Full-time RV'ers for nearly 2.5 years

Since Husband and I have been together we have lived in 10 different homes.  That is an average of approx 2.5 years in each - of course we were in some places for a very short time and the longest 8 years.  Nevertheless we've moved a lot.  We've lived in 7 different cities and two states.  We moved for jobs, for opportunities, for adventure and for dreams.  We've moved for practical reasons and because of what we imagined was possible.  Nearly 2.5 years ago we moved from a 4000 square foot house into a 200 square foot RV.  It was much to small for our family, but because we were committed to making some significant changes to our way of life and wanted to test out RV living. 

Our first house on wheels

Living area in the Hideout

We lived in our tiny, 200 square foot Hideout for a year and a half (Inside it was ~ 26' long by 8' wide).  We traveled over 6,000 miles with it.  In January of this year we bought a new truck and RV to substantially upsize our living space (to 315 square feet).  The rig is longer, (just over 30') but it has two deep slides so we have an open area inside.  

Extra width in our new place

Living area in the Mesa Ridge

Living in an RV has a number of advantages - most significantly we are debt-free and have been saving a significant portion of our income for 2.5 years.  Secondly, moving is a breeze - We've been in situations when we needed to move for a job, but were unable to sell our house for what we paid.  Like many Americans we have experienced being house poor.  We have experience as landlords...forced into renting out a property because we couldn't sell.  I am very content that I don't have the burden of home ownership weighing on me.   I am also nervous about the housing market in 2020 and beyond - economists say the housing market has recovered from the 2008-09 financial crisis but there are reasons to think another large recession is coming soon.  It seems working Americans can't get a break - we put all of our money into our homes only to have our homes fall in value as a result of the irresponsible actions of those motivated by greed in the financial sector.  So, yeah, I am glad that I am not currently invested in a house.  Third, we've been able to hit the road for two summers in a row to tour our National Parks and appreciate the beauty of this country.  Our RV provides the comforts of home even off grid due to a solar system.  Fourth, our whole interaction with the material world has been transformed - we cannot accumulate stuff like we used to.  We have donated and sold a huge majority of our possessions.  We are deliberate in our purchases and our things are practical.  Lastly, though the space is easily cluttered, it is also easily cleaned!

Living in an RV has a few disadvantages as well.  The biggest one I see in our future is that Brother and Sister will not want to share a tiny bunkhouse for too much longer.  Brother has the larger (wider) bed above the cabinets and Sister has the longer (narrow) bed above the table.  They each have one drawer, the space under one of the benches as well as a closet.  Their possessions (other than stuffed animals which compete for bed space) fit in those spaces.  As they grow, as their clothes get larger, this space will seemingly shrink.

Having friends over is challenging - it's not that we can't  entertain, it's just not a very comfortable set up and we have to spend a good amount of tine outdoors as there are not enough seats inside.  We've been invited more than we have invited and I dislike my failure to reciprocate.  Lastly, and this is a big one....I miss my desk!  I would love to have a home office....sitting here in my massage chair is awesome, but having two monitors and a desk would be amazing.  Along those lines - we still have the problem of not being able to adequately spread out for school/work.  We thought having the bunkhouse would help, but we still do school and work at the kitchen table.  Perhaps if we had a house we would still do school at the kitchen table...that is where homework used to take place when we had a house and Brother went to school...

Yes, massage chairs!!!

There is a stigma that comes with this lifestyle choice because being frugal is not appreciated in this society.  Most people are all wrapped up in identities associated with their consumption and purchases.  Homes and cars make people feel successful (or not).  If your identity is associated with  home ownership and the type of car you drive you probably won't have many positive words for a family that lives in a travel trailer.  Additionally, for a family in AZ, it is really hard to find a decent RV community since so many cater to the 55+ community.  There are also more and more people/families pursuing the full-time parked life due to the low cost, so it is hard to find long-term lots.  We've rented monthly lots in four parks and each has pros and cons (some parks only have cons).  Good parks require criminal background checks and do some sort of screening prior to letting you move in.  In bad parks your used tennis shoes may be stolen from your steps (yes, that happened to me).

Despite the cons, it has been a great adventure and it's fun to reflect upon as we approach our 2.5 year anniversary.  After the holidays my parents will snowbird (in their RV) to AZ from MI and we will enjoy having them around....then we will be planning summer 2020!

Final accounting...

When we talked about getting a larger trailer and truck I was optimistically thinking we would spend $40,000 out of pocket (after selling off the Hideout and Tacoma).  Yesterday we sold the Tacoma and could calculate the final out of pocket cost....it ended up being $42,000.  So I was very close in my estimation.  While we did finance both the new truck and trailer from both dealerships we will be paying them both off this month from the proceeds of the sales as well as drawing from our savings. 

We ended up selling the Tacoma to a dealership after using Kelley Blue Book to get the range of values for trade-in/cash/private party sale.  It appeared our range was approximately $21,500-$26,500.  While we were very fortunate with the sale of the Hideout we didn't want the hassle of finding a buyer for the Tacoma.  We thought if we could get $24,000 we would be happy.  We ended up with $23,800 after visiting three dealerships (Kelley Blue Book was $23,600, 1st dealership was $22,000, second matched KBB, and final dealership went to $23,800).  The second two dealerships were concerned about buying a manual transmission - they were unsure if they would be able to sell it.  So...if you are keeping track that means we got $37,400 for the sale of the Hideout and Tacoma.  That is a return of 70% of our combined original purchase price (with sales tax). 

So....here are some take aways...if you are thinking about embarking on a full-time RV life, you want to buy new, and if you are a family of two I would say that you could find a truck for around $30,000 and a trailer for around $20,000 and be really comfortable.  If you are a family of four (with two members growing at some ungodly pace) then you need about $45,000 for a truck and $35,000 for a trailer.  I am sure there are deals to be had in the used market.  In terms of new, I feel that we have been very frugal in terms of finding the most economical truck and trailer in the classes/sizes we were exploring.  We have limited handyman skills and even less time to devote to projects, so we did not want to buy anything that needed to be fixed or worked on.  But the family that bought our Hideout got a good deal and won't need to work on anything - so there must be other deals out there, they just take time to find.  With that said, I have seen/heard of people living in all sorts of refurbished trailers. 
From our original rig to our current we paid 60% more and we have 60% more living space in the trailer and 200% more payload in the truck.  If you are going to start from scratch, I highly recommend buying the trailer first and then fitting the truck to the trailer instead of being limited by the truck.  However, if you already have a truck and want to use it (like we did with the Tacoma) then by all means do what you have to do to get out on the road!

