Bus Life with @simplyusandabus

We have always been a bit spontaneous.  A bit may be an understatement.  To be honest, we’re a lot spontaneous and a little crazy, but wouldn’t have it any other way… let me backup a bit, introductions first.

We are Aaron & Philan.  We have been married for just over 10 years and have three kids, Cashin, Brig, and Freya.  We were from Rockford, Illinois, but now we live full-time in our skoolie. Here’s how it all started.

About a year and a half ago, my wife Philan asked me to go on a little weekend road trip together.  We love to travel, see new places, explore new cities, but this trip was different. It wasn’t just to experience somewhere new, it was to find a new place to live, so we thought.  We had become consumed with stuff.  A bigger house, remodeling a kitchen, kids toys filling rooms, it was too much.  We realized none of that was making us happy, it was time for a change. After a few weekend trips to Asheville, North Carolina we were ready to sell our house and move there.  We sat down and thought about what would make us happy. The more we thought about it, the more we realized that we needed a bigger change than just a new location. We needed to completely downsize, to slow down, to experience life together more with our kids.

That’s when we decided to take a year off and travel.  After looking at RV’s for a few weeks, and not liking anything we were seeing, Philan said, “what about a school bus.”  We had heard of converted school busses, but at that point, had never seen one, or researched skoolies. So we jumped on social media and started looking.  What initially sold us on the skoolie idea was being able to build it ourselves, therefore, being able to make it our home, not just a purchased motorhome. After all, our plan was to live on the bus full-time, not just to travel for a few weeks a year.  

Two weeks later, we found our bus.  We had been looking at auction sites and on a whim, I looked on Facebook Marketplace.  A bus popped up about an hour from our house. A few days later, we drove down to “see” the bus and came home that afternoon as proud owners of a big yellow school bus.  Our kids flipped out when they saw what we had just bought. They thought it was the coolest thing and wanted to sleep in it that first night. We skipped that idea but we did take it on a road trip the next weekend to get an idea of how it would be like to travel in a bus.  Maybe it was the bean bag chairs we put around the bus for them to ride in, or maybe it being in a really big bus, but for the first time they all just chilled in the bus. We were all hooked.

From November 2017 through February 2018, we gutted the bus.  It’s quite cold in upstate Illinois during the winter so it was slow going to start.  We ran propane torpedo heaters and did demo work in the freezing cold. After getting our layout down on paper, we began our build.  We started our build in March 2018 and finished up at the beginning of July. For the last two weeks of the build, while our kids were away at camp, we were both working on the bus for 16 hours a day.  After spending that many hours working in 90 degree weather, Philan told me, “That’s it. Tomorrow we’re leaving.” And with that, we were finished. We needed to get on the road.

I’m not going to lie.  That first month was rough.  We had spent so much time working on the bus that we didn’t take the time to plan where we were going, what we were actually doing.  We broke down on day one. Only 7 miles from home, we were on the side of the highway, stopped on the shoulder of an exit ramp, on our bus that just died.  A million things went through my head as I unhooked our car from the back of the bus and sent Philan and the kids to a nearby restaurant. I wondered if all that work, all the blood, sweat, and tears were all for nothing.  We had rented out our house for a year, gave away a ton of stuff, packed up the rest of our stuff and put it into storage. What now? It’s a horrible feeling to think that your year long journey would be over on day one. Luckily, it wasn’t anything major.  We were low on antifreeze and the engine cutoff automatically to prevent it from overheating. Over the course of the first month, we blew out a wheel bearing on our trailer; realized the bus didn’t have enough power to travel safely over the Rocky Mountains while pulling our car; left our car in Fargo, North Dakota; realized we didn’t like spending as much time in big cities as much as we thought we did; Brig fractured his arm; our bikes, bike rack, and rear window all got damaged; and worst of all, we bickered about everything.  

We also saw some amazing places, met some incredible people and learned a lot.  A lot about being a family, a lot about working out our problems, both individually and together as a team.  We began to learn the ins and outs of living in a small space, traveling full time, and spending 24 hours a day with just the five of us.  

It brought us together.  It brought our kids together, it brought our family together. It is not always easy living together in a converted 20 year old school bus, but it is completely rewarding and totally worth it.  We don’t miss the stuff we left behind, but we value the stuff we have with us. We have been on the road for 8 months and while counting down the months to go until our one year goal, we are making plans of where to head to for the next year.  

Tiny living isn’t for everyone, but it is for us.  We love it and we’re looking forward to continuing for the next few years.  

We would love for you to follow our journey.  We are on social media @simplyusandabus. We post the same content to Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter, so follow us on whichever platform you prefer.

Thanks for letting us share a part of our lives with you.

Aaron & Philan

Simply Us and a Bus

Instagram: HERE

Facebook: HERE

Twitter: HERE

A few details about our bus:

• 1999 International Amtran Genesis 30’ school bus.

• Navistar dt466e diesel engine

• Allison automatic transmission

• Diesel heaters

• Rooftop AC units

• 990 watts of solar with off grid battery setup

• 225 square feet of interior space

• Triple bunk bed

• Full bed

• Kitchen

• Living room/dining space

• 70 square foot rooftop deck

• We travel with 4 kayaks, 5 bikes, and 1 dog

Living Tiny with @tincanramblers

So excited to share J & Brit today from @TinCanRamblers. I started following them when they lived in a cute renovated Airstream & now they live in an RV they totally remodeled. Wait until you see how beautiful it is!

