Alternate Post Titles:

Never Stepping Outside Again
Are You Freaking Kidding Me?
This Was Not Disclosed at Closing
OH NO! OH NO! OH NO!

You may recall I was understandably shaken by my first snake encounter at our new home. Bull snakes are stealthy little ninjas of doom! But that was nothing.


You don't even see what I'm talking about yet, do you? Well, watch out! Because that's how they get you. Not every branch of that center tree is a branch.

What the hell, nature? What. The. Hell.
What I want to know is, why didn't the photographer set this tree on fire?


You thought you were going to enjoy a relaxing day at the Paa-ko Ridge golf course, soaking up the sunshine and breathing in the fresh mountain air, but little did you consider each breath could be your last. These, my friend, are snakes called Red Racers. After learning they reside in my new neighborhood, I did some Googling.

What do you get when you search "red racer snake"?
*Warning - not for the squeamish* (So, I …

How long is the flight to Australia? Oh, not too long - just 16 hours (!) or so from LAX to Melbourne.

Of course, few of us start in Los Angeles. Our journey took us from Albuquerque to LAX (5 hours because there were no nonstop options available), from LAX to Melbourne, and from Melbourne to Hobart (another hour or so, plus several hours to kill at the airport). By the time we arrived at our hotel, the fabulous Maylands Lodge in Hobart, we were understandably exhausted...and then my husband took me on a surprise, multi-hour hike. Uphill!

Do I even need to say it was a surprise? Surely no sensible person would have agreed to strenuous activity after all that flying unless they didn't understand what they were getting into. Then again, after that much travel, is anyone still sensible? Can they understand anything?

(Honestly, I think SN just got lost and he wouldn't admit it.)

I'd been dreading the long flight even before booking it. I tried to convince my travelmate of the meri…

Mindfulness is simply being present in the moment. It sounds easy, right?

I'd love to blame this one on jet-lag.


This morning, I rolled off of my Amerisleep mattress feeling completely unlike my usual, lazy self. Today, I was full of determination. I was going to accomplish everything (everything!) on my To Do list, even the items that have been there forever. Yes, I was finally going to tackle the mess that is my office.

And exercise!

And stop eating sugar!!

And write a stack of long overdue thank you notes!!!

It was going to be quite a day. With the help of Alexa, guiding me through my Amazon Echo Dot, I completed a meditation session before I'd even had my coffee. Feeling very zen, I decided I would practice mindfulness while making my morning latte - feeling the weight of the cool mug, listening to the sound of the milk being poured, inhaling the aroma of the freshly ground beans. I rejected all outside distractions and was 100% in the moment. Aaaahhhhh.

I don't think…

2 Weeks in Tasmania - The Best Parks, Restaurants, Bed & Breakfasts, and More on Our Tasmania Road Trip (Plus the Must-See Attractions We Wish We'd Skipped)

We've been home almost a week and I still haven't done any serious Tasmania blogging. Even with my best tip for long flights, jet lag is no joke! Plus, we seem to have brought home a cold (me) and the flu (SN) from when we visited my family in Perth at the end of our trip. (His is totally the same thing I have, morphed into a man cold.) When traveling to Australia, keep in mind that it may be their flu season when you visit.
Here is the detailed itinerary we began our trip with, including notes on the best restaurants per stop. Locations that are in bold are the main focus of the day. I'll share the changes we made to the actual trip (and the ones we wish we'd made!) in the coming days. Enjoy this list - it took me months of research to put it together!

You can also find lots of photos and funny trip stories o…