Living Unconventionally

It’s Official — We booked our next hub✈️

🌎 If you’ve been following along for a while, you know how much we love worldschool hubs!

We’ve only done a couple so far, and we definitely believe that you don’t need to be going hub to hub in order to worldschool, BUT we love the solution that hubs provide for community, routine, & educational support 👩‍🏫

just opened a new hub in Kotor, Montenegro (the first session is happening right now), and we are headed to there second session in just a few weeks. They now have 7 different locations 😍

🗺️ Kotor is located in Montenegro, a country in Southeast Europe, on the Adriatic Sea. Kotor is situated on the Bay of Kotor, a winding bay surrounded by steep mountains. It’s known for its well-preserved medieval old town and stunning natural beauty ⛰️

📍 We chose Kotor for several reasons including the historical & cultural richness, the incredible natural beauty, the interesting architecture & design, and the relaxing atmosphere. We love a destination where the mountains meet the sea 🌊

🏫 We are excited to be participating in the Boundless Life program because of their approach to education and their emphasis on building community amongst the families 🫶

🗣️ Have you ever traveled to Montenegro? If not, is it on your bucket list?

📦 Follow to see the whole experience of worldschooling with Boundless Life in Montenegro this summer!

https://youtu.be/mq7uI6U6wMY

It was so great to be in St. Croix, USVI 8 years after going to college here... and this time with my family!

Don’t go to St Croix until you watch this // Saint Croix US Virgin Islands with Kids Don’t go to St Croix until you watch this // Saint Croix US Virgin Islands with Kids —-----------------------------------------------------------------------...

Happy Birthday America 🇺🇸

Can you tell the 4th of July is my most favorite day of the entire year?

When I was growing up in Ouray, I always felt like the town was too small for me. I loved the summertime when tourists would arrive from all over the world because it was an opportunity to connect with new people. I love watching my town come alive. The 4th of July is, by far, the busiest & most exciting day of the year here 🥰

Each year we make our family travel plans around this day because I cannot imagine not going home to the mountains to celebrate it ⛰️

This year was extra special because I had all 3 of my kids with me, friends and family joined us in the festivities, and I actually competed in the Women’s Waterfight (full video coming soon) 👩‍🚒

🗣️ What is your favorite holiday? Why is it so special to you?

📍 Ouray, Colorado

Summer Photo Dump 🌞

Ocean turned two months old on Sunday… they go from tiny newborns to chunky babies so fast. It’s wild because there is so much anticipation through deciding to conceive & then pregnancy & even labor itself, but once they arrive, it’s like we enter a time warp.

With my first born and even my second, the amount of overwhelm I felt was almost unbearable. It made it extremely challenging to focus on soaking in the precious moments, but I’ve made a conscious decision to not let that happen this time.

I have been totally focused on being present with my baby, learning her, nurturing her, and appreciating her. I’ve exclusively breastfed up until this point which I’m very proud of because I didn’t with my first two. The closeness that comes from breastfeeding all day and all night is an unmatched bond.

While I wasn’t sure how Atlas and Isle would respond to so much of my attention being diverted to this new being, she has joined our family almost seamlessly. The boys are head over heels for their baby sister. It is safe to say this has been the most beautiful postpartum experience I have ever had.

I’m so grateful for my family, all of my life’s blessings, and how I have been able to grow through motherhood 💞

1️⃣: Atlas’s Last Coach Pitch Game ⚾️
2️⃣: Ocean’s first hot springs dip ⛰️
3️⃣: Atlas in hiking camp 🥾
4️⃣: Ocean & Keira ( > 3 weeks apart) 👯‍♀️
5️⃣: Waterfight practice 🧑‍🚒
6️⃣: Sweet sleepy girl 🤗
7️⃣: My 10 Year High School Reunion! 👩‍🎓
8️⃣: Atlas lost his 3rd tooth 🦷
9️⃣: Daddy & All His Babies 🥹
🔟: Mama & Ocean 🫶

🗣️ How’s your summer going so far? Any highlights??