Good News!

Well, it has been two weeks since we listed the Hideout for sale and today we accepted an offer of $13,600 for it.  The sale should take place on Wednesday - I hope it all works out as anticipated.  We are going to meet the buyers at our bank (actually we all bank at the same place) and transfer the funds and title.  We paid $22,000 for the Hideout in June of 2017 so our monthly cost of living for the 19 months we lived there was $450.  Now that we have our larger home we can reduce the cost significantly by staying in it for longer. 

In other news, I've written before about how much we've wanted to simplify our life and part of that was getting out of the rental business.  In 2017 we sold three houses (our primary and two rentals), but we still had one rental remaining.  We were talking about how much we want to be done with renting over the holiday break - but we've had an awesome tenant in the house for the past three years.  In January I decided to call them and how they would feel about us selling the house.  To my surprise they told me they were going to move out!  So we listed the house and they started moving.  In the meantime we accepted an offer.  This past weekend the tenants moved out and tomorrow is the appraisal for the sale.  We are scheduled to close on that house at the end of the month.  It has all happened so smoothly!

I'm just so happy that in only one month all of this change has taken place and everything has fallen into place.  Life is very good.

Tow trucks...

You may want to ignore this post if you don't care much about tow vehicles 😉

The #1 rookie mistake is to only look at the towing capacity of the truck...unfortunately choosing a vehicle to tow your trailer is a bit more complicated.  Oh, and by the way, neither the trailer dealers nor the truck dealers will have the correct information so you seriously need to do your research.

When we first bought the Hideout we were focused on our Tacoma's towing capacity of 6,500 lbs.  We were looking for a trailer that had a dry weight in the area of 4,750-5,000.  The Hideout is at 5,000 lbs dry.  The trailer sales rep told us that for each person staying in the trailer add 150 lbs of personal property (not true if you are full-time).  Ok, we figured that we would have about 600-1000 lbs of personal property and we would be well under the max towing capacity of the truck.  However the GVWR (Gross Vehicle Weight Rating) of the Hideout is 7,500 lbs and we altered the Hideout before we even brought it home by having the dealer enclose the underbelly.  When we have weighed it we have been over 6,500 lbs by a couple hundred pounds despite trying to thin out our personal property.  So we have been overweight on towing capacity alone, but that is only part of the issue.

You also have to consider the payload of the truck.  The payload is the weight of all the stuff the truck can carry including passengers, stuff in the bed, the weight of the hitch, and the tongue weight of the trailer.  Trucks front and rear axles also have maximum weight ratings.  If the tongue weight of your trailer is around 1000 pounds and the truck's payload is only slightly over 1000 lbs you have no available weight for passengers and stuff in the bed.  This is also the problem we ran into.  Our rear axle was overloaded by approximately a hundred pounds.  The Tacoma is an awesome truck and despite the fact that we were slightly over towing capacity and payload it performed really well on steep grades up and down as well as on flats in windy conditions.  However, it did give me stress.

This time we are wise to the details.  Our new Mesa Ridge has a GVWR of 9000 lbs - that is the maximum it should weigh with property, propane, & water.  The tongue weight is 931 lbs and we want to include 700 pounds for passengers, bikes in the bed and other stuff.  In other words we need a payload of at least 1630 and a towing capacity of over 9000 lbs.  However we don't want to be right up against these limits, we want a little room to work with.

The trailer always has a sticker either on the side, inside or both that looks something like this:

I also really want to maximize fuel efficiency - this is something that really give me heartburn about upgrading the rig.  So I did a lot of research into half ton trucks and found that the Ford F150 comes in many different configurations including a 4x4 with a towing capacity of 10,700 lbs. and a payload of 2030 lbs.  The unloaded mpg are 17 city, 23 hwy, and 19 combined.  Because we use the truck as our second vehicle while "home" and because we use the truck for sightseeing once the rig is unhitched we could benefit from a truck with decent gas mileage.  We want the option of 4x4 for the land because those dirt roads get bad and are not maintained by the county.  We want enough truck to pull the trailer, but not too much truck so as to sacrifice gas efficiency.  We were looking for the Goldilocks truck!

So we spent a few days traveling to six different Ford dealerships looking for a very specific configuration of truck.  The necessities were a truck with a payload of 2000 lbs or close to it, a towing package, 4x4, and towing capacity of over 10,000 lbs.  We also wanted the 3.5L V6 Ecoboost engine which give you the max power with the best gas efficiency.  At many dealerships we were disappointed that their "best" truck had a payload in the 1700's.  This is because of all the other options piled on which cost more in terms of money and weight.  We soon learned that we needed a very basic model with few frills to meet our payload requirement.  Finally we found one at Camelback Ford...here are the stickers from inside the driver's door:

Together you can get a good idea about how much weight is available on the rear axle, which is the one you have to avoid overloading.  With this truck the Gross Vehicle Weight Rating (maximum load is 7000) and the payload, or available cargo/passenger/trailer weight is 1994 lbs.  We anticipated needing around 1700 lbs of payload considering the weight of our family, cargo, the hitch and the tongue weight of the trailer. 

The final piece is the towing capacity of the truck.  For that there is a sticker underneath the rear bumper that looks like this:

This shows that with a weight distribution hitch this truck can haul up to 11,000 lbs. And the max tongue weight is 1,100 lbs.  Given the GVWR of 8995 lbs for our trailer and tongue weight of 900 lbs this truck is sufficient.

So we did it!  We bought the F150...

