San Diego, Serious Downsizing...the Purge

When we began this journey almost a year ago we didn't have a clue where we would be today.  We began purging between March and April 2015.  It was slow at first,  but picked up momentum after we got orders to Alabama.  We decided to trade in our 2008 travel trailer on a new-to-us 2014 Heartland 5th wheel.  Then we began downsizing in earnest! 

Our weight when we moved from Colorado to Virginia was 14,000 pounds!  The new weight from Virginia to Alabama was 8,000 pounds!  We have done a pretty good job I think.  We sold some stuff, gave some to the kids and donated the rest.  So now we have a storage unit in Alabama with what's left.

We've been living in the camper full time now since June of 2015.  We love it so much that we have made the decision to continue living in it full time even when we move next. 

So a few weeks ago we received our next set of orders.  We are being stationed in San Diego, California!  We met in California 22 years ago (in the San Francisco Bay area) when we were both active duty Navy, and now we are headed back to Cali...southern warmth in our future!  Perfect weather for camper life for sure!

While we were very excited about our new duty station, we were left with some decisions to make concerning what's left of our belongings in storage.  After giving it a lot of thought, we have decided to get rid of everything...gasp!  I, personally, had no idea what an emotional roller coaster it would be!  In the end the decision was based on cost and need.  It was going to cost us so much money to store our belongings indefinitely and we didn't need any of those things because we have been living without them for months now.  We didn't want our life's collection of stuff to go to waste, so we asked our adult children if they wanted our things.  Of course, they did!  

I don't want our children to be "saddled" with our (mostly mine) personal memorabilia so we went through everything!  One. Box. At. A. Time.  We did this in 2 sessions and finished last weekend.  It was so much harder than I thought it was gonna be.  Maybe, it was because I had already gotten rid of so much stuff before leaving Virginia.  Maybe, it was because the stuff I had gotten rid of thus far I had no real emotional attachment to.  I don't know.  But, this time it was really difficult to let go.  I felt like I was boxing up what took more than 22 years of a life together to accumulate.  No matter, it was emotionally draining, but in the end it was also very freeing.  I am so grateful that our children will have some good quality furniture, appliances, kitchen ware and tools.  It will help them a great deal as they start their adult lives.  

We still have a few boxes to pare down that we had set aside to take with us.  I know for a fact that we aren't gonna have room for all of these things, so there are still a few more difficult days ahead. Pictures have to come out of frames, photo albums have to be pared down or given to the kids, cards letters and gifts from the children have to be sorted out.  We'll get there, but I am sure that there will be more than a few tears along the way.

Sometimes the hardest things to do for me are the most freeing and rewarding in the long run.  I can't even remember what 90% of the items were that we've parted with over the last year.  Life is so much easier without all of the stuff to clutter it up.  You can focus on living and making new memories instead of cleaning, organizing or storing needless items.  And in the end, the memories are all in my heart and mind...that is all I'll be taking with me when I journey beyond this world anyway!

Peace and Blessings

Florida Campground Review

Treasure Coast RV Resort
Fort Pierce, FL

Well, it has taking me long enough to get around to writing this review don't you think?  Everything was great...the end!  Just kidding, but in all seriousness, it was a pretty sweet campground. 

The grounds were fantastic and very well manicured. Each space has their very own palm tree... what more could you ask for really!  The lots were fairly close together,  but the neighbors were all very nice so it didn't seem like too big of a deal.

There wasn't very much room for our chairs on the concrete pad along with the provided picnic table either.  Our 5th wheel is 44ft. long and has three slides so it really takes up a lot of space.  Other folks with smaller rigs were better off space wise obviously.  We didn't spend much time at the campground as we were visiting family,  but if we were hanging out there longer it might have been less than comfortable for us. 

The pool area was lovely surrounded again by palm trees and plenty of deck chairs/tables. The pool was located right next to a nice pond which had ample park benches to sit down by the water.  It gave a very relaxing vibe. 

There were several little extras that we appreciated as well - like coffee pool side in the morning and popcorn was available all day!  We love popcorn, so this was a treat for sure.

They also had lots of activities to choose from daily.  There was water aerobic exercise,  live music, bingo and poker night to name a few.  Again, we didn't participate in too much because we were busy with family! 

Unfortunately,  I can't comment on the restrooms or laundry facility because I never used them, but they looked well maintained from what I did see.  The poolside restrooms were very clean (we did use those of course). 

The location was fantastic for shopping and accessing major roads.  Huge bonus for us getting to family in neighboring towns every day!

So all in all I would most definitely stay in this campground again.  Sorry that I didn't include the rate,  but Justin already left for work and I forgot to ask him.  I'm pretty sure it was reasonable because he never mentioned it being too pricey.  Hope that this review will help of you're ever traveling along the Treasure Coast of Florida...big thumbs up!