Traveling the World with Three Children (and writing about it!)

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Tell me a little bit about your new venture, creating a family travel blog.

I started my family travel blog, Bon Voyage With Kids, about a year and a half ago. I have a background in Public Relations and have worked for public television, an educational travel company, and for Walt Disney World in a communications capacity. My husband (also a Westminster alumnus) and I have both lived abroad and have traveled extensively both before having kids and we have traveled and lived abroad with our kids.

Since our oldest son was three months old, we started to travel with him and continued after our twins were born. When they were ages 4, 1, and 1, we moved abroad for a year. This was a very big experience because our son was in a school, we had to visit doctors, playgrounds, and get around a major European capital with three kids under the age of 4. We learned a lot about traveling with kids with that experience.

But, even more than the logistics, I realized how much I loved traveling with kids because you experience travel in a whole new way. You really get to experience a place through your kids. You have to slow down, give them time for breaks which often means playgrounds and playing with local children, visit grocery stores for snacks, and dine in family-friendly restaurants. In many ways, you get to live like a local.

After being a stay at home mom for the last 10 years, I was looking for something I could do when my kids were in school, and one day, I came across a family travel blog who was looking for writers. I have dabbled in travel writing before, and I have become a go-to resource with my friends for all things travel related. I had an "aha" moment that this opportunity would combine my family travel and communication experiences. I started writing for that blog and then decided to start my own.

I love traveling as an adult, but traveling with kids is a whole new adventure. Whether it is stepping on a plane for that first time, venturing to Disney, visiting a different country, or even taking a long road trip, traveling with kids can feel overwhelming. I love helping people realize that not only can they travel with kids, but all the reasons they should! I also love creating content that helps people travel from home and introduce their kids to world cultures.

Where did this passion begin? What’s something that sparked and why did you want to offer this to families?

My passion for travel actually began at Westminster! During that time, we had a January term. I had already been thinking about doing a semester abroad, but the college choir announced a European choir tour during one of the January terms. I decided I had to go (and my now-husband also was on the choir tour.) It was an unforgettable experience, where we sang in major European cathedrals including Westminster Abbey and Notre Dame. I decided to travel abroad that next fall to London with an exchange program Westminster had with Regent's College in London. It was another amazing experience and really got me hooked on travel and want to work in cultural exchange.

It took a few years before I was able to travel a lot again, but once I started working for an educational travel company in their cultural exchange division, and my husband began a global consulting company, we traveled extensively. We have gone to nearly 30 countries, including places in Europe, Africa, Asia, the Caribbean, and North America. We have also loved just exploring the diversity within the United States.

Once we had kids, we knew we still wanted to travel - even if it was locally, to visit family, to Disney, and eventually abroad. And, as I said, I just really loved watching my son play with other children in Europe. Even if he couldn't speak the language, kids all understand the language of play. It was magical, and we wanted to introduce him to as much of the world as possible. In fact, that has been one of our major goals as parents, to introduce our kids to as much of the world as possible and to raise them as global citizens.

And now, at age 11, he can name most flags of the world and loves geography. Our twins are full of wanderlust as well.

I wanted to start my blog to inspire families to travel, be it locally, to Disney, within the United States, or abroad. Traveling with kids isn't perfect. Trust me, we have had many things go wrong on our trips. But it is most certainly a journey from door to door, and I love helping families with ideas for what to do, where to go, and how to get there.

Tell me about what your life looked like following your graduation from Westminster College.

After graduating from Westminster, I moved to Washington, DC to attend a graduate program in Public Communication. I first worked in public relations for public television stations WETA in Washington, DC, and then once we moved to New England, for WGBH in Boston.

But, I realized I wanted to work in travel and joined an educational travel company in Boston in their cultural exchange division. After working there for a few years, my husband and I relocated to Florida, where I got my dream job as a Global Communication Specialist for Walt Disney World (best job ever!). But, after just two years, my husband's job took us back to New England, so I returned to the educational travel company until we moved to France. We then returned to the United States and started our family, and I became a stay at home mom. When our kids were 4, 1, and 1, we moved to London for a year, then returned. And, a year and a half ago I started my blog.

What were some of your favorite moments as a student at WC and what still sticks with you even though you’re no longer on campus?

I loved being a student at Westminster College, and I have so many great memories. But, I have to say our European choir tour during January term was without a doubt one of the most significant moments, as well as meeting my husband. We still have friends we see from college, and it's wonderful to connect with friends on Facebook. We have a lot of fun memories of great times with great people, and it was a wonderful community. I also loved being a member of Alpha Gamma Delta and the theatre department.

What were some of your favorite moments as a student at WC and what still sticks with you even though you’re no longer on campus?

Well, it is very much a work in progress. I am constantly working to learn about the business of blogging, creating content, working with other bloggers, and keeping up with the never-ending tasks it requires to create a successful blog. It has been quite a learning curve for me to learn how to build the site, use social media, market, and how to generally do blogging.

