Stephanie Howell

Exploring Italy | Sardinia {Cagliari, Villasimius, Chia}

This past Friday we went on a little adventure to Sardinia. The plane ride is only a little over an hour and the tickets were crazy affordable.

We decided that we should go to the south of Sardinia, Cagliari specifically. Oh, who am I kidding. *I* decided. I am the trip planner and packer in this family. Ha!

I picked Cagliari for several reasons. First- I heard that the southern part of Sardinia was less touristy than the northern part. Also...the tickets to the Cagliari airport were WAY more affordable than the tickets to the north. Decision made.

Here's where we were on a map:

The first day we got there about 10 am and checked into the apartment. As always, we used Airbnb. I find it the best way to travel for a large family. If you want to try Airbnb, use my referral link. We will both get travel credit!

We knew we didn't have a good grasp of the area yet and we didn't want to cram too much into the first day, so first we did a bit of exploring in the city.

Since we flew to the city, we opted to rely on public transportation. We wanted to get the lay of the land before we attempted anything complicated.

Of course that included eating. Duh. I have to say whenever anyone asks me where to eat in Italy I say ANYWHERE. This isn't a joke.

I have only had one bad meal in the year we've been here. Everything is good here.

You simply cannot go wrong with a plate of pasta. The more simple the better. Italy does al dente right. I haven't had a single plate of over or undercooked pasta since moving here.

After lunch we decided to hop on a bus to Poetto Beach. Poetto is Cagliari's "city" beach.

It was an overcast and gray afternoon so photos don't do it justice but it was quite lovely.

Since moving to Italy I've discovered the Spritz Aperol/Aperol Spritz , a traditional Italian cocktail. I'm obsessed. They are the perfect combination of bitter and sweet.

Spritz Aperol // 3 parts prosecco + 2 parts Aperol + a splash of soda water . Garnish with orange and serve over ice. Aperol is the sweet counterpart of Campari...you can also make this cocktail with Campari for a more bitter version.

On day two, we took the advice of our taxi driver and visited Villasimius.

Oh.My.Gosh y'all. There are no words. The most beautiful beach I've ever seen.

It was about a 2 hour bus ride away from Cagliari and as our bus got close I knew we were in for a treat because this is what i saw out our window.

 

We got off the bus and walked for about half an hour down the beach, around a corner...and saw this. GASP.

 

Day three we took our taxi driver's advice, yet again, and hit up Chia Beach.

Chia is all the way down at the southern tip of Sardinia.

Another day, another walk clear across town to the bus station. These four are rock stars.

Chia was closer. The bus ride was a little over an hour long.And it was magic. Wayyy more crowded than Villasimius but still incredible.

It was a wonderful, beautiful trip. And I'm missing it terribly now that I'm back in the real world!

A few summarizing thoughts.

1. This part of Sardinia was the perfect choice for our family. We only heard English one time the entire weekend and that's how we like it. In Italy, wherever the Italians go is the best. That's true when it comes to beaches, restaurants, and vacations.

 

2. We used the diaper trick for our valuables. We took a diaper and rolled up our money inside. Who's going to look inside a diaper for money? It was a very safe area but you can never be too safe.

 

3. I took this beach mat from Target. It was amazing.

 

4. I did not take my big camera at all. Lots of people like to comment that I'll regret not taking DSLR photos. Here's the deal though. I'm not lugging my big camera to the beach and leaving it in the sand while I swim. Not gonna happen. Also...the longer I live here it's just a simple fact that I don't want to take it with me. I don't want the added bulk. I don't want to have to pull it out and adjust the settings. My iPhone works just fine. For me.

 

5. You don't see many photos of the girls because in Europe little girls don't wear tops at the beach. It's just the way it's done and it's so funny talking to my Italian friends. They don't understand why you would cover up something when there's nothing there. HA!

That said, the girls went to the beach every day in 2 piece swimsuits. Once they got there and saw all of the other children they all made the choice to do it the European way and I didn't argue. So there are photos, but they won't be shared here. HEEE!

