Must-have book for weekend travelers

I was excited the other day when I saw that the New York Times feature, 36 Hours, was showcasing Marin County. I love this column and have been following it for a couple of years, and my mom got me this awesome book, which is a compilation of columns for most major destinations within the U.S. and Canada.

Here’s the link to the 36 Hour archive…highly recommend exploring, especially if you have a weekend trip planned, or would like to book one. I was reading the San Francisco column in the book the other day and thought that the writer did a great job of recommending the essentials while considering realistic timing.

Excited to check out some of the spots recommended in the Marin column, although I had mixed feelings about one of my favorites (The Tourist Club…shh) being exposed. 

Teacher Appreciation Week

Last week was Teacher's Appreciation Week (lots of belated posts this month, May is killin' me!)! As a former teacher with a lot of friends still in the profession, I definitely wanted to do something small to show my support for the amazing educators in our country. I gave a donation through DonorsChoose.org to a help fund a classroom library for one of my former colleagues.

DonorsChoose enables you to navigate projects based on a specific school, community, or subject you want to help - or you can choose to support the project of the day. There is full transparency, so you know exactly where your money is going and who you are helping. The majority of the projects on the site help underserved or high-need schools. What a great way to support teachers -- and classrooms -- everywhere!

In honor of Teacher's Appreciation Week, here is a link to some of the hilarious moments from my teaching days, and the photo above is me with my 11th grade English class.

Belated Friday round-up

New tumblr showcasing the worst rooms in New York City. Hilarious/terrifying.

Ranking of all 18 of Carrie Bradshaw's boyfriends on Sex and the City.

Apparently my brother will outlive us all. 105-year-old woman says bacon is the key to longevity.

Beautiful and touching.

Not that we were shopping at Abercrombie and Fitch anyway....plus one mother's great response.

Robert Redford turning one of my all-time favorite books into a movie!?

Grooms blown away by their brides. Adorable.

I spent the weekend at Bottle Rock Music Festival in Napa Valley with Cam, Olivia, Olivia's brother Brien, and our good friend, Amy. Top picture is of me and Amy at the Sculpture Ranch in Fairfield, CA (yes, that's a donkey to the left of the arch - what you can't see is the zebra that was also roaming around).

10 lessons I've learned from my mom

In honor of Mother's Day (a day late, I know), I thought I would do a post on some of the important things I've learned from my mom. The list is always growing, and there are a zillion things I'm not mentioning. I'm lucky to have someone who has put in so much time and effort into my happiness and success.

Taking a big trip on a little budget

I am beyond excited for my and Cam's trip to Peru at the end of this month. A lot of friends have asked how we're affording a ten-day international vacation, so here a few tips that worked for us!

One of the reasons I love my siblings

Madison & John

One of Cam's good friends from home, Phil, is currently en route to San Diego via cross-country road trip. He messaged my sister Madison, whom he has met once before, about meeting up in Baton Rouge where she is a junior at Louisiana State University. Madison obviously agreed to host him, and they had so much fun together that he ended up staying the full weekend...

Friday round-up

Photo of my friends in Delores Park on Cinco de Mayo, 2012

It was an absolutely gorgeous week in San Francisco and I'm really hoping the weather holds strong through the weekend (forecast says showers for Sunday, nooooooo!). Here are some of my favorite finds from this week:

OK. I won't bore you with details, but this article is my graduate school admissions letter coming to fruition...EXCITED!

Let's taco 'bout it. 

Cinco de Mayo party from Lululemon and celebrating in SF (I LOVE this holiday :)

My dad sent me this...apparently Millennials have done some pretty bizarre things while interviewing. 

41 Places To See Before You Die....Gahhh I get to cross #5 off in just 3 weeks!! 

Lots of cute Mother's Day cards on Etsy

May the Fourth be with you...The Star Wars nerds on my team at work were excited about this :)

Fascinating TEDTalk on a North Korean expatriate's journey to freedom

I love browsing Rent the Runway (perfect place to find a dress for a summer wedding) and I love this dress that reminds me of Kate Middleton.