Monday

We had such an amazing start to the week, a new friend showed up at the feeder! Gwyn noticed his orange head and suggested we call him OJ; how could I say no to her!? Then J sees the new hummingbird and suggested Cinnamon. So, I present to you- OJ Cinnamon. I spent the evening sitting out with my birds, trying to gain that trust. It was then I learned OJ Cinnamon is a bit of a bully. He did not like any of the other birds coming near the feeders and I had to raise my voice a few times to settle down now.

Dinner

Mexican Chicken

By: Linda’s Low Carb Menus & Recipes

This one is so easy and simple, and is always well-received! I left a portion of it cheese-less for Cal and served it in tortillas with shredded lettuce. So good!

Tuesday

We played a little guess the total, Target Edition!

I came in here looking for a few things including some basic tanks and tees and left shaking my head at Target’s selections these days. I am looking for something that is a little looser, maybe considered cropped (but doesn’t show the belly), and that I can just throw on with a pair of shorts. Doesn’t seem too hard, right?! WRONG. With a long torso, it’s all just too short, or just not the style I am looking for. If you have any thoughts on where to find this, I’d love to hear them!

But if you want to take a glass of wine to the bathtub, Target’s got ya covered. They do have my new favorite (thank you so much for the recommendations!) creamer, though, and tends to be in stock when I check there, so at least there’s that. 

We also had a few tears this morning when Franklin discovered his fish didn’t make it. He did find comfort in giving him a little burial in the backyard by his fort, though. He even made a little cross which I thought was pretty perfect.  A sweet friend suggested we plant flowers by his grave and Franklin was very excited to do this! Not really knowing what to expect with Dollar Store flower seeds, we threw some and planted some in the ground. Not sure if anything will bloom, but it made him happy. We ended the evening all together outside watching the hummingbirds come in and the deer eating in the yard, even Bruce was happily watching. It was truly one of my favorite evenings we’ve had in a long while.

The real part that got me, though, was watching these two stay outside a little longer. They’ve really been bonding lately and catching this sweet moment is something that I think will be ingrained pretty deep in my heart. Actually, in all of ours. While I wish I could relate to having a relationship like this with my dad, it’s something I cannot, but it just makes me all the more grateful that they have it.

Wednesday

I shared how our mornings used to look a lot different. They were a big struggle for one of our kids, and it resulted in all of us being frustrated.  J decided to take over and woke our soon-to-be teen up at 6 am the next morning. She obviously wasn’t thrilled about this but he did everything with her that morning; he helped make her bed and do her chore (the dishes), they took Bruce on a walk together, and came home and made breakfast for everyone. It is now a routine that has stuck with them. They do it every morning, and Gwyn even asked J to continue their morning walk on a Sunday when she could have slept in.  They both cherish this time so much and her demeanor in the morning is now so pleasant. I accompanied them on their walk one time but I wanted to keep it something special between the two of them. What I would have given to have something like this.

We also had a fun night out with friends and went to play some Trivia. I admit, I am not a big asset to the team when it comes to trivia, but I did get a few. One of the categories was “pirates.” Pirates?! I didn’t get a single one.  Good thing I have such smart friends because we ended up winning the whole thing! The guy behind us was the MC, and the girl behind him is… hiding?! From us?

Thursday

I started off the morning at Bible Study where we continued our reading in Unoffendable. Part of the book discusses a woman who was assaulted by her gymnastics coach when she was a teenager and how she chose to ultimately forgive him.

She states, “I trust in God’s justice and release anger and a desire for personal vengeance. It does not mean that I minimize or mitigate or excuse what he has done. It does not mean that I pursue justice on earth any less zealously. It simply means that I release personal vengeance against him, and I trust God’s justice, whether he chooses to mete that out purely, eternally, or both in heaven and on earth.”

As a group, we talked about what an extremely difficult, yet commendable, thing that is to do. And how God is the one who has the final say and how maybe knowing that can help heal and allow those who have been so wronged to let go of that anger and pain.

I shared with my group how something (somewhat) similar happened to me when I was sixteen. I was lucky enough to be able to get control of the situation(s) before things ended up very badly, but this book has made me think about my own situations in life where I have been wronged and how harboring that anger and resentment will only be a disservice to myself. (I wrote about this story a while back, and you can read that here if unsure what I am referring to.)

I also had a Shan with a Plan day! We have an antique mail sorter that I use to store all of our art/craft supplies and it needed a little organizational help. I took everything out, sorted it all, consolidated glue bottles, crayons, and markers, and put everything nicely back into its place.  I used chalk markers on the labels to make everything easily visible. I even have empty space now! I will say, my absolute favorite thing about the cabinet is that there are a few names still written on the slots; what a beautiful piece of history.

Dinner:

Texas Cowboy Stew

By: 100k recipes

I love how many veggies are packed into this meal and out of the huge pot that it made there was very little leftovers. Everyone loved it.

Friday

I have been eating this for years and I’m not sure that I’ve ever shared it. It is the perfect blend of protein, healthy fats, and carbs. It’s delicious and it fills me up!  I truly look forward to it, even after all of this time. You use plain Greek yogurt with honey drizzled on top, sliced apples (I dip them into the yogurt), nut butter of your choice and I use frozen pomegranate seeds (you could use any fruit you like) on top of the yogurt as well.

Random Thoughts:

I’ve learned that I am a cryer in church. Whether it’s the music, the message, or something else, I more often than not cry at some point while there.

Every week during the closing song, the pastor invites anyone who would like to go to the corner of the room where people are standing, waiting to pray if they feel like they’d like someone to pray with or over them. I’m not usually sitting where I might notice those who walk to this area, but today we were sitting right there where most would need to walk by us to get there. I watched a mom, about my age, walk to this corner with her son who was maybe around seven years old. And I couldn’t help but watch. I watched this mom and this little boy bow their heads. I watched as the people praying put their hands over this boy. I watched this unbelievably beautiful prayer circle of people who most likely have never met, come together as one. And I cried.

The mom and son then came and stood right next to me while the song finished. And I couldn’t help but tell her, through tear-filled eyes, that I noticed the two of them and what a beautiful thing I thought it was. She thanked me, got a little teary herself, and then told me her son asked to be prayed over. Annnnnnd then I started crying even harder and told her just how wonderful that was.

We can learn SO MUCH from our youth. Walking up to be prayed over is something that makes me feel nervous, yet there was a young child asking to do just that. What an inspiration.

***

Gwyn’s 13th birthday is this coming week and I just canNOT believe we are about to have a teenager. We will also be sharing a big surprise with our girl this week, as well as celebrating her special day with her friends over the weekend. I can’t WAIT!

I know there are so many things you could be reading on the internet and you have chosen to be here. Your presence and time mean so very much to me and I am just incredibly grateful you continue to be here with me each week. Thank you.

<3 Shannon

The post Re-Living with Lady appeared first on Living with Lady.

