An upcoming trip to Argentina is closing in fast. Why Argentina? Because that’s where my grandchildren are. OK, their parents are there, too, and I am excited to see them as well, but it’s that three year old first grandchild and the eighteen month old sibling who are pulling my heartstrings as I plan for this trip.
My daughter sent me a video of the three year old expressing their excitement at seeing “my NayNay” soon. Unfortunately, “soon” to a three year old is confusing. “Tomorrow?!” was the jumping-for-joy response that followed. It’s the “my” NayNay that got to me. And now the second grandchild calls me by that name. They will have to learn to share “their” NayNay. I’ve written about my grandmother name, and the importance of names HERE.
And why are my daughter and her family in Argentina? Some of you know this, but she and her husband quit their jobs and have been traveling internationally, with their two toddlers, yes, since late July, 2024. They plan to come back home in June in order to look for new jobs. This wasn’t an irresponsible whim, just taking off. The planning has been tremendous. In fact, my daughter says that even now, they continue planning for their next destinations while experiencing and enjoying their present location.
I have visited them in Nova Scotia and Costa Rica, but they have also spent time in New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, and Quebec. They have been in Argentina for a month, and I will be flying to the city of Mendoza to meet up with them for a week.
There are many things about this adventure that stir my admiration. For one, they are choosing to rent houses in off the beaten path locations—no big cities or tourist areas. They stay in smaller towns, shop locally of course (always finding the Saturday markets), and stay in homes suitable for their children. Because they choose to stay in each location for at least two weeks, usually longer, they get to know their neighbors and even other international long-term family travelers. They enrolled the three year old in swim lessons while in Costa Rica and in summer camp for two weeks in Argentina. This was especially amazing to me as the three year old does not speak Spanish, and only one of the counselors spoke English. You can only do this type of traveling if you take the time to actually BE there for a significant length of time.
To me, the most remarkable aspect of this year has simply been that my daughter and her husband decided to do this. Who quits their jobs to travel for a year with two toddlers? That’s just not something people in my generation would have even considered. It would have been seen as “irresponsible.” My daughter’s generation doesn’t play by those rules, though, and I love it. They don’t define themselves by their occupation. Plus, the world has opened up to them in ways it couldn’t for my generation. Thank the internet for that. Life and work expectations have changed. They always change. For a woman to choose to have a career and not stay home was seen as “irresponsible” for the generation before mine. Freedom to decide how one lives is expanding, and that’s amazing.
So I’m off to Argentina soon. After that, who knows where my daughter’s family will be? And I might be right behind them for a quick visit.