Am I the only one that, when the holidays roll around, realize I really don’t need anything. Like at all. And my family has felt the same way the past few years. So instead we’ve done family trips lately. And this year, Sedona, AZ. Hiking, board games, VRBO house, stargazing, good food, massages, Jeep Tours, et all.

Below is a snip of our long weekend together. From Indiana, Michigan, and Tejas we all gathered packing casual clothes, no make up, Chacos, yoga pants, and all the Patagona. It was chillier than we expected, but perfect for a long, sunny hike!

Keeping that bucket list checked.

Since we live thousands of miles away from family, and since we were spending two weeks in the Midwest for the holidays just a few weeks later, we decided to ditch Thanksgiving and spend it in a rainy, cooler place, Seattle and Vancouver. Vancouver being one of our shared “bucket list” destinations.

We flew into Seattle and stayed for just over 24 hours, and all of those 24 rained…of course. We toured the city checking out the “hot spots” including the Pike Place Market, original Starbucks (underwhelming IMO), walked Capitol Hill, and saw the Space Needle. Once our dear friend, Mallory, got off work she met us for a drink at a few of her go-to places.

The next morning, Thanksgiving, we took a bus from Seattle, crossed the Canadian border, got dropped off in the heart of downtown Vancouver, and immediately found a local place for some warm and yummy ramen. Afterwards, we walked up Robson Street and grabbed a drink while we wait for our adorable Airbnb to be ready. The next day (no rain!) we rented bikes and took a long ride around Stanley Park, pictured below. After that, we walked to a few second hand stores, then across the bridge to Granville Market (so kitch-y and cute) and ate some of the best fish and chips we’ve ever had at Go Fish. Just a little hut on the water that served fish caught and purchased that morning. Yum.

Day 3 was spent walking all around Gastown, the cutest neighborhood in Vancouver. It rained all day but we didn’t care. We stumbled upon boutiques, restaurants, and coffee shops and ended the evening at one of the best restaurants we found, Tuc Craft Kitchen, and did an escape room with a bunch of strangers because…well we’re obsessed with escape rooms.

Day 4, Whistler and Joffre Lakes. A dream. We rented a car and made the beautiful 1.5 hr drive north to Whistler. Instead of rain, they had snow. And so much of it. Whistler is like a little snow globe of a fake town, where the wealthy gather to escape with their friends and family and experience some of the best skiing North America has to offer. After opting out of skiing, we decided to go snowmobiling (my first time!) instead. So after signing up, we had 2.5 hours to kill and quickly made our way to Joffre Lakes. Another hour north of Whistler. This was my “must” for our trip to Vancouver. We had just a half hour to see the lake, snap 100 quick pictures and get back in time for our incredible snowmobile trip along the mountains of Whistler, where I swear they filmed The Revenant.

More to come as our travel itch continues to be scratched, but until then enjoy some of the highlights from our trip and never hesitate to reach out with tips or questions! xo