Our Route to the Warm Weather - The Adventure Begins

It is really cold on Nova Scotia tonight. Going down to 3 degrees C. It is time to head south, which we will do on Tuesday. Thank heavens.

As promised, here is our itinerary:

Monday, Oct 15: Seabright to Truro NS to visit Arch's sister and family and say good by

Tuesday Oct 16: Truro to Woodstock, NB

Wednesday, Oct 17: Woodstock NB to Freeport, Maine

Thursday, Oct 18: Monegan Sun Casino in CT.

Friday, Oct 19: around New York City to Cape May, NJ for 3 days at the Seashore Campground

Monday, Oct. 22: Ferry from Cape May to Lewes, Delaware and on to the Janes Island State Park on Maryland's eastern shore for 3 days.

Thursday, October 25 we cross the Chesapeake Bay tunnel and bridge to Virginia Beach where we will spend 3 days at First Landing State Park.

Sunday, October 28: Then its is on to Cedar Point National Forest in North Carolina for 4 days. We plan to set up camp here and back track to Okracoke Island, Cape Hatteras, etc.

Thursday, Nov 1: Myrtle Beach State Park for 5 days. Golf heaven. Need I say more? :)

Tuesday, Nov 6: Hunting Island State Park SC. Recommended by the folks at Wheeling It. We are really looking forward to this stop. We love Nina's reviews and she posts great pictures of several sites in each park they review - very helpful.

Sunday, Nov 11:  Skidway Island State Park. GA. This is our Savannah stop. Should be interesting. Also close to Hilton Head. More golf.

Fri Nov 16 to Sat Dec 15 Jekyll Island, GA. Another Wheeling It recommendation + about 100 other people. We expect to have a grand time here.

After Dec 15 who knows? Around Florida and on to Alabama, Mississipi, Louisianna and Texas is the plan. But we are very flexible.

If you have and suggestions for things to do, places to see, places to eat, etc., at any of these stops we look forward to hearing about them.

Some Days are Diamonds, Some are Coal

Yesterday was the first day of our new life as travelling full-time RVers. The day started out as a diamond. Beautiful weather. Delivered Tara to the  dog sitter for a 10 day stay and dog-free holiday for us (she is going to the farm for her holiday). Had a delicious breakfast at Rhubarb Cafe and Grill. We cleaned and prepared the Adventure Bus to go. Pulled out into Bay Hammocks parking lot to attach the dolly and load the car, leaving our 3 month home looking lonely:

And then the day rapidly turned into coal.

In the excitement of the moment Arch drove the car over the end of the dolly:

Oh my! This was not good.

The business next to Bay Hammocks runs a car-towing service but no one was there. So Arch called them and Jamie, the owner sent out a man to have a look and decide what was to be done. He brought a couple of jacks with him which he mounted on these boards to raise the car off the dolly. No such luck.

Jamie was called again and he decided to round up several guys and they would lift the car off the dolly. They all arrived in an hour or so and that is exactly what they did.

So with the car properly loaded Arch jumped in the Adventure Bus to start it. Fail!! The motor appeared to be dead. After canvassing several neighbours they found someone who had a set of jumper cables and attempted to get the thing started.  

No way. The motor simply would not turn over. So then they decided the starter was gone and Jamie hopped in his truck and headed to Dartmouth (45 minutes away) to get a new one.

He arrived back one and a half hours later and installed the new starter. Still nothing. So one of his men crawled under the Adventure Bus to see what was wrong.

I think he is under there somewhere. Oh, here is a foot, so there must be a person attached!

After much discussion, wiggling and jiggling of wires and a lot of bad language the Adventure Bus finally started. But that was not a solution because, if we turned the motor off, we would have to go through the same procedure again. And, by now it was 5:30pm. 

Arch made the decision that we would take the Adventure Bus to Homestead Auto Repair, 10 kms down the road The owner used to be a service manager at a Ford dealership and knows everything there is to know about Ford trucks. They also did a lot of work on the Adventure Bus. We settled up with Jamie (his bill was very reasonable considering all the effort he and several of his men put into getting us going)  loaded up and off we went. 

