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ATTENTION ALL WOMEN Want it all? Start telling the truth about your life JUDITH TIMSON, PAGE 3 F R I D AY , J U LY 2 0 , 2 0 1 2
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Globe Life Family & Relationships
LIFE EDITOR: SUSAN GRIMBLY
GETAWAYS
12 months 4 continents 2 kids 0 casualties .....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
W
hen Nancy Harper and her husband decided to go on vacation in 2006 with their two daughters, aged 7 and 8, Disneyland wasn’t going to cut it. The travel junkies took their desire for adventure to the extreme, deciding to leave their home in Elora, Ont., for a year-long trek across Canada, New Zealand, Australia, Singapore, Malaysia and South Africa. There are many parents who would consider undertaking that kind of trip with two children foolish, if not slightly insane. And looking back, Ms. Harper admits that there were times when the “adventure” was even a bit too much for her (like camping in Australia during monsoon season – it’s a wonder, she says, that she didn’t start smoking again). She documented the ups, downs and way, way downs of their odyssey in her self-published digital book, Travellin’ Mama: A Parent’s Guide to Ditching the Routine, Seeing the World and Taking the Kids Along for the Ride.
Camping with her daughters in Australia during monsoon season may not have been the smartest decision Nancy Harper ever made – but she wouldn’t travel any other way. Caroline Alphonso talks to the writer about how she and her husband managed to pull off the ultimate family vacation
‘What shines through is the amazing stuff you did together,’ says Ms. Harper of the trip, which included a South African safari and a visit to the shores of the Indian Ocean. NANCY HARPER
We tracked down Ms. Harper to talk about how she pulled off the ultimate family vacation. It didn’t come as a surprise to hear that she’s preparing for a two-month backpacking trip through Central America. Yes, the kids are going, too. ..................................................................................................
A lot of parents find a two-week vacation with kids this age exhausting. Why did you decide on such a big undertaking? I do actually enjoy travelling with them. As they get older, you find that routine makes the time fly so fast. You want to try and slow that time down a bit. So being on the road, just the four of us for such a long time, it really did do that. ..................................................................................................
Didn’t they drive you crazy? I think what a lot people [focus on] is those times when it is irritating as hell. Travel, Page 2
FURTHER READING Dear Mom and Dad: I hate camp Joanne Kates shares her tips for managing the sleep-away blues PAGE 5 ................................................................
Crowdsourcing care When 8-year-old Jordan Feradi needed special cancer treatment, his parents signed up with a funding site. Within two weeks they had $200,000 PAGE 5
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