FULL-TIME FAMILIES
When I was eight years old, my parents took me and my sisters (then aged 10 and three) out of school, and we trundled around Australia for four months, towing a Jayco Songbird behind us.
Memories from the rest of my childhood all blur together—school classes, sports, friendships—but everything that happened on that trip around the giant, desert-filled country where I was born is arranged into distinct recollections of the various places we went. We climbed mountains, swam in thermal springs with turtles, discovered Indigenous culture in the desert, and paddled in gorges with freshwater crocodiles. Colors appeared that I hadn’t seen before—the red dirt of the Australian desert, the ridiculous clear blue of the Indian Ocean. I spent long days in the car, on the beach and in the forest with my family, learning about my sisters and connecting with my parents. That adventure shaped my life completely—it’s why I love to travel, why I am so curious about other cultures, and why I have such a solid, loving relationship with my family. It’s the best thing that we could have done together.
Around America, families are embracing the RV and road lifestyle, and not just for a weekend or a month here and there. A growing number of families live on the road full-time, homeschooling their kids, experiencing the world together, and creating memories that will never fade.
I spoke with three families whose lives happen under small roofs, and on four wheels. Here are their stories, in their words.
The Mayes
The Mayes family—parents Gabriel and Debbie, and children Gracen (10), Darby (7), Deacon (6) and Jovey (2)— live in a 2000 Thomas high-top converted school bus. Their
