Nearing the end

I am nearing the end of my blog which I began Jan.1,2010. My husband left two days ago as he has finally ended his unemployment by securing a position as an overseas contractor in Afghanistan. My daughter and I will be getting an apartment soon and putting the rv in storage. Would I recommend this style of living to others ? I would have to say no or maybe I am just needing more stability than the rv lifestyle can offer. It is an adventure to say the least!

Biggest problems

I thought I would just list the downside of rving on this post.
1. Have to take very short showers, good for the environment
2. Trapped in a small space with people you may end up wanting to kill for fun and entertainment, or it does bring you closer if you don't kill them.
3. Brings new meaning to the words" riding the storm out", makes you feel like a real survivor.
4. You really have to limit your number of possessions, there are always storage lockers.
5. Your black tank can freeze or get plugged, what a feeling of exhilaration when you manage to get it flowing again!
6. For about the first year you bang your head when you get up on the frame of the slide or the overhead cabinet by the door, you also get to watch your guest do this even after you have warned them:-))

This is our home

Using way less propane

As first time rvers we literally stumbled on some things, a few months ago my husband was pouring over some of the manuals that came with our RV when he discovered that we are able to switch the hot water heater from propane to electric....who knew! Now it has been 3 months since we refilled the propane tanks, that's a big savings since our electric is included here in the RV park. We still use the propane only stove and oven for cooking but I really don't use the oven that much in the summer. I love to use the propane grill we have outside whenever possible, the food is always so flavorful and it is much healthier than frying. Something as simple as a bag of seasoned precooked hot wings are so delicious if you just crisp them up on the grill and the RV stays nice and cool.

We found an even cheaper way to live!

Can you believe that! We became members of our rv park and now we pay $90 every 2 weeks! What a bargain this includes space rent, electric, water, free wifi, use of an inground pool and we are on a beautiful lake. I think we are really blessed to have found such an economical way to live in this recession that America is experiencing.

Visitors!

Recently our daughter,son and two teenage grandchildren came to visit us for the weekend, we literally had wall to wall people in this 31 ft travel trailer! It was great to see everyone and lots of fun but a real juggle to make meals in the tiny galley for everyone., but just so you know it can be done! One big help was the showers here in the rv park so everyone didn't have to wait on the little 5 gal tank here to keep heating up. We really need to do some spring cleaning inside and out. Birds are everywhere and they all have nests and babies. It makes me smile everytime I go outside. I have been walking a mile about 5 days a week and trying to recover from a torn rotator cuff that has been really causing me a lot of pain. I would love to answer questions anyone has ....really I would.

Spring!

Beautiful spring has finally arrived! This was the longest and hardest winter of my life. It is like a long blur of shivering under a throw and buying tank after tank of propane. Now I can get outside everyday and enjoy some sunshine. This is the weather rving was made for. The coyotes are gone, replaced by a family of toads and many birds nesting and apparently thrilled to have spring upon us .Having many times been a bird mommy I don't mind the birds at all.
 We recently bought a memory foam mattress in an effort to relieve some of our aches and pains and I am not really impressed with its comfort. It still is an improvment over the standard rv mattress.
On the bright side we have been enjoying some really delicious meals from the bbq, can't wait til the fresh veggies arrive.

Geico cancelled our auto Insurance!

We recently received a letter from Geico insurance stating they had to cancel our auto policy because we do not have a "permenant address" . We have been in the same rv park since last July and have had the same PO Box. We have had Geico insurance for about 7 years and have lived in 3 states during that time but for some reason they have decided to get rid of full time rver's. Has anyone else had a problem like this? We have never filed an insurance claim and have perfect driving records and always have paid on time, so I feel this is very unfair treatment.

Coyotes!

At 5:17 a.m. today I decided what my blog should be about today as I laid in bed listening to a pack of coyotes howling and yipping their way through the rv park. This is of course unheard of during the tourist season as is the herd of deer that now feel free to graze their way through the park. Being the parent of a 7 pound Yorkie this can be quite alarming. During the tourist season the park has about 300 rvs and during the winter there are about 10 full timers. I suppose the wildlife feels free to roam the near desolate park now. During the tourist season the wildlife consisted of a flock of geese,some squirrels, an occasional doe with a fawn and assorted bird species. Knowing there is a pack of hungry coyotes outside my door is kind of unnerving to say the least.

How to shower in an rv

If you have never had a shower in an rv I suggest you read this first especially in cooler weather. First you wet yourself down then turn off the water and apply shampoo and soap then you can turn on the water again to rinse off, if you don't learn to turn on the water only for wetting down and rinsing you will end up with some very chilly showers. A hand held shower head that is made to increase the pressure is also nice to have as a lot of parks don't have very good water pressure. You really learn to appreciate some good water pressure! What a luxury.

Oh MY Aching Back!

Like I mentioned before living full time in an rv can really limit the exercise you get, they are almost impossible to exercise in and in the winter I can only force myself to face the cold for a very short time like maybe making a mad dash for the car. I suppose some people might be able to do a few simple stretches in an rv especially if they don't have a princess kitty who is trying to maintain her 14 year old feline figure and insists on stretching out beside me and trying to mimic my every move. Unfortunately laughing at your cat does not count as exercise. As a result I can definately tell I have lost some muscle tone since cold weather set in. I have also begun to have some pain and stiffness in my shoulder along with some limited movement. Another contributing factor is that rv matresses are like pull out sofa beds ...horrid. Ours is a short queen size on a wooden platform.

What it is really like to live and travel in an rv.

I have always heard you should write about what you know. I hope this blog will contain helpful information for those who are considering living in an rv.

In April 2009 we arrived in Nebraska, my husband is a heavy industrial electrician and he travels from job to job on ethanol plant builds,power plant expansions etc. We had been spending quite a lot in traveling and moving expenses sometimes living in a rundown motel room for months at a time at a phenominal rate. We travel with a yorkie, a cat and our 30 yr old daughter who sometimes works with her Dad.

I hope to cover some things in this blog I never knew about full time rving. Like how little exercise you get. How you have to really downsize in every way. We have a storage of things in NE and one in OK. The galley is a very small area and so is the stove and refrigerator, making it impossible to cook like you would in a house. I recently cooked the first holiday meal consisting of a smoked turkey breast, cornbread dressing, gravy, praline pecan sweet potato casserole, green beans and a coconut pie. It was the smallest holiday meal I have ever made and still I had to juggle making the items that needed baking.
      I don't want to sound all negative here. I can't think of any other way to live as cheaply as we do.  This recession we are in has left my husband unemployed most of this year. Even though all we had was his weekly unemployment check, we still had a lake at our doorstep and an inground pool to enjoy in the rv park we are at and for only ten dollars a day! We do have the expense of buying propane but that is our only utility expense. Let's stop here for now and I hope I have caught your interest and you will visit me again.