So here we are.

Today we woke up, we got dressed, we ate.

Maybe today we went off to some job we've been working at for the past 5 years.  Or maybe we worked on putting some value back into that dream house of ours.

Maybe we kissed loved ones goodbye.

Maybe we sat on our butts and watched TV all day.

Whatever you did, good or bad, I'd like for you to answer one question.

How did you get to where you are today? 

I've got a secret for you.  And yes, it works just like magic.  But first a story.

Some time ago, before the days of Wifi and Facebook, I found myself running an internet-based business out of a concrete apartment on the outskirts of Nanning, China.  I was 26, and not only was I creating my first business, I was also deeply entrenched in my first trip abroad.  I had been in China only 6 months.  I didn't speak the language, I was struggling with culture shock, and between my wife and I we had about $1,500 to our name.  And yet, here we were, starting a business, and the pieces were just falling into place.

Over the past few years I have kinda become addicted to playing the travel hacking, frequent flyer game.  I've managed to save up over 600,000 miles and rewards points to use during our travels, and the funny thing is - I hardly ever fly.

In a few weeks I'm going to share with you how these free reward miles will save us thousands of dollars as we travel and allow us to visit a few places we would normally never be able to afford, but for now I just wanted to give you some ideas to get you going in the right direction.

I asked Justin from InACents.com to write a guest post and tell us just exactly how to get started collecting and benefiting from travel reward programs.  Justin started visiting our site last year, and after getting to know each other a bit, I realize that the guy knows his stuff!  He really breaks the process down perfectly here.  As well, he's actually running a cool contest to find the best travel story of 2011 that all you travel bloggers should check out!

I'm sure you'll learn a lot from this post, and make sure you contact either of us with any questions.

I'm far from a Facebook addict.  Actually, until about 10 months ago I had never even laid eyes on Facebook.  But now, with the blog and travel and all, the FB has become pretty much a necessity for me.  Actually, I'm not sure there is a blogger out there who isn't on Facebook or some other major social media stream.   It's how we get - and stay - connected.  It's a must for us.  But I have to say, it can sure suck the hell out of your day if you're not careful.

Travel photography is not my strength.  Not only am I an inexperienced photographer, I'm terrible at securing and managing the good images I actually capture.  I'm just unorganized.  I lose stuff.  The few wonderful pictures I have taken over the years are gone to the world.

I realize that as we set off to travel the world, my poor photography skills just aren't going to cut it - I need help.  So I asked 5 travel photographers to get me started on the right track by sharing their methods for storing and managing photos.  They were kind enough to help me out, and I must admit that I was enlightened by their responses.  I truly had no idea what I was doing.

So if you're like me and can't seem to keep those precious photos of yours in order, then this post is definitely for you.

Am I changing the world?

C'mon.  I've got a tiny blog and I've saved some money to travel - big deal.   But I'm doing more than I was before.  I'm on the right track.  And because I'm finally doing something I love, I'm starting to believe I might be able to make some real change in the future.

A few months ago my Iphone slipped from my daughter's hand, found the end of a nail protruding from the floor boards of our dining room, and died.

Now this is something none of us ever want to experience, but I have to say - I'm glad it happened.

I never bothered getting my phone fixed and that has made all the difference.  Sure, I missed it at first, but as time passed I quickly realized I was missing a lot more when I had the phone around.  I found myself observing more.  Showing patience.  Listening.  I started playing with my kids more at the playground.

I always thought technology was a necessity as we travel in the modern world, but looking at it now, I think we might actually be better travelers without it.

Last week I wrote a post asking people for their suggestions on where we should travel when we head down to Mexico and Central America.  Within 5 minutes of publishing the post I received suggestions on 18 destinations in 4 different countries.  Within 4 hours I had received over 100 suggestions and numerous people had offered to host us, play travel guide, or just chat by phone or Skype to help us get whatever information we needed. Truly unbelievable!  Big time thanks to everyone out there.

Over the past year the world as I know it has changed. It's become closer, friendlier, and more accessible. Things I only dreamed about doing before seem not only probable, but easy!  As my friend Emiel says, the travel game has changed.  I don't need guidebooks or TripAdvisor to tell me where to go anymore. I have the world helping me out - and you can have it too!