One Year, One Big Dream: Why We Left It All Behind

Why would a family like ours pack up and take off for a whole year? Honestly, it sounded crazy even to us—and we love crazy adventures! We weren’t running away from anything (except maybe routine), but the idea of leaving everything behind—school, work, friends, normal life—was a mix of butterflies and pure excitement. It was overwhelming to think about all the moving parts—visas, money, insurance, school plans, what to pack when you’re living out of a few bags for a year—but deep down we knew: the best stories start when you say yes to something just a little terrifying.

And yet… we did it.

Leaving everything behind wasn’t easy. Saying goodbye to steady routines, familiar faces, and the comfort of our daily rhythm felt a little like standing at the edge of a cliff and daring ourselves to jump. There were a million questions swirling: Will the kids fall behind in school? Will we survive 24/7 togetherness? How do you even fit a year’s worth of life into a carry-on suitcase?

Spoiler: we didn’t have all the answers. Honestly, we still don’t. But here’s the thing: sometimes you have to leap before you’re ready.

The logistics were dizzying. We juggled school withdrawals, vaccinations, travel insurance, renting out our house, and about 1,278 other details that kept us up at night. At times, planning the trip felt harder than running a small country. Yet through the chaos, one thing kept us moving forward: the dream of what could be.

We wanted more than a life lived on autopilot. We wanted messy, colorful, laugh-till-you-cry moments. We wanted the kids to see that the world was so much bigger than their classroom, and that there are endless ways to live a meaningful life—and that magic often happens just outside your comfort zone.

Was it scary? Absolutely.

Was it tricky? Every single day.

Was it worth it? More than we could have ever imagined.

There were bumpy flights, wrong turns, cold showers, and moments we questioned our sanity. But there were also sunrises over the New Zealand Mountains, picnics under the twinkling lights of the Eiffel Tower, and cozy evenings spent laughing in tiny apartments in cities we didn’t even know existed a year before.

Taking off for a year wasn’t about escaping life; it was about diving deeper into it—with all its wildness, wonder, and unpredictability.

If you’re sitting there thinking, “Could we do something that crazy?”—trust us, you absolutely can. It doesn’t have to be perfect or even pretty. It just has to be yours.

Here’s to chasing dreams—even the ones that scare you a little.