Being on the road for only nine months we've barely scratched the surface of this life style. While it would be nice if every thing worked all the time, we couldn't be happier with our decision to be full-time RVers.
I often see the question about leaving behind friends and family discussed on forums. How can we possibly just "be gone"? Aren't your children upset that you're "abandoning" them? Won't you miss your social life?
Answers to these and similar questions are different for each person. The common thread that runs through most of them is "We're living our lives."
This is true for us as well, and includes living our best, most full, lives. Our six sons all have their lives as well, and while we miss the opportunity to see them more often, the reality is that when we're in the old home town we don't see most of them much anyway. None of the rest of our family live in that town, so we didn't leave any of them behind.
Instead, we feel like they're all now in front of us - all in places where we can go see them and spend as much time as we want. Like our time with Mom and Aunt Nancy in Roswell this month.
We don't miss a social life that we didn't have. Not unlike our initial life on the road, we spent 90% of our time with just each other.
The first five months we traveled for places. Just the two of us seeing beautiful, amazing locations. There were a few days with son Jeff in Seattle and time in Spokane with Bill's best friend, but until the end of September, the two of us mostly played all day and retired to our home for the evening.
Every day was filled with the wow of vistas we could only imagine before. We have had so much fun with places!
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| The beauty of Fort Bragg, CA |
We still see amazing places, spend our days playing in fantastic spots, but looking back, that was a big turning point in the focus of our travels. As I started planning our winter route, the destinations included a lot more people as well as new, fun places.
A month back home for Nick and Jillian's wedding, special time with our new grandbaby Ezra, Thanksgiving with 85% of our immediate family, lunch with my buddy Laura, and dinner with daughter Megan and her hubby Chris. Wow - November was a big people month!
Our winter travels have confirmed that this life (for us) is much more social than our stationary one. All destinations but one (Organ Pipe National Monument) have included seeing old and/or new friends.
BBQs, desert runs, camp fires, a friend's granddaughter's birthday party, pot lucks, happy hours, meeting fellow bloggers, family joining us at our location, and mooch-docking at friends' homes - we have had so much fun with people!
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| The joy of friends in the desert! |
A very full life!
It is indeed a very full life. Glad you feel you made the right decision and you're enjoying what you've chosen to do!
ReplyDeleteAll we thought it would be - and lots of big surprises too!
DeleteWell said!
ReplyDeleteThanks :-) I know we're not alone in feeling this way!
DeleteSounds like just about the same things we did. We still chart out course for the "places" but realize there is so much more, or less, to do with our days. We too had fewer friends at the house. We knew a lot of people. We attended group activities, but couple and couple get togethers were infrequent. Now we seem to meet people at campgrounds and have nice evenings with them. Facebook and the internet has replaced phone calls and the back fence. Our adult daughter never lived in town either. I do love this life.
ReplyDeleteLove the FB is the new back fence - great! And what a great big fence it is :-) I just never thought about travel as "visiting" until now.
DeleteIn this lifestyle we are the most social we've ever been. Sometimes it get overwhelming, but mostly it's a lot of fun. We've even rearranged travel plans to meet us with folks and have had the best time!
ReplyDeleteIt's nuts that being nomadic would also be social - especially with new people, strangers until we meet, then great friends.
DeleteI've been amazed at how many people you've seen in your time on the road. You always seem to be getting together with someone. Perhaps it's being out there in the wild west where several couples seem to travel together or meet up a lot. We've been out 6 years in April and most of our times are just the two of us with occasional meet ups with people we find are serendipitously in the same place.
ReplyDeleteI think you're right about the wild west! Not only is it where many of our old friends ended up, but also where many bloggers are this time of year. I suspect once we head north and east our gatherings will diminish.
DeleteWhat matters most is that you are enjoying your time together YOUR way. I look forward to when we move to Utah and you stop by for a visit. Hugs and love my friend. BB
ReplyDeleteAbsolutely - and our way is still growing and changing as we figure it all out :-) Yes, looking forward to that Utah visit! BB sweetie
DeleteSo happy for you!!!-----it is a great life!!!!
ReplyDeleteThanks much and enjoy that beautiful desert!
DeleteAgreed! We spend a lot of time visiting friends, family and meeting up with new and old RV friends. Much more social time than I would have imagined! We love this new life.
ReplyDeleteIt's the best in ways I never imagined!
DeleteWe are way more social now than in our working days, as well. I'm sure many of us could say "ditto" with this post:) We'll said, Jodee:)
ReplyDeleteWe are way more social now than in our working days, as well. I'm sure many of us could say "ditto" with this post:) We'll said, Jodee:)
ReplyDeleteThanks Pam, we'll always remember you guys as our "first" :-)
DeleteSame way with us. We never imagined we would meet so many people we'd become good friends with considering our nomadic lifestyle. If you're like us you will find it's nice to spend time alone once in a while though. We didn't have much of a social life when we worked and had a house, so sometimes it can get overwhelming. That's the beauty of our house on wheels!
ReplyDeleteWe definitely enjoy our alone time and I try to route us so that we have a good balance. The new people have definitely been as wonderful as old friends.
DeleteAren't you glad that more people don't get it and get in our way. It has been good for us to be able to spend time with family that live away and the new people we meet are just icing on the cake.
ReplyDeleteWith social media and the price of fuel there are already a lot of us out here!
DeleteHa ha, joining the caravan to Puerto Penasco recently made us more social than ever. But we do like our personal time as well. But as your title said, Its a wonder full life!
ReplyDeleteI've wondered about caravans for Alaska although our travel days are usually much shorter than most others. Other RVers tend to be so much fun but we always enjoy our alone time.
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