Homestead was closed but the owner lives next door so we got his (actually, his wife's) permission to sleep there over night - our first Boondocking experience! Our favourite little dining spot - The Finer Diner - was right across the road so we decided to treat ourselves to dinner out watching the sun set over St. Margaret's Bay.

A small reward for a very trying day!

The next day the Adventure Bus was repaired and ready to go by 10 am and off we went. Tonight we are parked in Arch's sister(Grace's) driveway in Truro, NS. We will stay here for two days. Tonight we played cards with Grace and her husband Cyril. Tomorrow golf at Fox Harb'r and then on to PEI on Thursday.

By the way, if you are on Facebook and would like to keep up with us on a daily basis please like our page: https://www.facebook.com/TheAccidentalRVers I will be posting daily updates there and writing on this blog when once or twice a week as events happen.

Success

The outing today for the Adventure Bus with car on dolly attached was a bit of a production to start but a great success:

Arch made some makeshift ramps to get the car to the dolly ramps. The car has a very low under carriage so getting the ramps placed just right and loading the car was very tricky.

It doesn't look like much to be hauling a car but we cannot tow the car with all 4 wheels down and a trailer was too big for Arch and I to manipulate, so this is it.

Once on, the car is held in place with these yellow straps. Sure hope they are good and strong.

It wasn't long before the straps were securely in place and all was ready to go.

Our grand nephew. 9 year old Jonah,(also John's grandson) was also along for the ride. So all three plus Tara (our dog) hopped in, buckled up and off they went.

All went very well. Towing the car actually made the Adventure Bus much more stable to drive. The lights are now hooked up (they go on the dolly) and the whole thing is very easy for Arch and I to manage. This was a very big step because, if it did not work, we would have to buy a vehicle that we could tow and we did not want to do that. It is a dream to buy a new jeep before we go to Arizona and points west next year, but we want to be sure we like the lifestyle before we invest too much money in it.

Next step is to have the awning installed and the front of the motorhome painted. We are not even sure how we are going to get the awning to the business to have it installed, It is 16 feet long. And, if it takes more than one day to paint the front, where are we going to sleep. If it was just us, no problem. But we also have Princess and Tara. Challenges for another day.

Everything That's Old is New Again

I love coffee and am very particular about having good coffee, properly brewed. Arch is also fussy about his coffee, but not so much as I am. After all, I was once a coffee roaster and my taste buds are trained to recognize the nuances in flavours between the different coffee beans. As a result, I spend a lot of money buying good coffee and brewing it properly.

I've tried a lot of coffee brewers along the way. Everything from a Bodum (good if you like grounds in your coffee) to the new capsule brewers. At our old house we used the home version of the restaurant-style pour-over coffee brewer. I loved it - it was fast, easy and made excellent coffee. But way too big to use in the Adventure Bus.

After looking at a lot of coffee makers I settled on an old-fashioned, but electric, coffee peculator. It was time, I thought, to sacrifice a little quality for more space in our tiny kitchen.

And, guess what? We love it too! It is easy to clean, does not take up too much counter space and stores in a corner of the cupboard when not in use. And, much to our surprise, makes the best coffee ever! And uses half as much coffee as other brewers. A real money saver it this home as we drink a lot of coffee. I think it uses less coffee because the water is in contact with the grounds longer as it perks through. 


Whatever the reason, this is one old-style appliance that has won a spot in the Adventure Bus.

Life on The Adventure Bus

Well, here we are. Moved in and somewhat organized. The Adventure Bus is very comfortable and we are really pleased with the changes we made. I am still paring down our possessions. You get mighty tough about getting rid of something about the third time it gets in the way.

Tara is settled in and happy. Any place that Arch is is good enough for her.

Princess is doing much better than we expected. Sometimes I think cats would rather change people than change houses so we are relieved that she is settling in so well. When she came to live with us she spent the first 2 months under the spare bed. So we were a bit worried, but she spent one day trying to find a place to hide then gave up. Now she has claimed our bed as her turf and shares with no-one during the day. Much to Tara's disgust and disappointment.

