Tag: family

Birthday in Cancun 

It’s my birthdayyyyyy, I can fly to Cancun if I want to!

It’s only right to celebrate your birthday in Cancun at a 5-star resort! Because where else would I spend my birthday? Don’t answer that.

I travel a lot. But rarely do I travel to 5-star luxury resorts where everything is all inclusive! Maybe 24 will be that year for me *cheers to luxury* haha.

I’m only slightly kidding.
We flew United, cautiously, and headed to Cancun from Ohare. The flight wasn’t that bad, honestly. A little less than 4 hours and a 20-minute cab ride to the hotel to be greeted with Moët and a few other surprises unbeknownst to me 🙂 it was worth it.

I just wanted to share a few pictures/videos from my vacay as I’m not sure when I’ll post again about Cancun.

 

 

 


 

 

 Thank you, Mommy! 💗💗💗

Wednesday Women: Theresa

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Hi. My name is Theresa. I am a logistician, a paper crafter, a cook, a mother, a nerd, a writer, and a lover of books and coffee.  I want to leave the world a better place than I found it. In pursuit of that goal, I have been a Peace Corps Volunteer, a tech entrepreneur in West Africa, and now I work for my government abroad.  I am currently posted to Jerusalem.
I write about my adventures and those of my globe trotting family as I seek to balance a rewarding career, parenting, and travel.
 
What inspired/inspires you to travel?
I have lived abroad for over a decade now.  My job takes me from country to country, and we can’t help but explore while we’re there.  The world is a very big place, and it would be a shame to see only a tiny part of it.
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Where is your favorite destination to date?
I don’t know if I have a favorite!  I’ve loved living in Jerusalem and exploring Israel and the Palestinian Territories.  I loved living in Freetown and Cotonou and DC.  I loved visiting Jordan with my parents and kids.  Europe’s wonderful to visit (but so so so expensive, compared to many of the other places we’ve lived).
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How do you prefer to travel? Solo or with a group? Why? Do you think there is a difference traveling as a woman? How do you plan your trips?
These days, almost all of my travel is with my family.  I have two young children and traveling with them opens my eyes to the world in way I’ve never experienced on my own.  They see things I don’t notice, and their delight in discovering the world is infectious.
I plan our trips around my children’s capacity to not melt down into total monsters.  That means we can do two things per day: one in the morning and one in the afternoon, with a long break in the middle of the day for play, naps, and quiet time.  If we plan a physically challenging outdoor activity, usually we do it in the morning, then spend the afternoon relaxing somewhere tranquil.
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When is your next one?
We’re moving to Malabo, Equatorial Guinea for my job!  I am super excited to spend a few years living in a country I’d otherwise not be likely to visit.
Any advice you would like to give to your fellow travelers?
1)  Just do it and go with the flow.  Travel never works out as planned.  Go ahead.  Plan a perfect trip where you see all of the tourist destinations, then take time out to explore a less traveled path.  But when life jumps out at you (you miss your bus, your kids melt down, you see a poster for an amazing comedy show or poetry slam), ditch the plan and go for it!
2)  Travel with your kids.  Solo travel (or travel with other adults) is certainly easier, but traveling with our children has been rewarding in ways we never imagined.  Seeing the wonders of the world through their eyes is life affirming, and these experiences will stay with them for the rest of their lives.
Want to know more about Theresa?

Wednesday Women: Natalie

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Meet Natalie.

I’m a tea lover, literature nerd, former college professor, parent to two little kids, and restless soul. I grew up (and still reside) in Charleston, South Carolina, but I am determined to see as much of the world as I can. I’ve been blogging not-so-seriously since 2010, and pretty seriously since 2013. I mostly focus on how to travel more deeply through an immersion of history, literature, culture, and the arts, but some family travel and general lifestyle slips in there from time to time as well.

What inspired/inspires you to travel?

I’m one of those people who constantly needs to be challenging myself to be happy. For me, that goes hand in hand with learning about a new culture, visiting somewhere I’ve never been before, re-visiting an old favorite locale, and reading a novel or history about where I’m traveling. Traveling goes hand in hand with learning for me, and I just can’t get enough of both.

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Where is your favorite destination to date?

I will always, always love the British Isles: I studied abroad in London, and have visited the UK and Ireland more than half a dozen times. There’s something about the combination of culture, literary history, and sense of community that keeps drawing me back there.

How do you prefer to travel? Solo or With a group? Why?

Over the years, I’ve done just about every time of traveling as I’ve gone through different phases in my life: solo, couple, and family. These days, I’m all about incorporating my kids into the learning and cultural exploration that comes along with traveling, so that’s fun to see the world through their eyes. I also love a getaway with my husband, who’s my absolute best friend and such a good travel buddy since we complement one another well in what we enjoy seeing.

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Do you think there is a difference traveling as a woman?

As for traveling as a woman, I know that I tend to take fewer risks when I’m traveling by myself than when I’m with my husband or family. I’ll call it a night earlier, take better lit paths, and avoid certain destinations or locations. I tend to be overly cautious (to a fault), but that goes into high gear when I’m by myself.

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How do you plan your trips? When is your next one?

I tend to plan my trips WAY in advance because I’m one of those nerdy people who enjoys the planning almost as much as I do the actual going. Planning far in advance also helps me save money in our limited travel budget each year and helps my family maximize the days that my husband (who works in a location-based finance job) will get off for vacation. We tend to start our planning around the dining room table by talking about places that have been intriguing us, and we even include our preschooler in the planning! (She’s quite the traveler already and loves hotels more than anything else in the world.) We are staying put in Charleston, South Carolina, for the rest of 2016 since our second baby is making his arrival in November, but we have plans to go to Cape Canaveral, Florida, for our daughter’s birthday (she’s obsessed with rockets) and to London, England, sometime next year.

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Any advice you would like to give to your fellow travelers?

If you’re hesitating about traveling, just go! I have worried about scheduling, budgets, and family matters while planning trips, but I have never regretted going on a single one. Somehow, everything I worry about prior to leaving manages to work itself out by the time we leave.

Want to know more about Natalie?

 Cosmos Mariners: Destination Unknown

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