More on preping for full timeing

Organizing the RV and refining our cooking for the RV is our current mission.

Here I can buy a 10 pound piece of choice meat and cut it up into small roasts, brown and freeze so all we need to do is pop it in the oven or DO and ready to eat:)  So when we stay a few weeks to a month or so we can pre-cook for our next movement when all we need to do is re-heat.  We will also do one pot meals with our pressure cooker.  We also both like soup, salads and sandwiches so all should go well.

 Below we decided we do not need cookie cutters when a tin can will do with the top and bottom removed.

What do we take and leave.  We have tons of tools for the house kitchen we can only take a few and put the rest in storage.

 Limited space under our dinette seats for heaver or little used kitchen tools which do we take and which go to storage.  Also had to cut out a piece under one seat to get the air fryer in.

 We would like to have one spare propane tank on board as a backup.  We added an extend a stay connection to the RV a year ago.  By using a standard BBQ bottle it will be easier to do an exchange then find a propane station in some areas.

Prepping for full time RVing

Prepping for full time RVing.

Several things have have been happening starting in March.

Kathy and I have both tendered our resignations for retirement to start early summer 2018.  We want to travel by RV our first few years of retirement.  Altitude is not my friend I have been on O2 for years and on a CPAP.  When I am below about 4500 feet my breathing improves and at or near sea level it is great compared to 6000 feet and above.  So much of our travel will be below 4500 feet.  During these travels we will be looking at where we will end up retiring to a home or condo.

Our current  RV insurance expires the start of May so we are going back to Good Sam to find a replacement that is set up for full time (365 days a year)  RV'ers. Our current policy only covers us for part time use. Most RV'ers are occasional users so their coverage is only geared to cover them for 60 to 90 days a year. So we will switch by the end of April to the full time option, looks like cost will be around 3 times the part time coverage.

Since Kathy and I are both veterans our primary providers are VA so for the 2.5 years before Medicare the VA will be our primary coverage backed up by our HSA that we funded over the past 10 years.  Once on Medicare the VA will become our secondary coverage.  The VA also provides us our eye classes and we have taken out one of the 2 VA approved group Dental Plans that we do pay a monthly fee.

We have a joint appointment with the social security administration to sign up for retirement starting this summer.  Kathy  has already signed up for her state retirement should start by June.  I can not sign up till the end of April to have mine start by June,  Both states advise if they have not started our retirements by our planned date they will pay us back to our planned date once they complete set-up.  We plan on leaving Kathy's TSA alone for now, may take it in a few years to give ourselves a raise.  I had a small IRA and that has been added to our emergency/future home fund.  Finally I note that Kathy and I have also been receiving early retirement from two previous employers.

We did not buy a home here at my final college, because we did not want to be tire down till it sells so we rented these last 5 years,  We plan to be out by end of summer with some items in storage at our daughters and the rest sold off or donated.

Finally for this post I have dropped off the RV at our mechanics to do a detailed going over and for new tires.  Our tires are 5 to 6 years old so we want to start out with new tires as well.  If they replace any parts do to looking weak I asked them to hold them for us, we will hold most for emergency spares.

Even our overhead bunk is being converted for storage as you can see below.  Chairs and a walker with seat if needed on a long walking tour can also carry my spare O2 tanks.