One of the RV bloggers we follow is Nina from http://wheelingit.wordpress.com, She recently wrote a post explaining the 80/100/100 rule of RVers -  if 80% of the things on the motorhome are working, we should be 100% happy 100% of the time . We are quickly learning that this true. We thought everything was perfect when we moved in but now the kitchen tap is leaking. And the freezer is icing up - I think that is because it was on and empty so I am defrosting it. And Arch is getting a new tap this am so we will be back to 100% working. Briefly, I expect.

The two biggest glitches we are experiencing are the location of the electrical plugs - very inconvenient:

Having the telephone on the dining table is not great.

And the panel on the front of the ventilation fan on the microwave oven keeps falling off:

We have not figured out a cure for this. Also, note the location of this plug. They are the only two in the living area of the motorhome and must be used for kitchen appliances, laptops. etc. I guess there is really no way to put them in the walls of the motorhome as they are too thin. As one of the manufacturer's reps. at the RV Show said "its just a box on wheels you know".

We're Moved In!

Well, here we are, at home in the Adventure Bus. All in all the move-in went well.

The only real glitch was with the great deal we got on the memory foam mattress. It turned out to be a not so great deal after all. Mainly because the manufacturer - NasaFoam - failed to deliver as promised. The deal on Groupon looked great. A $2100 mattress for $699 - what a saving. Who could resist. So I ordered it. The order procedure seemed strange. No "thank you for your order" note. No receipt. No anything. That made me nervous.

So after three weeks I called the company. Someone answered the phone with "hello". No company name at all. That made me more nervous. I said I was calling to enquire about an order I placed. "They don't deal directly with the public" the voice said. "but you have a link on your website to redeem my Groupon" I said "Oh" said the voice "Well, where do you live?" "Halifax. Nova Scotia" "Halifax, where's that?" Now, that made me really nervous.

The conversation ended with a promise that the shipper would call me with a delivery date by "the end of the week". The end of the week came and no call. So I called again. The voice said "I will look into it and get right back to you" Then no call.

After another week I called again. The voice was starting to get abrupt and rude. So I hung up and emailed Groupon. After two responses saying there was nothing they could do because it was an internet order I wrote asking for a refund. One day later we got a note from NasaFoam asking for payment for shipping. Hurrah! Finally some action! I paid it immediately with Paypal. As you likely know Paypal guarantees they will refund your money if there is a problem. We use Paypal for Bay Hammocks on-line payments and know their system - they hold back 15% of each order for 90 days in case they need to refund someone's money.

We waited another week and still no mattress. Arch then called NasaFoam and talked to the voice. By now we know his name is John.  After some discussion he learned that the mattress was supposed to be shipped by a freight forwarding company and they (Nasafoam) had no control over the shipping date. So Arch asked for a bill of lading #. John said there was no such thing. Now, Arch used to work for Ford Motor Company in material handling so he knows - there is always a bill of lading.  After some discussion Arch got the name and a phone # for the supposed shipping/freight-forwarding company - Can Move. He called Can Move. Again, the phone was answered with "hello" and the addition of a lot of laughter in the background (are you starting to get suspicious?? we sure were!). After a short but heated discussion he hung up and called John back. 


If you know Arch, you know he is not the most gracious person in the world when he is angry. This conversation ended with John cancelling the order. 


I immediately emailed Groupon asking for a refund, which I received within 24 hours. By the time I got to Paypal our payment for shipping had been refunded - by John I suppose.


Nasafoam has a very fancy website and looks like a real and successful company, but I guess looks can be deceiving. Can Move appears to be non-existent. Here is the BBBs listing for them. We have no gripe with Groupon. We use them frequently and this was our first difficult experience. However, I do feel they should vent the companies they do business with a little better. And their complaint procedure could be more efficient.


After all this, we then got on the phone and found a company, right here in Halifax, Comfort Foam and Fibre, that custom cuts and makes foam mattresses to size. Very nice people. We got exactly what we needed within two days. It is not memory foam, but but it is extremely comfortable and cost only $800 tax included. The moral of the story: SHOP LOCAL whenever you can.