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Hey there! We wanted to share a little about our journey to living tiny in hopes for you to get to know us a bit more and to help anyone out there who may be considering the lifestyle. =)

Way back when (or at least it feels like it)…

Three years ago you could find my husband (J) and I (Brit) living in a 3 bedroom house in the suburbs of Nashville, TN. We loved our house at the time and honestly when we bought it we thought we would live there for decades but that plan changed.  We started to feel stuck in the daily routine and wanted more adventure out of life.  Our journey into this lifestyle started when I was obsessing over tiny houses and sending my husband absolutely everything I could find on tiny living. I was 110% sold on the idea and the thought of selling everything we owned sounded so freeing. I found so much inspiration from others who had already taken the leap and shared their stories through social media/blogs/youtube channels.  I could just picture us rolling down the road with everything we owned in the home being pulled behind us! It took a while for me to convince my husband (he wasn’t sold on a tiny house) - but finally he came around and instead of building a tiny house he pitched the idea of an RV…..and the rest is history.

Our main intentions in living tiny were to pay off debt, have financial freedom, and to be able to travel.  We started downsizing immediately and sold/donated pretty much everything we owned - except a small amount of clothing. This process was so eye-opening, to go through the stuff we had been carrying around for years for no reason at all other than we thought we “needed” it. We put our house on the market, luckily it sold very quickly and we moved into an apartment while we renovated a 1980 Airstream Excella. We spent the winter completely gutting and rebuilding our new home on wheels, from flooring, to plumbing, to electrical, etc.. Luckily, we had family along the way to help us build our dream and we learned so much from the experience. We poured so much love into our little home and it was finally happening right before us. It definitely wasn’t easy though, we had challenges along the way and things would go wrong - at times it felt like we would never finish. Through this process we learned to not dwell on the problems - just fix them and move forward, it’s all part of the journey.

The following spring we finished the build and moved into our airstream. We were living stationary in Nashville at the time at an RV park. Adjusting to the smaller space took some time, but we quickly fell in love with living tiny.  We lived in our airstream for about a year until we decided we wanted a little more space. We decided to sell the airstream and buy a travel trailer with slides. We ended up purchasing a Forest River Wildwood 27REI which we live in currently. Even though this rv was much newer than our airstream and didn’t need a complete remodel, we knew we wanted to make our new camper feel like home. So the first project on our list was to paint. We painted pretty much everything, the walls, the cabinets, the doors… The paint made such a big difference in the space and it felt so much bigger inside! From there we continued to do projects here and there to update the space and it started feeling like home in no time! I love decor and am always coming up with a new project around the camper or changing something up. =)

What our life looks like currently...We’ve been mostly stationary in Nashville for the majority of the past 2 years, but we’ve been parked in southern Alabama for a couple months now and are looking forward to traveling more soon! If you are considering living stationary for any amount of time, a lot of rv parks offer a discount for monthly stays, and even seasonal rates if you plan to stay the entire season. J works remotely and my job is based out of Nashville. If you are looking for remote work, a great resource that we’ve found to be helpful is www.flexjobs.com. We also have two pups, Rocky is our 5 year old Yorkie/Pom mix and Charlie is our 2 year old Merle Long Haired Chihuahua. They have adjusted so well to RV life and we spend so much more time outdoors than we used to! 
We quickly fell in love with living tiny and don’t foresee stopping anytime soon! We stop and think about our purchases now and whether we actually need an item, because let’s be honest - we just don’t have room for non-essential items. One day when we are done with life on the road, we hope to build a small house in the mountains somewhere and maybe build a camper van for adventures. 
All this to say, if you are considering tiny living we encourage you to take the leap! It may seem scary at first, but the journey will be so rewarding!
If you would like to follow along with our journey we’d love to get to know you - come say hi on instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tincanramblers/ . =)

Airstream Life & Renovation with @thislittleairstream

Miranda Lawson is on the blog today talking about Their tiny living journey & Airstream Renovation. If you’re on the hunt for an amazing wedding photographer, check out her website!

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When I was a kid I played outside. I never wore shoes. I picked potato bugs off potato plants in the garden and spent hours studying them. I dug in the dirt.  I took baths in the creek and chased minnows around in the water with empty yogurt containers. It felt good to play outside. 

When I had my own girls in 2008 and 2010 I wanted them to experience nature in the same way. Then real-life happened. My husband and I worked regular 9-5 jobs. We came home from work exhausted. It was already dark and dinner needed to be made. Then dishes, and homework. and laundry. The same routine, every day. At the end of the day it felt like we were getting nowhere and my kids were growing up fast. This was not the childhood I imagined for them. 

In 2016 I had a wake up call.  A few days after my annual exam, my Dr sent me a Facebook message at 10:00pm (yep, I'm facebook friends with my gynecologist). She asked if she could call me and told me the news. I had cancer.  My life flashed before my eyes and I vowed to make the most of every moment with my family.  I thanked Jesus for my two beautiful girls and I had a hysterectomy. 

A year later, I had another life changing event called Irma. The strongest observed Atlantic hurricane ever plowed straight for my home in SWFL.  I will never forget the days leading up to the monster storm Irma and how I felt the day we left. For the first time in my life, I didn't care about the house. That house and all of the stuff we spent our whole lives working for- WHY did we have it? Its just STUFF. As I drove away from the house, I realized the only thing that mattered was in the car with me. 

In Feb 2018 we decided to change our lifestyle and travel full time in an RV. Our goal was to focus on making memories with our kids and adventuring outdoors.  We bought a 1998 25' Airstream and began preparations.  Over the course of the next 8 months we renovated the Airstream, donated most of our stuff, and sold our house.  We moved into the Airstream in October 2018.  

