Tag Archives: Stream2Sea

Feeling Back to Normal

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It’s been a few weeks for us being back in our actual home and we are loving it!

With the one minor detail, that we’re living around a bump out that’s fully closed in the living room, everything else is working perfectly (knock on wood). We’ve been able to enjoy our evenings and weekends again without feeling like we’re on borrowed time. I especially love having my own washer & dryer, although the loads are smaller and I have to empty the grey water tank every 3rd load.

Since moving back in, we have kept busy – I headed to the Bahamas for work and introduced 4 colleagues to Scuba! They got to try Discover Scuba Diving with our team at Sandals Royal Bahamian and enjoy all the resort amenities.

We ate all the sushis, soaked up all the sun, and even got to see a Shark on their first ever dive (at a Shipwreck)! There’s just something about floating in the sea that warms your soul.

After the Bahamas Trip I came home for a quick weekend to welcome BigSeester and the Niblings (Nephews & Niece) before I had to take back off for Ohio.

That weekend happened to be Pirate Weekend in A-Bay! I had some portions of a costume already in the camper (some of my favorite shirts, by Migdalia – I found her in a booth at the Hendersonville Apple Festival a few years ago!)

Is it giving Pirate? or more Kid Rock?

I tried to swap the dates on the Ohio trip so I’d get more than 3 days with the family but sadly that wasn’t meant to be. Watertown has a teeeeeny tiny airport, the photos below are both the check-in counter, and baggage claim. And most flights take off at 6am, so you’re there around 4:30a to check bags and head through security. The actual gate waiting area is on the other side of this wall, but they do have donation coffee and a vending machine!

The Ohio trip went really well! We had about 3 days to connect with Travel Advisors from Cleveland through Columbia and the BDM did a phenomenal job on our itinerary. While there wasn’t time for a visit to the Rock n Roll Hall of Fame, we did take a drive around Cedar Point! Both add on’s for the next trip for sure.

We ended up meeting 41 Travel Advisors and opening up their travel opportunities to SCUBA in those 3 days. Here’s hoping for more visibility soon!

Austin had been pulled from his Syracuse job that week as well, so he was back on the road in Texas. By the time I got back to NY, the fam had been having a fun week leading up to a very special 7 year old Birthday Celebration! I was glad to not have missed that day.

Oma and Daddo treated us all to mini-golf, digging for treasure, and bumper boats! I had to jump out mid-day to coordinate a virtual meeting from the car, but it was buckets of fun for everyone!

As the weekend approached, it was time to get everyone “home” and back on the boat, into the water with C&B and Adopted Uncle Dave & Aunt Judy. I managed to pack all the dive masks & snorkels and got all the kids snorkeling around the boat with Austin – they FLOCK to him and he’s so great with them.

The Niblings’s final night was spent on a foam mattress with blankets for everyone, outside stargazing till late in the evening – on BigSeester/mom’s approval. We even downloaded some stargazing apps for each kid to look for constellations. We had so much fun pointing out the big dipper, and all the satellites streaking back and forth across the night sky.

With Keystone still planning to collect our camper at the end of September for fixes, we’re looking forward to spending some time in VA with everyone. It’ll allow us to get to fall practices and games and just be with family a little bit longer.

Austin was able to get the trolling motor all situated on my kayak like he’s been wanting all summer. So now it’s a true fishing kayak and he took the big kids out on a ride before they packed into the car to head home. I took it out myself (without using the motor, because I didn’t realize it wasn’t hooked to the battery) as a core/upper body workout the other windy day and it got my heart working!

It’s been extra windy this last week so I haven’t ventured back out with it again.

That next weekend we decided to head into some of the local dive shops and grab some new, and some rental gear to check out the 1000 Islands dive experience. It’s COLD.

BUT I’m obsessed with my new Halcyon backplate & wing BCD. It’s a discontinued color so we got a hell of a steal deal on it. It was also time for my regs to be serviced and good thing, the shop said they were gross. Somehow I managed to wedge a small piece of metal into a spot where it shouldn’t be and it punctured another spot and had been rusting! The Dive Shop is fixing all that now ahead of my next 2 trips in September.

Did I mention that the water is COLD here. Well, colder than I’m used to so I also bought a 5mm wetsuit, but we got Uncle Chris hooked – sorry, not sorry! Welcome to the cult… I mean Club! Next up is Uncle Dave!

It’s been nice to have our own space back as I noted before. The cat is a happy camper on his spot on the couches, and I’m able to finagle my work schedules a little bit so I can enjoy some early morning fishing some days.

I caught my first Walleye this past Monday!

As we get into our final month of time here at The River, we’ll start unpacking the camper for Keystone. It’s been helpful as I’ve always been an over-packer so we’ll be able to actually get some of the things we didn’t use the last 6 months out and have a better understanding of the basic necessities for our future trips. We’re also planning to be back here next summer so we’ve been graciously offered to keep the summer necessities stored here at Grandma’s our C&B’s houses.

I like my stuff. D&J have figured that out with us as we’ve used their address here for our Amazon deliveries… sorry, and THANK YOU!

This first week of September brings another 2-week out of the month travel month for me. It’s Labor Day weekend here at The River and should be an exciting bit of fun. Then I’m off to host some divers in Antigua, do some dive training webinars for Travel Advisors, and help host our Inaugural Dive Week in Curacao!

I’m so excited for Dive Week – we have an awesome itinerary scheduled and some of my favorite people partnered with us.

