Wasted Days And Wasted Nights

Oh my as I think about all those hours of worry and lack of sleep. What was I thinking?

We went on our maiden voyage with the new RV. We just went overnight and stayed at Catalina State Park which is only about 8 miles from our house. We wanted to go somewhere close where we could hook it all up and get used to it.

Even though the park is closer to where we live, the RV was farther away. We had to get the RV, which was way down on the southeast side of town and drive it to the park, which is northwest of town in Oro Valley. I fretted and stewed and worried myself sleepless the night before we left wondering if I had what it take to drive something so big. I worried about fueling it up and getting it to the pump. I worried about driving in city traffic. I worried if I was worrying enough.

So when we got up yesterday morning, I hadn't slept much but was cautiously worried about the trip. Well we went for it! First step, taking it to the gas station. The gas station was right there by the storage facility and I didn't even have to leave the parking lot to get to it. So, to get used to the RV, I drove around the storage lot to get a feel for it. So far, so good.

Our gas tank is behind the license plate so I had to pull clear forward to fill it. I was hoping to get a pump on the driver's side, but no luck. I pulled in but was too far over so I had to back up and get closer. Again, no problem. I did it like a pro.

Done with filling up, so it was time to hit the not so open, very busy city streets. It took me all of 2 minutes to feel at ease and comfortable driving. I had no problems at all. We got to the park quicker and easier than I could have imagined.

The trip was a success. We do have a few issues that need to be addressed but nothing that will be too expensive. I hope. The two biggest issues are we couldn't get the rubber cover off the water hook up thingy. So we couldn't connect to the water. I don't know if there is a problem or I didn't eat enough Wheaties to have the strength to twist it off.

The other issue, is the hydraulic levelers. I was using them when we set up and got all leveled, but when I went to retract them when we were leaving, they we not set anymore. When I started the engine, the warning beeping was going off saying the jacks were down. I think we lost all our hydraulic juice and the system thinks the jacks are down. So we got to hear the obnoxious beeping all the way home. I have no idea how expensive this will be to fix. We are going to take it in to get it checked out asap.

Other than that, the RV is perfect for us. We fit in it great and love the floor plan. It is in such good shape on the inside, redecorating will get done much later. Even our dog Dexter was comfortable in it. It already feels like home.

So the bottom line is-----there was absolutely nothing to fear. It was so easy and comfortable.

Here are some gratuitous pictures for your entertainment (and reward for reading this long post.)

HEELLPP!!!!

Now that we have our RV, we realized we spent so much time looking for one, we forgot how to learn about how to actually use one. We have so many questions and concerns on how to use all the systems and such. We have been looking all over the internet for help but tend to feel a little whole lot of stress.

So, do any of you out there know of any really good resources or books that will teach us how to use the RV? We don't even know how to use the toilet yet. We are taking it out next week and hooking it up so we can work with getting to know it, but we don't want to break anything in the learning process.

Any and all advice is much appreciated!

This Time Its For Real

We finally got an RV!!! This time we didn't brag about it until we had the title and keys in hand. I had decided to relax with looking for a while and BAM she showed up on Craigslist last night. We called the owners and it sounded really good so we set up an appointment to see it this morning. It was clean and ran well and everything seems to be working just fine. It was a great deal. It belonged to the guy's father and was part of the estate.

She is older but in excellent mechanical shape and the interior looks good too. It may not be our taste since we have outgrown the 90s, but we can live with it until we decide what we what to do. She won't be the prettiest girl pulling into the park, but we love her anyway. We will spend the next 7 months getting to know her and making her ours.

Without further ado, here are some photos:

Another Step Closer

We took another step toward our goal of full time RVing. We have a Lazydays dealership here in Tucson and they offer a driver's confidence course. Since neither of us have ever really driven a big rig, we thought that it might be important to learn how before we buy a big monster and wreak havoc on the roads of this fine country. We signed up for the course and today was the big day. It is two hours in a classroom then we get to go out and actually drive around the campgrounds they have at the dealership.

It was quite scary and intimidating at first, but all in all, we both really enjoyed the class. I am a firm believer that everyone who buys an RV should be required to take some type of course like this. Driving an RV is NOT like driving a really big car.

Now that we have taken the course, I feel much more confident in actually driving one. (I guess that's why they call it a driver's confidence course!)

Anyhow, here's the proof that we passed the course.

The Perfect RV

I think I found the best RV for us.It will be very cheap to operate, is very eco-friendly and we can probably get it in the smallest of spots. Without further ado, here it is:

I have a feeling we will fight over who gets to drive it.