Some say we're crazy but we are loving our new lifestyle. My kids are adventuring outside and finally experiencing the life I had imagined for them. When I see them covered in dirt at the end of the day I know we made the right decision. 

Follow our adventures at instagram.com/thislittleairstream

Wedding Photography website: http://weddingphotographerfl.com

A Life Change with @aly.tracy

I’m so excited to share Aly on the blog today. What I love about this space is we get to share friends we meet from all over & share the journey we’re on.

Aly Tracy is a wife and a mama (to Avery - 1), and she and her family are full-time RVers. They are currently stationary near Houston, Texas and hope to begin full-time travel just as soon as they can get their debt paid off.  Aly has recently become a life coach and mentor after years of informally coaching friends, family, and colleagues. She’s most passionate about working with people who feel “stuck” in one or more areas of their lives.

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Can I be honest from the get-go here?

Talking about myself is hard. 

When Colleen reached out and asked if I could share some about the recent journey the Lord has put me on with my new career path, I felt honored, but then I quickly felt panic. What in the actual heck am I going to say? 

After a bit of brainstorming and thinking it over (plus a little more panic) I realized I needed to talk about this exact thing... how I feel about myself... how we feel about ourselves. 

Why is it so hard to share about myself? Am I worried I’ll sound like I LIKE to talk about myself? Well, yeah. But also, who would want to read a story about ME? I’m nothing special. Also, I’m probably not too great of a writer... so even if they want to read, they’ll probably get a few paragraphs down and be over it. What if they think I think I’m an expert on all of this? Dang it. I should’ve said no to this whole thing. I should’ve waited until I had something really good to say. 

I know I’m not the only one with inner dialogue like this. I know I’m not the only one who creates her own roadblocks, worries about what other people think, and “shoulds” on herself way too much.

And I know I’m not the only one who forgets her worth comes from God alone.

We

all have this inner struggle... we like ourselves, but only sometimes, or we like some parts of ourselves but not others. And for most of us, this struggle comes from thinking we have to look, think, believe, talk, act, etc a certain way to be liked and loved. It’s our human nature to desire acceptance. We were created for relationship. But relationship shouldn’t come at the cost of tearing ourselves down.

I realized not too long ago that so much of the person I had “grown up” to be was built on expectations of others, societal pressures, false beliefs, shoulds, and pure comfort. No wonder it was hard to love that person! That person wasn’t really me.

So, I decided it was time to get to know Aly... no holding back. I was going to love me for me. And what I found is a much freer, more joyful and alive Aly. When I let go of the shoulds, when I stopped worrying so much  about what people might think, when I began to embrace that I am fearfully and wonderfully made, that I am unique and the world needs me to show up as me (that’s why I’m here!!); when I began lifting up gratitude for being the exact person I am here and now, my whole life began to change.

I’m not kidding...

We literally sold our whole house worth of stuff and moved into an RV.

I left the company I had been with for 4 years.

I started writing a book. 

I began pursuing a brand new career.

I began really dreaming for the first time in my adult life. 

When we get in tune with who we really are, and ultimately, who God is calling us to be, crazy (and also totally amazing) things happen.

Now obviously, I still struggle with inner dialogue issues (aka the catalyst for writing this blog post). I probably always will. The thing about it is: I’m more aware now. I know to listen for the voice of truth over all the noise. I know my default mode is worry. But I’m working on it. I’m working on being a better version of me (the real me) every day. And that’s what I encourage each of you to do, too.

Here are some questions you can ask yourself as you work to get to know you better:

Who do I truly want to be?

What things matter most to me?

What is holding unnecessary space in my life because I don’t really care about it?

What kinds of things make me come alive?

How can I do more/enjoy more of those things?

What kinds of things do I believe make a person brave? Successful? Worthy?

Am I truly open to God’s work in my life? 

Oh, one last thing!

Regardless of your answers to these questions, regardless of your past, your struggles, regardless of anything you’ve ever done “wrong” or things people didn’t approve of, know that you are so loved right here, right now. Yes, by me and the Cashios (aren’t they the sweetest?), but also by the God of the Universe. And He has declared you’re already enough just as you are. Don’t forget He has you here for a reason. The world needs you to show up and be YOU ️

Thanks so much to the Cashios for allowing me to share my heart and a chapter of my journey with all of you. I’m honored, humbled, and crazy-grateful. 

Blessings & Love,

Aly

Connect with her via Instagram: @aly.tracy 

Tiny Living with @314sqft

I’m so excited to share with you Bibi from @314sqft. I love their story and all the yummy food she makes! She shares two of her favorite recipes at the end, enjoy!

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I’m Bibi, Wife to my amazing husband, Mom to three loving kids aged 6 to 1 and Daughter of our King. We are debt-free Fulltime RVers in our 1999 Fleetwood Bounder.

I was born and raised in Germany. My husband and I met while I was in college and married a week after I graduated almost 12 years ago. Our RV life began when my husband and I were newlyweds and decided to move into the same RV that we are living in now while househunting for our first starter home.  We bought a home in a subdivision and pursued the American Dream- with careers, cars and a general feeling for the need to fill a hole with more. But more of what I wasn’t sure?! Fast forward 10 years and three children later, we sold our second home with the intention of moving into the camper only long enough to relocate to a different area. We sold most of our furniture and belongings, items we weren’t attached to, while keeping a handful of things in our 20 foot trailer intending to rent a new home once we find a new area to live in. However, a few months into this full-time RVing we realized how much we enjoy living tiny and how good it was for our family!

