Driving Towards F.I.R.E.

Traveling Healthcare Professionals On a Mission For Financial Independence Living and Working from our 5th Wheel RV!

Driving Towards F.I.R.E.
  • Our Story
  • Before RV Life
  • The RV Lifestyle
  • Careers
  • Our FIRE Movement & Debt Free Goals
  • Investing In Retirement
  • Nomadik Fitness: Fitness on the Road
  • Fulltime RV Life with Dogs
  • Campground Reviews
  • Places We’ve Experienced
  • Financial Clarity Coaching Blog
  • Our Story
  • Before RV Life
  • The RV Lifestyle
  • Careers
  • Our FIRE Movement & Debt Free Goals
  • Investing In Retirement
  • Nomadik Fitness: Fitness on the Road
  • Fulltime RV Life with Dogs
  • Campground Reviews
  • Places We’ve Experienced
  • Financial Clarity Coaching Blog
Our FIRE Movement & Debt Free Goals

Live Intentional

“Remember this maxim: When you change the way you look at things, the things you look at change. The way you perceive things is an extremely powerful tool that will…

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May 26, 2020
Our Story

Defying Our Ending

“Our job is not to deny the story, but to defy the ending—to rise strong, recognize our story, and rumble with the truth until we get to a place where…

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June 25, 2020
Investing In Retirement, Our FIRE Movement & Debt Free Goals

ETFs & Mutual Funds; Investing in Retirement Part 3…Resources…

Morningstar. (www.morningstar.com). Undeniably the best online resource and research tool for ETFs, Mutual Funds, & other stocks and bonds. Their analysts provide real insight that is frequently updated. They have…

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March 13, 2020
The RV Lifestyle

A Love for Love’s…(Large Travel Stops)

Fulltime RV Life; When we travel our stops are 100% intentional and planned

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February 13, 2020
Careers

Not All Heroes Wear Capes…

My hero wears a N-95 mask and holds the keys to my heart. There might be others like her, but she’s mine.

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December 4, 2020
  • Our Story

    Prophets of Doom and Gloom Appear Wise and Insightful…

    January 21, 2021 / 0 Comments

    By using scare tactics, insightful end-of-the-world dialogue, and probably my favorite statement, “I’m not a pessimist, I’m a realist” as they describe current events. No Tony, you’re just being a pessimist and it’s ugly.

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    bshoemaker

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    Make Memories, Not Payments

    June 8, 2020

    Tumultuous 2020: A Recap of Our Journey Towards FIRE

    December 17, 2020

    Happy Thanksgiving!

    November 26, 2020
  • Our Story,  Places We've Experienced

    Date Nights at Villa Montez in Tyler TX

    January 20, 2021 / 0 Comments

    Enjoying some of our last few date nights as just us!

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    bshoemaker

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    Day 800 of RV Life

    January 1, 2021

    Old Dreams Versus New Dreams

    April 8, 2019

    The Secret to a Happy Life

    December 7, 2020
  • Our Story,  The RV Lifestyle

    RV’ing and Pregnancy: 35 Weeks Day 246!

    January 19, 2021 / 0 Comments

    Was it the plan to be in the RV to start a family? Not really. Then again, we never had a plan to live nomadically in our RV to begin with nor did we plan to be in the RV for longer than a year, but here we are. You have your plans and then there’s life’s plans.

    read more
    bshoemaker

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    One Foot In Front of the Other

    October 30, 2020

    RV’ing and Pregnancy: 27 Weeks Day 191

    November 25, 2020

    Gone But Never Forgotten

    November 11, 2020
  • Our FIRE Movement & Debt Free Goals

    Building a Financially, Economically, and Politically Immune Lifestyle

    January 18, 2021 / 0 Comments

    When you pay off debt, increase savings, and invest in your future... YOU are in control.

    read more
    bshoemaker

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    6 Months Into 2020

    June 1, 2020

    Preparing for FIRE

    October 15, 2018

    Our Rootless Living Podcast Episode!

    November 6, 2020
  • Our Story,  The RV Lifestyle

    Our RV Nursery is Coming Along Nicely

    January 15, 2021 / 0 Comments

    We also added a corner bookshelf (thanks Wayfair!) next to baby’s changing table dresser and it fits perfectly. We plan to put baby books on the bottom as well as other baby things we need to access easily.

    read more
    bshoemaker

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    Day 240 of Being Unemployed

    December 15, 2020

    2020: What a Start to a New Decade

    April 1, 2020

    RV’ing and Pregnancy: 26 Weeks, 2 Weeks Until Our 3rd Trimester!

    November 17, 2020
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drivingtowardsfire

* Nomadic Travel Family
* Locums CRNA & Money Coach
* RV’ing Our Debt Free & FI Journey
~ DEBT Paid: $180,180.19 (24 Months)
~ DEBT Left: $62,988.88

Brett & Meredith | $Coach-CRNA
I told you I love big mutts and a cannot lie... C I told you I love big mutts and a cannot lie...

