Growing up in a small town, I always had a big imagination. The countryside of Eastern Oklahoma was beautiful in its own way—with green rolling hills, the Illinois River, and Lake Tenkiller as our summer refuge. But even as a kid, my mind would wander far beyond those places.
As a rancher’s daughter, my world was rooted in the land. My sisters and I spent most of our days outside, building teepees out of sticks and old quilts, climbing trees, and exploring the acres around us. We didn’t travel much—ranch life means staying close to care for the animals. But the few trips we did take really stuck with me: Breckenridge, Colorado… Disney World in Florida… Silver Dollar City and Table Rock Lake in Missouri… and one big road trip to Washington, D.C., where we saw the Lincoln Memorial and the Capitol building. We always drove. With a family of six and a tight budget, the road trip itself became part of the adventure.
My childhood was pretty sheltered too. I grew up in the Pentecostal church and didn’t really see the harsher side of the world. I’ll never forget the time we stopped in New Orleans on the way to Florida and drove down Bourbon Street. My dad just wanted to see it. We didn’t get far before my mom screamed, “Girls, get in the floor, don’t look!”—right as we passed a man painted gold… and completely naked. That was a whole new world for me. Even then, what stuck with me most about traveling wasn’t just the places—it was the people.
When it came time for college, I didn’t really want to go. My real dream was to move to Austin and play country music in a band. But my mom, being a teacher, didn’t really give me that option. I applied to only two schools—one in my hometown (where I had a music scholarship) and one about three hours away. At the last minute, I chose the one farther from home. I needed to “see the world,” even if that world started with Oklahoma City.
That move opened up so much for me. I met amazing people, including a group of musicians who lived like it was still Laurel Canyon in 1969. They introduced me to a whole new way of life, one that matched my curiosity for yoga, consciousness, and creativity. We played at local bars and festivals, camped out in fields, drank whiskey, and made music all night. I still kept up with my college classes—I was studying music business—and started traveling to festivals during the summers.
One year I almost bought a ticket to a music festival in Spain, but my friend bailed and I didn’t feel confident going alone. I was heartbroken not to go—but life gave me another chance to visit Europe later on, and it was everything I hoped it would be.
While I was in college, I was working at a coffee shop when a guy with sparkling blue eyes and a huge beard walked in. We clicked right away—talking about music, yoga, and the mountains. After he left, I wrote a poem about him, dreaming that he’d sweep me away to the mountains one day. Ten years later, he’s my husband… and he really did.
We’ve done a lot of traveling together since then. We’re not luxury travelers, and I kind of love that. Our favorite days are the ones spent outside, hiking and exploring. When we’re in a new city, we walk a lot. I always joke that my husband is the worst tour guide because we’ll go from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. without eating—but we’ll have had coffee and beer!
There are places that we have frequented in the past and places we have only gone once together and dream of coming back and trying new things! Some of the places we have visited are: Arizona, Arkansas, California, Georgia, Florida, Tennessee, Texas, New York, Scotland UK and where we now call home Northern New Mexico. There are obviously so many places that we would still love to add to our bucket list of travel and are planning trips this year to Colorado. You can tell we like this spot. This blog will give you advice on all the things we love to do when we travel like hiking trails, coffee spots, restaurants, and charming hostels, and the occasional luxury hotel (depending on the location). I hope you enjoy and am looking forward to hearing about your recent and past travels as well!