Chronicling My Travel Adventures, 1 Memory at a Time

Tags

adventure, Grand Tetons, hiking, journaling, mount rainier, national park, scotland, travel, vacation, west highland way, yellowstone

The blank canvas for my travels made the perfect gift for my birthday.

To celebrate my 39th year on this planet, one of my close friends gifted me a travel journal and a Walgreens gift card. My darling and I had a trip to Scotland scheduled for that summer, and my friend knew I would want to document the adventure. Each page of the journal offered a section for writing the day’s summary, but also a place to attach a photo or draw a picture.

Finding Joy in the Midst of Trial

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hiking, international travel, scotland, The Glorious Table, trail tales, travel

“This is the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen,” someone in my hiking crew declared, as we took in the cliffs, pastures, and sheep. Just a bit further up the trail, we rounded a corner and enjoyed another beautiful vista. “This is the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen!” someone else exclaimed. The refrain became almost a joke on the trail, but each time we uttered the words, we spoke them in truth.

Will hike for snacks

How to Plan an Epic Adventure (Hint: Marry a Nerd)

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Grand Tetons, international travel, itinerary, scotland, spreadsheets, top deck, travel, western europe, yellowstone

As a kid, my family traveled regularly. Resulting in seeing most battlefields and amusement parks on this side of the Mississippi. When Jay and I got married, I knew one of my non-negotiables was a yearly vacation. I told him that I wanted to go somewhere every year, even if it was somewhere small. I’ve referenced the year we stayed in Kentucky in the middle of nowhere. If I can have memories of that then I feel certain that I truly mean anywhere will do. I mean I’m sure my family did something but all I remember is the Bates motel vibe from the place where we stayed.

Our first vacation as a married couple was our honeymoon in Villa Rica Georgia. A friend was kind enough to give us their vacation travel points for the stay. It’s hard to beat free on a newlywed budget!

Direction – Looking Back to Move Forward

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2019 lists, adventures, bullet journal, concerts, family, hiking, journaling, my darling love, project, scotland, storytelling, west highland way, writing

In reviewing 2019 and looking forward to 2020 (the year of my 40th birthday!), I’ve considered what direction I want to take my writing. Seasonal fatigue mixed with stress about moving to a new house (if just up the street), has left me with not much energy to devote to writing. Then I got the flu, which I’m still recovering from.

The Confident Woman in My Photos

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10 things to tell you, body image, my darling love, scotland, travel, west highland way

When I look at the pictures from that vacation I don’t see me, not really. Sure, the woman in the photos looks like me and is creating memories I currently possess. But she seems far more joyful and confident than I consider myself to be.

Learning to Redefine Failure on the West Highland Way

Tags

failure, hiking, inspiration, marriage, scotland, west highland way

While walking the West Highland Way, I made a wrong turn and got us lost. Isn’t that just about the worst-case scenario on a hiking trip? Horror movies are made of such.

I’d like to tell you that instead of freaking out, I reviewed the map, appreciated what the wrong turn had given us, and continued on our trek, better for the experience. Instead, I pouted, sulked, cried, and lashed out. After none of those things helped, I stood up, wiped my eyes, and just kept moving.

Musical Vacation Memories

Tags

hiking, music, scotland, songs, travel, west highland way

Anyone who ever sat with a tape deck trying to record a song off the radio understands the power of the perfect song. Jay and I have several “vacation” songs that never fail to make us smile. We crank up the volume and remember the events surrounding us hearing the song, but more importantly the context of the particular vacation where we heard the song.

Vantage Points of the West Highland Way

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bag pipes, hiking, pain, scotland, story, storytelling, west highland way

I’m already starting to forget.

Thanks to Margaret Feinberg’s Wonderstruck: Awaken to the Nearness of God, I learned about the West Highland Way. I revisited the book, and her testimony of experiencing God on the trail, just a few weeks before Jay and I tackled the trail ourselves.

Back – The Scottish Remix

Tags

adventures, free-writing, journaling, local flavor, quotes, scotland, writing

Me: No matter what the Five Minute Friday
prompt is, I’m gonna make it work for writing about my #Scotland trip

Prompt: BACK

Me:

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Preparing for Our Scotland Adventure

Tags

books, cozy mysteries, non-fiction, reading, scotland, travel

Fresh off of Camp McFradd’s hop across the pond – Scotland in general and the West Highland Way specifically – I thought I’d share a bit of the homework that went into our journey.