Hi! I’m Jacki!
I have a hard time sitting still, I love going out and discovering new places to explore and things to do…whether it is a 30 mile drive from home or a 5,000 mile flight! I also love taking photos of everything I see and talking about our adventures. So one thing led to another and here we are. Welcome to my blog! I started this blog simply to share all of our adventures, vacations and day trips in hopes that they inspire you to get out and enjoy yourself!
My family consists of myself, my husband, our daughter, and the occasional exchange student (we are up to 9 exchange daughters and sons around the world!). I also have a step-daughter who lives in Denmark. Family and friends tease us that we own a mini zoo, and I have to agree…we have 6 dogs (from a big German Shepherd to a tiny chihuahua), a snake, 4 leopard geckos, a crested gecko, a false chameleon (otherwise known as an anole) a bunch of fish, 2 horses, and also foster dogs for various dog rescues. Yes it literally takes a village for us to be able to travel!
My husband (who I met while living in Denmark) is a senior software manager for a tech company and in his spare time he enjoys woodworking and spending time in nature. Our daughter took a gap year after high school and is now a college student studying equine science and pre-veterinary.
Together we love exploring the world around us from our home in Virginia, and we hope you will follow along!
about my work
Nope, as much as I would like to be, I am not one of those lucky travel bloggers that quit their job to travel full-time. In order to afford all of our day trips and vacations, my day job is working in the exchange student industry! My family and I have hosted exchange students since 2013 and about 4 years ago I began working full-time for United Studies. I love making connections between exchange students and host families! A few times a year this position also provides me with the opportunity to travel as well!
my hobbies
When I am not working or traveling or out and about on a day trip, I really enjoy reading (pretty much anything but romance novels!), cooking, watching TV and movies, and of course photography. I also like watching my daughter ride her horses. All of my life I have been a huge animal lover, and if you hang around long enough you will discover that I am absolutely obsessed with dogs! That’s why we have 6 of them and foster countless more!
why i love to travel
I grew up a military brat – my dad spent 20 years in the US Navy – so traveling is in my blood. I spent my childhood in all kinds of cool places and once I graduated high school I knew I wanted to continue traveling the world. That’s how I ended up moving to Denmark after graduating from college!