Since then we have been diligently donating, gifting, and selling the remainder of our items while continuing to live in our RV. My husband is currently jobhunting and we are praying to find an opportunity to work from home so we can begin to travel full-time. At this point however, we are stationary in North Carolina and our day to day RV life looks similar to what it did in a regular home, only better ha ha ... Once my husband leaves for his job in the mornings my oldest and I do some homeschooling. After that, the kids and I head outside to spend some time in fresh air that can either look like jumping into the pool or the lake during the summertime or some hiking now that it is colder. After we return inside we freshen up and run our errands in town or visit the local library, the zoo or find other activities. It is very important to find activities outside for the children so they can run off their energy. They have found so much joy in playing in nature and their imagination has grown immensely since we started full. 

Since living tiny it’s a must to go outside and some days that means I have to force myself to do so as I’m by nature more comfortable curled up with a book and a blanket. A big thing for us also is being debt-free and being able to give the kids more in experiences by going places for them to enjoy. 

Since my husband’s New Years Resolutions is to become healthier, we have taken up running rounds over the campground while the kids ride their bicycles with us. I have also been plant based vegan for almost two years (on and off prior to that) and since cutting out animal products as well as processed foods I have felt such an immense benefit health wise. No more brain fog, no more emotional ups and downs and so much more energy to run with my kids. So in a way we are not only living close to nature but eating as close to nature as possible as well!

There are challenges, if you will, to live in a tiny space, one of which is the sacrifice of our privacy. But we are willing to accept these opportunities to be closer as a family. When we had a house the kids were always in the same room as us anyways. They are still all around my feet (literally some days) now that we are in the camper, the only difference for me is that I have less to clean, ha!

The sacrifices are worth the gain, though. There is a sense of community that I have not found anywhere else before. Both online and IRL, you check in with each other and support as best as you can. This feeling of belonging and community is so special and I’m very grateful for that. 

To find Bibi on IG click HERE
I’m going to leave you now with two of our favorite recipes. Hope you enjoy and thank you so much for reading! 

Berry (N)ice cream
1 cup frozen berries 
1-2 frozen bananas
1 cup frozen mango (optional)
1 tsp vanilla flavoring
1-2 pitted dates for added sweetness
Blend all ingredients in a high speed blender until smooth. You may have to add a TBS or so of soymilk or water to get it to loosen up. Alternatively you can let the frozen fruits sit for a minute to loosen up. 
Scoop out into a bowl,l and top with your favorite toppings, such as sliced banana and more berries.

Banana Split Oatmeal
1/2 cup oatmeal
3/4 cup water
1/2 cup coconut meal (optional)
1 TBS sweetener of choice (coconut sugar works well)
Pinch of salt
Combine everything in a pot on medium-high heat, bring to a boil and simmer 5 minutes

Meanwhile, I’m a blender combine
1/2 cup of cashews (soaked)
1/3 - 1/2 cup water
1 TBS sweetener of choice (for example maple syrup)
1 tsp lemon juice
1/4 tsp vanilla flavoring 
Pulse until smooth. Assemble the Banana split:
Half 1 banana, top with oatmeal and cashew Creme. Top with blueberries and shredded coconut, also good with strawberries and hemp hearts.

Van Life with the Rosenes from @rosenesontheroad

I’m so excited to have the Rosene’s on the blog today! When I stumbled across their IG I knew we had so much in common! Their van is a-m-a-z-i-n-g & we can’t wait to cross paths one day on the road! Be sure to check out their amazing videos on youtube!

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Hi there, We are the Rosene Family- Travis, Lexi, Finley (4.5), and Zealand (1.5).  We are a young, not so average family, who are choosing to do life a little different than most people our age. 

In the last 12 months we have radically changed our lifestyle and have documented the process in hopes that we never forget this transformative time in our life. We also hope to inspire parents to keep traveling, adventuring and exploring after they have children, if anything it's a greater reason to! In the past year we have left our home in Northern California, sold (almost) everything we own, self converted a Sprinter Van into our home on wheels, with plans to live and travel in it full time by Spring 2019. WHEW. Talk about change! I'm excited to share with you a little about our family, get a peek into our life, why we chose Van Life, the hard things and perks of van life, and how our kiddos do living this lifestyle. I'm no expert at this, as we're just getting started in this journey. We're pretty much just making it up as we go and we've never been happier! 

A little about us: 
Travis, my incredible husband of 6.5 years, boyfriend since I was 15 (actual babies in braces together) takes most of the photos you see, has many outdoor hobbies he's really good at- surfing, climbing, free diving, and spear fishing. He can play a few instruments, and is the nicest most honest person you'd ever meet. His work is in Marketing and Photography/videography. He is a really good cook, the best hands-on dad to our babies, and leads our family so well. In the beginning of our dating relationship when we were kids, he endured a very tragic time with my family and actually dropped out of high school with me and went to independent studies to help care for my little sister full time who suffered from a massive brain aneurysm. I knew i would marry him one day, even though i was 17. When my sister was starting to get well, we moved to the beach and became beach bums living in a tiny apartment, when most of our friends were just graduating high school. We got jobs, started businesses,  traveled to a few countries, learned a lot about life, married at 21 on his parents property, and had our first baby girl a few years later!

