Inspiration Monday

Happy Monday everyone!  I hope you all had great weekends filled with lots of fun fall activities!  I had a pretty good weekend, filled with lots of babysitting, running, studying, and a very special walk for a disease that is near and dear to my heart.

Before I begin, I thought I would try out a new theme for Mondays, Inspiration Mondays (maybe I'll even create a link-up - if there isn't one already!).  Our blog at my old company used to do this and I always thought it was a neat idea to get people going when Mondays can be so hard.  We all need a little inspiration sometimes :)

Anyway, this past Saturday I was very lucky to join a small group in a Walk for Myositis in Columbia, MD.  Myositis is a rare autoimmune disease that causes chronic muscle weakness and fatigue.  There is no known cure for the disease and no known cause.  When I was in high school I was diagnosed with juvenile dermatomyositis and underwent lots of different treatments to help me get better.  Luckily today I am in remission and feeling healthy and well.  

So this little walk this weekend meant a lot to me as there is very little funding for Myositis as it is a very rare disease, only 3-5000 children in the USA have my form of the disease.  The last time I checked the website we had raised over $7500 to support the cause so I was very excited to walk and help others learn more about the cause.

Well, Saturday was an absolutely beautiful day and the location of the walk was a beautiful park surrounding a lake.  The leaves were changing and it was just a picture perfect fall day.  We had a small but enthusiastic crowd and we set out to walk around the park.  It was just wonderful.  My parents joined me for the walk and it was great to just be outside walking for something that I believed in and wanted to support.  Although we didn't have the biggest crowd it was neat to be surrounded by people that have had similar experiences and understand what I went through.  It was special.  Here are a few pictures from the day:

Beautiful view across the water

Mom and I in our walk t-shirts!

Geese on the lake...uhh surenity

Gosh it was just so beautiful, I'm glad to know of this wonderful park now!  Do you have a cause that is near and dear to your heart?  Have you supported it lately?  Walks and runs are huge in October and it is the perfect time of year to get out and support a good cause - go for it, it's definitely worth it and you'll be glad you participated!

Lovely Summer Weekend!

Well this weekend was a HOT one in Baltimore but luckily I spent most of the time by the pool cooling off.  On Saturday a few of my friends from KaBOOM! came to visit and sit by the pool, we had so much fun catching up, catching some rays, and relaxing poolside!  I got to play hostess which was kind of fun, although I'm kicking myself that I didn't take any pictures of our smorgasbord of food we had.  I made a lovely fruit salad and we had crab chips, guacamole (not made by me but by one of my friends that came), salsa, hummus and lots more!  We also had some yummy summer lemonade and my new favorite, diet grapefruit soda from Wegman's!

It was a fun fun day:

Relaxing poolside

We blew up this float (above) that my mom had given me for my Birthday.  It was very difficult to get in and out of (as you can tell by the pic above of me trying to even see my friends in it).  Also you'll notice my lovely sun hat my mom gave me for my Birthday, I absolutely ADORE it!  I had been looking for a sun hat that was not straw because I think the straw color looks very weird on blondes and so for my birthday my mom went to Nordstrom's and found this PERFECT one:

You can find it here, and it's 50% off!: Nordstrom's Brown Hat

We had a lovely afternoon and a wonderful dinner (which again I'm kicking myself for not taking a pic) - we made crabcakes, tomato and mozarella and corn...a perfect ending to a wonderful summer day!

love these girls!

Then on Sunday I got up early and went on a long hike in the Patapsco Valley with another friend of mine (didn't bring my camera so sorry no pics!).  We did a 5 mile hike and it was so nice to be back in nature and see a new part of the Baltimore area!  I came home and was exhausted so spent the rest of the afternoon hanging by the pool again...tough life I know!

Anyway, that was my lovely weekend, what did you do this weekend - get in some good beach/pool time?  I'm off to Annapolis today to meet with one of the other counselors for a camp I'm volunteering for next week, can't wait!

The Art of Walking

Most Sundays when I'm home my mom, dad and I take a bit of a jaunt over in Robert E. Lee Park.  We walk and talk and make our way all the way to this one tree where we touch it and turn around, I enjoy it immensely.  In college I took an amazing class called Walk the Land.  Every Monday afternoon we would gather in a classroom, discuss our reading for the day, and then head out somewhere on the domain for a long walk.  Most of the time we didn't follow a trail, we just bushwhacked are way down or up a mountain until we found whatever Dr. Potter was looking for.  Walking the Land was one of the best classes I took at Sewanee, we talked about what walking means to people, and how it shapes them.  We talked about different excursions across America and why people choose to hike trails like the Appalachian Trail, what motivates and drives them to do it.  We read stories of famous hikers and learned about views on the art of walking.  It was an absolutely amazing and inspiring experience in my Sewanee career.

View from a beautiful hiking day at Sewanee

Dr. Potter, my amazing professor, yes he plays
the guitar and banjo often around Sewanee

Senior year of college my friends and I also hiked the perimeter trail around Sewanee, a trail over 20 miles around the domain.  It took us two days and we camped out at the forestry cabin in between, it was a ton of fun.  A few of my friends had taken the Walking the Land class so we were ready to soak in everything that a long hike had to offer.  We spent hours talking about all kinds of things from what we were going to do after college to our favorite music to our deepest passions and desires for life, all the while enjoying the beautiful scenery and bluffs around us.  It is to this day one of my favorite memories of my time at Sewanee.

Enjoying Sewanee on the perimeter trail

Although in DC I don't have as much of an opportunity to stroll off to a beautiful view after dinner (which we often did at Sewanee), I do love walking around the city and looking at the beautiful row houses and buildings.  I try to continue my love of walking as much as possible, last summer one of my best friends and I hiked a mountain or two in the Adirondeck's which, although a little grueling, was a very neat experience.

I love taking walks with friends and family, it is about the best way to catch up with people and have a real conversation about life.  How can you not fee invigorated and rejuvenated after a good jaunt?  What's your favorite place to take a walk or go hiking?  the beach?  the mountains?  in the city?  out on the farm?  The possibilities are endless and the memories made while walking or hiking are priceless, enjoy them.

Taking a walk with old friends is simply the best :)