Starting Travel and Points Hacking

Off We Go!

This summer I was introduced to the concept of Travel Hacking! And it's fascinating!

What is Travel Hacking? So, you open a (for example) Chase United card and they'll give you a 65,000 points bonus after reaching the "minimum spend." Meaning, you have to put (eg) $4,000 on the card in the first 3 months. (They very.) To reach that minimum spend, travel/points hackers use these credit cards for all their usual household expenses and pay off the balance at the end of each month (carrying a balance would defeat the purpose!). And they open multiple cards a year to gather more points/miles.

In case you don't know, 65k points is two round trip economy flights in the US. And 1 round-trip to Europe. So, just that alone is a pretty sweet deal.

I'm so intrigued by this. Travel is my favorite thing. And making it cheaper for us to do more often, in any way, is exciting.

Just think, in five years we're going to be empty nesters. I'll have kids to visit in far off places (probably). Plus, my sisters and husband will be more available to travel with me.

So, this seems like a hobby that could help me get to all my dream destinations and be closer to my family. I love traveling and planning travel, so why not do something to make it easier.

They call it a "hobby" which is good name. "It's a marathon, not a sprint." It's not a "rich quick" scheme. Point/miles accumulate over years. So I'm getting into the "game" now and hoping in a few years I'll be traveling all over the place.

But I've also found it's a good way to manage credit cards, build good credit and get into positive spend habits. For me especially, after my 20s when I abused credit cards and didn't know any better.

Also, the cards carry perks! Airport lounges, upgrades, free luggage check-ins, access to deals, and some even include Audible subscriptions, DoorDash deals and more. Also, no foreign transaction fees for international travel. YAY!

So I started. I opened up two new credit cards at the beginning of the summer and use them at the grocery store, shopping for school clothes, while on vacation last month, at the farmer's market, hiding my bank card in the back of my wallet. And paying them off every few weeks to be sure I don't carry a balance -- because their APRs % are REDICULOUS. The nerve of charging 30%!

I'm hoping to use some of my new points for our travel plans next summer. In the meantime, I'm listening to travel hacking podcasts, reading e-newsletters and trying to figure out this whole world of travel I didn't really think was possible.

Behold! Everard Blue!

Here's the After picture of our master bedroom now that the walls are a dark and moody blue. Maybe the best part is I was at work while the painters were here, so I walked in and found -- as if by magic -- the room no longer minty green but a bold blue. That's pretty awesome. They also painted the trim an eye-popping white, which I just love against this blue. And the angle is a dark beige-y, tan color that I hope goes with the headboard. I spent the evening cleaning and re-hanging the drapes, and moving the furniture back into position. It will be a while before I dare hang anything in here. I'm too in love with the walls to put too many holes in them right now. So, just in case I'm looking for this information later: The walls are "Everard Blue" by Benjamin Moore . And the tray is "Curly Willow" by Behr . Now, does that furniture look too dark against the walls or is it just me? And wouldn't a lighter wood or white look fabulous agains...

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France and the Third Baby

Odd fact of the day .... The French government pays for a mother’s tummy tuck after the birth of her third child (you do have to have at least 3 babies to qualify). Found on this blog about raising kids in Southern France. Yes, I'm day-dreaming again. Related posts: All the fancy quotes My love of France runs deep, people

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So Long, Hanukkah Part Two

And just as quickly it started (in New Jersey, on the night of Thanksgiving, no less), Hanukkah is over. Our eight nights were full of fun and squealing! And lighting many candles, of course. We missed one night because we were in a hotel room after spending the whole day driving home from New Jersey -- and I just didn't have the wherewithall to pull out the menorah. Speaking of menorah, we've replaced our old, wax-filled menorah with this lovely silver beauty given to us by David's mother. It belonged to her mother and sat in the dining room for years. Isn't it pretty?! And, the wax cleans off it much easier, so we're sure to hang on to this one for many Hanukkahs to come. I'm a sucker for traditions. Here's some photos of the last two nights: Leah Lighting the Candles - in an Eli Manning Jersey, No Less Alice Lighting in a Top She Calls her Genie Shirt David Constructing the Cardboard Pirate Ship The Last BIG Gift? A Pirate...

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