I (Lexi) love my little family hard. They're my pride and joy! I enjoy cooking, being creative with my hands, hiking, seeing new places and making new mama friends. I drink too much coffee and not enough water, I live for Hygge, I homeschool Finley. I help where I can for our Marketing business after the kids go to sleep! And I spend too much time on Pinterest designing our future tiny home and putting outfits together that i'll probably never wear. I let my kids watch Netflix, i feed them mac n cheese two nights in a row, and give them lollipops for 10 minutes of peace and quiet. Told you you'd get a peek into our life! One thing we told ourselves while documenting our Van travels is we will not glamorize Van Life, or traveling with kids. It is hard, it is messy and a lot of times frustrating. But is it worth it? Absolutely, yes! 

Meet Finley: She goes by Fin, Skippy, FJ, Louie- She is a ballerina and aspiring gymnast, she is really brave and kind, and is probably one of the silliest coolest 4 year old little chicks you'll ever meet. Her favorite color is pink, she enjoys riding her scooter fast, skateboarding, surfing on her dad's back, crafting and helping in the kitchen. Last but definitely not least Zealand, or... Z, brother, Z boy, tunny. He is the sweetest, yummiest, most cuddly 18 month old you will ever meet. He's always happy, always hungry, and is starting to talk a lot. Our family is obsessed with him and his little quirks. He likes to skateboard and ride his sisters scooter. He is a daredevil but can also sit and color for an hour by himself. He is pretty amazing and growing too fast!

Why we chose Van life. I recently wrote a blog post on this exact topic, you can read it here (https://rosenesontheroad.com/2018/07/21/vanlife-the-reason-why/). To sum it up, While living in Northern California we ran a very successful business. Travis worked 10-13 hour days, 6 sometimes 7 days a week. We had a beautiful home on property in El Dorado Hills, grew our family, life was good but it felt… stale. We were realizing that although Travis is so talented in what he did, it was not adding value to him or our family. Real heart value, not the dollar amount. The time we were apart, the holidays and birthdays missed, leaving when it’s dark and getting home past bedtime, it took a toll on all of us. After many life and business circumstances, that chapter came to an end. We could feel a huge shift coming in our life, but we never expected it to be this.

We always knew we wanted to live tiny (our first home was a studio on 5 acres), even before it was a movement. Never did i think prior to owning a van that we would be planning to live in one full time. A few weeks after our son, Zealand was born, Travis brought home our 2017 Mercedes Sprinter 3500 for business use, it ended up being the only thing we kept from our business. After discussions of self converting it for fun and long weekend trips, we quickly realized that there’s this awesome community in van life and it’s actually a thing. We wanted that lifestyle and all that it included. After we made the decision, things moved quickly. We moved out of our home in NorCal, started selling our stuff. We packed what was left of our things into a small storage unit in Southern California to temporarily live with family while we built our van. It took us 8 months to complete! We're still staying with family and for now take long weekend trips since Travis works an office job 2-3 days a week. We are hustling to be able to work from the road. One thing we've realized about our family is we get uncomfortable and crabby when we’re stationary for too long, so the anticipation to GO is rising!

The real meaning behind all of this is, We want to be Intentional with our lives and babies and the short time they are with us. We want to show them the world and see things through their eyes. We want to simplify our life and live minimally. We want to focus on what’s important to us and that is God, our marriage, our children, family + friends. Time is fleeting and this season of life of our children being this small will go by fast, so we want to spend it together, to set the tone for the rest of their life. We want to instill a love for nature, adventuring and family into them. We want to explore and see new places. We want to be in charge of our children’s education and educate them through experiences. We want to live life by our own terms. We want to see more sunrises and sunsets together. We want to experience the challenges we know we will face living in a van and tackle them together. We want to get out of our comfort zone and be stretched in new ways for our faith to be increased. We want to pay off debt, and grow our savings. We want to see our homeland as well as travel internationally. We want to grow our community. We want to encourage parents to continue adventuring through life, that it’s possible to do with children in tow.

 The last 8 months, during  the build of our van, we would take 3 day, 5 day, even 10 day trips in our unfinished van. Now that it is (finally) complete -sort of, we're always changing things- i'd say the BIGGEST PERK of Van Life, among many, is no matter where we go we always have the comfort of home with us. We always have snacks and a dry bathing suit or extra blankets, a bathroom, our bed. It's convenient in the fact that we have everything we need to do whatever we want. We save money because instead of going out to eat, we have a full functional kitchen with a stocked pantry. We can visit new beautiful places without having to pay for a hotel. It's freeing!

When doing something different, there's always drawbacks, which is why this lifestyle is not for everyone. Some of the things that i would see people not enjoying in Van Life is the extra effort it takes to do little tasks. For example, my husband and i really wanted our layout to have a walk way all the way through our van to the back doors. Since we went with this layout, in order for us to put our bed up at night, we have to be done with the kitchen and everything washed and put away, otherwise we'd pretty much be sleeping with our dirty dishes. We're somewhat clean freaks so we keep our van orderly, if we didn't things get messy QUICK, because it is such a small space. But, the perk of that is it cleans up quickly too! The same goes for our kids bed. Their bed triples as our dining table, work/homeschool table, and couch! We have a good system or flow that works for us but it definitely takes a tonnn of patience, especially when you have two overtired kids who are late to bed. We have our kids on a schedule and they're pretty much like clockwork so we eat early, have beds up early and they go to bed around 7/7:30. Another thing about living in 86 sq ft that most people wouldn't be used to is the obvious limited amount of space that makes you have to really communicate with everyone. There is not much personal space so it's important for us to communicate if we're feeling like we need a minute to ourselves, talking about our feelings, etc. We don't spend a ton of time just sitting in our van, we spend 90% of our time outside. Keep in mind home base for us is in Southern California where there's hardly 2 seasons. Next year i'm sure we'll learn a lot when we make our way to colder climates. 

