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Archives for July 2014

Look Up

Written by: Amanda // Category: New Zealand

Sometimes the best photo opportunities come when you're least expecting it. Yesterday Derik and I spontaneously decided to head down south and explore The Catlins, an area renowned for it's beauty. The day ended up taking a turn for the worse as the storm clouds came in and the rain (thank goodness it was a light rain) wouldn't let up. Although we forgot our rain jackets back home, we were bound and determined to go see some of the rumored 'best views in the country.' We had so much fun tromping around despite the rain, we decided to stay in the area overnight and try our luck the next day. Sure enough, as the sun went down the sky cleared. Just as I was climbing into my nice, electrically warm, comfy bed for the night, Derik  burst ... Read More

New Zealand Bucket List

Written by: Amanda // Category: New Zealand

I've always want to have a physical, tangible bucket list to cross things off on, but have never actually gotten around to making one. My husband and I have our 'top ten places in the world to visit' lists memorized, but I'm wanting something fun,  semi-easy to accomplish, and that's documentable on this blog. Cue the New Zealand Bucket List! A few of these things we've already accomplished during our road-trip (as you'll notice they are crossed out), but I still wanted to note them just because they were things I wanted to do before we moved here. NEW ZEALAND BUCKET LIST (2014-2015) Glow Worm Caves Zorbing Cathedral Cove Milford Sound Doubtful Sound Gold panning in Otago Dog sledding in Wanaka Learn to Snowboard (without killing ... Read More

Travel Insurance with a Major Health Issue

Written by: Amanda // Category: Sp

Getting travel insurance is an issue almost all travelers go back and forth on. Derik and I hadn't ever thought about purchasing any until the beginning of this year when we went on our long trip in January-February. I couldn't be happier that we made that decision, especially since I had to take a trip to Urgent Care within our first week in Hawaii. I will be discussing more on our travel health insurance later next month. But what about travel insurance if you have a major health issue? To be honest I had no clue until a lovely company contacted me about doing a post on it. I think it's important to say informed on information like what is shared below, because you never know what will happen down the road; you may need to know this ... Read More

10 Little Towns In Europe You NEED To Visit

Written by: Amanda // Category: Guest Post

There are certain bloggers that come out of nowhere and truly make a name for themselves. Margo from Guten Blog Ya'll is one of these bloggers. I don't know how, but I hadn't stumbled upon her blog until she began sponsoring me this month. I can't get enough! Not only does she share amazing photographs (something I tend to zone in on), but her posts are well-written, informative, and fun. You'll be hearing more of Margo later this week when her sponsor spotlight rolls out, but for now, enjoy her fantastic post: 10 Little Towns In Europe You Need To Visit! -------------------------------------------------------- Hi guys, I'm Margo from Guten Blog Y'all. I currently live in Germany and after snuggling with my sweet Schnoodle, Stuart, ... Read More

Pros and Cons of Living in New Zealand (30 day edition)

Written by: Amanda // Category: New Zealand

We've officially been in New Zealand for over a month. The time has flown by, and we're bracing ourselves for the fact that we only have eleven months left now on our current visa. Yes, it seems like a lot, but if the months keep flying by like this last one has, it'll be over before we know it. In true expat form, it's time for a Pros and Cons list.  I only ended up doing one list while I was in Korea, and I wish I had written more. Casey from We Took The Road Less Traveled on the other hand, is an expert at these. I'm determined to be better with my Pros and Cons, and I'm starting things off with thoughts on our first 30 days here. PRO: THE LANDSCAPE If you haven't noticed from my over-enthusiasm for posting Instagram pictures ... Read More

The Suitcase Designs (New Look + Premades!!)

