Thursday Thoughts - Unknown

It's not what you save...but what you don't spend.

Unknown

Read this on a guy's posting on none other then Facebook and I think it certainly rings true. I think it's great advice. The year is half over and if you set financial goals it's time to be taking a peak of where you are. There is always room for tweaking and there is no better time to start if you aren't on a savings plan or to re-start if you have fallen off track.

Ahhhh....HOT showers!

While boondocking (no hookups) we are thrilled when there is running water...we are over the moon when there are showers. When checking out our spot for the past several days it listed showers, BONUS!!!! However, upon our arrival we learned they are sans warm/hot water. UGH!!! A cold shower is NOT for me. I am thrilled that we now carry a solar shower in our rig. Even when there are not shower houses you can still hang it out in the sun and have bathing water. We have been able to wash our hair with it as well as used it to do a really nice sponge bath. It's been a wonderful add.

Since they have individual shower rooms here for their cold showers (how thoughtful) we took our solar shower and hung it in the shower room and had amazing hot showers anytime we wanted. That my friends is a fine, wonderful thing that we love. The added bonus was that the restrooms also had hot water available (NOT always the case) so if we did not get enough solar to heat our water we could still fill the solar shower bag and take our showers. WOOHOO! It is the little things.

 Ahhhhhh!

#It'sthelittlethings
#hotwaterrocks

Wednesday Words - Unknown

When you have more than you need, build a longer table not a higher fence.

Christmas is right upon on...very insightful thought. Our table need not be a physical one, there are needs, genuine needs, all around us. It's a great time to really bless someone else, especially, if you know you are in the situation where you might be tempted to build higher fences rather than build a longer table...

I have always been a fan of living below your means, it's just a way of making sure you have extra income freed up should a situation present itself and you want to help or get involved. If you are making a decent wage and you are so stretched that you find it hard to pay your bills or you lay awake at night worrying about financial obligations than perhaps it's time to re-evaluate your budget. Make changes to remedy this situation, I would almost bet you will not ever regret it. 

And don't forget that if your are on a tight budget giving of your time and talents can also be a table extender. We have found that in our season of early retirement this is a way for us to bless others, too.

#FinancialPeace

Breakfast Burritos

We have spent the last few days preparing to go back on the road. Last minute chores, errands, tidying up, storing away. We are ready, I think.

Some time ago MiRV decided he wanted to make up breakfast burritos and freeze them; we had just never got around to doing it. Today that changed! We now have 20 burritos nicely tucked away in the freezer. He is the egg man among other things in our family, so naturally he made the eggs, I browned the sausage and sauteed the onions. Then he assembled them with a little shredded colby jack cheese and popped them into re-closable bags.

Assembling the burritos

As we travel in Roada it's always a challenge when it comes to cooking. I miss my crockpot for sure. Having only two burners is its own issue but I make it happen! We eat pretty darn good; as evidenced by our tighter jeans :(. So, I do enjoy getting to work in a larger space for preparing meals. I am not a fancy, gourmet cook. I can and do put a solid meal on the table. We do not eat out all that often as we like to use our limited funds on other ventures. So one of the ways we stretch our finances is eating in. Of course, that changes when we meet up with friends and family along the way, then eating out is a special treat. Otherwise, you will find me coming up with yumminess right here within Roada or out on the the grill! It's a good life.

Tonight was dinner with the Littles...their momma is such a good cook! We are going to miss our neighbors. They are so good to us; they let us park Roada right next door for however long we want. It's hard to leave them and the rest of our family but we know, Lord willing, we will be back. Tomorrow we hit the road...heading south.

#LovetheLittles
#familyisforever

Run MiRV Run!

Since our return to MO after the BIG Move we have really (really) been trying to get in some regular physical activity. It seems so hit and miss with us and this nomadic lifestyle. It's taking it's toll on the way my clothing fits. It's sad. So MiRV has been putting in some miles. I have been riding my bike while he runs or taking walks.

Rocking the run in the HOKAs

New running shoes a few weeks ago have been good. A blister did appear on the first run or two but adjustment in lacing and all seems well. He really thinks they are going to be great. This from a long, long time ASICS wearer who is now seemingly sold on HOKAs.



