When we first moved into our bus in June 2025, I had a pretty long list of things I thought would be difficult about bus life:
- No oven
- No dishwasher
- A tiny bathroom
- A small kitchen
- Waiting for hot water
- No A/C while living in a tin can
And honestly, at first, I noticed all of it.
I noticed every little inconvenience because I was comparing our new life to the one I had before. I was so used to having certain things readily available, and suddenly, some of them weren’t.
But somewhere along the way, I stopped noticing.
Not because we added all of the conveniences we thought we needed, but because we learned to adapt to bus life.
And it made me realize how quickly we can get used to a different way of living—and how many things we think we need are really just things we’ve become accustomed to having.
It also reminded me of when I was thirteen and traveled Europe with my family for five weeks. I lived out of one small carry-on suitcase, and that trip (which also happened to start all of this!) opened my eyes to how little we actually need to live well.
Living in a bus has taught me that lesson all over again.
I Thought Not Having an Oven Would Be a Big Deal
When we first moved into the bus, I remember wondering how I was going to cook anything.
The funny thing is, before I moved out, I hardly ever cooked or baked anyway. So all of my assumptions about what I needed came from watching my parents cook for seven people—often more, because we always had friends or family over!
But we made it work.
We even got a toaster oven, which works just fine for our needs. I’ve figured out what meals work well for us, gotten better at using the appliances and counter space we do have, and learned that I can make plenty of good food without having a full-sized kitchen.
Turns out, the taste of your food doesn’t depend on the size of the kitchen it was cooked in.
Do I think ovens are great? Absolutely.
Do I need one to make dinner?
Apparently not.
And it turns out a toaster oven works pretty dang well.
I Thought Washing Dishes By Hand Would Drive Me Crazy
A dishwasher was one of those things I didn’t think much about before we moved into the bus. It was just something we’d had for most of my childhood.
When every dish has to be washed by hand, it definitely can feel like an inconvenience—especially when you have a tiny sink and a few plates and bowls somehow make it look like you’ve created a mountain of dishes.
But now, it’s just… washing the dishes.
I often use it as my time to listen to an audiobook or catch up on my favorite podcast. It really doesn’t take as long as I convince myself it will, especially during the weeks when I’m good about doing them every day.
It’s funny how something can feel like such a burden when you’re imagining having to do it forever. But once it becomes part of your normal routine, you hardly even think about it.
I’m also fully convinced that any household task is made better when you have a good audiobook.
I Thought Waiting For Hot Water Would Be Terrible
Instant hot water is a pretty foreign concept to us after living in the bus for over a year.
Our hot water doesn’t just become hot instantly. We have to flip on the propane, wait about 15 minutes, and then we can do the dishes or take a shower. And if it runs out, someone has to go swap the tank for a full one—rain or shine.
But I’ve learned that you don’t actually need hot water instantly.
I can wait 15 minutes to shower. I can work on something else while the water heats up. Zane and I even have a pretty good routine, and I try to make sure the water is hot for him when he gets home from work.
Eventually, you just stop caring.
You realize that it’s really not that bad to wash your face with cold water on your way to work in the morning (it’s probably better for you anyway!).
So many of the things we call “inconvenient” are really only slightly inconvenient.
And I think that’s partly because I live in a country where convenience is so normalized. I grew up with most of my needs met—and then some.
Of course, I’m grateful for that. But I also think there’s something valuable about learning that you can live without every convenience you’re accustomed to.
We Adapted to Bus Life
There are so many things that bus life has made us adapt to, and each season brings its own version of that.
In the summertime, we put up our A/C unit and let it run 24/7. It doesn’t make a huge difference, but within a few weeks, our bodies adjust to the heat and it really isn’t that bad.
The same thing happens in the winter.
We turn on our heaters, and the first few weeks are usually a little chilly. But we quickly adapt, and before long, there’s nothing cozier than having a few extra blankets laying around.
And I definitely don’t mind the extra snuggles from my husband.
It’s really a win-win!
If there’s anything I’ve learned from living in a bus, it’s that God made us incredibly adaptable.
Just like the seasons in our bus bring different obstacles, there’s usually a short season of adjustment—and then life moves on.
We adapt.
It reminds me of our Father, the Potter, who molds and shapes us throughout our lives.
As an American, I used to believe (and honestly, sometimes I still do) that everything should come with convenience. But I think we’ve lost some of the joy and growth that can come from slowing down, learning to adapt, and becoming heartier plants when the storms of life come.
Because they always will.
No matter how comfortable you try to make your life, storms are still going to come.
The Blessings of an Inconvenient Life
Convenience is nice.
It’s comfortable. It’s easy.
But it can also create an unconscious reliance on things that are often outside of our control.
And when those conveniences are suddenly taken away, it feels like a much bigger deal because we’ve grown to expect bigger, better, and faster.
But there is a great blessing in living simply.
In learning to adapt.
In embracing the inconveniences of life with a quick shrug and a smile.
In realizing, I can handle this.
And that’s what I’m most thankful for when it comes to bus life.
Not because I want to be able to say that I can withstand hot or cold temperatures. Not because I suddenly find washing dishes by hand exciting. And certainly not because I think everyone needs to give up their dishwasher and move into a bus.
I’m thankful because I hope this season is shaping me more into the woman God has called me to be.
I want to learn how to walk into the storms of life with a smile.
I want to learn to live within my means and be okay when life isn’t exactly picture-perfect.
I want to learn to slow down.
To adapt.
To be grateful.
And most of all, I want to learn to give my Lord thanks for everything He’s blessed me with—in every season I enter and every season I leave behind.
Maybe that’s the biggest thing bus life has taught me:
You don’t always need to change your circumstances. Sometimes, you just need to learn how to live differently within them.
