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“From Epic Fail to Epic Life.” That’s how Clark Vandeventer describes the last five years. He and his wife Monica went from living in a garage to traveling with their three kids every year — always returning to Lake Tahoe for ski season.
Patchwork income, Epic living
Clark and I met in Penang, Malaysia one night and I’m so glad we did. We’ve kept in touch since, and it’s quite possible we’ll cross paths again soon — either Stateside or in some random corner of the world.
In this Epic Education Interview, Clark describes how they’ve traveled, how they earn a living through patchwork income, how they educate their kids, and what they’d recommend to other families who choose a life of travel.
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About
- Names: Clark and Monica Vandeventer, and their kids Jackson (7), Emery (5) and Abby (2).
- Holds passports from: USA
- Type of travel: Travels part of the year, but returns to the US for ski season in Lake Tahoe, California.
- A few places they’ve been: Guatemala, Thailand, Ireland & all across the USA.
Find Them On: Facebook | Clark’s Twitter | Family Trek’s Twitter
EPIC ORIGINS
- Road trip in 2009 started as a sabbatical, but became something more (details in the podcast).
EPIC RULES & ROUTINES
- Utilizing micro-routines (details in podcast)
- To instill gratitude, sharing everyone’s favorite part of each day during dinnertime.
- Getting to the airport early: Follow these rules.
- Unpacking in hotels any time staying more than 2 nights
- Calling every place they stay “home.”
EPIC ECONOMICS
- Adopted what they call “patchwork income”
- Consulting work for non-profits
- Coaching
- The site Tahoe Ski Bum
- Monica builds smartphone apps & websites
- Credit Card Processing
EPIC ESSENTIALS
Crucial items:
- Macbook Air 13″ (Late 2010 model, but preparing for an upgrade)
- Android smartphones (which also serve as our cameras)
- Monica’s: Samsung Galaxy Note 2
- Clark’s: Samsung Galaxy 4 Active
- Tablets: All three kids (even the 2-year-old) has a Samsung Galaxy Tab 4 (7-inch)
For US Travel:
- Space trailer
- Yakima bike racks
- Cargo box
For international travel:
- Parents: Northface backpacks
- Kids: Camelback backpacks (especially in places/countries where you can’t drink the water)
- REI Men’s convertible pants
- Ex Officio underwear
- Maui Jim sunglasses
- Suncloud sunglasses
- Helly Hansen base layers
- Smartwool socks
I proudly mentioned my Patagonia underwear
Additional links mentioned:
EPIC INSIGHT
- “Our goal is to raise resourceful kids”
- A mix of homeschooling, unschooling, hackschooling and conventional education
- Hack Schooling: here’s Logan LaPlant’s TED Talk
- Learning opportunities are everywhere. For example: navigating the BTS Train System in Bangkok (details in the podcast)
EPIC RESOURCES
For kids:
- ABCMouse.com (for ages 3 to 6…maybe 7)
- TimezAttack
- Meet the Masters Art Program
For parents:
- Tim Ferris’s blog, books and podcast
- Beyond the To-Do List Podcast
- Stitcher
- Duo Lingo
- Toggl
- Smarty Pig
I mentioned Parkinson’s Law
EPIC ADVICE
- Seek out people like you: Being around like-minded people very important.
- Slow down and enjoy each kid’s development: “My son is seven now. The three year old version of him is gone forever, and I’ll only have this seven-year-old version for one year.”
EPIC DESTINATIONS
- Central America. Specifically Guatemala & the Lake Atitlan area.
- Thailand
Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links. This means, at no extra cost to you, we might receive a small commission if you make a purchase or book using those links. My opinions are my own and I only recommend places/services that I believe will genuinely help your travel.
