Having Fun Today

Today is March 1, 2014 and it seems that it is going to come in like a lion starting tonight.  Just when we thought maybe winter was over -- and it's been a winter with bitterly cold temps this year -- here it comes again.  We have enjoyed some nice warm, sunny days but tomorrow and Monday our highs will only be in the 20s with snow, sleet and ice.  YUK!  We have been so pleased with how well our motorhome has handled this cold weather keeping us comfortable.  The only thing that froze up was our ice maker and we solved that by putting a very small low wattage lamp in where the pipes are. They are totally accessible from a panel on the outside of the coach.  Recently we think we have had a problem with our large external propane tank.  We have noticed that our regulator has iced over and propane is being vented from it.  This regulator is one the propane tank in our motorhome and is setup so we can easily switch between the onboard tank and the external tank as well as disconnect from the external tank since we frequently hit the road.  There has also been oil in the line coming from the external tank.  Nobody seems to be able to help us so we have added an additional regulator at the external tank as well.  Only time will tell but we went through last night with no problems.  Tomorrow will be the test.  It may be that with the varying temps and humidity that all this is normal and nothing is actually wrong.  The heater and stove burners never quit working but I have to say seeing that regulator iced over and smelling propane is a bit disconcerting.  This is our third winter and we have never had this problem but this winter has been the coldest and with really wild temperature swings.  I think once we have five years under our belt we will be absolute pros at this full-time lifestyle.  

This past week we had a combo washer/dryer installed in our RV and today is our first day to give it a run.  It is absolutely awesome!  After going to the laundromat for 2.5 years this is really a treat for me.   Yes - it does it all in one machine and it has all the fancy settings.  Additionally it senses how much water it needs.  The instructions suggest that you shake out the clothes before the dry cycle starts so they don't wrinkle from the spin cycle.  It's extremely quiet.  They suggest we use the laundry soap made by the same company as it has less foam and is specially designed for this type of machine.  I only use 1-2 tablespoons of the powder so one box will last me about 100 loads and it only cost about $18.00.  I have to use liquid softener and again only 2 tablespoons so that won't cost much either.  Our first load was interesting though.  During the rinse and spin cycles water started coming up one of the bathroom sinks and the kitchen sink.  So much so we had to scoop it out and dump it.  Even when it went to the dry load the water just sat there in the sinks.  Hmmmm -- so John went out and opened up the gray tank value to dump the tank and whoooosh -- out the water went immediately.  There must be something about the air flow/vacuum.  The second load went just fine with that tank opened up.  Otherwise this thing is operating like a dream.  I will just need to get used to what settings and how much dry time I need.  It's a 110 volt and not 220 like the home models so drying takes a bit longer.  The loads are smaller than what you do at home as well so I may have to run it it 5 times a week but that's no big deal when I don't have to go out to do laundry.

On an entirely new topic, recently I came across a recipe for dog biscuits that sounded good and was really simple.  Buying dog treats gets expensive and you have to be so careful to make sure they are made in the USA or they may have deadly chemicals in them.  Also, Bailey is so picky.  So my quest was to find doggy-related cookie cutters so I could hopefully make fun snacks they like.  We stopped at Bed Bath and Beyond and they didn't carry any.  Then into Petsmart and Hobby Lobby and both were out of them.  While getting groceries at our little Walmart today there they were.  They were bone, paw and dog shaped.  So I whipped up a batch and the girls loved them.  They are somewhat soft and made from whole wheat, oats, eggs, pumpkin and peanut butter.  Although they take 30 minutes to bake and the recipe makes a bunch it is totally worth it not to have to pay for store bought treats.  These are healthy and made in my kitchen.  The cutters make big biscuits for our little girls so they can easily be cut up into much smaller pieces.  

We have also decided to start grooming the girls ourselves.  It is so expensive when you have two that need grooming every 5 weeks or so.  That's about $30+ a dog plus a tip and when we are on the road full-time we won't have the ability to choose the same groomer so you never know what your dog will look like when you pick them up.  One of the tables in the RV is just the right height for this so I have ordered a grooming arm that will clamp onto it so I can put a loop around the girls' necks to keep them still.  I have the clippers, scissors, brush and comb so I should be set.  I have downloaded some training videos and watched several online for doing their faces.  I'm sure I will make mistakes but hopefully in time will have a good handle on this project.  I'm sure there will be tales to tell initially.    

Well that's enough for today.  Getting ready to batten down the hatches for this next winter storm and pray this is the last one.