Living In Our RV For Two Months!

So now we've been living in our travel trailer for two months. We sold our house, and we sold Most everything that we owned. I quit work the week before Christmas, this way I could the be available to sell our household items. I used two apps One was called "let go" and the other one "offer up". Between the two, I was able to sell most everything. These apps were free. Now you could get premium advertising if you want to, but I sold most everything through the free ads. The garage was a real challenge, it was just packed full of stuff. So I rented a dumpster from a company called "Bin there dump that". So we dumped a lot of stuff. We moved into the trailer January 4th. And we still have too much stuff. The back of the truck was full of stuff and including the back seat. I have been slowly sorting through it consolidating down. I built additional storage inside the trailer by building steps for the two sides of the bed so the dog could get in-and-out. Inside the steps, I created more storage space. We bought a new bed to replace the Rv bed because RV bed was terrible. We bought a Novaform memory foam mattress. It is a 14" thick mattress, and so that is way taller than the original mattress. That's why I had to build the steps. If you are gonna live in an RV full time you need a comfortable bed, RV beds are just not going to cut it.




So we are still Sitting here in Manitou Springs. That is giving us time to continue to consolidate down and to continue to organize our things better. It's also giving us an opportunity to pay down our bills and get our taxes taken care of so all our financial things are in order before we start to travel. I'm trying to preserve as much cash from the sale of the house but we have to get rid of the credit card bills. The amount of interest that we pay each and every month is crazy. what a waste of money! I have paid off about half our credit cards so far. I started off by paying all the small balances first and have been slowly working up to the cards with the higher balance. I did it that way so it felt like we are accomplishing more. We had way too many credit cards which made it very difficult to keep track of it all. As I pay off these cards it will reduce our future monthly bill Obligations.

watch My Video "two Months Living In the RV Full-Time"

I can't wait to start traveling. We should be able to hit the road end of April. The first trip will be to South Dakota that's where we are going to domicile. First order of business will be to get new drivers licenses. I already have a PMB in South Dakota. A personal mailbox becomes your legal address.We signed up with America's mailbox because they offer a lot of services. I'm currently working with them to register my car. They will mail me my plates. It's definitely nice to have someone in South Dakota to do the legwork for you. Once the car is registered in South Dakota I can get auto insurance in South Dakota. Auto insurance is way cheaper there.

 If you decide to sign up with America's mailbox please use me as a Referral. Tell them Syd Robinson #9435 sent you. You will get a $25 Gift card good at 15,000 restaurants around the country www.americasmailbox.com




Cathy's already collecting her social security retirement and mine begins this month. Between the two of us, we will have a decent monthly income. Fortunately, Social Security is not our only resource. even though we retired early we can still make extra income through various work opportunities. We won't lose any benefits as long as we keep our earned income below $17,020 each. As long as we continue to make some extra money we should be able to do pretty much what we want. I plan on trying to keep as much money in our retirement funds as possible by not using them. It will be good to continue to allow the retirement funds to grow until age 70. At that time you have to start withdrawing money from your funds or you will be penalized.



While we continue to prepare to travel I will continue to keep you updated with these blog posts. So until next time happy camping!


PS: Check out my youtube channel! RV Tips And Trips!





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Should Children Be Raised on the Road? Is Living Full Time in an RV a Healthy Choice For Kids?

I believe there is a place for full-time RV living, but I have some serious misgivings about parents who decide to raise their school-aged children full time in an RV. 

My Wife and I are in our early 60’s.  We’ve worked hard our whole life, paid into retirement and social security, and are now considering early retirement and full-time RV living.  We plan to sell our home, travel in our RV and see the whole country before we are too old to continue to do it.  We have the resources from the equity in our home, our retirement money, and of course, social security.  For us, the choice to live full time in an RV is a sound decision. 

But what about the children who are raised full time in an RV?  Don’t you think they are giving up a whole lifetime of experiences that they will never get back?  In my humble opinion, they might grow up with little or no social skills.  They will never experience going to school with children their own ages and never make lifelong friends.  And what about school dances, their first prom, going to football games, joining sports, joining the band, trying out for cheerleading, the list goes on and on.  None of these activities are available to them on the road. 

