Pillar 5: Building community abroad

What if living your dream summer in Europe was more possible than you thought—with kids, a full-time job, and all?

In this episode of our Toolkit Series, host Barbara Mighdoll shares exactly how she and her family lived in Portugal for nine weeks through Boundless Life—without pausing her career, disrupting her children’s routines, or completely blowing their budget. If you’ve ever fantasized about living or working abroad but immediately shut it down because of kids, school, or work commitments, this episode will shift your mindset and give you a step-by-step framework to make it happen.

This isn’t just a travel story. It’s a tactical deep dive into how to pull off a working family summer abroad—whether you want to go through a program or plan it yourself. Barbara walks through five key pillars every working parent should consider before packing their bags and the exact conversation starters you need to get your partner and your company on board. From managing childcare in a foreign country to navigating coworking setups and budgeting the true costs—this episode is your one-stop resource for transforming your “someday” dream into a “next summer” plan.

Here’s what we cover in this episode:

🌍 The 5 essential pillars to making a summer abroad work – From school and childcare to housing, coworking, transportation, and community, get a practical breakdown of everything you need to consider before committing to life abroad with kids.

💼 Work logistics: How to stay fully employed while living overseas – Learn how to manage U.S. work hours, optimize your daily schedule, and even reduce your workload to maximize your time abroad without sacrificing your career.

💰 Real numbers: What a family summer abroad actually costs – Get estimates for flights, housing, summer camps, and coworking spaces—and find out how to offset those costs (including renting out your home while you’re away).

🧠 Mindset shifts to make this dream feel doable – Barbara breaks down the most common blockers, like getting your partner or employer on board, and shares reframes to help you treat this like a real opportunity—not just a fantasy.

🔍 Boundless Life vs. DIY: Which abroad approach is right for your family? – Hear the pros and cons of going through a structured program like Boundless Life versus coordinating your own international summer setup. Get €400 off your program with Boundless Life with code NEWMODERNMOM.

If you’ve ever said, “That sounds amazing, but there’s no way we could do that”—this episode is for you. Barbara proves that living abroad with young kids is not only doable, but deeply enriching for the whole family. She even gives you the exact next steps to kickstart the planning process, from how to prep for the partner convo to what to Google tonight.

Whether you’re dreaming of Lisbon, Provence, or anywhere in between—your summer abroad starts with this toolkit.

Follow Barbara:

• On Instagram here
• On LinkedIn here

Get €400 off your program with Boundless Life with code NEWMODERNMOM.

About New Modern Mom: You know the dream of having it all – a thriving career, an active social life, present time with your kids, and adventures in travel. But how the F can we actually do it all? Host Barbara Mighdoll chats with other working mom executives on the raw truth behind their support systems, self-identity shifts, productivity, infertility and pregnancy loss, mom guilt, partner dynamics, childcare and even imposter syndrome. We’re exploring how these incredible women are translating their professional superpowers into their personal lives. Because we believe you can have it all, you just cannot do it all. Together, we’re building the playbook for the new modern mom.

The New Modern Mom Podcast is produced by Barbara Mighdoll, Ali Alquiza, and Em Roberts.