 

6. In contrast, I felt like a nun on the beach. Seriously. I felt like I was wearing a head to toe wetsuit. In reality it was a tankini. Y'all...European women are awesome. They all rock bikinis no matter weight, age, or breast size. There is zero self consciousness. I wish I could say I've reached this enlightened state after a year here, but the fact is I haven't.

After reading this incredible blog post (by my friend Jessica) I realized I was doing myself and my girls a disservice by not participating at the pool and the beach. What kind of a message am I sending them?  So I spent an entire weekend sans coverup just being present and having FUN. It was exhilarating.

 

7. Yes there was a lot of walking and a LOT of down time riding buses. We made the decision that our girls were just going to have to deal with it. We didn't take electronics at all. Harper did take books but didn't ever read them. There was some whining but they learned to deal with it. And I love that.

So there you have it...our Sardinian adventure!

Happy Wednesday y'all!

xoxo

 

 

Exploring Italy | Venezia/Venice

 

Last Friday I decided to surprise Sadie with a fly-by-the-seat-of-our-pants day trip to Venice.

Harper had just left on a Girl Scouts trip to Naples and I was able to put the littles in hourly care on post.

I realized a couple of things:

1. I'd never been to Venice in the year we'd been here- yeah, i know i know. Not sure how that happened.

2. I'd never taken Sadie anywhere for the entire day- just the two of us.

I set up hourly care for C and L, purchased train tickets, and kept the secret. If you know ANYTHING about me, you know this was excruciating.

On Friday after I dropped C&L off, I turned towards our apartment instead of towards Sadie's school.
I wouldn't tell her what was going on until we got to the train station. I think she was suspicious of my intentions and she didn't seem that impressed. HA!

We bought some croissants, hopped onto the train (it was only a 45 minute train ride!) and hit the road. Tracks? Anyway...

Sadie started to get VERY excited.

When we walked out of the train station we decided to just explore. That's probably the best thing about living in Italy. Instead of only having a once in a lifetime trip...I can come back whenever I want.

I didn't have to cram in any must-sees or must-eats...we just wandered. And it was magical.

Every time we saw a gondola, Sadie begged to take a ride. I knew we were going to take one...I was just picky about choosing the gondolier. I wanted it to be a fun, non cheesy experience. No, that's not right. I wanted the right kind of cheesy!

 

Meet Guila the gondala. And her captain, Stefano. This is one of my all-time favorite Italy stories.

Stefano and I had a hilarious conversation. All in Italian and I have to say I'm pretty proud of myself. A year ago I couldn't have had this experience and I wouldn't have had this story to tell.

I asked Stefano who Monica was.

He told me it was his mama. I said...You don't have a wife? And he said...oh I have a wife, but I'm not putting her name on Guilia.

Mammas are forever. Wives do not last.

BAHAHAHAH! Such a typical comment from an Italian man. I about fell out of the boat!

Here are some things we saw on our gondola ride. Yes, Stefano sang to us. Sadie was simultaneously mortified and intrigued. I,of course, ate it right up.

We ended our gondola ride and set off to find St. Mark's Square. Jimmy? Is the navigator in this relationship. And he was not there.

Let's just say we got lost. Very lost. But that whole wandering/no stress thing worked. We eventually found it. Ask anyone how to get to St. Mark's and they'll tell you to follow the signs.

Please note that the streets of Venice are VERY narrow and winding. There are many bridges to cross and many corners to turn.

At first the signs looked like this:

Then they started to look more like this. Oh my. They got smaller and smaller. Pretty sure I saw one on a post-it.

 We stopped along the way for some shopping:

If you ever need to dress like a gondolier, go here.

We finally found the square. We chased some pigeons, did a tiny bit of sightseeing...

Had a quick lunch, and then caught the train home. Despite what this photo might have you believe- Sadie had an AMAZING time. In this photo we were standing on a bridge and every single time the lady would try to take our pic...about 20 tourists would pass in front of her. HA! Sadie was not amused. Obviously.

It was such a special day. I loved spending time with sweet Sadie. I want to be able to do one on one trips more often. It takes effort, but it always pays off.

