wash 'em up!
Oh, the inspiration that comes when you can get the dishes done.
Well, turns out, if there isn’t a system in place… it can bare a lot of stress.
Who’d have thought?
Well, it also turns out, not us.
My sweet and wonderfully talented husband surprised me the other day with a brand-new washing station. And I’m obsessed.
Y’all yes. Believe it or not, this right here is what gets my skirt flyin’.
Systems. Rhythms. A hard-working husband.
This is what my station looked like previously. It was fine. It does well for the campsite. It hurt my back lugging water to the table. But it did its job for us, and I was glad to say adios when we did.
But truth be told, making an outdoor space suitable for everyday life is actually pretty tricky. And having the idea in your mind that it’ll be like “one big camping trip” is completely unrealistic.
The RV or tiny life, that Cooper and I have overly romanticized for several years, is actually - very hard. Especially with unrealistic expectations & being pregnant & parenting & dealing with the heat.
At least with a big ‘ol camping trip, I can throw my dirty and crusty dishes and clothing in another bag to deal with upon arrival back to home. Hop in the shower to get the yuck off and snuggle right up into bed with a good book to read whilst the toddler snoozes the night away.
For now - gone are the days.
This can be quite stressful on a marriage.
But keeping Christ at the center & working WITH your partner and not against them, can truly make all the difference in the world. It isn’t just one person feeling the load, it’s the entire family.
So here is my sweet and amazing husband. Building me a new station to do all my things. The things I’ve been yelling and crying about.
Yes, y’all. yelling and crying. (Can we just blame it on the pregnancy hormones?)
The ugly realities that I’m embarrassed to even talk about, but I want to. I feel convicted to share this journey. Because I was under the impression it would be a lot easier. Mentally, I thought I knew how hard it was going to be to transition to this lifestyle.
However, I hadn’t a clue.
Mimi came up with the brilliant idea of creating a “sink”, by placing the 5-gallon bucket underneath my washing bucket. That way I’m not continuously dirtying my soapy water. Where my drying rack is I place 1-2 more buckets of scalding hot water to rinse off the soap and give one last scrub to then place on the wrapped countertop to air dry.
On the opposite side of the washing station, is a completely private outdoor shower space. Try taking a shower facing the gravel road without getting caught. It’s a learned art ha!
The clothesline is attached to the top of the largest post and strung across the yard to the nearest tree. I am able to rinse sweaty & dirty clothing then hang to dry. This helps with the “sour smelling” clothing that was laying around. Like a high school locker room. ew.
I was not using my head with this one.
I’m so very humbled and so very thankful. And I am reminded that it’s okay to acknowledge the hard WHILE being kind and going about expressing the hard with grace, deep breaths and prayer.
I don’t mean praying for myself “me, me, help me” however, praying for others. Getting my mind off of myself.
The view from our shower is of our side pasture; eventual paddock for… maybe… sheep? Cooper really wants meat sheep, and I can’t say that I’m not interested, because I totally am.
Thank God, for Cooper. For his even temper. For his generosity. For his grounding that he provides for me. For his love for his wife who can be sure fire wild. Thank you, God!
Oh, thank heavens for humility. So good. So necessary.
Cheers!