Our Family

Get to Know Our Family

We Are Living Our Adventure...And Making Every Moment Count!

Our passion for traveling as a family began with a goal to take our kids to all 50 states before they turn 18. That goal turned into an even bigger dream of showing our kids the world, which has now turned into a lifestyle. 

We're 4 very ordinary people who just traded our 4,000 square foot house in the suburbs of Charlotte, NC for life on a boat. 

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Sarah Headshot May 2020

Sarah

I’m the writer and main photographer for this site. I’m also the crazy idea girl who dreams up an adventure and figures out how to make it happen. Besides my family and travel, I have a passion for: Jesus; dressing my children in coordinating clothes; good food; good books; and an empty laundry basket.

As I mentioned, I’m the writer and main photographer. I’m also the crazy idea girl who dreams up an adventure and figures out how to make it happen. Besides my family and travel, I have a passion for: Jesus; dressing my children in coordinating clothes; good food; good books; and an empty laundry basket.

Things I don’t like include (but are not limited to!): shopping for gifts for my husband; baking; changing batteries in toys; germs; and pumping gas in my car.

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Brent Headshot May 2020

Brent

When he’s not traveling, Brent has a “real” job in the insurance industry. He’s also the guy who does it all and makes it look easy—managing an office, leading a bible study, coaching t-ball, etc. Oh, and did I mention he just finished up his MBA in his spare time?

When he’s not traveling, Brent has a “real” job in the insurance industry. He’s also the guy who does it all and makes it look easy—managing an office, leading a bible study, coaching t-ball, etc. Oh, and did I mention he just finished up his MBA in his spare time?

When he’s not busy making the rest of us feel like total slackers, Brent enjoys: playing golf, watching YouTube videos about boating, cheering for the UT Vols, and grilling.

Things that Brent doesn’t like include, but are DEFINITELY not limited to: mornings; cleaning up as he cooks, actually…cleaning up in general; and losing to me at any game (which happens often!).

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Mary Grace Headshot May2020

Mary Grace

This girl is pretty much the inspiration behind Mom With A Map. We’ve traveled with her since she was a baby and learned A LOT along the way. She’s been our travel guinea pig and our biggest adventurer. Mary Grace is the type of person who’s just passionate about life so narrowing down her “likes” is difficult.

This girl is pretty much the inspiration behind Mom With A Map. We’ve traveled with her since she was a baby and learned A LOT along the way. She’s been our travel guinea pig and our biggest adventurer. Mary Grace is the type of person who’s just passionate about life so narrowing down her “likes” is difficult.

She’s an outgoing, brilliant, animal-lover who crafts constantly; reads encyclopedias, dictionaries, and Bibles for fun; and marches to the beat of her own drum.

Her dislikes include: keeping her room organized; playing the quiet game; and donuts.

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Miller Headshot May 2020

Miller

The baby of our family has been a game-changer. He’s the opposite of his sister in almost every way. So everything we thought we knew about parenting, we had to re-learn! He embraces travel in a totally different way than the rest of us. We like to jump right in while he wants to observe everything first.

The baby of our family has been a game-changer. He’s the opposite of his sister in almost every way. So everything we thought we knew about parenting, we had to re-learn! He embraces travel in a totally different way than the rest of us. We like to jump right in while he wants to observe everything first.

But he loves in a way that’s unparalleled. He falls in love with every place we travel and with every adventure we take. He describes almost every day as his “best day.” He wants to be a baseball player when he grows up and live with me forever.

His dislikes include: being alone; any food other than PBJ, hot dog, or pizza; attention over his curls; and sleeping past 7AM.

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We've visited 48 states and a handful of countries in our quest to see the world.

More recently we’ve set our sights on doing a trip around The Great Loop. We would also like to visit as many countries as we can. In other words, we want to show our kids the world!

Our adventures have produced laughs, tears, speeding tickets, an entire closet full of suitcases, and above all—amazing memories. I love sharing our journey; thanks for following along!

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This is our family shortly after we started Mom With A Map. Miller (3) and Mary Grace (8) Although I knew we needed a little update- I couldn’t bring myself to remove this picture completely!