And Venice? Stole my heart. I cannot WAIT to go back!

Ciao Y'all!

xoxo

S

Positano + Amalfi

This past weekend we took a little trip to the Amalfi Coast. And it was not NEARLY enough time. I've been obsessed with Italy almost my entire life...specifically the Amalfi Coast. So going there was a HUGE deal to me.

And it met (and surpassed!) every single expectation. I want to go back NOW.

We left bright and early Friday morning for the 8 hour drive. Here's what blows my mind. I grew up in Texas. Where you can drive 8 hours and still be in Texas.

Here you can drive across an entire country (or through multiple countries!) in that amount of time. We drove through Tuscany, Umbria, and then into Campania...the region the Amalfi coast was in.

I literally gasped out loud the entire trip!

We rented a villa (pretty much my dream home) through Airbnb. You can see it HERE. I can't recommend it highly enough.

I've talked about this briefly before...but Airbnb is awesome. And so much more financially smart for big families. In Europe, due to occupancy, we'd have to rent 2 hotel rooms per night. Which would cost a FORTUNE. We so prefer renting entire apartments/villas and have done so in every single country we've visited!

Here's what we saw when we walked in the gate...the steps up to the house. There were calla lilies, succuluents, and elephant ear ferns everywhere.

The view from the magical terrace. My favorite part of the entire home. There was a huge retractable roof, a gorgeous table and couch, candles everywhere, and an unbeatable view.

The living room view:

The neighbors:

The jaw-dropping view at night:

The lemons there are RIDICULOUS. Seriously the size of small Nerf footballs.

The first afternoon we headed to the beach to explore.

We also walked through town and looked at all of the adorable storefronts.

The pottery there was so beautiful. I had to go back before we left and pick up a few pieces!

On Saturday we took a water taxi/ferry to Amalfi. We wanted to go to Capri (one of my ultimate dream destinations) so that's definitely at the top of the list for next time we go.

It was overcast but the view was so inspiring.

This was Amalfi from our bird's eye view:

and the adorable piazza:

 

We drank a lot of limoncello on this trip. And we've had a fair amount since we moved to Italy. When it is good it is really, really good (like delicious lemonade with a kick). And when it is bad it is so,so,so SO bad (think something that tastes exactly like the smell of Pine Sol.) We had lots of the good kind on the Amalfi Coast.

They do limoncello right there!

We explored the winding streets of Amalfi. And OH THE STEPS. So so so many steps. Ha!

When we got back to the house, the littles were WORN OUT. They fell asleep without dinner. So we sent H and J out to pick up pizzas and Sadie and I set up a surprise outdoor dinner for them.


Befor we headed out of town the next day we made sure to pick up some souvenirs. Limoncello glasses, pottery, and lemons. Of course.

We were heartbroken to leave. Every single one of us. I could definitely live there forever. We are already planning our next trip(s).

Ciao Y'all! And Buona Pasqua.

xoxo

S

Austria

Before I tell you about Austria, let me tell you about this fun trip came to be.

That means I get to tell you about Dana. Dana was our nanny when we lived in Newport. Over the year she also became a good friend...hence her current title of franny (friend+ nanny).

We were all missing her terribly when we left. One day she messaged me asking if I thought she could come live with us for a few months after she graduated college and before she started her job.

Confession? I could not type YES!!!! fast enough. She is a Godsend. She is an amazing helper...but more than that she truly loves our family and our children. We never have to worry for one second when she is with them.

Fast forward to the day Dana arrived at the airport:

We got her in the van and I told her I finally decided where I wanted to take her first in town.

I asked the girls to tell her and their little voices said:

Austria!

Germany!

Liechtenstein!

Switzerland!

I think she was just confused at first and then when it sunk in she couldn't believe it.

And that is how (2 hours after we picked her at the Venice airport) Dana found herself on the way to Austria.

This is our shortest leg of the trip, but we cannot WAIT to go back. I kind of fell in love with Austria.

The scenery on our drive was amazing. Goosebump inducing. Truly.

