My Grandmother's House...

I woke up this morning thinking of my grandmother's house. There's a lesson to be learn from my grandparents, they were true minimalists. My grandmother was born in Oklahoma Territory in Bradley, Oklahoma and traveled in a covered wagon at times as a small child. My grandfather, depending on what birth certificate you look at, was either from Tennessee or Texas and traveled the world as a young man installing power lines in Asia and Northern Africa at the turn of the century.

My grandfather was a diabetic and had lost his sight due to cataracts before I was born. I can remember my grandmother giving him his shots and then boiling his syringes and needles. Believe me, they were not the little needles of today.

Their house in West Tulsa consisted of a screened in front porch,which I slept out on a roll-a-way bed in the summer, living room, dining room, kitchen, bedroom, added on bathroom, enclosed back room and a very small enclosed mud room at the back of the house and one small closet. The house was 20 feet wide and 40 feet long, not much larger than a 5th wheel and was four doors down from the train yards so I would always hear the 4 am train that came through as there was a crossing at the end of the block.

Grandma had a sofa, chair, lamp and small bookcase with a radio and little nick knacks that I would play with as a child in the living room. I would sit by my grandfather being sure to not knock over his tobacco spit can and listen to the stories that he would tell me and wish I could see all the places he had been.

The dining room had a dining room table with 4 chairs, a television in a large cabinet with a six inch circle screen, a gas heater and my great grandmother's treadle sewing machine which I learned to sew on starting at age 3. That's when I would spend Saturday nights at her house and play on the treadle sewing machine. I just could reach the peddle to get it to move and move the material under the presser foot but without a needle, many years later I made my wedding dress on that old treadle machine. On Sunday mornings it was a treat for her to give me sweet coffee milk. It made me feel like a big girl.

My grandfather's room consisted of a bed and small dresser. My grandmother's room consisted of a day bed that opened up into a full size bed and dresser and a very small closet that hardly held anything. Her room did not have any heat so it was always cold back there and the insulation consisted of cardboard and newspapers. That is where I would stay when I came to visit.

The kitchen was the hub of the house, providing wonderful smells and great food. The food was simple but oh so good. My parents would come on Sunday afternoons and we would have dinner together. Grandma would fix a roast with potatoes, onions, carrots, cabbage, green beans and homemade rolls.

Out in the back of the house was a shed with a chicken coupe. Grandma kept about 6 to 8 chickens. So I grew up having the freshest eggs one could ask for.

My grandparents didn't have much but there was love in our household and that's what's important.

My mother was raised in the depression era and did with out just like a lot of other people did. I sometimes wonder if that's why she placed so much value on material things and could never toss anything away. I grew up in a house that had a basement an unfinished upstairs and a garage that we never put cars in. So everything that she wanted to save went upstairs or in the basement or the garage. The main floor of the house was neat and uncluttered but out of sight out of mind was the rest of the belongings. When we finally sold mom's house it was amazing all the stuff that was tucked away in various areas, and my mother wanted to take it with her and ended up having to let go of a lot of stuff as she could not take it all with her when she moved to Norman.

Is that why we can't seem to throw anything away? The habits of our parents instilled in us, and in turn we instill in our children the same habits, that everything we have done in life has some importance, no matter how insignificant it is and cannot be gotten rid of?

Do we really need more to be happy, or is all of this stuff bogging us down in a mire of helplessness, unable to process it and move the junk out of our lives?

We have so much to go through and toss before we get to the state of getting out on the road. It takes time and since time is what I am going to have on my hands for 6 weeks, what better time than the present to start the paper tossing process. Ruthless...is what I have to be. But we can do it. Together Dave and I can start to make a larger dent in what has to be done.

776 days and counting!

See you out there...

German Chicken Barley Soup

Just posted a new recipe to our other blog Dave and Susie's Musings, go check it out.

Taco Soup...

Posted my recipe for Taco soup on my other site which is linked to this site.

Enjoy!

793 Days and counting!

See ya out there....

Up and Down...In and Out...

Yesterday we took the whole day to go to the RV Show at the state fairgrounds in Oklahoma City. We arrived around 11:00 and started the browsing process. Up and down stairs we went. In and out of motor homes, 5th wheels and some regular size trailers.

Dave was amazed at the amount of the space in some of the motor homes and the price tag as well. We went through each motor home checking on how much downsizing we would have to do. A LOT!!!!! I said that certain criteria would have to be met. Some of the motor homes did meet those criteria but the price tag....well let's put it this way we would never see the end of payments on the vehicle in our lifetime.

