Friday, September 18, 2015

#WYFF - Where's Your Feet Friday

#WYFF is a hash tag from "Full-Time Families" - a Facebook group for families which are living full time in an RV. The idea is to share a glimpse through one snap shot in time.  Without further ado our #WYFF for the week or the BLUF (Bottom Line Up Front).

We finished a full week of school! It was surprisingly easy to do so in the Caboose. I feared the close quarters would cause distraction, but this first week it seemed to serve to keep us on our course. I found myself much more engaged with the schedule - a less distracted teacher resulted in less distracted students, greater productivity in a shorter amount of time.  It is motivating to know exploring awaits the conclusion of school.
One thing we LOVE about schooling in the Caboose is MICHAEL is home!  It has been a lot of fun to have his input - our science experiments have a much better chance of succeeding this year - and we all KNOW what the cool activity is teaching us when Michael is done teaching.  Nolan and I were discussing the fact I didn't have the foresight to bring a 9v battery and copper wire along. Michael was on it - they created a 9V battery (complete with testing to be sure they had the voltage right)....and it was easy enough to find copper wire in his tool box.  Anything Dad is involved in will draw the whole tribe - wala science.  We split hydrogen and oxygen (molecules not atoms ::wink::) and watched the hydrogen burn off (the photo is puny).  This science input from Michael is especially helpful as it appears I inadvertently packed  the younger two's science books in Mom and Dad's garage. Until we make it back up there, they'll piggy back on Nolan's chemistry.




 
 
Michael was ready to settle in for an afternoon of trailer repair.  He wasn't aware we push hard through the week, so we can PLAY  Friday afternoons. He was quite willing to switch gears and we headed over to Mom G's. The sun was out, the water a bit nippy after the two days of rain, but the river was ours alone to enjoy on a Friday afternoon. Michael surprised us with this inflatable boat he found on clearance - perfect for our new lifestyle. I'm wondering if we can fit another one or two in somewhere.
Nina and Arrow are always ready to play at the river

Yuuki enjoys checking out neighbor's kayaks more than swimming


No - peer pressure won't work on me
 

Nolan found a branch and had a brilliant idea.....the dogs pulled him through the river....


Yeah - I'm not sure I see a lot of this from various kids

Michael wondered what they'd do if he threw it.....

 
Michael asked, "Now is this an every Friday expectation?"  Evidently, we've hid our affection for playing on Fridays from him all these years. After some thinking we all agreed - yep. In the "sticks and bricks" home, we tended to head for various electronics - but the possibilities are varied and endless in our new lifestyle.  We'll have to figure out when TRAVEL days fit best. LOL

Back at the trailer Michael tried out our new zero-gravity recliners. I'd coveted them since seeing similar at John and Nadine's motor home.  Yep - all the comforts of "home." This was our "test" for Amazon prime. They can find you anywhere.

 
I popped in the meatloaf I'd prepared earlier in the day.  I am still learning the quirks of this oven. Some things cook as expected - some take longer. My PLAN was to pop a veggie patty into the  microwave for myself. I'm not used to microwaves. It's been a source of humor to the family that we HAVE a microwave in the Caboose. What could go wrong? I came back in from delivering the meatloaf and veggies to the outside table and discovered smoke billowing from the microwave. It hadn't even been two minutes. The smoke alarm went off and everything. We're the talk of the park- though the 13 yo running around in night vision goggles may have something to do with that.  I haven't a clue why the veggie patty incinerated - but it did.  More cleaning is on the agenda - if the microwave keeps smelling like smoke, I may gain another cupboard... I found it hilarious, when I sat down to blog, to find a post in progress on Cooking in the RV - "smells are magnified" - yep - you betcha!
Mom G joined us for dinner and an evening around the campfire. We read Patrick McManus, enjoyed S'mores, looked at photos of Pluto, and I may have drifted off in my comfy recliner by the fire for a few moments.









It was a "practically perfect" Friday.