What is that all about?

I mean seriously shouldn’t this be a weekly face?

Maybe it’s becase I keep her so busy that she doesn’t have much time to be on the computer.

After all I started crawling. Then the following week I tried pulling myself up.

A few day later…success!!! Watch out big brothers. I’m coming after your stuff!

Pretty soon I’m going to tackle the stairs!

Lake Tahoe was fun. We did things like hike and go on walks through the campground.

My big big brother read books to me.

My big brother let me play his guitrar.

Unfortunately, I got yelled at by Meow Cow.

He just doesn’t understand how much I love him.

Love and Laughter,
Jenn

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The post Thing 3 in Lake Tahoe (Weeks 34 and 35) appeared first on Newschool Nomads.

We spent last year in Florida waiting for Thing 3 to arrive. This year we were anxious to get back to mountains and prepared for a three part “Not All Birds Fly South” winter adventure.

Lake Tahoe, the second deepest lake in the United States, was the first stop of three.

Being the exciting adventures we are, we kicked off the New Year with a family game about American history and a bottle sparkling cider. The questions were so hard and the facts so obscure that we could only answer a few of them. I think we’ll stick with Uno. It’s easier and takes up less space.

The boys were excited to explore the different ski resorts using our Epic Passes. They were also excited to be old enough to be dropped off at the mountain after school. This is what I’d call a fun way to get in PE!

Brent’s brother, Garret, and his girlfriend, Kelly, came up for a few days. The boys and Brent went riding with them one day and Garret asked Kelly to marry him on top of the mountain. Classic “Go big or go home” Garret style.

We had high hopes for lots of snow but no such luck. Aside from the night we drove in (of course!), the temperatures were unseasonably warm and not a single storm passed through during our two week stay.

With the warm weather winter hiking was extra fun. One evening, Brent and I hiked a bit on the Tahoe Rim Trail with Thing 3.

We enjoyed a family hike on Eagle Falls trail. The older boys complained at first, as is customary, but once we were on the trail they went up ahead of us and seemingly forgot we were watching them. It was pure joy seeing them talk and laugh together. These are the moments I wish I could tattoo on my heart.

This guy’s smile has been melting my heart since 2000.

We spent and afternoon in Truckee meeting up and having pizza with an old college friend of mine.

After walking downtown Truckee, we headed over Donner Memorial State Park to learn about the Donner Party tragedy because, admit it, learning about people resorting to cannibalism to survive is fascinating.

It was a good two weeks and as much as we enjoy the snow, I have to admit I’d kinda like to see Tahoe in the summer and maybe we could swim in instead of walk on the lake!

Lake Tahoe at a Glance:

Where We Stayed:

• Tahoe Valley Campground-  The park was quiet (maybe because it’s off season), clean, and a great location within walking distance from stores and restaurants. It was about a 15 minutes drive to Heavenly Ski Resort.

The Highlights:

• Snowboarding at Heavenly Ski Resort
• Hiking Eagle Falls Trail in Emerald Bay State Park
• Donner Memorial State Park
• Downtown Truckee
• Driving around the lake for the gorgeous views.

Where We Ate:

• Best Pies Pizzaria in Truckee – We had the Best Pies Signature Pie and Pizzadilla. Both were really really good! The Pizzadilla is folded up like a quesadilla.
• Blue Dog Pizza in South Lake Tahoe – I guess we like pizza. Not particularly memorable but certainly good.

Love and Laughter,
Jenn

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The post Not All Birds Fly South: RVing in Lake Tahoe appeared first on Newschool Nomads.

Hey look at me! I’m getting so big!

I can even ride in shopping carts now that I have a new cart cover.

Maybe mommy will lay off the hand sanitizer. Doubtful!

This week, I met my Great Noni on our way up to Lake Tahoe.

She’s really nice!

The visit was extra special because I really showed off and crawled for the first time!

A few days later my parents put me in a new fuzzy suit.

And I experienced the cold for the first time.

The kind of cold where your parents have to dress up in said  fluffy hazmat  suit.

I’m not sure how I felt about it.

It was so cold that the shore of Lake Tahoe was frozen solid.

I’m glad daddy is strong and steady.

And that mommy doesn’t mind laying down on the ice like a weirdo to take our picture.

Love and Laughter,
Jenn

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The post A Week of Big – Thing 3 Week 33 appeared first on Newschool Nomads.

My mommy is posting Christmas photos before July.
It’s a miracle.

It was my first Christmas.
My big brother helped me open most of my presents.

I got a piano, cars, a wooden zebra from my brother, and something called a rotary phone.
I’ve never seen anything like it.

BUT…

…my FAVORITE things were the boxes and paper.
All that paper!!!!!
I could have chewed on it all day.