I found our rooms (more like a little apartment) on Booking.com.

We stayed in Kreith, a little town not far south of Innsbruck.

As we drove through Brenner Pass (the pass that connects Italy to Austria) we got hit pretty hard with snow. It was dark and kind of scary at times.

We found our way to the area our accomodations were in and very quickly realized that the van would NOT make it down the mountain to where we were staying.

No worries! The lovely owners had us park our van at the top and they came to get us (and all of our luggage!!) and drive us down.

We couldn't see much when we got there (it was VERY snowy, dark, and foggy) and wondered what we would wake up to.

We spent the night drinking Italian wine and playing games. The apartment was SUPER cozy.

We woke up to this:

Honestly and truly one of the most beautiful things I've ever seen in my entire life.

We made snowmen and played on the side of the mountain.

And honestly, I could have stayed there for days and days. It was peaceful and beautiful and warm and cozy inside. And the proprietors were SO NICE.

But we had to head to Garmisch.

So we drove through Innsbruck. It was rainy and gloomy and foggy and we didn't get to see much. But it was beautiful despite the weather.

A stop for a delicious lunch and we were on to Germany.

Like I said...I honestly loved Austria. Its beautiful and everyone there is so so nice.

Next on my Austria list is Salzburg.

xoxo

s

5K Ranch

**ETA after several email inquiries...this is a privately owned ranch. It's not a hotel or rentable property!**

So between seeing my family in Waco and Jimmy's family in Nederland...we decided to take a little vacation at 5K Ranch.

Hmm. How can I describe 5K Ranch? How about this. Heaven on earth.

Imagine a place where you have absolutely nothing to worry about. It's in one of the most beautiful parts of Texas, each of us have our own large bedroom+bathroom, and there is a big ole pool. At 5K ranch there's nothing to do but ride 4 wheelers and explore, swim in the pool, eat, read, and relax.

Oh, did I mention that our most favorite friends in the world gather there every year? This was the 6th summer at 5K ranch.

We've made three.

Every year when our friends meet up there I'm so homesick. Homesick for the jokes, the laughing until we cry. Homesick for the BBQ, the cocktails, and the just being together.

The core of this group is Jimmy's best guy friends that he's had since he was a kid. Friends that are the kind of friends that would do anything for each other. You know...the ones you can call up in the middle of the night and they will come without hesitation.

Yep. Those kind of friends. The kind that are the best kind to have when your husband is in Afghanistan and you don't know if he'll come home. The kind that dance with you at weddings when he is gone so you don't feel sad, the kind that take you in as one of them even if it's super intimidating at first.

The last time we went the the ranch we pretty much had the only kids. This year? Well look for yourself.

Kind of amazing, huh? And two more growing in bellies as we speak.

The kids run themselves ragged all day. Swimming, exploring, not napping, getting dirty, using their imaginations. There is a collective group of a zillion adults watching them.

We discipline and admonish each other's kiddos as if they are our own. Love them like they are our own too.

This year I met six children that I've watched grow through the Internet. Four kiddos I've long to hold and get to know. I finally got to do that this week.

We finally got to tell them how long we've been waiting to meet them and how much we love their mommies and daddies.

And after the kiddos zonk out we stay up late talking, reminiscing, and laughing. So much laughing. As I sit here today I don't have a voice at all.

This week I got to have my coffee on a porch swing every morning.

I got to watch the sun set and the horses graze every night.

And where can you ride a giant swan and learn how to flip off the diving board? 5K. That's where.

Oh, and let's not forget the cocktails.

Thanks to Uncle Brad for making me not one but two delicious drinks that tasted like juice and threatened to have me napping on the lawn with the dogs. Which wouldn't have been a big deal because there would have been 93248028 adults to step in and take over my parenting role.

That's the thing about 5K. Never any worries.

I've tried to put in in words here, but the fact is I can't really do that properly. The fact is that I'm a little bit teary eyed as I type this.

We are very fortunate to lead the life we lead. We get to see this world and explore and meet new people. But we miss our friends. I  miss them so much it makes my heart ache.

