I didn’t consider myself a person who would like reading parenting and pregnancy books. But the concept of Like a Mother: A Feminist Journey Through the Science and Culture of Pregnancy caught my attention. Author Angela Garbes is a journalist who found herself questioning much of the conventional—and often contradictory—wisdom doled out about pregnancy and postpartum care, so she decided to investigate the latest studies and speak to both researchers and mothers around the world on the …
Matera, Italy
For our last stop on our babymoon to Italy, we visited the city of Matera in the Basilicata region of Southern Italy. Matera is about a 4-hour drive from Positano, and I chose to add it to our itinerary based on its unique beauty and history. Matera is a city of limestone caves, or sassi, first excavated and inhabited in the Paleolithic period. Today, those caves have been transformed into restaurants, hotels, apartments, shops, and museums, …
Amalfi, Italy
Andrew and I spent two days in Positano on the Amalfi Coast during our babymoon in 2018. During our time there, we took a quick day trip to the nearby town of Amalfi. We hopped on the high-speed ferry and arrived in Amalfi about 30 minutes later. Taking the ferry is a great (and affordable!) way to see the Amalfi Coast in all its beauty. Once we arrived in Amalfi, we visited the duomo, the …
Positano, Italy
Our second stop on our Italian babymoon was Positano. Located on Italy’s famous Amalfi Coast, Positano is a gorgeous seaside town perched on a cliff overlooking the Mediterranean. We spent two nights in this colorful, vibrant city and it was probably our favorite part of the trip. Before our trip, I spent a lot of time trying to decide which town on the Amalfi Coast we should stay in, from popular Positano or Amalfi to …
Pompeii & Herculaneum, Italy
One of the first destinations we chose to include in our babymoon was Pompeii. Believe it or not, my husband’s go-to for travel advice is his dentist, who often shares stories from his travels during their appointments, including treks into the rainforests of Belize or adventures to the Antarctic. One of his recommendations was to visit Pompeii, but also Herculaneum, a nearby and lesser-known town that was also decimated by the eruption of Mt. Vesuvius …
Naples, Italy
Andrew and I started our weeklong babymoon to Italy with two nights in Naples. When doing my research before the trip, I read a lot of negative articles about Naples—literally if you Google “Naples, Italy,” the second article to come up is entitled “Why No One Wants to Travel to Naples.” The main complaints were that the city has issues with trash collection, has mafia connections that contributed to crime, and that pickpockets are common. …
Traveling at 26 Weeks Pregnant
Andrew and I decided to take a weeklong babymoon to Italy this April. I’m going to write separate posts about each of the destinations we visited—Naples, Pompeii & Herculaneum, Positano and Matera—but first I wanted to share a little bit about our decision on when to go, and also my fears and worries beforehand and how things panned out in real life. I want to preface this by saying this is just my personal experience. …
What I’m Clicking: May
A few of my favorite articles from over the past few months: Looking for your next read? Did you catch all these in 2017? 100 Notable Books of 2017 NPR’s 2017 Book Concierge (300+ titles with easily searchable tabs) Visiting Antarctica at 21 Weeks Pregnant – This woman is my role model. 101 Dishes That Changed America – A sweeping history of iconic American foods. From Nathan’s Famous Hot Dogs to Chicago deep dish pizza, …
Turtle Inn, Belize
We took a five-day trip to Belize to celebrate my dad’s wedding in early 2017. The wedding was held at Turtle Inn in Placencia, an intimate resort owned by Francis Ford Coppola. All of the wedding guests stayed in beachside cottages looking out onto the Pacific Ocean. We enjoyed tropical cocktails at the beachside bar, borrowed snorkeling equipment to explore the reefs right off their beach, and loved our private and spacious thatched cottage with …
Cusco, Peru
In 2012, Andrew and I traveled to Peru to hike the Inca Trail. Before starting the 4-day, 3-night hike to Machu Picchu, we spent a few days in Cusco to help acclimatize to the elevation. Cusco is situated 11,152 feet above sea level, so altitude sickness is common. Andrew was mostly fine, but I did feel short of breath and lightheaded for the first few days. We drank coca tea and stocked up on candies and …
Caitlin Kenney Smith 