Reflections from 4 months on the road

We are just over the four month mark, which also means that we are past the half way point in our adventure. Time has flown by and I can’t believe that we are already plotting out what the path homeward looks like.

There are so many things that I have loved about the past few months, along with a decent amount of learnings and “hmm…” thoughts.

What I have loved so far:

• The simple things like our breakfast routine – it’s simple, consistent and leaves me smiling every day
• The quirky conversations that come about when Hunter and I are doing school work – I am amazed every day with the thoughts that flow through his head and, although often not related to the topic at hand, these are some of our best conversations. They also bring a lot of smiles & giggles.
• Living in a small space allows me to witness to Hunter’s down time. He is happiest playing in a quiet corner with lego, playmobil and trucks. The imagination and play by play conversations between characters that are happening blow me away. Right now he’s sitting up on the bed, having laid out a full lego war scenario, while I sit at the kitchen table writing.
• As much fun as it was to visit family over the holidays, and to have space to spread out, I love the simplicity and stability of our life in the camper (or “the bubble” as I lovingly call it, where everything else exists outside our bubble).
• Experiencing the diversity of people and places as part of our journey

Some general thoughts, observations and learnings:

• The hardest changes to deal with are the little things – different grocery store layouts & brands, finding places to get your hair cut, a massage or aesthetics done. The magical internet and sites like YELP certainly help. Patience and flexibility also help a lot.
• Buying National Park passes (US and Canadian) are bargains. We have paid for them a number of times over.
• Good internet connectivity is harder to find than you think. It also plays a critical role in staying connected with friends and family and is more central than I had anticipated.
• The only things I really miss from home are my bathtub (oh, to have a long soak with a glass of wine and a good book!) and my friends. Tim misses his workshop and Hunter misses his BFF.
• When picking campgrounds, I spend more time reading review sites than the actual campground website. I am grateful to all the people that share their thoughts on YELP, Trip Advisor and RVparkreviews.com. We have had very few poor campground experiences BUT it does take a lot of research time on my part
• Roadtrips are amazing things for bringing school to life. Our last 10 days in St. Augustine, Savannah and Charleston have really solidified Hunter’s American History learning and brought history and geography to life
• When 3 people live together in a 100 square feet, privacy is pretty hard to come by. Intimacy is like being 18 and living in your parent’s house – creativity is a must…
• Interstates are interstates and highly interchangeable – you rarely see anything great. They are however very good for speeding up travel time.
• Diesel pumps at gas stations are not as common as you would think, especially in California and Florida.  Diesel prices are highest in Southern Florida and cheapest in central Texas.

I’m excited to see what the next few months bring our way!