Also been working hard on portion control. I pray it helps, I so don't like my clothing being so tight and I certainly don't wish to have to spend good money on new clothes. That provides some motivation to slimming back down, 

#HOKAS

#getridofunwantedpounds

Snapshot of life as it is...

It's just been a myriad of goings on and comings in our world and without a doubt we are staying busy. It's been running the gamut on activities...from more plumbing, weed removal and tree trimming, lawn mowing, getting poison ivy, oh yes, that's been awesome, NOT! To enjoying eating yummy cake, to fun family dinners in and out, cleaning for a soon to be new homeowner, hanging out with the Littles, more fresh veggies, football games, steri-stiches (oh yes, yes indeed), sanding and staining our BBQ table as well as going to the races again and having .50 corndogs at Sonic. Yes, yes, it's been good in our world, very, very good!

 Yummy good foods!!!

 The NOT SO FUN poison ivy I am battling...

Boogity, Boogity

Seriously, it's not all that terribly exciting or extremely difficult, it's just life for us right now. We are certainly enjoying being with the family and just doing life along side them.

I will say without a doubt some days are better than others depending on what we do and who we are trying to please, LOL, it's not always easy trying to do for someone else, their vision is not always clear and our skills are NOT professional. We just have the willing, somewhat capable bodies to do what they cannot. Let me state that again...we aren't professionals...sometimes we are hilarious to watch I suspect but we are having a good time so that's what counts and we are sleeping well at night!

And just an FYI Internet access is still a challenge,sometimes it's so maddening, most of the time it's down right scarce and very slow, hence the low posting activity, sorry! I want to try to post more directly from my phone but it's just not that easy (at least for me).

#poisonivysucks
#LucasOilSpeedwayWheatland
#Sonic

Money Matters

Soooooo it was a BIG 2nd quarter! Honestly, the budget looks busted in several areas at first glance. However, looking at the big picture it's not so bad! I did have to remind myself that we were "banking" money in the first quarter for this exact purpose. And that while we were parked for the winter some of the categories were 0. That helped a lot with my mindset. Even so the numbers were hard to swallow in some categories. Nonetheless, like I said, in the big picture it still looks good and on track with our projections.

RV Travel was amazing in June! We left FL in early May. We were on the move until we landed in NE the very last day of June. It was a whirlwind of mile after mile. Mostly new territory for us once we got out the of DC area and then it was lots and lots of new scenery for us both as we entered the New England states!

Staying on budget proved challenging in many areas. Especially with Food Out since we did so many touristy things. We often took our cold bag to have snacks and drinks readily available but many meals were consumed away from the RV to which put us in over in this area :(

Believe it or not even with the shorter stays our RV Parking line item was lower then last quarter! Of course we did several nights of dry camping (thank you Wal-Mart and Cabela's)! That certainly helped to keep costs down.

Fuel for the CRV and RV was up as was expected, but keep in mind we had no entry in this category for many months where the RV was concerned, so this is the banking I mentioned above for this exact reason! 

Our grocery category continues to be a sore spot with me. Groceries just continue to increase in price, it's unbelievable. Being back in the midwest just a couple weeks has helped. East coast prices were definitely higher! I know this category is going to have to be adjusted AGAIN. And seriously people we rarely buy meat of any kind so I don't know how others are doing it. I am busting it nearly every month and we eat cheap. Lots of beans and rice! I will continue to try to stretch our dollars but it's a challenge and an unavoidable expense that just continues to grow. UGH!

Prayers were answered with RV travel protection. We  have been so thankful for a sound rig with no major repairs needed while on the road. We did have a few fixes/tweaks to do and thankfully, we were able to do most of them ourselves. That was a great money saver. Love that MiRV is willing and able to do this and that I can usually be a good assistant!

