The holidays (revised)…

As I have grown older and changed, holidays and holiday traditions have grown and changed with me.

As a child, we often had unorthodox holiday plans, often traveling on Christmas Day and simply celebrating on a different day. This flexibility has stuck with me and it something I have come to appreciate. While I value the holiday season and welcome the joy and togetherness it brings, I am not rigid in my expectations and it has made the holidays and planning so much more relaxed and easy.

This year, we headed out to Colorado (!) to explore a new place we have never been, Estes Park, at the edge of the National Forest. We were looking forward to learning about a new part of the country, enjoying the outdoors and being with my mom and stepdad. They had booked a timeshare and were kind enough to invite us along — I so welcomed this opportunity to do something new and make a new holiday tradition and memory.

However, in turn, I knew I wouldn’t be able to spend the actual holiday with my dad this year and instead he decided to come and visit Vermont. We had planned a weekend previously, but flu season got the best of him and rattled our plans. Nonetheless, we revamped our dates, got together and enjoyed a low key pre-holiday weekend together.

All in all, while we didn’t celebrate in the same fashion as we have previously, we made new memories and traditions together this year and it was truly special.  It was a great reminder to let gifts be minimal and togetherness take importance.

What now?

For many Americans, today was a challenging day.

Speaking for myself, it was a day like few others, where I felt a range of distinct emotions that I am lucky enough to rarely experience. After a stressful evening of watching election results roll in, I woke up to the news that Mr. Donald Trump was elected to be President…. of the United States.

After the initial shock and upset, I pulled myself from bed, already feeling like I wanted to shut down and simply process the information before me. As I prepared for the day, I took notice of my body and my feelings, noticing a energy that I am seldom aware of in my adult life. I felt my heart and mind racing with a sense of urgency and nervousness and a pit in my stomach, almost feeling as though I had a big presentation ahead of me that I wasn’t prepared for. In hindsight, I wasn’t prepared. I hadn’t vetted the possibility of Donald Trump as our new Commander in Chief and the news felt like a punch in the gut.

While today has brought with it a range of emotions and disbelief, along with it is a resounding hope that now is America’s time to shine– not as an economic or political leader, but a nation comprised of those who individuals who lead by example, by action and virtue. After months and months of shaking our heads at racist, misogynistic, and hurtful speech and actions, we have now before us a call to action where we, as individuals, need to prove to ourselves and our country that Donald Trump and his ideals do not represent us, but rather we are a nation of strong, tolerate, compassionate, accepting and loving people.

Now, 24 hours later, I am reflecting on the last day and the many friends, coworkers, and community members I have talked, empathized, and shared with today. I have been so struck with the thought that we are all so lucky and thankful to live here, in Vermont — and me in Burlington, in a city and state where I am continuously witnessing acceptance, tolerance, and love. I have come to expect the dozens of gay pride events and parades, community action gatherings, women empowerment forums, and community wide events that even the most seemingly unorthodox event is unsurprising.

While there are a range of opinions, personalities, and stances in our community, we are all afforded the right to be a part of this vibrant community, no matter our differences. After today, I am beyond grateful to live here amongst an optimistic community that I am sure will rally together, support one another, and always remember love conquers hate.

A quick bite

image Lately I’ve been on a major snack kick, most healthy, some not, and I decided to try my hand at a homemade snack, protein bites.

A number of different recipes and variations exist but to start off, I decided to  go with a classic combination of peanut butter and chocolate (can you ever go wrong?)

I found them them super tasty and they satisfy my craving for something sweet without being to heavy or filling or junk-foods. These have been super handy when heading out the door or just before a run.

Heres the recipe if you’d like to try:

Ingredients//
⅔ cup creamy peanut butter
½ cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 cup old fashioned oats
½ cup ground flax seeds
2 tablespoons honey
Instructions//
Combine all 5 ingredients in a medium bowl. Stir to combine. Form the mixture into small balls, big or small. Place on a baking sheet and chill in the freezer or refrigerator for one hour. Enjoy!
Store in the fridge for up to a week.

 

Thoughts on …

imageheadshots.

When I was taking courses at Norwich University towards my Masters’ degree, I was approached by their Marketing staff to provide a testimonial and have my headshot taken. For the longest time, I struggled with updating my LinkedIn profile, because I didn’t have what felt like an appropriate photo. I had looked through Facebook albums only to realize, cropping people out of photos so only that their shoulders showed, looked glaringly unprofessional. With that struggle in mind, I jumped at the opportunity!

However, soon after saying “yes”, I realized that I knew little about prepping for any type of photoshoot and quickly did a little bit of research. Here is what I learned: Continue reading “Thoughts on …” →

Sunday slow down

 

The last few weeks have been a blur, moving at the heightened pace of trying to maximize all of the daylight hours, offerings of late spring and early summer, finalizing coursework, the busiest time of year at work, along with hosting and visiting friends. Oh, and throw a 5 year college reunion into the mix (#ilovesaintmikes).

It seems as though life has been flying by and I have been trying to keep up and soak it all in. This weekend, we made a conscious effort to slow down, and hey, it worked!

With the alarm shut off, I slept in until a somewhat unreasonable time. It was a gloomy Sunday where bed just felt oh so right. Stumbled out of bed to a low key breakfast, a bout of bouncing activity ideas off of one another, only to decide to get coffee, do one errand, cook a full dinner at home, and top it off with some ice cream and some tv. Needless to say, I was thankful for this day and feel rejuvenated.

What about your day? Did you take a second to slooooow down?

 

 

 

A penny saved is a penny earned…

Most days I carpool to work with my close friend Emily and another coworker of ours. The conversation ranges from work to cars to babies to 90s nostalgia. The other day however they were busting on me for being frugal (they were kind enough to say frugal instead of cheap) and I kept my mouth shut. I’m proud of it, very proud of it, and today I had a reason to be even more proud…

image

Continue reading “A penny saved is a penny earned…” →