So here we are all moved in and very comfortable. I will write more about our first days in our new digs tomorrow. For now, here is Princess enjoying the new bed.

First Guests

One of the things that I wonder about a lot is how we will live in the Adventure Bus. Lots of full-time RVers write blogs about what they do and where they have been or are going, but no one posts about how they live day to day. And very few show pictures of the inside of their RV. Also not much about how they cook or what they eat. Lots of posts about RV systems though so that is helpful.

One of the big questions is how we will entertain friends. Especially here on the Atlantic coast of Nova Scotia where the weather is unpredictable and sitting and eating outside is not something we can count on. So when old friends "from away" (as we say here) came for lunch a week or so ago it was a big test.
All in all I think we managed pretty well. Especially since we are living half here and half there at the moment. The weather required that we be inside and we found the sitting area very comfortable:(left click on the pictures to enlarge them)

The ability to turn the two driving area chairs around created a cozy and very functional livingroom.

I made lobster and scallop chowder (recipe follows) and cheddar and chive tea biscuits for lunch. Served with some good cheddar and strawberry-rhubarb pie (from Delish, a local deli) and white wine it was a simple but delicious lunch.

I even had space on the table for a bouquet of tulips. It was snug but we managed quite nicely. Any more that 4 and I would serve buffet-style.

With the kitchen so close at hand it was easy for Arch and I to sit and enjoy our company and still keep track of what was on the stove.

And it was great to catch up with old friends. Thanks Gil and Joyce for being such great guinea pigs. You set the bar high for our next guests.

We are about two weeks away from moving in to the Adventure Bus. As you can see if you look behind us in the last picture our new mattress is still not here. We are starting to get a little impatient with this situation. The people at Nasafoam Mattresses in Toronto are being unresponsive and at times simple lying about when we can expect delivery. We will give them another week, then ask Groupon to refund our money.

Seafood Chowder

Ingredients:
4 C diced potatoes
1 onion, diced
1 envelope of Knorr Leek Soup mix
2 to 3 cups mixed seafood (I use an equal amount of cooked fresh lobster meat and raw scallops - diced)*
1/4 lb. Velveeta cheese
2 C blend or half and half
chives, paprika, salt and pepper

Directions
1. Boil the potatoes and onion until the potatoes are tender. Drain
2. Prepare the leek soup as directed and add cooked potatoes and onion. Add seafood.
3. Dice the Velveeta and add to pot along with the cream. Add salt and pepper to taste.
4. Heat through, stirring frequently, until the cheese is melted. Do not boil. Garnish with paprika and chives and serve.

Serves 4 to 6

* In Nova Scotia we can buy cooked fresh lobster at a couple of speciality fish stores. You can use frozen or substitute the fish of your choice.

Cranberry-Apple Crisp

One of the great things about living where we do is the clarity and freshness of the air. This means that we get to enjoy the great aromas that mother nature produces - the fresh ocean air, the spruce and fir trees after a rain, etc. Right now it is the scent of apple blossoms that fills the air.

This one graces the driveway at my sister's home

Apple trees are everywhere in the area where we live. They even line the trail where we walk. The trail is built on an unused rail bed. Years ago the railway took people from Halifax to Yarmouth and back. A distance about 300 kms, one way. It was called the Blueberry Special because, during blueberry season folks jumped on in the morning with their berry picking buckets and the train dropped them off at their favourite picking spot. Then stopped to pick them up on the way back to Halifax in the evening. Locals tell me the apple trees are the result of these train passengers and berry pickers eating apples and throwing the core out the window.

They appear in some pretty wild spots

Another theory is that, back in the day, every home had an apple tree or two as a source of food and while homes have been moved or demolished the trees survive.

This old girl enjoys a view of the ocean

Whatever their source the trees are currently in full bloom and beautiful. And the resulting fruit will be great to make one of my favourite recipes. This will be very easy to prepare in The Adventure Bus.