Chloe is our oldest.  She’s the blonde in the middle.  We rescued her from a no-kill shelter in Mississippi we used to volunteer with while Meredith was in Anesthesia school.  She doesn’t follow the typical blonde stereotype.  She’s a genius, has an extensive vocabulary, and puts herself to bed every night at 9pm. 

Duke is our middle child.  He’s our handsome sable German Shepherd.  We rescued him from Middle Tennessee GSD rescue while we lived in Nashville.  Big paws, big bark, bigger heart is the best way to describe our DukeMan.  He also has a cool party trick.  He loves to howl at sirens and will do it every time an ambulance, police, or any other siren goes off.  He’s just letting his brethren know he’s here to assist if needed. 

Blue is our youngest.  He’s a spunky and wanderlust German Short-haired Pointer.  We didn’t pick Blue, he came to us as a stray here in East Texas.  Blue didn’t have any tags and was heart worm positive.  He’s been with us almost a year and is completely spoiled, loves his schedule, and no longer heart worm positive.  He absolutely loves to hunt birds and loves to go for car rides.  He can be a handful sometimes, but he fits in with this pack pretty easily. 

These furry kiddos are prepping for the arrival of their new human.  They’ve been working on their protection techniques to ensure baby is well protected (and loved). They love traveling with us everywhere we go in our RV!

Which of our 3 rescue pups is your favorite?
Maybe I’m naïve but...

I had to Google what “Pollyanna” meant.  For those like me who haven’t heard that word before seeing our post today, it means “an excessively cheerful or optimistic person”. What I do know is that I’m likely less excessively cheerful and more of just an optimistic person.  But notice how I downplayed being an ‘optimistic person’ with the word “JUST”? Positivity is often met with being unaware or uninformed on current happenings.  Probably the best terminology I can use to compare ‘Pollyanna’ to is “Happy-Go-Lucky”. Implying that people who might be happy-go-lucky “walk around like they don’t have a care in the world”. Do you know anyone that fits this description? 

The doom and gloom crowd seek to destroy us Pollyanna’s...

By using scare tactics, insightful end-of-the-world dialogue, and probably my favorite statement, “I’m not a pessimist, I’m a realist” as they describe current events.  No Tony, you’re just being a pessimist and it’s ugly.

I know this because I once was a doomer.
I know this because I once was a “realist”.
I know this because I once was a pessimist. 

Do you believe that?  It’s true, It was many years ago and I was several pounds heavier.  Do you know what helps pessimism?  Running.  Not just a light jog, but a moderately paced run. Regularly.  Do you know what helps being a doomer with an end-of-the-world attitude?  Loosing weight.  As soon as I did both routinely, I dropped pounds and pessimism for positivity and Pollyanna-ness.  And let me tell you, it takes a whole lot less energy to be positive!

In today’s world it’s so easy to meet the insightfully wise doom and gloom crowd.  They’re usually hanging out behind their computer monitor dishing out resistance and opposition without providing solutions.

Ignore the doomers...stay the course, be optimistic, think and act positively, and let those “realists” believe you are naïve.  Meanwhile, while you are building your future with dedication, hard work, and a Pollyanna attitude...

One day they’ll come out from behind their computer monitor and ask you how you built your success. 😉
Reservation party of 2... I mean party of 3 😉 Reservation party of 2...
I mean party of 3 😉 

Enjoying some of our last few date nights as just us!

Our date nights are going to look much different in the next few weeks.  Instead of wine and dine, it will likely become “stay in, eat at home, & keep the tiny human alive” for the foreseeable future. 

We’re here for it...

A few nights ago, we decided to get dressed up for an official date night at one of our favorite places here in East Texas, “Villa Montez”. It’s a perfect little hacienda serving up some of the biggest burritos we’ve ever seen and don’t get us started on the guac!  We don’t come often enough, but when we do, we leave satisfied.  The food is delicious and the service is always great.

Truth is I had a hard time focusing on dinner because of that red dress Meredith was wearing 🥰😍
35 Weeks, Day 246!! In 4 short weeks we’ll get 35 Weeks, Day 246!!

In 4 short weeks we’ll get to meet new our little nomad.  Whew, time has flown by.  The nursery is ready to go!  Let me just say that while the space may be small, it’s the cutest nursery I’ve ever seen (totally not biased though!). The best part of baby’s RV nursery is the combination of new and old.  Fortunately for us, Meredith has many of her childhood things that we could mix in with the new things we’ve bought or been gifted from friends and family.

In case there are any guys out there that haven’t become dads yet...