People are curious how Finley and Zealand have adapted as kids to this nomadic lifestyle. They would be the first to tell you that this new family adventure is so fun! They have mom and dad together everyday, happy and in love, they make new friends everywhere they go, they're seeing new beautiful places, they're trying and learning so many new things,  they're collecting stickers in every National Park they visit. Really though, they're kids and they adapt so easily as long as they feel loved, safe and secure. I promise our kids are thriving, if we felt different we wouldn't continue this journey. That is what's so  great about this is we can do whatever we feel is best for our family and change course whenever we want!  
One of the reasons we love social media is finding and connecting with other like-minded people. The #vanlife #rvlife and #tinyhome community is made up of some amazing people. We have made quite a few new friends on a silly app and can't wait to connect with new friends on the road! When we were in the very beginning stages of building our van we got so much inspiration from different people on social media. We asked a lot of them for advice and honest curious questions. We get so excited when someone messages us now asking questions because, we were just on their side! We love connecting with new friends! With all that said, Come say hi to us, let's be friends!

website: 

www.rosenesontheroad.com

IG:

 https://www.instagram.com/rosenesontheroad

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCObjsVPggZPSPzR6unW_aqQ/featured?view_as=subscriber

Stationary life in Nashville with @fifth_wheel_living

I’m excited to share my friend Kirsten from @fifthwheelliving - I love how they designed their RV and took a leap of faith to this chapter of their life.

My name is Kirsten, and I am the person behind @fifth_wheel_living and this is my story. 

My husband is a very talented musician, and although he was very successful with pop music from Delaware, he wanted to break into country music. It was a random night In August 2017, a day without even talking about it to each other , we both got the feeling that we should move to Nashville. Devin immediately called me and asked what I thought, I told him YES, LETS DO IT! Right away we started planning, that planning shut our hopes down quickly when we saw how high the cost of living was! Apartments alone were around $1,300-$2,000 monthly for just RENT! So we started to look into buying a house, well I have never been to Nashville and my husband had only been a hand full of times. It just wasn’t a smart idea to buy right away and set ourselves up for debt. After that we kinda just said “oh well...”. I thought that’s what we did, but one night I was at work my husband Devin was doing some digging on the internet. He found a man living in a van and that led him to find 188sqft account. A couple who travels and lives in a fifth wheel! Devin asked me if we could do that and just be stationary in Nashville, obviously I was all for it. Fast forward to October 2017 we purchased our 2008 Keystone Montana. Luckily we had a friend who had all the tools and knew what he was doing.  Devin was touring and I was working full time night shift. We worked night and day, anytime we could to get things done in our soon to be home. January 1, 2018 we were pulling away from our old home and on our way to Nashville! We did it! Fast forward to now, it’s been almost 1 year guys since we went tiny. We love Nashville, so much music, entertainment and fun! Being stationary has been a major plus, we get all of the pros of Nashville without all the cons! Cost of living is low for us, we are saving money, and my husband is living his dream. Going tiny has changed our life. It was suppose to be a 1 year thing until we found our forever home, but right now we aren’t planning on leaving this lifestyle anytime soon. When we are ready to buy a house, we will have our fifth wheel to sell and use as a down payment. How exciting is that?! We are a tiny living, debt free life style, planning for the future couple. I hope our story inspires you to follow your dreams, no matter how crazy it may seem. Going from 1600sqft to barley over 160sqft we have adjusted very well. One of our biggest concerns were our dogs adjusting. Bonnie, phoebe and Daisy. Yes we have three sisters. Many people asked if we would get rid of them, heck no. Our dogs are a small breed and they run around our tiny home like they own the place. Even though they don’t have a fenced in area to run around in, they still get their energy out in long walks and playing inside. They have adjusted very well, I honestly think they like it better, because we are all always close to them all the time. 

If you want to follow and learn more about our journey, these are our accounts. 

@fifth_wheel_living 

@dev_trout 

Healthy Road Snacks by @mollyandjonathan

I’m so happy to have Molly + Jonathan on the blog today from @mollyandjonathan. On road trips I struggle with reaching for the healthy gas station snacks + instead grab the less healthy. Today they will share a range of healthy snacks they eat while traveling! Hope you enjoy + make sure to head over to their IG account. They will also be launching their website soon!

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When most people hear Road Trip, they think chips, candy, soda, fast food and trash everywhere. Well, now that our life is one giant road trip, that kind of food won’t really work for our budget or our bellies. Sometimes, it’s not just a few hours traveling, it’s all day! So road trips now have to encompass a wide range of meals and snacks.

We have had to get pretty creative since we tend to eat when we’re bored. Not that we don’t love each other’s company confined in a small space for eight hours at a time, but food can really break up a drive. So the trick is, over pack the snacks! We find ourselves reaching for food about every hour, despite how hungry we actually are. The more variety and options we’ve packed, the less likely we are to buy a candy bar at the next gas station.  

Some of our favorite snacks include:

• Fruit - Our go-to’s are apples, oranges, grapes, bananas, cut cantaloupe

• Cut Vegetables - Our favorites for the road are cucumber, carrot, peppers

• Avocado - We cut ours in half, add a little salt and put it back together before we hit the road, bring a spoon to eat this one!

