Sunday, December 4, 2011

NEW RV, NOW WHAT?

The largest step to realizing our dream has finally been taken and we have purchased our fulltime RV. We spent two weeks at Lazy Days RV in Tampa Florida making our purchase and getting all the little adjustments and tweaks taken completed, then I put that bad boy on I75 headed north.

I had never driven a motorhome before until the one day class that Lazy Days conducts, so my driving experience was very limited. All seemed to go well headed up I75 and then I headed west on I10.  We decided to stop for the evening, although still early, in Tallahassee Florida at Big Oak Rv Park. The park was fairly nice and we spent the evening nice and snug in our new home.

Our next travel day we ventured further along I10 and experienced our first truck stop refueling $$$!!! This days travel was longer (more than we intended) and we finally landed at a KOA in Baton Rouge Lousiana for another snug night in our new home.

Upon arriving in Shreveport Louisiana we proceeded to show off our new home to our family. The kids loved the motorhome, however the grands were a bit leary. It seems the question was raised, where will we have our Thanksgiving and Christmas gatherings papa? I reassured them all that the house is not sold yet and we will continue the traditional holiday gatherings there. Now when the house sells I guess we may have to start some brand new traditions.

After the visits from all the family, we headed for the Barksdale AFB Famcamp to park our new home. We will park here for a while to get our new home set up. I need to decide on which satellite service and have it installed. I also need to set up for internet with a cradle point router. We are slowly loading our clothing and some other things onto the home, hmmm not as easy as I thought!

Of course we may feel like fulltimers and retirees, but we are not quite there, so it was also back to work we went.  :(

I have been negligent in posting some pictures of our new home, here are a few:

Wednesday, November 16, 2011

FINALLY WE TAKE THE PLUNGE!

Hello family and friends, tonight I finally take time to post our big news. After much consternation, thought and prayer, we have taken the plunge and purchased our RV!  We are elated, exhausted and very thankful. It has been a busy week and a half here in Tampa, Florida.

We arrived here on the 5th of November, only to find that the motorhome we were looking to buy already had a buyer. The buyer had placed a deposit and was waiting for his credit approval and something else to come together for him. There were no other Allegro REDs that we were interested in on the lot. We had resigned ourselves to head back home after spending some time on a couple area beaches and doing a little sight seeing.

November 8th we got a call informing us that the previous buyers financing had fell through and wanting to know if we were still interested. We were. I still almost lost the purchase during our negotiation process, I got a might stubborn with my figures. I finally relented (a little) and the purchase was made :)

Next came all the paperwork, and the walk-through inspections resulting in the infamous punchlist. We had a few items on our punchlist, things that needed adjusting and touching up. We have been here ever since getting those items accomplished.

I think we finally have them all done and we will being heading back towards Louisiana tomorrow or Friday. Those that are interested in seeing our new home, check out the pictures in my previous post, that is the one. I will post new pictures later as well. Tonight we are happy, but exhausted.

More to follow...... Life is good.... God is good. ;)

Saturday, October 1, 2011

PLAN IN PROGRESS

Once again I had lapsed into the work grind and routine, not taking time to update my progress in obtaining our RV. We have been busy at work, yet taking time to shop around and research some motorhomes. I have received some invaluable advice and tips from other RVers who have experienced our same questions in shopping for an RV. Many thanks to Al and Karen for some wonderful pictures and information about a motorhome (we think may be the one) at Lazy Days in Florida.

The motorhome we think may be the one is a Tiffin RED 38QRA. It has the rear bath option with an additional 1/2 bath included. It also has a residential fridge. We like most everything about this coach, with some reservations concerning the large "ushaped" dinette setup. Who knows we may like that too once we see it up close and personal




One other thing I would consider changing (eventually) is the couch/sleeper. I would much rather have a couple of comfy recliners in it's place. I am just not sure that is possible, I guess it would depend on the style and size of recliners. When watching tv, we like to sit head on with the screen and the smaller the screen the closer we like to sit!




This motorhome has three TVs and automatic satellite, now I have to decide which satellite service provider to use. I also need to research and see what will be needed to ensure we have satellite service no matter where we roam.





