First Quarter Report

We hit the road three months ago today. As we look back on our first quarter of fulltiming, in many ways we can't believe it's been three months already. But, when reflect on all of the places we've been, things we've seen and people we've met, we can't believe it's only been three months. That's the kind of relationship we have with the calendar these days!

With hopes of providing some helpful insight to future and fellow newbie fulltimers, we offer a brief report on our first quarter on the road. Knowing also that there are many folks who pass by these parts who have been at this lots longer than we have, we welcome their comments, too. If it looks like we're heading toward a ditch with any of this stuff, please let us know!

Executive Summary

• It's all good!

The Places We've Been

• Nine states in three months, and we don't feel like we're rushing.
• Nine lovely quilt shops.
• Four National Parks!
• Speaking of National Parks, Crater Lake is, without a doubt, stunning.
• The rest of the West Coast...it's prettier in Oregon and Washington.
• Ferrying off to Canada was a very fun day.
• It's really something to stand where Custer last stood.

The Things We've Seen

• Sunset on the Pacific.
• Sunset over Canada.
• A gorgeous big Montana sky.
• A black bear popping his head out of roadside bushes to say hello.
• Endless miles and miles of highway across Wyoming.
• A 40-foot motorhome towing a 40-foot boat.
• At least one geocache in every state we've visited.

The People We've Met

• We haven't met any bad people, that's for sure!
• RVers tend to be a friendly, helpful and fun bunch!
• And, they have really fun friends!
• People who seem nice online are even nicer in person!
• You just gotta hang with da Godfadda!

The Things We've Learned

• Two back-to-back one nighters is our limit.
• One month in one place is our limit on the other end. (And we have six weeks booked in Kansas City....when it's cold!)
• 250 miles is a perfect travel day. 200 is better.
• Some of the best places to park are public - not private - campgrounds.
• We can live simply - and quite happily - on what we use to spend on our mortgage.
• Everything takes longer than you think.
• So, never, ever be in a hurry.
• If you're ever in a pickle, just stop, get out and look around.
• Stuff is just stuff.
• Cats, or at least our cats, can adapt to this lifestyle quite well.
• Our mistakes have been our best teacher.
• It feels great, and we mean great, to slow down and relax.

Looking Forward

• We can't wait to see Hilton Head and the Great Smokey Mountains, which are coming up on our agenda.
• Spending the holidays with family and friends in Kansas City, while we keep our fingers crossed that the temperatures are reasonable.
• Becoming winter Texans.
• Hanging with da Godfadda in Idaho, family in South Dakota and attending our first Grand National Rally next summer.
• We know we'll stop this one day, but we can't imagine when that might be!

The smartest thing we've done so far on this journey is make (and keep) our pact to not make any big decisions about life on the road for the first six months. Sure, it's tempting to think about buying a new diesel pusher (especially when you're climbing to 7,000 feet in Wyoming), but we think we're smart to wait. And, after working for 30 years, it's not hard to resist jumping right back in. But, we do think about what work will look like next. What a treat to give that six months to stew. Who knows what we'll come up with. People have asked how long we'll be at this, and our response has been "until we don't want to do it anymore." What we know for sure is we don't have to think about any of this for the next three months, at least. Right now, we're just going with the flow.

Here's to another great three months. Thanks so much for joining us on the ride.