What's in a Mane?

Happy Autumn! The season of inevitable change has brought one very big one to my daughter Ava. This morning she cut 10" of her gorgeous hair off to donate to the Children With Hair Loss Organization. I'm so very proud of her for doing such a selfless thing for others

 

On Tuesday my daughter asked me if she could cut her hair off and donate it so that girls with cancer could have it. I almost immediately responded by yelling, “No way!” but I managed to bite my tongue and take a moment and respond logically. I love her gorgeous long auburn hair and recently measured it at 24 inches long! So I asked her if she was sure, knowing how much she loves her hair and refuses even a trim whenever I suggest it. She was sure.

 

I can’t say no to her amazing generosity as her gesture is quite inspiring. She’s only 7 but quite often reminds me of the true value of life and the difference between needs and wants. There are so many little girls out there that would give anything to have a gorgeous head of hair like Ava has so she wants share her wealth.

 

I had only previously known about the Locks of Love and Pantene Great Lengths foundations to donate hair to until a friend mentioned the Children With Hairloss foundation. I visited the website and decided it was perfect for where my daughter wanted her hair to go.

 

An Apple a Day

Over the weekend we attended the Annual “Apple Day” festival at one of our favorite local farms, Terhune Orchards. We have been visiting the festival for the last four consecutive years. Of course, the main attraction is the apple picking but there is so much more to do at this wonderful annual event.

 

Upon our arrival we headed off to greet the farm animals while keeping our eyes peeled for the friendly farm cats and dogs that wander the grounds. Almost immediately we came upon a fluffy grey and white cat whose patience and tolerance for the overly rambunctious crowd of five-and-under’s was so admirable.

 

Ava patiently waited her turn and as much as the cat appeared to want to escape the throng of children, it gladly obliged Ava’s hand as she gently stroked its back. Ava was satisfied and we moved on to the Adventure barn to check out this year’s theme. It was apples of course…a great history on the American (and New Jersey) apple. Afterward we visited with the donkeys and horses and a few other animals before our annual measuring of Ava’s height against the cornstalks.

 

Throughout the rest of our day we enjoyed a hayride, wandering through the corn maze, picking some delicious apples in the orchard and munching on some amazing apple-themed foods. And of course, our visit would not be complete without stopping by the market for a bottle of apple wine on the way out. The weather was perfect and the day was incredibly enjoyable as always.

 

 

Glamping by the River

Last weekend we went on our annual camping trip to the Brandywine River with my parents and sister. We go every year as kind of a send-off to summer. My sister stays in a tent but the rest of us "camp" in a fully furnished cabin. Or as I refer to it, glamping.

It's always a refreshing weekend as we kayak, canoe and spend time on and by the river. The trees are all still green but the nights are beginning to get cooler which is perfect for roasting marshmallows and devouring s'mores.

My favorite part of the trip is always kayaking. It's so relaxing to float on the calm crystal clear water and watch the dragonflies dart above the water and sometimes quickly dipping in. The temperature, being in the low to mid-seventies, was perfect for boating.

The riverbed is covered in stones and fools gold that glitters in the sunlight. There is a spot not too far upstream that the water gets incredibly shallow and it was there that my sister stopped the canoe to let Ava out to wade in the cool water and collect some fools gold.

I am ok with summer coming to an end. I am really looking forward to the coming fall and the inevitable changes it brings with it.

Number 17: 30 Before 30

Compiling my “30 Before 30” list was a lot more challenging than I had imagined it to be. I created the list to send off my 20s feeling accomplished and give some meaning to the day of the big 3-0. I wanted my 30 things to be of meaning to me, to challenge me and spice up my last year in my 20s. My list began as a list of things I love doing that I never make time for. And that’s when I realized that the list was too easy to achieve.

 

I really wanted to test myself and set some personal goals that would require some real effort to accomplish. So I thought about things I hate to do and the first thing that came to mind was running. I absolutely loathe it! I find no enjoyment in it whatsoever. I feel like I’m dying when I run (yes, a tad dramatic). Don’t get me wrong, I can power walk in a pair of five-inch platform stilettos like it’s nobody’s business. But running? Ugh! So onto the list it went. “Run a 5k.” And for me, that’s no easy feat.