Moving on to 5th wheels we found several we really liked and a lot that would not meet our wants or needs. Keystone has a "new" trailer out called the Alpine 3640RL. I like an end entertainment center as I want to be able to do my Wii exercises but Dave likes the side entertainment center for some reason. We sat in the trailer for awhile and I did a mini workout and found that I had plenty of room to do my Wii exercises. After talking to a lot of real nice full timers yesterday one of the important things mentioned was to have a separate room for the stool located away from the sink and shower. This particular trailer had such an arrangement. It also had a King bed and lots of other real nice amenities. The trick now is to wait for a few years and let the price come down or look on eBay. I found a 2009 Heartland Landmark Pinehurst with what I wanted, currant bid @ $12,000.00 with 6 days left. Don't think I will bid on it now, my surgery comes first.

We went to Bunny's Hamburger stand for a bite to eat, it was delish as always and then went back to the show to tour the next building.

I find it rather interesting that there's not a uniform height for steps on these trailers and motor homes. Some you have to have mountain gear to get up into. Others are quite easy to get up into. You would think that these companies would realize the hazard of having too steep a step and too narrow a step. 4 steps are better than three. Wider width is better for balance. That was another nice feature of the Alpine 5th wheel, I felt safe going up and down. It also had a nice extended safety handle to grab onto. By the end of the day my right knee had had it and my knee cap was starting to let me know it. My left knee sailed right through the torture. I was even able to to stay on my feet all day and even get back up on them after lunch and continue the walking and climbing. I figure we were in and out of about 40+ vehicles.

We only had one negative experience and this was after we left the show. We decided to go to one of the RV Dealers to see if they were still open. We pulled up as they were closing, that was ok, we didn't expect them to be open. One of the salesmen was outside and we asked a simple question of what their Saturday hours were and were informed with an attitude, they closed at 5 today, well duh... we could see that. He then proceeded to ignore us and then after finishing a conversation with someone he turned back to us like we were bothering him, informed us they were closed on Sunday and would be open Monday. I doubt that I will go back there and do any business with them nor will I recommend anyone to do business with them.

I deal in customer service and you just don't treat a potential customer with indifference even if it is after 5 p.m. and you certaintly don't do it with a scowl on your face. So much for my rant for the day.

Dave was amazed at all the different configurations of the trailers. There were several that he really liked...so we will continue to do our homework and figure out which one will be perfect for us.

809 days and counting...

See you out there...

Space...The Final Frontier

Sometimes you just need more space to maneuver. After Christie moved to Georgia this past week, I had a room in which to move stuff into to, where it is cool, be able to sort, toss and tag for the garage sale. It's liberating to get the stuff moved to a different location so you can see what you have and don't need. We have a lot of stuff to get rid of so, we are eating the elephant one bite at a time. Sure takes a long time to chew though because it's so tough (to let go).

The living room is starting to take shape, Dave and I should be able to finished it this week. All of Christie's exercise equipment that she did not take will be moved to the spare room, the Guitar Hero band set will move to there as well. I have a Baldwin Acrosonic piano for sale if you know anyone who wants to buy a piano. Time to get rid of it since I don't play it, I sing, that is my instrument.

We have some serious catch all places that I'm determined will not remain that way. You know those shoe storage panels that hang on the backs of doors that have all the pockets on them. Yep those things. I'm putting one on the back of the entry closet to hold the sunscreen, Aloe Vera gel, dog chains, leashes, bug spray, Lysol spray and all the other stuff that gravitates to the door. I'm also going to put one on our linen closet door to hold medicines, band aids, tea candles and other things that take up surface space. I figure it will be easier to locate stuff that way instead of trying to dig through a dark closet.

After the living room I am going to tackle my office space. It's needing some serious help. For too long everyone has been putting their junk in my room and that's going to end this week. I have come up with a catch phrase, "Clutter in the room is clutter in the mind, DE-CLUTTER and it will set you free".

878 days and counting.

See you out there...

The Cat's Away...

I have the house to myself for the next 4-5 days and I wonder how much I can get done by myself. Sometimes you just need your space to pull things apart to sort and seperate.

884 days and counting.

See ya out there

Hidden Treasures...And Boy is it HOT!!!

I managed to get through three more boxes this past weekend before the rains descended upon me. During the rummaging I found several boxes of my daughters that she did not know what happened to them. I called her and asked if she wanted them and she asked what was in them. Yearbooks from high school and college, textbooks and a whole host of knick-knacks. She had wondered what had happened to them so the answer to my question was "yes". Everything has been repacked ready to take to her.

It seems like it's taking me longer to get through quadrent 2 of the garage clean-up, but I have been busy with a new grandbaby. Of course grandbabies always take precidence over the garage any day.