A new change for us this quarter is on the medical care front which was scary but necessary. We will just have to see how that works out for us. With our mobile life right now having a PCM in a location we were not just would not work so we are no longer on the Prime plan. This means no more premiums. It also means we will now do everything with a "cost share". This could be a money saver or not. We will continue to work to stay healthy for sure. However, we know that MiRV has some medical issues that will need attention at some point and being on Prime will be the better scenario to deal with them. Perhaps we will/can opt back in to the Prime to deal with them at some point which will be easier all the way around.

The numbers in black and white...

These are a few of our line items that were OVER for this quarter. You can bet I will be monitoring these and hope to still be on track for the yearly budgeted amount!!!

Household $148.39
Entertainment $262.14
Eating Out $646.77
CRV Fuel $770.55
Groceries $956.60
RV Travel $2032.05 (includes $170.10 in TOLLS)

Believe it or not RV Travel and Entertainment are easily still within reach to be on budget for the year.

A few of our on or under budget categories for this quarter.

RV Parking $1300
Laundry $29.75
Vehicle Upkeep $24.66
Clothing $80.28

So there you have it, a little glimpse into our finances this quarter.

Until next quarter keep track of your pennies, you never know when you might need them!

#MoneyMatters
#budgetingisfun
#RVliving

Shredded Sheet

I don't know how this happened, but it did. Not only the huge rip on MiRVs side but a small one was on my side. AND it happened on the same night...is that weird or what? Guess that's a SURE sign we need new sheets!

This sheet set is 5 years old. Is that old for a sheet? Maybe it is. I guess it is! We don't have another set, in fact this is a set from our sticks and bricks living. RV sheets are expensive IMO. Maybe they are not but they seem to be to me. However, I have seen them on sale at Camping World for 34.99. I guess that's not horrible and they are the right size for the RV, which is a queen short. So our fitted sheet from the sticks and bricks fitting is not a big issue but the top sheet is really BIG as in there is way too much of it and I don't like it. MiRV says whatever. But it bugs me!

A quick google search reveals that a Target trip is needed for a new fitted sheet. The size they carry will work quite well and solves the issue for now...it's not the same color but it WILL work for us. Well until we are near a Camping World!

 The new fitted sheet!

Since we are now near a Camping World and we recently scored a CW $10 off coupon we got new sheets! BONUS the sheets were also on sale! So that puts us right as rain for getting new sheets! And we now have the real RV queen short size. It is a matching set of new sheets with pillow cases! Happy dance!!! Now changing sheets will not have to coincide with immediate laundry :) Just need to get them washed and they are ready to be put in service!

#thelittlethings
#RVsheets

Wednesday Words - Fodor

You don't have to be rich to travel well.

Eugene Fodor

We are living proof of this.

Acadia = Amazing Place

Quietest, most peaceful location I have EVER been. Magnificent views of God’s creation were all around; EVERYWHERE it was nature as natural as I have ever seen it. From trees, to forest, to lakes, to ocean, to fields, to cliffs, to rocky shorelines, to waterfalls; just amazing beauty all around. It was as unspoiled of an area by man as I have ever witnessed. There are no words and photos do not even begin to do it justice. Seriously, it was the most serene and as I said most peaceful location I have ever experienced

Camping here was a new venture for us as it was totally WITHOUT hookups. No electric, no water, no sewer dump, no bathhouse. We survived. We did learn some things about our house batteries and the generator and hope to make some changes so we can “camp” like this more often.

 Camp MALCOM

Since there are no hookups they did allow you to run your generator during certain hours each day to juice up your house batteries which made it nice. And thankfully it was so pleasant we did not need AC, we actually had blankets on the bed most nights and slept with the windows open. 

We picked up some local wood to use the provided fire pit which was great in the evenings to take the chill off, also allowing us to stay outside longer since it seemed to keep the bugs away too!
 

Getting the fire pit going before having a pre dinner snack!

  Just enjoying the great outdoors!

Our time here was filled with day trips all around the area. One of the highlight was MiRV SUPing in Seal Cove and seeing a seal up close and personal right next to the paddle board along with a baby dolphin. I am insanely jealous of him! I will make a blog post of that day's excursions soon!

Wednesday Words - Shaw

After a visit to the beach, it's hard to believe that we live in a material world. 