Most people are fortunate to be surrounded by their best friends and family at all times. We miss out on that and it can be sad sometimes.

True friends of the heart are a gift. And time worry-free is a gift.

So grateful for 5K ranch.

We'll be back in three summers. And we'll miss it terribly until then.

xo

Road Trip Day 4

Thursday morning we woke up to a beautiful day in Nashville and spent some time in the Hotel Indigo lobby. I wanted to take Cate and Lucy's photos in front of this AWESOME wall.

Note to self...I'm totally doing this with teal books in our next house. But it will probably be a shelf/vignette. Love it.

Miss Cate cooperated, but Lucy was not in the mood. See below. Hmmph.

I quickly stopped by Hatch Show Print (one of the oldest working letterpress shops in America). And y'all...BY FAR my favorite thing I saw on this entire trip. I could have stayed there for hours and hours.

I wanted to purchase SO many posters, but time (and space) was very limited so I got a few small items:

Next we drove down the road to Local Taco to meet my sweet (and longtime!) online friend -and rockstar mommy blogger- Jessica Turner.

She is wonderful. We are a lot alike and it was so easy to talk to her about life and motherhood. There was a LOT of talking and a LOT of laughter. :)

Jimmy and I both agree that we'd be great friends with her if we lived closer. She's a doll.

The babies clearly took to her too. And I'm so grateful that she thought to ask to take our first family pictures from our road trip. Love these so much.
After reluctantly saying goobye we hit the road. Our goal was to make it to Little Rock, Arkansas.

These two monkeys were worn out and fell asleep really quickly.

We made it into Arkansas...

And here's where things got a little bit cray. We all got a little stir crazy. The roads were bumpy, there were lots of detours (without warning) and major traffic due to construction.

We went a little cuckoo.
So what else to do? Stop at the proverbial road trip restaurant...Cracker Barrel!
Some yummy food, a little checkers and a lot of rocking made everyone feel much better.
We also snickered a little bit of Jimmy with his man purse. Bahahaha. Yes, we were loopy.
We decided that we were ready for this trip to be over and that we just had to book it to Texas. So that's what we did.

We spent the night in Texarkana and woke up ready to get on the road. One last road trip breakfast and we were out of there.
We had one lunchtime stop at WHATABURGER. Oh how my Texan heart has missed this place. Can you tell we were a tiny bit excited?

And we drove alllll the way to Waco. Where we arrived at BB's magical house. Seriously. Magic. If you don't believe me, just look at these photos.

We had a really good time, y'all. The girls were SO good. We saw so many wonderful places and people. It was truly a gift.

Many of you asked how we kept the girls entertained. Truth is...we really didn't. We were crammed in a Pathfinder with luggage up to our ears.

There was no DVD players or games for them. We just talked to them and sang with them...listened to music. And they entertain each other.

I don't have a magic formula or road trip survival kit for this one. We just said a prayer and drove.

Army kids are pretty good at traveling!

Now I will do a survival kit for each girl for the trip to Italy (Houston to Philadelphia, Philadelphia to Venice) and I will make sure to share it.

Love you all!!

xo

S

Road Trip Days 2 and 3

Howdy from Nashville! We are up bright and early this morning and we will be hitting the road again after lunch, but I wanted to quickly share our second and third days on the road.

Monday morning we left VA and I started a book. So good, by the way. I finished it in one day. :)

Our goal was to get to Nashville but we quickly realized that we had several stops in mind and we readjusted our goal to Knoxville,TN.

Our first stop was The Natural Bridge. There are no words to describe how gorgeous this place was.

How Great Thou Art, Indeed.




And then, in case I need proof that my husband rocks, we made a detour to hit up the JCrew Clearance Center in Lynchburg,VA. Yeah, my heart was racing a little bit. The entire store was 20% off on top of pretty deep discounts to begin with. YES!

Unfortunately, it must have been a bum day. There wasn't much to choose from, but I did scoop up a couple pair of shorts and a  really cute one piece. ($20!?!?!?)

