We have been living the mobile life to its fullest of late. I have not had solid internet connection for a long time. We left for a real vacation to Lake Poinsett in South Dakota on June 24th and returned to Sioux City to do our first Solar Seminar on June 29th. That’s right! We took several days off, IN A ROW, and hung out at a lake house. I grew up around Lake Poinsett and I have many memories of my grandparents there. I was so happy to have my family with me at my childhood lake. My brother Jeff lives in the area and he had his daughter Emma there all weekend. My mom even flew up from Austin to be with us!

On Saturday morning we all went to the Hamlin Church and put my dads ashes in the ground. He is now in his final resting place. The closure is an emotional relief for me. I am grateful that I could be there with my Grandma and my brother for this final ceremony.

My Dads Burial

Levi dropping off flowers for Memorial Day

We were in town over Memorial Day weekend and that was an amazing experience for us. There is quite a difference between spending Memorial weekend in a big city vs a small All American town. We went to a service at my grandparents cemetery. My Grandfather (my moms dad) was a Veteran and they had a large flag for each Veteran buried at this cemetery running along the perimeter. Each flagpole had a Veterans name on it.

Dempster Cemetery

We had a few meals with my uncle Howie and aunt Cathy while we were in town. So great to have a cook for an Aunt! We didn’t have internet service at the lake (a difficult gift) so we were forced to stop working most of the time. Richard did go to the local bar/restaurant to use the wifi a few times. I thought this was ironic as this is the same bar that my fathers alcoholism was probably established and my very long time sober husband was getting dropped off there for a few hours while I went to the playground with the kids.  Kind of weird! Richard even read part of a book that he had been wanting to read for awhile now called Abundance. It really was a great vacation. Topped off with S’mores by the campfire one night. Can’t get any better! On our way to Sioux City, we were able to meet my aunt Linda for lunch in Sioux Falls. I wish she hadn’t been on her own vacation. Then we would have been able to spend more time together but at least we were able to visit at the end of the trip.

Piper, Emma and Levi

Canoe ride!

Grandma with us by the lake!

Great Grandma and the girls

On to Sioux City for our first Solar Seminar. We stayed across the river, in Nebraska and our RV view was of a Casino Ship. At night it was all lit up and was a sight for the kids to stare at. Very nice stay there. Next, was Council Bluffs. We stayed at a Casino parking lot. The view was…concrete. The great thing about this tour is that we will get to see some great spots and the not so great spots are only for 24 hours! Richard put in a very long work day in Council Bluffs and I was starting to get a little cabin fever. Could it be the lack of internet? I’m useless for work with out it! I Google searched “things to do with kids” and found an hourly daycare at ANOTHER casino. I called the place and found out anyone can use the service and the casino had a coffee shop right upstairs from the daycare and they had free wifi. Yeah for internet! I decided it would be great to try to separate from the kids. The truth is, they have only been with me or family (that includes Cathy and Ryan as family). I have never left them with strangers before. I told the front desk that this was a separation experiment and that I would be right upstairs doing work. I called them at 45 min to check on them. They had put Levi in a separate room for little ones and Piper was to be in the big room with the older kids. The gal told me that Levi was a little upset so they asked Piper if she wanted to come be with Levi because he was having a hard time.  She was apparently very proud of her Big Sister Job and went and hung out with him for awhile. He calmed down right away and she was able to go back out to the bigger area. He calmed down because he found the dinosaur box. It really is his obsession…dinosaurs…all the time. So I told them I was going to let them stay for as long as they could handle it because I thought this was so healthy for all three of us. Then, about 15 minutes later, they call me. A toilet over flowed and for health regulation reasons all kids needed to be picked up. Ain’t that some sh*t! Oh well! Maybe it was a good thing that I picked them up before they missed me and went into meltdown. They were so happy to tell me about all the fun they had and it was such a positive experience. And it got me thinking….

My newest business plan for my someday future: Hourly drop off daycare in the same building as a coffee/bakery shop, massage, mani-pedi salon with free wifi. I would love a place to bring my kids that allows me to stay in the same building (because I’m that kind of control freak) and have any of these services available to me. So that is my someday plan, for now.

