Traveling in the company of those we love is home in motion.

-Leigh Hunt

Dad. The rock.

Loves: Writing, filmmaking, thinking, exercising, and working on our 98 year old farmhouse. Wine and a meal with my wife and family.

Favorite Destination: My favorite family vacation activity has to be the beach. Suds, surf, and sand: Can’t beat that!

I hope that one day our family can travel to: Siena, Italy for the Palio race.

Though the father of the pack, I might be what is considered the reluctant traveler. Don’t get me wrong - I do love to travel. But typically I am a bit more grounded when it comes to planning our trips. While my wife is dreaming about Fast-Passes, I am trying to figure out who is going to cut our grass while we are gone. Heavy lies the crown of a father. But once the wheels touch down I get caught up in the magical whirlwind that is a family vacation. It is a moment of pride and gratitude. 

I have been Mr. Pate in an English classroom for the last 10 years or so, but I have aspirations of turning my dream of writing and filmmaking into a reality. When not writing or teaching or playing taxicab to busy children, I can probably be found coaching a child’s team or working on our nearly 100 year old farmhouse. My favorite family vacation up to this point has to be San Diego, CA 2017. I am a sucker for most things California, but this trip is precious to me because I got the chance to surf for the first time in my life. The trip also holds a special place in my heart because it helped me overcome my fear of traveling with a large family; it showed me that it was possible to transport infants and toddlers alike, across the country, on a plane. Since this vacation, I have embraced our travels with a more open heart.

Mom. The planner.

I wear many hats, but my favorite is probably “Mom.” When I am not getting the kids on the bus in the morning, coaching a soccer team, or baking cookies for a school function, I am probably on the phone with a doctor’s office for work or planning a vacation for some lucky family. I work as a sales rep and dietitian by day, but my side hustle is all things vacation planning. I had always loved planning vacations, but in 2019 I took the steps necessary to become a licensed travel agent and I haven’t looked back since. My hunger for travel planning has carried over into our family life. A few years back I had a work conference scheduled in San Diego and we considered taking the whole crew. We were dragging our feet about the trip. Would we be crazy to try and take 3 kids on a plane? Finally, we said let’s do it. Ever since then, that has been our motto. Why can’t we go here? Why can’t we go there? Our kids became accustomed to the travel life and have learned that a good vacation might cost you some extensive (boring) travel time. They get it though. I am a proud mom.

Loves: Her kids. Coffee. Chocolate. Drinking wine with her husband. Cooking. Renovating their 98 year old home.

Favorite destination: Florence, Italy

I hope that one day our family can travel to: Cairo, Egypt

Leo. The dreamer.

Loves: Roblox. Family. Friends. Batman. Building legos. Pizza. Hot Fudge Sundaes.

Favorite destination: Legoland and Universal, Orlando.

Places he dreams to visit: Paris, France and Australia

I am the big brother of the clan. I enjoy all things Roblox and I’ve recently finished watching every Marvel movie in the proper order. It was a huge feat this summer and I must say I am pretty proud of it. I stay busy as far as my extracurricular life goes. I’ve suited up for both grade school football and basketball and recently made a select soccer team. I take no breaks from sports in the summer either - baseball and swim team keep me pretty off the couch and out of the air conditioning. When I’m not on a field or in the water, I like my screens or I could be on the stage. I have enjoyed being a cast member on both school and community theater performances. It is a lot of fun up there and I hope to continue this as I get older. I also enjoy reading and hope to finish the whole Harry Potter series some day. My favorite vacation thus far has to be Universal Studios (Jaws, King Kong, Spiderman and stuff and Harry Potter). And my favorite vacation activity is probably a beach day because I enjoy playing around in the water/waves.

Siena. The performer.

Loves: Dance. Brownies. Making bracelets. Acting. Producing plays at home.

Favorite destination: Disney

Place she dreams to visit: Siena, Italy

You might consider me the performer of the family, but that’s not all I can do. Sure - I am a natural on the stage and under the spotlight either dancing or acting, but I also enjoy being a part of swim team, soccer, basketball, and cheer with my friends. I like a little of everything. I am the oldest sister of the bunch. This comes with a little bit of extra work because my little sister (4 years younger) likes to occupy my time. It’s all good though - I actually enjoy it. We sometimes get to turn my bedroom into another world. Knock on my door - and you must knock! - and you might find me teaching a ballet class attended by my little sister; or it’s possible that you’d catch us in the middle of nap time at “day care”; but if you are lucky you will see us rehearsing for an original, independently produced musical. I love to pretend. I love to imagine. Having a little sister keeps me young and I think I will always be grateful for that. Plus, I know mom and dad depend on me to help out with the youngest and I am proud to make them happy and do my part. When I get a moment of peace I like to spend some time reading. I enjoy learning about different people and different situations. I have even written and illustrated my own stories. That might be one of my favorite things to do

Harrison. The builder.

Loves: Family. Making things out of other things. Ice cream. Roblox. Legos. Sports.

Favorite destination: Disney. Myrtle Beach.

Place he dreams to visit: Egypt.

I like to move. I like to do things. This is all true, but I also find a lot of joy playing by myself with my Legos or action figures. As a matter of fact, I can turn anything into a toy. Give me your empty paper towel roll, your dry milk carton, some scissors, and some tape and I will show you the meaning of recycling. Leo might be the King of Screens, but I am the ultimate Scrap King! I love when a package gets delivered to our house because that means I’ll have an empty box to play with pretty soon. It may find a second life as a shield, a cave, a stage; the options are infinite. It comes naturally to me. I also like playing Roblox with my big brother though. I’ve been getting into team sports a little more lately. I am currently on a select soccer team; I recently finished up my final season of t-ball; and I plan on pounding the Spalding at the local courts this winter. I enjoy being the little brother of the family, but there’s a lot of competition around here. Sometimes I’ve got to go to extremes to make my voice heard; such is the life.

Esme. The joyful.

Loves: Paw Patrol. Puppies. Wearing dresses. Chocolate chip cookies.

Favorite Destination:

Place she dreams to travel: Egypt

There is only one person in this house that gets to call themselves the “baby of the family” and that is me.As the baby of the family, I have a lot of privileges that the others might not receive. For example: I am usually the only one who can escape the dinner table without touching one scrap of food or wetting my lips with a simple drink of milk. What do ya think about that? Leo knows better than to think he could get away with that kind of behavior. Only men. I love playing with my big brothers, and big sister. They’ve taught me how to do almost everything: Play Roblox, color, watch Star Wars, do a ballet dance, twerk. I am lucky to be the little sister in this family. I haven’t gotten much exposure to playing many team sports just yet; God knows I’ve been dragged to every field in Butler Co. up to this point though. I did - however - just start playing soccer and I loved how many fans came out to support me. It feels good to be a part of such a big family. How lucky I am.