All the in Between

To my dismay real life has taken priority over internet documenting for the past several months.

These happenings have captured all the time...

January brought my first trip to Hillsborough, North Carolina for the year. The most adorable baby graced this planet in early December; at seven weeks, we met. Baby R.J.F. continues to grow in both adorable-ness and size. Life thankfully brought more time with long eye-lashed Baby R.J.F. in April, July, August, and December.

January, Hillsborough, NC

July, Hillsborough, NC

August, Round Hill, VA

December, Hillsborough, NC

Later that month brought a full-speed combination trip to visit my charges from the college era in New Haven, Connecticut--crossing CT off my '50 States before 50' challenge, dwindling the list to single digits, and R.D.S. in New York, New York. "My" little people are now now quite big--turning seven and double-digits over the summer. The visit, despite the brutal temperatures and time shortage, was an excellent escape.

New Haven, CT

New Haven, CT

New York, NY

Strand Book Store - New York, NY

After all the busing, driving, planing, and training, I stayed in in February as it snowed... and snowed some more. We also escaped to Jamaica for a wonderful retreat with P's family.

Treasure Beach, Jamaica

We moved in March. And we had special visitors from both Atlanta, Georgia and Lesotho. On our first hike of Spring, on a day with temperatures leaning more Winter than Spring, Boyfriend became Fiancé at Great Falls National Park. Two weeks prior, my brother proposed to his girlfriend!

Washington, DC

Great Falls National Park

Great Falls National Park

April had me traveling back to NYC to celebrate R.D.S., though she was deathly ill through it all. If she had to be sick, we were all thankful it was during her bachelorette weekend and not for her big day. By her wedding day, she'd made a full recovery and I headed South to commemorate her nuptials. She was a beautiful bride and the weekend itself was busily wonderful.

New York, NY

Columbia, SC

I also finished twelfth (in a field of 3000 women) at the George Washington Parkway Classic 10 Mile race at the end of the month. My 6:55 pace shocked me! The 1:09:06 finish time wasn’t for lack of training, but holy smokes--speedy.

To complete a hectic month, Fiancé and I went on our annual Cherry Blossom walk, clocking eight miles before we arrived at work.

I married Fiancé first thing in May; he’s now Husband and I wife. Weird? Very weird. We jetted off to Nashville, Tennessee to celebrate and had a great, great time doing so. Nashville was followed with weekend in Baltimore with K.A.B. before her departure to South Africa. I thankfully had a bonus weekend with her on my third trip to NYC for another wedding. Another beautiful bride. And way too much fun for a girl with a strict 9:00 pm bedtime.

Washington, DC

Nashville, TN

Long Island, NY

June brought a weekend escape to Asheville, North Carolina--just husband and wife. We mostly got poured on, though we managed a couple scenic waterfalls strolls. To call these mile jaunts hikes would be misleading. I then spent time in Jacksonville, Florida with my mom, where beach strolls were our thing.

Wicked Weed - Asheville, NC

Devil's Courthouse - Asheville, NC

Blue Ridge Parkway - Asheville, NC

Little Talbot Island State Park - Jacksonville, FL

My company treated Husband and I to stellar seats at a Nationals game where it proceeded to rain and rain and rain for two hours straight. The game was not canceled but the mood was certainly dampened.

Nationals Park - Washington DC

What February dumped in snow, June tripled with rain. The soggy month ended with Book of Mormon for the win. The two years was certainly worth the wait and the great seats were worth the price!

The Kennedy Center - Washington, DC

I spent 4th of July at my parents’ home cuddling puppy dogs and eating. Ready or not, this holiday weekend rebooted the marathon season. And as soon as Husband was back in the states, we caught a flight to Portland, Oregon for an extended vacation in the Pacific Northwest.

We spent time with H.J.W. in Portland and further South at Diamond Lake and Crater Lake before catching the train to Seattle, Washington to celebrate my grandma's 80th birthday. The highlight of the trip was definitely the day we spend in Mt. Rainier National Park. Two family vacations in one year is a feat in and of itself, having my mom's entire family gathered was nothing shy of a miracle!

Watson Falls - Umpqua National Forest

Crater Lake National Park

Diamond Lake - Umpqua National Forest

Seattle, WA

Ferry to Bainbridge Island 

Mt Rainier National Park

I also squeezed in another weekend in Asheville for J.L.W.'s bachelorette weekend in late July.

Asheville, NC

August my parent's hosted our non-wedding celebration. To have all our family and friends gathered in one place for us was both exciting and overwhelming. The night was as near perfection as I can imagine. I hope to remember the night for years to come.

Round Hill, VA

I also started a new job in August. While I continued to focus on building my career, I also began the building of a lot of running mileage this month.

