I’m happy to report that Terence and I survived 10 straight days together in the van. Probably a good sign since we are going to be living out of it for a while, oh and our two kids. The trip was pretty amazing and gave us time to reflect, think and plan out our next steps. It also gave us time to get a feel of living out of the van and learning the mechanics of it all.
[POWER] I was really concerned about power…actually it was a concern about running out of power and having to sleep in the cold. We had the heaters running pretty much all night for 8 days, cabin lights, phones charging, and a running fridge. Took me a couple days to figure it out but we have a pretty kick ass set-up when it comes to power sources: battery – propane – solar and the generator. Each appliance and electrical need uses different sources (I did not know that) and things are constantly charging…the battery for example, charges when the van running…solar panels well of course are charging during the day and the propane…it’s a 15 gallon tank so when we get low, just have to fill her up. Easy peasy. [PLUMBING] The van has been winterized but we have used the toilet. We had to take an extra step of flushing anti-freeze down when we were done. We are hoping to de-winterize this weekend since the forecast doesn’t call for below freezing temps over the next couple weeks…keeping fingers crossed. [DRIVING] We logged over 120 hours in 8 days. It was (is) a fun van to drive! Slow and wide when it came to turning, braking sooner than later and being more mindful of height clearances. I thought it would be a slow drive all the way home but we were able to push 70-75mph and at times 80. [LIVING] I seriously cannot wait to be in it full-time. The inside is a lot bigger than I expected and has more than enough room for our family. [COOKING] We have a 2 burner cooktop which heats us pretty fast, boiled water in 2 minutes time! We also have a convection microwave – pretty happy I can still bake and cook things that require oven functionalities. Last but not least…my InstantPot. I plan on doing most my cooking in the IP because it’s just so damn amazing. [INTERNET] We now have unlimited data! Yay! Terence is also doing his IT thing to run internet in the van for the security cameras and other fun IT stuff.We have 23 days left in the townhouse before we are 100% in the van. Teren is really excited and ready to be in it now. One of us will sleep in the van tonight with him…Tara caught a bug and would rather be sick in her bed and not risk spreading her germs in a super enclosed area. I do miss sleeping in it. The bed in the van is actually more comfortable than our pillow-top mattress, go figure!
Soon, it will be soon.
By the way…we still have stuff to unload so let us know if you need anything, we may have it!