I’ve always been fascinated by the ability of an aircraft to take me from a place that looks like this..
Brown, dry land.
To this..
Green, snow-capped land.
Airplanes are fascinating, but that is beside the point of this post. Despite the wonder that was the fog line on the evergreen trees upon my arrival in Washington, this post is dedicated to some of the amazing adventures I encountered while away in Arizona.
This will never get old. Fog laying on the tree line is my favorite.
One blogger meet up. I met up with a fellow plant based blogger and had a lovely time talking blogs, food, life, and of course…coffee. =)
Two big decisions. I researched and purchased my first DSLR camera and it should arrive in my arms sometime this week. I also set up my 401K..boom, big girl pants ON.
Three mountains climbed. Self explanatory.
Four trips to Sprouts…in less than a week. We don’t have one in Washington!
Five toppings on my grilled pizza. Spinach, pineapple, potatoes, rosemary, & brussels sprouts. It’s January and I was able to stand outside by the grill in shorts/tank top.
Six packs of sugar in my dads coffee. I was one proud daughter when my dad attempted to get away from Splenda after I told him real sugar was “better” (your body recognizes real sugar and can properly digest it, fake sugar..not so much), however we need to figure something else out because six packs of sugar for one small cup of coffee is not good!
This article breaks it down perfectly. I’m just happy he tried..baby steps. Love you dad!
Seven family members attending The Sound of Music together.
This is why I bought a DSLR..this quality is horrific.
Eight Harry Potter movies watched. After a complete HP marathon, I have finally seen EVERY movie and after the last one ended I felt a piece of my soul die. I’m still recovering.
Nine *plus six* miles run with my Garmin. Gary held out for 15 miles of casual running.
Ten days without my retainers. If you know me, you’ll know I wear my teeth huggers EVERY. SINGLE. NIGHT. Very rarely do I miss a night, and when I discovered I left my retainers on my bathroom sink in Washington I was DISTRAUGHT! Convinced my teeth were being shifted by tiny gnomes every night, I was so happy to be reunited with them.
Until next time Arizona, keep it classy.
Q: What was the last vacation you went on??
Blissfulbritt 
54 thoughts on “Post Vacation Blues”
kathy @ vodka and soda
yay for your DSLR! now you can take snazzy and gorgeous pictures of us while we’re all at BBM2014.
Brittany
SERIOUSLY! Send me an e-mail about this. I just need to know some info to see if I’ll be able to go. I don’t know what the dates are, but I am declaring this year my year of travel. I do have a vacation already planned in March, which is what I thought you said was the time you guys were going, so that would be the only problem. BUT JUST GIVE ME SOME INFO SO I CAN STOP TOYING WITH YOU!
Britta
hahahaha this post makes me so happy! I love absolutely everything. Your dad is with sugar how Dora is with butter… one day will get there – baby steps is right! WAHOOO on the new camera, definitely big girl pants on. Holy cannoli… meanwhile I am still taking pictures with my iPhone and leaving my camera(s) at home. Whoops. Absolutely LOVE the mountain pic of you and merrr I wanna be making pizza in a tank top. Let’s move to Arizona? Ok wait no, I can’t do that. But a visit. Or another vacay. I neeeeed warmth! Glad you has such an awesome time!
The Vegan 8
You are so funny freaking out without your retainer! How long do you have to wear it? Love all the pictures…even the fuzzy one! 🙂 Last vacation I took was a very mini one last May to a resort in Austin, TX with my hubby and daughter….so much fun!
Brittany
I have to wear it for life!! Unless I choose to get a permanent retainer I suppose.
allieksmith
I bet you are super excited to get your camera and have your retainers back! You were studying to be a hygenist, right? I bet you know all about teeth shifting and stuff. I hate when I know too much about something, and then I get all freaked out, you know?! Anyways, I am glad you had such a great time in Arizona!
Brittany
I was studying in hopes of further studying to become a DH YES. However that has shifted and I not longer have plans to further that education. Different plans are now in my future! Perhaps a post on that…someday! I do still find teeth fascinating though, and love reading about them..haha.
Amy @ A Desert Girl
Ahhhh!!! So much goodness here. First of all, I hear you on the retainers. I’m obsessed with wearing mine every night and if I ever forget it, I can FEEL my teeth misaligning as the seconds tick by. And your new camera! You’re going to love it! Can’t wait to see the lovely photos you take – especially the PNW nature shots. Gorgeous! Good for you on the 401(k)! And I’m reading the 4th Harry Potter book now – love the series and can’t believe I’ve survived so long without reading them.
Alex @ therunwithin
oh god I can’t go that long without my retainers either. I get totally flustered!! Gosh I love HP movies. The only way to watch them is marathon style for sure
Kristina at damntenpounds
Ahhh, coming home can be such a let down. Hopefully you can hang onto those vaca vibes a little longer. And if that fails, at least you’re reunited with your retainer. Ha ha. I feel the same way about my clairsonic.
sincerelylily
gahhhhh love. you are updaitng so much, i gotta keep up! YES FOR THE CAMERA! so excited for you to fall in love with it. Speedy got me one for my bday last year and it is amaaaaazing. I love that you went and saw the sound of music.
latest vacation – NE? I dont know if you can count that b/c it was a frozen tundra and miserable car ride. Sooo mackinac island in the fall! that was a blast… next stop, honeymoon!
