We ♥ Hill Shade!

Several months ago, when we announced that we were headed back on the road, a reader named Summer left this comment over at WSLW:

"If you head down through Texas I know some tree hugging,
Jesus loving, hippies that own a small RV park."

Sweeeeeeeet! We were all over that one. Summer left me the web address of Hill Shade RV Park and of the owner's blog. I started to read through it, and I knew instantly that we would be spending time there.

Michael and Christine were in full time ministry for 20+ years and last year, they followed Jesus down an interesting (and sometimes scary) road. They left it all and bought an RV park in the middle of Texas. Oh, and did I mention that they have 5 kids? They are an amazing bunch and it's been such a blessing to live in community with them.

We've been at Hill Shade for almost 2 weeks and we love it. We're planning on staying at least another 6 weeks while Matt works on different projects for them around the park. We're one hour from Austin (love love love that town!) and one hour from San Antonio. We're 11 miles from the closest town, and we have longhorns for neighbors. The pastures are so green and beautiful and the wildflowers are a truly splendid sight. I now understand why people love Texas. Well, until summer hits anyway! I hear it gets pretty toasty warm 'round these parts.

Bella is in heaven...because their youngest daughter, Precious, is 7 years old. They tear up this place on their bikes every day and run, run, run until sunset. Tonight, Precious was gone to town for a few hours and I Bella was in full "friend withdrawl". I think she said "I'm bored!" 10 times in one hour.

They have 4 other kiddos, Mackenzie, Andrew, Rocky, & Marah...each one unique and wonderful in their own way. There is always something new and exciting going on around here.

Christine and I have much in common...we both love Jesus, we both have dreads, we unschool our kids, we like chia and green smoothies, and she doesn't complain when I bring her green curry. She's sassy and hilarious...and has the cutest southern drawl. Her blog is a hoot...her writing is irreverant and funny, and she tackles the big issues with ease.

The girl loves her coffee...every morning I see her doing her rounds in the park with a steamy cuppa joe in her hands.

Michael and Matt are having fun together too. The first 18 years of Michael's ministry was spent in youth ministry. Matt has a degree in youth ministry. Lots of stories to tell. Michael is trying to suck Matt into his sports watching obsession...but so far that isn't working. Both of their wives have dreads, and they both prefer that their hippie wives continue shaving their legs and armpits. Love those guys together.

We have an endless supply of farm fresh eggs (Christine takes Bella with her to pick them at a neighbor's house and then delivers them right to my door!). There is nothing quite like an egg that has been picked that very same day...yummy.

We have waters to test and docks to walk. There is a retired science teacher who lives just down the road and he has been showing Bella how to pick the wild onions in his yard and the wildflowers that are indiginous to this area. He's traveled the world and has the artifacts to prove it...such interesting people in the heart of Texas!

We've already had our dear friends, Dan and Alicia (along with their 4 kids) here for 11 days (more blogs on their visit soon!)...and now my parents will be coming down next week (yay!). Chris and Cherie of Technomadia fame will roll in right after they leave. After that, we have the NuRVer's rally, and hopefully more friends coming by to stay awhile! We're looking forward to all the excitement. Even in writing this, my heart leaps because we just love it here so much. Thanks Michael and Christine...and to Summer for planting a seed that has blossomed into a lifetime friendship.

You can see all the photos I've posted so far in the Hill Shade RV gallery. There will be more coming as I recap the Thiede's stay, but you can have a preview there :)

Tree of Life

Five years ago, I became very interested in the raw food diet and one of the first books that I bought was Rainbow Green Live-Food Cuisine by Gabriel Cousens. After reading his book, I KNEW that someday...I would visit the Tree of Life Rejuvenation Center.

Fast forward to last year when I watched the documentary Simply Raw: Reversing Diabetes in 30 Days. It's filmed at Tree of Life and is an incredibly inspiring film. Definitely worth seeing. Add to that, the fact that I had been reading the blog of one of the staff at Tree of Life, Courtney Pool...and it was ABOUT TIME we went there! (side note: you can find more information about my love of raw vegan foods on my blog, Happy Foody).

What is the Tree of Life? According to their website...

The Tree of Life Rejuvenation Center is the world’s leading spiritual, vegan raw and live food retreat center. It was founded in 1993 to promote spiritual awakening and to support an inspiring, healthy and “alive” lifestyle through education and first-hand experience. The Tree of Life Rejuvenation Center serves as an oasis for the realization of whole-person, whole-planet healing. It is a place where people of all ages, nationalities, and religious and spiritual paths come to experience physical, mental, emotional and spiritual renewal and well being.

We offer expertise and support in spiritual juice fasting and detoxification, live-food nutrition, spiritual living, sustainable living, and authentic and purposeful living through more than 40 different yet integrated programs, including our global peace initiatives and Culture of Life Community. People from more than 93 nations come to The Tree of Life for inspiration, a relaxing vegan vacation, or to regain health and vitality from a variety of diseases. It is here under the shade of our tree that they are rediscovering a life of meaning. We welcome you and are delighted to serve you in becoming the alive person and spirit that you truly are.

