As we begin the countdown to the MOART, people overwhelmingly want to know more about the preparation details. To me, the prep work is like childbirth-messy, loud, somewhat dreaded, a few obscenities here and there, but the means to a fantastic end. I guess some people really like the process, though (otherwise TLC would cease to exist). So, as the preparation days tick by, I will try to share at least little bit each day about the (gory) details that will make this trip possible. You have to promise me two things, though, if I am going to let you see all the juicy bits of our planning.
- You can’t expect to get any kind of expert advice about how to plan for a three month road trip. What we’ve got going on here is an out of the frying pan into the spilled milk kind of free for all that will eventually end in everything getting into the camper and ready to go. If not, I hear they have stores in other parts of North America.
- If I start to mutter incoherently, give it a day or two and see if it straightens itself out. If not, send chocolate.
What did I do today to plan for going on the road long term?
Today I found myself in a bit of a seasonal time warp, for while it was a sweltering 97 degrees outside, I was inside knee deep in hooded sweatshirts and weatherproof jackets. Since there is no chance that we will need any of those things in Texas any time soon, I felt like it was a good place to begin my packing. Digging through buckets of hand me down clothes in a Texas attic is what it must feel like to be trapped in a wool sweater six sizes too small during a bikram yoga session. All sweating aside, I found the cold weather clothes I needed and began to assimilate them into piles for counting.
I plan to bring enough clothes for each person so that I only need to laundry once a week, but I will have to plan for warm and cold weather. Surveying my piles, I created a tally list for each kid so that could at a glance see what I had and what I needed to complete each wardrobe. Right now, my piles are in a holding pattern in a bucket in the corner, but they will eventually be ordered and placed into clear plastic buckets. When I go digging through the bowels of the trailer to find things, I don’t want to have to take lids off of buckets to know what’s inside. Clear buckets will let me see the contents at a glance.
In other season altering news, I put the kids on notice that they needed to decide what they wanted to be for Halloween ASAP. One of them actually had the gall to insist that it wasn’t quite time to be thinking about Halloween costumes. To his credit, we usually leave these decisions to the last minute and end up paying scalped prices on Ebay for the coveted costume or making something out of tin foil and paper plates. But, this year we won’t be in any one place to reliably be able to ship packages. Decisions must be made before the camper rolls. I am also happy to report that for the first time in the history of ever, I have begun my Christmas shopping before Thanksgiving.
The only other thing on the MOART agenda today is to have a family meeting to discuss all the things that need to be done and the order in which they need to be done. I expect this is why the mister stayed at work late. Denial is just easier.
I can't even imagine. I love your humor about the whole thing! Makes me giggle!