Those who see Krista’s life from the slick screen of their phone may think that life as an RV influencer is one thing — all sunny smiles and stunning scenery. But while those picturesque images are real, so is another reality — her journey of grit, faith, and courage. The reality is that Krista — of @happyhealthycasita on Instagram and Facebook — is more than an RV influencer. She is a wife, a mother, and an entrepreneur. In a digital world governed by perfect snapshots in time, it’s easy to forget that influencers are human first, storytellers second.
During my interview with Krista, she helped pull back the curtain and allowed me to go with her behind the scenes into what her life on the road as an RV influencer is really like.
Where Krista’s Journey Began: “Did I Make the Right Choice?”
It’s a familiar theme to millions of a Americans now, but it was shocking then. In 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic ripped open the canvas of everyone’s daily life. Some people tried desperately to mend it back. Others grabbed hold of the loose threads and fled the scene altogether. In 2021, that’s exactly what Krista, her husband Ryan, and their son did. They started by spending short weekends away in a 2004 Thor Motor Coach Wanderer Glide Lite. They were spending more and more time outside, and more and more time together. And Krista saw that their quality of life was elevating in direct proportion with these changes.
During the pandemic, Krista’s job at a local community college became virtual. Ryan was already working remotely for a software company. So, they saw an opportunity for a big life change. They sold everything, including their house, in one giant leap of faith. This monumental act of courage didn’t come without a healthy dose of doubt, fear, and second guessing. They asked themselves over and over if they were crazy. Not only were they in the throes of a global pandemic. As they launched into full-time life in their RV, Krista was also 27 weeks pregnant with their second child .
Krista recounts, “I remember those first days and just the craziness of moving and being in the RV and just trying to figure it all out. We left our community. We left all we knew … And I remember just sitting on the floor crying and thinking, ‘What did we do?’ All these big leaps of faith where you’re like, ‘Did I make the right choice?’ ”
Some of the biggest rewards require big risks. I’m not talking about a trip to your local casino. I mean stepping into a vulnerable place — stripped of all sense of security and then sticking around a while. That is a leap of faith that can reap big rewards. Raising a family is going to be hard no matter where you are. But taking your home on the road means you can, “Choose your hard, and choose your beautiful.” Krista and her family chose both.
Embracing a Community: “What’s gotten us through”
When Krista and her family started their journey on the road, she made sure to prioritize community as a part of the experience. She says that is what got her through. After her difficult transition into full-time RVing — with a newborn, in the middle of a pandemic — she started connecting with other families. They sat down with her and shared stories. And validation. With a sense of community, she started to have some aha moments like, “OK, wait. This might be okay … This is why we did this.”
Now, as a fully vetted full-time RVer, she connects with families as often as she can. And specifically, new RV families.
“I just love connecting with new families as much as I can. And I try and reach out to people and invite them over, because I just want them to know that it is hard,” Krista confesses, “Taking that leap of faith can feel so overwhelming at times — because you just question everything, and everything feels so new. It’s a completely different way of living. The community on the road is what’s gotten us through.”
Krista engages with other families on the road through a variety of means. Facebook groups, Instagram, and Fulltime Families, all offer infinite opportunities for RV socialization.
So now, Krista is giving a little bit back, which is part of what motivated her to be so engaged in the digital RV community — and ultimately, took her on the road to become an RV influencer. As an RV influencer, she brings her authentic story to a platform with genuine engagement. She enjoys validating and motivating others who want to embark on similar journeys.
Fringe Hours: “It’s OK if I can’t post everyday”
But being so deeply enmeshed on your platform as an RV influencer comes at a price. The biggest cost is time. This is something that nobody is giving out for free, and once it’s gone, it’s gone. Krista discovered this reality as her sphere of influence grew..
I asked Krista how she balances the time suck of content creation, especially with kids.
“That’s a great question. I feel like some days, like, plates drop. Right? And I’m always going to put my kids first.”
Social media is definitely not on the top of her list of priorities. Her husband, being the full-time worker in the family, gets his work day first. Often, Krista is left with the “fringe hours.”
Even so, she is grateful for that, and her husband is really good at giving that to her when it’s available. And her platform clearly shows that Krista makes the best of it, cranking out content in small windows of time as they present themselves. What is difficult is to avoid the comparison game with other content creators. Many RV influencers have no children. Others don’t have a full-time working partner. Playing the game of social media sustainably, means regular affirmations like: “It’s OK if I can’t post everyday,” or, “It will always be there as something to come back to,” and “If I take a couple days off, it’s not the end of the world.”
