I traveled the US for 7 months with my family for just $5,000, thanks to a few smart moves I made with our house and RV

• I went on a road trip across America with my husband, two kids, and dogs for seven months.
• I worked on the road, AirBnB my home, and quickly resold the RV we bought to keep costs low.
• Cost-saving measures aside, I have no regrets and think this was great for my kids.
• Read more from Personal Finance Insider.

The sun was setting on 2020. I stood at the edge of the Grand Canyon, watching golden light hit freshly fallen snow that was dusting red rock. My mom stood next to me, while my husband held our girls a bit further from the edge. Visitors who were more prepared than us popped New Years Eve champagne bottles, but just standing here was celebration enough for me. 

It was, quite literally, a dream come true. As a child my mom had saved coins in a massive glass jar in hopes of taking a road trip to the Grand Canyon. A label on the jar proclaimed the mission: Operation Vacation. 

Unfortunately, Operation Vacation failed. But when the pandemic hit my husband and I realized we had the chance to take the trip that had long been a dream for my family. 

In August of 2020, we bought an RV, despite the fact that we had never once spent a night in one. We packed the kids and headed out, with little plan. Over the next seven months, we visited 33 states, racking up more than 16,000 miles. We saw bison and bayous, the Golden Gate Bridge and the Alamo. We even met my mom at the Grand Canyon and made Operation Vacation a reality. 

The trip was priceless, but in actuality cost us about $5,000. Here's how we traveled the U.S., while keeping costs down and income flowing. 

Our lives made this trip a perfect opportunity

I freelance full-time, and my husband was a stay-at-home dad in 2020. That meant we could both do our job from anywhere.

Our kids were 2 years old and 6 years old, and they weren't going to in-person school because of COVID concerns. There was nothing tying us to our home in New Hampshire for the winter, so we began considering a road trip. 

We had a few other advantages going for us. For the first time we had built a healthy emergency fund, so we had a safety net to fall back on if things went south. We also had access to credit, and a home we could AirBnB.

As we planned the trip we focused on making one decision at a time. First up was finding an RV. We had two choices: spend cash on an older RV, or finance a newer option that would hopefully have fewer mechanical expenses during the trip. My husband convinced me that buying newer was the way to go.

We hoped we could purchase an RV in the fall — the off-season in New Hampshire — and sell in the spring, when prices were hottest. It was a gamble, but it ended up paying off: we financed a newer RV, made payments, and sold it in the spring for a profit of nearly $10,000. That windfall covered a huge portion of our trip expenses. 

Next, we debated whether or not to AirBnB our home. We're close to the mountains in New Hampshire, and figured we offer someone else their own COVID escape.

My husband was very wary about people being in our home, but I was determined to take advantage of this income potential. We agreed to list our home and see what happened.

The next morning when I woke up it was entirely booked. AirBnB income covered our mortgage and utilities at home, and we used the funds normally allocated for home expenses to cover our campground fees and RV payment. 

We kept our costs low

Throughout the trip we focused on keeping costs low. The best way to do that was by minimizing camping expenses. Some campgrounds cost $60 a night or more, which adds up quickly.

On the other end of the spectrum was free and very low cost camping at state parks and on federal land, run by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM). We utilized those sites as much as possible, quickly learning to "boon dock," or run our RV with no hookups like water and electricity. 

Since it was a pandemic, we also weren't spending much on activities. Almost everything we did was outdoors and usually involved simply wandering around, seeing all the beautiful places this country has to offer.

We purchased an America The Beautiful Pass, which gave us free admission and reduced-rate camping at places run by the National Parks Service. That pass saved us hundreds, if not thousands, of dollars. 

I'm glad that we did this for our kids

When my husband and I were considering this trip, we kept coming back to the same question: What's the worst that could happen? 

It could have cost us a lot more than $5,000. Our gamble with buying a more expensive RV might have flopped. Our home could have been damaged by AirBnB renters — or we could have just hated our trip. But even if those things had happened, I would still feel we made the right decision.

My mom wasn't able to take her dream trip with her kids, because she was too busy keeping the lights on and the cupboards stocked. My husband and I have been through periods where we had no money at all, and arrived at a place where we're privileged enough to have savings and decent credit scores. Money can't buy everything — but it can afford you the ability to take chances. 

When I hear my kid talk about canoeing with manatees or exploring the rocks at Arches National Park, I know that sometimes, taking a financial risk on experiences that will last a lifetime is the right decision. I'm proud that I had the gumption to do just that.