SEA Book Prep

{My view from the balcony at the Quileute Oceanside Resort in La Push, WA}

I visited Seattle & the Olympic Peninsula in May of 2014. Twenty eight months ago folks, and I STILL haven't even started on an album. Seriously. I know. Initially I had planned on a 4 x 4 mini but after going through my travel stash there was just too much stuff I didn't want to cut down. I was at Michael's a few weeks ago and came across a white canvas 6 x 8 album by Recollections. (Haven't been able to find it on their website anywhere anywhere.)

At first I walked right past it, thinking it wouldn't exactly work for what I wanted. After not really finding anything, I picked it up and started flipping through it. Because of the plain Jane white canvas, I wasn't expecting much but the inside is filled with 52 pages of goodness!

There are four clear 6 x 8 dividers. I wish there were a few more because then I could use them to divide the days. Oh well.

The album also includes forty pages of a very light smooth kraft paper. I think I might try designing some stuff in Photoshop to print directly onto the paper. I'll also be using them to adhere photos to.

There are four black pocket pages to store travel ephemera in.

As well as four kraft envelopes.

I'm super excited to get started and might have to go back and pick up some more albums as I think these will be perfect for travel albums. I'll be uploading my photos to Persnickety Prints rather than print them at home and plan on using a variety of sizes (4x6, 5x7, 4x4, 5x5) Expect a SEA book post when it's done!

Royal Caribbean's Ship Repositioning Cruises

{More of this please!}

I went on my first cruise in 2007 and fell in love. With cruising, that is. Mom and I left out of Fort Lauderdale on the Enchantment of the Seas for a 5 night cruise with Royal Caribbean. We chose to go in October because it's hurricane season and the rates are cheaper. (Note: I think it sprinkled for an hour while we were in Grand Cayman.) Our itinerary was as follows:

{Swimming with the rays}

Day One: Board ship and get settled

Day Two: Day at Sea

Day Three: Ocho Rios, Jamaica

Day Four: George Town, Grand Cayman

Day Five: Day at Sea

Day Six: Back to port

{Mom & I before heading to dinner one night}

 We had a blast, the food was fantastic, facials and massages were booked and we did some pretty awesome shore excursions (Chukka Cove Polo Club for horseback riding on the beach - and in the water, and Sting Ray City Sand Bar where we got to swim with sting rays. I even got to hug one. And we hit up Margaritaville in both places!) There was so much going on that I felt like I needed to take a vacation after my vacation just to recoup.

{Frolicking in the ocean at Chukka Cove Polo Club}

If you've ever wanted to try cruising or if you're looking for an awesome deal, check out Royal Caribbean's ship repositioning cruises. There's a 12 night deal that starts at just over $1000. That's less than $100 bucks a night, all your meals are included and you're on a boat in the middle of the ocean going to great places that are far away from work while sipping fruity drinks that come with umbrellas. It's a win-win situation, folks. Here's the breakdown:

Day One: Departs out of Boston, MA

Day Two: Cruising

Day Three: Cruising

Day Four: Cruising

Day Five: Charlotte Amalie, St. Thomas

Day Six: Philipsburg, St. Maarten

Day Seven: Castries, St. Lucia

Day Eight: Cruising

Day Nine: Willemstad, Curacao

Day Ten: Oranjestad, Aruba

Day Eleven: Cruising

Day Twelve: Cruising

Day Thirteen: Docks in Fort Lauderdale, FL

There's six days at sea which gives you ample time to explore the ship and just kick back and relax.

{Checking out Margaritaville in Ocho Rios}

If you'd like to learn more, head over to Royal Caribbean and check out the ship repositioning cruises. They also have a Mediterranean Cruise! 

Blurb Book: Washington

This past week I started working on my Washington photo book. I mean, it's only been a year since I went. (Get your shit together, Latini!) Anyways, I decided to use Blurb again. A few years ago I made a small 7x7 Instagram softcover with some photos from my summer in Alaska and it came out really great. Blurb has their very own software that you can download and basically drag and drop your photos in. It's very user friendly, which you can see by the photos. You can even add text in AND sell your book, should you so wish.

My only problem now is going through 2,000+ photos and try to decide which ones make it into the book. Baby steps. I'll keep you guys posted on the progress and hope to do a video walk through once it's completed. 

Check out the staff favorites here and the best sellers here.