One more blog with a "Back to School" post

So there was a day or two where all anyone could post on social media were back to school pictures.  Little Johnny and Sally all dolled up with their backpacks, smiling about their new adventure.  Some were sad to be leaving momma's apron strings, but there were very few pics of sad children.  There were NO pictures of sad parents.  Why not?  I tried googling one, and found nothing!

I don't think society talks a whole lot about being sad as an adult about things like your children going to school (at any age), driving, wiping themselves, helping do chores, leaving the nest.  We are always so anxious for our children to reach the next milestone.  Achieve the next goal.  We rush and rush to the next thing and then one day realize it is all over.  The End.  They are grown and we are done.

I can't wait until my child:
sleeps all night, eats without puking, stops crying
rolls over, scoots, crawls, walks
gets out of diapers, gets out of pull ups, gets out of my bed
stops throwing tantrums, stops throwing food, stops throwing things in the toilet/trash
starts school, starts sports, starts cleaning up their own mess
learns to drive, gets a job, gets out of my hair
gets children of their own (at appropriate time) so they will know what they put me through and call me to apologize profusely for ever having pooped in the tub or snuck out of the house.

We hear stories told by other parents and we laugh a little out loud and then secretly cry on the inside at the thought of our children not needing us.  Not wanting us as much as they did.  It is a good thing that we all go through those seasons to prepare us and them to leave and be independent.  That is what life is, training for us to know how to survive without each other 24/7. Preparation for the next step, always.

I wait for the ugly crying mother pictures on the first day back to school.  The ones where they have just watched their baby turn and walk away from them, headed to their first classroom.  Seeing the back of your child's head when you drop them at college (yuck, I don't want to think about that).  What will they do without us?  What will we do without them?  So don't feel alone sad parents.  You aren't being silly or needy.  You are being completely and utterly normal.  Just no one tells you that.  Well there are those old women who always say "don't rush them, and make sure you nap when they nap, and don't worry about the dishes-they will be there later".  The ones who warn us to take advantage of all this precious time (even when they are pouty, sarcastic, mouthy, and opinionated), it is still precious.  In a smack them kind of way.

You can tell I am still a little melancholy about the whole thing but it is only day three of school.  I will get acclimated before it is over.  But then summer will come and I will get used to having her around all the time and we will do this whole thing again next August when Junior year starts and she is able to drive herself to the school.

Must go now. My eyes are melting again.

What's wrong with my RV?

I thought "let's start with a funny one". I thought "don't get too heavy a subject until you have a week or so under your belt".  I thought "pick something that has nothing to do with school starting back".  SO I chose the RV.  The classic, super fun recreational vehicle.

They don't tell you that you can upgrade the bed and toilet.  We didn't tackle the toilet yet but we did put in a cushy pillow top queen size residential mattress.  It makes the bed really tall but it is not so heavy that I can't get into the under bed compartment.

Or that there are hidden fuses all over the trailer that will blow. We knew about the ones in the breaker box, but were not aware that there were external fuses in bay compartments.  It wasn't until the front landing gear blew a fuse and we had to hand crank the trailer to get it to the dealership that they showed us where those handy little jewels were.  We stocked up on 30 amp fuses so as to not be stranded again.

Or that the airbag hitch they installed is notorious for leaking all the air out.  We had to purchase a portable air compressor while on a trip to Alabama for this obstacle.  We were packing up to head home and found the airbag in the hitch had bled out.  So we towed it sans air to the nearest air supply about two miles away and filled up.  Come to find out a tech said that the hardware needs to be replaced and they are known to leak.  He also said they don't test the set up before the customer takes delivery, no soapy water or anything.

Or that you can purchase a water filtration system to put between the city water hookup and your trailer.  When the water comes out fizzy cream colored, that's not an A&W root beer tap!  You need a filter!

Or that you should invest in one of those foam swim noodles to cut a slit in and place on the bottom of your bedroom slide out.  I hit my head twice on that thing.  Made sense then why I had seen those noodles hanging from slide out bottoms.

Or that the back feet come down at separate times when stabilizing the trailer.  Here I am pushing one side down with my foot thinking that something is broken, only to be told that they are on a pendulum and should come down separately.  My bad.

You are going to feel every step and movement that other people make in the trailer and you are going to hear every acorn that drops onto the roof while you are sleeping.
But you are also going to love having a cool place to rest between swimming and hiking!  A soft bed to lay down in, and a place to use the restroom that 5 million other people haven't already used.

They DID tell us not to wash the trailer with the water pointed up, to keep from spraying water into the side vents and into the trailer. And to drain the black tank first then the grey tanks.  And to pour the cleaning tabs and a few bags of ice into the toilet before heading home to help clean the lines and black tank a little more thoroughly.

This is based on a 2014 Forest River Heritage Glen fifth wheel.  And I will probably edit it and add more helpful tips as we learn more things the hard way.  What tips do you have about campers that no one told you?  Don't you wish you had one of those cute vintage campers that seem super simple?

 

Happy Camping!

 

Jennifer

Where to begin?

Chapter one, page one-
In the beginning there was school.  Where they are supposed to tell you everything you need to know.  Kindergarten was useful and very informative, but not complete.  Elementary, Junior and then Senior High certainly gave pertinent information but there were holes where life lessons would have to suffice.  But who can wait to learn these things?

Things such as:
1. What happens if you don't file your taxes properly or at all...
2. When you don't take a friend to a public restroom with you...
3. Using the internet for good and not evil...
4. How you can love someone so much and still want to punch them in the mouth...
5. What really happens when you go to jail...
6. How to help your child through school situations you never experienced...
7. When a response is not necessary...
And many more.  Things your parents didn't know, or couldn't tell you even!

So this weekend while on a family camping trip, I remarked that someday I would write a book with all these things in it.  I then told my 15 year old daughter that she had better pay attention to my musings because I would probably die before finishing my handbook for a better society and she would need to complete my work. Ha!  This from the girl who says "Don't tell me your problems, I'm not a chiropractor".  It should be a good read if you can translate her way of thinking into proper English and complete and accurate thoughts.

So a blog is the better answer, simply because you won't have to wait for those little nuggets as you need them..  While my style of writing and thoughts on what is "helpful" may differ greatly from the rest of civilization, I know my friends will at least read my words and laugh a little.  Since this compilation doesn't have to stick to any guideline or theme, you will find all sorts of helpful advice.  And if you have an idea, question, or story to share-let me know.  When I hit a dry spell, I may need a guest blogger.

So, thanks for stopping by this handy little spot where you may learn something new. And don't judge.  I am not perfect, that's how I learned a lot of these things.

Jennifer