As we prepared Big Bertha for our very first travel day, we thought we had done an excellent job securing everything inside the RV. Cabinets were latched. Drawers were locked. Loose items were tucked away.
Everything was ready.
Well...
Almost everything.
There was one exception.
One very heavy sewing cabinet.
It had locking wheels, and before leaving we talked about tying it down.
Then we convinced ourselves it would be fine.
After all, it was heavy.
It wasn't going anywhere.
Famous last words.
Not long after getting on the road, Paisley began voicing her opinion about this whole RV travel thing. She meowed... and meowed... and then meowed some more.
After about an hour, we decided to pull over and check on everyone.
We had read that many people allow their cats to ride inside the RV while traveling, and that most eventually curl up on the bed and sleep through the drive. We figured we'd give Paisley a chance to see if she'd settle down.
What happened after that is anyone's guess.
We don't have cameras inside the RV, so your theory is as good as ours.
But when we opened the door...
Our hearts sank.
The sewing cabinet we had decided not to tie down had tipped completely over.
It had crashed into the patio door, scratching the glass and breaking the hardware that secures the door to the floor.
Our "it'll be fine" decision had officially become our first expensive lesson.
Of course, because it was completely loaded with sewing supplies, fabric, and who knows what else, standing it back up wasn't exactly easy.
It felt like it weighed a thousand pounds.
Eventually we wrestled it upright, secured it properly this time, made sure Paisley was comfortable, and climbed back into the truck.
Lesson learned.
Tie.
Down.
Everything.
Even the things you're convinced won't move.
Thankfully, our travel day itself was intentionally short.
Back when we traveled full-time the first time, we learned something important about ourselves—we're not interested in driving from sunrise until sunset.
These days we plan shorter travel days, usually around 200 to 250 miles, and prefer arriving between 2:00 and 3:00 in the afternoon.
Setting up camp is so much easier when you can actually see what you're doing.
For this first day, our destination was only 228 miles away, about a three to three-and-a-half-hour drive.
That gave us plenty of time to deal with unexpected surprises... like runaway sewing cabinets.
Our destination that evening would be something new for us.
Our very first Harvest Hosts stay.
And thankfully, the rest of the day went much better than the first hour.
Or at least that's another story for the next chapter.
Lessons We Learned on Day One
Tie down everything, even if you think it can't move.
Expect the unexpected.
Traveling with pets takes patience.
Shorter travel days make stressful moments much easier to handle.
The best travel stories usually begin with something going wrong.
After three months of preparing, packing, downsizing, organizing, shopping, selling, and wondering if we had forgotten something, it was finally time to hitch up Big Bertha and hit the road.
To say we were excited would be an understatement.
We were more than ready.
Hawkins Pointe had served its purpose well. It gave us a convenient place to stay close to home while we sold the house, found our tow vehicle, organized the RV, and finished preparing for full-time travel.
For that, we're grateful.
But by the end of our stay, we were definitely ready for a change.
One thing we hadn't anticipated was the nearby race track. On race days, the sound carried everywhere. Even inside the RV—with the television on—you could still hear the cars circling the track.
It certainly made for some noisy weekends!
The park itself was convenient for our needs, but compared to our previous RV travels years ago, we were surprised by how much campground prices have increased while amenities haven't always kept pace. Hawkins Pointe had a dog park, which Oscar and Harley appreciated, but after three months we were looking forward to experiencing parks with a few more things to offer.
More than anything, though, we were simply ready to begin the adventure we'd been planning for months.
Of course, we also had a few concerns.
Oscar had never been much of a fan of travel, and now that he was older, he let us know exactly how he felt by whining for much of the drive. We hoped that after a few weeks on the road he'd settle back into RV life like he had when he was younger.
Then there was Paisley.
Traveling with a cat was completely new territory for us.
Would she hide?
Would she cry?
Would she decide she hated RV life altogether?
We honestly had no idea what to expect.
As much as we'd prepared ourselves, there were still plenty of unknowns waiting just beyond the campground exit.
That's the funny thing about starting a new adventure.
You can spend months preparing.
You can make lists.
You can research.
You can organize every cabinet in the RV.
But eventually there comes a moment when all the planning has to stop.
You simply have to put the truck in gear and go.
As we pulled out of Hawkins Pointe that morning, we weren't just leaving an RV park.
We were leaving behind months of preparation and stepping into the lifestyle we'd been dreaming about.
The open road was finally in front of us.
Big Bertha was ready.
The crew was loaded up.
Our next chapter was about to begin.
And we couldn't wait to see where the road would take us.
Have you ever had a moment when months of planning finally became reality? We'd love to hear about it in the comments!
Before we take you down another highway or into another campground, we thought it was time to properly introduce ourselves.
We're Greg and Anna, the couple behind SeasonedRVers, along with our three four-legged travel companions—Oscar, Harley, and Paisley.
Together, we're proving that life doesn't slow down just because you get older. In fact, sometimes the best adventures begin in the next season of life.
Meet Greg
Greg is a disabled Army veteran who proudly served our country for 17 years.
His military career took him all over the United States as well as overseas, giving him a love for travel long before we ever considered becoming full-time RVers.
If you spend any amount of time with Greg, you'll quickly discover that he's the quiet one in our family. He's laid back, easygoing, and rarely gets rattled by much of anything.
When we're not traveling, you'll usually find him watching the Tennessee Volunteers, talking about bass fishing, or planning the next time he can get out on the water.
Meet Anna
Then there's me...
I'm the creative one.
If it involves making something, there's a good chance I want to learn how to do it.
