A dad, from Milton Keynes, who is raising his sons on boats, said he “wanted to move away from seeing material possessions and money specifically as a sign of success.”
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00:00So what does a typical day look like for a single dad living on a narrowboat?
00:04It feels like spring is finally here and the change of the season has me feeling reflective
00:09and as we start our Sunday slowly, I'm keen to get the boys outside.
00:13On a boat however, there are always jobs to be done and I start by filling our water tank from
00:18our filtration system and then we get ready to head to the boat service area to do the bins
00:23and everyone's least favourite job, empty the toilet. When we arrive we find out the bins have
00:28not been emptied and the L-SAM points are also pretty disgusting. As we head back to the van,
00:34we stumble across a collection of old classic cars in the car park, including a very bizarre
00:40transparent plastic car. A quick trip to the supermarket and then it's time to get back to
00:46the boat so that the boys can appreciate some much needed time in nature. Days like today help me
00:51remember why I really love living on a boat and the warmer weather seems to have brought back a
00:56feeling of community. So as the day comes to an end, we decide to cook outside and share it with friends
01:02before relighting the fire for the evening and setting the boys to bed.
01:07Take a real life look around our canal boat home. My name's Andy and I live on these two boats with my
01:13three children. When I first moved onto this boat, I was a single man with my children just visiting at
01:18the weekend. This reverse layout and big double bedroom was perfect for a single man. Seven months ago,
01:24tragically, my children lost their mum and the boys came to live with me full time. This meant
01:29converting the space to allow for two single beds and also using the main living area as my sleeping
01:34space. Alongside the main boat, we've also purchased a 21-foot river cruiser, which is my 14-year-old son's
01:39bedroom. While I'd love to say it's always the perfect home, living in a small space with three
01:45children comes with its obvious challenges. Even on a boat, the children manage to make the usual mess
01:51and, as you would expect, cause utter chaos. But waking up each day with such beautiful views of
01:56nature helps me provide the boys with a life full of fun and adventure, and a home that's warm,
02:03safe and secure, and filled with love. So follow my family as we navigate this new way of life together.