August 27, 2014

Unexpected Adventures: Learn, Explore, and Grow Together #TargetWedding #Sponsored

Photo, Product and/or other value provided by our partner, Target. Regardless, all opinions are my own.
Unexpected Adventures: Learn, explore, and grow together - The fun in traveling as young newlyweds!
Traveling has always been a favorite activity for hubby and I. Although, we haven't even come close to visiting every where on our "Bucket List", we are beyond thankful for the vacations we have taken together and look forward to many, many more!


We've road tripped across the southern half of the country in a car without air conditioning in the sizzling hot southern summer heat (then we came home to Florida and bought a brand new car the same week because we realized how crazy that was).

Unexpected Adventures: Learn, explore, and grow together - The fun in traveling as young newlyweds!

We've journeyed on a whim to the Space Coast in the middle of a tropical storm just to eat our favorite meal from our favorite restaurant.

Unexpected Adventures: Learn, explore, and grow together - The fun in traveling as young newlyweds!

We've spent hours stuck in a Mexican Police Department after a fender-bender in Cozumel. I had to play the hero that day, which left me traveling the backstreets of the town by myself to retrieve funds that would ultimately save hubby from what could have been. Talk about a crazy trip!


We've nearly been attacked by some mysterious growling and snarling creature in the middle of the night while camping near a lake in Oklahoma.

Unexpected Adventures: Learn, explore, and grow together - The fun in traveling as young newlyweds!
Unexpected Adventures: Learn, explore, and grow together - The fun in traveling as young newlyweds!

We've hiked to the top of Mayan pyramids and looked out over a jungle, seeing nothing but ridiculously huge and beautiful handmade structures nearby and miles and miles of lush green tree tops all around us.

Unexpected Adventures: Learn, explore, and grow together - The fun in traveling as young newlyweds!

We've walked the streets of Las Vegas on my 21st birthday in the middle of the night giggling and gambling, hoping for a big win.


We've spent the night cuddled together in the backseat of our car "camping" in the middle of no where because I was too scared to really "camp out" after seeing bear crossing and panther crossing road signs near by.
Unexpected Adventures: Learn, explore, and grow together - The fun in traveling as young newlyweds!
Unexpected Adventures: Learn, explore, and grow together - The fun in traveling as young newlyweds!

We've stayed in haunted hotels and driven through zoos on random road trips to Arkansas. We've even gotten up close and personal with some emus, fed some llamas, talked closely with some buffalo, and interacted with all kinds of other crazy animals.

We've taken so many trips I can't even begin to recap them all, traveling together is something I hope we do forever. I hope when we have children they will be able to experience the world with us. We've both developed a pretty good case of "wanderlust", we both can't wait to do more learning, exploring, and growing together. Traveling with that guy is full of adventure; Life with this guy is full of adventure.

Marriage is truly all about the experiences and the adventures you share, the fun memories you create while just simply experiencing life together - the good days and the bad, the days full of joy and the days full of worry, it's about sticking together through everything. Weddings should truly be about celebrating your life together forever and so should every item in your registry! Making a registry at Target that includes all the items you'll need for your life and adventures together is a really fun part of getting married, but obviously it is not what "getting married' is all about. Gaining the title of "husband and wife" and obtaining the marriage certificate is great but having your best friend by your side forever, for everything is the best. Learning to make everyday an adventure is the key to our marriage success; exploring this big wide world together is my favorite activity with my husband - whether we are just running to the farmer's market together or paddling around the ocean in a kayak or even taking a cruise to Alaska (hello, bucket list) I love spending time just being with him.

Unexpected Adventures: Learn, explore, and grow together - The fun in traveling as young newlyweds!

When Target asked me to share our most memorable trip together, I had trouble choosing which vacation to write about...They all have been full of adventure and excitement, some more than others...  Ultimately, I decided to share more about our most recent trip, just a little staycation-esque vacay to Miami in March. Although it's so close to where we currently reside, the whole trip was such an amazing experience! The hotel stay and flight were taken care of by a local radio station and I'm so incredibly lucky to have won their giveaway! The luxury resort they booked us was immaculate. The views of the beach from our balcony in our high rise room were breathtaking!

Unexpected Adventures: Learn, explore, and grow together - The fun in traveling as young newlyweds!

From the moment our plane landed in Miami it felt as though we were in a different country; it's a beautiful place but it has a huge Cuban element to it that I wasn't expecting, although I absolutely embraced it. I just wish I would have used Rosetta Stone in Spanish before we left - I was a little lost when we asked for directions from the car rental guy and he started speaking in Spanish.

Unexpected Adventures: Learn, explore, and grow together - The fun in traveling as young newlyweds!

