Welcome Wayne and Deanna,

As another "static" full-timer, I can tell you that you will be "charged" for some time to this lifestyle.  Jo and I have been living in our fifth wheel for about a year and a half, parked in a small mobile home park, and enjoying that we don't have a lot of yard work and, as Jo says, not a lot of cleaning because of owning a home.

The biggest thing to remember is HOLDING TANKS.  I was shaving the other morning when my wife, Jo, mentioned that the kitchen sink was holding water.  Yep.....I forgot to keep an eye on the tank.  No issues though as there was not a lot of water there.

Feel free to ask questions and make comments.  Since you've been RV'ing for some time, I'm sure you will be able to answer the questions of others.  Glad to have you as part of the family.

Terry

Thank you for the encouragement, Terry.  Can't have too many reminders about those holding tanks.  :)

Welcome to the family!!!...........hope to hear alot from you,the journey has begun!!!!

Hi and welcome. We are static for 8 months of the year mobile for 4. We, like Terry & Jo have been been fulltiming about a year and a half. We are in a large very well-run park, but are in a section basically for what they call extended stay. Since we will retire in June,but will always want to spend part of the year here, we are able to reserve our space ahead of time for the months we want to be here,well ahead , as we have done the past two summers,it works well for us. We too, love the freedom of having sold the house. I truly believe static or mobile, this lifestyle adds to the quality of life. Since we are in an area where people are always in & out, we get to meet people from everywhere, including europeans who come to see the west and rent RV's to do so. Almost like travel without moving. Very enjoyable.

 Like many here, this site and the great folks who participate were a driving force behind or decision to fully embrace the lifestyle. Although we had been RV'ers most of our lives, and we knew we liked the idea, doing it,as you know, if quite a different matter. I wish you the best.

Terry's comment about the holding tanks is right on, but rather ironic. Three days ago, the park was working on the water system,and notified everyone that the water would be off for two hours. I have no idea how I came to leave the bathroom sink faucet on, but since the water was off when we left that morning, I wasn't aware of it. Our grey tank was closed,as is our habit and of course when they turned the water back on the tank filled and overflowed from the shower. We got a lot of water in the storage compartments of our rig, as well as the underbelly, we guess that the water ran a couple of hours before our neighbor across the way saw water coming from the underbelly,and shut off the water. Luckilly, the damage was minimal, and two quickly drilled 2" holes in the underbelly cover drained the water quickly, and heaters in the underbelly and in the bath solved the problem.Minor carpet damage in the bedroom, but I imagine we'd have had a disaster if my neighbor hadn't acted when he did. RV people truly are the best. Just a few weeks before that,the same guy had a terrible time replacing a roof vent on his rig, and much as I hate heights on windy days, I climbed up there and helped him get it done. Never considered not doing so, just like he never considered not shutting off my water, and helping us deal with the mess, when we returned. Just another reason why the RV lifestyle is so awesome.

Best,

Richard

Thanks for your kind words. Yes, this is exciting and scary and challenging. Spent good part of last night on here, reviewing many posts on the emotional aspects of this life change.

Appreciate everyone's candid sharing. This week will be more talking to the kids about what they can use, and more moving into our new home. Let the sorting begin. Want to be done with this part when we list the house. Onward...

Congrats Wayne and Deanna on your new adventure! We are newbies as well with just under 4 months now and loving it! We are "static" or "fixed based" FT'ers right now while I still work FT but can honestly say that it has been one of the best moves we have ever made. Just the release of the stress of having to care for a large home and yard, yet have the comfort of being able to move in a heart beat if necessary or want to! We have decorated the interior already for the holiday's (first year in 26 years without a full blown tree) but we made it special nonetheless (we strung lighted pine garland over the sides and tops of each slide and hung our former tree ornaments on the garland (pics to follow).

Wishing you continued great luck and happiness in your new lifestyle and have a very Happy Holiday Season.

Les

 

 

Thanks Deanna. The box on the back of the truck houses our motorcycles and my tool cabinets and other "essential" workshop type tools, etc. So far it has been a blast, especially trying to figure out how to "Christmas" the joint up, but Sue is well on here way (this is her big time of the year and lives for the festivities). She is now looking for a workamping position at one of the local campgrounds for next season while I continue to work FT.

Happy New Year update...almost 2 months since we joined this group now. We have learned so much, and continue to learn as we go. We just had yard sale #2, hoping to list the house 2/1. Have continued living in the 5er since we committed to doing so day before Thanksgiving. It is our cozy, new home. We cannot wait to be done with the cleanout and sale of the Big House. Storage unit in place for what we cannot part with yet. What a process. What a wild emotional ride, at times. We are growing closer than ever as a couple, as we work through this huge change. God is faithful. Thank you for all the help and encouragement, everyone!

Best of everything in the New Year to y'all!

Deanna

Hi Wayne and Deanna :)

We too are Static Fulltimers, we bought our 'new home' in August last year and moved onto the Family Campground on the base where Jay still works fulltime. I remember how hard it was for us to 'downsize' everything we had collected over our 25 year marriage, we had two huge yard sales and still ended up with a garage full that we gave to goodwill. We also have a storeage unit with all the things our Son is going to put into a house sometime this year, he is getting out of the Navy in the Summer and moving from Hawaii back to the mainland US. I think both of us were physically and emotionally drained during the whole process!

Fast forward almost 6 months and we are both happier than ever! We have loved every minute of our 'new life'. We took our first trip in the RV over Thanks Giving to Patrick AFB in Florida and we had a blast!! Jay keeps saying that he is going to love being a "mobile" fulltimer, we are just waiting to pay off the last bit of debt before we are outta here!! Hopefuly toward the end of this year. We are in a great spot here on the base, Jay is home for lunch every day and the other RVers that live here or just visit have been great neighbors! We decided to get to know everyone that was here for Christmas, so we printed out invites to a "Marshmallow roast" on Christmas eve, it was so much fun and now we feel like we are a big family!

We are not financially sound enough to be able to live this life without having some extra income, but we are looking forward to the Work Camping experience, or volunteering for a site at the national parks etc. There are lots of opportunities to earn a little extra when we need it.

Congrats to you both for taking the chance and living 'your' life! It's just going to keep getting better from here! Welcome to the forum!

Good Luck and huggs
Kim x

Jay and Kim, what a wonderful setup you have going for you! Thank you for the encouragement. We are so busy getting ready to be less busy, but when we do check in and hear from those of you who have made it through....we are energized. Thanks for taking the time to post your kind words. Hope we meet one day.

Deanna

Kelly & Jay, best of luck to you on your dream! These are hectic days now, but all steps forward help. And your taking time to say that those of us who share are fueling your dream made my day. More packing today. Onward march!
Deanna

Kelly & Jay, best of luck to you on your dream! These are hectic days now, but all steps forward help. And your taking time to say that those of us who share are fueling your dream made my day. More packing today. Onward march!
Deanna

Wayne and Deanna....it's only a matter of time...time to put the St. Joseph upside down in the front yard!