About

"Paradise isn't where you are, it's who you're with", a wise friend once told me. Words that ring very true for me in my life right now. 

My name is Stacey Tope. I travel the country with my husband, Chris in our forty foot travel trailer for his job as an environmental compliance monitor, while I substitute teach every where we go. In the past seven years since we've been married, we have lived in Utah, Wyoming, California, Oklahoma, Texas, Pennsylvania, Massachusetts and now, Maine. We have lived in some of the most beautiful places and some, almost forgotten in time. Traveling the country in a trailer with my husband has been one of the greatest adventures, yet a humbling experience, that some may find a little too unconventional, but to me, it is perfect my uTopeia. 

How our story began:

Chris and I met in College Station, Texas in 2005 while going to school. We were friends for about two years and then one day I found out from my friend, Kylee, that "OMG, Tope has mad crush on you!" He ended up winning me over with his dog, his '94 Bronco and a motorcycle ride to the bluebonnets that sealed the deal. After another two years of dating and a year engagement, we got married on Lake Travis in the beautiful Austin hill country in May of 2010. 

Up until about a month before our wedding, we had plans to get an apartment in the suburbs of Dallas, Chris would continue to work at the Dallas World Aquarium and I would look for a teaching job and we'd live the happy little suburban life, until...he got an offer from a previous boss in the pipeline industry to be an environmental inspector in Utah and Wyoming. When he told me about the offer, he said he didn't know how much the pay would be, where exactly it would be and when exactly it would start, and I said, "Let's do it!" So we packed up all our belongings, canceled our apartment contract and began our adventure together. 

When we arrived in Utah, we put all our stuff in a storage unit, lived in a motel 6 for a bit while Chris had meetings and trainings and then found a condo about an hour north of Salt Lake. We quickly discovered how amazing Utah was, not having any knowledge of the state (except for it having lots of Mormons) and were in awe of the mountains and desert. We had some awesome times and went on some great adventures around northern Utah, Jackson Hole and Evanston Wyoming. 

After two years in Utah, Chris' project was coming to an end. We realized if Chris' job required us to move every year or so, we'd need to become more mobile, so we purchased a Heartland Cyclone 5th wheel trailer and put all our belongings in storage. Over the next few years, we traveled to Southern California, Oklahoma, Texas, Pennsylvania, Massachusetts and Maine. Each place holding a special place in our hearts. Utah is where our adventure began and our love for the state is still strong. We return frequently to see friends and ski on our favorite mountains, and we even plan to live there permanantly one day. 

We hope you enjoy a peek into our little gypsy life as tiny house dwellers across the US and maybe it will inspire you to be a little brave, a little spontaneous and a lot happy. 

Stacey