We signed the paperwork to start our sabbatical four years before we could actually take the trip and a week later, we started planning.
It’s easy to fall into the mindset of “it’s so far away—we have tons of time, no reason to think about it now.” But think about something that happened four years ago. Or better yet, let Facebook or Google Photos remind you what you were doing back then. When you look at those memories, don’t you immediately think, “Wow, that feels like just yesterday”?
Especially with young kids, I can literally see weeks and months slip by in the blink of an eye. I knew our time to plan wouldn’t feel very long at all.
Plus, I was so excited to start planning.
I’m the type of person who loves the weeks leading up to Christmas more than the actual day itself. I love the anticipation, the gift planning, the decorating, the suspense. So, as you might imagine, I was thrilled to spend the next 3.96 years thinking about this trip, planning it, and watching it slowly take shape into what I know will be an absolutely incredible adventure.
That said, when you’re planning something this big, you also should build in some downtime. There will be moments when you’re exhausted from staring at itineraries, budget spreadsheets, and Airbnb listings. And when planning starts to feel more like a chore than an excitement, it’s great to be able to step away for a few weeks and then come back with renewed energy.
So—all of that was a very long preface to the actual question: where do you even start?
You know that feeling when you have a really busy day ahead or a massive task in front of you and you’re completely overwhelmed? What’s the first thing everyone tells you to do?
Make a list.
In that spirit, we started out our sabbatical planning simply: we made a list. Justin and I individually made a list of our top 5 destination choices. We intentionally did this separately, without influencing each other, but we did try to keep the girls’ ages and abilities in mind. They’ll be 5 and 7 years old, so climbing Mount Everest didn’t exactly make the cut.
Here’s what we came up with:
Sam’s list
- African Safari
- Japan
- Southeast Asia
- Australia / New Zealand
- Canada / US National Parks
Justin’s list
- African Safari
- Japan
- Galápagos
- Australia / New Zealand
- Egypt
You might notice a few overlapping destinations—and a bit of cheating, where we justify grouping multiple countries into a single destination. Once we had our lists made, we put them up on a map to get a global picture.
Looking at our destinations laid out on a map made everything feel suddenly real. What started as abstract ideas and daydreams began to take on shape and direction, giving us our first glimpse of what this year could look like. We knew these plans will evolve—routes will shift, timelines will change, and new ideas will undoubtedly sneak their way onto (or off of) the list. But this simple exercise gave us a starting point, a shared vision, and a reminder that even the biggest adventures are built one small step at a time.