Megan
SO MANY UPDATES. congrats on the camera! you are so crafty with your pictures, I can only imagine what they will look like once you get a nice camera. YOU MUST BRING IT TO DC
BOOK YOUR FLIGHTS.
that is all. ❤
GiGi Eats Celebrities
Does going home count as a vacation? I am always CONFUSED by this! I consider vacations going off to far away lands, running on the beach topless and being fed grapes by 1/2 naked men. So if that’s what you’re classifying as a vacation then… I have never been on one! 😦
Brittany
Well, you don’t run…and if half naked men are feeding you then you’ve been holding out on hookin a sista up and I would be so mad at you!! SO in that case..yes..going home counts!
freedomfoodjournal
I recently splashed out on my first dslr camera. You won’t regret it!
Kim
Ah Harry Potter! My husband and I decided to try a marathon starting New Year’s Eve. I just couldn’t get into it! I wanted to like it, but just could not stay interested… My husband finished and really liked them all. Oh well, not for everyone 🙂
Brittany
GASSPP- We cannot be friends anymore!! JUST KIDDING, I feel this way towards the LOTR movies, I just can’t really get into them. Although I will say the new Hobbit movie was VERY good. You tried, and that’s what counts, haha!
Lora @ Crazy Running Girl
Sounds like an awesome vacation! Love that pic of you on the mountain!
Change of Pace
Sounds so wonderful! Your family photo at the Sound of Music is awesome! And yay about a fancy, new camera!
Hmm- last vacation I was on was to Canmore. Cold, but great!
Amy
AHHHHHHH!!! SO SO SO excited for you and your new DSLR!!! Seriously cannot wait to see your new shots. 🙂 And if you need a photo editing software, I highly recommend GIMP. It’s free (download from the internet!) and does almost everything Adobe Photoshop does. Amazing.
P.S. I LOVE the Sound of Music! At one point, I had the lyrics to every single song memorized. “Raindrops on roses and whiskers on kittens…”
Brittany
Thank you for the GIMP info!! I can totally picture you singing those songs..while baking in your kitchen..with an adorable half apron, and batter in your hair.
Amy
You’re welcome! And you totally pegged me… I always end up with cookie dough in my hair or brownie batter smeared across my chin. So much for sneaking taste tests… 😉
P
Love everything about this post. Congrats on the new camera :)!
Rach @ This Italian Family
You bought a DSLR!! I am so excited for you! You are going to love it! I am excited to see all your great new pictures as you learn to use it! 🙂 I love that you rewatched all the Harry Potter movies! I love them so much! And I love Sound of Music as well! I’ve never seen it live, though!
Matt @ Runner Savvy
You will love the camera!
Katherine
That little yoga/hiking picture totally looks like something professional! You look great! Airplanes fascinate and frustrate me. The fact that they can take you someplace you’ve never seen or explored is amazing. It frustrates me how little time I have to actually travel on planes and see the world. I just want to take endless trips! Rewatching all the Harry Potter movies is a close second to travelling though! Oh, and you’ll love the new camera! 🙂
shashi @ http://runninsrilankan.com
Congrats on your DSLR purchase! And climbing 3 mountains!
Blogger meet ups are so much fun – Happy New Year!
Life After Swimming
Ahhh the post-Harry Potter slump…I know it well!
Meghan@CleanEatsFastFeets
Baby steps is right. Ditching the artificial crap is a huge break through. You just keep leading by example and it’ll rub off on your dad. In fact, it sounds like it aleady has.
I am so jealous you went to see The Sound Of Music. It’s a classic and I love it. I also love the idea of grilling a pineapple pizza in the early January while wearing shorts and a tank top.
I’ve read all the HP books (in fact I’m gearing up to reread them) but I don’t think I ever saw the last movie. Weird, right?
ahellams
Holy crap with the 401k, I am bowing down to you right now!
genext13
Must have been a shock coming down to our dreary yet warmer locale for the holidays. Looks like you had a fun time!
Davida @The Healthy Maven
After a hellish 24 hours trying to get from Montreal to Toronto I am not pleased with airplanes right about now!
You’re going to LOVE your SLR. I recommend actually reading the manual though which I stupidly didn’t do for the first year and legit had no clue what I was doing!
Vanessa
What a fun trip! I love your mountain yoga photo. Enjoy the new camera!
apartmentwife
so much happiness in this post! i’m jealous of the sound of music performance and your stint with the warm air 🙂 i have that same dslr, so let me know if you have any questions — i love messing around with it and would be happy to help! oh, and welcome home!
Brittany
Oh wonderful, good to know!! Thank you!
An Unrefined Vegan
Definitely got those big girl pants on! You are going to go absolutely mad (in a good way) when you get your camera!
