Mike and I have done a lot of traveling together, and it's impossible to pick a favorite destination. But our favorite place to return to? That's Maui. We love the beauty, the culture, the beaches, the sunsets.

It's officially been two years since I quit my day job to pursue my writing career. Last year, I wrote a post about my reflections one year in, so I wanted to check in with an update on my second year of full-time freelance life.

Last fall, I took a press trip to Tampa, Florida. I got to stay in a cool hotel in a former courthouse, and I saw a dolphin on my morning run. I checked out a food court made from shipping containers, sipped cocktails at a rooftop bar, and took lots of photos. And I ate plenty of delicious food...

As you may have noticed from my posts about Maui and Hilo, I have a thing for shave ice. It's the perfect pick-me-up on a hot Hawaiian afternoon, and it's also a local specialty that you probably won't find on the mainland. Wondering what the deal is with the brightly-hued dessert pictured above? Here's your guide to Hawaiian shave ice.

In 2011, Mike and I took a fall vacation to New England. Even though this was pre-food blog, the things that stand out most about that trip are food related.

Kansas City-based Paleterias Tropicana is a restaurant that defies a simple description. The company started in 2004 as an ice cream parlor, serving housemade Mexican-style ice cream and paletas (ice pops). But then the menu kept expanding. There's a lineup of smoothies, made from the fresh fruit piled behind the counter...