 

As much as I hate running I decided to have fun with it. I signed up for “The Color Run 5k” after a recommendation from my friend Allison.  Any 5k described as “the happiest 5k on the planet” was worth a shot. And then I decided to ask my sister and two cousins to join me to form a team. I knew I would need a lot of motivation to do this so having them by my side was probably the only way I actually would follow through on it.

 

The training was horrid. I hated every minute of it. I started running in the spring using the “Couch to 5k” app for iPhone. At the beginning of my training I was fine because I was also using the elliptical and going for daily walks on my lunch break at work. But then I sprained my back in a car accident and sidelined the running for two months. When I started again (I am not proud to say this) I complained… ALOT. Oh boy was I miserable on those few runs I actually did take leading up to the race.

 

But guess what? I DID IT! We did it, all four of us. Well, 5 of us, because my cousin’s husband ran with us, motivated us, and of course took some lovely pictures of us getting “colored” during the run. Going into the race I did not expect to finish, let alone run the entire thing. But it was so much fun! Yes, those are words even I can’t believe came out of my mouth that day.

 

It was a great feeling to cross the finish line covered in rainbow colors with my family by my side while my husband and daughter waited for me at the finish line. I really hope that by watching me run, my daughter can learn something about setting personal goals no matter the challenge they present. I am so thankful to my sister and cousins for running with me, and I am so ready for my next 5k with them…just not the training in between! 

 

Pre-race team photo

 

Post race colors!

 

Team Amazing Grey's



Time to celebrate



 Enjoying the post-race color party!!

 

Spreading color

 

The Color Run = Happy!

The Color Run 5k New Jersey event specifically partnered with a local charity called Back On My Feet - Philadelphia, a national non-profit organization that uses running to help those experiencing homelessness change the way they see themselves so they can make real change that results in employment and independent living.

So Long Summer

It's September. How did that happen? I spent the entire summer NOT BLOGGING. It's been quite an eventful summer and even year for that matter. I cannot believe we are in the home stretch for 2014 and about to head back to school.

The last 8 months have been pretty amazing though. We've taken so many day-trips and mini-vacations (my job-hopping prevented a full vacation this year). We've spent so much quality time with family near and far. I RAN A 5K! Who knew I could do that. I recently was hired for a job that I spent the last 20 months working toward. I eliminated soy from my diet (for the most part) so my belly is much happier with me (and even my chronic migraines have managed to disappear). And as a family we are eating so much healthier! It's been a great year, a positive and progressive one; a big year!

And this one also turned 7! How did that happen?!

 

There are still four long months left in this gorgeous year and we sure have a lot planned to fill up those coming months. Most importantly, I have some catching up to do with my 30 before 30 list. This has been such a positive year so far. It's the first good, low-stress year I've had in a really long time. And it's almost autumn... my absolute favorite time of year!

We're Saving Babies

It's been awhile since I've written and we have done so many fun things in the last two weeks that I'll have to catch up on. But I've also been spending most of my "free time" fundraising for the March of Dimes which is a charity that hits home for me. Our walk is in 8 days and I'm so close to my fundraising goal of $1,000.

My daughter was unexpectedly born 5 weeks early and we are one of 40% of preterm births with no known cause, no answer to the question, "Why did this happen?" Her story, her struggle, her battle was fought 6 1/2 years ago but each year we reflect and we share our story so that those going through the same bittersweet experience can feel some comfort in knowing that they are not alone and that someone gets it.

When my daughter was born 5 weeks too soon I was so angry, so sad, so embarrassed, and felt so guilty. I felt helpless for her. I also felt so alone like no one understood what were going through. Then the hands of The March of Dimes foundation touched my heart and gave me guidance. I found all the tools I needed to not only properly take care of my preemie and know what challenges to expect as she grows but I also found a network of families sharing their stories that were so similar to ours. It helped me heal. So I decided to put on my sneakers and to walk.

I created our Family Team for the March of Dimes March for Babies in 2006 because I felt I needed to do something after our NICU stay with my daughter. When we completed our first walk with Ava at 9 months old I still hadn't made sense of everything that had happened and she still hadn't made a 100% recovery yet. But walking that year and being with the other NICU families helped get my emotions in check.

