Know who you are:  I love animals.  I am a restless spirit.  I am drawn to the water.  I need, not want, need to travel.  Because I know these things about myself, I always have the next trip (or 4) planned.  I do not own property because it is far too much commitment and I’d rather spend my money traveling.  We currently live one block from the off leash dog beach in Melbourne, Australia, but who knows where we will live in a year.    Because of who I am I know that at the end of my life, I will not look back and wish that I owned a house or bought nicer things, rather I will look back on the amazing experiences I’ve had and places I’ve seen and be grateful.

I love that my partner, my future husband, is comfortable with this lifestyle, despite the fact that he is a homebody who prefers security and stability.

Surround yourself with awesome people: Somewhere in my 20s I realized that I don’t have to continue to be friends with people just because I am currently friends with them.  If someone is toxic or too judgmental, cut them out.  My best friends in life are my family – my sisters, my mom and my dad.  My favorite people to party with are my family – my sisters, my mom and my dad.  They are loving, supportive and never judge.  I have friends that I love as much as family too.  Not a ton of them, but they’re really good ones.  Much like family, they are loving, supportive and never judge.  Love should always be unconditional.

Do what you love:  We have a rule in our household – if you don’t like it don’t do it.  This applies to everything, including our jobs.  We can always figure out the money part of things, but you cannot be happy if you hate what you spend your time on.  Happiness is very important.

If you get these three things right, it should lead to living an amazing life.  I believe that every life can and should be EPIC.  The things that make my life amazing will not necessarily make your life amazing, but we can all wake up every morning thinking, “Thank you God! I have an amazing life!”

On Sunday I was walking through the farmers market and came across fresh okra for the first time in this country. I looked at it for a minute and thought to myself, “How hard can it be?” So I picked out a dozen of them, took them home and set to pickling them.

Louisiana Hot Pickled Okra
1 pint jar
12 fresh okra
1 cup white vinegar
1 cup water
2 tbsp salt
2 cloves garlic
1 tbsp dill
1/2 tsp brown mustard seed
1 tsp red chili flakes

Bring water, vinegar and salt to a boil to form a brine. Place garlic, dill, mustard and chili in bottom of jar; pack okra in to jar tightly. Pour boiling brine into jar leaving about 1/4 inch head space. Put lid tightly on jar and cool to room temperature. Refrigerate for 4 days to process/ferment. Enjoy!

Sometimes I impress myself.