In September, I kept on running. P and I traveled to Michigan to visit my extended family unable to travel to Virginia for the "I Do BBQ." My grandparents were delighted to meet P, and it was hands-down one of the best trips to Michigan in recent memory. Later in the month, we took another l-o-n-g road trip back to South Carolina for J.L.W.'s wedding. Despite a disgustingly rainy, wet weekend, the bride was stunning and the night was wonderful (though quite chilly). I very much enjoyed the company of my brother and his fiancé throughout the weekend, including an indulgent Waffle House breakfast prior to our drive home.

Southfield, MI

Livonia,MI

Taylors, SC

 

In October, Louis and Toby came to visit for a long weekend. Though it rained for four straight days, we managed lots of long walks! We finally managed to scramble Old Rag, the hike of Shenandoah National Park. October also consisted of the end of the marathon cycle... and a disappointing marathon finish. I still can't quite wrap my head around how it all went wrong after the successes I had earlier in the year and consistently throughout my fall training cycle. I suppose that is the challenge of the marathon. There will be more races to run.

Old Rag - Shenandoah National Park

In November, we had another long weekend with Louis and Toby. This time we went to Northern Virginia, our country escape. We re-outfitted Husband at the Premium Outlets, we hiked Raven Rocks, and exercised the puppies silly. We celebrated Thanksgiving at home. This was my first year contributing to the menu, which was an absolute fail.

We kick-started our holiday season with new and old traditions in December. We saw the Kansas City Chiefs beat the Ravens in Baltimore, Maryland the weekend before we headed to Boulder, Colorado for Christmas with Husband's family. We celebrated Christmas (again) on New Years with my family in Northern Virginia. The highlights include lunch at Bar Taco and shopping in Reston Town Center, a tailgate party to watch the College Football Playoffs (including two of our four teams, Clemson and Michigan State), a tried-and-true Christmas morning on New Years Day!

Baltimore, MD

M&T Bank Stadium - Baltimore, MD

With changes on the horizon, I head into 2016 grateful and hopeful, thankful too.

2015 Reading List

Did I hit my goal of 40 books read for the year? No, no I did not.

• Generation Kill by Evan Wright
• Gold Boy, Emerald Girl: Stories by Yiyun Li
  
• Three Junes by Julia Glass
• Yes Please by Amy Poehler
• Unbroken: A World War II Story of  Survival, Resilience, and Redemption by Laura Hillenbrand
• Look Again by Lisa Scottoline
• Kisses from Katie: A Story of Relentless Love and Redemption by Katie J. Davis 
• An Invisible Thread: The True Story of an 11-Year-Old Panhandler, a Busy Sales Executive, and an Unlikely Meeting with Destiny by Alex Tresniowski and Laura Schroff
• The Weight of Silence India by Heather Gudenkauf
• Dead Aid: Why Aid Is Not Working and How There Is a Better Way for Africa by Dambisa Moyo
• Hard Choices by Hillary Rodham Clinton
• Jam on the Vine by LaShonda Katrice Barnett 
• Blame by Michelle Huneven
• The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins
• The End of Overeating: Taking Control of the Insatiable American Appetite by David A. Kessler
• It's What I Do: A Photographer's Life of Love and War by Lynsey Addario
• When Helping Hurts: How to Alleviate Poverty Without Hurting the Poor... and Yourself  by Steve Corbett
• Olive Kitteridge by Elizabeth Strout
• However Long the Night: Molly Melching's Journey to Help Millions of African Women and Girls Triumph by Aimee Molloy
• Eye on the Struggle: Ethel Payne, the First Lady of the Black Press by James McGrath Morris 
• Fun Home: A Family Tragicomic by Alison Bechdel
• Cutting for Stone by Abraham Verghese
• Modern Romance by Aziz Ansari
• Rising Strong by Brene Brown
• Fast Girl: A Life Spent Running from Madness by Suzy Favor Hamilton
• Bebe Day by Day: 100 Keys to French Parenting by Pamela Druckerman
• Dime by E. R. Frank
• The Art of Fielding by Chad Harbach
• The Gift of Failure: How the Best Parents Learn to Let Go So Their Children Can Succeed by Jessica Lahey
• Where the Red Fern Grows by Wilson Rawls
• All the Bright Places by Jennifer Niven

"At times our own light goes out and is rekindled by a spark from another person. Each of us has cause to think with deep gratitude of those who have lighted the flame within us." Dr. Albert Schweizer (The Gift of Failure)

A Colorado Christmas

If one can have a spirit state, mine is Colorado. Husband and I spent this Christmas in Boulder with his family. And if anything can distract me from missing my family and traditions, it's nature and good food, both of which exceeded my expectations on this trip.

