I am thinking of naming our camper Arrakis

I am showing you the superhero syndrome and your own participation in it.
—Frank Herbert

We found more 3M Command Spice Racks that are 

large enough for our bigger items

I know it is a cheesy...

Referencing the Dune Saga, but if you think about all of this talk about spice racks, the Indiana Dunes, I thought it was appropriate. What would be cooler is if Frank Herbert used the Indiana Dunes as his inspiration for the books. Unfortunately, that came from the Oregon Dunes.

But, Like Paule Atredies, we have had to overcome many hardships in the past ten years. From an unstable economy, several lay offs, poor financial and investment decisions, to the death of my father and closing our martial arts schools, we have had to face a lot. By the grace of God and sheer will, we have made it through. 

Making Arrakis our home, organization and simplicity is the key...

I started to be fascinated by camping and RV'ing a little over a year ago. In my research, I came across Families On The Road, and have been in awe of the families who decided to change their lives and live freely. What is inspiring to see is that people from various backgrounds and countries, changing their lives, living more simply, and experiencing a closeness and contentment I haven't found in the path I had chosen for my life.

You see, I am just different. Sure, easy for me to say, since I am the one writing this. I have so many interests and pursuits, that normally 'define' someone. From my faith in God, strong technical skills, multiple black belts, Master's rank in Kung Fu, entrepreneur pursuits, and various 'sub' interests, I find myself lost, only finding solace in one pursuit or the next.

Obviously, that is unhealthy and not the norm. I decided two years ago to put those pursuits on the back burner and focus on the family and righting both our emotional, spiritual, and financial courses. Changing jobs to become a consultant allotted me less hours of work for much more money. I am home more, spend more time with the kids and dedicate more time to them. We are invested more in our Church and I have taken back the reigns from the world on my family and decided it was time to be back in the driver's seat.

What I admire most from these families and this lifestyle is the simplicity of it. I did a back of the envelop assessment of our expenses living on the road versus living in a traditional home. For our family, I believe we can save $900 to $1000 per month without sacrificing on the luxuries we are akin to.The sacrifice is the home lifestyle in exchange to less room with more experiences, distractions that drain our time to fulfilling our emotional and spiritual needs.

While cutting the chord in selling everything and be completely unattached is still in the planning phase, we have settled on the happy medium of our 'experiment' in living in Casa Barnes, AKA Arrakis for a month. Today, the kids start their first full day of road schooling. We have prepared ourselves and have made the transition. We will keep you updated as our experiment unfolds its results.

Indiana Dunes and the Jr. Ranger Program

Officially, we have told the kids that school starts next week. This will allow us to fully try out road schooling and determine whether or not this is something we want to do for the long term. I will say however, I am very impressed with how the kids are adapting. They have come from having their own rooms to a much more cramped living space. Our living room is combined with kitchen and dining room which means that we multi-purpose everything.

However, each of the children have a designated place to use for learning and working. 'Defined' spaces means a lot to our children as we are still fighting constant 'mines' over property. Just last night we had an Epic battle over an extra blanket being used during a movie of  'Mirror, Mirror' we rented from RedBox. 'It's Mine,' got in the way of a peaceful evening only to be settled by me turning off the TV and reminding the children that we are all in this together and that sharing is an absolute must. Finally, they calmed down and peace was restored.

The Indiana Dunes has been a huge draw for us. The kids love adventures at the beach. From climbing Mt. Baldy, to just playing on the beach, the kids seem to love it. I am actually even more impressed with the Indiana Dunes Junior Ranger Program. They have booklets that you can get in their office or download. The kids explore and learn about the lake shore, the beaches, plants, birds, and other historical information. From there, they fill out their booklets to turn them in and get their Junior Ranger badge.

Earlier last week, I had the chance to climb Mt. Baldy and it was a fun adventure for all. There is so much to do and see. It has also provided us with an endless list of 'to do's' and 'to see's.' What better way to spend an evening than a sunset walk along the beach with the wife as the kids scamper and play in the surf?