It's a week later and it's too hot to work in the garage or even outside. Am having to bring the boxes inside the house to work on. We got some of our daughter's things out of the shed and sorted for her to take to her new job in Georgia.

At the moment our priority is gettting her ready to move, getting her scooter sold and finding a place for her to live.
As they say, "it's all in a days work." 899 days and counting. Wow we're
out of the 900's.

See you out there...

Rain, Rain Stay Away

It's Sunday morning and here I stand in the garage surveying the lay of the boxes. But first, breakfast. I decided that after the $200.00 electric bill I got, I would cook on my grill outside this morning and not heat up the house. Bacon, eggs and grilled toast with orange juice and coffee. It was good and I really think food tastes better when cooked outside. Besides it drives the neighbors nuts to smell good food hanging in the air.

After breakfast dishes were done. More boxes made their way to the car, trash put in the trashcan and.... WHAT WAS THAT NOISE? Was that THUNDER I heard off in the distance. I went in to have Dave check the weather and he said I should be OK until this evening.

I have cleared the area in question and lo and behold there is the 6 drawer chest that I was trying to get to. However I have just been informed that the rain is about an hour away so progress had to stop and all the stuff that had been out on the patio I now had to get back in the garage. That's the only thing that is wrong with all of this. I can't leave it out in inclement weather. So if I want to sell it in August I will need to keep it dry. Oh well it's the end of another weekend an time to go get some dinner.

With all that I am finding I think that we will have a fairly good garage sale. So here is to finding more "stuff". 920 days and counting.

See ya out there...

The Garage...Round Two

It's Friday evening and PIZZA NIGHT. We have pizza every Friday night, homemade from Wal-Mart. We generally get a pepperoni pizza and then add mushrooms to it. For the price we can't get any better, thin and crispy.

Tonight we will be mapping out a strategy for tackling the next section of the garage. We have divided it into 9 sections. Last week we tackled the recycling area of the garage, Saturday and Sunday we will delve into the next quadrant and tackle that.

It's a slow process. We have a big trashcan that the city provided and they pick up the trashcan with a big motorized arm on a truck which dumps the trash and shakes the can before setting it back on the curb, it's operated by a single person. If everything is not in the trashcan but out on the curb beside the trashcan the city will not pick that up and will have to wait until the following week for pick-up. That is why the process is slow.

Saturday morning and coffee in hand on the patio. It's already warm outside and only going to get hotter. More "stuff" pulled out of quadrant 2 this morning. Saw a funny sign yesterday at a garage sale. GARAGE SALE... STUFF FOR SALE! Yes, I guess we all have "stuff," and I sure don't need someone else's "stuff." I have enough "stuff" to get rid of myself.

Just found a plethora of children's coloring books and dried up markers, old crayons and trinkets a little girl would love to have. What children's treasures have I discovered? In the 5th grade my youngest daughter participated in an invention fair at her school. Her invention was children's house slippers with little flashlights in the toes. Everyone who saw them thought it was a great idea. A year later they were on the market but patented by someone else. The following year she made a sweater drying hanger by attaching telescoping antennas to a heavy duty quilt hanger. We still have it and use it. It eliminates the shoulder bumps and the sweaters dry beautifully. Once again someone took her idea and year later was using her idea but made in plastic and selling them on the home shopping channel. So if your child or grandchild comes up with what seems like a great idea don't let it pass you by.

I have a whole box of decent toys and trinkets and will set up a children's table and sell the items for a nickle apiece at the garage sale in August. I have one of those Shark Steamers and will hit all the items with a shot of steam before I put them out for sale.

I really hate to throw certain things away but in this case it is a must, a whole box of sheet music. It now smells like grandma's wet basement. However I do have the Chorus books to the three operas that I sang in with Tulsa Opera. Those I might have to hang onto a little longer. Dave use to belong to Rotary and we found a whole box of stuff from those by-gone days, so out it goes. Am I getting ruthless yet?


Christie and I just got back from taking a whole load (the back end of the suburban) of recyclables to the recycle station. More stuff gone. I can now see a portion of the floor of the garage.


Tomorrow we will tackle the stack of boxes that have been saved, I want to get to the chest of drawers that is behind them and unload the drawers that are full of magazines


See ya out there...

Father's Day and the Garage

I announced Friday evening that this weekend we would start on the garage. We decided that we had a plan and we would work on the garage in sections.