• Dried Fruit - We love dried pineapple and mango

• Nuts - All of them!

• Trail Mix  - See, we’re not monsters, we included chocolate!

• Granola Bars - Bring a variety of flavors

• Kettle Chips - A little indulgence is okay

• Rice Cakes w/ Almond Butter - Bring a bag of rice cakes, a jar of almond butter and a knife

• Seaweed Snacks - These snacks are awesome for flavor, we love the wasabi kind

• Rice Bowls - Just throw some rice, veggies, and sauce in a jar, don’t forget your spoon!

• Leftovers from dinner - if it doesn’t need a knife, bring it!

We are not exaggerating when we say we will bring EVERYTHING listed above for a full day drive. We mean ALL the different kinds of fruits, vegetables, nuts, granola bars… yeah, everything. We go through a multitude of cravings - sometimes we want something sweet, salty, crunchy, filling - and if we don’t have it on hand, boredom will drive us to buy it!

We also try our best to be mindful about the waste consumption, so we attempt to buy as limited packaging and plastic as possible. We don’t use plastic bags to hold fruit and veggies at the grocery store, we buy our dried fruits and nuts in bulk, and we make our own trail mix. In the car, we use a cooler and store items in glass jars, stasher bags, cotton bulk bags, thermoses, and canvas lunch bags to keep things fresh. We don’t use paper towels or napkins, so we bring a few of our rags to keep us neat and presentable. Don’t forget to bring cutlery and be aware - the person riding shotgun may have to feed the driver!

We are Molly and Jonathan, our health and happiness is living tiny, eating good food, practicing mindfulness, having adventures and chasing joy! Molly is an online professor, website consultant and yoga teacher. Jonathan is a chef, park ranger, and teacher. We travel the country in our 19’ travel trailer with our two dogs! Follow us at @mollyandjonathan and soon check our website iconoclasticwellness.com for tiny living adventures, recipes, zero waste tips, and yoga flows and meditations.

Molly + Jonathan’s IG: HERE

Molly’s IG: HERE

Website: COMING SOON

Road School by @weelittlenomads

I’m so excited to share Mary from @weelittlenomads today. She was one of the very first accounts I started following when we were looking into Airstreams. I love following their family travels & hope to pass them on the road one day! They are in mid-renovation of a new trailer so make sure to go see their progress! - Colleen

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Making the decision to educate your children at home is momentous. It not only dictates the learning environment for your kids and their childhood experiences, but also your parenting schedule and strategy.

Now that we have this big ole ice cream Sunday in front of us called HOMESCHOOL- let’s just put a cherry on top by putting that school in motion on wheels and calling it ROADSCHOOL.

There are so many similarities between the two and many times they go hand-in-hand with curriculums and schedules, but there are also many differences. The most notable one is the lack of a permanent home-base. This creates challenges such as - library cards, sport leagues, subscription mail kits, and inability to form weekly learning groups or join co-op schools.

Instead of focusing on the closed windows, let’s focus on the doors that open for a child and parent that school on the road. 

1. Ability to travel to various points of interest and not only teaching something, but experiencing it. Lessons about different climates and land formations are more exciting when we can explore deserts, volcanos, and coastal regions. We can touch sea stars in tidal pools on the rocky Pacific Coast, and walk along the harsh terrain of the Arizona desert. We can color pictures of peninsulas and plateaus and then see the landscape with our own eyes - bringing geography and geology to life in unforgettable ways.

2. Nature at our doorstep, an ever-changing backyard. One day we are picking poppies and identifying the California wildflowers, and the next we are in the Pacific Northwest touching moss and fungi species on the rainforest floor. Nature studies is a very prominent part of our schooling journey because we are constantly outside exploring our new surroundings. National and State Parks are great roadschooling resources - with junior ranger programs making it fun and accessible for kids to learn about the wildlife in that area.

3. Cultural and Social skills flourish. I know what you are all thinking - but what about socialization?!? Won’t you raise an unsocialized weirdo living this way?! All I know is that my children are incredibly social and make friends everywhere we travel - they have learned how to communicate and create relationships that are respectful and culturally sensitive. If they do not enjoy the company of another child, they can walk away - they do not learn the ill behaviors of classmates - instead they form friendships at playgrounds, museums, and with fellow traveling families. They have strong bonds with their siblings and love to meet peers along the way.

4. Technology has come a long way. Online resources are available to fill in some of the gaps. We can do online art classes, music classes, math classes - you name it! We can download any book with a library card from our home state. Online subscriptions are available for National Geographic Kids Magazine or documentary series. The possibilities are endless! 

In fact, we created an online subscription for a human anatomy and physiology homeschool curriculum to fill in a science gap. My husband and I are both medical - he is an ICU nurse and I am a Pediatric Nurse Practitioner. We wanted to create a simple lesson plan for families to learn about health and wellness. Each month introduces a new bodily system with a correlating disease or disorder; for instance, respiratory system and asthma lesson is month 1. It can easily be applied to homeschool and roadschool families alike because it is conveniently sent to your email at the start of each month with the downloadable PDFs and linked resources.

To learn more visit https://www.littlenomads.net/wee-little-learners/

I have learned so much from teaching my children on the road. It takes patience and perseverance and a large dose of flexibility. Here are my main takeaways from this type of education:

Let the travels be your guide to teaching - base your lessons on your surroundings. 

Don’t get weighed down by materials. School supplies are wonderful, but most of the time less is more.

