JD & Britney Lott: We Live in a Bus with 10 Kids. Why Downsizing Saved Our Family | DSH #1608 A/B Testing Edit title

Summary

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Digital Social Hour – Episode #1608

JD & Britney Lott: We Live in a Bus with 10 Kids. Why Downsizing Saved Our Family
Host: Sean Kelly
Date: November 4, 2025

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Episode Overview

In this candid and energetic episode, Sean Kelly sits down with JD and Britney Lott, a Texas couple raising ten kids while living full-time in a custom-built RV bus. Fresh from their speaking slot at a Bitcoin conference in Las Vegas, they share why radical downsizing transformed their family, how they approach parenting and legacy, the challenges and joys of large family life, and their countercultural stance on tech, minimalism, and education. The conversation delves deeply into family values, intentional living, and cultivating authentic relationships—peppered with humor, honesty, and bold insight.

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Key Themes and Discussion Points

1. From Texas Mansion to RV Bus – The Downsizing Journey

• The Shift: Formerly living in a 7,200 sq. ft house with multiple cars, the Lotts felt unfulfilled chasing material “success.”
  • JD: “We felt like we were pursuing things that ultimately don’t carry meaning, and we were just inspired… I converted an Air Force base bus to an RV… did the plumbing, electric, got the designer over here to make it look beautiful.” (01:02)
  • Britney: “Built me a bunk house for all my kids in the back.” (01:32)
• Family-Centric Minimalism: Downsizing allowed them to focus more on relationships, not possessions.
  • Britney: “I’m so much happier because I don’t spend my whole day worrying about taking care of things... I spend my time playing with my kids.” (24:19)
  • JD: “Minimalist thinking is probably a super valuable thing for young families… It just becomes a burden… Wealth becomes a burden as well.” (24:45)

2. Parenting Philosophy: Tools, Not Baggage

• Legacy and Intentionality: Their parenting focuses on preparing kids for authentic life, not reproducing generational baggage.
  • JD: “One of our mantras is we want to give our kids tools, not baggage… If you’re not willing to do that for your children…they just become like a whiteboard for everybody else’s values.” (02:58)
• Personal Growth Through Parenting:
  • JD: “Parenting is more about the growth of the parent than the child… it’s going to be the most rewarding thing that you ever do in your life.” (04:10)
• Letting Life Unfold: They never set out to have a specific number of children; being open to life's surprises.
  • JD: “Don’t have your mind made up about how many kids you’re going to have… it’s not because of information from experience, it’s from your environment.” (05:24)

3. Counterculture Choices: Tech, School, and Independence

• No Phones for the Kids:
  • Host: “None of your kids have phones, right?” (08:17)
  • Britney: “Correct. I want my kids to look up at the sky, not down at a phone. When I look at them, I’d much rather they be curious about the world around them…” (08:40)
  • JD: “All the tech creators… don’t let their kids have phones. They send them to schools that have, like, no screens, all wooden toys.” (09:16)
• Homeschooling & Socialization:
  • On concerns about “weird kids”:
    • Britney: “I’ll be honest, there are plenty of weird kids in public school…doesn’t matter where you are.” (12:03)
  • JD: “Your kids are going to be as weird as you are… That’s just a value judgment based on you don’t fit in with what I think is ideal.” (12:28)
• Community and Birth Order:
  • Britney: “We get a lot of people that come out going, ‘Oh gosh, I’m one of ten, I never see a big family.’ …I’m glad your parents didn’t stop at the two Americans have.” (06:10)
  • On siblings and personality: “Birth order impacts personalities, you’re never born into the same world your sibling was…” (47:52)

4. The Value Crisis: Family, Culture, and Relationship

• Why Family Is Diminishing in Value:
  • JD: “People don’t take the family relationship with as much respect and seriousness...it trickles down.” (06:46)
  • Host: “People don’t value family like they used to…I see it in my generation for sure.” (07:50)
• Legacy Building:
  • JD: “Every generation starts from scratch… you’re at a disadvantage because your success rests on what you can make of yourself. But imagine a family with shared values… self-reinforcing system…” (16:06)
• Complaints about Dating, Commitment, and Modern Relationships:
  • JD: “Relationship is the currency of life. You want to be wealthy in meaningful relationship… you can have money, but it doesn’t make you happy.” (22:38)
  • Host: “When I made my first million, I wasn’t happy at all, to be honest. Nothing changed, if anything, I was more depressed.” (24:05)

5. Money, Minimalism, and Meaning

• Consumer Culture Trap:
  • JD: “A lot of that’s been programmed into us…we created this industrial capability after World War II—and what are we gonna do, shut the factories down? No, we have to manufacture desire.” (36:50)
  • Britney: “We fell into that. The more kids we had, the more houses… we wind up in this huge house and then we were miserable.” (37:52)
• Freedom Through Less:
  • Britney: “I love my bus. I am so happy living in [a] tiny [space]…I spend my time playing with my kids. It makes motherhood so much more enjoyable.” (24:14)
  • JD: “Minimization of your obligations is at the core.” (38:28)

6. Marriage, Roles, and Generational Support

• The Marriage Decision:
  • JD: “The person you marry is probably the most consequential decision that you will make in your life.” (19:34)
  • Brittany: “You want someone genuine, who’s going to commit to forever...for better or for worse. Yeah, we're in this forever.” (22:00)
• Intergenerational Living:
  • Brittany: “I thought immediately, I don’t want my kids to ever have a nanny. That will be me. I will show up. I will be the one. My daughter knows.” (42:39)
  • JD: “Multigenerational home is amazing… It increases longevity… The relationship between a grandparent and grandchild is intimate in ways parents can’t be, because they don’t have the baggage of authority.” (43:57)

7. Navigating Change—Parenting and Growth

• Respect and Teen Relationship:
  • Brittany: “My oldest is a 14-year-old...he respects dad, respects our family, and he's choosing that. I’m like, OK, it’s working.” (32:17)
  • JD: “Having an amazing wife that holds me accountable and being receptive to that is an incredibly integral part...we are one, we’re a team.” (32:39)
  • On accountability: “Look, it makes me mad when she questions me...but then I gotta snap out of it and be like, OK, I’m sorry. Thank you for that feedback.” (45:25)
• Family as a Continuous Project:
  • JD: “Life is about, you’re either growing or you’re dying…It requires you to constantly be growing and be humble.” (31:43)

8. Flexibility & Child-Led Interests

• Adapting to Kids’ Interests:
  • Britney: “They wanted to try football, so we stopped, rented an Airbnb …It was playing season, it was playing where we chose to stop…they didn’t like it…This last year, instead, we went skiing and snowboarding.” (47:05)
  • JD: “To meet your kids where you are, you gotta know where they are. Thankfully they feel comfortable letting us know.” (47:52)

9. Navigating Technology: Video Games and Limits

• Balanced Approach to Tech:
  • Britney: “My son is one of top 500 players in the world in a game he plays…he also does all his schoolwork, is well-rounded, likes to hike and exercise…Video games are a tool, not a baggage thing.” (54:49)
  • JD: “Surgeons perform 26% better if they also play video games…Part of it is you are engineering your way through a situation, and it’s very high speed.” (55:08)

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Parenting and Family Vision
  • JD: “Parenting is more about the growth of the parent than the child… it’s going to literally be the most rewarding thing you ever do in your life.” (04:10)
  • JD: “If you have your mind made up on how many kids you have, it’s not because of information from experience, it’s from your environment.” (05:24)
• On Technology and Kids
  • Britney: “I want my kids to look up at the sky, not down at a phone.” (08:40)
  • JD: “All the tech creators… don’t let their kids have phones… They understand the implications of technology.” (09:16)
• On Minimalism and Happiness
  • Britney: “I love my bus. I am so happy living in a tiny [space]...it makes motherhood so much more enjoyable when I'm not having to clean 24/7.” (24:14)
• On the Importance of Relationships
  • JD: “Relationship is the currency of life. You want to be wealthy in meaningful relationship.” (22:38)
  • JD: “Life is about, you’re either growing or dying…It requires constantly growing and being humble.” (31:43)
• On Marriage
  • JD: “The person you marry is probably the most consequential decision that you will make in your life.” (19:34)
• On Multigenerational Families
  • Brittany: “I don’t want my kids to ever have a nanny. That will be me. I will show up. My daughter knows.” (42:39)
  • JD: “Multigenerational home is amazing… increases longevity…The relationship between a grandparent and grandchild is intimate.” (43:57)

