The longest day of our lives. It all started very well. We had breakfast, fueled up the truck, and headed out at a decent hour. Our plan was to be in Oklahoma City by dinnertime. Service Required Just after leaving Albuquerque, the check engine light came on. As most of our day was going to be spent in the middle of nowhere, we called Uhaul and found a service station in the dusty town of Santa Rosa. The mechanic discovered we did not have any oil in our engine. Zero. We were now an hour behind schedule, and no less frustrated, and so continued on through Texas toward Oklahoma. Service Really Required Just beyond the Texas boarder, one of the rear tires blew out. It felt like an isolated earthquake that only our truck was experiencing, ... read more

The decision to move from Las Vegas to Orlando was easy. Actually moving across the country, however, took a lot more work. Packing up the house What a daunting task! Since college, I have moved five separate times, with a couple temporary layovers in between. And yet somehow, I managed to accumulate more material goods each time I settled into a new place. Mark, on the other hand, had a respectfully consolidated collection of goods, which was easy to sort and pack. This move would challenge my outlook on possessions. My plan was to go through every single item I owned and sell, donate, or discard anything that hadn’t been touched within the last two years. This was pretty successful during the two weeks I was in full-throttle packing mode. But even with my rampant effort, ... read more

The Joys of Camping For three days and two nights we enjoyed the cool air of Utah’s Cedar Breaks National Monument. We picked this area of Utah for a couple reasons. First, the weather. Escaping Las Vegas’ weekend high of 104 degrees for the cool mountain air and near-freezing temps at night was probably one of our best ideas ever. In fact, the weekend before, the whole area was blanketed in snow. Second, Cedar Breaks isn’t the most popular spot in southwestern Utah to visit, so we weren’t going to have to fight the massive crowds that congregate at Zion or Bryce Canyon. Our campsite at Cedar Canyon Campground was fantastic, with lots of trees, no direct neighbors, and a little stream at the back of the campsite. It was a completely relaxing weekend. The ... read more

The east coast does not understand the Washington way of life. We go outside when it rains, we live for the farmers markets, and our high school mascot is a lumberjack. This trip was a much-needed visit home for me, and a great way to introduce Mark to my homeland. We went everywhere: Point Defiance Park and Anthony's in Tacoma; Laser Beatles at the Pacific Science Center, the Sculpture Park, and Pike Place Market in Seattle; a cruise through Edmonds; and the Steel Bridge over the Skokomish, where we watched people sacrifice their old Halloween pumpkins to the river below. It was a fantastic trip, and all too short. Until next time, Washington!... read more

My first to New York was in February 2010 for the Westminster Dog Show. Fast-forward fourteen years later, I was headed back for a much more serious event: meeting my boyfriend's family. Mark's youngest sister was graduating high school, prompting a gathering of 100 people at his father's house. Surprisingly, there was a little bit of culture shock for me. Sure, my people are loud and obnoxious, but we're a far cry from the New York Italian family. There is such a difference between east and west coast mannerisms, but it was fun to experience all of it. Following the graduation gathering, we visited with Mark's mother and cousins in the city (meaning Manhattan). We had a great dinner and strolled along the waterfront. We stayed overnight in a nice hotel across from Grand Central Station. ... read more