📍 Colorado

https://youtu.be/ZSkH9QQPNN4

We spent Christmas golfing & surfing in Nicaragua!

Where to Go with Kids in Nicaragua: Christmas Abroad VLOG Where to Go with Kids in Nicaragua: Christmas Abroad VLOG—---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------...

https://youtu.be/QxlE8mO_6Xk

Nicaragua Family Travel VLOG: 1 Week on Isla Ometepe with Kids // Where to Stay Isla Ometepe Nicaragua Family Travel VLOG: 1 Week on Isla Ometepe with Kids // Where to Stay Isla Ometepe—----------------------------------------------------------------...

🧨 One More Week …

… until my favorite day of the year 🇺🇸

🗣️ Where are you celebrating this year?

📍 Ouray, Colorado

https://youtu.be/bqtGQWigfRA

Best Things to See in Nicaragua with Kids | WorldSchooling in Granada Best Things to See in Nicaragua with Kids | WorldSchooling in Granada —--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------...

Birth Story of Ocean 🤱Part 3 🫶

When I got out of the bath tub and onto the toilet, I immediately felt some serious, downward pressure. My doula was checking on me in the bathroom and noticed that the baby’s head was crowning. She hollered for the nurses who came rushing in and told me not to push.

The crazy thing is that I wasn’t pushing 😳

The nurses called for the doctor right away but wanted to move me out of the bathroom and onto the hospital bed for the delivery. I told them I couldn’t make it back to the bed.

The doctor came rushing in less than a minute later, saw me on the toilet, and felt for the baby’s head.

She yelled “DROP TO THE FLOOR ON ALL FOURS RIGHT NOW. YOU NEED TO GET THIS BABY OUT IN 1 PUSH!” 😱

I dropped on all fours.

I pushed twice, and my baby was earthside 🥹

She had the cord wrapped around neck and had swallowed a good bit of the meconium so they whisked her away to the incubator next to my bed side while the pediatricians suctioned the 💩 out of her throat with a tube and checked her breathing.

It took about 10 minutes, but it felt like a lifetime not having my baby on my chest and feeling concerned that there was an issue.

There were no issues — praise God!

My baby was finally put on my body for that precious skin-to-skin time.

& I had just completed one of the most empowering experiences of my life: an all-natural vaginal birth after cesarean 🥲

💞 I had dreamed of rewriting my relationship with birth for years, and I finally did it. I hope this serves as a reminder that doctors give recommendations, but, ultimately, we know our bodies best & must make our own health decisions.

🗣️ Have you ever went against a doctor’s advice? How did it turn out for you?

All that is mine, I carry with me. 💭

Last week marks 8 years since my dad & I completed El Camino de Santiago 🥾

For those who don’t know, El Camino de Santiago, or “ The Way of St. James” in English, is 1 of 3 Ancient Christian pilgrimages. One goes to Jerusalem; one goes to Rome; one goes to Santiago de Compostela in Spain.

My dad and I saw the film back “The Way” back when I was in 7th grade. At that point in our lives, we were only allowed to see eachother once a month for about an hour and a half. Our relationship was limited and strained for my entire life, making it extremely difficult to develop a real bond.

We talked about doing that hike someday when I was an adult and could make my own decisions…

Well, once I graduated high school and went off to college, I saved up as much money as I could. On Father’s Day after my freshman year, I surprised my dad with a one way ticket to Paris to hike the Camino that following summer 🥲

After 7 years of dreaming of embarking on this pilgrimage together, we set out on the 500 mile hike from St. Jean Pied de Port, France to Santiago de Compostela, Spain, carrying all of our things on our backs.

Part of why I loved this hike is because we went through so many towns every day. We weren’t alone in the middle of nowhere, we were in towns of every size, getting to really see Spain… by foot!

Walking anywhere from 15-20 miles per day, we had a lot of time out there to talk and reconnect. We spent each night in a albergue, or a pilgrims’ hostel, meeting interesting people from all over the world and connecting over our shared expedition. It was a really special way to get to know my dad, and it was one of the greatest adventures of my life to date.

🗣️ Have you ever done a “through hike”? Which one? If not, would you ever consider a big hike like this?

