we're headed to new orleans!

happy hump day! 

As if this month hasn't been packed with enough adventure from our west coast trip, we're headed to New Orleans tomorrow.

cactarium

When we pulled into Palm Springs, I knew that our first stop had to be this hidden gem of a botanical garden, featuring only cacti. 

I've always been a fan of caudiciform plants. We even had succulents as our wedding flowers BEFORE they became a trend. I love how unique these plants are and that they don't fit in with anyone else. And the variety at Moorten Botanical Garden does not disappoint. 

We went first thing in the morning so we pretty much had this place all to ourselves. It felt so dreamy and relaxing to wander through the garden with flowering cacti underfoot and dozens of hummingbirds flying above our heads. This really was perfection. 

friday favorites: spring break edition

happy friday dear ones! 

I'm just coming off of Spring Break on the West Coast with arriving home early Monday (3AM!). This week has been a bit of a challenge with adjusting back to the time change, the workload of grad school, and hardest of all being apart from my husband. The break was much needed and I'm so thankful for it for so many reasons. It really was the highlight of my week, my month. So I thought I'd be fun to do a Spring Break edition of Friday Favorites. 

I will have plenty more to share over the next few weeks, but for now, here's a glimpse at some favorites. 

day trip diaries: Las Vegas

Las Vegas Baby! 

This city is known for its glitz and glam, its exorbitant flash, and pricey party lifestyle. Basically, it's everything that we are not. 

But it felt like we should do Vegas as part of a last hoorah while we're still in our twenties! 

studying on-the-go

I'm currently entrenched in studying---even more so than usual as I prepare for the second part of my national board exam-a massive standardized test that I have to pass in order to become a dentist. It's a big deal! That being said, I haven't stopped living my life. I haven't stopped making time for family and friends and travel and all the parts of life that I love most.  

Studying in Palm Springs 

death valley national park

Welcome to the hottest place on Earth! ☀️ 🌏 

Lucky me, I got to visit with the hottest guy I know. 💍 

And lucky for both of us that we visited during late winter when the temperatures are still tolerable.

After our day in Vegas, we made the 2-hour drive to Death Valley National Park with a detour here on the way.

the great southwest by the numbers

Just back from a week in the Great Southwest where I squeezed every drop of fun out of my spring break. I made it back home at 3AM this morning, so today was an extra-long day for me. It's back to business as usual now, but first, I wanted to share a little taste of our week out west...by the numbers. 

desert greens for st. patty's day

happy st. patty's day! 
In honor of the holiday dedicated to all things green, I thought I'd share some of my favorite desert greens that we've been enjoying all week long. 

staying flexible while traveling

I'm currently typing this from our hotel room in Phoenix. We just arrived here---two days sooner than planned. 

exploring rhyolite ghost town

Before crossing the state line into California, we decided to make one last stop in Nevada at the Rhyolite Ghost Town. 

where the neon lights go to die...

Hello from Las Vegas!

We’re currently road-tripping through the west coast for spring break. We’ve already seen so many amazing things and had so many unique experiences that I know there will be lots to share from this trip. So, I’m attempting to blog in real time to kick off sharing our adventures sooner.

west coast love

Today, we're headed off on a west coast adventure. At least once a year, we take a pilgrimage to the other side of the country to trek along the West Coast. 

Over the years, we've managed to visit Colorado, Alaska, California twice, Washington state, and even an unexpected epic trip through Utah together. We love showing the west coast a little love and are excited to be headed back there today. This time, we're planning to road trip our way through Nevada, California, and Arizona. So with the west coast on our minds and in our hearts, I thought I'd share just a few of the things we love about it most. 

friday favorites 03.09.18

I'm always happy to see Friday roll around the corner and realize that I survived yet another week of grad school. I was at the dental school doing labwork for my patient's denture until about 2AM last night (even though I started Thursday at 4AM), so I'm ready to make one more big push today and kick off my weekend. Before I do, wanted to share 3 big things making this week special. 

an arctic adventure…4 days in iceland

From volcanoes to glaciers to Icelandic ponies to cave hikes to chasing the northern lights to soaking in geothermal pools---somehow two poor grad students managed to visit one of the world's most expensive countries on a budget. 

We had a hectic 4 days in Iceland and I've enjoyed sharing bits and pieces of our adventure here from what we packed to what we did. So I thought I would finish out Iceland by sharing our exact itinerary and budget below. 

iceland winter packing list

When we were prepping for our Iceland trip, I found lots of cute girly girl packing lists, but most of them weren't overly functional. Iceland is really an outdoor lovers dream. Since we spent the majority of our time there out in the winter weather, I thought I would share my packing list that's reflective of that. 

 We spent several hours outside each day braving Iceland's winter and felt comfortable doing it thanks to packing a few key items. 

spelunking in a lava tube cave

spelunking = n. the exploration of caves 

soaking in a geothermal pool

If you're going to visit Iceland, than you have to stop by one of their geothermal hot springs or pools, especially if you're visiting in the winter like us. And the most famous of them all is of course the Blue Lagoon. So on our very last day in Iceland, we spent the morning soaking it all in before heading off to catch a flight home. 

sunrise ride with Icelandic ponies!

The day we road-tripped through Iceland's Golden Circle, what mesmerized me most wasn't the waterfalls or the geysers or the cute Icelandic homes dotting the countryside. It was the ponies! We would whiz by them and I would swoon. So the very next day, we headed on a sunrise horseback ride---a definite highlight of the entire trip. 

february 2018//

Happy March Dear Friends and Happy Friday! Before we jump into this next month, I want to say a proper goodbye to February. Because how can you not love this month of love?

chasing the northern lights

While we spent our days in Iceland soaking in geothermal pools, riding Icelandic ponies, and hiking through lava tube caves; our nights were spent chasing after the northern lights.