As you may have picked up from my travel posts, I’m a little bit of a planner – ok, maybe the word obsessive is more appropriate.

I was telling my Mom that our nephew on my husband’s side took an amazing trip where he flew into Barcelona, Spain and three weeks later had a flight out of Athens, Greece. He had no specific plans on how he was getting from Barcelona to Athens, he just knew he had to be there in time to make his flight. I told her he was posting updates and photos regularly on Facebook and his trip sounded amazing – just going with the flow and really living in the moment. My Mom’s exact words were “You could never do that. You’re too much of a planner.” Hmmmm…. Don’t ever tell the oldest child they can’t do something… My gut response was “Challenge accepted!” and “I’ll prove you wrong!”

This fall, my neighbor, who will be sending her seventh and final child off to college, is embarking on the 500-mile walk Camino de Santiago de Compostela (a.k.a. the Way of St. James.) She is flying into Paris and will take up to 40 days to complete her walk, eventually ending her quest in Finisterre, Spain. And she’s going alone. She wants to spend time reflecting and planning for the next chapter of her life. I’m intrigued and envious of this introspective, completely off the radar adventure.

During a walk with my husband, I shared what my had Mom said about me being unable to take an unplanned trip and he agreed with her. Of course, he did! They are two peas-in-a-pod with very similar personalities. Now, I have two people (maybe more) to prove wrong. The real question is, am I up for the challenge?

Just watch me.