Lifestyle Change
Our Camper Home
Big Bertha 1 was a 34ft Zinger travel trailer with bunk beds, a HUGE pantry, a full-sized bathroom AND a half bath with a master suite that had its own door. With one slideout featuring a couch and a dinette and an electric fireplace on the other side, it was wonderful for our family. I did have to paint the main living area, hang curtains instead of the ugly blinds, put cute contact paper on the brown fridge, and recover the dinette cushions with adorable buffalo check fabric for it to feel more like home. And of course a couple of wreaths, some modern farmhouse wall decor, a fun “dream big” wall decal and it’s home sweet home.
Big Bertha 1 served us a little over a year as a weekend/vacation camper and she was fabulous. I LOVED my half bath! We took Big Bertha 1 throughout GA and all the way from Central Florida to Niagara Falls, NY and back.
However, as 2022 approached we started to realistically think of a lifestyle change for our family. We had lived in central Florida our entire lives and as we do love things about Florida like our family & friends, the warmer climate, and the FL springs to name a few, our town kept getting more and more crowded and our feelings to spread our wings increased. Three years ago we bought my in-law’s house (which my husband grew up in during his MS and HS years). We LOVED our house! It had a fabulous back porch that overlooked a giant heated pool. We built a fire pit area with a pergola in the backyard and Dustin built a child’s dream play space in the backyard complete with a swing set, sandbox, tree fort, balance beam, rock climbing wall, and zipline! The house had a huge laundry room and we built lockers from a closet space. I created a cute playroom and Dustin built a banquette in the dining room. We poured quite a bit of blood, sweat, and money into our beloved home which sat on a quiet cul-de-sac in a great neighborhood. However, we felt like much of our time was spent cleaning, maintaining, and fixing. Who wants to spend an ENTIRE Saturday cleaning the house? It hit me one Monday morning when asking a coworker “How was your weekend?” And she gave me the typical response that I hear almost every time, “Oh, you know, just cleaning, laundry, errands”. It was beginning to become this life of mundane routine:
Harried, rushed morning getting ready for school with frequent yelling, nagging, and exhaustion before 8:00am
8:00am-4:00pm at school Monday through Friday, all separated from each other
Evenings spent playing with neighborhood friends for a little while, making dinner, cleaning up (if not too tired), showers, homework, family time (what’s that?) and bedtime
Weekends- cleaning, laundry, grocery shopping, yard work, errands, etc.
We decided that instead of conforming to the typical suburban life of routine and security, we could break out of the box and pursue a life of adventure, exploration, bonding, and growth.
Thus we took the steps to trade in our camper for a better suited one for full-time living, sell our house, resign from our jobs and obtain remote jobs; and develop a plan to jump into this life of adventure.
In comes Big Bertha II. Even though we loved our camper (Big Bertha I), we started searching for a travel trailer that would be better suited for the life we were about to embark on. We went to the Tampa RV Show and were there the ENTIRE day!
And it was freezing.
And we had all 3 boys.
And we under-planned snacks.
And we missed lunch.
BUT…we got a camper!
Big Bertha II is also a 34ft travel trailer, but instead of a half bath she has a bunk house (with a slideout!)
My job was to prepare her for full-time living, which was my jam! I absolutely love decorating and organizing!! We downsized A LOT and took only what we needed in regards to kitchen stuff, clothes, toys, etc. to put into Big Bertha II. The boys’ bunkhouse was large enough to store ALL of their stuff: clothes for all seasons, shoes, toys, school & art stuff. (See post “Top Ten Toys for Boys” and what made the cut.)
The WHY we did what we did:
Why would we leave such a great life? I was tired of feeling like a slave to my house. As much as I loved my home, I felt like I was constantly cleaning and maintaining. It was an endless cycle that was taking time away from my family, adventures, and my life. There was always something to fix or yard work to get done. (Full-time living= less cleaning & maintenance and more time to explore)
I had always wanted to homeschool my boys. As a teacher for 10+ years I could see the value in homeschooling vs. traditional schooling. I wanted to make learning fun, expose my boys to different experiences, places, and cultures. I wanted to see them grow and learn. I wanted education to be a family endeavor. (Homeschool= more learning in less time & unique opportunities)
It was beginning to hit me that I had less than a decade with my 3 boys, only 8 years before my eldest son would be 18, a legal adult and begin the trek of his own life adventure. I wanted to maximize our time together as a family. And we couldn’t do that by sending them off to school all day, every day or only taking a family vacation once or twice a year. We wanted more.
Dustin worked in physical therapy and in rehab facilities for years. He constantly heard stories of older people that all contained a similar thread. The general similarity was the couple/person had big dreams to travel and have adventures when they retired, but…a spouse got sick, got cancer, fell and needed multiple surgeries, had a heart attack or stroke, began mental decline, or one of the other sad scenarios that they hadn’t counted on. We were beginning to see that the couples who actually made it to retirement together and were able to travel and have adventures were blessed because for so many life did not turn out the way they had planned. Of course, when does it ever?
I wanted our family to be challenged. I was beginning to see that living our comfortable, routine-filled suburban life could have detrimental effects like letting fear of the unknown control our lives, not taking risks in order to grow and develop, having our family drift apart as the boys got older, letting a plethora of activities take over our lives and family time, having narrow mindsets and limited perspectives. Not to say that living in a house or living in suburbia or having your kiddos in school is a bad thing. Every family is different and every season of life is different, but for our family, we wanted a change.
Our philosophy:
To trade living/surviving for thriving.
Trade abundance of money, things, and activities with an abundance of togetherness, experiences, and growth.
To explore, discover, learn, and grow as a family.
To put faith and family first.
To live life fully engaged.
Since our launch into the unknown on Memorial Day 2022, we have explored the West from southern New Mexico and Arizona all the way up to northern Montana. That summer out west we visited 17 national parks, went to 14 states, plus saw and did incredible things. (see posts about our national park trips out west). Last Fall, we traveled up the east coast to Maine and as we ventured through New England we studied the Revolutionary War. (see posts about our New England travels) We have a family goal to visit all 50 states and the 63 national parks. As we approach our 3 year anniversary of full-time RV living we have visited 36 states and 25 national parks! We plan to keep going for our goal! The past 3 years have not always been easy or smooth sailing or all smiles, but it has been full of faith, adventure, and family bonding.
“Two roads diverged in a wood, and I-
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.”
Robert Frost
Grand Teton National Park, Wyoming
“Fill your life with adventures, not things. Have stories to tell not stuff to show.”
