De-cluttering is hard! We’ve just had success selling camping type stuff on Facebook marketplace. I was surprised how quickly things sold.

@TheHappyTravellers

2 ай бұрын

Yes sold a couple of things on marketplace. Must do more of that 😀👍😎

It's great that you are going back to full time van life, it's so much better to be almost completely free. You could digitise the photos, just use your phone perhaps, it takes time but it worked for me and they don't fade anymore or go a green tint. 😊😁😁😁👍👍👍👍👍

@TheHappyTravellers

2 ай бұрын

Yes we are doing that / have done that with many. Not quite the same as the physical thing though 🤔

Wohoo full time motorhome

@TheHappyTravellers

2 ай бұрын

Well, we tried the “having a base” to come back to and it’s not really worked. Plus as we started to travel again we found our mood just lifted to a happier level. Clearly motorhome life is “our thing”!

Things are a lot harder to get rid of than they are to bring home!😂

@TheHappyTravellers

2 ай бұрын

That is so true 😜

Well done on decluttering, it will all pay off in the end. Looking forward to you both full time motorhoming, thank you for sharing ❤ xx

@TheHappyTravellers

2 ай бұрын

Thanks. Not long really until our next trip. 24th June we are on the tunnel again and heading for Sweden. 🇸🇪

When my husband’s grandparents were getting older, they gathered all the photos & family memorabilia together & gave it to him. Now, our house is like an archival repository, as my husband & I are both “only children”. We have only 1 child - poor thing gets it all! But, we donated great grandmother’s 1890’s wedding dress to the local museum, in the village where the wedding occurred. That was a good idea! They will conserve & display it, along with the family history.

@TheHappyTravellers

2 ай бұрын

Yes good call on the wedding dress. They’re hard to deal with sometimes 👍😀😎

@Mistydazzle

2 ай бұрын

@@TheHappyTravellers my wedding dress from over 30 years ago, is still entombed in one of the "preservation boxes" that were sold to save them (my satin shoes developed horrible discoloration, so I photographed them, then threw them away). The 1890's dress was kept in a cotton pillowcase forever, and I understand that it is a better way to preserve fabric from rotting. I should just get rid of my old dress, as well.

Hi there you three...we've all got excess items that we don't need but your doing it right one area at a time..well done...take care.. 😊x

@TheHappyTravellers

2 ай бұрын

It’s a tough process but it is getting easier. 👍

You're doing really well with decluttering. I had to do the same last year. Bought a motorhome in Feb 2020 to travel to Europe! Full time in it but only travelled uk so sold it & bought a boat! Lived on that 2021-23. Now live at my daughter's & got a campervan, hope to go to Spain later this year. Been following you since abt 2019, even when I was on the boat. You both look really happy when you're travelling in the van (& Pippin) 😊

@TheHappyTravellers

2 ай бұрын

Van life suits us and we are so much happier when we are travelling 👍😀😀

I think if your awning over the back of the boat had a weighted edge that was lapping past the lip of the boat edge the water running off it would go in to the canal not on your wet deck as you called it. That's an easy fix to get a canopy maker in to add this to the existing canopy. They just sew a chain into it after they extend the edge 6 inches.

@TheHappyTravellers

2 ай бұрын

It’s a good idea and it sort of has that already. Problem is the edges around gunwall are not water tight. Some water will always get in, it’s just the way it is 😔

I think you are doing well - it's a difficult task to declutter. Anything thrown / sold is an improvement!

@TheHappyTravellers

2 ай бұрын

Thanks Robert. Yes we feel good about the clear out 👍😀😎

So are u giving the boat up? Even though I don't know u but have followed u for ages, I think u are both more suited to vanlife, and Wendy seems completely back to her own self.. Looking forward to ur travels AGAIN!!

@TheHappyTravellers

2 ай бұрын

Yes Susan, we are selling the boat and will go back to full time van life. It certainly suits us better as we are both loads happier travelling in the van. 👍😀😎

Are you getting a bigger mhome.xx

@TheHappyTravellers

2 ай бұрын

Hey Gill, Our plan is to go for a 7.5 mtr coach build motorhome like a Dethleffs Trend. We think we will have time to start properly looking for one later this year but think our next trip to Spain might ”get in the way” of us actually upgrading so it’ll probably be a 2025 upgrade. All depends on Timing and budgets.

Just curious but how do you spend six months in Spain since the UK decided in their infinite wisdom to leave the EU and we are now controlled by the Schengen rule.

@TheHappyTravellers

Ай бұрын

Yes we are subject to the Schengen visa limits so we spend 90 days in Europe and 90 days back in the UK. We spend the Winter in Spain (December to March) then back to the UK for 90 or so days, then off to Sweden, then back to the UK. Then start that process again. We keep a close eye on the 90 day limit for the Schengen Zone Visa and usually limit ourselves to about 87 days so we can account for a small delay on the way back. This will be our life "routine" for the next chapter of our lives. Winter in Spain Summer in Sweden the in between times in the UK travelling around and staying at various campsites.

@SF-ei8df

Ай бұрын

Oh ok, well hope that all goes well. the 90 day thing confuses me a bit lol

@TheHappyTravellers

Ай бұрын

Yes the 90 day thing is confusing. In simple terms though, you can spend 90 days in Schengen Zone in any 180 day period. The 180 days is a "rolling period". For me that is the confusing bit. Basically if you spend say 50 days in Schengen you have to spend 50 days out (I think)... so 90 days in and 90 days out = 180 days so then you can go back in for 90 days etc... OMG, I'm hoping that when kier Starmer is PM he's going to reintroduce freedom of movement LOL

@SF-ei8df

Ай бұрын

Thanks for that, yes we have been going to Tenerife for odd weeks through the Winter to avoid some of the UK weather, we found an App that keeps track of how long you stay in a EU country and how many day you have left and calculates how long you need to stay away before the 90 day part resets - still causes me a bit of a meltdown 😂 lol.

Great to hear your going back to a motorhome/campervan 🚐😊 what I find funny how must stuff you have accumulated in the time you moved from a motorhome to canal boat. When we retired we thought of a canal boat as our honeymoon was on one, booked a holiday on the Norfolk Broads but it made our mind up it would be to restricting in many ways and a money pit, love our campervan. Till next time have a good week wherever you are

@TheHappyTravellers

2 ай бұрын

It’s incredible how much stuff we’ve accumulated but some of it is left over from the last motorhome 👍😀😎