Mapping My Month: September 2015

So this post will be nearly as much about life in general/baby stuff as travel! While my Mapping My Month posts have always tended to run more on the personal side, they may continue evolving into more and more of a life recap. #sorrynotsorry

We began our month fishing, swimming, and sunning in Kilmarnock, VA. Oh, that every month could start this way! I considered it an early birthday getaway as my actual birthday weekend was spent cleaning, organizing, and in all other respects starting the nesting process of having a little Baby Gypsy arriving in a few months. And speaking of Baby Gypsy, it's a she! Over the last few weeks, we passed the pregnancy halfway mark, threw a "Dirndl or Lederhosen?" themed reveal party (if you follow me on Instagram, you've already seen some of the decorations!), and started the long four-and-a-half month process of responding to inquiries about names with a "we're keeping that a secret 'til birth" smile. We had a really full house for the reveal as both Danny and I have a lot of people just in our immediate families - and two siblings weren't even able to attend! We had such a great time, though, that I wish we could do it again!

Shout out to Rule of Crumb in Goochland, VA, for these amazing dirndl and lederhosen cookies! Check her out if you're near Richmond and need custom-shaped cookies at a great price!

Shortly after the pink streamers came down, Danny's cousin from Frankfurt came for a ten day visit. When she visited in 2012, we took her on a tour through Washington D.C. with one brief (and chilly!) stop in Kilmarnock. This time the sun and warm weather shone down on us for an extended weekend of relaxation with her, Danny, and his sister among the beautiful Northern Neck setting. Seriously, this is one of my favorite places on earth - and it's right in our backyard!

The hubby's side of the family. Photo by Brittany J. of Bev's Photography.

September will be just as exciting and jam-packed as August and if you follow me on Instagram, Twitter, or Facebook, you already know that we're embarking on our second-most-last-second-trip-ever this week as we are heading back to Europe! The "Travel Make-Believe" post from July will give you an inkling as to our general itinerary: Danny is being sent back to London on a business trip, and my awesome boss has approved time-off for me to tag along. I'm going back to my favorite city in the whole wide world, y'all!!! I can't even contain my excitement!

Once Danny is finished in London, we'll be taking advantage of cheap airfare to pop in to Germany for a few days to see family, marking the first time either of us have returned so quickly since a previous visit. We are blessed beyond measure for this opportunity. I'm already drooling over the thought of fish 'n' chips and brats 'n' beer! 

After we return to the states, we'll settle back into more quiet living as autumn begins to creep into Virginia, bringing bonfire invitations, apple picking outings, and maybe a winery visit or two. As yet, there are no other plans for September, but with such a last minute trip to Europe already on the books, we probably need an R&R month!

What does your September look like?

2015 Goal Updates:
1. My shoes gained a lot of miles walking up and down the Kilmarnock beaches and around the house as I cleaned for the reveal party and the arrival of Danny's cousin. As the weather cools, I'll become more motivated to take my regular lunch-time walks at work, too.
2. Over 14,500 points on the credit card! Only 185,500 more to go before my goal of free tickets to Europe...
3. Accomplished.
4. I'm going to just cross off the social media goal as being semi-accomplished. We did make the decision this month that we are going to be overly cautious about what we share online about Baby Gypsy.
5. We made zero progress on the #252by2022 challenge this month. Again! (Do I sound like a broken record?) Maybe the tail-end of September will bring some opportunities.