We didn’t have an ‘actual’ vacation planned this summer. We have things going on and lots of fun planned but we didn’t have an actual going someplace for a few days trip planned. Then about a month ago a potential renter asked Kenny if we did one way rentals. He told him that we didn’t but out of curiosity asked where he wanted to take it. The guy told him Kansas City. So Kenny asked us if we wanted to drive it back to Florida and BAM! Instant summer vacation! Bonus that it is something new that we have never tried before too, which we probably should since we own an RV Rental business.
We met the guy on Saturday and kept the RV at our house until we could leave on Tuesday after I finished work. We had a few days to clean and pack everything we need in it and hang out in it just for fun. The kids LOVE it. They offer everyone who walks by a tour if they would like. We didn’t turn the AC on and it was pretty warm in there but they just hang out anyway.
Departure day finally arrived. I was working so Ryan took half a day off to finish getting everything ready. The girls were at Ms. Cristi’s house so when he went to pick them up he drove the RV to pick them up. They were over the moon excited which Ryan liked because usually they are not happy to go when he picks them up from Ms. Cristi’s.
We got all loaded up and headed out about 5:15. Just in time to cross KC in rush hour. Forty miles and an hour and a half later we decided to stop and grab dinner. We grabbed some Five Guys and ate it in the RV. We also sang Happy Birthday to Ryan and had his birthday cake then headed out again.
Singing ‘Happy Birthday’ to Ryan…not their best effort
Our driving goal the first night was about an hour east of St Louis. It would be 5 hours by car, but we quickly learned it is a little slower going by RV. We ended up stopping just outside of St. Louis on the west side at 10:15. We also quickly discovered some handy tips to remember when in an RV. By ‘we’ I mostly mean the kids who tend to only half listen or completely ignore us when we tell them things. Some of these will seem like I don’t watch or am unaware of what my kids are doing, or teach them basic safety rules but the saying ‘You can lead a horse to water but can’t make him drink it’ applies. And its really loud in the front of the RV so you can’t really hear what is going on if you aren’t looking and I get car sick.
#1. An object in motion stays in motion until acted upon by an opposite force (or something close to that).
That one took a few bumps and bruises for some of them to sit their behinds down when we were moving. They were semi fast learners though.
#2. If you don’t hear a ‘click’ then it isn’t closed.
Matthew personally learned this applies to the fridge, drawers, cabinets, and the door to the RV (even if its locked). Luckily most of these, especially the door was figured out pretty quick once we started moving instead when we were cruising down the freeway.
#3. The table (or any other flat smooth surface) is not a ‘secure’ place to leave items unattended when moving. This applies to card games, drinks, and plates full of food.
#4. Coinciding with tip number #3, make sure you have plenty of napkins and a broom with you on your trip. We also were glad to have a first aid kit due to a smashed finger, bringing us to the next tip.
#5. Don’t play tag or hide-n-seek in the RV.
#6. Matthew can not eat watermelon anymore.
That last tip is not RV related but one we will have to live by from now on. We figured out that he must be sensitive to it or something because he ate some then he felt yucky and started having a hard time breathing and had to do his nebulizer.
There is a little bit of a joke about how many times we will have to call Kenny and ask him how things work since we have never used an RV before. We asked several questions before we left and a couple since we started but we are trying to keep it to a minimum, partly so we don’t drive Kenny crazy and end up in any of his hashtag references, and partly because of our pride. Haha! So Ryan took a cold shower instead of a warm one last night, but he took it because he was really hot so…not a complete newbie error.
After an hour or two everyone settled in and got the hang of traveling in an RV for the most part. The found a spot to stay and used their ‘RV Legs’ when they had to move around. The rest of the night was pretty uneventful learning new tips wise. We stopped at a Flying J and gassed up and stayed the night in one of their RV Parking areas. We weren’t right next to anyone so we extended the slide outs and got comfy. We played Uno and Wacky Six and then got ready for bed and lights out.
TUESDAY FAVORITES:
- Emilee- Getting picked up from Ms. Cristi’s in the RV.
- Allison- Riding in the bunk area in the RV.
- Matthew- watching Angry birds in the RV while driving.
- Dad- Birthday cake in the RV.
- Mom- Leaving on vacation!
Ryan popped up like a daisy the next morning and we were on the road again at 6 am while the kids kept sleeping. Which leads me to my next list, things we love about traveling in an RV.
- More comfortable. Lounging about on the couch or playing a game at the table, or even taking a nap in the bed. It is pretty darn comfortable and more roomy then a car or plane.
- Sleeping. Laying down and actually having a bed to sleep in instead of trying to get comfortable propping yourself up in an upright position is awesome.
- Pit Stops. The only time we have to stop is to get gas. No potty breaks needed. Which also means no gross gas station restrooms.
- Bedtime. No checking into a hotel. My kids love staying in hotels and its an adventure for them when we’re on vacation but it is so much more simple in an RV.No carrying all our stuff in unpacking, then repacking the next day and worrying about getting to breakfast and back on the road. So awesome.
- Stopping for the night. Our first night we ended up stopping about 70 miles before we originally planned. We didn’t have to worry about getting to a certain spot for a reservation. It got dark and rainy so we decided to stop. Easy-peasy.
- Eating. No fast food. If we see a fun or famous restaurant we can stop, but otherwise it is turkey, ham and PB sandwiches for lunch. Cereal, fruit, and eggs for breakfast. No McDonalds- hallelujah!
- Weather. It rained a lot while we were on our trip. There isn’t much more miserable when your camping than getting soaked (bugs and heat are close). We just slept right through it at night-no worries- and hung out inside when it rained during the day. The biggest mess was sweeping out the wet grass when it dried.
It took us until about 4pm the second day of driving to get to Racoon Mountain. Our stop for a bit. Much longer than by car but we weren’t in a hurry. Our camp spot was right next to the pool so the first thing the kids did was go swimming. We got everything hooked up and extended and settled in. Ryan started a fire and we had tin foil dinners. While we were waiting to eat Matthew had the urge to show me his latest dance moves.
Matthew showing off his new moves.
#7. The typical child will not eat tinfoil dinners because ‘it looks weird’ even if it is food they recognize and normally eat.
Good thing we also brought a bag of hotdogs for them to roast. After dinner they played at the park and then went swimming again. They swam until after dark. I forget that pools have lights in them at night. I remember swimming with the lights in the pool growing up. It was exciting and fun. This pool light changed colors which was pretty neat. We let them swim until even with the lights it was to dark to see them. After showers and getting ready for bed we played a game of Wacky Six. Then the kids willingly crawled into bed and were out.
WEDNESDAY FAVORITES:
- Emilee-swimming
- Allison-swimming
- Matthew-swimming
- Dad-relaxing and grilling over the fire
- Mom-family Uno game
