Explore the World with Mrs. Wood

"We would really love to go there, but the thought of planning a trip exhausts me..." If this thought, or one similar, has ever passed through your mind, please keep reading!  We were out with friends recently and I jokingly offered to plan an upcoming trip for them as I made fun of myself for enjoying the planning of trips almost as much as actually taking them.  Although I was kidding, they were truly up for it, and the next day I planned a full trip to the Mt. Rushmore area for them, complete with my suggestions for their hotel stays and restaurant choices.  Of course, they are not obliged to take every suggestion, but the framework and much of the legwork is done for them.  My favorite thing to do when planning a vacation is to find personal or family blogs written by real-live people and see what they did with their time on a particular trip.  I write down anything and everything I can find on the location, and then I compile it into an organized schedule with an itinera

The Wood family plans to never pay cash for airline tickets ever again, and I'm here to tell you how.  I know this isn't for everyone.  In fact, there are things in my life that I know I could get for free or at least cheaper, but I'm not willing to do the work it takes.  Sometimes, time is more valuable than money.  For our family, this one is a no-brainer, but please feel no judgement from us if you'd truly rather just keep your finances the way they are and pay cash for those airline tickets. So, here's how it works for us...  When Mr. Wood and I went to Italy, we flew Delta.  At that time, we found out about Delta's partnership with American Express.  For a yearly fee, we could get a Delta Skymiles American Express card.  Our first task was to determine whether or not the savings would be worth the yearly fee.  We decided that they would be...BUT we love to travel.  If you rarely travel, this might not be for you.  The Delta Skymiles card was having a promot

In the summer of 1996, Mr. Wood sat in St. Mark's Square in Venice, eating gelato and dreaming of the day he and I would return together.  We dreamed of going for our 10 year anniversary, but, alas, we had not-enough money and three little boys, and that did not happen.  So, in May 2017, on our 19th wedding anniversary, he took me to an Italian restaurant near our home and presented me with a limerick (Mr. Wood has a secret talent for limericks!!) to tell me that we would be going to Italy the next year to celebrate our 20th anniversary and I would have a whole year to dream and plan for the trip.  Yahoo!!!! in the car on the way to the airport The first thing I do when I know a trip is on the horizon is research.  I scour google and pinterest and especially personal blogs about real people taking a similar trip.  I want to nail down the big picture first...What cities are we going to? What areas are best to stay in for our personalities? Do most people stay in hotels or cabins or