Full-Time RVing with Kids?

TheColoradoan wrote:
Hello! My wife and I have decided to make the plunge... Full time RVing w/ kids... :) We have two little ones and took a 'test run' this summer where we hit the road for two months and fell in love with traveling around the United States sightseeing, and family we typically wouldn't see. I know there's been post about this before but I'm looking to connect with any other families who do this to get some pointers...

We're planning on heading out early October -- heading south for some warmer weather. :)

Hey,

I saw your post and thought I would respond. We are a full time camping family with two children ages 12 & 10. Please look at our story through our website at therubelfamilyadventure.com

TheColoradoan wrote:
Hello all, I was away on a nice 4th of July camping excursion.

Here's my situation and why I think right now is the perfect time to do this...

Last year I sold my business. I started a new business that is internet based and focused on recreational travel (perfect fit.) We have health insurance that covers us and the kids in all 50 states.

I believe, if you have the opportunity to do it and all of the stars have aligned (which they have so far for us) then do it, otherwise you might not otherwise get the chance and as my 3 year old says, that'd be a bummer!

We purchased a 300BHSL Kodiak which has turned out to be a really fantastic trailer for our family. Two separate rooms, 3 slide outs and a massive kitchen make living from the road a bit easier and more enjoyable.

Go for it! I totally agree. If you've got the time and the money and the health insurance, you need to go while you've got this opportunity. We never know what the future holds. I'm a big believer is jumping at adventure when it presents itself.

It sounds like the fates have aligned.

Do it

Hello all, I was away on a nice 4th of July camping excursion.

Here's my situation and why I think right now is the perfect time to do this...

Last year I sold my business. I started a new business that is internet based and focused on recreational travel (perfect fit.) We have health insurance that covers us and the kids in all 50 states.

I believe, if you have the opportunity to do it and all of the stars have aligned (which they have so far for us) then do it, otherwise you might not otherwise get the chance and as my 3 year old says, that'd be a bummer!

We purchased a 300BHSL Kodiak which has turned out to be a really fantastic trailer for our family. Two separate rooms, 3 slide outs and a massive kitchen make living from the road a bit easier and more enjoyable.

Chock Full o' Nuts wrote:


I felt this way, too, when I was in middle school and high school. Kids that are younger than school age probably won't care as long as they're with their parents. Much as I've wanted to go FT, we didn't do it when the kids were in HS. Matter of fact, I had a rule--wherever we are when they hit 14 is where we stay until graduation.We moved a lot in our early days, but it worked out that we stayed in one place since 1992. I homeschooled my kids through middle school, and one in HS off and on due to learning difficulties. Being part of their school activities was very important to my kids in HS and I really didn't mind making sacrifices for them to do that. But in their elementary days, we traveled a lot during the school year because our days were pretty flexible.

OP, I don't know why you can't do this. If you have healthcare insurance in place, I see no reason not to pull up your stakes and go on caravan.

I agree mostly with this statement... However, I had some really good friends from K-6 that I wish I still had.. Before school age, no problem.. I couldn't tell from the original post how old, nor how long they would be travelling.

Each person is different :D, and it could be that I just wanted what I didn't have. Isn't it always that way?

Wishbone51 wrote:
I don't really have any input that you're looking for, but as a kid, I moved around a lot. Looking back on my childhood, I wish that I was able to say "I've been friends with him since kindergarten." I was always the "new guy" in school, never really had any long term friends.. I've provided this stability for my kids. I wouldn't mind taking them on an extended vacation (did a 5-week, cross country last year), but not indefinitely, without a permanent location to call home.

Just my 2 cents.

I felt this way, too, when I was in middle school and high school. Kids that are younger than school age probably won't care as long as they're with their parents. Much as I've wanted to go FT, we didn't do it when the kids were in HS. Matter of fact, I had a rule--wherever we are when they hit 14 is where we stay until graduation.We moved a lot in our early days, but it worked out that we stayed in one place since 1992. I homeschooled my kids through middle school, and one in HS off and on due to learning difficulties. Being part of their school activities was very important to my kids in HS and I really didn't mind making sacrifices for them to do that. But in their elementary days, we traveled a lot during the school year because our days were pretty flexible.

OP, I don't know why you can't do this. If you have healthcare insurance in place, I see no reason not to pull up your stakes and go on caravan.

http://www.familiesontheroad.com/

For my work, I work full time from home. We've talked about homeschooling daughter for a year while we tour the country. Our son is only 1 now, so he'd still be pretty little. I'd continue to work full time and hopefully finagle a compressed work week (4x10s with each Monday off for moving the camper by 200 miles).

For us, our intention is to move houses anyway - we were thinking of timing it so that we sold our house, put everything into storage, traveled for the year, then come back and stay at a campground while we found + bought a house.

Just a dream right now...

Sent You a PM

We are in our early and mid 50's, but we have two daughters, ages 6 and 9. The DH and I both retired from our jobs and receive a good retirement each month. We have camp hosted for several months and are tentatively planning to go full-time next year. (We want the youngest to really be able to read well before we go). We will home school both girls for the year and plan to hit the western national parks and be "down south" for the winter months.

It is not cheap to do, so make sure you have plenty of available funds to make a go of this unless you plan to work while traveling.

I see no reason why this won't work for you with some pre-planning.

Have a great time.