Experience trumps worksheets. If you have to choose between your child sitting in a chair and writing 100 multiplication problems versus creating tiny boats to float down the nearby creek - always pick the latter. Kids learn through play! 

Mother Earth is the greatest teacher, let her do most of the work.

Most everything worth teaching is done outside of a desk. 

Visit us @weelittlenomads on instagram to follow our roadschool journey! 

Vist our website https://www.littlenomads.net

Journey to Jackson Hole | @honeysucklesweetlife

I’m so excited to share Tristen and her family with you! She is sharing her journey to Jackson Hole and some amazing photos! If you aren’t already following her on Instagram you need to, her pictures are always breathtaking. Make sure to check out her blog for yummy recipes, all about wellness, and adventure! @honeysucklesweetlife

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Our Journey to Jackson Hole

My husband and I were both raised in Southern California and our boys were both born there so our move to Jackson Hole, Wyoming this summer was a pretty big step for us. 

Our journey started 8 years ago when we went on a camping trip with my husband Darren’s family to Lake Arrowhead, Ca. We were tent camping with a three year old and a one year old and lets not forget the pack n play. We did this two years in a row. This situation was not ideal for me, however, this is when we realized how much we enjoyed the outdoor life and time out of the city. We had some good friends that had an RV and camped in comfort as I call it. I started looking into travel trailers since we had the car to pull one. I knew the layout I wanted after researching and I had a tight budget. I found a great used trailer that I updated a bit and we set out on our first big adventure to Yosemite with two other families. We had never owned a trailer and yet there we were dry camping in Yosemite for eight days! We had an amazing trip hiking, fishing, campfires and my oldest learned how to ride a bike there. And so began our RV adventure travel. 

Over the next couple of years we explored Zion, Bryce, Capitol Reef, Grand Canyon, Sedona, Redwoods and most of the California Coast from San Diego to Big Sur. We found ourselves trying to spend as much time as possible out of the city. Our life really changed when I planned a trip to Yellowstone and Jackson during the summer of 2015. We drove to West Yellowstone explored the park for a couple days then drove down to Jackson Hole. As we were driving into town all four of us had this overwhelming feeling we were going to love it. We stayed outside of town at a little ranch called Rockin M Ranch. I had researched all of things we should not miss while and Jackson and we packed it in! The Tetons, Rodeo, Persephone Bakery, hiking, floating on the Snake River, Horseback riding you name it we did it! 

Something changed when we got home from that trip and we started talking about moving from California. We looked at Colorado, Idaho, Oregon and Wyoming. My husband just could not get the Tetons out of his system. We decided to head back to Jackson for Thanksgiving Break that same year. It was the coldest trip I have ever taken. We arrived to negative 9 temps and so much snow. It was 75 when we left So Cal. After that week I was not sure I was feeling Jackson anymore other than for vacation. By the following spring Darren was still all things Jackson Hole. He would wake up and have his coffee to the webcam in Jackson and he had subscribed to all of the online platforms. He was checked out of Southern California. We had taken Colorado and Oregon off of our list at this point so it was down to Jackson and Boise. I felt like I needed to spend more time in Jackson other than just a week here and there to really see if I could live here. That is when I had the idea to spend the summer in Jackson in the trailer. Darren thought I was nuts at first but quickly jumped on board. He works from home so we found a co op office space in the square where he could work, we sold our 24 foot trailer and upgraded to our brand new 32 foot trailer with slide out, found a house sitter for our home in California and hit the road. 

We parked the trailer at the Fireside RV resort for the next eight weeks. In the morning the boys and I would drop Darren off in the square to work and we would go play. We would go to the parks in town, ride bikes, and skip rocks. At the end of the day we pick up Darren and grab a pizza or pack a picnic and head into Grand Teton national park for the evening since it does not get dark until 10 pm! I spent the summer watching my boys just be boys and have a freedom they did not have at home. I was sold. I toured schools and made plans. One of the hardest things we had to do that summer was go home. None of us wanted to leave. As we drove into LA my oldest said “ mom look at all of the pollution”! It was crazy after spending so much time in the most beautiful place just how changed we were. 

Our plan was to move to Jackson the next summer however that was not the same plan the universe had. Corporate America and mergers and acquisitions derailed us for a year. We spent one more year in California than we had planned while we rebuilt and recovered. Early this year we started working with an agent who would FaceTime us houses to rent and on June 28th this past summer we set off for our new life in Jackson Hole, Wyoming. We moved into our home July 1st. This was three years in the making. 

We have learned that the life you want is worth fighting for and maybe it won’t come easy. We have learned that as long as the four of us are together we are ok. Even though this is the life we craved is it perfect? 

 For me this journey has been bitter sweet. Yes, I wanted this move but change is hard. Leaving my mom in California and all of my friends has been incredibly hard. I was the President of the parent association, Team mom for sports and very social. I am starting over at 44. The boys wanted this move and they love Jackson but there are so many adjustments in a new school and a new place. We are all finding our way and growing so much. I have discovered a passion for photography and I am more at piece then I may have ever been. We live in the moment rather than never having a moment. We are looking forward to ski and snowboard season and I am going to try to embrace all things winter! We have spring and summer trips planned in the trailer to Moab, Arches, Canyon Lands, Glacier, Banff, Olympic and the Oregon coast. And lets not forget a California Christmas to see family and friends and defrost! 

When Colleen asked me to write this article I thought it was important and might help someone else with their journey. Never give up on your goals and dreams!! 

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Ways to find Tristen..

IG: @honeysucklesweetlife

Blog: https://honeysuckle.me