nature’s calling

nature’s calling

by | weekly specials

The theme of the week is NATURE and if there is one thing I know about Nature, it is the one place where I feel like you can truly escape.  You can “get lost in the wild” and spend some quality time alone – just you and your thoughts – or with a friend – disconnected from technology… only you and that person or group of people will stimulate your thoughts.

I grew up taking family camping trips, going to a camp each summer where we learned to hike, canoe, rock climb, cook out doors and play outside.  Nature was a part of life for me then.  Sadly though, as I get older, and especially with a career that keeps me behind a computer most of my day, I am not outside as much as I would like.  The picture I took above was on a hike from TWO years ago and I realized… wait, was that my last hike?  I have GOT to get out more!

I am going to sound old here, but do kids today get outside as much as they should?  Do they play in creeks making home-made pottery from clay that they dig up?  Do they build forts out of old sticks in the woods?  Do they go on nature walks or witness a caterpillar transforming into a butterfly?  Do they catch lightening bugs, punch holes in the top of an old mason jar and keep them in their room at night?  Where would we be without the wonder and beauty Mother Nature gives us?

I will say that today I was so excited to talk to a friend of mine that is going to take a camping trip with her husband and kids to a “wilderness camp” of sorts.  While at the camp, they will hike and learn to survive off the land.  How cool would that be?  Learn which plants you can eat, how to split wood and all of the other things people knew how to do 100 years ago, that we could never figure out!  You can read more about the specific camp they are going to here.

I’ll close with a few of my favorite photos I took on one of my favorite mountain days!  The following pictures as well as the first picture in this post were taken on a hike in the North Carolina Mountains right outside of Blowing Rock at the Linn Cove Viaduct!  Beautiful place with an easy hike! What pictures do you have?  Have you found anything fun while being outdoors?

Can you see the man’s face in the rock?

EXTREME CLOSE UP of tree bark

One of my favorites that a friend snapped when I wasn’t paying any attention.

 

This weekend we are heading to Charleston, SC and I can’t think of a better way to experience being outside.  I think we will take a long walk on the beach with our feet in the water, walk across the bridge staring out at the ocean, walk through a garden and take in nature … see what we can see!

 

 

 

 

 

*  The firefly picture was “borrowed” from 2 Chicks and a Road Trip.  The lightening bugs picture was used on their #10 Southeast Delights  post.

savvy

savvy

by | weekly specials

When we all sat down to come up with ideas for weekly topics, Savvy made the list.  We went back and forth on it for a while… is there enough substance to build a week around this word?  And what is savvy anyway?  A funny word if you say it over and over in your head as I’ve done while starting this post (like many words you say one too many times until it turns into a new one altogether).

And so Savvy stuck.  Because it’s actually quite simple.

It’s who you are.  And it’s what you do.  Something that makes you unique, or something that gives you so much in common with others.

Business savvy

Tech savvy

Fashion savvy

Design savvy

Photo savvy

Music savvy

Book savvy

The list could go on and on.

And then I think of my friends and can easily attribute a savvy-ness to each them… my own little experts in certain areas, something I may lack an understanding in and someone I can go to for their knowledge, expertise and opinion..  (for example, wait ’til you see Heather’s post later this week… it may change your whole life when it comes to grocery shopping!).  Our friends bring so much to our lives; have you ever stopped to think what it is that makes them so unique… what they’re “savvy” at and why you admire them for it?  And what would they admire about you?

I took 5 minutes to write down a list of 5 savvy things about myself… and 5 savvy things I love Heather, Jenn and Mandi for.

It may sound silly.. but tape it to your mirror, monitor, or car dashboard for the next few days, and remind yourself how awesome you are… and even better!  how fortunate you are to have awesome people who make your life better.  You may just need their advice soon!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

vacation

vacation

by | weekly specials

This week’s focus is on vacation.

When I was a little girl some of my fondest memories were when my parents would pack up the car and take my brother, sister and me to the beach for a week. Looking back, it was such a simple trip; scrambled eggs and pancakes for breakfast as mom packed a cooler of drinks and sandwiches for the beach. We would all hop on the golf cart and ride through the camp ground where we would spend all day playing in the ocean and building sand castles along the water. There was never anything particularly extravagant about our family vacations….there was never the need. We made memories out of our time spent together and the older I get the more I long for times like that.

Now, as a mother, vacations and trips to the beach are never as relaxing as they once were. I imagine it will be many years before that happens again. The beautiful truth to what vacations have now become lies in a cooler filled with peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and tiny sandcastles along the shore.

xoxo,