This year we celebrated Christmas, Florida style, in shorts.
We are the Devine's and we started our journey as full-time RV'ers in September of 2019. We sold our house and all our stuff and moved into our 38 foot travel trailer to travel across America. Along with our dog, Abby, we would like to welcome you to our blog about us enjoying life, "Our Devine Life". We will post adventures, how to’s, RV life, and updates on our travels.
Tuesday, December 24, 2019
Tuesday, December 17, 2019
Camping in the cold
This October, Mike and I went to Montana to visit his family
and he warned me in advance, that we would have snow while there, but it would
melt. When we downsized and loaded up
the camper Mike made sure that we were prepared for any kind of
weather condition, IE: a winter coat, boots, thermals, rain coat and rain boots, etc. Good thing he did, as we did have snow as
well as below zero temps for a few days.
When we were at Aunt Betty’s, our hot water tank line froze up overnight
when it got to single digits, but thawed out with the warm-up of the day. We have a fireplace under the TV in the
living area and we have a free standing temp control electric heater in the
bedroom. Running those with our propane
furnace we were able to keep toasty warm, along with additional clothes and thick
blankets. Mike puts reflectix in the
windows to keep the cold air out and the warm air in. When it did get below zero all the water
lines froze so Mike thawed them out with my hair dryer and then blew out the
lines to semi winterize the rig until the temperatures were finally above
zero. We were blessed to be staying at
my mother-in-law’s to use her shower and cook in her house as needed.
NOTE: We were using the fresh water tank, both at Aunt
Betty’s and my mother-in-law’s, so we didn’t need a heated hose.
Wednesday, December 11, 2019
Downsizing
For us to go from a 1,600 square foot house to a 350 square
foot 38 foot travel trailer to live our dream of full time RVing and travel
America, we had to downsize and downsize big time.
If you are looking to downsize or even minimize your
lifestyle, these are the steps Mike and I took to do it.
- Change your mind set. You have to remove emotions from things.
- Stuff is just stuff. I know that some of your treasures are treasures of your heart for sentimental reason, but remember it is just stuff.
- Don’t let your possessions possess you. Once I realized that we are working so hard to store our stuff, it was easier to give away or get rid of the stuff.
- Need vs want. Do you NEED it or WANT it, know the difference. You might need 4 – 8 forks, not 20. How many coffee cups? Two to four is needed NOT ten. Instead of books, how about using e-books.
- More than 1 use. For example our toaster oven, it is an oven, toaster and broiler. Multi-functional is key.
- Have you used it in the last 3 years? If not, then you don’t need it. This includes clothes.
- Ask family and friends first. See if your family or friends want any of your treasures. This way you know they are going to a good home. You can even ask them to hold your treasures until you are ready to take them back. This helped me give them away.
- Have a yard sale or advertise online. Why not let the stuff you no longer need make you some money.
- Giveaway or donate. Giving brings joy to others as well as yourself. Donate to a church rummage sale, Salvation Army, Goodwill, or any other charity.
I hope this was helpful.
Do you have any other suggestions?
If so, put them in the comments below.
Friday, November 29, 2019
Waco, Texas


We took a shuttle that gave us a history tour
of downtown Waco. Mike and I stopped at
the suspension bridge to take a stroll and pictures. At the market they also have a shuttle that
will take you to Magnolia Tables. We
decided to save that for our next visit with my Mother and Aunt. On our way back to camp we decided to stop at
Harp Design Company store and the original Magnolia store on Bosque. If you are in Waco, a must stop to enjoy.


Thursday, November 28, 2019
Oklahoma City National Memorial Museum
Mike and I visited the Oklahoma City National
Memorial Museum. The OKC Memorial
and Museum honors those that were killed and survivors of the federal building
bombing in April of 1995. It cost us $15
each for the museum. You will experience
the moments leading up to the bombing, see artifacts from the bombing, listen
to survivors and family that lost love ones and see the evidence that lead to
the arrest of those involved.
Outside the museum, you will see the memorial… the survival
tree, the gates, reflection pool, the field of chairs and the fence of memorial. Worth the trip!
Thank you and God bless our first responders.
Wednesday, November 27, 2019
Moab, Utah
In early November we visited Moab for five days. November is off-season for Moab, so it was
less crowded and the weather was cool but pleasant. We stayed at OK RV Park about 10 minutes
south of town. We were able to use the Passport America
discount since it was off-season and had full hook-ups (50 amp, water and
sewer).
I recommend visiting Canyonlands Needles, south of
Moab first. Be sure to fuel up and have
plenty of water, since it is far outside town.
This was a half day trip for us. On
the way to Needles, stop and visit Newspaper
Rock. Newspaper Rock is covered by
hundreds of petroglyphs—one of the largest, best preserved and easily
accessed groups in the Southwest.
Canyonlands Needles has some gravel roads, so drive with care. Please go to the visiting center first to
discuss your plans with a ranger so they can advise on the best views for your
level of adventure. We enjoyed our hike
and climb to the Cave Spring.
Unfortunately dogs are not allowed on the paths, so Abby was able to
enjoy the car ride and air conditioned car for our short adventures/hikes.
Then be sure to visit Dead Horse Point on your way to
Canyonlands Island in the Sky. This was
$20 entry per car and Abby was able to hike with us. Dead Horse Point is a
state park and has more hiking and biking trails than our current
experience. Island in the Sky is
wonderful, be sure to stop at the visiting center to pick-up a map and be
advised by the ranger on what to see based on your time and expertise. Mike and I visited Mesa Arch, Buck Canyon
Overlook, and Grand View Point Overlook.
For a grand finally of your visit, I highly recommend Arches National Park. Abby stayed home since she was not allowed on
hikes and this park was highly populated with visitors. The round trip through Arches will take you
most of the day and cost you $30 per car.
Get there early and pack a picnic lunch, plenty of water and fuel up. As always, we recommend visiting the visitors
center and coordinate plan with a ranger.
Be sure to check out Balancing Rock, Window Arches, Delicate Arch, and
Landscape Arch as we did this trip.
We plan to return next year to experience sunset through
Delicate Arch, to step our feet in a Dinosaur Track
hike, and a fiery furnace hike at Arches National Park; maybe a jeep off-road
adventure.
Enjoy your visit to Moab and God bless!
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