And today we brought the new rig home right after a quick stop at the CAT scales to get an unloaded weight.  Both of the truck's axles are well under the GAWR (Gross Axle Weight Rating).  The trailer axle was a little light from what was on the sticker.  Prior to our next adventure we will weight it loaded, but the truck pulled like a champ - it felt much more stable than the Tacoma.  The best part about this set up is we have a 10-speed automatic transmission as opposed to the 6-speed manual on the Tacoma.  While the Tacoma did well going forward it was always terrible to back up with the manual transmission.  I really enjoyed backing the rig up today (I seem to be terrible at giving directions from the ground, but I am very good at taking direction while in the driver's seat so I've been doing the backing up). 

Tonight the Mesa Ridge is sleeping next to the Hideout!

New Rig for a New Year

Well we did it.  After a month of serious deliberation, debate and consideration we found the "perfect" rig!  I say that in quotes because everyone will tell you - there is no perfect rig.  There are always pros and cons, but this one included most of the features and the layout that we wanted.  The best part about this purchase was the fact that we found a new 2018 model and it was seriously discounted to sell.  I have many tips to share about negotiating for a rig (and I do want to share our good and bad experiences).  But for now let's talk about our new home which was purchased in Mesa, and we live in Mesa for 9 months of the year, so why shouldn't it be called Mesa Ridge Lite!?  

Highest on our list of features was some type of thermal package - there is no industry standard regarding thermal packages or 'four seasons' packages.  The fact that there is some attention given to the rig staying warm in cold weather and cool in hot weather is necessary when one lives in the desert.  No matter what steps are taken to insulate the rig by the manufacturer, we will still have to take additional steps to keep it cool when we return to AZ at the beginning of the school year.  Air conditioning units will keep the rig 20 degrees cooler than the outside temperature - but when the temp is in the high 100-teens, that is a small comfort.  Speaking of air conditioners, we needed this rig to have two.  Having two air conditioners means this rig is 50 amp, not 30 amp like the Hideout. The Hideout has a 13,500 BTU A/C.  The new rig has a 15,000 BTU main A/C and a secondary 13,500 BTU ducted A/C.  So those were two huge pluses to this particular unit.

Next let's talk layout.  Most RV buyers chose their unit solely or primarily on layout and I think this is a mistake.  There are structural and practical considerations that should weigh at least evenly in the decision.  In our case we did not want more than two slides.  The more slides the harder it will be to keep cool in the summer.  We needed a bunkhouse and in this upgrade we wanted the kids to have more space overall.  We specifically wanted to have more desk spaces for work/school.  

Mesa Ridge Lite 3110BH (2018) by Highland Ridge

 NAILED IT!  I'm not sure if you can tell, but under the bunk on the slide there is a kiddie dinette!  This booth is not small either.  All four of us could sit at that table - I don't think four adults could fit, but my point is it is a good size.  Wait...let's remember what we have been living in for the past 20 months...

Hideout 25LHSWE by Keystone

We are increasing our livable space by 115 square feet! The Hideout has 200 square feet, the Mesa Ridge has 315 square feet.  Let's talk kitchen.  People - do you see the counter space I have been working with in the Hideout?  Do you see the improvement in the Mesa Ridge?  The kitchen in the Hideout is fully functional.  I have made all kinds of wonderful vegan meals, but have I missed having a decent counter?  Uh, yes. 

My new kitchen!

So. Much. Counter.

In addition to the counter space (highest on kitchen wish list) the fridge is slightly larger.  Oh, and now I will be able to stand at the stove while someone passes behind me without having to get out of the way!  Yes, the corridor between the couch and the bathroom (Hideout) is not really a passing zone for two adults, a kid and an adult may be able to pass...you get the point.  It's tight.  But, regarding the kitchen....I now also have an outdoor kitchen!

Huge outdoor kitchen

If you've followed our adventure you know that I cannot cook indoors in the heat of the summer.  Actually, if the air conditioner is running you should not use the stove or oven if you want to have a cool indoor space.  But check out that outdoor fridge!  It is huge!  I have seen a lot of outdoor kitchens and most do not have that size of fridge.  The outdoor kitchen also has a two burner cook surface.  There is also a grill mount on an arm attached to the rear of the unit which swings around to add the grill to the outdoor kitchen.  There are so many cabinets between the indoor and outdoor kitchen cabinets.  Storing groceries has been a challenge, though I do have grocery shopping down to a science.  

Bunkhouse room with kiddie dinette

The other exciting aspects of the new rig is that the kids have an actual room with a door that closes.  Since living in the Hideout we parents have been confined to our bedroom after the kids go to sleep so as not to wake anyone.  I am really looking forward to closing that door and hanging out in the living room in my heated massage chairs in the evening (not a joke).  Finally we are glad that this rig includes two 30 lb propane tanks like the Hideout.  We saw others that have two 20 lb tanks.  It also has a prewire for our solar setup. 

Heated massage chairs - what camping trip would be complete without this perk?

As with all rigs there are downsides.  The biggest one is the size of the gray and black tanks - at 28 gallons each they are WAY too small!  We are living with 40 gallon tanks for each.  With 40 gallon tanks we have to empty the black every 4 days, however I guess we will be emptying it every three days now.  While we are stationary and hooked to the sewer the gray is not an issue, but when we in dry camping situations it will fill too fast.  I complained a lot about that to the dealer and their solution was to throw in a 35 gallon portable external tank for free (on sale for $150).  I think that will solve the problem for us and will in fact increase our capacity to 63 gallons which exceeds the fresh water - showers for everyone while boondocking - Hooray!  The final negotiated price for this beauty was $31,495 with the portable external tank and all vent covers installed at the dealer's expense.  I think we got a good deal.  We will be selling the Hideout by owner.  The purchase price of the Hideout was $22,000 and we hope to get around $16,000 for it.  

Having a bathtub was a necessity too and this one seems longer and more sturdy than the Hideout's.
It's also nice to have a second door placed in the bathroom.

So...the next step is to get a new truck.  If you are ever going to buy a trailer and a truck I highly recommend buying the trailer first so that you can size the truck to the trailer.  As you might recall we bought the Hideout because it was the biggest trailer our Toyota Tacoma could pull, we were limited by our truck's capacity and even when we tried to keep our weight down we were a bit over while on our 2018 adventure.  So the dealership is prepping the rig and we will find a truck over the next week and we will be able to bring home our new home next week.  I will discuss towing capacity and payload in one of my next blogs because fitting a truck to a trailer is not as simple as you may think!