We’re still trying to fit visits in with the rest of the family in the area – our plans were just so thrown off by this camper debacle that we feel terrible it hasn’t all happened yet and now we’re running into a time crunch.

The plan is to head back towards NC/TN area for the winter (once Keystone tells us we can have our house back) but we’ll see what happens! The house closing is still on for September 16th – we’re just waiting for the closing lawyers to get paperwork together and sent out to us. They originally tried to get us to sign blank documents which I absolutely was NOT doing, and it seems to be a challenge getting them to understand why… You’re a law firm! You should know better! We’ll be doing a mail-away closing so we’ll also need to connect with a Notary up here.

What’s in my Makeup Bag?

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With a lot of traveling, comes a carefully curated bag of makeup for all occasions. While I tend to go overboard sometimes, depending on the trip… I do have a few staples that are always within reach.

Sunscreen: There are plenty of different options out there for sunscreen but I BEG of you, please find one that is Reef Friendly. While there is no actual regulatory organization overseeing these “reef friendly” “reef safe” stamps on products – you can be more aware by ensuring you’re reading the ingredients.

PADI has a great blog post about it here. Your basic take-aways are:

  • Avoid sunscreens containing: avobenzone, butylparaben, ecamsule octinoxate, oxybenzone or 4-methylbenzylidine camphor.
  • Choose a physical sunscreen with non-nano zinc oxide or titanium dioxide. Nanominerals make the product easier to apply, but ecotoxicology research has determined nanoparticles are not reef-safe.
  • A sunscreen labeled “biodegradable” does not mean it is reef safe or non-toxic.

Is it more expensive – It might be. Is it better for everyone. YES. Your skin is nothing to mess around with, it’s the largest organ of the human body. Why wouldn’t you want to protect it with the best products?!

Some of my favorite options are listed here. And yes, you’ll find all the affiliate links there for easy shopping (I also may receive commission from it – so, thank you!).

Makeup-wise, my husband HATES watching me pack because I always have so much “crap” shoved in that little makeup bag. BUT I’ve dwindled it down to a few basics that can get me through any trip and I add or subtract based on the events we’re attending. For example; Our recent Girls Trip at Beaches Turks & Caicos; I packed tinted sunscreen, moisturizer, vitamin C serum, and mascara. For this upcoming Liveaboard trip in the Maldives, I have skincare only – no makeup at all (who am I trying to impress? hubby’s there already!).

For our Bridgerton Themed Global Sales Conference earlier this year? You bet I had a full array of makeup and accessories.

So here’s that basic visual, and I’ll go through a few of my favorite brands. Keeping it simple with neutral tones that can work for day or night.

Eyeshadow: This one pictured is Distributed by Jasmine La Belle from Target/Walmart/I don’t remember. And it’s great because it was cheap and I don’t mind if it gets smashed up in transit. For a splurge: Try Tarte’s Clay Matte Eyeshadow Palette

Moisturizer not pictured: e.l.f Daily Hydration Moisturizer in a 2.5 oz bottle (perfect travel size!)

Foundation-ish, I’ve never really been a foundation girl and only for events – not on island (no use wasting good makeup!) I splurged for this one because I wanted quality; Chanel Vitalumiere Aqua with Broad spectrum spf 15. It’s buildable and doesn’t make my newly bronzed skin look funny color wise. It’s also super light because it’s a sunscreen makeup, not an actual foundation. Another Option I’ve used: Almay Smartshade collection.

Concealer & Powder: both by Physicians Formula; Butter Glow Concealer has an awesome lipstick like applicator PLUS a sponge – two for one! Natural Defense Finishing Powder is light, airy, and doesn’t look caked on. It’s a nice light dusting.

Eyeliner: KVD Beauty Tattoo Liner – this stuff is MAGIC. I’ve worn it in the ocean scuba diving and it doesn’t even budge. Get the Felt Tip if you wear contacts – it’s super easy to use.

Mascara: Benefit Bad Gal Bang Waterproof – again, this has been in pools, the ocean, scuba diving, etc. and it DOES-NOT-RUN.

Lip Oil (can also be used as blush): Jelly pong pong cosmetics – this probably came in an old Ipsy bag to be honest.

Dry Shampoo Options: Target usually has travel sizes of these to test out first, but I do love the Not Your Mother’s Options; Clean Freak, Plump for Joy and Beach Babe. Alternate option: I Dew Care Dry Shampoo – I used this all through our South Africa Honeymoon and it was the bomb.com.

After Bite: for those pesky mosquitoes! Stops the itch pretty quickly and is about the size of a marker so it easily fits in a purse or pocket.

Hair:

  • Goody invisible hair ties – for your braids, twists, etc. Tip: instead of pulling them out of your hair (and all that hair that breaks/comes with it), try heating up a curling iron or a straightener and tapping while the iron is hot to the hair tie. It should break easily and be removed easily!
  • Real LIfe Mermaid Hair Tie – I’ve used this multiple times while on a dive and it’s awesome. There are two elastic circles at each end where you pull your hair into a ponytail and then wrap the long piece around the tail/braid you’ve created and secure at the bottom.
  • Shampoo/Conditioner (if I have to bring it): Scuba Screen – eco friendly and reef safe! 10% off with code: mermaidmel. there’s also an awesome leave in conditioner spray that I use on the boat after dives.
  • Leave in Conditioners: Sun Bum leave in, It’s a 10 leave in
  • Scalp Sunscreen Spray: Sun Bum – Coola

Don’t Forget your toothpaste & toothbrush! Or try some swish and rinse options like Magic Gargle for those long plane rides.

Happy Traveling!