Travel Photo Friday: Lessons from a Three Year Old

This move has been a big deal for all of us, but especially for Camille. Just like when Noah was three and we were preparing to leave Japan, she is full of questions, anxieties, and wakes up each morning convinced that today is the day we will be arriving in Italy. Being three is a challenge in itself, being three and moving is even more challenging. Hard to explain such a strange and abstract concept to a little one who craves consistency and routine. Hard to prepare her for all that is ahead in the next few months. Hard to explain why someone else is living in her house. Hard to reassure her that her books and toys really will be waiting for her in Italy. Hard to explain that her favorite teacher and friends won't be waiting there but that she will make new ones.

And yet despite these challenges, there is a lot to be learned from a three year old in the process of moving overseas. Just as her temper can flare up in an instant, so can her enthusiasm. She can become so excited by what appear to be simple things but suddenly take on larger meaning to a three year old. I love how sincere and exuberant she can be. It's contagious and we need that right now. She notices things that the rest of us sometimes miss because we are moving too quickly or are looking up instead of down. She forces us to slow down our manic pace and reminds us to breathe and/or take naps (see above photo from one of our moving days).She is rapidly soaking up new information each day and processing it at warp speed. I have a hunch she will be speaking Italian more fluently and quickly than the rest of us. I am eager to see what her impressions will be of Sicily and her new surroundings. A three year old view of the world is fresh and free of filters. That's not found in most traveling companions. Moving and traveling internationally with a three year old is never boring, at times thrilling, requires lots of patience, and is always very memorable.