Time for a tour! We have been living in the RV lovingly called Big Dan for approximately 2 months now and are mostly settled in. There's a couple of things I would like to tweak or add to, but there is absolutely no rush right now.  Let's start off with a quick intro to why we chose this one. Simply put, it had the best storage spaces for us. A lot of these RV's only have a little bit of underbelly storage and we just knew going into this long-term, that wasn't going to work. This one has SO MUCH extra storage, we were able to bring on all the stuff we NEEDED being full-timers. There are a whole bunch of "extras" included in this we didn't ask or look for, though.  The cool thing with RV's is now the full-time living has become popular enough that now the companies make units for such people and that includes thicker walls, longer warranties, larger fridges, and more touches like home. They certainly don't make them like they used to.  I'm not going to go photo heavy, because I posted some 360 videos to fb, except for the bathroom, but I will tell you some of my favorite things about each space.

Living Room: 

We chose the front living style because to me, this felt more like a home rather than a place on wheels. Having a place for the Grillz to sleep when home from college  (THEY ARE BOTH IN COLLEGE?! WHUT!) was so important to us. We knew it would be just the two of us, but just like the big house we wanted to think ahead. Both couches fold out to become queen size beds.  Basically when both are out it becomes a giant slumber party pallet! We think it's pretty fun and the Grillz enjoy the slumber party atmosphere. The couches are in two of the five slides we have on board so because of that it feels spacious. I don't actually have all these cabinets filled, but inside are some books, DVD's, a fan, Goose's office stuff, and some cables for the iPod/TV.

I love that I was able to bring on my cedar chest for the coffee table. When the slides are closed there is plenty of room. I joked that I had TOO MANY pillows, but just didn't want to part with them. They came from all the couches and the guest bedroom.  Plus they aren't heavy.

Shyann Belle Blanket Thief chose not to remove herself from this photo.

Kitchen:
This was probably where we had to be most picky. We needed the space for all of our cooking stuff. We don't go out to eat very often so cooking at home is important. When it comes down to it, we need the space and counter space if I don't want to be ripping my hairs out of my head!  Because of the way this is laid out, it's more than enough and somehow we ended up with TWO pantries. Okay well one of them is technically a designated stack washer/dryer pantry but I said no.way. to the washer and dryer. I know that sounds insane, but I did the research and for how little I can fit into a washer and how much time and water it consumes, it's just not worth it to me. Most places had on-site laundry or a laundromat nearby and I am 100% fine with taking my roll of quarters and getting it all done at once. The other actual pantry has fun rolling shelves that I filled right up! I downsized about half of our cookware.

We managed to fit everything we brought on into the kitchen and it all feels very comfortable where it's placed.  Everything is a little smaller, so of course the trashcan is as well but it works out because its just smarter to take out the trash daily or every other day. We have not once used the oven, and don't plan to except to season the cast iron skillets. It is SO RARE we bake that we don't even need it.  The fridge is almost full-sized and we didn't have to throw anything out to make it all fit.

I was not moving in without my ninja blender and my pressure cooker. I use the ninja every single day for bullet coffee and I've used the pressure cooker at least once a week. At some point I think I will upgrade to an instant pot because it also is a rice cooker (used daily) and I can declutter the counter even more! We downsized the coffee pot to 5 cups, and that works more than fine.

The dining table is a dining table when we have the whole family here.  Otherwise it's a dual office space. I set up a nice viewing spot for Shyann Belle Super Spy and at some point I would like to switch out two of the chairs for a cushy bench with storage for a more comfortable reading nook.

I did give up a dishwasher. *hangs head* 

(the disappointment is dripping with this one)

you did what? 

It was a big pill to swallow. I said I would never live in a house that didn't have one. I decided to give it a shot before begging to have one installed (yeah it can be done! So cool!) and so far, I don't miss it. We don't dirty up enough to make me crazy and in the large side of the sink I have my dish bucket that I fill up and clean dishes the old fashioned way. one of my favorite purchases was the collapsible dish drainer that goes right back away when done washing.

Guys, the smoke-master is working. SHH.

the "hallway" but most importantly, senior pictures!

Bathroom:

Just up two steps from the kitchen is the bathroom/bedroom.  We knew we wanted the bathroom seperate so that other people can use it without having to go through our room. Okay, so this was one my biggest worries about the switch.  We had to condense 2.5 baths into one for a family of four when both Grillz are here, which means 3 LADIES' worth of bathroom crap.

