So far....

The journey has been interesting up to this point to say the least. I've lived in Florida all my life and never knew there were mountains. Okay, they actually call them bluffs but still...I discovered that the panhandle is my favorite part of the state and if we come back I sure wouldn't mind living there. It is unbelievably quiet and peaceful and my favorite part is no gated communities and cookie cutter subdivisions all over the place, lol....just trailers and old cracker houses.

I've learned a few things so far. If a campground is described as rustic you will have to drive at least ten miles out of your way to get to it, maybe more, which wouldn't be so bad if we weren't driving a vehicle that gets 5 mpg. I guess that is the tradeoff to being at a not so nice crowded campground where you can hear traffic in the distance.

The second thing we've discovered is that free wifi means either you will occasionally get a connection which might last five minutes and then go back out or that you will only get internet by going to a central location in the park, even if they tell you each site has it.

The other thing is that we are so grateful for our Passport America membership. Although we prefer the state park experience, even state parks are often more expensive than campgrounds with our membership discount. We are eyeing one now in Louisiana for $11 a night.

I feel a little tired right now. Being on the road at the pace we are now which is every few days or so is a little exhausting for me. It is also hard to get into a homeschooling rhythm that works when you feel like you are always coming and going. We are hoping to slow down as we get further west and find more opportunities for boondocking. Riki is still iffy about it but I'm hoping we'll find our niche and save some money that way. New Orleans is going to be crazy busy I think, especially since it is a little expensive for us to stay longer than a few nights. Then we are hoping to relax for at least a week or so on the way to Texas.

I'm wondering how people manage to eat healthy all the time. I am finding it hard, especially with no health food stores nearby. I'm such a food snob as much as I hate to admit it. It's one thing I just can't let go of. We walked out of a Piggly Wiggly because the food looked so bad. Nevertheless the best thing we've come by is a Winn Dixie which would usually be the bottom of my priorities. Produce won't keep in our fridge because it keeps freezing everything so we have been eating a mostly meat based diet which is not normally like us. Plus, making meals from scratch means I have to wash dishes like four times a day, lol. The sink is super tiny! So we haven't found a way to eat real healthy yet. Things like microwaveable ramen noodles start looking real good in an rv, lol....and we didn't even own a microwave before moving into the rv.

We were excited to visit Biloxi while we were stuck but silly me, I didn't realize that kids aren't allowed in casinos. I thought Ellery might get a kick out of playing a few slots. It isn't like I know anything about gambling but I doubt we will go through Vegas so I figured this was our chance but the nice security man quickly told me the kids couldn't go on the floor. Bummer. I was too intimidated to go out there by myself while Riki watched the kids so we ended up eating an overpriced meal instead at the Hard Rock.

Hopefully we will be fixed tomorrow and on our way to New Orleans. I've learned to roll with the punches though because everything changes constantly. I am a lot better at that now it is harder for the kids to understand that things change and you don't always get to go where you planned right on that day or even the next day sometimes. We'll get there when we get there.

Then I would like to make a long stop near Austin if we can. There is a Buddhist center there I would like to spend some time at and a whole lot of other things like health food stores and live music I hear! Sounds pretty good to me. We'll just have to see where the universe takes us next.