Van Life Gal

    What is happening at the van workshop April 14th under my van following the drilling of my new shower drain hole! Greetings VanLifeGal followers.  It is a breezy and COOL 70 degree day here. A welcomed change from the heart pounding 105 degrees we had a little more than a week ago during the heat wave.  I sit outside, at the base of *** mountain as I write this post, reflecting on the way things are.  It has been 1.5 years since I left corporate, and I don't for one second forget how great it feels to not answer to some "boss" dude and work for a cause I think is BS.  I feel grateful the way things are moving forward since I left my apartment in Tennessee and bought my van. There were many bumps in the literal road since buying the van, but now that I am on the final stretch of the build a wave of calm and relief is building. I am currently working on finishing the bench seat that will house my shower. My green penny porcelain tile was delivered yesterd...

   A few thoughts, and an OVEN! I am moving on over to substack. If you love this content, please find me there: https://substack.com/@vanlifegal Greetings VanLifeGal followers.  It is Saturday morning, I was woken up by Charles licking my hand and nuzzling in my hair at 6:30 am.  I am lying in bed with my laptop, typing this blog post. It is a chilly 60 degrees here this morning, which is welcomed because it has been reaching 90 every day. I like waking up in the van when it is cooler out, the air inside the van feels refreshing.  The view out my rear windows alongside my bed is mountains, for as far as I can see. I haven't lost my appreciation for it, but I have begun to get used to it. I also have less patience for busy city streets.  If you have been watching me on  YouTube  or  TikTok  you know that I recently installed my oven and my propane system to go along with it. This was a feat. I laugh as I realize that the project is comp...

  VAN UPDATE! Big Things! I am moving on over to substack. If you love this content, please find me there: https://substack.com/@vanlifegal Hi all! It's been a really long time since I have posted on here, and want to make this a regular weekly post . I think this will be a good place for all the JUICY details that my voiceovers on YouTube don't really allow for, and photos alone on instagram don't show.  Feel free to comment any questions you have, or any topics you want me to cover and I'll make a post response for y'all! Today is Monday March 23, 2026 and I am feeling exhausted, but feel that I can't rest because every moment not working on my van is another month that I am living in an unfinished home (without a sink, spitting into a bottle to brush my teeth!) If you have been watching me on YouTube or TikTok you know that I recently finished the cabinet and drawers (minus the drawer faces) that will hold my oven! I love cooking and cannot wait to instal...

  A Really Wonderful First Night's Sleep... I am moving on over to substack. If you love this content, please find me there: https://substack.com/@vanlifegal Things don't always go as planned, and if I've taken anything from the year's worth of spiritual work I have done it's that there is a reason and a larger plan. Fighting the way things are going is only going to set you back off the path that's meant for you. For me things not going as planned means I'm going to be living in the van while converting it. This means, finding a place to convert it, and figuring out what to do with all my stuff (!!!) that I'm hauling with me while I work on the van... The photo above was a wonderful spot I found off of i overlander, an app used to scout good sleeping spots! It was right by the water in New England. The salty water smell was wonderful, and super familiar from my childhood when my mom and I would go to the beach and walk out on the sand flats.  That is al...

A home for my solar, AC and fan... I am moving on over to substack. If you love this content, please find me there: https://substack.com/@vanlifegal I am VERY excited for this part of the van build because this is where the most important components will go. My solar, my fan and my AC. Planning to never be in a place under 70 degrees ever again (unless skiing) so AC is a must. Today was the day for the roof rack install . Well it was the second time around I tried to complete this install as the first time I tried I realized one of the side rails for the roof rack was bent. This set me back a week + because I had to wait on the company to send me a replacement.  So you think the second time around things would go smoother. Nope, this time the wrong rear rail for the roof rack was sent. I decided to purchase the upgraded roof rack with lights, and the rear rail should have had cut outs where the lights can sit flush. This isn't what I was sent. I was able to get the majority of th...

 Installing the Subfloor. I am moving on over to substack. If you love this content, please find me there: https://substack.com/@vanlifegal The installation of the subfloor was pretty straightforward. I started by using a roll of heavy duty paper, and began to make my own floor template. I have been told that some Ford Transits come with a floor liner = built in template (sigh*).  After much cutting, taping (with lime green duct tape ;)) and scribing (using a washer LOL) the template was complete. I then placed the template on baltic birch plywood and traced it out. Test fit in the van, made a few trim adjustments to ensure nothing was hitting the edges of the van, and then repeated the tracing process on XPS foam. The XPS foam was then glued to the baltic birch plywood. Next I used alcohol to clean the van floor really well. Put down some glue, and placed the floor! Last step was to weigh everything down with helping hands and some bags of sand. Stay tuned for the next part o...