Saturday morning rolled around and after I had my first and only cup of coffee we got started. The area closest to the back door was where we would start as it would be easy to bring stuff out onto the patio. But first I had to dispose of a bag of paper that had been around since 2005. We had decided long ago that anything with any important information on it would be destroyed somehow. This bag has been hanging because I didn't want to deal with it at the time. Today I dealt with it. There was all sorts of stuff in it that needed destroying but I was determined that I was not going to run it through my new shredder as there was a lot of dirt involved and i didn't want to destroy my shredder. So I got out the fire pit and started burning the items that need to be disposed of and the rest was put in a plastic bag to be taken to the recycling drop spot.

Dave hauled out bag after bag of plastic that was no longer being used that I went through and determined that most of it could be dumped but there was some of the items that could be sold in the garage sale that we are going to have in August when the students start to come back to town and are looking for bargains. I found a set of curtains given to me from our neighbors house 10 years ago. I will cut them down this next week and have Dave put them up in my bedroom as they are room darkening and they're all the right colors to boot.

Out came empty shoe boxes that we can dispose of. We kept them because the kids were needing them for dioramas for when they were in elementary and middle school how many years ago? The youngest is now 27. Out came items for serving food to large amounts of people. Those might come in handy when we hit the road, we will just have to see. Bags of rags and old clothes made an appearance and were quickly disposed of. Boxes of old taxes that we still have to keep were discovered an stored in the shed (That too will have to be gone through). We even discovered a Rubbermaid cleaning caddy that was loaded with cleaning supplies from my daughters house in Shawnee while she was in school there 10 years ago. It got emptied and cleaned up and discovered some items that were still usable, so cleaned the containers off and now I have a cleaning caddy that is now in good order. Recycled a lot of old plastic #1 and #2 containers. We are in the process of getting some containers for the garage to put recyclables in to make it easier to sort and take to the drop spot.

I even found my fathers wool blanket from the U.S. Navy in WWII. We washed it but it is full of moth holes but the printing is still on it so I may cut it to put in with the the book that I am working on about the love letters my dad wrote to my mom during WWII.

Once again I ask myself why are we keeping so much "stuff"? However today was a good start and once it became too hot to work outside (100 degrees) we came in and cooled off by emptying the front closet and carted off a bunch of coats and raincoats and hats to the Salvation Army Family Store.

Christie and I went to the store to pick up the fixing's for dinner tomorrow. We are going to have boneless ribs fixed in the crock pot and then I am going to do some baby back ribs on the grill along with grilled green bell peppers, red, yellow and orange sweet peppers, onions, mushrooms along with grilled corn on the cob and homemade bar-b-cue sauce.

My brother and his wife surprised us and we went off to Van's Pig Stand for dinner, a must place to eat. It's celebrating it's 80th birthday. For a description and a bit of history on Van's see the attached link above.

Sunday morning had brought us clear weather and out on the patio I am with my cup of coffee going through more stuff. It's mind boggling to think we kept all of this instead of dealing with it at an earlier date. Dave just brought me another load of things to go through. Ugh, will it ever end. Just how much stuff is in the garage? That's easy to answer...too much! I already have several boxes packed with old chemicals and such that will have to wait until next springs clean-up day to dispose of. More stuff to the curb, actually we have to put it in a garbage can and a truck comes along and dumps it. It is full to the brim so will have to pack more in next weekend.

Christie and I went all over Norman trying to find propane and had to go to south Oklahoma City to get some. It is more expensive than gas $3.13 a gallon. Dinner is on the grill and the corn on the cob is just about ready to pull off.

To all you Dad's out there...here's wishing you a wonderful Father's Day. If your children have grown an moved away. Remember all the wonderful times you had with them while they were growing up. The little league games, soccer games, school activities, camping trips and teaching them how to fish. If you are getting ready to be a dad, just think of all the wonderful things you have to look forward to. And to those dads that have children at home still...cherish these moments as they are fleeting. Remember to teach your children well.
Happy Father's Day...928 days and counting.

See ya out there...

Memories Like the Corners of My Mind...

What's the saying? A picture is worth a thousand words? What about memories? Well...What About Memories!!!! Today I delved into a sore spot in my room and found box after box of pictures of the kids when they were young. "Remember this camping trip?" I would quip to Dave. "No, I have no memory of it" How is that possible? I remembered every little odd-ball memory of the trip with the help of the pictures. Where we were, what we did, how we felt, the head lice episode etc...and he has no memory of it? Now I see why it takes so long to get rid of stuff. You have to relive the memories so you can remember them and then let the item go.

For instance I found a Social Security Certificate from 1950 for my grandfather that said his first months payment was going to be $101.65, but the rest of the payments for the year would only be $33.50 a month. Now why do I need to keep that? My mother did, do I? Is there some significance in it, a bit of history perhaps? I found my grandfathers Death Certificate as well and discovered what my great-grandmother's maiden name was, now that is something I can use in my research.

