It was a tough decision, but we have officially put our homesteading plans on indefinite hold.  Hubby is still having some back pain and we see some physical therapy in his future.  The realtor has been told to quit the search for our country property and we’ve turned our focus elsewhere.

One chapter on hold, a new chapter has begun.

I supposed it’s more accurate to say that we have reopened a chapter of our story and are doing some rewrites to better fit our lifestyle today.

We first began discussions about buying an RV almost 10 years ago.  It’s a subject that has been discussed, researched, thought about and considered off and on for a very long time.  Now it’s a matter of taking the steps necessary to find the perfect RV for our family and making the purchase.

Yesterday, we visited a local RV dealership to begin our search.  We found one that has our interest peaked and are researching it a little more.  Much like auto dealerships, there were only a few makes and models at the dealership, so next month we will visit the Chicago RV Show and take a look at other makes and models to see if there is something we like better within our price range.

We have spent so much time and energy on our homesteading dream and even more time an energy on the possibility of an RV for our family that we are trying to be proactive in our search.  We are committed to making this happen and the kids are especially excited about what lies ahead.  So much so that Naomi is begging us to buy an RV and they are already talking about which bed they’ll sleep in.

Our commitment has also caused us to begin looking at camping opportunities and we have already made reservations to join our local homeschool group on a camping trip to Indiana Dunes State Park in July.

One thing we’ve learned in all our research is that it’s not a good idea to purchase an RV and then taking off on a major camping trip.  A few short trips close to home will allow us to get to know our new home on wheels, work out the bugs,  and take care of any problems that we discover after bringing it home.

Something that excites me about owning an RV is having a place for our visits with our son Ryan.  I haven’t written about Ryan in quite some time, so for those who may not know, he has autism and lives in a group home about 2 1/2 hours from our home.  In the spring, summer, and fall our visits consist of picking him up for lunch and maybe a visit to a local park.  There just aren’t a lot of options of places we can take him where he feels comfortable and doesn’t get overwhelmed.  There is a nice state park with camping facilities in the area though, so going down on a Friday night, picking him up Saturday for a day visit and then returning home on Sunday is very appealing to us.

There are so many possibilities ahead.

One chapter on hold, a new chapter of hope for lots of good times, laughter, learning and great memories are ahead.