We drove throughout the rest of the day and pulled into the Hilton Knoxville just in time for drinks and dessert on the patio. The girls were pretty much a hit to all of the businessmen. HA!

Can you spot the tiny topknots above the piano? My favorite.


Tuesday dawned gray and rainy but we got on the road. It was going to be an easy day, only 3 hours to Nashville.

Our first stop was to see one of my favorite people in the world, Ms Jenni Bowlin.

Y'all...her house. There are NO words. It is absolutely gorgeous. My dream house.

You have heard me rave about Jenni plenty of times on this blog, so I'll keep it simple. Genuine,kind, the real deal. Love her.


I also love Doris. She is just the sweetest. I think the babies wish they could have just stayed in Mt. Juliet forever.

Lucy loved singing the Itsy Bitsy Spider with Miss Doris...

and Catie loved seeing the chickens with Miss Doris. So so sweet.

I loved catching up with my scrapbooking friends. The curly haired gorgeous girl is Melissa, she used to work for Jenni and I always loved catching up with her at CHA. I've missed her and was so glad she could meet us for lunch!

After we reluctantly left my dream house :) we checked in at our hotel in Nashville.

We walked down Broadway to get some dinner. The girls were pretty much in heaven at this point. You should have seen their faces!

We had the best ribs this Texas girl has had in a long time (and sausage, and pork, and brisket,and and and) at Jack's Bar-B-Que and then we just wandered for a bit.

The girls stood with their little faces pressed to this bar for quite a while. They loved the music (the stage was right up against the window). The bouncer thought they were so cute...he even took a photo.

And at one point the drummer tapped the window with his sticks and grinned at them. It was unbelievably cute.
We decided that C and L needed to see their first ever live music. They were so dang interested in every single live music venue we passed.

So we took them into Wildhorse Saloon and let them listen. Y'all...it was awesome. They were so into it. Dancing, bobbing heads. Pure awesome.

These 2 party girls stayed up way past their bedtime but they loved every minute.

Today we are meeting a friend for lunch and then booking it through Arkansas.

On the road yet again!

xoxo

S

Road Trip Day 1

After the better part of a week in the hotel (oh, and by the way, we SO recommend Homewood Suites in Newport)...

We said goodbye to our sweet friends and neighbors...

and recreated our very first photo as we said goobye to our home:

june 2013

july 2012

J drove the girls to Providence to meet my mom. I missed them right away but seeing pictures like this puts my mind right at ease. BB time is always magical.

Saturday afternoon the big girls flew to TX...

and bright and early Sunday morning we packed up the car said goodbye to Newport.

We vowed to not rush this trip. It's all about stopping when we want to stop and taking the scenic route.

So when we saw these outlets right down the road, we had to stop. ESPECIALLY when I saw they had this store:

and y'all...I hit the mother lode. All handbags were half off. I promptly decided (and J agreed, even if he was chuckling when he agreed) that I needed a new bag for Italy. And we all know my affinity for obsession with Kate Spade.

After the outlets we had lunch at Danny's Drive In. SO good. The burger was delicious. I totally recommend this as a road trip pit stop.

Side Note: I'm using the Best Road Trip Ever App to help us find quirky attractions and non fast food restaurants. It rocks.

Then it was over the Tappan Zee bridge:

Through NY, NJ and some of the most beautiful land I've ever seen in PA, 5 or so minutes in Maryland...there was a very brief foray into West Virginia and then we ended up here.

Winchester, VA at the George Washington hotel. Note: rooms are 77 dollars right now and it's really nice.

You know J is dying at all the Civil War battlefields around here. In his element.

So as I type this we are in VA. Today we book it to Nashville. We have lots of fun places to stop along the way.

Our first stop is Natural Bridge.

Wish us luck, see you soon. On the road again...

xoxo

S

NYC

NYC holds a special place in our hearts. I grew up visiting with my family, and fell in love at a young age.

The city was part of my love story with J. He went to West Point, which is about 45 minutes north of the city.

I'd fly to NYC to meet him all throughout our years of dating.

We have so many good memories there. We've taken the bigs once, you can read this post to hear about our amazing adventure.

