I’ve been posting a disproportionate number of fabulous things lately.

We’ve had some epic adventures in New Zealand. Penguins, train rides, boat trips, cycle adventures, and this last week with Uncle Dick at High Peak Station was the cherry on top.

It all makes this travel life sound pretty shiny, doesn’t it? One vacation after another, one fantastic experience on top of the next? And it is. Sometimes.

New Zealand makes it particularly easy: we speak the language, it’s clean and well organized, the countryside is spectacular, the food is fantastic, the local wines just begged to be tried, one bottle at a time. It’s perfect.

Except when it’s not.

Now don’t worry, nothing terrible has gone down this week that I’m not writing about. We’ve had a perfectly lovely overnight with strangers who became friends and we’re camped in a quiet little spot outside of Greymouth as I type this. We’re not miserable. But it has occurred to me lately, between posting pictures of the “highs” that the “lows” deserve to get a little press as well.

We love our life. We love to travel. But it comes with a few trade offs:

• We live in 126 square feet… all six of us… my buddy Lois has a bigger bathroom than that!
• Our bathroom is 2.5 by 3 feet… that’s the toilet, the sink AND the shower (and we feel lucky to have all three!)
• Tony and I share a bed *almost* 4 feet across and we have to climb up over the cab to get into it.
• The little boys have to have their beds assembled each night by the teenagers.
• Personal space? What personal space.
• Sound bite from any given morning: “Mom is naked! Close your eyes!” Yeah, glamorous.
• When someone is grumpy, there’s no escape.
• When someone is a little *too* happy, there’s no escape.
• To quote our friends over at Nomadic Moose… People are like Visa… everywhere you want to be.
• When it rains, we’re like sardines in a can. It’s raining today.
• When it’s cold… we’re really cold.
• Sometimes we’re home sick.
• Sometimes the boys fist fight.
• Sometimes I have to stick a $100 IOU into the cuss jar over the acrobatics of cooking dinner while kids weave over under and around me.
• Sometimes, the paddle thingy inside the portable toilet breaks off and Tony has to spend an hour with his arm down in the half full black water tank trying to retrieve it and put it back on.
• Sometimes showering boys is an Olympic sport
• Sometimes the place we planned to camp, that *perfect* place… isn’t and we have to drive on in the dark trying to find a place to call home for the night.
• Some days, I would give my left ear for a bathtub. A real bathtub.
• I get tired of stepping over 12 shoes in the 1.5 square foot area in front of the door.

There are moments when it’s not all snuggly and fabulous and I think we must be in-expeletive-sane to live this life on purpose, because it’s hard work, and more hard work and, some days, profoundly not fun. But then I sober up and consider the alternatives….

So there ya go.

Truth in advertising. Perhaps you feel better about your 11oo square feet that you wish was 2400, or your old washer and drier that you wish was a new one. Maybe you’re vindicated in your choice to stay home, build a comfortable life in a beautiful community and dig deep roots because people like us are clearly nuts! 😉

One thing I’m continually learning: Life is just hard no matter how you choose to live it. Raising kids is like corralling oiled piglets at the fair, everyone’s watching and you can’t seem to keep a grip on one while the others are running amok. That’s true at home or on the road. It’s not a matter of which is better or worse, at home or traveling, it’s just a matter of a choice for a little while. This is our choice for a little while. There are things we love and things we struggle with. There are days that make it all worth while, and other days when a plane ticket outta here seems like a really sane option. All of the hard things “at home” are hard things “on the road” too. It’s just a matter of perspective!

So read on and enjoy the ride! Just remember to read between the lines a little too!