I wasn’t the only one who got presents. Daddy got coffee, pralines, and a Kindle.
(Daddy gets a little crazy for coffee.)

My brothers kept opening cards with pieces of paper in them.
They guarded their paper like they do their computers.
Kinds selfish if you ask me. I just wanted to taste it.

My big brother did get this cool Evil Inflatable Unicorn Horn for Cats.
I’m not sure Meow Cow liked it all that much though.

He didn’t like his Santa Clause hat either but Nico didn’t really mind her antlers.
I wouldn’t have minded them either. They looked like they would be great to chew on.

So apparently Christmas is AWESOME.
I can’t wait for the boxes and paper next year.

Love and Laughter,
Jenn

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The post Christmas Before July – (Thing 3 Week 32) appeared first on Newschool Nomads.

It was even cold for Meow Cow.  He regularly sleeps on our feet but last night I pulled him under the covers.  At first he stiffened, “I think not, human.” but the warmth outweighed his ego and he cuddled beside me resting his little head on the pillow next to mine.  I love that cat.

We are getting better at packing up to leave.  Last week when we left Morgan Hill we didn’t pull out until after check out.  Today, we made check out time by a few minutes.

Slowly, we wound down the mountain roads leaving Yosemite behind.  We drove through a small town called Chinese Camp.  This was literally a “blink and you’ll miss it” sized town.  I saw a solitary white church on top of a hill next to a cemetery filled with above the ground tombs.  I wondered who was burried there and how their lives led them to be buried in the small town of Chinese Camp.

We turned left down a old bumpy road called “Red Hills Road”.  I may or may not have failed as navigator again.  Good thing I’m not getting paid for this.  However, sometimes mistakes are really blessings in disguise.  I don’t know if I have ever been on a road as lovely as Red Hills Road.

Oak trees, horses, hills, boulders all placed like art on the hillsides.  The sort of road that you think of in storybooks.  It was only 4 miles long but I could have driven it for four days.

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We scarcely saw a car except for a lone UPS truck.  Modern day cowboy.

In the evening, we stopped to visit Brent’s aunt for dinner.

We enjoyed our visit very much and the boys especially enjoyed relaxing with the dogs.  Have you ever seen a dog sleep like that???

Finally, we stopped for the night at Walmart in Bakersfield.

I’m a little sad.  It’s hard being so close yet so far from home.

Love and Laughter,
Jenn

The post Day 18: Goodbye Yosemite appeared first on Newschool Nomads.

Days when we get up, have breakfast, and I do school with the boys while Brent “goes” to work.  Then when afternoon comes, we go for a bike ride, a walk, or some other simple adventure.

Today was one of those days.  After our morning routine we loaded up in the truck and headed back to Yosemite to say goodbye to Half Dome and film my first workout.  I’m trying to film a workout in every state for my health blog, Girl Heroes. While in Yosemite, the boys decided to play in the snow since we had just bought them overpriced new gloves from the camp store.  I’lll never understand, how we took off forgetting gloves when it was nearly winter.  For goodness sakes, I packed a pair of fishnet stockings.

Then it was war! 

After playing in the snow, we ran out of propane which meant no heat or stove. Go figure.

Luckily for us, I had bought some convenience food and we had a cozy meal of  micorwaved lukewarm Indian fare before hitting the cooooold sheets.

Love and Laughter,
Jenn

The post Day 17: Snow!!! appeared first on Newschool Nomads.

Is there a way to describe the beauty of Yosemite National Park without sounding cliché?  El Capitan reaching violently towards the sky.  Half Dome ,austere, keeping watch over the valley. Bridal Veil Falls unapologetically crashing through the forest.

Today, we enjoyed Yosemite National Park.  We stopped at vistas, hiked up to Bridal Veil Falls, explored bridges, went on a ranger walk, observed mule deer, and watched Half Dome glow bright orange at sunset as the moon rose behind his stoic face.  Magical.

Of course, for every moment of magic there is the pinch of reality.  When we told the boys we were going on a ranger walk they protested.  Thing 1 saying he “could learn all this on the internet.”   Sigh.  They ended up enjoying themselves (for the most part), learned a few things, and earned their Jr. Ranger badges.

So far the hardest part of our trip is accepting that we can’t see it all.  I could spend a month exploring the wonders of Yosemite but the road calls, new adventures await, and there is work to be done.  

Love and Laugher,
jenn

The post Day 16: Yosemite National Park appeared first on Newschool Nomads.

Brent spend the entire day working at the lodge where there is internet.  We lost our cell phone service yesterday coming up the mountain right after we got a call from our tenants that the fridge broke.  Oh lovely.

While Brent worked, the boys and I did school and laundry.

