cabin fever

i am hesitant to blog about my cabin, because i honestly feel it is such a luxury. i really struggle each month to make the payment on it, seriously, i have to ask myself over and over if it is worth the financial sacrifice. i basically work a weekend or two extra each month to pay for it. for years and years i have had a love/hate relationship with where i live. i love being close to the beach and close to my family. but over all, i have a wanderlust so strong, i read travel memoirs by the dozens and long to live ANYWHERE! on a cliff in italy, an igloo in greenland, a tropical island, an adobe cave in the desert, a straw hut in africa...you name it, i want to go there. i traveled every year to europe for years, charging my way across the globe, paying for it later, who cares! then kids came along and it just became too expensive and difficult. emily was awesome on a trip we took to italy with my parents when she was a year and a half old, but when lizzie joined us it was just too much. if i had unlimited amounts of money, then i am sure traveling abroad would be different, but we are always on a major budget. this doesn't mean i won't ever take my kids on an international trip, it just means not until we can enjoy it...maybe paris? :)

so, back to the cabin. i needed something to help me with my taxes (i am self employed) and we needed something to do in lieu of big vacations, something to help us get away from the hustle and bustle of the city. a friend turned us on to the green valley lake area and immediately we were hooked. it's a small vacation area, small and rural and very laid back. cabins at the time were expensive, but no where near what houses in long beach were going for. we pulled out some equity and made the plunge. i can say, it has been a great lesson in paying bills on time and cutting it close each and every month. my comfort level for a checking account balance has been greatly challenged, but month after month we seem to make it work. it is just a priority and i can say i am thankful every time i am able to get away and relax up in the mountains, back to nature. i have always been a "camp" type person, having spent most of my summers away at camp and loving every minute of it! i am so jealous of people who live every day of their lives in a natural setting, i know someday i will too.

for anyone struggling to take a chance on a vacation home or anything risky like this, i say, just go for it! if it's right for your family, something you really need to do, just go for it. we have made it work for two years now and the difference it has made in our lives is priceless.

fisher price 1970's version of our cabin, gotta love ebay!

our silkscreened version of cabin living.

i had the kids paint their version of our cabin during our first weekend trip (of course i had to try one too). the a-frame book was a present from my husband, we love mid century modern design, the cabin was built in the sixties and compliments our long beach house built in 1953.