The First Week - A Test of Patience

Once the decision was made to "go small", we had little to no apprehension about our move to 600 square feet. I was actually excited about the opportunity! I looked forward to "camping out" and making it fun for the kids.

But with all things great and small comes responsibility. The first night in our new home, the 600 square foot RV, the power went out. I assumed it was my error, plugging in a fan, my phone, and the alarm clock all into one outlet via an extension cord might not have been the best idea.

I decided to figure it out for myself by reading our RV instruction manuals.I checked all of the GFI outlets. Check! The breakers weren't tripped and the fuses weren't blown. The next day I noticed the outlets weren't working, the washer worked and the dryer didn't. (yes I thankfully have appliances in here!) The dishwasher worked but the fridge did not. I must have a cell phone, especially for emergencies, so charging my phone in our car was no big deal, although I have the type of car that won't charge unless the car is on.

The main concern were the lights. Day after day the lights were getting dimmer. I had to start using a flashlight to get around at night.The red LP Gas Protector light started blinking inside the RV, although the propane supply was low. Since I wasn't sure if it was malfunctioning due to lack of power or not, I decided calling a repairman was the only choice.

Success! The electrical wires inside the connector head had fallen off of their contact point! Only 50% were still attached. With that figured out and our outlets working, it was finally time to replace our milk and start really living in our new home. Again, it was time to get excited and start taking notes on how this journey might change us all for the better.

I agreed to go small but being unprepared to live off-grid was not in the plan!