It is definitely something that requires a "growth mindset" as I learn daily from mistakes. It is a great example for my kids as they watch their mom try something new and learn new things all of the time. But I really enjoy meeting other bloggers in mastermind groups and partnering with them, because it is definitely something where building each other up helps everyone grow. I enjoy the camaraderie.

I also still write for a few other sites, and a typical day could look like doing research, outlining, writing, sourcing images, editing, and then marketing the posts once they are live. It is a lot of fun and uses a lot of my communication and PR skills.

Why is it important right now more than ever to shape positive experiences at home?

I think that for our kids, setting a positive example is really important. They watch everything we say and do. A lot is going on in the world, and keeping positive experiences at home and helping them find joy in simple things - even going on a hike or playing outdoors - is really important in our family.

For us, raising our kids as global citizens is a priority. It comes naturally for us in that both my husband and I have worked and are working in a very global industry, so it is part of our everyday conversations to share world cultures with our kids.

We travel a lot with our children and introduce them to world cultures through food, activities, and our friends. The world is a fascinating place, and we want them to feel inspired and empowered to explore it as much as possible.

And, it doesn't even have to be abroad. Here in the United States, there is quite a lot of diversity, and that is equally as fascinating as traveling to a new country. In fact, this summer, we visited Montana for a (socially distanced) vacation. None of us had ever been to a ranch or ridden a horse. But for the owners of this 100-year-old ranch, being run by a third-generation family, this was their life. Our kids found so much joy in the simple-ness of this experience - just riding horses and playing outside, without TV or internet. It was completely new for them and they loved it (as did we!)

And, that's what I love is seeing how people live all over the world, learning new traditions, and exploring cultures of all kinds. Because, for us, it teaches our kids compassion, understanding. tolerance, and risk -aking. It inspires kids to try new things and to become global citizens.

What are your top tips for traveling with toddlers on a “normal year.”

Traveling with toddlers is tricky, but not impossible. If you have one toddler, it is a bit easier than more than one toddler. But, I would say, it is still doable.

• First, pick a destination where you can have a home base. This could be a family home, a VRBO or HomeAway, or if you are staying at a hotel, try to get one with a kitchen and laundry. If you are going to Disney, check out their Disney Vacation Club hotels.


• Second, if possible request the pack and play and high chair at the hotel - or if you are staying with family or renting a HomeAway (or even at Disney), you can find a local rental service! Often these places will rent cribs, toys, strollers, high chairs, bumpos, and everything you need on vacation so you don't have to bring it. They usually drop off and pick up.


• If you can, bring enough "supplies" like diapers, food, and snacks to get you to your destination + a day or two, and then shop at a local grocery store once you land for the additional items you need to get through the trip. Or, you use Instacart or a grocery delivery service for diapers, food, snacks, etc.


• For planes and road trips, pack a car sick bag. Always. Extra clothes, cleaning products, and extra plastic zip locks.


• Bring activities to entertain your toddler in transit, but make them simple. Things like lovies, toddler-friendly games on an iPad, toddler-friendly shows on an iPad (like Mickey Mouse Club House and Peppa Pig), and simple drawing activities with a few or one giant marker will keep them busy.


• You could go somewhere like London, which is a very toddler-friendly city. There are so many things to do in London with little ones (playgrounds, a Transport Museum, Hampton Court Palace, and more). It is also really easy to get around on the bus with a stroller.


• Have a good travel stroller - I prefer umbrella strollers because they are easy to fold, fit into transportation like taxis and buses, are light, and can fold quickly. If they still fit in a carrier, like an Ergo, bring that. I carried my little ones around London a lot that way.


• Relax, and build in breaks. Toddlers need to stretch their legs, so find playgrounds and places for them to run. Have extra snacks, and if they need to nap in the stroller, it is okay. Do try to stick to meal and bedtimes. It is okay if things go wrong, in fact, that is part of the journey.

How can you create an experience for your family that mimics the wonders of “travel” within your own home with toddlers?

I have many blog posts about ways to travel from home with kids. I am a huge fan of travel subscription boxes, culinary activities, travel books, travel games, and multicultural activities. You can even do it during the season of Christmas. In fact, I just published a post about "Santa Clause Around The World: Traditions of Christmas Around The World For Kids." It's a great way to travel around the world like Santa Claus, but do it from home! I also have another post about "Holiday Traditions Around The World For Kids." The holidays are a great way to explore the wonders of travel at home. Virtual tours would be another way, especially through animals. Exploring a country and its animals will fascinate toddlers and will begin to introduce them to places in the world from where they come.

Where can people visit your blog?

Come visit at https://www.bonvoyagewithkids.com. I am also on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Pinterest. You can also sign up for my newsletter on my blog to keep updated!