Renovating Our Vintage Camper as Marriage Therapy

If you are looking for high adventure and bonding with your spouse, look no further than a renovation project. There is nothing quite like diving into a large unknown with the person you are married to. Much like those wedding vows you took ,( however many years ago), these projects will prove to test your love, bravery, and respect for one another. And if nothing else, leave you with a true sense of where you need to do some growing as an individual who is part of a marriage.

John and I hope you enjoy this sneak peek into our chosen project for this past summer- and one of the reasons I didn’t get as much writing done as I planned. Spending time together is sometimes exactly what we need- even in the confines of a small space such as this one.

            

          

 

This is where we started. After countless dead ends, bad frames and inflated prices, this is the little 1968 Cardinal Deluxe we settled on. In our eyes, she was a dream. In friends’ eyes, she was a hunk of junk on wheels. But we fell in love with her the second she became ours, and we never looked back.

                

 

She was looking a little rough. She had rotten wood, holes in her aluminum and faulty electrical wiring. But she also had all her original appliances and trim. The previous owner had started to tear her apart- renovation was the plan. Then he got tired and decided to sell her and move to something a little more finished.

We made a game plan and a lengthy list of things to do, trying to prioritize them. Framing needed to be replaced, along with all the insulation and some of the paneling. The back had some adjustment issues that needed to be done on the aluminum shell, so we started there.

                                 

 

We had to cut off lots of nails and screws that came through the siding where the rain rail was placed. We replaced almost every metal screw and nail on the exterior. We re-sealed windows, replaced broken glass and window jalousie style cranks. (note- if you ever decide to do a project like this- these will make you cry- a LOT). We researched, framed, insulated and sealed the entire thing.

 The attention to detail on John’s part was exhausting to me. He didn’t miss a single little thing. In a space this small, you really can’t take the chance. Just like in marriage, the most important things happen in the details. The biggest impact on our continued years together has been in the little things. For our little camper, it was caulking and touching up the paint, making things clean and smooth. In our marriage, it’s being flexible and considerate, always looking out for the other person, even when it feels like an enormous undertaking.

The exterior of this camper was already white- it just needed some major TLC. It has previously been parked outside in the weather, inside a garage, been pulled down the road and covered with a tarp. It has been through a myriad of environments and weather situations, yet it managed to stay in one piece. In marriage, we go through storms and we weather various degrees of tragedy, difficult situations and circumstances. There is never a day in which we have  perfect conditions. But we hang on to the vows we made the very first day, and we hold one another up through each moment as if our lives depend on it.

 

As we were nearing the end of 8 weeks of working on this tiny project, we kept putting off painting the final colored wings. It was a super scary concept to me- only having one shot to get it right. Finally, I gathered up some courage- and a full night of sleep, and we taped it off. It didn’t hurt at all. In fact, it turned out quite nice. The blue wings and tail feathers really pop on the white camper. All the hard work we have put into this little tiny space has been worth every second. Just like our marriage, we fixed the things that were broken. It doesn’t matter how they got broken, or who broke them. We took the time to mend them because we wanted it to work for us. In marriage, when things get broken or even just a little out of sync, it is important to stop and mend them. There is nothing that cannot wait when your spouse needs to be held. There is nothing that cannot be put off for the two seconds it takes to say a prayer over them before they head back out into the world. There is no reason to feel disconnected when you have the ability to control your time.

 

 

As we pulled the tape and paper off the camper, the wings took my breath away. The bold blue paint was striking against the pure white undercoat, and the little camper took on a personality of its own.

We haven’t put a name to her yet, but my personal favorite is Smurfette. I am not sure how John feels about this feminine name and attitude I have given her. But I am sure of this- it will not be a sticking point for us. We have done other projects together and survived it- a simple name will not deter us now.  Having this little space available to us to go away for a weekend or even a night is definitely a benefit. As we grow older and our kids move out into the world, we need a plan. Working together and investing our time in this project has been an investment in our relationship as a married couple. After all, we were married before kids, and we will remain so after they have their own families.  We have always had a “me & you” type of mentality.

Now that we have finished this little project, who knows what is in store for us next.

But I am sure excited to find out.