So this year we have…

Katniss Everdeen and Effie Trinket

An old man and his sweet lady

And King Kong and his giant banana

Below you will find the sources for everything, other than what I have listed at the very end.

Katniss- the bow and arrow we picked up at the Halloween store, but they can be found online

Old man- We found his entire outfit except for the mask at the thrift store.

As always, thank you for stopping by!

<3 Shannon

The post Our Halloween Costumes 2021 + Sources appeared first on Living with Lady.

Food

Loveless Cafe– We didn’t make it here but it came up multiple times as a recommendation.

5 Daughter’s Bakery– Very yummy cronuts (croissant donuts). Many people told me they have dreams about these.

Martin’s BBQ– A very popular spot. The brisket is amazing and we really enjoyed the cheddar sausages, too.

Hattie B’s Hot Chicken– My husband said, 10/10. I am a wimp when it comes to spicy foods, and you do have the choice to lessen the spice, but I think that is what “makes it.”

The Pharmacy– Such yummy, unique burgers with a pretty outside dining area. We both really enjoyed it here.

Frothy Monkey Coffee Shop– We didn’t eat here, though the food looked good. I did crave their sugar-free vanilla lattes.

Acme Feed and Seed– We never made it here but another popular spot.

Ladybird Taco– A popular spot in the 12 South area that we didn’t get to.

Peg Leg Porker– This spot was a HIT! Great pulled pork and as my husband said, “These are the best baked beans I have ever had in my life.” The only thing missing for us is that they don’t do brisket, which we both love.

Pancake Pantry– If you LOVE pancakes, then this is the spot for you. TONS of gourmet pancake options.

Pucketts– This spot came up over and over as a must-try, and we can see why, though I don’t think we ordered the right things. I was trying to eat on the healthier side during this breakfast, but we saw plates and plates of the chicken and apple waffles being taken out, and that appears to be where it’s at.

Ruby’s Sunshine- Across the street from Pancake Pantry is this little gem, and we both really enjoyed it! They put a fun spin on their dishes and have healthier options, too, if looking to take a break from the heavy dishes.

Edlys– One of our top BBQ spots because they do a little bit of it all, and this is where we tried grits for the first time and we both really enjoyed them. Good BBQ and great sides.

Good Country Southern Restaurants off the beaten path (as recommended by my friend, though we didn’t get to)

• Barbara’s Home Cookin’ (right off Hillsboro Road in Franklin)
• Arnold’s Country Kitchen (downtown Nashville)

Franklin

• Pucketts (Also a location here)
• Biscuit Love- we didn’t make it here, but heard about it over and over)

Bars

Note- Due to my anxiety, we didn’t spend much time downtown as the crowds were just a little too much for me. It was very busy, even during the daytime mid-week, so we spent most of our time in the surrounding areas.

Honky Tonks-

Ole Reds- It was closed for private events when we were downtown, seemed pretty popular

The Stage- We popped in here, and could see how it would be a good spot. It was pretty slow during our visit.

Wild Horse Saloon- We never made it here, but they have line-dancing lessons over the weekend that sound fun.

Robert’s Western World- Heard of its popularity, but never made it in.

Tootsies Orchid Lounge- This felt very true Nashville honky-tonk bar-ish (not that I really know!)

Rooftop bars

White Limozeen- Dolly Parton’s bar- a truly great girl’s-night spot.

L27- A nice rooftop bar with beautiful views

Activities

Bluebird Cafe- We LOVED this. It’s an intimate setting, so you MUST get in line early as they ony have a limited number of seats. To be safe, I’d say 2 hours before showtime. We were there 1.5 hours before and were okay, but it also was a Monday night.

The Listening Room- This is a bigger venue than the Bluebird, but a similar idea. Four artists up on stage sharing their music. It’s only $5 for a ticket, but then it’s a minimum of $15 per person in food/drinks, which we had no problem meeting.

Grand Ole Opry- Eight performers, from up-and-comers to bigger names. We saw Trace Adkins during our show and it was a great evening. Probably one of the highlights of the trip.

Opryland Hotel- A BEAUTIFUL hotel to walk through and enjoy. There are so many HUGE plants to look at and even a large waterfall/stream running through the main area.

Country Music Hall of Fame – Recommended multiple times but we never made it in.

Jack Daniel’s Distillery- This was a great tour! Very interesting and the grounds are beautiful. I don’t like whiskey at all and enjoyed it.

Line Dancing at the Wild Horse Saloon- Held over the weekends, but we left town before.

Arrington Vineyards– owned by Kix Brooks of Brooks and Dunn. “Beautiful spot to grab some snacks and sit on the grass and enjoy live music/ wine and the true country. I loved going there.”

Drive to Franklin/Leiper’s Fork– This may have been one of my favorite days. The drive out to these two little towns is just gorgeous and it felt nice to get a little break from the downtown crowds. My friend suggested we take the backroads for the scenic route, and I am so glad we went this way. She said, “take 21st Ave. up to Hillsboro Road in the Green Hills Area ( look up the Hills Mall to get directions) and then keep driving on Hillsboro Road” it’ll take you right to Franklin/Leiper’s Fork.

The Factory at Franklin – There is a Jeni’s Ice cream in here (which is very popular over here), as well as a number of other cute little shops and eateries.

The Carnton Plantation- Tons of history about times during the Civil War, we never made it but was recommended over and over for the history buffs, or for those just wanting to learn more.

Shopping

Draper and James- Reese Witherspoon’s store

Serendipity– Cute little boutique in the 12 South shopping area

White Mercantile- Located at the end of the street in the 12 South area, great little spot for gifts.

Uncommon James- Kristin Cavallari’s Store

Molly Green- A cute family-owned boutique with the friendliest staff near Pancake Pantry.

Downtown Franklin- The shopping on this street is great. Tons of little stores with the friendliest people.

Walton’s- This is in downtown Franklin and is a very quaint jewelry store that my friend recommended, and it’s where her husband bought her wedding ring from! We stopped in and it did feel like a special little spot!

Antiques in Leiper’s Fork– There is the most beautiful little sitting area with a gazebo behind Tennessee Turquoise Co (owned by Chris Stapleton’s wife) and you can grab a drink at one of the spots nearby and enjoy. We also did a challenge back here and it will always be a special little spot I remember!

Hotel

We stayed at a hotel downtown called the Moxy, but we wouldn’t stay there again, solely based on the location. Again, as soon as you walked outside you were blasted with the music from all of the bars, and this just wasn’t our scene. We’d stay somewhere closer to the 12 South area, or maybe even at the Opryland Hotel, which also has a new indoor/outdoor waterpark.

I hope this list is useful to you if visiting Nashville for the first time!

As always, thank you for stopping by!

<3 Shannon

The post Our Top Nashville (and Surrounding Area) Favorites appeared first on Living with Lady.