We continue to walk each year to give thanks for the chance Ava was given and to give hope for all the babies to come. The March of Dimes also touches every family everywhere, even those whose babies were born healthy. And for that we give thanks. Every dollar we raise, every step we take, we are making progress.

 My daughter lost 5 weeks so we walk 5 miles in honor of the battle she fought to find health but we walk for all babies everywhere. Please support Team Ava Marie on our mission to save babies!

A 24-hour Refresher

It's been a while and we've been busy. My daughter has been on spring break this week so we've been on the move! I also never posted my Day 31 of the blog challenge. I kind of skipped that post on purpose. I hate endings. I try not to acknowledge them. So I didn't because I didn't want the challenge to come to an end!

One thing that has finally come to an end that I'm very happy about though has been this much too long winter. Winter came exactly one week after Hurricane Sandy hit us. We had our first winter snow and became gripped by winter's relentless cold fist during the first week of November and it hasn't let go until this weekend. We have had snow and grey for far too long this year it was hard not to feel affected by it. Lots of Vitamin D kept me as perky as I could be during the long winter.

A few hours ago I returned from a quick overnight trip out in Lancaster, PA. It's a favorite clear my head spot of mine as it's so rural with big open spaces and narrow winding roads. The simple Amish life dotting the landscape is very grounding as well. After a long few weeks at work I finally feel refreshed.

My daughter and I perused one of the local villages in Intercourse, PA this afternoon and stocked up on her favorite Jams and preserves at the local canning and jarring company. I'm excited to try their new Blueberry Pomegranate jam. Afterward we popped into a local Art Gallery where Ava fell in love with a few landscapes. She couldn't understand how someone could paint so well that it would look just like a picture. She's really enamored with modern art so the realist paintings were very new to her. But she appreciated them. One such painting she was in awe of was an original Andrew Wyeth.

It pleased me that she dragged me into the gallery and she led through it and started conversations with me about the art. Many trips to the art museums of New York have really had their impact on her which makes me smile. Their collection was mostly local but still much to appreciate.

Day 30: What's Your Favorite Flavor of Ice Cream? - 31 Day Blog Challenge

My favorite flavor is not necessarily an ice cream. When I crave a cold refreshing treat that usually means we are heading to The Bent Spoon in Princeton. In the shadow of Princeton University is the best artisan sorbet I've had. Of course the fact that it's created with local ingredients (some of which are grown at our favorite orchard) makes it that much better too.

We are die hard Spoonies. Although they have so many amazing and often interesting flavors of organic sorbets and ice creams I always go for the organic raspberry sorbet. It is the best I've had anywhere. My daughter is in love with their organic mango sorbet so the two of us are always so predictable with our orders. The daring one in the group is my husband. He's been trying a different flavor every time. Just writing this is making me crave some. Maybe we'll take a trip to savor some this week since it is spring break. And maybe one day I'll finally break my pleasant habit order the lavender mascarpone I've been dying to try.



My daughter with her mango, my raspberry and my husband went for coconut ice cream.

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Are you keeping up with the challenge? Head over to Fabulous Finds by Tiffany to link up and read about other bloggers favorite seasons. Or you can check out my past Blog Challenge posts here:

• Day 1: 5 Random Facts
• Day 2: Favorite Quote
• Day 3: What Makes You Happy?
• Day 4: Best Childhood Memory
• Day 5: Favorite Movies You Never Get Sick of Watching
• Day 6: Your Last Random Act of Kindness
• Day 7: My Dream Job
• Day 8: Pet Peeves
• Day 9: What’s on your Bucket List or Life List?
• Day 10: My Daily Routine
• Day 11: The Last Book(s) I’ve Read
• Day 12: Something I Miss
• Day 13: Do You Have Regret?
• Day 14: What's on Your iPod?
• Day 15: 10 Things That Make Me Awesome
• Day 16: My Biggest Accomplishment
• Day 17: Why and When Did I Start Blogging?
• Day 18: Where Are You Happiest?
• Day 19: 5 Blogs I Read on a Regular Basis
• Day 20: What Do You Collect?
• Day 21: What's Your Biggest Fear?
• Day 22: What Do You Do When You're Home Alone?
• Day 23: Do You Have a Hobby?
• Day 24: My Most Embarrassing Moment
• Day 25: Describe Your Location
• Day 26: What's Your Favorite Food?
• Day 27?
• Day 28: What's Your Guilty Pleasure?
• Day 29: What's Your Favorite Time of Year and Why?

