If you had told me a month ago that visiting Wats (temples) would be one of my favorite activities in Chiang Mai, I would have smiled politely and thought “no way.” Don’t get me wrong, I was looking forward to visiting a few Wats to see the relics, learn about the culture and history and … More Sabbatical days 208-214: A Week’s Worth of Wats
Where to begin…I’m a novice cook at best, and Trent’s specialty is scrambled eggs and bacon, which is awesome don’t get me wrong, so taking a Thai cooking class could have been intimidating for us. Except that three weeks in to our 6 month adventure abroad, we knew that the Thai people are so kind … More Thai Cooking 101: You are what you roll, Sexy Pepper!
Having never been to any part of Southeast Asia before, I wasn’t entirely sure what to expect. There have been so many things that made me go “Wow” or “Oh my” or “Hmmm” or “Ha!” Here are just a few of my favorites. 1. The traffic is utter chaos but no one honks If we … More 7 Cool Observations about Thailand
Bangkok was pretty awesome, but we had explicitly decided not to spend too much time there. After all, Thailand is a big country and we were anxious to see more of it. So, we headed to Chiang Mai, an ancient (but still thriving) city in a northern region of Thailand on the edge of the … More Sabbatical Days 199-205: Sawatdeeka from Chiang Mai
After nearly two weeks of fake parenting our nieces and nephew back in Texas, we were ready to start Sabbatical Part II: Thailand. That meant a 4 hour flight from Dallas to San Francisco, followed by an 11 hour flight to Tokyo and a 7 hour flight to Bangkok. Add in layovers, delays, and travel … More Sabbatical Days 193-198: Swooning Over Bangkok
Texas is my birthplace, and Trent has family roots there as well, so it’s no surprise that we have spent more time in Texas than anywhere else (except home in Denver) over the course of the first six months of sabbatical. About four weeks of the first 26 were spent crisscrossing Texas. I do love … More Sabbatical days 171-192: Farms, Family and Life Lessons in Texas
I was just hanging out on the couch one Sunday morning, watching TV and thinking about all the things we needed to do to prepare for our six months in Thailand when I got a text from my good friend who has the cool Hollywood job (we will call her Kiwi). The text simply read: … More Sabbatical Days 159-161: Just Say Yes to NYC
The first time I went to the Grand Canyon was more than 20 years ago with my high school friend, Dylan. It was part of a road trip from Texas to LA and back. We arrived at midnight, set up a tent in the dark, peeked over the edge in the morning and then kept … More Sabbatical Days 133-136: The Grand Canyon, It’s So Big!
Sabbatical priorities: us, mind, body. I was spending lots of energy on us (camping, driving, talking) and on body (hiking, walking, camping). But I knew that for my own mental wellness, I needed some girl time. So I hopped a plane to LA for a visit with one of my closest girlfriends of more than … More Sabbatical days 124-132: Hangin’ in Hollywood
The Found Year 