There is a lifestyle movement that has been shifting since the pandemic of 2020. The Tiny House Movement, minimalist lifestyle, and homesteading are all gaining in popularity. With hikes in the housing market and everyday items at the grocery store no wonder more and more are being pushed to live minimal. Are you curious? Thinking about joining in? Take a peek for our inside views.
If you read our Who We Are Blog, then you may already know our history. We got married in October 2013. We bought an older park model camper from a friend to setup to live in. We lived in it for seven and a half years. At first, I didn't necessarily like the idea.... in that time being in my 20s we lived in an age of bigger is better? What will everyone think? I very quickly fell in love with the old camper because we made it our home. It was our space. A huge porch, flowers, lights, ferns, a swing and just a great outdoor space made it heaven! At one point we even had a hot tub! (Tyler never liked it, however.) Life was simple. Just the two of us, some farm animals, the dogs, and our tiny home. No internet the first year. No TV for years. Just simple!
#1 Reason to Go Tiny: Minimalist Mindset
Living a minimalist mindset is a conscious choice to prioritize simplicity and intentionally in all aspects of life. Decluttering physical spaces and letting go of distractions so that you can focus on what truly matters. It's about quality over quantity. Stop worrying about what your peers may think. It's such a marketing scheme to need the newest and latest item. Whether it's the latest gadget, newest vehicle, latest gaming system, lots of name brand clothes, or toys for your kids. Guess what? You don't need it! They don't need it! Our son Beckham lived in the camper til he was 1.5 years old. We learned you really don't need much. We had simple toys, books, his pack and play, and most items were compact like highchair or swing. I stored diapers under the bed and came up with creative storage. Life was simple. We enjoyed our yard and big porch. We enjoy each other's company and quality family time. We had pigs, chickens, quail, ducks, and of course the dogs. We gardened and I canned. (We still do, just on a smaller scale for the time being) We didn't spend hours cleaning and dusting all those knicks knacks. Having a minimalist mindset helps free your life of clutter. Whether in your house physically or mentally. We are not meant to live in stress, confusion, and chaos. Kids can also learn so much with free play and raising animals, gardening, and being outside. We are all kind of like plants. We need that sunshine, a little water, and fresh, warm air!
We now live in our 2 bed, 2 bath timber frame home we built. It's just under 1000 sq feet living space. It's uniquely designed for our needs. When we first got married, we had different house plans, needs and wants and then it evolved after living tiny and realizing what you truly desire. Our bedroom is more like the family room....as in we are in the era of raising young kids and everyone sleeps in the same room. I love the refurbished wood in our home and after 3 years have still not hung-up pictures or knick knacks. The wood was from a home Tyler's Grandpa built. The home was to be burned and we were able to repurpose it as shiplap in our home. Most of our furniture is hand-me-downs and antiques passed down. I absolutely will take that any day over brand new and modern! We've scaled down farm animals and the gardens currently because the lake takes a lot of time and maintenance growing the business.
With the minimalist Mindset Family has always and will always be our number 1 priority. We value our time together. Eating as a family, working together, and homeschooling the kids. We are in our first year of homeschool. We print materials offline as we need, we do kitchen classroom, and explore whatever subjects the kids are into that week. Nature walks, feeding animals, music and arts are a huge part of our mornings.
#2 Saving money
Number 2 and 3 can go hand in hand. You first have to be able to save money before you can begin to invest it. Many full time Campers chose to, during the height of the pandemic. The rising prices of rent, the mortgage interest rates, costs of living with groceries and everything on the rise. If you are fortunate enough to buy a camper outright or lower your mortgage payments by half or more with a camper or a tiny home, then you can begin to save money. You have options of renting a lot with utilities included, traveling, or parking on your own lot/family lot. It doesn't have to be a camper. The unique stays are on the rise. The Amish styled sheds turned into a Tiny house or a shipping container can be found on Pinterest with tons of ideas to remodel and make your own. There are so many options out there pending what suits your lifestyle and your needs. Do you need or want to be able to travel around or do you plan to be stationary?
