Back to the honeymoon posts! đ Albuquerque, New Mexico did not disappoint. From the delicious food to the kindest people, I highly recommend paying this city a visit. My only regret is that we shouldâve spent more time here instead of Santa Fe, but câest la vie!
Highs
Our AirBnB was super cute!
We drove by the Breaking Bad house, and didnât get screamed at by the paranoid lady who lives there haha!
We had the most delicious dinner and mezcal drinks, and the restaurant was super dog friendly. Our server loved us and Linley even got a free chicken dinner from the owner!
We walked to Bar Uno, a super dog friendly bar downtown, and our bartender was incredible. He was super nice and loved Linley, too⌠as did the other patrons.
Simply walking around and exploring our area with Alex and Linley was so much fun; itâs always the little things!
Low
I had the *worst* bloody nose at night. It woke me up and I had the worst night sleep of the entire trip that night by far.
Buffalos
At Bar Uno, a lady came in who was clearly on pills. Our lovely bartender actually cut her off and called it out. It was sad to see someone going through that, but really responsible on our bartenderâs end and Alex and I sincerely appreciated his nonjudgmental approach. Well done, sir!
I missed the morning walk before heading east because of my stupid bloody nose and shitty nightâs sleep, but Alex and Lin saw some hot air balloons together! Although slightly jealous since theyâre a New Mexico staple, I was happy they got to experience them together!
For those of you who have been reading along for a while, yâall know how much I love New York City. Itâs a place where *healthy* family memories were shared with *healthy* family members of mine. My favorite cousin used to live there as her family was located in Tarrytown, but I havenât visited since Katy moved away in 2023. Last weekend, Alex and I *finally* flew together for the first time to visit our friends, Amy and Danny. It was wonderful to make new memories in the city, although I did miss Katyâs quality time very much.
Amy and Alex have always had a brother/sister-type friendship. Itâs been lovely getting to know her and her husband even though weâve been ships passing in the night (I moved to Atlanta in September of 2023, while Danny and Amy moved to NYC two months later). Alex and I have wanted to visit for a while now, and all our schedules finally aligned.
While Linley was living it up at our auntâs and uncleâs house with his pup cousins, Alex and I arrived at the airport early on Friday morning. We were tired but excited, and quickly woke up when we felt the energy of the city (for example, the traffic controller in the rideshare lane was yelling and insulting all the drivers, which we personally loved)! We stayed in Chinatown and ate on the border of Little Italy for lunch, where I enjoyed gluten free mozzarella sticks and cacio de pepe. Alex and I also enjoyed some delicious mezcal cocktails, which was an excellent way to kick off the weekend!
After our amazing lunch, we strolled through Dumbo and walked the Brooklyn Bridge. We also ended up at an outdoor bar called Jury Duty, which was ironic because not only did we see a few brides and grooms walk by from the courthouse, but it was also the day of Luigiâs ânot-guiltyâ plea. Talk about a wild coincidence haha!
We strolled back to our hotel and met up with Amy and Danny for family-style Thai seafood dinner. We laughed and caught up while I tried a fish eye for the first time. It was so nice to try new places and celebrate Dannyâs new job, Amyâs birthday, our recent marriage and my official last name change. So much to celebrate! The kindest thing that Amy said was, âYouâve meant so much to me because of how happy you make Alex.â That meant the world to me, and itâs been great to grow our friendship, too!
After dinner, we kept the conversation going at a really cool speakeasy bar. It was fun to people watch and talk about travel, how we all met and just overall continuing to catch up. Even though we donât see each other as often, it always feels like no time has passedâa good sign of a great friendship!
Saturday morning was fun and full of exploring Chinatown more. Iâd only been once but it was fun to revisit with someone who is actually Chinese! Alex was in heaven. With hotel coffee in hand, we strolled to a congee place called Big Wong where Alex enjoyed some pork dish that couldâve been a dinner, and I tried shrimp congee for the first – but not last – time. Good thing we had an hour wait for brunch with Amy and Danny, because we definitely over ate!
Once Alex grabbed some food from a bakery and another market, we made our way back to the hotel, and finally brunch with Amy and Danny. We had an hour-long wait, which was okay because the people watching outside was prime, and we had time to grab coffee from a nearby spot. I loved all our conversations and seriously miss Amy and Danny already! For lunch, I had a whitefish sandwich and banana bread, all gluten free. We also had fun navigating the subways after as we ventured to Central Park. The flowers were so beautiful and it was Alexâs first time walking within the park itself. We all majorly needed a nap before heading back out for dinner and our nighttime comedy show!