Day 29: What's Your Favorite Time of Year and Why?

In New Jersey we are fortunate to experience all four seasons. The beginning of each of them is always exciting, enjoyable and something to look forward to. But my favorite time of year has always been fall and my favorite month has always been October.

Through spring and summer the trees are waiting patiently in the wings. They go mostly unnoticed in spring if they're not the flowering kind. They then offer much needed shade on those thick, moist summer days. But once fall comes they finally have their chance to take center stage. The foliage is not only breathtaking but offers such an overwhelmingly pleasant aroma of the landscape to enjoy simultaneously. The crunch of the leaves underfoot also elates me.

I was fortunate enough to find myself traveling through the Swiss, Austrian and German Alps during mid-October in 2005 during the peak foliage week. It was breathtaking and a fall I will never forget. It was absolutely the perfect time for me to be exploring those countries. We drove from country to country passing old castles in ruins and exploring the perfectly preserved castles of Ludwig's grand estates. This photo is one I snapped looking out from Neuschwanstein. It was the King's view and it's one of my favorite photos of mine that represent my favorite time of year.

The view from Neuschwanstein in Bavaria, Germany

Autumn in New York is pretty Grand too!

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Are you keeping up with the challenge? Head over to Fabulous Finds by Tiffany to link up and read about other bloggers favorite seasons. Or you can check out my past Blog Challenge posts here:

• Day 1: 5 Random Facts
• Day 2: Favorite Quote
• Day 3: What Makes You Happy?
• Day 4: Best Childhood Memory
• Day 5: Favorite Movies You Never Get Sick of Watching
• Day 6: Your Last Random Act of Kindness
• Day 7: My Dream Job
• Day 8: Pet Peeves
• Day 9: What’s on your Bucket List or Life List?
• Day 10: My Daily Routine
• Day 11: The Last Book(s) I’ve Read
• Day 12: Something I Miss
• Day 13: Do You Have Regret?
• Day 14: What's on Your iPod?
• Day 15: 10 Things That Make Me Awesome
• Day 16: My Biggest Accomplishment
• Day 17: Why and When Did I Start Blogging?
• Day 18: Where Are You Happiest?
• Day 19: 5 Blogs I Read on a Regular Basis
• Day 20: What Do You Collect?
• Day 21: What's Your Biggest Fear?
• Day 22: What Do You Do When You're Home Alone?
• Day 23: Do You Have a Hobby?
• Day 24: My Most Embarrassing Moment
• Day 25: Describe Your Location
• Day 26: What's Your Favorite Food?
• Day 27?
• Day 28: What's Your Guilty Pleasure?

Day 28: What's Your Guilty Pleasure? - 31 Day Blog Challenge

I have a few guilty pleasures. Shoes, getting pizza wasted (like I did tonight), daytrips to New York City (that is one expensive city) and Rachel Zoe. My husband cannot stay in the room when I'm watching her. He finds her irritating. I don't care because I find her fabulous. I am so happy her show The Rachel Zoe Project is back after a much too long hiatus when baby Skylar Morrison came along. I pretty much stalk her. I Facebook stalk her, inbox stalk her and I TV stalk her. It was love at first, "OMG, That is so MAH-JOR!" I'd write more but she's about to take over my television for the next hour.

 

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Join the 31 Day Blog Challenge!

