Milton Keynes dad raising sons on boat

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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.”

Transcript

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.

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