Come Tour My Tiny Home on Wheels

Come on in! Take a load off and stay awhile! There are only about six people who have entered my home in person over the past year. For anyone who knew me in my former life, this is shocking information. I have always been comfortable with a crowd of people in my home, eating food I’ve cooked all day… it’s just in my blood.

 As I come from a long line of Italian chefs and bakers who show their affection through home-cooked meals, I came by this tendency quite naturally. Nothing makes me happier than to host a table full of family and friends, when the chatting and eating and chatting and eating last all evening.

Fast forward to my current living situation….. nope. Although I’ve hosted a few outdoor barbecues for small groups at a campground, it is just not physically possible to host more than two people inside my home, assuming we weren’t in a global pandemic. So now is my chance to open the door wide for you and wholeheartedly welcome you in for a chat! (Collect your goodie bag of homemade treats on the way out.)

Exterior

Our Grand Design XLS 17MKE is a “couple’s travel trailer,” meaning there is no bunk house or alternate sleeping options, as it was designed for two people. (I don’t know when I adopted female pronouns for our home,) but here she is at 22’ in length.

There is a pass-through storage compartment that extends the entire width of the trailer, where we keep a few seasonal items, one seldom-used kettlebell ten-pound weight, a yoga mat, pink rain boots, and our “hitch-up bins.” These bins have our leveling blocks, hoses, and other tools needed to set up or break down a campsite.

We have a ladder on the back to access the roof, which is also where we keep a few handy gadgets to stay connected, including a cell signal booster and WiFi extender. She has a black tank and a gray tank, which both hook up to the campground utilities so we can use running water. I’ve already had so many questions about black tanks in particular, so there will be a whole post on ‘Black Tank FAQ’ for the newbies among you.

Interior

 

Welcome inside- I’m so glad you’re here! The inside of our trailer is what absolutely sold us. When you commit to a tiny home, efficiency is essential. The queen bed is perfect for tucking into the wall when it’s not in use, and also acts as a comfy couch during the day. The bed has a few built-in nooks for phone chargers and books.

 

We were looking for a functional kitchen with lots of counter space, and that was shockingly difficult to find. 13 feet of kitchen counters make this the perfect rig for us. We meet many RVers who never use their ovens, but I use my oven and stove every single day. A Vitamix, single-cup Keurig, and a never-used crock pot are stored in the cabinets, as well as two pantry cabinets for food and spices. Looking back over the past year, I realize that I cook more in this tiny kitchen than I ever did at my previous address.

 

Our bathroom is…. cozy. Well, okay. It’s small, even for a tiny house. Our shower doubles as storage for a bin of dog food, cases of water, and our clothes hamper, as we usually use park facilities for showers. In the year we’ve lived here, we’ve used the shower only a handful of times in the Grand Canyon because it was eight degrees and the camp pipes were frozen.

 

We’ve made a few modifications to make the space work for us, including changing out the razor-sharp drawer pulls on all the cabinets, painting the bathroom, adding backsplash, and moving some built-in features around.

We don’t have room for much decor, so we obsessed over exactly what to display in our tiny home. We moved the stock mirror and replaced it with some motivation for an upcoming trek to Mount Everest base camp this year to keep us focused on preparation. (In case you were wondering, cardio fitness is required for this trek. Also in case you were wondering….. nope. Not even close to being physically prepared for this yet.)

 

Finally, we chose artwork that we feel perfectly sums up life in this small space of ours.

Love grows best in little houses, with fewer walls to separate. Where you eat and sleep so close together, you can’t help but communicate. And if we had more room between us, think of all we’d miss. Love grows best in little houses just like this.

 

Thanks for stopping by! The seating may be limited, and we may not have service for 12 guests on fine China, but mi RV es su RV. Y'all come back now!