Why We’re Taking Our Three Kids to France for the Summer

I don't think there is ever a perfect time to do something like this. And I don’t think most people (myself included) ever even think about doing something like this, except for the moments when you’re watching Under the Tuscan Sun or reading Eat, Pray, Love. 

But there are windows. And right now, I happen to be in one.

Next summer, we're taking our three kids to France for over a month. It’s not for a whirlwind European vacation where we try to see everything, check every box, and come home exhausted (although I’m fighting the urge constantly as I add ideas to my spreadsheet).

We're going to actually live there for a little while and have a home base in an Airbnb. We'll grocery shop, do laundry, cook in a small kitchen that isn’t ours, and freak out a little when we realize what I’ve actually signed us up for. The kids will have some structure to their days. We'll walk around town, take trains to nearby places, eat food we don't recognize, and figure things out as we go.

This idea came after we took the kids on a cruise in Europe last August, and their favorite memories were all the little things we did throughout Italy before and after it. It felt like home having an apartment to go back to and space to relax, even though it was only for a couple of nights. 

I want my kids to experience the world from a different vantage point.

I want them to see that the way we live in the United States isn't the only way to live. That families in other places have different routines, different foods, different priorities, different ways of getting around—and that different can be better, or at least open our eyes to new ways to live and build a life.

I want them eating real food from a French grocery store. Walking to get somewhere instead of getting in the car. Hearing another language every day. Navigating the public transport to get to their classes on their own. Ordering something they can't pronounce. Getting a little uncomfortable and realizing they can figure it out. Trust me, I’m scared too (and I took French for 7 years way back in high school and college).

It’s a really small window where this works for us to pick up and leave, and the flexibility we have right now is not the norm for our life.

My oldest will be heading into her senior year. My kids have sports that all start and end in different months, friends and activities they’ll miss, and more and more distractions to tell us this is a bad idea. There is a very small window when all three of them can step away from home for a month without missing out on something that can't be replaced. And work? Well I've been on a pause from corporate life since last year, so it's easy for me. And since my husband can't quite swing remote work, he'll join us for two-ish weeks in the middle. I'll get us settled, he'll join for some adventures, and we'll close out on our own with a few more days.

Could we spend this money on a big family vacation that’s less out of the box? Absolutely, and I'm sure we'd have an amazing time and make incredible memories.

But if we can take the money we'd spend on one big vacation and turn it into 32 days of living somewhere completely different, I'm all in.

I took a week to create the high level plans and budget, chose a city, and let ChatGPT help me think through camps and neighborhoods and weigh the pros and cons of various options. Then I committed. I started telling people our plan so I couldn’t back out. 

Three kids.

32 days.

One French home base.

A whole lot of figuring it out as we go.

And as we work through this year of planning, I’m sharing all the steps I’m taking to make it manageable, less scary, and budget-friendly-ish.