Happy 2019!!

Happy New Year!  I hope you had a wonderful holiday season.  We had a good one!  We didn't leave the area - I had to work - but we enjoyed each others' company and found many ways to have fun.  Husband and I quit putting up a Christmas tree years before the kids were born and we have never had one with them (though we have made one for the fridge door last year and this year).  In addition, this year we all went to Make a Wish Pottery and painted a ceramic tree.  It was a cute and small addition to the Hideout...though the presents weren't really under the tree!

Our painted ceramic tree with a holiday lights necklace
is in the midst of the presents on Christmas Eve.

Brother turned nine in December!  Parents say this all the time but it is true, it seems like yesterday he was my little peanut.  He has turned out to be such a cool kid.  I couldn't even imagine how awesome he would be when I first held him.  I am so proud to be his mom.  I am so lucky to be able to share so many moments with my 'little birds.'  It seems so natural and right to spend our days together, making, playing, hiking, cooking, learning, joking around and exploring our world.  I love that we are not a very busy family.  Thankfully I was able to work mostly from home over the holiday break so that we could all be together.  

Don't look!  It is so hard to
see your kiddo suffer pain.

But my poor kiddo suffered - the day after his birthday party he fell while playing outside and broke his arm again (nearly 10 weeks after he first broke it) except that this time it was not a buckle fracture of the radius and ulna, it was a complete fracture of both bones in the exact same place.  His arm was at a terrible angle - there was no doubt it was broken.  The drive to Phoenix Children's Hospital emergency room was a horrible experience for all of us.  Of course Brother was howling in pain and agony, Sister was crying in sympathy and we parents felt completely useless and anxious as we fought rush hour traffic...ultimately Husband drove on the shoulder of the freeway to reach our exit as sitting still just didn't seem like an option.  So...it has now been over three weeks.  He has had his cast on for two weeks.  It is a full arm cast (above the elbow).  He may graduate to a short arm cast when this one comes off in two more weeks...we will see.  I have so much love and empathy for parents with suffering children.  I am glad our tribulations have been relatively mild compared to the plight of others and these events really highlight how fortunate we are to have our health.

In other news we finally purchased high-speed internet.  Though we have been able to do everything with our two line, $100/mo, T Mobile unlimited data plan (using 70GB a month!) via hotspot to our computers and other devices, there were some down sides.  For instance we had limits to the number of devices that could be connected and/or streaming while others were, well, working! If too many were on/streaming, others would have to be very patient on a slow internet.  We now have a $65/mo bill.  Because we avoided that for 18 months we saved almost $1200!  The real reason we decided make a change is that we bought an Xbox for the kids because their cousins have Xboxes (is that a word?) and we wanted them to be able to play games together.  Though Brother could not even hold a controller for the first week after the break, he is now Minecrafting (another made up word?) with his cousins.  It is so nice for him to have that while his activity options are limited.  Even Sister has enjoyed playing, though her attention span is significantly shorter.  I love that the connections the kids made over the summer can be built upon and they have a relationship with their family 2,000 miles away.

Stormy seems to be pretty happy with his new home

In fun news, we added a furry friend to our family! We adopted Stormy the kitten from the Humane Society almost four weeks ago and he is a sweetie.  The only problem is that he has persistent conjunctivitis and we have taken him to the vet three times for more medication.  I really hope it clears up soon because goopy cat eyes are no fun!





Husband and I have a decision to make because our yearly lot fee here in Mesa will come due in April and they raised the rate to $3,600/year ($300/mo).  We had set this renewal date as the date when we decide if we want to continue this lifestyle or move back into something more conventional.  We have been debating and investigating so many options it makes ones head spin.  The bottom line is that the kids have both celebrated two birthdays in the Hideout and they are getting big!  Sister was two when we moved in....when winter finally came to AZ we had to get winter clothes and they are bursting out of the clothes bins!  Also, the Hideout is not ideal for the beginning of the school year when the temps in AZ are still in the high 100-teens.  It is too small of a space for four people to be stuck inside.  The good part about this life is that we have spent a lot more time outdoors - but in the desert it's just not possible in August and September.  While I think that our current rig is ideal for traveling across the country in terms of size and gas efficiency, it is not as ideal for being parked for nine months of the year.  We also have significant limitations in space when it comes to homeschooling and working from home.  Our goal is to become location independent which means we have to have a better set-up for work.  The new semester begins Monday.  Husband is taking all of his classes online.  I am teaching all but one of my classes online, Brother needs a work space for fourth grade and Sister is also doing preschool workbooks and projects and will start Kindergarten next year.  Both Husband and I do most of our work sitting in our bed, which wreaks havoc on the lower back.  We have considered renting, buying a home, buying a manufactured home and buying a new rig.  Our number one priority is to stay debt free and continue to save money.  We also want to minimize the hit to our current savings, but one thing is certain we LOVED traveling and want to do it again and again.  So...after much deliberation we have decided to move into a larger rig and get a bigger truck (selling and/or trading in both the Hideout and our Tacoma).  If we did have a house to stay in for the school year we would keep our current set up, but we like the full-time RV life and don't want to be burdened with home ownership, landlords, or costly rent.  When we started this adventure we didn't want to sink too much money into it because we had no idea if we would like it.  We were fortunate that we owned our truck outright and that it was able to pull the Hideout (which we bought for $22,000).  Now that we are no longer rookies and well versed in the lifestyle we are ready to take the next step.  So we have been looking at rigs and will be making a change in 2019...stay tuned!

(P.S. To my friends that I have spoken to over the past month, I may have said something different because that was where we were at that point in time - but I think this decision is final....well, nothing lasts forever!)

Hideout living 18 months later...

It's crazy, but I am kind of in love with living in this tiny space now that the weather is good.  While I am not going to deny that there are things I miss (like some decent counter space in the kitchen), the pros to this life far outweigh the cons.  I think the biggest reason I don't want to move from the Hideout is the cost of living.  Lot rent is cheap, the Hideout is paid off, and living in a small space limits how much stuff we can buy.  In the meantime our savings is growing which means we will continue to live free of debt far into the future.

