Mapping My Month: November 2014

Wait - it's November?!?!

Believe it or not, the time for pumpkin pies, turkey legs, cranberry sauce, and gratitude is fast approaching!  It's time to put away the Halloween ghoul and goblin decorations and break out the autumn garlands and cornucopias.

October brought some highs and some lows.  We lost our new little kitty to some unknown ailment, which crushed me to the point of canceling attendance at an Oktoberfest celebration here in Richmond.  But we did manage to attend the State Fair of Virginia earlier this month, spend a windy weekend at Kilmarnock hunting for arrowheads and pretty shells, and experience the Central Virginia Celtic Festival and Highland Games this past weekend! 

I feel like a broken record by saying that this next month will be fairly quiet in terms of bigger travel plans.  We tend to live frugally, hoarding our money and vacation days for big trips abroad, and we'll be doing more low-key living through November (minus the anticipated bite into my wallet that buying Christmas gifts will bring!).  I plan to kick off November with a trip out to Charlottesville tomorrow to watch my sister's team play a rivalry rugby game against the University of Virginia and then walk the beautiful Grounds of the University reminiscing on my time there as an undergrad.  Later in the month, a dear friend will be returning from her 20-month Asia trip before she moves on to California.  We'll undoubtedly hit up a few breweries and catch up on all her travels!  (I'm anticipating a lot of travel envy after those conversations!)  By then we'll be nearly to Thanksgiving, which means we'll be "headin' to Pennsylvania and some homemade pumpkin pie!"  (Perry Como, anyone?)  We spend every other Thanksgiving in the heart of Amish country, and I'm excited about our first out-of-state trip since late August.  Beyond visiting with family, I'm wondering if we'll have time to sneak a visit to the Hershey Factory while we're there!

Before you know it, we'll be in the swing of the Christmas season. And in just a few weeks, we should be able to announce our 2015 international travel plans!  I can't wait!

How was your October?  Any big plans for November yet?

Perfectly poured if I do say so myself. #beer #hefeweizen #bier #prosit #thirstythursday

A photo posted by The Thrifty Gypsy's Travels (@thriftygypsy87) on Oct 10, 2014 at 3:21pm PDT

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Linking up with A Brit and a Southerner for #WeekendWanderlust!