An adventure in food and travel with a side of homeschooling along the way

I’m not going to lie, the idea of writing a blog about ourselves and our adventures is a little awkward. Does it really matter what we ate for dinner or how tired we’re feeling after another 11-hour flight?!  However, whenever we think back to what we miss most about Cured it isn’t the daily dose of cheese, wine and bread (because if we’re being honest those are still part of our everyday), it’s the community we are no longer connected to by virtue of being on Pearl Street most of our waking hours - the friendships built and the spheres intertwined, all the incredible humans who entered our lives and made them richer, fuller and happier. And so, while it is not in our nature to talk about ourselves or find ourselves particularly interesting, the idea of sharing this next chapter, an adventure that is only happening because of Cured and the incredible community that supported us for the past 11 years, is simply too appealing to pass up. It is a way to stay connected to friends, family and loved ones while we’re halfway around the world riding camels, swimming into underwater caves or studying seaweed, and something tells me that we are going to crave that connection more than we realize! So here it is, our blog, our story, our tapestry of life; the good, the bad, and the delicious, and we promise to do our best not to get self-important or too annoying. So bear with us as we dive in….

 First, a little context to help this all make sense for those that don’t know us well. We started Cured, a small specialty grocer and wine shop in Boulder, CO in 2011 after returning home from a handful of years spent abroad.  We still jokingly call it our first child, and in many ways it was. A modern-day mom and pop shop, we lived and breathed our business, building our crazy dream into so much more than we could have ever imagined, a flourishing business with the incredible community of Boulder helping its heartbeat. Our first year we worked every single day we were open, closing for 2 weeks in early January to run away to Mexico and get married. The second year followed suit, this time closing for 2 weeks in early January to take our honeymoon. The thing about starting a business with your husband or wife is that you don’t want to take turns taking time off, you want to travel together, which leaves the gaping question of who looks after the shop. To make a long story short, we became really really good at 3- and 4-day escapes, long enough to (sort of) recharge but short enough to not be missed. Add one child, and then another, a global pandemic and a refocusing of priorities and dreams and we started dreaming about the possibility of a next chapter. A chapter that was focused inward instead of out, on the two amazing boys, now somehow 5 and 8 and who wanted more than anything for us to engage, to play, and to explore. We realized we were in a magical moment in time where they still considered us to be the coolest people in the world and we knew we’d forever regret if we didn’t dive in headfirst and see where life could take us. A little bit of wishing and hoping and a whole lot of luck later, we found ourselves with an amazing opportunity to sell Cured, which left us with something we hadn’t experienced in nearly 11 years, time. Coupled with that time, there was one more magical gift that Cured had given us in the form of a Mileage Plus account briming with just over a million miles from all the jams, chocolates, oils, cheeses and crackers procured over the years. One bottle of wine led to two bottles of wine which led to a third bottle of wine with a map of the world spread across the kitchen table and a challenge; what if we packed our bags, traded out our cheese and wine hats to those of homeschooler and travel agent, and took a year, seeing how far those miles could take us. As if selling our business of 11 years and completely altering our daily life wasn’t enough, we decided to sell our house and car while we were at it, packing all our belonging into a storage unit and our van (we couldn’t sell the van, you never know when we might a mobile home!) and truly leaning into the moment and the great unknown.

So here we find ourselves, currently sitting on a plane headed to Edinburgh, with 4 carry-on bags, 4 backpacks, a rough outline of a homeschool curriculum and a whole lot of unknown ahead. We’re scared, we’re excited, we’re anxious but most of all we cannot wait; to be jetlagged and tired, to make mistakes and figure things out, to remember how to be uncomfortable, to have to be flexible, to try new foods and experience different cultures. To teach our boys, and ourselves, about the vast world that exists outside of a pandemic, while eating, drinking, and seeking adventure along the way. Oh yeah, and that homeschooling thing too…  ;)