What’s the Beal’s Point of this Life Anyway?

A little over a month in and we’re right back where we started…. Beal’s Point-home base. Mike had shoulder surgery and came back home to the RV the same day.
The surgery went well, and the RV proved comfortable for his recovery. He is doing well and even helped tear down the yard, etc. for our departure. He really was an excellent patient. His pain has been manageable with ibuprofen and he feels confident he can drive to Santa Rosa for our next stay. I have kept him happy with fresh baked goods every day. I’ve found it’s easiest to mix up a batch of cookie dough and then only bake 9 cookies a night-9 big cookies fit on my pizza stone in the convection oven. I keep the dough in the fridge in a zip lock bag and bake it off over several days. I plan to freeze several batches before we head south to boondock in the desert later this month. That preparation will help reduce dishes and keep him in his beloved goodies. We MUST cut back from 9 though lol. WE feel the need to eat all 9 before the next evening lol! MUST GET BACK TO HEALTHY EATING! Soon lol!

Beal’s Point will always be remembered as our starting out point and I will always think of this area (EDH and Folsom Lake) as home. We finished raising our family here and the opportunities we had here helped afford us this adventure. It is a stunningly beautiful, safe, warm community. Beal’s Point is a wonderful state campground with nice sized sites and full 50-amp hook ups. My personal favorite site is 62. We had 64 for this trip and it was fine too.

 

It is located right off Folsom Auburn Road which makes travel to Folsom or Granite Bay/Roseville very easy. The couples who camp host are all very nice. They give you all the privacy you want but are also very approachable, friendly and knowledgeable. I enjoyed learning a little more about their full time RV lives. Thank you for making us feel welcome and affording just the right amount of privacy. Historic Sutter Street in Folsom is within a couple miles of the campground and so charming at Christmas time!

The Rainbow Bridge leading into Old Folsom is a historic landmark and one of the most stunning sites I had ever seen when I first moved to California 10 years ago. I vowed I would never forget how beautiful that bridge over the water was at that moment. We settled in and somehow over the years I began crossing Rainbow Bridge without even a thought, let alone a glance. I saw its beauty again with this visit. I was so grateful for that feeling!

The campground also sits on a huge trail system that is pedestrian, horse, and biker friendly. You can walk over a marathon one way on this beautiful, wide, established and largely paved trail. Yes, that sign says Negro Bar. It’s a state historical park where gold was discovered in 1849. Many groups have been consulted about the park name and it makes for some interesting reading if you choose to google it. It’s a beautiful park with easy Lake Natoma access for kayaking and canoeing. There are tons of blackberry bushes and hiking. Kayaks can be rented here as well as brought in. The water is ALWAYS ICE cold. Some kids jump in, but few stay in very long-it never warms up. It is filled from the bottom of Folsom Lake-ice cold snow melt!

There are also dirt trails easily marked in the wilderness along the lake’s shoreline. If that’s not enough, this time of year the lake is very low, and guests can enjoy miles and miles of exploring in the empty lake bed. Never know what you might find! All I found were broken sunglasses that someone probably lost boating last year but hey, you never know! There are lots of trees and rock formations that will be dozens of feet under the water this spring when the mountain snow melts.

The ruins of Mormon Island, one of the first sites gold was discovered in California, sit under the waters of Folsom Lake. Several artifacts were last discovered during the drought of 2013. Many locals bring their dogs and off leash running is allowed in the lake bed. The area is so vast it’s easy to find an area off to yourselves for your dogs to run and not interfere with others also hiking around. Be careful and check your dog’s paws frequently if they aren’t used to running on sand. Build up slowly if they’re new to it. It can really tear them up. Look at the water lines above you as you hike around and climb on the giant boulders. The current snow pack is above average for the season so far. If those levels are maintained until spring, that lake you are standing in could fill all the way to the top water line you can see. Stand there and imagine how much water that is for just a minute. The power of nature is so amazing! Another thing I am loving about this lifestyle.

We had 3 people sleep over at one time! Hannah came for 2 nights. She came down from Chico to bring some mail and packages and stayed so she could spend some time with the EDH family she nannied for over the past several years. We went to Dove Wood Court like we had done when she was young. Such amazing Christmas lights and only 10 minutes away. It’s an annual tradition that makes the local news every year! If you are in the area, it’s a must see!