Are you keeping up with the challenge? Head over to Fabulous Finds by Tiffany to link up and read about other bloggers guilty pleasures. Or you can check out my past Blog Challenge posts here:

• Day 1: 5 Random Facts
• Day 2: Favorite Quote
• Day 3: What Makes You Happy?
• Day 4: Best Childhood Memory
• Day 5: Favorite Movies You Never Get Sick of Watching
• Day 6: Your Last Random Act of Kindness
• Day 7: My Dream Job
• Day 8: Pet Peeves
• Day 9: What’s on your Bucket List or Life List?
• Day 10: My Daily Routine
• Day 11: The Last Book(s) I’ve Read
• Day 12: Something I Miss
• Day 13: Do You Have Regret?
• Day 14: What's on Your iPod?
• Day 15: 10 Things That Make Me Awesome
• Day 16: My Biggest Accomplishment
• Day 17: Why and When Did I Start Blogging?
• Day 18: Where Are You Happiest?
• Day 19: 5 Blogs I Read on a Regular Basis
• Day 20: What Do You Collect?
• Day 21: What's Your Biggest Fear?
• Day 22: What Do You Do When You're Home Alone?
• Day 23: Do You Have a Hobby?
• Day 24: My Most Embarrassing Moment
• Day 25: Describe Your Location
• Day 26: What's Your Favorite Food?
• Day 27?

Day 27? - 31 Day Blog Challenge

So Day 27 of this challenge did not happen. The writing prompt was "List 3 online friends you've never met but you hope to real soon." I have no online friends that I don't know or see outside of the web. I tried so hard to think of something else to write about yesterday too since the prompt didn't apply to me at all but nothing came to me. My creative juices were zapped up by the last two weeks of chaos at work. So I went to bed early instead.

Thankfully since I'm about to reach the point of stress-overload, I took off tomorrow to enjoy a nice three-day weekend with my family. I'll be heading into the city tomorrow with my daughter to visit the Museum of Modern Art. The last time I visited that museum was with my husband for the Tim Burton Exhibit. It was A M A Z I N G!

After many trips to different art museums and checking out the different genres of art my daughter has decided that she loves modern art the most. Andy Warhol is her favorite and there are a few good pieces of his we've admired at The Met. We recently checked out the "Regarding Warhol: Sixty Artists, Fifty Years" Exhibit at The Met which she loved! She followed the audio guide through the entire exhibit. I can't wait to see what she thinks of the MoMA tomorrow!

She likes to sketch surrounded by art in the museums.

Are you keeping up with the challenge? Head over to Fabulous Finds by Tiffany to link up and read about other bloggers who actually have an answer for Day 27! Or you can check out my past Blog Challenge posts here:

• Day 1: 5 Random Facts
• Day 2: Favorite Quote
• Day 3: What Makes You Happy?
• Day 4: Best Childhood Memory
• Day 5: Favorite Movies You Never Get Sick of Watching
• Day 6: Your Last Random Act of Kindness
• Day 7: My Dream Job
• Day 8: Pet Peeves
• Day 9: What’s on your Bucket List or Life List?
• Day 10: My Daily Routine
• Day 11: The Last Book(s) I’ve Read
• Day 12: Something I Miss
• Day 13: Do You Have Regret?
• Day 14: What's on Your iPod?
• Day 15: 10 Things That Make Me Awesome
• Day 16: My Biggest Accomplishment
• Day 17: Why and When Did I Start Blogging?
• Day 18: Where Are You Happiest?
• Day 19: 5 Blogs I Read on a Regular Basis
• Day 20: What Do You Collect?
• Day 21: What's Your Biggest Fear?
• Day 22: What Do You Do When You're Home Alone?
• Day 23: Do You Have a Hobby?
• Day 24: My Most Embarrassing Moment
• Day 25: Describe Your Location
• Day 26: What's Your Favorite Food?

Day 26: What's Your Favorite Food? - 31 Day Blog Challenge

(I'm a day late. I just worked two 12 hour days. Please forgive me.)

I currently have a love-hate relationship with food. I have always been sensitive to soy but toward the last few months of last year I became completely intolerant. I cannot consume it all now which is near impossible if you've read the ingredient labels on most foods at the supermarket. It's used as a preservative in almost everything from dressings, bread, snack foods, even ice cream! My favorite hummus and coffee creamer also use soy. As I read more and more labels over the last few months I've become really disgusted with the ingredients found in American Food. As a result we're working on transitioning our kitchen to a fresher kitchen (many trips to the farm market) with very little processed foods so we all can eat the same (soy free) meal.

