I recall Tracey Clark sharing this article a while ago and you know what stuck in my mind… that you only have 18 summers with your children…

What?! That’s not very many…

And I think 18 is even stretching it, it’s probably less…

So our boys are 11 and 9 so I’m over half way through my available summers… Thankfully I’ve been making them count already….

Part of going on our big adventure was that this time in our lives won’t come round again. We’re embracing life and seizing opportunities while we can, because sometimes you blink… and it’s all different, before you know it, life changes.

We all put things off coz life is so busy! but you know what?… it’s always going to be busy…That’s not going to change till we’re old enough to potter on the allotment and take naps on sofa in the middle of the afternoon.

We create our life this way, and that’s ok, because we can also fill it with goodness when we carve out time for what’s really important.

I’m a believer in not letting moments pass me by.

Ever since I’ve had a camera (stills or video) it’s been my mission to record my life, capture memories… making that extra effort, even when work or family commitments take over because I know I’ll want to look back at these times.

I did it last summer… Made a few films and those moments are precious.

Thank goodness I found the time to hangout & shoot just for pleasure, capturing our life. Then working with my memories by creating Time Capsules and not letting the footage disappear on some hard drive… I watch this and I’m taken right back… the feelings wash over me, of how much I missed Cosmo when he went to camp on his own… it’s pretty magic.

So, back to counting the summers… If the theory is right, I’ve got 5 summers left with both boys together! Yikes!

This gives me fire in my belly to keep making memories through photos and videos… and make more summer Time Capsule films, just like I wrote it in my list – number #20.

We’re diving into my COLLABORATE course, and the ideas are flowing.

What are your plans for your summer? How many do you have left with your children? Wanna make some memories together with them? you could join us for COLLABORATE… registration opens tomorrow… details here.

These photos are a few of my favourite iPhone pics from our big hopeful adventure… photos I wouldn’t have if my iPhone hadn’t been in my pocket at that moment… grateful indeed.

Of course our trip away would bring plenty of photos of new situations and places, but there were also opportunities for photos of our boys, at times like first thing in the morning… doing things they don’t normally do.

Instead of rushing breakfast and getting ready for school – this happened – being thoughtful, watching the sun come up, in a hammock on the balcony of our wooden hut in Kampot, Cambodia…

These are the moments I want to remember… a break from the routine, disrupting our pattern… a precious gift. Just me & him talking about the sunrise and listening the chickens and enjoying the simple pleasure of swinging in a hammock.

Where to begin?

I feel like I’m under the best mountain of memories…

This is a good place to be. I’m just finding my way back from a month of living very differently.

Being away and disrupting regular patterns is amazing.

Seeing new parts of the world is amazing.

The whole experience was… yes, amazing.

And I have a ton of material – photos and footage to tell some of the stories…

But how do I begin?

I’m trusting it will unfold as its meant too… that it will surprise me, just like parts of this experience have.

I figure I will probably start slowly, with mini stories… Sharing moments I want to remember. There will be time capsules films… I have enough footage, just a little fear is creeping in of how to start to cull through it.

Can I summarise? Just to give a flavour and set the scene… and get the ball rolling of re-living this dream.

There was Bali… A wonderful introduction to our adventure, a familiar place, full of family (Luke’s sister & brother have families there) we soaked up the heat, adjusted our body clocks, Cosmo learnt to swim underwater, Ky rode at the front of a boat, they snorkelled for the first time ever. We woke early each day and watched many sunrises… there were also two birthday celebrations – mine and Lukes – we were spoilt… it was lovely.

The colours of Bali sparked so much…. the richness and creativity in every direction filled me up… if our adventure had stopped there, it would have been enough… but thankfully it wasn’t over… it was just the beginning.

There was Cambodia. This was the BIG adventure. New discoveries, constantly on the move exploring new places. Our longtime friend Jake, shared his favourite spots away from the tourists traps and this gave us a special perspective of a country coming out of such tragic times.

I loved it there, reminded me of travelling back in my younger days. Full of unspoilt scenery, rawness… real life so very different from ours, a lot of emotion and stimulation for all the senses. It was a whirlwind, the best kind, where your days are so full of experiences, that each day feels like a week.

There were boat trips, beach trips, city trips, motorbike trips, canoe trips, jungle trips, temple trips… and so much more…

Cambodia blew my mind.

