My Step Dad* sent me this beautiful video this morning that the National Park Service made in honor of the 150th anniversary of the Battle of Antietam, or “the bloodiest single-day battle in American history, with 23,000 casualties on both sides.” I am no Civil War buff, but I have a great appreciation for all the men and women who spend their time preserving history and educating the public about this important time in our country’s history. Especially because my Dad is one of them! He is not in this video, but he is one of the many that take part in the frequent living histories that take place in the area. I feel lucky to have grown up in a place that is so rich in history and I think it’s really cool that he does this.
I also think the video is gorgeous and love the music. Hope ya enjoy it too!
My Dad IS in these photos, however. Pretty cool, huh?
*I say ‘Step’ here for clarification’s sake, for anyone reading whodoesn’t know I have four parents, but my Step parents are every bit my parents as my biological parents! They are the best!!
Somehow our trip to Seattle just creeped up on us! We’re heading up today. I am really, really excited, and honestly not even minding that I’m about to turn 30 (well, maybe a little bit). I’ve got my Hunter boots ready, though it looks like sun the whole time we’ll be in town. We didn’t really make plans this time, just looking forward to wandering around the city and hopefully not looking like tourists (especially on Saturday). I do really want to make a trip to Mt. Rainier to see Paradise, which looks gorgeous! As usual, I am most looking forward to the food. If you have any good restaurant tips, or any Seattle tips really, we’d love to hear ‘em.
“Make it a rule of life never to regret and never to look back. Regret is an appalling waste
of energy; you can’t build on it; it is only good for wallowing in.”
One of those “funny ’cause it’s true” things. Don’t act like you haven’t thought about this before! I may be considered ashamed of what I’m currently reading… but not fully ashamed because it’s still entertaining, and after all, it’s still reading. I decided to give the Emily Giffin books a go, and I’m on book 4. I’ve read Something Borrowed, Something Blue (my fave), Baby Proof (least fave), and now I’m reading Love The One You’re With. They are easy to read and hold my attention for the most part, but it’s not like I’m learning anything or challenging my mind while reading. And I certainly wouldn’t read them in public. The very definition of chick lit! Let’s face it, it’s cooler to be seen reading something that makes you look slightly more intellectual. At least it’s not Twilight!
I am not sure if reading the books back to back is something I would recommend, because I am starting to get that feeling you get when you eat one too many chocolate caramels. Good in small doses but really, really hard to stop even once you realize you’ve had enough. It’s leaving me feeling glazed over and like the story lines and characters (all female, with cool jobs, living in NYC, caught in an undesirable romantic situation) are starting to blend together.
Anyone else read these books? What did you think?
Shamefully, I have no idea where that image came from and the Internet isn’t helping me out here.
Happy September, my friends. I haven’t been posting much this Summer because I have been keeping busy with other ‘happenings.’ For starters, we took a two week trip in June to Scotland & Ireland, followed by another week in Virginia for the Fourth of July. It was stupendous. We miss the UK already. I especially miss the sheep and cows. Julian posted plenty of photos of our travels on his photo blog. We also had the pleasure of hosting my 15 year old sister for a week in July, and my 12 year old brother for a week in August. Other than that, we sat by our pool a lot, drank out of coconuts, made pancakes on the weekend, I grew more addicted to Pilates, and I gave into Julian’s pleading and finally watched Star Wars. All in all it has been a fun summer, albeit a bit too quick. However, my favorite season is rapidly approaching, so I’m in good spirits.
I’m always excited to see Fall, for the usual reasons – a change in weather, a change in scenery, a change in wardrobe. I like the coziness of the season and looking forward to the upcoming holidays. This year is extra special because I’m turning 30 in just a few short weeks… ok, a couple short weeks. But I’m trying to stretch out my 20s as long as I can, you see! Why is turning 30 such a massive ordeal? It’s not that I feel particularly old. Or even look particularly old, so I’m told (and I hope it is true). I’m happier than I ever was in my 20s, so why does everyone make such a big deal about 30? I’m doing myself a favor and viewing it as a new beginning… a fresh decade!
I’m pretty excited about celebrating as well, because this year we’ll be celebrating in Seattle, a place I’ve always wanted to visit but never have. I’ve never even been to the Pacific Northwest, or Northern California beyond San Francisco. We thought about making the coastal drive, but quickly decided that we’d get more pleasure out of spending days wandering the city rather than sitting in our car. If anyone has an recommendations for restaurants or parts of town to check out, I welcome them!
I’ll also try to make an effort to update more often, but no promises.
I got an A in Chemistry this semester. I’m a regular Walter White over here. I am half in complete disbelief, half in complete joy! I can’t believe I pulled it off.Yes, I worked my butt off, but I was fully prepared for a B. It almost makes me want to take another Chemistry class… almost.
I also got 3 other As, and a puny little B (my first one). Yes, bummed about the B, but my GPA is still 3.90 so I am pretty happy about that.
• it’s my one-week Pilates anniversary (still love it)
• my husband came home from his 2-day Nashville trip
• we saw Alexander Skarsgard at lunch today (for serious, ladies)
• it’s Friday
my first best friend
Not so good things about today:
• my little brother is flying overseas, and he won’t be back until next summer.
In this case, the cons kind of outweigh the pros, and so I’m feeling a little mopey. I have gone longer without seeing my brother, but it still doesn’t make it any easier. I will miss him so much and I really do hope the next year flies by.
It’s a happy day over here… I took my last final exam yesterday so school is officially out for summer! I also took my very first Pilates lesson this morning, using one of those fancy reformer machines that I have seen and heard about but never actually had the guts to try.
Back story, I went to my doctor yesterday (he is an alternative medicine doctor, who does chiropractic work, acupuncture, and all the other Earthy medicine that I love), and after looking at my X-rays, he told me that my cervical spine (in my neck) is reversed – meaning it has started to bend the WRONG way, all because of bad posture/hunching at a computer desk! Apparently this is directly related to the pain I have in my mid-back as well as the TMJ pain I’ve had for years in my jaw. Basically, I am a hunchback and need to straighten my act up or live in pain for the rest of my life. So in addition to the therapy I am getting through him, he also recommended I start doing Pilates to build up strength to improve my posture. I was so excited to start. I think deep down I wanted to go, but never had the motivation to do so, until it was a doctor’s order!
So after my appointment I immediately booked a lesson with the local Pilates studio in my neighborhood (which has great reviews). I loved it!! I loved how fluid the exercises are, the slow and controlled movements feel like they are doing so much more than just lifting weights. I felt (and still feel) great afterwards, not as tired or worn out as if I had just gone for a long run, or done a crazy bootcamp class, but more like every muscle in my body is “awake” and just buzzing. I can see why my friends have gotten hooked on this! I did a private lesson this time but I am looking forward to doing the group classes with everyone else. So glad I found a great place so close to my house, too.
Any of you do Pilates with the reformer machines? If I have anyone in Chicago who is looking to try, my good friend Tracy just opened up a FABULOUS new studio called Flex Pilates Chicago. Here’s a little video of my Tracy showing off her moves:
