Diamond Head Road

I Surrender… Bali, here we come!

Call it a mid-life crisis or the adventure of a lifetime. We kind of like to call it redefining the American dream. It took us 5 months to formulate, 2 months to execute and 22 hours to travel from our idyllic home base of Kamuela on Hawaii's Big Island to our new landing pad of Bali, Indonesia.

There are four members on our team: David (41), Stacy (40), Stanley (5) and Bristow (15 months). Our family sabbatical sprung from the harrowing kindergarten application process at the end of '08. The last five years had whipped by at unprecedented speed - what would the next thirteen look like?

I have a horrible memory anyway, so beyond birthday parties and a few Christmas mornings thrown in there, what would I truly remember over the next few years, especially when the stress of daily life in America seems to weigh heavily on even the fun times. Our family's interest lies in spending more time together, not less, and yeah, I know that sounds crazy, but we actually enjoy each other's company.

So, we rented out our beautiful house, spent six weeks getting all of our financial stuff automated and paperless, packed two large Da Kine duffle bags, Bristow's Pack & Play, David's surfboard, Stanley's Legos and planned our escape in search of more laughter, less stress and yes, lots of beach time.