Written by: Amanda // Category: Blog Design

I don't usually intermingle my web/blog design business with my personal blog, just because the two have nothing to do with each other. However, my design business has been my primary form of work for a few months since we began wrapping things up in Korea and moving here to New Zealand. Also, I've noticed I have quite a few new readers, so maybe it's time to introduce my business again? So here's a brief introduction: I started The Suitcase Designs the beginning of last year as a fun hobby and as a creative outlet. Throughout the year my business has grown and I've incorporated Wordpress.org, Wordpress.com, and Blogger designs, transfers, referral programs, and finally premades into my business plan. I've had an absolute blast ... Read More

6 of the best tropical destinations in Asia

Written by: Amanda // Category: Travel

Derik and I had a thing for taking tropical vacations while we were living and working in Korea. Although there were plenty of other places to visit that weren't all sand, sun, and cocktails, we rather enjoyed resting on the beach and spending a crazy amount of time in the water. A few weeks ago one of my lovely readers requested I write a post about our favorite beach destinations in Asia, so thank her for this post idea! Although there are countless other hidden tropical gems we never had the opportunity to visit, I'm so glad we were able to experience these six beautiful places! 1. Monkey Beach, Thailand: Not only is it quite the adventure to get to this little secluded beach, but once you get there the experience is just ... Read More

Why New Zealand?

Written by: Amanda // Category: New Zealand

I feel like I'm having to dust off the old cobwebs that have collected on this blog as well as my design site.  I've been MIA for a while as Derik and I have been galavanting around New Zealand for a little less than a month. It's been a whirlwind adventure, and a bit of a refresher before we buckle down and make New Zealand our home for the next year. Thanks for sticking with me and my lack of...ehem...presence around these parts lately. I did such a great job in January and February with prescheduling 20+ posts for you all to make you think I was still around, and then this time I just dropped the ball. Truth of it is, the break was really nice. I missed seriously blogging and really getting into writing my posts, but during our trip I ... Read More

Not Captured on Camera

Written by: Amanda // Category: hawaii, United States

Wouldn’t it just figure that one of the most amazing and unforgettable experiences of our lives happens when we don’t have our camera? But isn’t that just how it works? It’s either your battery dies, your space is used up, or you forget the camera all together. I swear it’s some sort of karma which is forcing you to use your photographic memory and really absorb the ‘unforgettable experience’ without you sitting there fiddling with gadgets and missing the opportunity to envelop yourself in that moment completely. Our last day on the Big Island, Hawaii proved to be one of these experiences. We went snorkeling in Honaunau Bay, which we found out after talking to the locals, that this was the snorkeling gem of the island. I’m so mad at ... Read More

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Currently on Instagram

Our adventures may be few and far between nowadays Our adventures may be few and far between nowadays, but the ones we get to take are oh so sweet. 

My daughters are now 2.5 years and 6 months old. Life never slows down, but only gets faster with each day we’re blessed to live. Social media may not be a part of my life how it used to be, and instead I’m working on living life intentionally each day as we raise our girls during these crazy times. 💕
2020 has been a year has it not? As much as I love 2020 has been a year has it not? As much as I love social media, I found myself taking a break as the things we were all going through made social media so insignificant to me. 

In January/February I had a miscarriage. It was a horrible way to start the year, and little did I know it was just the beginning of it all. 

Even with the loss, hardship of moving back to the US in the middle of a global pandemic, and navigating our new lives here, we were given many blessings. The greatest of those was finding out I was pregnant again in March.

It’s a scary time to be pregnant right now, especially after a miscarriage, because doctors visits are very minimal. Also, Derik was never able to come to a single visit. I was terrified something would happen and I would be told bad news and have to face that alone. But God was gracious to us. 

We kept our special little secret to ourselves, and it wasn’t until our third trimester before we told immediate family and close friends. My pregnancy was very private for me, and a special time to bond closely with the babe growing inside me.

Our sweet little girl arrived November 30, and yes I had to deliver with a mask on, but she is perfect and I truly feel our family is complete. 💕🌈
 
“When a rainbow appears, it doesn’t mean the storm never happened or that we are not still dealing with its aftermath. It means something beautiful and full of light has appeared in the midst of the darkness and clouds. Storm clouds may still hover but the rainbow provides a counterbalance of color, energy, and hope.”
I am in love. As I’m sure every other plant/mons I am in love. As I’m sure every other plant/monstera collector is when you get to behold such a beauty in real life. If there were ever #plantgoals, this is it. 

