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Tag: todos santos

A First Timer’s Road Trip Guide for Driving to Baja, Mexico

Dreaming of a Baja road trip? From border crossings to packing tips, here’s everything you need to know about driving to Baja, Mexico.

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It took me 3 months to actually feel… PEACE!!!! It took me 3 months to actually feel…

PEACE!!!!?!? 😮‍💨🫶🏽

I spent years planning to quit my job in my 20s for a career break, which eventually became 30s (because life), and finally ended up doing it at the age of 32. 

That was 4ish months ago, and after a wonderfully gradual exit, I’ve officially been on a fully unemployed sabbatical for exactly 3 weeks. 

AND

I’m not afraid to admit that in the last 3 months… 

• I’ve cried several times, once for a full weekend without end, as I struggled with my decision and whether I was being foolish. 

• I have genuinely had NO idea what I will do next, or where. Still don’t. 🤭

• My husband and I have had several difficult conversations about navigating this atypical lifestyle while I’m on a career break, and he isn’t. ❤️

• I’ve missed my friends and my family. 

• I have not missed the USA. Genuinely. But my heart aches with my home country from afar. Australia isn’t perfect, but I’m learning a lot.

And for the first time in months, these worries and fears and anxieties are still there, but no longer feel ‘suffocating.’ 

All big changes take time. 

Love from the other side of the world! (29/30) Follow along for more post-30 sabbatical content ☺️#GoingFortheGap
Here’s to more rewriting the rules, flipping the Here’s to more rewriting the rules, flipping the script, and celebrating every damn thing in 2026 🎉

2025 was a whirlwind chapter – hello marriage! and career break! and moving abroad! and so much water time! – and I am so proud sitting here, looking at these reflections, and taking a moment to honor every part of my story that I had the audacity to dream up and do.

I’ll also be real with you and tell you there’s so much I thought I would’ve done this year and didn’t. So many unfinished to do lists, so many 2025 goals left unchecked, so many mental blocks and imposter-y moments and internal battles along the way.

But in the mental overwhelm that is the end of the year, it’s important to look back and see all that you have done, all that you have lived, and all that you have dreamt up but not quite realized yet, and let it fuel what you choose to do next. 

More celebration, more audacity, more belief that you can change your life if you change your thoughts.

That’s what I’m bringing into 2026. What about you? 

#2025wrapped #2025goals #lifelessons #careerbreak #girlswhofreedive
A love letter to those also celebrating the holida A love letter to those also celebrating the holidays far from home, or far from family, for the first time ❤️

It is a privilege to be here in Australia for Christmas (or Chrissy, as we’re learning 🤙🏽), but that doesn’t mean we aren’t feeling all the things. It’s okay if you are, too! 

There has been so much change in our lives this year, but we paused to snap these photos because we reminded ourselves no matter where in the world we are, this is our first holiday season as a married couple (!) and first real opportunity to create our own traditions as a family.

One thing we always try to do is pick a day in this window between Christmas and New Year’s and dedicate it to reviewing our year + setting intentions for the year ahead. We always go out for this – to the beach, or a brewery, or a coffee shop – to make it feel more special.

This year, we also sent out our very first personalized holiday cards (which was a struggle from Aus, but we got it done 🙌🏽😅).

What are some holiday traditions you’ve created as an adult that bring you joy this time of year? 

Part 28/30 of the early days as an American abroad in Australia on a career break #GoingForTheGap 🎄
A very Aussie Christmas indeed 🌴 what do your h A very Aussie Christmas indeed 🌴 what do your holidays look like? 

Growing up in Hawaii, this has always been what Christmas felt like for as long as I can remember. A balmy 70-80 degrees, humidity that feels like dewdrops on my skin, and a quick dip in the ocean to remind myself to pause and find gratitude in the holiday season. Followed, of course, by my annual screening of the Grinch 🎅

While we’re far from family for the first time and that’s certainly very strange, I’m especially grateful for the things that do feel like home.

P.S. hi from Byron Bay! 

#offdutyinaustralia #onlyinaustralia #australia #gapyear #gapyearlife
If you’ve ever thought about quitting your job o If you’ve ever thought about quitting your job or taking on any big life change that comes with some financial risk, let’s talk about what that looks like from a savings POV!

I share exactly how much I saved for my career break here – so be sure to watch till the end 👆🏽

Once you have your Quit Number, back into the number of months or years it’ll take you to reasonably save. Try to shift your mindset away from “I’ll never be able to do this” to “what adjustments do I need to make in order to save for the experience I’m after?”

PS – I break all of this down further in my Guide to the Gap Year. Comment SAVE and I’ll send you the link.

Again, these are not magic numbers and I am not providing financial guidance. Everyone’s situation is different. But I hope that seeing my breakdown helps demistify things just a little more.

Do you know what your Quit Number / Walk-Away Number / F@!^!&-It Number would be? Could you sit down and crunch the numbers to see what it would take to finally do that thing you always said you would do? Let me know your thoughts + any savings tips you’d add below! 

Part 27/30  #GoingForTheGap | Gap Year | Career Pivot | Career Break | Moving Abroad | Saving Tips
Don’t count yourself out just yet. It took me Don’t count yourself out just yet. 

It took me 7 years to accomplish one of my most audacious goals to date, so if you’re stressing about not getting all your resolutions finished by the end of this year, I hope this goes to show, your timing is your own. Don’t let someone else’s dictate you fast or slow you go, as long as you’re making moves 🤍

Coming back to Byron Bay is another full-circle moment for me!! The last time I was in Australia visiting family in the Gold Coast, I was just starting to experiment with traveling solo. One of those formative little trips was right here, to Byron Bay, for just 8 hours (yes, a day trip away from my family 🥺). I wanted to see beyond the hotels and high rises of Surfer’s Paradise. I boarded a bus, I hiked up this very lighthouse, I wandered along Main Beach, and I fantasized (as I often do when I travel) about living here one day. That was exactly 7 years ago, in late November of 2018.

And now, 7 new years resolutions lists and 2,555 days later, I get to call Byron home. At least, for a little while 😌

don’t feel discouraged if your dreams are too big to fit within 12 months on a calendar. Usually, the best ones are worth being patient (and persistent) for the long haul! 

Part 26/30 #GoingForTheGap
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