After 2 weeks of knowing each other he told me he was going to marry me. I didn’t even know what to think but I knew it was something special.

We traveled together in Thailand for a month, took a 2 month road trip in our RV Dolly with our cat Gibson, and ultimately settled into a small cabin on the lake and life in Northern Michigan.

But like any dreamer, and dreamers we are, we felt this urge to go. To travel and see the world and get lost on adventures.

That’s when we met vanlife. Or rather, vanlife met us. We couldn’t get enough. Well, I couldn’t get enough. Scott was harder to convince but he it soon became a dream for him too. And instead of saying someday we said let’s make it happen.

In November, 2020 we bought a 2014 Ram Promaster cargo van. An empty shell filled with opportunity. We are currently converting it to make it our tiny home on wheels.

You can imagine the frustrations, the things, we’ve learned, and the victories we’ve had as we basically build our home. It’s brought us joy and headaches and mostly I feel free when I’m in our van. Complete freedom.

While we are building out our van in stages and living in it part-time, we are also living on Mackinac Island in Michigan. If you’re not familiar with Mackinac Island (Don’t worry, I wasn’t either) it’s a place stuck in time. Vehicles are banned on the Island, there is a revolutionary era Fort in the middle of town, and everything is a bit slower. Transportation consists of walking, bicycles, or using a horse-drawn carriage. IT is beautiful and magical and a place like nowhere else in the world.

The irony of living on an Island with no vehicles and living in our vehicle when we visit the mainland is not lost on us. We smile and shake our heads and wonder how we got to where we are.

I’ve tried out this blog a few times before. I must admit, I get in my own head. What am I doing? Do people care? I should write this and this and this. More, more more! No. I’m done with that.  I just want to do as Mary Oliver says. Pay attention. Be astonished. Tell about it.

Thank you for being here as I do just that. Tell about this life.

On this blog you’ll find stories of slow living. Travel. Being present. New projects we’re trying. Life’s magic and moments. The things I’m learning along the way. I also enjoy passive income and finding ways to make money online. I have an entrepreneurship degree and have always been into brainstorming the next best thing. To help others see our journey in making a living through the online world and to document it for myself, I will have monthly income reports. We also share our vanlife, travel, and conservation adventures on our YouTube channel.

But mostly, I want this to be a space where I can write freely, openly, and not care. Of course I care, but I don’t want it to keep me from writing. I want to write for me. For you. To be a shining light for someone who needs it.

Thank you for being here. It means more than you’ll ever know. 

Cheers to a life lived boldly, fully, and with intention.

-Steph