October was slated to be one of the busiest months of the year, and it proved to be everything we thought it'd be. And then a little more. On the day we left home for three weeks, JD turned to me and said, “Things may go wrong, there may be stress, but we're doing what we love, so let's hang on for the ride!” And with that, we departed to Seattle to shoot a wedding, then to Sweden to speak at conference, then to Italy to shoot another wedding.

Our time in Stockholm was awesome as much as it was cold. And it was very cold. The Swedes promised the weather wasn't bad, but I couldn't hear them BECAUSE MY EARS WERE FROZEN SHUT. But the warmth from the hearts of many Europeans in attendance for the conference dulled the frostbitten ache (why, yes, I can be a tad dramatic, eh?). I'll be sharing more about the conference soon, but until then, here are a few snapshots from our time in Stockholm…

I have Swedish humor.

We spent our days mostly in Gamla Stan (old town) Stockholm, sipping tea, shopping, and people-watching. My husband insisted I stared too fondly at tall, blond passerbyers, but I explained I was admiring the nice jackets Swedish men wore. Obvs.

One of my favorite memories is strolling the cobblestone streets listening to the sounds of church bells sing the passing of our day…

On the rare occasion the sun opted to shine, I ran like a wild woman to stand in its warmth. Like the Californian I am.

We ventured on the subway to a different part of town to explore a little more…

The highlight of the trip for me (besides the most amazing vegetarian restaurant we stumbled upon) was exploring the Fotografiska, Sweden's beautiful photography museum. It was darn near perfection on all counts, especially the restaurant that served farm-to-table meals that make your mouth give up and cry Uncle!

After Sweden, we took the recommendation of Brianna of Milk and Honey Travels to stop by Cinque Terre, Italy. It's comprised of five beach-side cities, nestled in the rocks. It was–by far–one of the prettiest places I've ever visited in Italy. We spent three days exploring and living like Italians…which means espresso 17 times a day. Brianna planned a custom trip to ensure our travels were unique to our aesthetic…LOVED it!

Normally Cinque Terre is crowded with tourists, but we were lucky enough to experience the cities at the tail-end of the season, with unseasonably gorgeous weather…

We spent an entire day hiking from city to city…which basically meant we could eat anything and everything we wanted because, well, exercise.

This girl? I don't know who she is, but when I looked at her, I was all: LIFE GOALS.

We stepped away from the bustle of the main street and tucked ourselves hillside at an organic cafe and wine bar. We ate tomatoes, mozzarella, dark olive oil, aged cheese, fresh basil, honey, and so many other delicious foods, all accompanied with local wine. It's the stuff dreams are made of.

We then headed to Florence (one of my favorite cities!) to buckle down and get work done.

I didn't view this trip as a vacation because while there were moments of pleasure, I worked every day. We set aside four hours each day to write, email, and create while we were away from the studio, so I referred to it as a workcation…

…I don't normally drink coffee (if you've met me in real life, you'd easily understand that my energy is off-the-chart high so when mixed with caffeine, I bounce off walls), but a midday espresso became the norm.

This was the view from our hotel rooftop…we enjoyed a libations and toasted to the Duomo at sunset…

I'm a total homebody. I actually enjoy being home and the comforts of what's familiar…so when given the option for a cooking class in a chef's home, I happily obliged. Like every good meal, it started off with a toast…

I pretended to be really busy taking photos, so JD offered to make the homemade pasta…

Not too shabby, eh?

We then headed to Tuscany to shoot a wedding…I'll be sharing that part of the trip soon, but until then, Arrivederci!