On our way home...Harvest Host

I'm a few weeks off from updating anyone on our trip. We're actually in Tennessee already and trying to sort our life but before I go there, let's rewind to our trip.  

From Park City, Utah to Murfreesboro, Tennessee is a drive. It's even more of a drive pulling a 40 foot RV home behind you. Just now, as I am typing this, am I realizing what we just did. That's a lot of miles for T to drive over a weekend. I took one turn driving for a few hours and that was it. T did the rest! 

We stayed at an alpaca farm one night, a brewery the next night and our friends house the next night.  

It was quite the adventure heading back. Ok that's all you get for this post. HAHA! Enjoy the pictures.

Park City, Utah

 

Sometimes all a girl needs is a McFlurry

Our view one way from the campsite

Our view the other way from the campsite

And here we are in another town. 

We're nearing the end of this part of our journey. Both of us are feeling like it's time to go home and then regroup. I've not been resting well. My emotions are all over the place right now. Processing the loss of Mom is coming in waves. I'm feeling this tsunami of emotions crashing down hard right now that really goes all the way back to my cancer diagnosis last May til now. Lots of life... lots of emotions. I want to call people to say hey but then I'm like, actually, I don't think I have it in me to do that. So there's that.

Park City is a cool town with great recreation. Last time we were here was for a vacation during Covid. T is getting in a few rides and tonight were going to hike. We're definitely missing our outside rec time. The site we're in is funny. It's gorgeous one way and turn 180 degrees and it's a car lot. No for reals. And it's next to Highway 80 so its LOUD. Moral of the story, don't believe the online pictures when your camping! Get on google maps and look where the place is located before booking. And stay away from highways. Our site is big and quite welcoming. But sleeping is hard when you hear traffic. We're learning! That's what this part of the journey's been all about, learning. So when we go back out next time for a stint, I'll know more of what to look for and how long to stay places. 

Until next time...

The In-Between

 

Oh, where to start. 

We left Washington after one more sweet day in Vancouver with our kids and baby Valerie and headed to Boise. My sister met me up there to close a final chapter. 

My folks have had storage units as long as I can remember, like seriously. that long. We tried to help them over the years get rid of the stuff but to no avail. Now that Momma's gone and Dad's in Tennessee full time, we decided it was time to close that chapter and be done. 

I have so many thoughts rolling around my brain. Trying to decide what to write about this finally being done. Some of its too painful to write as of yet, some if it so thankful we never have to go through this again, and some if it is saying goodbye to mom all over again. It's really hard on children to have to make decisions that should have been made by their parents. 

So listen up- don't leave this earth unprepared and don't leave this earth with a hot mess for your children to navigate. It's not that hard people.

Get a trust

Get a will

TALK to your children about what you want, write it down and have it ready for the time you die or get ill.

Give away those special family treasures while you're in your right mind.  Enjoy watching your kids wear that ring or open that book or use a favorite dish that they always wanted. GIVE IT TO THEM or it may find its way to Goodwill when they're having to quickly make decisions. 

I am so thankful for the few treasures I have from Mom and Dad. The beautiful white country dishes they gave me a few years back, the ring that Dad gave Mom on their 10th wedding anniversary, the deer print that hung up in our home when I was tiny. And I know good and well that I can't take any of it with me to heaven, and anyone who knows me, knows my motto is Simplicity. But I am also a person who loves deeply and some of this love is shared through a memory attached to something we physically own. It brings back to mind a sweet time in our life. So why not share that with your kids now and enjoy seeing them celebrate a memory that means something to you both. 

Have your financial house in order. Do not be foolish and think, "Oh they will be fine. They can do what they want when I die." It does not work that way. It's YOUR responsibility to be prepared, and then to SHARE that information with your children. Saying goodbye is already so hard, why on earth do people burden their kids with figuring out all the details to YOUR life?  The last gift you give your kids is gift of preparedness. So don't be lazy and do it. And don't think, "Oh that's private, they don't need to know about our finances." Umm, yes they do. And should. The good, the bad, the ugly. And I'm not just talking to the older people here. I'm talking to young families too. Be prepared.

We do a financial overview with our kids each year. We send them a document, so they know what and where to find everything. Now that we moved, it's time for a refresher. We will update everything and share that with them. Ta da. It's that easy. My husband is super organized, and this is one area he's gifted. If that's not you, then find someone who is and ask them to help you. Just do it, stop waiting for tomorrow. 

So this post is less about the hard time my sister and I had clearing out our folk's storage and more about how to do it right.

Don't be foolish, be prepared and then for God's sake, share it with your children. You will die one day, we all will. Make it a little easier on them. 