Our friends, James and Jennie, were really excited to go there as well...so we decided to all go together. We loaded the kids up in the minivan and headed one hour west to Patagonia, AZ.

You have to make reservations in advance...and the afternoon meal is $25 per person for the buffet. We arrived about 15 minutes early (lunch is served from 1-2pm), so we had a little time to explore. As the meal preparation was being finished, they gathered everyone who was there for a blessing. We all came together and held hands while the staff member spoke about peace within families (each day has a different focus).

After the blessing, we ran walked down to the kitchen and started filling our plates with raw food goodness. It was so heavenly. I wanted to just stand there for a moment and soak it all in. The colors, the people, the smells.

There was a salad bar with HUGE bowls of freshly picked greens and sprouts...4 different dressings, fruit + granola, nut/seed pates, spaghetti, "raw"violis with nut cheese between thinly sliced beets (this was the entree), sweet potatoes (my fav), two kinds of kale salad, and so much more! All of this food was 100% raw and organic. *swoon*

All of the seating is outside...with amazing views all around. Some people were sitting on the ground...others gathered at the tables, and some were praying/meditating off away from everyone else before they ate. We quickly realized that there were no high chairs at Tree of Life :) So, we took turns holding Lucy while the other ate. It was SO SUNNY and amazing outside...I could have sat there for several hours.

While we were sitting there, the lead chef at Tree of Life, Kosan, came over for a visit. Jennie and I talked with him for several minutes until Bella came back and booted him from her chair. Kosan is a master vegan raw food chef...he has been a chef, cafe owner, teacher of healthy cuisine and lifestyle for over 25 years. It was fun chatting with him.

After we ate, we walked around the grounds a little bit. They have several greenhouses where they grow all the food. If you've never tasted greens/salad that are freshly picked...you are missing out! So tender and soft...nothing like the greens that have been sitting on the grocery store shelves. We walked back to the teepee, which Bella thought was really cool. We've decided to add "sleeping in a teepee" to our list of things to do in our lifetime.

The babies were getting restless and it was time to head home...but not without a stop to the store/office to say hello to Courtney. I had meant to email her and let her know we were coming...but my forgetful mama brain won out. I knew I had to at least TRY to catch her before we left and tell her how much I enjoy her blog.

When we got to the office, I stepped inside and the first person I saw was Dr. Gabriel Cousens. Now there is a guy with a lot of letters behind his name!! I felt healthier just being in the same room with him :)

I walked back to the store and asked if Courtney was in, but was told that she had stepped out for a Q & A session. So, I browsed the store a bit and found a few items that I had been searching for at the last couple of Whole Foods with no luck...raw nori and green stevia. Yay!

Jennie came inside too and we had a nice chat with one of the staff members about cameras and dreads. Just as we were about to leave, Courtney walked in and we were able to meet and hug and chat briefly. Jump on over to her blog for some raw food inspiration!

It was a day that will remain in our hearts for a long time...so much inspiration and beauty. If you ever have a chance to visit the Tree of Life for a retreat...or even just a day...do it! You won't be sorry.

Here is a video that I made with some of the highlights of our day there. Many of you have expressed an interest in the Tree of Life, so I hope that you'll enjoy seeing it "in motion"!

Photos of our time at Tree of Life here.
All photos available for comment on Flickr here.

39 Floors Above Vegas

A few months ago, I got this message on Flickr:

Are you a homeschoolin' RV mama? I know, strange question, lol. Someone suggested I find 'delight' on here since I'm about to go RV'ing for a little bit, and I'm wondering if you are she!

Tiffani

I wrote Tiffani back and assured that I "I am she". :) I started following her amazing Flickr stream...and realized that she is a total freak about photography, just like me. We sent a few more messages...and I always looked forward to her photos. I also started reading her blog, Child's Play.

Then, a few days before we were leaving Vegas, I got another message that said she was going to BE IN VEGAS for 3 days! Yay! That's what I'm talkin' about. Tiffani was going to be tagging along to Vegas while her husband attended a convention there. They left the kiddos with Grandma.

After a few failed attempts at connecting, we were finally able to make it happen. We picked her up at the Four Seasons (where Matt happened to walk right by Cameron Diaz!) and we headed out for Thai food. Afterwards, we hung out in her huge hotel room on the 39th floor. Our ears popped as we were going up there!

Lucy loved sitting at the window and looking at the pretty lights. We were so high up that it kind of made us dizzy looking down to the ground!

We all curled up in the cushy bed and giggled like we were having a slumber party. It was a good time.

We had such fun talking about unschooling, photography, Jason Mraz, and life in an RV. It's really amazing how we can feel like old friends in such a short time thanks to the connection we had online. Can't wait to run into this family again on the road somewhere...

You can check out her sweet blog here.
And her Flickr stream here.
Photos from our time together here.
All photos available for comment on Flickr here.