We started this grand adventure 18 May, filling the RV with personal items, cat litter boxes, carriers and kennels, and 19 cats. We remained in Ohio, parked down the road from my first brother’s house, for about three days before driving the paths to South Carolina. A stopover in Tennessee, then parking the RV at the Givhan’s Ferry State Park outside of Ridgeville, SC (think towards Charleston) found us learning how to live with one another and the cats. It wasn’t easy. John hates small spaces and the cats were accustomed to having nearly 2,000 square feet of house to run about (down to about 370 square feet).
After the closing finally happened on my parents’ house, we were able to move the RV from the state park to the front yard of their newly purchased home in Whitmire, SC on the 26th of May. The house is around 1,800 square feet on under two acres of land surrounded by 10 acres of wooded land. Oh, so peaceful! Still, we were living primarily in the RV, with all 19 cats.
John and I worked on the house for nearly five days while my parents returned to my second brother’s home outside of Charleston. As we worked on the house, we brought in “the big kids”, the older ones of our clowder. They had time inside as we worked during the day, then returned with us for the night in the RV.
Once Mom and Dad came back, for a few nights’ stay, we allowed a group of “the big kids” to remain in the house without the back and forth. All the while, the Council and the Coffees stayed onboard the RV. It was tough on a few of them to be so limited, which is probably the leading cause for Annikin Einar’s escape.
Two weeks into living in Whitmire, we lost Annikin to his grand adventure in the wilds of South Carolina. Other than a single possible sighting less than 24 hours after his escape, there had been no word about him. A couple weeks ago, John and I realized we were seeing him in the dusk and dawn around the property. It thrilled my heart to know Annikin was safe and nearby. Now, every morning we put out a fresh breakfast, and every evening we lay out a fresh supper and maybe some night-night treats.
My parents finally returned to the house. The big kids remained inside without coming back to the RV. And I continued living on the RV with the kittens, splitting my time between being in the house with the other half of our clowder and the ones staying on the RV. All the while, John worked in the house, in our two rooms, trying to prepare them for the Coffees and Council.
The day after Fourth of July, we bit the bullet and brought the entire clowder together. The kittens moved into the house. It went as smoothly as could be expected, and truthfully at this writing we are all still adjusting to blending the family back together again. In another post or blog, I will share the preparations John was making for the presence of the Coffees and Council. I am so incredibly proud of that husband of mine!
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