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Segment Timestamps

• 00:41 — Introduction: Downsizing and Family Background
• 01:32 — Details on Custom RV Bus
• 02:58 — Parenting Philosophy (“Tools, not baggage”)
• 04:10 — Growth as Parents
• 06:10 — Public Reaction to Large Families
• 08:17 — Kids and Phone/Screen Policy
• 12:03 — “Weird” Kids & Socialization
• 16:06 — The Concept of Family Legacy
• 19:34 — Marriage as a Pivotal Decision
• 22:38 — Relationships as Currency
• 24:14 — Minimalism & Real Happiness
• 31:43 — Growth, Humility, and Raising Boys
• 38:28 — Consumerism and Family Burdens
• 42:39 — Value of Multigenerational Support
• 47:05 — Adapting to Kids’ Interests & Activities
• 54:49 — Video Games: Limits and Benefits
• 56:18 — Host’s Reflections and Episode Close

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Tone & Style

The Lotts are open, philosophical, and humorous, with a strong but approachable point of view. The conversation is lively and peppered with relatable examples, self-deprecating humor, and practical wisdom about life, marriage, parenting, and values-based living.

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For Listeners

If you’re seeking a fresh take on family, legacy, simplicity, and authenticity—delivered with both warmth and conviction—this episode will challenge common assumptions and inspire reflection on what truly matters.

Follow JD & Britney: American Family Road Trip on Instagram
JD’s company: Satsaver — Seed word management for Bitcoin users.

Transcript

[Host]

Out.

[Brittany]

And I'll be honest. There are plenty of weird kids in public school. This doesn't matter where you are. I mean, weird is relative to your perspective, I guess. Illegal then. So in all fairness, they were hide my purpose.

[J.D.]

Every day your kids are going to be as weird as you are. At the end of the day, if you're constantly realizing that you don't have it all figured out. Yeah, you may have like some personality, things that are unique to your family or bringing, but ultimately, like, that's just a value judgment based on. You don't fit in with what I think the ideal. Okay, guys, got J.D.

[Host]

And Brittany. Here we are in Las Vegas. They're about to speak at bitcoin conference. Family of ten, really unique story. Thanks for coming on, guys.

[J.D.]

Yeah, absolutely.

[Host]

Yeah. Family. Family of 10, but lives in an RV. I should have added that part, right?

[J.D.]

Yeah, that was an interesting story, you know?

[Brittany]

Yeah. I mean, less is more.

[J.D.]

Yeah, we. We used to have a big house, cars and all that kind of stuff. And we used to live in a 7200 square foot house.

[Host]

Damn, man.

[J.D.]

Well, I mean, it's just. Everything's bigger in Texas. Yeah, right. But, you know, just. We felt like we were pursuing things that ultimately don't carry, like, meaning, and we were just inspired. We. I. I built. I converted a Air Force base bus to an rv. And I, I've always been kind of hands on, but I cut the roof off of it and raise it two feet. Welded together. Did the plumbing, electric. We got the designer over here to make it look beautiful.

[Host]

Nice.

[Brittany]

Built me a bunk house for all my kids in the back.

[Host]

Baby skull.

[J.D.]

We built a.

[Host]

We.

[J.D.]

We put a tub in there because we thought we were bringing her grandma with it.

[Brittany]

She was living. She was living with us at the time. And she is an awesome lady and she really wanted to go, so. So, yeah, it was, it was. It's a cool bus.

[Host]

That's awesome. I was gonna say I can't stand in a bus. You raised it two feet.

[Brittany]

Oh, yeah, you can. You can stand on our bus.

[J.D.]

This one again? Yeah, definitely. Yeah.

[Host]

You're.

[J.D.]

You're pretty tall.

[Host]

Six' six.

[J.D.]

Yeah.

[Host]

Yeah. Wow. Yeah. When I went to high school, I could not stand on that bus.

[J.D.]

Man. I'm five ten and three quarters. And I'll tell people five' eleven all day long.

[Host]

You have to round up as a guy.

[J.D.]

Yeah, right.

[Brittany]

Do girls do that two foot roof raise?

[J.D.]

No, you round down or round up? Well, she told seven for a while, but I measured her.

[Host]

Damn.

[J.D.]

Called her out I did.

[Host]

She wasn't five, seven.

[J.D.]

I think she's five, five and a half.

[Host]

Whoa, that's a big six.

[Brittany]

Thank you very much.

[J.D.]

But yeah, well, as you age, you.

[Host]

Do lose some inches, I heard.

[Brittany]

I don't know why that did you lose interest.

[Host]

That could play a role.

[J.D.]

This girl has had eight of my children.

[Host]

Her body, that's a lot. You gone.

[Brittany]

Women are impressive.

[J.D.]

They're like, Eric, Yeah.

[Host]

You going for double digits? You want 10?

[J.D.]

Yeah.

[Brittany]

What?

[J.D.]

20?

[Host]

20 would be nuts.

[Brittany]

Gosh.

[Host]

You'd have to adopt at that point, I think.

[J.D.]

Oh, no, man. We're just cracking them out now.

[Brittany]

Okay, now let's not volunteer. I think it's more just, you know, what, what will God give us? That's kind of. It's not a number. Okay. It's never been about a number.

[Host]

I love it.

[J.D.]

Here's the deal. I, I feel like people have this perception of family, but it's like it's not based in their own personal experience. Family. Unless they maybe have some baggage. Because maybe the parenting. One of our mantras is. Mantras is we want to give our kids tools, not baggage. Right? Yeah. To, to develop like healthy relationships, it requires like time and effort. You can't outsource that to other people. Like, we all have an innate need to be valued. And if you're not willing to do that for your, your children, whom you are, the one that cares most about them, who is right. At that point, they just become like a whiteboard for everybody else's values and truths. And then they have to navigate that as they get older. Yeah. So for us, insofar as deciding how many kids we wanted to have, you know, when we hit three kiddos, I was, I said, Britney, like, what are we doing? We're just going to have kids forever. Right.

[Brittany]

Keep in mind we're also like young, early 20s. We got married young. So it was, he was like, oh my gosh. I'm looking at you thinking this could, this could, we could get, we could get crazy fast.

[Host]

And it did, huh?

[J.D.]

Yeah, it did. You know, and then. But it's been, you know, parenting is more about the growth of the parent than the child. Like, if you're willing to take the responsibility of parenting seriously, it's going to literally be the most rewarding thing that you ever do in your life.

[Host]

Wow.

[J.D.]

So we, we transition in a lot of ways to being legacy minded. This is a concept that you don't hear about or think about in, in mainstream. So like every kind of. To just put a pin on My last thought or wrap it up is, you know, most people's perspective of family is what they see in the culture writ large and, and also shaded or jaded by their own personal experience and like, as a child or money problems or whatever. But it's really the most powerfully transformative experience in the world to, to have kids.

[Host]

I'm excited for it if you're willing.

[J.D.]

To take it seriously. Yeah.

[Host]

Getting married this year. Yeah.

[J.D.]

Nice. That's amazing.

[Host]

Hopefully within a year or two, you know, the first one.

[J.D.]

Yeah.

[Host]

I'm really excited.

[Brittany]

That's very exciting.

[J.D.]

Just encourage people, like, don't have your mind made up about like, how many kids you're going to have. Like, why do you have to do that? I mean, just like, you're still learning where I'm still learning. Right. I just feel like if you have your mind made up on how many kids you have, it's not because of information that you have from experience is from information that you have from your environment. Right, right. Like, maybe your environment as a child is rough or whatever, or maybe you're. The culture around you has created this idea in your mind that you should have X many kids because we get a lot of flack. People come up and say rude stuff.

[Host]

Really?

[J.D.]

Well, yeah.

[Host]

Just for having a lot of kids.

[J.D.]

Yeah, absolutely.

[Brittany]

Oh, yeah.

[Host]

How do you hate on that? That's so weird.

[Brittany]

Depends on what state you're into. It's also like, you know, you do.

