The golden days of summer are made of splashing in swimming pools, biking through lush wooded trails, running and laughing with friends on green fields, and basking in the warm sunshine on a beautiful blue-sky day. A triathlon is the race of summer, taking all the good parts and squishing them together as fast as possible. When Noah found out we would be “home” for the summer, he was thrilled to know that he would be able to compete in the local Youth Triathlon.

So we “trained” by making good use of the local swimming pool, developing a recognizable stroke and learning how to dive. I had told the kids that I could either pay for two weeks of swimming lessons, or I could buy a family pool pass for the summer and they would have to give me 10 minutes each of their time to practice their swimming. We bought the pass, and I basked in the pool-side sun, enjoying every minute. They both improved daily. Natalie had become comfortable with the water earlier that summer, and one day decided to put her face in and swim. I felt like I was witnessing a miracle! It confirmed what I knew in my head but sometimes had a hard time believing- kids will develop when they are ready, just give them time.

The day of the race was the quintessential summer day. We gathered with friends to cheer, the kids took their places, and the race was on! Noah didn’t dive, he didn’t use his new stroke to swim down the lane, I had kept the shoelaces too tight so that it took Paul a whole agonizing minute to help Noah get his shoes on, and he fell trying to do a fancy transition on his bike. Noah ended with a huge smile, though, and didn’t notice all of the imperfections. He was there for the joy of the race.

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Practice didn’t make perfect, but it sure was fun. Sometimes our family’s journey doesn’t feel like a race, more like a slow crawl, and it doesn’t hold all of the elements we had rehearsed, but we are enjoying it so much! We have realized all of the opportunities we have gained through this unexpected time, like being home to squish summer into an early August morning.

It all started on a rainy afternoon drive through the wildlife loop in Custer State Park. We were spending the weekend with family in the Black Hills of South Dakota and enjoying a break from daily life. As we drove through the winding roads, Paul and I continued our ever-present conversation about life: how it’s going, what our goals are, how we feel about things. We argue now about who brought it up first, but one of us began talking about the possibility of living somewhere else. “Where would we go?” “How long would we go?” “What would we do?” The questions kept coming, and by the time we exited the park, we had decided that we would go to Spain for a year.

Why Spain? We decided for our first time living outside of the United States, we wanted someplace slightly familiar, which narrowed us down to Western Europe. We also decided that if we wanted the kids to learn another language, we wanted it to be Spanish. So, Spain it is.

Why a year? I really didn’t want to just take a glorified vacation. I wanted to immerse in the culture to gain a better understanding and appreciation for the people, history and landscape around us. A few weeks were not going to do that. A year would allow us to feel every season, see every holiday, learn through a whole school year, and get over the middle hump of hating everything foreign.

But, really, why? Why did we want to go?

There are plenty of reasons why we are choosing to uproot and take our family to a foreign country for a while. The excitement of adventure in a new land, the challenge of living in a foreign country, the bonding of experiencing change together, the opportunity to learn from others. But, if I’m honest, we were looking for escape.

The few years leading up to last fall had been really hard. We had dealt with relational strains as friends had moved, we had spent three years trying for a baby, we experienced havoc as we were part of leadership at our church, family members were diagnosed with deep illness, and we were feeling overwhelmed with life. I couldn’t handle the pressure. My hair had started falling out, I wasn’t eating much, I avoided friends (even though I’m highly extroverted), and I stopped attending Sunday morning worship. It was dark, and I was so confused and heartbroken over lost relationships and lost dreams that I wanted to step away from everyone and just breathe.

Little did I know, when we concocted our plan to move to Spain, that by following the plan to keep our distance from people, we would end up doing the exact opposite. Not only did we not leave for Europe in July, but because we had already sold our home, we also ended up needing to make plans to live with people. Not just near them, but literally with them. In short order, we had set up a string of nine different homes to live in.

It’s been oh-so-hard to live with others. To have to glare at my weaknesses each day, to give up control, to try to adhere to the rhythms of each new place. But it has also been good to be in close relationship with so many of our wonderful friends and family. To remember how amazing it is to be together. We are healing, and so much of that healing is coming through daily life and conversations with the people.

