Meet the Family

Welcome to Adventures of Six — meet the family of six, living, learning, and adventuring together. We’re a close-knit, creative, and adventurous team, each with our own unique personality and passions, but always connected by love and curiosity. From our journey across South Africa, Spain, and now the UK, to the everyday adventures of learning, exploring, and creating together, this is the heart of our family.

Scroll down to meet each of us individually — from the meditative calm of Clive to the unstoppable energy of Zeke — and discover what makes our family unique, creative, and always ready for the next adventure.

Meet the Family: The Burkinshaws

Clive

Husband, friend, and dad; the meditative one in the family. Keeping peace and calm… most of the time. Always ready to learn and fix anything (often requests from the children). Loves a challenge! A bit old school, but keeps an eye on the present and future.

(added by Jolene: extremely kind, gentle, patient, and caring to all he meets)

Clive is also the steady hand that keeps our family moving forward — quite literally! He’s a Class 1 HGV driver with years of experience on the road, and recently added his ADR and Tanks licenses, giving him specialist knowledge in the transport industry. Driving has always been more than just a job for Clive — it’s something he genuinely enjoys, and it gives him a unique perspective on travel, products, and life on the road.

When he’s not behind the wheel of a lorry, Clive enjoys photography, writing, and poetry. He’s a natural storyteller, which you’ll see in the articles and reviews he shares here — from life with ankylosing spondylitis, to his truck driver’s take on gear, gadgets, and the world around us.

Clive’s Skills & Interests

• Photography – capturing life on the road and our family’s adventures.

• Writing, Poetry & Storytelling – bringing words to life through honest, down-to-earth reflections.

• HGV Class 1 Truck Driver – with ADR & Tanks licenses, adding specialist expertise.

• Truck Driving Reviews & Insights – sharing a driver’s perspective on products, places, and industry life.

Jolene (Joe)

Mom, wife, friend, diplomat, negotiator, and a host of other skills to hold this family together. Passionate and motivated, always looking for a way to make life better and more fair. Watching out for the helpless, and defending the victims. A soft heart with a strong will.

Jolene is the organiser, the glue, and often the voice behind My Tip Offs. She loves creating content that helps others, whether that’s sharing health and wellness tips, home education resources, or honest reviews of family days out. With a mix of practicality and creativity, she keeps the website (and the family) running.

Jolene’s Skills & Interests

• Writing, Editing & Proofreading – bringing clarity and personality to every post.

• Website Design & SEO – the technical brain behind My Tip Offs.

• Organisation & Planning – whether it’s homeschooling or travel prep, she thrives on structure.

• Health & Wellness Research – sharing personal experience with a down-to-earth, relatable touch.

Luke

The oldest of the four and a natural big brother. Level-headed and cautious, he quietly watches over his siblings and teaches them with tenderness. A good sense of humour and quick wit make him fun company. A smart and deep thinker. His curiosity about life is his energy.

Luke faces some sensory challenges, which he has learned to manage incredibly well — even thriving now at college on his own. He is deeply creative and technically gifted: for over a year, he has been developing a game and creating his own animated movies, photographing characters frame by frame to bring them to life. He also makes digital music on his computer and can fix or build almost anything — becoming just like his dad in his hands-on skills.

He helps out massively with tech, gadgets, and online projects, including assisting with the website. Even with all this, his sense of humour remains sharp, making him a constant source of joy for the whole family.

Alysia

“To be or not to be, this is the question.” A free spirit and wandering personality makes Alysia flow from being a princess to a playful companion to a puppy effortlessly. Positive and happy, loving and kind, creative and artistic. She brings energy and sparkle wherever she goes.

Alysia has a soft, caring heart and a deep love for nature and all living things. She often worries about the world around her and wants to help wherever she can — whether it’s people, animals, or the environment. In our family adventures, she is the curious explorer, always observing, questioning, and learning. Her intelligence shines through in her love for maths, science, and the natural world.

While she doesn’t directly contribute to the website, Alysia is one of the first to test and explore the toys, games, and activities we review — her honest curiosity and feedback help guide our experiences and make sure our reviews are true to life.

Gabrielle (Gabby)

No mountain too high, no river too wide… Gabby doesn’t see obstacles, only challenges to overcome. She has always had a strong will and a drive to do her best.

These days, Gabby is pouring that determination into her creativity. She is an incredibly artistic soul, with a gift for drawing (both traditional and digital), design, and music. She loves acting, sketching, and playing the keyboard — exploring different ways to express herself and discover who she is.

Behind the scenes, Gabby has already helped shape My Tip Offs — from logo ideas to creative concepts. She may be quieter in a crowd, but her artistic vision speaks loudly.

Ezekiel (Zeke)

With an older brother and two older sisters, he gets the best of all worlds. Sensitive and caring one minute, fast and furious the next, then happily painting in the craft room. He lives life BIG. We think he was born with extra batteries, but we haven’t checked! Outdoors is his happy place.

Zeke is an explorer through and through. He would rather be outside than inside, passionately discovering dinosaurs, rocks, insects, and anything nature-related. He has an incredible imagination and loves role-playing, turning everyday moments into adventures. While he’s usually a whirlwind of energy — racing from one place to the next like a little hurricane — he can also sit completely still when absorbed in art, reading, or discovery.

His zest for life and creative ideas keeps the whole family on our toes, inspiring new adventures, games, and ways to spend the day. Zeke is never boring, and his energy and enthusiasm amaze everyone who meets him.

Our Story

We are an adventurous, fun family of six, originally from the gorgeous countryside of KwaZulu-Natal in South Africa.

From 2018 to 2021 we lived in Spain with plans to travel through Europe — a starting point for our dream to explore the real world, and share our experiences.

But since December 2021, our family faced a different kind of adventure: rebuilding after COVID-19 hit us hard (as it did many families). After leaving Spain, the five of us returned to South Africa to stay with family, while Clive moved to the UK to work and prepare for us to join him. Those two years apart were incredibly challenging, as we are a close-knit family, but we stayed focused on our goal.

In February 2024, we were finally reunited in the UK. It was a joyful and emotional moment to be back together, and since then we’ve been adjusting to life here, planning our future, and continuing our journey as a family. While we’ve settled in for now, our adventure continues, and every day brings new opportunities for learning, exploring, and creating memories together.

As part of this ongoing adventure, we worldschool our four incredible children and believe in life-led learning, especially from nature. We spend as much time outdoors as possible, keeping life simple, minimalistic, and plant-based. We are passionate advocates of peaceful parenting and non-violence in every aspect of life.

Our aim? To live a natural, peaceful, creative, fun, and adventurous life — together.

Thanks for stopping by to meet the family!