Monthly Musings: Winter Travel Edition

 Hey friends! I know I totally missed the boat (ha) on this linkup, but I still wanted to participate, so I answered anyway! Also, it's always fun (to me) to think about vacations!! So here are my answers to last month's questions...

1. Favorite Warm Weather Destinations?
Well it used to be Puerto Rico because my grandpa lived there, but since he's passed I'd say definitely Key West, Maui, and Jamaica. 

2. Packing Cubes: Yes or no?
No, thank you. I get why families may swear by them, but I'm good. 

3. Favorite Carry On?
Ummm... I like bags with a zip closure so I don't lose anything/nothing falls out, and no one can put their grubby little hand in and steal my shit? Probably my LL Bean bag with my name on it (though it's a bit small). You can kinda see it here...

4. Essential Items in you Suitcase?

The regular essentials? Toothbrush, undies, extra contacts and contact solution...?

But for anywhere where snorkeling is an option, I always bring my own mask! 

5. Excursions? Yes or no? Share your favorites.

YES! So, fun fact: I'm always the planner when it comes to vacations; finding the cheapest flight/hotel, but also finding the best excursions, the "must-see" things there, and "must-eat-at" restaurants. The only thing I truly suck at is finding out how to get from point A to point B- I leave that to someone (really anyone) else! Some favorites... kayaking through mangroves and swimming in a bioluminescent bay and snorkeling with turtles in Puerto Rico, seeing the Taj Mahal in India (I didn't plan this one, but was so excited!), day trip to see Bob Marley's village and house and Dunn's River Falls in Jamaica, the Road to Hana in Maui, and the full day trip in Aruba which included seeing caves, off-roading in ATVs, and getting my feet nibbled on by fish (right before getting my second bee-sting ever- ouch!)!

6. Most Random Item You Always Pack?
MOPEY BATMAN! Oh, and toilet paper. (You would understand if you've ever been caught somewhere and there was no tp!) But yeah, Mopey Batman comes on every vacation! I don't remember exactly how or when I acquired him but ever since I did, he comes on every vacation with me. He even has his own Instagram account to share *his* adventures! (He's kinda snarky though, so beware if you stumble upon his page!)

7. Do You Use a Travel Agent?
A what?! Does this job even still exist?! If so, I may be in the wrong profession! My only travel agent is myself, TripAdvisor, and Expedia!

8. Favorite Sunscreen?

I'm actually really bad about wearing sunscreen, and (like lotion) I hate how sticky they can feel. So I suppose Neutrogena Ultra-Sheer Dry Touch in 15 - 30 SPF (depending on location).

9. Favorite Flips-flops or Sandals?

Flip-flops, I guess Old Navy because they're cheap and I don't mind throwing them out if they get dirty! Sandals- my Sam Edelman tan ones because they match with everything and are sooo comfortable! 

10. Favorite Swimsuit?

So all of my favorite swimsuits have come from Victoria's Secret, but they don't make them anymore **SUPER SAD FACE** Unfortunately I haven't found a decent replacement yet. 

Monthly Musings: Vacation and Trip Planning

 It has been quite a while since I've joined Patty and Holly for Monthly Musings. But I've been missing "real" vacations and trips, so what better way to cure that then to plan a few, share, and reminisce about past ones?! 

1. What trips/vacations do you have planned for the rest of the year? We have a few long weekends away planned - one to the beach later next month for my niece's birthday, the return of our annual "glamping" trip in July, and another long weekend away (probably to a casino) in July for Blue's birthday. 

2. Best packing tips? ROLL YOUR CLOTHES! You save soo much space this way! I also personally like to plan out a few outfits in advance, and usually things I can mix and match if I'm not feeling that "exact" outfit on any given day. 

3. Packing cubes- yes or no? No thank you!

4. Favorite travel outfit? Jeans or yoga pants and a hoodie- just like my normal favorite outfit! I just like to be comfy. 