Ingredients
4 Granny Smith apples - peeled, cored and sliced
1 1/2 cups whole berry cranberry sauce
1 cup whole wheat pastry flour
1 cup rolled oats
2/3 cup packed brown sugar
2/3 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 cup butter, melted

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
Place apple slices in an 8 or 9 inch square baking dish. Spread the cranberry sauce over the apples. In a medium bowl, stir together the flour, oats, brown sugar, cinnamon, and butter until crumbly. Sprinkle over the apples and cranberry sauce, covering completely.
Bake for 45 minutes in the preheated oven, or until apples can be easily pierced with a knife and topping is browned.

Serve with ice cream.

Sorry I haven't posted for a while. My computer was ill. Much better now. Pictures of the renovated Adventure Bus in my next post.

Wallpapering Buddies

In late May of every year, up until now, Arch and I threw a "bring your own lobster" party for the neighbours. The lobster season ends in our area on May 30 so a season ending feast seemed appropriate. Everyone arrived with their lobster and the "experts" argue about how to cook them. About 25 to 30 people attend and a great time is had by all.

Is this watched pot going to boil?

Cooked and ready to eat

Arch makes it easy for everyone by chopping the claws

About 5 years ago one neighbour emailed to say he met a couple new to the neighbourhood and could they be his guests at the party. Of course, I said, everyone is welcome. Then, on the night of the party, the neighbour who issued the invitation was unable to attend and did not notify the people he had invited. So they showed up, lobsters in hand, to a party where they knew no one and were horrified that their host was not here. Needless to say we invited them in and they have been great friends ever since - although they must tolerate being called "the party crashers" at subsequent parties.

In 2009 we went to California with them for a golfing, hiking and exploring holiday

That couple was Norman and Susan and they are our volunteer wallpaperers. (I don't think that is a word, but, you get my drift.) They came last Sunday for the first round of wallpapering and spent all day working away in the "Adventure Bus".

They work well together, don't you think? Norman called it a bonding experience. And the wallpaper looks great. Really freshens everything up. You can see it on the wall behind Susan, below. Left click on the pictures for a larger view.

 I sure am glad we invited them in that day 5 years ago. Thanks guys.

They ran out of wallpaper. More has been ordered and I will post more pictures when to job is finished.

It's all About the Mattress

We've spent hours trying to decide on a new mattress for the motorhome. We have a king size bed now that was very expensive and we love so deciding on something for the motorhome is a big deal to us. We've been looking at memory foam but it is incredibly expensive. Thought about a sleep number bed but then we read a blog post by Nina at Wheeling it . So much for that idea. Then yesterday we received a Groupon for a Memory Foam Mattress, all components made in Canada, at an amazing price.

So we headed into Sears to try out the memory foam mattresses. They had three different ones, at three different prices, all over $1500, just for the mattress. All very comfortable. So we came home and purchased the Groupon and ordered a queen-size deluxe mattress.  We've purchased groupons in the past - mostly for golf - and had great success with them. They have always been accepted without hesitation and been very good value so we are looking forward to receiving the mattress. I'll let you know what we think when it arrives.

Tara's Story

Several people have asked about Tara. (We find it encouraging that rvers all seem to be dog lovers). Tara's story is a long one.

She came to live with us from the SPCA in March 2004 when she was 4 months old. The people there told us that she and her brother were found abandoned in a field. Likely discarded by a puppy mill because they were not perfect.

At the SPCA her name was Eve.  Our grand niece immediately changed that to Tara, her favourite name. The first year went very well, Tara is a loving dog who gets along with everyone, especially children. She does a great job as the greeter at Bay Hammocks.

She loves to sleep on the bed

Then the first accident. Tara is a country dog, accustomed to running free around our almost 2 acre property. One day Arch was walking her on a leash in a small town when she saw another dog across the street. In her excitement she broke her leash and raced across the road to say hello. And was hit by a van driven by a woman with three children on board. Tara received a cut on her leg, was a bit banged up but otherwise OK. The children were very upset. After calming the kids they and their mom drove Arch and Tara back to his sister's home where we cared for her leg. All was well that ended well. We thought.