In the past month we rearranged the kids' bunks.  We ditched the flat full sized mattresses that came with the Hideout and bought two twin foam mattresses from IKEA.  We also bought IKEA bins that fit between the mattress and the wall to better contain their toys and clothes.  They both like the new organization and said it is easier to find things.  They also have been spending more time in their spaces - which is the biggest proof that they like the changes we made.  We've talked to Brother about whether he missed having his own room - it seems he misses some of the things that were in the room that we can't fit in the Hideout, not necessarily the room itself.  I don't think Sister cares too much.  18 months of her four years have been spent in the Hideout - this is home for her.

Did I mention Brother broke his arm three weeks ago?  He was playing outside and riding a scooter that is too small for him....he tripped, fell off of it, and caught himself with his right arm.  He has a buckle fracture of both the radius and ulna.  He is now halfway through his time in the cast (assuming he does not need a second cast). 

He's had to learn to use his left had more.  He had a bit of trouble climbing up to his top bunk at first, but has adapted.  Bathing is a bit of an adventure....we've been focusing on school work that does not require handwriting.  He's been reading a lot of fiction in place of video games as the controllers present challenges.  Thankfully he is not in any pain.  He has many well-wishes and signatures on the cast. 

The last day of classes for fall semester is November 30.  During the winter break I have a lot of work to do to get my classes ready for the spring semester, but I will mostly work from home.  Husband switched to an online program so starting in the spring he will not need to commute to campus.  We think that is going to work out better.  Sister can now count to 100 by ones and tens!  She also knows almost all of the sounds of the letters and can sound out two and three letter words.  She's as bright as her brother.  Brother is doing really well in fourth grade.  He just finished a lesson on fractions and decimals and made us proud with his progress. 

In September we had to have the motor in our air conditioner replaced.  Thankfully it was under warranty.  We didn't mess with the dealership - I doubt we will ever go there again - we just called a company that came to our lot and did the repairs on site.  We had to pay for the service call but the parts were under warranty.  This week we turned on the furnace for the first time.  We are in that crazy time of year in AZ where the air conditioner is needed during the warmest part of the day and we have to turn on the furnace at night.  I can't remember when we filled the propane last, but it was a long time ago....before Michigan...so June?  We've been running on the same 30 gallon tank since then - but now, since we are using the furnace it will probably run out soon.  We had a couple of high electric bills since we've been back the highest was $180 and the next one dropped to $130.  Now that we are not running the air conditioner so much it will be low again. 

Finally, we are planning on setting up service with a high-speed internet provider while we are stationary.  We have been using our T-Mobile service/hotspot for the past 18 months and it's been ok, but we want something faster and more reliable.  Century Link is the only provider in our area - I think we will set that up this month. 

Well, those are the updates - we are busy when we are stationary!  We are looking forward to a wonderful weekend in the mountains at Rancho Status Quo next weekend - though it will probably be cold and we will have to look through boxes to find our winter clothes!

Stigma

What's good for the rich is not necessarily what is good for your family.  Unfortunately the values of the ruling class are those that are contained in every commercial, TV show, news article, etc...it's called cultural hegemony and people have understood and talked about this since the early 20th century.

To understand the hegemonic influence of the wealthy, most people need look no further than to examine their views of a family living in a trailer.  Do you feel that it is just not right or trashy or low class or some other negative judgement?  If so, you may be internalizing the values of the wealthy as opposed to the values of the working class.

Working class values stand in stark contrast to those of the wealthy.  Here are a couple of examples:

1.  The rich like to show off how much money they have by engaging in conspicuous consumption.  Rich consumers are concerned with the way they are perceived as a result of the crap that they own.  It's not enough to have a car, it has to be a sports car...At best the working class can only engage in crass consumerism - where they try to one-up their friends and family through their consumerism.  It is a messy game and the end result is debt.
2. The rich are invested in the current systems of energy and war.  They spent a great deal of money marketing the military to the working class.  The military,in turn, pursues foreign oil interests funded and staffed by the working class.  Americans who are extremely patriotic are buying the advertising being sold.  War is not good for the working class because we are the ones dying for the interests of power.  With very few exceptions rich people do not send their kids to war.  
3. The rich believe in socialism of risk, but not in socialism for the greater good.  For instance when the banks crashed in 2008 the working class paid to bail out the banks even when home forclosure was at an all time high.  The working class socialized the risk to the bankers, but did not socialize the greater good of home ownership.  The same thing happens when Amazon and Walmart underpay their employees and the working class taxes end up paying for the welfare benefits for those underemployed workers.  The rich keep their labor costs low thereby minimizing the risk to their investors and keeping profits high.  Meanwhile the working class has to prop up those workers who don't make enough to survive.

I could go on and on...the criminal justice system comes to mind as another disgusting example...healthcare/pharma....food subsidies...environment....damn, the whole meat and dairy industry...its a bad deal for the working class these days.

Let's clarify the values that will help the working class.

1. Valuing relationships, leisure, and your time over things.  
2. Valuing savings over spending
3. Valuing love over war
4. Valuing a clean and healthy environment over pollution
5. Valuing freedom over being a wage slave
6. Valuing health over the toxic shit being advertised

So....if you live by these values you may end up living in a very small house, apartment or RV - the goal would be to maximize savings over the cost of housing.  Will you face stigma?  Yes, because the cultural hegemony is so strong.

So much money is being spent on advertising and trying to convince everyone that the values of the rich should be the values of everyone - but that is bullshit.  You know it, I know it.  Working class people from the conservative or liberal side have infinitely more in common with each other than they do with the 1%.  It's time we stopped turning on each other and judging each other and instead worked together to figure out how to set this system up with our values in the center.  A first step is to ignore the stigma and embrace the values of the working class.  Your parents and grandparents were in the same boat as you and your kids will be there too - why not try and make this country work for us and for the next generation?  Imagine media messages crafted with working class values; imagine laws written to support workers not the idle rich - what a wonderful world it would be.

Benefits of living with less...