On to my here and today drama. Ticks! We went for a hike around our RV park yesterday afternoon and Piper ended up with a tick in her back. Last night while watching a movie I had one crawling down my arm. This morning, Levi had one attached to his arm. I gave them major scrub downs in the bath last night after we found Pipers. So Levi got his in the RV sometime. I have the creepy crawlies to no end and I don’t know what to do about it. I put nail polish on both of them and Piper’s just flaked off. After it was dead I pulled Levi’s off because his was in a spot that he could mess with. This morning I researched it better since clearly this is going to be a problem here and found I should not put anything on it Just pull them straight out! I have an uncontrollable urge to throw a fit and beg for my grandma like we use to as kids in South Dakota when we got ticks. She was a nurse and she would put her cigarette on them to make them back out. Not the approach I want to use on my kids but I do wish she was here so I wouldn’t have to deal with this. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

We will be here at the Newton, IA KOA until Monday night and then we will begin the Iowa tour until June 14th. This work schedule will be a long rough road. But we will survive and have fun doing it too!

Levi is ready to work!

Yes Mom! I was waiting to see if anyone was reading my blog before I posted again! Just kidding, but thank you for the comment on my last post.

Our company has been asked to do a major task and it has consumed every moment of everyday this week. We will be going to 12 different cities all over Iowa in just over 2 weeks time. Teaching 3 different Solar PV short courses in every town! We will start on May 22nd. We had already planned a trip to South Dakota over Memorial Day Weekend so thank goodness we will get a break from this madness. Then it’s off and running to all these locations starting May 30 and ending one day before they start 2 back to back 40 hour courses at the I-GREEN center again. WHEW! It is going to be crazy fun and exhausting for these guys. I’m happy my only job is researching each city. We need to find 1. Places to stay, 2. Two different places to teach because our courses are geared towards two different audiences and 3. Find food to serve at each location. Yeah, that is what I have been doing!

My poor kids have been getting so little attention and outdoor time. I feel terrible about it and we are not getting along very well because they are bored and I am busy or exhausted. This has not been the best week for us.

I did find time to make one dessert with the kids. Homemade Snickers. Yes they do taste as good as that sounds. Here’s my picture:

Homemade Snickers

Richard was teaching for 10 hours on Mothers Day but the Learning Center had a BBQ at lunch hour so we went up and spent lunch together. I am planning on sending this gooey delicious treat with him to work as a thank you gift for hosting a meal for us.

One night this week, we went walking around a lake in downtown Des Moines. It was a lovely and much needed break from the computer screen. Piper and Levi were acting like super hero’s and all along this bridge we crossed over, Piper would stop and yell very loudly “I’m Piper the Super Hero. I’m here to save the planet!” Where do they come up with these things? Too cute! here’s a picture of the two of them posing as “The Hero’s”.

My Hero's

I decided to get a season pass to Adventureland.  The kids get in for free at their young age and with the pass I get admission and free parking. This park is only a few miles away and after Memorial weekend, the water park portion will be open too! I think this will be my home away from home in June. And if Iowa keeps going so well with work, I may be sick of Adventureland by the end of July!

Adventureland!

We went to check it out this past weekend. I put my brave boots on and went by myself with both kids. I am realizing that although some things are very hard, I can survive any activity with these two. However, it would be a much more enjoyable experience if Richard could take a day off work and go with me. I figure I’ll get him there eventually. He really wants to go, just so busy with work right now.

I am grateful for the successful work schedule. It is not always the case with new businesses to be as lucky as we are. I do believe our success is the direct result of how much we believe in what we are doing and our product. When you do what you love and love what you are sharing to the world, it just feels good. But it does help that we have met some really supportive people here in Iowa. We are teaming up with The I-GREEN center in Newton, IA. Not only do they have the same renewable goals as we do, they are just such NICE people!

So Cathy and Ryan are on a health kick for the month. I’m very happy for them because they say they are feeling good and enjoying working out and eating better. BUT I have lost my dinner guest. Don’t get me wrong, I love to cook for just my family but I really like to make desserts. And most recipes should not only be eaten by a family of four. Especially two toddlers and Richard and I because unfortunately, we WILL eat that dessert! We have such a sweet tooth. We watch movies at night and give the kids popcorn in the back bedroom with their movie and we eat sweets up in the front of the RV and hide it when they come near us. Well, at least I’m trying to save them from our bad habits! The other night I made this really yummy, very easy “chicken slop“. I made it once before in Santa Fe but I don’t think I posted the recipe here. I top this crock pot chicken slop over rice and it is the best comfort food ever. Unfortunately, without my dinner guest, Richard and I ate this meal several times this week. It is a good thing we liked it so much.