The next night Cesar and YaYa (my great niece Julianna) stayed over since she had a basketball tournament in the area. Hannah and I went in to watch her play and had a great time. When I was working full time, I was selfish with the hours I had off. The kids would come down to stay and we wouldn’t go to their games. I always needed to fit in weekend household chores and run the errands for the next work week. Squeezing in extended family time felt like an added chore. How sad. I want to get to know my extended family again! Now, that I am in charge of my time, I went to her game with zero guilt and 100% pleasure! It was a fantastic afternoon!

Cesar slept on the fold down dining room table. While it is long enough for a shorter person to stretch out, he reports that the table is not very comfortable. Hannah and YaYa said the combination blow up sofa bed with mattress was a little hard but that can be adjusted with the amount of air you use. Others have told us it was comfortable.

YaYa and Cesar both needed to shower as did Mike. It was his third day post surgically and we had removed his pressure bandage. I had to dump the gray tank after YaYa’s shower-I had done 2 loads of laundry earlier in the day and showered myself. Once emptied (pulling up a lever) Cesar and Mike were both able to shower. Tankless hot water heater was AWESOME! One of my favorite guilty pleasures when we have full hook ups-loooonnnnnnggggg HOT showers are definitely on my agenda! Our shower is pretty good sized and has a seat to sit when shaving or whatever. Mike is 6’2” and can stand under the water. Pressure is good -never a problem rinsing my hair which is thick.

A tight but successful 3-person sleepover, a visit with my daughter, a successful surgery for Mike, lots of running for the dogs every single day, and a visit back to Folsom Care Center and the people I love, I should have been happy every minute, right?

Despite all of this, I’ve been moody, a little depressed I guess since getting to Beal’s. What does this lifestyle really mean? Do I have the courage to be true to this? Am I so programmed with beliefs in material status equating success that I can’t enjoy this?
The dream job I had thought I was going to start didn’t come to fruition. The position shifted from initial discussions of a liaison/trainer/quality assurance- ¾ time work with ½ time travel abroad as desired- to a managerial role ½ time with full time responsibilities negating any ability to really travel like we want. That was a big blow. I was looking forward to the stability of a regular position.

Not having guaranteed income is a renewed fear I ran from for years. I come from a lineage that put huge value on appearances-must have best yard in town, must have best car, best toys. That’s how it felt to me anyway. I had a baby at 19, single, and on welfare, not the best start per family standards. We struggled and clawed a curvy path out of poorness to own a home in El Dorado Hills and have money in the bank. I remember when we were scraping by, my biggest dream was to have enough money to buy a takeout pizza any time I wanted. We could buy a few pizzas or tacos or whatever we wanted. Security feels good! I was great at my position-my staff made it easy and we accomplished sooo much- and it came with the boss of a lifetime. I knew I was letting go of a great world, but for a greater cause-time doing what I love, with those I love. Knowing how good that would feel, I didn’t really think how it might feel to have less.

Would family still think the same of me? Would they see this change, this downsizing as downgrading? Money=adoration, money=success, money=approval, money=love, right? I know in my heart that’s not the case, but It’s a tougher one to get out of my head than I thought, I guess. Cutting our Christmas budget helped spark some of these feelings, I think. As I’ve been drafting this, I’ve been thinking about that. I’m agnostic. Yet the thought of not being able to blow thousands on a Christian holiday is upsetting me? That’s a little humorous and a lot sad really. I’ve decided I’m just grieving the past a bit, which is okay, and yes, I’ve made the right decision. Kiya thinks so anyway. She loves that I’m home every day for walks. When Tyler text me to inquire about Christmas gifts for us, these thoughts were heavy on my mind-I was working on this entry at the time. Here was our conversation. I hope he gives me what I want! I hope they all do! What a great gift!

I read about a local 49-year-old woman who just died in a car accident-speeding and not wearing a seat belt on Grant Line Road last night. I bet she had plans for tomorrow too.  A dear friend from my teenage years died in her sleep just 12 days before we went full time.  Katie was just 46.  I know she’s smiling down on me, encouraging me to walk to the beat of my owner drummer. 

 Mental note- don’t speed, buckle up, this lifestyle IS right. Maybe I just need to go back to Zihua to put it in perspective, maybe I need to read another obituary. I guess I just want you to know that it’s not automatic joy, this lifestyle. There are feelings I will need to work through, but I think the journey is the reward. Off to Santa Rosa!