Tonight, the simple amount of $50.60 cents has changed our lives and sent us to a point of no return.
A simple ad that readsΒ somethingΒ like this:
MOVING SALE:Β
furn, tools,toys, camping,reptile, etc, 26&27Jan 8am
Just like that with a few strokes of the keypad, and an online payment and our lives are on sale!
I guess the most common question we get about selling up our lives to travel is “What will you do with all your stuff”?
Our answer is generally just a simple “We’re selling it all”. We’ve answered that question what feels like hundreds of times in the past year, and the answer seems so clear cut and simple.
There’s not much emotion behind it, and perhaps there’s even a relief in knowing that we’ll be rid of all the things that seem to weigh us down, and free to explore this amazing country and embrace our children as they grow so fast before our eyes. Other people seem so much more concerned with us selling everything than we are ourselves.
But now, it feels real.
Now, there’s no going back. On the 26th January, people are going to be knocking at our door, rummaging through our belongings and walking away with a part of our lives that we’ll never see again.
There’s something about this experience that’s leaving me feeling very vulnerable, but excited all at the same time.
Of course we’ll be keeping photographs and highly sentimental things that are impossible to replace, Β and my brother is storing those in plastic boxes in his garage. The rest, it will go.
If it doesn’t fit into our caravan or car for the trip, we just can’t keep it. It’s that simple.
I have to acknowledge that this will be somewhat difficult on us, and on the kids, as I’ve written before but I just know the result, and the life we’ll be living for the next couple of years is going to outweigh the vulnerability we’re all facing right now, I just know it!
We’ve already moved a load of things to my brother’s house. Mostly things he wanted, along with our boat and boat trailer, but this week, I’ll be sorting everything we own into boxes and piles of saleable items ready to say goodbye to this coming weekend!
Inspiring! Good luck with the sale.
Thanks Tricia! I’m going to need it lol x
Hi Guys,
Good luck with it all, we are in the process of it all ourselves right now too so we know exactly how you feel! We are down to the little nic nack stuff left. It is all worth it in the end! See you on the road soon!
Thanks for stopping by guys! It’s such an interesting process to go through isn’t it! Definitely not for the faint hearted lol, but when you’ve got a dream you just need to do what it takes to get there. Can’t wait to catch up on the road and celebrate surviving the cull π
Do u work aswell or just live off the house money. My worry is why do I come back to. How do I buy a house when I get back . Is it better to just rent the house out? But yeah u would have to work to be able to keep traveling
Hi Renee, We didn’t own a home before we left. We earned money via my freelance work online, our travel blog and Matt doing haircuts etc as we travelled in return for dog sitting etc. Lots of people stop for a month or a few and pick up work and then travel again once they stop working. We’re only just saving for a house now we’ve settled back down again, and still wouldn’t change having sold up everything to travel. It was the best decision we ever made!
That’s exactly where we are up to also, its a difficult thing knowing what to keep & what to get rid of, but like you said “if it can’t fit in the caravan”. & it is a bit daunting knowing that “this is it”. Hopefully we will catch up with you on the road also.
I have no doubt we’ll meet you all on the road, the joy of an open ended trip is we don’t have to rush through it and can stop and meet with whoever we like π Now THAT part is exciting and makes this all worth it doesn’t it!! Good luck with it all, at least thanks to the internet we know there are other people out there just as crazy as we are, and we can celebrate our achievements together!!! π x
WOW! Congratulations on taking the step to freedom.
One day we would love to do the same, it’s not a should, it’s a must. My wife would love to sell up everything and hit the road for as long as it takes and wherever it takes us. My wife and myself will be watching your website and FB all the time to see how things are going. We have 3 children aswell, aged 6.5yrs, 4.5yrs and 18 months.
I’m sure it will be an amazing feeling to know that you don’t have “stuff” weighing you down.
I also hope that this website will make you enough passive income so that you don’t have to work if you don’t want to.
All the best,
Nathan.
Thanks so much Nathan! It took me a while to convince Matt, but finally got my way LOL π Luckily for me my income comes from writing and online work, and we’re aiming to be as self sufficient as possible with solar etc so that will help keep costs down. Slow travelling and free/budget camping will be the goal, so no need to have lots of money to move quickly, and as you’d know, keeping 3 kids, a house, a business etc is a lot of hard work and costs money, so it will be a relief just to simplify things.
There’s so much travel we’ve done already that hasn’t made it to the site, just because of the time taken up in keeping the books/staff/running of Matt’s business, then the kids schooling and my work etc, so once we hit the road we’ll have so much historical travel to write about as well as what we’re currently up to it should keep my fingers busy for a while! We’ve been lucky enough to talk to some great brands about working with them as well so that will help I hope.
