2014

I haven't been too anxious about this trip because it felt so far away.  We don't leave until 2014!  But as of today it actually is 2014 meaning we leave in 10 sleeps.  10.  Sleeps.  My ever growing list of To Do's is not slowing down either!

Often the first thing people ask after they respond with "6 months!!" is "Why?  What prompted a trip like this?"  And our answer is simply to bond.  To bond together as a fairly new family, to build new memories that will hopefully anchor us together and to learn more how to be mom and dad and brother and sister to each other.  Because of our story we've had to find creative ways to do this.  Thankfully because Luke has his own business we are able to leave work and leave home and force ourselves to be together.  All the time.  But with the hopes of figuring more about what it means to parent these kids as a team and how to be newly marrieds with four kids.

We know it's going to be crazy, hard, tiring, maddening, and frustrating but we also look forward to the moments of laughter, friendship, fun and joy.  We've tried to put some strategies in place to help the craziness.  We've rented homes for mostly 2 week stints with the hopes of creating a home base.  We're embracing the idea of Slow Travel with the hopes of getting to know where we are really well.  And we're hoping to nap Josie at home once a day if possible allowing us to do school work, explore the area we're living in and take it easy if we need it.

Ok time to sign off.  Kids are just getting up (it's 10:40!).  We let them stay up to midnight last night to ring in the new year.  It felt kinda right to start 2014 together as a family knowing we are making choices to turn towards family this year.

Happy 2014!