An R.V. for 13 people...

It took us awhile to find our new home... we actually started looking in Florence, OR, just 2 weeks into our trip! We could have happily kept traveling in our travel trailer, but we quickly figured out that we would like to travel a bit longer than just this winter, and more room would be a bonus. We really wanted to get a good deal, but also to purchase the toy hauler that would fit our family the best. We looked on the internet, made trips just to see certain 5th wheels (like our trips to Mesa, and Yuma, and Houston...), and called all over the USA.

A couple of weeks ago, we almost bought a very nice trailer in Houston, and were about $500 from making the deal; when we finally left after spending the afternoon there, we knew that we needed to either give it up and decide not to buy a new rig, or just buy one and be happy with it. We had been praying about this decision for months, and were trying to be patient, still the search for the perfect trailer and at the best price, was beginning to affect our trip!

Vaughn had looked on ebay a couple of times just to find new floor plans/manufacturers, but not really shopping. The day after our trip to Houston, Vaughn was taking a nap (it's been a tough winter so far!), and I was surfing (do they still call it that?) while the kids played outside. I still don't know how I found this trailer on ebay, and later I couldn't find it again to show Vaughn.

We decided that night that we would go to Mesa to buy this one. But, the next morning, a dealer from Indiana called Vaughn back and offered to deliver to Houston the new toy hauler that we thought we wanted, and for a much lower price than we thought that we would be able to buy it for picked up. We went back and forth over what to do, but I did know that I needed to look at this one in Mesa or I would always wonder... it was so different than any others that we had looked at.

Vaughn called the guy that was listing 'our' r.v., and he said that if we got there and didn't like it, we didn't have to buy it... that cinched the deal since we didn't have to give them any money before we saw the trailer. I have bought a lot of items off of ebay, but never a new house :) now I can say that I have! We closed our eyes, clicked 'buy it now', and left TX for AZ. I thought that I would be nervous, committing to something like that online, but I never was. And the minute that we walked into this camper, we looked at each other and said, 'this is it!

So, this is it...
This type of 5th wheel is called a 'toy hauler' because the rear 12' of the 40 foot long coach is a 'garage'. It is meant for hauling dirt bikes, quads, dune buggies... We were looking specifically for toy haulers because of the sleeping capacity they offer. Nearly all of the garages have 2 electric drop-down queen beds. We leave them hanging where we like them for sleeping, but they can also be lifted up to the ceiling, opening up the entire room.

The boys have the 'garage' - just wait until CPS shows up because someone at WalMart overheard the boys talking about sleeping in the garage!

For now, Greg & Eli have the top bunk, and the 4 younger boys sleep the wrong direction on the bottom. We are looking for some fold out, hide-a-bed chairs that turn into twin beds for under the bunks. Then the boys can spread out a little more, but they are not complaining - they like to stay up late whispering.The back looked a lot like a garage, so we have found a few ways to make it more homey.

We bought some shoe shelves at Costco, so each person has their own shelf for their shoes - we only brought a few pairs each, which has been plenty. The floor of the garage is black diamond-plating, so we put down a rug to make it more conducive to playing back there. We also bought some plastic drawers for clothes, and installed coat hooks next to the back door. It seems really odd to say things like 'go out the back door', or 'it's upstairs'!

One of the cool things about the garage is that the entire back wall is actually a garage door. The whole thing drops down and is a ramp for loading the 'toys'. The kids have put it down and pulled down the screen door - cooled the coach off nicely when it was 80 a few days ago ;)

One bathroom still, albeit a much larger one...

The plan is to modify the garage this summer and put in a half-bath (doesn't take up much room).

We just took our handy-dandy shoe organizer out of the other camper and put it in here. Everyone has a cubby in it for their toothbrushes, deodorant, or whatever they want. Eventually, I would like to get one that matches the bathroom decor a little better (can a camper have 'decor'???), but don't have a sewing machine on board to alter it right now. Our room has more storage than in the other trailer. The closet is a slide, so there is still plenty of room to walk around the bed. Molly and Savanna's clothes are kept in our closet, and the girls hang some of their skirts in there also. My favorite part is that there is a TV mounted on the wall, and I can watch a movie in bed again! The living room is what we love most about this particular toy hauler. It is so wide open, and there are tons of windows! The coach actually came with a dinette set which we didn't want, so we had it replaced with a queen hide-a-bed sofa. So, now we don't have a kitchen table in this trailer, and are still deciding how to handle that. We like having the floor space free, so we are thinking that we will just use lap trays...but, if that doesn't work, it would be easy to add the components for a removable table. When it is nice out, we usually are around the picnic table anyway.

I love Vaughn's chair. Initially, he claimed it, but I like being able to rock Molly, so I'm afraid that he seldom gets to use it :)

The other little couch is also a hide-a-bed. Just think, now we can have company! hehehe!!!

The ladder leads up to the 'loft' ~ the girls have claimed it, and though the couches are both very easy to fold out, they insist upon all staying up in their little hide-away.

We use the cupboards above the smaller couch for our school books.

Eli's favorite part of the new house is the fact that it has FOUR TVs!!! What are we supposed to do with 4 tvs? There is one in the master bedroom, one in the living room, one in the loft, and one OUTSIDE! And they wired them all together, so Dad can watch tv 'with the family' while he is checking dinner on the grill... gee, lucky us :P

The kitchen. ANY r.v. kitchen is a challenge long-term. We have really had to adjust our cooking and eating habits (not always for the better) from our sticks and bricks (r.v. talk for house).

I end up grocery shopping much more often, and cannot stock up during the sales like I used to. Now, I'm not complaining, but it is different, and I am still adjusting. I did claim the cupboards in the garage, and also have plastic totes full of groceries under the boys' beds. The fridge in this coach is a little bigger than in the last camper, so that is nice, but I still have to be very careful not to buy too many perishables when I go grocery shopping.

We are so glad that we waited for the perfect 5th wheel for us!

After a year and a half in our rv, I can still say that we love it. Would we buy this same RV again? Absolutely NOT. While we love the RV itself, Gulf Stream has horrid customer service. I have attempted to converse with them multiple times over 3 different issues, and while I never wanted anything from them other than to purchase parts or for structural information, they don't seem to feel that follow-up customer service is at all a priority. The first time that I contacted them, it was to special order a couch for in our big slide. I talked with a lady named Amy, who took my info and promised to get back to me with a timeframe and price. When I didn't hear from her after a week, I called a couple of times and left messages hoping that she simply lost my name/number. Never a reply.

A couple of months later, I contacted them about ordering some replacement parts - basically the same deal.

And just recently, I called their service department hoping to get a little info on how one of the walls was built so we would know if we could wait to fix an issue when we got home, or if it was structural and we needed to fix it immediately. The man was a absolute jerk, but took my name and number and promised to call me back. Of course I never heard from him or anyone else. And this was an issue that ANYONE who worked on/built them should have known, not something he would have to 'look up'.

So, would we buy this same RV again, knowing that parts/info were basically non-existent? No. We would definitely choose a manufacturer with higher standards; if they can't even return phone calls, are they competent enough to build an RV that can be towed safely at 70mph???

So, all that to say - we love the layout, but would never buy from Gulf Stream again.

Everyone is enjoying the new r.v., and the little ones especially like to have room to play on the floor while the rest of us are liking being able to walk on the floor without stepping on the toys. Even Molly is enjoying the expanded floor space...

Now that we are all settled, we are looking forward to enjoying some time on the road again. As soon as the weather clears, maybe we will head over to what is supposed to be the RV experience of all RV experiences - Quartzsite. I'll be sure to fill you in...