Day in the Life 24

 Today is another day filled with snow! And that to me is just crazy.

Couple being raised in California with living in Memphis for 10 years and experiencing this just blows my mind.

It's a very welcome, unexpected vacation from life. And I am appreciating every second of it. (Appreciation—maybe that should be my word of the year?)

Most of it has been spent planning for Italy. Accommodation planning, travel planning, packing planning...I am a little anxious about being so far away from home. For light packing for a little over two weeks, I plan to bring mostly Piko tops of neutral colors and jeggings. Here's one set of outfits re-wearing the same shirt:

We did book a place with a washer and dryer so we'll have any opportunity to wash some clothes. Also, cardigans, a chambray top, sneakers, and a light scarf. This Fjallraven backpack is on my wishlist, but I may just end up using the backpack I already have.

Also want to note here that after a year of not being able to use my second generation Kindle after resetting it and having trouble getting it to update, Amazon must've fixed the problem. On a whim, I took both of our second generation Kindle's off the bookshelf, plugged them up, and signed on with no problem. For a whole day, we couldn't get passed the "cannot connect" message. It was frustrating! So now we have 4 Kindles all together :/ Anyone need a Kindle?

Going to see if I can plan out a little bit more of the trip—au revoir!

Day 1: Arriving in Maryland

Well, I actually arrived in Virginia at the Reagan National Airport after a very long morning.

The day started when my parents picked me up and we had to drive to my work, because that's where I forgot my laptop charger. Of all things to forget!

We said our goodbyes and I started on my way. There's no better way than to start a day that got off on the wrong foot than with a Starbucks. I picked up a latte and watched the sunrise while waiting to be called to board.

My layover was in Charlotte, NC, so I picked up a bottle of water and a magazine. I was actually too tired to read it, but did enjoy staring at its beautiful cover.

When I arrived at the airport, I was overwhelmed. With all the traveling and being in an unfamiliar place, it was a lot to take in. I took a moment and ate at Wow Bao. I ordered chicken dumplings and they were really good. From there, I found the taxis. I was so thankful to be in a quiet space.

The driver dropped me off at the Gaylord National Resort & Convention Center and I was scared because I thought I was at the wrong place. My Google maps hadn't caught up with itself and it told me I was still ten minutes away. I had to hit refresh a couple times before it finally updated and I let out a sigh of relief to see I was where I needed to be. The hotel was beautiful!

As soon as I checked in, I took a shower, crawled into my king size bed, and turned on iZombie with a cup of chamomile tea in hand. I was so exhausted I fell asleep by 8.

Packing for DC

I scoured and studied the internet on the best items to pack for a short trip that could fit into a carry-on.

Destination: Santa Cruz

The cold ocean water encircled my feet up to my ankles.

Aaah, I thought. This is the beach I remember.

Destination: San Francisco

It took about an hour and a half to drive to San Francisco from Stockton. It was mid-morning on a Sunday and traffic was better than it would have been driving in on a week day.

Once Trace and I got into the city, I drove to and parked at the same parking garage my family had used on all our visits to San Fran. So comforting to be in a familiar place with a gorgeous view of the city!

Seeing: Brian Wilson