Recently, I announced that I was taking over 2 months off for baby bonding leave and I was met with a lot of questions and curiosity. It turns out a lot of women don’t really understand maternity leave and bonding leave, including my coworkers who had already done it twice before and had to do… Read More The Nitty Gritty of Maternity and Bonding Leave in California
Every year on February 1st, avid hikers and waterfall chasers wait eagerly for 8am Arizona Time, ready to pounce on the highly coveted Havasupai permits for the year! And this year, you’re in luck because in 2020, February 1 is on a Saturday! Since I made the journey myself in 2017, I have been giving… Read More How to Get a Permit and Visit Havasupai in 2020
If you’ve been following along my Beyond Pregnancy series, I sincerely thank you for your interest and hope that good, thoughtful conversations are being raised from it. I’ve had a lot of really kind responses, and I’m deeply grateful for the outpouring of support and love from everyone, even friends I may not have connected… Read More Beyond Pregnancy (3) – My Recovery from Postpartum Depression
This post is part two and a continuation of “Beyond Pregnancy – My Battle with Severe Postpartum Depression.” Again, I want to warn that these posts are long and text-heavy, as they contain a lot of detail and my thoughts in reflection. But my goal is to hopefully help someone who is going through postpartum… Read More Beyond Pregnancy (2) — My Struggle With Taking Antidepressants
At the beginning of the year, I shared my conceiving journey. Today, as we near the end of the year, I share my postpartum tale. Both are very personal stories, but I thought long and hard about sharing these vulnerable feelings and experiences. In the spirit of Thanksgiving, I made the choice to share my… Read More Beyond Pregnancy — My Battle with Severe Postpartum Depression
This isn’t my typical blog post. It’s definitely long and a lot more personal and mostly just text, and I debated keeping this on a private blog or sharing it. I wrote this a few months ago when I wanted to capture all the emotions I had felt through the crazy roller coaster of getting… Read More The Journey to Motherhood – Starting with Conceiving Issues
Where else can you hike and see 10 waterfalls in one day, AND walk behind 4 of the waterfalls?! Silver Falls State Park is one of the coolest Oregon State Parks to visit because of its high density of waterfalls (large ones at that!) in one state park! The “crown jewel” of Oregon State Parks, I definitely think this place is not to be missed!… Read More Silver Falls State Park in Oregon – A Guide to the Trail of Ten Waterfalls Day Hike
There are a billion Disney blogs out there so I’m definitely not going to write in detail about Disneyland because that job is more aptly suited for someone who lives in SoCal with an annual pass! But I did recently go to Disneyland last week and tried out the new MaxPass, which my friend Emilie… Read More Tips and Tricks to Using Disneyland MaxPass and When It’s Worth It
There’s something about tulip fields that just looks so magical. I love all types of gardens, but tulip fields have such a distinct look. And maybe it’s that OCD in me, but I love how organized the rows and rows of tulips grow and those perfect leading lines of vibrant and sturdy blooms that make… Read More Visiting Wooden Shoe Tulip Farm in Oregon for Sunrise
Throughout our travels last year, I made my husband learn how to operate many different transportation modalities from jet skis to Vespas to ATVs. We had never been on any of these before and I give him props for being thrown into the unfamiliar scenarios and handling all of these vehicles like a champ! (Minus… Read More Moorea Excursions – ATVing with ATV Moorea Tours