Thanks for listening,

Tuna Jones

 

Victoria Island- Buchart Gardens

Sunday’s Beauty!

We arrived early at the port to walk onto the ferry and enjoy the cruise over to Victoria. We were invited to sit with an older couple who had extra seats across from them in their booth and heard their life  stories along the way. I grabbed a cup of coffee and a breakfast sandwich from the cafe.  It took about a hour and half to go from one port to the other. Listening to the stories of Glenda and Robert made the time pass quickly. Once there, we waked across the street to check in to the shuttle and explore the Empress Fairmont hotel. We hopped on a shuttle a bit later that took us to the gardens. Buchart Gardens is over a 100 years old. When we walked in I was quickly taken back to Disneyland. It feels like Disneyland without the rides and all the beauty. It’s gorgeous! From the minute you reach the entrance there are flowers everywhere. 

The land on which this exists was a limestone quarry and when it was finished being mined, it was bare and ugly. Jennie Butchart took to task making something out of nothing. She must have been an artist herself to envision what we see today. She got the best of the best to help her and went to work. After many years, her grandson took over the task and completed the work. A process that took well over 50 years to complete.  The gardens are still in the family and as beautiful as ever! 

The idea of taking something ugly, bare and what looks to be useless and turn it into something beautiful, blooming and breathtaking is such a visual of what God does to us through our life with Christ. In the Potter’s hand we are made beautiful. The old has passed away and all things are new. Oh thanks be to God for his gracious way of pruning me so I can become more like him by the power of his Holy Spirit. He truly makes beauty from ashes. The process of being pruned sometimes hurts. Ok, all the time. It’s painful to let go of my way, my whatever, to be more like Jesus. I love roses and understand to get more blooms they HAVE to be pruned regularly. The trimmers are sharp and direct. They do the job well. Oy, that’s exactly how it feels to be pruned by the Lord. If I don’t pay attention to what’s happening I’ll spin out of control whining, complaining, and frustrated. It’s not that God prunes everyday, all the time, but in the seasons that He sees the yuck in my heart and my life that’s needs GO, he prunes. My part is to lean in, trust him is the work he’s doing, and allow the Holy Spirit to refine me. God’s desires for me are far greater than I can see. His unconditional love and his saving grace is salve to my soul. For me, God has never let me down. It’s not always easy peasy to allow him to shape this lump of clay, but I’m grateful for his gentle hand and strong love for me. 

Reality Check- 

Are you willing to allow God to prune you? Do you pay attention to that tug in your heart that says something’s not right? Ask the Lord if it’s him trying to take out some old stones and put in a beautiful garden. 

Thanks for Listening,

Tuna Jones

 Buchart Gardens

Fort Worden- Port Townsend

Saturday morning the 10th of August- well, we woke up, had some steaming coffee and after finishing our “discussion”  that started on Friday made a plan for the rest of the weekend. It’s been super cool in the mornings here. Just what we wanted when we started this adventure. We decided to head over to Port Townsend for the day. I researched quite a bit before we arrived in Port Angeles and discovered there’s just sooo much to see and so little time to do so, we only had time to hit the highlights Saturday and Sunday.  As we entered Port Townsend, we pulled over to Google “best things to see in Port Townsend” and Fort Worden State Park showed up. So off we went. Oh my it was so worth it! We love history and this place is full of it. We saw Point Wilson Lighthouse that has its own story. Too long to tell you here so Google “history of Point Wilson lighthouse Fort Worden” and you can discover it yourself. Definitely history worth knowing, especially for wartime buffs. We saw old military housing, beautiful beaches, had a drink and played cribbage in the old jailhouse, hiked up to where they practiced shooting bombs in the ocean (that’s a bizarre thought), and pondered life of a soldier during the late 1800’s- 1940’s on this base.  The houses for the commanding officers has servant quarters on the third floor. Which also caused us to take pause, as the entire base was white soldiers. We saw picture after picture in the museum and all the men and women were white. After our time here we went into town and asked some locals where to find some good fish and chips. Can’t have enough fresh fish!  I think we’re on restaurant #4 now for local fish and chips? We did indeed find a great place and thus far the best fish and chips. Very light batter and yummy cod fish. 

After a full day we headed back to camp and planned to go into the Hoh rain forest the next day, something I was highly looking forward to, but ran into our camping neighbors when we pulled in and enjoyed a long chat with them about all they’ve been seeing in the area. It’s been fun meeting people along the way who are regulars at this life in the road lifestyle. This couple is retired and enjoying a few weeks this summer traveling. They highly recommended Buchart Garden on Victoria Island. Talked us through all the logistics and so we changed plans on the fly, bought our ferry tickets for early the next morning and prepared to go to Victoria. Now to watch the Olympics and go to bed.