Pam Shaw

I knew it!

Groceries have gone up and I knew it, I knew it, I knew it. I mean I have noticed that on the things I buy some of the prices have steadily increased over the past year but I thought maybe it was because I am not buying at the same place all the time and it is location dependent. NOT SO it's everywhere and prices truly are rising.

I saw a tweet about this article that was on ABC news a few days back and thought, yep, I certainly agree, grocery prices are definitely higher!

No wonder I am having a hard time staying on budget with my grocery money! UGH

#FoodTOOexpensive
#ABCnews

Money Matters

It’s here! The first quarter financial look…Honestly, I still kept up with it monthly! 

So how did we do? I think great overall, we are living within our means and we are still able to save a little bit and best of all we don’t feel as though we are just barely scraping by. When we first started this journey my fear was that we would just be scraping by. Now don’t get me wrong, we DO NOT live extravagantly by any stretch, we do not own one of those “BIG” rigs (but we do own what own), we rarely dine out and I don't buy steak on a regular basis at all! However, I don’t think we are suffering and push come to shove we could tighten the belt even more if we had to. We are always mindful of our expenditures but this is nothing new for us. We have always been budget conscious. I really think it’s just how God blessed me to be, I am not a spender.

A glimpse into the first quarter numbers!

First figure is the budgeted amount, second it the actual amount spent.

2014 - 1^st Quarter - Jan-Mar

RV Parking $1650 / $1600

RV Upkeep $900 / 576.02

Groceries $840 / $872.34 (OVER)

Eating Out $300 / 281.92

CRV Fuel $450 / $336.50

Clothing $195 / $165.80

Household $107.86 / 112.66 (OVER)

Gifts not Christmas $165 / $148.69

As you can see, I am still struggling with the grocery budget. I KNOW groceries have gone up and I can’t change that but it annoys me to have to spend that much money on food. We don’t eat a lot of meat as it is I don’t know how people who do afford it. I have also been buying less fresh produce, it’s just gotten too expensive, especially fruit! Being in Florida I would have thought fruit to be cheaper, NOT TRUE! As for the Household line item being over, it’s a catchall category and sometimes it’s things that have no other category to fall in.

Also for 2014 some categories were increased. Those are Groceries by $30, Eating Out by $45, Household by $5.86 (which appears may need to be more!), Gifts not Christmas by $25 and Entertainment by $35. We also added a line for Savings $300/month and Medical Co-Pays $20/month.

I enjoyed the quarterly report even though like I mentioned I am still tracking monthly. Quarterly figures are so much larger it kind of scared me at first!

Couple thoughts to share… there was a $12.72 raise for 2014. In addition, just this month we changed our cell phone plan; we are still with AT&T but now we have the value share plan. We have more data then before and are paying less. That’s definitely a change we like!! Savings when all is said and done should be about $30/monthly.

Oh and now there will be a new facet to our finances called VA benefits that we will just be thankful for but not count on. While we are extremely grateful for the monies they are not permanent so we will not be adding them to the budget.In addition we are looking at another change as far as our health insurance. We have some options when MiRV retired and chose the one we thought best but now after nearly a year with it we are considering changing. It would be better for us since we are mobile but it could mean a bit more out of pocket expenses however there would be no monthly premium. It's something we are thinking through.

Looking forward...it is still our plan to continue this RV lifestyle while we can. We know we will need an exit plan at some point and we continue to explore options on an ongoing basis. We are also looking at upgrading Sunny in 3 years if we do stay this course. Much food for thought and long range planning on my mind! And while I don’t want to over think it, I don’t want to not think it through. So his saying always pops into my brain whenever I think of finance… 

Fail to plan, plan to fail. 

So keep that in mind as you make your own journey, I know I am!

Coconut Oil! Who Knew?

I recently took the plunge and bought a jar after contemplating for quite awhile. I like it.

 
I am cooking with it just as I would use butter/Crisco/canola oil/margarine. And for the record it DOES NOT taste like coconut. At least not to me, others have said it does, I just don't taste it! I also don't smell it so maybe this is just the way too cheap stuff!