Our dinner was lovely as we enjoyed more pasta, and Alex and I enjoyed mezcal espresso martinis! After dinner, we had the best time at our Gotham City comedy show. Iâve always wanted to go there and Iâm so glad we finally did! The host and all five comedians were absolutely hilarious and the jokes and laughs kept flowing. We stayed up wayyy past our bedtime but it was so worth it!
I hope yâall enjoyed this break from the honeymoon posts (which will resume tomorrowâŚ) but in case you missed him as much as we did, hereâs what Lin was up to while we were away:
Sedona, Arizona – although touristy – didnât disappoint!
Highs
We lucked out weather-wise! It was a little hot on our way to the car, but Iâm so glad we visited and hiked when we did!
Linley had a big ole smile on his face the entire hike! đ
Alex and I wore our matching dog fist shirts, and we met a sweet couple and their young daughter who wanted to pet Linley. They apparently had the same shirts as us, and also a small, white dog named Waffles, but didnât wear them or bring him along. It reminded me of how much Alex and I love bringing Linley wherever we can!
The views were absolutely stunning! I mean, they were truly breathtaking (proof below).
We met so many friendly people on the hike, all of whom loved Lin!
Lows
The parking sucked. The touristy energy of the area sucked. It definitely wasnât our vibe, but we had a great hike as a trio regardless!
I had to carry Linâs poop bag for a while, and because of the heat, it stank BAD haha! đ¤Ł
Buffalo
Linâs paws were stained with the orange-colored dirt from the hike. He majorly needed a bath and a good grooming after our trip haha! All the dogs at the parks and along walks wanted to smell him after that⌠đ
We definitely had fun in Flagstaff between visiting the Grand Canyon and hiking in Sedona the following day!
Highs
The brewery we stopped at was awesome! Bummer we had to sit outside, but other than that it was great!
Our Thai takeout was wonderful, and enjoying it at our cozy AirBnB was perfect.
Stargazing at both our AirBnBs was amazing! I wish we wouldâve enjoyed it a bit moreâŚ
The distillery we found after our Grand Canyon adventure was so great, that we visited three times while we were there!
We stopped for lunch and great cocktails after hiking in Sedona, and a kind couple paid for our drinks!
Lows
We couldnât sit outside at the brewery, and it took us so long to find a spot that we could actually bring Lin into for dining⌠which just so happened to be our AirBnB! It was a headache but it was all good in the end.
Alex definitely got sunburned from sitting in the sun after hiking in SedonaâŚ
On our last night in Flagstaff, we picked up some Indian takeout and it was absolutely horrible. It was flavorless, watery⌠none of what we were expecting. We love Indian food and we definitely need to order some soon now that weâre back in Atlanta!
Buffalo
When we visited the distillery for coffee on our way back East toward Albuquerque, Misty (our lovely bartender and barista!) accidentally made Linley three pup cups instead of one. She thought we asked for two to go, but we really wanted to mugs to go! It was sweet and Linley definitely enjoyed them.
Iâm going to put a pause on the âhigh, low, buffaloâ theme for our honeymoon posts; the Grand Canyon was absolutely beautiful, it was the perfect day, and it was an incredible first visit for all three of us! I promised Linley that I would take him someday when I first rescued him over seven years ago, and it meant so much that we finally made it together â with our other best friend right by our side, too! đ
From all the adults and kids who were smiling and greeting us as we walked by, to the kind gentleman who took his dog on a similar road trip just because, and the two young women who gave Linley some love on our way out: we had the best day as a family and couldnât have asked for anything more. đĽš
Media taken Thursday, March 20, 2025 at the Grand Canyon. â¨
The ranch we stayed at in Flagstaff, Arizona deserves its own post. From location to views, appliances to coziness, this place was just what we needed and then some. Weâll be back and this was probably our favorite AirBnB of the entire trip.
The best parts? Our big, family breakfast, seeing the gophers dig in the neighborâs yard, and seeing Lin run around and have so much fun!
Media taken Wednesday, March 19 & Thursday, March 20, 2025.
Santa Fe did not disappoint! From the food and drinks, to the beautiful hiking, and all the crazy weather in between: I highly recommend paying this unique town a visit.
Highs
Our AirBnB was awesome! It was the quintessential desert stay that we wanted and needed. We also enjoyed nice breakfasts there each morning; Lin enjoyed sitting at the table with us! đ
The rail yard near our place had some amazing breweries, and it was cool to see the trains roll by while we walked and enjoyed our time in the area.
