There are certain creature comforts that people have while living a conventional life that they assume you cannot have living in an RV. Not only do Vanessa and I totally thrive on debunking these notions, we also love when we can amp up our small RV luxury game and blow people's minds. This is why when we thought about creating our own little movie theater in Maude, it wasn't a completely crazy idea.

When designing  certain aspects of our RV Maude, we discussed things that truly make us happy, and how we could incorporate those things into our home. Something we both agreed on was the enjoyment we each get from watching movies. While it may be way more of a hobby for me than for her, at the end of any given day, we can sit and watch a movie together and then endlessly talk about it afterwards. This is why we decided to get a projector and have a mini theater of our own.

Because let's face it. Movies are f*%&ing expensive nowadays. At nearly $25 for two tickets, it's highway robbery. Thank goodness our animals aren't film buffs, because buying their tickets would be an arm-and-a-tail. Amiright?

So when Vanessa and I came across the Rif6 Cube Mobile Projector, we said a unanimous YES to buying this puppy. First and foremost, this cube projector is 2 inches by 2 inches. It's small. It's compact. And it shoots an incredible picture. Rif6 does a great job in creating a mobile projector that you can take anywhere. Project a movie on the side of your tent, from the comforts of your bathtub, or on the outside of your RV—anything is possible.
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​We love this little mobile projector. It has served us many a'movie nights in our RV, and will last us a lifetime. Seriously. With over 7,000 hours of enjoyment for the bulb, how can you not stretch this for many years to come?! As fond as we are of this technological contraption, we do have some cons we need to discuss.

Con #1: You need to buy a speaker. Bluetooth will be helpful. But the cube does not project sounds well enough. We actually received a Rif6 coupon in our projector box which gave us a percentage off their portable bluetooth speaker, and THAT was a hell of a deal. If you can wait to buy your speaker and want a great one at under $25, then use the coupon.

Con #2: While the box does come with alllllll types of cables (to hook up your computer, table, smartphone, etc.) there are no Apple attachments. We had to spend $60 to purchase the Apple cable to connect our iPhone to the HDMI cable, to the projector. We weren't expecting that expense. 

Con #3: The battery life is a bit short. While it does stretch for 90 minutes, which is the length of most movies, after that it shuts down completely. If you attach your bluetooth speaker directly, the charge is even worse. (Note: this is only a con for us because we live in an RV and boondock. If we had constant electricity pulsing through our recreational vehicle veins, then it would be fine).

We decided to swap out our old haggard RV blinds for a fresh, white blackout approach. Not only are they more modern, but they also double as a movie screen. PERFECT. These babies were about $30 ea from IKEA and work like a charm.

Honestly, we love our little movie projector. The picture is great quality, and we both are agreed that it is one of the best investments we have purchased for our RV. 

Back in September, Vanessa and I spent a few weeks in St. Louis exploring the city for the second time.  What's so interesting about when you get to take on a city again, is that you realize there is so much more to explore than you realized the first time around. In my eyes, St. Louis is a progressive, unique, and historic city that we will forever enjoy visiting. Here are a few things we loved about visiting St. Louis, and things you should absolutely check out.

We actually weren't able to make it up to The Gateway Arch the first time because we were oblivious to the fact that time is of importance in securing a ticket, however thanks to Vanessa's mom, we were able to travel up to the tippy top. It's worth noting that I'm not fond of heights, or really it's more plunging to my death that's alarming. However, it was an adventuring that everyone should experience at least once. The trip up in that little rickety cart is interesting to say the least, and the doorway to the cart is almost straight out of a Harry Potter novel. Yet, once you're up there, you can see for miles into two different states and that's pretty damn neat.

Sounds weird, buuuut it's  not, it's delicious. This ice cream shop is so unique and different from other's we've visited, our minds were blown. First off, it's a microcreamery which means it's small batch, handcrafted, all natural, with a butterfat of over 16%. All of those things combined really just equal deliciousness. If that wasn't cool enough though, Clementine's also offers alcohol infused options to create boozy ice cream combinations. The Maple Bourbon with Salted Caramel Pecan was out-of-this-world. Not too boozy in flavor, but just enough for you to feel a bit rebellious.

We love vegan food. And boy were we shocked and surprised to find out there were tons of vegan restaurants in St. Louis. Last year we dined at the delectable Tree House, and this year we decided to indulge in Lulu's Eatery. Lulu's in located on South Grand, and boasts a bit of a more casual vibe than Tree House. But...the food was exceptional. We went for lunch and hung out on the patio area, adorned with white lights strung from the ceiling, and picnic tables everywhere. We passed on beer and wine, although the menu looked full of craft options and inexpensive glasses. Instead we got the Buffalo Cauliflower Bites, the Buffalo Cauliflower Wrap, and a Superfoods Bowl. We pretty much shared everything and reveled in the taste. It was flavorful, filling, and fun to look at.

Beyond those great adventures, we also spent time in Forrest Park again, walked around downtown, indulged in Ethiopian, and more. If you're interested in what we got into in St. Louis last year, then check out Things You Must Do in St. Louis, Missouri.

