10 Apr Just do it…
Recently another mum asked me for advice on whether or not their family should pack up and spend time travelling.
Of course I told her to just do it..
A little more than a year ago I remember asking friends that exact same question. I was feeling scared, nervous and unsure about whether or not we were doing the right thing for our children, and our family, by packing up all our belongings and moving into a teeny tiny space for an uncertain amount of time to travel.
I was nervous because we hadn’t really planned anything out and I was scared because we were jumping into the unknown. Pretty normal feelings when you are making a big decision as a family, just like selling a house, moving to a new place or any other life changing event.
One of the biggest perceived barriers to travelling long term with children is around ensuring the children continue to receive an education, however there are so many ways to manage this, it really just depends on what suits each individual family.
Obviously this is not an issue we have had to deal with yet but the time is looming that we need to make a decision around how to begin our children’s education path. At the moment we are managing a caravan park on the Yorke Peninsula in South Australia and we have decided to enrol Avalon into the local kindergarten for the start of the school year so she begins to get the structure and discipline that regular school attendance can give.
Obviously while on the road this is not always an option and we’ve met many families on our journey who are also travelling with children. Most families use distance education which is attached to a state based Department of Education and a distance education teacher who manages their courses, however some families have opted to follow the world schooling theory as well.
Some of the many things the girls have learned about on our travels so far..
Funding your trip is another perceived barrier and again, depending on the type of trip you want to do, there are many different ways to do this. Whether you do what we do and work for a few months then travel a while to your next work stop, or you have enough money to fund the whole trip up front.
I believe there is nothing that can stop you embarking on extended travelling if you are creative about how you solve any perceived barrier. If you really want to travel with your children (or without them) then, while it seems simplistic, you just need to make it happen.
Looking back on our time so far I wouldn’t change one single thing about our experiences. Yes we’ve had challenges but those challenges have helped shape our experience, and experiences become memories. Isn’t that what this whole adventure is ultimately about?
So if anyone is reading and pondering such a decision my advice is to ‘just do it’. You can never regret making memories with your children and you will never get this time back with them.
Creating strong family ties and lasting memories.. nothing more satisfying
The GudLanges xx
About the Author
I am a mum of 2 girls aged 2 and 4 years. As a family we have been travelling around Australia in a tiny pop up caravan, navigating the country, while navigating the early years. We are currently managing a caravan park on the Yorke Peninsula in South Australia.
Website: http://www.thegudlangesblog.com.au
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thegudlanges/