[J.D.]

Get a lot of love, too.

[Brittany]

You get a lot of love. Some, some places are a lot more welcoming, excited. We get a lot of people that come out going, oh, my goodness, I'm one of ten. I never see a big family. It's so good. Sue and I always ask, you know, what number are you? And ironically, they're always like middle or lower. They're more than happy to be here.

[Host]

Wow.

[Brittany]

They're like, I'm number seven. I'm number whatever, you know, And I'm just like, you know. Yeah, it is kind of. I'm glad your parents didn't stay stop at the two that Americans have.

[Host]

You know, I was just saying, like our grandparents generation, that was a normal amount of kids to have absolutely eight kids, but now it's feeling like it gets less and less.

[J.D.]

There's some reasons I think that, that it is. And I think, you know, ultimately it comes from people not taking the family relationship, like treating it with as much respect and seriousness and then that trickles down. Right?

[Host]

Yeah.

[J.D.]

It's like if, if you, if you don't like raise your kids well because you're too. And, you know, these are just broad generalizations. But if you don't raise your kid well, for example, because you're pursuing your own professional career again, they're going to have that deficit of feeling valued and they're going to have that perspective that, like, family isn't. Is. Isn't what everybody. That isn't as positive as, you know, people make it out to be.

[Host]

Right.

[J.D.]

Or. But I think it's completely the opposite. I think that when you actually. We decided we're going to have the kids we were intended to have, we don't want to extinguish life. Like, this is the life that we're living in. We'll see where it takes us. And it's been amazing.

[Host]

I wish more people thought that way, honestly. Yeah. But a lot of people don't value family like they used to. I agree with that. I see it in my generation for sure. Like, they'll leave after college, not even call their parents. And. Yeah, that's normal. I feel like.

[J.D.]

Why do you think that is?

[Host]

Social media plays a role. Plus they're just not present. I think everyone's on their phone. I actually was watching an interview of you guys. None of your kids have phones, right?

[Brittany]

Correct.

[Host]

That's, like, unheard of these days.

[J.D.]

Yeah.

[Brittany]

Yes.

[Host]

You know, kids are getting phones at like 6 years old.

[J.D.]

Yeah.

[Host]

First grade.

[Brittany]

I mean, which is. Which is. I mean, for one thing, I mean, we're from the generation that phones were not around like that. Whenever I was six, that wasn't an option for my parents. You know, cell phones didn't become part of mainstream until I was 16.

[J.D.]

Yeah.

[Brittany]

I was well into high school. So that wasn't, you know, my childhood. We were all outside already. You know, I have the mindset. I want my kids to look up at the sky, not down at a foam. That's when I look at them, I'd much rather than be curious about the world around them versus living vicariously through whatever is playing on that screen.

[Host]

Yeah.

[Brittany]

I want them to experience it. So that's kind of led a lot to our, like, vision of our family.

[J.D.]

Yeah.

[Brittany]

And being present. I see your point, what you're saying, like, we're missing out a little bit. It's interesting though, because all of the tech creators, when you look at their families, they don't let their kids have phones.

[J.D.]

They send their kids to schools that have, like, no screens, that are like all wooden toys and stuff like that.

[Host]

Right.

[J.D.]

Why? Yeah.

[Brittany]

You know, so why aren't they on to our children. Like it's like, you know, I'm talking.

[J.D.]

About like the CEO of, of you know, Alphabet. Right. And you know, there's just a handful of people that they understand the implications of technology. Here's the other thing. You're constantly nowadays like we curate our information flow, right. And, and a lot of times the information that we, you know, select for ourselves is the information that makes us feel good. Right. Mankind innately desires to get the Trilite.

[Host]

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[J.D.]

As much as they can for the least cost, but that's a very high time preference. More mindset because there's always a cost. If you're like, if you're consuming illicit materials, if you're, it's shaping your perspective, it's, it's, it's altering the way that you see the world and what your desires are. And it, it, it can have really serious implications. So it's not only just about technology per se, but it's just about living your life and based on what, what, what are you actually, what are your real values? Like do you take, have you sat down? Take the time, taking the time to realize like what do I want? Where are my goals? What do I want in life? And I think that when you do that, you can start to tailor your life experience in a way that shapes you toward the path that you want to be on.

[Host]

Yeah, yeah, I agree with you. I just had on the CEO of PragerU. They get a billion views a year and her kids don't have phones.

[J.D.]

Yeah.

[Host]

So it's, it's, it's common with people like you're talking about in the tech space.

[Brittany]

Yeah, it can totally be a tool. It's not like my kids don't use the Internet. We take some homeschool extracurricular classes. It's not like, you know, I get that question. Oh, these kids don't have a phone. So they're going to be super weird. I'm like, well you know, they're going to be as weird as we let them be. I mean, weird as we are. Right. There's plenty of kids and I was, you know, went to public school and wasn't part of the popular crowd. And I'll be honest, there are plenty of weird kids in public school. That doesn't matter where you are. Right. Yeah. And weird is relative to your perspective, I guess.

[Host]

Right.

[Brittany]

Which is another conversational kids when I.

[J.D.]

Was in high school.

[Host]

Same. Yeah. I used to think they're weird, but it's like.

[Brittany]

It's like it was also illegal then, so in all fairness, they were hiding my purpose every day.

[Host]

Was it actually illegal?

[Brittany]

Actually illegal.

[J.D.]

Wow. So when I think it was like.

[Brittany]

Depending on the state. I mean, you're look, you're talking into like the early 90s.

[Host]

Damn.

[Brittany]

So, yeah. You had kids, you had parents that were nervous about. I can't even take my kid in public during the day because I might find a truancy officer or whatever.

[J.D.]

Yeah. You know, it's day that, like you said your kids are going to be as weird as you are, right?

[Brittany]

Yeah.

[J.D.]

Like. Like at the end of the day, if you're. If you're constantly realizing that you don't have it all figured out and, and you see the value of, you know, cherishing other people in the relationships that you have with them and, and improving and seeking truth, you know.

[Brittany]

Yeah.

[J.D.]

You may have like some personality things that are unique to your family or bringing. But ultimately, like, that's just a value judgment based on. You don't fit in with what I think the ideal is.

[Host]

Right.

[Brittany]

Yeah.

[J.D.]

There's no correlation to feel is necessarily a desirable ideal anymore. I think it's. It's gotten so far off base that everybody's just like, like kind of disillusioned.

[Brittany]

Yeah. I mean, there's no correlation of being weird and happiness. Just throw that out there.

[Host]

Yeah. I've never heard that. I love weird people these days. I. I think normal people are a red flag.

[Brittany]

Yeah.

[Host]

Because they're not being themselves.

[J.D.]

Where's the uniqueness? Where's the vision?

[Brittany]

I can see that, you know.

[Host]

Yeah. I want people to be their authentic self. And that might come across as weird, but at least they're being themselves. You know, if they're being normal, they're just conforming to society, pretending to be someone they're not, which is how I used to live.

[J.D.]

That's a valuable insight for sure. I think that's really neat.

[Host]

Yeah. Well, public school kind of force you into that because you got to find your click.

[J.D.]

Yeah.

[Host]

Well.

[J.D.]

And I Think too you. When you go to public school. So, like, we're both raised, you know, by the public school system. I say raised because, you know, where do you spend all your time? Parenting, for example, is like. Like, it's about putting in the work. Right. So if you're not willing to put in the work, like, your. Your children are basically even being raised by their peer group, right?

[Host]

Yeah.

[J.D.]

Like, not even teachers. Like, oh, they love their teachers. Who cares about what their teachers are? Because, like, in school, you have to teach to the lowest common denominator. And generally speaking, it's behaviorally based, whether it's academically, you know, hey, we can't. We can't focus on how much attention you need because we got to catch other people up. You know, there's an academic component to it. But then also, like, behaviorally, you know, when you're in a group and somebody comes up and start acting, starts acting boisterous and rowdy and disrespectful, it lowers the whole group's, you know, vibe. Yeah, right. And I think there's a lot of challenge there as well with. With that type of a setting. So it just. Where the time is spent is. Has a. Is a higher correlation with. With a person's development, in my opinion. Like, if you want to dig a treasure out of the ground, you have to move the dirt. Are you going to pay somebody else to move the dirt? You know, are you going to do it yourself? Because, I mean, nobody cares more about your kids than you do, and they're going to absorb values and perspectives and worldviews that are in their environment in which they're being trained, raised.

