A New Beginning – July 2022

We’re the Evoy-Kovalio family: Mom (Doree), Dad (Kevin), Alex (age 9) and Ethan (age 7). As I write this first entry, it is July 22, 2022, and we’re just days away from departing on an adventure of a life time – moving from Canada to France for one year! Kevin and I have always enjoyed travelling. Before we met, we each lived and worked abroad for extended periods of time, and have visited many countries around the world.  Once we met, we continued to travel together and with our boys.  Our shared dream of living abroad as a family has been in the works for many years, and started crystallizing during the doldrum days of COVID. After living through lockdowns for months on end, like many others, we were itching to get out of the house, hit the road and explore again.  We also considered that the boys are now in the “sweet spot” age where they’re old enough to appreciate new experiences and young enough to want to spend time with their parents and not just their friends. Knowing this window won’t last forever, our mantra became (as the kids say these days) “YOLO – you only live once!”.  And now, after a year and a half of planning, organizing, making lists, and lists of lists, we’re about to set off.  Despite our many mixed emotions, we’re all looking forward to a year of change, growth and many adventures, throughout France and other countries along the way.

We created this site so family and friends could follow along on our travels.  Our adventure begins with a month of travel through several regions in France, and a week-long visit to the UK.  Then, at the end of August, we’ll be making our way to the outskirts of the city of Perpignan in the south of France, where we’ll settle into our daily life in our new home. Sandwiched between the mediterranean sea and the Pyrenees mountains, and just a 30 minute drive north of the Spanish border, this region is full of opportunities for day trips and weekend getaways which we can’t wait to blog about!  Also, stay tuned for updates on how the kids (and parents!) integrate into a fully Francophone lifestyle!  Finally, for those who may feel inspired, we’ll share some details on how to plan a year abroad (including pitfalls to avoid) to help make the planning a little bit easier for others.

For more frequent updates, please follow us on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/yololetsgoinsta/

We’re excited to have you join us, so make sure to check back in for updates, pictures and videos, and until then…

À bientôt!

This is us in May 2022 in front of the beautiful Parliament Buildings in Ottawa, our home town.