Birth Story of Ocean: Part 2 🤱🫶

When we arrived at the hospital, I got checked out in the triage unit by the nurses where they told me I was already 8 cm dilated 😱

This shocked me because I had only been in labor for about 2 hours! Things were progressing quickly, and for that, I was grateful 🙏

Since I was already to far along, we got admitted to a labor & delivery room. I found it very uncomfortable to lay down on the hospital bed so I only did that when they wanted to check in on the baby with the monitor. The rest of the time I was going back and forth from all 4s with my face on the bed, to squatting on the birth ball, to leaning up on the birth bar, as instructed by my doula who was applying counter pressure to my hips and lower back during contractions (& instructing Scott to do the same).

After a bit of time passed and labor was getting more intense, they checked me again. I was told that I was still 8 cm dilated and not to try pushing because that would cause tearing at this stage.

The doctor repeatedly told me that a VBAC with a previous shoulder dystocia posed a serious risk to both the baby and I. She continually reminded me that the baby and I could die and continually pushed me to have a c-section 🫠

Scott did a great job advocating for me and my wants and basically told the doctor to stop talking 🙊 we didn’t need that kinda negativity in our delivery room 😅

After finding out I was still only 8 cm, the doula urged me to get into the bath tub with hopes that it would alleviate some of the intensity of my contractions since it was helping at home.

After about 2 minutes in the bath tub, I had to get out to go 💩 …

… be sure to follow along for part 3 🙂🙂

Birth Story of Ocean 🤱🫶 Part 1

After an evening of curb walking, Scott pressing on some foot pressure points, and dry pumping for the first time, I went to sleep like any other night.

I woke up around 11:45 pm with some discomfort. I hopped in the shower to see if it would help— something that wasn’t totally abnormal for pregnant me.

When I got out of the shower, I tried to get back into bed but found that to be too painful. Since I didn’t go into spontaneous labor with either of my other 2 kids, I wasn’t quite sure if I was in labor or not… but I knew that pacing the room felt better than laying down in bed!

Scott called our doula, and she said for me to try to lay down and get some rest because if it was labor, I’d need all my energy. She instructed us to update her in 30 minutes if I was still having contractions.

I tried to lay down, but after 2 contractions of that, I knew that rest was NOT going to happen. At this point my contractions were consistently lasting for about a minute and were 3 minutes apart. We updated our doula shortly after, and she made her way over to our house around 1:15 am where she found me laboring in our kids’ bathtub downstairs.

After talking me through a few contractions, she advised us to go to the hospital just to “get checked out” since contractions were intense and consistent. This surprised me because I thought I’d be laboring at home for a good amount of time…

… be sure to follow along for part ✌️ 🙂

Happy 7th Birthday Atlas 🥳

… to the boy who made me a mama 7 years ago today,

I wasn’t expecting you.

I didn’t plan for you.

I was so scared when I learned about you.

I didn’t feel prepared to meet you.

I thought my life was over when I got the news that you existed…

But boy oh boy was I wrong in every way.

You were the best surprise I’ve ever received.

God’s plan for our lives was far greater than the plan I had for myself.

Being scared just means I care. You taught me how to feel the fear, and do it anyways.

Unprepared? Sure. But is anyone ever really prepared for something as life changing as becoming a parent?

My life wasn’t over when I met you — 7 years ago today is the day my life truly began!

Words cannot express the joy I get from being your mom and watching you grow, learn, and thrive into the young man you’re becoming.

I am more proud of you every single day.

& I am honored to be your mom.

Happy birthday Atlas Peter 💓

I love you SO much!

📸 1 photo from every year you’ve been alive!!

🎉

Introducing Ocean Eliza Schindelar 🌊

After 3 nights in the hospital, we were finally able to bring her home on Friday night. It feels so good to be in our own space with our things and comforts.

Our whole family is smitten over this beautiful, special girl 💓

Can I tell you a secret? 👀

I HATE my big, fancy camera 🙊

This Canon Eos 6D Mark II DSLR is something I felt like I NEEDED to invest in back in 2021 when I was getting more serious about creating photos & videos. Up until that point, I was making everything on my iPhone & GoPro.