5. Favorite vacation destination and why? Ohh, this is a hard one. More recently I really enjoyed Key West, FL. I've been there a few times in the last couple of years because it's a quick and relatively inexpensive trip. But my absolute favorite was Maui, Hawaii over 10 years ago. I'd love to go back there! I think I was there for a full 7 days, and I got an opportunity to do lots of exploring in bamboo forests and waterfalls, experienced an authentic luau (and delicious meal!), and even went to the top of a volcano for a sunrise that didn't quite make it out of the clouds, and bike down the side of that volcano!

6. Have you flown since March 2020? Nope. 

7. Beach or mountains for vacation? BEACH! 

8. Do you prefer to sightsee or relax on vacation? Depends on where we are going (and if I've been there before), but usually I like to do a bit of both. 

9. Hotel, camping or Airbnb? Hotel. The last few Airbnb experiences weren't up to expectations, unfortunately. 

10. Overpacker or underpacker? Definitely overpacker, but I've gotten much better when I started planning outfits! I just hate to not have what I want/need when away. 

Have you done any air travel since 2020?

What's your favorite destination?

Fall Bucket List

I feel like I haven't done a bucket list in forever, and that would be because I completely forgot about it! Ah well, I got exactly half of them done anyway- I guess writing them down actually did help me remember some of them! 

Summer Goals

Visit the dang High Line! - Hahaha. No. I just checked and this has been on my list since 2016 so clearly I'm just not that interested. I'm not even rolling this one over.

See an outdoor movie- getting on this one early; seeing Thelma and Louise next week! - Fail! Michael and I made it to the venue, but we were both freezing so we left before it started. 

Go to the dentist - Yes, 5 times actually! I went just to get a check-up and they wanted to do scaling.

See an outdoor concert - Yes, two actually! Evanescence with Lindsey Stirling, and 3 Doors Down/Collective Soul/ Soul Asylum. ( I saw Gin Blossoms and Tonic and Daughtry too, but they were indoors.)

Work on Erin's 9.0 Book Challenge - Done! 

Continue the purge - Yes.

Visit the NJ State Fair - Nope.

Go down the shore - I think this is the first time I have NOT gone to the beach! Not once! 

Visit Citi Field for a Phillies/Mets game... it's tradition! - Yes!

Complete 10 goals from my 101 in 1001 List- I completed one lousy goal! I'll do a recap of the whole list next week, and I'm still debating whether or not I want to try another 101. 

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Fall Bucket List

Go leaf-peeping

Attend an Oktoberfest event

Attend a food festival

Host Annual Halloween Party

Fall getaway

Participate in Jenn's Fall Film Challenge (16/25!)

Check out a new winery or brewery

Make pumpkin pie

Have a PSL

Get cozy and read from my Fall TBR List!

What's on your Fall Bucket List?

What's New With Me: June

June was a craaaazy busy month, but that's because it's finally SUMMER and time to get outside after the endless drone of winter and the non-existent spring. We kicked it off with free VIP tickets to the JerseyFest Food Truck Mash-Up (thanks Michael!). Blue and I stopped attending these because though the food trucks were good, the lines were certainly not, and sometimes they ran out of food before you even got to try it. But with these tickets we got in 2 hours before everyone else and some specialty dishes. Plus, we finally learned how to do it right from prior experience. Not only did we split everything we tried, but we brought tupperware to bring home even more good eats for dinner. Here's some other stuff that happened in June...

BOOK CON! I attended my first NY BookCon and it was awesome! So many books, and authors, and fellow book nerds all in one place! If you've ever been to a comic con it was kind of like that, except with books and literary swag. My favorite parts were getting to hear James Patterson and Bill Clinton talk about the book "The President is Missing," a panel with Rainbow Rowell and Charles Soule called "Marvel: From Pose to Panels" co-presented with NY ComicCon about the similarities and differences between writing novels vs. graphic novels, and "The Reel Real" panel about the process and what's it's like having your book turned into a movie with Angie Thomas (The Hate U Give), Becky Albertalli (Simon vs. the Homo Sapien's Agenda/Love, Simon), Lauren Oliver (Delirium series), and Soman Chainani (The School for Good and Evil series). Oh, I also got Sarah Morgan to sign a free copy of her latest book, "Holiday in the Hamptons." It was such a fun experience! 