Presently we are planning a trip to Lazy Days to see this motorhome and possibly bring it home :). There are a lot of decisions to be made for this plan also. Do we drive our car, packed with items we need for the stay and return trip in the motorhome or do we fly with bare minimum suitcases?  If we drive Cheryl will have to follow me back to Louisiana in our Toyota Camry which is not towable with four wheels down. If we fly, we ride back together, assuming Lazy Days sells us the coach at my price. This should not be a major decision, especially after "the major decision" to buy or not buy!

Another consideration in our decision making is that we have never even rode in a motorhome before, much less driven one! Hmmm, maybe trying to tow a car on my first experience driving a motorhome would not be a great idea anyway :).  I will take the driving course they offer once we decide to make the purchase! I may be quick to learn; I used to operate some heavy equipment during my military service, let's see, how many years ago...

Well we are doing our best not to stress out with all the decision making and "what ifs". If anyone has advice, tips or recommendations, feel free to chime in, I need all the help I can get!


Sunday, August 14, 2011

WE NEVER KNOW WHEN......

Wow what a week!  It was an eye opening emotional kind of week.  Tuesday a friend and coworker of mine had a siezure coming back from a jobsite, just before he entered our office!  He had a massive heart attack.

 God was certainly watching over him during this trial, just as he was walking to the front entrance a group of medically trained firefighters (one a CPR instructor) was just leaving our building. They had been in a training class in our conference room. The instructor of the group began CPR immediately and is credited with saving his life.

  The ambulance arrived just in time for the EMT to use the de-fib equipment when his heart stopped beating, thus saving his life again! He was then transported to a nearby hospital; while in route I am told his heart stopped once again.  They saved him once more and eventually Tuesday evening installed a stint into a 95% blocked artery.

He was critical for a couple of days, with a possibility of some brain damage. Today he is conscience, doing good (for someone surviving a massive heart attack) and it appears there may be little or no brain damage.

 God has worked miracles in his life!  My friend is 48 years old and until now a lot healthier than I (or so we thought)!  Wednesday there were a few calls to the office wanting to know how I was doing! It seems as news spread through out the base that someone in my section had a massive heart attack, there was a lot of assumptions made that it was the old diabetic guy (me)!  It is a shocker that it is the youngest in our office, the guy who goes to the fitness center three time a week and is more than 10years my junior!

Cheryl and I are re-evaluating our retirement plans and looking for ways to move the dates up!  Until next time....

Saturday, August 6, 2011

Shopping for a Motorhome

We had a great week of vacation last week and really enjoyed spending time with our sister Sue. We stayed on the go and it is a good thing we were real active, because we were constantly dining out! We sure do miss our sister. Cheryl has known her since birth, I was priviledged to meet her when she was 13 years old. The three of us went everywhere together, Cheryl's parents insisted!

Well we are back to work, the same ole grind. We are making time to research and shop for a motorhome though. We found a motorhome we like at Lazy Days in Florida (online of course).
There are a few features in this motorhome that we are not sure we like though. The "ushaped" dinette seems to be a bit much for just Cheryl and I, however would be very convenient when the grands are traveling with us. The white upholstery is scary for the same reason as the aforementioned grands. Also there is no place to put any recliners unless you remove the couch, thus losing a bed (also inconvenient because of the aforementioned grands. Other than that, we like this one:

View all                       Get your own


Thursday, July 28, 2011

We are still here and daydreaming!

We are still here, working hard and striving to reach our goals for fulltiming. Our lives have become a daily routine of rising at "0'dark thirty", heading to work and getting home with time left for dinner and a made for tv movie!

We do manage to sneak in some fun once in a great while. This week we are both on vacation and enjoying the company of our sister from South Carolina. It is so great to be able to spend time with her, she is a lot of fun. She is hoping to return mid September to help Cheryl and I shop for an RV at the Dallas RV show. She has a vested interest in what we buy, since she plans on traveling with us a whole lot!

We are looking at Tiffin motorhomes, since I saw Joe and Sherri's a while back. It seems I hear a lot of good things about the Tiffins. I am wanting a rear engine diesel (RED), but we will have to see how the ole savings account is faring at the time. We hope  to buy no later than November, but may have to wait until January or February to increase the savings.

