Lake Brownwood

Eldon is 3 weeks into his 13 week contract with the Brownwood Regional Medical Center. He is enjoying it. I am happy that he is not hating it :) . He works 3 days one week and 4 the next, which means every other weekend he has off. We are planning to stay down here until his weekend off then take the camper the 3 hours back to dads. 

So far the only place we have stayed is Lake Brownwood State Park. We bought a state park pass and that has already saved us well over $100.  I have no desire to go anywhere else. The only downside is Eldon has 30 min to work. It also means I'm way out here with no vehicle most of the time. I'm not complaining about that either! Right now the park is very empty and I'm loving it. The place is huge so I doubt if I'll ever feel crowded. I like that the children can ride bike on the road and I don't worry about them getting hit. I like that there is no playground so they are content to stay near the camper. I like that the water is close enough to see and hear but far enough that unless I'm being really negligent, the children couldn't get there without me seeing.

A map of "our park"

They have a lot of these adorable stone cabins scattered throughout the park. I love how secluded they are.

We can see the fishing pier from our living room window. We've walked out there once but it freaks me out because my children think it's soooo fun to lean over and look at the water. 

Just gorgeous

Makayla wanted to take a picture of the lake.

Reading a story to her teddy bear. I wish I could freeze these moments.

Another naptime shot. Trying so hard to not sleep!

Another sunset

Silence is no longer golden.

Who needs toys when you have flip-flops anyhow?! I have not regretted the huge toy purge one bit. They haven't either!

In case you are wondering, yes, we still love each other and our camper. None of us would go back to a house if we had the option. Yes, maybe we are crazy but that's ok. At least, we are ok with it :) . It has it's challenges but we are learning to work through them. Instead of sending a naughty child to their room we have to actually deal with the problem. This has been a very good thing for all involved. My patience has been stretched (and honestly, broken a few times) to the max and is growing. I have 4 children who love to "help" cook and be underfoot. Eldon and I have both become more deliberate in giving them more responsibility and so far the messes have been minimal. So yes, it's different and it's not for everyone but we are happy and certain that we are in the center of  God's will.