On our first date, as I rode in the passenger seat of Peter’s 2001 silver Pathfinder, we spoke about our dreams. Mine was to summit Kilimanjaro. His was to retire at 40 and sail around the world. We both thought the other one had pretty good plans and 15 years later, as I reflect on that night, I know it was our passion for dreaming and our shared desire for an adventurous life that brought us together and keeps us going today. We fell in love and began traveling the world. We traveled to stoke our curiosity, to pursue the spark, to have fun, and to grow and push ourselves in sometimes challenging environments. It didn’t take us long to achieve my dream, we summited Kilimanjaro for our honeymoon.
We also dreamed of starting a family, one we could do differently. Children who aren’t attached to screens, children who travel well, who thrive in the outdoors, whose educations center around real world experiences. Well that didn’t take long either. A month later we were pregnant! When our baby Sage arrived, we were adamant that we would continue pursuing our dreams and bring her with us on our travels but maintaining our adventurous lifestyle with a baby was hard!
Luckily we both like a challenge.
This blog began in that space. As an opportunity for me to share what was possible as a family. Not only to keep our loved ones updated on our travels but to model what it looked like to pursue our dream life with a baby in tow.
As it turns out, the other side of hard is a rewarding place. By the time Sage was three we traveled as a family through 14 different countries, rock climbed on weekends, camped all over the western United States, went on dozens of road-trips and backpacked with her through the Sierra Mountains. Through our experiences we discovered that chasing our dreams is still possible with children. Yes, in some ways it’s very hard, but the fact that it’s hard makes it so much more rewarding. Pursuing our dreams, while also being parents, requires careful planning, creativity, an open mind, a LOT of patience and constant reminders to resist the easier choice of staying home. To us, the easier choice is rarely the most rewarding.
Now we have three children (hopefully someday four) and are in the process of planning our greatest adventure yet. We are proud of the work we’ve done to get here and we love to inspire others to think about their dream lifestyle and take the leap!
What are the dreams you want to chase? What’s it going to feel like for you on the other side of hard? Get in touch and let me know. I would love to hear from you.
Thanks for being here.