Our Story

Welcome to our site! We are Joanne & Steve. After 20+ years working for a city school department and police department, we sold almost everything, bought an RV, and started living on the road with our three children. Joanne homeschools and works online.
What we have chosen is to live life as unencumbered as we possibly can and to spend time with our family, for our family, and as a family.
This website is a record of our travels. But, we also hope to educate, entertain, and inform others about RVing, roadschooling, and the great places we visit in this country.


Sunday, August 2, 2015

Making Modifications

We've since left this rig, but I thought I'd share some modifications.


RV storage is for sure something upon which can be improved.  


Steve added molding to the 2nd bathroom's cabinet 
so that baskets could securely sit on top.




One shelf creates a vast, unusable area inside the cabinets.  
With scrap wood, Steve built a shelf 
for the 2nd bathroom cabinet...



Hinges allow for easy insertion into the cabinet.



This suction cup toothbrush holder worked well...until it didn't.  
After a while it just didn't want to suck.  And, so it did.


Here's the shelf for the master bath.  
Definitely allowed for more product.



We had an extra soap dispenser for the outdoor shower.  
Not sure why.  
This was a great addition to the 2nd bathroom.  
Screwed into the wall.


We also utilized the 3M Command hooks.   These worked well, when they worked.  But I have to say, MOST of the clear, plastic backings on which you place the sticky strips BROKE!  And you cannot buy replacement clear backings.  So, I have a plethora of nice hooks, and can buy plenty of sticky strips...but the clear plastic backings I cannot get.  And I did write the company.  No go.



A Bevy of Bison

As we traveled through Yellowstone National Park recently, we were lucky enough to get a great, close-up glimpse of these beautiful bison.  Loud grunts, grazing, and crossing the roadway.









This calf was determined to procure some milk from this bull?  cow?  





Determined, but unsuccessful.




Finally, a scolding.




Thursday, May 28, 2015

A Drive Through Flood-Torn Wimberley, Texas

We purchased a new RV on April 14th.  That story will come later, as it is quite a story.  But right now, I want to offer up some images of the devastation caused by the flooding of the Blanco River in Wimberley, Texas.  After many days of rain, finally, on May 23, the Blanco River swelled and flowed, pushing anything in its way, out of the way.  Sadly, not only property was lost.

We have visited Wimberley a few times, most recently for one of Brendan's last baseball games.  It is a quaint, quiet, pretty little town with shops and parks and lovely homes.

We took a drive through Wimberley today.  Seeing the damage and evidence of the river's sheer power left us awestruck.  

We ventured off the main drag and down County Road 1492, where we were forced to stop due to barriers that were placed before the road turned downhill, toward the river.  The houses along the bank, about 40 feet up from the river mind you, had damaged antique furniture, waterlogged chairs, and tons of other belongings out on porches and amid the rubble of trees, stone walls, and other wreckage.

I walked past the barrier and down the hill.  What I saw was amazing.  The entire road was now a river and waterfall.  Across the way was what used to be the 7A Resort & Pioneer Town.  

Click to watch the video from CNN...

7A Resort & Pioneer Town Destroyed by the Blanco River



Satellite Image of County Road 1492 before the flood.
How County Road 1492 looks now.
Across the way is 7A Resort
What the river did.
This is still high, but it rose tens of feet higher.
Picture this under water.
So much damage.





Here are some other images we captured as we slowly traveled through 
what is still a beautiful, little town.


Bridge over Blanco River...one lane at a time.
saved
Bridge over Blanco
Blanco River
River Road...emptying the homes.
River Road
River Road
River Road
River Road
Overflowing Creek
Creek
Creek
For those homes that weren't swept away, the damage was still great.
So sad.
A view of the engorged Blanco from on high.
Debris
What the River did.
Blanco River
Where once a house stood...
Gone
Destruction 
Cypress Creek
Cypress Creek
Swept Away
Homes and lives in shambles.

Wimberley will rebound.

There are, I am sure, many avenues out there by which one can donate to 
help any of the areas affected by the floods.  
These are a few:



More images: