Our last stop along our travels before heading home was Port Angeles, WA. It was a family visit to see Mitch’s son Elijah, daughter Alichia and step-mom Judy. Eli lives with his mom and it’s a blessing he’s surrounded by so many loved ones, both on his mom and dad’s side. Judy was kind enough to let us stay in her yard while we were there, which made visiting her much easier as well.
Loving the grass after a month of concrete under their feet
During our visit we got to be a part of Elijah’s monumental steps towards adulthood. After driving around town a bit looking for businesses that may be in the need of a willing and able young man to work, we stopped in to see Eli’s Uncle Damon. Thankfully we did and with some networking and enquiring Eli had a job interview lined up with Subway the next day.
Mitch beaming with pride right before Eli goes in for his interview
We got to take him shopping for some good interview clothes, dropped him off for his interview after we prayed together and gave him many tips about eye contact, no cell phones and body language.
Hey Hey Subway, here comes your future
He said it seemed like he may have gotten the job, she was going to call him later that day. After his first ever interview off we went to get the boy car insurance.
Eli’s first documentation signing for his insurance
Two days later, while hanging out with family he got the call. He was going to be put on the schedule in a couple weeks. Yahooo!!! Elijah the sandwich artist!
Picking up dad to go wash his car after he got insuranceFirst drive with dad, off they go
Alichia, Mitch’s daughter came from Covington, WA to spend time with us while we were in town. We had such a great time just watching movies, walking the dogs, hanging out and throwing the Frisbee around.
Funny and good looking runs in the family
We all went out to the spit, papa did his last hurray of beach metal detecting and afterwards we topped it off with non other than another trip to Dairy Queen!
After skipping rocks, everyone got together for a family photo
Papa checking out his treasure, a long lost dime for back in 1996
View of Port Angles from “the spit”
Wet and Moldy happen easily here in Port Angeles, but the beautiful water Lilies love it here
We are headed up north to Port Angeles tomorrow to visit the kids and Judy before making our way back home. Thankfully the rain stopped and the sun came out this last week making our trip to Multnomah Falls with Cindy better than anticipated. Siri had taken us onto a side road before we made it to the famous fall and we came across a lesser known, but beautifully powerful waterfall called Wahkeena falls.
View of Wahkeena Falls from the bottomAfter a half mile steep walk on a paved trail we are at the Wahkeena Fallsstanding on the bridge, feeling the power of the waterfall can be intimidatingSiblings in the mistCindy and I going back down the trailWhat a great day for a little walkThere’s a bench up the trail a little bit where you can sit and do some people watching and waterfall admiringThis is the view from the bench, don’t forget the picnic basket
Our next stop was Multnomah Falls
Beautiful morning fog over Multnomah Falls LodgeMultnomah FallsMultnomah FallsA rock fell and damaged the bridge so we were unable to cross and go to the topBetter view of hole in bridgeClick on picture to read about rock damage to bridgeSurprise, another picture of Multnomah FallsFamily time at the fallCindy and I looking like we are learning something, but actually we’re just looking at the pictureThis is what the top fall looks like as it hits the ground
On our way home, what do you know? Another waterfall!!!
Horsetail Falls in Oregon
After our waterfall walks we went and picked up Papa and had lunch with Alice. I forgot to take pics, but we had a really nice time and any time I get with my dear friend Alice is awesome! Whether it’s moving furniture, having coffee or doing lunch it’s always quality time.
The next night we went and spent time with Tus and his wife Shirley. It was a great time and we’re really starting to feel like social butterflies!
Delicious dinner with Shirley and Tus, our first time having crab cakes and for sure won’t be the last
The next day we spent with Cindy and Aubria, (Mitch’s Niece) got some pizza and watched a movie. After, it was such a nice day we decided to go on the search for some slippers since mine are about shot.
What else do you when when shopping for slippers? you try on fun hats! Cindy and Aubria having fun.Maybe we should always put on silly hats when shopping at K-Mart! This is funWhen you can’t find slippers you like, it’s best to have a little Dairy Queen with the family
The next day the girls came over to our place for dinner and brought with them beautiful flowers for us to take with us along our travels! How wonderful those girls are!
Cindy brought us DaffodilsAubria brought us Daisy’s!!!
Not only did Aubria bring us daisy’s, but then she did all the dishes after we had dinner! Such a sweetie!
Since we’ve posted about our future plans of heading back home we’ve been doing a bunch of yard planning, what vegetables we’re going to grow, tossing around other ideas and picked out colors to paint a couple of the rooms. We are really excited for our future, thankful in the now and grateful for our past.
Papa’s playing ping pong at Cindy’s
We’ve tried to get Mitch’s crown finished, but everyone has to send it out and you wait weeks to get the permanent one. Frustrated by the different price quotes and the uncertain feelings we had about not knowing these dentists, an idea popped into my head. I said, “Why not just go home to get your tooth done, it’s only a 6 hour drive. Dr. Menke has a milling machine in his office, you could get be completely finished with this in a couple hours!” We were so excited, set up a rental car, bribed Papa with a steak dinner if he stayed and looked after the dogs and asked Sherie and Dale if we could stay with them when we came to town.
We got the hot rod on the right
Things fell into place so well, it was a trip destined to happen and blessed with great things to come! First and foremost Sherie and Dale, you two rock! If you were any cooler you’d be an iceberg, we love you guys and are so grateful to have you in our lives.
Chef Sheri and her amazing baking skills! Delicious!
They made us feel so at home while we stayed with them. Sherie fed us with her AMAZING cooking and her thoughtfulness spilled over in leftover containers to bring papa a little bit of everything we ate, while we were with them!
What are we, chopped liver?
