Why We’re Taking a Seven-Month Trip Around the World
The boys and I are off on an adventure: a seven-month, round-the-world trip.
It’s been a long time in the making. It’s been reshaped, reconsidered, and nearly abandoned more than once. There were many moments I thought it would never happen. And yet, here we are. I’m excited to share the journey with you.
When I first started telling people about our plan, the question I expected most, “why?” was actually the one I heard least. Maybe people were being polite. But I think many instinctively got it. They understood that this was a rare, once-in-a-lifetime opportunity that was crazy, impractical, and meaningful all at once.
When Family Travel Started to Feel Too Short
We’ve always loved to travel, but like many families, our trips fit neatly into the margins of busy American life: long workdays, packed school schedules, endless sports and activities. A few years ago, I realized I wanted more than short getaways and pretty photos. I wanted deeper experiences. Real learning. And the chance to see the world through my kids’ eyes before they outgrew traveling with me.
Long-Term Travel with Kids: Does It Have to Be This Extreme?
A fair question is whether it had to be a seven-month, round-the-world trip. Aren’t there plenty of ways to connect, grow, and share values as a family without quitting a job, uprooting kids, and leaving friends and family behind? Of course there are. How families connect and pursue meaning should be as unique as the families themselves. This is simply my way and I’m here to share what we learn and experience not to prescribe a path.
What I Believe About Travel, Education, and Discomfort
I’m a voracious traveler who believes that the best education doesn’t always come from a classroom, that discomfort can be a gift, and that seeing how other people live reshapes how you see yourself. I love the logistics as much as the magic, the how-tos, the planning, the splurges that are worth it, and the lessons learned the hard way.
Research suggests that travel can support adult well-being, cognitive flexibility, creativity, and intercultural competence especially when it involves meaningful engagement, challenge, and reflection. Travel alone isn’t enough; how you travel matters just as much as whether you do. There’s far less data on the impact of long-term travel on teens, but my hope is that by creating an experience that balances challenge with reflection, my boys will gain some of these same benefits.
Leaping
This is a leap for all of us. It’s exciting. It’s hard.
And if you’ve ever thought this sounds amazing… and slightly unhinged…welcome. You’re in good company.
Leave a Reply