We sometimes get some flack from people we meet on the road, who like to share their criticisms and judgments about our lifestyle. It's few and far between, mind you, as most people we meet are either extremely supportive or entirely fascinated. Yet, there are those few who think we're crazy for giving up our house to live in an RV full-time. But, let me tell you, living in an RV is waaayyyyy better than living in a house, and we have a few reasons to prove it.
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Maybe this is the most obvious, but it's also the most fun. Living in an RV full-time means we get to travel where we want when we want. We're not stuck in a house, planning vacations sporadically. Nearly every week we're traveling to a new destination, exploring and adventuring our way across the United States. Living in a house never would have allowed us to travel the way we do.

It's true. I've mentioned this before as it probably is one of my favorite reasons for living in an RV. We have such a small space (171-square-feet), cleaning is a breeze. No longer do we need to spend full days deep cleaning our place. In fact, every day we clean, and spend 45 minutes collectively keeping everything vacuumed, dusted, organized, and neat. It can free you up for...
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Since Vanessa and I left our house, left our jobs, and moved into an RV we find ourselves with a lot more time. We're not sitting in a cubicle wasting hours browsing the internet . We're not sitting at a desk just to make hours. Nor are we stuck in traffic heading to or from work. We have so much time to do whatever we want with. Hobbies and passions that had disappeared during conventional living have now reappeared and we are thriving because of it.
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It's simple really: less space = less stuff = less clutter. Living in an RV, you really don't have room for crap. Storage is a hot commodity in an RV, and you don't want to waste space by fitting those pairs of shoes that maybe you'll wear once this year. Vanessa and I reevaluated all of our possessions, which allowed us to pare down and only focus on what we truly use and need. Minimalists unite!
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I used to sit in about 2 hours of traffic daily. DAILY. My anxiety was through the roof and I didn't have a choice. However, living in an RV means that we can choose when and where we want to drive. Very, VERY rarely do we choose to be on the road at 9am or around 5pm. And if we do, it's a choice we make, because either a) we're booking it to a new destination or b) there's some sort of vegan food involved. However, when you have choices to make rather than obligations, life sure is sweeter.
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This is a fun one. Primarily because I'm a weirdo and need to be prepared at all times for everything. Yet, there really is no reason to stress about forgetting to bring something because...well, you have everything with you at all times if you live in an RV. Need to brush your teeth? You're toothbrush is in there. Forgot a cell phone charger? No you didn't, it's in there. Damn, it's cold, why didn't I bring a jacket? You did, it's in your RV closet.  See how much fun that is? Forever prepared.

Do you know what infuriates me to no end? Stupid taxes and fees that humans have to pay simply because someone is FORCING them to pay. That is something that I love about living in an RV—no land taxes, no rent, no mortgage, and no stupid fees. It's glorious. You can be off-grid without having to disappear into the woods.
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Something Vanessa and I love is experiencing all four seasons in completely different locations. We always said, prior to living in our small RV, that we would want multiple properties across the country where we could get just that. Yet, that's pretty damn expensive. By living in an RV, we can travel each season to a new place and not need to spend any money on extra rent or mortgage. 
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It's nice to always have our pets with us. If we're in a coffee shop and need to let them out, we can just walk back and do it. There is no stress on whether or not they will destroy the house, or be without water. They also love it, too (I think...they don't speak English) because they get to see us more. Before, when we lived in our house, they were stuck at home all day while we worked. Now, we have more time to spend with them and actually enjoy each other's company.
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Living in an RV means that you're pretty much forced to learn how not to over-consume. You have a water tank, so taking long, drawn out, and very unnecessary showers is just not an option. Also, your batteries only hold a certain amount of electricity, so leaving lights on can hurt you over time. Consumption becomes something you're hyper-aware of and that's definitely not a bad thing.

Goodbye electric, goodbye water, goodbye cable, goodbye garbage, hello savings. Conventional living usually imposes a lot of utility bills and fees, which living on the road just doesn't require. Sure, we need to pay about $40 in propane a month, but that powers our hot water, stove, and heat. Our utility bills are practically non-existent thanks to our lifestyle.
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This one is a big one for us. In fact, in the past year alone, we've spent more time with our family and friends than we have in the past handful of years combined. Because we're able to travel, not be bogged down to make X amount of dollars, and have more free time, we can spend days and nights with our loved ones creating new memories and experiences together.

​Have we inspired you to live on the road yet? If not, that's okay. But maybe our recent Maude Mods will. Check out our new Class C RV Remodel.

For those of you who don't know, or haven't perused our online lifestyle pictorial yet, The Roamans are on Instagram! We update photos and stories almost daily, which is a nice in between if you're jonesing for a fix in between blog posts. Our handle is @the_roamans, or you can find us here:

http://www.instagram.com/the_roamans/

Truthfully, we love Instagram. We don't really spend as much time on Facebook, nor do we have a Twitter or Snapchat. What's most enjoyable about Instagram for us, is the fact that we can update photos in real time, and share exactly what we're seeing, exploring, adventuring through with our followers. Again, that's part of the reason why we chose to be an online presence when we started, was because we wanted to inspire. We want to be transparent on social media, so that people can see how we're living and what we're doing. Instagram is the perfect medium for that.

Another reason we love Instagram, is because we're able to follow along with a lot of other full-time travelers. We've met some pretty incredible people on the road, especially through Instagram. The travel community is such a great one, and it's amazing to give and receive the kind of support that makes so many of us continue on.

So, if you're on Instagram, say hello! We'd love to hear from you. You can follow our journey and share with us your own stories and inspiration. 

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