Upsizing and Downsizing, part 2.

OK, back to downsizing. Remember I was struggling. I wanted to get a bigger 5Th wheel...but should we? Was it right for us?   Well by morning, I had decided the only way I would do it was if we could work a trade. I didn't want to end up with two RVs. So I offered my co-worker that deal and he said he would think about it. He brought his wife over that evening and showed her our little 32' Airstream.  Ugh, I knew it was gonna be tough for them....moving from that nice, big, new Teton. But they needed out from under the payments and also needed something to live in.  So I made them a "take it or leave it" offer....I made it so low that I assumed they wouldn't except it.  Well, it's bad to assume anything because after a lot of debate on their part, they decided to take my offer.  Uh Oh, now I got myself into it but Pat and I decided that if we were ever going to "upsize" this was the chance of a lifetime. This kind of a deal could never happen on a dealer's lot. 

So we did it.  We pulled the RV's door to door and we took everything out of the Airstream and they took everything out of the Teton.   It took us about an hour.   Four hours later they were still taking stuff out of the Teton.  Finally they got it all out and we put our stuff in the Teton, it didn't even make a dent in it. It was like an empty RV, even after we put ALL our stuff in it.  My friend on the other hand had stuff everywhere.  No way could he get all his things in the Airstream, so off he went to rent a storage unit..

I remember sitting in my recliner the very first night in that big Teton.  WOW!! I looked at Ms Pat and said "what have we done"? Pat was smiling from ear to ear and said "isn't it beautiful"?  I knew it was right for us so I just put my feet up in the recliner and watched that BIG TV. Life was good!!!


It's too long a story to tell you all about how we got that Teton down to Florida that Fall, but after 5 years living in it and 2 trucks later we traded it for a new 1999 40' Grand Teton.  It was a Grand Teton!! It had an extra slide out and was 3' longer (more space).  We lived in it for 5 years and 2 trucks later, we traded it for a new 2005 Reliance 45' Teton that we special ordered with everything we could imagine on it, including a Full Body Paint Job.  We sorta knew it might be our last "Big" rig.   Well, here it is almost 5 years later and we both see the handwriting on the wall.

Both of us have enjoyed the RV'ing lifestyle so much that we dreaded the day we had to even think about not doing it but we knew it had to happen.   We always tried to stay as healthy as we could, eat right and exercise a lot, so we could keep enjoying this lifestyle as long as we could..    We didn't slow down much the first 10 years....a couple months here, then move on.  It was a great lifestyle. We thanked God for such an opportunity and for the good health we both were experiencing..  We saw a lot of our original RVing friends come and go. Several of them are deceased now, others are too sick to continue, some are in nursing homes, apartments, park models, etc. That is when you see the hand writing on the wall. We want to continue on as long as we can but...and that's a BIG "but"...we want to be ready if something should happen to either of us.

Thus, the decision to downsize.  We love Tetons and we love 5Th wheels. There is twice (or more) the room and storage in a Teton than there is any Motorhome we have ever seen and believe me in the last 2-3 years, we have looked at dozens of Motorhomes.  For full timing, we don't feel there is any comparison in the room.  However, that being said, I do believe Motorhomes have an advantage in that they are easier to handle.  Many of my friends that used to have big 5Th wheels and have gone to Motorhomes confirm this. But they still agree that 5Th wheels have more room. Some will disagree with me but I believe I've seen the proof over the years. I will never try to advise what is better of the two, because it is a matter of preference, just as some prefer Fords, Dodges, Chevrolet, etc.

That is where we are at now.  We haven't made any definite plans yet, but we are planning on slowing down and downsizing..  You might just say, we are getting kinda tired and need to plan for the future. We aren't in any great big hurry and we're open to any suggestions and advice anyone wants to give us. We are waiting for the right deal to come along and we will make the switch to a Motorhome and probably get a small house.

There I said it.  It wasn't easy and I know a lot of you are saying, "Well I'll be. I don't believe it".  It won't be an easy task for us, but one that we feel is absolutely necessary.  I'm sure a lot of you will understand, if not you will after you have done it for 15 years and are nearly 3/4 of a century old.  Last I heard, no one has lived forever and no one ever got out of this world alive.  We both want to continue as long as we can and we will. But in a little smaller scale. How long it will take us to downsize?  We have no idea. It might be a few years and it might be tomorrow.

If anyone is looking for a nice 2005 Teton 45' Reliance and a 2001 Volvo to pull it with, get in touch with us.  If you should have anything, preferably a Motorhome, any size 30' to 45', old or new, that you would like to offer a trade, let us know.

We won't be listing the Teton anywhere for a while. I have several avenues that I want to pursue. Word of mouth will get out and the opportunity will appear. For anyone who's interested, we will be at the SKP North Ranch RV Park until the end of May. Then we will be heading for the Black Hills.

This is one beautiful RV and it has been a pleasure to own. We have received more compliments on it than we can believe.  When we pull into a place it definitely is a head turner.  People go out of their way to tell us that it is the most beautiful RV they have ever seen.  Plus the comfort is outstanding. It is one comfortable Full Timing rig!...

This Blog has gotten way too long and I'm sorry. I planned on breaking it up in several parts because I don't like long Blogs but I heard from several of you that are like me and don't like to "wait".

It is a GREAT WEEK!!!

Thanks for stopping by and let us hear from you.  We are ready for that deal.

Travel Safe,

Mike

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