I have been researching some RV remodeling ideas (carpet removal and dining area up do) lately. While surfing around for some ideas, I found the Janssen family who traveled for several years in the same RV as we have and they added a veggie oil tank to run off of. That was interesting. What was even more interesting was a family they met while in a campground that was a couple traveling with their 11 kids! After reading the Ticknor story, I will no longer EVER feel like my RV is too small for us 4. It did still keep me inspired to remodel this place if I feel the need to. Sometimes I feel held back by the idea of the resale value once I’ve changed it to meet our needs better. After reading a few full time traveling blogs, I realize how important it can be to make a place your own no matter what that does to the future value. On that note…off to research some more!

We have been so wrapped up in living this great life, I can’t seem to keep up with this blog! Here is a group of photos to show what we are up to.

Face Painting while in Fairfield, IA

This was such a cute picture of the kids. I can’t believe I forgot to post it while blogging about Fairfield. This is the first time for face painting and they did a great job! I wasn’t worried about Piper sitting still but I did pick a tiny picture for Levi just in case he hated it. Of course, he sat so still and loved having it on his face.

Levi giving Piper a ride!

Here is yet another visit to the nearby Bass Pro Shop. I think this may be the cutest picture of these two yet. Thank you Ryan for catching this moment for me!

This is where my car is usually parked!

Ryan and Cathy park our Prius at the Airstream. If they don’t drive to the nearby town of Newton for work, they meet Richard in the RV park clubhouse. On this particular morning, Ryan decided it was too windy and yucky to walk the few hundred yards to the clubhouse. This is what they came home to! Thank you Ryan for being lazy! This tree would have fallen directly onto the top of my car.

Family at John Wayne's birthplace

John Wayne's birthplace in Winterset, IA

We took a mini road trip about 1 hour away for pleasure this past week. We went to Madison County. To the town of Winterset. This is where John Wayne was born and also where the movie Bridges of Madison County was filmed. This day was amazing in every way. The weather was overcast and perfectly cool with no rain. The City Park is where the stone bridge pictured below is located.

Levi at the famous Bridges of Madison County Movie "Stone Bridge"

Piper posing at famous Stone Bridge

Piper and Levi in The Maze

At this park they had a real maze that we all ran around in! This is actually a bucket list item for me. I was so excited to finally be wandering lost in this maze with my family and friends. It will be one of my happy memories for a really long time.

The Tower

After the maze, we went for a long walk through the park to find a tower that overlooked the countryside. Breathtaking! Good times!

Piper is drawing!

I’m not sure when my little toddler girl turned into my child but one day there was scribbles for pictures and now there is this! Time really does fly when you are having fun.

I had not actually seen the Bridges of Madison County movie and so we rented it this week. It is like the anthem movie for all stay at home mothers. Not the whole affair part! Just the parts where Meryl Streep’s character describes what it takes to be a mom and a wife. The line that struck me the most was “Mothers just stop, we stand still so that our children can keep moving forward.” Or something like that…. This feels very true to me. I love my life, my kids and my husband but I am not a single piece of what I was before. Obviously, I am still the core person that I have always been, but my past career and lifestyle are so far removed from the person that I am now. Life is a moving forward ride, I wouldn’t want to still be that person and not have all that I have now. I just need to remember that when the life of being “mom” is over, that I don’t stop living. That I stay on the ride and find out what the next adventure is for me in this life.

How I love my life, my family and all my daily blessings that greet me along the way.

If I were a dog, I’d be under the bed right now. It is 1am and I’ve been trying to sleep through this storm. Have I declared yet how much I don’t like storms? I really don’t like storms in a house. I HATE storms in an RV. I was woken in my bed with all the normal fears that I usually have with storms.  Will we be hit by lighting, windows break from hail, or could the wind tip us over? I was laying in bed, eyes stuck wide open, certain that at any moment one of the kids would wake up and need me and I wouldn’t be able to hear them. I finally decided to come out to the living room and lay down in Pipers bed with her.  How are these people sleeping so soundly through this!? I, for my own needs try to cuddle up to Piper. Her feet stabbing me in the belly is so comforting to me!  I can now lay wide awake, with my eyes closed. I was tossing and turning too much and was concerned I would wake her so I decided to write instead.

I’m amazed at how my need to comfort a child gives me strength. I know that if she were to wake up and say she was scared of this noise, I would slip into the role of strong mom and hold her and whisper to her that it is just rain and we are safe and everything is going to be fine. I myself, at that moment would drop in my own anxiety. The power of helping others….

Really, how the HELL can they sleep through this! I need a hug!

