds of fresh oranges about a quarter of a mile for me. He got lots of great encouragement from everyone we walked by. My goodness that kid has a smile that melts hearts and he knows how to charm people. Max has also been without his training wheels on his bike now for a little over a week. He has been doing amazing, so we got him a bell for his bike, just like Tucker’s, for doing so great. Now he rides up and down the resort roads constantly ringing his bell and saying “Hi” to everyone sitting outside their RVs, oh and he is usually in his pjs cause that is how Max rolls. It is pretty dang cute.

Our favorite adventure this week was the day we rented a boat on Lake Eustis and explored the chain of lakes of Eustis, Harris and Mora. It was a different boating experience then we are used to in Wisconsin. The boys are used to being able to jump over the side of the boat and swim whenever we stop, but in Florida it is not so advisable. We saw a two different gators on our boat ride and about 7 turtles of various sizing sunning themselves on a log. We also were warned about the Blue Green Algae in the lakes can be toxic, so needless to say we stayed in the boat. But we still had a great time. We boated to a great restaurant for a delicious lunch. We also got to experience the Mora Canal that connects two of the lakes and it seriously was worth the whole day just to be able to boat down the canal. It felt like we were on a movie set, it was breathtakingly beautiful.

We laid low for several days in Eustis just hanging out at the pool, making friends, riding bikes, going to the park, driving around exploring the area and of course the dreaded laundry day. I have gotten to do some more cooking with slower paced days which feeds my soul and my families stomachs, a win win. You can’t beat some delicious finds at the farmer’s market to inspire some creativity in the kitchen.

On our final day we drove to a fresh water spring at Kelly Park. Max and Tucker swam in the 68 degree crystal clear water and had a great time splashing around. 68 is a little too cold to convince me to jump in. Poor Zac never made it to the water because he fell asleep 5 minutes before we got there and woke up as we were getting back in the truck to go home. But sometimes a nap is more important than anything else.

There are so many different parts of Florida, so many different types of geography, so much to see. We barely scratched the surface on everything it has to offer, so who knows we might just have to visit again next winter ?

Life is a funny thing. I can honestly say that when we decided to take this journey the thought of a crazy pandemic happening while on the road NEVER crossed my mind. And yet here we are. So what do we do now. First, we will not let fear get the better of us. Fear is a sneaky little thing that can quickly become debilitating. What happens if… will eat you alive if you let it. But I know that I have nothing to fear because God has got us. He knew this was going to happen and he knows how and when it is going to end. He gave us brains to make smart decisions and take care of ourselves, but he did not give us the spirit of fear. So when I feel fear starting to creep in, mostly after I have read to many news articles or been on social media for too long, I have to make a conscious decision to stop the information overload and cast out the thoughts and feelings of fear. Second, we will keep on keeping on. We will be smart and we will be safe, but as of now there is no reason to change any of our plans. We will be in South Carolina for the next two weeks so hopefully when it is time to move again we will have more answers as to what the future holds. Third – I will continue to enjoy this opportunity we have been given to spend time with our kids. We have had some trying moments of parenting lately. I am not sure what is going on other than working through stages of development, I hope. But there are still moments to hold onto every day when those sweet faces melt me. I love the brotherly hugs and kisses, the sweet random I love you mommas, the crazy imaginative play, and the sweet baby snuggles. Yes the baby is two and almost 40 pounds, but he will always be my baby. We have much to be thankful for, even this crazy nomad lifestyle that allows us the freedom to run from crazy viruses.

I pray that each of you will take a moment, tell fear to shut the heck up, and take a deep breath. Be smart, be safe, but don’t forget to find the joy in the little things.

Live you Adventure,

Julie