Making It Last From Coast to Coast
There’s something to be said about being able to be on the road and completely unplug from reality. The past six months have been the least stressful times of our life. It’s hard to explain the sense of peace that you get when you are doing something that you love with your wife and you know that she loves it just as much as you do. The kids are having the time of their lives and we are doing our best to make happy positive memories that will last them a lifetime.
Not to say this is been without struggles, because that is not the case at all. Every day we learn something new; every day we are faced with a new challenge on the motorhome that we never expected. I thought this time would be a lot of sitting and relaxing and kicking back and it has been quite the opposite. Just before we left for this trip I thought they would be so much time but there’s so little time, but that’s OK because we’re all in this and doing it because we love it.
You might ask yourself what do you do in your day? Well since the kids are still in school virtually from Maryland, we login every day at 6:00 am so that we can make the 9:00 o’clock start time back on the East Coast. Wow that’s tough getting up early, but the payoff is greater with having the day left to play and enjoy and see things.
Leslie’s mornings are filled with getting the kids ready for school, fixing breakfast, and then a little bit of trying to keep the kids focused and paying attention to virtual learning. While they’ve done very well, it’s a major challenge to school children virtually at this age; they really need the hands-on and the movement in the centers.
Given that, we are toying with the idea of homeschooling them the next school year so that we don’t have to do virtual and continue this adventure for one more year.
Making It Last Even Longer
We’ve been on the road for six months now and we are seeing that we are going to need much more time than what initially thought. Originally, we thought we were going to be back in Maryland for the start of the school year in September.
Now we are thinking that we need to continue this adventure for as long as possible and while the kids are still young. We are never going to get this time back. Not to mention the kids are having such a blast and learning so much by being outdoors and seeing different landscapes every 10 days.
On top of that we have not missed a beat.
“Planning is everything, the plan is nothing.”
Dwight Eisenhower
A Typical Day
As I mentioned before, school starts at 9:00 am EST, so we wake up at 5:15 am five days a week and sleep in on the weekends. That has been the case for couple of months now since we have been touring the west coast. Once we head back east getting up “so” early will be a thing of the past.
Post breakfast and getting ready, the kids login to their laptop and start their virtual school where as Leslie and I are tackling laundry and cleaning before we both get online to do our work.
Throughout the day, the kids have 15 min. breaks and 1 hour lunch break. During that time they go outside to stretch a leg, relax or take a nap. Leslie usually fixes lunch for all of us and go on her walks once everyone has been fed. After 8 hours of school and work we go out as a family and explore every place we visit and before you know it it’s time for dinner. Sometimes we like to go on hikes or simply relax by the pool.
After the kids have gone to sleep each night Leslie and I sit and have a quiet dinner together either outside in the cool of the night or at the table under our little kitchen light. These are my most cherished times as we get to talk plan and just focus on what’s really important and what we love about this.
Both of us sit there and we say that we don’t miss a thing about our old life back in Maryland and our lifestyle in our apartment.
On occasions, we wash and fix up few things on the coach to keep it in tip top shape. We had our first oil change service for the engine and generator so we should be good for another 15,000 miles. In addition, we serviced our hydronic heating systems (Oasis) so that we can have adequate hot water and heating running while on the road.
In terms of driving, we plan most of our driving during the weekend that way no-one has to miss school or work and it give us more latitude to go “low and slow” and take our time from point A to point B. There are few exceptions when we have to travel during the week and when that happens Leslie gets to drive while the kids and I are focused on our school and work related tasks.
Leslie in particular had mentioned to me the other night, there really is nothing that she misses other than friends and our church. As far as space goes we don’t miss a thing. I guess all these years of her living in New York in a tiny apartment and having a tiny apartment with our family of five has been preparing us for this journey.
Both of us talk about how the coach has more amenities than our actual home so there’s really nothing more that we need.
“I am constantly pinching myself for the mere fact that I get to see all of this and all of God’s creation with my family. It’s an opportunity that just doesn’t come along every day. I would hope that those of you reading this would seize the moments in your life and recognize when God has open doors for opportunities like this. It’s hard to take the first jump, but once you do the memories and the experiences are in valuable.”
Leslie in her own words.
Not A Vacation
There is a huge difference between being on vacation and traveling full time. We are on the road all the time and that means our motorhome constantly requires attention.
From cleaning the inside and outside to fixing things up, there is always something to do there is always a chore or two that needs to get done. Being on the road doesn’t mean all the little nuances of life go away. In fact it is lot harder to manage a full time rv lifestyle, but at the end of the day the reward is absolutely worth it and the memories are priceless.
It takes a lot of creativity and it gets the best out of you every time. In return it helps us appreciate one another, it broadens our horizon, and it shapes our character.
Simplicity
Living in a 1,200 sq ft condominium has its perks. First and foremost we have been doing a great job purging the little we have to keep it minimal because it makes us feel good, plus we have less to manage and worry about.
Living in a motorhome has enhanced that experience and has allowed us to continue the trend of living and keeping things simple.
The kids get to experience fist hand what it takes to live a simple lifestyle. They want to buy new things and there is nothing wrong with that but they also understand that they need to make room for the new stuff by donating what they no longer need.
It’s a win win situation for us and our kids because we get to appreciate what we have and make wise choices about what we need considering the space we have in our new mobile home.
Final Thoughts
It has been nothing short of a positive experience going full time six months ago. We have been able to travel all over the country see the true inner beauty from coast to coast. It hasn’t been all rainbows and sunshine, but our main goal is to spend more time as a family with less distractions.
As an added bonus, we have been able to spend as much time as we needed with family and friends without being rushed. On top of that, our kids are having a blast and are excited to continue this epic journey. The question still remains, will they remember rv’ing full time with their parents when they were 6 and 8 years old?
Only time will tell but for now, we will keep the bus rolling, rolling, rolling……!
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