Today I am really thankful for our simple life.  It's a hard truth to understand until you live it - buying more stuff will not make you happy.  I'm doing laundry today.  We do laundry once a week and it takes a couple of hours because we use multiple machines at the laundry facility in our community.  When I owned a house I had a laundry room.  I used to ALWAYS have laundry to be done.  I never got caught up.  I owned more clothing, bedding, towels, etc than I needed so I could let the laundry pile up and still have more clothes to wear, towels to use, etc.  These days I donate anything that I don't wear.  If I buy a new piece of clothing I get rid of another.  As the kids outgrow things I donate and replace.  We own about a weeks worth of clothing each - it is plenty.

Our family of four has one tiny cupboard for dishes.  We have four bowls and four plates that we use as our main dishes.  We have some storage containers and three glass mixing bowls of different sizes that come in handy.  We have a few cups, but we mostly just use our water bottles all of the time.  Doing dishes is easy because we have so few things to wash.  We can't make a mess on top of a mess because we don't even own duplicates of anything.  It is so simple, basic and easy.

We don't waste food.  We are limited by our small fridge and our pantry size.  We buy exactly what we will eat and then when it is gone we shop again.  We don't throw away food like we used to - we don't lose things in the back of the fridge.  Our space is precious and we can't use it to store things we are not going to eat. We make salads and canned soup and things on the grill.  I make crockpot meals.  It is easy and simple.  We eat vegetables, fruits and greens every day.  It is a healthy way of living and I feel good about using up the food we buy.

The kids play with their toys.  They don't have many.  Brother likes Legos and Sister likes dinosaurs and dragons.  When their screen time is done, they play with their toys.  They don't have too many to overwhelm them.  It is easy to put them away because they each have one bin which holds all of their toys.  I don't have to stress about toys everywhere - I remember what a disaster the toy situation was in our big house.  Toys are valued here, the ones that are not played with are donated.  It's a good system.

When your space is free of all the clutter so is your mind.  Whatever the future holds I know that I will always value a simple life and a small house.  It's the most liberating feeling to be free of all that stuff.

Speaking of liberation: Since we have been back from our summer adventure we have been clearing out our 5x5 storage space.  We had three boxes left of our leather bound book collection and Husband has been selling them on ebay.  We sold most of the books in lots by collection, but these are the few that didn't fit into any collection or were unique in some way.  In a couple weeks he has already collected $1000 for some of these items.  Overall it seems we recouped about 2/3rd of the cost of all those books - with many collections you're lucky to get back 1/3 of the value, so we are very happy about that.  We've put about $12,000 into savings from the sale of all the books.  It's been a royal pain selling them and it had taken a lot of time, but we are finally down to the last box.  This experience has been a lesson in the truth that it is much easier to acquire things than to get rid of them.

Finally, speaking of savings - I love having savings.  With no debt and low expenses, even with our summer trip, we have been able to grow our savings significantly over the past year.  Of course selling things has helped increase the savings, but there is a portion of my paycheck that has been going to savings for over a year and we have not had to use it. In a country where 40% of our fellow Americans can't afford a $400 emergency without selling something or borrowing money it is a good feeling to have cash in the bank.  Currently we have the bulk of our savings in CDs bought at different times and with different maturity dates.  This investment strategy works for us and is also simple.  There is little stress, it is straightforward, has a guaranteed return, and allows us the option to change our strategy at regular intervals.  Watching the savings grow is joyful and allows us the freedom to consider various options for the future.  Most significantly we have freedom - we own ourselves and our things without any obligations to a bank or a lender.

There are so many benefits of living with less.  I partially attribute my improve health to the reduced stress and the increased sense of control I feel.  I no longer binge drink or eat - I am not even tempted.  Choosing to live simply includes making good choices for yourself and your family.  There is an added sense of mindfulness and peace associated with it. There is also an increased sense of thankfulness for what we have - especially each other and our health - perhaps that is the best aspect of living with less.

"...I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence: Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—
I took the one less traveled by, And that has made all the difference."
-Robert Frost

Schooling, learning, and teaching

We are very focused on education around here!  Each day we have a number of educational obligations, not least of which includes Brother completing fourth grade.  There is some irony on the homeschooling road.  We have been very concerned about ensuring that he keeps pace with the public schools and his peers.  The irony is that when he was in public schools we felt he was not sufficiently challenged. We are continually ensuring that he is challenged and as a result he is undoubtedly much further along than his peers.  For example, we have only been "in school" for approximately three weeks, but in that time he has covered over half of a math workbook that is supposed to last the year!  Clearly we will have to keep moving ahead to keep him challenged.  Likewise, with language arts, science and social studies (which are all integrated through the Moving Beyond the Page curriculum), we find that our summer adventures have really added a depth to the material.  He has first-hand knowledge of geology, fossils, and volcanoes from National Parks and museums so studying rocks and minerals was a breeze and actually rather superficial compared to what we have already learned.  We also explored a number of archaeological sites and learned about American history while traveling.  These experiences give us a great deal to draw upon when reading Little House in the Big Wood or Sign of the Beaver.  Husband is directing his education and working with him each day; I take the lead on teaching him piano and building upon the formal lessons he took in second grade.  When he surpasses me, I will have to find him a new piano teacher.  By the way, the piano leans up against the wall by my side of the bed.  The stand folds up behind my bedroom door.  When we play we set it up in front of the couch...it's a minor inconvenience, but it works in this tiny house!

School for Husband is going well - he is 2/3 of the way through his degree and is finally taking all the difficult upper division computer science classes.  I am settling into my classes this semester.  I was told that the third time you teach an on-ground class is the time you finally find your footing and I see the truth in that now.  I am more comfortable than I was last year.  

Sister is growing up so fast!  She is more interested in learning her letters and numbers as of late.  She loves doing her preschool workbook and reading books.  There were times past where she would get all frustrated with us trying to teach her letters or numbers.  Now she is asking about words and letters she sees.  She still has her own way of writing and she pretends to write stories in her own little cute script.  It's adorable....see?  

Unfortunately the weather has remained very hot and we are still packed inside the Hideout.  As a result the biggest challenge is allowing Brother the space and quiet to concentrate and complete his tasks without interruptions from Sister.  

I've been figuring out how to cook outside and with the appliances again.  It's a way of thinking that I had to remember from last summer and come to terms with (I've been rebelling and hoping it would cool off).   However I am sick of trying to find something decent when eating out and I want my own healthy food.  Tonight I made a wonderful salad with a frozen/steamer/microwaved bag of veggies on top.  It was awesome - I ate it too fast to take a picture!  

