Melissa,

Believe me, you aren't the first to experience the "hesitant" stage.  Lets face it, you are uprooting and moving on into a new horizon for yourselves.  Be thankful that your family is supportive, because nothing could diminish the excitement more than thinking that family members would think you unkind and, dare I say it, "selfish."

I'm not saying that you are selfish, but some folks that began this lifestyle had family that did just that and felt just that.

In an introductory piece on my blog, I wrote of Louis L'Amour's comments from some of his books where pioneers were finding that while they were ordinary people "back home," when they began their treks westward they found that they had an inner strength and resolve that made them extraordinary.  (That piece is entitled, "Pioneers Take the Arrows.")

Jo and I are from the Oklahoma Panhandle and that was an area that was hard hit in the Dust Bowl during the "Dirty Thirties."  Folks from the Dust Bowl areas uprooted whole families and packed what they could put into one car and drove to western states without any guarantee of employment.  However, they had courage, resolve, and the ethic for hard work and most of them made it.

So, take heart in that you aren't alone and that you are about to become "pioneers."

Terry

Well September 17th is quickly approaching - the closing of our house.   Had a meltdown yesterday thank goodness I could read some posts from here and calm down. The house was sold in June, we went away for the month of June, came back and have been packing and dejunking.  Everything has seemed to all fall into place for us.  Never thought our house would sell - didn't even have to list it and someone was interested in it and it sold in a couple of days.  New owners didn't want possession till Sept 17th - left us plenty of time to pack etc and the new owners even wanted to buy some of our furnishings.  What more could you ask for!!!   So why do I wake up at night, thinking what are we doing.  We haven't bought anything to come back to as we do not want to live in this city anymore, way too big and way too overpriced.  So if we decide we don't like what we  are doing we can just start looking for something. So why!!  All our family, friends and acquaintances think it is just awesome what we are doing and wish they could do it.  So why!!  The getting rid of things hasn't been very hard as we have only been married 11 years (as a matter of fact 11 years this Friday) and most of the stuff was either his or mine not ours.  The first thing we have bought that is truly ours is the motorhome.  It is nothing grand but we have made it into our little abode and love it everytime we have been out in and hate the thought of having to come back to the sticknbrick.  The years we have been together have been stressful - blending families and looking after elderly parents but the kids are doing well and unfortunately both parents passed away within a year of each other but we have been strong through all of this and now it is our time.    So why!!

I am just so thankful that I have found this website and been able to read through what others have gone through.  I just wish I could figure out why I have this hesitation.

Thanks for listening!

M -- I can completely relate to what you have gone through.  As I read your post it was as though I wrote it.  While we don't have any children, we are caring for my dear husband's elderly aunt who has dementia and many medical problems. We have not had any vacation in a year, and don't know when we will be able to take vacation.  We can't even go to church together, much less go anywhere else together.  But, I refer to this period as another chapter in our book of life.  When we are able, however, we plan to full-time, as well.  My husband has been retired going on 4 years (January) and I will be able to retire in 51 weeks, 6 days, 2 hours, 53 minutes, and 32 seconds (as I write this).  I know people are probably tired of reading my countdown, and I really don't want to rush life.  I don't.  But I can certainly empathize with your feelings and look forward to the day we can explore God's country and live beyond the boundaries we set for ourselves while we have had to work.  I have slowed down recently, but I was wound up there for a while going through stacks and stacks of papers, and scanning what I must keep into my laptop (and backups).  We don't have a lot of clutter (other than my DH's garage), but I do have a plan when the time comes.  In the meantime, I am doing my research like crazy and plan to hit the road when God sees fit.  We are blessed and it sounds as though you are, too.  Congratulations on taking this step, and I wish you and your hubby all the very best life has to offer!

Thanks one and all - once again you all have come through.  I do look at this as such an incredible adventure.  Not one person has said a negative thing to us and when I read other posts of family being so negative I know we are truly blessed.  The kids have been wonderful - a little disappointed that we will not be coming home for Christmas this year but happy when we suggested we would rent a vacation rental and they could all come down next year.  We have decided that if something truly means something to us we will make it fit into the storage locker or else one of the kids will hold onto it for us.  It has been the ideal time to pass down to my son some of the family heirlooms and I know that he will treasure them.  It may become difficult when they have kids (right now we are grandparents to three lovely dogs!!) but we will face that when it happens.  We have to come back up into Canada for our six month period every year so I think that maybe the difficult time - no house to come back to and all the kids are close to the old house and to friends.  I think if we were able to stay down across the line all the time it would not be so difficult. We bit the bullet and splurged on communications so that we can always be in touch.  It is not so easy here in Canada for internet so we went the sateliite route (ouch that was expensive)

It is such a wonderful experience and waking up in the morning to a beautiful spot and the adventure of moving on down the road to another one what more could someone ask for.  Also we have been so lucky to have found one another and both enjoy each others company.

