We were attracted to each other for many reasons; one of them being, we knew we wanted to explore the world.🌏
So… one year after we got married, we rented a rather large U-haul 🚚 and headed out to Los Angeles with 2 cars on tow!!
Fast forward to today (six years later), and we’re leaving L.A., in a rented van and my little Audi, unsure of our plans, but very optimistic of our future! 🤩
FIRST STOP ON THE SABBATICAL: Catching up with family and heading back to our hometowns!
It’s one thing to visit your family during the 🎄holidays; it’s typically hectic and splitting the time between your in-laws never seems fair. It’s a whole other experience to have an extended stay; to immerse yourself back into the culture that is your family. 👨👩👧👦
When you’ve been gone for 6 years and traveled like we have, you grow up a lot, both mentally and spiritually. 🧐
You learn so much about other cultures in the world 🌍 and you want to share this knowledge with your family.
This can be both refreshing and frustrating, because you have to get used to being around each other constantly again! 😳 You need to be patient and try to understand each other’s perspectives; you also have to come to terms with the things that will never change! 🤔
The best part of it all, is that you also get to spend magical moments with them, moments that can only be had while you’re just “hanging out.” 😊
Impromptu sleep-overs and photo shoots, Thai cooking class, pottery, painting, hiking, walking the pups together;🤗 cheering your niece on during her first swim class, while wearing Minnie Mouse ears (🐹that was a dare!), and then consoling her in the locker room when she realizes, it’s just not for her.
Taking a yoga class for beginners and then catching your nephew chanting a mantra while he takes a bath using essential oils. Or this…. just this…. 😍
It’s the little things that amount to the moments we remember as adults…
Every time we went back to L.A. after visiting our families, Michael and I would look at each other and say: I think we’re missing out, the kids have grown up sooo much… It truly made our ❤️ hearts sad. 😔
So taking this time with them is very special for us, it’s giving us the insight into a part of their childhood that we’ll cherish forever. 💑 They may not be traveling all over the world with us, but they’re getting to see new perspectives, through our stories, our pictures and hopefully… vicariously through our experiences.
The Sabbatical 