I am a thankful wife and mama.  Life is good, we've settled back into life in the Phoenix area and have found our routine for the school year.  

RVegan success

I recently visited the doctor for a yearly physical, blood work and so forth. The last time I went was back in the spring of 2017, so it has been over a year since my last visit.  Before I report on the outcomes let me recap the significant changes I have made to my diet during the intervening time.

1. Dairy-free for over a year (July of 2017)
2. Teetotaller for almost 8 months (Jan of 2018)
3. "Mostly" vegan for over a year - though I lost my habit tracker data when I got a new phone I estimate that at least 75% of my meals are vegan (conservative estimate).  When they are not it is because I ate fish or poultry.  

In the past eight years (since Brother was born) I have been told I was pre-diabetic, I have had high cholesterol, and I was treated for high blood pressure with medications for a short time.

Today I found out my HgA1C is 5.1!!!  That is in the healthy range for the first time in a long time (last physical I was considered pre-diabetic).  My blood pressure continues to be normal as it has been for a few years and I have lost 20 pounds since my last physical!  My BMI is still in the overweight range at 28 - but I have been as high as 34.  I have to lose 23 pounds more for my BMI to be under 25 and in the normal range.  My cholesterol is in the healthy range as well.  

We were more active over the summer - we did a fair bit of hiking and I am sure that helped, but I really think that my improved health is a result of my changed diet.  I have not been trying to lose weight, I have just noticed my clothes getting bigger.  This is a big first in my life. It is very gratifying to be able to go clothes shopping for smaller pants!

I am feeling proud of my health.  Considering that prioritizing our health was at the top of our list of reasons for changing our lifestyle I am gratified that I am seeing some really great results (on top of feeling better on a daily basis). Also, I am not on a diet - I have changed my lifestyle and habits.  I want to eat Whole Food Plant Based meals, I don't want to eat the junk I used to eat/drink.  I think this aspect of any lifestyle change is really important - when dieting we are in a state of deprivation - but I don't feel like that at all.  I am so thankful that I have my health and that I can adventure with my kids - I plan on continuing to take care of myself so that I can enjoy these adventures for as long as possible.

What's next?

According to the National Park Foundation there are 417 National Park Sites in the United States.  Before we went on this adventure I knew there were National Parks and National Monuments, but I didn't realize there were National Lakeshores, Memorials, Battlefields, Parkways, Historic Sites, Wild and Scenic Rivers....and the list goes on!  

There are 59 Sites that have "National Park" as part of their official name.  Though I ordered this poster before we left, we didn't receive it until after our trip.  This is a scratch-off National Parks map.  The green trees are the ones we have visited so far - but now I wish I would have searched for a more comprehensive map showing more of the National Park Service sites!

To tell you the absolute truth, returning to the Phoenix area during this extreme heat has been depressing.  When it is so hot we have to put the reflectix and sun shades in the windows and reflectix in the sky light to block out the sun.  We run the air conditioning 24/7.  I can't use the stove inside because the air conditioner is already working hard to keep it 30 degrees cooler than the outdoor temps (it was in the 100-teens the first week we were back and now in the 100s).  If it is 108 outside, we have to minimize the number of times we open the front door during the day to keep the Hideout at 78.  Today it reached 109 and inside we were at 82 degrees (due to going in and out, running the coffee pot and there just being four bodies inside giving off heat).  Cooking outside on the grill is possible - but then again it increases the number of times we have to open the door.  We have been eating lots of cheap bean burritos from fast food places when it is this hot.  I long for the days of open windows and kids playing outside.  Right now we are trapped inside as if it was a Midwestern winter!

With that said the thing that excites me and allows me to look past this moment is the next trip!  While we are happy with our spot in Mesa it is not especially scenic or exciting.  It is the best and most cost effective place we have found that allows us a short commute to the light rail and to ASU, but we have caught the road bug and I am counting down the weeks until we can roll out again.  Thankfully we have a couple of weeks over winter break (during which time I work remotely)!  Of course Arizona is the place to be in the winter - we don't want to go too far away from the winter weather!  Looking at the National Park map inspired me - we will see Big Bend, Guadalupe Mountains and Carlsbad Caverns on our winter trip!  I really can't think of a better holiday experience than being in a National Park with great weather hiking and enjoying the peace and serenity of nature.  

We have been asked if we are going to buy a house now...the answer is no (though in this heat I am missing having a house).  This "house" is so economical and we are able to spend so much time together as a family - there would have to be a trade-off if we purchased a house.  For now we want to maximize our adventures with our kids while I have the flexibility with my job.  Also, I am sort of excited about collecting more Junior Ranger Badges and National Park stickers for the Hideout! So fun!

Back to school

We have started our school year - Brother is in 4th grade, Sister in preschool, Husband continues his studies at the University and I begin my second year as an instructor.  These days our life is about travel and school - we learn in everything we do!  We continue to use Moving Beyond the Page for the bulk of homeschooling and we like the fact that the curriculum is all planned out.   This year we are also using Singapore Math in conjunction with Khan Academy.  Certainly the Junior Ranger programs through the National Park Service are valuable science and social studies lessons.  When we are traveling, completing these lessons makes our trip even more educational.

Brother also uses duolingo to learn Spanish.  One thing we failed to do last year is continue Brother's piano lessons, so that is high on the priority list this year. We also will continue physical activity - swimming, hiking, bike riding and basketball.  We live in too small of a space to be indoors all the time - it's good to get out and move whenever possible!  Also we were given a Wii from a family member this summer; this will give us some indoor physical activity options as well. 

Brother really wants to continue homeschooling and we love the flexibility.  He is a great student and he really tries.  While it is challenging for us at times we are getting better at setting the schedule, understanding the curriculum and leading him through it.  We are trying to set up get-togethers with friends on a regular basis to ensure he and Sister have time to play with other kids. 

In the meantime the priority is to clean out our storage unit (eliminating a monthly expense) and determine what we can keep and what we can part with of our remaining stuff.  Our other huge goal for this year is to make progress on our building project on The Land.  It looks like we will take a trip up there in the next month to start planning our moves. 