Since moving from Germany, it has been a long and slow process getting our life back to normal. All of our belongings have yet to arrive so we’ve literally been camping in our house on an air bed and camping chairs for two months. 😂 All that to say, having to start my plant collection over again here stateside has been so much fun! I will miss the plant prices if Germany, but the selection here blows my mind. Anyone else obsessed? We’ve lived here for almost 8 weeks now and I already have 11 plants 😂😬😬😬. I don’t have a bed or a couch, but by golly I have greenery. 😂🤦🏼‍♀️🌱
Oh my heart. I’ve been trying to figure out the Oh my heart.

I’ve been trying to figure out the words to say about our time in Germany, but my fingers can’t seem to type out how to express my love, gratefulness, thankfulness, sadness, and heartbreak I feel about leaving. Every country we’ve lived in has taught us something and has given us so many beautiful memories, as well as opened our eyes a little more to different cultures and ways of living.

But Germany was special. The first time we stepped foot into Germany was in 2015, and we loved it so much we stayed the extent of our travel visa (3 months). I was able to visit again in 2016, and then we officially packed everything and moved in 2017. Germany has always had my heart: the people, the festivals, the food, wine and beer, the immaculate home landscaping, and even all the rules that every resident is just expected to follow to a tee (like recycling every tiny scrap of trash). Our family grew from two to three while in Germany. Bringing our daughter into the world, and raising her for a year and a half in a different culture, will be one of the most beautiful memories of my life.

Our move was impacted by the COVID pandemic, and it took three long months of delays, red tape, and countless phone calls to get everything together so we could actually get on a plane and have our stuff packed and shipped to our new home. 
I am breathing a sigh of relief to know all the stress of everything is over and our new adventure can begin. I am mourning the loss of leaving Germany. I am in a weird transition right now trying to grasp it all, but here we are jumping into new things head first! We are back in the US for a while, in the beautiful state of Tennessee, and look forward to many new memories, travels, friends, and being able to spend time with family! 
Photos from my sweet and talented friend @juliejayphotos
I feel like I failed hard this year at Christmas m I feel like I failed hard this year at Christmas markets. We went to a total of ONE market, which is exactly 19 less than I told myself I would go to this year to make up for not going to any the year before 🤦🏼‍♀️(I was 40 weeks pregnant and not feeling crowds). I will say, it was a great one and the weather was so nice, we stayed out until the market shut down.

If there’s one thing I will miss most about Germany when it is our time to move, will be the sheer enthusiasm this country has for Christmas, and I’m not talking about consumerism. Food, laughter, friends, family, music, dancing: celebration. Also, Germany shuts down for not only one day, but THREE. Stores are closed, mail is not delivered, people aren’t out and about. Everyone is home enjoying time with family, and I love it. However, I may have gone into full blown panic mode Christmas Eve when I realized I had a total of 8 diapers to get us through until the 27th. 👀
We spent Thanksgiving back in North America: Whist We spent Thanksgiving back in North America: Whistler, Canada! A 10 hour flight from Germany , and I can’t say this one was better than the one we took over the summer on our trip to Alaska, but we survived! Entertaining a 11 month old for that long is much harder than a 6 month old, especially when they aren’t into sleeping on the plane AT ALL. 🤪

Whistler was beautiful despite the lack of snow, and we enjoyed our time with family, the delicious food, and as much sightseeing as one could do with a jet-lagged baby. 
This was actually my first trip to Canada ever, (unless you want to count the move my parents took up to Alaska from Arkansas when I was two. 😂🤷‍♀️ ) and I loved it! We would really like to take a big Canadian road trip someday and explore more of the country! 😍😍🇨🇦
Being a mama may mean I don’t always have time t Being a mama may mean I don’t always have time to put myself together, but I would rather spend the extra moments making special memories with our daughter that she can cherish forever. I doubt that she will look at this picture and see a tired, messy haired mama that’s barely had time to wash her face nevermind carefully apply makeup, but am hoping she will see a mama that never tires of carrying and cuddling her, or sharing new experiences with her. 💕
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