[Host]

Yeah, whatever. Good point. You got me thinking about the nanny I'm going to hire. I got to really do some vetting on that one.

[J.D.]

Yeah, for sure. I mean, family is a good nanny, too.

[Host]

Yeah.

[J.D.]

You know, it's also a great way to reestablish bonds that maybe have been kind of left loose and hanging that, you know, thankfully, we can all find a way. If it. If it matters enough to you, you can make it happen, you know?

[Host]

Yeah.

[J.D.]

Hopefully we can restore some of the relational challenges in our own personal things. Families.

[Host]

Yeah. It's interesting looking at family and how different countries treat it. Like, in. In Asia, like, you live with your grandparents, that's normal. But out here, it's like, I don't know, kind of shunned upon, I guess. Moving in your grandparents. Have you guys noticed that that's what.

[Brittany]

We'Re hoping to change with our generation? Yeah, yeah.

[J.D.]

Family legacies is like just this thing that I've become really passionate about. Like you have this world right now where every generation starts from scratch. Every sibling is independent in their entire life. Right. And that's the norm. So you're at a disadvantage because it, it your success solely rests upon what you can make of yourself. Right. And, and there's value to that. I'm not saying that there's not work required to be successful and, and, but just imagine if you can have a family, for example, which has shared values, which truly loves and respects one another and desires to see one another succeed and that becomes a self reinforcing like system.

[Host]

Yeah.

[J.D.]

That, that can allow you to achieve really great things. But where most people fail there, in my opinion is that they don't establish like a, like a family, let's call it governance, where they learn to operate according to like the shared set of principles and values that allow them to be strong. Right. And so when that breaks down, then you basically start all over. So I think one of our, our big things right now is, is really, really helping to, to learn constantly but share what we've learned about how to build or how to develop the tools for building a strong family legacy where people can. Families can within themselves work together to give each other a leg up.

[Host]

Yeah. You know, well, yeah, when you look at the most successful people in the world, they all have legacies of families for decades.

[J.D.]

Right.

[Brittany]

That's absolutely it. And that was kind of the key is it's like, well, you know, if, if we change the way we're parenting and change the direction we're going and make an effort to actually build these relationships and be the foundation of this, then yeah, you can match some of these other people that have done it historically. Because if you look at them, they, they don't send their kids off all day.

[J.D.]

Yeah.

[Brittany]

No, they're starting over from scratch. However, they're not even purging that concept.

[J.D.]

You have the general population, right. That, that is as I described earlier, everybody starts from scratch and lives independently, then you have like a group of people that you know, are at generally speaking the highest levels and people say, oh, it's nepotism. Well, you know what? If you're trained from a young child to learn to develop healthy relationships with people that are, you know, it could be nefarious. You know, there's plenty of people that are run in things that don't have our best interest.

[Host]

Yes.

[J.D.]

Right. But I think that if you can develop a family relationship first based on truth, because Then it's like somebody runs away from it. It's like. But we realize that they're running away from, like, what the truth is. What do we even share our perception of what truth is? You start there, and then you build from and to establish. You gotta start from first principles, right?

[Host]

Yep. This is resonating with me because I. I grew up only child, single parent household. It was tough.

[J.D.]

Very similar.

[Host]

To me, it was real tough.

[J.D.]

My brother's eight years older than me. I was raised by a single mom.

[Host]

Oh, yeah.

[J.D.]

We have different dads.

[Brittany]

Damn.

[J.D.]

And, you know, I mean, similar situation. You say damn to me, but not say damn. It's like both, like, it wasn't trauma bonding. It wasn't the ideal, but, like, you know, it's. There's so much opportunity, man. It's exciting. It's amazing. And I think a lot of people tie their hands by the perception of what they think family should, like. Should be like, as opposed to just like, hey, let's just. Let's just figure out as we go, do you love me? Good. I love you. Let's let our, like, the. Your marriage, like, the person you married to marry is the probably the most consequential decision that you will make in your life.

[Host]

Wow.

[J.D.]

Like, do you. Do you really want. Do you want to get married and then just be like, hey, things don't work out, we'll just get divorced? You know what I'm saying? Like, do you want that? No, I don't think anybody does. But you have to think about, like, it's. It's a serious decision. And I think people get married when they're at the place where they're ready to. But if you can, you know, align your marriage according to a truth that you both agree to, like, for us, like, we're followers of Jesus Christ. Yeah, Right. That's our core belief system. Our first principle that we have to. That we've agreed that, like, we'll align ourselves to. So if we get too carried away with one thing, another, you know, that's a. That's like a homing beacon where it's like, hey, we both agreed to this. Like, let's. Let's in love, hold each other accountable. And then from there, man, it's off to the races. Love, opportunities is whatever you kind of want.

[Host]

Yeah. Are you guys seeing a lot of complaints about the dating market from your single friends or on social media?

[Brittany]

Yeah, I get a lot of like, hey, how did you find someone? How did you do this? I'm like, well, I went off to war and found some. Your odds are pretty good, girls. If you're going to go to a deployed zone, there's not very many ladies to men of your pick.

[Host]

Good. Good ratio over there.

[Brittany]

Good ratio. Yeah. My kids say I pulled them along.

[Host]

I'm sure at the bitcoin conference. It's a good ratio for females too.

[Brittany]

Yeah. Yes.

[J.D.]

And they show up. The ones that are there, they're ready to play ball.

[Host]

Oh yeah. I could tell.

[J.D.]

We go to like some, we've been as like some political stuff, you know, and some of those, some of those people are out there hunting, you know, so you always got to be careful.

[Host]

Right. Those aren't the right ones for, for me at least. I know some people like that stuff. I agree.

[Brittany]

No, you want someone genuine. You want someone who's going to commit to forever. You want someone who, you're gonna have fun with it. You know, you want to have the spark. You want to have all of that. But in all reality it. You have to look at someone to decide for better or for worse. Yeah, we're in this forever. And that's an awfully long time.

[Host]

I saw a crazy stat yesterday. 70 of people meet through dating apps now their significant other. 15, 20 years ago. It was like friend groups, it was workplace.

[J.D.]

Yeah.

[Host]

It was like referrals.

[Brittany]

Yeah. I feel like it's a little bit of a scary statistic to be honest, because how do you know?

[J.D.]

I don't, I don't know if that's bad.

[Brittany]

Maybe it's not bad. Maybe it's not bad.

[J.D.]

I think culturally we have to get to a place where we just realize like we're tired of being run through the ringer non stop. And I actually want to have genuine relationship. My, like one of my core principles is that relationship is the currency of life. You want to be wealthy in meaningful relationship. You, you can have money, that's great, but it doesn't make you happy. I've had the, I wouldn't say privilege necessarily, but opportunity to be around people. We both have very wealthy. It doesn't make you happy. What makes you happy is having meaning and purpose. Wealth can make you comfortable, but it also can create. Allow you to create a world in which you're always right. A world in which you never have to feel pain, even if it's would be normally what you're doing is wrong. Right. You, you, you insulate yourself from the consequences of reality to a certain extent, but everything just compounds and catches up to you eventually.

[Host]

Right. But yeah, they just buy their way out of problems. But it's temporary, right?

[J.D.]

Yeah. Whether it's substance abuse abuse or, you know, not having genuine, healthy relationships or. Or you just name it.

[Host]

Yeah. When I made my first million, I was like, I wasn't happy at all, to be honest. I worked so hard for that for years. I was like, I'm gonna be so happy when I become a millionaire.

[J.D.]

Yeah.

[Host]

Nothing changed. Like, if anything, I was more depressed. It's a weird concept for people watching, but, like, yeah, money doesn't buy it.

[Brittany]

No. I'm. I love my bus. I am so happy living in a.

[J.D.]

Tiny well because we have freedom, right?

[Brittany]

I have freedom. It's 217 square foot. You know, people. How do you do that? How do you get ready in the morning? I'm like, you take turns that hard, y'. All. You learn this in kindergarten. Okay. Get with it. But it's. I'm so much happier because I don't spend my whole day worrying about taking care of things.

