Lift off is in a month (or less)!!!! Holy Rabbit Tails! Considering I put the No in Novice, I decided that taking a weekend trip to a friend's place about an hour north of the Twin Cities would be prudent.
After planning and organizing - sort of - I pack my blankets, pillow, just enough clothes to survive, and my laptop. The original plan was to leave the bunnies at home, but at the last minute I packed the boys up along with their piles of possessions - about twice as much stuff as I had - and brought them along.
November in Minnesota is unpredictable at best, so of course the weekend I planned my adventure ended up not only being cold, but windy! The weekend before my trip? In the 60s, of course! But that is just Minnesota and as any good Minnesotan knows, if weather stopped you from doing something, we'd never leave the house!
With the bunnies on board, safely tucked in their carriers, I bravely backed out of my parents driveway for the first time, with just a little help from my mother. One important safety measure that should always be done is checking tire pressure. So, before hitting the road I swung by the Holiday station, as they almost always have air for free. Considering that I had four tires that I have no idea where they are on their way to 80ps, I have no desire to pay for air! Not to brag, but I rocked at lining up to both the gas pump and the air hose! After a shocking $60 gas bill, I headed over to fill my tires. After some scraps that caused a dripping blood situation, pauses to let a car and bike fill their tires, and waiting for four tires to go from 40psi to 80psi - which takes forever - I at last get on the highway. Only two hours after arriving at my parents house.
Much to my joy, the trip was uneventful and I arrived in Rush City without incident. I plugged in and started getting the boys set up in the back. As I get Peter settled in his enclosure, I look back and see I have a visitor - my friend's little cat, Bobcat has ventured in and is checking out Benjamin in his carrier.
I have always wondered who would win in a battle between Benjamin and a cat. Now I know, even in a carrier Benjamin scared that little kitty into submission!
Once the kitty was clear - so Benjamin wouldn't eat him - both boys were established in the back of the RV in their makeshift home. As you can see, I am definitely going to have to figure out a better situation in the permanent setup. Even after only a few minutes the garage was a complete disaster! However, the boys started eating a drinking soon after settling in, so Bunny Test #1 has been successful!
One of aspects I'm most excited about with having an RV is that I will be able to visit friends without descending into their space. This trip embodied everything I had hoped! I spent a wonderful two days with them without them having to deal with all my belongings.
In general, the maiden voyage went well. My heart only stopped once, when the neighbor boy popped in the front door and said, "um, the fire alarm is going off in the RV." My mind immediately when to the thought, "I have killed my bunnies and burned my house down before I've even slept in it!"
Thankfully it wasn't as dire as that, or, really dire at all. According to my friend's husband, after kicking on the heater for the first time dust entered the air and set off the smoke detector. So, thankfully, not fire! We also realized that the RV did not come with a carbon monoxide detector, so I borrowed one of theirs and quickly ordered one on Amazon for future use. The only other hitch came on night two when I attempted to completely dry camp and didn't plug in to their shore power. One night - with only my phone and the outside light strip on - completely drained my RV batteries! Not okay! I will need to find the right batteries to replace the ones that came with the RV, but better to find that out now!
Overall, I spent a truly wonderful weekend with my good friend, her boys, and husband, as well as finally meeting her darling little girl who they adopted last year. For the kids, the highlight was buckling in and taking a ride around the driveway circle in the back of my "car-house."
Between that, some bunny petting, and getting to climb up into my over the cab bed, the kids were a huge fan of my new home. Sis even asked if she was coming with me!
As part of my maiden voyage I spent Saturday morning as I plan to spend much of my time: working in the RV (I gotta pay the bills somehow!). So, as the urging of my friend I fired up my stovetop and had my first cup of tea in my new home while prepping for my upcoming week. Other than a slightly wobbly table and slightly cold toes, this can definitely work for me in the long run!
Do you remember I said that the weekend's weather wasn't really ideal? It got better (do you feel my sarcasm?).because on Sunday morning I woken to the winds blowing with gusts up to 37 miles an hour. Man, was my home a-rockin'! Normally, I wouldn't drive in that kind of wind. With an RV wind is one the most difficult atmospheric activities to drive in because it's basically like driving a large box down the road!
However, staying up north wasn't an option, so I had to brave the drive. To add to the excitement I decided to see how the boys would do outside of their carriers in the back. So off we went, white-knuckled (literally) and fingers crossed (not literally, that would be dangerous!). I can officially report that I hate driving in the wind and will avoid it at all cost in the future. In addition, the boys aren't a fan of driving in or out of their carriers, but their response wasn't too different out of their carriers and they were actively eating and hopping around within 15 minutes of stopping. Considering it was a wild and wooly ride, I think we'll be able to make this work!
Phew, I made it! Now I feel more confident but also learned a few important things: While I know I still have a lot more to master, I feel just a little bit more confident about my RVing adventure!
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