Year Three

When we started, we thought we'd be done by now. Our original plan was to travel the country for at least a year, perhaps two, maybe as long as three.

Yes, it's been that long!

That fateful day, July 7, 2009, the idea of living on the road for three whole years seemed pretty extreme. By then we were sure we would have seen it all. We were certain we'd have found a place we'd rather be and other things we'd rather be doing. This crazy idea of living fulltime in a small box on wheels couldn't possibly keep us entertained for more than three years.

We got that wrong!

In the three years since we left the last place we called home, we've traveled 29,323 miles and parked our moose in 147 spots in 35 states of just one country.

We haven't seen it all. Far from it.

And, where would we rather be? We don't know! We think it might be a smallish college-town somewhere west of the Mississippi someday. We'll know it when we find it. But, for now, the place we park our moose is the best place for us to be.

What would we rather be doing?

I'm still amazed that I haven't "worked" in three years and I'm still a fully functioning human being. For a couple of recovering workaholics, we have adapted quite well. For what would we trade exploring our country while we hike, bike, geocache and meet wonderful people?

We don't know.

And, what's the entertainment factor these days living in this box on wheels?

Year Three has been particularly challenging for our moose. It ended as it started, with a problematic heat pump. In between, we dealt with big problems with our refrigerator and ceiling, and pesky maladies with our satellite radio, TV antenna motor and sleep number bed. Add in regularly scheduled maintenance and it seemed like we spent much of our energy this year on Bullwinkle's care and feeding. Our fingers are crossed that next week we'll get the heat pump taken care of and our moose will be ready to roll for a trouble-free year.

While these troubles have tested our patience, our sense of adventure (and humor) remains intact. And, it's all still pretty darn entertaining.

These first three years have exceeded our expectations. We've had the great privilege of seeing amazing sights, meeting interesting people, reconnecting with family and old friends, making new ones, learning lots and dealing with the highs and lows of life on the road. And, we're not done.

Today, we start Year Four. We didn't think we'd be here. But, we're sure glad we are.