Then our final chapter, back to the island we lived on for two years in Thailand. Going back to see what had changed. Surprisingly, so much was the same, familiar places and faces at every turn. But there were also differences…

Standing in our old house (which is now a shop), was a real moment. A rush of emotion of a life we once had… the tiled floor Ky used to crawl upon, the stairs he learnt to walk up, the grass he used to run on… Was now a boutique, selling bowls and beaded bits. I cried, then I also let go. This was good.

We had good times catching up with friends, the boys found a whole new gang of children to hang with and ate plenty of crepes. We had the most amazing day for Thai New Year.

Yet, I hardly picked up my camera, inspiration left me… the rain, continuous storms and lack of light were getting to me.

I struggled for a few days with this feeling, thinking I was wasting this opportunity, and what kind of artist am I to not be inspired here of all places. I sulked… then I worked through it and accepted perhaps this was how it was meant to be. It doesn’t always have to be about photo making and shooting, sometimes you just need to be. To be me. To recharge. To be with those you love, and just BE. Play cards, watch films, sit in cafes, and do very little. So that’s what I did… made memories in a different way.

We have so many memories now, real stories to share with together and with others, for years to come. The boys have opened their eyes to some amazing wonders, made new friends and discovered what great travellers they are…

We were spoilt beyond measure, filled up to the brim with goodness. Lived a different life for a little while. I’m forever grateful for this time in our lives, everything slotted into place and many personal dreams were achieved.

This was the right time, in the right places to open our eyes to see how far we’ve come and the possibilities of what’s next.

This is just the beginning of my stories of our big hopeful adventure… there’s plenty more to come… Stay tuned.

Bali was all I remembered and more… just popping in to share a few colourful memories…

The next part of our hopeful adventure is… Cambodia… we’ve never been there before, I can’t wait to see what delights it brings…

{Follow along with me at Instagram}

Ever since we left our home in Thailand 8 years ago, I’ve wished to return. For us all to go back and make more stories in a place that will always warm my heart.

Travel has always been important to us, it enriches you in ways beyond your wildest dreams. The opportunities just haven’t been there for us over the last few years, finding the spare kind of money you need has been a struggle and we’ve not had a proper holiday for too long now.

We’d like our boys to experience the world, and now is the right time for them to begin. They are now an age where they will remember this time in their life forever, their life is unfolding and shaping them up to be incredible people on this earth. And while we try to give them experiences out of the city through camping etc… It’s time they had more.

So we’re off… For adventures far far away from here, and I can hardly believe it’s actually happening and happening to us.

I’m so very very very grateful.

We’ll be going to Thailand and stopping in Bali & Cambodia along the way…

Who knows if I will blog while away, I’d like too, but only time will tell… so stay tuned.

Let the adventure begin…

We are so ready!!

{This illustration was a birthday present for Luke from us all by the fabulous Blanka.}

When you turn 11 here in London, you have to have a special travel card to get around on public transport… this is very exciting to our 11 year old.

So much so, that even though we don’t travel on the bus or tube that much, as soon as the card arrived he wanted to use it. So we made a special trip into central London just so he could experience it.

And of course, I made a film. This is part of a new series of Time Capsule films that I will be creating called the One Minute Memory, which is telling a story of family life, or a memory I want to hold onto, in around a minute. I’ve made a few of these for my A JOURNEY course, giving inspiration to those taking part, by suggesting you can make a quick and simple Time Capsule film this way… I’m going to making more of these in the future along with my Random Happenings films too.

Telling a story in around a minute offers a new challenge, but also makes the process much simpler – less time shooting and less time editing… but still all the goodness of the treasures you want to remember.

This project – On My Parents’ Island project makes me so emotional about my own children… you watch them grow up before your eyes, each day bringing something new, each day emerging as the person they will become.

Yet as grown up as they may be some of the time… there’s still this place, our island, where they are still little…

Weekend reading, bundled up cozy in the duvet, in this big bed… totally entranced by his book, totally comfortable and totally loved. This is real, and I love it.

Means jumping for joy… Happy Friday!

A “friend” can come in many forms… this time is was a little blue balloon.

So the balloon came with us to the park…

This boy. His balloon. His joy for life. His beaming light & colours. Make me SO happy!

But eventually this happened…

This boy is magic… and there is a heart there, and this doesn’t surprise me one little bit.

The wishes from the younger members of this family were answered this weekend… as London became covered in snow… there’s nothing more wonderful than watching their excitement of playing in it. They don’t feel the cold, they just dive into the magic…

While we’re left standing at the top of the hill. For. A. Long. Time… next year I’m getting my own sledge!