We spent years saving up for and envisioning our new kitchen, and one of the main things we wanted was an open concept. The main floor was cut up with separate rooms for cooking and dining and with a wall separating the kitchen from the living room, the person cooking was always a little secluded. Our goal was to make it more inviting and family-oriented, somewhere all of us could be together when cooking, dining, and just living! Plus, I admit I was a little excited to change out the cabinets that came with our home that just weren’t my style.

So, we knocked out the wall separating our family room from the kitchen and completely relocated the kitchen to the back wall, thus opening the room up completely.

Before

(Our kitchen was on the other side of this wall)

After

(The load-bearing walls and pillars were supported with beams)

As mentioned above, we had been saving for quite some time for this remodel, but we still needed to save where possible to make it all happen. The cabinetry was one of the biggest costs of the whole remodel when we received the breakdown of our initial budget, so we started looking at other options that would hopefully still give us the look we were going for a fraction of the cost.

When my in-laws remodeled their home they did so with Ikea cabinets and had nothing but wonderful things to say about them and this is what first piqued our interest. I then had a couple of friends share they also had Ikea cabinets but swapped the Ikea fronts for a more custom look with Semihandmade fronts. I called one of my friends, picked her brain, and she gave me a video tour of her kitchen, and my husband and I watched in awe. This is exactly what we were looking for and would save us THOUSANDS.

Semihandmade specializes in making custom door fronts for Ikea cabinets. They solely work with Ikea so they have perfected the process down to a tee to make it as easy as possible. We were thoroughly impressed with how smoothly the process went and how they have figured out every last detail.

The Process: Designing the Kitchen with Ikea

–The first thing you want to do is schedule an appointment with Ikea in their Kitchen Planning department. Since we don’t live near an Ikea, we did all of our appointments virtually by screen-sharing and it was so nice to be able to do this from the comforts of our own home. The best part, it’s free! We started by giving Joshua, our planner, all of the measurements of our spaces so that he could input them into the program. This is something you want to be sure of, and if nervous and near an Ikea, you can pay $99 for someone from Ikea to come to your home and do the measuring for you. There is some flexibility as you can add filler pieces where necessary, but the fewer, the better! Next, they’ll input the measurements for all of your appliances so that they know exactly how much room they have to work with. Then, the fun part!

– Ikea has so many different options from standard doors to drawers of all sizes to extremely tall cabinets with pull-out drawers, to skinny spice drawers, and so on. So, the next part is choosing exactly what you want while your planner inputs each option into the program for you so you can see exactly how it is going to look. They can even show you exactly how it opens and what is inside if you choose a more intricate design! You are also able to play with the design yourself, but having someone who knows the program and every item Ikea offers right there at your fingertips (again, for free) is such a nice service. Our bases are from the Sektion line and someone had asked if I noticed an off-gassing odor when we opened them, and no, we didn’t.

Below is the design of the kitchen before I changed the back wall to all drawers. THE most common piece of advice I received was to have more drawers than cabinets, and we are so glad we listened! So, instead of the cabinets in the back, we have a corner cabinet on the left, then two 30″ drawers, then three 24″ drawers next to the stove, and the same design is mirrored on the right side of the stove.

In the pantry, we essentially have this exact layout, except last minute we decided to add a sink below the window, which also gave us room on either side of the sink for two skinny cabinets. And because Semihandmade can make a front to any specification, it was doable!

– Once happy with your design, the next step is to order your Ikea cabinets WITHOUT THE FRONTS. I repeat, make sure you order the bases without the fronts.  We ended up scheduling three appointments with Ikea before submitting our order. In the first appointment, we designed the kitchen, the second appointment the pantry, and the third we made any necessary tweaks and finalizations. Ikea is very familiar with Semihandmade, so we just asked our planner, Joshua, to take the fronts off of our order for us, and he did! You will then receive a PDF file of your entire order; save this! You will need it. 

-You can either have your kitchen delivered or if you need it sooner, you can pick it up in-store. While we don’t have an Ikea in our city, we do have one near us in Seattle and in Portland, and to ensure we would have everything on time (since everything is backed up these days) we decided to pick our order up. So, my husband drove there with our order sheet, rented a Uhaul, loaded it up, and drove back! It was so wild to see our kitchen in the back of a Uhaul!

The Process: Ordering the Semihandmade Fronts

Once you have your order placed with Ikea, you will then get in contact with Semihandmade to place your order for the fronts. They have SO many different styles, colors, and designs to choose from that you could really create just about any look. But looking back at all of my Pinterest boards, the most common look I had pinned was a combination of white and wood, so that is exactly what we went with. We chose the Supermatte White Shaker and Cove finish for our kitchen. If unsure how they will look in person, you can also order samples on their website.

Once you know exactly what you want, you will forward the PDF list you were given from Ikea to Semihandmade and they will make the fronts to fit your design.  It takes about 3-4 weeks for the order to be complete, and then about another week for them to ship. So, plan accordingly!

The fronts will arrive on a pallet and are packaged extremely well to ensure their safety.

Assembling the Boxes

Because we were having cabinets in our kitchen and pantry, we had a LOT of boxes and drawers to put together. To make it more manageable, my husband put them together in groups. The first few hours he put together the majority of the kitchen bases. Another day he spent a few hours on all of the pantry ones. Another day he worked on the drawers. It was a lot of work, but the savings were just so worth it. He used little pieces of painter’s tape to label each one so that each base was easy to identify come time to install. And once he put together a few, he got the hang of it and they went together faster. To give you an idea, one standard 30″ cabinet base took about 8 minutes to put together.

Install

We had our contractors install the cabinets to ensure everything fits as it should, and it was pretty straight-forward. They marked where each cabinet would go on the floor and on the walls and in they went! If working with a contractor, I would recommend having them help on this process as everything must be set right so that the countertops can then be placed correctly. Since sharing our journey with going this route I have heard from SEVERAL people who have done it themselves without a problem, but it was just nice for us with everything else going on to just have this portion done.

For the island, we used six cabinets (three 30″ on each side) so that we could maximize storage space. And because we wanted the sides of the island to match the fronts, we ordered extra panels that our finish carpenter could use to finish off the island.

Once the cabinets were installed and the island was finished, it was time to put the Semihandmade fronts on. Because these come labeled and pre-drilled, they went on so easily.

It still doesn’t quite feel real, that this kitchen is actually something that we get to keep and that this is our home. Going the Ikea/Semihandmade route saved us several ( I mean SEVERAL) thousand dollars and allowed us to get all of the features we were looking for. The amount of storage we have in this kitchen and pantry is absolutely incredible and the numerous options that Ikea offers to help organize the space make everything just so nice.

Hidden drawers, yes please! These not only help you make use of every inch of that drawer, but they help keep like-items together without being cluttered.

