My husband and I just returned from a family vacation in Lewes, Delaware. We were anxiously awaiting a week off and some time to get away and relax. I was over-the-top excited to see my almost one year old nephew whom I haven't seen since Christmas! We had a really great week!
The weather was perfect! We had been having almost 100 degree, hot, humid days in Columbia before we left so we were loving the mild temperatures of the Mid-Atlantic where summer has just started to make it's presence. The days were warm and the nights were cool...my favorite. I love that temperature when you are perfectly comfortable wearing shorts and long sleeves or jeans and a tank. Sometimes in Columbia, it feels like we go from winter to summer and only get a brief taste of spring. I spent hours laying out by the pool or the beach and almost every day Steven and I took a bike ride up to a new bike path that runs parallel to the ocean.
We also ate plenty of delicious food and my summertime Delaware favorites - Grotto's pizza, blue crabs, and Dolle's caramel corn. All those bike rides helped to not make us feel too guilty about indulging, but we're still planning to do some food detox. No extreme juice cleanses for the the Belles yet...just maybe not having ice cream every night and pizza three times a week!
My beach read this year was Bread & Wine by Shauna Niequist. I loved reading about her heart for food and hospitality. It makes me excited to continue to incorporate these things into my life. I just finished the book last night so I'll share another post soon on more of my thoughts. Needless to say, I'm glad she wrote that book!
Probably my favorite part of the trip was showing my husband one of the places where I grew up and also seeing my nephew experience some of those things for the first time. Have you ever been somewhere and thought, "I would love to be here with someone I love!"? Once I got into my college and post-college years, I often thought that every time I went to the beach. I loved being able to make new memories with Steven in a place where I already have so many!
We had a wonderful week, but are also so glad to be home. So glad to be back into our routine a little more refreshed and of course, so glad to be back in our bed! :)
Monday, June 30, 2014
Wednesday, June 18, 2014
My First Blog!
Hello World!
I'm starting a blog! Over the past few years, I have loved reading blogs. I have gotten countless ideas for recipes, outfits, how to do my hair and make up as well as encouragement, empathy, inspiration, and of course some laughs. I so enjoy reading about the things bloggers are loving and learning. I love hearing that perfect strangers both appreciate and struggle with the same things I do. I also love how blogs are a way to chronicle the every day moments of life. It's a like the scrapbook or photo album for the 21st century (that is if you aren't counting Instagram!).
There have been many times when I considered starting a blog, but I quickly dismissed it because I felt like no one would want to hear what I had to say. It could be true, no one could care, but I want to do this for me! I want to create a place where I can reflect and collect memories and share the things I am loving and learning. It's a little scary, but I hope to take baby steps and just start becoming comfortable with this space.
Another reason why I want to do this is for the students I will be teaching in the Fall. I teach a freshman seminar class at the University of South Carolina and I recently went to a conference that covered various topics on how to have a successful and meaningful class. At one of the breakout sessions, the speaker shared how she had her class create blogs. When I heard that I realized this was the perfect opportunity to start a blog myself and have some accountability to keep up with it each week along with my students.
I also really liked the idea of giving the students a more modern place to reflect on what they are learning and experiencing during their freshman year and hopefully beyond. At our university, the importance of reflection has really been emphasized and those of us who work directly with students have been encouraged to incorporate opportunities for reflection after significant experiences.
I love the idea of reflection, but it does not come easy for me. I definitely like the idea of reflection, but often downplay it, thinking I'm wasting time because I'm not "doing" anything or producing something. I am hoping this space will encourage me to grow in reflecting on the moments in my life regardless of how major or mundane they may seem.
So here goes nothing! Welcome to my world! :)
I'm starting a blog! Over the past few years, I have loved reading blogs. I have gotten countless ideas for recipes, outfits, how to do my hair and make up as well as encouragement, empathy, inspiration, and of course some laughs. I so enjoy reading about the things bloggers are loving and learning. I love hearing that perfect strangers both appreciate and struggle with the same things I do. I also love how blogs are a way to chronicle the every day moments of life. It's a like the scrapbook or photo album for the 21st century (that is if you aren't counting Instagram!).
There have been many times when I considered starting a blog, but I quickly dismissed it because I felt like no one would want to hear what I had to say. It could be true, no one could care, but I want to do this for me! I want to create a place where I can reflect and collect memories and share the things I am loving and learning. It's a little scary, but I hope to take baby steps and just start becoming comfortable with this space.
Another reason why I want to do this is for the students I will be teaching in the Fall. I teach a freshman seminar class at the University of South Carolina and I recently went to a conference that covered various topics on how to have a successful and meaningful class. At one of the breakout sessions, the speaker shared how she had her class create blogs. When I heard that I realized this was the perfect opportunity to start a blog myself and have some accountability to keep up with it each week along with my students.
I also really liked the idea of giving the students a more modern place to reflect on what they are learning and experiencing during their freshman year and hopefully beyond. At our university, the importance of reflection has really been emphasized and those of us who work directly with students have been encouraged to incorporate opportunities for reflection after significant experiences.
I love the idea of reflection, but it does not come easy for me. I definitely like the idea of reflection, but often downplay it, thinking I'm wasting time because I'm not "doing" anything or producing something. I am hoping this space will encourage me to grow in reflecting on the moments in my life regardless of how major or mundane they may seem.
So here goes nothing! Welcome to my world! :)
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