And after buying all the guides + courses, and spending hours upon hours trying to master this piece of equipment, I was left feeling so defeated.

I’ve been stoked on maybe 3 sessions I’ve ever done with this camera. I hate how heavy the thing is. I hate how protective I feel over it because of how expensive it was. The lens + camera set up cost me over $3000, and I didn’t even bring it on our most recent adventure where we traveled 4 countries over 11 weeks 😱 which is the purpose I bought the camera for in the first place.

Can you say frustrating??

I recently signed up for an “outdoor photography” class at my local community college as one final attempt to master this camera, and it was actually SO HELPFUL in putting all the pieces together as far as aperture, exposure, and all the other “fun” settings. I loved having an in-person instructor to ask questions to. I honestly wish I would have done this years ago…

BUT, this camera is still heavy and bulky and super inconvenient for my carry-on only family to travel with. I LOVE my GoPro (I’ve had like 5 over the years). I LOVE my iPhone, and last year I invested in a DJI Mini Pro 3 drone which I also LOVE.

I also realized how little time and effort I put into taking photos. My heart is in my videos— my family’s videos 💓 and I love the simplicity of our set up without the DSLR.

So despite the fact that I feel like I’m finally getting the hang of the DSLR thing, I’m bidding this thing farewell!!

📫 If you know anyone looking to get started or upgrade their set up, send me a DM!!

I’m offering a great deal for the camera, lens, ND filter, peak design camera clip, battery grip, and tripod!! 😁

📍 Grand Junction, Colorado 🇺🇸
📸 Photos taken during the outdoor photography class at CMU Tech

https://youtu.be/B78OE9nyAZw

Crossing the Nicaragua Border | Traveling San Juan del Sur with Kids (Surfing + Purisima) Crossing the Nicaragua Border | Traveling San Juan del Sur with Kids (Surfing + Purisima)—-------------------------------------------------------------------...

Our last BIG TRIP as a family of 4 🥲

We spent 11 weeks away this past winter from right around Thanksgiving to mid-February, enjoying our last few months as a family of 4.

Visiting Texas, Costa Rica, Nicaragua, the U.S. Virgin Islands, British Virgin Islands, Florida, & Jamaica, we had a whirlwind trip while trying to avoid the cold in Colorado and keep me up and moving around throughout this pregnancy.

I will forever cherish the travels and time we spent together over the past 5 1/2 years as a family of 4. This has been my most joyous season of life yet!

We are now less than 2 weeks away from our due date with Babygirl, and we are unbelievably excited to meet her and welcome her to our family. She’s got a lot of adventures to catch up on!!

🗣️ Where should we travel with her first?

📍 Saint Thomas, US Virgin Islands
📦 Follow for family travel inspiration from around the world 🌎

https://youtu.be/csjEZ0uv_-E

Borinquen Thermal Resort

Borinquen Thermal Resort: Hot Springs Maternity Photos in Costa Rica Borinquen Thermal Resort: Hot Springs Maternity Photos in Costa Rica-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------...

https://youtu.be/IMDy4-iOPbc

World Schooling in Costa Rica: Costa Rica's BEST Beach Destination World Schooling in Costa Rica: Costa Rica's BEST Beach Destination ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------...

https://youtu.be/x7_MOnuj-s8

Our first BLUE ZONE: Car Trouble in Costa Rica | Santa Teresa VLOG | Isla Tortuga Snorkeling Our first BLUE ZONE: Car Trouble in Costa Rica | Santa Teresa VLOG | Isla Tortuga Snorkeling—----------------------------------------------------------------...

https://youtu.be/MKfPG867_P0

Austin, Texas Family Thanksgiving VLOG Austin, Texas Family Thanksgiving VLOG —---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------In to...

