A year in the life of....

It's been a year since my last update, and my goodness, and what a year it's been!

Apologies for the long, ok, very long break in blogging. But it has been a busy year, with lots of changes to embrace and adjust to.

So what did the last year of my life entail?

Summer 2011 kept me busy. Getting used to my new life in Columbus, new friends, my parents visiting from London, Summer Road Trip to Charlotte, summer concerts, travel, halloween and more travel etc.

My parents came to visit in July 2011, their first visit to the East Coast and Columbus. My Mom and Dad loved it here, the balmy and sometime soupy hot weather, our road trip to Charlotte, N.C, via, W.Virginia and Tennesee. We drove through the Smoky Mountains which are amazing.

Soon the end of summer was replaced by the amazing colours of fall. The changing colours of the leaves are so amazing, and with all the natural woodlands around our home, we were spoilt with all the foliage colours.

Fall brings with it the fun and games of halloween and street parties!

Chris and I also celebrated our 5th Wedding Anniversary in Sept 2011, so we decided to spoil ourselves with a trip to Cancun, Mexico. We stayed at an amazing hotel, with one of the best beaches in Cancun. Our days were spent drinking margarita's on the beach, reading, swimming and relaxing. I also attempted my first scuba diving course, which I LOVED!

Soon enough, fall was replaced which the winter chill. We did not get as much snow as we used to in Denver, but it was still enough to haul out the snow shovel.

Luckily Chris and I got to escape some of the winter with our trip to South Africa. This was Chris's first trip back since our move to the US, so he was super excited to see friends and family. It was my 2nd, but still 3 years since I last saw everyone, so we were both so thrilled to spend Christmas in SA.

I even got to spend some time in the Kruger with Jules. What an amazing time, we saw the big 5, and so much more.

Jules with her amazing ceramics collection at the Skukuza gift shop

Winter seemed to pass quickly once we got back, and soon the signs of spring showed up everywhere. The Columbus Observatory held a wonderful showing of butterflies and orchards, which we went to see.

I have this thing, that for my birthday every year we go to a place we have not been before. This year Chris and I decided to spend my birthday in Nashville. I am a country girl, my parents will tell you that as a little girl, I wanted to be a gow-girl. So off we went, boots and all, and spent a fantastic weekend in Nashville, Tennessee.

Our drive past Cincinnati on our way back.

Columbus has a wonderful atmosphere in summer. There is so much to do and enjoy. Summer concerts, bbq (braai's), golf and they even have a wildlife reserve outside Columbus, called the wilds! 

Our backyard, all green and ready for some summer bbq's

My Mom came to visit, which was such a great surprise. I met up with her in Washington DC, did some sightseeing and spent some girl time together before heading back to Columbus. She enjoyed the sunny weather compared to the London rain.

I decided to spoil my Mom with a trip to the Amish Country, which is about 2 hr's from Columbus. We stayed is this sweet B&B, with a singing inn-keeper. Touring the Amish Farms, cheese factories and seeing how they make quilts was very interesting. We even got to ride in a Amish buggy!

Love the coke truck next to the buggy's

Soon it was 4th July weekend, and Chris and I decided to spend it in very special Colorado. We spent some time catching up with friends in Denver and then headed into the mountains to Beaver Creek and Vail for some much needed clean, cool mountain air.

Very hazy due to all the wildfires in Colorado

And so we've caught up on what I've been up to this past year. Our next trip planned should include a trip to Chicago in Sept, and then probably Mexico in December, so watch this space....Until next time.