It took forever to find a good, dog-friendly spot for dinner, but once we did it was worth it! We enjoyed good food and spicy margs before our next day of adventure.
We had a very fun, windy hike in the morning during our full day there. We almost got lost of the hike, but luckily we didnât, and it was great to beat the crowd and the heat!!
Our lunch spot was wonderful and I enjoyed some of the best nachos to-date. They also let Linley hang out inside with us, and he was getting all the attention per usual.
After an eventful drive, we hung out at a brewery outside of the city center, and had a blast making it a restful part of our afternoon.
We stopped by a really cool pottery bar for a drink before dinner, and it was fun to watch people make pottery while we had great martinis out of pottery glasses!
Lows
Santa Fe really isnât as dog friendly as Iâd thought it would be. Even some places donât seat you outside during certain days or times of the week⌠in hindsight, I wish weâd spent more time in Albuquerque as opposed to Santa Fe.
Linley actually had some bad altitude sickness in the morning on our second day there! Iâd had it bad in Peru with my mom in 2018, so I knew all the symptoms he was experiencing. He bounced back in time for the hike, but definitely look for warning signs in yourselves and pets (nauseous, cold and shaky, etc.)
Buffalo
We really had a wild full-day of weather, including a dust storm AND a snow storm in the same day! It was wild, but very cool to experience.
Like the places we visited in Arkansas, Oklahoma City was a very underrated place with some really surprising, unique spots!
Highs:
Our garage-style AirBnB was super cool! We loved it and had the best time. We barely stayed in, but we enjoyed coffee and laughing at the local news the next morning before we left. (Shout out local news⌠itâs always so much better than the other garbage!)
We enjoyed drinks and brunch in a cute part of town that actually reminded me of a small, beach town Iâd visited near San Francisco. Linley, of course, got more attentionâŚ
The park downtown that we walked through was absolutely beautiful! So many families were out and about, and it was a gorgeous day overall.
We popped into a cool library-style distillery before dinner, and when I say we had the most creative cocktails yet, I mean it! Alex ordered a pho-nomenial drink that literally tasted like Vietnamese pho! Our minds are still blown⌠10/10 would recommend!
Believe it or not, we had dinner on a âlakeâ with the most beautiful sunset. It was a lovely way to continue our trip out west. And my gluten free vege burger with a gin and tonic didnât hurt either!
Lows
Bricktown was super crowded! The river walk was way too touristy and packed, and that part of the day really wasnât as enjoyable. But we quickly remedied that with the distillery visit I mentioned above.
I slept like *garbage* that night, because Linley kept pushing into my back the entire night. I love when he snuggles up to me, but it was a little too far⌠he made my stomach push out and it was feeling it for a while there! (Heâs worth it, but still!)
Buffalo
We made the most of our dinner, but boy did it get cold while we were sitting outside! Next time, Iâll remember to bring blankets for all of us.
Our first stop on the honeymoon road trip was Arkansas, which may not seem super glamorous, but it didnât disappoint! Here are some of my favorite photos and âhighs, lows and buffalosâ from the first state on our journey:
Highs
Our AirBnB in Russellville was amazing! 10/10 would recommend the home. Seeing Linley run around in a yard was a big plus, too.
Hiking in the Ozarks was amazing! Although rainy at first, this was an underrated hiking spot that everyone should check out at least once.
The distillery we found in Little Rock was amazing! They had the best service and St. Pattyâs Day drinks, and we ran into some kind strangers there and along the way.
Lows
Our county was a dry county, and we had NO idea! We tried ordering margs at two different places, only to realize the nearest liquor, beer or wine was at least 40 miles away! We still have a good laugh about it hahaâŚ
Of course some family stuff had to go down during this leg of the trip, but so it goes. Alex and Linley are my family, and thatâs all that matters. đ
Buffalo
Alex was whistling while we walked through a creepy Dollar General, and the cashier commented and said it felt like a horror movie. Way to go, Alex, for creeping out a complete stranger! đ
March 14-27, 2025… what can I say! Those were the two best weeks of my life. Alex, Linley and I went on the honeymoon road trip of a lifetime.
As excited as I am to write alllllll about it, I probably can’t; it’d take too long and I’ll always have the memories in my heart. Instead, I’ll share stories “high, low, buffalo” style. Haven’t heard of this? Well, I’ll share a few highs, lows (or weird situations, I should say!) and “buffalo’s” are random things that happened on the trip.