Her Happy Balance
That picture of tree pose on top of a mountain/peak is awesome! I saw it on your IG and thought it was stunning.
brickhousechick
Thanks for taking us with you! That pizza was a killer! Brittany, I hope the vacation blues go away soon! The memories will live on!
di @ life of di.
1) Whoo-hoo! Blogger meetups are fun 🙂 I wish more people lived in the Ohio area. I would totally do it more often! 2) Awesome new camera! 3) Great picture on that mountain. Love that you can see the ocean! 5) Those pizza toppings are amazing. That’s my kind of pizza. 8) This cold weather makes me want to watch the HP movies. I think I’ll watch one within the next few days. My favorite is The Prisoner of Azkaban. PS – I can totally relate to having the post-vacation blues. I’m suffering big time after my trip to NYC.
Alex
LOVE harry potter marathons. LOVE mountain climbing. LOVE sprouts. LOVE your pictures from the plane. But most importantly, LOVE YOU! It sounded like an awesome getaway and I’m so glad you had fun!!! 🙂
PNWRunner
I NEED.TO.GO.ON.A.VACATION! 😀 Thought I’d just put it out there!! AZ sounds amazing and I cannot wait to visit the state sometime in the future! Love the heat and beautiful scenery. Your pictures from the plane are pretty darn awesome! Congrats on getting a new camera! I still just use the basic Iphone 5s camera. lol. It will have to do! I’ve been researching marathons lately and eating plans for training. Ugh, its so difficult! I am happy to say that I am going to participate in my FIRST running club on Thursday! I hope to make it a regular event each week starting in Feb! Welcome back!
jessielovestorun
I have the perfect method of eliminating all that sugar from your dads coffee. You ready for the secret ingredient? ADD A 1/2-1 TSP. COCONUT OIL!! Not only is it a healthy fat, but its just friggen awesome. I wouldn’t lie to you my friend.
A Tablespoon of Liz
Sounds like you had a blast! My brother and I have a HP marathon every year around Christmas time, and every time it makes me sad that there are no more books coming out. I haven’t been on a legit vacation in probably over a year : ( We used to go on family vacations but now all us “kids” are adults and have jobs and school so it makes it hard to schedule.
alex@vegginout
A Harry Potter marathon was the one thing that I didn’t get to over break that I think I could cry about. Those are seriously some of my favorite movies EVER!
And I’m glad to learn that I’m no the only one who religiously wears their retainer. My brother never really wore his, but I happen to like my teeth as is and don’t want them to change!
katalysthealth
love this little recap!! And Im hooked on my retainer as well…Ive been rocking mine since 8th grade!!
jessiebearwhat
Yes to Harry Potter. That is all. 🙂
Christina Does It All
Yayyyy I love Arizona!!! Glad you had such a great time, loooove the mountain photos!
karla @ finding my fit
ahhh so jealous of that camera!! i want a DSLR so bad… wishlist.
glad you were able to get away to a well-deserve vacation! ❤
Jessica @ RunYourMuttOff
Hey, I just found your blog today (via a link in PNW Runner’s Seattle Half Marathon recap) and wanted to leave you a little blog love! I read your Blogging for Dummies page and was glad to learn that even though I’ve only been at it a couple months, I think I’m doing it right! It’s been fun finding a rhythm, working on finding my voice, and joining the community that is blogging by stalking great blogs and actively commenting a lot more than I used to. And I’m glad I’ve got your blog to add to my daily reads!
Ok, after all that crazy too-much-love-for-someone-I-don’t-even-know talk, the last vacation I went on was a weekend to Denver in December to visit my best friend. The best part was she had NO idea I was coming (her hubby helped me pull it off). The look on her face when I appeared in her bedroom on a Saturday morning was priceless!
Meghan @ fitnesscrEATures
Oh my gahhh I love everything about this post. I am super excited that you got a serious camera because I love the pics you take with your phone so I just know your new pictures will be so much more amazing and make me want to come back to WA just to hang with the cool kid and her cute new DSLR. CONGRATS on that. WOW WOW to 15 miles too, girly! 🙂 Amazing. And that landscape in WA is stunning. I love it. Welcome back to WA, ha!
I’m trying to get my boyfriend on that same train as your dad – he is all about some Splenda and I am trying to hard to get him over to real sugar. 🙂
kelly @ racesrepsramblings
HOLY big girl pants. LOVE that you set up your 401K. Seriously that’s awesome. I feel like such an old lady to harp on saving for retirement early, but 5 years of a delay can make a HUGE different over someone’s lifetime. I was just reminding my sister this week to get going.. okay stepping off soap box. Also SUPER jealous of the DSLR. That’s on my short term to do list. Mainly I’m just holding out that my Dad will want a new one and donate his to me 😉 Great work you, great success.
Mary @ Fit and Fed
Nice I’m glad you got away from the rain! Hope that’s tiding you over right now. But of course we do live somewhere green, not brown….. so those raindrops do serve a purpose. Congrats on the DSLR, I’m sure you will love it, and in future years you will be so glad you started saving now in your new 401K.
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