My Dads headstone is complete and in place.  I will be planning another trip to South Dakota very soon to put his ashes in the ground.  We have decided to only have the preacher, Grandma, Jeff and I there.  We don’t feel a ceremony at this time is necessary. Here is his stone:

David Lee Jongeling

The back facing the street

Also, I updated the blog about his final days with a little bit more detail towards the end.  It was too painful to write it all before but I have found that writing this down has helped me heal more than I ever imagined.  Thank you to Rachelle and Jeff for allowing me to put something so personal out here on the web.

After trekking my kids to and from South Dakota, we then took a trip to Burlington, IA (3 hour drive, one way), Cedar Rapids, IA (2 hour drive, one way) AND Fairfield, IA (2 hour drive, one way).  Yes, these were all done on three separate days, there and back in one day.  Can we all just agree now that I have serious car riding troopers for children!  Embrace the idea of watching movies on the road and tell them we are going for Daddy’s work and they are game for just about anything.  We dressed them in SolPowerPeople shirts and set them out as our mascots! Needless to say, we have been very busy marketing and exploring this state.  I fell in love with Fairfield.  They are very green, earth loving hippies!  My kind of people.  And I learned that Fairfield is only 1 hour further away to a little village called Dancing Rabbit. I read about this village last year and I have always wanted to go.  I did get to meet some of the residents who live there. I love the idea they are going for, but to be honest, I just don’t think I have it in me to live that kind of lifestyle. Although, I do totally agree with everything they are doing there.  Read about it, it is interesting.  And look out for a movie called Within Reach.

Burlington, IA was really pretty.  We ate right by the Mississippi River.  It made us miss Jim and Joanne.  The area felt a little like New Orleans.

Personal complaint to Ryan Doty: Ryan informed me that it is no longer necessary (nor has it been since the 1970’s) to double space after a period.  That goes against everything I learned in typing class and this new information has made these last few blog post rather difficult.  Thank you, Ryan!

I drove almost 5 hours to South Dakota recently. Just me and the kids.  I arrived on Friday and returned late Sunday night. I had such a great time! I had dinner with my Grandma, brother Jeff, Emma and Emma’s mom Jamie on Friday night upon arrival.  On Saturday we went to Falls Park in Sioux Falls.  I had never been.  It was beautiful.

Levi in Falls Park

Anna, Andi, Emma and Piper in Falls Park

My Grandma!

After the park, we went on a Trolley ride around Downtown Sioux Falls.  Then….McDonald’s!

Lunch!

Sunday was a quadruple birthday party.  Cari, Jeremy, Jeff and Andi.  Loved being there for a Sonnenburg family event.  I haven’t been to many of them in the last 25 years! I did cut my trip short however due to the weather.  When everyone went home Sunday after the birthday affair, Piper was so very sleepy because she hadn’t napped in days because of all the excitement.  She was an exhausted mess and a storm was about to come through.  I hastily decided to make the drive that night with sleeping kids rather than the next morning in bad weather with bored kids.  On my way out of town, I stopped at Starbucks and bought the biggest strongest coffee I could.  My kids were asleep immediately and away we went. Um, until the grown up in the car realized why we should not chug down a large coffee at the start of a trip! Here I am, making great time, listening to MY music…and I really need to pee!  My sleeping angels will not wake no matter how loud I turn up the music.  By the time Piper woke and declared her tiny bladder finally needed relief I almost pulled to the side of the highway for the both of us! Luckily for everyone, there was a rest area near by.  We made it home safely and we were all very happy to be home with Daddy again.

I enjoyed getting to know Linda better.  I have a friend in food with her!  We swapped some recipes and I have already made two of them since I’ve been home.

I have to say, sometimes when eating one of these bars, I look down at it and say “DAMN this is SO good!” I am usually really good about pushing my sweet tooth off until late day but with these things…I’m convinced the nuts make this a healthy breakfast alternative!

I also tried Linda’s Chicken and Tortilla Soup…very tasty!

Chicken and Tortilla Soup

Richard and I get some interesting looks when we show people our “Find Friends” app on our iPhone.  It is an app that allows you to invite friends and unless they turn it off, you are then able to track them by the GPS in their phone.  It has been useful for us in situations where he is on a work phone call and I need to see if he is on his way home from work yet, or I’m meeting him in town and he is “watching” for me and comes out to help me unload the kids.  But, this time the app became very useful in a little motel in Altoona.