Behind the scenes of an influencer is a very delicate balance of content creation and real life. The platform must be constantly weighed against life, scheduling, and financial priorities.
Making Money: “You can do partnerships.”
Sure: On the other side of the screen, it may look easy. But make no mistake — the sacrifices of being an RV influencer on social media aren’t cheap. They are big. Influencers have to sacrifice time with their kids, their partner, and time away from the present moment. All this in an effort to share their stories and ideas with you. This isn’t a terribly sustainable model without some sort of tangible payback.
Krista still works part time for the community college virtually. She also has, “little entrepreneurial things here and there,” on social media. But it’s not as straightforward as it may seem. Making money on social media requires a lot of work and planning.
“That’s something that I kind of toggle back and forth with. Being a mom is my main gig. And I do have a part-time job. I’m the homeschool parent, the travel planner, you know, all those things.”
In other words, time is a precious commodity, and it isn’t given out lightly.
Krista shares that social media is, “a creative outlet for me. It’s a connection outlet for me.And, you know, you can build a business that way … I think it’s something that a lot of RVers fell into, because it’s just an intriguing lifestyle. You can share about something like, just teaching people about RV living, to … budget friendly travel and hidden gems and outdoor activities with kids. There’s just so much you can do with it.”
I asked her more specifically how that translates to monetary exchange. People aren’t venmoing her simply for being awesome on Instagram. There are layers of things that happen before money is exchanged, or goods/services are traded.
“You can do partnerships with RV brands … I’m still figuring out the ropes half the time.” Krista explains, “I’ve really started to take it more seriously as a business this past year. I’m still growing and learning, for sure.”
“We’ve worked with brands for a new lock on our door… We are actually getting our tanks cleaned this week, and I’m working with a brand on that, to highlight them. Its basically advertising for them, but we are also getting the service. So, sometimes people will do it for trade, sometimes people will do it for pay. There’s a lot of factors that go into that. You can work with RV brands specifically.” Or, she says, an RV influencer can go a different route.
“I’ll often reach out to places that we want to visit in advance, like in North Dakota by Theodore Roosevelt National Park for instance. I talked to the tourism board, and I was like, ‘Hey, we’d like to, you know, explore.’ And they were like, ‘Yeah, we’ll shoot you tickets.” She says that can allow her and the family sometimes to go to dinner, a musical, or nature exhibits, opening a world of options for travel and exploration. The payback isn’t always monetary. It can come in the form of free entertainment, places to stay, and maybe even repairs on your rig. In exchange, the brand or tourism board will ask to be documented and shared, regarding any content made on the subject.
“It’s been fun to highlight this stuff for people, but in a sense, it’s keeping this lifestyle and those experiences more affordable for us too, because I’m putting in work to advertise, especially for them. But at the same time, my family is getting to do that experience that maybe we wouldn’t have otherwise.”
As content creators, “We’re photographers. We’re videographers. We’re creating ads.” This is something that brands in the past would pay professionals a lot of money to do, that now RV influencers can do.
But Krista doesn’t just advertise any brand that is willing to pay or trade with her.
“If I’m putting it out on my page, it’s getting out to my community of people that you know I’ve built up. And we connect. They have this relationship with me in a sense, you know, that I’ve built.” Krista clarifies, “I really focus on authenticity and not sharing things on my page that aren’t truly things that I believe in. And I hope that the people who come to my page also see that and then they have that trust built up when they’re looking at something that I am sharing.”
Behind the Scenes: Not as Easy as It Looks
Safe to say that the journey of an influencer, comes with a lot more blood, sweat, and tears than people realize. Krista’s story certainly speaks to that. After speaking with her, I realized that she has a way of intertwining life lessons with a sort of organizational foresight that is required to put her life on the platform so succinctly. It requires an immense amount of foresight and strategic marketing on a bed of authentic storytelling and genuine engagement. All of this must be delivered while simultaneously prioritizing motherhood, roadschooling, lifeschooling, and so much more. She has mastered a juggling act that few can equal. And this is why, being an RV influencer isn’t as easy as it looks. I don’t think many can claim the title by luck. And Krista has definitely earned hers.
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