Once again thanks for the ears and the shoulder to lean on. 

Melissa

Melissa, I just posted a reply to your initial post at the very same minute you did!  What a wonderful opportunity this is and, my, how we look at things differently as we age.  Like some have said on this board... what's the worse that can happen?  So you go "home" one day and settle back down into a sticks-n-bricks.  In the meantime, know that you are blessed and enjoy the ride!

P.S.  I am already "full-timing" vicariously through this board and, especially, Howard and Linda's travel journal.  I even wake up some mornings imagining I'm waking up in my 5er!  Ahh, how sweet it is!!

Hi Mary Sunshine:

I had read your post about travelling with friends and totally, totally related to your situation.  I thought I had written it.  Your time will come - we didn't think ours would ever happen and at the same time I would never have done anything - anything differently.  Last February we had to cut a trip short because we got a call that my father-in-law had gone into emergency with a terrible backache.  We rushed back, got home on Wednesday, took him to the hospital on Thursday for a battery of tests to find out that he was full of cancer and they gave him at the most 6 months to live.  By Monday we had him back up from the retirement home and living with us where he passed away one month later but we had been dealing with issues with mom in law for three to four years prior to that, so yes I can totally relate.  I also understand your reluctance to go with friends.  I to want  to wake up when I want to wake up, read a book, just do whatever.

Thanks

Thanks to all of you:

Terry & Jo:  We are going to become pioneers - no one that we know has done what we are doing and we are moving onto a new horizon

GENECOP:  We are going to trust the process and step off into the unknown

Pinky AzNative:  We are not going to look back

Pieere:  We are going to roll with the flow

Lucky Mike: We will have great relief when we pull out and we will not look back but forward down the road and I will try and be more optimistic - although I am so pessimistic!

Mary Sunshine:  We are going to stop and think "what is the worst that can happen to us"

Let the adventure begin!!!

Now could one of you guys come by and help us finish packing!!!

Take care and will keep you posted

Melissa,

I will disagree "slightly" with some of the above advice.  That being the comment to "not look back."

All I can say is that if you don't look back, you'll possibly miss another great view.

Again, Louis L'Amour had some wise words.  The early mountain men were advised to look back occasionally while traveling.  In their case it was partly to watch for danger but also to have landmarks to know of should they need to return.

Good luck with being a pioneer.

Terry

Good Morning Everyone:

It is a beautiful hot day here and going to go and do some more packing!!! 

Thanks for your remarks and Terry I think when I read about not looking back it would be the time when we driving away in our new home away from our house.  It is definitely the time to leave here and I would want to be in anything else but our new home. 

Cherie, think you hit the nail on the head - I have always had responsibilities before - work, kids, aging parents, always trying to please other people etc and now for the first time it is just us and maybe that is why it is a little scary.  Neither one of us feels like we are being selfish.  So like you said now the responsibility is for us to jump in and make it happen and have a wonderful time.

Have a wonderful day everyone and thanks again!!

Melissa

Well, everything is happening quickly in our world too.  We decided that we wanted to go full time and started our research.  We decided to put the house on the market and give it to the end of the year to get any action.  Well, 6 weeks later we had a strong cash commitment and our closing was set for 8/31.  So, in the last couple of weeks we have downsized to almost nothing and got a motorhome that is going to be ours on Monday 8/20.  Coincidentally, that is my birthday and I could not be happier with the gift.  The gift of being able to get the motorhome and to be able to call America our home.  We are so excited with all that is going on.  We need to find a place to park for awhile as my mom is failing so we may have to stick around for a little while before actually hitting the road.  So, all is bittersweet at the moment.   

Lucky Mike - the windshield is clear and ready to go and I have a bottle of Windex beside me.  Thank you!!

Loretta - how wonderful!!  All will work out and you will be on your adventure in no time.

Thank you, mjlitz.  Looks like we all might be bumping into one another along the highway, so many starting their new journey.

