Ben and I are in a little bit of a trip-planning mode, thinking ahead to what we will do this year for our vacation. We would love to take a big international trip again, but something within the United States seems more financially reasonable for us right now. And of course there are an abundance of gorgeous places for us to choose from.

Last year we decided to try and visit as many National Parks as we can, which is a great jumping point when deciding where to travel within the United States. On our trip out West last fall, we headed to Colorado and South Dakota. One of the places we stopped is the Badlands National Park. The amazing rock structures are so majestic…and a little bit creepy. It kind of made us feel like we were wandering around on the surface of the moon. It was a super cool experience!

This year, we’re thinking Pacific Northwest…I’ll share more specific details about our plans as they solidify. But I’m SO excited about what we have in mind already.

Also, I’m so excited to announce that the randomly chosen winner of the Makewells Giveaway is Vicki! Congratulations!! Megan and I will be in contact shortly :)

I went to Charleston, SC for a quick weekend break with a few friends. We had a fantastic time—shopping and eating dominated our schedule—and the weather was absolutely perfect.

We hit up two restaurants of Food Network fame: Hominy Grill and Jestine’s Kitchen. Fried green tomatoes, sweet tea, fried chicken, fried okra, mac & cheese…need I say more? Both with menus full of delicious Southern cuisine and atmospheres to match.

We also stopped at Middleton Place Plantation to view the gardens (designed by the same gardener who did Versailles), and the azaleas were at their peak…talk about gorgeous! Oh, and I got to see a little alligator swimming around a swamp lake near a hillside with 5600 blooming azaleas. See if you can spot it in one of the pictures! ;)

Charleston is a special place for me, because Ben proposed there…it always brings back lovely memories! xx

P.S. My amazing blog-friend Megan featured me on her blog Friday. Please head over there and take a look!! And while you are there, stay awhile and explore…her blog is full of fantastic art inspiration.

Ben and I headed up the mountains for a hike recently, and we unexpectedly ran into some snow! Since spring has come in full force here (it’s more like early summer…the high today is 82!) we were pleasantly surprised at the beautiful white snow quickly covering the ground around us. The world became hushed and all you could hear were the snowflakes gently hitting the forest.

Isn’t it beautiful? I’m guessing this is the last little bit of winter we’ll see here in sunny South Carolina. Until next year, cold snowy hikes!

Since the weather has been warming up, Ben and I have enjoyed getting outside more again. We’ve done recent hikes to DuPont State Forest, and Pilot Mountain and Looking Glass Rock in Pisgah National Forest (NC), gone to our favorite park to read, and done some porch gardening.

As much as I love cozy winter with its cocoa and boots and extra blankets, I’ll give a warm welcome to the spring, with extra light and soft breezes. I guess I can be glad ours seems to have arrived early, because it’s usually short and summer’s heat and humidity takes over fast. I’m looking forward to being outside as much as possible during the next few months!

And for some inside activity, we went indoor rock climbing for the first time earlier this month. I was nervous about being up so high at first but got used to it pretty quickly and had fun!

I’m glad life gives us the opportunity to pack it full of adventure, aren’t you?

One morning Ben and I headed to Jones Gap State Park for what we thought was going to be a warm, sunny hike. We were seriously wrong about the forecast and the rain started falling shortly after we were on the trail. We spent the day getting quite wet—sloshing around in wet leaves, crossing muddy creeks. (And falling in the water…that really happened, but I won’t say to which one of us! hehe)

We had a fun day despite the weather, but it was so nice to get back home and change into dry warm clothes!

Ben and I took my 4-year-old nephew Caleb to Lake Placid at nearby Paris Mountain State Park for a “hike” (more like a nature walk). This was his first time hiking in the woods and he did a really good job. He helped us find the green markings on the trees to keep us on the trail.

Ben picked out our trail, and it was just the right speed for someone small. It also included some interesting things: we saw geese, a lake, a waterfall, trees, leaves, and rocks. It’s so fun to see the woods through the eyes of a child.

Ben and I spent New Year’s with some friends in Wilmington, NC. We had a wonderful time ringing in 2012! And it was warm enough to walk along the beach on New Year’s Day.

A big thank-you to our lovely friends that hosted us and showed us the town. We had a great time!

Hope your new year has gotten off to a wonderful start!

While spending some time with Ben’s family in Georgia we hiked to the top of Stone Mountain with his dad, sister, and youngest brother. It was cold and windy! But very nice to get a little fresh air and exercise after all of those Christmas cookies I ate… hehe

(they were trying to let the wind catch their coats and puff them up)

Notice the Atlanta skyline in the background of our photos. It was fun for us to do this more urban hike!

Ben and I snuck away during this busy time for a quiet and relaxing weekend in North Carolina. We enjoyed a winter hike, good movies by a cozy fire, and walking around the lake at our cabin.

Last year we went on a weekend trip in December to Plains, GA to see Jimmy Carter teach Sunday School. I think a pre-Christmas mini trip should become a tradition for us! It’s so nice to stop all the hustle and bustle of shopping, wrapping presents, searching for the perfect recipes, etc. and enjoy spending time together.

Over the weekend Ben and I headed up to Great Smoky Mountains National Park, where to our surprise we met gorgeous autumn color AND winter snow, all on the same trail. It was one of the most beautiful hikes we’ve done in our area and the views at the top were spectacular. (The trail we picked was called Charlie’s Bunion.) For a girl who’s not used to snow this was the perfect winter wonderland. I was seriously cold though!

One of my favorite things about hikes are the nice people you run into on the trail. There are always an abundance of smiles and friendly faces, and sometimes we end up having little conversations with people we meet along the way. There is an in-it-together attitude, that common bond of shared experience, that makes you instant friends-for-a-moment.

Also, this trail was part of the Appalachian Trail, which stretches from Georgia to Maine. The AT crosses through many spots in our area, so we’ve done a lot of day-hikes along it. When we got near the end of our hike Ben said “do you want to head back to the parking lot or keep going to Maine?” I was ready to get in the car and blast the heat, but it makes me feel extra adventurous to know that I could just keep on walking and end up in Maine. Like sometimes when I’m driving to work I see a sign on the highway and realize that if I just turned off and kept driving I’d be in Atlanta in a few hours. Or the worst is in the airport, when you are maybe just picking up a friend or flying to another state, but if you move over one gate you’d be on a plane for China or Paris or somewhere far away. I love that feeling of not being tied down…oh the possibilities!!

Celebrate a spirit of adventure with me this week, won’t you?!