Australia on a Budget

Australia has been on my bucket list for years. However, buying 6 round trip tickets from America to the land down under is NOT cheap, and I knew I was going to have to plan ahead if we ever wanted to touch down in Sydney. 

Two years ago, I told my husband that if we were ever going to make it happen, we had better start preparing now! And it's a good thing we did, because we just booked 6 round trip tickets to Australia, 3 domestic flights (for 6 people), AND lodging for the entirety or our trip....ALL FOR A GRAND TOTAL OF $500!!!! 

Want to know how we did it? Let me show you....

1) Miles Credit Cards

We knew the biggest expense to Australia would be the airfare. Knowing there was NO way we could afford the average ticket price of $1800 per person (cough, cough, over 10K for our family of 6!!), we decided to start stock piling miles on our credit cards. 

Two years ago, I signed up for the Capital One Venture when the bonus was at 100,000. I then referred Kevin, and he signed up (and I received an extra 15K points for referring him). Then, a year later they had another huge miles bonus on their Venture X Business card, so I signed up for that one, referred Kevin and he signed up. All in all, we were able to stockpile over 400K points between the sign-up bonuses and then just accruing miles from using the cards. You can see the Capital One Venture Card HERE and the Capital One Venture X Business card HERE. 

2) Going.com

I knew we needed to find the flights on sale. Even thought we had a lot of miles, we still could never cover 6 tickets at the current price they were at. So I signed up for Going.com. They are a website that allows you to put in wishlist destinations. You input your local airport (where you want to fly out of) and then the airport you want to fly in to. For us, this was Los Angeles to Sydney. If there are ever ANY details or mistake fares, they will notify you as soon as possible. 

In June of this year, we received an email that flights from Los Angeles to Sydney were 50% off!! The minute I got the email I KNEW we had to jump on and use our points to purchase them. We ended up getting 6 tickets, and only paying a total of $500 for taxes and fees! This was incredible, as it worked out to under $100 per person to fly round trip to Australia! A savings of $10,000!!! 

Right now, if you use my referral link, you get 20% off your year subscription! Honestly, we would NOT have been able to book this trip to Australia without Going.com!! It is SOOO worth it!! You can use my referral link HERE! 

3) Home Exchange

We discovered the Home Exchange platform a few years ago, and it has been LIFE CHANGING! We are now addicted to getting free lodging around the world! We used it in France 2 years ago, and stayed in the most gorgeous provencal farmhouses in Provence! (You can read more about our experience HERE) This last summer we used it to stay in a beautiful Cotswold farmhouse in England! 

I cannot reiterate how this platform has saved us THOUSANDS of dollars every trip we take. Lodging for 6 people is not cheap. Not only is it economical, but we have stayed in the most gorgeous of homes! I have booked the ENTIRE trip to Australia with Home Exchange, and we are stay RIGHT ON THE BEACH in multiples places. It's literally a dream come true! 

To check out HOME EXCHANGE, use my referral link HERE where we will both get extra Guestpoints when you sign up!! 

Friends, we are not anything special. We are just a regular family on a small budget, who has found a way to crack the system and travel for very cheap. You too can do this! 

Good luck and let me know if you have any questions!! 

All Creatures Great & Small Day-Trip with Kids Yorkshire

If you're anything like me, you ADORE the cozy setting and heartwarming cast of All Creatures Great and Small set in 1930's Yorkshire, England. For the last 6 months my daughter and I have been watching an episode every Wednesday night. We make tea and nibble on chocolate and transport ourselves to the Dales with James, Helen, Siegfried, Mrs. Hall and Tristan. It's about as cozy as they come! 

So when we were planning our trip to England this summer, we knew we had to include a day trip to Yorkshire to see all the sights of All Creatures Great and Small. I wish we  had more time to spend in Yorkshire, but alas, we only had a day. Because of this, we made sure every minute counted. Also, between our friends and us, we had 7 kids between us so we knew we had to make it kid-friendly! 

Here's our Yorkshire All Creatures Great and Small Itinerary with kids: 

1. Ride the Stream Train at Bolton Abbey

This is such a fun and beautiful way to see the Yorkshire Dales! Step on to a historic steam train that meanders through working farms, along stone fences with sheep doting the green countryside. Our kids were absolutely  thrilled to be in the train car and explore the historic stations! You arrive at a Embsay Station with time to wander through the historic cafe and gift shop. Then, you climb on board and ride back to Bolton Abbey. Make sure to reserve tickets ahead of time, they only have limited seats and sell out fast! You can see all the info HERE. 

