One sleep to go - Setting off for our lap around the block tomorrow

It is hard to believe that tomorrow is our departure date.  This moment has been years in the making, and I am a little excited, and mostly exhausted!

I thought I would keep this a short post, except to thank some of the many people who have helped us get to this point.

At the risk of missing someone, I want to thank some of those wonderful people.

Firstly a big thank our to boys, who have embraced our camping lifestyle and bring so much joy to us when we see the world through their eyes.  We hope this year is one they will remember forever with fondness, and excite in them a passion for learning, travelling and all things outdoors.

Our parents I suspect initially thought we were mad... until they saw our camping set up which confirmed their beliefs.  That said, their support has been wonderful, culminating in a week long working bee at our little house getting it ready for tenants.  It is due in no small part to their efforts that we can leave our house knowing it is in tip top shape.  Thank you. 

I have the most amazing manager who gave me approval to pursue this dream way back in early 2009.  I also work with a great bunch of people who will cover my shifts for me whilst I am away - which will provide its own challenges and I appreciate no end.  

We are fortunate to be part of an an incredible tight knit community, and we have been touched by everyone's support and encouragement. From offers to keep and eye on our home, to completely unexpected little farewell gifts, and even looking after our little pooch, we have been blown away. We will miss you all!  Our school and it's wonderful teachers have been so supportive of our plan, we leave well armed for a year of homeschooling. 

And of course, Jo, who agreed to my foolish adventure.  She has worked tirelessly on all the boring bits to make sure that everything will carry on at home in our absence that needs to, and what needs to find us will find us.  An incredible woman and a tower of strength.  Thank you!

We are so fortunate to have so many wonderful people in our lives, that funnily enough on the cusp of our grand adventure I feel a twinge of sadness.  Almost like being on a ship leaving for a long deployment, we will soon settle into our new routine, but we will miss our wonderful friends and family still at home.  Sometimes you have to leave to really appreciate how fortunate we are to be surrounded by such great people.  However unlike ships of not that long ago, we will be not far from mobile phones and email, so we hope to stay in touch!

And so here we are... Almost all packed, and due to hit the road at 8am tomorrow.  Fingers crossed we will get away before lunch, after all, what could possibly go wrong!

Get out there - travelling with a medical condition

About three years ago our eldest son (aged just over three at the time) was diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes.  It was a bit of a watershed moment in our family, causing a readjustment of priorities in our lives.  We embarked on a strict diet regime, overcame our fear of needles, and learnt how to administer insulin to our young son.  We were (and still are) determined to give him every opportunity to live a normal life, and don't make a big deal of his diabetes.

As such, the aim of this blog entry is to share some techniques we have found helpful in getting the most out of going camping and exploring with someone who does have a medical condition that requires constant vigilance.

Our philosophy is simple.  One of our sons has a pancreas that doesn't work properly - in the same way that people who wear glasses have eyes that don't work properly.  We all have little quirks and ailments, and we consider diabetes to be just one of these things.  We, as parents, just need to be a bit more organised that we would normally have been and a little more selective in what equipment we use.

In a way his diagnosis galvanised us into action.  At the time, Project 2014, our year long camping trip around Australia was but a distant half conceived dream. We took a long hard look at where we were, and committed to our dream.   We have been since been slowly refining our travelling and camping in order to ensure we are ready for our trip to give both our boys the opportunity of a lifetime.

So how do we do it?