Living word by word: Travel

Well, it's settled. We have our tickets to Europe, my husband has the go ahead to take two months off, and people at church are starting to say, "You're still here?!" My sabbatical doesn't begin until mid-April, but it feels around the corner.

We're going to Germany via Iceland, with a couple days there. Then on to family in Cologne and our main home base in Freiburg. There we'll write, hike, and hopefully re-discover one another as a family. We have two weeks set aside for travel in northern places around summer solstice, then finish off with more time with my in-laws in Switzerland.

So, since I know so many of you dear readers have spent time in Scandinavia (where I have never been, and by the way, I have no heritage, only admiration): any and all suggestions/ recommendations/ must-sees/ must-not-dos with small children are welcome. Two weeks is not much, and our budget is not unlimited, but the days will be long and we're eager to get a good taste of these places so many of our friends claim as their origins. Comment, email me, call.

As I've mentioned before, I'm going on sabbatical this spring. I'm having a real hard time right now not letting the planning of the sabbatical detract from the restful purpose of the sabbatical. I enjoy exploring all the options more than most J's (myers-briggs), but golly, it's time to make some decisions!

Anyhow, we're narrowing in on the area around Freiburg as a home base (near France and Switzerland, a great unversity town, lots of vineyards nearby . . .), but we're still open to other suggestions. If anyone knows of the perfect kid-friendly town in Germany or another German-speaking area that has plentiful public transit and won't break the bank, let us know!

Our goal is not to travel all the time but to settle into a new rhythm of life, spend time writing (me), doing photography (Will), and playing (all of us). Anyone who makes a perfect suggestion, we'll take you out to dinner (there, or here).