Oh Yeah I'm the Type of Guy that Likes to Roam Around

"Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn't do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover."
                                                                                       -Mark Twain

Rach and I are finally sitting back and relaxing after a whirlwind of a weekend that involved a great deal of house cleaning, kid wrangling, and Santa and Mrs. Claus hosting. We invited friends and family members over for our fifth annual Sunday with Santa, today, and the house is still abuzz with Christmas energy.

The event's always a good time, but it involves quite a bit of work on our part to make up for the months of focusing on the kids more than the cleaning. We had a lot of help, though, so everything worked out and it was fantastic seeing the kids (and adults) interacting with The Claus Clan.

Now, though, the kids are in bed dreaming of St. Nick's visit and we've kicked back to watch The Amazing Race and feed our wanderlust.

We're living vicariously through the teams racing around the world, because, with three young kiddos, we know our travel adventures are on hiatus. In the past, though, we've certainly made the most of our opportunities:

One of my first extended experiences with Rachel's family was a road trip that covered Niagara Falls, camping in Canada, U-Turning on the border bridge in front of a speeding semi, playing in Lake Michigan sand dunes, and returning home via a family reunion in Wisconsin.

For our honeymoon we explored the Mayan Riviera and their speeding taxis.

In 2004, we had a blast travelling from Naples to Rome to Florence to Bologna to Venice to Salzburg to Munich in a Volkswagen van with four other family members.

We've been to Hawaii four times, (twice with Mini-Me in tow and once with The Wubster), and plan to return in 2013 (with only adult friends...poor Mickey (the kid not the dog) will have to wait a bit for her turn).

 We've had fun feeding our wanderlust in the past and our dreams for the future involve travelling to Alaska, the Caribbean, Australia, Ireland, and anywhere else the winds might take us. For the near future, though, we'll be sticking to more kid-friendly road trips in the continental U.S. and, in the process, teaching our kids to love exploring the world as much as we do.

If we do nothing more as parents than teach them to explore, dream, and discover, we will have given them the best education possible.

Beyond the East, the sunrise,
Beyond the West, the sea,
And East and West the wanderthirst
Will not let me be.
                             -Gerald Gould