[Host]

Houses are a lot of work.

[Brittany]

I don't manage things all day. I spend my time playing with my. My kids. It makes motherhood so much more enjoyable when I'm not having to clean 24 7. Yeah.

[J.D.]

Minimalist think is probably a super valuable thing for. For, like, young families especially.

[Brittany]

Absolutely.

[J.D.]

Like, you got to figure yourself out. Just like marriage. Like, we're going into this. We don't. There's still a lot we don't know about each other, but we're committed to each other. We got to learn how to figure it out as we go and commit that we'll keep at it together. And then same with kids, you know? Know, you just add that additional layer of complexity to it. And, you know, again, we used to have a big old house, and. And it just becomes a burden. And wealth in and of itself becomes a burden as well, because, you know, you're constantly worrying about, you know, asset allocation, lawsuits. You're constantly worried about just losing it.

[Host]

Yep.

[J.D.]

Right. You're worried about the carrying costs of the stuff that you have, like, whether it's a home or boat or whatever. Everything's just subject to just entropy. Right. And anyways, that's an exciting thing. About Bitcoin, for example, I was about.

[Brittany]

To say bitcoin fixes a lot of those things, doesn't it?

[Host]

Have you guys. Oh, God.

[Brittany]

Oh. I was just gonna say. But it's still, you know, what. What. What is that compared to relationships? Still nothing. It's still more valuable to spend your time and effort on family.

[J.D.]

Yeah. That's the core I think that's the core of existence is, you know, there's, there's some people say like we're all just the sum of our relationships.

[Host]

Yeah.

[J.D.]

And it's kind of profound to think about like our conversations, our interactions with one another and who we are. But you know, that maybe that's a little much. But I think there's a lot of truth to it. I think that if you can get yourself prepared. I think a lot of the reason I was like ready to go all in marriage. We've been married for 15 years now. Let's go. Let's keep going.

[Host]

Hello.

[J.D.]

Like, I like got okay with my. I got okay with myself. You know, like, I think saying you had traumatic experience as a child and you got okay with yourself. We were both like ready to, to just make it happen because we found somebody that we thought was worth it.

[Brittany]

Yeah. You know, pretty immediately if you're gonna marry someone or not.

[J.D.]

We got married in.

[Brittany]

So you don't need any long engagements. All this like, oh, we've been engaged for six years.

[J.D.]

I'm like, we have a crazy story. So I, I was deployed to Iraq for 15 months on my first, first deployment. Came back, I deployed early with an addition with another unit. Um, just cuz I didn't want to get stop loss so I didn't want to get like close to when I was about to get out. And then they deployed me. So I ended up staying a lot longer in the military.

[Host]

Oh, okay.

[J.D.]

And you know, I grew up a lot, in a lot of ways in the military. But you know, I also was ready to, you know, pursue life according to my terms anyways. But she, her story is like super crazy. But I showed up at Florida operating Base Warrior for my second deployment. And I walk up and I have like, we land on this C130 and I've got like my armor on, I've got rucksack on my front, duffel bag on my back, two duffel bags in my hands, and I have like an M4 like slung over the top as I walk up and I look up and I see this like beautiful woman tanning on a baggage.

[Brittany]

I was not standing on a baggage.

[J.D.]

With her leaves rolled up.

[Brittany]

There's no tanning in a uniform.

[J.D.]

But she was wearing shorts and a T shirt so it's not, you know, getting some sun.

[Brittany]

Getting sun.

[J.D.]

Anyways, I looked at her and I'm like, there's like 60 something dudes with me. Just keep walking. Right. And next thing you know, we ended up like working at the, the, the flight line.

[Brittany]

Yeah, we worked together down there, so it was meant to be.

[Host]

Did you remember seeing him when he was carrying all those bags?

[Brittany]

Absolutely not. This is a great. It's just a, you know, sea of army and I'm like, dang, dang it.

[J.D.]

Oh, I'm five, ten and three quarters.

[Brittany]

Yeah.

[Host]

You didn't stand out. Yeah. Yeah. So it was love at first sight for you.

[J.D.]

It was just, you know, hey, there's a beautiful woman. You don't see that very often.

[Brittany]

I'm telling you, your odds are.

[J.D.]

The odds are not in my favor. Yeah, like, you know, I'm just. I. This is like day one of. Yeah, like, just keep walking.

[Host]

What made him stand out? Because hundreds of guys were probably trying to holler at you. I bet.

[Brittany]

You know what? Yeah, it's. It's. That is kind of funny, but. Well, for one thing, I would say it was pretty simple because he was enlisted and being enlisted, usually no one cares about you. Just honest. But all the officers would listen to him. They were. I all respected him and care what he had to say. Well, he held himself very differently and it was very obvious. He treated everybody with respect, went out of his way. He didn't see rank, he just saw people. It's like, he's such a cool thing. A girlfriend and I actually bet on him. Who could get him to ask us one of us out.

[Host]

Oh, really?

[Brittany]

Yeah, look. So it was.

[Host]

I love it.

[J.D.]

All you average looking dudes out there or below average looking dudes, you got what it takes.

[Brittany]

Yeah, baby. Is very obvious. He just lived with integrity.

[Host]

And you.

[Brittany]

That's what makes that.

[J.D.]

That makes me feel good.

[Host]

I love it.

[J.D.]

Thank you.

[Brittany]

It makes me nervous though, with these online dating apps. A little bit is what I said is because I'm thinking in my mind is how do you see someone's integrity online? That's where I'm like, when you're a woman and you're gonna commit to forever and I'm looking at him and I'm thinking, I'm gonna have children with his DNA. And that's a forever decision. I want someone with integrity. I want someone that's gonna stand there and do the right thing. And we have seven boys.

[J.D.]

Wow. Yeah.

[Brittany]

Yeah. Seven boys, one girl.

[Host]

There's something to that, right?

[Brittany]

Yeah, they're pretty cute. They just keep coming. But whenever you have children, especially sons, I'm like, they're going to be like him. I don't want to. Schmuck.

[Host]

Yeah. No soy.

[Brittany]

Boys out here want strong men and that's what my sons are going to be. They're going to be strong, courageous men like their dad.

[J.D.]

And that's. And like, that, like, makes my spine tingle because I'm like, man, I need to. There's constant, like life is about. It's like either you're growing or you're dying. Right. And even feeling, you know, relatively confident in my life decisions and my perspective, I know that there's still the work to be done. It's like, like you're sailing a ship. You have to keep the sales trim, you have to maintain the equipment. And it never stops. And you can either find joy in it and purpose in it, or you can. It can be a task that you just. It that irks you. But there's consequences to not doing it right. Because there's. Entropy is everywhere.

[Host]

Yeah.

[J.D.]

Things are always moving from order to disorder. And it's, it's, it requires you to constantly be growing, you know, and, and be humble. And I just hope that I can do that.

[Host]

You know, you're doing it. Tiffany told me privately she's met your kids, I guess a few times and she said they're the most well behaved children she's ever met. So just wanted you guys to know that behavior.

[Brittany]

So I want to throw this out there because in the Bible talks about an elder is a man of one wife who has children, plural, who respect him. You know when you say they well behaved? Well, my youngest children are because I make them. They have no choice. What's cool to me is that like my oldest is a 14 year old. Respect is not something you can force. You can see it, right? They, he's. And it's cool because he, the way he interacts with my husband, the way he carries himself, it's very different. He respects dad, respects our family, and he's choosing that. And I'm like, okay, it's working. You know, I mean, I'm not done yet. Right. We're not.

[J.D.]

Let's just be honest here, that I.

[Brittany]

Can see the light at the end of the tunnel.

[J.D.]

I appreciate, I appreciate, I appreciate like that. But I also understand that, like having an amazing wife that holds me accountable and being receptive to that is an incredibly integral part. You know what I mean? I'm not over here. Like, look, we are one.

[Brittany]

Yeah. We're a team.

[J.D.]

Like, we have to, we have to, we have to bite our tongue sometimes and you know, we have to. Look, we're people, right? I don't know.

[Host]

You have emotions.

[Brittany]

Yeah. We're not perfect by any means. Don't think that.

