A vacation bucket list

Sean and I recently decided that in two years we WILL go on a family vacation. We are starting to save for this now so that we can have the type of vacation we want and not have to skimp on any of it! Right now we are in the research phase. In the summer of 2014 we will have a 3 year old and a 1 1/2 year old.  I've been spending way too much time on the computer researching some of the best vacation spots to take toddlers. All of this has me thinking....

There is a lot I want to do with my children before they grow up and leave me!

My family never vacationed. I took my first flight when I was 18 and on that trip I saw the ocean for the first time. Since then I have been to two different countries and vacationed on the beach multiple times. This has sparked a fire in me that I never knew existed. I am a traveler and I want to see the world.

However I am now also a mother. This shouldn't change my passion for seeing the beautiful things God has created all over the world. Instead it has driven me to want to drag my children along for the ride! I look at Ella and know that there are so many things that they can't teach her in school. They won't be able to teach her the excitement and anxiety of visiting a foreign country. They won't be able to teach her how the sand feels between her toes and how soothing it is to fall asleep to the sound of crashing waves. 

Knowing this motivates me to get her out there. Let her experience the world and see the things that make it obvious that God created everything!

Ok. My rant is over. My original purpose for this post was to share some of the places I am determined to take my family to. Not a bucket list to achieve before I die, rather one to finish before Ella gets married and leaves the nest.

So... here goes

1. Yellowstone, Rocky Mountains
2. Grand Canyon
3. Alaska
4. Scotland & Ireland
5. General Europe trip that must include Italy and Macedonia (where my ancestors were from)
6. 7. Hawaii- mostly to visit the Pearl Harbor Memorial
8. Cancun- mostly because Sean loves it so much and I have never been
9. South America
10. Australia

Ok. So we have hopefully around 20 years to accomplish all of this. Hopefully we can do it :)