With an extended vacation on the horizon, I have no time off work. On Christmas Eve, I was up and working at 6:30 am (after arriving late on Wednesday) at Boxcar Coffee Roasters to stay on par with Eastern Time. As a morning person, I much enjoyed these hours. Plus, it provided an excuse to try a couple Boulder coffee shops—something I relish when traveling. (And an excuse to pass on running, though I brought my gear, the weather was frigid.) I should also mention caffeine is a mandatory additive when you travel at my pace. (We later sampled coffee at The Cup Espresso Cafe and Oxo Coffee Co.) Alas, all the coffee and hard work on this particular morning called for a breakfast at The Buff, where dollar Bloody Mary’s were on the menu. Yes, please! The food was quite yummy. Though as I proceeded to eat my way through Boulder, nothing disappointed me. There was my favorite salad at Christmas Eve, made by my mother in law. There was eggs benedict for Christmas breakfast, Yorkshire pudding for dinner. A diner breakfast at The Village, where the slogan captured my heart: "890 sq. ft. of reality surrounded by Boulder." The dinner at Jax stole the show. Oh my goodness, heaven on plate after plate—a true food experience. The next morning we whipped up a mighty fine pre-outdoors breakfast with Christmas leftovers. And what does hunger call for at the end of a long day? Margaritas at Rio Grande Mexican Restaurant! On our last day, when I should not have been able to fit in my clothes, we squeezed in one more scrumptious lunch at Fate Brewing Company. That meal was nearly eight hours ago as I pound away on my keyboard on the flight home and I’m still not even mildly hungry. True overindulgence. I had no idea Boulder had so many delights waiting for me. Every time I thought I had experienced a Rocky Mountain high, something better touched my palate.

While we were there, the temperatures did not rise above 25 degrees, which was quite the contrast from the way Washington, DC has been. The bitter cold definitely brightened the holiday spirit! And in a town like Boulder, no one is slowed by the chill. We were out for long walks—along Boulder Creek and through University of Colorado’s campus. We hiked Wonderland Lake Trail, Buckingham Park, and Chautauqua Park. We saw the sights along Gross Reservoir. And we snowshoed in Rocky Mountain National Park, an obvious vacation highlight!

All the eating. And all the nature. 

Holiday Traditions

I admittedly am overwhelmed by the holiday season. I probably always have been to some degree; I remember being called Grinch at a young age. As I have grown up, I understand myself much better. I can feel the stress coming. With practice, I have become better at managing my anxiety during this time of year. I’m nowhere close to perfect or even where I’d like to be but progress has been made, I think.

Growing up, my parents set the traditions, some of which I still enjoy to this day. With less time and flexibility during the holidays, I have a lot more control over my fate. Though dating and recently marriage have added a level of complexity to holidays—blending traditions, new traditions, and holiday travel. (My family traveled once over Christmas during my junior year of high school and swore off holiday travel for all eternity imm.)

For the past several years, some traditions have emerged. I’m here to document for prosperity.

The Sunday after Thanksgiving, Husband and went to Lowelands Farms to pick out our Christmas tree. This was our third (and perhaps final year for some time) visiting this farm. The owners are very kind. The honey is divine. The location is optimal. The farm is large enough to select from a couple Charlie Brown trees amongst the true beauties, though the selection has dwindled considerably in size over the past several years.

We visited the National Zoo to see the Zoo Lights in mid-December. With the exception of one exceptionally busy December, this has been a tradition of mine since December 2010. This year has been unseasonably warm, which made walking the zoo very enjoyable! The fact that we didn’t have our hot chocolate in hand was only mildly disappointing. We had thousands of children to navigate, thanks to the genius idea of going on the nicest Saturday of December.

This year, for the first time, we attended my company’s holiday party. The party was incredible. We felt like A-listers. My previous company did not have a holiday party, and we’ve had competing priorities with Husband’s party both years he has been with his company. We won’t be upset if attending company parties becomes a tradition from here on out.

We dined at Little Serow for annual fancy Christmas dinner. (In previous years, we dined at Le Diplomate and Rasika. For the record, we think Le Diplomate is our favorite yet.) The Northern Thai food was delicious and the time together was nice as always. I was able to leave work at a reasonable hour so we could queue up for the first seating, allowing us time to soak up the continuation of pleasant weather as we visited the National Tree and the Capital Tree post-feast.

This year, in additional to the holiday party bonus, we saw Matilda the Musical at the Kennedy Center. This night was an absolute highlight for me. I anticipated this night since the last time I saw Matilda, no lie.

And what's Christmas without thousands of cookies? We hosted the our second annual sugar cookie decorating party with our new neighbors. There are few things better than celebrating the season with friendship, cocktails, frozen pizza, and holiday movies and music. There was of course the products of our artistic sides to further sate our tummies.  

We then jetted off to Boulder, Colorado to spend Christmas with Husband’s family. And afterwards, we’ll do Christmas at New Years with my family!