I have to admit – I have a major travel bug in me lately. Maybe after a few trips I will get it out of my system, but Iris is at such a fun age to travel with, that all I want to do is go exploring. Recently inspired by Emma’s post over on A Beautiful Mess, I decided to make my own list of top destinations I want to visit with my family. While it may be a bit unrealistic to accomplish all of these trips in the near future (we only have so many days we can take off from our jobs after all), planning and daydreaming is one of my favorite parts about travel. So, here goes…

photo via: Loomis Dean/ Time & Life Pictures / Getty Images

Disneyland
Iris has started the inevitable… asking to go to Disney. While she doesn’t yet know the difference between Disnleyland and Disneyworld, I’ve had the chance to visit both and really want to take her to California. I love the nostalgic (and less overwhelming) feel of Disneyland. Plus, I would love to make the trip about exploring Southern California and not solely centered around Mickey. Maybe we can surprise her for her fifth birthday (that’s THIS year, y’all!) or for Christmas, but just looking at these vintage photos makes me want to book a trip today.

30A – Florida
We’ve visited Rosemary Beach, Florida the past two summers in a row and we are making it a priority to get back to the 30A area again this year. Todd, Iris, and I all agree that this is one of our favorite getaways and I hope the annual tradition continues for years to come. For months, Iris has been asking when in the world we can go to the beach again. I hope my answer of “once the weather is warm” is accurate.

New York City
NYC is one of my places on earth. In fact, as a kid I always dreamed of graduating high-school and moving away to the Big Apple. I ended up in Washington D.C. instead for a couple of years, which I grew to love in its own way. And while I’m more than happy living in Arkansas, I now have dreams of visiting New York again and bringing Iris along. My last trip there I was pregnant with her and I went alone for work. The feeling of being by myself, almost for the last time, in such a crowded city was such a unique, lovely experience. I walked through Central Park, ate way too much Indian food, and brought home a pink snowglobe that still sits on Iris’ dresser today.

Hawaii
Maui is another place that my work has taken me (again, all by myself) and ever since then I’ve been dreaming about going back with my little family. The island was pure magic – the air seemed to smell like fruit and flowers everywhere I went. The ocean was the most beautiful I’ve ever seen. And the Road to Hana was one of the best life experiences. However, flights from our airport are crazy expensive and, of course, so are the resorts, so this one might have to wait a little longer. One day, one day.

Nashville
We have several friends in Nashville and I severely need to make the time to pop over to see them and to hang out in such a cool city. Growing up in Memphis, I never made the trip to Nashville as often as I should. The city seems to have really grown over the last few years in such an awesome way. I took Iris a couple of years ago and we had a blast – it’s time we do it again.

Random Location
Iris has flown on an airplane a few times, but she was so little that she doesn’t remember it. For her, an exciting trip would just be the experience of flying in the air. Todd and I have talked about packing our bags and picking a cheap place to fly one weekend. We’d have fun wherever we go, making an adventure out of it.

While I’m not sure where all we’ll actually end up in 2016, I’m excited I already have a few trips planned this year, including a girls trip to Mexico this summer (CAN’T WAIT) and a work trip next month to Newport Beach, California. We also want to take some quick weekend trips too. On our list is:

+ Kansas City (to visit friends… and Ikea.)
+ Tulsa (to visit a brewery and perhaps see Peppa Pig live)
+ Wilson, Arkansas
+ Back to Memphis (Iris has requested to visit Elvis’ house)

Where else should we add to our list?