The NEW Coast-Family Adventure

Where do I start? So much to put down, and at the same time that’s kinda the point. I’ve lived a pretty incredible life in only 35 years.  There really isn’t much I regret through it all. Learning from so-called ‘mistakes’ has always made me the man I am today. At the moment, I have a wonderful wife, 3 bright kids, and my health. I am truly blessed beyond measure.

On top of what’s most precious to me, my family, is all the other stuff. First, let me define ‘stuff’. Stuff is all those other things that you tend to acquire over the years that, in themselves are harmless, but we become attached to them. We spend so much time and money and even emotional energy on these things. We put our stuff in nice cases, build shelves for it, hang it in walk-in closets, and then when we’re tired of it, box it up and put it in the garage or attic. Once the attic is full, you rent out a storage unit and pay a monthly fee to store the stuff, or you build a shed in the backyard or buy a shipping container to continue on the process. Stuff is a lot of work, especially when you account for moths, mice, and high humidity.

Every time we move we go through stuff. We sell some, give away some, and throw away some. In time, we start to fill back up. Personally, I start to get in a funk when things are cluttered. I can’t concentrate. I’m not motivated. I’m not happy. 

All of this to say, we’re down-sizing. We are getting rid of stuff. How much stuff? My estimate is about 94%. That’s a lot of stuff, and if you need some of it, let us know. We won’t need most of this stuff, because we are also selling our house. That’s right, the farm is going on the market as well. So if you or someone you know needs a 10 acre homestead, we might have the right setup.

“What’s the deal?!” Well, a lot actually. For the last year or so my wife and I have been talking, and dreaming. (Dangerous combo) We love our house, we love where we live, and it’s home. I also have a great job. I travel internationally sharing laughs and and a message of God’s love to families. I’ve been doing this for over 12 years now, and I have no desire to stop anytime soon. However it keeps me on the road over 200 days a year. We do spend much time together as a family though. We homeschool, and we travel together as we can, but we deal with it. 

The hardest part for me is to keep up with my house on my ‘off’ days. It’s either I have the time or money to do a project, but never both at the same time! If you own a home, you know what I’m talking about. It just never seems to stop. So, I’m only home maybe half the year and working on it, either repairs or improvements, and I don’t feel like I enjoy it as much. “So what’s the plan?”, you ask…

DOWN-SIZE EVERYTHING WITH EXTREME PREJUDICE

Sell our stuff, sell our house, and go mobile!  Sounds so simple, doesn't it? Well before you think this all sounds too radical, it seems to make nothing but sense to us. Here’s why:
My Job is global.  I can base out of pretty much anywhere and fly whenever it’s more convenient than driving.
My family loves to travel.  This is all they have ever known, and they want to see more and more.  The kids are 6, 9, and 12 so whatever we see now they’re going to remember.
We already home-school.  We have been for the last 5 years, and love it.
No Mortgage.  Living mobile isn’t free by any means, but I’m tired of the mortgage and the upkeep. There’s only 25 more years till payoff…”only.” As much as we love this house, we all agree we don’t have to have it.
We can always come back.  That’s right. We can always come back home, buy another house and more stuff. That’s not hard at all.

Most American-Dreams follow the ‘work and pay off your house THEN travel without kids.’  We are choosing the ‘travel NOW with the kids while we have a great opportunity and pay cash for a house later if we really want one.’ At least that’s the idea ;)

As of now, the plan is to buy an RV fit for the full-timing lifestyle of a family and base out of one place for 6 months out of the year. I can fly in and out like I do now and save money by staying put. The other 6 months we travel, wherever we want. We can work gigs in and out as we need to, but no pressure.

We have a lot of friends and family, and it’s hard to go let everyone know what’s going on. So here it is, in a blog.

Right now we are heading into Summer, and it’s nothing but camps until mid-August. So for now, we are slowly down-sizing. We will be advertising stuff to sell on Facebook, so stay tuned! This Fall we will be getting the house ready to sell. Once the house sells, we’ll see what happens, but the NEW Coast-Family Adventure begins! And that’s all that matters. YOLO, baby!