We went to see Vertical Horizon, Tonic and the Gin Blossoms perform at a local theater turned venue. Be still my 90's loving heart! They had so much energy and were just as fantastic as they were back then (minus Robin Wilson... he was lacking, but everyone else totally made up for it). 

Blue and I attended the PopSugar Play/Ground, which promised to be fun pop-up weekend (with single day passes available) filled with yoga by Kayla Itsines, panel discussions with Mindy Kaling, Kate Hudson, Arianna Huffington, and Tiffany Haddish among others, shopping, free makeovers, and concerts by Tinashe and AlunaGeorge. It was not fun. It was a hot mess, which I should have known because even the online schedule was a disaster. Honestly I should have known when I read the description for one of the panels described as a "talk about owning your smart-girl self." It was very, very YOUNG (think early 20's- I'm 34...) and very crowded. I think we stayed for 2 hours (including the panel discussion). I'm glad that we went (no FOMO here), but ecstatic that I was able to get tickets for $20 instead of $70. 

I think the best part was that afterwards we found this tiny Southern comfort food brunch spot  called Spoonfed NYC serving up fried okra, grits, and fried chicken and waffles. 

I joined my mom at Trinity Church for a Pulse Nightclub memorial mass and reception, and on the way back found some really cool recent murals near the Oculus. 

Michael joined me for a night at Gulliver's Gate. I first heard about from my friend who builds models there. Basically it's an entire world of miniatures. And yes, I mean literally the world. There was a New Year's Parade in China, the Christ the Redeemer statue in Brazil, the Sphinx in Egypt, even the Muslims on their pilgrimage to Mecca. My favorite parts were the interactive ones though; they give you a key to insert in certain places and you can make Santa and his reindeer circle a mountain, raise and lower the London Bridge, and even get your face to appear in Niagara Falls! You also get a "passport" that has things to look for in each location (like the Beatles crossing Abbey Road in London, pictured below). If you are in the NYC area, I HIGHLY recommend checking it out! 

I had to take 8 days off from work or lose them by June 30th, so I didn't work any Mondays or Fridays the whole month. I can't say I did a whole lot during that time besides rest and relaxation, but I did redo my bedroom (does anyone else remember doing this as a kid/teen?) and purging a whole lot of stuff. That pic below was the second Vietnam Veteran pick-up this month! I'm really happy with my room now; I feel like I'm finally utilizing the space well and everything has a place. (Sidenote: when you move your bed, waking up and not seeing the same view you wake up to every day is very disorienting.)

Always good eats- sliders, seafood Paella Valencia, personal pizza, and classic mac n cheese for national cheese day. 

We celebrated some birthdays with day drinks at a local bar, my friends came in from Denver for a short weekend trip and I met them in NYC, and I saw some old coworkers turned friends for dinner at my favorite Portuguese restaurant.

The month ended with a quick trip down to Key West, FL for my friend Kathy's wedding. It was extremely hot, but the ceremony was short and the food was great and after the reception we all went out to Irish Kevin's and danced the night away... until my shoe literally fell apart (pictured below) and I hobbled back to the hotel in one shoe. Also of note: they had a mac and cheese AND a mashed potato bar which is something I've always wanted for my wedding. It was as amazing as I thought it would be. Also, check out that Cheeseburger in Paradise wedding cake (ya know, because of Jimmy Buffett)! It was alternating layers of vanilla and chocolate with cream filling. Nom. 

That's it for me. What's new with you?

Linking up with Kristen! 

California Dreamin' Part 2

Today I’m continuing to recap my whirlwind trip to LA/San Diego. For part one, click here!

On day two, we woke up early and took an Amtrak to San Diego so we could see the scenery off the Pacific Coast Highway without the hassle of renting a car and driving. Upon arrival in Old Town, we left our bags in the hotel and headed to the closest Mexican restaurant, Café Coyote. We only wanted a snack because we had dinner plans, but Blue’s steak quesadilla turned out to be the size of her head! Their salsa was just the right mix of flavor without the heat, and so fresh!

