Travel

Girls' Weekend in DC

Girls' Weekend in DC

This past weekend was the annual JJKC (Jess, Juli, Karen, & Caitlin) girls' weekend. Jess and I have actually known each other since kindergarten and the four of us became really close friends in college. Every year we take a quick weekend trip away to catch up, since we live all over the East Coast. If you follow me on Instagram, you probably noticed a lot of pretty architecture pictures on my feed over the weekend. Seriously, DC has the most beautiful buildings!

On our list this year: the wax museum, the National Portrait Gallery, the American History Museum, the monuments, and the National Postal Museum. Here are some favorite shots.

Monday Musings

Dear Sewing Machine, Want to throw together that baby quilt all by yourself? K thanks!

Dear Legs and Feet, I promise to take it easy today and not walk miles and miles. Sorry about this weekend, but thanks for hanging in there.

Dear Wax Museum, Two critiques... You really could have done a better job with Elvis's face. I've seen impersonators that looked better than your wax statue. And secondly, your entire establishment is one big selfie, so could you hook us up with a little bit better lighting?

Dear Packing Cubes, You're officially the best packing hack ever! This is the only trip my clothes have ever stayed nicely organized and folded for. Even on the shortest trips, my suitcase is always a hot mess! I'm officially a big fan.

And one more...

Dear Man on the Bike Who Almost Ran Me Over,  You probably should have felt bad about whizzing past me and my friends without a bike bell BEFORE you saw my little belly. I'm all for taking care of pregnant women, but all pedestrians deserve the same consideration. You've got the whole 'biker athlete' outfit already. Just buy the stupid bell. I'm sure it's way cheaper than those stupid little shorts.

 

Ryan Quote of the Week:
Bruchetta is the meat I always think is a cheese, right?

Babymoon in Charleston

Babymoon in Charleston

The last time we went to Charleston was for our honeymoon 5 years ago and although it was incredibly HOT in July, we loved it and always said we'd go back. I knew I wanted a mix of sightseeing, relaxing, and really good food for our babymoon and Charleston seemed like the perfect spot.

We stayed at the Hilton Garden Inn right across the Arthur Ravenel Bridge in Mount Pleasant. They built it last year, so it was gorgeous and we could get downtown in 10 minutes. We loved it.

Charleston is my favorite city in the US. I could wander through their downtown looking at houses every day!

Girls Weekend: New Bern

Girls Weekend: New Bern

Well, it's officially a tradition now! This year was the 3rd annual weekend trip with my 3 closest college friends. After a cottage in New Hampshire in 2013 and a Savannah getaway in 2014, we bounced a lot of ideas around for this year's trip. But when Jess's job prevented her from being able to take more than Saturday and Sunday off, we knew we needed to find a meeting place close to her. And we settled on New Bern, NC.

New Bern seems to be a town with mixed reactions. Some people who've been there say 'what a cute little town!' while others say 'why would you go to New Bern?' Even the hotel staff seemed a little confused why we would choose New Bern as our getaway location. And the truth is, it really doesn't matter to any of us where we go. We just want to be together! Unless we're talking about a trip to Europe... because when Europe is on the table, there are no other options!

Refill Your Heart: Chihuly Gardens and Glass

Refill Your Heart: Chihuly Gardens and Glass

A couple times a year, I try to photograph something or someone just for the pure enjoyment of it. No pressure. No desired outcome. No specific goals to shoot for. Just following my creative heart.

Vacation is the perfect time for photographing like this, because we're experiencing a new location and living slowly, enjoying every minute instead of rushing through a to do list. In March, between all the craziness that was WPPI, I took a couple hours to wander through the hotels and enjoy the over-the-top themes and designs. Some I photographed. Some I just drank in.

If you're not a creative person, this probably sounds really weird. But as a creative ambivert, this is something that I definitely need to refill my heart.

That's why the Chihuly Gardens and Glass Museum was on my must-do list for our Seattle Vacation. Glass art speaks to me in a way that a lot of art doesn't. It captures the essence of something, like a flower or a basket, and any interpretation or meaning that you might gather from it is up to you to discover for yourself.