Welcome back to 5 things Tuesday!

As the summer (vacation season!)  is winding down, I thought it would be a great time to remind myself why it's important to keep planning vacations, especially during those long winter months.

5 reasons why I take vacations:

1. A break.  Vacations give you a break from your normal routine and stresses of everyday life.

2. Making memories. No matter what happens on a vacation, every moment is a memory. I have so many memories of vacationing with my cousins, and now Dave and I are making memories together with each vacation we take.  I make a photo book of all of our major vacations, and it's so fun to look back.

3. New experiences.  I like to go new places and explore new things. I also really like to go to the same places, yet have different experiences each time I'm there.  I've had some pretty neat experiences on vacation:  zip lining in Jamaica, standing on the great wall of China, and having a picnic with my best friends in a park in London.  Like the memories, these experiences are priceless.

4. Inspiration.  After I have stepped away from something for awhile (like blogging), I usually feel more inspired and have fresh ideas to explore. Without a break from the routine, I find my ideas getting stale, and myself getting bored with the ordinary.

5. YOLO. It's a bit cliche, but the last reason to go on vacation, is "why not go on vacation?" If you like to travel, but are debating if you should, The answer is yes, you should go.

See you in Hawaii.