I'm not a doctor, but I play one on TV: March 2009

My husband is in a position to reinvent himself, or at least that is the positive spin I have put on it. Our business has gone through so many changes over the years. This, though, seems like the last change. We have decided to close shop and slowly work our way out of the business once dh figures out what he wants for the next chapter in his and our lives. He jokes that this year will kind of be a sabatical. So after we get the garage cleaned out and all of the business moved home, what's next?

First, a garage sale! Maybe more like a basement sale. We have a ton of stuff to get rid of. We are planning it to coinside with the Eagle Lake/Crooked Lake sales. I called the township and found out they are April 17th and 18th so that is set.

Second, we need a vacation, or better described as an adventure! We haven't really gone anywhere for 6 years. I worry about an adventure with a three and a half year old but maybe I can find the grace to survive. :)

So where will we go? WEST! When I was 11 years old my parents took us on an adventure. There wasn't much of a plan. We had two weeks and $800. We had a full size conversion van and a tent for a family of 5. My parents took the $800 and split it into two envelopes. One for each way. So when the first envelope ran out we started headed back towards home. We ended up starting towards Branson where we had relatives and ventured across the panhandle of Texas to New Mexico where we got to see the land my dad bought when he was in the Army. Then to the Grand Canyon, Painted Desert, Momument Valley, into the Rockies, over to Mount Rushmore and Crazy Horse, Wall Drug, Corn Palace and back home to Michigan. Sure, we didn't make it to California or the northwest but we had a great time! If we just had had a little more money maybe we would have made it to the Pacific!

So, while we reinvent we will give our entire family an adventure and hopefully learn something new about ourselves. Life is all about learning!

We hope to be able to pull this off by May but might have to delay until July if we can't come up with the funds. I will keep this blog updated on our progress and our adventure. I think this can be a learning experience for everyone. I will chronicle our route, expenses and experiences.

We have a Ford Excursion so will have plenty of room to pack. It doesn't get great gas mileage but I guess it does better on the highway. Dad has most of the camping gear we need. I will take inventory when I actually see it. We will tent it and live out of a cooler as much as possible. I don't know how much money we can scrape up but I would shoot for at least $1500.

Keep watching and see what happens!