But like I said, it's a love-hate relationship because I haven't had the time to really find tasteful recipes. Most of what I've been eating is the same few things over and over. I've been soy free for three months now and it hasn't been easy. But the immediate side effect I felt was that my chronic migraines (I'm talking 8-10 days of every month) have completely vanished. It's been since early December since I've had my last migraine. It's amazing the effect processed food has on you. Eliminating it has been the best thing for me. I still get frustrated at my lack of options though which is why I made it a goal of mine to master some new recipes by adding it to my 30 Before 30 List.

At least I still have pizza and double stuffed Oreos! (Regular oreos have soy, double stuff don't, this makes no sense to me.) I live in New Jersey so it's only natural that I consider pizza a food group. I must consume it at least once per week. And it must be from a local family owned pizza place. I sure do have my options too because there's at least 100 pizza places (probably even double that number) within driving distance to me. Now when I say pizza, I mean REAL pizza. Not a chain, not frozen pizza, real pizza made by the countless Italian immigrants that have opened up shops in New York and New Jersey. (I still maintain that Jersey Pizza is better than NYC Pizza). You cannot say you don't like pizza until you've had Real Pizza.

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Join the 31 Day Blog Challenge!

Are you keeping up with the challenge? Head over to Fabulous Finds by Tiffany to link up and read about other bloggers favorite foods. Or you can check out my past Blog Challenge posts here:

• Day 1: 5 Random Facts
• Day 2: Favorite Quote
• Day 3: What Makes You Happy?
• Day 4: Best Childhood Memory
• Day 5: Favorite Movies You Never Get Sick of Watching
• Day 6: Your Last Random Act of Kindness
• Day 7: My Dream Job
• Day 8: Pet Peeves
• Day 9: What’s on your Bucket List or Life List?
• Day 10: My Daily Routine
• Day 11: The Last Book(s) I’ve Read
• Day 12: Something I Miss
• Day 13: Do You Have Regret?
• Day 14: What's on Your iPod?
• Day 15: 10 Things That Make Me Awesome
• Day 16: My Biggest Accomplishment
• Day 17: Why and When Did I Start Blogging?
• Day 18: Where Are You Happiest?
• Day 19: 5 Blogs I Read on a Regular Basis
• Day 20: What Do You Collect?
• Day 21: What's Your Biggest Fear?
• Day 22: What Do You Do When You're Home Alone?
• Day 23: Do You Have a Hobby?
• Day 24: My Most Embarrassing Moment
• Day 25: Describe Your Location

Day 25: Describe Your Location - 31 Day Blog Challenge

When I look out my window I see the street that knew my bike tires well as a little girl. At the end of our street is what we referred to as our "Dead Man's Hill." It is the hill that slopes steeply down the bluff we live atop right up to the creek that feeds the marshes and wetlands we overlook.

A few blocks away is the street I grew up on, Mae, and I still carry the pieces of my life there with me every single day. My stomping grounds included the forest behind my parents house with countless brooks that led to the creek and marshes. If we weren't in the street playing with all the kids on the block we were down in the woods building forts, exploring, hiking, even hunting for Indian and Revolutionary War artifacts that our parents made us turn over to the local State Museum. We didn't need toys in this neighborhood, we had such big imaginations.

Summers on Mae were the best times so it's no wonder I settled so close to where I grew up. I have always loved the location as well. We are halfway between New York City and Philadelphia which we frequent often and minutes from Princeton (where I also work). We can get to the Jersey Shore in under 30 minutes. We have 127 miles of gorgeous Jersey coastline (not to be confused with MTV's portrayal). And there is so much history at our fingertips.

I may be in the suburbs in an extremely overcrowded town but our piece of land is very secluded, tucked away in a quiet neighborhood that overlooks some pretty amazing sunsets. We are surrounded by such a culture rich environment that it satisfies our every thirst.

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Join the 31 Day Blog Challenge!