Another feature I appreciate so much is that the shelves are all adjustable so that you can customize them to fit your exact needs (not all of our cabinets were in our old kitchen)! And one of my very favorite features is that you can still choose a cabinet door style, but also have the convenience of a pull-out drawer so that you aren’t digging in the back of a cupboard into the unknown abyss.

The same thing goes for the corner units! They have a few options to choose from for corner cabinets and having the option for them to pull out like this just seemed so brilliant.

We designed our pantry to not only function to help us organize and store our kitchen essentials and food, but to also act as a utility closet; somewhere to store all of the things we didn’t have a good place for like batteries, toilet paper, etc. This has been SUCH a nice feature not only because it is extremely useful for us, but because it just looks so nice coinciding with the wall on the other side surrounding the fridge.

We made sure to include an outlet in one of the tall cabinets for our vacuum, and this is where that, the broom, and the mop are stored.

In the next set of cabinets we have paper towels, Clorox wipes, toilet paper, command strips/hooks, air fresheners, light bulbs, sewing kit, cleaning towels, beach towels, batteries/flashlights, paper goods, a “random” drawer, extra coffee mugs, our table linens, extra trash bags/Ziplocks/, spare grocery bags, and I am sure I snuck in a few extra random things, too! Finally, all these things have a home!

We are SO in love with our kitchen and still can’t quite grasp that it’s here to stay. I just LOVE how easy Ikea and Semihandmade have made it in designing, ordering, and obtaining our dream kitchen. Everything is so easy to clean (wipe down with a damp cloth) and just looks completely custom. We now have so much storage that we have a few empty drawers and that is something I am NOT complaining about!  We would not have been able to achieve the design we were after if we didn’t go this route and we are just so pleased with how it all turned out. This is the kitchen of our dreams!

As always, thank you for stopping by!

<3 Shannon

The post How We Designed Our Kitchen With Ikea Cabinets And Semihandmade Fronts appeared first on Living with Lady.

As part of our 25 Days of Kindness, we decided to do this for our delivery people and since I just finished making up the sign we will leave alongside the treats, I thought I would share if anyone else would like to do the same. (Click the link below to print!)

Delivery Drivers

As always, thank you for stopping by!

<3 Shannon

The post To Our Delivery Drivers appeared first on Living with Lady.

25 Days of Kindness

Let’s all Be The One this holiday season and spread joy!

<3 Shannon

P.S.- You can go HERE for our Delivery Drivers treat sign!

The post 25 Days of Kindness Advent Calendar appeared first on Living with Lady.

Today I am sharing the third part of the anniversary trip we took this summer, which was in Positano! (My apologies for taking so long to get these posts up; we took SO many pictures on this trip so it took a while to get through and edit them all!)

We started out in Venice, then went on to Rome, and finished in Positano and I have got to say, if you love being by the water, this is the right move.

I knew the first two cities we visited would include a lot of walking and sight-seeing and wanted to finish the trip at a slower pace, soaking in the sun and water.

Positano is a little town built on a cliffside on the Amalfi coast and it is as picturesque in person as it is in the photos. But, being on a cliffside means there are a lot of stairs and hills to navigate around, so if getting around is difficult for you or anyone you are with, this might not be the right stop for you.

We stayed at the Hotel Miramare and to us it was the perfect location. It wasn’t too high up on the cliffside that it was a pain getting to, yet was high enough to give us an incredible view. A family we met while on our trip was staying much higher on the cliff in an Air BnB and it took them so long to go up and down that they just packed what they needed for the whole day and didn’t go back until the evening. At the Miramare, it only took 5 minutes to walk down to the beach.

I also cannot stress enough how friendly and helpful the staff were at this hotel. We were greeted with the biggest hugs and truly were made to feel like family.

The room we stayed in was really spacious, had a NICE air conditioning unit that kept the room cold (which in August was a must for us) and the view was perfection.

The first thing we did once getting settled was to go down to the beach and to check out the little town. Again, the VIEW!

Something that was really nice was that our hotel gave us a little bag and towels to take down to the beach with us which was so appreciated!  Otherwise, we would have had to either bring our own towels from home, bring our bath towels, or buy some once there. So this was a nice surprise! If you look closely once on the beach, you can find little nuggets of green glass in the sand that have been rounded over the years, so I enjoyed hunting for those while my husband snorkeled.

There are a bunch of little shops all throughout Positano, all which can be reached by foot. I would not bother renting a car as there aren’t many places to park and once there, you really don’t need one. So for the rest of the night, we explored the town by foot and stopped at any and all places that looked appealing to us!

Our favorite little shop was this lemon store, which we couldn’t find a name for! There is a bottle of perfume in that store that smells just like a lemon drop, and we both loved the smell. A great little spot for gifts!

The next morning we decided to check out the complimentary breakfast provided by our hotel and it blew us away! Not only was the room beautiful in itself, but the views were incredible! Plus, each time we ate in there we were either the only ones in there or were with only one other couple.

View from the breakfast room

Plus, there was a really nice spread! Bottomless cappuccinos, too.

For our first full day in Positano, we had booked a boat tour to the island of Capri. My husband LOVES snorkeling so I knew this tour would be a hit, and it really exceeded our expectations. (Just google Boat tour island of Capri.) We met at the meeting place and got on a bus that took us to Sorento, which is the next town over, and it was about a 30-minute bus ride. Once there, we got on our boat with about 5 other couples, and by the end of it, we were all laughing and having a great time. Wine, beer, prosecco, and snacks were provided as we toured around Capri, stopping at various places to snorkel.

Because my husband loves to snorkel so much, we bought and brought our own snorkel masks for this tour. Initially, I wasn’t sure they were worth the suitcase space, but I have to tell you, we received many compliments on them from fellow passengers saying they wished they had masks like these. They worked really well.

Once we made our way all the way around Capri, we docked the boat and were given 3 hours to explore the island. There are a bunch of shops and restaurants, and filling those 3 hours was not hard to do.

We then got back on the boat, did a little more snorkeling, and then made our way back to Sorento. Before we got back, though, our captain took us by a little waterfall and let us go underneath it, which was fun for everyone.

One thing I REALLY wanted to do while in Positano was to visit the Blue Grotto on Capri. I thought maybe we would have a chance to do this during our 3-hour break on the boat tour, but after talking with a few people, we might have cut it close. I was ready to let it go when the super-sweet receptionist saw that I was a little let-down and said she might have the direct number to the Blue Grotto so that we could call and find out when their slowest time might be. So that is exactly what we did! They said we might have the best luck right when it opens.

So the next day we caught the earliest ferry, which I believe was around 8:45  and got to Capri around 9:30. We then were told we had two options; we could either take a 45 minute bus to the location, or we could take a 15 minute boat ride there.

