America's 50 Best Cities

Traveling to other cities definitely shines the light on the city you live in ... good or bad.  And, I'm happy to admit that after every trip Gabe and I go on, our drive home from the airport consists of us commenting on how amazing of a city it is and how happy we are to be "home!"

I found this article on America's 50 Best Cities to live in:

My hometown came in at #42

Dallas

Rank: 41
Population: 1,199,739

Dallas is arguably the focal point for oversize American culture: fried food, mechanic bull riding, and glitzy displays of largesse that inspire stereotypes and television shows alike. If you just know Dallas as a fan of the soap opera (or, more improbably, the canceled GCB show), you’re missing out on a city with several major art districts and a vibrant music scene. And Dallas’s take on Beverly Hills, the Highland Park neighborhood, is very much real.

Bars: 249
Restaurants: 2,808
Museums: 26
Libraries: 43
Pro sports teams: 2
Park acres per 1,000 residents: 23
Colleges: 10
Percent with graduate degree: 5.9
Median household income: $44,838

Percent unemployed: 7.9  

My city I now call home is #2

quite the step up if you ask me :)

Seattle

Rank: 2
Population: 624,070

For our runner-up best city, we turn back to the Northwest to the nation’s spiritual home for coffee and personal computing: Seattle. Residents of Rain City will take the city’s famously prodigious rainfall in exchange for their high average median income, beautiful water-bound locale, and standout clean air. Microsoft (MSFT) and Boeing (BA) provide tens of thousands of jobs to the area, for those who can’t toss fish at the Pike Place Market.

Bars: 219
Restaurants: 2,307
Museums: 29
Libraries: 42
Pro sports teams: 4
Park acres per 1,000 residents: 9
Colleges: 8
Percent with graduate degree: 16.8
Median household income: $90,303
Percent unemployed: 7.2

AND this years winner: 

San Francisco

Rank: 1
Population: 808,854

The City by the Bay, this year's winner, provides residents with the best blend of entertainment, education, safety, clear air, and a prosperous economic base. As the heart of the Bay Area, San Francisco draws on the prosperity of Silicon Valley and possesses its own diverse history well represented at cultural centers such as the de Young Museum. Residents care fiercely about their cafés and causes; night life flourishes in the Mission and the Castro, while tech companies code away in SoMa.

Bars: 394
Restaurants: 3,430
Museums: 70
Libraries: 52
Pro sports teams: 2
Park acres per 1,000 residents: 7
Colleges: 17
Percent with graduate degree: 16
Median household income: $90,640
Percent unemployed: 7.8

The top 10 were:

St Paul #10

San Diego #9

Austin #8

NYC #7

Denver #6

Portland #5

Boston #4

Washington D.C. #3

Seattle #2

SanFran #1

Click here to see if you city made the list!

Tiny Prints

I have a date with my computer to sit down here shortly, upload photos from our Europe trip, and pick a few winners that summarize our experience for our 2012 holiday photo card.  Last year we used photos from Thailand, and the year before Australia, so this years Christmas card will be a must to find ones from Europe.  

The past two years, I have used Shutterfly and adored the final product.  

This year I am going to use Tiny Prints as they have 

a new premium double thick matte paper!

Loving the round edges, plus it's bright&cheery!

Tiny Prints so kindly allowed me to host a giveaway for one of my readers.

SO one of you can win a $50 credit to Tiny Prints.

(does not include shipping and cannot be combined with another offer)

a Rafflecopter giveaway

We're Home!

Hubs and I are home (that was fast since I never told you I left the country), so sneaky I know!!  It was the trip of a lifetime.  Everything went off without a hitch, all 19 days, and I cannot wait to post about each and every city.  

The people we met, the food, the sights, the excitement :)

I leave with you love from Trevi Fountain

And yes, of course I made a wish!!

Euro2012 Itinerary

Our upcoming adventure to
Europe consists of us venturing to:

London

Venice

Dubrovnik

Corfu

 Katakolon

Athens

Mykonos

Kusadasi

Santorini

Naples (Capri & Pompeii)

Rome

Oh my goodness, I have been dreaming of pizza and wine for months
and intend to crossfit like no other for the next window until we leave.
Do you have any insight to share - please do tell!

Euro2012

My most exciting news that has been keeping me super beyond preoccupied, is that I have been the biggest nerd and reading all my library books for our upcoming trip to Europe!!  

18 days, 5 countries to add to my visited list.

Yay, YAY, it can't be here soon enough, I'm ready!

Roll it!

THE look, I want next!

I love it and am on the hunt for a fab and inexpensive pair of casual jeans like these ...

Have you found a pair you LOVE??

Fragrance Lake Hike

Before the Seattle summer disappears right out from underneath me, Gabe and I made it a point to get a few more hikes under our belt as we all know that in a few more weeks ... Seattle will get a littler "damper!"  

I had seen pictures from Fragrance Lake, 

which is north of Seattle at the Larrabee State Park

and loaded my family in our Outback and we were off to explore!

This is a perfect way for me to spend a weekend:  getting exercise, hanging with my loved ones, taking pictures, and getting lots of fresh air.  One of my most favorite things about Seattle is the abundance of God's beauty right in my backyard!

Then, on the drive home we indulged in a Blooming Onion at Outback :)

Consumed all the calories back that I burned, lol.