We’re Going to Barbados
In about a week, we’ll be in Barbados.
Epic employees earn a 4-week sabbatical, after working at Epic for 5 years. I earned my sabbatical in May, 2010 and we’re finally getting around to using it. Epic offers employees the choice of one 4-week sabbatical or two 2-week sabbaticals. We’re choosing to take two 2-week sabbaticals.
Not only is Epic generous enough to give us extra paid time off, but they’re also willing to pay travel expenses. The “international sabbatical” reimburses employees for visiting a country that we’ve never visited before.
I’m taking my 14 days of sabbatical time and adding on 6 days of vacation time. All told, I’ll be away from work from Thursday, March 8th through Tuesday, March 27th. That’s 14 business days away from the office. It’ll be glorious. (It’s 19 days total, which is also fantastic.)
Not only am I taking time off of work, but we’re both taking time away from the children. Grandma is coming out to Wisconsin, to babysit all three girls for the full 19 days. We’ve done overnight dates before (we even did 2 nights away once) but this will be the first extended alone time that we’ve had since Esther was born. I know we’ll miss the girls but it’s hard to express how excited we are to be alone for a couple of weeks.
Why Barbados? Well, it comes highly recommended by James & Liz, who took their sabbatical there last year. It’s a country that speaks English, has a high literacy rate, and a good healthcare system. And it’s tropical and warm, which is a key factor when coming from cold, grey Wisconsin.
I’m extremely thankful to Epic for giving us this opportunity and for paying for our expenses. We certainly wouldn’t have been able to afford a trip like this on our own. I’m also very grateful to Grandma for coming and watching the girls. Making a trip like this without 3 accessories is a real treat.