Thankfully, we have a security guard.

Gotta be “serious” when you are sitting on your “thrones”.

While the laundry was drying I “made” the boys walk 1/2 mile up a hill to the country store because I’m a “terrible” mother for wanting them to get exercise.  Unfortunately, the store had closed 15 minutes earlier. Oooops.  The 10 minutes that followed weren’t  pretty.  Good thing, no one was around or I might have just decided to hitch a ride.  It’s also a good thing that I had my walkie-talking and could call 911 Brent.

Love and Laugher,
Jenn

The post Catch Up Day (Yosemite) appeared first on Newschool Nomads.

There is nothing like getting ready for church in the Wal-mart parking lot when it’s so cold you can see your breath.

We are in Turlock, CA, to see Brent’s “Noni”.  We’ve been meaning to see her for years and had decided that this was one of the first things we would do.

We got ready and headed over to her retirment community where we took the shuttle bus to Turlock Covenant Church.

Today was one of those mornings where I felt God’s presence as sure as I felt my own pulse.   Church isn’t always that way for me.  Faith has always been somewhat difficult for me to embrace as I’m a bit of skeptic by nature but today I fought back tears as a deep peace settled into the crevices of my soul.

After church we spent the afternoon visiting with Noni.

The boys swept her porch.

Thing 1 played the piano for her.

I sat in her small apartment, not much bigger than our RV, looking at her things.  Everything had a history, a story.  I noticed picture upon picture of family and I thought about how grateful I am for mine.   Dear family, I hope you know how much I love you.

Later, while Brent and the boys went move the RV closer to Great Noni’s apartment so she could see it, she and I spent a few minutes alone.  She told me about her wedding and how her and sister had a double wedding.  She told me about how she missed her husband.  Being missionaries to Africa in the 1950s, they had their own set of adventures.  I was reminded of the real reason behind our year on the road.  Love.  To say Brent still gives me butterflies is an understatement and going on this adventure with him…for lack of better words…is a dream come true.

Sappy, I know.

We said our goodbyes to Noni…

and hit the road.

We drove through fields

through small towns

and up into the mountains to Thousand Trails Yosemite Lakes to spend a few days enjoying the beauty of Yosemite National Park.

It’s beautiful but sure is cold cold up here…even colder than the Wal-mart packing lot we woke up in this morning.

Love and Laughter,
Jenn

The post Great Noni appeared first on Newschool Nomads.

Hmmmmmm…..

We left Morgan Hill this morning bound for Turlock, CA. We I have a thing about avoiding interstates so we decided to take Highway 152.

Despite an ominous sky, the drive was beautiful.

The road wove through farms and hills covered with Oak trees.

We passed San Luis Reservoir and around that time we passed a few signs as well. Signs we should have paid attention to. Signs that would have saved us a lot of time. Signs that would have helped get us to our destination.  Signs that wouldn’t have made me feel like an idiot.

We drove on. We crossed Interstate 5 in favor of the smaller highway and headed north from Los Banos until we ran into this.

Ending the call I was on with my dad, “Dad, I think I have to go. The road is closed. I saw a sign back a bit but I didn’t really read it.”

Ooops.

I opened up my “trusty” GPS and told Brent to head down “this road”. We’ll take it to “that road” and it will connect “a road” that will get us to Turlock.

A few mintues later we ran into this….

“On the GPS it looks like a major road,” I explain.  So we go right, instead of left, because this road meets up with our original road. “Maybe it’s passed the construction part.”

It is…about 300 feet.

“I bet they just put those there to reduce traffic. I bet it’s fine.”  So we go left bypassing the original road closed sign.

It was fine…for about 40 minutes.

We passed nothing the Great Valley Grasslands State Park and  birds for miles until I saw this up ahead.

I held my breath.

Uh-oh. I guess they meant it.

We turned around, headed back, drove around the orginal “road closed” sign, and all the way to Interstate 5.

The day only got better.

The rv park we were going to stay at was a parking lot. “I’m not paying $40 to sleep there. I’d rather sleep at Wal-Mart.”

So we did.  I feel legit.

Wal-mart would have been fine except we forgot to fill up our water tanks, it was raining, one of the boys favorite books got demolished in the slide out, and I broke the doorknob to the bathroom. Thing 2 really “had to go” (he doens’t mess around) and said the door knob wouldn’t turn. “Oh you just have to turn harder,” I said.  Nope it wouldn’t turn, he informed me dancing outside the door. I walked over, grabbed it, and turned it. Turn it so hard that the inside broke into about a 1000 pieces.

Ooops.

At least Wal-mart had unicorn bike helmets.

Love and Laughter,
Jenn

The post Day 13: This road? That road? What road? appeared first on Newschool Nomads.