Two Places I've Traveled... {thursday thoughts}

Man, over two years ago I started a list of ten posts I wanted to write over the next ten weeks. Well. It's been like, 104+ weeks since then and I still have two of those posts to finish. This is one of them. Here are the first eight of them:
ten nine eight seven six five four three

I haven't traveled extensively in my life but I have explored some really awesome places in the last 30 years of my life. Two stick out especially in my mind because they're the two trips I left the country.

01. Canada
I lived with my aunt and uncle for a couple years and made so many great memories with them & my cousins. We took a trip that included a stop in Canada and it was the first time I ever left the United States. I was 17 years old at the time which is old enough to soak so much of it in but just young and inexperienced enough to not realize the depth of what a cool and unique experience this was. We saw Niagara Falls - on the 4th of July! - and went to a super amazing amusement park in/near Ontario or Toronto called Canada's Wonderland. That was easily one of the best parts of the trip! I remember standing in line for a ride and there was music videos playing on TVs above us and an Ingram Hill song started playing and I could NOT believe what I was hearing... a local Memphis band playing IN CANADA?! What are the odds?!

We went camping in several different states and Canada and I did and saw so many things I'd never experienced before. I'm the type of person who would happily go to Walt Disney World every single family trip but traveling to Canada and having such a perfect, funny, amazing time really made me think twice. There is something special about traveling to new places and having new experiences.

I remember I helped cook pancakes one morning and my uncle made fun of me because they were just about as thick as hamburger patties! This is also the trip my aunt and uncle talked to me about the importance of just being and living in the moment. They talked about how they bring their cell phones on vacations for safety but they turn them off and choose not to use them so that they can be present exactly where they are. This was before the smart phones and social media we experience today but it the need to observe this on your vacations applies now more than ever.

The best part of the entire trip was spending that time with my family.

02. Mexico
The only other time I've left the good ole USA is when I went to Mexico for another family vacation! This time it was with my husband, cousins, sisters, mom, aunts, uncles, & grandparents on my mother's side of the family to celebrate our grandparents anniversary! We stayed at the Ocean Coral Turquesa Resort & I was 23 years old and about 9-10 weeks pregnant with Presley in the thick of the first trimester. For me, the first trimester (especially when pregnant with my two girls) was full of nausea. So, I think I would have enjoyed the trip a whole lot more if I hadn't felt sick 80% of the time. BUT! There were some awesome memories made on this trip and I'm so incredibly grateful to have had that time with so much of my family!!! Absolute favorite memory was playing beach volleyball with my cousins, sisters, & our significant others. It was hilarious and so much fun! We stayed at a beautiful resort with beautiful pools but when I look back all I remember is feeling so sick the majority of the time. Not to mention I couldn't get drinks with everyone else!!!

My takeaway from the Mexico trip was different. I felt like I didn't want to leave the country anytime in the near future... especially not when there were so many beautiful, amazing places to see within the United States. (I think that had to do with the fact that we couldn't drink the water there and being a little scared of local crime.) But at this point I really wouldn't mind doing something like that again! The sun, the beach, the water.... sounds like a dream!!!

Things About Me.

I'm trying to write 30 different posts about myself for my kids. This one marks the third one that I've completed. Baby steps.

List 20 random facts about yourself.

20. I feel like drinks are easier to taste and more enjoyable with less ice. Sweet tea, iced coffee, pop, water... all of it better a bit closer to room temperature. My husband is the exact opposite. He gets extra ice for his drinks and I want very little in mine.

19. I love planning our family vacations. So much. Especially the Disney ones. Which are very few and far between. BUT. I'm always making mental notes for our next one. I'd love to do it for a living someday for other families!

18. My Hogwarts house is Hufflepuff. My patronus is a wild boar. My Ilvermorny house is Thunderbird. Just in case you were wondering. (And yes, I'd love to hear yours! If you don't know them yet then I highly suggest you sign up at Pottermore.com and find out after taking a few short quizzes about yourself.)

17. It's pretty easy for me to be optimistic about things -- especially when it comes to starting new things. I've definitely got to work on the finishing all the things part...

16. On the other side of that same coin, I can be a pretty melancholy to downright dark and twisty person sometimes, too. Two things that don't quite seem cohesive (being both optimistic & melancholy) but somehow they coexist just perfectly to make me, me. In the dark and twisty moments I am lucky to have some great and strong and wonderful people in my corner to help put things into proper perspective.

15. I don't really believe in coincidence. I really do think things happen for a reason. And one particular thing I feel so strongly about that it makes me choked up is that I know that the timing of my dad leaving my life and my husband entering into my life is so much more than mere coincidence.