Are you keeping up with the challenge? Head over to Fabulous Finds by Tiffany to link up and read about other bloggers hobbies. Or you can check out my past Blog Challenge posts here:

• Day 1: 5 Random Facts
• Day 2: Favorite Quote
• Day 3: What Makes You Happy?
• Day 4: Best Childhood Memory
• Day 5: Favorite Movies You Never Get Sick of Watching
• Day 6: Your Last Random Act of Kindness
• Day 7: My Dream Job
• Day 8: Pet Peeves
• Day 9: What’s on your Bucket List or Life List?
• Day 10: My Daily Routine
• Day 11: The Last Book(s) I’ve Read
• Day 12: Something I Miss
• Day 13: Do You Have Regret?
• Day 14: What's on Your iPod?
• Day 15: 10 Things That Make Me Awesome
• Day 16: My Biggest Accomplishment
• Day 17: Why and When Did I Start Blogging?
• Day 18: Where Are You Happiest?
• Day 19: 5 Blogs I Read on a Regular Basis
• Day 20: What Do You Collect?
• Day 21: What's Your Biggest Fear?
• Day 22: What Do You Do When You're Home Alone?
• Day 23: Do You Have a Hobby?
• Day 24: My Most Embarrassing Moment

Day 24: My Most Embarrasing Moment - 31 Day Blog Challenge

I think it's hard for us as adults to find anything embarrassing anymore. By this point in life most of us have learned to just laugh at ourselves when we do something that would otherwise be embarrassing. I honestly have had to go all the way back to high school to remember something that at that time mortified me.

In my sophomore year of high school our marching band took a cruise to the Bahamas as part of a band competition festival. We performed in the streets of Nassau shortly after docking which was an amazing feeling since I had choreographed the routine we were performing. I felt invincible because we all performed so perfectly.

Later in the day when they ferried us to Blue Lagoon I was still feeling that post-performance adrenaline high. Then I fell down a flight of wooden steps in front of all my friends and countless others and skinned and bruised my shin and toe good. I still to this day have a small indent in my shin where it took most of the impact.

Reality really hits hard doesn't it? It pulled me right back down to the ground from the clouds I was walking in after our performance. I was mortified when it happened but looking back now I should have went and found some ice for my bruised shin and ego. Instead I just tried to brush it off and pretend it didn't happen.

My most recent fall down the steps happened at my parents house. I terrified my poor daughter who had to witness it first hand as I fell hard and hit ever single step on the way down. I was ok, just some massive bruising on my elbow and hip. But once I landed at the bottom I was consumed by uncontrollable laugher. Maybe because my funny bone hit every step on the way down? When my brother finally got to me he thought I broke my arm and was hysterically crying. It was quite the opposite, those tears were from laughter. I can only imagine what was going through my daughter's head as she still was in shock from what happened. I'm just happy I've learned to let these klutzy moments just roll off my back.

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Join the 31 Day Blog Challenge!

Are you keeping up with the challenge? Head over to Fabulous Finds by Tiffany to link up and read about other bloggers hobbies. Or you can check out my past Blog Challenge posts here:

• Day 1: 5 Random Facts
• Day 2: Favorite Quote
• Day 3: What Makes You Happy?
• Day 4: Best Childhood Memory
• Day 5: Favorite Movies You Never Get Sick of Watching
• Day 6: Your Last Random Act of Kindness
• Day 7: My Dream Job
• Day 8: Pet Peeves
• Day 9: What’s on your Bucket List or Life List?
• Day 10: My Daily Routine
• Day 11: The Last Book(s) I’ve Read
• Day 12: Something I Miss
• Day 13: Do You Have Regret?
• Day 14: What's on Your iPod?
• Day 15: 10 Things That Make Me Awesome
• Day 16: My Biggest Accomplishment
• Day 17: Why and When Did I Start Blogging?
• Day 18: Where Are You Happiest?
• Day 19: 5 Blogs I Read on a Regular Basis
• Day 20: What Do You Collect?
• Day 21: What's Your Biggest Fear?
• Day 22: What Do You Do When You're Home Alone?
• Day 23: Do You Have a Hobby?