Let me just say that the love for mom has swelled & the love for baby is unmeasurable.  I’ve been incredibly excited since day 1.  The best part though?  I feel so connected with Meredith, I didn’t think my heart could swell so big!  So many people say that it isn’t the guy’s life that changes & that only mom’s life does when you have children.  Why?  Maybe it’s because I’m older dad, but anything I did before baby I’ll continue to do with baby.  In fact, I can’t wait to do so many things as a family!  From baby’s first words to baby’s first muscle up (😉💪🏻), I plan to be involved in everything.  Maybe waiting until our late 30s and almost a decade of marriage to start a family has given Meredith and I ample time to travel, explore together, work through hard times & challenges together ultimately building a solid foundation for us to both stand on.  To be honest, I wouldn’t have it any other way.  Age is only a number and life experiences are priceless. 

Grateful for the life we’ve built...

Was it the plan to be in the RV to start a family?  Not really.  Then again, we never had a plan to live nomadically in our RV to begin with nor did we plan to be in the RV for longer than a year, but here we are. You have your plans and then there’s life’s plans.  Living tiny and nomadic over the last 2 years has taught us that “life happens” and when it happens, you likely won’t be ready, but YOU have all the tools to adapt. 

Our life over the last couple of years has been amazing...

This little home on wheels has given us more than just living in different zip codes.  It’s given us the chance to redefine what life means to us!
Our mission... We started our debt free journey w Our mission...

We started our debt free journey with all of these in mind.  While we aren’t quite there, the path is much more clear than when we started.  After paying off over $180,000 in debt over the course of the last 27 months, we’ve learned that there’s more to life than making payments.  We wanted to pay off debt, build wealth, invest the rest, & give so that regardless of what happens financially, economically, and politically, we’d be immune. 

Here’s what we mean by that...

When you pay off debt, increase savings, and invest in your future...
YOU are in control.  YOU lose the dependency on an employer and having to work 40+ hours a week.  Job layoffs aren’t as impactful, emergencies become inconveniences, and having time doing the things you’d rather do is now available.  True freedom is a result of being financially and economically independent. 

What if the lifestyle you built made you politically immune?

Once you become financially and economically immune, decisions being made at Capitol Hill likely won’t affect you.  Some might TRIGGER you, but that’s a different discussion.  Stimulus packages, layoff benefits, Medicare changes, full retirement age benefits, social security, changes to tax rates, etc may create opportunities to pause for discussions to your plans, but if you are in control financially, political decisions related to finances will be less impactful.  True financial freedom means that you aren’t waiting for the government to decide your fate which makes you politically immune.

At the core of our lives is personal finance...

Money isn’t everything, but when we are in control of our finances we become rich with time and rich with happiness.  In our experience, having time equals happiness.  Prior to our debt free and FI journey, we didn’t have much time.  Debt controlled our life and not managing our finances left us exposed.  Much like our health, we want to manage our finances in a way that keeps us healthy by doing our best to build immunity from outside influence. 

Budgeting, increasing savings rate, avoiding debt, adding multiple streams of income, and investing in the future is the lifestyle we choose to live!
Our RV Nursery is coming along nicely... You all Our RV Nursery is coming along nicely...

You all voted for it, so here’s another peek!  Baby’s sloth recently picked up a friend (thanks @amandanoon & @matnoon__ ). We also added a corner bookshelf (thanks Wayfair!) next to baby’s changing table dresser and it fits perfectly.  We plan to put baby books on the bottom as well as other baby things we need to access easily.

Some old and some new...

Bambi and friends belonged to Meredith when she was a little girl, so it’s only fitting for us to include them with the rest of the animals we’ve setup in baby’s RV nursery.  Once we finish unboxing some things family has sent us, we’ll share more pictures. 

A few posts ago I shared that we were struggling to find a bedside bassinet that actually fit in the RV over our bed.  Well, we’re thankful that we finally found one!  Halo Bassinest is both tall enough to cover our bed and small enough to fit in the bedroom....kind of.  The base of Halo has long but flat legs to ensure its safety for baby.  Fortunately for us, the bed is on a platform with a 2 inch space between the floor and the bed’s platform.  This allows the long legs of Halo’s bassinet to slide under the bed’s platform and remain securely on the floor.  It also swivels which makes moving it out of the way pretty easily. 

So what do y’all think of baby’s RV nursery so far?
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Recent Posts

  • Date Nights at Villa Montez in Tyler TX

    Date Nights at Villa Montez in Tyler TX

    January 20, 2021
  • RV’ing and Pregnancy:  35 Weeks Day 246!

    RV’ing and Pregnancy: 35 Weeks Day 246!

    January 19, 2021
  • Building a Financially, Economically, and Politically Immune Lifestyle

    Building a Financially, Economically, and Politically Immune Lifestyle

    January 18, 2021
  • Our RV Nursery is Coming Along Nicely

    Our RV Nursery is Coming Along Nicely

    January 15, 2021
  • Current Locums DNP CRNA, Former ICU RN, and soon-to-be Mom

    Current Locums DNP CRNA, Former ICU RN, and soon-to-be Mom

    January 14, 2021
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