We meandered down the main drag for a bit before headed to Stone Brewing. The menu and the food were TERRIBLE. By far the worst meal I’ve had on vacation, perhaps ever. I got a pork belly adobo, which was basically pork belly on a steamed bun with greens, and I couldn’t even finish it. That’s the other thing- they didn’t have any “regular” food; it was all like duck tacos and quail knots. They didn’t even have a regular burger! One was plant-based and the other was a bean patty. No, thank you. At least the beer was good.

The next day we were up and out early for a day at the San Diego Zoo. I think we only made it through about half the park- it was HUGE! We headed back in the early afternoon and took a nap before heading out for the night.

This dinner was my choice and of course I chose Trailer Park After Dark, a retro dive bar in the Gaslamp District with retro trailers inside, chairs crafted from shopping carts, and a fake “lawn” with plastic chairs. It was kitchy as hell and I loved every minute of it. I had grilled cheese sticks with a shot of tomato soup, tall boy PBRs, and a jello shot. We continued on our night of debauchery to Tipsy Crow (great cocktails), Whiskey Girl (where I met 2 others from NJ, one who attended school where I work- small world!), and ended the night in San Diego’s smallest bar, Pop’s Liquor Cabinet- max capacity: 12. Also delicious cocktails, and luckily only about 3 other people were there.

Our last day was Cinco de Mayo. Old Town San Diego marks the site of the first Spanish settlement on the West Coast and features 12 acres of Mexican heritage and historical sites, and San Diego's Cinco de Mayo celebration is held in Old Town every year. So clearly, the whole area was closed down and jam packed. There was a huge street fair with vendors selling pretty much everything, and a wrestling ring where they had lucha libre matches. Luckily we only had to wait 45 minutes for lunch at Los Locos Bar and Grill, and it was well worth the wait. After shoving our way through the throngs of people at the street fair, we spent most of the afternoon checking out the "historic" Old Town area, which was all old time-y shops like the Blacksmith and Carriage House mixed in with some Mexican shops where I picked up some worry dolls for my friends. By dinnertime, the crowds had grown even more and we were OVER it. Every Mexican restaurant (which was just about every restaurant in the area) had 3-4 hour wait times. So for our last meal we each had a personal pizza at Bella Italian Bistro before heading back to the hotel. 

Have you ever been to Old Town San Diego? 

Wanderlust Wednesday: California Dreamin'

Back in early May, Blue and I took a whirlwind trip to Los Angeles and San Diego. I was originally registered for a conference there, but it got rescheduled to October, so we decided to make the most of the trip anyway!

Unfortunately Blue had to go ahead without me for one day because we were finishing up a big project at work. I’m sure she was grateful for a night of rest though, because once I got there it was all “go-go-go!”

We met at the hotel then went straight to Mama’s Shelter, a fun hippie-inspired rooftop lounge complete with oversized couches, giant pillows, tapestry dividers, and an enthusiastic Rasta-wannabe bartender. It was much colder than we anticipated, so we only stayed for a drink before heading over to Grand Central Market for some eats. I wanted to check out Sarita’s Pupuseria, serving up authentic Latin cuisine including “pupusa,” which is a traditional Salvadoran dish made of a thick corn tortilla stuffed with cheese, coleslaw and spices. (The shop was also in a tiny movie you may have heard of called “La La Land,” but I didn’t realize that until after we were seated at the countertop exactly where they were and saw signs posted up.) I tried the pupusa, and Blue had the skirt steak platter- both were absolutely delicious! 

After filling our bellies, we headed to The Grammy Museum. Honestly, I thought it would just be an easy way to kill some time before our scheduled time slot at The Happy Place, but it was so much fun! Not only did they have a lot of very famous outfits from people who graced the Grammy stage, but they also had interactive singing and productions booths, DJ mixers, and other instruments which were plugged into headsets so only you could hear the ruckus you were making. 

