Not All Who Wander Are Lost

Not All Who Wander Are Lost
June, 2019 - Mount Denali, Alaska

Sunday, May 5, 2019

Inside Remodel Pictures

We are very close to being finished with the inside remodel. There are some trim pieces that still need to be put on the kitchen cabinets. Brad, the cabinet maker, has been on vacation the last two weeks, so the trim should be finished as soon as he returns.

In the entire place, the popcorn ceiling was removed, walls and ceilings were coated with knock down texture and then repainted. Also, all woodwork was painted. The walls were wallpaper before. We have had new windows, patio door, shades and flooring installed throughout.

Here is the living room before and after. The cornices over the windows were removed, opening up the look of the room. We replaced the old ceiling fan with a new white one. The little table is for my sewing machine. We're not sure what we are going to do for furniture in this room, as I plan to use part of it for my sewing space.



The kitchen underwent a drastic change. We had the drop down ceiling removed, and all new cabinets installed. Also, all new appliances including adding a dishwasher and new light fixtures. We got rid of the large kitchen table and put in an RV size small table. Perfect for just the two of us. The pictures don't do justice to the new cabinets. They are beautiful, made with alder wood. I did not stain them, just varnish. Once the trim pieces are done, I'll post some close up pictures of them.

We got solid surface counter tops that look like quartz. I am so happy with how they look. We haven't shopped for counter tops in a long time. I was blown away at how expensive they are, but at least they look great. By getting a smaller table, we were able to extend the counter and make room for the dishwasher. In our nine years of fulltime RVing, a dishwasher was the one thing I missed the most.




In the bathroom, we had the old tub surround replaced with a tiled walk-in shower. Also, a new vanity, sink, faucet, medicine cabinet and light fixture.






In the bedroom, we upgraded from a queen to king size bed. That doesn't leave room for much of anything else. We added a new ceiling fan, and had the cabinets painted.






I found this cute picture frame display at Bed, Bath and Beyond. Fits perfect on the bedroom wall.


The Arizona room, which is the same as a family room, also had a dramatic change. The closet on the back wall was removed, and a large window was installed to open up the beautiful view of the golf course. We also got a new back door, TV and recliners.

By taking out the closet, we added more room, but it is an odd shaped room, 16 feet long, but only 8 feet wide. The couch under the window was here, and it is a sleeper sofa. We're going to keep it there for when our kids come to visit, so it makes the space usable.





So, that's pretty much the extent of what has been going on here at our place in Yuma all winter. I can't tell you how happy we are that it is finally finished. Overall, our park model is only about 600 square feet, but it is now our home, and we love it here.

In previous years, we had to be back in Wisconsin for our campground job by mid-April. Now that we've completely retired, we are able to stay in Arizona longer. I've really enjoyed seeing the different types of cacti bloom. Recently, the saguaro have begun to bloom. Here's one that is on a site in the park. I'm guessing it's about 20 feet tall. Lots of flowers growing at the top.


The weather has not been as hot as I was expecting. We have days in the 90s, even a few 100 degree days. But, at night it is still cooling off to the low 60s. We understand that in the summer months, the night time temperatures stay in the 80s. Only about 70 people stay in the park year round. The RV area has 5 spots occupied. In the winter that area has over 400 spots filled. It looks like a ghost town around here.

We'll be leaving near the end of the month to head to Seattle where we will leave our RV and begin our two week Alaska vacation. We're very much looking forward to that!! Then we'll slowly made our way across Washington, Idaho, Montana, North Dakota, Minnesota to be in Wisconsin by mid August. We're staying for a month, then heading to Nebraska for a few weeks, planning to be back in Yuma in early October.

Don’t wish upon a star – Reach for one!