For those new to the board, we bought a Toyota Sienna last year and had an inverter, isolator, and second battery installed in it so that I could run a microwave and a portable chest freezer. See this thread for more information on the setup: http://www.perskyfarms.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=13272
EATING/FOOD PREPARATION
The last road trip we took ( http://www.perskyfarms.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=10275 )was different because I was still able to eat chicken, beef, rice and potatoes. We ate dinner out every evening at Outback Steakhouse, P.F. Chang's, Arby's, and Olive Garden. Those restaurants are off-limits for me now.
Breakfast on this trip was never a problem because we stayed in motels which offered free continental breakfast for DH. I ate Corn Chex, waffles or pancakes with turkey sausage, and corn polenta with pork sausage, all in the hotel/motel room. We always made sure the room had a refrigerator and microwave. My waffles and pancakes stayed frozen in the car freezer, so I only needed to heat them.
I had made a list of everything that needed to be packed in the freezer and in the cooler. I packed the unrefrigerated food and cooking equipment and DH packed the frozen and refrigerated foods. Our first problem arose when I realized that DH didn't pack my turkey and pork sausages. We couldn't find the brand I've found to be safe (Jones) in grocery stores, so we bought frozen GF-labeled pork sausage and a frozen Jimmy Dean turkey sausage package. I don't know if they were a problem or not.
For lunch, I was able to easily reheat my meat and corn tortillas in the microwave at a rest stop. Cutting and mashing the avocado was also pretty easy. I zapped the frozen mango chunks and ate them for dessert. Making the turkey soup required more preparation and cooking. Of course, DH was done eating his sandwich before I even began, but he is a very patient man and didn't complain.
We arrived at the motel at dinnertime and we were both hungry. This was always our biggest dilemma. We ended up trying four different solutions:
1. We both ate out.
This always poses a risk for me. The first night we ate at a German restaurant after reading their menu online. I ordered smoked pork chops with an oven-baked potato. They no longer offered the Roulada Beef that DH wanted, so he ordered a burger. I noticed that my pork chops had the same grill markings that his burger had. Sigh. The potato was skinned and baked. The second time we ate out was at a BBQ steakhouse. I called first to verify that they had turkey and could order it w/o any sauce. I also ordered steamed cauliflower (also came with carrots and broccoli) with nothing on it. My order arrived with two slices of bread atop the turkey. I removed them and ate the turkey that was away from the bread.
2. DH ordered a take-out dinner and I heated/cooked my dinner in the motel.
This worked OK, but motels don't usually have a large eating area. DH ate his take-out at the desk while I cooked my meal, then we switched. I brought a single burner and used it for cooking. I was afraid to use the burner and the in-room microwave at the same time, so my meals took a little longer to make than usual. I cooked my vegetable in the microwave.
3. We both cooked and ate our dinners in the motel.
With one burner and microwave, we cooked in shifts. Since DH is diabetic, I let him cook first. I'm fairly used to being hungry, so it didn't bother me. Once again, we shared the desk when we ate.
4. DH went in a restaurant to order his meal while I cooked mine in the car. I then brought it in the restaurant to eat.
DH said that the restaurant patrons had some nice entertainment watching me prepare my meal at our car while they ate. I was in the back of the car, preparing the cauliflower, getting the cooking pot, opening the freezer (I had to climb in through the open back), etc. By the time I cooked my meal and brought it into the restaurant, DH was done eating. I noticed that patrons watched me as I walked through with my plate.
None of the above solutions seemed totally satisfactory, though they were all doable. We didn't have any rain, however. I'm sure that cooking out of the back of the vehicle would have presented a whole new set of problems with rainy/bad weather.
EQUIPMENT
1. Freezer
The freezer worked well, except when the auxiliary battery ran low. Then the temperature raised to about 37 degrees. My meats stayed frozen, but the softer foods (DH's bread, mango pieces, sorbet) didn't. We kept the freezer in the car at all times because it was so heavy to move. On our tests at home, it would run for two days before the battery ran low. I figured out that it ran low the days that I cooked my meal in the car microwave and we didn't drive the car long enough afterward to recharge the battery.
2. Microwave
We unplugged the microwave each time after using it. This necessitated resetting the clock each time I had to cook. When the auxiliary battery ran low, we had to run the car while I heated my foods. It took a while to figure out that solution. I was standing in the back where the exhaust was, but it pointed to the side, so it didn't bother me. I would walk away until it was done.
3. Cooler
We have a thermoelectric cooler which plugs into the 12v connection. It worked well without any issues.
4. Crockpots
We have a 12v and a 110v crockpot. I didn't use either on the trip. The microwave was more convenient. Given the battery issues the microwave caused, I probably should use the crockpots more often. The battery amount required for them is much less.
CLEANUP
We placed our dirty dishes in a plastic bag and washed them each day in the motel. We bought a Coleman dish pan/drainer setup which worked quite well. It has a battery-operated rinse hose attached to a lid. One pan went in the sink, one pan held the drainer, and the third pan held the rinse water. The rinse hose hooked into the top and sprayed at a diagonal on the dishes. To rinse, we pressed a button and the water sprayed. It was very convenient.
My overall assessment of the setup: we still have some tweaking to do. I need to use the crock pots for my dinner meals. That would save a lot of preparation time at dinnner, plus the battery would be fully charged to keep the freezer running overnight. It would also allow me to eat in restaurants with DH. I think we both were trying to accomodate each other's desire for eating. Unfortunately, I'm having a flare and have gone back on 3 Entocort a day for the time being. It may be that the mango smoothie I had on our last day caused the problem, though I began deteriorating prior to eating the smoothie. I specified that I only wanted mango and ice, but you never know what you're actually going to get in a restaurant.
I am
that this flare is temporary and I can get back to having Normans again. We did enjoy the historic sites and I found some new genealogy information. I'm fortunate that DH entertains himself while I research. He visited museums two days and read the other two. Our plan for retirement has always been to travel and do genealogy research along the way. One day we hope to go to Germany where DH was born so he can do his research.
If anyone is interested in my packing list, let me know and I can try to post it.
Gloria
( i dont think i have esp powers)