After that, we continued to make our way over to The Happy Place. I don't really know how to describe this "museum" so here's what they said about it: "[The Happy Place is a] massive pop-up experience is filled with larger than life size installations, multi-sensory immersive rooms, and dozens of moments curated to Capture Your Happy... Highlights include: dancing in the middle of world’s largest indoor Confetti Dome, jumping off of a larger than life double rainbow into a pot of happiness, and posing inside HAPPY PLACE's signature rubber ducky bathtub of fun! and let’s not forget 7-foot stilettos made of a million candies and 6-foot-tall X and O letters made out of thousands of tiny mirrors, surrounded by a wall of one thousand red lips!!!

HAPPY PLACE will be in Chicago from June 28 – August 6 before it hits the road again!"

Remember at the beginning of this post when I say I was all "go, go,  go?" Well, we weren't done yet! Since this was my only night in LA, we made one final stop at a "speakeasy" called "Good Times at Davey Wayne's." I put speakeasy in quotes because when I read about it online, it made it sound like it would be really hard to find and you had to walk through a refrigerator to get in, yadda yadda... meanwhile we show up and there's a huge bright blinking sign with an arrow pointing down. But it was super cool inside. There were multiple rooms, some open air, some night, lots of seating- couches and swinging chairs- the bartenders were all dressed up in suspenders and the drinks were strong. I wanted to take pics inside but it seemed more like a locals hangout and I didn't want to be that person. (Plus they didn't come out, they were all too dark.) 

And that concludes Day 1! I was going to put the whole trip in one post, but I think we've covered enough today, yah? Check back tomorrow for the rest of the trip! (I'll try to keep it condensed!) 

ABC's of Spring and Summer Goals

Happy first day of summer! I'm back to recap the outcome of my spring goals. If you missed the last update, you can see that here. Also, if you try to comment and I don't respond, my apologies. I added Disquis when Blogger stopped sending comments to my email, but it hasn't been syncing properly. Anyone else having this issue? It's such a pain! Anyway, moving on... ones marked with an asterisk are from my March goals, and "101 goal" ones are from the Day Zero Project. 


Albums (101 goal)- I have photo albums, and I have photos. I need to put them together lol. 

Dentist appointment*- Scheduled for 7/17! 

Eyebrows- clean up, reshape and learn how to fill them in.- Cleaned up and reshaped, and going again next Wednesday. 

Fix wireless printer*- I didn't specify who was fixing it, right?! Blue was able to set it up properly again. 

Gallery wall- I have frames, I just need to fix the printer so I can print some recent photos- Got printer fixed, and even got photo paper, but this still didn't get done! 

High Line- this has been on my Spring bucket list for at least 2 years. I really want to get there! 

Jigsaw puzzle (101 goal)- Blue and I started doing one 2 years ago (ha!), but she got tired of doing it and would get aggravated. I still have it though and would like to complete and frame it.  - Big fate NOPE. I started doing it again, but then I realized I just didn't feel like actually accomplishing this goal, so I donated it. 

Obtain a new scale* (101 goal)- Totally forgot this was one here. 

Pedicure- I'm marking this as a pass since I'm going next Wednesday right before vacation. 

Set up my Echo Dot and Alexa-fy my apartment*- Not sure about "Alexa-fying my apartment," but I did set up my Dot!

Take a class (101 goal)- Some ideas include a wine pairing, cocktail mixology, cooking, chocolate making, or woodworking (if I can find one locally). -Nope. 

Update my resume fo reals (101 goal)- Always a work in progress, but it's in a great place right now! 

Visit Citi Field for a Phillies/Mets game... it's tradition!- This will not be happening. We missed the series in April (and 2 got postponed), and the next one isn't until July. 

eXamine Spring wardrobe; pull out and purge as necessary- Yes! 

Yelp reviews- I'm going to set this one low at 15 or 5/month, for starters.- Haha, I completely forgot about this one. Oops! 

18/26- not too shabby! There are definitely ones I could have completed easily that I just didn't, and ones I straight up forgot about, but oh well. 26 is a lot of goals, and I'm happy with the progress I made!

That was a fun way to do goals, but I think I need to cut back a bit for summer. These are less "goals" and more fun stuff/bucket list type things I'd like to do this summer. 

Summer Goals

Visit the dang High Line!