Like I said I've cooked with it. Then the other day I put some on my face. I know BUT I had read about others using it as part of their beauty routine, so I though, what the heck? I gave it a try. I wasn't that impressed. I did not see remarkable softness like others have proclaimed; however, it did seem quite oily. Then I tried it on my slightly rough heels and I put it on my freshly shaved legs. I do think it's pretty good for those things but it did leave that little greasy feeling so you do have to really rub it in.

Anyway, I liked it for cooking for sure and I will continue to use it. They (and exactly who is THEY?) say it's better for you as far as fats go. So I'm in, at least til the jars gone!

Have a great day!

Money Matters (October Wrap Up)

Since doing the 31 day challenge featuring a post on finances I have decided (for now anyway) to make it a monthly spot. Sort of a monthly wrap up for us so to speak. More for me then you (though I know some out there are a bit curious) so just indulge me or go ahead and click off if you aren't interested in that sort of thing. It's going to make me a little more accountable in keeping tabs on the budget (even making budget)if I know I am going to blog about it!!! So thanks invisible readers I appreciate your motivation! However, if you know me in real life you know I am sort of a nut when it comes to record keeping anyway but I digress, let's move on!

Here we go! We "moved" last month (and the month before that and the month before that...hmmm, I'm seeing a trend here) and we are moving again this month as well. It seems this is the way it's gonna be so I might as well come to grips with that part of this lifestyle... Anywho, the meat of this revelation is that moving cost money. Moving always cost money no matter what your situation is. Like I said I am coming to grips with this factoidl it's just the way it is and I'm gonna be okay with that; it just takes me second!! LOL

The big picture breakdown for October...went waaaaaaay over on food budget AGAIN! Ugh!! I guess there is an adjustment needed in this category! However, helping that hemorrhage this month was ordering coffee, it was on sale so I ordered to stock up (we will see how long it last), course it was only the kind MiRV drinks soooo still will have to track down my kind with a coupon for sure!!! And honestly, our food budget as I have made note of before is dependent on location and stores (ALDI makes a huge difference in stretching our grocery dollar and I will be happy, happy, happy to be near one again in just a few more days!!!) Also being close to the commissary helps.

In other areas we did well in the big picture look at it. RV slot was slightly higher here but still within budget!! We were over on gifts this month and I know next month will be as well but the budgeted amount reflects the yearly average; in my head I know some months will be over while others will be under and some none at all. It should all work out...I hope!!! Report shows eating out was r.i.d.i.c.u.l.o.u.s.l.y over as well. Hmmmm...this one is harder to stay on track with as we meet up with friends. We enjoy meals together...out. Adjustments may have to be made.

I also tweaked a few category names Tithes became Charitable Gifts since we also give to worthy organizations as well as give our tithe. I changed Stationary/Business Expense to Household Expenses. I will continue to adjust for what works for us in the coming months.

On a brighter note RV fuel was d o w n as well as CRV fuel, RV Exp/Upkeep/Maint; so that is awesome in my book!!

I have to say seeing the numbers in print on Groceries and Eating Out definitely makes me cringe a little...but not to fear as we still came in under budget overall so I'm not desperate about it and a bit of cash went into savings again this month so it's all good!

Snapshot for October...

Charitable Gifts $450.00 


RV Slots $510.00 (U)
RV Fuel $114.00 (U)
CRV Fuel $87.25(U)
CRV Upkeep $31.77 (U)
RV Exp/Upkeep/Maint $15.38 (U)

Groceries $439.05 (WAAAAAAY O)
Cell Phone $110.00
Eating Out $160.84 (O)


Gifts $60.00 (O)

Clothing $37.89 (U)
Household  $33.70 (O)
Laundry $12.00 (U)

(U) = UNDER
(O) = OVER

Again, overall, I am still a happy girl since $$$ went into savings and we are living within our means, THAT is the goal and a great feeling for me no matter the income!

Day 26 - TV

Yep, we have TV. In fact, we actually have two sets in Sunny. If MiRV had his way we would have three! One for the out of doors, too, maybe eventually but right now, no. However, he does take his laptop out and sets it in one of the basement compartments and watches PC TV.

