And we’re off….

After nine months of planning, the day has arrived when we fly out.

Over the next seven months, we’ll make our way through Mexico for five weeks (after a ridiculously touristy stop-over in LA), on to London for a month, and then slow travel across Europe for three months hugging the coastline through Italy, Croatia and Greece, before making our way back to the United Kingdom (and an unplanned itinerary) for our final two months.

It’s been a rollercoaster of emotions over the last week as the reality and magnitude of saying goodbye and travelling for this long lands for each of us. Isla takes it in her stride, filling each day to the brim with time with friends, and I’ve loved having the house filled with their laughter. It’s been the perfect antidote as I’ve had to do my hard things (like say goodbye to our beloved dog Jet for the time we’re away).

For Leo, it seems to have hit him the hardest. Maybe because he’s the best at being in the present moment, so all the preparatory conversations we’ve had have kind of washed over him.

There’s a swimming pool complex on our street. It has a high dive board of over 3 metres. The kids love to go there and we can all relate to that moment when you’re poised and ready to jump. This is how I try to explain it to him: “This is the hardest part. The waiting in the queue is over, and now we’re on the wobbly platform, we can see how high up it is and we’re not sure we want to do it. But once we jump, it’s going to be amazing”.