The Big Reveal -- Mini-Vagabonding!

Deek and I have been teasing a little online about a big surprise coming up! Well, it's here!

So what's going on? You know that Deek and I want to become "professional" vagabonds in the future, right? Well, we have some very important reasons why we can't do that full time right now. However, it got us thinking...why can't we do a mini-vagabond? So, Deek got permission to work remotely (I already work remotely), and now we're spending a month--pets too--at the BEACH!!!!

Everyone loves the ocean!

OMG! I am so, so, so excited! We both *love* the beach, and the notion that we get to spend all this time here blows my mind. When we wrapped up work, we went for a two hour walk on the beach, hand in hand. So romantic and a perfect way to end the evening. 

But the evening kept being awesome when we also got to have dinner with my dad. Because guess what?? We inspired our parents to vagabond too! So, we'll be spending extra time with both Deek's parents and my parents over the course of the month. We have some pretty cool adventures planned with them, so I'm stoked about that too!!

We are both blessed with super cool, super fun parents 

who all get along swimmingly with each other!

And let me give you some Dave Ramsey-esque tips:

--Plan, plan plan: Deek and I have been planning and budgeting for this trip for a year. He requested permission to work remotely in December of 2018 in preparation. We've also been saving and allocating budget funds to this trip since then. So, everything is paid for, and we're here to have fun without financial worries!

Planning: 

It gives you such peace of mind to know

you aren't racking up debt on your adventures!

--AirBnB: If you rent a place for a whole month from AirBnB, it's cheaper than renting for two week (sometimes cheaper than renting for one week!). You can get anywhere from 30-75% off your stay just for booking for a month. So, Deek and I were able to get one of those huge markdowns. We are living it up in style in a beautiful home right by the beach, and we obtained permission to bring both our cat and our dog (for no extra charge!). 

I'd say they like their new digs!

--A great practice in minimalism: We don't own much that is of value because we don't place value in stuff. And since 2014, we've been working on paring our lives down and becoming minimalists. Being able to bring only what you can fit in your car, for a whole month of living, is a great minimalist test. I, for one, am thrilled because I've been wanting to test out the capsule wardrobe concept. I only brought pieces that I love and that can be mixed and matched, and I'm going to see how I do wearing only those clothes for a month. If I "pass" my own test, I'll be getting rid of what I didn't bring and start doing the minimalist wardrobe!

I am so excited to be on this adventure, to take a break from our regular life and do something different and out of the box. But more than anything, I'm SO very thankful to be doing it with my family, the people I love the most. And I am STOKED to be here with Deek--my best friend, my partner, and my true love! He makes everything in life so much fun!

I adore this man so much!

Greenville ComicCon 2019

So, apparently Deek and I do our main comiccon circuit during the summer and fall. LOL!

Remember how I said GalaxyCon was so crowded that it almost wasn't fun? And HereosCon wasn't what we'd hoped either? Well, we'd started to wonder if maybe we shouldn't be doing ComicCons anymore.

Enter GreenvilleCon.

This little beauty was *everything* we love about cons--personable and nerdy with good traffic but not enough that people were stepping on each other.

GreenvilleCon, you restored our faith in ComicCons! We love you!!

All set up!

Pre-ComicCon smooches!

We saw cool stuff like this headband that sits 

on your eyebrows but looks like glowing eyes!

We saw AWESOME nerdom shirts!

And of course, the cosplayers...

Deek's favorite!

Such a super cute dad and daughter.

We loved talking to them!

Hunger Games, anyone?

And this lovely lady reads aloud to her husband every night.

She was kind enough to read a few pages from The Prophecy for us!

We did not head into Greenville ComicCon with a great attitude because of the disappointments from earlier in the season, but I'm so very glad we went. We met some amazing people, sold and signed a bunch of books, and had the best time.

Thank you, Greenville ComicCon! We'll see you again! 

GalaxyCon -- Nerds Unite!

Confession: This post has been sitting half-written for two weeks. Eep! #EditorLife

So, as you know, Deek and I just got back from our first big international trip together. And lo and behold, GalaxyCon was right after. We usually work a booth at cons when we get the chance, but we knew we just wouldn't have the energy after being gone. So, we went as guests instead! Sometimes it's nice to just take it all in and go as a spectator!

Here we are, ready to get our nerd on!

Of course Deek found the Star Wars stuff right away 

(in a Trekkie shirt, no less--LOL!)

We also enjoyed seeing Hopper from Stranger Things.

This guy rocked the cosplay on it!

Always fun to run into family at events.

Here's my cousin, who does an awesome cosplay of Green Arrow!

The Ghostbusters' Car!

Huge Lego Deadpool

Cool red contacts!

We saw this guy (Seth) again at another ComicCon the week after this one.

He told us he's a stunt man for a Marvel show! How cool is that!?!

Shoutout, Seth!

OMG! <fangirl squee>

It's COMMANDER ADAMA!!!!

<faints>

And a CYLON!!

There was a lot of fun stuff to see, but it was *way* too crowded. I am a total extrovert and love to be around people, but even I thought there were just too many at this con. I can't tell you how many times I got stepped on and knocked around. Not sure if we'll go back as guests or as vendors in the future. 

So. Many. People.

But I got to spend the day with my husband/best friend, and what could be better than that??