Anyway I wanted to finally  post to let everyone know we are still here and still daydreaming about the RV lifestyle. I will close with some pictures of our "stay-cation" with our sister here in Shreveport.







Friday, March 4, 2011

STILL SEARCHING FOR THAT PERFECT RV

As my last few days of "rest and recovery" wind down, I am taking advantage to the time to continue my research into RVs. I should say as my last few days of "rest" wind down, I will still be recovering, however I return to work on Monday :(  ..... The doc realizes that since I am a "desk jockey" I can do my job with one arm and half a brain .....lol

Since this is the second rotator cuff surgery (the first on the right shoulder) and my tendency to attempt to exceed my physical limitations, we have decided to explore the motorhome option. It has been said that setting up a motorhome can be a lot less physically demanding than setting up a fifth wheel. 

Here is my first choice in the motorhome choices:








Well maybe if I sell the house, everything in the house and the truck, then negotiate about 80% off the dealers invoice price............ :)

God bless us all.......

Monday, February 28, 2011

GETTING WELL, TIMES TWO

Hi all, just checking in to let you know I am still here and getting better everyday. I am referring to the recent surgery and not just my ego! I failed to mention in my earlier post, Cheryl has fallen victim to the flu :(  and has had a tough time with it. She has been improving with medication (tami-flu). It has really been challenging around here with my being benched with one arm and her being down with the flu, but we are both getting well :) 

One silver lining is that I have had plenty of time to think and ponder our future plans while being mobility impaired. I say it is a silver lining, however it could just be perplexing and dangerous! :)  I have been giving a lot of thought concerning the "fulltiming" lifestyle.  I have also been reading a lot of blog articles concerning the lifestyle and my attitude has changed a bit!  I think I am re-evaluating the importance of being deemed a "full timer" and thinking maybe we may just want to be deemed as "any time we wanna goers" LOL.  Now that classification needs a little work, doesn't quite sound as catchy as "full timer", but maybe it will catch on   ;) ....

The decision to sell or not sell the house may be a mute point. Since the market is whacked right now, we may be better off to set our sites on something less expensive for our rig and keep the house. We would be in the sticks and bricks from November until about February, then hit the road in late Feb to destinations to be determined. Once we are living this lifestyle, we can then determine if we want to sell the house or make any adjustments necessary. :) ...... Now these have been my random thoughts and could change with my next mood! Cheryl is like-minded and will be happy just to hit the road, no matter what we decide..lol

Well I have rambled enough for today. If anyone has any opinions on my rambling thoughts, please let me know. I need all the help I can get!  God bless us all.........  :)

Saturday, February 19, 2011

BODY REPAIRS GOING WELL

For those that may not know, I had some "bodywork" done recently. No, there was nothing wrong with my truck or Rv, the body that was worked on was mine :)  The repairman did an excellent job and it would seem the repairs were successful (thanks Dr. Shane Barton). I have been sitting , sleeping and generally living in my recliner since the second of February and I am going stir crazy!

I did leave the recliner and house to go to physical torture twice already. Those were interesting trips. The first was easy enough, all I had to do was lay there and let the PT move my arm in all directions while watching me wince and make painful faces. Now he did a little of that on the second visit, but then he hooked me up to a rope pulley, a handle in each hand, then had me torture myself by pulling my left arm above my head! Those people are sadistic. I cannot believe they talk me into torturing myself and then I even pay them lots of money to do it! Oh well, as I have said earlier, oh the humor of a complicated mind...lol.

Well I have been sitting around the house for nearly three weeks now and you would think it would be a sort of preview of what retirement would be like.  I kind of messed that up by setting up my home computer system to remotely connect with the servers at work and enabling me to work at home (man I dedicated). I don't think this absence from the office is a fair indicator of what retired life would be like, especially since I couldn't get off my rear bumper and do anything much!  I guess in the next couple of years,  I will just have to try the real thing instead :)

Until next time friends... God bless us all

Tuesday, February 15, 2011

PAINFUL TIME OFF

Wow, once again it has been a while since my last posting. It never fails, I either get busy or lazy and end up procrastinating on the blog posting. This time though I have an additional excuse of being incapacitated. I am recovering from some surgical repairs to my left rotator cuff and trying to learn to operate with one arm for a while. Thank God that this time the surgery was on the left rotator cuff and I am right handed. :)

