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The Smith family

Family of eight traveling around United States full time.

Sold home Sept 08 in Highlandville, Missouri. Headed out in truck and fifth wheel camper.

Parents: Shae and Sheri Smith. Shae is a disabled veteran, both were in the Navy. Sheri writes books and for a newspaper. Shae is a telecommunications Engineer.

Children: Cody age 18, Hanna age 16, Naomi age 9, Gabriel age 6, Josephine age 3, Tytus 1 yr

We drive two vehicles, a Dodge dually that pulls the camper and a 15 passenger van that pulls a flat bed with 4 atvs, 3 kayaks, and 7 bikes.

We travel from state to state seeing the sights, meeting great and interesting people, and doing volunteer work.

States we have been in, in the order we have been:

Missouri, Kentucky, North Carolina, Tennessee, South Carolina, Georgia, Alabama, Florida, Mississippi, Tennessee again, Missouri, Kansas, Nebraska, South Dakota, Wyoming, Montana, Washington, Oregon, California, Nevada, Arizona, New Mexico, Texas, Oklahoma, Missouri

Why we did this? We were sick of the rat race of life; always on the go, constantly tending to our “things” instead of people, spend more time as a family, teach our children a love for people and this country, a great education, see incredible sights, be debt free (which we were until we got doctor bills for the new, sweet baby we had this spring), see family, make a difference in this world.

Most common questions:

1. Are you crazy?

Well, yes. Really though, this lifestyle was not an easy decision. My husband was the first to say he wanted to travel full time. I wanted to jump on board my husband’s visions, so we started praying about it and really researching the idea. We talked to people we respect and sought their wisdom. We finally decided this is the life style for us, at this time.

2. What do you do for work?

My husband is a Telecommunications Engineer. He was in communications in the National Guard, then active duty in the Navy. He did electric after that and then installed equipment in central offices for the phone company. He tried engineering and liked it. He has been doing it ever since, from home. Many of you know he was terribly ill for 13 years, the last 5 of it being the worst. We were so thankful he didn’t have to “punch a clock”. He is healthy now and still working from home. He has a laptop and does all his work from our bedroom. He has a cell phone with Verizon. He gets good service most anywhere. His company provided him with an ATT air card for the laptop. It does ok, but usually he tries to use wireless at the campground we stay at. His job pays the bills and we have insurance, but ultimately, he would love to start a business for him and his sons; it just isn’t working out right now. He works Monday through Friday. So, we usually have to be settled down during the week and not travel until the weekends.

3. How do we all fit?

We actually have lots of bedding. Our fifth wheel has two extra long queen size bunk beds in the back. Hanna is on the top bunk and Naomi, Gabriel, and Josie sleep on the huge bottom bunk. Cody has his own area, a loft bed in the living room area. It has a curtain for privacy. Shae and I have the king size bed in the front. Little Tytus sleeps in that room with us. We have a nice shower and a separate toilet area. We have two slide outs; one is our living/dining room area and our king size bed slides out. It makes it a lot roomier. We bought a our camper new, so it is in good condition.

4. After our first year of travel, do we regret it?

No. We are thankful we made that choice, for many reasons. Shae lost his job in Oct 08, so we were glad to not have the house payment and bills. He did get hired back with a better company in January 09. We have had so many incredible experiences. It has been wonderful and wonderfully hard at the same time.

5. Where do we plan on settling down and when?

We don’t know yet. I think we will travel a while longer. We like Oregon, Marysville, Kansas, southern Missouri-where we are from, and northwest Nebraska. If we had the money, I would buy a little, old farmhouse right now, just for a home base. I would like somewhere to go back to now and then. We just don’t want to go way in debt again. So, we are not buying a home until we make some money to buy it with. We do want to keep traveling for a while no matter what.

6. What is our favorite place?

We loved our time in Florida with family. Meeting the 508 paratroopers was such a privilege. Our 4 days in Key Largo were amazing. The stars in the sky seen from the top of the mountain in the Big Horn Mountains. Hwy 2 in Nebraska was amazingly serene. The jagged mountains in Glacier National Park. Volunteering in Lusk, WY. Artist Point waterfall at Yellowstone. Waterfall in the middle of nowhere in Oregon. Visiting friends and family everywhere. Nogal Canyon, NM. Riding atvs in the Badlands of SD. Seeing grass and trees as we headed back to MO.

Shae and Sheri Smith

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