You should definitely listen to your wife π As exciting as it is, I am sure I’ll shed a tear as we leave Wauchope, my kids were all born in Port so it’s like leaving a little piece of ourselves behind, but we still have family here so we’ll be back to visit often enough. I hope we can inspire you to join us on the road π
I thought you lived at Wauchope. We were only at Bago Winery last weekend. We live just north of you guys at Fredo π This is a beautiful part of the world, but there is so much out there in Australia to see and do.
Oh did they have something on at Bago? We took the kids to the maze there, have to blog on here about it yet, it’s gorgeous there! Our families are both in Kempsey, we both went to high school there (don’t admit that often haha), then lived a few places before coming back to have the kids in Port and have been here since. Moved to Wauchope to start the business and escape the chaos of Port ;). It’s definitely is a gorgeous part of the country, but you’re right, there’s lots to see and do and plenty of other spectacular parts of the country to experience!
They just had a local Kempsey band “Cedar Creek” playing. It is an amazing place to take the kiddies, they loved the maze, even despite the heat π It was our first time there and I’m sure we will be back there for more lazy Sunday’s for Jazz in the Vineyards.
Eeek I remember all those sales to get rid of our crap!! Exciting but exhausting at the same time! You’re very right that other people care more about you getting rid of your stuff than you do! My only bit of advice – be ruthless. If you think you want to keep something check again the next day – most times you won’t really miss it. Be ruthless I tell ya!!!
WOW !!! Thats us too. We are going from a 6 bedroom, 3 bathroom, 2 loungeroom house to a 36ft bus. Im selling a lot through facebook buy and sell pages and doing great. So far we have been able to put a new kitchen, bathroom and lots of other renovations on the bus with all the money I have raised by selling off our ‘treasures’. We will do like you and store photographs etc in bxes at nannas. Please feel free to join our facebook mage and watch our progress. https://www.facebook.com/chris.Beard.758
It’s such an interesting process to go through isn’t Chris! Will join you over on facebook and hopefully catch you guys on the road. I’m so grateful for the internet and facebook, it means we’ve already connected with some amazing families doing the same thing, and I’m always surprised but excited about the number of families taking a chance to do something amazing together, there seems to be a growing number π
I have to be honest I would’ve hired a storage shed. Photos just wouldn’t have been able to replace some of our things. And when I came home I think your would be able to sell or donate more things because the emotion would be less. Goodluck with your sale – such an exciting journey awaits.
Thanks for linking up with #TUST
Annaleis – Blogs and PR Team
I admire you for taking this brave step. Could I do it? Probably not but I love those who can and do possess that determination and vision to have the experiences you will have without all that “stuff” we collect.
Look forward to hearing more.
Thanks Annie π It’s been a long time in the “dreaming” and it still doesn’t feel real yet, even though we’re full steam ahead toward leaving, especially now the shop has hit contract stage! I keep thinking to myself “are we really doing this, we’re crazy!” LOL π
Oh Loreena I am jealous, can’t wait to follow along with your travels. My uncle and aunt bought a bus and did Australia when I was younger and it was an amazing experience for them.
I feel for you on the sale though, when we moved back from England we shipped a 1m cube home (mostly wedding gifts , sentimental things & some clothes) and sold the rest of our lives. It’s such a weird feeling. I hope everything sold for you quickly and without too much fuss.
Thanks Kyla. It is a weird feeling isn’t it! We were cracking up laughing last night that we have 2 weeks left as owners of the shop and we’ve still done so little toward getting rid of all our stuff, although we’ll still be here for another few weeks after the shop sells we do need to get things happening! Thanks so much for visiting x
Hey guys,
sounds so awsome, as you know we are in the same boat. just gota get rid of the shop,
fingers crossed will see the contract signed very very soon.
getting very very itchy feet, so much to see and do.
Im loving looking around your website its geting even more keen to leave.
Happy days
Ben and Erina ,Chloe
π π
I couldn’t believe it when Matt said you guys were so close to heading off too! It’s exciting and driving us to new levels of insanity all at once!!! π How awesome we’ll be able to meet up with you guys on the road. We’re doing the cape in July as Matt’s probably told you so we’ll have to grab any tips you have before we head off. Good luck, here’s for a smooth settlement and lots of amazing adventures π
Good luck. Look forward to reading about your travels, trying to convince husband for us to do the same! UmI’m interested to read about how you plan to educate your kids on the road… (although I’m sure the most important lessons aren’t taught, they are experienced! )
This is very freeing. We have done it twice, once when we moved from Tennessee to the Virgin Islands, and then even more so after our youngest left for school and we took of traveling full time. No regrets either time.
Great Blog Loreena and family. Congrats on the time and effort put into having such great adventures with your family.
This is one adventure we are planning for the future – a drive around this great country of ours with our three boys. We will be sure to be reading your advise and tips before we make that journey.
For now we are just about a year back from a year overseas with them and still con’t believe how wonderful that was. We are all so blessed and lucky.