What qualifies as a “buffalo?” Well, the fact that we encountered a severe dust THEN snow storm in Santa Fe, New Mexico in the same day definitely qualifies. More to come on that later đ
Stay tuned in the coming weeks! In the meantime, here’s some disposable camera photos from our trip of a lifetime.
March was our best month yet! Our best friends got married in one of our favorite places, we were married at one of our favorite places, and we had the honeymoon roadtrip of a lifetime as a trio. Although more photos of all that will come, I wanted to share the disposable camera photos our friends and family took during our reception. I immediately knew having these out would be a hit, and what a great idea it was! I look forward to seeing more photos soon, but hereâs what we have so farâŚ
Maddie and Quinten, our officiant (on my right)The one and only Sahil!Ariel and Alex!Our venue and second homeCousins Catherine and ReaganOur signature drinksMom and Linley, our bestest ring bearerOur lovely bartenders, Justin and Kyle!Jesse!!!My lovely best friend, Carolinaâ¨Wait, there were three Mattâs?!Our lovely photographer, Trizzie!Uncle Ray⌠hahaReagan, Alex Matlock and cousin JasonDancing as newlywedsOh boy⌠hahaOne happy brideOne hammered groom⌠haha
Photos taken Saturday, March 8, 2025 at Bantam Pub in Atlanta, GA. â¨
Itâs currently 4:05am CT in Oklahoma City right now. Weâre in a garage-style AirBnB as a trio, and Lin is pushed against me in our ginormous king bed. I turned to face him so my belly would get his warmth, as opposed to him bending into my back and causing me pain later in the morningâŚ
I wouldnât have it any other way. đ
Alex and I got married last weekend! We had an absolute blast and it couldnât have been a more perfect weekend all around. Our rehearsal and dinner went great the night before, and it was so nice to hang out with our parents, friends, and Alexâs family members.
Even the morning of the big day felt ânormalâ in a sense. We had brunch with my parents at our favorite spot (where we had our reception actually!) and lazily hung out until 2/2:30 or so. Alex, Linley and I did, however, sneak away around 1/1:30 to read each other our vows. We wanted to do this in private, and Iâm really grateful we did. Itâs something Iâll cherish for the rest of my life. How lucky am I to have found my best friend!
Getting ready was quick and painless, and I of course had to have one of my favorite fellas help me out!
Our apartment, park where we had the ceremony and Bantam Pub for the reception are all walking distance from each otherâwhich is extremely lucky! We love our neighborhood and our friends in it so much. My dad walked me down to the pond where we met Bill, Alexâs dad, who also helped walk me down to Alex. Iâm glad I involved both our dads and it was nice to have a moment with both of them before everything got started. It was another special moment Iâll never forget.
Our ceremony was quick and our best friend Quinten married us. Despite the wind and Cecilia, my mother-in-law, having to hold down my veil, it couldnât have gone any better. I even made Alex cry! Haha and that was the goal⌠What made everything extra special was that I was able to see my high school best friend and her sister at the very end. Although they missed most of the ceremony, the fact they even made it at all was a huge surprise and blessing. After popping my first ever bottle of champagne – both with Alex and his brother, Jonathan, we chatted, took some group photos, then had fun with our coupleâs session with Trizzie and Tripp. Alex and I are grateful that we have not only such loving friends, but talented friends who can marry us and photograph our big day!
Bantam Pub⌠where to even begin! When Alex and I first met in person, we visited Bantam for brunch that weekend (August of 2023). It was Bantam where we decided to move in together, and it was there and the servers-turned-friends who rallied for Linley during his major surgery last year. It truly is our second home and the community we feel – and created – there is insurmountable. There was absolutely no way we could have our reception anywhere else! We each had a featured cocktail (Linleyâs was the âsalty dogâ of course!) and we danced, ate and drank the night away. Seeing all our favorite people in our favorite place⌠unreal in the best way.â¨
I could go on about how much I love Alex, how great Linley did as the ring bearer, and how lovely everything else was⌠but I donât feel like ugly crying at 4:33am CT in some random AirBnB that weâre staying at as we head out west haha. All you need to know is that this is a once-in-a-lifetime kind of love that Iâm forever grateful for, and our little guy killed it out there last weekend. 𼚠The morning of, the after party where everyone kept buying us drinks, and everything in between⌠it was an incredible day, with incredible friends and one incredible husband!
Traveling with the Traceys 