Rain, Rain, Go Away....

Woke up Saturday to sunshine! It was the first thing I noticed when I came out of the tent. Thank you, Lord!

​...and never come back.

We hope everyone had a wonderful Mother's Day! Ryan and I would be a wreck if it wasn't for our moms being supportive through this entire process of preparing for The Nook.

Seriously, thank you Moms - you two have been the best and we couldn't love you anymore than we do now! You're priceless to us.

It was beautiful Sunday, thank goodness! Ryan and I are so sick of this "cold, Kentucky rain". It rained the day we married (over a week ago) and it seemed like it wasn't going to stop. We're tried to stay positive though, because this rain just presents new obstacles to overcome and motivates us to work harder towards our goal. That's fine, we're made of tougher stuff.

And then it happened: a weekend of sunshine! It only rained a little over the weekend but the reprieve was welcomed. It's amazing how the coldness and the rain can try to break a person's spirit, sore throat and exhaustion has been part of the journey but when we feel low we have supportive friends and family we visit and they lift our spirits. It's ok to feel overwhelmed but the ending stays in sight and I realize once again, we're just learning how to cope for when we start living in The Nook - not much will change but we'll be out of the rain and cold and when that happens we'll look back and say: "remember when we lived in a tent?"

My mother-in-law introduced an idea to me that I hadn't thought of before. I'll start keeping a journal of our life here - from the tent to The Nook - and publish it as a book! I've gotten so much positive feedback about my posts and how we're living, and I thank everyone for the support you've shown us. In our book I'll not only write about our new lifestyle and how we do day-to-day things, but I'll list recipes and formulas I make with herbs around me, homemade cleaners, etc.

With that being said, let me update you!

This Thursday will be two weeks of Tent Life, but at the end of the first week I looked back and was shocked at how my mindset had changed in only a week! I'm not joking, it is something altogether changing when you spend evenings washing clothes by hand, living according to weather and daylight. I'm now to the point when I watch the sky for measuring how much more daylight I may have left to wash by (you DON'T want to try washing clothes and dishes in the dark with only a tap light or lantern to clean by), or how I now listen for the gentle sound of rain or the rumble of distant thunder so I can rush and cover things or put items away (i.e.: "Batten down the hatches!")

It's peaceful, though. I used to return home from work exhausted and barely accomplished much because I'd fight instant sleep so hard, but now I feel a rush of demanded energy for accomplishing necessary tasks as soon as I arrive home. It's either I start washing clothes, preparing a meal, and clean the tent as soon as I get home before dark or we don't have clothes, food for work, and we'll be sleeping in a dirty tent.

A friend of our's, also by the name Ryan, told us not to make things too hard on ourselves. If someone offers a service or something, accept it. Him and his girlfriend Kinsey also live without electricity and running water, but in a cabin rather than a tent. They've done so for a year now and they've given us some tips and advice for not only what may help us along on getting closer to living in The Nook, but what may make life easier and what to do in some situations.

Some services we've been gladly accepting are the occasional shower, or using my mother's washing machine and dryer when the rain just won't let up! If we had a covering area for the clothes line it just maybe our clothes would have a chance to dry! I already have ideas for how to dry our clothes inside The Nook when it rains.

My mother-in-law looks up ideas for what may help our temporary tent lifestyle and she came across an idea on Pinterest for a new way to wash clothes that will save me time on the washboard! Here's a video introducing it (forgive the awkwardness and the poor quality...I'm a novice at videos):
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Drilling the holes for the bucket washer.

When I said "lye", in the video, I meant lye soap...just to clarify...

Bentley, our doggie, has abandoned us a few nights to sleep at my mom's house because of how cold it gets - he gladly accepts that open door policy!
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Many thanks to everyone for the gifts and loans! It was so nice of our parents for all the help they've offered and to everyone so far for the gifts of bedding, cast iron, pots and pans, dishes, grill utensils, buckets, screen tent, etc. You guys are helping us so much!

It's been rough trying to get orders done while living in a tent and I'm sorry for not posting as regular. Next week the nutrition posts will start back up and I'm learning how to keep things as normal as possible, because it's all a new kind of "normal" we've adopted - I just have to learn what that is.

Thank you for following the blog, and for showing your support the way you have - you are all the best!

​Until next time, wishing you good health to you and yours!