Why We Decided to Be Stationary For A While
We signed a one-year lease at our favorite campground.
When we set out on our RV adventure, it was with the intention to travel as much as we could. Our camping membership meant that we would need to move to a new campground every 2 or 3 weeks so that we could stay for “free” at participating locations, aside from the membership dues. And that’s what we did for most of our full-time RV life. There were stints here and there where we were stationary for a few months at a time, like when Charlie was doing training for his RV repair business, etc.
But when we came to the Orlando area back in May 2023, Charlie saw the potential to grow his business even more. We’re in an area with many campgrounds nearby that are open year-round, with tourists drawn by the attraction of Disney and Universal and other theme parks. Even during the “slow” months of summer, his calendar is booked with clients who need repairs or maintenance. So it made sense financially to stay in this area. And with our membership, we were getting tired of moving every 2 or 3 weeks, if we’re being honest. I think if we could stay for 2 or 3 months at a time, we would have been fine, but it gets old moving so very frequently when you’re not on vacation and sightseeing new areas of the country.
So in December 2023, we threw around the idea of getting an annual site at the campground that’s our home base of sorts. We weighed the pros and cons and ultimately decided to go for it and we moved into a great site in January of this year. This spot is ours until January 2025, unless we decide to renew again. We’re not sure yet if we will, we’ll just have to play it by ear.
But I gotta admit, seeing everyone who is still doing the Florida “shuffle” as they call it, moving every few weeks and worrying about getting a reservation (because SO many people camp down here during snow bird season of Jan-April), I think we made the right decision, even though it was a significant financial investment.
We’re really happy, though. We’ve made friends with some amazing neighbors. [OK fine, Charlie made friends with them first as our family ambassador, but now they’re my friends, too!] We’ve also put money into site improvements and built a deck, with plans to add a gazebo and an outdoor entertainment center soon. I have a great view from my deck of the field where my favorite sandhill cranes congregate every morning and greet me with their bugle calls. Charlie can head to work without worrying about move days. Our dog, Karen, has stopped having anxiety attacks because she really hated move days. And when our friends who are traveling come into town, they know exactly where to find us and I love that.
We definitely still plan to travel a bit this year and have tentatively planned a trip down to the Keys in May. But I think we’re content with slowing down a bit this year. After all, this Substack is called Mia’s Musings from the Slow Lane.
But even though we’re stationary in our RV this year, there will still be fun RV posts and drama to talk about, don’t you worry. No place is perfect, but we really enjoy being here in central Florida and we hope you’ll follow along with our shenanigans. Until next time!
Looking forward to reading your Adventures from a Stationary RV!