14. I connect strongly through music. Whenever a significant moment in life takes place you can guarantee I've put a playlist together for it. When I watch a TV show or movie and I hear a song that they placed perfectly to evoke emotion I have to find that song right away.

13. If it were up to me, I think I'd love a ton of kids. There is something so magical and so holy about giving birth. Something so wonderful about creating life and getting to know and raise these kids. It's nice to have a husband who keeps me in check... we certainly can't afford a bunch of kids and I don't know if I have the patience or sanity required for any more kids. But, if it were up to me, I'd be barefoot and pregnant and at home raising them myself. THIS COMING FROM SOMEONE WHO IDENTIFIES AS A DEEPLY FEMINIST PERSON! I don't find those two things (motherhood & feminism) as mutually exclusive, either.

12. I'm a cradle Catholic. I've always loved being Catholic and was so fortunate to grow up going to a church that felt like home. Equally lucky to have found that in Illinois for the time we lived there. The last few years I felt disconnected from the Church and so glad to be back now. I've been helping my sister teach Sunday school this year and it's been a huge balm in my faith life. I really like our new church and look forward to the day it feels like home.

11. I love soundtracks. And more than anything else these days my favorite thing is to listen to the scores from movies or tv shows. I have so many favorite composers (Carter Burwell, John Williams, Hans Zimmer, Howard Shore, Danny Elfman, Alexandre Desplat, James Newton Howard, James Horner, Alan Silverstri...) and there is something so peaceful about listening to musical compositions with no words. The background music to my life is often "The Twilight Saga: New Moon (Film Score)" station or "Harry Potter And The Half-Blood Prince (Film Score)" station on Pandora at home.

10. If I had to pick my favorite Disney princess it would likely depend on my mood BUT. If I had to give one favorite it would be Ariel. For so many reasons. The entire movie is brilliant and the music is untouchable. Jodi Benson and Howard Ashman working together made real magic. And I love how brave and sure Ariel is.

09. I have a 2 year-old son and I'm still breastfeeding him. And he shows no signs that he's ready to give it up either. I nurse him first thing in the morning, right before he goes to bed, and occasionally once or twice throughout the day. There are times he asks for "milkies" and I'll tell him no. If it were up to him we'd still nurse much more often throughout the day. But to be honest: I'm getting a little burnt out. Or maybe just stuck in the wrong mindset about it: I'm a little tired of sharing my body. The plan I have in mind is to quit on his terms. I've never nursed a kid this long before so we'll see how it pans out.

08. My sisters have always been my confidants. I've always told them everything for as long as I can remember. I lean heavily upon them. When I'm upset or excited or really anything, they are the first people I want to talk to. When they hurt, I hurt. When we're not okay, I'm not okay. We haven't lived in the same city for some time now and I'll always feel a bit incomplete until we're all back together for good.

07. My teams: Chicago Cubs, Dallas Cowboys, and Memphis Grizzlies.

06. Trenta iced coffee with 3 pumps of caramel - no ice, no classic, no cream. That's my Starbucks order. I come home and add my own cream. And it'll last me a couple days. And I love it. The trenta size is giant and I swear it's the size that tastes the best with the right coffee to syrup ratio. I know. I'm a weirdo. My favorite barista works at night & knows my order so I frequent the same store around the same time of day a few times a week and it's something I just love.

05. I really want to have a vow renewal. Intimate with a focus on the vows and inclusion of our children. I feel like even though I was conscious of this at the time, weddings are still such a production. It's so easy for the focus of the day to slip. I don't have much to regret about how we celebrated our big day -- it was such a great, happy, wonderful, beautiful day -- but I often look back and wish it had been a bit more intimate. Not to mention, Tony and I are - in many ways - two completely changed people from that day seven & a half years ago. Our experiences (and especially becoming parents) has transformed us deeply and I'd like to honor who we are now. To acknowledge that change and come back together all over again. I think it's beautiful to promise ourselves to each other all over again and to be able to include our children this time.

04. I want to go on more adventures. The furthest I've been is to Riviera Maya, Mexico and Ontario, Canada. Both were awesome experiences. I'd love to explore the United States so much more than I have and would love to visit Belgium someday. Jerusalem would be another truly amazing place to visit.

03. I am a crier and I am a hugger. Shaking hands feels cold. Also I can not watch Moana or Coco without crying.

02. I am frugal pretty much to a fault.

01. I'll forever be sad that both Nsync and The Civil Wars disbanded.