Two combat veterans who met in Iraq swapped military duties for a life on the open road, converting a 200-square-foot school bus into a home on wheels for themselves and their seven children. Together, they have been exploring the United States since 2018, “roadschooling” as they go.
Texas natives JD, 37, and Britney Lott, 34, met on deployment in Iraq in 2008.
JD was on his second deployment to Forward Operating Base Warrior for Operation Iraqi Freedom. Britney was reassigned from Lackland Air Force Base in San Antonio and was underprepared.
Britney’s chief lent her his XXL uniform, four sizes too big. She was also missing sunglasses and had to be led around for three days after suffering sun blindness in Qatar, but she still made a moving first impression on her future husband.
JD told The Epoch Times: “After landing in our C-130 and unloading our gear, I turned the corner to see this beautiful girl sitting on the top of some pallets full of gear, tanning.”
The two ended up seeing each other at the flight line pretty often. Eventually, Britney gave her number to JD; soon, one thing led to another, and they ended up chatting and spending all of their free time together.
JD was stationed in Hawaii for 7 months. As soon as he returned home, Britney also returned home and the couple tied the knot.
The couple then moved to Lubbock, Texas, where JD planned to finish school at Texas Tech University.
Since then, they have welcomed six sons and a daughter: Gunner, 11; Kinsey, 9; Schofield, 7; Audie, 5; Swift, 3; Uriah, 2; and Aquila, 2 months.
‘Building an Ark: Our Bus’
JD claims he and Britney have always shared an adventurous spirit and knew they might live “outside the norm.” However, buying a bus in November 2017 coincided with a huge spiritual awakening for JD.He said: “I had grown up in the Christian tradition, but had really been living out an altered form of Christianity I call ‘cultural Christianity,’ more of social identity than submitting my life fully to Jesus ... God led me through a significant period of spiritual growth for about eight months.
“One day, near the end of that time, God gave me a vision of building an ark: our bus. It was profound, so I went to share it with Britney.”
Meanwhile, Britney had already had a similar inspiration through teaching their kids about Noah’s Ark.
“I was sharing with them that Noah’s wife and kids supported Noah even though what he was doing sounded crazy,” she said. “Next thing you know, he came up to talk to me.”
Within a week, the couple bought a decommissioned school bus and prepared to downsize from their more-than-7,000-square-foot home. The renovation was a “steep learning curve,” said JD, but the couple had some basic experience from remodeling houses they'd lived in over the years.
Although JD watched some YouTube videos in the beginning and sought out advice from trusted professionals, he quickly understood that they needed to carefully engineer the bus and build it according to their own needs.
Britney said: “I got to be the designer, which was a bunch of fun. JD had to do all the hard work!”
When JD started working on the bus, he and Britney were still running a small business: a developmental program for kids. But when he had a major surgery on his vocal cords that rendered him voiceless for three months, the couple’s staff took over daily operations, with Britney as the manager. The bus then became JD’s full-time project.
They settled on an ergonomic layout for the bus, with a six-bed “bunkhouse” for their kids at the rear of the bus. Next came a bathroom with a composting toilet, a full shower, and a bathtub; an open-plan kitchen and livingroom space doubled as a master bedroom with a drop-down bed.
“We decided we needed a washer/dryer—a lifesaver—and plenty of clothes and food storage,” Britney added. “Thankfully, we had some cabinet makers we knew build all of our cabinets, and the couches JD designed with storage underneath.”
With their bus renovated and raring to go, the family left Lubbock in October 2018. But they weren’t just leaving their hometown behind; they were also leaving the school system, for good.
Roadschooling Journey
Both public-schooled, JD and Britney had enrolled their eldest child, Gunner, in a Christian private school in Lubbock. They were quickly disappointed by the school’s secular approach, and by politics that didn’t align with their own, so they tried a hybrid homeschool/university model instead. They were equally disappointed.They then took their children’s education into their own hands. They chose a core, book-based curriculum including math, reading and writing, history, science, and the Bible, supplementing schoolwork with hands-on excursions that respected their kids’ very different learning styles.
Britney explained: “Roadschooling gives us the opportunity to learn about various topics right at the source. It’s an immersive educational experience.
“Our daily life is normal in a lot of ways. In the mornings ... we put the bed up and start breakfast. We try to have family worship time right after breakfast. School is year-round for us; it’s nice to get that knocked out as soon as possible. Sometimes in the afternoon, we’ll try to do a hike, or visit a local site.”
Since setting out, the family has visited almost every region except the north of Pennsylvania, Michigan, Wisconsin, Nevada, Utah, and Alaska. Their immersive tour of the United States has given their kids real-life examples of the subjects they study, be it historical, cultural, ecological, political, social, or industrial.
Britney recalls one example: learning about oysters in Rockport, Texas.
“We happened through there during oyster harvesting time,” she said. “We were able to talk with an oyster processor, watch the oyster boats at work, and talk to a crew out on a boat who was happy to answer all of our questions.”
One challenge they’ve found with their method of roadschooling is being able to resist the excitement of visiting new places so as to keep on top of work, errands, schooling, and finances. Other challenges include bus repairs, navigating sickness on the road, and the weather.
“If there are several rainy days in a row, it can get tough being cooped up together in our 217-square-foot RV!” said Britney, although the family’s memorable experiences at national parks make up for most of those days.
Sharing one special memory, Britney said that one afternoon at Glacier National Park, they watched a grizzly bear chase baby mountain goats up a hill to a sheer rock face while hiking the trail at Logan’s Pass.
“The goats kept just out of the grizzly’s reach. After reaching the end of the trail, we started heading back to the car. The grizzly came onto the path behind us and stood up about 100 yards away,” Britney regaled.
JD revealed more about the intense experience: “We only had five kids at the time, and I realized if it came for us, we wouldn’t be as fast as those mountain goats!”
“I thought that was a pretty good philosophy in that situation,” he said.
Since having kids, undertaking the bus renovation, and adopting a life on the open road, they claim the most valuable thing about their travels is the people they meet.
“We tend to move pretty regularly,” JD said. “The longest we’ve stayed in a place was almost four months, with some families we met in Oregon. Usually, we aren’t in a place longer than a week or two.”
Despite the constant movement, the kids love their life on the road.
“We’ve had land and various different houses in the past, and they do look back on those times fondly, but the main thing is that we enjoy experiencing life together, in whatever form it takes,” JD said.
Britney said their kids love meeting up with old and new friends on the road as well.
“While many of our friends aren’t full-time RVers, there is a surprisingly large community of full-time RV families,” she said. “One thing about traveling is you develop really genuine relationships pretty quickly.”
The couple share a faith-forward philosophy when it comes to raising their tight-knit brood. JD said that developing “intentional, aware, considerate, and responsible character traits” is key, even before hitting the books.
“Our parenting philosophy is ‘character first,’” he explained. “We’ve really focused on creating a healthy, loving family environment. I think having lots of kids actually makes it easier ... we’ve decided to trust God with our family size.”
Britney added: “I believe that God created this Earth and the people in it for us to have a relationship with Him, and to show His love to others. People are meant to be in community and to share life with one another.”
“My hope is that we live a life of integrity before God, and one another,” said JD. “I also hope that the natural byproduct will be that our children do the same, and that it trickles down to their families and their various relationships outside of the home as well.”