NOW HERE IS WHERE YOU NEED TO LISTEN! TAKE THE BUS!!! What we didn’t know is that if you take a 15 minute boat ride, your boat then waits on the open waters for your turn to go into the Blue Grotto. That means you are waiting on rocking waters for around 1-2 hours, and we saw many people getting sick during this time. It was not good. BUT, if you took the bus to the location, which appears to be the less-popular route, you simply wait on land and you actually get into the grotto much faster than those waiting on the boats. I had my little umbrella packed and can’t tell you how thankful I was to have had it to block from the sun.

ANOTHER good option we later learned, is that you can rent your own little mini boat at an hourly rate, and drive on over to the Blue Grotto yourself. And, if you let some of the workers running the canoes know that you are willing to tip, you will skip right on ahead of those waiting in the big boats. Is it fair? no. Did it happen? It sure did.

We ended up waiting about an hour, and when it was our turn, a man in a little canoe took us to pay (I think it was about 10ish per person) and then took us to the opening of the blue grotto. Here, we had to lay flat on our backs so as not to hit our heads upon entering….

And once inside it was a cave of the bluest of blue waters! It was truly incredible and was in this moment that we realized the whole ordeal of making it to this point was totally worth it.

My husband had heard that if you offer to tip your skipper, that he would let you jump in, so he did and overboard we went! We can now say we swam in the Blue Grotto, which is something we will never forget.

Below is a photo of the little tent you where you can rent your own little motorboat to take you to the grotto. This is what we would do if we were to do it again!

Once back in Positano we just decided to soak up the last night of our vacation. We showered up and hit the town to decide where to eat.

There is a Michelin restaurant called Rada that is located inside and around a giant rock on the edge of the cliff but does take reservations to get in to. Instead, we asked if we could go to the bar upstairs, which I believe is called Fly Bar, and we were allowed to do that and it was AMAZING! We were the only ones up there, had incredible 180* views and enjoyed an appetizer and drinks with the place to ourselves. Another hidden gem!

After our drinks and appetizers, we landed on a restaurant named Tre Sorelle, which means three sisters, and I cannot recommend it enough.

We ordered lasagna, these little fried appetizer things (I apologize for not remembering the name but they were amazing), eggplant parmesan, water (you pay for water everywhere here) and a beer and our total was $40. Pretty dang good!

Because we had to be up at 2:30 am to catch our ride to the airport at 3 am, we decided to call it for the night and went back to our hotel. The last little bit of goodness that I want to be sure to share, though, was that as we checkout out of our hotel at 3 am, our sweet receptionist handed us this bag of goodies to take with us for thw ay home. She had made us little sandwiches, and threw in some drinks and patries. We were SO touched and will never ever forget the wonderful hospitality we received while visiting the Miramare hotel in Positano and we would 100% stay there again.

Ciao, Positano! You treated us well!

This is the last post for our 10th Anniversary series, I hope you enjoyed and found them helpful!

If you missed it, I explained what to pack for Italy in THIS post, our favorites for Venice HERE, and our best tips for Rome HERE.

You can also see videos saved of our stops in Venice, Rome and Positano saved to my Instagram highlights HERE.

As always, thank you for stopping by!

<3 Shannon

The post Our 10th Anniversary Trip Part 3: Positano! appeared first on Living with Lady.

This past summer my husband and I went to Italy for our 10th anniversary, and it was such an unforgettable trip that I thought I would share our tips and trips with you all in case you, too, ever want to take such a trip.

I started by sharing what we packed; the things we are so glad we brought, as well as the things we didn’t end up using, and you can see that post HERE.

And since we visited three different cities during our trip, I decided to break these posts up by city, with the first one being all about Venice, and today’s is all about Rome!

While Venice was picturesque, easy to get around, and absolutely charming, Rome was filled with SO much history that it just left us constantly entertained and in awe.

We arrived in Rome on our third day of the trip, about midday, and checked into our hotel, The Marcella Royal, which was located centrally in Rome, and truly we had no complaints. The staff was very friendly, the views on top fo the hotel were wonderful, and it came with a complimentary breakfast each day that was more than just cold cereal, which we enjoyed.

The first landmark we visited was the Pantheon. This is free to the public and was the first piece of architecture that we saw in Rome, and it was really cool, but if you are short on time in Rome, I think this is one stop you can skip. The Pantheon is where the Romans went to worship the Gods, and again, it was fun to see, but there is just so much more out there.

This is the only light in the Pantheon, and it allowed people to “contemplate the heavens.”

Our next stop was the Trevi Fountain, which is located pretty close to the Pantheon. With this little tip, this is definitely a stop you aren’t going to want to miss. One of my Instagram buddies let me in on a little secret that changed the whole experience for us. The Trevi Fountain is extremely crowded and a place that we were warned to be careful of pickpocketers at. So while we went down by the fountain, threw in a coin and snapped a pic, it wasn’t a place that we wanted to hang at for very long. UNTIL!! Now here comes the cool secret…

Directly across from the Trevi Fountain is a hotel named the Hotel Fontana; if you go to the reception desk once inside the hotel, ask to go up to the upstairs bar. The person behind the desk will tell you that it costs $15 each to go up, but that includes any drink off their menu, which ranges from $10-$15 anyway, and you will be GLAD YOU DID.

Because once up there, we had a little room ALL to ourselves, which included a private, crowd-free, air-conditioned view of the Trevi Fountain! We truly felt like VIPs and were blown away by this secret. Soon after arriving, a waiter named Issac came to take our drink order, and we could basically order any drink we wanted, even those not on the menu. He let JD go up to the liquer cabinet and choose any liqueur he wanted, and then brought us a little complimentary tray of snacks to enjoy.

Before we left, Isaac took us to one of the empty hotel rooms, opened the window for us, and let us take pictures of the Fountain right up close. It was so cool!

This is an experience not to miss! One of our faves of the whole trip.

After the fountain, we made our way over to the Spanish steps. The night before we had watched THIS episode of The Amazing Race, which had participants having to count the steps in order to move onto the next phase. So, we tried counting them ourselves and could never get the number right, either. It was tricky! And also gave us a good workout.

The next day was our TOP EXPERIENCE OF THE TRIP. This is when we visited the Vatican Museum, but it wasn’t the crowded, hot tour you may have experienced or might think of when you imagine visiting this hugely popular museum. Again, an Instagram buddy informed me of a tour called Wake Up the Vatican Tour, where you are in a group of no more than 20 people and you get to tour the Vatican before it opens. No lines, no crowds, it’s nice and cool… and it was PERFECTION! And the BEST part is that you get to open all of the doors and windows to the Vatican for the day which is truly an unforgettable experience!

There were about 12-15 rings of keys just like these ones that we used to open the doors! I was blown away; no master key here!

There were only ten people in our group, and I was asked to open the first door. I was nervous! Haha!

Normally, from what I am told, seeing each exhibit is difficult with so many people, so being able to freely walk around the museum and take in everything it had to offer was truly special.