Checking Princess out

Then Princess came to live with us. Tara was fine with this addition to the family, Princess would have preferred a family where she was queen and king of the castle. One night we were away at different events and Tara and Princess were home alone. Arch got home first and discovered that Tara had found a large bottle of Anicin and eaten the whole thing. As we had already learned that Tara will eat anything that fits into her mouth we scoured the house before we went out & thought it was free of any problems. The only thing we can think of is that Princess found the bottle of pills under the bed and in playing with it rolled them out where Tara could get them. Or maybe she was deliberately trying to get rid of Tara. Who knows? With Princess, anything is possible. A trip to the emergency vet (how lucky we are to have such a service) where they induced vomiting and fed her charcoal (apparently the charcoal absorbs the foreign matter in her stomach before the body does) and all was well.

Then we were awakened one night by Tara having a seizure. Panic set in and we called the emergency vet service. A few questions later it was diagnosed that it was likely epilepsy. Which was confirmed by our vet the next day. After a long period of experimentation with medication, and some very scary seizures, her epilepsy is now somewhat controlled and she only has seizures once every 3 or 4 weeks and we have learned to live with them and accept them as being a part of what makes Tara, Tara.

Then the next accident. Again, we were out. The house had been scoured for anything Tara could get into and I thought all was well. There were 3 - 300 gram bags of chocolate chips on the kitchen counter. I put them up high where I thought she could not reach them. Wrong! We arrived home 2 hours later to discover she had eaten them all. How she got to them we do not know - did Princess have a hand in this one too?? Another trip to the emergency vet. By now we are calling them the "Midnight Vets". Stomach pumped, more charcoal, an overnight stay and all is well again.

Then the worst of all. Tara was swimming in the ocean in late May. When the water in the north Atlantic is really cold. But she loved it and went swimming often. This time she was out over her, and Arch's, head when she had a seizure and went under the water, head first. Arch, who is not a swimmer, took off his shoes and went to get her. He managed to grab her tail and haul her in to shore. Where he gave her artificial respiration until she started to breath, then got her in the car, brought her home to get me and off we went to the Midnight Vet. There they put her in an oxygen kennel where she stayed overnight. We picked her up the next morning and delivered her to our vet and she spent that day in the oxygen kennel. Then we brought her home where she quickly returned to normal. Now she only swims in lakes, attached to her leash. She is very cautious and does not go out very far.

This lake is shallow so she doesn't need her leash

After this all was well for about a year. Then she started to limp. After several trips to the vet it was determined that she had a torn ACL in her right back leg. TPLO (Tibial Plateau Leveling Osteotomy) surgery was required. Following the surgery was a 3 month recovery period. As Tara sleeps in our bedroom we had to carry her - all 85 lbs. - up and down stairs until she was able to manage them as she would not consider sleeping down stairs alone. This was difficult but we managed by using a harness on her front end - Arch lifted her here  and I balanced her with a towel under her hind end.

One month after she recovered from this she was running for a stick when she fell. Arch knew immediately what had happened and loaded her in the car to go to the vet where it was confirmed. The ACL in her left hind leg had torn. More surgery, more carrying her up and down stairs, but, she recovered well and was fine for a few months.

Tara came home immediately after surgery because of her epilepsy

Now she is favouring her right front leg. We are not sure that we understand the problem but her spine is degenerating and the condition is progressive and not curable. She takes pain medication and, while she limps, she is happy and loves to go for short walks and accompanies Arch everywhere he goes. And she still delivers the paper each day.

So now we just go day by day, accept her as she is, and hope she will be joining us on our great adventure.

Some Adjustments are Easy

Some Not so Much

Arch and I grew up in Nova Scotia, went to university in Quebec and lived and worked in Ontario for 39 years. Montreal still feels like a second home and we loved living in Ontario. We made great friends - whom we miss.  But, we never quite felt like we belonged there.