We also did some networking, and Mitch and I both have job opportunities lined up that we’ll divulge later when they come into being, don’t want to count those chickens yet, but yahoo and thank you!
We had a wonderful visit, I was so happy to drive around town, knowing where to go, what roads to take and just that feeling of familiarity! AAhhh, the good life. We just had to visit a couple of our favorite restaurants while we were there so the first night we went to Bruchi’s in Medical Lake, and got their delicious Caesar Salad with Chicken.
Frappy and Rags, best of buddies! Who would have thunk it
The next day after the dentist, we went into Spokane to run a couple errands and stopped into Linnie’s Thai on 3rd St. We always get the #44 with chicken and usually 2 stars (the spiciness varies with them, and you can add more spice if not hot enough).
YUM!
Mitch’s tooth turned out wonderful! Dr. Menke in Airway Heights is a wonderful dentist, and his staff is great, if you are looking for a dentist we would recommend him to anyone. Before heading out of town we stocked up on a few of Papa’s favorite snacks that we haven’t been able to find anywhere else and then back to Vancouver we drove.
On the way back to Vancouver, cool car shot of the clouds
Yesterday we had brunch at the Red Lion’s Inn at the Quay with Mitch’s brother-in-law Tus and his wife Shirley.
The view from the Red Lion
It had been too many years since they’d seen each other and I hadn’t met them before. After introductions and hugs, it was as if we were all old friends, no weird awkward pauses of uncomfortable silences, just good company.
Happy full bellies
I actually ate myself a quiche, which I have never ordered before in my life, but dang it was yummy! They also brought out all this fresh fruit and baskets of pastries. It was a bit pricey, but they have a beautiful view and everyone really enjoyed their meal, so it was worth it.
The saying “you can’t have everything” resounds in every aspect of living in an RV. One must LOVE this lifestyle to actually flourish. It is not for the faint of heart, those that like consistent creature comforts or familiarity of any kind. It’s an ever changing, unknown, unpredictable lifestyle that can challenge even the most adaptable type of person.
This ol girl thought the full timing shoe would be a perfect fit. Accepting it’s not….priceless.
We wanted to put out a list of things to really consider before you decide to live in your RV fulltime. We are now 4 months in and the rose colored glasses have shattered and we can share this information from experience. Before you read our list please know that this has been our experience, and as great as it is, it can also be just as challenging.
Papa in deep thought… about pie
Either you RV out in the boondocks where you don’t have all the amenities and water is like gold, or you join the masses and fit yourself into a sardine can. It is really a trade off. Here are a few of our reasons for no longer full timing in an RV.
Boondocking in Yuma, tons of room to move
*The cost of fulltiming can become high if you are not consistently watching your spending and distance that you travel.
*Privacy, if you are boondocking you can have more space than you know what to do with. If you are in any type of camp or park people will probably be right out your front door.
The sea of RV’s at our current place
*Dog poop is everywhere, not all people will pick up their pets poopies! We haven’t been to a single place where there wasn’t dog doo doo. Either you end up stepping in it, your dog try’s to eat it, or steps in it themselves and it’s just a crappy situation. Oh, and no just letting them out the door to do their business, you gotta go for walks in the rain, the cold, the heat and all the in betweens.
What? I’m good at avoiding the poo!
*Familiarity of your surroundings is a challenge because you are always somewhere new. Finding a repairman, the Laundromat, the grocery store or where to buy propane gets very frustrating at times.
*Refueling at a gas station becomes something of a search, not only for the lowest prices but the ability to maneuver in and out of the station with 56 feet of metal.
*Space…. Overall, it is lacking. The fridge, shower, microwave, stove, oven, countertop and everything else is just smaller, I know that’s a given but months into it, things seem even smaller.
Our shower has become the closet, as we use the RV parks showers
*Some places will charge for electricity, want to do a credit check, charge you for more than just two people or if you have pets. Seriously.
*Finding RV toilet paper can be one of the most frustrating things while traveling!
The good RV toilet paper costs $3.17 for a pack of 4
*If you love baths, moving furniture around, decorating the house and meeting friends for dinner on a whim, this lifestyle will not be conducive to such things.
*If you are like me and want to be more organized, eat better, exercise more, and have less stuff this lifestyle won’t automatically make you that way. I still throw stuff in a drawer to deal with later, I love my candy and we’ve both put on a traveling 12 lbs each, we don’t ride our bikes as much as I thought we would and as for less stuff, yes but you can do that at home. Please don’t make the mistake I did in wanting to be a better me and not do the work in hopes that your environment will change you, it’s gotta be you that changes you. I am such a dreamer, my ideals about how I would be didn’t mesh with the realities, and that’s life sometimes. Now I am ready to go home, plant some flowers, and watch them grow.
I just want to go home so I can bury this thing
Our situation, since we have the camper and travel trailer has been challenging beyond words trying to only pay for one site. Most places will charge you for each recreational vehicle, not allowing you to use one site. That cost can add up quickly considering the average charge for a night can range from $20 to $40 a night per site.
Fulltiming gives you the freedom of the open road, but life is about perspective and if that is not your ultimate hearts desire it may not be for you. The freedoms you wont have is to do laundry whenever you want, shower with real water pressure, or have hot water the whole way through. Ultimately, all the day-to-day things you do and take for granted, when out on the road can become your most challenging hurdles.
We’re all a bit wiser from our travels, Charlie just has a way of making it look good
With all that said, we wouldn’t want to pee on your parade, be negative nelly’s or ruin your ideals of this lifestyle. We just want to share with your our experiences, challenges and those things that helped us to realize this way of living isn’t for us.
Goin' Road Trippin' 