Blink and you’ll miss it! That old adage doesn’t half ring true now! Just like that, the dream was over.

So was it all worth it? Was it worth the planning, the upheaval, the expense? Was it worth the 36 weeks of painful home schooling? Was it worth not seeing family and friends for a year? Was it worth the endless credit card bills?

In short – YES, YES, YES! Of course it was worth it. It not only met all our expectations, it smashed them to pieces. It was hands down the best and most fulfilling year of my life. Not only did I get to see some far flung corners of the world, I got to do it with the people that mean the most to me. It’s not even really about the places we visited, it was about spending that year experiencing the world while watching our kids grow in front of our eyes. It’s the sort of thing money can’t buy, you need the opportunity to be able to do it. Or perhaps more poignantly, you need to create that opportunity for yourself, and that’s easier said than done. 

The problem is, now that it’s all over, and real life has started once again, it all seems a bit like a fever dream. The years of dreaming and planning, and the 12 months of moving slowly around the world have all faded into the misty recesses of my mind. Daily work has become the norm once again. The daily school run has replaced the daily field trips to new and exciting destinations. But that’s just life. To be honest, moving between vans and hotels felt like normal everyday life while we were doing it, and now school and work life seem totally normal too. You just get used to things I suppose. 

The great thing is that we have a thousand memories. We took tens of thousands of photographs, and kept this written record of our entire trip. In months and years to come we can look back and remind ourselves of our epic year off. And more to the point, I hope we’ve expanded the horizons of Hunter and Bam, even if it’s only by a little bit. Maybe we might have instilled a love of travel and adventure in the back of their minds? I hope so, that was kind of the idea.

So what about the statistics? I think we visited 23 countries, drove 15,000 miles in campervans, boarded 18 planes and flew nearly 50,000 miles. Not bad really. I won’t go into what it cost, but it was a sizeable chunk of money. What better way to spend it though? I’d rather have 12 months worth of amazing memories, made with my wife and children on an amazing year around the world, than a new car sat on the driveway. In 10 years time I’ll still be the proud owner of these memories. Assuming I haven’t lost my marbles by that point of course! At least if I have, I’ve got it all written down anyway!

So that’s it, the fat lady has sung, and it’s time for me to sign off. 

It’s been real, but I’ve got a school run to do….