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My A to Z Travels

On January 23rd, 2012 / Family Travel / 1 Comment

Las Galeras, Dominican Republic 2009

A: Age you went on your first international trip: I traveled to Tijuana, Mexico for the first time when I was 19 or 20. But that doesn’t really count. My husband and I traveled to Playa del Carmen, Mexico for a second honeymoon while I was pregnant with our fourth child. It was the trip that sparked our move to Costa Rica – we drove there from the United States.

B: Best (foreign) beer you’ve had and where: Don’t drink beer, sorry

C: Cuisine (favorite): I love Latin food – pretty much all of it. Some of my favorites have been Costa Rica’s Caribbean side Ricenbeans – a rice and bean dish with chicken, cooked in coconut milk.

8 Months on the Road: What it Costs, How Far We’ve Driven

On January 7th, 2012 / Alaska to Argentina, Financing / 4 Comments

Palenque, Chiapas, Mexico

It was April 26, 2011 when we left Homer, Alaska to begin our Epic Expedition – a road trip from Alaska to Argentina.

It’s been just about eight months on the road. How much has it cost us and how far have we driven?

Here’s the breakdown:

Home-less for Christmas

On December 25th, 2011 / Alaska to Argentina, Mexico, Travel Tips / 7 Comments

After a series of misfortunate events (which have yet to be told here) – a fender bender; stranded; dead battery; oil leak; inoperable vehicle; invasion of ants; attack of invisible biting insects; delayed bank transfers; flying clothes on the freeway; broken roof top tent; inoperable stove; stolen camera (hence the lack of pictures in this post, except for the one above snagged from Flickr); lack of showering and cleanliness, and countless other minor irritations associated with life in a Ford F250, the result was stress; little sleep; back ache; a sore neck and sickness.

As a result, the only thing I really wanted for Christmas was to be in a house.

I was exhausted. Mentally, physically, emotionally and spiritually. I was tired in both body and brain.

Christmas is Coming… What Do We Give on the Road?

On December 1st, 2011 / Alaska to Argentina, How To's / 31 Comments

Christmas at Grandma’s in Alaska, 2010

One question that people often ask us in regards to our simplified life on the road is “What do you give your kids for birthdays or Christmas?”

They realize that we have limited space on our truck (about 321 things), that is all organized with a place for everything (and everything in its place), so naturally they’re curious about whether we add to it or not during those traditional gift giving occasions.

Our personal lives have swung from one side of the pendulum to the other. In the past, we were big consumers. We lived in large houses, drove fancy cars and bought lots of things.

I Poop My Pants (Yes, Really)…And It’s the Breaking Point

On November 19th, 2011 / Alaska to Argentina, Mexico, Travel Tips / 15 Comments

Perhaps it was due to the cramped, insanity producing quarters and sweltering heat.

Maybe it was one too many mosquito bites, the filthy conditions of our truck, the A/C that wasn’t working in stifling temperatures, too little sleep due to a fussy baby all night, or stress over inadequate work time, and feeling that it would be so much easier to just ‘be a mom.’

Whatever it was, I was ornery.

I’m SO Glad We’re Not One of THOSE Travelers…Anymore

On November 12th, 2011 / Alaska to Argentina, Mexico, Travel Tips / 5 Comments

On of the most difficult challenges of our trip is deciding what not to see. Even with our plan to take up to 3 years for this expedition, we still can’t see everything. There’s just too much!

Already in Mexico we’d missed out on some great sites that we wanted to explore – like the city of Gunajuato.

But we’d also seen some incredible places that we hadn’t originally planned on either – like Patzcuaro and Morelia.

You’ve Got to…Know When to Walk Away, Know When to Run

On November 8th, 2011 / Alaska to Argentina, How To's, Mexico / 8 Comments

There’s an old Kenny Rogers song, The Gambler, that my dearly departed dad used to listen to. It went something like this:

You’ve got to know when to hold them, know when to fold them, know when to walk away, know when to run.

You never count your cards, while you’re sittin’ at the table, they’ll be time enough for countin’, when the dealin’s done.”

Sometimes things just don’t go as planned. This might be due to unrealistic expectations, inaccurate information, or from simply pushing your limits.

Travel is a constant game of adaptation – adapting to a change in plans, a change in location, a change of circumstances.

If You Didn’t Wake Up This Morning PUMPED, Something’s Gotta Change! Here’s How.

On November 5th, 2011 / Financing, Why / Leave a comment

In the end, it’s not the years in your life that count. It’s the life in your years.” - Abraham Lincoln

Have you ever woken up in the morning and actually dreaded that you had to start a new day? Whatever you had going on – job, duties or other obligations – you were not excited about facing.

I remember one particularly difficult time in our lives, that the moment I reached consciousness, I felt physically ill. Rather than the peaceful escape that sleep provided, I was awake and forced to face ‘my life’.

Life’s too short to feel that way on a regular basis.

Instead, when our ‘opportunity clock’ goes off, we should leap out of bed, enthused about the work we get to do, grateful for the people we get to spend time with, and excited about what life has to offer us.

The reality is – this won’t happen on accident. It’s not ‘default mode’ for most of us.

It’s something we’ve got to deliberately plan and intentionally execute. It take planning, execution and persistence.

But it is possible.

You can live a life that you’re excited about living. You can do work that you love to do, that you’re good at doing, and that you’re paid well for.

Through all our travels and our adventures, the one message we really hope to share with you is that life is meant to be awesome.

Don’t look at us and live vicariously. Instead, do something to make your life amazing too. Take action so that you’re the ones your friends envy and say, “Wow, you’re so lucky. I wish I could do that.”

And secretly inside you’ll say, “You can, if you really want it.”

It’s absolutely possible to get paid to do work you love to do. It’s absolutely possible to travel the world, live free from a job, and do anything else you really want to do.

We sincerely want this for you. Because it makes life meaningful. It makes life amazing. And that’s how it should be.

We really encourage you to check out the following life changing programs.

Yes, you will need to spend money, but isn’t it time to spend your money on something that will change your life? If you need to, cancel the cable. Seriously.

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There’s been times in our life that we dreaded each day. Now we wake up excited to explore some new corner of the world, spend time together as a family, and do work that we love to do.

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Live off Your Passion

We really recommend this course by Scott Dinsmore of LiveYourLegend.net about discovering your passion, and turning it into a full-time income.

Can you imagine the joy and freedom that will result from doing work you actually LOVE to do?

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4 Steps to Turning What you Love to Do Into Financing For Your Travel Dreams

On November 4th, 2011 / Financing / Leave a comment

Don’t settle for anything less than passion and profit.” – Steve Pavlina

So you’re dreaming of traveling the world and wondering how in the heck you’re going to finance your adventures?

Why not pay your travel bills by getting paid to do what you love to do?

A pipe dream, you say? Well, why? There’s people doing it everyday.

I Don’t Want to Travel If I Have to Be Sick Like This!!! Chapala, Mexico

On November 2nd, 2011 / Alaska to Argentina, Mexico, Travel Tips / 7 Comments

Sitting on the toilet, doubled over in pain, my pants around my ankles, I can hear in the dining area just outside the bathroom door, babies crying, children screaming, and chaos in general.

Between our family and that of the friends we’re staying with, there are four adults and 8 children. The adults are all feeling sick. The house is in shambles, and disorder reigns.

I think to myself – “This is travel. Glamorous, isn’t it?”