See an outdoor movie- getting on this one early; seeing Thelma and Louise next week! 

Go to the dentist

See an outdoor concert- tickets purchased for Evanescence and Lindsey Stirling! 

Work on Erin's 9.0 Book Challenge- it starts 7/1 and if you're interested, you can join here! 

Continue the purge

Visit the NJ State Fair

Go down the shore

Visit Citi Field for a Phillies/Mets game... it's tradition!

Complete 10 goals from my 101 in 1001 List- I know I'm not going to complete the whole list (I had a lot of lofty travel goals on there), but I would like to make some more progress on it! 

Other summer plans include a destination wedding in Key West, Florida, our annual camping trip in Delaware, planning and celebrating my sister in law's retirement, and of course, celebrating Blue's birthday. It's going to be an awesome summer! 

What are your summer plans?

Linking up with The Blended Blog, Betsy, and Sara! 

What's New With Me/Currently

What a crazy month it's been, but so much fun too! I must say I'm looking forward to a much quieter November before the craziness of December (vacation AND birthday AND Christmas) starts up! This is my time to embrace hygge and recharge for a bit. Here's what I've been up to since last time:

I went to NYC Comic Con for the first time! It was... overwhelming. And SO crowded. It was hard to even get to the booths to see what they were selling! I didn't dress up, but I enjoyed all the people who did, and the highlight for me was hearing Rainbow Rowell speak and get a signed copy of her latest novel, Carry On! We also sat in on a Star Trek panel so that we could already have seats for the Walking Dead panel, but we didn't make it that far lol. We got to NYC at 9am and that panel started at 9pm- not happening! 

It may not be much, but I decorated my door for Fall. I made the wreath pictured, and the "bouquet," and just purchased the mat from And That! Coming home to that just makes me so happy!

I also did a major closet clean-out- 3 huge TJ Maxx bags filled to the brim for Plato's Closet, and they only accepted like 7 items! The nerve! But my closet is more organized and I'll attempt to sell on Poshmark before donating. 

We saw Bruce Springsteen on Broadway! It was amazing. It wasn't a concert (no screaming fans and drunk people singing- this is Broadway, after all), and it wasn't a play- it was more like him telling stories about his life as if we were in his living room, and he played a few songs in between. His wife even came out for some of them. I especially loved the theater- it was so small and intimate, and just the perfect venue. We could hear him even when he wasn't at the mic. 

We also hosted our annual Halloween party! This year our theme was Game of Thrones/Medieval. Blue and I were Daenerys and one of her dragons. (I hope) everyone had a great time. I wrote more about it here.

Realizing: I need a new job. Just writing that out freaks me out, but I just don't fit in this department. It became crystal clear during my (first negative) annual review when asked "What do you want to do?" and I couldn't think of anything. I made something up obviously, but this is not where I want to be. 

Stirring: Just my (second) morning coffee! Iced today, because for some reason it's 75 degrees out. In November. But there's no such thing as global warming right? 

Appreciating: Alllll the pumpkin beers! 

Investigating: Why in the world I've been banned from Ebay and Etsy. I didn't even realized I was banned until I went online to buy an Iron Throne decal for Halloween. It's been over a month and I still haven't received an update, or been granted access, to either site. #rage

Reading: I finished Erin's Reading Challenge for the first time in the 3 years I've participated! WOOT! I'll be sharing my reviews on Show Us Your Books 11/14.  Currently reading The Invoice by Jonas Karlsson. 

Watching: finished Stranger Things over the weekend! Did you guys watch? What did you think? My regulars, TWD, Grey's Anatomy, Blindspot, This is Us, BBT, and a new favorite The Good Doctor. Also still watching movies for Jenn's challenge. 21/25

Listening To: Just the radio lately. 

Eating: Halloween candy. Crunch/Krackle, Snickers, and Twix are my faves.

Making: Last month I made pumpkin Oreo cheesecakes, lighter spinach pasta alfredo, tie-died a skirt  and restyled a wig (that I've worn for the past 3 years) for my Halloween costume.

What's new with you lately?

Linking up with Anne, Kristen and Gretch