Decisions, Decisions, Decisions (Part 1)

As I am finishing this post, we are on our way on our 1^st extended trip; traveling from Michigan to South Dakota (Badlands National Park, Mt Rushmore, Black Hills, etc); on to Colorado and then to North Carolina.  SD will be subject of next post!

Here are some additional thoughts on how we went through the process and transition to full time RVing:

In the Fall, 2016, Jim and I realized that life changes were coming our way.  We had already made the decision to sell our house in the Spring 2017, and were considering the possibility of moving to a condo or apartment.  When Jim’s job ended sooner than we hoped (as mentioned previously) we started looking at everything, including retirement for both of us.  That is when we started seriously discussing the possibility of becoming full time RVer’s, and we began gathering information.  In addition to extensive research about RVing, we had to consider the following:

•  Retirement – If you believe everything you read and hear, you may never have enough money to retire, right?   It’s obviously a very personal decision and retirement can be different for everyone.  We all know people who never got to enjoy retirement for various reasons.  We felt strongly that we wanted to retire while we were still healthy and active.  We decided pretty early that a simpler life style was very appealing.  Once we looked at all our retirement information and “ran the numbers” we decided to go for it.  We definitely set up a budget and need to be careful and will make adjustments as needed.  I am exploring possibly doing some accounting and/or tax work on a part time basis, but haven’t made a decision yet.  Since we are not eligible for Medicare for several more years, I was able to find an individual health insurance policy through an agent in Florida that specializes in health insurance for full-time RVers.  This policy covers us in all States and includes dental and vision.  Here is the link to this website:  http://www.rverinsurance.com.

•  Full-time RVing – We read everything we could find on the subject, including blogs and books.  We watched U-Tube videos, and went to RV shows.  We looked at the cost of purchasing an RV that we would be comfortable in as well as ongoing budgets.  Selling our house was a big part of this decision which we had already made. The timing of the house sale looked very promising and that gave us confidence to move forward.  I have to say the appeal of traveling this way, the sense of freedom and adventures, was very strong for us.  By late Winter, we had made the decision and began taking the necessary steps to make it happen.

•  Family and Friends in Michigan - The biggest and hardest decision for us was if we could leave Michigan for extended periods of time.  This would mean being away from family and friends in Michigan more, but possibly spending a little more time with family in other states.  It has been difficult and there have been some tears for sure. I hope we can balance the travel time with great family time following our initial plan of traveling in the Fall and Spring, spending Summers in Michigan as well as some of the holidays, and heading someplace warm for most of the Winter.

• Downsizing -  We would have to downsize big time.  Everything from paper work, furniture, clothes, “stuff”, had to be dealt with.  This turned out to be somewhat of a freeing experience, but some decisions were difficult and it took us much longer than we expected.  You have to be committed to the process and keep the end goal in mind.  We found that items we thought had value maybe did not to others.  We downsized by various means, including throwing things away and shredding old documents.  It was a combination of items going to family, items being sold or donated.  A few items we wanted to keep, but not put in the RV, are being stored at our son’s house.  We have a feeling we may be “pairing down” a little more over the next year.

I said several times that this is not for the "faint of heart" and at times it seemed too difficult or I thought maybe we shouldn't do this.  It's easy to let small setback and doubts hold you back.  We helped each other through and how ever it turns out, we won't ever have to wonder "what if".