I love him so good! <3

The Rhews Go International!

Y'all, Deek and I made our first international trip! SUCH a serious and total blast!

As you may or may not know, I am *terrified* of flying. I mean it's phobic level. When I was young, I was on a flight that almost crashed, and it scarred me. My parents had elected to get us an earlier flight that day, and because of that, they were sitting at the emergency exits. I remember them frantically reading the manuals as we became weightless from falling out of the sky. I remember the really old lady beside me gasping for air and clutching her chest with fear, and I worried she'd die before the rest of us hit the ground. It was awful. AWFUL!

Image by Alexas_Fotos from Pixabay 

But Deek and I have big plans for travel, now and in the future, and I don't want my fears to hold me back. So, when work afforded us the opportunity to travel internationally, we took it.

Image by Free-Photos from Pixabay 

I am X number of years old and have never left the US of A. So, I had to go get my very first passport, like a big girl. I was TOTALLY stoked to have a real, live passport and be officially sanction to travel the world whenever I choose.

Image by Pam Patterson from Pixabay 

The momentous day finally arrived, and it was time for me to get on a plane again. I can't even tell you how grateful I am that Deek was by my side. He was so loving and encouraging. He helped me through each flight, explained things when I had questions, and held me when I was scared. He was my rock. I adore this man more than I can say, and every day, I find reasons to adore him more!

I love this man so much!

Holy crap. I'm on an airplane.

We always ended up sitting near the flight attendants.

This worked out well for me because I figured if they looked like all was well, it probably was.

And they cheered for me when we landed. LOL!

Yeah, not thrilled.

I peeked out the window occasionally.

Deek is my rock!

He's so calm, so patient, so loving, and so very encouraging!

I don't like flying, but I do like airports.

Philly's was really cool!

Liquid courage. LOL!

And we're on the second flight. Lawd Jesus.

Peeking out again

I always feel safe when he's around.

Finally, the reward!

We landed safely, took a little nap, and then....

I got to have a special outdoor dinner with the most handsome man in the world!

Stay tuned for more about the Rhews' first international adventure!! 

Our HeroesCon Experience

Deek and I love to go to ComicCons (this is how I punctuate this word because I have yet to find a consensus on it)! We dig the vibe, enjoy the cosplayers, and adore talking about our favorite nerdy stuff with likeminded individuals.

Little Pink Vadar from SueperCon (now GalaxyCon) 2017

So, imagine our disappointment when we got to Charlotte's HeroesCon and found very little of that. The energy at the event was super low. In fact, other vendors kept saying both the vibe and attendance were way off compared to other years. We also didn't see many cosplayers. There were some, don't get me wrong. But we're used to seeing lots of people decked out in the most awesome gear imaginable. And sadly, a lot of the attendees just didn't want to talk. They'd come with their stack of comics and list of names, and they just rushed from place to place.

HeroesCon was not what we'd hoped.

I'm SO thankful I had Deek there with me because no matter the circumstances, we always manage to have fun. We talked and laughed, met our booth neighbors, and greatly enjoyed exploring Charlotte when the con ended each night.

Goofing off after "work"

Funny story: One of my cousins has a booth every year at HeroesCon. His mom got my booth number for him and his booth number for me. We spent all of Friday looking for each other, to no avail. But that night, we ran into each other outside the 7-11. What are the odds of that? LOL!

We don't know how other years at HeroesCon played out--maybe they totally rocked--but we won't be repeating this event to find out. Deek and I concluded that, from here on out, we will only attend cons that have actors, a large cosplay group, or both. If it doesn't have those elements, it's probably not the crowd for us.

Little Pink Storm Trooper from a different ComicCon.

But despite the bummer nature of HeroesCon, we had a blast exploring the city of Charlotte. We found a coffee shop with the coolest atmosphere we've ever been in (and we've been in *a lot* of coffee shops across the county). We also ate at a restaurant called Valhalla because...Thor and Vikings. Y'all the food was so heavenly (see what I did there?) that we ended up eating there twice!

Eating at Valhalla

All in all, we turned a blah situation into a blast. I am so very thankful to have a husband who rolls with whatever and always keeps a positive attitude. Even if things around us suck, we can carve our our own little piece of paradise. Deek Rhew is a true gem, my friends! And I'm the luckiest girl in the world!

Here's our pictorial view of Charlotte and the con:

We were *required* to wear these non-removable bands the whole time. 

I *hated* it.

I don't wear bracelets or watches or anything because I don't like stuff on my wrists.

I was SO happy to cut that annoying thing off.

Skybridge like in Portland!

Gorgeous church!

Some people are riding in style!

The *coolest* coffee shop ever 

(and we've been to all sorts of coffee shops across the whole country)

But hands down, Coco and the Director has the best vibe!

View of the skyline

Our table setup rocked.

Just sayin'...

Sam and DEAN!

Sam and Dean's car!

The Mystery Machine!

Deek on the Millennium Falcon!

Sporting our Tenacious Books Publishing shirts!

View from the behind the table (Erin)

View from behind the table (Deek)

My favorite picture from the whole event!

We did find a few cosplayers!

I love it when whole families own it!

A wizardly bunch

Valhalla and Odin!

Finally back home and out to get more coffee--after a smooch, of course!