Day 23: Do You Have a Hobby? - 31 Day Blog Challenge


If you know me then you know I love to take pictures. My fondness of this obviously came from my father who also made a hobby of it. Every family vacation we took he was always snapping away behind his SLR and we have tons of family photos albums to show for it. I find I do the same thing as my favorite thing to photograph is our day trips or travels. I usually photograph every single detail, big and small, from the scenery right down to the texture of the sand so I can look back on it and remember every bit of our trips, the memories we made and the good times we had. Sometimes my family gets annoyed at the quantity of pictures I take but when we look at all the pictures after the trip is long gone all is forgiven and they are thankful. Being our family photographer is my favorite hobby.

Here are a few memories over recent years:

Cape Henry, VA

Tian Tian at the National Zoo in Washington, D.C.



Bleeding Hearts at the Central Park Zoo





Green Island, Antigua, B.W.I

Bushkill Falls hiking trail

The one that inspires me most, my daughter

 

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Are you keeping up with the challenge? Head over to Fabulous Finds by Tiffany to link up and read about other bloggers hobbies. Or you can check out my past Blog Challenge posts here:

• Day 1: 5 Random Facts
• Day 2: Favorite Quote
• Day 3: What Makes You Happy?
• Day 4: Best Childhood Memory
• Day 5: Favorite Movies You Never Get Sick of Watching
• Day 6: Your Last Random Act of Kindness
• Day 7: My Dream Job
• Day 8: Pet Peeves
• Day 9: What’s on your Bucket List or Life List?
• Day 10: My Daily Routine
• Day 11: The Last Book(s) I’ve Read
• Day 12: Something I Miss
• Day 13: Do You Have Regret?
• Day 14: What's on Your iPod?
• Day 15: 10 Things That Make Me Awesome
• Day 16: My Biggest Accomplishment
• Day 17: Why and When Did I Start Blogging?
• Day 18: Where Are You Happiest?
• Day 19: 5 Blogs I Read on a Regular Basis
• Day 20: What Do You Collect?
• Day 21: What's Your Biggest Fear?
• Day 22: What Do You Do When You're Home Alone?

Day 22: What Do You Do When You're Home Alone? - 31 Day Blog Challenge

I'm a day late with this post. Yesterday was just so bad in so many ways and I could not bring myself to a happy enough place to write. I did not want to put negative energy out there in the world so I resorted to sleep therapy.  It's crazy how our bodies react to situations when we feel we are being attacked under false pretenses. So after a nice good cry, a new pair of shoes, pizza therapy, lots of hugs from my family and a very long night of sleep I'm feeling like I have a better perspective on the negative situation that arose. I feel like I can now approach it professionally and with a level head.

But onto the topic of being alone. I am never alone. I honestly cannot recall the last time I was home alone. I imagine for most people being home alone can be incredibly relaxing but for me it's quite the opposite. I am most relaxed when I have my whole family with me under one roof because I don't need to worry. When they are not with me I worry like crazy. So if I were home alone I imagine I would find things to do around the house to keep my hands and mind busy until they were all back home with me again. I am crazy for hating the thought of being home alone?

Join the 31 Day Blog Challenge!

Are you keeping up with the challenge? Head over to Fabulous Finds by Tiffany to link up and read about what other bloggers do when they're home alone. Or you can check out my past Blog Challenge posts here:

• Day 1: 5 Random Facts
• Day 2: Favorite Quote
• Day 3: What Makes You Happy?
• Day 4: Best Childhood Memory
• Day 5: Favorite Movies You Never Get Sick of Watching
• Day 6: Your Last Random Act of Kindness
• Day 7: My Dream Job
• Day 8: Pet Peeves
• Day 9: What’s on your Bucket List or Life List?
• Day 10: My Daily Routine
• Day 11: The Last Book(s) I’ve Read
• Day 12: Something I Miss
• Day 13: Do You Have Regret?
• Day 14: What's on Your iPod?
• Day 15: 10 Things That Make Me Awesome
• Day 16: My Biggest Accomplishment
• Day 17: Why and When Did I Start Blogging?
• Day 18: Where Are You Happiest?
• Day 19: 5 Blogs I Read on a Regular Basis
• Day 20: What Do You Collect?
• Day 21: What's Your Biggest Fear?