I’m NOT a big proponent of homeschooling to begin with.  Where will these children get the ambition to go to college, or to leave home to get a job?  Where will they get the skills and/or the knowledge to even go about being on their own in a traditional environment?  Most kids in a traditional home have chores.  Most kids grow up getting a job delivering newspapers, or cutting grass, it's how they learn the value of a dollar.  Where will these kids learn this lesson? Kids learn by example. Aren’t the parents teaching these children a way of life that may not be appropriate for them?

If I’m wrong, I’d love to hear from the adults who have chosen this life for their children.  I’d like to know why they chose this life for them, and if there are any children who have actually grown up on the road with their parents, kids who have been doing this for a very long time.  What effect has this had on them?  Do they feel deprived? Please send me your comments.  I would really like to know.

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Choosing the Right RV/Camper

Which RV is right for you?  Million dollar question, right? Speaking as someone who is on camper number 3, and my wife really wanting camper number 4, this is a really tough decision.

Our first camper was a 20 foot Cabin A.  It had a very TINY bathroom, a full-size bed, and a very small sink with no counter space, and a refrigerator with a freezer that could hold maybe one pound of meat.  If you’re upgrading from a tent or pop up trailer, then this type of RV would probably be perfect for you.  If you’re only going to use it for the occasional weekend camping trip or once a year vacation, then this type of RV will work for you.  Even though it was small, it had a big closet, lots of storage, and it slept 6.  We were in our early 50’s when we purchased it and it was a little difficult climbing over people to get into the bed.  A young family would’ve really enjoyed this camper.

When we decided to trade in the Cabin A, my wife's main concern was a bigger bed.  She walked into what would be our second camper, a 25 foot Aspen Trail, saw a huge queen sized bed, and decided it was the camper for her.  She didn't notice that the bed sat very high, and it was a challenge to get in and out of the bed.  Also, we were now in our mid 50’s, and all the jacks and the awning were manual cranks, and it eventually became burdensome to set up, and take down the campsite.  It had a much larger bathroom, no slide-outs, and a “U” shaped dining table.  It had a nice sized refrigerator, and a separate freezer, which was pretty awesome.  As time went on, she felt the height of the bed was a pain, and she really did not care for the “U” shaped dining table.

That brings us to camper number three.  Again, she walked into a 30 foot Sprinter Campfire Edition camper, saw the queen sized bed, this one closer to the floor, a slide out which made the living area much bigger, a really nice couch, a huge bathroom, electric jacks and awning, and to top it all off, an outdoor kitchen.  So you’re probably thinking this one should be perfect right, so why is she looking for camper number 4?  Well, now we’re not just using it for the occasional weekend or yearly vacation. We are now thinking about living in the camper full time, so now she wants a little more space.  The couch is very comfortable, but not for sitting and watching TV for a couple of hours.  It's barely big enough for me, my wife, and the dog.  And I need a lot more storage space.  So, looking for number 4.

So, when you walk into that camper that looks just perfect, first decide what you’ll be using it for and what your needs are.  Do you want a camper, a fifth wheel, or a coach?  What’s important to you, a big bed, lots of storage, a big bathroom?  Walk into the camper, lay on the bed, sit at the table, stand in the shower, sit on the toilet, open the cabinets, take your time to imagine what you will take with you and whether there is enough room.  Go to a place that sells hundreds of campers and RV, not a small lot that doesn’t have a lot of choices.  Go to an RV show and look at all the options.  Then pick your camper or RV.  Don’t do like we did.  In the long run, it will just cost you a lot of money because you will be upside down on every decision.

Happy camping!!!

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Introduction

I will be posting articles on RV related projects, tips and reviews on camping products we use.

I will be writing articles on places we have visited and give you some ideas of where to go.

I enjoy camping and try to do it as much as time allows. Eventually we would like to retire and travel full time. That would be our ultimate goal would be to visit every state. Still have a few years yet for that but for something like that we need to start planning. There are many things we need to consider and prepare for. As we go through that I will post articles on what we discover to share with you the reader.

Our current Rig is a 2016 keystone travel trailer 26rb sprinter campfire edition. Our tow vehicle is a 2016 Chevrolet Silverado 1500. We have travelled with it coast to coast and have made various upgrades to it which I will share with you in future articles.

I will also be making videos of our trips as well as tips on You Tube. Come follow me there at

RV Tips And Trips

My website is www.RvTipsAndTrips

Until next time Happy camping!