This will not be a lengthy post, because for some odd reason being able to use only one arm has reulted in my ability to type and I have succumbed to typing with only one finger! It is like my brain has made a special rule: one arm limits me to one finger? lol.  Oh the humor of being a "complicated" person.  Never mind my ramblings, I am also under the influence of some strong pain drugs ;)

I thought that being "layed-up" for a couple of weeks would give me an opportunity to catch up on some of my preparations for fulltiming, however the first week and a half after the surgery I was only good for comic relief to others! I was able to get some organizing done today and got rid of a bunch of paperwork that has been piling up. I was pretty happy about accomplishing something to uphold my status of "preparing to fulltime" and all with only one arm too!  :)

Until next time, God bless us all..........................

Thursday, January 20, 2011

GOOD INFORMATION

I don't post a lot during work weeks, however I wanted to give a special thanks to all who have given advice, information and encouragement concerning our decisions that we face. I am discovering there are a lot of others that have went through this process and also a lot that are facing the same decisions. Thank you friends for all your advice, information and support.

I don't have a lot of time to post this morning and I would like to acknowledge all the comments that were received on the previous post. Anyone that is facing similar decisions in their fulltime transition, I encourage you to check out the comments. Thanks again.............. God bless us all :)

Monday, January 17, 2011

HARD DECISIONS

I have had a great "lazy long weekend" doing nothing but surfing the computer. I have also been doing a lot of thinking about upcoming decisions concerning my retirement or resignation (decision 1),  buying a fifth wheel or motorhome (decision 2) and keeping the house or not (decision 3).  I have always thought those would be easy decisions to make when the time came, however the time is here and I now know otherwise!

Decision 1, retire or resign. Why is this a decision, well  if I retire it means I wait until March of 2015 to finally be free to travel when we want and not based on our work schedule. It also means the difference of collecting some additional pension money or not. The pension money would be about $350. a month, since I only would only have 10 years in that pension plan.  If I did wait on that pension money, with rising fuel prices, it may equate to a tank of fuel for the rig! However is it worth working another 4 years to get it? I don't think my laziness is a factor in this decision; I have literally had a job since I was 15 years old (if you count the working in cotton fields, make that 12 years old!)

Decision 2, fifth wheel or motorhome?  I know it is a personal preference thing. Cheryl and I both love the Mobile Suites fifth wheel and the Fleetwood Voyage motorhome. If we go with the fiver, we are also looking at a truck, cost could be as high as $130k. If we go motorhome, cost could be as high as $220k (we would cap it at that).  Another consideration other than cost is health. I have a couple of health problems, will they effect my ability to setup a fiver? I am scheduled to have rotator cuff surgery on my left shoulder in a couple of weeks (fairly routine). I am not the macho male I used to be!

Decision 3, sell the house or not. I believe fear is a factor in this decision. Our house is relatively small, 1450 square feet. We bought it in 1997 and have some equity built (depending on the market). However we still have some mortgage left also! Emotionally (a term not used a lot by us macho males), selling it would be like cutting ties with our past life. We do want to get out there and travel, see America; we do not want to cut ties with our past life. Our family is important to us and at times it seems they are really dependent on us. Maybe we should just keep the house and use it as a home base?

I know that these decisions may not seem like a big deal, however they have been wieghing heavy on my mind lately. It helps to write about them and I am sure it would help to hear opinions and advice.

Until next time... God bless us all...............

Sunday, January 16, 2011

WHAT'S NEXT?

That is the question on my mind for the past couple of weeks. What is the next step in our journey to change over to a fulltime (or most of the time) RV lifestyle?  I know what the answers should be, yet know I find it sort of intimidating to be at the point where I need to make life changing decisions. We have reached our financial goals, no debt (except the house) and now I can easily go out now and finance a fulltime rig and even make a decent down payment.  On the other hand I can put the house up for sale, wait a year and a half, then tap into our retirement savings and house equity to pay cash for the fulltime rig. Then there is the question of our 22 year old son who decided to move back in with us and start school! Things get complicated, its time for prayer :)