• Europe,  Life Lessons,  Personal

    A Small Hurdle

    “The question isn’t who’s going to let me; it’s who’s going to stop me” Ayn Rand You ever had something so exciting planned that it’s all you could think about, talk about, dream about because this is the one place you wanted to go your whole life? And then you find out that you have to cancel your trip.

  • Honeymoon in Sardinia, Grand Hotel Poltu Quatu
    Europe,  Italy

    Serenity in Sardinia

    The latest Adventures of S & S included an exciting honeymoon to the beautiful island of Sardinia. Check out this short clip for a summary of our trip, then keep scrolling down to read all about it!! Overview of Sardinia Country: Italy Recommended Hotel(s): Grand Hotel Poltu Quatu (Poltu Quatu), Hotel Panorama (Olbia) Best Bites: The famous Sardinia tortilla bread, mussels, octopus Activities: Snorkeling, kayaking, scuba diving, hiking, dolphin watching Beaches: Baia Sardinia, Phi Beach (party beach), Porto Cervo Language: Italian, most people spoke English well enough Surprising Parts: $$$, very little sea life due to minimal vegetation underwater, topless beaches Best Assets: differing landscapes – mountains, beaches, deserts; beautiful…

  • North Carolina,  Personal

    Life in This Small Town

    The month of November is a bittersweet one this year. With it brings birthdays, a military homecoming, Thanksgiving, weddings, and a big move. There is a lot to be grateful for — and anxious about at the same time. These last couple of months, I have learned to treasure the little things in life, like walking with my pups to get the mail each day, dining with my parents and talking about upcoming plans, and just being in the moment. You see, before I became a world traveler, I was just a girl from a small town farm. This small community (we’re not even technically a town it’s so small)…

  • a fresh start
    Europe,  Military Life,  Personal

    A Fresh Start

    In a little over a week from today, I will board a one-way flight across the ocean. With a new address, a new phone number, and my new last name….all of this feels like a fresh start – a blank slate. While it may not seem that big of a deal to many millennials or some of my fellow readers, keep in mind that I come from a small town where people don’t usually leave. This is a MONUMENTAL event for my family. I asked my dad the other day if he had ever been away from his family, even for a couple months. He simply laughed and said no…

  • Europe,  Italy,  Military Life,  Personal

    The First 48 Hours Living in Italy

    Whew… it has been a complete whirlwind since the moment we landed in Venice at 0900 on Monday morning. We finally made it to our new home around 1630 after an hour bus ride and waiting for a rental car to become available so we could move all 7 of our suitcases to the house. In these last couple of days, I have come to LOVE many things about life in Italy. Heated floors and light switches by the bed are possibly the best things since sliced bread. So is my husband who let me sleep for three hours but then drug me out of the house to go get…

  • chocolate and tan dachshund in north carolina
    North Carolina,  Personal

    Surprise Visit to North Carolina + A Unique “Bucket List”

    When I waved goodbye to my parents and Presley at the airport three months ago and moved to Italy, I could literally feel my heart breaking. I wasn’t sure how I could make it living so far from my family for the first time in my life. Somehow I survived those first 48 hours of emotional roller coasters (you can read about that here). Only a few people knew for all those months that I’d be making a surprise visit to see my family – one was the bride that was getting married (the main reason I was going home), and the other a best friend that I knew I…

  • downtown Vicenza Italy
    Italy,  Personal

    The First Time My Mom Came to Italy

    For one whole week, I had the opportunity to play the only child. I had my Mom all to myself. No distractions, no work, no other siblings to draw her attention away…and while that may seem selfish, it has never happened in my life before – that I can remember that is. I grew up in such a big family, with 4 of us kids, that we always shared parents, attention, toys, experiences, friends, etc etc. One thing that we don’t have in common though, is living abroad. And when my Mom came to visit me for the first time, it was just me and her for a whole week!…

  • Personal,  Travel Tips

    My 10 Favorite Podcast Series

    Lately, I’ve become infatuated with listening to podcasts. Why?? Well, for someone who lives in a foreign country, it’s not easy to find a radio station that has a lot of English songs on there. And I spend a LOT of time in the car. I mean A LOT. Driving my husband to work, running errands during the day, picking him up from work, and then road trips on the weekend. We used to do a lot of scrolling through channels and it just got to the point that it was frustrating. So I started downloading podcast series to listen to. Now I listen when I’m cooking dinner, when Stephen…

  • 2018 year in review
    Africa,  Albania,  Austria,  Bulgaria,  Croatia,  Europe,  Germany,  Greece,  Hungary,  Italy,  Macedonia,  Montenegro,  Morocco,  Norway,  Personal,  Scotland,  Serbia,  Slovenia,  Switzerland

    2018: A Recap of Our Year Traveling to 20+ Countries

    2018. A year that flew by. I look back and I feel as if I’ve hardly accomplished anything, and then I read through all these posts, look back through my photography, and think WOW – a lot happened this year. I grew as a person, a writer, a photographer, and a wife. I have seen and done things I never thought I’d do in my entire life. One thing I love about blogging and writing, in general, is that it gives you time to reflect on the past and to see what you’ve learned and accomplished (or just flat out failed) during that time. I’m super excited to share this…