 I created some vertical storage at the sink so I wouldn't clutter the very pretty vessel sink. Interestingly, I used elements from each bathroom. As you can see, a lot of my stuff is out there for easy access but it doesn't take up a whole lot of room. Inside the shower I hung a rod across the back and hung S hooks to hold poufs and mirrors and bathing suits to dry. I got some clearance suction cup holders at Target and stuck them on the shower wall to keep the clutter at bay. 

No, my hairbrush is not in the sink....gotcha!

I was surprised to find that I still have a lot of room in these cabinets for storage. I kind of just threw everything in there and never reorganized, but the ugly towels are above the toilet and some cleaning products. Under the sink I put stacking storage bins and have the not-so-important items at the bottom. I still can improve on organization and storage with maybe some tiers but right now it's working fine. Towels are hung with my old coat hooks.

I was really nervous also about showers being literally 3 minutes long. They're not. I am not certain but I bet it has to do with this being a larger RV and the water tanks are larger so we get more hot water use. So far I haven't run out of hot water!

Under the bathroom is another large pass through storage space.

Full size shower is a nice bonus

What you don't see is Shyann Belle Pillow Hog asleep just under the mermaid.

Bedroom:
So we downsized from a king bed to a queen and to be honest we haven't noticed the difference aside from the fact that it's not OUR mattress we were so used to, but at some point we will be replacing it.  My two greatest triumphs are the stairs and the closet space. I was certain I was going to have to find another way to get the little sausage dog in bed, since there's limited space on both sides.  On the side her stairs fit (And I mean by an inch) was the most practical side because the other side a slideout for the closet. I didn't want to get rid of these stairs becauses Goose built them. Shy was also used to the stairs at the end of the bed so it took some rewiring on her part to use the stairs at the side instead. There was a lot of exasperated "SHYANN BELLE YOU ARE GOING TO BREAK YOUR BACK IN HALF" at the beginning.

You may notice the bed is really high, yeah it's hard for me to get in sometimes. No I don't use the dog stairs, its on the wrong side for me! Our mattress lays on the roof of the garage space. Yes you heard that right.

Everything you see that has mirror on it, is a closet space.  While I was fine with downsizing, I was NOT getting rid of all my clothes in the name of tiny house nation. With a little creative use of baskets in the lower cabinets for pants, shorts, leggings, unmentionables (oops I just mentioned it!) and travel bags I was able to get every bit of my hanging items into there. I came running out and up the driveway when I finished pumping my arms in glee and Goose thought I had finished all the packing only for me to say "No dude, I got my clothes in there somehow!"

We do use this TV a little more, just mostly for winding down. We actually haven't done anything with the TV watching options yet so we have whatever is on basic cable channels via the antenna.  I watch a lot of METV which is probably geared towards the, uh, more seasoned vets?  Lots of Perry Mason, Bewitched, Twilight Zone, Happy Days, Carol Burnett, etc.  Our plan is to purchase the Roku stick and stream, but right now it's just not that important yet.

My three favorite wall hangings made it in.

The one where I cram April-June 1 into one post.

You guys.  This post has been a long time coming, and I have my reasons for the delay but it is time to talk about our sudden changes!

During our Colorado trip we kind of made the choice to open up job searching to country wide. The travel bug hit us BAD.  I was in a crossroads with my job, which isn't important now in hindsight, but their decision made my decision concrete. Goose was at a crossroads with his job because the company wasn't the same company he signed on with in 2013. We knew the youngest Grill was about to start college and was most likely staying on Oklahoma (she did) and the oldest Grill had a pretty awesome handle on college life and could survive if it happened.  Around March Goose was put into a life altering career path. While he had applied at various other jobs with little to no interest, there was still the option of uprooting.  He was being looked at a company in Houston in corporate level with quick advancement or a job in Connecticut as a Contract Engineer. Long story short, neither company hired him though he was second place for both, but he had made his decision and we had come to an agreement on how we would live from here on out if something came along.

--I had become burnt out on the suburban life as much as Goose. I loved that house we picked out three years ago, knowing it was too big for us but plenty big for family and did it ever serve its purpose. So many fond family moments were gathered up into my heart in that home, but I was burnt out. Goose had become miserable at work and he was in physical pain from the stairs also. We both wanted a better quality of life for us and our children and nothing secured that thought more than taking our jeep trail trip to Colorado. We knew right then we wanted all of us to see the country before we were old, and we couldn't do that if we were living to maintain our house. We wanted to find HOME. --