Mynyel Posted March 25, 2013 Share Posted March 25, 2013 My parents have looked into this. It sounds interesting but what is it like in reality? Anyone ever done it (shoot or is doing it?) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest inoubliable Posted March 25, 2013 Share Posted March 25, 2013 I haven't, but I've been reading about families who do this for years now. I want to. Badly. Um, I read Kinsa's blog with envy. There's another website...workamper.com, I think. A network of jobs at camp sites and state parks. You know, for making a little moola along the way. So far my dream has manifested itself as a 1978 Coleman popup. LOL. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest inoubliable Posted March 25, 2013 Share Posted March 25, 2013 I have "lived" in our RV by myself with our six kids for three months before. My DH lived on his own for an entire year in the RV while he worked in Houston and we stayed in San Antonio. So we're no strangers to it. We're getting ready to sell our house and go on a long trip in our RV, probably a year or more. I have started a blog about it (which I should probably update this week...) found here: http://coach-and-six.blogspot.com/ There is an organization dedicated to being a support system for full-timers, called "Escapees". There is a WHOLE LOT of information on their website: http://www.escapees.com/ We just officially joined the Escapees RV Club recently, and their welcome packet is chock-full of information. I spent an inordinate amount of time on their discussion forum (even more than on here - LOL), which is a great learning experience: http://www.rvnetwork.com/ If I'm not mistaken, there is someone else on this forum who was (or is?) full-timing. There is another former WTM member who has been full-timing for about two years now, but I don't think she posts here much anymore due to the nature of their full-timing and privacy issues. Hope this helps! Thanks for the links! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NotSoObvious Posted March 25, 2013 Share Posted March 25, 2013 check out Families on the Road http://www.familiesontheroad.com/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NicAnn Posted March 26, 2013 Share Posted March 26, 2013 We have for a little over a year now. There are thousands of families doing it all over the country and a pretty decent support system out there. It's fun, can be stressful at times like any lifestyle I guess. We make it work by enjoying the little things in travel. For instance we took failed trip to the beach last week, but on the way to another campsite we came across some random guy in a parking lot with an 8 foot long python. He was just a reptile lover who brings out his collection to an abandoned parking lot on main street to show people. Most often it is things like that that make the life worth it. The space is an issue at times, because you have to be aware of what you bring into the house. But it's not terrible and only a minor inconvenience most of the time. It's not a perfect life of course, and you WILL end up on the side of the road with two flats and 1 spare and a 100 mile trip will take 2 days when it should have taken 2 hours. But I wouldn't trade the experiences. I'd be happy to answer specific questions or direct you to blogs and groups where you can get more info. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Liz CA Posted March 26, 2013 Share Posted March 26, 2013 I just checked your blog and now I am fascinated. How long is the "beast"? :) There is room for all 8 of you, sleeping, living, eating....? I can see doing this with my dh perhaps when we are retired if ever can retire. My one burning question is: How do you get mail? Keep a P O Box in every major town in the country? What is your "permanent" address for credit card billing statements, tax info, census forms and all other pesky stuff? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jenn- Posted March 26, 2013 Share Posted March 26, 2013 I just checked your blog and now I am fascinated. How long is the "beast"? :) There is room for all 8 of you, sleeping, living, eating....? I can see doing this with my dh perhaps when we are retired if ever can retire. My one burning question is: How do you get mail? Keep a P O Box in every major town in the country? What is your "permanent" address for credit card billing statements, tax info, census forms and all other pesky stuff? Although we are not full timers, we just talked to one the other day about this. He said most states require that you have a physical address to remain a resident but a few don't. South Dakota and Texas are the two he mentioned. He has a registered address through a mailing company in SD. He pays them a small fee each month and twice a month they forward his mail on to him. Almost all banking can be done online now so bills are easier to handle. As for the idea of doing this full time... Not a chance! Heck I barely survive a few days in this box. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pawz4me Posted March 26, 2013 Share Posted March 26, 2013 We have an RV and have taken a few 20+ day trips. But full-timing with kids is something I couldn't do. DH and I have played around with the idea of full-timing once the boys are grown, but after much consideration I came to the conclusion that I couldn't do it. I need a home base. I need to feel anchored somewhere. Our current plan is to downsize to a townhouse in a few years and after DH retires spend several months of the year traveling, maybe even doing some workkamping to help cover expenses. I think as long as I knew I had a nest to come back to I'd be okay. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
melissad2 Posted March 26, 2013 Share Posted March 26, 2013 Oh! I would absolutely love to give this a try! My dream is for dh to retire early and for me to take up travel nursing. He would never do it but I would in a heartbeat! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MomtoCandJ Posted March 26, 2013 Share Posted March 26, 2013 We want to do this for a few weeks over the summer. Dh's work isn't travel friendly so we can only for vacations :( luckily dh's boss is cool and has let dh build up his vacation time so I *think* he will have three weeks this summer (might be more, who knows) after this year dh will get two weeks a year regular vacation time but they also like to have "summer days" (unplanned paid days off when it's really nice outside) and the "guys" want to go to some kiddy type places and dh with dd and I are the perfect excuse for them to go so that means more "vacation" time but doesn't count against "personal vacation" time. Not sure what these guys will do if they get more employees (there is one not related, the secretary, but her and her dh are usually included anyway if they want) as far as these "vacations". Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MomtoCandJ Posted March 26, 2013 Share Posted March 26, 2013 Do you think we could this with a tent??? We have a huge three room tent we got at a yard sale and don't really want to buy a camper right now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ladyinthegarden Posted March 26, 2013 Share Posted March 26, 2013 We did this in between a military PCS. If you hate cleaning a house, and you are the outdoor type this is the ideal lifestyle. Daily housework takes 10 minutes. From my experience the smaller the home the more people will go outside. I had more private time to myself, and actually took up an old hobby. