Family Gap Year

When I was in my twenties, my fellow teacher friend, Whitney, and I would go to open mic night every Tuesday at the Mucky Duck in Houston (while multi-tasking on school work).

One night, we heard a song about living your life backwards. It was something about living the retirement life when you were younger—traveling while your body was able to handle it well—and then going back to school when you were older and had a deeper appreciation for it.

I took from that song the goal of retiring much later than the average age and using those extra years to take mini-retirements throughout my life while I was younger.

I did it once when I was 27. I saved up my money for an entire year and then took almost a whole year off from teaching—traveling up the East Coast, learning how to make hammocks and tofu at an intentional community, working at a folk art school, tutoring evacuees after Hurricane Katrina, and traveling to India.

Now we are going on a Family Gap Year! It’s not a “mini-retirement” because I will still be working remotely. The goal is to explore, spend a whole lot of quality time together, and develop a deep appreciation for the vastness of the world and the diversity of cultures and people in it.

Here’s our itinerary:

June 2022 = Road trip around the United States: Austin to Bloomington to Madison to Livingston (Montana) to Baring (Washington) to Vancouver to Eugene Oregon to Arcata (California) to Stinson Beach (California) to San Francisco to Los Angeles to Pasadena.

July 2022 = Oahu, Kauai’i, and Maui

August 2022-mid-October 2022 = Hilo, Hawai’i

October 2022 = Malaysia & Singapore

First half of November 2022 = Bali, Indonesia

Second half of November + early December = Australia (Melbourne to Sydney to Byron Bay to Brisbane to the hinterlands)

Late December 2022 to January 2023 = Road trip around the South Island of New Zealand

End of January through April 2023 = Nelson, New Zealand

End of April through May 2023 = Wellington, New Zealand

If you live in any of these places or will be traveling through at the same time, please reach out! We love meeting new people.

I try to post an update on Instagram nearly every day and send out a weekly newsletter update.

Posts about Planning Our Family Gap Year

• Family Gap Year Post #1: Is it possible?
• Family Gap Year Post #2: The Planning Begins
• Family Gap Year Post #3: Brainstorming Possible Locations
• Family Gap Year Post #4: A List of Destinations
• Family Gap Year Post #5: Getting into the Weeds
• Family Gap Year Post #6: An International Pandemic
• Family Gap Year Post #7: Starting Over
• Family Gap Year Post #8: Planning Begins (Again)
• Family Gap Year Post #9: A Plan Takes Shape
• Family Gap Year Post #10: Departure To Do List
• Family Gap Year Post #11: Planning for the Heart
• Family Gap Year Post #12: T-Minus 35 Days
• Family Gap Year Post #13: Stress-Reducing Strategies
• Family Gap Year Post #14: The Budgeting Process
• Family Gap Year Post #15: The Final Month of Preparation (May 2022)
• Family Gap Year Post #16: 5,000-Mile Road Trip—Our Adventures (June, Part 1)
• Family Gap Year Post #17: 5,000-Mile Road Trip—Our Family Dynamic (June, Part 2)
• Family Gap Year Post #18: 5,000-Mile Road Trip—Lodging & Food (June, Part 3)
• Family Gap Year Post #19: 5,000-Mile Road Trip—Exercise & Budget (June, Part 4)
• Family Gap Year Post #20: Hawaiian Island Hopping—Our Adventures (July, Part 1)
• Family Gap Year Post #21: Hawaiian Island Hopping—Our Family Dynamic (July, Part 2)
• Family Gap Year Post #22: Hawaiian Island Hopping—Lodging & Food (July, Part 3)
• Family Gap Year Post #23: Hawaiian Island Hopping—Exercise & Budget (July, Part 4)
• Family Gap Year Post #24: The Big Island—Our Adventures (Aug-Oct, Part 1)
• Family Gap Year Post #25: The Big Island—Our Family Dynamic (Aug-Oct, Part 2)
• Family Gap Year Post #26: The Big Island—Lodging & Food (Aug-Oct, Part 3)
• Family Gap Year Post #27: Fast Travel Around Southeast Asia
• Family Gap Year Post #28: Fast Travel up the Eastern Side of Australia
• Family Gap Year Post #29: Settling into the Hinterlands of Australia
• Family Gap Year Post #30: Road Trip Around the South Island of New Zealand
• Family Gap Year Post #31: Settling into the Tasman Region of Aotearoa New Zealand (Jan-Apr)
• Family Gap Year Post #32: Road Trip Around the North Island of Aotearoa New Zealand (April 2023)
• Family Gap Year Post #33: Settling into the Wellington Area (May)
• Family Gap Year Post #34: Our Trip in Review