[J.D.]

But it's rough from time to time. But you know, anything that. Why, why do. Who hurts you the most? Right. The people that care that you care most about.

[Host]

True. Because you value their opinion the most.

[J.D.]

And we all at our core or desire to be valued. And so like, you know, it just, man, there's a lot of growing and learning in life.

[Host]

Yeah, that's good to hear. They respect you. Because most teenagers do not respect their parents these days.

[J.D.]

Well, they're not raised by their parents though.

[Host]

True.

[J.D.]

They're raised by their peer group.

[Host]

Yeah. It goes back to what we started with.

[J.D.]

It's like, look, you got to make your decision about that. And it's like ultimately the decision that you make is going to have significant long term impacts. It's not something that you can just write off. Just you're making this decision just because everybody else does.

[Host]

Yeah.

[J.D.]

It lowers the, the liability from you personally. Oh, that's just what everybody else is doing. You know, at some point you got to take responsibility for your own life. And, and you know, we are living a completely unique lifestyle, but we're doing it based on genuine and true convictions that we have that we believe have first principles that are sound that lead to life and growth and health and happiness and like deep joy. Not make me feel good right now and I'll just deal with the downside later.

[Host]

Yeah.

[Brittany]

Well, I do say though, a lot of it has to do, I think, with the fact that we made these decisions when we were young. Right. We got married whenever we were in our early 20s. I was 21, I was a full adult. I knew exactly what I was doing when I married him. But it, because of that, it did set us up for success now in the sense of I can stay home with our children and I've been able to. We were debt free when we started and so that, that made a huge difference. And I think that's where a lot of women, I hear, get lost, where they come and they go, we, how do you do this? And I'm like, well, you're going to have to not have all this debt.

[Host]

Right.

[Brittany]

And so we have a little bit of a generational gap, right, in America because we have women that have gone to school, gotten school debt because our government backed student loan debt. And then they go to get married and they have kids and they're like, hey honey, I want to stay home, but by the way, I need you to work for your student loans and mine. Right. And so then they can't. And the Husband's like, I can't afford to cover your. Like, I literally have friends that are doctors and lawyers who are like, I had no idea I wanted children or I wanted to stay home and raise my children. Because I decided this when I was like, you know what? When you start talking about college. 16, 17, 18. Yeah.

[J.D.]

And here, owned for 200, 300, whatever it is, you know, here's the. Here's a loan.

[Brittany]

Like, right? And then they finally get to meet the man that they fall in love with. And likely I do want children with him. And then you have a kid and you're like, oh, wait, I do want to stay home with this baby. Because that wasn't my original plan. I originally thought I was going back. I love the military. I was going back to the military. I was on maternity leave and they handed me our oldest son and I was like, okay, forget that.

[Host]

I'm not leaving. Yeah.

[Brittany]

Like, I mean, it completely changed my perspective because I didn't want to stay home with a baby. I was like, that's for somebody else. But you don't know until you get your kid story online. People all the time reach out and say, that's my story too, Britney. And how do I stay home now? You know, my husband has a great job, he owns his business or whatever, but he doesn't make enough to also cover me. So I think that's kind of the issue is that. Yeah.

[J.D.]

And I think, I think society also, like, alongside that is that we are a very, you know, consumerism oriented society. And I think a lot of that's been programmed into us. I read this. There's a MIT like, journal or whatever, and it. This. One of the writers was talking about the. The roots of consumerism. They referenced a book, for example, called Propaganda and some other things where basically these marketing experts that understand, you know, mankind's innate, like, inclinations or status or whatever, that if we. We created this industrial capability after World War II and what are we gonna do? Like, shut the factories down? No, we have to manufacture desire.

[Host]

Right.

[J.D.]

And so I think not to necessarily get into that too much, but I think some people have this perception that they have to have this, that and the other to. To feel good about themselves because they want to be accepted socially or.

[Brittany]

We fell into that. We did. The more kids we had, we. We went through numerous houses and we flipped them. We did it correctly, right? It was like, okay, we started with this tiny house that we were able to purchase off of deployments.

[J.D.]

So.

[Brittany]

Because he spent forever in the desert and so we started there and then it was like, oh, we need a little bit bigger house and we'll renovate it and sell it and make money. So we did that and the next thing you know, we're, you know, people like, you get a bigger house, you have more kids, you have more. We wind up in this huge house. And then we were miserable trying to keep up with this house and take care of it and take care of the kids and homeschool and it was just like, take a lot out of you. I'm so unhappy. I'm just, you know.

[Host]

Yeah.

[J.D.]

It's like, I want to spend time with my kids, but I gotta do all these things. So in a lot of ways, it's like minimization of your obligations. Yeah. Is at the core kind of what it is. So, you know, if you can afford to have like a nanny or if you can afford to have like a housekeeper, just first understand that there's going to be impact of having an additional person. Person in your family dynamic. And that's going to, you know, you just handle that in a healthy way. But then also realize that if you don't have those things and you. But you do have things, the more obligations that you have, the less time that you can commit to things like raising children. And if that's. Again, back to first principles. If raising children within according to a set of values that you hold dear is a desire of yours, you're going to have to do the work. And time obligations are really. Time obligations include, like, having to work for money to pay for your stuff. They, they take away from your ability to, to pour into your kids. It's hard to be a parent. Right. But it's meaningful.

[Brittany]

Yeah.

[J.D.]

Like, you have to get good at being together.

[Brittany]

Absolutely.

[J.D.]

Most people aren't willing to do the work to get good at being together. Right.

[Host]

A lot of breakups these days. Right. 50. They say it's a coin flip for marriage.

[J.D.]

Yeah.

[Host]

Crazy.

[J.D.]

Is that, is that a gamble you're willing to take? Because you don't have to take the gamble if you know what the odds are before you started. Right. You can actually say, hey, I'm going to play the game according to a different set of rules.

[Host]

Right.

[J.D.]

Like, like, will we. A lot of this we just stumbled upon. Right. But I think the dating game nowadays is wild.

[Host]

I hear horror stories about it.

[J.D.]

Yeah.

[Host]

Yeah. Some of the stuff I've heard, like, it's crazy.

[Brittany]

It's almost worth just, you know, fixing your marriage and staying strong so you don't have to do it again, for real.

[J.D.]

Yeah. But again, that requires personal sacrifice. It requires, like.

[Brittany]

It is not. Hey, every situation, obviously.

[Host]

Yeah.

[Brittany]

General.

[J.D.]

Yeah.

[Brittany]

Just throw that out there.

[Host]

I mean, I'm witnessing what my mom's going through at her age. Oh, man. Dating at 60.

[J.D.]

Yeah.

[Host]

Yeah. It's tough.

[J.D.]

Yeah.

[Host]

Real tough.

[J.D.]

Yeah. That's.

[Brittany]

I can't imagine that. I'm not. I don't want to imagine that. To work on my marriage. And always. I'll always be focusing on that.

[Host]

You guys will have grandkids by them. You're gonna have a lot of grandkids.

[Brittany]

Yeah, I hope so.

[J.D.]

Yeah. I think family is really special. And then our. Then our role will change. Right. So, like, it's funny because, like, my son, our oldest, he's like. He's big as me now at 14. It's like, well, I have to respect his identity in a sense of, like, he is an individual person, and, you know, everybody is, but they have a lesser sense of that when they're younger.

[Host]

Yeah, right.

[J.D.]

And what are his interests? You've got to win your children's hearts because, like, if it matters enough to you, you'll make it happen. Like, how do you get somebody to share, you know, values with you? Well, first of all, are they true? Because they'll see through that eventually, and they'll pursue truth down a different path, but until they find it. But you have to. You have to win their hearts. You got to show them that they matter enough to you to pursue. Yeah, right. I think that's. I think that's really where it's at. So I can't. I become more of, like, a. An encourager and an advisor as my.

[Brittany]

Yeah, your role changes. I mean, that's. That's what goes back to showing respect. Why does he respect you? Because he can see that relationship is changing, and it's equal to where he is at personally.

[Host]

Yeah.

[J.D.]

You know, and when. When he has, like, kids and, you know, when our kids have kids, we want to be there to support him. Like, a lot of times, you know.

