I'm alive!  I know it's been close to forever since my last post and I definitely don't feel good about it!  Life's been busy -- between work, traveling, a new gig, and simultaneously trying to balance a social life and fit in a workout where I can, I haven't had the most time to sit down and write.  I truly applaud all of you bloggers who have mastered the craft of fitting this seamlessly into your crazy schedule!  I'm getting there, y'all!

I wanted to focus today's post on a personal goal of mine, and I know a ton of you probably have a similar goal for yourself.  I recently went to Baltimore with my boyfriend for a weekend trip, and I was doing a lot of thinking on our way there about my need for travel + my plans to make it happen.  If you read my post about credit cards, you'll know that I mentioned the United MileagePlus card + Chase Sapphire Preferred as two of my top picks.  I've been swiping the United on almost everything, and I finally got the Chase Sapphire myself after doing tons of research.

My goal for 2017 is to get to Europe: anywhere I can possibly fit in.  I'd love to visit London, France, Amsterdam, Greece, and Italy, but believe me, I'm not discriminating.  I've never crossed the Atlantic, and there's never a better time than the present.  2017 will have to be my present to give me some time to save and utilize vacation days, though!

I decided to get the Chase Sapphire Preferred card for a few reasons:

• Points transfer to most airlines with a 1:1 ratio, so you don't lose any of your $ spent
• You can earn 50,000 points within the first 3 months just by using the card (that's a free domestic flight round trip)
• Earn double points dining out, which I do all the time
• No annual fee for the first year, then $95 (pretty standard for a good, rewarding card)