Wisconsin leaves us full!
We have had a pretty up and down last few weeks since arriving in Wisconsin to a slew of RV problems. We split time staying in the Wisconsin Dells where we docked the RV and driving to Beloit and Sun Prairie to spend time with my Mom, my twin brother Joel's family and my best friend Jeremy and his wife Michelle. We had down time but were rarely ever alone to want to pick up our phones to blog. Quality family time is long overdue as Erica and I hadn't spent two weeks in Wisconsin in over 18 years since we moved out of Middleton, WI.
We spent a handful of nights at Grandma Peaches and she gave Erica and I the gift of kid sitting a few times. We all played games and watched movies together. Grandma brought Blythe a cake for us to sing happy birthday with a few days prior to us leaving since we would be on the road on the actual date. One night we went to dinner with Jeremy and Michelle to share in their journey as they continue to fight his cancer diagnosis. As we left town he began new agressive, non-invasive lazer treatments to shave off the remaining brain tumor that could not be extracted surgically. He poked fun at himself often and we jovially laughed along with him. He continues to fight hard to find the words to say that escape him so easily since his latest surgery. It is hard to see him struggle but he has and continues to inspire me. I try to keep my body healthier than the past and I am making sure to avoid cell phones to my head at all costs. The glioblastoma is becoming incredibly prevalent in young adults and is thought to be tied to blue tooth cell phone technology. Scary stuff as we all prepare for the new 5g technology running into our ear canal!
We enjoyed a day on the lake too doing what they love to do!
We spent at least half of our time at Uncle Joel and Aunt Jen's house savoring much overdue conversations about life while letting the kids run a muck together. A few nights our good friends Jim and Colleen joined us and we told stories about our younger years together and filled each other in on the last few years since we were all together last. We miss them already but are so grateful for all the small bits of time together. One of the nights we capped off with listening to all the great songs of the eighties and ninties. Everything from Whitesnake to Silk to the great Michael Jackson was played and our kids must have thought we were nuts as we all sang along. Erica performed an unforgetable improvised sign language version of our childhood love song "More Than Words Can Say" by the band Alias. I wish I had it on video to share here. We all laughed so hard!
Joel and I have always been polar opposites. In this way we work together as a team extremely well. For example...I talk and he listens, I formulate a loose plan and he makes it happen to perfection. I can't say enough thank you's to him for all his help and guidance as we spent what little opportunity we had to fix some broken RV parts. We had a drawer in the kitchen that needed fixed...no problem for my brother! We had the clothes hamper that came out of the wall because of the thin cabinet wood not holding the weight of a weeks worth of clothes. Once again, no problem! I have heard the following a lot the last two months and it is so true. RV's are recreational vehichles to be used every once in a while. They are not built to be lived in...especially with children!
The biggest catastrophe was that our generator stopped working. Scary stuff since we rely heavily on it to use on our travel days and boondocking nights to run the ac, cook meals, watch movies and charge devices. These are our last few luxuries to help calm anxiety and help provide normalcy and days filled with uncertainty of where our next destination will be. Joel came to the rescue again. He helped me figure out that the unit was still good but that it just wan't getting fuel and thus needed a new fuel line and or pump. We watched a couple youTube videos and attempted to fix it ourselves. We realized when I cut the gas line off the fuel filter and the gas line was dry that the problem was too big for us to solve quickly. I took it to a local small engine repair shop and they replaced the fuel line. After 6 hrs charged labor spent trying to problem solve at $116 an hour and keeping the rig overnight to make sure it would start after sitting, we paid the $881 tab and we were back on the road with a seemingly brand new RV. Leaving left us sad but with hearts that were full from all the moments spent enjoying our family and friends. Joel also helped me install a flat screen tv to replace the old tube tv that weighed a ton and couldn't accept hdmi. This was a favorite with the kids and helped them transition away somewhat easier. Leaving what is familiar is so hard emotionally every time and we continue to discuss those feelings as a family.
Peace and Love