I know exactly how you feel Melissa, Mary Sunshine and Loretta!!  Our time is quickly approaching too!  We retire on Aug. 31st and hit the road on Sept. 4th.  We've been fulltiming in our fiver for the last 5 years, but we were still working and living in the same town so it wasn't too bad.  Now that we're leaving our "security blanket", everything is changed.  I think the hardest thing for me is retiring early because my husband is older than me and I won't be able to get my retirement for 3 years.  Then my 95 year old mother lives with us (which I thought would end when we retired) but she refuses to even talk about going into a retirement home.  She has never been alone with no family around.  So another worry I think about all the time is if she passes when we're on the road.  I'm sure things will work out, but it's just the thought and it's scarry!!  Then there's so much to get done and make arrangements for - social secuity, medical, storage, dogs medical, etc, etc.!! 

Needless to say, I'm excited and scared all at the same time!!  And I just wanted to say that I know exactly how you all are feeling.  I know I need to enjoy the ride and savor every moment.  I just have to get to that point!  I hope we will all be able to meet on the road and compare our stories.  I'm sure we'll be in lots of laughter and maybe a few tears too!!

Safe travels to you all!!!

Danette

Well, it seems like a lifetime ago we drove down the road leaving our house - Sept 17th.  

We were both mentally and physically exhausted with the move and every last minute thing that needed to be done.  We were just glad to hand over the keys and be gone. 

Are adventurous journey hasn't really begun just yet but hopefully we will be on the road by the end of next week.  Hubby is writing a book and has library research and interviews to finish up. 

We made our first stop to get some breathing room at Ft. Ebey in Washington State.  We fell in love with the State Park a couple of years ago and thought it would a great place to just kick back. 

Half way between Bellingham and Burlington we heard a pisssss.  Lyle pulled over and figured it was the inside dually on the passenger side.  We limped along I5 shoulder to the nearest gas station.  He found that there was a Les Schwaab dealer in Burlington so we limped off again.  Finally arrived there.  We have been two Les Schwaab stores before and both of us are amazed how fast, efficient and polite the staff is.  We were lucky and it ended up to be the rubber valve stem blew off.  They suggested we have metal valve stems be put on.  So we decided to have them all replaced.  While that was being done. I headed over to Camping World - a dangerous decision on my husbands part to let me go there by myself!!  I bought an Ezywash washing machine.  Have used it once and I think it will work out great for when we finally get to some warmer weather and will be able to dry the clothes outside (too cold and damp here). 

Got to Ft,Ebey later than we had hoped for but still found out a really nice spot.  Next thing to not go our way was the satellite tv dish.  We couldn't get it to work with our TV (upon our return we found out what was wrong).  Also couldn't get any satellite internet - to much tree coverage.  While trying these things out I ended stepping and breaking my glasses!!.  Then we had issues with the solar - starting by not knowing how to read the panels!!.  I was about to cry and just kept telling myself that this is nothing different than if we were living in the house.  This is our new house and these new issues are a challenge but such a good one to have!! 

Got back across the border had made the decision to stay the duration at a forest rec site that we have stayed at many times before.  After getting some instruction to the solar and a call in for the satellite TV we headed over there arriving in the dark. 

We stayed there from Sept 20 to Oct 12 - the weather was just wonderful there but now the rain has started.  Well, while there we got mice into the rig!!!  I hate mice.  Thought we had figured out where they were getting in, sealed it up and it was quiet two nights in a row, then it started again, right beside where I sleep!!!!!.  Found the space but it was too big to close up.  A fellow camper gave us a suggestion for a bucket, coat hanger and can covered with peanut butter.  He was even kind enough to brings us up all the makings for it.  The first night 5 mice, the next night 1, next night 3 but not in the rig.  Hurray!!

We have since moved from that campsite and are parked in our son's driveway.  The driving (1hr or more) for Lyle everyday was wearing a little thin plus the cost of the gas.  It is nice to have one last visit with the family and friends till we move on next week.  Didn't realize how much I would miss the internet, not so much the TV.  Thank goodness for my Kindle. 

Well, just thought would send an update.  Sure glad for all the words of encouragement when we first began, that helped me make it through those rough days when I was wondering "What the H___ are we doing!

WestWardHo wrote:

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Mjlitz,

So glad you posted the update. Aren't fellow RV'ers wonderful!
Please explain the bucket, peanut butter, coat hanger and can thang (intentional on the thang thing).

~Sherry

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I concur with Sherry.  I await an answer with "baited" breath.

Terry