 The front TV which is up above the driver/passenger area

We are pretty basic folks, have only ever had cable one time way back in 1996 when we lived so close to the mountains in Colorado that we were unable to receive an over the air signal so we subscribed. Normally, we are just antenna people, so you can read that as notsomuch TV people. That's really true in my case, however, there ARE a few shows I do enjoy! In the RV with our over the air and we have gotten decent reception everywhere we have been. Usually we get an average of 10 channels, but some areas we get more, way more! Like when we were in OKC we got nearly 30, lots of PBS, Christian and independent offerings. We have always been able to get the BIG 3 so it works for us and best of all it's F.R.E.E. We love the that and it's really more then enough TV for me!

The bedroom TV

At some point in the future when and if there is a terrific sale (hoping for black Friday) we plan to upgrade the main TV and then switch that one to the bedroom and then potentially make that one the outdoor TV. But there will need to be a terrific sale! 

For the first time ever we have cable included with our slot space, that has been a real treat for MiRV who IS the TV watcher in our family. But not to misrepresent, I do have my favorites...Person of Interest. And I do love me some NFL, college football and basketball as well as a little NBA, gooooo Thunder and MLB, go Cardinals!!!! But I can go without it all if it's not there and available but I will tune in if we are in the RV and it's on!

And today you WILL find us watching some football! Go Chiefs!

Check out the whole Day+# thing right HERE!

Day 10 - Boondocking or Stealth Parking

We now have ONE boondocking night under our belts. Technically, according to some we may have just stealth parked (we did have permission as we checked with the manager first). Just depends on your philosophy I guess but the fact is we parked overnight sans hookups/paying so it was good for us for the circumstances we were in.

It was an experience and hopefully we will get better at it as we attempt it again. There are lots of sites out there dedicated to this style of "camping" so I will defer to them as the experts since, as I said, we have done it ONCE! But we do plan to try it again sometime, someplace!

One guy's take and a little history on boondocking is here!

For us it was stopping over in a Sam's Club parking lot after the interstate rest stop just seemed too noisy/busy. It was right next to the highway so it was still a bit on the noisy side and it was hot. Since you are without "hookups" (no electric/water/sewer) you have no A/C so windows were open but the breeze was not flowin'. Did I mention it was HOT. Yeah, it was hot! Thankfully, the next day we were only going a few hours to our next location so it wasn't too bad. I would not have wanted a full travel day after that warm noisy night! Next time we will plan better. Other potential places to boondock include Wal-Mart, Casino's and Interstate rest stops. Make sure overnight parking is permitted. You must always check first, not all Wally World's/Sam's allow it, always ask!We were just asked to park over to the side not near the front doors, easy peasy!

This particular site I stumbled upon recently lets you search specific areas for individuals who offer up their driveway, yard or land for parking. Pretty neat! Maybe we will try that one day! I follow another blog and they do boondockingto the extreme, you can check them and their boondocking out here. We are not ready to be quite this extreme but definitely will keep the option in  mind! What about you?

Boondocking is not for everyone, be careful, you must plan ahead; you will want to have water in your tank and enough fuel in your tank to run the generator for at least a little while if needed. You will also need to ask permission but it can be fun and cheap (free) I like that! We are always up for saving some cash. Life on military retirement pay is good but it's always great to stretch our dollars!

Day # info is here if you are wondering...

Cooking, RV Style

Many people ask if I cook in the RV and my answer is unequivocally, YES, I certainly do! I cook almost exactly like I did when we lived in the sticks and bricks. The exception is in warm weather I DO NOT use my oven AT ALL. Just too darn hot! However, I cook daily! We have an outdoor grill as well as a cook stove and those are my saving grace in hot weather so we don't heat up our 31 foot of Bliss! I will say we don't eat real fancy but we eat well.

 One of our favorites grilled polenta and veggies!

