≡ Menu

Family Downsizes and Travels in their Bus Conversion

on November 30, 2022

This post contains affiliate links.

Jon Paul and Lindsay are the proud owners of a 2004 Thomas bus that they lovingly converted into a light & airy skoolie for themselves and their two kids.

They have front benches in the living room, a split kitchen, bunks for the kids, and a cozy back bedroom for themselves. Enjoy reading their story in their own words below!

Don’t miss other interesting tiny homes like this one – join our FREE Tiny House Newsletter for more!

Family of Four’s Light & Airy Bus Conversion


Hi! We’re the Whites (Jon Paul and Lindsey and we have 2 kids) and we live in a tiny house skoolie.

It’s a 35 foot 2004 Thomas Built Bus. About 280 square feet total.

It has solar to keep us off grid, a roof deck, a full kitchen, a shower, bathroom, bunks, and our own bedroom with a small desk for JP to work.

We saw some friends on Instagram were selling their skoolie in Sept. 2020 and we decided to just go check it out.

We had always talked about traveling in a converted van but never thought it would be a reality.

We didn’t find the layout how we wanted, but seeing that just sparked our desire to build our own.

We found a local guy who converts buses and he helped us find the perfect one. Because of some family health problems he wasn’t able to work on it like we hoped.

So we took it back and did most of the work ourselves! JP worked almost every day after work and all weekends and I helped where I could, but mostly watched our two kids.

We also hired a couple contractors to help us with some other things we weren’t comfortable with.

It took us about 18 months from start to finish and we officially hit the road this May. So we’re still relatively new but loving the adventure!

We’re from Utah, but our goal has been to travel up the west coast and other western states. We started in southern California and made our way up to Oregon, Washington, Idaho, southern Utah and Arizona for the winter. We named our bus Sunny to remind us to look on the bright side and enjoy the little of things.

We really wanted the bus to be warm and inviting on the inside so we spent a lot of time thinking about the design, paint, wallpaper, artwork and other design aspects of the bus. Hello pinterest and mood boards!

We wanted every little space to bring joy and be functional. Storage was our number one priority so we have a few creative spaces that help us get more use out of the space. We also tow a jeep to help us explore our surroundings more.

Anything else you want to add or tell us about your tiny home or any of your upcoming adventures/goals/projects?

This fall I (Lindsey) just started homeschooling our daughter for kindergarten and that’s been an adventure in itself!
We’re trying to follow the warm weather so we’ll be heading back south for the winter and working on small projects around the bus. Mostly upkeep and small updates. With white paint its easy for it to get dirty, but we love how much it brightens the space. It’s been an incredible adventure to see places we probably wouldn’t have and meet some pretty incredible people along the way as well.

Learn More:

Related Stories:

Our big thanks to Jon Paul & Lindsay for sharing! 🙏

You can share this using the e-mail and social media re-share buttons below. Thanks!

‘If you enjoyed this you’ll LOVE our Free Daily Tiny House Newsletter with even more!

You can also join our Small House Newsletter!

Also, try our Tiny Houses For Sale Newsletter! Thank you!

More Like This: Tiny Houses | Motorhomes | Bus Conversions | Conversions | Interviews

See The Latest: Go Back Home to See Our Latest Tiny Houses

This post contains affiliate links.

The following two tabs change content below.

Natalie C. McKee

Natalie C. McKee is a contributor for Tiny House Talk and the Tiny House Newsletter. She's a wife, and mama of three little kids. She and her family are homesteaders with sheep, goats, chickens, ducks and quail on their happy little acre.
{ 2 comments… add one }
  • Blake
    November 30, 2022, 10:16 pm

    Love the design, layout and feel. I see you have a minisplit to keep it comfortable in hot and cold weather. Is that only for when you’re plugged into shore power, or have you found a way to run this off-grid?

    Reply Link
  • tdchinges
    December 1, 2022, 5:31 am

    Love your RV, love the simplicity, I really want to live in it

    Reply Link

Leave a Comment

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Next post:

Older post:

 

Share Your Tiny – Brn

↑ Back to top ↑


2010-2024 © Tiny House Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Disclaimer, Usage Policy, Privacy Policy & DMCA Policy.
Submit Content

The content and information here is for entertainment and should not be taken as professional advice. While we strive to provide accurate and helpful information, we are not professionals. The owner of this website disclaims all warranties expressed or implied regarding the accuracy, timeliness, and completeness of the information provided.

Tiny House Talk is the ultimate resource for tiny house enthusiasts. With an extensive library of articles, videos, and interviews featuring expert advice, stories from people who have made the switch to a smaller home, and more – it’s the perfect place to learn everything you need to know about going small! Get all your questions answered and start your tiny house journey today.

Tiny House Talk lets you list tiny homes for sale or rent as a free service but Tiny House Media, LLC, TinyHouseTalk.com, and its contributors do not validate/verify the information we receive for these listings so it is your responsibility to verify the information we provide for you. Please do your due diligence and deal with people in person. Thank you.

TinyHouseTalk.com participates in affiliate marketing programs. This means we may post customized links, provided by retailers, to track referrals to their websites, and we may earn an advertising fee from any purchases made through these links. This program uses cookies to track visits for the purposes of assigning commission on these sales. We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites. Read our full disclaimer & policies here.