We also got to turn on the lights in each room, so if you can imagine standing in this long hallway and waiting for the lights to turn on, and then seeing this view?! It was breathtaking.

We were also permitted to enter areas of the Vatican that are normally off-limits, including THIS. One of the popes way-back-when had this built so that he didn’t have to walk from the bottom floor to the top. This allowed his horse and chariot to carry him up!  Because this is in a fragile state, the public isn’t normally allowed into this area.

Now, I am probably going to butcher this story… but… when this statue was discovered years and years ago, it was missing part of an arm. A contest was held for sculptors to create a new arm, and the winning arm stuck straight out resembling jazz hands. Once Michaelangelo saw it, he immediately knew it was wrong and took on the task himself to create a new arm. That arm is now attached to the back of this statue, away from the public’s eye (seen below) as years later, the original arm was discovered and re-attached. The crazy part is that the original arm and the arm Michaelangelo created are incredibly similar, bent in the same position. This statue is normally roped off and you aren’t allowed to go around it to see what’s behind, but we were allowed to.

(Michaelangelo’s arm)

Husband opening one of the many gates.

And the windows; this was SO COOL!

The Gallery of Maps was another one of those areas that once lit up, took everyone’s breath away. It is SO amazing to see this hallway without anyone in it!

AND YOU GUYS. I got to open the door to the Sistine Chapel. THE SISTINE CHAPEL! And below is the key that I used to do so. It felt SO surreal!

Normally, photos aren’t allowed once inside, but people taking this tour are allowed to take as many as they’d like!

At the very end of the tour, we were given the option to buy an exact replica of the key to the Sistine Chapel for $10, something only offered to those on this tour. So, of course, we bought one!

After the tour ended at 8:00, we were fed breakfast in the courtyard. Then, we were allowed to go back and visit any of the areas we’d like with the museum now open to the public.

So the first thing we did was check out St. Peter’s Basilica, which was SO insanely huge and incredible!

This tour was our FAVORITE thing we did on the entire trip. It is a splurge. But absolutely worth every penny!

After the Vatican, we were ready for some kind of lunch, and ended up stopping at La Siciliana, where we had one of the best, cheapest lunches of the whole trip! Two slices of pizza, a beer, a cappuccino, and two treats only cost us $12! And everything was delicious!

All of these little goodies were only around a dollar or two!

While on our trip, we learned that our favorite restaurants were the ones we found on our own, and that weren’t recommended or on Yelp. We started walking around and looking at what people were eating, and if we liked what we saw, we ate there. That is how we ended up at Bottiglieria, which was probably the best restaurant we ate at on the whole trip. First, doesn’t it look like a painting?! (See below.) This was our one fancy indulgent meal and it was GOOOOOD. To give you an idea, we ordered three appetizers (ha!), a bottle of wine, and two entrees… and the total was around $100… really not bad, right!? We were also given limoncello shots, complimentary of our waiter, who was fantastic.

The next day we did a Coliseum, Palatine Hill and Roman Forum Tour, and I ate this up! I LOVED studying this stuff in school and thought this was so cool. We booked a Skip the Line tour, which did just that; no lines. Just google “Skip the line Coliseum tour” and you can choose one to your liking.

This is walking up Palatine Hill, which is where the wealthy lived, as well as the Pope during the summer months.

Going on a guided tour for this was really nice as we learned all about the history of these areas, that of which we knew very little of prior.

And once at the top of Palatine Hill, we were able to overlook the Roman Forum.

I was FASCINATED by the Roman Forum! It was basically Rome’s city center back in the day and was actually built ON TOP of years and years later until Mousellini ordered it to be dug up.

After the Roman Forum, we went into the Coliseum and this was just so overwhelming. To actually think people were sacrificed like this for entertainment back then is just unreal.

Underground is where all the animals were kept before being released on stage.

When Christianity came to be, and the church took over, this type of entertainment was no more. A cross was placed where the Emperors sat to pay respect for those who lost their lives here.

We were STARVED after this tour, so we walked directly across the street, again, looked at the food at the 2-3 restaurants lining the street and settled on Cafe Martini, which was SO good. We ordered the calamari and Caprese salad and both were so fresh and delicious.

Plus, the VIEW!

After lunch we went to the Aventine Hill where you can find the Aventine Keyhole, which is a semi-secret in Rome. At the end of a random rcul-de-sac you will find an unmarked large green door, and when you look through the keyhole you will see a PERFECT view of St. Peter’s Basilica. It’s actually REALLY cool!

My husband just googled the Aventine Keyhole and was able to locate the address, and it looks like this at the end of the street.

This was the best photo I was able to take of it.

After this we went to the grounds where the chariot races were once held, officially called Circus Maximus. Again, this all fascinates me so much! We even went down and walked the same grounds once raced upon.

Next we visited the Mouth of Truth, which was believed to bite off the hands of liars. So, tourists come to this site, stick their hands in and hope they leave with them!

After we did ALL of that, we were pretty tired, so we decided to sit at a little cafe, have a drink and game-plan what we wanted to do on our last night in Rome. We both hopped on our phones and started googling, and soon after I suggested we do a cooking class. This wasn’t something my husband jumped on, so I didn’t push it, but after about 20 minutes of not being able to decide, I suggested it once more and he agreed, though I could tell he wasn’t all-in. There wasn’t a phone number on the site, but we were able to tell what general area they were in, so we decided to walk over to the area, see if they had room, and if they did, great! We’d do it. If not, it wasn’t meant to be.

We found this little sign, pushed the buzzer, and were asked to come right up after explaining what we were after. And luckily, they had room! AND, we paid a cheaper price than offered online! (Look for a green door; it had been freshly painted that day (which is why there are newspapers on the ground.)

So after signing up, we had about an hour and a half to kill as the class didn’t start until 5:30, so we ended up wandering into this store, which was really close to where the cooking class was, and this store offered free balsamic tastings, which was something we really wanted to do! We ended up buying two little bottles of our favorite bottle, which was so fun for us.

We had about an hour left before our class, so I suggested we grab a small bite to eat. My thought was we probably wouldn’t be eating until later, and going into a cooking class hungry probably wasn’t ideal, so we stopped at Ai Tre Tartufi, which was right around the corner from the cooking class in Piazza Navona (which is the name of the little square). We were lured in by the owner, Angelo, who ended up serving us and sharing his story of how he lived in LA for 18 years!

Once at the cooking class, we were served appetizers and as much Prosecco as we wanted.

The first thing we made was dessert, which was Tiramisu so that it had time to set up in the fridge.

We then moved on to making the pasta, and we made two kinds; stuffed ravioli and a pesto spaghetti. Neither of us had done anything like this before, but we both really enjoyed it!

In fact, after about 30 minutes my husband turned to me, gave me a huge hug, and thanked me for suggesting we do this as he was having such a good time. And afterward, he said it was one of the highlights of his whole trip, which of course just made me light up!

