We’ve now been on the road for four months, long enough that our former lives are just a hazy memory. We’re in our Winnebago Groove.

Random Statistics

• Miles driven by Patrick: 10,000ish
• Miles driven by Aimee:  Look! Was that a squirrel?
• Miles hiked: 367
• States/Provinces: 14
• National Parks/Monuments Explored: 26
• Scenic Byways Traveled: 22  (yes, we really have a list of all the Scenic Byways we’ve driven)
• Number of times we’ve eaten at Mexican restaurants: 12
• Number of times eaten at all other restaurants: 26
• Pounds of cheese bought and consumed: at least 21

Lessons Learned:

• A little mascara and a clean shirt are a fine substitute for a shower.
• The best way to heat up the Minnie is to bake cookies.
• Small aggravations are magnified when you live in 160 square feet; the solution is to spend more time outdoors.
• Frozen pizza and the occasional fast food, though they make my foodie snob soul cringe, are deliciously easy.
• This country is freakin’ enormous. Four months just in the West and we’ve never been anywhere we ran out of things to do or see.
• You can wear socks for three days in a row, as long as they’re wool.
• The greatest radio shows are This American Life, Wait Wait Don’t Tell Me and Car Talk. This road trip has been brought to you by NPR.
• Saying ‘yes’ is always best. I need to be reminded of this periodically. Saying yes always adds to this experience and leads to richer memories, especially when it means getting out of my comfort zone. Yes to the hike that seems too long, yes to inviting strangers into our RV, yes to city camping, Yes.
• The outskirts of cities all look the same with their SeedyBigBoxMcDonaldsDollarStoreCarWash sprawl.
• Black Box Merlot is not only surprisingly drinkable, but also fits into the small storage space under the fridge and isn’t breakable!
• Explaining, “we live on the road” never gets old.
• We need less. Fewer things. Less space. Less money. It’s what we do with our time that really matters.