Is everything relevant or irrelevant? I want to know. Why do we keep what we keep. 8+ boxes of our family pictures of the girls activities,sports, family stuff and camping and we're not talking shoe boxes, I mean big boxes of pictures. Dave has been trying to get them all onto DVD's but there are just so many of them. That's not counting all the boxes we have of my mother's pictures from the 1940's or family pictures of us kids growing up. Then there are my grandmother's family pictures. At least Dave's sister has the family pictures in Canada otherwise we would not have room in the house for it all. We are trying to downsize if that is possible.

Then I have all the pictures of the day care kids that I took care of years ago. All the fun things we did as a group. The places we went. I'm still in touch with some of the parents and think I will give them their child's pictures to them. I sure don't need them any longer.

Now take clothes. You look at every article of clothing and think will I ever be able to get back into this, maybe if I loose enough weight. Or...remember when you wore this to that party and the great time you had and so on and so on. Took three bags of clothes to the Salvation Army Family Store over the weekend. Gosh it felt good to get rid of them. Need to get rid of more.
Time to put all of it away until next weekend. 935 days and counting.

See ya out there...

Decisions, Decisions, Decisions...On "Stuff"...

We all face those decisions when downsizing, on what we want to take, what not to take and what we really need to take with us when we start our adventure full-timing. I've already pared down my clothes once, but into the closet I went this morning and pared down even more. I have to be practical in that I'm still working and will need dress clothes for the next 2 and a half years. And by the time we are ready to leave I may be a different size, smaller I hope.

I packed all my dressy sweaters into one of those space saver bags and stored it away until next season. It's amazing on how small you can make a sleeping bag when all the air is sucked out of it. Christie wants me to make a blanket of all her special T-shirts so... into one of the space saver bags they went...another project to work on before we leave (have to keep track of all the projects).

Clothes, clothes and more clothes...where do they all come from? It's like a rabbit colony, it's amazing on how piles seem to multiply when you start throwing it out. I truly am dumbfounded on how much "STUFF" we have and that's the thing it's just "stuff". Is it important that you keep those pendents from high school 48 years ago? Nobody has looked at them in how long? Why do we keep the "STUFF"?

We have a closet that we have put "stuff" into, but have not looked at it since 1990. 20 years now. Pathetic isn't it. Do I have a garage sale or just throw it out? I'm almost afraid that if I see it I will have some memory and just have to keep it. Bobbie says if it's that important, take a picture of it. I almost hate to pass it on to my kids and increase their "stuff" load. They don't need anymore "stuff".

Today I was cleaning my Great-Grand-Mother's Singer treadle sewing machine and commented on how I would like to take it with us, to which Dave said a resounding "NO, It's too heavy for the trailer". I really have to agree, even though I thought it would serve double duty, as a computer desk and sewing machine. So I will take my Bernina with us instead.

The task before us seems so daunting. Where do we start? Closets, garage, kitchen, storage shed...where? I guess pick a spot and just start. Those reading this blog, where did you start and how did you do it (de-clutter)? I'm at the point of looking at it, shaking my head, turning around and going back in the house and watching a "Harry Potter" movie instead.

The one thing I will not get rid of are the family photos. I'm working on a book of my fathers letters to my mother during WWII while he was stationed in the Pacific Theatre. Hence the genealogy project that I'm doing research on. Those will be stored and while on the road it will give me something to do on a rainy day.
Gee...I just wish we would win the lottery and get out here sooner. Every one's pipe dream.
Well back to the de-cluttering project. 949 days and counting.


See you out there...

Credit Cards and Coffee Cups...

I sell Mary Kay...there I said it. This past month I had a sale and never in my wildest dreams did I think that I would be able to pay off a credit card with my earnings with my Mary Kay business in one lump sum. But that is exactly what happened three months ahead of schedule. I'm sure you know how I feel but OH MY does that ever feel good!!! One credit card gone and oh so many more to reduce to -0- but every little bit helps when your trying to get out on the road. I'm having a private shredding party this evening and shredding that little sucker so I won't be tempted to ever use it again. The more I can shred the happier I am.

The kids are coming in this weekend for a baby shower for my soon to be grandson. Now how does coffee cups equate with a baby shower? I have this passion for collecting coffee cups. Tall ones, short ones, square ones, round ones, skinny ones, chunky ones, ones that look like cars, ones that tell me I'm a star and so on. My space runneth over with coffee cups. I even have one from Cambridge University in England, I don't remember how I inherited it but I have it.
These are just a few of the cups I have.