We decided to take a pit stop in the city on the way to my brother's DC wedding last weekend.

Good idea and horrible idea. All at the same time.

NYC is just NOT quite as enjoyable with four children. Oh my lord. I pretty much just sweated the entire time.

Twins that can fall onto subway tracks. Four kiddos that touch EVERYTHING. Sadie tries to lick things.

Lucy? Dropped a paci on the subway floor and then grabbed it and put it in her mouth before we could stop her.

Oh dear Lord have mercy.

I think I aged 10 years and had double the gray hairs after the few hours we spent there.

But still...

My heart loves NYC. So much. I loved spending a few hours in town.

But next time? It will be an adults only trip. HA!

Here's a quick recap of our whirlwind trip.

We packed up and headed out at about 12:30.

We pulled into Manhattan around 4:00 or so and the light was just beautiful. And traffic was super light. Perfect.

We checked into our hotel. We stayed in the Doubletree Financial District.

Our room had an incredible view of the new World Trade Center.

It literally took my breath away, made my heart pound, and brought tears to my eyes.

We hopped on the subway and met Dan and Colton for dinner in TriBeCa. Leigh was sick and I was so sad not to get to see her, but I did get to love on Colton.

Who is, quite possibly, the cutest little boy I've ever seen. I thought Jimmy might steal him.

The Howell girls were also quite enamored with him. Or, as Dan says, Colton "speed dated" the Howell girls.

HAHA!

Lucy was the winner, I think. They kind of loved each other.

I had to take this shot of Dan, Jimmy, and the kids.

From West Point cadets to awesome dads. Kind of cool, no?

And I've always thought that these two resembled each other. Totally could be brothers. They are both so handsome!

We hopped back on the subway and headed back to the hotel.

This picture cracks me up so much. Do H and S not totally look like disinterested NYC natives? perfect.

The girls couldn't stop looking out the window and saying how much they loved the city.

It made my heart happy b/c they are the product of two parents who feel the same.

The next morning we walked around a bit...the girls wanted a good view of the statue of liberty so we walked through Battery Park.

 

And then it was back to the hotel to load up the car.

I snapped this photo of the girls in the hotel window.They were waiting for their daddy to pull up with the car.

LOVE.

So there you have it. Our NYC experience with six.

It may have not involved high heels, fancy food, and chic cocktails. But I've had plenty of NYC experiences involving those things.

This time it was more about surviving. Teehee.

Happy weekend, y'all!

xo

Stop 2-Baltimore

After spending 2 days in Cary, we knew that our next (and last) stop had to be Baltimore. We didn't have long there. We rolled i to town around dinner time and we had to leave early the next morning.

There was only one reason I wanted to stop there (other than the fact that it is a beautiful town),and that was Laura.

After an..umm....interesting? incident while driving through DC,we arrived.

We stayed right on the Inner Harbor in a hotel with an amazing view. Here's what I saw when we walked in the room:

We headed down to meet Laura and Charlie at a restaurant. I was SO sad that we didn't get to meet Ken and Clara. But I have no doubt we will all get together eventually.

Laura and I have been friends since Harper was one. We started by emailing about The Bachelor (which we have almost every season since). She has come to be a true friend of my heart. I always suspected we could be long lost sisters. Tall, same size,same sense of humor,same awkwardness. And I was right. Meeting her was just as I thought it would be. Easy and natural.

It's sort of heart breaking to meet these women (Gabby and then Laura) that I'd give anything to live closer to.Because as soon as I met them...I had to say goodbye. Such good friends.

And I could stare at Charlie's eyes and lashes for days. He's gorgeous.

Here are my favorite photos from our night in Baltimore:

  

And then after a night's sleep, I woke up to this beautiful view. And unintentionally took a super cool Instagram! :)

Some people like to say that moving is a pain. But I really,truly think of it as an adventure.

I will always remember this time in our lives and it was such a blessing to meet some of my favorite ladies and see such beautiful scenery.

Happy Wednesday...our household goods are supposed to come today,wish us luck!!

xoxo