2. Lunch at Linton Falls

Enjoy a picnic along the gorgeous bank of Linton Falls. You can park in the small parking lot, and then actually leave your car there when you walk the short 10 minutes in to Grassington. The kids ran around & played tag before we headed in to town! We saved money by bringing a packed lunch, and it made for the best picnic with our friends! We could just imagine James and Helen walking along the water's edge! You can read more about Linton Falls HERE.

3. Explore Grassington 

I was so beyond excited to explore the fictional town of Darrowby. My daughter and I are die hard fans of the show, so to step foot in the Drovers, the Grocers, and at the steps of Skeldale House was a dream come true! Just a note, you may not recognize Skeldale House at first as the show ads quite a bit of extras to the front of the house! Definitly spend a good hour exploring the town. There are many shops that have photos from the filming of the show, specifically the book store that stands in as the Grocer in the show. 

4. Tour James Herriot’s actual Home

We drove about an hour from Grassington to Thirsk to visit James Herriot’s real home, but it was 100% worth it! Alf Wright (the real James Herriot) lived in this home with his wife, and two children, making veterinary calls all over the county. You get to see all the rooms as he left them, watch a video about both tv shows (the current one and the one in the 1980’s), walk through a museum dedication to Alf’s life, and then see a floor all about veterinary medicine. The little museum sure packs a punch! We bought tickets on arrival, 10 pounds for adults and 5 pounds for children. You can see more about the museum HERE.

This is a FULL day so make sure to start early in the morning! Enjoy and let me know if you have any questions!! To see more come follow along @worlds.of.hope on IG 

My Daughter's Bedroom

I have been dreaming up a space for my precious daughter for years. 3 years ago I picked out the most whimsical wallpaper, and then planned the entire room around the colors and style of this floral motif. I just shared my daughter's room on IG, and many people have been asking for links to each of the items in her room. It may surprise you that this room was created on a very tiny budget. Aside from the wallpaper, most of her room was curated from Amazon. I'm of the mindset that decorating doesn't need to be expensive, it just needs some time and creativity. I've slowly been pulling items together, and when I finally revealed the room to my daughter, she smiled the biggest smile i've ever seen and said "Mom, it's the most beautiful room in the world!". 

That was the best reward:) 

A special thanks to my dear mother who wallpapered the entire room. I truly could not have executed this project with out her expertise! 

My vision for the space was a vintage whimsical cottage room, complete with dusty pink paint, floral wallpaper, woodland animals, and artwork that felt feminine, fresh and inspiring. I wanted her to feel like she had stumbled in to her own secret garden in England (we read the book together last year and watched the iconic movie...a very bonding time for us) In short, I wanted my daughter to have a beautiful space to dream and grow in to the special woman she will become. 

Let me know if you have any questions! xoxo Katie 

Wallpaper- Flora by Borastapeter found on the Wallpaper Direct website HERE

Paint- Cheerful Heart by Behr at Home Depot. I asked them put 100 drops of white in it to lighten the color. 

Bed- From Amazon HERE

Rug- Rifle Paper Co. Loloi Rug HERE

Curtains- Amazon HERE

Gingham Sheet Set with Ruffle- From Amazon HERE

Blush Pink Comforter- IKEA HERE

Crochet lace Blanket- Amazon HERE

Bed Canopy- Amazon HERE

Bedside Table- Mine is sold out but a cute alternative HERE

Dollhouse- Hobby Lobby HERE

Artwork- Robin Anneliese Calendar HERE (Currently on sale! Such incredible artwork!!) 

Scalloped Baskets- Hobby Lobby HERE

Anne of Green Gables Blue- Rifle Paper Co HERE

Heidi Book- Barnes and Noble HERE

Anne of Green Gables Yellow- Barnes and Noble HERE

The Secret Garden Book- Amazon HERE

Angel Stuffy- Amazon HERE

The Tale of Squirrel Nutkin-  HERE

Hanging Basket- Michael's HERE

Gold Frames- At Home HERE

Wooden Frame Beaded-  At Home HERE

Golden Bunnies- Mine sold out, but a cute alternative HERE

Bunting- Handmade by my mom (sorry, can't link it! But stay tuned in our shop The Somerset Cottage if you're interested in this!)