So when we "retired" in 2003 we moved back to Nova Scotia, built our retirement home and plunged into life in Nova Scotia.

Some adjustments were easy. We love being with our families, living in a neighbourhood where we made great friends and running a business in such a business-friendly environment.

We rapidly learned to chat with people whether we knew them or not. To look people in the eye and say hello when we get on elevators. To be more polite and gracious when driving (Arch still finds this a bit of a challenge). To stop for jaywalkers, no matter where they step off the curb. We love the fact that when you call a business you still get a person on the phone - unless it's a bank, of course. We were amazed when we went to get our Nova Scotia driving credentials and, when we did not have all the papers we needed, the woman serving us said " don't worry about that - I will call the company and get the information I need later" and gave us our plates. And then, the person issuing our drivers licence asked us to smile for our photos and offered to take a second one of me when the first wasn't very flattering! We quickly changed back into Nova Scotians.

Except for one thing. We have still difficulty with is how long it takes to get things done. All this sociability is a time killer. I cannot head for downtown Halifax, make four stops on the way, and still get there in the amount of time I expected to. You cannot quickly run into a store here, purchase something and get out quickly. You must wait while the cashier chats with the person in front of you - there always seems to be time to admire a new baby, chat with a child, discuss the weather, etc. etc. Or, the product you want must be ordered.

So that is where we are with the motorhome renos. The floor is done. The wallpaper is ordered and will arrive in 10 days. The upholstery is being done - I have been told this could take up to 2 months. TWO MONTHS!! To upholster two dining chairs and recover 6 valences! The same with the side curtains. So we are in waiting mode.

One really good thing. Great friends have volunteered to do the wallpapering for us. Can you believe it? They volunteered! Needless to say, we are taking them up on their offer.

A Great Week of Planning

Now that the baby is here the work has begun. We really accomplished quit a bit so far:

• Don't laugh but we hired a decorator to advise us and help redo the interior. We are planning to make mostly cosmetic changes and think a pair of trained eyes will be helpful. So now we are awaiting her recommendations.
• At the flooring store Arch found someone to advise him on how to install the wood floor. This young fellow just finished helping his father-in-law install a floor in his motorhome and volunteered to do a plan for Arch. 
• We (Arch in the drivers seat, me from the passenger seat - I do my best driving here :) ) have driven it 3 times on the roads around the neighbourhood and feel quite confident now. Our local roads are very narrow, twisty and hilly so I doubt if we will ever run into any more difficult to manoeuvre. This also means Arch has backed it up our 450 ft. driveway 3 times - again, probably the most difficult backing-up he will need to do.
• A very mechanically experienced neighbour dropped in and spent 2 hours going over every inch of the motorhome. Thanks Langis. Mechanically, she is in excellent condition and needs only some minor fixes, which Arch is working on.
• She has received her Canadian seal of approval and Nova Scotia Motor Vehicle Inspection sticker so anything we do from here on in is cosmetic.

It's a long, long, narrow, rock-lined driveway to back up

Today it is freezing raining/snowing here so we are sitting around waiting for spring. According to the weather people we will be golfing this weekend. Can hardly wait.

Our New Baby Finally Arrived

The new-to-us motorhome has arrived, two days late, but she is here.  She is perfect and has been thoroughly inspected. My sister and her husband arrived to check out the sofa sleeper bed. It must be changed. My niece and nephew arrived with the grand nieces and nephews. The kids wanted to take it for a spin. Not yet I am afraid. Soon though. The neigbours were over and baptized it with beer and tea. Champagne will come after it is fixed up.  We have a lot of work to do but that will be the fun part. (If you click on the pictures they will enlarge.)

It has arrived but missed the driveway.

Getting over this section was tricky - the gravel on the driveway was very soft.

It (we really must come up with a name for the poor girl - all suggestions welcome) is towing a boat that is for resale if you are interested.

She made it and is now parked in front of the garage

She need a good bath as she came through a lot of snow and muck. Then it was time to inspect our new home.

Lots of good storage in bedroom. 

