What you Really “Need” Living in a Camper
DISCLOSURE: THIS POST MAY CONTAIN AFFILIATE LINKS, MEANING I GET A COMMISSION IF YOU DECIDE TO MAKE A PURCHASE THROUGH MY LINKS, AT NO COST TO YOU. PLEASE READ MY TERMS OF USE POLICY FOR MORE INFO. You’ve made up your mind Full time RV living here you come!!! But wait, what do you actually need to take with you?
I promise when you first move in you are bound to take wayyyy more than you actually need or even have room for.
I remember when we first moved into our travel trailer. We moved from a 3 bedroom 2 bathroom house. I brought ALL of our clothes, ALL of our dishes, and ALL of our extra craft supplies and toiletries. It didn’t take long for me to realize there wasn’t enough room and feel like I was drowning. I downsized immediately and then shortly after we made our move to South Carolina for my husband to finish his apprenticeship we got a storage shed and literally filled it up. I have no idea how we managed to have so much stuff in that tiny camper.
So what do you really need to live in your camper?
Dishes
You need at least one of everything for each person in your household. Obviously, right? You may shortly realize you want more silverware or cups, but really this just depends on what works best for your family.
We have a water cup for each person and a mug for everyone. A lot of forks and spoons and even more serving dishes. We have 2 casserole dishes and 2 pots, 2 pans, 1 skillet, 1 electric skillet, 1 pitcher, and a small pizza pan. (the oven is much smaller in a camper so measuring everything) We had a dishwasher in our first camper, but sadly not in our current one, so we tend to use paper plates and bowls. Again you do what works best for you and your budget.
Clothes
Again clothes definitely depend on several circumstances. We have a washer/dryer combo (yep that’s a thing) and we rarely boondock. So we can do laundry every night. Still we keep about 1 week's worth of clothes for each person. In the summer we keep rain boots, sandals, and tennis shoes for each person and 1 jacket and/or hoodie. That may be too much for some and not enough for others. It really depends how much room you have to store clothes, how many people you have living in your camper, and how many clothes your heart tells you that you need. Just be careful your heart doesn’t get the complete say-so. ;)
Toys
Lets face it, if the kids decided which toys to bring, it’d probably be all of them! I am all for kids being a part of the decision making process and creating healthy habits, however the less toys you take the happier you and they will be. I never thought my girls could live without all their babies, barbies, and accessories, but when we finally ditched most of them, they were actually happier! Having less things means having less to clean which in turn means more time for fun!!
I do also keep a waterproof tote outside for outdoor toys that never come inside.
Everything Else
Heres a list of other things I keep with us, but try to keep it at minimum:
Essential oils
Games
Homeschool books
office/craft supplies
First aid
Cleaning essentials ( we choose to use a Bona mop and a Household vacuum)
Minimal food
Toiletries
Paper towels
Bathroom towels (with a large family this is my hardest storage item)
Laptops and tablets and chargers
Batteries and flashlights
Outside we keep these:
Chair for everyone
Bikes for all
Rollerblades
Grill and supplies
Cooler
Fishing gear
Projector and screen ( our favorite weekend fun!)
Small canopy ( nice to have even with an awning)
Air mattress (great for movie night!)
Weed eater (lots of campgrounds slack at this especially long term places)
Swim gear
Clothing dry rack
That about sums it up! If I missed anything let me know and feel free to share any tips you have!
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