John is semi-retired and works as an orthotist (bracing for existing limbs). I retired from the University of Oklahoma HSC in June 2012 after 27 wonderful years. Our dogs are morkies (Maltese/Yorkie cross). Bailey will be 3 the end of April and April is almost 7 months old. Bailey is also a certified therapy dog. Our RV is a 2013 37' Thor Challenger with 3 slides.
So a little bit about how we got into the RV life. Back in 1998 we decided to purchase a 5th wheel after years of tent camping. We were getting tired of the work involved in the Oklahoma heat with tenting. So we found a low-end 5th wheel and a used truck and we were off an running. Yes, we have tons of stories about traveling down the road and everything that can go wrong - an they do - but I'll tell some of those stories later. Needless to say, we fell in love with the RV lifestyle. Since we had a boat and pulling both of those was not going to happen we found a little bit of heaven south of Sulphur, OK in a private RV park called Cedar Blue which is near Lake Arbuckle. We purchased a great empty lot there and over the years have developed it into a great weekend get away. We planted trees, built a large storage shed and had a large canopy built which we park our RV and boat under and have a deck under it as well. We enjoy the birds and other critters along with campfires, boating and swimming on Lake Arbuckle.
As we talked about retirement we both decided that we wanted to sell our house when we retired and get into a class A motorhome in order to hit the road. We discussed this for several years but never intended to do this until we both retired. In 2008 John was diagnosed with cancer and although it was caught early and was not labeled a terminal cancer for him, we both agreed to speed up our plans. So we searched for just the right used motorhome and in 2009 we found it in the middle of winter in Rochester, MN! Yep lots of snow and ice and we were not able to test drive it. We just trusted God and purchased it and returned in April to pick it up. It was also a Thor Challenger.
Over time we both finally reached the same conclusion that it was time to sell the house and move into the RV full-time even though we were both working. It probably took a year for us to mentally and emotionally get to the point to get rid of all our stuff. The housing market was starting to go down and our neighborhood was starting to turn into rental homes so we felt the time was right. In 2011 we sold our home, got rid of almost everything and moved into our motorhome.
We round a great RV park between Newcastle and Blanchard, OK in the country that was just perfect and the price was incredible. In addition to that the owner built us a 40' x 30' metal canopy on our lot since we committed to 5 years there. We can park our RV, two cars and a motorcycle under cover which is great in the winter and hail storms. We have a beautiful view from our windows of the park and it's so peaceful and safe here.
In June 2012 I retired and in August 2012 John started to work part-time so we have 3-day weekends together every weekend. John has to work about 3-4 more years before he can retire so in the meantime we plan to take 1-2 trips a year and spend lots of time at our lake lot. We leave an older vehicle at the lake so we can just drive our RV there on Thursday nights after he gets home or Friday mornings and not have to bother taking a car. Initially, when we started doing this it just seemed so strange to hit the road and not have to pack. John often would say "I hope you brought......" and then he would remember we have the house with us!
So while I am waiting for John to retire I returned to my old job 12 hours a week to help with training and projects. This makes up for the Social Security check I am too young to collect!! One half day a week Bailey and I visit inpatients at a local hospital for pet therapy. We focus on cancer and trauma patients and some long-term medicine patients. We also visit residents at a local nursing/skilled nursing home. We enjoy our visits and hope that we bring a bit of joy to the patients and residents we see. I also use my days for all those things I used to have to do at night or on weekends when I was working - grocery shopping, laundry, cleaning the RV and so on. I am also trying to get all the family photo albums scanned as they are way too heavy to load into the RV. The girls also keep me very very busy as they have to be walked a lot.
So yes we live in about 350 square feet but have all the amenities of home. We have a sleep number bed, central heat and air, a 4-door refrigerator/freezer, 3 TVs, a fireplace and comfy seating. We get a lot of walking in which is great - even in the dead of winter. It's probably a good thing we have dogs that need walking or we might not get that exercise in.
So that is a quick introduction to us. I hope to share various stories about the RV lifestyle and even the transition from the house to the RV over time. We would love to hear from you as well as we continue through our retirement.
Maggie, Loved your introduction. Am having fun reading. Cheers! Susie and Dave
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