**This post contains affiliate links.** I love to take photos, just ask my kids. When we're on vacation, I'm usually behind the camera which means I have tons of pictures of my kids and Scott but very few of us all together. Two years ago, I discovered Flytographer just before our 20th wedding anniversary trip to Europe. We got the most spectacular pictures of us. I mean, like frame-worthy. So, when we decided to head to the east coast this summer for photos, I figured why not give them a try stateside? These Washington, D.C. photos speak for themselves. Our photographer, Elisenda, was just a delight. I had hopes of taking the photos at the Capitol, but with security (and the … [Read more...]
East Coast Adventure: (Not) Hotlanta
Over the next few days, I'll be sharing bits and pieces of our epic road trip to the east coast. It was 13 days filled with joy, sibling fights, a bazillion rest stops, one major meltdown on the side of I-10, great memories and lots of hugs with awesome people. Oh, and we saw a ton of cool stuff, too. You can read all about it by city: New Orleans, LA; Atlanta, GA; Charlotte, NC; Washington, D.C. and Knoxville, TN. The drive from New Orleans to Atlanta was easily the absolute worst of the trip. Everyone was still settling into the close quarters, we hit Alabama beach traffic and it rained, rained, rained. It's stretches like that when Scott and I wonder if we are legit bananas. One … [Read more...]
East Coast Adventure: Easy Living in NOLA
Over the next few days, I'll be sharing bits and pieces of our epic road trip to the east coast. It was 13 days filled with joy, sibling fights, a bazillion rest stops, one major meltdown on the side of I-10, great memories and lots of hugs with awesome people. Oh, and we saw a ton of cool stuff, too. You can read all about it by city: New Orleans, LA; Atlanta, GA; Charlotte, NC; Washington, D.C. and Knoxville, TN. Here. We. Go. Because our sweet, reliable, amazing Honda Odyssey was hovering close to 230,000 miles on her, we opted to let her sit this 3,700-mile road trip out and rent a van. What was originally supposed to be an 8-seat capacity Suburban turned into a 12-passenger … [Read more...]
Traveling to Italy? Your 411
Call us addicts, but we've been to Italy five times in the last 16 years and I can attest this is a true statement: Italy, a lifetime is not long enough. Some of those trips were two-week stints as chaperones with our high school youth group. Some were work related and some were pure pleasure, just the Mister and I. Each has given us a unique perspective and an undying love for all things Italian. We get asked quite a bit about our best traveling tips, the "must-do" things and all the good places to eat, so I figured why not dish on the blog? Honestly, I can't believe I haven't shared it before now. The Pope Probably our most asked question is, "When and how can I see the … [Read more...]
The Best of 2016
I always love the "best of" lists people write: best photos, best blog posts, best recipes, best everything. It's such a glimpse into life, isn't it? 2016 was beautiful, and hard, just like most years. With age, I'm starting to truly understand that no year is perfect, rather it's our perspective that changes. We learn to soak up the joys and live in the moment for we know no milestones are guaranteed. This was the first year, in nine years of blogging, that I haven't religiously checked my blog stats. I think I just stopped caring so much about the numbers and started focusing more on what I was writing rather than how often I published it. For those that are new here, I'm so honored you … [Read more...]
