I’d like to dedicate this post to those who have inspired us in our RV journey. Getting off the ground with such a non-traditional lifestyle is a challenge and feels very lonely. When you are going through the stress of buying or selling a house, at least you have friends that can relate and give you their reassurances of “it will all work out”. When buying a used RV, renovating it, and then leaving your old life behind to go on the road full-time? Not so much. When you don’t know anyone else in the same situation, it makes it more difficult. This is where we got connected with other full time RVers who were already on the road. We had 3 main couples who both helped and inspire us, and I’d like to highlight them here. If you are in a similar situation, please get in touch with us. We’d love to pay it forward and help you, too!
Less Junk More Journey
The same day the RV idea hit me, I found a post about Nathan and Marissa (their blog/Youtube is Less Junk, More Journey) in a forum from my first Google search. We gobbled up their YouTube videos. We’ve watched every single one (except the most recent ones, since we are a little behind on TV watching) and they documented their journey all the way from their first RV (a huge 42′ fifth wheel) to their Newmar motorhome to their current setup of an Airstream and a van. We relate to them because they are our age and have a young daughter just like we do. As we’ve been on the road for awhile now ourselves, we’ve discovered that we also have a similar travel style fo Nathan and Marissa – we prefer state/national/county parks over private campgrounds.
If you are interested in RV life, check out their YouTube channel (links below). They used to have an awesome series called “What What Wednesday” where they answered viewer questions, so look for those specifically. They were our favorites as we were considering the lifestyle. We looked to them for videos about choosing a rig, diesel vs. gas, fifth wheel vs. motorhome, how to choose a campground, how to RV with a toddler, etc. At the risk of sounding dramatic, I’m not sure if we would have ever ended up doing this if it wasn’t for discovering Nathan and Marissa’s blog and YouTube channel. They are very relatable to us, and the information they shared was extremely valuable. Now that we have been creating content ourselves (although it’s “just” a blog) we also appreciate the time and effort that go into both their blog and videos. It’s not trivial to do these things and to share your life so openly.
Check out Less Junk, More Journey here:
Swept Together
Annabelle of Swept Together was introduced to me through our mutual friend Emily. Annabelle and her husband Christian have been on the road in their renovated motorhome, Gulliver, since April 2017. They host the Swept Together podcast and Annabelle runs Evergreen Lane Productions, a video production company. Their RV remodel is so well done, so we looked to them for inspiration and advice for ours, as well as in many other ways (their podcast is also chock full of RV life advice).
I sent Annabelle a lot of e-mails with a lot of questions about full-time RV life, and she was always very generous with her responses. Annabelle’s advice that sticks out in my mind is related to working + this lifestyle. First of all, it’s not a vacation. You can’t expect to see the same amount of stuff in one stop as you would if it was a vacation. Secondly, visit each place as if you will come back. It can get overwhelming to think of everything you are missing out on or COULD be seeing if you didn’t have to work. This lifestyle does let you see much more than if you were stationary in a house, but there are only 24 hours in a day, so what you didn’t get a chance to do can be a source of regret if you let it. Visiting as if you will visit again takes the pressure off. Thank you, Annabelle and Christian, for the advice on everything from vinyl flooring to WeBoost to entrepreneurship!
Check out Swept Together here:
