The Decision - Full-time RV Life

Going from traditional living to life on the road

When people learn that we are full-time Rvers, there are always two questions. The first, "do you love it?," is always answered in the affirmative. The second question requires a little more explanation.

"Why Did You Decide to Do That?"

In May 2021, a long-brewing cacophony of events came together in a moment that changed the trajectory of our empty-nest life. There were rumblings on several fronts, that eventually pointed, without question, to this decision. And since, we'd dreamed off and on about this nomad life for over 10 years, we were completely open to it. Things ultimately unfolded in two steps: 1) Let's sell our house and change where we live 2) Let's be nomads for an indefinite period of time.

Baltimore or bust

Since 2019, Randy has digitally created over 70 murals which have been installed up and down the East coast. Neither of us had ever spent much time east of Kentucky and only via flights in and out of specific cities. It seemed appropriate and important for Randy to visit some of these mural installations in person. With family in the Baltimore area, and multiple installations, it seemed the logical destination. So we booked ourselves two weeks on the road, loaded up the RV and off we went. As we moved through new territory in Indiana, Ohio, Pennsylvania, West Virgina, Maryland, and Washington D.C. we became enamored of the eastern US. By the time we hit Kansas City, on the way home, we began seriously considering selling our house and making a change. By the time we reached our Colorado home, the decision to put the house on the market was made.

Though beautiful and varied, there was more than the scenery that led to our decision. Namely health, shifts in perspective brought on by witnessing the loss of loved ones and the pandemic/pandemic-responses. We saw an opportunity to live a richer, fuller life by living at a lower altitude and exploring different communities and ways of working.

From Scouts to Nomads

As we rolled away from Glenwood Springs, Colorado in November 2021, we set off on a carefully constructed trip to explore places we may want to make our new home. The primary factor was low altitude to accommodate my hypoxia/dyspnea diagnosis and moderate climate to keep us both out of the snow and Randy out of the humidity. We had spent countless hours looking at homes online, community demographics, livability factors and more. We found THE PERFECT home for sale at a favorite spot in Florida and missed it by a day to another cash buyer. Perhaps that was for the best. By February 2022, we decided that we wanted to remain nomads indefinitely and let go of home-shopping for the time being. We turned our attention to finding a replacement for our beloved 1999 Class C that had served us well over the years but just didn't accommodate both of us working or hauling our toys the way we wanted. By March a new-to-us 2014 Class A was purchased and by April we made the switch. Luckily, our beloved Class C stayed in the family, with my sister and brother-in-law who are now considering taking their show on the road someday soon.

Settling In

Now with our Class A (Newmar Canyon Star 3921,) that affords plenty of room for us (and two dogs) to live and work, haul a car, a motorcycle and other miscellaneous toys we are settling into this new life of ours. We sleep well at night, knowing we made a great decision for us.