When my brother was here Easter weekend, he and Emma stayed in a motel one night just so we could have a pool to swim in.  On that Friday night, we were at the indoor pool having a great time.  Richard had put his phone down on a nearby table right when he walked in but Jeff and I unloaded our gear at another table in the opposite corner.  At some point another family came in.  Mom, Dad and two little kids and was met by a third adult lady.  They left before we did.  With Richards phone….

Well, Richard got my phone and started tracking his stolen phone.  He went to the front desk and they called the police.  The first cop came and they could see that is was on the far end of the building but the building was 3 stories high!  The front desk gal took the bottom floor, Richard the second and the cop was on the third.  Richard started to call his phone with my phone and heard it ringing on his floor!  He ran upstairs to tell the cop he knew the room it was in.  Thankfully a second cop had just arrived.  They knocked on the door right as Richard hit “call” on my phone.  It was only the one lady in the room.  She had her phone in her hand.  The cop says “Is that your phone?”  She replies that it is.  Just then, Richards phone starts to ring behind her.  The cop says “Is that also your phone?”  She claimed it was her brothers phone and he and his family had just left.  She knows nothing about this phone!  Richard said “That’s my phone from the pool.  I don’t care how you got it, I don’t want to press charges, just please give it back.”  Turns out this lady works there!  Crazy situation, I’m so happy it all turned out good for us.  Richard lives and works from his phone.

So, yes, it may be strange that we can track each other whenever we want to, but sometimes it is just the greatest app ever!

I have so much to share about my past week, but not tonight! Check back soon. Goodnight.

We made it to Altoona, IA without any problems!  Could it be because we had no dolly….?

Our new RV park in Iowa is very nice.  There is a little playground here so the kids are extra happy about that.  My brother from South Dakota has already come to visit over Easter weekend.

He brought his sweet daughter Emma along.  I love watching my kids play with their cousin.  We got to dye eggs, get pictures with the Easter Bunny and we had a little mini egg hunt here at the RV park.

Sweet Girls!

Oh my how I needed a little family visit!  It was sad to see them go.  However, I will be bringing the kids to Sioux Falls this coming Friday for a weekend visit.  I’m a little torn about leaving because our work here is getting very exciting and busy but the chance to see family is so hard when on the road. I’m happy to get the chance to go be in South Dakota for all the family April birthdays.  Easter Sunday we tried to get back to work but the holiday spirit was still with us and we went out and flew kites!

I am enjoying Iowa’s land and weather.  I thought I was going to miss the mountains in the horizon in Santa Fe and I do, but I am appreciating the true beauty of GREEN GRASS!  Not just the grass, but the rolling hills, crop fields and random ponds dispersed everywhere.  Iowa is gorgeous.

I am very disappointed in the recycling options around here.  I asked several people where I could drop off my stuff and they seriously had NO IDEA!  That means they don’t recycle at all….ever….REALLY!   I wish our company had time for a recycling push across the nation as well as the solar push.  If any of you out there want to start a business for good cause, I have an idea.  Go to major cities and have them pay you to educate the residents about recycling and then educate the businesses how to collect.  In Amarillo they have recycling bins in almost every grocery store and library parking lot.  I know major cities usually have a system for residential neighbors to pick up recycling on trash day, but what about the people who are traveling or don’t live in the city neighborhoods?  We need a relationship between the Waste Management and the commercial businesses.  There is a place here in town that has YOU pay to have them take your recycling from you.  I understand that the other pick up options are being paid through taxes or our city utility bills but with all the traveling I’ve done, this is the first time I have been asked to pay them something on the spot.  I did find my place for drop off after much searching.  I will be driving 20min east out of town to the landfill where they have 4 huge bins of one stream recycling.  So easy, except for the crazy drive out there.  These bins should be everywhere!!

Sarah has been here all week from Austin.  We are taking her to the airport today.  I’m going to miss her.  She is sweet, organized and a healthy addition to our work and friendship team.  We were so busy in Austin from the time she was hired in February until the day we left, I feel I didn’t get to know her very well.  After this week, I’m happy to say that I would choose my new co-worker to be my friend too.  It is really wonderful to work with your friends!

Also, my kids ask for Ryan everyday so I think it is time for him to come back. Piper told me last night that he has been working too much and it is time for him to come eat dinner with us.  She must think that he has been in an office somewhere for days just slaving away!  I told her he will be here next week and she sighed and said “BUT he is Levi and Cathy’s best friend and Levi loves him very, very much.  He needs to come here NOW!”

Off to enjoy spring!  Get out and play!!