A typical summer meal looks like this; pasta dish (pesto is a fav), veggie fajita's, fried rice, veggie medley (such as boiled potatoes, green beans, corn on on the cob), chili dogs with fried potatoes or chips, pancakes (blueberry are a favorite!), bean burritos with chips and salsa or cheese dip, grilled polenta with or without meat, usually ham and a veggie (zucchini is my favorite), Chinese salad or cantaloupe with ham. Pretty typical food for us, we eat meatless a lot, we are not vegetarians we are just not big meat eaters. We do buy steaks especially when Albertson's has them on sale. I have chicken and burger in the freezer right now. Potatoes are very popular with MiRV, I prefer sweet ones and he is more of an Idaho boy!

 Grilled Veggie Fajitas

 Grilled Polenta again and zucchini

 

 Blueberry pancakes!

Cooler weather meals include crock pot meals. So easy to do. We love soups and stews! I will sometimes add a fresh baked bread item, but our waistlines seem to grown to quickly when I do this so I try to watch it! I love a good hearty veggie soup/stew, wild rice soup, chicken noodle soup, chili, taco soup, corn chowder, tomato soup and potato to name a few. They also make great lunches for the next day or two with a grill cheese! YUM!

If you are unfamiliar with polenta it is just a fancier name for corn meal mush. Until we lived in Italy I called it mush and we ate it fried. It is still my most preferred way to have it but since I am usually watching my waistline, grilled is a little better for that. When you fry it you slice it up thin, dredge it in a little flour combined with a bit of salt and pepper then pop it a pan that has a shallow layer of hot oil. Fry until golden brown on each side.

Should preparing polenta/mush peak your curiosity it usually comes in a roll, sometimes a brick. It is most often in the dairy section. However, at Trader Joe's it is available in shelf stable form which I love since fridge space is at a premium in the RV. If you cannot find it to buy where you live it is so very easy to make; boil salted water, pour in the corn meal stirring constanly, reduce heat, continue to cook and stir then transfer to a loaf pan to set up. Google it for better directions and exact measurements as it's been quite some time since I have made it but it is super easy! The recipe may still be on the corn meal container as it was at one time!

 Polenta from Trader Joe's

If you are curious about lunch, it can be leftovers or a sandwich of some sort, ham is popular, PBJ on occasion, tuna, chicken or egg salad are also possibilities; I also like a green salad. Sometimes we do fried egg sandwiches too, I like mine on toast with mustard, MiRV likes his with cheese and ham. It's totally random and just depends on what's in the fridge.

If you think I skipped breakfast, I didn't. I am just not a big breakfast eater and I cannot eat when I first wake up! Just give me coffee please, strong with cream! If I do east breakfast it's usually cereal cold or hot (I love oatmeal and rice), MiRV likes toast but will eat cereal once in a while. I also like toast with peanut butter and pickles on it, MiRV prefers cinnamon sugar or Nutella on his! He is also happy to grab a PopTart (brown sugar are his fav)! Yogurt is an option too!

I am sure you are thrilled to know so much more about our eating trends and believe me they are trends. We take spurts, for a while we were eating corn on the cob every evening since it was in season and soooooo good. Seasonal sales and availability do tend to influence my meal planning. I scour the local ads for the best sales and we eat accordingly! We also like to hit up the local farmer's markets for fresh produce. I did that even before we were in the RV it just made good financial sense to me so not much changed on that front!

We've been converted!

The converter, which I am really still not totally sure how it works but I know it's very important, needed to be replaced. It's 11 years old, one of the breakers was getting weak and since we are full timers it's pretty important that this thing work properly.So once we diagnosed the issue and knew we were in for a replacement we set out to do it. Thankfully, the guy at the local RV place is good and gave us lots of insight and encouragement! A mere two hours later and we are back in business and all is well and we are converted!

ALL DONE and rehooking up the batteries!!! WOOHOO!!!!

I am so thankful that MiRV is willing and able to tackle some of these "homeowner" tasks. To get it in to have it done at the RV shop would not only have been costly we would have had to wait until the end of this month for an appointment!

Wednesday Words! - Howard

"You have succeeded in life when all you really want is only what you really need."
--Vernon Howard

Pretty much says it all and evokes some pretty deep thoughts in my brain...