Cinque Terra, Italy

I'm once again in a reminiscing mood, and wanted to share a few of my photographs and  memories from one of the most beautiful places I visited when I studied abroad. It is hard to believe that it was three years ago, that I met my family over Easter in Italy, and went to the Cinque Terra. We were staying in the Tuscan region, and it was a two hour train ride. You can hike between all five towns, and my family hiked between Monterossa and Vernazza. We had the most amazing lunch in Monetrossa, feasting on fresh fish, calamari and caprese salad and then began our hike

Turns out, that is the most difficult hike of all the cities, and my family is NOT the most naturey of people. The hike was long, and through the mountains, on narrow pathways where at times we'd have a good couple hundred feet drop off right into the water on our side (which freaked my Dad out that we'd somehow fall to our death). We were all exhausted by the time we finished and had gelato in Vernazza. But wow, the view as we made our descent into Vernazza (just look at that amazing photo above) left us awestruck. I twas worth it.

My entire trip to Italy was unbelievable, from the scenery, and the food, and the gelato. I'd love to go back to Italy some day. But for now, I'll just look through my photos. Below, are just a few of my favorites.

    

        

12 days of Christmas

The month of December is one of my favorite months, and I have a feeling the posts on the holidays will be a major trend here in La Caffeinista. I loved a post over at the fabulous Polished Chaos discussing 25 Christmas to-dos. It made me excited for the holiday season and gave me inspiration to write this post; my top holiday to-dos; the 12 days of Christmas, to give it a name.

1. Donate to a food bank - I love working for a company that takes community service/giving back to others seriously, so I plan on donating food to a local food bank. We've having an inter-office competition and its so much fun, but all for a good cause!
2. Play in the snow - I'm hoping by the time I'm back at my parent's house for Christmas there will be snow; there's nothing better than a white Christmas.
3. Find my parent's the ultimate Christmas gift - My brother and I are working hard to find our parents something amazing to show them just how much we appreciate all they've done for us. They're hard to buy for, so I've been scouring the internet. No luck yet!
4. Bake holiday cookies
5. Watch Elf, Love Actually, the Santa Clause and Home Alone. Also, watch A Christmas Story on Christmas Eve- it's a family tradition!
6. Decorate your tree; reminisce about the ornament/where they came from.
7. Drive around and look at Christmas lights. Back at my parents home, there's an amazing drive through Christmas light show. It's beautiful. 
8. Go look at the White House Christmas tree - I think when my brother visits in a few weeks, we'll go check it out!
9. Make a Gingerbread House - I'm thinking of inviting some friends over to make them. It's so much fun.
10. Be thankful for what you have, and spend time with family  and friends- I have close to 50 family members who will be at my house on Christmas eve. Its the best day the year, and it's not about the presents. Its about all of us being together (and of course the delicious food!)
11. Listen to Christmas music until you can't take it anymore - I've been jamming to my Glee Holiday music Pandora playlist at work; it really cheers me up!
12. Get at least one drink in Starbuck's holiday cup- already achieved this a long time ago, but it equals the holidays are here!

Okay, so technically this makes it 13, but I feel like this is a separate one all on its own.

1. Remember what the holidays are about - family, friends, and giving back to others. Such a special time of the year to be thankful for everything you have.

Happy Thanksgiving!

First and foremost, Happy Thanksgiving to everyone who celebrates. I hope you spend your day with friends and family, eating delicious food, and being grateful for everything you have in life. I know that's what I'll be doing! I feel so blessed to have such amazing people in my life who've supported me along the way to help me get to where I am today - working at an fabulous PR firm in one of my favorite cities. It's wonderful to finally be content with the path life is taking.

I'm thankful for...

1. After over year of searching for jobs, and countless times being told no or "we'd love to have you.. as an intern!" finally having a job, and loving what I'm doing, working with such intelligent, creative people at a place that really allows their employees to think outside the box and try new things. I am SO grateful to be there and count my blessings every day.
2. For my parents putting up with my low-paying internships and allowing me to take risks, helping me stay afloat when I first moved to DC. Without their help and support there would have been absolutely no way I'd be here right now.
3. New friends and old ones. Its tough being away from my friends from home/college, its exciting that I have friends all over the country to visit now. Without their support and listening to me when I first moved and was alone/knew no one, I wouldn't have survived!
4. Things that make me appreciate life, and laugh- this is an assortment of things; from being in awe that I live near all the monuments and can see them every day; being able to watch  my favorite TV shows or go to sporting events; traveling; exploring the city with my friends; going to fancy brunches; appreciating that I can call up my brother and have a conversation with him (never would have happened a few years ago). It's little things that add up in life. I need to step back and appreciate the little things in life.
5. finally accepting my life and being content with it. Aside from graduating college, 2009 wasn't very kind to me; 2010 has been about starting afresh, accepting who I am, and being more independent and confident with myself. I'm happy with the people in my life, and accepted the fact that some people once were a very important part of life are no longer in it- I've let go, and it feels wonderful. I've put the past in the past, and only look to the present!

So, as I sit at my parent's house, listening to Glee music, and my Dad downloading a crazy amount of YouTube videos on his iPad (which my Dad just "discovered" today after I showed him the bird dancing to "Whip my Hair."), about to get ready for my Aunt's house, I am happy. I wouldn't have my life any other way.

Happy Thanksgiving to all. 

Why I love Thanksgiving..

Thanksgiving is one of my favorite holidays; I think it's pretty close to Christmas. Especially now that I have to fly home for it and don't see my family as often, it's more important to me. By the time this posts, I will have already left DC and arrived back home with my family and friends. Cannot wait!

I love...

• the amazing food. This year my Mom's not cooking and I'm kind of sad because my parents are the most amazing cooks I've ever met (for real). But... it's nice because we are...
• spending time with family. My family is large and we see each other often; but Thanksgiving everyone does their own thing and Christmas is where we ALL (over 50 of us) come together (at my parents house). This year we are going to my Aunt's for Turkey Day; and spending it with my aunt/uncle and at least two of my cousins, and my grandma. I'm excited to spend time with a few of my cousins and my family. I appreciate my family so much more now that I'm not living at home.
• colder weather - It's pretty warm in the District- this past weekend it was in the 60s! At home, its in the 30s, and I'm looking to a few days of cold.

I'm pretty sure this is the most awesome picture - EVER

!

• the Michigan/Ohio State weekend! Yes, Michigan sucks and will probably lose, but this is the biggest game of the year, still, and I am SO excited to get to watch it with my Dad/maybe other family members! Miracles can happen, right? My Dad isn't too optimistic, but I still have hope!
• that Christmas is almost here! Thanksgiving marks the start of Christmas lights, my Mom putting up decorations, and Christmas music. It makes me excited.
• thinking about present shopping - my brother and I will HOPEFULLY get our shopping done for our parents this week, but knowing us, that's not a guarantee. I love present shopping for others, but Black Friday kind of intimidates me.
• Christmas/Holiday cards - My Mom always does our cards... do I send out my own now that I no longer live with them? It's not like I have a significant other or a pet to take a photo with.. and my favorite part about cards is the photo. Maybe I'll send out some personal/handwritten cards to just my family and a few close friends. I should get on that!
• new traditions. I'm hoping to meet one of my "little" (she's 16, I can't believe it!) cousins for coffee and breakfast, something we've been trying to do every time I come home now. I miss my sports buddy! (we go to a lot of games together.) I also want to see my god daughter and basically cram as much family time as I can into the 4.5 days I'm home!