[Brittany]

Yeah. You mentioned looking for a nanny, and I thought immediately, I don't want my kids to ever have a nanny.

[Host]

Really?

[Brittany]

That will be me. I will show up. I will be the one. Oh, I can't wait. My daughter knows. She's like, when I have my babies, you're going to be my dual. Help me and be there. I'm like, absolutely. And then you're going to need my laundry. And I'm like, yeah, so you can hold your baby and so you can bond with that baby. I'm going to come cook for you. So my mom shows up and she makes food for the week and takes care of my house. And wow. She, like, pours into me so I can hold my sweet baby.

[Host]

That's cool.

[Brittany]

Which is what I'll be hearing that then.

[Host]

That sounds unheard of. Yeah.

[J.D.]

Better, though.

[Host]

Way better.

[Brittany]

But it's what our grandparents did. I mean, my. I. My grandmother would come and take. Take us or we'd go spend time at her house. It was like a joy. She was always. I mean, that's why she lived with us. We. When we were. My grandmother, she now has Alzheimer's, and so she's in a special place for that to help her. But she lived with us for quite a while because she was getting to the point where she was like, okay, my memory's going. I don't have as much time. I can't drive myself. I was like, grandma, come live with me. Like, we. I want you. She's like, are you sure? I'm like, don't even say it. And we went out there the very next week to Louisiana and picked her up, brought her back to Texas.

[Host]

Wow.

[Brittany]

And like, when you have that relationship and it was fit in them, it was so special.

[J.D.]

Of all. My generational home is amazing, man. If you look at the stats on it, like, it. It increases longevity. Just imagine if you're a grandparent and you're, like, dealing with babies. Like, the baby falls down or bumps his head or gets a cut. Like, you're going to have to move and make it happen. Right. You're getting out on the ground, standing up.

[Brittany]

Like, absolutely.

[J.D.]

From a physiological standpoint, it's beneficial. From a relational standpoint, there's nothing more like, intimate in a lot of ways than the relationship between a grandparent and a grandchild. Because they don't have the baggage of authority. Like, the.

[Brittany]

Like, they skip that part.

[J.D.]

Parents really struggle in a lot of ways because they have a responsibility of authority. And. And. And parents either, like, go too hard or go too soft.

[Host]

Right.

[J.D.]

And whichever way you go, there's consequences. Right. Parenting is a tightrope walk. Like. Like, you have to. When you have the tension and when you're doing the balancing work, it actually makes you better at balancing. Like, you're ne. If the mo. I'm constantly questioning myself, like, am I handling the situation right? You know, not that I have it all figured out and then just know that I'm so flawed.

[Brittany]

We're talking to each other about it. Yeah, do this right? Do we not. Do we need to apologize to a kid? Do I need to change how I do it next time? We're constantly having that conversation.

[Host]

Love it.

[Brittany]

You know, stabbing someone else there to check, you know, just edify you and make sure we're on the right path.

[J.D.]

Look, it makes me mad when she questions me. Right.

[Host]

I can relate to that.

[J.D.]

It makes me mad because, like, ultimately, like, if I'm not perfect and right then, you know, I'm a freaking crybaby about it, you know, because, look, I'm the most important person here, and then I gotta snap out of it. I'd be like, okay, I'm sorry. Thank you for that feedback. I don't always like to hear it, so thank you for being patient. It's like one of those things.

[Brittany]

We.

[J.D.]

We've owned a handful of businesses, you know, started this whole room, and. And we have this, like, thing that anytime an employee comes in late, they get you twice. Right. Because first of all, they show up late, and that damages the team. Right. Because it's a breach of trust or expectations. And then second of all, you gotta be the one to go up to them and, you know, reprimand them. Yeah. Just agree that a. Is being late something you're okay with or not okay. And then. And then a lot of times, they don't want to be held accountable, so you're getting slapped in the face twice.

[Host]

They blame traffic.

[J.D.]

That is. That's what it's about. And in a lot of ways, to be a good leader is to. Is to, like, be genuine with people and accountability, but in, like, a. I had to say loving, because it sounds sappy, but in a gracious way, maybe, like, I'm leaning towards. I'm, like, trying to pick up a porcupine.

[Brittany]

Right.

[Host]

Yeah.

[J.D.]

I know it's gonna hurt me, you know, so I'm gonna be as careful as possible.

[Host]

Be calculated. How do you approach if the kids want to do sports or, like, activities with other kids?

[Brittany]

Well, we've stopped more than once. I mean, within our life, we have the freedom to eat, getting anywhere. So it depends on the sport. We. They wanted to try football, so we stopped, rented an Airbnb just to have more space. And because it was playing the season, it was playing where we chose to stop because we wanted to do it in South Korea. It was like, we'll have more space this way. So we ran out of place. They didn't like it. They were like, not for us this last year. Instead, they were like, hey, we want to go skiing and snowboarding. So we got season passes for Epic and spent a bunch of time on the mountains that. We loved it. It was the great fit for our family. And so we're gonna probably do that again this next year. But you know, we have the freedom with our lifestyle to pick and choose.

[J.D.]

Yeah.

[Brittany]

Go where when you want to be there.

[J.D.]

Yeah. It's tricky like to. To meet your kids where you are. You gotta know where they are. And like, thankfully, you know, they feel comfortable like letting us know. But they also have like really tight relationships themselves. I think like birth order like impacts people's like personalities and because you're never, you're never born into the same world that your sibling was like, your parents have changed sibling dynamic, you know, like, you know, there's a, a bigger person than you that can already walk that's.

[Brittany]

Like, oh, you're right. The other day was like, yeah, Gutter's an adult.

[Host]

The 14 year old.

[Brittany]

Yeah. My little, little 5 year old was like, he's an adult. I was like, he's not an adult. He goes, he's as big as dad. You know, it's. It was just kind of a cute like. Okay, from your perspective, I could see that. Cuz looking up, they're the same height.

[Host]

Wow. He's going to be tall.

[Brittany]

Seeing you're like, it would seem like to a 5 year old that would be an.

[Host]

Yeah. So he's 5, 10 at 14.

[J.D.]

Yep.

[Host]

He's going to be tall.

[J.D.]

We'll see. I measured, I measured his knee joints.

[Brittany]

We were in quite a bit bigger than dads.

[J.D.]

I was like, I feel like you're getting big. I don't know if that's like a. I think it's somewhat scientific approach. I was like, I'm gonna measure around. His joints are like bigger than mine. I was like, all right.

[Brittany]

Dang.

[Host]

So was either your parents really tall or something?

[Brittany]

My family's tall.

[Host]

Okay. Cuz it skips.

[J.D.]

We're six' six. Right.

[Host]

Yeah, it's all father's relative.

[J.D.]

But yeah, we have. Yeah. Hope. I hope that he's taller, you know, but whatever.

[Host]

As a guy, it doesn't hurt.

[J.D.]

Yeah.

[Host]

You know.

[J.D.]

Yeah.

[Host]

I'll take a few more inches myself too.

[Brittany]

Trending right now to be tall, so.

[Host]

Yeah, well, you got to be above 6. They say these days you want it Songs about it.

[Brittany]

Yeah.

[Host]

All right.

[Brittany]

Before I made it real about that.

[J.D.]

Really?

[Host]

Wow.

[J.D.]

There's a song about that I slipped in right before that. Yeah.

[Host]

It didn't matter back then. Right. Five, ten and a half was good enough.

[J.D.]

Five Ten and three quarters.

[Host]

Oh, that matters if you can find.

[Brittany]

Yourself a military man.

[J.D.]

That's how it's hard at you though, man. Because here's my thing about like real quick, back on dating apps. Like, it's just an introduction.

[Brittany]

Yeah.

[J.D.]

If you don't have the ability to like, screen for like, like healthy relationship patterns, it's on you, which is ultimately on your upbringing and the environment that you're brought up in and which is ultimately on your parents to decide what that environment is.

[Host]

Yeah.

[J.D.]

And so in a lot of ways it can impact you.

[Host]

I agree with that. But also, people hide themselves on social media.

[J.D.]

You're still going to interact with them.

[Host]

Yeah.

[J.D.]

And, and get to know their true character. I think people are just willing to compromise because they have, you know, they get tired of waiting or whatever. I don't know, man. I don't know. Relationships are very complex.

