It has been a while and I have many things to report! Since my last post we have collected most of the items we ordered with various levels of drama. For example we took possession of the Sunbank solar water heater, which arrived via freight. However a few of the glass tubes were broken as the box containing them was not strapped down and had fallen off the pallet. We are in the process of ensuring we receive replacements for the broken tubes.
We drove to Flagstaff to pick up most of the components for our solar system from Northern Arizona Wind and Sun. We knew there were a couple things on back order so a second trip will have to be made when the time comes.
Our large order from Home Depot has been collected via trips to the store and receipt of multiple packages. Our cargo trailer is full of stuff. At present we are waiting for our contractor to install the garage door on our new building. Once this is done we will begin to install the solar and plumbing systems with the ability to lock it up overnight. The contractor said mid-June, so we are hoping that his team will be out there next week.
Our fridge died (for the second time in a year) in April - this month it was finally repaired (delayed due to the factory being closed during the shut down), which was a huge relief. We have been using a Dometic chest fridge/freezer, which was awesome and will be our main fridge on our land, but it took up a lot of room in our tiny trailer. It is nice to have floor space back!
My parents, who have been in Arizona since February, left this morning. Since April we have been parked next to each other and the kids have been able to go between our spaces. Because of the corona virus I have been doing the shopping for both of our households and they helped us at the land and with watching the kids. We had become accustomed to their presence and will miss them. I also worry for their health and safety as they travel across the country - but fully understand their desire to return home to Michigan. We had a pretty nice setup and we ate most dinners together (many outside).
Yesterday, though Sister's BD is in July, we had a surprise party so that we could include Nana and Papa. It was a nice event although the wind was crazy and made being and eating outside rather difficult. I can't believe Sister is almost 6 years old.
Our three year anniversary of RV living is this month! Given the state of the country (pandemic, civil unrest, high unemployment, recession/depression) I am so very thankful to have the ability to be mobile. This arrangement has also allowed us to simplify our life and finances and to pursue the completion of this long-term goal of having a self-sufficient homestead. No one can say exactly what the future holds, but I will feel very secure having a base of operations as well as the ability to travel.
In Rancho Status Quo news, we got a new chainsaw and have been trimming trees. As a result we have had some very nice evenings around the fire pit.
In homesteading news I have added a new set of recipes to my repertoire - spreadable cashew cheese! This stuff is wonderful spread upon my solar oven baked sourdough. I linked to one recipe above, but I have been trying variations with ideas from Pinterest.
Brother and Sister are pretty much done with the Homeschooling year. Brother has a few last math lessons to complete which we are going to spread out over the summer to keep him fresh. Sister has come along leaps and bounds with her reading - it finally clicked for her - so we have to keep reading so that she continues to become comfortable and increase her skill. Regardless of what happens with the public schools (and the homeschool enrichment program we were attending) we will not be returning to any public settings in the fall. As a public health expert, I advise remaining far away from others until you can obtain a vaccine that has been sufficiently tested - that is what I am going to do - I will be teaching online only.
I hope that you and yours are safe and healthy and that you are able to follow your bliss even in the midst of these troubling times.
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