Today we’d like to introduce you to Giselle Jenkins.
Thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
I (a free-spirited hippy living on a pot farm) met John (a business-minded corporate nomad in between jobs) in California. Our connection was instant, and we delved into conversations about our shared wanderlust and love for travel. We stayed in touch over the phone for a couple of months.
John came out to California again and after a month of dating, we decided to adventure off to Colombia for an entire month. Upon our return to the United States, we took a leap of faith and quickly decided to make Duluth, MN our temporary home. What was initially planned as a brief 3-6 month stay unfolded into a beautiful nine years and counting. We got engaged while traveling through the Hawaiian Islands and then got married while traveling through Indonesia while 5 months pregnant. Our family expanded with the arrival of Jaden (1/2020) and Luna (9/2021).
Traveling with kids is important to us because it offers invaluable experiences that nurture their growth and understanding of the world. Exploring new places exposes children to diverse cultures, traditions, and landscapes, fostering empathy and open-mindedness.
It ignites their curiosity, stimulating a thirst for knowledge and learning. Through travel, kids learn to adapt, problem-solve, and become more resilient individuals. Sharing adventures as a family strengthens bonds, creating lasting memories that will enrich our lives.
We also want to show that traveling and adventures don’t need to stop because you have kids, it should be the reason you start!
Can you talk to us about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way? Looking back, would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Traveling with kids can present its fair share of challenges, especially when compared to the carefree days of traveling without little ones. However, staying home with children also has its own set of difficulties. While it’s true that we’ve had our fair share of daunting and embarrassing moments on the road, we’ve also experienced incredible travel days that have created lasting memories.
Sometimes, the chaos takes over, like when Luna cried throughout an entire flight or when Jaden had an unfortunate combination of accidents that led him to walk off the plane naked. However, these moments, although challenging at the time, become stories to laugh about later on. They remind us that even amid unpredictable situations, we can find resilience and humor.
We’ve also encountered travel days where unexpected mishaps, such as flight cancellations, turned long journeys into endurance tests. Despite the odds, our children surprised us with their adaptability and resilience. They found joy in simple things, reminding us of the power of embracing the present moment and appreciating the little pleasures that travel brings.
One of the advantages of traveling with kids is the simplicity it brings. With fewer clothes and fewer toys to clean up, we are freed from the burden of excessive baggage. It teaches us to focus on what truly matters and encourages us to embrace a more minimalist lifestyle.
While traveling with kids may have moments of chaos, it also holds immense rewards.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
I (Giselle) started Juice Pharm, Duluth’s first juice bar and vegetarian/vegan restaurant. We also own New London Cafe in Lakeside Duluth and we own a handful of rental properties. Managing work and kids has been our biggest struggle but also the most rewarding. We are constantly working towards creating passive income to help keep our bills paid while traveling.
Juice Pharm – website: juicepharm.co
Instagram: @juicepharm_
New London Cafe – website: newlondoncafe.com
Instagram: @newlondoncafeduluth
We recently started The Traveling Jenkins blog and vlog. Here, we share our family’s amazing travel experiences and offer practical tips, budget-friendly product recommendations, travel hacks, and heartfelt stories. As middle-class adventurers, we understand the challenges of affordable travel, and we’re excited to create a space for families like ours.
In our early days of family travel, we frequently sought advice from fellow family travel bloggers. However, we discovered that many of their product and destination recommendations were too extravagant for our middle-class budget, making it challenging for us to pursue our passion for travel.
Thankfully, John appreciates my knack for finding great flight deals and practicing frugality, which has allowed us to continue exploring the world on a budget. Inspired by our own experiences, we created this platform to cater to families like us – those who yearn to embark on memorable adventures without breaking the bank.
Thetravelingjenkins.com and @thetravelingjenkins IG and FB.
Any big plans?
We are leaving for Aruba in a couple of weeks. This will be a short mellow-family-style trip. Then, we are planning a longer trip to Guatemala (4-6 weeks). Then, we will be planning the kid’s first trip overseas to South East Asia which will be 3-4 months.
We are still working on a Youtube Channel and our website.
Contact Info:
- Website: thetravelingjenkins.com
- Instagram: @thetravelingjenkins
- Facebook: thetravelingjenkins
- Youtube: thetravelingjenkins
