Here we are. We are a family of 7, two middle-aged adults and 5 children, aged 2 through 12. We have been living a blissfully conventional suburban existence in the San Francisco Bay area but we’ve known that it was time for a change for a few years. We just couldn’t figure out where to go. During a backpacking trip by mom and Libbey (age 3 at the time, now 4), it hit me; I love the feeling of packing up your stuff in the morning and leaving nothing behind, knowing that everything you really need you can carry on your back. We all love travel; why couldn’t the whole family go on the ultimate backpacking trip: around the world! A quick reality check by the treasurer (Jeremy), and the seed of an idea was planted. Six months later, we were ready to commit to the plan, and another six months after that we were ready to go. We hope that family and friends will find this blog helpful in keeping up and keeping touch.