In Limbo For Another Week & End Of Year RV Club Discounts

Well, November passed quickly, but the time from making an offer on a house in The Villages until closing has been dragging. We're scheduled to close on December 9, but everything is ready to go now and we're anxious to move forward.

Inspections have been performed, the appraisal is back with no surprises, our loan has been approved, and we're just waiting. We have a long list of things to get done but many of them are contingent upon the actual closing of the sale, having deed in hand, and getting our new official address.

In the meantime, we've gotten Linda's business going and she has a "splash page" set up on her domain while we build her full website in the background - Your2ndPairOfHands.com.

 

 

She's already had a job helping someone pick out paint colors for their house, and she has her first holiday decorating gig assisting a gentleman with putting up his Christmas Lights.

In addition, Linda has been perusing the neighborhood app NextDoor where she has found bargains on tools and supplies for her business as well as items for the house. She was able to set up her business page there and her two jobs so far have come from posting on NextDoor.

I also, got a top of the line pickleball paddle at a nice discount from NextDoor. Yes, I'm still playing pickleball every day, sometimes two or three times a day with different people at various locations. 

The combination of all that pickleball and our Keto eating has me down to a weight of 159. At 5'8" all the height/weight charts have indicated that I should be in the mid-150s which I've never considered realistic, but I'm almost there and feel great. I haven't been in this good of shape since my baseball playing days in high school.

We've established new doctors here in The Villages, and have had physicals with good results. I'm off cholesterol medication, and my new hematologist (who is also doing Keto) took me off of blood thinner, so I'm prescription free.

Linda is still losing weight and inches, and her knee pain is gone. She naturally eats less and doesn't feel hungry at all - she's thrilled with the results.

Her sister and brother-in-law, Karen & Jay, have adopted Keto as well, and they prepared Keto dishes to enjoy with the family Thanksgiving meal here in The Villages last Thursday. We weren't tempted to stray from our program at all.

It was a nice family dinner on a beautiful, warm, sunny day in which the younger family members spent several hours at the pool before it was time to eat.

The next morning, Linda & Karen put up their mother's outdoor Christmas decorations and then visited some of the many area thrift stores, avoiding the crowds of Black Friday shoppers. 

I, of course, played more pickleball. Yesterday, Saturday, I played my last round with the friends I've made here at Recreation Plantation RV Resort. I said goodbye and got several hugs and handshakes.

In the afternoon/evening, we got together with our RV-Dreams friends Tom & Marci (who just purchased a house here in The Villages) and John & Karla who purchased here a couple years ago. There is an RV club here in The Villages, but we might have to start our own RV-Dreams club and have periodic gatherings.

So today, December 1, we are moving.

There is an RV park, Southern Oaks, that is much closer to our new house, and they offer a 50%-off Passport America rate for up to a week, so we'll spend our last days as full-timers there.

Speaking of Passport America, they are having another Refer-A-Buddy special promotion. It runs through January 31, so if you sign up for Passport America and use our membership number - C-342286 - you will get an extra three months added on to a one-year membership. You can sign up at PassportAmerica.com or call 1-800-681-6810. For $44 for half-price camping it's a great Christmas gift for RVers, especially full-timers.

And, while we're at it, we might as well mention that Harvest Hosts is allowing us to offer new members a 20% discount off their membership through the end of the year. Follow this link - Harvest Hosts 20% Off - and you will find the 20% off coupon code at the top of the page. If you sign up now, you lock in the discounted rate for as long as you remain an active member, not just for the first year.

Harvest Hosts and Passport America are great ways to save on rising camping costs, and we've gotten our money's worth out of both over the years.

By the way, we've already had a few inquiries about possibly renting our motorhome and our new house. We can't do anything official just yet, but we're getting close, so if you are interested in either, just let us know.

Well that's about it for now. 

Oh, and don't forget, if you are in the central Florida area next weekend, there is an RV-Dreams picnic in Lakeland on Sunday.

RV-Dreams Fall Picnic 2019

Lake Parker Park

Lakeland, Florida

December 8, 2019 (Sunday)

12:00 Noon to ???????

This is very informal. Just show up with your lunch, whatever you want to drink, and either an appetizer or dessert to share. A couple of folks have graciously agreed to arrive early to snag a first-come, first-served picnic shelter, but be sure to bring chairs just in case we have to create or own space or we run out of seating in a shelter. Dee scouted it out and recently posted this.

"There's several pavilions, but we're going to be at the "LIVE OAK" pavilion by 8am. IF someone beats us we have plans A, B and C. Go to Gate 2, go past two pavilions and straight ahead is Live Oak pavilion. We'll have signs up. Bring chairs, there is a big parking lot to the right before seeing the pavilion."

Everyone is welcome. It doesn't matter if you've never been to a Rally before or you've never met any of us before. Most will have some connection through RV-Dreams.com, but all that is required is a desire to meet and spend some time with a group of like-minded, happy, friendly people.

And if you know other RV-Dreamers that may not be reading the Journal any longer or checking in on our Facebook page, please pass along the information about the picnic.

 

We hope to see a lot of people there - it should be a great time.

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Comments

[Janna]

I am happy for you guys. You are going to be busy, active and healthy! Enjoy your new surroundings--that new home, unlimited pickleball and lots of customers for Linda!

[Jodee Gravel]

So much wow getting caught up on your last couple posts!! Of course Linda already has a new business up and running :-) Sounds like you're both excited about all the changes and I couldn't be happier for you. I'll always be grateful for your guidance and inspiration to get us on the road fulltime! Looking forward to seeing how you make this latest transition as we also have new property for a winter base :-)

[Cindy T]

Congratulations on your new business, Linda!

[Deb Senko]

Congratulations on all of the changes in your life. Definitely an exciting time buying a new home and starting a new business. The Villages are great and I have a cousin that just bought a house there. They moved in November, 2019. Tim and I finally started full time Rving in October and have been thinking of you and the great information you shared at the RV show in Columbus a few years ago. We were hoping to meet up with you and Linda on the road someday; perhaps that will still happen. In the meantime, perhaps we will catch you at the Villages when we visit my cousin. We are staying in Homosassa, FL the last 2 weeks of December and plan to go over to see their new place while we are there.

[Clark]

Congrats on your next chapter! We have met you several times at your sessions at RV shows. Our home base is an RV Resort near Lakeland, so sorry we missed the PicNic. If you need help with your websites - let me know. I am a retired IT guy. All the best!

[Tina]

Comments are closed on the other post of your big news, so commenting here. WOW what a ride it has been for 15 years!!! Think I found your blog after you had been on the road for under a year. Appreciate all your time, energy, support of those that want to follow in your footsteps. Very happy and excited for you both in this next chapter in your life. Love Linda's new business idea and logo. I don't comment much since I've decide vanlife is easier to maintain for me. But do often search your blog for travel ideas. Many blessing to you both in 2020. Thanks again for sharing your life and journey it has inspired many.

[Lynda]

Be careful on the keto diet. My daughter in law said her friend had kidney issues on that diet. All else is wonderful for you both.

[Timothy Fansler]

Has anyone heard from Howard and Linda? Here we are almost to 2020 and surely they are moved into The Villages by now... I hope. Moving into a house is a PITA I know, but fortunately when I bought my house in 1989 I didn't have much. 1 1/2 24 foot truck loads and a couple strong friends was enough to get it done in half a day.