Hi!  My name is Sheena, and I live in Chicago with my husband, 10-month old son, and our 5-lb yorkipoo (who is currently in desperate need of a haircut as she looks more like a dirty mop than a dog 😬).  I am a former special education teacher. For the past few years, I have been providing coaching and consultation to schools…behavior and social-emotional learning are my bread & butter. While I could go on and on about behavior and schools, I won’t…but I will leave you with one of my favorite TedTalks by Rita Pierson: “Every kid needs a champion.”  

Now for the real reason I’m writing this…

I’m just a mom who loves to travel.  I have always loved traveling. I blame my mother…she’s also responsible for my shopping addiction, but that’s neither here nor there.

From family trips to our cottage “up north” or visiting relatives in South Korea, I’ve been traveling for as long as I can remember.  So, it only seemed fitting that I find a life partner that loves it as much as I do.

<Enter dear husband>

You know what the best relationship test is?  Going on a trip together. If you can go on a trip with the other person and not kill them, it’s meant to be.  And since I’m sitting here writing this post and my husband is sitting on the couch across from me reading The Economist, it’s safe to say we haven’t killed each other…yet.

We like to take in the sights, while also exploring all that a new city has to offer.  But what do you do when you’re trying to figure out all the best sights to see in a new place?

<Cue Rick Steves>

This quirky, old man (to be fair, I have no idea how old he is and I’m too lazy to look it up on Wikipedia) is my travel idol.  We get his books every time we travel somewhere new. And thanks to Hulu, you can stream Rick Steves’ travel show any time your heart desires.

While my husband and I have major wanderlust, we weren’t sure what kids would do to that. We vowed to not let any future “littles” stop us from doing what we love.  I’m proud to say we stuck to our word…though it’s not always easy (especially if you ask my husband…to be fair, the baby pooped on him at the beginning of an international flight).  On our most recent trip to Italy, I told my husband and best friend (yes, we brought an extra set of hands to help with the baby–I highly recommend it) that my goal in life is to become the next Rick Steves – mom version.

So, here it goes.

Looking forward to sharing everything I’ve learned on our travels and all the mistakes I’ve made to help the next family hoping to travel with their “littles!”