I was in California for a whole week and only took two pictures with my camera. (My phone, however, tells another story.) I had planned to take a ton of photos of everywhere we went and report back in the form of a blog post, but I ended up pretending to live there instead, so my camera stayed in my bag every day until I grabbed an Uber to Baker Beach, which has a really dreamy view of the Golden Gate Bridge.

The fog was lying low so the top of the bridge was mostly hidden--I wrapped my scarf more tightly around my neck and walked the length of the shore, holding my sandals in one hand and letting the freezing water lap up against my feet; actually soaking the bottom of my jeans at one point.

A week isn't a long time, but Rob has been traveling so much that having him come back to me every night really did make me feel at home. It quieted some of the anxiety I've been holding about moving across the country, away from my family and so many of the friends that know me best. When I was writing my book, the "About the Author" section stumped me--where was I supposed to tell people I lived?

Technically we're still in Charlotte but why would I put that if we knew we were leaving? But to write California made no sense to me because we hadn't moved yet. I ended up going with a cheesy but incredibly accurate "She has lived in California, Virginia, Minnesota, and North Carolina; and currently considers home to be wherever her husband and their rescue dog are." At the time I pictured us all in our car, somewhere between Charlotte and San Francisco.

Home behind us, home ahead of us.

How surreal that we're a month away from just that.

The other day I posted this photo on Instagram and had a couple people reach out to me with questions about how I pack for a trip, so I thought it'd be fun to do a blog post about it! I usually save packing for the last minute, but I do enjoy it and with all the traveling I've done over the years I think I've gotten pretty good at it.

Here are my tips and tricks for packing a versatile wardrobe without lugging a bunch of stuff around with you:

• I generally do two carry-on bags because I hate to wait for baggage claim. One is a black suitcase that rolls (similar to this one) and the other is my grey Everlane backpack.
• Clothes I pack in my suitcase for a week:
  • A casual black dress like this one that can be dressed up or down (usually I travel in this since it's so comfortable and then pair it with boots and some jewelry for a night out during the trip).
  • Two pairs of skinny jeans (usually one light and one dark) and one pair of pants that aren't jeans (this time I brought a green pair of these chinos from J.Crew, shown here). I also always pack a pair or two of black leggings to hang out in or wear in the mornings to pop out for coffee. (I always pack them and say I'm going to work out when I'm out of town but that rarely happens.)
  • Four or five tops, usually Everlane or J.Crew tees and a tank top or two.
  • One sweater and/or one light jacket.
  • One scarf, if it's chilly.
  • Two pairs of shoes: flat sandals and wedges or boots. Sometimes I'll sneak a pair of Converse or other tennis shoes in there if I have room. 
• Stuff I carry in my backpack:
  • Laptop
  • Wallet
  • Book(s)
  • Headphones
  • Liquids: usually just perfume and toothpaste. I always forget to buy travel-size hairspray and dry shampoo so I usually buy that stuff once I land.
• My makeup goes in my larger suitcase and I usually pack a purse--either this one or this one. Once I get to my destination I take my purse out and carry my wallet in it. (This way I don't have to use my purse as one of my carry-on bags.)

That's about it! At the risk of being boring (I guess that's just my style), most of my clothes are solid colors and generally neutral, so everything I pack is easily mixed and matched. It's so much easier to pack when you know you'll be able to put outfits together but don't actually have to plan them ahead of time.

Let me know if you have any other questions; and if you have a packing routine you love, I want to hear it!

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Hello and happy Friday from California! I landed in San Francisco last night and Rob and I grabbed some dinner before heading to our hotel and watching some Olympic swimming before bed. Today I'm visiting Rob's office and then we have a bunch of apartments to look at later this afternoon! Our next few days are pretty busy but then we'll have plenty of time to relax and explore and catch up with some of our friends and family out here.

This week is the last round of my cookbook giveaway, so if you haven't entered yet but want to win a signed copy of my book, go for it! It's been so fun showing you little sneak peeks into the book and I'm so excited to be sending four of you signed copies very soon. I can't thank you enough for all your support as I've been promoting the book. Pre-sale ends on August 16 and it'll be in stores! It's just mind blowing and I'm so excited about everything.

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