Talk of a sabbatical in Italy began about two years ago. My husband, Dave, is a professor at Eastern Michigan University, and at that point he was just earning the ability to apply for sabbatical. The destination was never even slightly in question. My husband likes to pretend he is Italian. I can't remember exactly when or how it started. His father's family is Polish, and his mom's family is German (he has the lederhosen to prove it). But by his early twenties, Dave had decided to learn to cook Italian food and had started teaching himself the language. Dave and I have taken two trips to Italy- one pre-kids and one when Ben was two. Always one to go after what he wants, my husband wrote to several Italian universities to request that they sponsor his sabbatical. Lo and behold, we will be spending winter 2019 in Padova, Italy.
It took a year for Dave to fully convince me that going was a good idea. Don't get me wrong- I love to travel. I was fortunate to visit Mexico, Australia, Europe (including Italy), and many U.S. destinations before I graduated from high school. This adventure is right up my alley- except that we are now adults with responsibilities. Kids, our house, my job... all of these have been the source of a fair amount of anxiety for me.
Ethan and Ben are in first and fourth grades.
This is the time to go. Ethan is now reading well enough that learning to read in Italian won't cause any lasting delays, and Ben will be back home for his fifth grade year and the beginning of middle school.
Kids pick up language quickly. I know this, because I teach elementary English learners. They know some Italian vocabulary, so they won't be starting from ground zero. Kids learn English in Italian public schools, so there will be people there that can greet them and help them out.
I've spent a chunk of the last few months prepping our house to leave. We have purged a ton of belongings. I've taken pictures and listed the house on sabbatical housing websites and Airbnb. We've had three sets of strangers rent the house to give us reviews (and offset some of my future lost income). We have done some major renovations to the house, which makes it attractive to others, but haven't invested much recently in furniture or decor that can be ruined.
Job anxiety comes from two places. One is the obvious- lack of income. Dave will still make his salary while on sabbatical, but I won't. We have planned well, paying down a lot of debt and saving as much as possible for the last year. Less obvious (or, perhaps, logical) is the fact that I am not entirely comfortable not working. I battled the feeling that I would be 'letting people down' at work by leaving school for a semester. Teaching is a serious profession to me, and I feel strongly about my commitment to my students. That's been the biggest hurdle to clear as far as my feelings toward the trip- and it has helped immensely that everyone at work has been incredibly supportive of me and excited about this opportunity!
We're going to Italy! I'm finally incredibly, over-the-moon, thoughts clouding every free moment, excited about this! The boys and I (and hopefully Dave) will be documenting parts of our trip here. (Thanks to the Knotts for the inspiration.) We're looking forward to the adventure, and to sharing it with all of you.
I've been trying to make necessary purchases for the trip and the holidays while I still have an income. This week, I ordered gifts for the boys' teachers, classmates, and other people who help us out. I found some relatively inexpensive Michigan t-shirts and pencils with our state symbols and motto on them. Many of my students who come from other countries bring gifts, and I have always found it very thoughtful. I also ordered American flag post-it notes. If anyone has any ideas as to good, lightweight, 'American' gifts to bring, please suggest them!