Are you planning a trip to Colorado this summer? Don't skip Colorado's Adventure Capital (OURAY)!! We rented a side by side with Altitude Adventures Side x Side Rentals and had the most beautiful ride of our lives :)

We drove the most beautiful road in Colorado | Colorado’s ADVENTURE Capital: Off Roading in OURAY We drove the most beautiful road in Colorado | Colorado’s ADVENTURE Capital: Off Roading in OURAY------------------------------------------------------------...

Magic Kingdom & Epcot Photo Dump 🪄

When we took the kids to Disney World back in 2021, we visited Epcot and Animal Kingdom. So, naturally, this time around, I wanted to take them to the other two parks: Magic Kingdom & Hollywood Studios.

However, when we arrived in Orlando, I looked a bit further into the list of attractions in each of the parks and found that Hollywood Studios had the least things for us to do with our height of kids and with me being pregnant. Also, a big part of that park is Star Wars themed which is something our kids have never seen and know nothing about.

So we decided to forego Hollywood Studios this round and return to Epcot instead. Paired with Magic Kingdom, it made for an epic experience!

Magic Kingdom definitely has the most attractions that are available to little kids so we packed in as many as possible. We got the Disney Genie + which allowed us to skip lines and make our day there very efficient. We also visited at the end of January when most kids were back in school already from the holiday break. Scott and I were surprised at how many rides we were able to ride in one day here!

Epcot was fun because of the travel theme, but it definitely has less rides & attractions. Most of the attractions are in the front loop of the park so when you start your “walk around the world”, there are very few rides. It’s mostly restaurants and some short movies. It’s still really cool, and the kids collected stamps for their “KidCot” books which are like mini-passports. Because of the shape of the park, it was much more challenging for us to use our Disney Genie + effectively and efficiently here.

However, my favorite attraction of the entire trip was in Epcot! It was a Ratatouille 4D experience in “France”. The ride takes you under the stove and around the kitchen while getting splashed with mop water and smelling the fresh baguettes baking 🥖 this is a can’t miss attraction!!

🗣️ Which Disney park is your favorite?

📍 Walt Disney World, Orlando, Florida
📦 Follow for family travel tips, guides, & destinations 🌎

https://youtu.be/4IvuJmAdYM4

Driving Across Wisconsin with Kids | Midwest Family Road Trip & Isle's 5th Birthday Celebration 🎉 Driving Across Wisconsin with Kids | Midwest Family Road Trip & Isle's 5th Birthday Celebration 🎉 ----------------------------------------------------------...

https://youtu.be/lbtAOSODyw8

Traveling Normandy, France with Kids | Honfleur, Omaha Beach, & Courtomer Traveling Normandy, France with Kids | Honfleur, Omaha Beach, & Courtomer —----------------------------------------------------------------------------------...

Happy International Women’s Day ✨

Here’s to strong women 💪
May we know them 👯‍♀️
May we be them 💁‍♀️
May we raise them 🤱

This pregnancy has felt different to me than my past ones— I’m feeling a new sense of responsibility in being a girl mom. There are different things we must teach our daughters than our sons, and a big part of that is how we, as mothers and as women, show up in the world. I am focusing on setting the highest standard possible for myself, my life, and what and who I choose to allow into it because I want her to have the very best example 💓

Lessons I want to teach her early on:

* uplift other women
* speak up for your own beliefs & values
* identify your own unique talents & passions and act on those instead of conforming
* a kind heart radiates beauty from the inside out
* don’t be afraid to sail in uncharted waters
* be resourceful & creative
* hard skills and soft skills are equally as important
* there are so many ways to embrace your femininity
* we all get to set our own boundaries
* a healthy body is a strong body
* it’s okay to be wrong; it’s okay to admit it
* you don’t have to be strong like a man; you are strong like a woman

I hope all of you wonderful women & moms out there have a spectacular international women’s day and a wonderful weekend 💓 Thanks for being my community — my digital “village”.

🗣️ what’s the most valuable life lesson you think girls need to learn early in life?

