On Fulltime RV Living

Our home, tucked under the persimmon trees, behind the garage

Details matter. You never realize how much they matter (if you are a right-brain global thinker, like me, that is) until you live fulltime in an RV.

Now I, like most folks who live in our country have lived in a stick and brick home all my life. I have probably moved more than the average American, the move here putting my total to 20 moves in my lifetime...not so bad for someone who was NOT a military brat! And my personality is one that likes change, so all in all, the moves have been good.

I grew up with six people, one bathroom and no a/c in Georgia. Not quite the "shoebox in the middle of the road" but cozy, nonetheless. And since I married the Hillbilly, we have lived in everything from roomy 3K square foot homes, down to 800 square foot apartments. But this last move, this 20th move of my life...this has put us in the tiniest place of all. A 250 sf camper! Five of us. You do the math.

All in all, I really love living in this camper. We are all learning to be better humans, to respect private space, to work together, to be more forgiving and thoughtful. There is no "disappearing" for hours and disconnecting from everyone else (great for the two extroverts, a little more troublesome for the three introverts). It has been a good learning experience for us all.

The reason we are here...to care for these two lovelies...my Outlaws

But back to details and how they impact our day to day life in a camper.

Sitting there, in your stick and brick, have you ever had to decided when you were cooking dinner, if you wanted to use the oven OR the a/c? How about run the hair dryer or the water heater? Well those are a few of the things we deal with every day. We are constantly juggling the power coming into the camper. It can get quite amusing at times...."Oh, shoot, I forgot to turn off ______________!!" (Which is followed by rushing to find a coin to open the fuse box to flip the breaker back on, after turning off the water heater.)  We hear that EVERY day...and more importantly, when someone goes to get in the shower "Did the water heater get turned back on?!"

Oh, wait...speaking of water heater, I don't think I turned it back on after I turned off the oven...hold on.

The water heater button...it's gonna wear out soon!

Ok, done.

As I was saying, managing all this electricity stuff is quite entertaining!

Then there is the potty. Basically a very large chamber pot that is tucked under the floor in the back of the camper. The chamber pot, called a "black water

tank" by the RV'ing community...personally, I think chamber pot is way more fun!

The Chamber Pot

This lovely Chamber Pot has to be pumped out weekly into the septic tank here on the farm. My amazing husband has acquired this job for himself...not because he wants it (he actually said last night as we stood in the light of the full Blue Moon pumping out said Chamber Pot: "I would rather be caned than do this!") but because all the rest of us run as soon as we see the tank reaching capacity! Oi vey! What a nasty job. I must say though, that he has put all his wits to the project and made it as easy as it can be. He found this cool thing called a "macerator" and it chews up everything and makes it small enough to run down a garden hose to the septic tank. Pretty darn amazing, if you ask me!

"Once in a Blue Moon?" Here ya go!

Wait, did I mention "oven" earlier? We have been here since March, and I just this week bought an oven!! Everyone was shouting and dancing for joy!  Over an oven. See, when you live a simpler life, the small things become big!

So this oven. It lives on a little rack tucked behind the little chair in the little living room, um, er, in the Darling Daughter's bedroom, I guess. Like I said, this fulltime RV living is fun!!  Really.

The living room, kitchen annex and DD's bedroom!

Anyway, back to the oven. With it's purchase, the children began dreaming...dreaming of things like bread, and cookies and bread! Pretty much, they just want bread. So now, I better to go digging through the kitchen boxes and see if I can find a bread pan. It's there, somewhere. I just know it!