We landed around lunch time, so after driving around in circles in the parking garage a few times (yes, we were THAT couple. haha.) we went and grabbed a bite to eat in Downtown Miami, then we set our GPS to head towards The Keys and off we went. A little impromptu road trip simply because we had time to waste until we could check in to our hotel and because why not? I love that hubby comes up with fun ideas like this, how cool is it that this is the guy I will spend every day of my life with? *swoon* We made the drive to Key Largo in about an hour, the views were incredible. I loved watching the water fly by as we drove along the long bridge. After getting to Key Largo, we spent some time at a local park and saw a sting ray swimming just a few feet away from the rocks we were playing on. I'm sad to say it was a bit windy on the day we visited so we decided not to get in the water, maybe next time!

Unexpected Adventures: Learn, explore, and grow together - The fun in traveling as young newlyweds!

After spending time exploring the park, we were ready for a bite to eat and a cocktail or two. We saw  Jimmy Johnson's Big Chill on the side of the road and decided to pop in. I ordered a Key Lime Colada and I have to share with the world: This is The BEST cocktail, ever - really though, EVER. I could rave on and on about it, but instead I'll just suggest that ANYONE visiting Key Largo stop in and have one!

Unexpected Adventures: Learn, explore, and grow together - The fun in traveling as young newlyweds!

Then it was already time to head to the hotel! Once we made it into our room, we immediately walked out onto the balcony. Although it was dark, it was still so breathtakingly beautiful. The moon was glowing over the top of the ocean, leaving a glimmer along every inch of the water with the breeze blowing ever so slightly. The sound of a steel drum being played poolside slightly drifting up towards our room and the lights of the color-shifting pool illuminating the edges of the palm trees. Needless to say, it was a heavenly stay and we slept with our doors open every single night of the trip - no need for air conditioning with a cool breeze from the ocean. (I'm sitting here day dreaming about the trip as I type this, can I just go back right now - please?)

Unexpected Adventures: Learn, explore, and grow together - The fun in traveling as young newlyweds!  Moon over the water in Miami

The next few days in Miami were filled with fun exploring the city. We spent several hours sunbathing on local beaches. We took a nice walk around a Spanish monastery. We tried out several new foods and even developed an addiction to Cuban espresso. We listened to some awesome jazz music. We shopped, we dined, we drank, and giggled until our hearts were content. It was fun simply enjoying time together. That's what being married is all about after all, enjoying every adventure, every minute, every second together - no matter where you are.

Unexpected Adventures: Learn, explore, and grow together - The fun in traveling as young newlyweds!  View from the Westin Diplomat
Unexpected Adventures: Learn, explore, and grow together - The fun in traveling as young newlyweds! Miami Beaches

Target also wanted me to share a few of my favorite travel essentials. If you're tying the knot soon you'll want to snag these items up as gifts to yourself or add them to your registry.



Unexpected Adventures: Learn, explore, and grow together - The fun in traveling as young newlyweds! Target Travel Essentials for Newlyweds
Unexpected Adventures: Learn, explore, and grow together - The fun in traveling as young newlyweds!

I highly recommend a D-SLR camera, having great pictures of your adventures is important! The Canon EOS Rebel T5I is a great model, I'm personally a Nikon user but playing with the Canon in stores has me thinking about making a switch! You can definitely tell the difference between my cell phone pictures and the D-SLR pictures above. The SwissGear City Pack is also a great travel item, the perfect bag for both you and hubby to take turns carrying all the goods you'll need for your adventures. The Coleman 10 person Instant Cabin Tent is the answer to a girl's "glam" camping dream - the perfect compromise to get a girly, girl to go camping. Maybe you plan to travel internationally? You might want to try Rosetta Stone, it'll help you brush up on your foreign language skills. Don't forget a cool passport cover for both of you as well! You'll obviously want some great pieces of luggage and these perfectly fitting luggage tags to keep them safe and stylish! Head on over to the Target Wedding registry to start adding to yours!


  In case you need some $$$ to get ahead of the game on your registry,
I've teamed up with Target to bring my readers a $25 Gift Card giveaway.
Please use the giveaway tools form below to enter to win:








Disclaimer: I received compensation, or one or more of the products mentioned above, to facilitate my review. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers.This contest will run through August 30th at 11:59 pm EST. Must be 18 years or older to win.  This promotion is in no way sponsored, endorsed or administered by, or associated with, Facebook, Twitter or any other company mentioned above. You understand that you are providing your information to Lauren Paints | a beautiful life and not to Facebook, I will not use your information other than to e-mail you a winning notification if you are the chosen winner. Enter using the Giveaway Tools form above. Void Where Prohibited. Please note that Lauren Paints | a beautiful life is not responsible for sponsors that do not fulfill their prizes. If you would like to be a sponsor of future giveaways, please contact me at laurenpaintsflorida@gmail.com.

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