Uncategorized – Jill's Journey Journals

Sister trip in Mexico City

I love my sister. We grew up together, but we could not be more opposite. Shelly loves being around people. I need my alone time. Her idea of a good time is a day of shopping. I hate shopping. My idea of a good time is curling up with a good book or hiking upContinue reading “Sister trip in Mexico City”

Anniversary in New York

Greg took me to my first Broadway show shortly after we were married. We saw Phantom of the Opera at the Fabulous Fox Theater in St. Louis. That was the beginning of my love for theater. I buy season tickets to the Fox every year now. It’s one of my favorite things to do. GregContinue reading “Anniversary in New York”

Lisbon, Portugal-Tiles, Toenails, and Tons of Stairs

We traveled to Lisbon, Portugal for a week in August, 2024. Wanderful, a global women’s travel community, was having a global meetup there, so we planned our vacation around the event. I belong to Wanderful, and both of my daughters and my daughter-in-law belong to Wanderful as well. The global meetup had events planned forContinue reading “Lisbon, Portugal-Tiles, Toenails, and Tons of Stairs”

They Call Me Little Bull

I am not a fighter. As a matter of fact, I pretty much avoid confrontation at all costs if I can. But there have been some times throughout my life where confrontation has found me. Since my stories are mostly about adventures in travel, you may find the beginning of this story a bit confusing.Continue reading “They Call Me Little Bull”

San Diego-Beaches, Mountains, and….Possums?

I love San Diego, California. I love the weather, the food, the beaches, the mountains. I have been to San Diego a few times, and I have enjoyed it every time. Our first trip to San Diego was to visit our daughter. In 2013, our daughter, Ally, was working for an organization based in SanContinue reading “San Diego-Beaches, Mountains, and….Possums?”

Our Aruba Vacation

In 2010, Sarah decided she wanted to go to Aruba for vacation. Since she was graduating from high school, she got to choose the vacation destination. Sarah was allowed to bring a friend, and my mom and my Aunt Carol were joining us on this trip. Our little vacation group included me, my husband Greg,Continue reading “Our Aruba Vacation”

Girl Trip to New York

I have mentioned Wanderful before. It’s a women’s travel community, but it’s more than that. Wanderful supports women who love to travel, with webinars, chat, and virtual meetings. They also offer global meetups that allow women to get together in various locations around the world to meet other travel minded women. Wanderful offers support toContinue reading “Girl Trip to New York”

Mission Trips to Haiti

In July, 2015, Greg and I went on a mission trip to Haiti. Our church was working with Gordon Montgomery who had started a mission called Farming God’s Way. He had been led to go to Haiti and teach them to farm their land. He was working with a village called Hati Coton. Gordon improvesContinue reading “Mission Trips to Haiti”

Visiting Alaska, Again (and hopefully, again and again and again…..)

In my story about an Alaskan vacation that I posted a few weeks ago, I mentioned that Ally loved Alaska so much that, the next year, she quit her job in Virginia, packed her bags, and went to Seward, Alaska to work for Kenai-Fjord Tours (KFT). This was the tour company we used for ourContinue reading “Visiting Alaska, Again (and hopefully, again and again and again…..)”

Packing Tips

I am going to change direction just a little for this story. I have had someone ask me for packing tips, so I thought I would share some of my packing experiences and tips. I have been researching and practicing minimalist packing for the last couple of years. I still don’t have it completely mastered,Continue reading “Packing Tips “