#3 Investing
Living in a Tiny home or camper can be a strategic way to save money and invest in the future. By downsizing individuals can significantly reduce housing costs associated with a larger home. Stop spending money on unnecessary items. The money saved can then be allocated towards investments, savings accounts, or your personal financial goals. This allows for greater financial freedom in the long run.
Our personal story, we purchased our camper in 2013 for $6,000 dollars. We then spent probably around another $6,000 to set up utilities, build porch and to furnish it. We lived in it 7.5 years. During that timeframe we put a majority of our money into savings. Tyler was burned out in his job as a mechanic and decided to retire after about 9 years. We had no plans...but we were financially set for a few months to a year if he needed time to decide his next moves. Tyler's first crazy idea (that's what I thought at the time) was lets buy this foreclosure (a known drug house in our community) and make a rental? So with the money we were saving to build our house we then invested it in our 1st rental property. We bought the 2nd one before we even finished the first one. We played the game of using the banks money and investing until we purchased six rentals. We built our tiny, timber frame home around year seven. It's still a work in progress but it is ours! It's a cash flow game like playing monopoly as a kid. Tyler is a huge risk-taker. So, with a huge risk, hopes, dreams, and prayers we made a bid on the lake. Three years later we are still steadily growing and relying on all those hopes, dreams and prayers.
None of this would have been possible if we had of jumped out into huge debts as a young married couple. If we would have listened to those who did not understand and looked down us for doing the rebellious, out of the ordinary thing. If we had a mortgage on our dream home and new cars, we wouldn't have had the funds to save and invest for our future. It's a sacrifice to set aside your own personal desires to dream big and save for your future. Dig deep and ask yourself what is it that you really want in life? Is it your dream house? A business? Land to raise a family and farm. Just the financial freedom to have time to do as you want? Travel? Really think about what is your WHY? Now don't get me wrong. We have debts and big ones! But it's different debts when its business vs personal. What we pay on business debts we know some who are paying that for home mortgages and 2 brand new vehicles!
#4 Travel
Living in a camper or tiny house on wheels offers a unique and liberating lifestyle. Waking up to ever-changing landscapes, the freedom to explore new places, and the simplicity of having all our essentials in a cozy space create a sense of adventure and flexibility. Travel from the mountains to beaches, meet new people, try something new whether it's an experience or food. Many Full- timers are choosing traveling route as a major advantage with jobs choosing to go remote since the height of the pandemic in 2020. With technology like Starlink internet you can work from almost anywhere in the world!
If our camper was not a park model, I would have definitely wanted to do more traveling. We did however have the savings funds to take annual trips to the Blue Ridge Mountains. We love all things outdoors and would hike the waterfalls, zipline, explore antique shops and splurge for dinner at The Chalet in little Switzerland. (If you have never, been We highly recommend) We would stop at all the overlooks and just gaze at God's country. Mount Mitchell is one of my favorite stops!
One of my favorite scriptures is Jeremiah 29:11 For I know the plans I have for you says the Lord, plans to prosper you and not harm you, to give you a future and hope. God wants us to be successful in all areas of our lives. Success in our jobs, careers, dreams. Being financially successful allows for you to be able to help community, those in need, and your family. He wants to see us successful in our marriages and wholesome families. God wants to see you be prosperous in your spirit, soul, and mind. Again, we aren't meant to live in chaos and stress all the time. The workplace and financial problems are the number one cause of life stress.
TELL US:
Tell us do you live in your camper or tiny home? Hoping to downsize in the future? What is your why? Tell us your experiences? What are your goals with tiny living? Do you travel with your camper currently? If not, where would you like to travel to in a camper? Tell us in the comment section below. We want to know!
Our tiny cabin builds at the lake are inspired from living tiny for so long. We absolutely enjoy staying in each cabin as often as we can and experiencing what our guests get to see. We have plans for several more unique cabins and stays. Each one being different from the one previous. We enjoy creating these unique stays and absolutely love tiny living. We look forward to hosting you and your many variations of Tiny homes whether it's your vacation home, weekend tent, or you are a full-timer.
-Tessa JCO Campground at Lee Baysden Pond
Beautiful post, Tessa!