Once we finished making everything, we sat down with our group and ended up sitting there, chatting and enjoying our meals until almost 10 pm!

Our chef, who also works at one of the finest restaurants in Rome.

And the kitchen we worked in:

After the cooking class, we decided to check out the Trevi Fountain one last time to get a good nighttime view. But this time, we didn’t have to pay! When we were there a few days earlier, Isaac told us to come back at night, so we just asked for him and he took us right up for a picture!

Rome was a much larger city than Venice, with a lot more people and a busier vibe. But gosh was it SO COOL! We both really enjoyed our time while here and felt like we got the most of our time, too. We primarily traveled by foot when getting around, which allowed us to see things in a new way, stop at little shops along the way, and grab a treat here or there. We made some wonderful memories while here and hope these little tips help you to plan your stay if Rome is in your future!

And coming soon… Part 3: Positano! Stay tuned!

As always, thanks for stopping by!

<3 Shannon

The post Our 10th Anniversary Trip Part 2: Rome! appeared first on Living with Lady.

Shortly after my husband and I got married ten years ago, we said for our 5th anniversary that we would travel to Italy to celebrate as I had always dreamed of taking a gondola ride down the infamous canal in Venice.

When our 5th anniversary rolled around, we were not in a position to take such a trip with my husband being in school and two young babies in the house, so that dream was put on hold.

Fast-forward five years and my husband and I were able to take our dream trip and it fell nothing short of being just that. So I will be recapping our trip with all of our favorite stops, eats, and activities, as well as the things we would have done differently!

Our first stop was… VENICE! And we loved it every bit as much as we thought we would. I know some say it is oversaturated with tourists, but being tourists ourselves, we were able to see past all of that and fully enjoy all of the beauty that surrounds this city.

As I had previously mentioned, I hired a travel agent to take care of the nitty-gritty, and our hotel was located right on one of the canal’s and I could not have been more pleased! (Right behind the bridge in the photo below.) We stayed at the Casa Nicolo Priuli and it looked just like an old Venetian house.  We LOVED being right in the middle of the action and it made for getting around extremely easy. The actual room was tucked back a bit, so everything was nice and quiet. Plus it included breakfast in the morning which helped us save.

I took these photos on our first day there and I could just not get enough of everything around us. We didn’t have an agenda this day but just planned on wandering and getting lost in the city, allowing it to take us wherever it wanted.

I also gave myself permission to gain 10 guilt-free pounds as I was going to fully indulge in everything Italy had to offer. And something to note, and something we found surprising; not all food in Italy is as incredible as you might expect! Some pizzas were DEFINITELY better than others, some pasta was DEFINITELY better than others, and the same goes for gelato, too! My best advice is to follow your eyes and nose, and to look before you sit. We discovered that looking at what others were eating before deciding on a restaurant proved to be the best outcome for us. (Note-Because we walked and walked and walked all around Italy, neither of us gained a pound… so…. ENJOY!)

After a wonderful first few hours of exploring, we were WIPED. I mean WIPED. The lack of sleep was starting to catch up with us, so at this point, all we wanted to do was to sit down, rest, and enjoy our surroundings. So, we decided to find a nice place to sit and relax. The restaurants in St. Mark’s square are SO pricey. I am talking $15 for a cappuccino and $25 for a mixed drink. BUT, they do have live music that is actually REALLY good, and if you want to sit and people watch, this is a great option and some time we really enjoyed.

We went back to our hotel around 9:00 that night and thought we would crash… but we really didn’t because of the time difference! So I highly recommend taking a sleep-aid to help you fall asleep while there. Melatonin was my bff at night.

The next day we went out exploring once again and ended up wanting to tour St. Mark’s Basilica since we were just in awe of it. You can buy pretty cheap skip-the-line tickets/tours to go inside like THIS ONE, and we ended up doing this last-minute. They were around $30 each and actually came with a little 30-minute history lesson. We actually really enjoyed the little lesson as it helped us to understand everything we were looking at.

Photo taken from on top of St. Mark’s; we thought it was worth going to the top!

Note- Women must have their shoulders covered when entering most churches, so make sure you bring a light cardigan, shawl, or use that cooling towel I told you about in the last post to cover your shoulders with! Often times the knees need to be covered, too, so just make sure you know ahead of time what the church requires.

The ONLY thing I really wanted to do in Venice was to ride in a gondola. Everything else was bonus in my book. So on our last night (we only stayed two nights), we did just that. Originally I had booked the gondola in advance but then canceled last minute because I didn’t want to feel rushed if we were in the middle of something else. And I am glad I did! This is something you do not need to book ahead of time. There are gondoliers everywhere ready to take you down the beautiful waters. AND, you can get a better price! While walking around, two gondoliers informed us that a daytime ride costs $80, and after 7:00 it goes up to $100. It was around 6:00 when we were talking with them, and they offered us a ride for $70, so we took them up on it! The only thing we wanted to do before was to get some Gelato from a highly-reviewed place online, but these gondoliers advised us elsewhere, and it couldn’t have been more perfect!

Before going to Venice we watched Phil Rosenthal’s show, “Somebody Feed Phil,” which is basically Phil going to all of the best restaurants in various cities and sharing them on this show. Well, one of the places shared was La Boutique del Gelato in Venice and we couldn’t have been more thrilled to have seen the same woman behind the counter as seen on the show.

I mean I TOTALLY had a fangirl moment!

So we took that amazingly delicious gelato with us and had one incredibly memorable ride. Truly, it was exactly as I had hoped for. And, since the original ride I booked was somewhere between $100-$120, and we ended up going for $70, it was just a total win all-around.

That night we went to the most delicious little spot that had a number of these little croquettes for an amazing deal! And I am kicking myself for not remembering the name of this amazing little spot! But, it was right across the water from a gondola repair shop, which I think might be the only one around…

And after we ate, we just strolled around picking up a few little goodies for the kids and just got lost in the city. I loved this city so much!

I shared so many videos and photos of our trip on my Instagram account; just look for the saved highlight titled “Venice” for even more tips, tricks and a ton of videos!

Our next stop was ROME and my gosh do I have some amazing tips and tricks for that city! Stay-tuned!

The post Our 10th Anniversary Trip Part 1- Venice! appeared first on Living with Lady.

My husband and I recently celebrated our 10th wedding anniversary by taking a trip to Italy, and while things are still fresh in my mind I thought I would put together a little guide for all of the things we found useful while there, as well as include the things we didn’t really need!

To give you a little background, we went to Venice, Rome, and Positano (which is a little cliffside town on the Amalfi coast.) We were gone a total of 9 days and this was both of our first times in Europe.

So, with all of that said, here we go!

Travel Agent– Since neither of us had traveled to Europe before, the thought of planning this kind of trip was just daunting. Getting between each city, booking the tours, researching hotels; there is SO much time connected to planning a trip like this, and as the date got closer and closer, I found myself starting to panic. That is when I decided to hire out the planning portion of this trip to take the stress off, and went with Cheyenne from All Travel Matters.