The bed is queen-size - we could fit a king-size one in but would need to take out the night tables.The mattress, mirror and TV must go. There is room for a nice painting where the mirror is and Arch is trying to figure out how to install a flat screen TV. The bed is in the slide and both slides work perfectly.

Bathroom is large but dated.

You see only half the bathroom here. We will replace the sink and both sets of taps and the shower head. Counter top is OK. The shower doors must go. I hate those things - way too hard to clean the nooks and corners. The floor is carpeted - yuck. That must go! As a matter of fact the whole place is carpeted and must be replaced.

The kitchen is small but function-able

There is a great, side-by-side refrigerator freezer with an ice maker, a large microwave, a 3 burner range with a small oven and a 2 compartment sink. Counter top is Corian. Not much counter space - I will be working on more simple-to-prepare recipes.

table and chairs in dining area

This is great and there is enough room that we can move them around to play cards, etc. No peeking over the opponents shoulder you know. Will probably recover the chairs.

The sofa must go

It is a "davenport-style" sofa,  that is, the back goes down to make a bed, and is too short and amazingly uncomfortable, I don't think even Tara will sleep on this. It is bolted to the slide so I am not sure how we are going to replace it with a sofa bed. All suggestions appreciated.

Arch is trying to get the TV out.

The driver and passenger seats turn to add seating to the "livingroom" and the other large chair is a recliner. They are a beige leather-like fabric and we will likely keep them - they are a little worn but very comfortable.

Most important of all, Tara has found her spot.

This is going to be a fun project. We purchased and fixed up homes in the past but this will be a first. Wish us luck.

Oh My! Its a Big Motor Home!

Our motor home is on its way to Nova Scotia. Chris, the person we bought it from, sent some pictures and we are thrilled to see that it is in excellent condition and very clean. I think he sent this one of it being filled with gas so Arch will know what is in his future :)

Oh my! It is very large! It is all well and good to talk about 36 feet but it is something else to see it in perspective to the person filling the tank. Arch is busy measuring outside, trying to find a space to park it. In front of the garage I guess. That will mean we can't use the garage any more this year so lets hope winter is nearly over.

We’ve Changed Our Mind – Now it’s a Motorhome

When we started considering full time RVing we thought we would buy a motorhome.

Then we started talking to dealers and went to the RV show. Everyone was selling 5^th wheels and trailers. We still are not sure why but it became obvious that it was going to be a lot easier to find a used 5^th wheel in good condition than a motorhome. Also, they have bigger kitchens and more comfortable sitting areas – with Lazy Boy chairs even. So we decided that was the way to go. We looked at many used 5^th wheels. Found some great ones. Arch spent days shopping for a suitable truck. Found several. But there were 3 very obvious disadvantages to travelling and living this way:

Firstly, you have two large machines to manoeuver into place every time you stop. A 36‘ trailer and a very large truck.

Secondly, the cost. We would have to buy a trailer and a truck, which would be expensive enough, but then our touring around vehicle would be that big truck. A gas pig. Some people tell us they rent a car when they get where they are going but we plan to move around a lot and do not want to do that.

Thirdly, our pets. Travelling with both of them in the truck would be miserable. Tara would be fine. She is a great traveller who hops in the car, lies down and goes to sleep with a “wake me when we get there” sigh. Princess Kitty is another matter. She hates being in a cat carrier (necessary) & hates being in close proximity to Tara (also necessary).

So we changed our minds again and decided to investigate the motorhome option further. (As was recommended by a friend who has experience doing this type of thing.) And guess what, we found the perfect motorhome. 

It will arrive in a couple of weeks. It is 36’ long with 2 slides, has lots of storage, a not bad kitchen, was a dealer owned and operated vehicle and, most important, there will be lots of room for Princess to be free while we travel and she will find a safe spot to be.

We will tow the Smart car to use when we are not on the move. We will equip it with a golf bag carrier (on the back) and a roof carrier for the bits and pieces necessary when on day trips as Tara goes everywhere with us and will take up all the space in the back.

Now, it is time to think about getting rid of a lot of our possessions. I have been really procrastinating on this one.