Hey everyone!! Some of you more consistent readers may notice the change in layout a little bit, font change, etc. This is only the beginning of a pretty big lifestyle change. We are hoping to gain some more followers, even if they are just family and close friends keeping an eye on our whereabouts and what we're up to. We are also in the process of making a YouTube channel (which isn't live yet), so those videos will be posted here too.
Shawn and I are hoping and praying that the buyers of our home follow through with the deal. We're thinking they will, because the most stressful part of the selling process happened Friday: the bank appraiser came out. SO blessed that he was professional, understanding, and helpful. He knew that boxes stacked in a living room are nothing new when people are moving, he knew that the last thing we want to do is put more money in to the house (and thankfully we don't have to!) and understood we are counting on this deal. Thank you Scott for being so understanding and practical.
After a full year of doing research, talking with families, going to shows, and investing a significant amount of time going through finances, apartment prices, travel costs, accessibility, and talking about our dreams (and everything else), we've come to a decision. We asked ourselves how much house we really use and need. We DEFINITELY don't need a four bedroom, two bath house with zoned heating. So what would we do? We are buying Shawn's grandpa's Class A motorhome!!!!! Not a pull behind, not one that goes over the truck bed, not one that just sits in a truck bed, and not a van one! This one is 35 feet long, and has so many perks that we never thought in a million years that we could afford. This investment is SO amazing to us, that I feel that the benefits could fill two posts at least! The journey to this point has been incredible in so many different ways, and while I certainly had nights where I just wanted to sit, snuggle, and eat some raspberry sorbet, I knew the outcome was worth this process. I knew the process was going to be scary, but to me, having regrets and not following my dreams (and Shawn for his) was much scarier and unnerving.
Okay, bear with me here. We know that many people don't know about or understand this lifestyle, and feel that it isn't the best route. Why would we want to be mobile? Why would we want to downsize? Why would we want to buy something instead of rent? Why, why, why! So let's lay this out. But first thing's first. Sorry, not sorry if I sound like a b***h. It may not be the best route for YOU but after so much time researching, this is the best lifestyle choice for ME (and Shawn). We hope that you take the time to understand the reasoning behind our decision, and hope that you will grow to love our experiences and understand that it wasn't a spur of the moment decision/a one sided decision/biased/not researched/whatever. We know that you may not like the decision, but we ask that you respect it.
#1: COST EFFECTIVE!
So for the price of the RV, it is considerably less than what I would pay in rent nearly anywhere in the country (unless I lived in the ghetto with shootings, slumlords, and a high crime rate). For less than $40/year, we can get a Park pass where we can stay in National and some State parks FOR FREE, or a significantly discounted price (like $4-10/night). We can also sign up for Good Sam, where we would get discounts to stay at parks in that club. Can we also just take a moment and appreciate KOA work program??? It's something Shawn is looking in to. From what we gathered, he would work there, we wouldn't have to pay a nightly hookup rate (water, sewer, electric, depending what they have) or pay a discounted rate, and any work done over the price of the space is take home money. Shawn's a landscaper, has experience as a construction worker, cement worker, electrician, went to school to be a mechanic, and is a general contractor. So, as Aunt Julie would say, "in my humble yet always correct opinion," he's pretty handy to have around and any KOA would benefit from having him there. KOA's are across the country, and if one is in need of help for x amount of time and if it works with the school schedule, we can go spend some time there, make some $, and have an adventure. (I'll probably work 10-15 hours/week lifeguarding hopefully to add to an income, where I'll apply as a student, on the school schedule, as our address will be out of town. More on that later.)
So let's also add under this, we're paying ONLY insurance (which is around $250/6 months), phone, gas for the motorhome, groceries, maintenance, and any site fees if we aren't boondocking (which is what we plan on doing the most - we'll have a built in generator, so we will be entirely self sufficient). We plan on eventually adding solar power, so that will add to our battery life. We're also going to change over to LED lighting, which will be almost a 90% difference from fluorescent and will help our battery life, decrease fire risk significantly, and add to the life of the lights.
No more gas bill. No more (higher) electric bill. No more cable/internet when we can use phones as a hotspot. (We might get something internet wise from Verizon at some point in the future, but starting out, we aren't worried about this detail.) No more property tax. No more quarterly water bill. I'm selling my car, so no more insurance on that. Shawn's going to be putting his truck in storage, so no more insurance on that. YES, we will be getting a vehicle to tow behind our motorhome, but more on that later.
#2: FREEDOM!
We are able to be extremely flexible in where we go. We don't have to worry about animal care if we want to travel to another part of the country. We don't have to worry about leaving an apartment full of personal belongings behind during a hurricane. We don't have to worry about not being able to see parts of the country because plane tickets are just too expensive. We don't have to be limited to Graduate School area during school breaks. The list of things WE DO get is ginormous. We get beachfront sites for a week that is HALF the price of a hotel for ONE NIGHT. We get to be off-grid. We get to explore different towns, cities, cultures, communities, and so much more. We get to learn about lessening our carbon footprint. We get amazing views. We get sundowners. We get amazing experiences. All of which are to be documented and put on YouTube and on here. We get more time to learn about ourselves individually and as a couple. I'll have more time to read. Shawn will have more time to do his list of things he loves to do. We get to make friends across the country. We get to make unexpected experiences into memories. We get to "live on less so we get to LIVE more" (Less Junk, More Journey).
We aren't naive, we don't expect everything to work out perfectly. Heck, we already have a small to-do list! But we have a general idea of what to expect after doing a considerable amount of research over the past year. To get an idea, check out blogger and YouTuber "Less Junk, More Journey" a couple with a toddler who RVs full time. Another favorite is "Gone With the Wynn's" on YouTube and their personal website. They spent years full timing in their RV and decided to transition into a catamaran and try to live as off-grid as possible. Both of these are our favorites, as they have SO much information to digest and share their bad experiences so people get an idea of what they are getting themselves in to (and also share the good!).
I don't want to make this post super long, so I guess I'll end it here. But I want to leave you with a quote that sums up the adventure, said by Marissa from "Less Junk, More Journey"
"We RV because we crave a life of less junk and more journey. Less house, more living. Less cleaning, more mingling. Less monotony, more memories. Less commute time, more family time. Life is short. It’s all about the journey and having no regrets!"
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