 

How much did it cost?

It's the moment of truth - in the end there was a price tag - what was it?

First, let me say that $80 spent for an America the Beautiful National Park pass was TOTALLY worth it!  I almost felt guilty entering the parks without paying time and time again.  We visited 18 National Park Service parks and we didn't pay admission to any of them.  I did however buy collectible stickers and/or patches at each of the gift shops to show my support for the parks, make my kiddos look cool, and collect a souvenir.

We were on the road for 12 weeks (84 nights).  Campground fees ranged from a high of around $65/night in California to free when we boondocked at Walmarts, truck stops, Cabellas, or with family.  Overall we spent an average of $27/night for a grand total of $2,263.  I was disappointed by that number, but then again I didn't plan out all of our stops before we left.  We did have a free week in Michigan when we were at my parents' land and at my aunt's house...but we did have many $30 nights as well.  If I was going to do it all over I would search out more state campgrounds which are generally under $20/night.  We also need to seek out the good weather so that we don't need our air conditioning during the summer.  That would help.  With some changes to our rig and solar system combined with more attention to where the weather is good we could manage better in primitive campgrounds.

Gas costs were high.  We knew our circle across the country was around 6,000 miles, but we ended up driving well over 7,000 miles when you take into account day trips.  We spent $2,472 on gas for the entire trip.  While pulling the rig we averaged between 10-12 mpg.  The cost of gas ranged from a high of $5/gallon near Yosemite to $2.35/gallon in the middle of the country.  Generally it was around $3/gallon. It is an obscene amount of money to spend on gas.  It's an obscene amount of gas to use.  However we are very glad we made the trek with our 6-cylinder Tacoma instead of a larger vehicle.  When we spoke to other travelers hauling RVs we found they generally were getting 8 mpg or less and were impressed by our 10-12 mpg average.  We have seriously debated buying a larger truck, but this is the single biggest reason why we are going to stick with the Tacoma. We will get a cash back reward from our credit card - it so happened that gas stations were one of the 5% back establishments during the current quarter.

We spent almost exactly $1,000 on admissions and other entertaining events such as Universal Studios in California, Evans Plunge in South Dakota, 1880 Train in South Dakota, Mackinac Island, museums, movies, and tours.  Looking back over the list of fun things I have to say that some of the most expensive were not the most fun - some of the least expensive (such as the guided cave tours) were very exciting...you just never know!  I don't think this budget item is too high, but I would, in the future, opt out of the more expensive venues.

In terms of food and dining, we were living as if we were on vacation.  We spent $800/month on groceries and $400/month dining.  Clearly this is an area where we could do a lot better.  When I look back over previous years, when we were both working and living in the McMansion we were doing much worse in terms of the budget and our food choices.  Our goal is to spend $800/month on food total.  We have made that goal in the past, but not consistently.  We have noticed that not buying alcohol has impacted our budget positively.

Because I was teaching online during the second half of the summer we supplemented our income and it was good that we had those additional funds for this first adventure.  The down side was that we had to be sure that we stayed in areas where I would have cell service and data.  That was not a problem - we planned and stayed in major cities for the most part.  When we didn't I drove to a city to get service.  The most significant time that happened was in rural Michigan - I had to take a drive into town each day and work from a McDonald's.  The up side was that they had a cute sitting space with a Michigan table.  The marjority of the time I was able to log onto the class at least twice a day, respond to questions and concerns, and complete the grading and other work associated with the class.

The main expenses that could have been curbed and should be curbed in future outings are gas and food.  We probably should have planned a shorter route and had less drive-through states.  We could have stayed in some of the choices places for longer.  Our food budget should be under $800/month and we should not be eating out regularly.  Secondly we could do better planning our campsites and now that we are more comfortable with dry camping, we can go to cheaper campgrounds.

It was our first big adventure and it was a success.  It could have been cheaper, but it was worth every penny.  I still marvel at all the places we visited.

South Dakota

Hello dear readers - Still here, still travelin', just slow on documenting!

We met many members of my family in South Dakota June 23 and from that day forward it has been a whirlwind of excitement and adventure.  We stayed at Horsethief Campground in Hill City for almost a week, it was a beautiful place.

Brother (age 8) and Sister (age 3) have had their four cousins to play with ages 11, 9, 8, & 5.  It was so much fun to watch them all get along so well, play games, run around outside and explore the sights together.  During our travels together we visited five National Parks/Monuments.  Quick trivia: what is the difference between a National Park and a National Monument?  Monuments are designated by the President, Parks are designated by Congress!  So either way they are special sights set aside by the Federal Government for the enjoyment of all and both offer the Junior Ranger badges.  With the family we visited Mount Rushmore, Wind Cave, Jewel Cave, and the Badlands in South Dakota and then Effigy Mounds in Iowa.  Five of the six kids completed the Junior Ranger activities and earned their badges. 

We also had a really great time in Hot Springs, SD swimming in the mineral spring.  What a great experience.  5,000 gallons of water flow into the facility each minute and there are water slides and a really nice indoor facility.  We all loved it and would certainly go again if passing through that region. I wish I would have taken some pictures of the indoor facility, but it is called Evan's Plunge and you can see their website.

Another sight we saw that was not related to the National Park Service was the 1880 train.  We took this antique train from Hill City, SD to Keystone, SD.  It was an hour each way and we rode on an antique passenger car.  The engine was a classic steam engine.  It was the coolest train ride I have ever taken.

It was HOT driving to Michigan.  We stopped at the Badlands and Effigy National Monument on the way and had a hard time really enjoying either due to the heat.  We had escaped the heat until South Dakota, but since we left there we have had to run our air conditioning in the truck and in the Hideout.  It is disappointing to be trapped by the heat even in the East.  To get to Michigan, we drove approximately 1,200 miles in four days - it was a strenuous haul.  Prior to that we had been limiting our driving to no more than 200 miles in a day.  On our way home we are going to go back to that limit - it works better for us.  All together the Hideout has traveled about 4000 miles this summer! 

It's been good to be with my family, we see each other so infrequently.  I am glad that this trip allows us to share four weeks with them. I'll have to write future posts about our adventures in MI!