The room where the kids are going to sleep is inundated with coffee cups. I have a pantry in the closet and you guessed it... coffee cups galore. Therefore this evening I am packing them up, OWW... that hurts! I shudder, I love my cups. But as I have been told I can't take everything with me on this adventure and I have to make hard decisions as what to let go of. But my cups???? "Bobbie, are you sure I can't take my cups with me"? I hear her now, "You're limited by weight in your rig. No you can't take all your coffee cups"!


"Sniff, Whhhaaaaaa"!!!!!


I relent and start packing and think to myself, I'll put these in the storage shed and take 4 with me and as they break I will retrieve one from the box or, I could take them with me and give them to my favorite coffee shop in Southfork, Co. and let other people enjoy them as much as I have. For now the shed wins out.


You never know how coffee cups will bounce. From experience they don't bounce very well. When the girls were little I had three prized cups that I had put up in the china closet. They were from Canada and had stories behind them. I thought that the girls were old enough to be able use them, 6 and 12. Nope... all three broken within hours of each other. Was I disappointed? You bet! But as I told the girls "There's cubes of sugar and lumps of coal, today was a lump of coal day but sometimes that's what life deals you and you mustn't cry over it so cheer up and let's go fix dinner." Somehow I will survive without my Canada Eh? cups, I still have one left. It will go with me on our travels.


Darn, so much to get rid of and to make a decision on, I sometimes wonder if I will ever be able to wade through all of it. Well...962 days and counting, guess I better get cracking, leave date will be here before I know it.



See you out there...

Into the Land of Technocrats

Into every one's life a little rain must fall and the sun must shine. Yesterday for me, the sun did shine. You have to understand that I am not a technical person by any means. For me just turning on the computer is a major accomplishment, oh, I'd better plug it in first. So if I download something onto my computer without my hubby's help, that is a huge step forward for me (How will I ever survive out on the road with all the equipment on a 5th wheel I will never know. But hey, even and old dog can learn new tricks).

When I got my computer three years ago, it had a built in camera, light and microphone. I took one look at it and covered the camera up with tape, thinking of all the horror stories, i.e. Criminal Minds, that I had heard about people being able to hack into your system and see you on their end without your knowledge. Besides I knew that I would never use that feature on the system.

WRONG!!!!!!!!!!

My friend Bobbie Chapman introduced me to Skype yesterday. Last night I got home from work, read up on Skype and did the download. Oh Happy Day. My first and only call was to Bobbie as she is the only person in my Skype directory that I know. She was not in, darn! I had my line open and called Dave to my office. I told him about Skype, at first he was skeptical then Bobbie called and we hooked up with the video and gosh it was soooooo fun! Dave was amazed at the clarity and quality of the program and we had a great conversation to boot. After our call we decided that we needed to get all of our family on Skype. That way we can see the new grand baby when he arrives. What a wonderful way to stay in touch with your loved ones and friends and see them too if you have a camera and microphone. If not, you can use a headset with a mic and talk to them for free. Free is good!!!

Now for the cell phone...still not able to navigate through all of it and I've had it for over a year now. And don't get me started on all of the gadgets for the TV, DVD player, Wii and tuner, I tend to throw the controllers when I can't work them...see I told you I was not techno literate.

See ya out there...987 days and counting...

Getting Started...992 Days and Counting

I splurged yesterday and bought Jaimie Hall Bruzenak's new eBook "Retire to an RV, The Roadmap to Affordable Retirement" "Thank you Jaimie!" It's her newest book that was released on Tax Day and I got it for $2.00 off the regular price on-line. Boy is it ever a monster to print out. But it will be worth it. I added a blank sheet of paper to the end of each chapter so I could use it for notes. I don't think I could use a Nook at the moment. I like to write notes in the margins and put sticky notes on pages. So using an electronic device at the moment won't work for me. Besides I just like the feel of a book in my hands and turning pages. I thumbed through it and saw a lot of valuable information, so I am eager to read it.

I started going through the china cabinet today with my youngest daughter and we made some decisions on some of the things in the cabinet. She picked out some items that she would like to have. It really is a process that needs to be done when both the girls are here so we can split the contents fairly.

I have 3 sets of fine china. I know what set the oldest one is getting but the other two sets were a bit of a mystery in which the youngest one looked at the two of them and made the choice to take her maternal grandmother's china. It is a beautiful pattern and can be purchased at fine department stores. My china, which my Mother-in-law started for me, can only be purchased one place in the world. In Alberta, Canada. The Alberta Rose, a special pattern. It is beautiful but a pain to replace if broken. We will have more of an opportunity to replace it as we plan to get back up there to visit friends and family.

