Two Weeks in a House

As you might know we’ve been in an Air B&B in Portland Oregon for the last two weeks. This was a much needed break. After 6 months on the road we needed a bit of down time.

For me the hardest part of being in Portland was doing what we needed vs what I wanted. Portland is a really cool city. Its filled with waterfalls, museums, food trucks, and awesome parks. But everywhere we’ve been and are going has so much to offer and we tackle most of it like champs. Here we needed to relax. Enjoy being in a house. Cook, clean and sleep.

We crossed off many items on our half point to-do list. New tires were put on the Tahoe and Airstream. Clothes were swapped out and donated. Everything inside the Airstream and Tahoe was washed and cleaned. We restocked all medications. Booked several campsites and planned out our tentative path across the US.

We made sure to have some fun in Portland. We hit up the fabulous children’s museum twice. We went to the zoo. We enjoyed Washington Park and the Rose Gardens. We visited the wonderful Portland Farmer’s Market. We watched the Olympics.

All in all it was a really enjoyable break from the road. But being in a house we realized a few things.

1. Living in a small space definitely helps us keep things tidy. All of us sort of “exploded” in the house. The kids got out every toy and book. I cooked and spread out all over the counters.

2. It’s nice to have a wear it until its dirty policy. Jane must have worn 3 or 4 different outfits a day. I did laundry daily. Not that I minded, I had a washer and dryer in the house. But in real life that would be a pain.

3. TV is really the devil. We would let the kids watch a couple of kids shows during the day. When we would turn it off they would be cranky and mean for a solid hour afterwards. It turned them into Zombies! Also, Mark and I would stay up WAY too late watching the Olympics. We’d look at the clock and all of a sudden it was midnight! It really solidified us continuing not to have a TV back at home.

We realized some really sweet things too!

1. While the house was a 3 bedroom, the kids wanted to sleep in the same room together. We let them. Jane slept in a day bed and Wilson slept in the trundle beneath it. Many nights we’d go to check on them and they would be in the trundle bed together, just like they sleep in Airstream.

2. When Wilson would wake up in the morning he’d wake Jane up. She would turn on the light and get herself dressed and then dress Wilson. Then they’d both come out for the day. It was adorable.

3. Jane asked if she and Wilson could share a room when we move back into a house. I think we just might try that when we get home.

4. Both Mark and I are really excited to get back on the road. We have really missed the active lifestyle of hiking, biking and exploring every day. Don’t get me wrong, I’ll be more than pleased to move back into a house…I think. But getting back and explore more parks sounds amazing right now. Hooray!