The Struggle is Real

Have you ever had one of those days that just feels like a struggle? Today was that day for me. We’ve been living in our RV for almost a month now, and while there have been plenty of good days, today was the first time it really hit just how hard this transition can be.

I want this blog to be a positive space, a place where the good in each day is celebrated. But I also want it to be real. There are so many blogs and social media accounts out there that look perfect from the outside—beautiful photos, perfectly styled spaces, everything in its place. I love a gorgeous Instagram feed as much as anyone (the perfectionist in me can’t help but admire those flawless shots), but sometimes I worry that all that perfection sets the bar impossibly high. It’s easy to start comparing real life to the highlight reel we see on our screens.

That’s not what I want for this space. Whether this blog stays small and intimate or grows to thousands of followers, the most important thing to me is that it stays honest. This should be a place for anyone—whether cooking in a grand kitchen with a fancy European stove or in an RV with an oven that, while nice for an RV, still manages to burn the bottom of my three-day-process sourdough! It’s okay to not be perfect. I have to remind myself of that every single day.

If you look at the photo above, you won’t see a kitchen that looks like it just jumped out of a magazine. Instead, you’ll spot a tiny sink filled with dishes waiting to be washed, a much smaller and definitely non-European stove, a bowl of whipped mascarpone for pancakes (which, by the way, took twice as long to make in this space), and a loaf of sourdough with parchment paper burned onto the bottom because my oven and I haven’t quite formed the bond I had with my last one. That’s real life right now, and honestly, it’s okay to laugh about it.

We’re still in the middle of transitioning, and I know that once we’re settled in our destination, things will get easier. Everything will have a place, and it won’t feel like such a struggle. That’s the most important part of any space: making it work for you, making it feel like home.

When we traveled full-time in our RV before, it didn’t feel like such a challenge. We had minimized our belongings, kept things simple, and every day felt like an adventure. The small space didn’t matter as much. But today, I found myself missing my old oven that baked sourdough bread to perfection, and all the countertop space where I didn’t have to worry about knocking things onto the floor.

I know we’ll work out the kinks and find our rhythm in this new space. I just have to remind myself to be patient. In the meantime, my “Something Good” today was the time we got to spend with our grandchildren. That’s worth its weight in gold and trumps any little growing pains about living in a small space.

Here’s to letting go of the perfectionist side, keeping things real, and enjoying the moments—messy, imperfect, and all.