I don't know what to do with it for now other than to pack it up and put it in storage. I may take a few pieces of it on the road with us so if we want to have a lovely candle light dinner for two, I will have it. We love hot tea so I know I will take the tea pot with us and maybe a serving dish and a platter. And at least some cocoa mugs and tea cups. It doesn't hurt to have a few fine things with you. That decision will happen as we load the trailer.

I have already gotten rid of a boat load of clothes and gone through my closet once. I have 3 other closets to go through and purge again. I most likely will go through them many more times before I am finished with them. David's closet is easy. Throw everything away except for one pair of nice slacks, some of his favorite Hawaiian shirts, his work pants, jeans, some of his favorite casual work shirts and a suit for a dress up occasion. Work boots, tennis shoes, shower shoes and a pair of dress shoes. As you can see he is easy. As for me, I will keep a nice skirt, blouse and jacket. A nice decorative sweater, tops, jeans and sweats. And maybe a workout outfit. Pare down time. I have way too many clothes. I most likely will give them to Goodwill or Salvation Army as women's clothes don't sell well at garage sales. Besides I can use the tax write off.

My Mary Kay room is going to be a killer to go through and figure out what I will need to let go of and what to bring with me. I will cross that bridge when I get to it.

I joined www.flylady.net to help me get my act together and start de-cluttering. She has lots in interesting information and motivation.

Ah the kitchen, I wish I could take the whole thing thing with me but alas I cannot. So I will have to make some hard decisions here. I really like to cook outside so I more than likely will take cookware that will withstand an open flame (cast iron), I know I will have to be weight aware.

Dave's office...well is Dave's office, stuffed to the gills with film, slides, photos, newspaper clippings, files, VHS tapes, and junk. It will be the hardest room in which to get rid of stuff. I will wager that he will take the longest to de-junk.

I really don't want to wait 992 days before I can get out on the road but that is what the "Dave Ramsey" snowball spreadsheet tells me that I will have to wait to get rid of my cc debt. So we chip away at it each day. Besides I need to build up my retirement income after the hit I took on it due to the loss in the Real Estate market. It wasn't as bad a hit as some people had as I stayed on top of it, but it hurts anyways. And we are going to take another hit as the University is not going to put as much into our retirement fund as before. So staying there for a bit longer will help. Besides that gives me more time to research and prepare for life on the open road.

I will put up some pictures of the china when I can find my camera. I am going to hit the hay for now and get some shut-eye.

See ya out there...

Storytime: What Planted The Seed...

Eons ago when Dave and I were in our first house, for our first wedding anniversary, Dave got me a Coleman lantern. I looked at him and asked why? He said "For when we loose power and don't have any lights". It sounded plausible. Second wedding anniversary, he got me a Coleman 2 burner propane camp stove. Again I look at him and the look in my eyes asked why? He responded with "If the power goes off you will be able to cook". I nodded my head up and down yes. The Third wedding anniversary saw 3 foldingcamp stools with chair backs. I looked at him and said " for when the furniture breaks"? "Nah, for when we have company", I smiled and nodded. The next year saw two matching sleeping bags that would zip together. Ah Ha I said..."For when the power goes out in the dead of winter and we can snuggle". To which he said " Your starting to get it". The following year saw a Coleman metal encased Ice Chest. And I said "For when the refrigerator looses power, right"? "Yep", he replied. My hubby is such a ham.

When our oldest was 4 I turned to him and said, "You know, now that we have all of this camping gear, why don't we go camping"? Dave looked at me and replied "I don't know that you would like it." To which I replied after I picked my jaw up off the floor, " How would you know, we've never been". So we purchased a dilapidated tent for $50.00 that had holes and no zipper, in which I set about repairing with jean iron on patches and a sewing awl and then spread this Sears 8 person tent out on the driveway and painted duck back on it to waterproof it. We also purchased a soft side car top carrier for $10.00 and put it on top of our little Volvo and off to Colorado we went, happy as larks. We had the best time, and have been campers ever since acquiring more gear along the way.

We love the out of doors. It invigorates us. Our kids loved it as well and continue on with the camping tradition. I grew up going to the lake on the weekends with my parents. Their idea of roughing it was a cabin. But later in life after dad passed away, my mom would join us on our camping trips in our Pop-up trailer. She came to enjoy it very much as we traveled to Christie's soccer matches all over the country. We saved lots of money by driving and staying at campgrounds. We could drive to the matches, camp, eat, sight see and return home for what it would cost other parents to only fly their families to the tournaments. That did not include the funds to rent a car, hotel, food or sight see on their part. Dave's mom would join us from Canada and camp with us as well even into her eightys.

