Coming to Terms

I think the one of the most difficult things for me about quitting my job and becoming a mom is coming to terms with the fact that I will no longer be able to travel like I once did and wished to continue.

I was able to take some awesome trips in the past few years and had lofty ambitions of leaving the country ever year from then on out. And although I travel rather extensively around the eastern US, here are the highlights from my past few years of freedom:

Ireland 2010

Colorado 2010

St. Croix USVI 2009

Italy 2008

I was always determined to be one of these people who simply added children to their life, not changed their life as they added children. Take a three year old to Europe? Why would that be an issue?

Well, now I understand! I'm pretty sure there will be A LOT of those moments in my parenting experience as my stubbornness doesn't always allow me to accept other people's advice. =)

That said, I have also done extensive research on the realities of traveling with children and I definitely think by the time Miss Iz is about a year old, we could manage a cruise.

But then there's another reality: MONEY.

Everything was easy when I had a job, but now that I don't, how do you fund travel expeditions? I am so lucky my husband is able to find jobs easily and earn enough money to allow me to stay at home, but we are both young and we have a big house to keep up.

It's fairly depressing not only for me, but also because I want Iz to understand how truly accessible the world is. I was amazed once I got my passport of the simple power that booklet held. I could go ANYWHERE. Literally, book a ticket to anywhere, get on a plane, and go!

We went on extensive road trips when I was a kid and although those trips weren't always fun, they did instill in me a love of seeing new and interesting things. I wish more than anything that I will be able to share the world with my daughter. Not just road trips, but trips to other countries. I want her to know she can go wherever she wants. I want her to be a confident little traveler who understands the world and the different people in it. Nothing opens your mind and your heart like seeing how other people live and I feel like one of my most important responsibilities as a parent is to give her a compassionate spirit.