I don’t often think about my childhood. However, when I stop to think about it, I realize that many childhood routines pay off while RVing. Here’s how:
- Clean up before bed. As a child, I had to do a cursory cleanup of my bedroom before getting into bed. This meant putting away a few toys and closing dresser drawers. I’ve continued this routine as an adult. I enjoy getting up in the morning and seeing the RV decluttered. It gets my day started off right.
- Prepare. Growing up, summer nighttime storms were a fact of life. My sisters and I always kept shoes and a jacket beside our beds just in case we needed to run outside to our storm shelter. Still today, before my head hits the pillow, I prepare for what may come. This preparedness helps me, especially on the night before an RV travel day. I have everything prepared for the next day before I go to bed. Clothes are laid out, the truck is full of fuel, the route is planned, etc. The preparedness kicks off an RV travel day on a good note.
- Alarm clock. To this day, I keep my alarm clock on a dresser away from my bed—just like I did as a child. Why? Because I have to get out of bed to turn off the alarm and this makes it less likely that I’ll hit snooze and go back to sleep.
- Fix it. Whether it’s an RV lug nut or a loose screw, I still find myself whispering, “Righty tighty, lefty loosey,” as I turn to fix it. I learned this routine as a child, and it still sticks within the depths of my memory, resurfacing when necessary.
- Touch once. When decluttering the RV, I put each item in its rightful place as I find it. I don’t set it down thinking I’ll put it away later. Touch it once and done. It’s another childhood lesson learned, remembered, and carried into adulthood.
- Make and use a list. I remember making lists as a kid. “Things to do this summer” was one. “Books I want to read” was another. Now I make lists on a daily basis. Lists help me organize my thoughts. They can also help calm my nerves if I begin to feel overwhelmed. By writing down what needs to be done, I’ll often discover that the situation isn’t as overwhelming as I first thought. Plus, I love crossing items off a list! As an RVer, lists are critically important. Here are some RV lists for you.
- RV checklist: Everything you should pack.
- RV checklist: Campground setup
- RV checklist: Everything to do before leaving the campground
- Make the bed. Like most kids, I did not like this routine as a child. Now it’s become a habit. I make my bed daily before eating breakfast. This childhood routine keeps the small space looking calm and serene.
- Sense of wonder. As we travel in our RV, my childhood sense of wonder often bubbles to the surface. I’m forever grateful to my mom, who always found the extraordinary within everyday, ordinary life. She could identify many birds simply by their songs. She taught me to take a closer look at flowers to really see their delicate and intricate beauty. A sunrise or sunset was often allowed to interrupt daily routines because the wonderful sight would never be repeated exactly the same way again. Of all my childhood routines, taking time to sense the wonder all around me really pays off while RVing.
Can you think of additional childhood routines that pay off while RVing? Add them in the comments below. I’m looking forward to reading them.
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You hit the nail on the head! That’s me, even in retirement.
Alarm clock? Haven’t seen mine since I retired! Of course, phones have them built in now so you can’t get away from them.
Thank you, Gail! 🙂 I do not know that it was a childhood routine because I developed it when I was 19. I set an alarm early enough to allow me to do my morning run and still get wherever or do whatever I had to do later in the morning. So, never allowed myself to snooze. Later, I began laying out my clothes, and packing my singlet and racing flats or spikes into a bag the night before a race, so there were less distractions from getting to the race, (and once there warming up, racing, and warming down). I still do all those things 40, 50 years later. So, very similar in some ways to you, but habits developed later. Thanks again and safe travels! 🙂
Gail, some nice recollections. Reminded me of the same routines as a child in the country. Love it when you write like this. 🙂
Keeping a sense of wonder is probably one of the most important things in life to maintain. Personally, I cannot imagine a life without the daily wonders that nature provides.
Aldo Leopold’s ‘A Sand County Almanac’ describes so many of these. My favorite is when he was cutting a tree and it wasn’t “sawdust” coming from the blade, it was “fragrant chips of history.” Now that’s wonder!
One of my bedside table books!
Loved the tips, but inside our trailer it’s “righty loosey, lefty tighty!” All of the windows and vent covers have to be turned the opposite way you would usually do it. Aarrgh!
I am also a “list maker.” I may not get to everything on the list today, but eventually everything is marked off and done. I don’t follow all of your routines, but the one I would add is to look around and gather all the things that need to be another room and get it all done at one time, rather than make several trips. This idea also works for running errands around town; make all the stops in order.
Great advice, Marsha! Thanks for chiming in.
Storm shelter? In Oklahoma it’s called a “fraidy hole”…which I have used myself on occasion as a kid. Just watch where you step…it might be already occupied.