So, we are not escaping anymore. Well, maybe a little, but not because I can’t breathe. Just to enjoy the fresh air.

We have now moved 6 times in 3 months. The first move was by far the hardest. I loved the house that we had for the last 6 ½ years, and the memories it helped create; of my babies growing up, the garden growing each summer, sitting in the glow of twinkly lights in the winter, and so many, many dinners with friends and family. After saying goodbye to our wonderful home, we started our summer of “living in community”- an idea that had sounded appealing when we were young without kids, but that we didn’t really consider in this stage of life. It has gone surprisingly well, however. Hard, but better than I thought it would go. 

After staying with Paul’s parents for a week in Wisconsin, ended by a weekend with mine in Minnesota, we moved into the basement of our friends. They had graciously cleared out room and the plan was that we would stay for two weeks before flying to Spain. Then our visa was denied. Five weeks later, we finally left to another friend’s apartment who was traveling for a week. Then onto two other hospitable friends who made space in their basements and lives, then out to Minnesota to the home of friends and then my parents. Three more moves this fall to friends and family will complete our slow journey to Spain and England. I’m exhausted with anticipation and looking forward to the adventures.

Each place that we stay inspires me in some way. I keep writing down the great ideas from each family or house that I want to incorporate. For example:

• eat salad for every lunch- then you don’t have to meal plan
• let kids be free to fail
• write intentional goals down and make them visible in your home
• seed new grass- not sod
• pack a meal for date night instead of going to a restaurant
• have music playing in the mornings
• make Sunday evening rest time
• pray blessings over kids each morning
• feed the birds
• catch monarch caterpillars and watch them transform
• good friends are essential for living

I have loved seeing the varied ways that each family and home functions. All different in ways, but so similar in others.

As we continue this nomad lifestyle, I find that I am continually refining how our family functions. Finding what doesn’t matter is becoming easier and easier with each move, because I’m realizing that some items really aren’t worth unpacking and re-packing 27 times, or that a simpler routine is needed if I actually expect to be able to continue it in every place we go. And the fact that I will be teaching the kids from wherever we are (I’m calling it “world-school” this year), means that I really have to figure out the curriculum and routines that I’m willing to haul around with us. 

I’m sure I’ll continue to learn and refine with each new bend in the journey; it will be interesting to see where this road leads!

We booked the tickets. ALL of them! As in five flights, four airbnbs, one hostel, and one rental car. We will buy train tickets when we arrive, but the rest is set. Unless something else unforeseen happens, we are leaving for Europe on December 9th with a plan to return next June. And it will be beautiful! The place we originally had in Spain was a lovely family home in Granada that would have worked well for our family to settle for a year, but after our visas were repeatedly denied, our new plan limited us to only be in each country for three months at a time. When we started looking at new places, via airbnb, we found places that fit our price range, and are also a little dreamier than the first plan.

SPAIN: December through March.

The first home is less than an hour train ride to Barcelona, on the edge of the mediterranean, in a small town with a huge castle. Although it will be December, too cold for beach time, we will still enjoy the beauty of our “beach home”, explore the castle, and use some time to take in the touristy finds of Barcelona and the surrounding areas. 

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I dubbed the next place our “farm home”, though it could easily hold the title “paradise”. An hour south of Granada, set in the side of the Sierra Navada mountains, this farm home boasts 500 year old olive trees, as well as groves of oranges, lemons, avocados, nuts and other fruit. The views look spectacular and we will enjoy the seclusion after months of time with people. 

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ENGLAND: March through June.

After using up our 90-day stay in Europe, we will head to England, where we can stay for up to six months without a visa. Here we will stay in a small cottage in the quaint little town of Ludlow, close to Wales, in Shropshire (which is just fun to say). This town also boasts a beautiful castle right on the Teme river and seems like a pretty place to explore the area.

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I know that everything looks better in pictures, and that nothing is ever as easy as it seems, but I’m looking forward to continuing the adventure that we have already started, and enjoying the views along the way!