Practice makes perfect (or at least less bad)

So quick recap, we successfully closed on our Sticks and Bricks house a week and a half ago! We moved back into the RV last Saturday and the cats made a successful transition (it was the first time they had seen the RV).  We spent another good shakedown week (shakedown=find the problems while you still have friends/family and your RV dealer close by) in the RV.

So that brings us to yesterday, a sweet and FULL day! We started off the morning with a call to our favorite RV dealer and service friends to discuss our rapidly deteriorating AC situation.  We had been scheduled to bring Big Al the Chaparral (<–possible name for the RV?) in for service next Monday for that minor leak problem I mentioned in my last post but then it became clear that the AC for the main living section is not cooling the way it should (read: we are freezing out the unit, ice chips snowing down on inside and it regularly reaches temps between 81 and 86 degrees).  SO, they were able to bump up our appointment 6 days.  But that does mean we have to move out of Big Al for the time it takes them to fix the items on the list.  So our cats are going to D&D’s again but we are going to spread out the burden of our presence on another Bed and Breakfast (aka family) this week so D&D don’t grow too weary of us :).  We might be making future reservations at your house, so let us know if you have vacancies 🙂 (mostly kidding)..(hopefully kidding).

And then! We got to pull Big Al out of the mud and get her on the road (is big Al a girl? I don’t know but it could be short for Ali or Alice, it seems weird to call it a ‘him’, anyway back to the sentence).  To quote the Little Blue Truck book, she was “sunk down deep in muck and mire” from all the rain we’ve had and all the mud that quickly followed.  So with the excellent farm hands of Mr. Mike T, he coached us through hitching up Big Al to the White Stallion (<–maybe the name for the truck?) for the first time! Geoff took the first crack at hitching and towing while I was test running some iPad scenarios to keep Levi engaged and not screaming his face off while we were trying to concentrate.  So we got her on the road and did some wheelies in the parking lot of the Tampa Bay Downs.

Me, Levi, and slightly hidden are Bailey & Macgyver

And then! we brought her back home and the lovely staff at our new RV park offered for us to switch spots because of all the muck and mire in our last spot.  They even let us pick which spot we wanted! So we backed her in (and backed her in, and backed her in, there was some adjusting, hence the title of this post, but you get the idea) and set her up.  You guys, it’s SO BEAUTIFUL! We are on the river. All our big windows are full of water views and green grass and trees.  God spoiled us.  See for yourself.

 

It was an encouraging day which I think we kind of needed as it’s been a busy (grueling) few weeks and probably a few more busy ones to follow.  All in all, this is a pretty great way to live, so far.  I’d say we are growing as we are adjusting, but if you know anything about spiritual growth I’m sure you’ll agree that it is often grown through seasons of toil, for me that’s meant coming face to face with the ugliness of my sin and being willing to admit it, ask forgiveness (this step is sometimes the hardest for me!) and hopefully do so with less passionate Italian speaking (but let’s be honest, that’s still an issue).  But it’s all God’s best for me and it’s the main pursuit of our lives, to grow in godliness, enjoy God and glorify Him.

The view

So how are you doing with your spiritual growth? And encouragement? Don’t forget, if you’re his child, he’s not finished with you yet! And as my wise friend Danielle says, repentance is a good thing. (She makes a bit of emotional emphasis on the word good, so you’ll have to add that yourself as you read it, they only give me italics and that doesn’t quite cover the reassuring nature of how she pronounces ‘good’, but you know what I mean.)

Keep on truckin’

-Big Rig Rose