Cheyenne and I talked about what my husband and I were looking for in our trip, and she took the reins from there. She made sure to stay within our budget, sent me links to various tours she thought we would be interested in, and made sure to take care of all the details right down to which kind of seats we prefer on the airplane (window or aisle) which saved us from having to sit in the middle rows during the long flights! She also took care of every transfer, meaning as soon as we landed at the airport in Venice, we knew which boat to take from the airport to our hotel. And when it was time to go to Rome, someone was waiting in the lobby for us to take us to the train station. And then once off the train, someone was waiting for us to take us to our hotel; and this pattern happened in every city. Someone was always right there to take us to the next spot and it was SO nice not to worry about trying to find a cab or wondering where we needed to be.

In summary, I couldn’t have made a better decision in hiring Cheyenne! Plus, hiring her didn’t affect our budget and we were still able to do everything we wanted, and then some!

Next came deciding on what to bring on such a trip, and I definitely have some recommendations now that we have gone and experienced it all!

Suitcase– We decided to each bring a carryon suitcase and a backpack. The number one piece of advice I was given was to pack light, so we did. The streets in Italy are made of cobblestone and can be hard to roll a suitcase over, but I think it can be done if you really want a bigger one. We also did a ton of research and learned that in some airports, they will make you check your luggage if it does not fit in that tiny little suitcase measuring cube, which we learned is 20 inches. AND, in Paris (the city we flew into) they actually tried to deny our suitcases for being too big, until I had the man measure them, and because they JUST fit, we were able to take them on our next flight. The last thing I wanted was to HOPE our luggage made it after traveling that far. Our suitcases were easy to maneuver, durable, and we just had no complaints.

Packing Cubes– These came recommended by so many people, and I have got to say; I love them! They kept my clothes from falling all over the place and also gave me places to put dirty clothes to keep them separate from the clean.

Neck Pillow– You are going to WANT a neck pillow of some sort for the long flight. My husband accidentally left his pillow on the flight from Spokane to Seattle, so we were down to one. Since I was the one sitting by the window and could lean against that, I gave mine to him so that we could both be somewhat comfortable. We used THESE ones lent to us by my mother-in-law, and I liked how they laid nice and flat in our backpacks, but whatever kind you like I’m sure would be fine.

Furse– I know what you are thinking; “WHAT is a furse?!” It is the term I have coined a fanny pack purse, and this was hands-down one of the best things I brought. I was a little worried about pick-pocketers, and this allowed me to travel worry-free while also not having to worry about where my purse was, because it was attached to me at all times. My favorite is THIS one from Humble Hilo and is the one I took on the trip.

Walking shoes– We walked miles every single day, and we would do it that exact same way if we did it again! We felt like we really saw each city by walking it, but with that comes the need for good walking shoes. I researched good, but affordable, walking shoes that I could also dress up or down, and decided on these. I had heard white shoes were worn a lot in Italy, and I would say that is true! (Seen above.)

Socks– I think good socks help a ton! I bought no-show socks with a non-slip back and loved these. They are slightly thicker than my normal socks and helped keep things cushy.

Stain stick– I was worried about my shoes getting dirty, so I brought my favorite stain stick and was blown away when they washed up super clean after a week in Italy. Brand new once again! I also used it on some clothing when we got little stains, and they came right out!

Snorkels– if you plan on being anywhere near water and like to snorkel, I would recommend these. We ended our trip in Positano, which is right on the Amalfi coast, and planned a boating trip one day where we would be making snorkeling stops, and the ones provided on the boats just do not compare. These things are anti-fog and make breathing really easy.

Cooling towel– This SAVED my husband! You just get this thing wet and it keeps you cool throughout the day. You will need to re-wet it every now and again, but we were both actually glad we had these because it can get very hot during the summer in Italy. I also used mine as a shawl to cover my shoulders when entering churches! (Women’s’ shoulders cannot be bare in certain churches in Europe.)

Umbrella– If you plan to be out in the sun a lot, then bring a small umbrella might be a good idea to keep you shaded. During one of our stops, we were waiting on a boat for over an hour in the sun, and I was SO thankful I had my umbrella to keep me shaded. I got ours from the dollar store and they did the job!

Portable chargers– Nothing worse than being in a new, incredible city only to have your phone/camera die! We brought two portable chargers and charged them each night, and we both used them almost daily! You not only end up using your phone for photos but also as your main navigation source.

Adapters– Your phone chargers and electronics will not work over there unless you have European adapters; and note, not all adapters work in each city. The ones we used for Italy were the ones linked here.

Water bottles– We drank SO much water while in Italy and were so glad we had these refillable water bottles to fill up in the many clean-water fountains we found all across Rome. Water is NOT free at restaurants (around $4 a big bottle) so when we could come with our own it helped to save a little.

Sleep Aid– With a 9-hour time difference, falling asleep when you want to isn’t going to come naturally. I took Benadryl with us, as well as melatonin, and used them both to help us fall asleep at various times. I took the Benadryl on the long flights and that helped me to sleep for the majority of the flights, and then I took 5 mg of Melatonin each night because even though we did SO much and walked our buns off everywhere, I still could not fall asleep.

Hair– I know this is going to sound a little weird, but I got a blow-out the day before we left on our trip and it was one of the best things I did. I don’t know what they put in my hair or how they curl it so well, but I didn’t have to do my hair for a solid WEEK while in Italy, which was my goal. My hair is naturally frizzy, and with the humidity there I knew if I tried to do it myself it would just blow up like Monica’s from Friends, so getting the blow-up allowed me to get ready quickly in the mornings while still looking decent, and I got mine at Luxe Salon and Spa in Spokane.

Clothing– We went in August, which is a hot time of year to travel, so packing light, breathable clothing helped a ton. I also tried to pack items that could be interchangeable, which meant packing solid colors. (Check my stories titled “travel recs” to see exactly what I packed.)

What I DIDN’T need

Ipad- I didn’t use my Ipad once! Delta is the airline we flew and each headrest had a built-in movie player with enough movies to keep me entertained. I will say we did watch one movie on a train from my husband’s mini laptop, and that was nice.

Blanket-I packed a mini fold-up blanket, but I never ended up using it. Actually, though, I wish I would have brought it down to the beach when we were in Positano, instead of just having our little towels. But, if not going to a beachy destination, not needed. Delta also gave us a small pillow, blanket, eye mask and earplugs for the long flights, so again, an extra blanket wasn’t needed.

Wrinkle release spray- I never needed it!

If I think of anything else as time goes on, I will be sure to add it, but I THINK that just about covers it. We packed really lightly and used just about everything we brought, so we felt good about that and I hope this helps if you, too, are planning a similar trip!

As always, thanks for stopping by!

<3 Shannon

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