📍 Borinquen Thermal Resort, Costa Rica 🇨🇷
📸 Photos taken at ~18 weeks pregnant
😱 but I’m actually 32 weeks pregnant today

https://youtu.be/zCgSJvU1tTw

FAMILY TRAVEL VLOG PARIS: Seine River Cruise, the Louvre, Paris Catacombs, Luxembourg Gardens FAMILY TRAVEL VLOG PARIS: Seine River Cruise, the Louvre, Paris Catacombs, Luxembourg Gardens—---------------------------------------------------------------...

Worldschooling in Granada 🇳🇮

📌 save this for your trip to Nicaragua!

Granada is a colonial city with a lot of history, nestled on the West Coast of Lake Nicaragua. The city is full of beautiful, Spanish architecture, nature experiences, and tons of little artisans and galleries. This makes for a great WorldSchooling destination!

WorldSchooling Experiences in Granada👇

1️⃣ & 2️⃣: Take an art class! We just stumbled upon this gallery and asked the owner if he did classes (which he did), but many of the galleries do! I think it was $10/kid for a 2 hour art class, and it made for some fun souvenirs!

3️⃣ & 4️⃣: See hot lava at the Masaya Volcano 🌋. We’ve seen a lot of volcanoes in our travels, but this was the first time we saw actual hot lava! No hiking is required 😜

5️⃣ Take a chocolate making class at 😋

6️⃣ & 7️⃣: Try spinning some pottery at Apoyo Lagoon! Scott recently got into pottery at home and loved getting to try the wheel here which he had to spin with his foot!

8️⃣: Take a dip in Apoyo Lagoon, a freshwater lake that is fed by hot underwater fumaroles that are constantly releasing sulfurous gasses that keep the water warm all the time.

9️⃣ & 🔟: Take a boat tour of Las Isletas, a group of 365 tiny islands within Lake Nicaragua that were created from an eruption the Monbacho Volcano.🌋 Some of the islands are private and have houses built on them while others are public and are used for scientific research.

🗣️ Have you been to Granada yet? If not, is it on your list?

🗺️ If you’re looking for interesting WorldSchooling Opportunities, be sure to check out the WorldSchooling Map (in our bio). The WorldSchooling Map has 60+ hubs and family travel learning opportunities in a bunch of countries with lots of exclusive discounts and bonuses!

📍 Granada, Nicaragua 🇳🇮

https://youtu.be/MEWpoh2-9Ms

FRENCH RIVIERA PART 2: Best Places to Visit in France with Kids | Nice, Monaco, Menton, & Eze FRENCH RIVIERA PART 2: Best Places to Visit in France with Kids | Nice, Monaco, Menton, Eze, Villefranche-Sur-Mer—-------------------------------------------...

Have you ever returned to a place years later?

This is St. Croix Then & Now 🥲

When I was 19 years old and a sophomore in college, I got into the National Student Exchange program which allowed me to spend a semester living in the Virgin Islands while attending university there.

The NSE program allows American students to swap schools throughout any of the 50 states, US Virgin Islands, Puerto Rico, Guam, and even Canada while either paying their home school tuition or paying as an “in state” student at the out of state institution.

I entered this program at a pivotal time in my life when I was trying really hard to figure out who I wanted to be, and I can honestly say that this experience changed my life.

📸 1: back in St. Croix for the first time since I lived there, 8 years later

📸 2: When I first arrived at UVI in 2016

📸 3: 19 year old me, living her best life on an island in the Caribbean

📸 4: the first time I visited America’s Eastern most point

📸 5: the girls from my first trip to STX 👯‍♀️

📸 6: me with the real Captain Morgan— why did I think this was soo cool when I was 19? 😅

📸 7: Me in one of the 3 outfits I packed for the entire semester since I lived out of just a backpack 🎒

📸 8: outfit 2 of 3 when I lived there 🙈 just unbelievably stoked and proud that I made it here by myself because it was something that I wanted to do

📸 9: bringing my family to this magical little island and showing them all my favorite spots and where I went to college 😭

📸 10: reconnecting with the girls after 8 years away 🥹🥲

🗣️ Did you study away during college? Do you know anyone in college right now or about to enter college? Would they be interested in a program like this?

📍 St. Croix, US Virgin Islands
📦 Follow for family travel & worldschooling inspiration 🌎