Why can't you just sit still?

I think it would be a good idea at this point to let people know as to why my need to travel is so strong.

I have ADD.

Although this is a self diagnosis, I still believe it to be true.  I highly doubt that any person professionally diagnosed with ADD would actually enjoy being classified with me but oh well.  Add it to their list of issues. 

I have never been able to sit still and am always looking forward to what's next.  I have a hard time waiting for the Magic Shell to harden on my ice cream. Mmmmmm, Magic Shell.  The world just seems so shiny there is no way I would be able to stay in one area for long without exploring the rest of what is out there.  Me and shiny objects, it's an addiction.

My husband, Todd, and I have always talked about just packing up and traveling ever since we first started dating 15 years ago.  Leave it all behind.  What a wonderful concept;  carnies do it.  Although most carnies seem to reach a level of creepiness that tips the scale of comfort for me- they seem content.  I wanted to be content, too.  Get my itch of travel scratched if you will. 
We (Todd and I before kids) have lived in our small share of places throughout the U.S.  Originally we are from MI, which is a whole other story for another time.  On a whim we both dropped out of college and moved to Laguna Beach, California for a job Todd had been offered.. 
Beach life was NOT for me.  I knew this after a horrible day in the surf ended with a lifeguard running to my rescue and my bathing suit bottom full of 1/3 of the beaches sand in the crotch.  (Seriously, what ARE the little pocket flaps in the crotch of bathing suits and underwear for?) Southern California just rubbed me the wrong way, literally.  I lasted 5 months there and gained about 15lbs just to add to my misery. On to the next stop...

San Francisco.  This was also not my choice, yet again Todd had a great job offer (he has ADD, too) with a start-up company that was promising.  We lived in Alameda, which is just across the Bay Bridge, for nearly 1.5 years.  This was the longest I had ever stayed in one place since leaving my parents house at the age of 18.  I didn't love it there nor did I mind it.  I lived in a house with 4 males who we're not house trained in the least nor charming enough to pull off the fact that they weren't house trained.  I suppose it gave me something to do with my downtime. 
The Vietnamese food was fantastic, and I lived close to an IKEA. Who could complain.  I have never been known to turn away Swedish meatballs.

At that point Todd had quite a few options in the job market and could pick nearly anywhere to relocate to.  YAY- I pick Vermont!  I had an apartment all set up.  Moving truck was packed and on it's way to meet us there.  I was so excited.  I had never been yet I was sure I would love it at first sight.  Ski towns, mountains and fall foliage.  My kid of place. 
While the truck was halfway to my new dream destination Todd decided to take a job in Rhode Island instead.  Humm, okay then, no problem.  East coast living should be fun, right? Call the moving company and tell them to meet me elsewhere.

Providence, Rhode Island lasted 5 months.  The people are wired in that state, and I couldn't for the life of me focus on them long enough to figure out why.  Driving was a daily gamble filled with the fun of white knuckles, lewd gestures and profanity that would have made you sure I was raised on a ship full of sailors.  The pure overuse of the word "wicked" and "awesome" and "wicked awesome" left me with a "wicked" headache and the urge to do some "awesome" damage to these road rage enthusiasts.

Back to Michigan.  Get married.  Buy a house.  Have a baby.  Live the standard mid-west dream.  Done and done.  Now I'm bored.  I know, lets have another baby! 

This is where I want to insert my disclaimer that having children does indeed NOT cure boredom.  I don't need any life threatening emails or ugly lawsuits from anyone who goes out and has a child and is still suffering distress with their lives. Your issues are yours and yours alone.  I can't fix myself let alone give advice on how to fix you.

I have dreamed of moving to Colorado since a visit to my aunt's house when I was 15 years old.  I fell in love at first sight.  I felt like I needed something new to do...again. I know, move there!  Todd secured a job and we were off for the mountains when baby #2 was 4 months old.  We bought a foreclosure on the top of a mountain surrounded by acres of beauty.  This house was a disaster yet had potential you wouldn't believe.  We started working on it a mere 30 minutes after closing.  Projects and more projects to keep me busy.  I LOVED mountain life. 
I have always been happy in my life with Todd but now I was content. I knew we had finally found the place I had been searching for.  Oooo, lets have more babies! 

We worked on the house for 3 years.   Every inch designed and remodeled by us.  Blood, sweat and even some amniotic fluid went into making this house our perfect home.  It was near completion, only my dream kitchen to finish.  The materials were all there.  Beautiful new slate floors, a commercial sized fridge and freezer for when we get snowed in for weeks at a time, pine planked ceilings and even 2 dishwashers.  All set to get started! 
Then...it burned to the ground.

A little over two years ago we lost our house in a freak fire.  Everything gone.  It was labeled a "total loss".  I deem that term understatement.  Believe it or not this is where the real story of how we ended up traveling the U.S. in a trailer begins ....