The Perfect Day

We woke up to rain on Friday, April 19^th but we didn’t mind at all.  We used the morning to bake biscuits in the oven (pro tip for our RV – the oven is tiny and cooks at a much faster and hotter rate than a normal oven so they all had hockey puck bottoms) and sip our coffee slowly, listening to the rain come down around us.  I love slow relaxing mornings and this was especially nice since we had a good drive ahead of us.

The slow morning also gave me time to reflect on what seem to be the most common phrases on our trip so far:

What’s that smell?

What is today?

Do you need to go outside to pee?  (Thankfully that one is for the dogs only)

Even at our leisurely pace we got on the road by 10am and drove through lots and lots of rain to Mike Roess Gold Head Branch State Park outside Jacksonville, Florida.  That’s a mouthful for a state park name so I just call it Mike Ross (because I actually have no idea how that word is pronounced). 

The four hour drive took much longer but believe me, it was worth it when we got there.  Florida has the most amazing state parks and each entrance says something about them having the best state parks in the nation – and we agree!

Our site was very large and very wooded and shady.  After setting everything up we took the dogs to a huge open park and after having been in the car all day, they ran around like crazy and we laughed.  Belle really lets loose sometimes and we just love seeing her enjoying herself off leash, chasing squirrels, sniffing new things and having the time of her life.

Brodie rolled around in the grass, scratching his back and loving life.  Dave just looked at him in amazement and said, “Look at him!  He’s happy as a pig in….. Florida.”

Here’s why Mike Roess State Park is so incredible to me.  I love the huge moss covered trees that provide shade as well as homes for birds and squirrels.  I love the low palmettos mixed in with towering pine trees.  I love walking across a bed of crunchy brown leaves that made everything else seem quiet.  I love the dozens of lily pads on the beautiful lake.  I love the sandy trails where you could see what animals walked before you.

I could seriously live here.  Forever.  Forget Austin, forget Texas, forget everything I’ve known about the outdoors.  I want to live in Mike Roess State Park outside Jacksonville, Florida and all my friends and family can come visit and ask me to come back to Texas and I’ll say no.  Mike Roess is my home now.

The evening ended a little quicker than I would have liked because we had a glass of some cheap white wine I got from Publix (full disclosure:  it was Yellow Tail) and that stuff was full of sulfites and sulfites and I don’t agree.  I had a raging headache that I was convinced was an aneurysm until Dave read the label and reminded me that I can’t drink wine that has so many sulfites.  I went to bed at 8:30 and swore off cheap white wine forever.

Saturday I woke up all better and thank God because Saturday was The Perfect Day.  I’m really trying not to be hyperbolic here but I can’t remember when all the cogs in the universe came together so perfectly and so in harmony in my life to create what I consider to be the perfect day.

First, the weather was unbelievable.  The sun was warm but there was a cool breeze that kept things from heating up and there was almost no humidity.  We took the dogs back to the big open area and they ran around and acted crazy and we laughed and held hands and enjoyed just being outside together.  Once we got back, we didn’t even put the dogs in the pen because our slot was so spacious.  They ended up just hanging around the rig, resting comfortably, basking in the sun.  Everyone was calm and happy.

We read our books, we napped in the sun, we went for walks and I felt so at peace.

And we had our first campfire after dinner!  The logs crackled when the flames jumped and we talked by the fire.  Even though we didn’t have marshmallows it was awesome.  (Besides, I don’t even like marshmallows.)  Dave and I are amazed that after 18 days together in a tiny RV, together 24/7, our bond is stronger and healthier than when we left.  We laugh a lot, we work together as a team, we stay focused on the journey, not the destination, and we both truly appreciate this gift of time that we are taking advantage of.  We want to make sure that we utilize each day in the healthiest way possible, taking care of each other, focusing on what’s important and making memories that we’ll talk about in the old folks home.

And we are!