2015, what a year you shaped up to be! From adventures all over Iceland to visiting new countries, running the NYC marathon and spending the summer with my family in Oregon, it has been one amazing year.
Sitting down to write this post I feel so lucky for all the amazing adventures 2015 brought my way. This truly has been a wonderful year and I know 2016 is going to be just as great. When we welcomed 2015 I had little plans or expectations for how my year would go, just a list of goals that I hoped to cross off. Little did I know that I would cross off all of my goals for 2015 and then some!
I am ending 2015 feeling truly at home here in Iceland. It may have taken two years for me to settle into my life here but that is fine by me. I have traveled to some amazing places in Iceland this year and with each new adventure I fell more in love with this gorgeous country I get to call home.
The Viking and I took our adventures international this year and more than crossed of my goal of visiting two new countries. From Amsterdam to Prague, Hawaii to NYC the Viking and I have been all over the place, not to bad for a year that started off with no travel plans!
Let’s take a look back at my favorite memories from 2015 via Instagram.
January and February
First hiking adventure in 2015 in the books! #latergram
2015 started off with a hard goodbye to my family in Oregon and a rough few weeks months of winter storms back in Iceland. It was a bit of a rough start to the year. So when the weather finally calmed down and we were able to get outside my cabin fever self was beyond happy to get out for a hike, even if it was icy and somewhat scary! This hike was just the first of many amazing Icelandic adventures in 2015.
March
I am a big fan of how Iceland celebrates St. Patrick's Day ?
After a long dark winter the Northern Lights brighten up the skies to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day and gave me hope that brighter days were to come in the Spring months. I have been very lucky and seen some amazing Northern Lights since moving to Iceland, but this show, I will never forget it!
April
Tuesday morning history lesson
April was when the travel fun for the year kicked off. An Easter holiday trip to the beautiful Amsterdam with the twins was the perfect spring getaway that I needed after a rough winter. I hardly had time to unpack before I was off again for a work trip to Berlin, and boy did I fall hard for Berlin, I am still telling the Viking we should move there. These two trips recharged my batteries and I was ready to take on some Icelandic adventures before our summer travels started.
May
Today's adventure had me falling in love with Iceland all over again!
May was all about celebrating my birthday (because birthdays should be celebrated all month long) and exploring as much of Iceland as possible. And explore the Viking and I did! From hiking back to hot springs to a road trip around the North of Iceland, glacier hiking and horseback riding it was a month full of adventures and birthday fun.
June
June brought back the midnight sun to Iceland and some sunny hikes that had me falling back in love with Iceland after the rough winter. The month ended with a trip back to Oregon where I got to surprise my sister (I have always wanted to surprise someone!) and enjoy some much needed family time and warm sunshine.
July
Hawaiian Beauty ?
July, what an amazing month it was. The Viking and I spent most of the month in Oregon with my family, and as all my fellow expats know family time is just the best. We camped and explored more of Oregon, went to the beach with the dogs, and spent many summer nights talking on the porch, it was the perfect summer. And the cherry on top, spending a week in Hawaii. The Viking and I really had an amazing summer.
August
Some quality nature time is going to be necessary after this crazy busy week!
Summertime blues began to set in as the Viking and I made our way back to Iceland and real life. We did our best to make the most of the last summer days, and I must say I think we succeed! From cuddling with a puffin to visiting the most beautiful place in Iceland we said goodbye to summer in a big way.
September
Eating my way around Prague, my kind of Friday!#kikiabroad
The colorful houses in Prague have me dreaming of living in my own bright yellow house with colorful window flowers!
September was spent chasing waterfalls and exploring castles, yeah it was a pretty epic month. H and I welcomed the Icelandic fall with a weekend spent in the Icelandic countryside exploring waterfalls and taking in the Northern Lights, it was my ideal Icelandic weekend. A few weeks later we were off for another adventure, this time with 40 other Icelanders and a new country to explore. We spent a long weekend enjoying all Prague has to offer and we now fully understand why it is called one of Europe’s most beautiful cities.
October
I'm just going to leave this here for all of you debating a trip to Iceland in the Fall….
Did I mention that I love fall?! And that it is super difficult to get a picture throwing leaves?? // Find more from our DC/NYC adventure on snapchat:Kaelene
From Washington, D.C. to NYC, celebrating our fifth anniversary and running the NYC marathon, it has been one amazing trip! #justagirlandherviking
Apparently I wanted to end the year with a bang, I mean October, it was just full of amazing memories. First off, can I just say fall in Iceland this year was gorgeous! Last fall it was so stormy that we never got to enjoy the changing colors. This year though, wow they were amazing! When the last of the fall colors left Iceland the Viking and I headed off to DC where we found even more gorgeous colors. After a quick day in DC we headed up to NYC where we celebrated our 5 year anniversary and I prepared to run the NYC marathon. I have always dreamed of visiting NYC and getting to see the city in its fall colors, it was amazing.
November
Run the NYC marathon ☑️#bucketlist #iamnowretiringfromrunning
☃❄️⛄️
November brought one of the highlights of the year for me, I ran the NYC marathon! This experience was unforgettable and I still can’t believe I did it! The rest of November was a bit calmer which was nice after several busy months of travel. Our month kept us busy though with birthday parties and work parties, my two year blogiversary and a lovely Friendsgiving it was a good month in Iceland. And to end it, Reykjavik was hit with a big snowstorm which turned the city into a winter wonderland and put us all in the Christmas mood.
December
Merry Christmas // Gleðileg Jól ?????
Thanks to 24 Days of Togetherness December was packed with holiday fun. The snow stuck around for awhile keeping the city a winter wonderland, we had a cookie exchange party with new friends and I survived ice skating. This was my second Christmas away from home and it was as perfect as it could be without my family with me. The Viking and I combined our traditions to make for one wonderful Christmas.
Nothing like writing down what you got up to each month to make you really appreciate how wonderful your year was! Looking back on everything I did in 2015 I am ending the year feeling really proud with what I have accomplished and happy with where I am at in life. I have a feeling 2016 is going to be even better than 2015!
Thanks to all you dear readers who have followed along with my adventures in 2015. Wishing you all a very Happy New Year!
Question of the Day?
What was your favorite adventure of 2015?