I love quilting, sewing, cooking, baking sourdough, photography, and just about any creative hobby that lets me use my imagination.
One of my favorite parts of RV life is discovering beautiful places to photograph and sharing our journey with all of you through SeasonedRVers.
Keeping up with our website and social media has become another creative outlet that allows me to preserve our memories while hopefully inspiring others to begin adventures of their own.
What We Enjoy Together
While we each have our own hobbies, there are plenty of things we enjoy doing together.
We both love kayaking, bowling, exploring new places, and spending Saturdays cheering on our favorite college football teams.
Whether we're visiting a small-town museum, relaxing by a lake, or simply sitting outside our RV watching the sunset, we've learned that the best memories often come from the simplest moments.
Meet the Real Bosses
No RV would be complete without a few furry companions.
Oscar and Harley are our two 11-year-old Dachshunds, and they've been with us almost our entire RV journey.
Oscar joined our family in March 2015 when he was just eight weeks old, and Harley followed four months later in July, also at eight weeks old.
Between the two of them, they've spent more of their lives living in RVs than they have in traditional houses.
Needless to say, they're pretty experienced travelers.
Then there's Paisley.
She wasn't exactly part of the original plan.
One day in July 2024, she wandered into our yard and, like so many cats do, simply decided she had found her home.
She chose us.
We took her in, and before long she became an important part of our family. Now she's happily traveling the country right alongside the rest of us.
Why "SeasonedRVers"?
People often ask how we came up with the name.
The answer is actually pretty simple.
The word "seasoned" has more than one meaning.
We're seasoned because we've lived the RV lifestyle before and have returned to it with a little more knowledge, a little more experience, and hopefully a little more wisdom than the first time around.
But we're also seasoned in life.
We're embracing this chapter knowing that getting older doesn't mean your adventures have to end. Sometimes it simply means you've learned what's truly important.
For us, this season is about slowing down just enough to appreciate the journey, meeting incredible people, discovering beautiful places, and making memories we'll carry for the rest of our lives.
We're so glad you've decided to come along for the ride.
Welcome to our journey.
Whether you're a seasoned RVer, dreaming about life on the road, or simply enjoy following along, we're happy you're here. Be sure to say hello in the comments—we'd love to get to know you too!
FUN FACTS:
Greg: Never passes up a chance to fish and bleeds orange for Tennessee football.
Anna: Can usually be found behind a camera, at a sewing machine, or baking sourdough.
Oscar: Professional ball chaser and official campground greeter.
Harley: Expert napper who believes every sunny spot was made just for her.
Paisley: Former stray turned full-time RV cat who decided to adopt us.
When we chose Hawkins Pointe RV Park, it wasn't because it was our dream destination.
It was because it was exactly where we needed to be.
Located just across the Tennessee-Georgia state line, Hawkins Pointe allowed us to stay close to everything that was familiar while we finished preparing for our new life on the road. We still had belongings to sell, a storage unit to organize, a tow truck to buy, and an empty garage in Big Bertha that somehow had to become my sewing room.
Looking back, those three months were probably some of the busiest we've ever had.
One of my biggest projects was figuring out how to create a functional sewing space inside the toy hauler. I desperately wanted to keep the two sewing tables I'd used in our house, but after measuring, rearranging, and trying every possible configuration, I had to admit they simply weren't going to fit.
That wasn't an easy decision.
Those tables had been part of countless quilting projects, but RV living has a way of teaching you that sometimes practicality has to win.
I eventually purchased a different setup for my sewing area. Is it my forever solution?
No.
In fact, I'm already planning changes because I'm not completely happy with it. But that's another story for another day.
For now, I'm learning to make the best of what I have.
One of the biggest jobs was sorting through my quilting supplies. The loft area quickly became home to totes filled with fabric, notions, patterns, and finished quilts. Even after downsizing from the house, I still had far more fabric than I could reasonably justify bringing with me.
Over those three months, I sorted, organized, donated, and sold.
By the time I was finished, I had parted with nearly a third of my fabric collection.
For a quilter, that's no small accomplishment!
Not everything found a new home before we left, though. The items I couldn't sell in time were moved into our storage unit, where they'll stay until we're ready to continue letting them go.
Downsizing, we've learned, isn't a one-time event.
It's an ongoing process.
While I was creating a sewing room, Greg was focused on another important piece of the puzzle—finding the right truck to pull Big Bertha.
He spent weeks debating between a Ford F-350 dually and a Ford F-450 dually. After plenty of research and more than a few conversations, he decided the F-450 was the better fit for us.
The only problem?
Finding the right one.
Several weeks passed before he finally located exactly what he wanted, and by late April, we had our tow vehicle.
Now we were finally ready.
Or so we thought.
Technically, once we had the truck, we could have hit the road immediately. But we had committed to a three-month stay at Hawkins Pointe and decided to honor that commitment rather than leaving early.
Looking back, I'm grateful we stayed.
Those extra weeks gave me more time to sell additional belongings, continue organizing the RV, and slowly settle into what full-time RV living would actually look like.
Even today, we still have items in storage that we'll eventually let go of.
That's okay.
This lifestyle isn't about becoming a minimalist overnight.
It's about slowly discovering what truly adds value to your life—and realizing that everything else is simply taking up space.
Those three months weren't glamorous.
We weren't sightseeing or posting pictures from breathtaking destinations.
But without those months of preparation, we wouldn't have been ready for the adventures that were waiting just down the road.
Sometimes the journey doesn't begin when you turn the key.
Sometimes it begins while you're standing still, preparing for everything that's about to change.
Have you ever spent months preparing for something that completely changed your life? We'd love to hear your story in the comments.