Camping is a family activity that we enjoy. I can hardly wait for our grandson to get old enough that we can take him with us on some of our adventures. Of course mommy and daddy can come too.

Bobbie and Jim

This past summer we met a wonderful couple, Bobbie and Jim Chapman. The more we came to know them, the more we wanted to get out on the open road. Bobbie gave me a book on RVing which I read from cover to cover.

After reading it I came to realize that it will take a lot determination and decision making to get to the point of travel.

There are tons of questions that have to be answered first. And I guess there is no better place to start than now.

Why do we want to do this?
That is a question that everyone must ask themselves.
My answer is, I have always wanted to travel and see the country that I live in. There is so much that I have not seen that I want to explore and enjoy it. The other answer is this. Dave had a heart attack 3 years ago and is living on borrowed time. I want us to be able to get out and enjoy life in a BIG way. In every one's life at some point in time you want to be a gypsy, to be free to do what you want.

What will you do with your house? That one is easy to answer. We will keep the house and rent it out. We still do not have enough equity built up in it so selling it would be foolish as we would get Zip, Zero, Nada. My idea is to let someone else pay the mortgage. The area is filled with houses being rented to students. At some point in time we will have some equity built up and can unload it to finance us some more out on the road.

What about your friends? We hardly socialize now as it is. We know the people in the neighborhood but do not talk to them. Getting out on the road, one will met and make new friends. We already have 3 friends out on the road living the RV life and we communicate with them more that the people who live across the street from us. Making social connections is important to living a long life. RVing will allow us to do that. Where living in a sticks and bricks just keeps us holed up in one place. I am looking forward to "Happy Hour"

What if funds run low? There's Workamping. That's where you can find jobs out on the road and usually get your RV site with FHU (Full Hook-ups) and be paid or receive a stipend. Bobbie and Jim are Camp hosts at the Big Meadow National Forest Campground just south of South Fork, Colorado in the summer. In the winter they have been working at Amazon.com in Coffeeville, Ks. It's hard, hard work but they pay their workampers very well for 2 1/2 months work. Bobbie and Jim says the pay covers their gas for the coming year. When they're not working they like to travel. You can also volunteer your time and get FHU's at National Parks. They do however ask that you stay for the season. It's up to you as to what you want to do. Workcamper News

How do you start? There has to be a plan. But first there has to be the decision that you want to do this. Bobbie said she read everything she could on Full-time RVing for 2 years before they started. When we met them they were on their second rig. A nice 2 slide Keystone Challenger with a rear kitchen. They have since purchased a 3 slide Heartland Mt. Rushmore, a very nice rig. I can hardly wait to see it. They said that most RVers will purchase 3 rigs before they find the one they want.

• Set a date to be out on the road. March 1, 2013. I want to be in Washington D. C. for my 64th birthday to see the Cherry Blossom Festival.
• Bobbie and Jim said that you should be debt free. When we start we might have a little bit of debt but if all goes well we will be debt free.
• You have to purge, purge and purge some more. You can't take all of it with you. You have to decide what is important and will function in more than one way. That means lots of letting go. Time to pass it on to the kids. Remember your going from a big house down to a 350 sq ft. trailer.
• If you are a Senior, get your National Park half price camping card. Your better half may have to get one too.
• Join the Escapees Club out of Livingston, TX. They have campgrounds through-out the Southwest, Central and Eastern part of the United States, mail service, the Escapee RV Magazine and a Care unit, for retired off the road Seniors. Plus they have lots of learning opportunities at their escapades. They offer a great social network that will keep you young.
• Join Passport America, get a campsite at half price.
• Join Camp Club USA, get a campsite at half price.
• Become a Good Sam member or AAA member or AARP member, these may help in rates.
• Learn to live frugally.
• Put yourself on a budget and stick to it.
• Prepare to boondock and learn how.
• Learn all you can about electrical, water, tire and sewer systems so you feel confident about doing it.
• Decide the kind of rig you want. 5th wheel vs. a diesel pusher motor home with a toad. (Ya gotta learn the lingo) or a camping trailer.
• Start looking at rigs. Bobbie and Jim said they looked at rigs for two years before finding one on eBay.
• Never buy new. Otherwise be prepared to pay through the nose.
• Seek the good advice of other RVers that have been on the road for awhile. They can tell you what does and doesn't work.
• Read other RVers blogs, you can learn a lot.
• Join discussion groups.
• Attend Boot Camps for Rvers.

As you can see we have a lot to accomplish before we can get out on the open road. I hope to journal this experience. I will not profess to know it all, matter of fact I know nothing. So this will be a learning experience for all of us.

See ya out there....