This is the third article in a three-part series about planning for life on the road in an RV:
Are you a full-timer wannabe? | Frequently asked questions | The chorus of regrets

In 2001, Rob Frank and I were on the cusp of online dating through AOL's "Love Connection." We met for coffee in July, and I probably gasped when he told me about his future retirement dream of driving to California in his motorhome.

I'd only been tent camping a few times, so I couldn't imagine an RV lifestyle. However, we married in November 2002, and bought our first motorhome together seven months later. My two previous articles about "Are you a full-timer wannabe?" and "Frequently asked questions" fill in the background to our story — which could be described as "full-time RVing by the seat of our pants"!

It would be impossible to calculate how many campground conversations we had between June 2005 and August 2013, but the first two questions were always, "Where are you from?" and "How long have you been on the road?"

I'd spent 13 years in radio sales, so my ability to quickly "build rapport" came in handy in the campgrounds because most people love to talk about themselves. It's similar to the "organ recitals" you are subjected to when someone feels compelled to chronicle every detail of a recent surgery.

Many campers we met regretted not having taken the necessary risks to become a full-time RVer. If you believe forewarned is forearmed, perhaps reading their comments may inform your own decision making.

This covers a multitude of sins.

Didn't plan ahead

  • We would have been able to go full-time if we'd had a bigger unit. Our trailer is too small and our truck is too old to haul it around the country.
  • My wife won't even consider learning to drive our truck/fifth wheel — how can we ever go full-time? When did your wife decide to drive your motorhome? What? She always has?
  • We'd only crossed a few states and knew we'd outgrown our pop-up trailer. We couldn't live in it, 24/7 for a year. How would we manage in really bad, cold weather?
  • Every time my spouse (usually a husband) goes to an RV show, he gets "the itch" to buy something, newer, bigger or better.
  • We put too much money into the first one, now it has depreciated so much we can't afford to upgrade.
  • The fifth wheel had more living space, but as we've aged, we envy the convenience of a motorhome with a bathroom on board. The steps up to our bedroom are now too hard on our knees and hips.
  • Wish we'd have explored volunteer opportunities. Bartering work for a campsite or a minimum wage job would have stretched our financial resources.

Tethered to family/community

  • We waited so long for grandchildren, how could we leave them to travel full-time?
  • Our kids need us — they couldn't find jobs and pay for an apartment, so they moved back home.
  • Why did we think I couldn't find another bridge group or that he couldn't join a foursome for golf?
  • We love our church family. Would other congregations welcome us?
  • The "stuff" in our house is comfortable and familiar — we couldn't bring everything.
  • Entertaining our friends and family is so important to us. How could we do that in an RV?
  • Maybe we should have joined RV clubs and gone to rallies.

Unexpected health problems

  • I wish we'd have retired earlier. We used to be so healthy and adventurous.
  • High mountain altitudes make breathing too hard with her heart condition and my COPD.
  • What if my wife is one of the eight women who'll get breast cancer? Where would we go if surgeries, chemo and radiation treatments extend six months or longer?
  • What health insurance options should we have considered?
  • Special needs RVs is a new term to us. We could have stayed on the road longer if we'd installed a lift to make our RV wheelchair accessible.

There are so many creative solutions to these regrets. Grandchildren love to spend time RVing, and we've noticed younger families adopting this lifestyle.

When it comes to health problems, these concerns may just be tip-of-the iceberg issues. The big generational question is: Where do we go if we can no longer care for ourselves?

Have you heard of the "silver tsunami"? It will bring a flood of chronic diseases and disabilities of aging, and will peak in 2025, when there are 78 million American seniors. There will never be enough healthcare facilities and medical staff.

I typed "aging crisis in America" into my browser and was overwhelmed with the research. I learned a lot at these sites: AgingResearch.org; AFAR.organd HealthspanCampaign.org.

What options do aging full-timers have? There's only one company that provides this type of assistance for RVers: EscapeesCARE.org. The CARE acronym means "continuing assistance for retired escapees, and the organization is located in Livingston, Texas. Their 39 resident RV sites are well used, and there might be a waiting list.

To qualify for their Independent Living program you must have been a member of the parent organization, Escapees.com for one year. They also have an adult day care center for Alzheimer's patients.

Perhaps you'll want to settle down, but keep your full-time lifestyle. Escapees owns 19 parks where you can purchase a lot, and they'll buy it back when you leave. The waiting list for their properties in California, Oregon and Florida used to be five to seven years, which brings us back full circle to why we must plan ahead.

Thanks to 6,380 photos, I'm bombarded with our happy memories and the incredible sights we've seen crisscrossing this great country. I'd love to know what decisions you make.