Why

Several people have asked me why we're doing this.

Ok, that's a lie. No one has asked why, probably because they know my obvious and pithy answer will be "Why not?" Who wouldn't want to go on a never-ending vacation, even if that vacation does require living in a 40x8-foot box and emptying our own sewage tanks?

But there is a longer answer, and like many things in life, it largely boils down to finances.

Steve will be able to retire with his maximum benefits in about two years. We had always planned on his retiring at that point, but until recently we hadn't given much thought to what we would do.

We slowly started to realize that staying in Southern California would not be an attractive option. Don't get me wrong: We love California, and we especially adore our house. However, both require significant amounts of money.

When Steve retires, it's likely that we'd be able to stay in our house, but even with his pension, one or both of us would have to get a job to do so. We could do that, but we want to be able to spend as much time as possible with the kids, especially while they still like us.

We could, of course, move to a permanent house in another part of the country with lower housing prices and property taxes. In fact, for a while our plan was to do just that. We enjoyed some vacations in Prescott, AZ, and thought that would be a great option. As we thought more about it, though, we weren't completely satisfied with that solution. Was it really a good idea to pick a new city based on a few days spent there on vacation years ago?

Eventually the RV idea hatched itself in our minds. We figured we'd spend a year or two traveling around, and maybe in the process we'd find some places we might want to settle down. We could spend a few weeks or even a few months in a place to really get a feel for it. If we don't like it, or just want a change, we can keep moving.

That comes with the obvious benefits of being able to expose the kids (and ourselves) to all sorts of different people, places, and things. What better way to supplement the kids' education than by experiencing history, geography, even science, up close? Needless to say, the history nerd in me is giddy with anticipation.

Although maintaining a full-time RV lifestyle comes with unique expenses (nightly camping fees, for example), the overall costs will be significantly less than paying on a 6-figure mortgage and all its accoutrements. Whatever we save can be banked for when--and if--we decide to settle down.

Astute readers will remember that I said Steve will reach his maximum benefits in two years. Why, then, are we doing this sooner? Well, I have never exactly been known for my patience, and Steve is really looking forward to just being done. Elias is also rather resistant to change, so we hope that the younger he is, the more pliable he will be. Ultimately, we are willing to sacrifice a little bit of money for the extra time it will buy us.

I plan on answering lots of other questions here over the next few weeks, but if you have any specifics, feel free to ask! We look forward to sharing our journey with all of you!