[Host]

We're also so removed from that, both of us. Like, I haven't dated in eight years. I just hear the stories. It's crazy to me.

[J.D.]

I think that's the best thing to do. Like, you'll be ready when you're good with yourself. Like, I, I didn't, like, I had to like shut it down and like get okay with myself. Like, are you okay being alone?

[Host]

Yeah. So I grew up an only child, so.

[J.D.]

Yeah.

[Host]

Actually. Yeah.

[J.D.]

Yeah. One, I think that's like a, like a, you know, I think it's like kind of a first step to, to getting okay. Like to being like ready is being okay with yourself. And you know, I think a lot of people are trying to find somebody else to like fix their flaws or like we, we, we. He compliments my this or that as like y' all just, I think basically you just have to have an aligned vision on like, how are you going to keep each other accountable because you will change, you'll grow. Is it going to be together because you're committed to like certain set of values or something or I don't know. Is, is it going to be something that you guys are willing to make the commitment right now on being completely serious. I think online is an introduction. Right. It's, it's a path of least resistance. Probably is why it's so popular now.

[Host]

Yeah. It's easy. Just swipe.

[J.D.]

Yeah.

[Brittany]

Yeah.

[J.D.]

But it also makes people super.

[Brittany]

Jaded.

[J.D.]

Short sighted too. About I, I, I deserve this level of, I mean, the reason, that's what.

[Brittany]

I was gonna say. It makes me nervous because then you're looking at people and just judging them so quick.

[Host]

Yeah.

[Brittany]

I'M like, golly, that's. I want to know. I wanted to see their integrity. I want to know how they actually act behind closed doors. Because most of your marriage is going to be behind closed doors.

[Host]

No, it's literally a meme now. It's like six feet. You got to make a six figure salary. You need all these qualifications.

[J.D.]

Yeah.

[Host]

And that's how people are getting judged now.

[Brittany]

Yeah.

[J.D.]

And there's going to be a lot of people that waste a lot of time because, you know, they're, they prioritize something that shouldn't. I mean, don't get me wrong, like, it's important to have certain expectations, but I don't think like somebody's height or their ne. Like when, when are, when are people getting married? Generally speaking, it's when they're younger, right?

[Host]

No, it's getting older.

[J.D.]

Well, it is getting older on a net.

[Brittany]

You talked about that yesterday. The friend of mine, she is from another country and she was like, oh, oh, yeah. Here in America when I, I live here now. She's like. And I was looking. The Daisy thing. I thought, I gotta MARRY A man 10 years older. Because Americans don't get married until they're well into their 30s.

[J.D.]

I'm ready to get.

[Host]

Wow, 30s.

[Brittany]

Yeah. Was like, I'm ready to get married now. And I was like, man, that's so wild. Because. Yeah. It depends on where you're from. Right.

[J.D.]

Think about your whole, like, life though. You're still getting married in the earlier part of it.

[Host]

Right.

[J.D.]

Not your childhood. That's unreasonable. But, you know, you're still figuring out the world for yourself. And so, you know, for our, for our kids, for example, I hope that we can have a close enough relationship that not that we want to control who they marry. That's their decision. Like. Yeah. To have a healthy family, your kids have to be able to leave if they want to.

[Host]

Yeah.

[J.D.]

Right. Like, and, and, and so hopefully we can just be actually like a genuine sounding board for what's. What's healthier not. Or what you think dad, or what you think mom, and just, hey, I'm just giving you my thoughts and you don't have to do what I say.

[Host]

Yeah.

[J.D.]

These are just my thoughts.

[Host]

That's, that's healthy. Because some parents veto the, the boyfriend or the girlfriend, you know.

[Brittany]

Well, it's, it might be. Maybe they see something though, that know.

[Host]

Yeah.

[Brittany]

So I would, I'd be curious to know why are you vetoing this person?

[Host]

Yeah, there's more to it than.

[J.D.]

There's.

[Host]

It's A case by case basis. I wonder how I'll approach it when it comes up.

[Brittany]

Listen, I love it whenever people make all these like, well, when I, when I have kids, I'm going to do this or this is my thought on that. And I'm like, okay, let's see when you have a sibo, how much of that changes and how quickly and then what you're willing to stand your ground on. Are you going to buy the cell phone phone or are you not or there you have a phone. Are you going to take it back away? Because I changed my mind on things. I've purchased video games and then said, just kidding, you're not ready for that. Take it back. On the flip side, you know, my son is one of top 500 players in the world and in a game he plays, he is very good at it.

[Host]

Wow.

[Brittany]

He also does all his schoolwork, is, has a big group of friends. He also is well rounded, likes to hike and exercise, you know, likes to surf. I'm like, okay, you can also add in video games. And it's not, it's going to be a tool, not a baggage thing. Okay, you're right for this.

[J.D.]

No.

[Brittany]

So it's just, is it going to.

[J.D.]

Be, is it going to be like fulfilling a need that is, you know, maybe not the best need to like pour energy into or is it going to be like an enhancement? Yeah. You know, I saw a tweet other day, the other day of, I don't know, some, some like tech CEO. He was like, if you ever find a globally ranked like gamer, hire them. And, and it's like, funny because I remember when I was growing up, oh, video games are bad and all that kind of stuff. And it was like, you know, are we supposed to carry that whole mindset forward? Then I listened to a podcast and Elon Musk is talking about how like surgeons perform 26% better if they also like play get video.

[Host]

I saw that.

[J.D.]

Yeah, yeah. That kind of cool. It was, I forgot.

[Brittany]

So all of a sudden every mom is like, so we forgot the surgery on my kid. Do you believe you? Tell me about your. At home. Yeah, yeah, no, it, it's, it's definitely one of those, you know, depends on where you are personally self control and, you know, you might change your mind on a few things and that's cool, that's good. I feel like that's part of growth.

[Host]

Yeah, they've helped me a ton. I was a huge gamer nerd growing up.

[J.D.]

Awesome.

[Host]

Yeah. My reaction speed is insane. I'm like, Top thousand in the world in Fortnite right now. And it teaches you a lot of communication too, depending on the game you're playing, I guess. But you need to have teamwork if you're playing like shooter games. Solid duty. So, yeah, I attribute a lot of my success to video games.

[J.D.]

Yeah. Well, and two, I think, I think one of the things that he was getting to as well, maybe that wasn't a explicit. Is that you're like. So yeah, there's a physical thing doesn't really benefit too much in this. Well, maybe it's a fine motor skills for surgeons or whatever. But. But the CEO that was saying that, I think part of it is that like you are basically engineering your way through a situation and it's very high speed. It's very. And you know, the stakes are high if you desire to be successful and you have to have, you have to hone your mind to be able to parse information and like operate according to truth.

[Host]

Right.

[J.D.]

Like, because a lot of times, like in the world, like, we don't actually have to operate according to truth because we have like a safety net here or there that like protects us from, from the consequences of not operating according to truth. I think a lot of that again is falling away right now, which is good because it'll make people better. And so. But I think that, I think, think that's a reason that that like things like video games can, when they've historically been like a bad thing, are actually like, good.

[Host]

Yeah, no, that was super well explained. I just learned a lot about myself. Yeah, that makes sense. Well, guys, it's been awesome. Where can people find you on social media and keep up with what you're doing?

[Brittany]

Uh, we are on American family road trip on Instagram. That is the number one place to find us. It is my favorite app.

[Host]

Same. I love Instagram.

[J.D.]

Yeah. I have a company called satsaver. We have a seed word management kit. So with Bitcoin, your seed words are your bitcoin. You don't want to let other people see your seed words or store them on Internet connected devices. So with a sat saver, basically we've engineered a way to let you like manually encrypt your seed words and it keeps them safer even if they're seen because there's a lot more layers of complexity than just looking at. It has to be decrypted.

[Host]

Oh, wow.

[J.D.]

So sat saver is.

[Host]

Love it. We'll link it below. Thanks for coming on, guys. Yeah, I'll see you guys at the conference. See you guys next time. Check out the links below. Peace. I hope you guys are enjoying the show. Please don't forget to like and subscribe. It helps the show a lot with the algorithm. Thank you.