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HollyBee Posted March 26, 2013 Share Posted March 26, 2013 Following this thread b/c I keep thinking of doing this. Of course, we've never even *rented* an RV, so I don't know why I think I have any idea what it would be like to travel full time in one. :001_rolleyes: It just seems like such a cool thing to do. I mean, how many people actually take a year of their lives and hit the road? You only live once, right? DH is really burned out with his job, so I keep telling him we should just DO it. :driving: We'll see. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sparrow Posted March 26, 2013 Share Posted March 26, 2013 We'd love to do it about half-time, and we could, we just have too many animals right now. We own a campground, so that means we only get to travel December to mid-April. Those really aren't the greatest travel months in our region, or too many others, unfortunately. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pamela H in Texas Posted March 26, 2013 Share Posted March 26, 2013 There is this awesome sounding job in MI this summer (May 15 through Sept 15) for two couples. I was thinking that between my adult children and hubby and me, we *are* two couples in terms of work. It's work 4 days, off 4 days. I just need an RV or two, hubby to have several months off work, etc :) Anyway, that is what I would want to do if I RV'd full time. I'd probably park most of the year or do half the year in each of two locations. But I'd like the freedom financially also. We have a family in our congregation who did it for years. They made it seem great! ETA: Owning a campground also sounds pretty cool. Hubby and I have looked, for a couple years, at various "couples" jobs, a way we could all be together as a family. I'd still like to do that though it may be a little tougher with our family size now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sparrow Posted March 26, 2013 Share Posted March 26, 2013 There is this awesome sounding job in MI this summer (May 15 through Sept 15) for two couples. I was thinking that between my adult children and hubby and me, we *are* two couples in terms of work. It's work 4 days, off 4 days. I just need an RV or two, hubby to have several months off work, etc :) Anyway, that is what I would want to do if I RV'd full time. I'd probably park most of the year or do half the year in each of two locations. But I'd like the freedom financially also. We have a family in our congregation who did it for years. They made it seem great! ETA: Owning a campground also sounds pretty cool. Hubby and I have looked, for a couple years, at various "couples" jobs, a way we could all be together as a family. I'd still like to do that though it may be a little tougher with our family size now. I have to say, it's not a bad way to make a living. This was my dad's baby. He bought the property the year I graduated from high school and he and my mom cleared the land themselves and built it. We took over when they retired. In general, you'll find campground people to be some of the nicest around. Most are outdoor oriented and mellow :). They are willing to help their neighbors. We had a woman pull in with her camper last summer that was staying with us for a month. She was an engineer and working on a local construction project. As she was parking, the axle broke on her truck! Within 10 minutes, one of our seasonal campers had made arrangements with her to borrow his car the next day to get to the construction site. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
melissad2 Posted March 26, 2013 Share Posted March 26, 2013 In SC you can work at the various state owned campgrounds in exchange for a site while you are there. It is about 20 hrs work per week, I think that it would be great for a retired couple who just wanted to enjoy the great outdoors! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rident_Mama Posted March 26, 2013 Share Posted March 26, 2013 We've "full-timed" it 8-10 months of the year for the past three years. DH travels for work and we go with him. It's not a lifestyle for hoarders. The more material you can cram into electronic format, the better. Library cards are easily obtained (photo I.D. and a piece of mail with your current address, even if it is one of those yellow forwarding labels put on by the postal service). Our kids love it. New places, new sights to see and cultures to experience, new people to meet. It's an education all in itself at times! Certainly a life lesson in learning to not yell at each other (RV walls are thin, you should automatically assume that anyone nearby can and will hear you), to being patient and resourceful; and propane seems to consistently run out in the middle of the night when the arctic wind is blowing. :) Thankfully, we are more snowbirds than snowmen lately. Woohoo! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ravin Posted March 26, 2013 Share Posted March 26, 2013 I want to do this. Can't convince my partners, though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JuanitaL Posted March 26, 2013 Share Posted March 26, 2013 We did this in between a military PCS. If you hate cleaning a house, and you are the outdoor type this is the ideal lifestyle. Daily housework takes 10 minutes. From my experience the smaller the home the more people will go outside. I had more private time to myself, and actually took up an old hobby. This is how we've done it also - while waiting for military housing. And then for the longest 13 weeks of my life when he retired and we were job hunting, then house hunting, waiting for our closing date. In retrospect - 13 weeks really doesn't seem that long to have such major life changes. But every single one of those days was nearly a lifetime. Our travel trailer sits in the driveway to this day, just waiting to be sold. I am so over it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mynyel Posted March 27, 2013 Author Share Posted March 27, 2013 OK so let me bring up something else. I have looked at a couple forums but haven't seen it. We are in NC. Our vehicle would be registered in NC. NC requires a safety/emissions inspection every year in order to renew registration. How, if I am in say... CA or MT or anywhere west of the Mississippi, would I get that taken care of? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest inoubliable Posted March 27, 2013 Share Posted March 27, 2013 OK so let me bring up something else. I have looked at a couple forums but haven't seen it. We are in NC. Our vehicle would be registered in NC. NC requires a safety/emissions inspection every year in order to renew registration. How, if I am in say... CA or MT or anywhere west of the Mississippi, would I get that taken care of? I *think* you just register everything in whichever state you're claiming residence. At least that's what I've figured out in looking through a ton of forums. We were going with...North Dakota? I think that's what we were thinking. A few people told us that we just register the vehicle there. I'd pick a state that didn't need emissions testing and then make a sweep "home" to the residence state to get the safety inspection. But I've probably got that all wrong. :laugh: There is a LOT of information out there. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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